so inns of 
rable appearance. The gate itfelf was finilhed in 1518, 
but the other parts not till fome years afterwards. This 
forms the principal entrance to the inn, and affords a 
.■view,,of the fine hall and. chapel. Over the gateway, to¬ 
wards the ftreet, are three coats of arms, .of very ancient 
work man (hip, auz. The royal arms of England ; and'on 
the right fide this coat, within a garter, or, a lion azure, 
or purpure ; oh the finifter lide, another coat, within the 
garter, borne quarterly, being the bearing of the Lovels. 
Underneath is the date, Ann. Dorn. 1518. Theft-arms 
were new painted and refrellied in 169s, as appears, by 
the. inscription underneath. 
The hall is an extremely fine room, though by no 
means equal,to thofe of the other inns. It is ufed not 
only for the commons of the fociety, but for fittings,out 
of term, before the lord chancellor, in matters relative to 
Suits in chancery. At the upper end of the hall is a pic¬ 
ture that deferves the notice of a ftranger, as the_ produc¬ 
tion of'Hogartfi^ although a fpecies of painting in which 
he was not mod fuccefsful. The fubjeft is St. Paul before 
felix. This hall, which is now much modernized, was 
originally built in 1506, but has been many times repaired, 
as in 16.25,'1652, in 1704, and 1706, and frequently of 
later times. Sir Thomas Lovel, at the fame time that he 
built the great gateway, caufed the Lacy arms to be call, 
and wrought in lead, on the hoover, or lantern of the hall, 
which was in three efcutcheons, a lion rampant for Lacy, 
feven mafcules voided for Quincy, and three wheatfheaves 
for Chefter. Oil fome reparation being made to this loo¬ 
ver afterwards, the arms were left out. _ ., 
Lincoln’s-Inn chapel is a large edifice, in the Gothic 
tafte, built by Inigo Jones. It is reared on huge pillars 
and arches, which form.an open walk beneath the floor 
of the chapel. The chapel-windows are admired ; they, 
are of beautiful ftained glafs, by different artifts, repre- 
fenting the prophets, apoftles, &c. Tins edifice is fixty- 
feveri feet long and forty-one wide. It is excellently well 
kept. 
The firfi: foundation of this ohapel was begun in the 
time of James I. in the 8th year of whofe reign it was or¬ 
dered, that the old chapel, which was grown ruinous, and 
Was befides inconveniently fituated, and too fimall for the 
fociety, fliould be pulled down, and a new one erefted in 
the court where it Hood. But nothing was done tiil the 
i 5th of the fame king, when a feleft number of members 
was appointed by the bench, “ to confider of materials 
- for this chapel, and what ftqne and timber fliould be pro¬ 
vided for it; and whether Oxford ftone fliould be con¬ 
cluded on, according to the workman’s direction. And 
the model thereof was recommended to the contrivance 
of Inigo Jones, the king’s furveyor-general, who, having 
made a draught thereof, eftimated the charge of the fame 
at 2000I.” Accordingly, a fubfcription was begun among 
the benchers,; but, falling flrort of 2®ol.. “ it was agreed 
and ordered, firfi:, that each of the mailers of the bench, 
and aflbciates thereunto, fliould pay towards this ltruc- 
ture xx/. apiece ; each of feven years Handing at the bar, 
xx nobles ;, each of the bar, under that time, v/. and 
each gentleman of the houfe, under the bar, xb. And ten 
days afterwards, at another council, that there_ fliould be 
a general tax upon all fuch as had not contributed, or 
Ihowed’ their willingnefs fo to do, towards this w'ork. And 
for receipt of their moneys, Thomas Spencer, efq. was 
appointed- treasurer, and Alexander Chart his under-trea- 
furer.” This general taxation, and other contributions 
which followed upon it, enabled the fociety, in about five 
years, fully to complete this edifice ; which was confe- 
crated upon Afcen holiday, A. D. 1623, by George Moun- 
taine bilhop of London, as appears by an infeription 
placed under his arms at the eaft end of the arched roof. 
The walk beneath this building was ufed till of late as a 
promenade, to which it was ill adapted, being too cold 
for bad weather, and in fine too much, (deluded. It has 
for forne years been enclofed with, an iron railing, and is 
now ufed as a place of interment for the henchers only. 
COURT. 
The gardens of Lincoln’s Inn are exceedingly-pleaftmt, 
and a great ornament. The terrace-walk (which, toge¬ 
ther with the wall That fupports it, were erefted in 1663, 
and cod nearly ioool.) forms an uncommonly-fine pro¬ 
menade, and is always open in fummer. to the public. 
The gardens theinfelves are adorned with a number of fine 
ftately trees, and receive a fort of confequence from the 
grandeur of the adjoining pile, called Stone Buildings. 
They are befides laid out with great tafte, and excellently 
well kept. From the terrace-walk we have a profpect of 
one of the largeft and moll beautiful fquares in Europe, 
originally laid out by the mafterly hand of Inigo Jones, 
and intended to have been built all in the fame ftyle and 
tafte, but unfortunately not finiflied agreeable to the de- 
fignof that great architect. Several of the original houfes, 
ftill remain to be a reproach to the reft, particularly Lin- 
defey-houfe, once the (eat of the earls of Lindeley, and 
of their defeendants, the dukes of Ancafter, which was 
built after a beautiful defign of the-above architect. 
Lincoln’s-Inn library, which is fituated in the Sttme 
Buildings, contains, befides a good colle« 5 lion of books, 
many very fine and curious manuferipts. Tliefe were re¬ 
moved in 1 787 from the old library to the prefent, which 
is a handfome, fpacious, and commodious, apartment, 
being made out of three fets of chambers. Tile manu¬ 
feripts are in dole preftes at one of the ends of the li¬ 
brary, where fires are daily kept, except in fummer. The 
building is very fubllantial, with ftone ftair-cafes and fo¬ 
lk! party-walls. The keys of the preftes are kept by the 
mailer of the library, who is chofen annually by the 
benchers from their own body; and the manuferipts can¬ 
not be viewed without a fpecial order from one or two of 
the mailers of the bench. The greater part of thefe lha- 
nuferipts were bequeathed by fir Matthew Hale, and have 
been accurately claffed and explained in the return made 
to the feleft committee for examining into the Hate of 
the public records. The reafon why it is fo difficult to 
get a light of them is explained by the following extract 
from fir Matthew’s will : “ As a teftimony of my honour 
and refpeft to the fociety of Lincoln’s Inn, where I had 
the greateft part of my education, I give and bequeath 
to that honourable fociety the feveral mahufeript books 
contained in a l’chedule annexed to my will. They are a 
treafure worth the having and keeping, which I have 
been near forty years in gathering with -very great ..induf- 
try and expence. My defire is, that they be kept fafe, 
and alfo in remembrance of me. They were fit. to be 
bound in leather, and chained, and kept in. archives. / 
defire that they may not be lent out or difpofed of ; only, if I 
happen hereafter to have any of my polterity of that fociety 
that defires to tranferibe any book, and gives very good 
fecurity to re Ho re it again within a prefixed time, finch as 
the benchers of that fociety in council lhall approve of, 
then, and not otherwife, only one bock at one time may 
be lent put to them, by the fociety. They are a treafure 
not fit for every man’s view, nor is’every man capable df 
making nfe of them. Only I,would have nothing.of thefe boohs 
printed, but entirely prefer'ved together for the ufe of the 
induftrious learned members of that 'worthy fociety.” 
In 3 & 4 Philip and Mary, it was ordered, that thence¬ 
forth none fliould be admitted into the fellowffiip of this 
houfe who had not been of an inn of chancery before by 
the (pace of one year, except he paid for hisTdmittance, 
for his not being in chancery, 40s. This lum, in 7 Eliz. 
was raifed to five marks. But fuch as were utter barrif- 
ters of Furnivall’s Inn and -Thayves Inn, of one year’s 
continuance, were to be admitted for four /marks. And 
the year following it was farther ordered, that every _fel- 
low of the above two inns of chancery, “ by reafon they 
were the proper houfes of this houfe,” as-the regifter ex.- 
prefles, who had been allowed an utter barriiter there, 
and had mooted there, two vacations at the utter bar, 
fliould pay for his admiflion ipto the fellowftiip of this 
houfe only 13s. 4d. but utter barrifters of aiiy other inn 
of chancery 20s. And in 27 Eliz. it was decreed that the 
gentlemen 
