The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-04-29


! that the English towns. as they entered on =
larger Industrial activity. freed themselves
! from the INDISPENSABLE saualor and misery OF
the early middle ages but from this time for
: word may be detected sIRns Of awakening
prosperity At hrst under the Rulse OF = frugal
we'll being. but later displaying lie lux
uty with Ioyous ostentatlon. In the course
Of the next hundred years We see trading
ports such ss Lynn. sandwich. Southampton
and Bristol. and centres Of inland trafio
such as Nottingham. Leicester and Heading
and manufacturing towns like Norwich. Wor-
cester and York hespinR up wealth. doubling
and trebllnR their yearly expenditure. raising
the salaries Of municipal officers. building new
quarters or suburbs. lavishinR money on the
buyinR OF new privileges for their citizens or
on the extension Of their trade. While the big
ger boroughs we're thus enjoying harvest Of
fat things, the small seaports and market
towns also gathered their share OF the
Qensral.good fortune Mrs. Green cites. for In
stance. the town OF Colchester, where. from the
time Of the Norman conquest about z. 200 per-
sons had managed tn live. but In two and q
half centuries had never added to their num-
bers. or their manner OF lie something can
be cleaned from the record OF toll levied on
their goods about 1900. One OF the wealthiest
tradesmen In the town was butcher whose
| valuation was under $40; while the stock In
hand Of his brethren In tho trade consisted
mostly Of Drawn. lard. and few sailing tubs.
though one had two carcasses OF oxen at so
cents each. and another had meat worth $3.50
In his shop. II we add to the butchers thirteen
tanners and fourteen MERGERS. who sold gloves.
belts. leather silk purses. and needle cases.
besides cloth and flannel. and one
even glrdles (which with their silver
| ornaments we're costly artclesl we have ex-
hausted the list OF the well-to-do Colchester
burghers In the course OF the fourteenth
century. however. makers OF cloth came to
settle by the side OF the tanners and butchers.
| Card makers. combers. clothiers. wcnvers,
| fullcrs and dyers hocked to tho town and
A. read their trade out into the neighboring
villaRes Wool mongers kept on pushing
their business. till. in 1873. the bailiIs made
the under croft beneath the old moot hall into
wool hall for the convenience OF dealers. and
! added q fine porch with vault overhanEing
! the entrance to the moot hall. and some shops
with chambers over them. Before the four
| teenth century had closed the population Of
| Colchester hal doubled; the poor houses that
| once lined the streets wero swept away. and
! rich men erected shops In tho now stJ 10 with
sleeping rooms over them fronting the street.
and lot these dwellings to shop-keeping
| tenants.
or the little trading town OF Bridport We hear
q similar story. In 1910 the richest man had
one COW. two hogs. two brass platters. q few |
MUGS, ana n lltte Iurnlturb-tne wnOle worth |
SD. Ono OF the most respectable innk eepers |
in the place owned two hogs. two beds. two |
tahccloths. two hand napkins. n horse. q |
brass pot. platter. II few wooden vessels and |
some malt. A century later we ind new !
town. Traders from BRISTOL together with |
men from Holland and other foreign mer- |
chants an craftsmen. had settled In It's streets.
and tho townsfolk had grown prosperous and
b"gun to bind themselves In fraternitiea The
t,lI hall end IL, ~.
were set in order. and a new causeway was
made The guild hall got clock. the church
was rebuilt and fitted up with organs.
and things In it were let out to the
rich burghcrs Even towns which. like
Rye. had known all tho calamities OF war. had
only TO wait for an interval OF peace to profit
by tho common prosperity. Burned by the
French in 1877 burned and laid desoate again
in las. Rye long remained on tho level OF
poverty which had been general In the early
middle ages. In 14l4 It sheltered a mere
handful OF struggling denizens and had but
three men who were assessed as owning prop
erty amounting to SLID. By the end OF the
fifteenth century. however. Rye fishermen
were known on distant seas and Rye traders
In tho fairs at home and abroad. London
merchants bought property In the thriving
town. and new quarters spranR up with names
borrowed from the capital In 1893 two Of the
burghers were assessed at $4,000 each. and
the total value OF the personal property pos
sessed by the inhabitants at S31. 800.
In short, the labor and enterprise which in
previous centuries had been employed In COW
erinG England with castles and cathedrals
and monasteries was now absorbed In the
work OF covering It with new towns. In Can
terbury and Worcester and Nottingham and
Bristol. and a host Of other towns. We may still
admire the new houses that were raised for
the traders. with their picturesque outlines
and fine carved work. Waste places In the
borouGhs were built over and formed into new
wards. On every hand corporations. prompted
by municipal pride. erected common halls set
up stately crosses In the market places such
rs may still be seen at Winchester and MARI
borough paved the streets. or provided new
water supply for the growing population. |
Mrs Green assures us that. were We to count
up the new gates and auays and bridges and
wharVes and harbors and sluices and aque-
ducts and markets. we should be filled with
Rmazement at a creative activity which was
really stupendous Public duty and prl- {
vate enterprise went hand In hand
Sometimes the whole commonalty was called
out to help at a church building. or the dig
glnG OF a new harbor; sometimes the charity I
once given to religious uses was turned into I
the channel Of civic patriotism and good cit- I
zens left money TO found hospitals and aims {
houses and schools to pave the streets. to pay c
the rolls Of their town. to fee lawyers to de- '
iend lis privileges. or 10 buy charter to de- q
lend its lights from Invasion Thus 1t was
two traders OF Canterbury who built In 400 I
the first private bridge over the river; and in G
] iS5 mercer from London constructed at his Q
own sxprnse the ilrst main drain under the I
Old Street OF Canterbury to carry of the rain \
water into the river In Birmingham the
whole community formed itself into guild i
AMI lasting brotherhood" for the doing OF I
works Of charity. and chiefly. It seems for the n
repairing Of two great stone bridges and o
% divers foul and dangerous ways" on the high
road t. Walss-a work which the municipal L
was too poor to undertake v
v.