this celebrated relic, from which a few of our particulars are drawn,
conjectures that the horn would be brought to the Baltic shores by Arabic
merchants; if so, it will be then more feasible to suppose that the
carving would be executed previous to its being brought for sale. Having
so far considered the form of the horn, let us next look a little into its
history. The tradition, accepted from time immemorial, is simply
this--that, a considerable period before the Conquest, the horn was given
to the see of York by a Dane who had settled in England, as a symbol of
endowment of the wide lands which he conferred upon the episcopate. This
tradition comes down to the present day through various channels. First is
a poem in Latin (among the Cotton MSS.), describing the different gifts to
York up to about the twelfth century. In this, Ulf is described as an
eminent Yorkshire earl and ruler, his gifts to the church are mentioned,
and their confirmation by Edward the Confessor, the horn is noted to be
the sign of endowment, and its great beauty enlarged upon. In one
particular, the description differs from one that might be written at the
present day, inasmuch that, whereas the horn is stated in the poem to be
white, its hue now is brown. In Holland's "Britannia," the tradition is
given as historically true, and in the following words: "Then it was,
also, that princes bestowed many great livings and lands upon the church
of York, especially Ulphus, the son of Torald (I note so much out of an
old book, that there may plainly appear a custom of our ancestors in
endowing churches with livings). This Ulphus, aforesaid, ruled the west
part of Deira, and by reason of the debate that was like to arise between
his sons, the younger and the elder, about their lordships and their
seigniories after his death, forthwith he made them all alike. For,
without delay, he went to York, took the horn with him out of which he was
wont to drink, filled it with wine, and, before the altar of God, blessed
Saint Peter, prince of the Apostles, kneeling upon his knees, he drank,
and thereby enfeoffed them [the church] in all his lands and revenues.
Which horn was there kept, as a monument (as I have heard) until our
fathers' days."
In Domesday Book is mentioned an English thane named Ulf, who, in the
reign of Edward the Confessor, had held large possessions in Northumbria,
which, at the time of the Domesday Survey, had become the property of the
see of York. It is further stated, that large territories which were held
by the Archbishop of York, at the time of the Conquest, had also been
owned by this same Ulf. In Kirkby's "Inquest" (_temp._ Edward I.), these
lands are again noted to be the gift of Ulf. Thus far, the tradition is
corroborated by history, but the statement that Ulf's sons were
disinherited is incorrect, for Ulf had a large extent of property left
after making his munificent gift to the Church, which his sons in due time
inherited. These two sons, Archil and Norman, are included among the
King's thanes in Domesday Book. There was also another Ulf, who lived in
the time of the King Canute, dying in 1036, but, though confounded with
the Ulphus of our story, he was not the same, and had nothing to do with
the charter horn of York.
[Illustration: THE PUSEY HORN.]
The Pusey Horn, preserved at Pusey House, near Farringdon, has a curious
traditional history, carrying us back to the days of the warlike Canute,
and his struggles with the Saxons. It is related, that, on one occasion,
the king's soldiers and the Saxons were encamped near each other, in the
neighbourhood of Pusey. An ancestor of the Pusey family, serving as an
officer under the king, discovered an ambuscade, formed by the Saxons, to
intercept the king's army. He gave Canute a timely intimation of their
intentions, and thus enabled him to foil their plans. For this important
information, Canute gave to his informant and his heirs the manor of
Pusey, and as a ratification of the grant, a horn was presented. It is the
horn of an ox, measuring two feet and half-an-inch in length, and at the
larger end is a foot in circumference. The colour of it is dark brown.
Round the middle is a ring of silver-gilt, and the horn is supported on
two hound's feet. The small end has a screw stopper, also of silver-gilt,
in the form of a hound's head. It forms with the stopper a drinking horn,
and without it a hunting horn. The silver ring bears the following
inscription:
[Illustration: kyng knowde geue wyllyam pewse [thorn]us horne to holde by [thorn]y
lond]
Hickes, writing about 1685, states: "Both the horn and manor were in his
time possessed by Charles Pusey, who had recovered them in Chancery,
before Lord Chancellor Jefferies; the horn itself being produced in court,
and with universal admiration received, admitted, and proved to be the
identical horn by which, as by charter, Canute had conveyed the manor of
Pusey about seven hundred years before." On the 25th of October, 1849, at
a festival at Wantage, Berkshire, to celebrate the anniversary of the
birthday of King Alfred, a dinner was held, and amongst the guests were
Mr. Pusey, M.P., John Britton, the antiquary, and other notable men. It is
reported that, "during the proceedings, a pleasureable interest was
excited by the production of the extraordinary piece of antiquity, the
Pusey Horn, presented by King Canute to the ancestor of Mr. Pusey, and
forming the original tenure of the Pusey property, and inalienable from
it."
According to a popular legend, Edward the Confessor presented to a
huntsman named Nigel, and his heirs, a hide of land and a wood called
Hulewood, and the rangership of the royal forest of Bernwood,
Buckinghamshire, as a reward for his courage in slaying a large wild boar
which infested the place. The land was called Derehyde, and on it he built
a house, naming it Borestalle, in memory of the slain animal. The grant
was accompanied with a horn, which is preserved by the lords of
Borestalle, and is known as Nigel's horn. It is described as "being of a
dark-brown colour, variegated and veined like tortoise-shell, and fitted
with straps of leather to hang about the neck. It is tipped at each end
with silver-gilt, and mounted with a plate of brass, having sculptured
thereon the figure of a horn, and also several plates of silver-gilt
_fleurs-de-lis_ and an old brass seal ring." In addition to the horn, is
also preserved, an old folio vellum volume, containing transcripts of
charters and evidences relating to the estate. It contains, we read, a
rude drawing of the site of Borstall House and Manor, and under is the
rude figure of a man presenting, on his knees, to the king, the head of a
boar, on the point of a sword, and the king returning to him a
coat-of-arms, arg. a fesse, gu. two crescents, and a horn, verde. The
armorial bearings belong to a much later period than the reign of Edward
the Confessor.
Before the Rhyne Toll was collected in Buckinghamshire, a horn was blown
with not a little ceremony. The right of gathering the toll originated as
a reward for a heroic deed performed in the days when the wild boar roamed
the forests of England, much to the terror of the people. According to
tradition, a ferocious boar had its lair in the ancient forest of
Rookwoode. It kept the inhabitants of the district in constant fear of
their lives, and prevented strangers visiting them. A valiant knight, the
Lord of Chetwode, resolved to rid the country of the monster, or die in
the attempt. Says an old ballad:
"Then he blowed a blast full north, south, east, and west--
Wind well thy horn, good hunter;
And the wild boar then heard him full in his den,
As he was a jovial hunter.
Then he made the best of his speed unto him--
Wind well thy horn, good hunter;
Swift flew the boar, with his tusks smeared with gore,
To Sir Ryalas, the jovial hunter.
Then the wild boar, being so stout and so strong--
Wind well thy horn, good hunter;
Thrashed down the trees as he ramped him along
To Sir Ryalas, the jovial hunter.
Then they fought four hours on a long summer day--
Wind well thy horn, good hunter;
Till the wild boar would fain have got him away
From Sir Ryalas, the jovial hunter.
Then Sir Ryalas he drawed his broad sword with might--
Wind well thy horn, good hunter;
And he fairly cut the boar's head off quite,
For he was a jovial hunter."
The countryside rang with the knight's praise, and the king heard the
welcome news. The sovereign, as a reward for his services, made "the
jovial hunter," we are told, "the knight tenant _in capite_, and
constituted his manor paramount of all the manors within the limits and
extent of the royal forest of Rookwoode." The privilege of levying toll on
all cattle passing through nine townships was granted to him and his heirs
for ever. It was known as the Rhyne Toll, and commenced at midnight on
October 29th, and ended at midnight on November 7th annually. Before the
commencement of the collection of the toll, a horn was blown, as we have
previously stated, with some ceremony. The toll was collected until 1868,
when it was given up by Sir George Chetwode, the lord of the manor.
In the Chapter House, at Carlisle, is preserved an interesting relic known
as the "Horns of the Altar." Mr. Frank Buckland inspected it in 1879, and
expressed his astonishment at finding it to be a walrus's skull, without
the lower jaw, with tusks about eighteen inches long. The skull itself
was marked out with faded colours, so as to somewhat resemble a human
skull. Canon Prescott supplied Mr. Buckland with some information about
this curious charter horn. He said: "In the year 1290, a claim was made by
the King, Edward I., and by others, to the tithes on certain lands lately
brought under cultivation in the forest of Inglewood. The Prior of
Carlisle appeared on behalf of his convent, and urged their right to the
property on the ground that the tithes had been granted to them by a
former king, who had enfeoffed them by a certain ivory horn (_quoddam
cornu eburneum_), which he gave to the Church of Carlisle, and which they
possessed at that time. The Cathedral of Carlisle has had in its
possession for a great number of years two fine walrus tusks, with a
portion of the skull. They appear in ancient inventories of goods of the
cathedral as 'one horn of the altar, in two parts,' or 'two horns of the
altar' (1674), together with other articles of the altar furniture. But
antiquaries come to the conclusion that these were identical with the
'ivory horn' referred to above. Communications were made to the Society of
Antiquaries (see _Archaeologia_, Vol. III.) and they were called the
'Carlisle Charter Horns.' Such charter horns were not uncommon in ancient
days. Bishop Lyttleton (1768), in a paper read before the society, said
the 'horns' were so called improperly, being 'certainly the teeth of some
very large sea fish.' It is probable that they were presented to the
church as an offering, perhaps by some traveller, and used as an ornament
to the altar. Such ornaments were frequent, both at the smaller altars and
in the churches."
Mr. Buckland, adverting to the foregoing, says: "I cannot quite understand
how a walrus's skull and teeth came to be considered so valuable as to be
promoted to the dignity of a charter horn of a great cathedral like
Carlisle. I am afraid Bishop Lyttleton, 1768, was not a naturalist, or he
would never have called the tusks of a walrus 'the teeth of some very
large fish.'"
Hungerford, a pretty little town at the extreme west end of the royal
county of Berks, has its ancient charter horn, and linked to it are some
curious customs. A contributor to a local journal for 1876, states that
"the town of Hungerford, Berkshire, enjoys some rare privileges and
maintains some quaint customs. The inhabitants have the right of pasturage
and of shooting over a large tract of downs and marsh land bequeathed to
them by John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, subject to the annual observance
of certain customs at this period of the year. They have also the right of
fishing for trout in the Kennet, which flows through the borough.
Hockney-day and the usual customs have just been observed in their
integrity. The old horn, by which the tenure is held, had been blown from
the Town Hall, summoning the commoners to their rights, and the tything
men, whose duties are unique, have ably fulfilled them. These gentlemen
carry long poles, decorated with flowers and garlands, having to call at
each house and exact the tribute of a coin from each male, and a kiss from
each lady. The High Constable or Mayor, whose office combines the duties
of the coroner, is chosen on this day."
Blowing three blasts on a horn formed part of an old custom at Chingford,
Essex. Blount, in his "Tenures of Land," and the historians of the county,
direct attention to the ceremony. The estate of Brindwood's was held under
the following conditions: Upon every alteration, the owner of the estate,
with his wife, man servant, and maid servant, each single on a horse,
come to the parsonage, where the owner does his homage, and pays his
relief in the manner following--he blows three blasts with his horn,
carries a hawk on his fist, and his servant has a greyhound in a slip,
both for the use of the rector for the day; he receives a chicken for his
hawk, a peck of oats for his horse, and a loaf of bread for his greyhound.
They all dine, after which the master blows three blasts with his horn,
and they all depart. A correspondent to the _Gentleman's Magazine_ for
1790, gives particulars of this custom being kept up in the days of Queen
Elizabeth.
At Bainbridge, the chief place of the forest of Wensleydale, Yorkshire,
still lingers an old horn-blowing custom. An instrument known as the
forest horn is blown on the green every night at ten o'clock from the
first of September to Shrovetide. It is a very large one, and made from
the horn of an ox. Its sound on the still night air may be heard for a
considerable distance. In bygone ages, horns were blown to enable belated
travellers to direct their course over the almost trackless roads to their
destinations, and the welcome notes of the horn have saved many a lonely
wayfarer from perishing in the snow.
[Illustration: SUNDAY IN THE OLDEN TIME.]
The Old English Sunday.
The history of Sunday in England is a subject which merits careful
consideration. The laws and customs of bygone times are both curious and
interesting. The manner of observing Sunday is a subject which is fast
coming to the front, and one which we must be prepared to discuss in a
spirit of fairness.
In our investigations we shall find that, prior to the period of the
Puritans coming into power in England, the day did not rank higher than
other festivals observed by the Church.
Our Sunday laws commence with the Saxons, a rude race, who delighted in a
wild life, in which war and bloodshed formed prominent features. Gluttony
and drunkenness prevailed to a considerable extent.
The laws and canons passed from the days of Ine, who commenced to reign
in Wessex in the year 688, to the time of Edward the Confessor, who died
in 1066, clearly show that the Saxon rulers did their utmost to prevent
Sunday labour, and that firm measures were also taken to put a stop to
marketing on that day.
It appears, from the enactments of Ine, that if a lord commanded his slave
to work on a Sunday, the slave became a freeman, and the lord was also
fined thirty shillings. If, unknown to his lord, a slave worked, he was
severely punished, or, in lieu of corporal punishment, he had to pay a
fine. If a freeman was found guilty of Sunday labour, he had to forfeit
his freedom, or pay a fine of sixty shillings. A priest was doubly liable.
Alfred was King of Wessex from 871 to 901, and we learn from his laws that
if a thief was caught stealing on Sunday, at Yule, at Easter, on Holy
Thursday, or during Rogation days, the penalty was double the amount of
fine inflicted during the Lenten fast.
The laws of Edward, the elder, and Guthrum, made after the peace between
the Danes and the English, 901 to 924, include some strict Sunday
regulations. "If any one engage in Sunday marketing," says the statute,
"let him forefit the chattel, and twelve ore (192 pence) among the Danes,
and thirty shillings among the English." King Athelstan, about 924, passed
a similar act to the preceding one, anent Sunday marketing.
Several important ecclesiastical laws were made in the reign of Edgar,
which commenced in 959 and ended 975. We find, according to his
enactments, that Sunday was to be kept from noontide on Saturday until the
dawn of Monday, on peril of a fine. The following are two of his canons:
"And we enjoin you, that on feast days, heathen songs and devil's games be
abstained from."
"And we enjoin, that Sunday and folk-motes be abstained from."
When Canute, King of Denmark, became King of England, he passed several
laws similar to those of Edgar. He also directed that Sunday should
commence at noon on Saturday and end at dawn on Monday. He strongly
forbade marketing and worldly works on Sunday. A condemned man in this
reign was not put to death on a Sunday, unless he commenced fighting or
attempted to flee.
Before leaving this section of our subject, it may be observed that the
settlement of the Danes here did not produce any great changes, for the
customs and institutions of their native land were similar to those of
England. The civilization of the Danes, however, was lower in its standard
than that of the Saxons. During the whole of the Anglo-Saxon period,
slaves were sold like cattle in the open market. Many slaves were exported
to Scotland and Ireland from the English markets.
It may not be out of place to make a few remarks on slavery. They have not
any special bearing on the Sunday question, but illustrate the hard life
of the period when severe laws prevailed. Of circumstances which brought
persons into slavery, we may mention, in the first place, those obtained
by right of conquest; next, those sold into slavery by their parents or by
their own free will; another class were those found guilty of stealing,
who were made slaves as a punishment for their crimes; many were doomed to
slavery through not being able to pay the penalties imposed for breaking
the laws of the land; and lastly, we find not a few traces of men
voluntarily surrendering their liberty for food. Famines, at this time,
occurred very often, and men were glad to be slaves for their own daily
bread. A parent might sell his child if it had reached the age of seven
years, and at thirteen a child might sell itself into slavery. A slave was
usually estimated at four times the value of an ox. In the reign of King
Athelstan, the punishment for theft was most severe; and, on the authority
of Lingard, it is stated that a law was made respecting the offences
committed by slaves against others than their masters, to the effect that
a man thief was ordered to be stoned to death by twenty of his fellows,
each of whom was punished with three whippings if he failed thrice to hit
the culprit. A woman thief was burnt by eighty women slaves, each of whom
brought three billets of wood to the execution. If she failed, she was
likewise subjected to the punishment of three whippings. After the death
of the offender, each slave paid three pennies as a fine to the
proprietor. As Christianity spread, the condition of the slave became
happier than before its truths were known. The slave might still be sold
at the pleasure of the owner, but with the important restriction that a
Christian was not permitted to be made over to a Pagan.
A low value was set on human life in Saxon England. Flogging was
generally adopted for punishing persons guilty of offences, whether slight
or serious. It was not an uncommon practice for mistresses to whip, or
have their servants whipped to death.
On the 14th of October, in the year 1066, was fought the battle of
Hastings. The contending armies were one led by Harold, the last of the
Saxon kings, and the other by William, Duke of Normandy. Harold was slain,
his brave followers defeated, and on the following Christmas Day, in the
Abbey of Westminster, the Conqueror was crowned William I. On the whole,
he made a noble sovereign, and the Normans added nobility of character to
the people of the country in which they settled. It may fairly be asserted
that, all that is best of old English life is the outcome of the
settlement of the Normans in this land. The Sunday laws under the Normans
were, to a large extent, an expansion of those in force in the Saxon era.
Sunday trading received much attention, several enactments being passed
respecting it. In earlier ages, markets and fairs were held on a Sunday,
and in many instances in churchyards. At the commencement of the
fourteenth century, the traders of Cockermouth suffered much from the
active business operations at Crosthwaite. A petition was presented to
Parliament, in 1305, by the inhabitants of the former town, stating that,
owing to the sale of corn, flour, beans, flesh, fish, and other kinds of
merchandise at Crosthwaite Church, on Sundays, their market was fast
declining, and that the persons who farmed the tolls from the king were
unable to pay their rent. An order was made for closing the church market
at Crosthwaite.
Thursday was the chartered market-day at Bradford, Yorkshire, but it was
changed to Sunday, and doubtless was held in the churchyard. The toll,
about the time of Edward I., it is said, yielded L3 per annum, an amount
equal to about L45 of money at the present time.
A statute, made in the reign of Edward I., in the year 1285, ordered
"that, from henceforth, neither fairs nor markets be held in churchyards,
for the honour of the Church."
A market was granted to the town of Sedgefield, Durham, by Bishop Kellawe,
in the year 1312, and it was to be held on a Friday. The people soon
brought about a change, and held the market on a Sunday. The rector of
Sedgefield directed the attention of Bishop Bury to the Sunday trading,
and he confirmed the grant made a few years previously.
John Thorsby, Archbishop of York, about the year 1367, delivered to his
subordinates a charge respecting Sunday trading. It is stated in the
document as follows: "Desiring, therefore, to obviate some errors and
abuses, so far as we can, which we see to grow rife in the church; in the
first place (according to the example of Christ, who would have his own
church called a house, not of merchandise, but of prayer; and not allowing
fraudulent traffic there to be exercised, cast the buyers and sellers out
of the temple), we firmly forbid any one to keep a market in the churches,
the porches, and cemeteries thereunto belonging, or other holy places of
our diocese, on the Lord's day or other festivals, or to presume to
traffic or hold any secular pleasures therein; and let there be no
wrestlings, shootings, or plays, which may be the cause of sin,
dissension, hatred, or fighting, therein performed; but let every Catholic
come thither to pray, and to implore pardon for his sin." About this time,
a similar charge was made by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
In the year 1409, a statute of Henry IV. ordered:
"He that playeth at unlawful games on Sundays and other festival days
prohibited by the statute, shall be six days imprisoned."
At Hull, in 1428, the local bench of magistrates drew up a code of
regulations respecting Sunday trading. The chief orders were as follow:
"That no markets be held upon Sunday, nor any merchandise or goods sold
thereon, under penalty of 6s. 8d. to the seller and 3s. 4d. to the buyer,
except according to ancient custom, from Lammas to Michaelmas."
"That no butcher sell or expose for sale any meat on Sunday, under the
aforesaid penalty."
"That no cooks nor victuallers dress any meat on Sunday, except for
strangers, and that, too, before eleven o'clock."
"That no tradesmen keep their shops open on Sunday, nor sell any goods;
nor any vintners or ale-sellers deliver or sell ale or wine on Sunday,
under the aforesaid penalties."
"Any person who shall inform against transgressors, shall be entitled to
one-eighth over and above half of the sums so forfeited, provided he
acted out of pure zeal, devoid of self-interest or malice."