THE DERBY MUNICIPAL MUNIMENTS. 1 75 



entail some months of hard work to properly collate. But, 

 after all, this is only the common experience of those who 

 delve into the depths of the buried past. Among the most 

 interesting of the MSS. are the Toll, or Fair Books, which 

 were evidently at one period carefully kept, and as carefully 

 preserved, for they are in excellent condition and very readable. 

 There are four of them. These books contain the record of 

 Custom duties or tolls levied on all foreign goods— foreign, 

 that is to the Borough — which were sold at the fairs from the 

 year 1638, the date of the first, down, at any rate, to the year 

 1655, the date of the fourth. 



The existence of the Derby Fairs dates as far back as, at 

 least, 1330, * when among other privileges, the burgesses 

 claimed and were allowed to hold two Fairs, one on the 

 Thursday and Friday " in Whitsun-eve," and the other to last 

 seventeen days, beginning eight days before the Festival of 

 St. James. By a Charter of the time of King James I., how- 

 ever, permission was granted for four Fairs to be held, the 

 dates of which were to be : Friday in Easter week, the 4th 

 of May, the Thursday before Midsummer, and the 26th of 

 September, two days only being allowed for each fair. In the 

 following reign seven fairs were allowed, those additional being 

 held on the Friday aftt-r the Epiphany, the Friday in Whitsun 

 week and that on St. James' Day, which was revived. In 1732 

 two additional fairs were added, making nine in all, which was 

 the number in 18 17, when Lysons wrote his History of the 

 County. 



A statement by Woolley in 17 12 is quoted by Glovert, in 

 his History of Derbyshire, to the effect tht the tolls belonged 

 to the Mayor, for which he paid yearly about ,£70. This 

 would account for the careful way in which the Toll Books 

 have been kept. Glover further states that in that year, 1732, 

 "the Corporation possessed about ^500 a year to support 

 their dignity, as well as Charities arising out of lands at Little 



* Lysons, p. 102 ; and this Journal, x\i\\. pp. 83, 141, 142, 147. 

 '• Vol. ii., p. 433. 



