The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1865-02-28 00:00:00

FAIRS HI DOPSST.

Thus in Dorset the meeting at Blandford, Novem-
ber 8, is famed for the show of old ewes, lambs, /cc.,
whilst Bridport, April 6th, is equally celebrated for that
of horses and cove—the letter being, in fact, bar-
reners from the different dairies, which are brought to
Bridport fair, and sold to the graziers of Somerset and
the Isle of Wight. Dorchester fair, again, of August 6,
is a large sheep-fair for fat lambs and wethers ; and it
has of late years la-en followed up by a new sheep-fair
on September 29th. The fairs of Maiden Newton,
March 9 and May 4, are for barrenere, heifer; and
calves; whilst formerly the first day of Martinatown,
November 22nd, was for sheep, and the second (ley,
November 23rd, for Bucking•eolts, when many beat
croppers from the New Forest and from Wareham
Heath were brought forward, and forest ponies were,
In fact, to be had cheap for breaking, but in the present
year this tw, • late' meeting has for the first time been
concentrated into one, on the 23rd. Again, at Sher-
borne, pa the celebrated Pack Monday (the Monday
after October 10), young working oxen are brought
from Devonshire ; the sheep consist principally of
lambs and wethers, and the Sherborne fairs are also
important for the sale of wool. But Toiler Down,
September 7, as already stated, is one of the most im-
portant in the county of Dorset for the sale of lambs.
'fhe supply of sheep at this fair varies from 11,000 to
14,000; and being held a few days prior to the great
fair at Wilton, the breeder, are thus afforded • first
chance of selling their sheep in their own county.
Finally, as respects Dorset, at Woodbury-hill, Septem-
ber 21, although properly a fair for ewes and lambs,
cart colts brought from Somersetahire are exhibited in
large numbers. Fairs or markets are not held at more
than fifty places in Dorset; kadeed Morton's Almanac
does not enumerate twenty.

FAIRS IN SOIIIIMET.
Fully 100 sites of fairs and markets exist In Somerset,
but not with the same distinctive objects as those of
either Dorset or Devon. Axbridge is (March 25),
indeed, looked up to for its show of cattle and horses,
and there is a three-days' fair at Bridgwater; but per-
haps that held at Binnegar on Whit-Wedne,day and
Thureday is the best known. The Dunster great
market is on Whit-Monday. Cheddar bits two fairs for
cattle, oheese, fle, May 4 and Ootober 29. Chard great
markets are on the first Monday in January, February,
March, April, and December; fairs, first Wednesday in
May and November, the latter being the great cheese
fair. And Bruton and Castleoary have also two or
more in the year. Glastonbury has a fair on Easter
Wednesday, and another, September 19th, for horses,
&a. Highbridge, which has its annual cattle fair on
Trinity Monday, has also a market on the first Monday
of every month both for cattle and cheese; here the
cattle of the Sornersetshire dealers change hands for
Wales. Wells has a large cattle, sheep, and lamb fair
on July 6; and Yeovil, fairs for cattle and horses, June
28 and November 17.

As Mr. G. P. R. Pullman, in his admirable topogra-
phical volume The Book of the Axe, has traced the
origin of some of onr Dorset, Somerset, and Devon
fairs, it may not be deemed amiss here to illustrate, by
citing these examples, the general rise and progrese of
these particular institutions, as indicative of the nature
and origin of all the rest. Thus Beaminster has, a
weekly market on Thursdays, and an annual fair on
September 19th. The grants for these were obtained
In the 12th year of Edward I. (1284) by William Ewel,
Prebendary of Sarum. Mr. Putman adds that the tolls,
are now the property of a private individual,
having passed from the Portlett family either by sale or
In exchange for lands. Again, "A market at Thorn-
combs on Wednesday (altered in more resent times to
Saturday). and a fair on Easter Tuesday to last for six
days, were granted to the Abbot of Ford by Edward IL
about the year 1312. The fair on Easter Tuesday is still
kept sip, but of course for that day only, and there is
another fair held annually on October 20th."—" Chard
from an early period has possessed one of the best
weekly markets in the West of England. The market,
as usual, was originally granted for Sunday, and Is so
mentioned by Dr. Stukeley ; but it has for generations
been held as at present on Monday, although attempts
have been made to alter the day." In Collinson's time
(1790) Chard was celebrated as the chief market in
England for potatoes—" thirty waggon-loads," says he,
"being brought on • market.day frequently daring the
season, and seldom leas than twenty." None of the
three Chard fairs (first Wednesdays in May, August,
and November) are included in Morton's Almanac.
In 1709 (7th Anne) a grant was obtained for
holding a yearly fair on Lambert's Castle and
Hawkdown on the Wednesday before the Feast of
St. John the Baptist. The fair is still held, with rams
on the following day, and there is a fair recently este-
blighed held annually on September 18th. In 1219-20
(3 and 4 Henry III.) a market was granted to the
Bishop of Sarum to be held at Chardstock, where the
Bishops had a seat and extensive park; and in 1441
(19 Henry VI.) the grant of a fair was also made to the
bishop. The fair is still held on Old Michaelmas-day
(October 11), but every traee of a market has long minim
. . . .• , .

disappeared.' At Axiiiinster, the manor continued to
be held by the kings of England until the reign of King
John, who gave it to his favourite counsellor,
Lord Brewer, together with the grant of a weekly
market on Sundays, and an annual fair on the Feast of
St. John the Baptist. After the suppression of Sunday
markets, Saturday was selected, and the market con-
tinued for many centuries to be held on that day. It
has, however, for more than a dozen years, been held ,
on Fridays, after having for a short time previously I
been held on Thursdays. There have long been three
annual faire :—On the first Wedneadsy after October
10, the first Tuesday after April 25, and the "Charter I
fair" on the first Tuesday after June 24. When we
mention Whitford, in the parish of Shute, near
Colyton, we name a place which, so far as we know, is
Included in none of the published lists of fairs; and
yet about the year 1342 • market was granted to Peter
de Brewise, to be held on Wednesday within his manor
of " Wytteford," and a fair for four days on the Festival
of St. Peter ad ',Menlo, whilst, four years afterwards,
he obtained another fair for five days on the Festival et
the Assumption ; and there is still the shadow of a fair
held annually in September, so hard are these institu-
tions to die out even when effete and useless. At Coly-
ton itself King Johr, in 1208, granted a fair to Sir
Thomism Basset, to be held for seven days, " beginning
on the octave of St. Michael :" and there are now held
two annual faire; one on the first Thursday in May,
and the other on the Thursday after October 14th;
whilst the markets held on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and
Saturdays. are now inconsiderable. The late Sir
William Templar Pole at one time took some pains to
improve the Colyton fairs and markets, but without
success; although we are told of a time when Colyton
could boast of a large pitched corn-market, and of •
good show of cattle at its fairs. Such instances of the
rise and decadence of our fairs and markets might be
extended, from the county histories and other sources,
over the entire district; but enough has been said to
lay and illustrate the foundation of those observations
which it may be our duty to offer in regard to the pecu-
liarities that affect, and, to • great extent, injure
them.—To be continued.

PUBLIC Prerrners.—An interceding return, moved
foe by the late Mr. Samuel Oregson, has just been
printed by the House of Commons. The object of the
return is to give some information as to the growth of
the prac4ce of petitioning, and to set forth the number
of petitions brought annually under the cognizance of
the Pablo Petitions Committee. Thus, by way of
contrast, lt is stated that two hundred yem ego, in the
year 1664, the number of petitions presented was 21.
One hundred years later the number had but slightly
Increased. being, in 1764, only 47; while in the last
year, 1864, the number of petitions amounted to 10,222.
From the summary given at the end of the return we
find that in 32 years they have had before then.
389,056 petitions,of which they have selected 37,238 for
printing The number of signatures in that period was
81,851,510, and the number of reports made by the
committee, 1,597.

-
BANKRUPTCY. —A general return by the Chief
Registrar of the Bankruptcy Court, for the year ending
11th October, 1864, "of all matters judicial and
financial within the Bankruptcy Act, 1861," has been
printed. Thettotal number of adjudications in bank-
ruptcy in all the courts was 7,224„ of which 595 were
on the petition of a creditor, and 5,260 on the petition
of a debtor. The gross prOdnee realised from bank-
rupts' estates was £677,536, of which the amount
realised by creditors' assignees was £350,302, and by
official assignees, £327,233. A dividend was made in
1,586 cases, there being none ia 5,324 cases, and 848
dividends were under 2s. &L per pound, and 348 above
that sum, and under ss. In 37 eases there was a divi-
dend of 20e. per pound. There were 3,604 trust deeds
applicable to estates of the grosi value of £3,802,000.
There were 6,148 bills of °oats taxed, amounting to
£87,064, of whioh about 10 per cent. wae struck off
on taxation. The total revenue of the Court of Bank-
ruptcy, stamps, fees, &c., was £876,815, and the expen-
diture was £140,894, the item for salaries being £84,359.