The Student Rows of Oxford. •in the private yards and gardens of the townsmen. We also find that athletes "practysecl themselves in shootinge with the bow and arbelstre, to play with the sword and buckler, to rumie, to just, to play with the poleaxe, and to wrestle; and they began to bear barneys, to runne horses, and to ap prove them, as desyringe to be good and faithful knightes to susteyne the faith of God; for youth, emulous of glory, seeks these exercises against the time that war shall demand their presence." l
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at Oxford we find this custom prevailing in the early days. We hear of the "Northern Nation," including the Scots and northern English, of the "Irish," the "Southern" and the "Welsh." From the first the nations lived in the neighboring halls for reasons of protection, and afterward they frequented certain colleges. For instance, later on, we hear that Exeter College "was much troub led with Welshmen." These nations fought bitterly among themselves about theology and everything which appealed to the aca-
OXFORD UNIVERSITY SEAL, ABOUT I2OO A.D.
In such a community obviously quarrels must have been frequent and quarrels in the early days of the university invariably meant battle, as is seen in the warfare be tween the students. In the continental uni versities the students were grouped in cor porate bodies according to countries, and these divisions—we might almost call them fighting fraternities—had definite university privileges and were known as "nations." So 1 Hulton, p. 13.
demie mind, and their riots help us to under stand the fury of the strife between the town and gown. The account of two battles may serve as an illustration. "In 1258, on the feast of Holy Trinity, fell out a sad dissension between the scholars of divers nations. The Northern and Welsh joined together against the Southern, and had banners and flags among them to distin guish each division. They also pitched their field near Oxford, in that of Beaumont as
