Licence for Eating Meat. 229 



" Mai'tii 13. Anno dom. 1634. A special license, gi-anted 

 by the moste reverende tfather in God, William Lord Arch- 

 bishop of Canterbury his Grace, under his Grace's hand and 

 seale, used in the like grants, dated the uyneteenth day of 

 ifebruarie. Anno dom. 1634, and second yeare of his Grace's 

 translation. And confirmed by the Letters patents of our 

 Sovraigne Lord Charles the King's ma.''® that now is ... . 

 Under the Greate Seale of England fFor S"" "White Beconsaw of 

 this parish and county of Southtou .... (and) Dame 

 Edith hys wife ffor the tyme of their naturell (lives) .... 

 to eate flesh on the dales phibited by the Lawe .... 

 (upon condition of their giving to the) poore of the pish 

 . Thirteene shillings , . . ." 



Whether or no the knyght and his lady were to give the 

 sum yearly, as seems most probable, it is impossible, from the 

 torn condition of the leaf, to say. Their daughter was the 

 noble Alice Lisle. The licence, of course, refers to the prohi- 

 bition against eating meat on Fridays and Saturdays, and other 

 specified times, first made by Elizabeth for the encouragement 

 of the English fisheries, which had even in her reign begun to 

 decay.* And now that we are on the subject of Church- 



* Burn, in his History of Parish JRegi.sters, second edition, pji. 171, 

 172, 173, gives several similar instances of such licences. These most valu- 

 able books at Ellingham are, notwithstanding the incumbent's care, in a 

 shocking state of preservation. I trust some transcript of them may be 

 made before they quite fall to pieces. Elhngham also possesses another 

 book containing the names of the owners of the different pews in the church 

 in 1672, invaluable to any local historian. In the beginning of this book are 

 inserted a number of law-forms of agreements, wills, and indentures, pro- 

 baljly for the use of the clergyman, who was, perhaps, consulted by his 

 parishioners in worldly as also spiritual matters. In the Register there is, 

 unfortunately, no mention of the death of Alice Lisle, as the burials are torn 

 out iirom 1664 to 1695. 



