THE OAK. 75 



man never failed to pay his annual visit to the 

 public bean-feast^ and as regularly provided seve- 

 ral sacks of beans, with a proportionate quantity 

 of bacon, v^hich he distributed from the trunk of 

 the tree to the persons there assembled. A few 

 years before the decease of Mr. Day (in 1767), 

 his favourite Oak lost a large limb, out of which 

 he procured a coffin to be made for his own inter- 

 ment. We have been informed that the follow- 

 ing circumstance gave rise to the name of Fairlop, 

 bestowed upon this celebrated Oak. Some of 

 Mr. Day's friends having promised that he should 

 be buried in a coffin made from that tree, lopped 

 off one of the branches, for which trespass an 

 action was brought against the party, fortunately 

 for whom some flaw was found in the pleadings, 

 and the plaintiff was non-suited. It was, how- 

 ever, proved that the fact committed was not in- 

 jurious to the tree, but a fair lop. As lately as 

 1794, this venerable Oak, in the meridian of the 

 day, shadowed an acre of ground, although then 

 greatly decayed." 



Some years before its fall Mr. Forsyth's com- 

 position was applied to its decayed branches to 

 preserve it from future injury ; when a board was 

 affixed to one of its limbs, bearing the following 

 inscription , — All good foresters are requested 

 not to hurt this old tree, a plaster having been 

 lately applied to his wounds." In the year 1805 

 its trunk took fire, in consequence of the careless- 

 ness of a party of cricketers, who had spent the 

 day in its vicinity, and had left a fire burning too ' 

 near it. The fire was discovered the same even- 

 ing ; and although a number of persons did their 

 utmost to extinguish the flames, it continued 



