READING. 



with great violence at London, the c6u)-ts of chancery, 

 king's bench, and common pleas, were held here, as were 

 likewife the court of exchequer, the court of wards and 

 liveries, and the court of requclls. In 164Z, Reading 

 was a parliamentary poll, but the garnfon, being defedtive 

 as to ordnance and ammunition, quitted the town, without 

 refiftancc, on the approach of a party of the king's horfc. 

 In confequence of this event it became a royal garrilbn, and 

 continued to be fo till taken by the earl of E(!ex in April 

 1643, after a fiege of eight days. The king, however, 

 again recovered it in September the fame year, and held it 

 till May following, when he ordered the works to be de- 

 molifhed, and evacuated the town. After this event 

 Reading was frequently occupied as the head-quarters (<f the 

 parliamentary army, and was confequently much inipo- 

 veniheii by the contributions levied upon its nihabitants for 

 the fupport of the military. In 1688 the army of king 

 James II. was quartered in this town, but quitted it on the 

 approach of the prince of Orange. On this occafion a (kir- 

 mi(h took place in the market-place between two detach- 

 ments of horfe, which terminated in favour of the Pro- 

 teftant interell, and is ftill commemorated, by bell-ringing, 

 on the anniverfary of its occurrence. Queen Anne vifited 

 Reading in 1 700, when (he was received by the corporation 

 m ftate, and prefented with forty broad pieces of gold in an 

 elegant purfe made for the occafion. 



Municipal Government. — Reading claims the honour of 

 having been originally conftituted a guild, by charter from 

 Edward the Confefior. This claim, however, is extremely 

 queftionable ; and at all events we feel convinced that the 

 ancient guild was nothing more than an aflociation of me- 

 chanics and tradefmen for their individual benefit. Theiirft 

 monarch who conferred upon Reading the privilege of fe- 

 parate jurifdidlion was Henry tll., in the 37th year of his 

 reign. His charter was fubfequently confirmed by all his 

 fucceflors, but without any material alterations, till the 

 reign oPHenry VI., when the corporation is firft mentioned 

 by the title of the mayor and burgefles. Thus it con- 

 tinued to be defignated till queen Elizabeth divided the 

 burgeffes into capital and fecondary, and declared the 

 mayor and them to be a common council for the borough. 

 That princefo further conferred upon the corporation con- 

 fiderable eftates. Charles I. authorized aldermen to be 

 elefted, and inverted the mayor and them with ample powers 

 for the government of the town. This charter was con- 

 firmed, after the reiloration, by his fon Charles II., and is 

 the one under which the corporation now acls. By it the 

 ofRcers are declared to be a mayor, twelve aldermen, and the 

 fame number of capital burgefles ; the mayor, and his de- 

 puty, (the preceding mayor,) the fenior alderman, the 

 bifhop of Salifbury, and his chancellor, being juftices of the 

 peace for the borough, and empowered to hold feflions, and 

 a court of record. The recorder is an officer added by 

 Charles II., who likewife firft acknowledged the town- 

 clerk. Reading fent members te parliament from the time 

 of the earlieft records. Before 1716 the right of eleftion 

 was veiled in the freemen not receiving ahns, and in the in- 

 habitaiits paying fcot and lot ; but in that year it was limited, 

 by a decifion of the houfe of commons, td- the inhabitants 

 paying fcot and lot only. The number of voters is eftimated 

 at 560, and the mayor is the returning officer. The fpring 

 affiz ^s for the county are held at this town, as are likewife 

 the Epiphany feflions, but the fummer aflizes are held at 

 Abingdon, and the Mlchaebnas, either there or at Reading, 

 as the magiftrates may judge moll convenient. 



Reading is a town of confiderable extent, fituated on 

 both banks of the river Kennet, which feparates itfelf into 



10 



feveral branches in pafling through the town. It contain* 

 three parifiies, St. Giles, St. Mary, and St. Lawrence, and 

 is divided into five wards, called the Higii-ward, New-ward, 

 lyiinfter-ward. Old-ward, and London-ward, for each of 

 which a conflable is appointed. Formerly it was a place of 

 great trade in woollens, but that manufaclure fell to decay 

 during the feventeenth century, and has never fincc revived. 

 At prefent the chief manufafturcd produ£ls are, coarfe 

 linens, (fuch as flieeting, fail-cloth, floor-cloth, and facking 

 goods,) gauze, crapes, rnuilinets, ribbons, hat-bands, fhoe- 

 itrings, and other fimilar articles. Thefc afford employment 

 to a great portion of tlic inhabitants among the lower 

 orders ; but the principal fupport of the town arifcs from 

 its water communications with London, Bath, and Briftol. 

 The articles exported are, flour, of which 20,000 facks are 

 fent annually to the metropolis, timber, bark, ftraight 

 hoops, linen, wool, checfe, beer, and a variety of minor 

 articles : in exchange are received groceries of every kind, 

 iron, fpirits, fir timber, deals. Haves, Portland Hone, bricks, 

 hemp, flax, hides, leather, coals, Bath free-Hone, Bir- 

 mingham goods, &c. For the convenience of trade, feveral 

 wharfs are formed at Reading, and many improvements have 

 been lately made in the internal navigation of the diftriA at 

 large. 



This town, from time immemerial, has been noted for 

 its markets, which are held weekly, on Wednefday and Sa- 

 turday. The Wedncfday's market is chiefly for fruit ; but 

 that of Saturday embraces corn and every article of pro- 

 vifion. The fpot on which the corn market is held, is a fpa- 

 cious piece of ground, of a triangular form, environed by 

 commodious fliops for the accommodation of people attend- 

 ing the market, who may be fupplicd here with colonial or 

 manufaftured goods clieaper than in any other town in the 

 county. This market-place is kept in repair by the corpo- 

 ration, for which they are entitled to take one pint out of 

 each fack of corn fold in the market, amounting to about 

 54,600 quarters annually. The provifion market buildings 

 adjoin to the corn market-place, and form a long fquare, 

 confifting, one-half of two ranges of butchers' fliops, and 

 the other half of apartments for the market-women, who 

 bring butter, eggs, poultry, &c. for fale. At the fouthern 

 end of this building is a fquare open area for fifhmongers' 

 and huckfters' Halls, and next to this, and fronting a Itreet 

 called Fiflier-ftreet, is a large fquare gate-way, over which 

 is the houfe occupied by the clerk of the market. Befides 

 thefe market-places, there is another for the fale of llore pigs, 

 conveniently fituated between Friai--ilreet and Broad-ftreet. 

 This is private property, but the corporation receive the 

 toll. At Reading are four annual fairs, one on the 2d of 

 February, another on the ift of May, a third on the 25th 

 of July, and a fourth on the 21ft of September. The three 

 firft are chiefly for the fale of liorfes and cows ; but the laft 

 is alfo a ftatute fair for the hiring of fervants, and is further ■ 

 remarkable for the quantity of cheefe brought hither from 

 the counties of Gloucefter and Wilts. Hops are alfo plen- 

 tiful at this fair. 



The houfes of Reading are moftly conftrudled of brick, 

 and are generally difpofed in regular ftreets, fome of them 

 very narrow, which have been paved under the authority of 

 an aft of parliament, pafled in the year 1785. 



The principal public buildings and inftitutions in the 

 town are the three churches of St. Lawrence, St. Marj', 

 and St. Giles, and feveral diflenting meeting-houfes, the 

 town-hall and free-fchool, the blue-coat fchool, the green 

 fchool, the foundation fchool, the fchool of induftry, the 

 Lancaftrian fchool, liie fchool for national education, the 

 theatre, and the county gaol. 



The 



