died in 1809. A simple marble tablet bears the name of Major-General Sir James Lemond, C.B., a distinguished officer, who died in 1840; and another is to the memory of Major Morrison, of Gunnersbury Park, who died in 1827.

In the churchyard are numerous ancient vaults, but the names of many on these have long ceased to be known in Ealing. A few old family vaults, however, bear names happily still to be found in the place. The vault which contains the body of General Sir Frederick Wetherall is one of these. The family's connection with Ealing covers well-nigh the century. The name of Nicholas goes further back still, and the Woods of Hanger Hill were coeval with the old Doctor. The name of Butlin and several other families are also well-known.' Of interest, too, is another vault in the churchyard, where are buried "Mr. John Trimmer, his widow, and likewise Mrs. Ann Trimmer their daughter, who died May 5, 1824, aged 82 years."

A most interesting fact is shown by the old Parish Books which, perhaps, has no parallel in the kingdom—as far back as "Januarie ye 27 1693" the signature of William Atlee appears as one of the church officers, and continuing we find the office of clerk has been held by the same family with but few breaks for nearly two hundred years. A facsimile of William Atlee's signature in 1692 appears here. In the churchyard the inscription on a vault records the names of some who filled the office in succession.

Dr. Francis Nicholas lies buried in the portion of the churchyard which, before its enlargement formed part of the old school garden. Dr. Francis was the second son and successor of the famous Dr. Nicholas' of Great Ealing School, in the days when the illustrious pupils whose after careers are briefly sketched in these pages, were feasting on classics or fives according to their bent, and leaving Mr. Huxley and mathematics pretty much to themselves.

1 Not a few old Ealing residents have been laid to rest in the little churchyard of Perivale. 2 Dr. Nicholas was buried at Perivale.

L

CHAPTER VI.

Old Ealing and the Public Archives.

The Town and Village.-Ealing and the State Papers.-Frequent mention in the old County Records.-A Dark Deed of the Seventeenth Century. The High-road.-The Ship-money Tax.-Vagabonds or Egyptians-Old Ealing Tokens.

S the Chronicles of Ealing unfold little by little, one realises how largely, in its earlier history, the community life centred round the Church, and a greater completeness and fidelity is obtained by following full closely the old Registers and Parish Books, often the only sources of information, and always valuable from the curious matter they afford and the light they throw on the customs and habits of olden days. From them we learn how close was the connection between the ancient Cross House, standing at the north corner of the churchyard, where all parochial matters were dealt with, and the church itself. We learn, too, how wide was the jurisdiction of those early vestries.

These same sources reveal a more ambitious Ealing than old Norden with his quaint phraseology would have us believe. Examination of these parish documents shows that in quite early times, a part of the pretty rural district, i.e., the long road which took its name from the church, the Green, and the High Street claimed to be, and was known

locally as, the Town, as distinct from the more humble village of Little Yealing and the appended hamlets which constituted the parish, and it is called Zealing Towne in the earlier Rate Books, and various other local accounts. It must, however, be remembered that Ealing was an unincorporated community, the ancient institutes of the Manor and Hundred being still the centre and connecting tie, the court manor as to the holdings, the court leet and baron as to the Hundred, as we shall presently show.

On the old Rate Books are the names of personages of very exalted rank, and oddly enough, King George III appears therein as a defaulter. Probably his Majesty was altogether ignorant of the claim, nor has it been possible to trace the royal property in Ealing.

Besides local writings, occasionally, there is mention of Ealing in the state papers, public correspondence, and, naturally, more frequent notice in the county records. In 14 Henry VIII enquiry was made as to the value of property, and under its old name Yellyng, Ealing is classed with Brayneford for assessment purposes, when Henry VIII requires a loan, and that King desires his Commissioners to call together such of the temporal personages as they thought well and "explain the King's necessity in the present state of war with France and Scotland." The loan was to be at the following rates:-From persons worth between £200 and £300, £10 per £100. From £300 to £1,000, 20 marks per £100, and for higher sums at the discretion of the Commissioners. No account, however, remains of the amount raised in Ealing.

1

Another entry in the state papers of the same reign, which has reference to Ealing, records an act of royal clemency: "in April, 1527, the King (Henry VIII) granted to Thomas Doland, pardon for having stolen a sorrel

1 State Papers, Reign of Henry VIII.

horse of John Bukmaster at Yelding (Ealing)' for which he was arraigned before the justices at Newgate." Small mercy, however, awaited the horse thief, or indeed any criminal in Elizabeth's reign. In the old county records occurs the following notice of a highway robbery at Ealing by a gentleman horse-stealer:-"On the 20th July, 21 Elizabeth, a jury found a true bill that at Elyng on the said day Edward Smyth, gentleman, and James Darker, yeoman, both late of Acton, stole a dun (doun) mare of the goods and chattels of Mary of Elyng. Also another true bill against the same gentleman horse-stealer and James Darker for stealing on the 15 Aug. of the same year a dark yron-greye gelding, and a dapple-grey gelding called a nagge, of the goods and chattels of William Payne, Esq., at Fulham. Both thieves put themselves (pleaded) guilty, and were sentenced to be hung.""

Between Ealing and Acton, somewhere on the high road, another robbery of a different character was enacted some dozen years later than the foregoing, the particulars of which, as given in the county records, are curious:-" Seven men lying in God's peace and the Queen's peace" are "assaulted and there and then beat, wounded, and maltreated, and robbed of two silver-gilt salts, four silver cups, two parcel-gilt silver cups, a parcel-gilt silver cup called a 'nutte', and eighteen parcel-gilt silver spoons worth forty pounds, two taffytye hattes worth twenty shillings, a woman's aperne worth sixteen shillings, a gold ring worth twenty shillings, three pairs of linen sheets worth three pounds, and forty parcels of linen cloth worth twenty pounds, of the goods and chattels of Richard Whateley in the custody and possession of the same seven unknown men at Acton aforesaid." Memoranda that seven of the eight robbers were out of prison.3 The explanation of

1 State Papers, Henry VIII. 2 Middlesex County Records.

3 Ibid.

Mr. Cordy Jeaffreson quoted in another chapter may apply here also.

Robbery and murder were by no means of unusual occurrence in Ealing and the neighbourhood, and the following account of one such tragedy is quoted from The Chronicles of Greenford Parva:1-For several years a family named Verrey had been settled in Perivale,' and a parish entry discloses the murder of one Samuel Verrey, Farmer, in 174 The account given is that "he was set upon by two footpads on Saturday night last, about 7 of ye clocke near Castle-bear Hill, and on making some resistance was shot by one of ym thro' ye body, of which wound he languish'd till Monday morning, and then expired. Bd in Woolen as per affidavit received." A small broadsheet is in the possession of one of the unfortunate man's descendants. It is dated January 24, 1747, and purports to give "A full and particular account of the Apprehending and Taking of William Groves and Noah Groves for the barbarous Murder of Samuel Verrey, a substantial Farmer of Oxendon Hill (sic), in the parish of Perivale, who going home last Saturday night about 7 o'clock was attacked close by the empty house by Castle-bear Hill, late in the possession of Dr. Hollings, near the Uxbridge Road, with the whole examination before the Right Hon. the Worshipful Justice Clithero, and their commitment last night, the one to Newgate, the other to New Prison." It appears 1 Chronicles of Greenford Parva (Mr. J. Allen Brown), p. 116. ' Perivale, or Greenford Parva, is an adjoining village.

3 An Act passed in the reign of Charles II, which remained in force for one hundred and twenty years, ordered that every one should be buried in woollen, not "in anything made or mingled with flax, hemp, silk, hair, gold or silver, or any stuff or thing other than what is made of sheep's wool only," on penalty of a fine. The Act was intended to stimulate the demand for English woollen manufactures. One of the offenders against this statute was Mrs. Ann Lateward, of Ealing, widow of the Lord of the Manor of Perivale, whose representatives paid the fine, which money was given to the poor.-Ibid.

4 Chronicles of Greenford Parva, p. 117.