By C. R Straton. 



305 



Chalke there is a memorandum that " the tenants of Bower Chalke 

 pay annually for certain grain called bower corn which one of the 

 - tenants called the reeve collects and delivers at the lord's granary 

 at Wilton 1 qr. 7J bsh. wheat 15/6 d - 4 qrs. oats 10/8 d -" 



There were many other services which customary tenants had to 

 perform, such as carrying wool to Wilton, looking after the fleeces 

 at sheep-shearing, mowing a meadow, carrying horse messages 

 within the County of Wilts, breeding one hound yearly, and giving 

 loaves to the inswine who took the swine of the manor to the mast, 

 as did Bladud of old. 



The lord of the manor had to feed the copyholders when they 

 worked for him, giving them " a jentaculum called a breakfast " 

 and bread and cheese and drink at other times. Generally 

 the holder of a yardland had to ear and edge (plough and harrow) 

 one acre in Lent, taking his breakfast ; he had to find one man and 

 one woman in harvest, to reap one day, and he had to mow and 

 pook in the meadow, taking bread and cheese at the time from the 

 farmer. The farmer could ask for two or three extra benevolence 

 or boon works whenever he was pressed. 



Occasionally in the survey we meet a semi-servile tenant called 

 coscet or cotsettler, who held about 5 acres with his cottage, and 

 who had to work for the manor farm one day a week. The 

 farmer usually chose the day that followed a clay of rest, conse- 

 quently they are often called Lundinarii or Monday men. If you 

 look at a Wiltshire Directory the name of Monday is more common 

 than that of any other week day as a surname, because in most 

 places there was John the Monday man. The manor courts were never 

 held on a Sunday, because that was a day of prayer ; nor on Monday, 

 because that was a day of work. The difference between the Monday- 

 man and the bower tenant consisted in the cotsettler finding 

 his own stock and furniture and doing less work in consequence ; 

 his holding was let to him ; but the bour tenant got his stock from 

 the lord who set him up, and his holding was " set and let." 



In conclusion let me say a very few words as to how some of 

 those customs probably came to exist. Let us first look back at a 

 time when the edges of the high lands were occupied by the huts 



