SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY 



houses, and erecting in their places cottages for the poor, for the benefit of 

 certain private persons. Evidently the owners hoped to derive a larger 

 income. The issue was that the Lord Chief Justice ordered the staying of 

 the pulling down, unless with a special certificate of reasons ; if this should 

 not prove sufficient, an order of State must be issued, as it concerned the 

 commonwealth, &c."^ 



For the i6th and 17th centuries there is an unusual dearth of material 

 from which to build up the economic history of our county. But some 

 little light is thrown upon its social conditions by inventories and similar 

 documents. 



An inventory of the goods and chattels of William Gutch, at Eaton, 

 made in 1587 after his death, gives an interesting and a trustworthy picture 

 of a country interior of the date."' We find the appointments simple and 

 substantial, not merely less luxurious than those of to-day, but also less 

 crowded ; people had fewer wants then than now. The main contents of 

 the hall were spinning-wheel, benches, eight pieces of pewter, and some 

 ' painted clothes,' "' What is called the ' chamber ' had some more painted 

 cloths, and all the deceased's wearing apparel valued at 20s., two shirts 2s., 

 all his 'weaved' linen 4J., and his wife's wearing apparel at 13J. 4^/. An 



• upper chamber ' contained fruit, cheese, bread, apple pasties, 3 lb. butter 

 valued at 9^., dish, and ' grease churn.' Another chamber contained linen 

 wheels and a pair of cards (for carding wool), wool, hemp, yarn, and bed- 

 stead, blankets, and pillow, and a ladder. In the kitchen were flitches of 

 bacon, ' ball rybb ' [or baldrib, a joint cut nearer the rump than the spare- 

 rib], and chine, brass, iron, a laver, and a candlestick. In the ' bolting house' 

 were sieves, maund, clothes basket, washing vat, frying pan, bolting ' pyxe,' 

 wash-tub, skeps, sickles, bowls, cleansing dish, cheese-vats, tankard, dishes. 

 In the buttery were trenchers and spoons. In another chamber were sickle, 

 iron drag and wooden drag, bedstead, flax, other implements, and sacks. 

 In the stable were seven horses, valued at a total of j£/\. 1 3J. 4</. All the 

 cart gears, plough gears, and two panels, were valued at 8j. Among the 

 things in the yard were wheels, cart body, brake, wheel-barrow, plough, 



( wood, two ' shodde ' carts, hurdles, team and plough gears, &c. Among the 

 stock were 30 lamb-hogs, valued at 2j. 8^. each ; 10 bullocks, valued at a 

 total of jTS 6s. Sd.; all the hens in the yard, 6s. ; 3 hogs, valued at 20s. ; 

 14 store pigs, at 3J. each ; straw and hay in the barn, 30/. ; cock of hay, 

 and another of straw, 1 2s. 



Half a century later, in 1630, we have another domestic inventory, 

 which gives us interesting details. This inventory is that of a farm homestead 

 at Potton, made after the death of the owner. The total contents of the 



* great parlour' are valued at ^3, and consist of table with frame (this 

 description frequently occurs in such inventories), form, two bench-boards, 

 three chairs, standing bed and bedding, curtain, low chair, and three shelves. 

 The ' little parlour,' whose contents are valued at £^, had in it a table with 

 frame, bench and form, standing bed, bedding, trestle bed and bedding, cup- 

 board, two little curtains, box, stool and cushion, and a curtain and a half. 



"' Ca/. S.P. Dm. 161 1-18, p. 545. '" BsJs. N. and Q. iii, 252. 



"' Cloth painted or worked with figures, and often with texts. ' As ragged as Lazarus in the painted 

 cloth,' Shakespeare, I Hen. IV, iv, 2. 



93 



