that they hade at a fare holden yerely at Saint lyves, in your countie of Huntyngdon, [which had fallen] to rewyn and decaye, so that the p'decessours of y' seyd Orators lost the advantage of the seyd toll, &c. Whereupon the said late kyng, in considerac'on thereof, by his letters pattents, &c. discharged the said p'decessors of youre Orators by his said letters pattents of the said xxli. And, &c. the Inhabitants of the same towne be nowe more symple and poore then evr they were afore tyme, insomoche that there is nowe fewe or non p'sons there able to s've y Grace in the offyce of Bailliffs in yo' said towne, because of the yereley payment of the said fee ferme of xlj; for whereas of olde tyme paste ther were xv parish churches win the same towne, nowe there be but foure p'ishe churches there. Maye it therfore please y1 saide Highnes, &c. to graunt yor most honorable letters of discharge of the said yerely xxli, wt all arrearages of the same, in due forme, &c.

Early in the reign of Henry VIII. there is another similar petition by the Bailiffs and Burgesses to that king, for a further release of the fee-farm rent, in consequence of the continued or increased distress of the town, which, like many others, if taken abstractedly, may seem to countenance the presumption in favour of such burgesses being a selected few; but if compared with other documents, is evidently intended to have a more general application, not to all the inhabitants certainly, but to all the housekeepers paying scot and lot, that is, bearing its burthens; and, as a consequence, enjoying its advantages. This petition is very long, and for that reason only we shall take no further notice of it.

There are also some pleadings in the Court of Equity of the Duchy between the king's tenants of Huntingdon and the Borough of Cambridge, relating to the right of that borough to take toll of such king's tenants of the Duchy, who are said to be exempted from all toll by charter when going into the town of Cambridge. A more particular recital of these pleadings may not be necessary, as they have no direct bearing on the present question.

There is, moreover, a petition by the Burgesses of Huntingdon to the same king, for some relief in consequence of an undue election of officers, which affords no evidence, per se, upon the subject, though, when joined with others, it is apparent, that such Burgesses meant the persons liable to the fee-farm rent and other burthens, i. e. the housekeepers.

In the 23rd of King Henry VIII. there is a very singular document preserved in the corporation-chest, which is inserted at length. It may be considered a grant at the request of the king to an individual, of the next presentation to St. John's, signed as the act literally (and not figuratively, in the manner of the Indentures of return to Parliament) of all the Burgesses of Huntingdon, amounting together to fifty-four.

In the language of this instrument, the grantee is to "have our common seal for the said Hospital." We have none of these ancient presentations extant, and the records of the institutions so frequently mentioned here, take no notice of the formal act of presentation by the patrons the Burgesses. It is clear, however, by the recital in question, that the Burgesses presented under a common seal; and it must be remembered, that they did so in no case in the affair of returning members to Parliament, till comparatively recent times. As patrons of St. John's, they acted in a corporate character; as electors they acted severally.

It may be said by the present corporation (and valeat quantum), that so small a number as fifty-four is evidence that a portion only of the inhabitant householders of the place could have acted, and they are expressly said to be all the Burgesses. Admitting that the signatures are literally and not representatively those of all the Burgesses, the number is small, and taken by itself, this document may be thought favourable to the present corporation; but here again we must turn to other documents, and compare this

with them.

The Inquisitiones Nonarum, in the time of Edward III., return 160 names of Burgesses (see p. 36), but it is most obvious that Huntingdon had been retrograding in population from the time of Edward I. By the petition just noticed, it appears that in early times there were fifteen parish churches, whereas then (temp. Henry VIII.) there were but four; there were, moreover, but few left able to bear the office of bailiff. Looking, therefore, to the facts displayed by other records, it immediately ceases to be matter of surprise, that there should be but fifty-four responsible housekeepers in the place; the wonder is rather that there were so many.

Be it remembered, moreover, that even if the Charter of Richard III. had the effect of creating a select corporation, and that these fifty-four persons were the corporators, to the exclusion of the other housekeepers, it could not have taken the elective franchise from the housekeepers at large, if they had previously exercised that right.

From the Corporation Chest.

WHEREAS it pleased the King of his most noble Grace to write unto us the Bailiffs of the Borough of Huntingdon, and to all the Burgesses of the same, for our consent and assent at the next avoidance of the House and Hospital of St. John in Huntingdon, being of our gift, as it is apparent unto his Grace, as it appeareth by his gracious letters signed and sealed at the monastery of Waltham, the 1st day of October, in the 23rd year of his most noble reign. Wherefore we, Thomas Basse and William Horwood, Bailiffs of the said Borough, with the consent of all and singular the Burgesses of the same, the 16th day of January, in the said 23rd year of the said king's most noble reign, Henry VIII., at his high pleasure and gracious desire, we give and grant unto Sir Roger Reynolds, Clerk, the next avoidance by death, dimission, resignation, or any otherwise, our said Hospital of St. John, in our said Borough of Huntingdon, and in our said gift, with all and singular the profits, commodities, and advantages, that in any wise to the same Hospital belongeth or appertaineth,, unto the said Sir Roger

Reynolds, according to the King's most high pleasure and intent. And also will that the said Sir Roger, or his deputy, shall declare unto the King's Grace, or unto his most honourable Council, these our loving minds and intents, whereby his Grace may perceive we are not minded the contrary, but that the said Sir Roger shall have our common seal for the said Hospital at the next avoidance, according to his gracious letters. And for the assurance of this our said good minds shall not be denied in time coming, we, the said Bailiffs, with all and singular the Burgesses of the said Borough, have subscribed our names, and we that cannot write have subscribed our signs, the 30th day of January, in the 23rd year of the reign of our Sovereign Liege Lord, King Henry VIII.

(Signed)

Thomas Basse,

Wyll. Horwood, Bailiffs.

And 52 other names.

Unfortunately, the returns to parliament during the reign of Richard III. and Henry VII. and VIII. for Huntingdon are not now to be found, so that we have not the benefit of any information they might afford as to any change taking place in the elective franchise immediately after the charter of incorporation of Richard III. The first returns, however, which follow after that charter, are, as might be anticipated, in perfect unison with those which have gone before. Whether the charter of Richard first incorporated those who were previously entitled to vote or not, whether it constituted a select few, as corporators, to the prejudice of the rest or not, this charter could have had no effect on the elective franchise: we could not therefore expect, consistently with our view of the suhject, to find any alteration in this particular. The Burgesses, as anciently constituted, continued to elect, and severally to sign and seal the indentures; for these ancient Burgesses, would have continued to enjoy that right by law, even though the incorporated Burgesses should exclude some of them from their select body.

THIS INDENTURE WINESSETH, that we, the aforesaid Bailiffs, by the common assent and consent of the Burgesses

of the Town, and by virtue of a certain Mandate to us by the aforesaid Sheriff directed, as by the said Mandate more fully is manifest and appears, have elected John Arscotte, Esq. and John Millcent, Gentleman, to be Burgesses of the Parliament, who have, and each of them hath for us and the Borough aforesaid, sufficient power and authority for themselves for the Borough and the Town aforesaid, &c. In Witness whereof we have caused our Seals to be set to these presents. Dated at the Guildhall of Huntingdon aforesaid, the day, month, and year abovesaid.

Writ, dated the 5th of January in the 6th year

of the reign of Edward VI.

THIS INDENTURE Between Giles Alyngton, Knt., Sheriff of the County of Huntingdon, of the one part, and Philip Clampe and Matthew Andro, Bailiffs of the Town of Huntingdon, William Horwood [and Twenty others], Burgesses of the Town aforesaid on the other part, WITNESSETH, that by virtue of a Writ of the Lord the King, to me the aforesaid Sheriff directed, who were present at the proclamation aforesaid, have elected William Turwhytt and Thomas Mary Wyngfyld, Gentlemen, two Burgesses of the more discreet and most sufficient of the Town aforesaid, according to the form of the statute thereupon enacted and provided, who have full and sufficient power for themselves and the Commonalty of the Borough aforesaid, &c. In Witness whereof, part of these Indentures as well as the aforesaid Sheriff, as the aforesaid Burgesses, have alternately set their day and place abovesaid.

Seals

Writ, dated August, in the 1st year of the reign

of Queen Mary.

THIS INDENTURE Between Giles Alyngton, Knight, Sheriff of the County of Huntingdon, of the one part, and Philip Clampe and Matthew Androw, Bailiffs of the Town of Huntingdon, and William Horwood [and Twenty others], Burgesses of the Town aforesaid of the other part, WITNESSETH, that by virtue of a Writ of the Lady the Queen, to me the aforesaid Sheriff directed, who were present at the Proclamation aforesaid, have elected Thomas Mary Wyngfyld and John Purvey, Gentlemen, two Burgesses of the more discreet and most sufficient of the Town aforesaid, according to the form of the statute thereupon enacted