O X F 
between the interior of the county, and Birmingham, Li¬ 
verpool, Manchefter, and the Wednefbury-collieries, as 
well as with the cities of London and Briftol, 
Oxfordlhire is divided into fourteen hundreds, which, 
together, contain i city, u market-towns, and 207 town* 
/hips and parilhes, all of them in the diocefe of Oxford, 
and province of Canterbury. According to the parlia¬ 
mentary returns of 1811, the number of houfes in the 
whole county was 23,217, and the number of inhabitants 
119,191. In 1801, the houfes were eftimated at 20,599, 
and the population at 109,620 perfons. Oxfordlhire is 
reprefented in parliament by nine members ; two knights 
of the Ihire, two citizens for Oxford, two reprefentatives 
for the Univerfity, two burgefles for Woodftock, and one 
for Banbury. This county was formerly under one fhe- 
riff with Berklhire. It was funimoned on the 22d of 
Edward I. and from that time has returned members to 
parliament. In the 22d of Edward I. the Iheriff returned 
two knights of the Ihire, and two burgefles for Oxon ; 
and, in the 28th year of that reign, to this county the 
Iheriff added the knights for Berks, though not directed 
by his writ; and in the 18th of Edward III. he returned 
for both counties in one indenture. 
This county is remarkable for having had the laft great 
conteft between the whig and tory parties, which hap¬ 
pened at the general election in 1754, and firft brought 
the famous Mr. Charles Jenkinfon, who afterwards be¬ 
came earl of Liverpool, into court-favour and public 
notice; and procured him, at firft, the humble fituation 
of a clerk in the treafury; from whence he rofe, by a re¬ 
gular gradation, in 1762 to be private fecretary to lord 
Bute, in 1763 to be fecretary to the treafury in the ad- 
miniftration of Mr. George Grenville, grandfather to the 
prefent marquis of Buckingham; in 1766, a lord of the 
admiralty, under the adminiftration of the duke of Graf¬ 
ton ; in 1767, a lord of thetreafury ; in 1778, fecretary at 
war, under lord North; in 1786 created lord Hawkefbury, 
and made chancellor of the duchy of Lancafter by Mr. 
Pitt; in 1790, firft lord of trade and plantations; in 1796, 
ear] of Liverpool, befides holding, for many years, the 
finecure place of colleftor of the cuftoms in the port of 
London, worth 6oool. per annum; and at laft retired 
from office with the addition of an enormous penfion for 
life. “ All this accumulation of wealth, fortune, and 
favoritifm, originated (fays Mr. Oldfield) in his being 
what is commonly called fquib-writer to the court- 
candidates at this memorable election. Lord-vifcount 
Parker, and fir Edward Turner, were the whig-candidates, 
fupported by the duke of Marlborough, earl of Guildford, 
earl Harcourt, and earl of Macclesfield, and by the ad¬ 
miniftration of that day, the whigs being then in place ; 
and it was lord Parker who firft introduced Mr. Jenkin¬ 
fon to the duke of Newcaftle, at that time minifter, and 
procured for him the firft appointment he obtained. Lord- 
vifcount Wenman and fir James Dalhwood were fup¬ 
ported by the tory and oppoiition intereft, and by the earl 
of Abingdon, and earl of Lichfield ; and, after a moft 
violent and expenfive conteft, this eleftion ended in a 
double return of all four candidates; and, on the 23d of 
April, 1755, the houfe of commons declared that lord 
Parker and fir Edward Turner were duly elected, and 
ought to have been returned. At the enfuing general 
election in 1761, the duke of Marlborough nominated 
one member, and the tory-party the other, and they have 
continued to do the fame ever fince.” Oldfield’s Repre- 
fentative Hift. 1816.'—The prefent members are, John 
Fane and W. H. Affihurft, efqrs. 
Oxfordlhire has little claim to be ranked among the 
number of the manufacturing counties. Witney blankets, 
indeed, were formerly much noted; but this branch of 
trade is now declined, and the town is reduced to a com¬ 
paratively poor and deftitute condition. At Woodftock 
is a fmall manufacture of polilhed fteel articles, which was 
introduced by a Mr. Medcalfe, and was at one time in a 
very flouriffiing ftate. Here is likewifc a manufacture of 
Vot.. XVIII. No. 1232. 
O x N 103 
leather breeches and of gloves, which employs about 70 
men, and 1400 or 1 joo women and girls. The wages of 
the men are from one guinea to 30s. weekly, and thofe 
of the women from 8s. to 12s. per week, A fmall quan¬ 
tity of lace is made in the town and neighbourhood of 
Thame; and at Bloxham and Banbury a coarfe fort of 
velvet is produced. Henley has, for feveral centuries, 
been one of the London depots for malt. 
Oxfordlhire does not offer fuch a field for antiquarian 
refearch as many other counties; but, neverthelefs, it af¬ 
fords fiome materials in this branch of inquiry, by no 
means unworthy of attention. Several very curious Bri- 
tiffi coins have been found within its limits; and there 
are numerous barrows and other monuments here, which, 
we prefume, may properly be referred to an era antece¬ 
dent to the records of hiftory. Of this defcription is the 
Druidical monument called Rollricli or Rowlrig/it Stones, 
which were originally 60 in number, (though only 22 of 
them are now handing,) and formed a circle nearly equal 
in diameter to the outer one at Stonehenge. The fizes of 
thefe ftones, however, are trifling, compared to the im- 
menfe mafies of the Wiltlhire temple, few of them ex¬ 
ceeding four feet in height, and fixteen inches in breadth. 
One only, in the northern part of the circle, is feven feet 
high, and five and a half broad ; but, detached, is another, 
meafuripg eight feet in height, and feven in breadth. 
This laft is denominated the King-ftone, from a tradition 
that fome ancient monarch and his court were converted 
into ftones on this fpot. Contiguous to it is a large long- 
barrow, fuppofed to contain the alhes of an arch-druid ; 
and near it is a l'quare entrenchment, with,a double ditch 
and vallum, having fome remains of ftone-work in its in¬ 
terior. Thefe Dr. Stukeley calls Druid-courts, or houfes. 
Several other barrows, with the apparent foundations of 
buildings clofe to them, are difcovered in the vicinity of 
this temple ; and about 300 paces from it was formerly a 
kiftvaen of fix ftones, which have been lately removed. 
Of the four principal Roman roads interfering the 
ifland, one only pafl'es through Oxfordlhire. This is the 
Ikenild-ftreet, which enters the county at the parilh of 
Goring, and croffes it in a direction from fouth-weft to 
north-eaft by Ifpden, Ewelm, Watlington, and Crowell, to 
Chinnor, where it enters Buckinghamffiire. Vicinal ways, 
however, are abundant. The Akeman-ftreet ftretches 
itfelf throughout the broadeft part of the county, enter¬ 
ing it near Holywell, and leaving near Ambrofden, in the 
vicinity of the ftation Alcefter. From this ftreet many 
minor roads branch off in different dire&ions. Two of 
thefe are traced near Kirklington, a third within Blen- 
beim-park, and a fourth to the fouth of Bicefter. Between 
Mongevvell and Nuffield is a vallum, or high ridge-way; 
called Grimes’s Dyke, or Devil’s Ditch, alfo numbered 
by Dr. Plot among the Roman vicinal ways; but we are 
inclined to refer it to a more remote era. 
OX'HANGER, a fmall ifland on the eaft fide of the 
Gulf Bothnia. Lat. 63.19. N. Ion. 21.58. E. 
OXIA'NA, in ancient geography, a town.of Alia, in 
Sogdiana, near the Oxus, or Jihon ; which fee. 
OXIA'NA PA'LUS,a marlh of Sogdiana, called by Pliny 
Oxus, from the name of the river of which it is the fource. 
OXIB'II, a people of the Maritime Alps, between the 
river Argens and Antibes. Thefe people were powerful, 
and fignalized themfelves againft the Romans when they 
undertook the conqueft of the Gauls. They leagued 
with the Deciales, for attacking the towns of Nice and 
Antibes. Steph. Byz. affigns to them a town called Oat- 
Hum. Strabo mentions a port named Oxibus as belonging 
to them, fuppofed to be the fame with the maritime town 
called by Polybius JEgytna. 
OX'NA, a fmall ifland on the eaft coaft of Shetland. 
Lat. 60. 8. N. Ion. 1.42. W. 
OX'NEY, a riyer-ifland of England, in the county of 
Kent, formed by the divided ftreams of the Rother, about 
feven miles long, and three broad. It contains three pa- 
riffies; and gives name to a hundred. 
U u 
OX'TEK 
