Henry the Sixth to the Mayor of Reading (or more correctly speaking, perhaps, the Keeper of the Guild there), shows the jealousy with which the right of carrying a Mace was then regarded:

"Litere regis Henrici Sexti directe custodi gilde de Redyng.

"Well beloved, we greet you wel, and how be it, that we calle to our remembraunce how that at our last beyng at the towne of Redyng, we licensed you to bere oonly the mase before us, so that it be not prejudiciall unto our church and monasterie of Redyng. Yet, nathlesse, ye use it other wise than was or is accordyng to our entent. In so much, that as we sithens have clierly perceyvyd by sheweng of evidence and credible report made unto us of the antique usage and custume had in the same towne, that hit is contrarie to the franchise and libertees of our said church and monasterie, by our noble aunciesterees graunted and by us confirmed, you to be called or bere other in name or in signe other wise than as keeper of the gilde of Reding, admitted by the abbot of our said monasterie, and not by us, for to have any mase, or eny other signe of officer or office to be born by you or any other man within the said town and franchisse of Reding. Savyng oonly two tipped staffs to be born by the baylif of the abbot of oure said monasterie, graunted and yeven to the abbot and convent of the same our monasterie at the first foundac'on thereof, out of court of marshalsie eldest of record with

al maner court plees of dette of trespace and other, and also execuc'on of the same to be doon by his baylif, and by noon other, as in their charters of graunte and confirmac'on more evidently hit appereth. We therfor woll and charge you straitly, that ye ne use nor bere any mace, nor other signe, nor do to be born by non other personne within the said town and franchise thereof, whereby the intereste and right of our said monasterie might in any wyse be interrupted or hurted, which we ne wolde nor never entended, savyng oonly the two tipped stafs, in manner and forme as is above rehersed, as ye desire to plese us, and wol eschew the contrary. Yeven under oure signet at Eltham, the xxx day of Juill." 13

The right of having Serjeants-atMace was subsequently conceded to the corporation of Reading by the

charters of Elizabeth and Charles the First.14

On Michaelmas day 10th Edw. IV. the corporation of Cambridge purchased four Maces, which were delivered to the treasurers, to be annually let to the Serjeants, to the use and profit of the treasury of the town,the Serjeants being forbidden to use any other Maces. On the same day these Maces were let for 3s. 4d. each, -the parties hiring them each finding two pledges for their re-delivery.15 It may be assumed that the Serjeants amply reimbursed themselves by their fees on arrests.

Edward the Sixth, in his charter to St. Alban's, granted that there might be two Serjeants-at-Mace, either of whom might carry a mace with the King's arms engraven upon it, before the Mayor within the borough.16

Queen Elizabeth in 1573 empowered the Mayor of Thetford to have two Serjeants, who might have two silver Maces before him.17 In 1578 this Queen gave a Mace of silver gilt to the city of Norwich, where it used to be borne before the Mayor by the Chamberlain; 18 and in the 31st year of her reign she granted that the corporation of Hertford might have a Serjeant to carry the Mace, with the royal arms, before the bailiff. In 1605 James I. granted that there should be two Serjeants to carry within that borough before the Mayor, two maces of silver or gilt, with gold engraved and garnished with the King's arms.19

In the 41st Elizabeth the Queen granted to the corporation of Leicester that there might be five Serjeants-atMace to carry gilt or silver Maces, ornamented with the arms of the realm, before the Mayor within that borough.20

James 1. granted to the borough of Berkhampstead two Serjeants to bear

a silver Mace before the bailiff. This mace was to be adorned with the arms of Prince Charles (that town being parcel of the duchy of Cornwall).21

Charles II. in his Charter to the City of Gloucester, authorised the ap

15

Cross Book of Cambridge.

17 Blomefield's Norfolk, 8vo. 19 Turnor's Hertford, 76, 81. Hertfordshire, 8vo. edit, ii. 536,

pointment of four Serjeants-at-Mace, each of whom might carry before the Mayor, Aldermen, and Sheriffs (according to the custom long since there observed), a silver mace, with the arms of the King and the City engraved on it 22.

The instances I have given of the right to bear a Mace being the subject of an express grant from the crown, might, I have no doubt, be greatly augmented, and the charters of most towns enumerate Serjeant-atMace amongst the corporate officers.

It is well known that, on occasions of royal visits to a corporate town, the Mace is borne before the Sovereign by the Mayor. Whether it has been usual thus to honour other members of the royal family, I know not, but it appears that on the occasion of the Princess Margaret passing through York in 1503, on her way to Scotland to be married to James IV. the Lord Mayor of that city preceded her with the Mace on his shoulder 23.

At Southampton, it was formerly the custom to carry a Mace before the Mayoress on state occasions 24; and at Nottingham there was a Mayoress's serjeant 25.

A Mace seems to have been no unusual gift from noblemen or gentlemen connected with corporate bodies, as appears by the following instances -In 1609, the Honourable Edward Talbot, second son to the Earl of Shrewsbury, gave a Mace to the corporation of Pontefract 24; and in 1636 Sir Thomas Posthumus Hoby made a like present to the town of Scarborough 24; Sir Joseph Williams, one of the Secretaries of State to Charles II. gave a Mace to the town of Thetford 26. The Mace belonging to the corporation of the Bedford Level was given by the first governor of that body, William Earl (afterwards Duke) of Bedford 27. In 1663 a Mace was presented to the corporation of Guildford by the Honourable Henry Howard; and in 1670-1 Lord Henry

Howard (afterwards Duke of Norfolk) gave to the city of Norwich a Mace of silver gilt, weighing above 167 ounces 28. Two massive and elegant silver Maces, each surmounted by a crown, were, in 1680, given to the corporation of Newcastle-under-Lyme by William Leveson Gower, esq., the lineal ancestor of the Duke of Sutherland 24. In the reign of Queen Anne, Edward Earl of Orford (better known perhaps as Admiral Russell,) gave a fine large Mace to the corporation of Cambridge; and in 1703 the Duke of Hamilton made a similar present to the corporation of Preston 24. In 1724 Thomas Sclater Bacon, esq. then M.P. for Cambridge, presented the corporation of that town with four silver gilt Maces. In 1733 Sir Robert Walpole gave the city of Norwich a silver gilt Mace, weighing 168 ounces 29. About 100 years since Col. Twisleton gave two Maces to the city of Carlisle 24 ; and in 1810 George Forrester, esq. presented a Mace to the corporation of Wenlock 24.

The corporation Maces appear to have been anciently of a less ornate character than those now generally used; two old Maces belonging to the the city of Oxford are engraved in Dr. Ingram's Memorials, where they are termed Staves. At Dunwich they have or had a small silver Mace (apparently of some antiquity) in the shape of an arrow. This measured in length ten inches and a half. Upon the head were engraved the arms of the King and of the borough 24.

At Llandilloes were two old Maces of lead; and at Loughor two Maces of wood and tin were replaced by brass ones 24.

At Bridgnorth and Carlisle the tops of the Maces were convertible into drinking cups 24.

When the Mayor of Nottingham went out of office, the Mace, covered with rosemary and sprigs of bay, was laid on a table covered with black crape. This was called burying the

31 Vol. xvi. p. 338.

Mace. The old Mayor, on this occasion, kissed the Mace, and presented it to his successor with a suitable compliment 30,

On the capture of a fort at Agra by the British Army in October 1803, there were found five Maces, three of iron, and two of iron and copper, which were said to have been carried before the native princes on grand public processions. These are engraved in the Archæologia 31.

The suggestion of T. T. that the Mace is not used in the three great common law courts, because the Sovereign is, by a fiction of law, supposed to preside there in person, appears to me inadmissible. First, because the fiction of law to which he refers extends only to one of these three courts (the Queen's Bench). Secondly, because the same fiction of law applies to the Court of Chancery (where the Mace is used), as is apparent from the significant "teste meipso" with which the writs issuing from that court conclude.

I forbear, for brevity sake, to say any thing now of the Silver Oar, the emblem of admiralty jurisdiction,-of the Verges, borne before the dignitaries of cathedral and collegiate churches,or of the Maces (or, more properly speaking, Staves) used by the authorities of our universities. These (together with the Sword of State) may probably form the subjects of a future communication.

MR. URBAN, Cork, Feb. 12. THE Mace, from mazza, Saxon, or maça, Spanish, is spoken of as a sceptre or ensign of royal authority by our ancient writers. We find in the Faery Queen

"He mightily upheld that royal mace

Which now thou bearest."

We read that Walworth, Mayor of London, with his Mace, knocked the rebel Wat Tyler off his horse in Smithfield, for approaching, in an insolent manner, too near the person of the young King Richard the Second, and that he then dispatched him with his dagger. In those troubled days it was absolutely necessary for the magistrates to be well armed, and the Mace here spoken of was so formed as to serve, on emergency, as a wea

pon. The ancient Mace, in shape, somewhat resembled a coffee-mill; that of modern times is different in form, being of copper, or silver-gilt, with a crown, globe, and cross, and is the principal ensign of authority in Great Britain.

The word Mace, as derived from the Latin, Massa, and the French, Massue, is most frequently met with in its meaning of a heavy blunt weapon shod with metal. Many specimens may be seen in the Tower. The Mace was used as a weapon by most nations until about the end of the sixteenth century, and is common among the Turks at the present day. Muratori (Antiq. Med. Ævi. Dis. 26) observes, that, in a close engagement of heavy cavalry, it was almost impossible to wound powerful men in armour, sitting on horseback; for their persons, being cased in hauberks, helmets, and other iron coverings, eluded the power of swords, darts, and arrows; and that therefore the Mace was a most efficacious weapon, by its weight crushing and overthrowing the riders. Ellis, in his Fabliaux, says, that it was a common weapon with ecclesiastics, who, in consequence of their tenures, often took the field, but were, by a canon of the church, forbidden to wield the sword.

The pioneers of the train-bands, or city militia (London), used to bear, till near the close of the last century, Staves, at the end of which were suspended, by chains, iron and leaden balls armed with spikes. They resembled, in some measure, the ancient Maces, and were called "Morgan Stern," or Morning Stars, and it was with a weapon of this kind that a certain noble Marquess, notorious for his "larking" propensities,

"Vexing with mirth the drowsy ear of night,"

was, a few years ago, laid prostrate in the usually quiet streets of Bergen. Yours, &c.

M.

MR. UREAN, April 6. IN your number of this month I read, with deep regret, another gross calumny on the memory of the excellent Dr. Jortin. You observe (p. 353, in the notes on Boswell's Johnson) "that you quoted the judgment (not, perhaps, quite infallible) of the late

Mr. Rose, on that subject, in the Magazine of February 1839." You did, indeed! and a more base, calumnious, and unfounded invective has seldom appeared in print. Had it not been given on your respectable authority, I should have doubted the accuracy of the quotation. Nothing but the then recent death of Mr. Rose would have prevented the administering a most severe, but merited castigation. You now favour us with a second opinion, "pronounced," you say, "by another well-informed writer." You are perfectly right. These writers are both equally well informed on this topic, that is, they are both profoundly ignorant about it. The author you quote is Mr. Dowling,-I beg the gentleman's pardon, perhaps Doctor Dowling. If this Mr. or Dr. possesses one-tenth part of the talents and literature of Jortin, I promise him he will make no small figure in the world. In the present case, however, his unprovoked abuse must excite, with all candid persons, just contempt. What! is every malignant scribbler to insult the memory of him who was so eminently distinguished by the great Secker and his immediate predecessor in the archiepiscopal see? Is no reverence due to the ashes of the ecclesiastic who was the Archdeacon of our great metropolis, and the Vicar of the important parish of Kensington, the chief residence, about that period, of the Sovereign? These preferments are now, by a singular coincidence, again united in the person of a most learned and venerable divine, and long may they so continue! But it is easy, Sir, to see, with Don Quixote's housekeeper, on "which leg these two worthies have halted." Jortin was the strenuous and persevering opponent of Enthusiasm and Methodism. He was the contemporary of Whitfield and Wesley, and was a sorrowful witness of the mischiefs they perpetrated. He is, therefore, stigmatised as a rational divine, in opposition, as it were, to spiritual; and as if he had never professed any reliance on the great doctrines of Divine grace and Spiritual assistance. But if to be as holy, as just, as temperate, as mild, as gentle, and as good as he was, is desirable for any of us, we may well pray that

such "rationality" may ever flourish and abound. With respect to the works of this calumniated author, I readily allow that "The Life of Erasmus is dull and tedious. But why? From being over-loaded with quotations and appendices. We may next consider "The Remarks on Ecclesiastical History." Here, then, comes the rub! Jortin has anticipated, perhaps, what Mr. Dowling intended to have said, or rather to have borrowed. If Mr. D. takes in hand to enlighten the world on the History of the Church, why is it necessary to abuse a pioneer in the same, perhaps, rough path, who has, at any rate, removed some rubbish out of his way, and furnished some hints for his guidance. The fact is, that Jortin, like Bishop Warburton, was eminently rich in classic lore. I do not suspect that Mr. D. is quite their equal. Jortin, perhaps, made too much display of what is called profane learning; but we had better have too much of a good thing than too little. To assert that Jortin's remarks are "a vulgar caricature," is to talk sheer nonsense. What does the poor man mean? Whom or what do the remarks hold up to ridicule? The Church, or the Christian Religion? assuredly not. On the contrary, the folly of Paganism, the absurdities of Popery, and the gross errors of the Methodists, are the only objects of that keen and elegant satire, to the exercise of which Mr. (or Dr.) D. can prefer, I believe, but a very slender claim.

The truth, Sir, however, must be told at once. Jortin was a decided anti-Calvinist, and I am decidedly of opinion, if he had not been so, and had passed over the celebrated Bishop of Hippo in silence, neither Mr. Rose nor Mr. (or Dr.) Dowling would have troubled their heads about him.

He accuses their favourite Augustine (the idol of the Calvinistic party) "with a partial ignorance of the Greek language," and with some leaning towards " Manicheism," and this was an offence not to be forgiven. All the intimate associates of Jortin are long since gone to their eternal rest; but in the early part of my life I had the pleasure of being acquainted with several of them, and I distinctly remember the delight with which his

character was pourtrayed. The profound scholar, the zealous and orthodox divine, the devout and humble believer, the indefatigable parish priest, the affectionate father, the indulgent master, the kind neighbour, and the faithful friend, were the lineaments with which it was adorned. Mr. (or Dr.) Dowling, therefore, would employ his time much better in imitating so great an example, than in attempting (the attempt, indeed, is rather puny) to defame or lower it. I need not specify, however, against what such sparrow-shot will ever be discharged in vain !

Mr. Dowling may never have seen Jortin's Sermons. If he should, peradventure, meet with them, and if he is competent to understand them, 1 hope, and I believe, that his heart will smite him (provided he has one) for thus wantonly and maliciously calumniating their learned and pious

author.

Yours, &c. A CONSTANT READER.

MR. URBAN,

CONSIDERING your Magazine as one long devoted to the cause of Literature, and tenacious of the just claims which scholars and men of talent have on lasting approbation, I resort to it, for the purpose of repelling a most unfounded accusation against an individual, who, though now for many years removed from the world, is still affectionately remembered by nearly all those survivors, who had in youth the advantage of being under his care, and who has achieved for himself, in public opinion, a lasting rank amongst the poets of our country. The individual referred to, is the well-known Samuel Bishop, who devoted thirtyseven years of his life as a master to Merchant-Taylors' School, being for the last twelve years its chief director and the charge I have spoken of, is contained in the recently published Memoirs of Charles Mathews, the Comedian, the whole of which, indeed, I have not seen, but some extracts from which, contained in the Metropolitan Magazine for January 1839, have, within a few hours only, forced themselves on my attention. That part of these Memoirs to which I shall refer, appears to been drawn up by the aforesaid Comedian himself,

and that he, a man born to laugh at, or laugh with, should seek to make every thing he treated, ridiculous, need not surprise us; but, as he might have learned enough of Horace to have translated,

"ridentem dicere verum

Quid vetat?" ""

he should have recollected, that there was no sentence in this, or any other writer, authorising him, "ridentem, dicere falsum."

Schoolmasters from the very first appear to have been among those, of whom he sought to make sport, whilst in his Memoirs he endeavours so to caricature them, that they shall seem to the very last, or as long as his book shall be looked into, objects of contempt or abhorrence. Of his early instructors at St. Martin's, with whom he in such spirit amuses himself, I know nothing, thinking it however very probable that his statements respecting these are much overcharged; but when he speaks of Merchant-Taylors' School, and especially of Mr. Bishop, I am quite certain, that in endeavouring to produce effect, he calumniates rather than describes, and distorts rather than pourtrays. first attacks what he calls "his huge powder'd wig," though it was only such a one as most aged clergymen at that period wore, and proceeds to relate, that he, and his school-fellows, shot paper darts into it, till it looked like

He

a fretful porcupine."-Too silly a tale for any one to credit, who knows that the school-room is the largest in England, that three other masters were continually in it, and that such missiles, if discharged, must have been seen by them, as well as by all the boys, amounting to about two-hundred, some of the seniors among whom, out of respect to their beloved master, would have taken the law into their own hands, and avenged the insult. After this attack on the wig, the Memoirs proceed to relate, that Mr. Bishop had chalkstone knuckles, which he used "to rap on the writer's head, like a bag of marbles." Now, that the joints of his hands had been swollen by hereditary gout, is true, but the disease which thus enlarges enfeebles likewise, and if the knuckles ever made an impression on the skull of this mime, it was only because, for