Amongst the most interesting features of the country are our forests. There is nothing that we come in contact with, which conveys to our minds such vivid impressions of the progression of England in power and population; which presents such startling contrasts between the present and the past. We look back into the England which an old forest brings to our mind, and see a country one wild expanse of woodlands, heaths, and mosses1. Here and there a little simple town sending up
Passing a dreamy life, diversified5
A horn, resounding7 through the neighbouring glen,
Woke them as from a trance, and led them out
To catch a brief glimpse of the hunt’s wild route;
The music of the hounds; the tramp and rush
Left round the eager listeners;—the deep mood
Fallen again upon that forest vast.
We see in the distance the stately castle of the feudal11 lord; we hear the bell of the convent from the neighbouring dale. There are solitary12 hamlets and scattered13 cottages, with mud walls and thatched roofs, peeping from the ocean of umbrageous14 tree-tops,[349] and little patches of cultivation15. Born thralls16 are tilling the lands of the thane, or watching his flocks and herds18, to defend them from the wolves and bears; foresters are going their rounds beneath hoary19 oaks, on the watch for trespassers on venison and vert. We meet with the pilgrim with his scallop shell, and sandal shoon; we come suddenly on the solitude of the hermit21, where some spring bubbles from the forest turf, or scatters22 its waters down the fern-hung rocks. Perhaps the noble and his train sweep past in pursuit of the stag or boar; perhaps the outlaw23 and his train in the same pursuit, and setting at defiance24, amid vast woods and tracks familiar to himself, all the keen officers, and bloody25 statutes26 of forest law.
It is a pleasure but to hear
Amid the forest green;
With merry blasts between.
Stewart Rose’s Red King.
Perhaps there is the sound of martial30 alarm—the clash of sudden onset31 in the forest glade32. The dwellings33 of the vassals34 surrounding the lord’s castle are in flames, fired by the band of some hostile noble. Such is the England into which an old forest carries our imagination;—partially peopled with feudal barons36 and unlettered serfs; without commerce abroad; without union within; brave, yet demi-savage; aspiring37, but violent; pious38, yet sanguinary in all its penal39 enactments40. When we step out of memory and imagination into the cheerful daylight and conscious present, what an England now! All those forests, with three or four exceptions, are gone!—their names alone left in the land by the powerful impressions of time and custom. One wide expanse of cultivation;—the garden of the world;—swarming41 towns, splendid cities, busy and populous42 hamlets appearing everywhere, and fenced fields interscattered with patrician43 dwellings; not crowned with towers, lit by mere44 loop-holes, defended with bastioned gateways45, portcullises, and drawbridges, and moats; but standing46 with open aspects of peaceful beauty, amid fair gardens and fair lawns, undefended by feudal ramparts, because a thousand times more strongly fortified47 by the security of enlightened laws. We see a swarming people,[350] free, and full of knowledge, even to its hinds48 and mechanics, in possession of the highest arts of life; the hills and dales covered with their harvests and their cattle;—the seas round the whole globe with their ships;—a people, at once the most powerful and the most civilized49 on the earth.
Those old feudal towers are, for the most part, crumbling50 into ruin, the wasting vestiges51 of a barbarous system, or embellished52 and adapted to the spirit of the present times. Those abbeys and convents, standing in similar ruins, or exhibiting still more marvellous change,—the altars pulled down, the chantries silenced, and the professors of a sacred celibacy53 driven out, and replaced by men of the world, with their wives and families;—no longer places of worship, but places of domestic abode54. Those two mighty55 powers, Feudalism and Popery—gone for ever!
Here is an astounding56 change. A stupendous march has been going on from that time to this; and one from which, is there a man, however much he may murmur57 at the present times, who would be willing to recede58 a single step? Would the noble be willing to give up the delights of London for a feudal castle surrounded by wild woods and wastes, a troop of rude retainers, and no resources but the year’s round of hunting, or of party feuds—not of tongues in Westminster, but of swords and firebrands in the forests? Would he acquiesce59 in this, when the country can scarcely keep him a few months, though he can assemble round him kindred spirits, books, the elegancies and mind of social life, and the speediest news of the whole world? Would the country gentleman like to sink into a feudal retainer? The merchant follow his procession of packhorses through narrow roads, and in high peril60 of bandits? The farmer drop down into the born thrall17? The parish priest convert his pleasant parsonage and family into the solitary bachelorship of popery? Would the man most pressed by the cares and heart-griping necessities of this populous and struggling time, be willing to accept the quiet simplicity61 of those days, with their monotonous62 solitude, ignorance, servitude, and perpetual danger of arbitrary infliction63 of death or mutilation?
And yet, in what colours of the rose do our imaginations clothe these times! The repose64, the simplicity, the picturesque65 solitude, come before us with a peculiar66 feeling of delight. And so, no doubt,[351] there was a wild charm about them. The old minstrels delighted to sing about them, and they did it with a feeling of nature. The green shaws, the merry green woods, especially when “the leaves were lark67 and long” in summer; when
The wood wele sang and would not cease,
Sitting upon the spray;
the exploits of the outlaw; the hymn68 of the lonely anchorite; the vesper-bell of the convent; and the chivalrous69 adventures of knights71 and dames72 in forests and hoary holts, fired them with a genuine enthusiasm, and communicate their warmth to us. No doubt, too, that baron35 and esquire, forester and lawless pursuer of the deer, had all a wild delight in their life; and instinctively73 closing the eyes of our mind upon what was dark and unpalatable in their practice, we open them to all that was free, peaceful, and in contrast with our own situation and mode of existence. We rush from cities and social anxieties into the free world of woods and wildernesses74, with hearts that feel the cool refreshments75 of nature. To us it is a novelty, with all its piquancy76 about it; and we cannot bide77 long enough to wear off the charm. We come, too, with the high poetry of a thousand intellectual associations to take possession of woodland freedom. We have all the power of Milton, Shakspeare, Spenser, and Ariosto, upon us; and how delicious seems the picturesque England of the feudal ages! We have, indeed, now too little of what they had too much. They, like the modern Americans, would gladly have exchanged some of their trees for cultivated lands; they had too much of a good thing; in popular phraseology, they could not see the wood for trees; but O! how delightful78 are those tree-lands to us, prisoners of civilization, and walkers amongst brick-walls.
Let us wander awhile now amongst those fresh woodlands. Our old chroniclers tell us, that this kingdom was once nearly overspread with forests; that they existed from time immemorial; that is, long before the Norman dynasty commenced, by which they were more perfectly79 defined, carefully fenced, and protected with sanguinary laws. They were that part of the country, and indeed, the greater part, which retained its original state. That which remained uninclosed, and therefore called forest, or foresta,[352] uasi ferarum statio, because there naturally retired80 and made their abode the wild creatures, fer? natur?. All this was held to belong to the king; and when the Conqueror81 began to reign82, who had occasion to give away and divide large tracts83 amongst his military followers85, he began to exercise more strictly86 his prerogative87 over the remainder. Not satisfied with sixty-nine forests, lying in almost every part of the kingdom, such, and so many, says Evelyn, as no other realm of Europe had, he laid waste a vast tract84 of country in Hampshire, and created another, thence called the New Forest, because it was the last added to the ancient ones, except that of Hampton Court, the work of Henry VIII.
Various theories respecting the origin of this New Forest have occupied the attention, and divided the opinions of antiquarians and historians. Polydore Virgil asserted that the Conqueror’s motive88 for afforesting so large a tract of country here, was because it enabled him to maintain it secure from the intrusion of all but his own creatures, and thereby89 always to have a most convenient station for the escape of his followers, in case of any revolt, to their own country, or for the secret and secure arrival of fresh forces thence. Mr. Camden, however, has satisfactorily shewn, that no such object was attributed to him by the chroniclers of his own and immediately succeeding times, who certainly were sufficiently91 bitter against him, for his haughty92 temper, and the reckless atrocities93 which he committed in carrying into effect his system of policy, the thorough breaking of the Saxon spirit, and the establishment of his own noblesse. No such motive, however plausible94, was attributed to him for five hundred years. As Mr. Carte very reasonably suggests, if such was his intention, he would have carried it into effect within the first five years of his reign, during which time he was engaged in putting down disaffection, and strengthening his position. In the pursuance of these objects he was not in the habit of stopping short at trifles on the score of humanity. “His horrible devastation95,” says William of Malmsbury, “of great part of Yorkshire, and all the counties belonging to England north of the Humber, was made that the Danes and Scots invading his kingdom that way might find no subsistence, and to punish the people for disaffection to his government; without regarding what number of innocent persons would[353] be involved in the destruction.” We are told, even by one of the Norman historians—Ord. Vit. iv. p. 314, 515, and by Ingulph. p. 79, who speak of it with horror, that above 160,000 men, women and children, perished by famine in those ruined counties. The devastation was such that, for above sixty miles, where before there had been many large and flourishing towns, besides a great number of villages and fine country-seats, not a single hamlet was to be seen; the whole country was uncultivated, and remained so till Henry II.’s reign.
If we date the making of this forest at the same time with the publishing of the forest laws, it will follow that it was made merely for the pleasures of the chase. This was natural enough, when we reflect that he had taken up his favourite residence at Winchester; and this is the reason assigned by all the authorities nearest to his own time. The Saxon Chronicler, believed to be cotemporary with William, assigns this sole reason, and adds—“William loved great deer, as if he had been their father;” which Henry of Huntingdon copies. No trace of other motive appears in Gemeticensis, his own chaplain, Knyton, Ordericus Vitalis, Simon Dunelmensis, Brompton, William of Malmsbury, Florence of Worcester, Matthew Paris, Hemingford, or other ancient authority. In such a man the passion for the chase was cause sufficient. In all early stages of a country, where it abounds96 with forests, and intellectual resources hardly exist, hunting must constitute the great passion of life. The Britons, the Saxons, were passionate97 hunters. Harold had already restrained all forests to his own use, and William put the finishing stroke to the system. Here, however, occurs a second point of difference of opinion in the historians. Some tell us that he made this forest, others, that he merely enlarged it. It is certain that the ancient forest of Ythene existed here before; but it is probable that it had become rather a woodland than a preserve of game; and that William’s enlargement was almost, in fact, a new creation: and strictly speaking, entirely98 so, as a forest, having its defined boundaries, its stock of deer, its appointed officers, and its code of laws and courts:—this, the very name of New Forest clearly implies.
Others, again, attribute to his son Rufus, the enlargement and the devastations, and thence look upon his own death, in the very[354] spot where he had pulled down a church, as a direct divine judgment99. There can be little doubt but that both had a hand in it. The Conqueror probably laid waste and depopulated so as to complete the boundaries of his forest, and carry out his conceived plans, and Rufus went on, on the old royal principle, of making a solitude and calling it peace, to pull down churches, and remove what hamlets or cottages yet remained to interfere100 with princely ideas of forest seclusion101. That William did all that is attributed to him, is declared by all the historians of that and immediately succeeding times; and Gemeticensis, his own chaplain, distinctly declares that it was the popular belief that the death of his two sons, Richard and Rufus, and his grandson, the son of Robert, were judgments102 of God upon him for his atrocities committed here in the making of it. These atrocities consisted in laying waste the country to the extent of thirty miles in length, or ninety in circumference103, the extent still attributed to it; destroying towns, chapels104, manors105 and mansion-houses; according to some writers, twenty-two mother-churches, to others thirty-six, and to others thirty-two. Unquestionably the number was great; two churches only being mentioned in his own Survey in Doomsday Book, between A.D. 1083 and 1086, the 17th and 20th of his reign, as standing in all that space, while in the rest of the county there were 100. This violence he completed by driving out the inhabitants, and stocking the land with deer, stags, and other game.
Such was the origin and extent of the ancient royal forests of England, all preserved and maintained for the especial and exclusive pastime of the kings. Truly the state of a king was then kingly indeed: 69 forests, 13 chases, and upwards108 of 750 parks existing in England. There were, in Yorkshire alone, in Henry VIII.’s time, 275 woods, besides parks and chases, most of them containing 500 acres. Over all these the king could sport; for it was the highest honour to a subject to receive a visit from the king to hunt in his chase, or free warren, while no subject, except by special permission and favour, could hunt in the royal parks. These 69 forests of immense extent, lying in all parts of England, and occupying no small portion of its surface, all stood then for the sole gratification of the royal pleasure of the chase, and supplying the king’s household; and few persons have now any idea of the[355] state, dignity, and systematic111 severity of this great hunting establishment of England, maintained through all succeeding reigns112 to the time of the Commonwealth113, and some part of it much longer. Each forest was an imperium in imperio, having its staff of officers,—the lord warden114, his deputy, a steward115 and bow-bearer, rangers116, keepers or foresters, verdurers, agistors, regarders, bailiffs, woodwards, beadles, etc. etc., with their own courts. First the Court of Attachment119, held every forty days, in which all attachments120 against offenders122 in the forest were received, evidence heard upon them, and were enrolled123 to be presented at the Court of Swainmote. This swainmote was held three times every year, which all the swains, or free tenants124, were bound to attend. The warder or his steward presided, and the foresters, verderers, and other ministers of the forest were the judges. Here all the attachments enrolled in the records of the Court of Attachment were received and examined, but no award or judgment was made or executed by this court; but it swore in a grand jury to examine these attachments, of which all that appeared made on sufficient grounds and evidence were reserved for the decision of the Justice-Seat, or highest court of the forest. The justice-seat, or Court of Eyre in the forest, was held once in three years. Two justices in Eyre were appointed as supreme125 judges in these courts: one having jurisdiction126 in all the forests north, and the other over those south of the Trent. Yet there appears in the early reigns to have been great irregularity in the appointment of these justices. Sometimes there were two, according to the legitimate127 ordinance128; at others we find three going the circuit, or jornay, as it was called, in Edward I.’s reign, when in the 15th year of that reign, three are named as going the jornay of the north; viz. Sir William Vesey, Thomas Normanville, and Richard of Gryppinge, justices. This Sir William Vesey, Richard of Gryppinge, and their fellows, justices, are repeatedly mentioned in the king’s writs129. This might arise from the discovery that collusion and bribery130 to cover peculation131 had been the consequence of one justice going alone; for it is complained, that it “was fonden that oure lorde the kynge had sustained grete and many folde hurte fro the jornay of Robert Neville.” Great peculation and appointment of his own creatures for his own purposes were proved against Robert Evringham, and he was “deposed[356] from his office of chief forestershippe of fee in the Forest of Sherwood for ever.”[16]
[16] MS. documents respecting Sherwood Forest, in Bromley House Library, Nottingham.
Every officer was sworn to present to the court of attachment, every offender121 against the laws of the forest, for the decision of the justices, through the process already described; a system of most summary rigour, without favour or concealment132; yet abuses still crept in; and the long term between the coming of the justices—three years—tended greatly to this; for as no case could be finally decided133 till then, it afforded vast scope for the powerful and wealthy to try the force of bribery on the justice, as well as made the case fearfully severe on those who could not find bail118 or give security, and must therefore be in gaol134 all that time; especially as a man might be taken up on presumption135. This, therefore, became a gross injustice136 to the innocent.
You would imagine from the oaths of the different officers, that their duties were all alike, for they bound them all to seize, secure, and present for attachment all persons committing any depredations137 on vert or venison; vert, curiously138 enough Anglicized—Green Hugh, i. e. green hue139, and so continually written in the Assis? Forest?, meaning every thing having a green leaf, and therefore extending from the forest trees to the underwood and shrubs140 which formed cover for the game, and also to the grass which was the food of the game. All persons seen suspiciously strolling about on the highways, especially if in cloaks, with dogs in leash141, or out of it, pursuing small birds, squirrels, or vermin, cutting turf, peat, or boughs, or fallen timber, heath, or fern, without proper authority. The dwellers in the purlieus of the forest were kept a strict eye upon; and all gates, or fences, or dykes142 were presentable which were too high for the deer to pass from one part of the forest to another. The forests were very systematically143 divided into walks, or keepings, wards110 or regards, over which was a properly subordinate succession of officers. The ranger117 had surveillance over the principal keepers; they over their deputy keepers, and night-walkers. The verderers had especially to look after the vert, although sworn to watch for and bring to punishment, offenders of all kinds, and to them must all offenders[357] be brought to give surety to appear at the attachment. Besides these, there were in every township, and every regard, woodwards and their men, who attended to the felling and accounting144 for all timber. There were agistors also to look after the agistment of cattle. The swainmote was empowered to inquire and to see that all officers punctually performed their forest duties, going regularly their rounds; and that they paid the wages of their deputies, so that none might be tempted145 to commit depredations on the game, wood, browze, peat, turf, deers’ horns, or any other product of the forest. A sharp vigilance was kept up on this head, and severe punishment awarded for such offenders. No produce of the forest might be taken out of it without a direct warrant from the justice or warden; neither cattle, timber, dead deer, vert, nor anything whatever. Those who had freeholds within the forest, as came to be the case in time, through grants from kings to favourites of one kind or another, were subject to the same restriction146. And where warrant was granted for any of these purposes, or for supplying the religious houses with wood for burning, etc., the verderers were to see that no more was actually taken out than the warrant allowed, and were punished if convicted of failing in this duty.[17] Perambulations at stated periods were made throughout each forest, its enclosures, purlieus, and boundaries, to ascertain147 that all was kept in order, and that there was neither waste of vert nor venison, which included all game; nor encroachment148 within, nor without. The external boundaries of a forest, were not like those of a park, walls or pales, but metes149 and bounds, meres150, rivers, and hills, otherwise it was not a forest.
[17] Yet a curious instance is recorded in one of the Inquisitions of Sherwood Forest, of the way in which the vigilance of these laws was evaded151. The Countess of Newcastle, whose husband was probably at that time governor of Newark Castle, had procured153 large quantities of timber out of the forest, under a warrant to furnish such timber for the necessary repairs of that castle. The quantity delivered led to an inquiry154, and it was found that the castle was not repaired at all, but that the timber had been sold, and the countess had got the cash. Yet after this it was again found, that not being able to procure152 another warrant for timber, she had, however, got one for the delivery of cord-wood for burning, and under the title of cord-wood, the deputy-warden had supplied her with some of the best oaks of the forest. On a second investigation155 it turned out that the deputy-warden was a partner in a timber trade—that timber was thus procured through the means of the countess’s plea of public service, and that she and the deputy shared the spoil.
[358]
Drifts of the forest were made at least twice in the year. “By the Assises of Pickeringe and Lancaster, the officers of the forest did use to make drifts at least twice in the year: the first, fifteen days before Midsummer, at the beginning of the fencemonth, that the forest might be avoided and emptied of all cattle during that time. And every commoner was then forced to come and challenge his beasts, and take them away, or they were taken by the officers of the forest as strays. The second drift was at Holyrood-day, when the agistors did begin to agist the king’s demesne156 woods, and all beasts and cattle of all sorts then found in them were driven by the officers of the forest to some convenient place, and impounded, and then warning was given that every man should come and fetch his own. Forests are driven for three causes. First, for the avoiding of surcharging; secondly157, for the avoiding of forreners, who have no right; thirdly, that no beasts be commoned that are not legally commonable, as geese, goats, sheep, and swine, which are not commonable. Swine, however, were admitted to the woods of the king’s forests if their noses were duly ringed, and paid for their run there, a sum called pannage; and owners of woods in the forests might run such swine in their own woods. Upon reasonable causes the officers of the forest may make their drifts oftener if they will.” Manwood’s Forest Laws, pp. 86-7.
Such was the general constitution of a forest, with its courts, officers, laws, and customs; and so systematic does it seem; surveillance and subdivision so regularly descending158 downward, till it included watch and ward109 over every part, and the familiar acquaintance of every forester with his own location, that one really wonders how any Robin159 Hood160 could long escape amongst them. The difficulty of the thing no doubt it was that contributed so much to raise his renown161. But the vast extent of the forests, the obscurity of the wooded parts, and the immense out-boundaries laying them open to the nocturnal incursions of marauders, still account for the traditionary exploits of deer-stealers, in spite of the then forest-law, which itself gave a strong spice of interest to the adventurer.
The severity of the laws under William and his immediate90 successors was monstrous163. “In the Saxon times,” says Blackstone,[359] “though no man was allowed to kill or chace the king’s deer, yet he might start any game, pursue and kill it on his own estate, but the rigour of those new constitutions vested the sole property of all the game in England in the king alone; and no man was entitled to disturb any fowl164 of the air, or any beast of the field, of such kinds as were specifically reserved for the royal amusement of the sovereign, without express license165 from the king, of a chase or a free warren; and these franchises167 were granted as much to preserve the breed of animals as to indulge the subject. From a similar principle to which, though the forest laws are now mitigated168, and by degrees grown entirely obsolete169, yet from this root has sprung a bastard170 slip, known by the name of the Game Law, now arrived to and wantoning in its highest vigour171; both founded upon the same notion of permanent property in wild creatures, and both productive of the same tyranny to the commons; but with this difference, that the forest laws established only one mighty hunter throughout the land; the game laws have raised a little Nimrod in every manor106. And in one respect, the ancient law was much less unreasonable172 than the modern, for the king’s grantee of a chase or free-warren might kill game in every part of his franchise166, but now, though a freeholder of less than 100l. a-year is forbidden to kill a partridge upon his own estate, yet nobody else, not even the lord of the manor, unless he hath a grant of free-warren, can do it without committing a trespass20, and subjecting himself to an action.”—Commentaries, iv. 415, 8vo.
The full rigour of the forest laws of the Norman dynasty must be a curious subject of contemplation to an Englishman now. William decreed the eyes of any person to be pulled out, who took either a buck173 or a boar. Rufus made the stealing of a doe, a hanging matter. The taking a hare was fined 20s., and a coney 10s., as money was then! Eadmer adds, that fifty persons of fortune, being apprehended174 by the last prince for killing175 his bucks176, were forced to purge177 themselves by the fire of ordeal178, etc. Henry I. made no distinction between him who killed a man, and him who killed a buck; and punished them who destroyed the game, though not in the forest, either by forfeiture179 of their goods or loss of limbs. The monstrous severities of Geoffrey de Langley, who, in the reign of Henry II. had a patent for all benefits accruing[360] from the expeditation of dogs, and rode through most parts of England with an armed band, committing the greatest oppressions, and extorting180 vast sums, especially from the northern gentry181, are recorded with indignation by Matthew Paris. Richard I. enacted182 mutilation and pulling out of eyes for hunting in the forest, though he afterwards relaxed a little, and contented183 himself with banishment184, imprisonment185, or fine. Whoever was summoned to the chase, and refused to go, paid a fine of 50s. to the king.
The feeling created amongst the people by this bloody code, may be imagined by the language of John of Salisbury, who, after speaking of the higher offences, says,—“What is more extraordinary is, that it is often made by law criminal to set traps or snares186 for birds, to allure187 them by springes and pipes, or use any craft to take them; and offenders are punished by forfeiture of goods, loss of limbs, or even death. One would suppose that the birds of the air and the fish of the sea were common to all; but they belong to the crown, and are claimed by the forest laws wherever they fly. Hands off! keep clear! lest you incur162 the guilt188 of high treason, and fall into the clutch of the hunters. The swains are driven from their fields, while the beasts of the forest have a liberty of roving; and the farmer’s meadows are taken from him to increase their pasture. The new-sown grounds are taken from the farmer, the pastures from the grazier and shepherd; the beehives are turned away from the flowery bank, and the very bees are hardly allowed their natural liberty.”—Polycraticon, i. 4.
Ah! Johannes Sarisburiensis, thou wert a radical189! Can any body read the indignant spirit of this passage, and say that radicalism190 is anything new under the sun? This is the very soul of Hampden. The inhumanity of those proceedings191 occasioned frequent disturbances192, till the revolt of the barons extorted193 from Henry III. the Charta de Foresta, by which he repealed194 those severe laws, and enacted others more equitable195. These, again, were from time to time softened196 by different monarchs197, as civilization and popular power and influence advanced, by what are called Assises of the Forest, which were a kind of revision and re-enactment of the forest laws, by different kings; omitting or modifying any former provisions which might seem contrary to the spirit of the time; and adding such others as were[361] deemed necessary. As, for instance, the assise of Edward I., the preamble198 of which was thus:—“Here followeth the Assise of Forest of our lorde the kinge E., sonne of kinge H. and his commandements of his forests in englonde, made by the assent199 and counsell of Archbusshoppes, busshoppes, abbots, earls, barons, knyghtes of all his realme.” This consists of twenty items; and provides principally, that any person found in the forest, or the woods of the forest, trespassing200 on the venison, shall be taken, and, on conviction of hunting or taking the king’s venison, he shall be imprisoned201, and not delivered without the king’s especial commandment, or that of his justice of the forest.[18] That all trespassers on the vert shall be taken before the verderers, and they shall find sufficient surety to come before the next court of attachment; and such attachment shall be enrolled, to be presented to the justices of the forest when they next come into those parts to hold the pleas of the forest. That none who held woods within the forest should suffer those woods to be without a keeper, or they should be taken into the king’s hands again. Such holders202 of woods, or any other persons inhabiting within the forest, should not have any bows, arrows, or arbalasts; or any brach, greyhound, or any other engine “to hurte the king of his Deare.” But any dogs introduced into the forest shall be expeditated; or, according to the English phrase, lamed203, so that they may not be able to seize the deer; and that the expeditation, or laming204 of dogs, shall be made every three years. This practice of laming is differently described by different writers.[362] Some define it as consisting in cutting off at least one of the fore-feet; others in cutting off the claws only; and others, in cutting out the fleshy part of both fore-paws. Probably the practice differed in different forests, and different ages. At all events, the dogs were so mutilated as to be unable to seize a deer; the Latin term implies the actual lopping off the foot. Future assizes confine this laming to mastiffs; no greyhounds, brachs, or brackets being allowed entrance at all. No mower205 was allowed to bring “a great mastiff to drive away the deer of our lord the king, but little dogs to look after such things as lie open.”
[18] An old rhyme, full of mystery to uninitiated ears, contained the law of attachment in this case. Any person was to be seized and conveyed before a forester or verderer, who was found,—
At dog-draw, stable-stand,
Back-berond, or bloody-hand.
Which mean,—at dog-draw, having a dog in a leash, following a deer by the scent206, in order to come upon it and slay207 it; or having wounded a deer, and following the dog-draw, or guidance of the dog to overtake it. At stable-stand, standing in the forest with bow ready to discharge at the deer, or with a dog in a leash ready to slip him on its appearance. At back-bear or back-berond, actually carrying any forest property away. At bloody-hand, with hands or person bloody, as from the actual slaughter208 of game. Though three of these are truly called by the lawyers presumption, they were held sufficient for attachment and conviction.
The assize continues—but no holders of foreign woods in the forest shall agiste[19] before the regular time of the king’s agistment, “which begins at mychalmas and lastes to martinmasse then next followinge.” That none shall assart[20] in the forest without being taken before the verderer, and giving surety to appear at the next attachment. That no tanner or whittawer of leather dwell in the forest, out of boroughs209, towns, etc. That any archbishops, bishops210, barons, or knight70 being found hunting, the forester shall demand “a wedde and a pledge,” and if he refuse, the forester shall see “his dede,” and cause it to be enrolled to be presented before the justice of the forest. Other assizes say, that the bodies of such dignitaries, whether temporal or spiritual, shall be seized till they give security for their appearance; but that any such nobleman, or dignitary, being sent for to the king on any business, shall have the privilege of hunting one or two deer as he goes through the forest, and the same on his return, provided it be in view of the forester, otherwise he shall blow a horn, lest he seem to steal it.
[19] That is, turn in cattle to graze, at so much per head, which was done in most forests, and the money paid to the verderer,—a certain number of persons mostly having a right of common besides, by grant or charter.
That any man going along the king’s highway, through a forest, with a bow, shall bear it without string; or with dogs, he shall have them coupled, and his greyhounds “knytted in a leash.” That if any damage be done to the king’s vert or venison, or waste, of which no rational account can be given, the foresters, or verderers, under whose care the said charges have been, shall be taken, and no satisfaction but their own bodies shall be received till the king,[363] or his justice, have had their will of them. Yet, so early as Henry II., it was found that all these strict provisions being insufficient212 to prevent waste of the woods, and “extreme minishing of the deere,” the office of regarder was established. The regarders were originally to be knights, but “other good people” were afterwards admitted. They were to be chosen by the king’s writ107, and there were to be twelve in each forest. The foresters and verderers were gentlemen: the former appointed by the king’s letters-patent; the latter by writ in full county, like our present members of parliament; yet were the regarders set as inspectors213 over them. They were to go through every part of the forest, accompanied by the foresters, verderers, woodwards, bailiffs, and beadles, and examine into the state of vert and venison; comparing them with the reports of their predecessors214, and seeing that no waste, or embezzlement215, or improper216, or superabundant agistment was made; that no assarts, or purprestures[21] were attempted. This, however, they could not do when they pleased. They were summoned by writ, once in three years, preparatory to the coming of the justice to hold his pleas, to whom they were to deliver their roll, duly signed and sealed.
[21] Encroachments and obstructions217 of several kinds, such as impediments in the highways, turning dykes, building swine-cotes, mills, etc.
Queen Elizabeth, who found that, during the minority of her brother Edward and the troubled reign of her sister Mary, great waste, destruction, and embezzlement had taken place, made repeated inquests into the state of the forests by her commissioners218, and had general surveys and valuations made. She descends219 in her assizes to the very bees, which it seems built then abundantly in our woods, as they do in the American forests now—the old, hollow oaks, being very storehouses of honey. Hawks220, herons, the nests of hawks, and every species of beast that had been held the legitimate denizens221 of forests by her predecessors, as stags, bucks, hares, badgers222, foxes, and even cats and squirrels, are enumerated223.
These forest laws continued till the Commonwealth. One court of justice was held after the Restoration; but after the Revolution of 1688, they fell into desuetude224, and now all offences against the forests are cognizable by the common laws of the land.
[364]
For the fullest information on this subject, see Cowel, Heskett, Coke, and Blackstone; or Manwood on Forest Laws.
1. Aiden, Northumberland.
2. Allerdale, Cumberland.
3. Amsty, Yorkshire.
4. Arden, Warwick.
5. Ashdown, Sussex.
6. Bere, Hants.
7. Bernwood, Bucks.
8. Beverley, York.
9. Blakemore, or Forest of Watchet, Dorset.
11. Charnwood, Leicester.
12. Cheviot, Northumberland.
13. Chute, Hants.
14. Clun.
15. Cors.
16. Dartmoor, Devon.
17. Darval, Hereford.
18. Dean, Gloucester.
19. Deeping, Lincoln.
20. Delamere, Cheshire.
21. Epping, Essex.
22. Exmore, Devon.
23. Feckenham, Worcester.
24. Gillingham, Somerset.
25. Gáltres, York.
26. Hainault, Essex.
27. Hampton Court, Middlesex.
28. Hardwicke, York.
29. Hartlebury.
30. Huckestow, Shropshire.
31. Inglewood, Cumberland.
32. Kingswood, Gloucester.
33. Knaresborough, York.
34. Langden, Durham.
35. Leonard.
36. Lee.
37. Leicester, Leicester.
38. Mendip, Somerset.
39. Malvern, Worcester.
40. Martindale, Cumberland.
41. Maxwell, Cheshire.
42. Needwood, Stafford.
43. New Forest, Hants.
44. Pamber, Hants.
45. Peak, Derbyshire.
46. Penrise.
47. Perbroke, Dorset.
48. Rath.
49. Riddlesdale, Northumberland.
50. Rockingham, Northampton.
51. Rychiche, Somerset.
52. Salcey, Northampton.
53. Savornac, Wilts.
The only forest in possession of a subject.
54. Selwood, Somerset.
55. Sherwood, Nottingham.
56. Staines, Middlesex.
57. Teesdale, Durham.
58. Waltham, Essex.
59. Whittlebury, Northampton.
61. Wencedale.
62. Westbere.
63. Windsor, Berks.
64. Whinfield, Westmorland.
65. Wirrol, Cheshire.
66. Whitby, Yorkshire.
67. Woolmer.
68. Wyre, Worcester.
69. Wrokene, Salop.
Of these, most are now dis-afforested, and have left only their names. Those which remain are under the management of a board of commissioners; the chief of whom is, by virtue228 of his office, always one of the ministers of the Crown. Needwood is principally[365] inclosed, leaving, however, a portion belonging to the crown, and one lodge229. It had formerly four wards and four keepers, with each a handsome lodge, now in the hands of different private gentlemen. In Elizabeth’s reign it was about 24 miles in circumference, and in 1658 it contained 9220 acres of land. In 1684 it contained 47,150 trees, and 10,000 cord of hollies230 and underwood, valued at 30,710l. It and Bagot’s Park, formerly part of it, still contain some of the largest oaks in England. Windsor is the Royal Park, and the most complete and splendid example of a park in the world.—Of New Forest, and Sherwood, I propose to speak more particularly.
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1
mosses
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| n. 藓类, 苔藓植物 名词moss的复数形式 | |
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2
boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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3
tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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4
dwellers
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| n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 ) | |
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5
diversified
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| adj.多样化的，多种经营的v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的过去式和过去分词 )；进入新的商业领域 | |
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6
nought
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| n.／adj.无，零 | |
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7
resounding
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| adj. 响亮的 | |
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8
hush
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| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
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9
twilight
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| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
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10
solitude
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| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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11
feudal
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| adj.封建的，封地的，领地的 | |
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12
solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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13
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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14
umbrageous
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| adj.多荫的 | |
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15
cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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16
thralls
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| n.奴隶( thrall的名词复数 )；奴役；奴隶制；奴隶般受支配的人 | |
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17
thrall
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| n.奴隶；奴隶制 | |
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18
herds
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| 兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众 | |
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19
hoary
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| adj.古老的；鬓发斑白的 | |
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20
trespass
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| n./v.侵犯，闯入私人领地 | |
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21
hermit
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| n.隐士，修道者；隐居 | |
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22
scatters
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| v.（使）散开， （使）分散，驱散( scatter的第三人称单数 )；撒 | |
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23
outlaw
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| n.歹徒，亡命之徒；vt.宣布…为不合法 | |
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24
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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25
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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26
statutes
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| 成文法( statute的名词复数 )； 法令； 法规； 章程 | |
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27
bridles
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| 约束( bridle的名词复数 )； 限动器； 马笼头； 系带 | |
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28
rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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29
rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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30
martial
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| adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的 | |
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31
onset
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| n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始 | |
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32
glade
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| n.林间空地，一片表面有草的沼泽低地 | |
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33
dwellings
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| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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34
vassals
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| n.奴仆( vassal的名词复数 )；（封建时代）诸侯；从属者；下属 | |
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35
baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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36
barons
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| 男爵( baron的名词复数 )； 巨头； 大王； 大亨 | |
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37
aspiring
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| adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求 | |
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38
pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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39
penal
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| adj.刑罚的；刑法上的 | |
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40
enactments
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| n.演出( enactment的名词复数 )；展现；规定；通过 | |
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41
swarming
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| 密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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42
populous
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| adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的 | |
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43
patrician
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| adj.贵族的，显贵的；n.贵族；有教养的人；罗马帝国的地方官 | |
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44
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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45
gateways
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| n.网关( gateway的名词复数 )；门径；方法；大门口 | |
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46
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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47
fortified
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| adj. 加强的 | |
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48
hinds
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| n.（常指动物腿）后面的( hind的名词复数 )；在后的；（通常与can或could连用）唠叨不停；滔滔不绝 | |
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49
civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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50
crumbling
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| adj.摇摇欲坠的 | |
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51
vestiges
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| 残余部分( vestige的名词复数 )； 遗迹； 痕迹； 毫不 | |
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52
embellished
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| v.美化( embellish的过去式和过去分词 )；装饰；修饰；润色 | |
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53
celibacy
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| n.独身(主义) | |
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54
abode
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| n.住处，住所 | |
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55
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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56
astounding
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| adj.使人震惊的vt.使震惊，使大吃一惊astound的现在分词) | |
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57
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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58
recede
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| vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进 | |
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59
acquiesce
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| vi.默许，顺从，同意 | |
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60
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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61
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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62
monotonous
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| adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的 | |
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63
infliction
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| n.（强加于人身的）痛苦，刑罚 | |
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64
repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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65
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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66
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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67
lark
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| n.云雀，百灵鸟；n.嬉戏，玩笑；vi.嬉戏 | |
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68
hymn
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| n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌 | |
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69
chivalrous
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| adj.武士精神的；对女人彬彬有礼的 | |
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70
knight
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| n.骑士，武士；爵士 | |
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71
knights
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| 骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马 | |
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72
dames
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| n.（在英国）夫人（一种封号），夫人（爵士妻子的称号）( dame的名词复数 )；女人 | |
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73
instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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74
wildernesses
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| 荒野( wilderness的名词复数 )； 沙漠； （政治家）在野； 不再当政（或掌权） | |
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75
refreshments
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| n.点心,便餐;(会议后的)简单茶点招 待 | |
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76
piquancy
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| n.辛辣，辣味，痛快 | |
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77
bide
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| v.忍耐；等候；住 | |
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78
delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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79
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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80
retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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81
conqueror
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| n.征服者，胜利者 | |
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82
reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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83
tracts
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| 大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文 | |
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84
tract
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| n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林) | |
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85
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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86
strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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87
prerogative
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| n.特权 | |
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88
motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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89
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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90
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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91
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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92
haughty
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| adj.傲慢的，高傲的 | |
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93
atrocities
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| n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪 | |
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94
plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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95
devastation
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| n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤 | |
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96
abounds
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| v.大量存在，充满，富于( abound的第三人称单数 ) | |
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97
passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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98
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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99
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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100
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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101
seclusion
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| n.隐遁，隔离 | |
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102
judgments
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| 判断( judgment的名词复数 )； 鉴定； 评价； 审判 | |
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103
circumference
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| n.圆周，周长，圆周线 | |
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104
chapels
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| n.小教堂， （医院、监狱等的）附属礼拜堂( chapel的名词复数 )；（在小教堂和附属礼拜堂举行的）礼拜仪式 | |
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105
manors
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| n.庄园（manor的复数形式） | |
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106
manor
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| n.庄园，领地 | |
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107
writ
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| n.命令状，书面命令 | |
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108
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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109
ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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110
wards
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| 区( ward的名词复数 )； 病房； 受监护的未成年者； 被人照顾或控制的状态 | |
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111
systematic
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| adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的 | |
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112
reigns
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| n.君主的统治( reign的名词复数 )；君主统治时期；任期；当政期 | |
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113
commonwealth
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| n.共和国，联邦，共同体 | |
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114
warden
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| n.监察员，监狱长，看守人，监护人 | |
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115
steward
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| n.乘务员，服务员；看管人；膳食管理员 | |
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116
rangers
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| 护林者( ranger的名词复数 )； 突击队员 | |
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117
ranger
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| n.国家公园管理员，护林员；骑兵巡逻队员 | |
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118
bail
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| v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人 | |
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119
attachment
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| n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附 | |
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120
attachments
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| n.（用电子邮件发送的）附件( attachment的名词复数 )；附着；连接；附属物 | |
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121
offender
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| n.冒犯者，违反者，犯罪者 | |
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122
offenders
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| n.冒犯者( offender的名词复数 )；犯规者；罪犯；妨害…的人（或事物） | |
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123
enrolled
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| adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起 | |
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124
tenants
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| n.房客( tenant的名词复数 )；佃户；占用者；占有者 | |
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125
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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126
jurisdiction
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| n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权 | |
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127
legitimate
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| adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法 | |
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128
ordinance
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| n.法令；条令；条例 | |
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129
writs
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| n.书面命令，令状( writ的名词复数 ) | |
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130
bribery
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| n.贿络行为，行贿，受贿 | |
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131
peculation
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| n.侵吞公款[公物] | |
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132
concealment
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| n.隐藏, 掩盖，隐瞒 | |
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133
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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134
gaol
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| n.(jail)监狱；(不加冠词)监禁；vt.使…坐牢 | |
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135
presumption
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| n.推测，可能性，冒昧，放肆，[法律]推定 | |
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136
injustice
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| n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利 | |
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137
depredations
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| n.劫掠，毁坏( depredation的名词复数 ) | |
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138
curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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139
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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140
shrubs
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| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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141
leash
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| n.牵狗的皮带，束缚；v.用皮带系住 | |
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142
dykes
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| abbr.diagonal wire cutters 斜线切割机n.堤( dyke的名词复数 )；坝；堰；沟 | |
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143
systematically
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| adv.有系统地 | |
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144
accounting
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| n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表 | |
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145
tempted
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| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
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146
restriction
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| n.限制，约束 | |
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147
ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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148
encroachment
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| n.侵入，蚕食 | |
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149
metes
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| v.（对某人）施以，给予（处罚等）( mete的第三人称单数 ) | |
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150
meres
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| abbr.matrix of environmental residuals for energy systems 能源系统环境残留矩阵 | |
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151
evaded
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| 逃避( evade的过去式和过去分词 )； 避开； 回避； 想不出 | |
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152
procure
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| vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条 | |
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153
procured
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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154
inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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155
investigation
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| n.调查，调查研究 | |
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156
demesne
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| n.领域，私有土地 | |
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157
secondly
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|
| adv.第二，其次 | |
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158
descending
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|
| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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159
robin
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| n.知更鸟，红襟鸟 | |
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160
hood
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| n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖 | |
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161
renown
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| n.声誉，名望 | |
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162
incur
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| vt.招致，蒙受，遭遇 | |
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163
monstrous
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| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
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164
fowl
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| n.家禽，鸡，禽肉 | |
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165
license
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| n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许 | |
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166
franchise
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| n.特许，特权，专营权，特许权 | |
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167
franchises
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| n.（尤指选举议员的）选举权( franchise的名词复数 )；参政权；获特许权的商业机构（或服务）；（公司授予的）特许经销权v.给…以特许权，出售特许权( franchise的第三人称单数 ) | |
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168
mitigated
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| v.减轻，缓和( mitigate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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169
obsolete
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| adj.已废弃的，过时的 | |
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170
bastard
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| n.坏蛋，混蛋；私生子 | |
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171
vigour
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| （=vigor）n.智力，体力，精力 | |
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172
unreasonable
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| adj.不讲道理的，不合情理的，过度的 | |
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173
buck
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| n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃 | |
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174
apprehended
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| 逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解 | |
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175
killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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176
bucks
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| n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃 | |
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177
purge
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|
| n.整肃，清除，泻药，净化；vt.净化，清除，摆脱；vi.清除，通便，腹泻，变得清洁 | |
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178
ordeal
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| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
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179
forfeiture
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| n.（名誉等）丧失 | |
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180
extorting
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| v.敲诈( extort的现在分词 )；曲解 | |
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181
gentry
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| n.绅士阶级，上层阶级 | |
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182
enacted
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| 制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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183
contented
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| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
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184
banishment
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| n.放逐，驱逐 | |
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185
imprisonment
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| n.关押，监禁，坐牢 | |
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186
snares
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| n.陷阱( snare的名词复数 )；圈套；诱人遭受失败（丢脸、损失等）的东西；诱惑物v.用罗网捕捉，诱陷，陷害( snare的第三人称单数 ) | |
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187
allure
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| n.诱惑力，魅力；vt.诱惑，引诱，吸引 | |
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188
guilt
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| n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责 | |
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189
radical
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| n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的 | |
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190
radicalism
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| n. 急进主义, 根本的改革主义 | |
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191
proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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192
disturbances
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| n.骚乱( disturbance的名词复数 )；打扰；困扰；障碍 | |
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193
extorted
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| v.敲诈( extort的过去式和过去分词 )；曲解 | |
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194
repealed
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| 撤销，废除( repeal的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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195
equitable
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| adj.公平的；公正的 | |
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196
softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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197
monarchs
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| 君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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198
preamble
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| n.前言；序文 | |
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199
assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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200
trespassing
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| [法]非法入侵 | |
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201
imprisoned
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| 下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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202
holders
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| 支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物 | |
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203
lamed
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| 希伯莱语第十二个字母 | |
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204
laming
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| 瘸的( lame的现在分词 )； 站不住脚的； 差劲的； 蹩脚的 | |
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205
mower
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| n.割草机 | |
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206
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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207
slay
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| v.杀死，宰杀，杀戮 | |
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208
slaughter
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| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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209
boroughs
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| （尤指大伦敦的）行政区( borough的名词复数 )； 议会中有代表的市镇 | |
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210
bishops
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| （基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象 | |
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211
covert
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| adj.隐藏的；暗地里的 | |
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212
insufficient
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| adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的 | |
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213
inspectors
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| n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官 | |
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214
predecessors
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| n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身 | |
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215
embezzlement
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| n.盗用，贪污 | |
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216
improper
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| adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的 | |
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217
obstructions
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| n.障碍物( obstruction的名词复数 )；阻碍物；阻碍；阻挠 | |
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218
commissioners
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| n.专员( commissioner的名词复数 )；长官；委员；政府部门的长官 | |
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219
descends
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| v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 )；下去；下降；下斜 | |
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220
hawks
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| 鹰( hawk的名词复数 )； 鹰派人物，主战派人物 | |
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221
denizens
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| n.居民，住户( denizen的名词复数 ) | |
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222
badgers
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| n.獾( badger的名词复数 )；獾皮；（大写）獾州人（美国威斯康星州人的别称）；毛鼻袋熊 | |
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223
enumerated
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| v.列举，枚举，数( enumerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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desuetude
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| n.废止，不用 | |
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225
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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226
wilts
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| （使）凋谢，枯萎( wilt的第三人称单数 ) | |
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227
Oxford
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| n.牛津（英国城市） | |
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228
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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229
lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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230
hollies
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| n.冬青（常绿灌木，叶尖而硬，有光泽，冬季结红色浆果）( holly的名词复数 )；（用作圣诞节饰物的）冬青树枝 | |
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