257 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



THORNE MOOR IN EARLY TIMES. 



In the recently issued ' Transactions of the East Riding- 

 Antiquarian Society,'"^ the Rev. C. V. Collier has a valuable 

 paper on ' Stovin's Manuscript.' This manuscript was written 

 early in the eighteenth century, and in addition to containing 

 particulars of Thorne Moor and Hatfield Chase as Stovin found 

 it, includes extracts from earlier records. For instance, ' Prince 

 Henry of Wales is stated to have visited the Chase in 1609 ; 

 whereat His Royal Highness and his retinue turned out at 

 Tudworth for the Chase, not on horseback with hounds and 

 horns, but, attended by a numerous assemblage, they embarked 

 in about 100 boats, and having had driven from the neighbour- 

 ing woods some 300 deer which took to the water, the little 

 navy of sportsmen pursued their game into Thorne Mere, and 

 there some of the party going into the water, and feeling such 

 and such that were the fattest, either instantly^ut their throats 

 or drew them by ropes to land and killed them.""^-.This ap'pears 

 to have been the last time there was any royal sporting on this 

 Chase, and the Prince is said to have been ' v^ery merry and 

 well pleased.' ' So much for early ' sport.' 



LARGE TREES IN THE PEAT. 



There are numerous other items of interest to naturalists in 

 this quaint old manuscript, but space only enables us to refer to 

 some of the entries respecting the tree trunks found in the peat. 

 ' This Great waste [Thorne] is of the same nature with that 

 called Hatfield waste and Both of them, as also the Low 

 Grounds and Commons in Hatfield Chase, is a sort of sub- 

 terranious fforest which is Dugg up Daily, as oak, Firr, &c. 

 I have Known an Oak Tree taken up that afforded a Thousand 

 pales five foot and a half Long and from six to seaven Inches 

 Broad, for which I paid Ten shillings a Hundred Besides 

 several Loads of firewood. . . . Firr Trees have been 

 found underground above thirty Yards Long and Yet wanting 

 many Yards at the small End, and have Sold for Masts for 

 Ships from 4, 8, 10 to 15 pounds a piece, some have been found 

 chop'd and squared, some bored through, some Burnd through 

 on one Side, some half Riven with Great Wooden wedges in 



* Trans. East Riding- Antiq. Soc, Vol. 12, pp. 23-bo. 



1905 September i. 



K 



