Sir,--Perhaps you may deem the following singular tenure from “Horsey’s
Beauties of the Isle of Wight, 1826,” worth adding to those already
perpetuated in the _Every-Day Book_, and your present agreeable
continuation of it.
At the foot of St. John’s Wood are two meadows, one on each hand, the
main road running between them. These meadows are known by the name of
Monk’s Meads. It is a remarkable circumstance, that the first crop of
hay they produce annually is reaped, not by the owner, nor the person
who may rent the land, but by the tenant of Newnham farm, which is
situated upwards of two miles distant, and has no connection whatever
with the land. There is a legend attaching to this circumstance. The
tale is, that one of the monks of Quarr was in the habit of visiting the
family that once occupied Newnham farm, and as his visits were pretty
frequent, and he was accustomed to put up his horse at the farmer’s
expense, he bequeathed to the tenant of Newnham farm the first crop of
hay which these meadows produce annually, each meadow to be reaped for
his benefit every alternate year; and the warrant for his doing so was
to be the continuance of a rude image in the wall of the house. Whether
this be the legal tenure or not is another question; one thing is
certain, the idol is preserved in the wall, the farmer comes on the
specific day for the crop, and the produce is carried to Newnham.