76 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES 



married Miss Heath, who was nearly forty years his 

 junior. She survived him, and on her death his 

 property descended to his nephew. Colonel Edward 

 Dyke Lee, the present owner of Hartwell, and the 

 other properties, who resides at the mansion, and is 

 a most excellent, liberal-minded country gentleman. 

 Whilst giving this sketch of Dr. Lee, it occurs to 

 me to describe some characteristics of rural life. 



Forty years ago, at Hartwell and thereabouts, 

 were the meetings of the ' Gooseberry Society,' 

 a show that was held at the hostelry near the 

 park, called the ' Bugle,' and a dinner afterwards, 

 at which the doctor presided, accompanied by 

 many London and country friends, with the lead- 

 ing farmers of the parishes of Hartwell and Stone. 

 There were many members of the society resident 

 in Aylesbury who invariably made a practice of 

 attending, and exhibiting the produce of their 

 gardens, myself among the number. This gather- 

 ing was much augmented on the verge of a Parlia- 

 mentary election for the borough and hundreds of 

 Aylesbury, these parishes being within the borough. 

 The chief members of the society were cottagers of 

 the two parishes, and the rivalry of the various 

 exhibitors of the ' Big Gooseberry ' was intense, 

 whilst the disappointment of the growers, as the day 

 of exhibition approached, was very amusing. One 

 would deplore the fact 'that his "Gunner"was busted,' 

 another that 'there was a crack in his "Peacock,"' that 

 his ' Wonderful ' had dropped off, or his ' London ' was 

 rotted. These were the names of the various goose- 



