"The foresaid chattels, which were taken with the hands of the lord king, were given to four men of the town of Sudborough, to wit, William the son of Osmund, Robert Page the reeve, Henry the son of William Dolfyn and Jocelin of Deene, to answer for their price be fore the justices in eyre of the forest. "The broken string and the woodwork of the trap were given to the aforesaid four men to produce before the justices. "The two broken arrows were given to Rich ard of Aldwinkle, the verderer, to produce be fore the justices. .* The snare of the trap which was found set in the wood together with all the string was given to Maurice de Solers of Brigstock to produce before the justices." (Pages 94—95.) Here is a passage, dated 1255, giving a glimpse of the benefit of clergy :— "It is presented by the foresters and verderers that a chaplain and seven clerks were found with bows and arrows in the king's road within the forest. They were taken by the foresters on suspicion. And Hugh of Goldringham, stew ard of the forest, retained them in prison; and afterwards he delivered them to Simon of Houghton, then sheriff of Huntingdon, who imprisoned them in the prison of Cambridge. And afterwards they were delivered before Master Simon of Walton and his fellows jus tices in eyre at Huntingdon to Robert then the bishop of Lincoln as clerks. And because the said Simon, then the sheriff, did not send word to the said justices that they were taken in the forest by the foresters for an evil deed and for trespass, therefore he is in mercy. And because Simon of Coppingford, the ver derer, to whom the bows and arrows were de livered, that he might have them before the justices, now had them not, therefore he is in mercy." (Page 14.) Here is another passage, dated 1255, giving another glimpse of the disadvantages pertaining to the ownership of real estate in or near the forest : — "It was ordered by Robert Passelewe and his fellow justices last in eyre here for pleas of the forest that the houses of Vincent of Stanley which had been raised to the nuisance of the forest should be pulled down; and the doing of this was hindered by certain persons, Colin
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of Merton, and Richard of Toseland, the bai liffs of Philip of Stanton the sheriff of Hunting don. And the verderers witness that when they and the foresters came to pull down the said houses, as they were ordered, the said Colin and Richard of Toseland prohibited them from pulling them down. And when the for esters laid their hands on the said houses to unroof and pull them down, the said Colin and Richard forcibly drove them back saying that they would not in any way allow them to pull them down, because they had the precept to that effect of Philip of Stanton, who was then the sheriff of Huntingdon. And the verderers and foresters went to the same sheriff, and told him the nature of their precept concerning the houses to be pulled down, and how they were hindered by his bailiffs aforesaid by his pre cept. And the said sheriff said that they had no order thereof from him, and disavowed their deed entirely; whereby the order of the justices and what was for the king's advantage concern ing the aforesaid houses to be pulled down re mains undone. And therefore the sheriff is ordered that he cause the said Colin and Rich ard to come from day to day. Afterwards Richard came; and he could not deny that he impeded the said foresters and verderers as is aforesaid, and this without warrant; therefore he is in mercy." (Page 18.) For the forest officials themselves, life in the forest was not wholly free from care; and by the following passage, also of 1255, one is con vinced that Robin Hood and his companions are not mere sun myths : — "On Wednesday the morrow of St. Philip and St. James when William of Northampton and Roger of Tingewick had come from the pleas of Stanion and were going towards Rothwell they were given to understand that poachers were in the lawn of Beanfield. And forthwith the said William and Roger and James of Thurlbear and Matthew his brother, the riding foresters, and the walking foresters came in all haste to that place so that they might take the said poachers. And when the foresters came into the forest, the said evildoers attacked them, and shot Matthew the brother of the said James of Thurlbear the forester so that the said Matthew died thereof. And then the said evil doers turned and fled. And on account of
