Chapter II: Part 2

Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne on November 17th, 1558, S. Hugh's Day, and there are many entries to be found in churchwardens' accounts for ringing the bells upon that day after this date. At Kirton-in-Lindsey there is the following statement in 1581:--"Item for mending the belles aganst Sant Hew day viij{d};" and then again in 1597:--"Item vpon Sante Hue daye viij." No doubt the first entry means that either the wooden framework, or else the cords of the bells needed some slight repairs; it could not have been the bells themselves. There is another entry in the Kirton-in-Lindsey accounts that is interesting, though of a somewhat later date. In 1630 we find:--"Item bestowed of the ringers in ayle for Joye of the younge Prince xij." This was for ringing the bells upon the birth of Charles II.

In reading of these loyal payments one is reminded of the inscription upon the first bell at Witham-on-the-Hill, which evinces a very different spirit:--

"'TWAS NOT TO PROSPER PRIDE OR HATE
WILLIAM AUGUSTUS JOHNSON GAVE ME;
BUT PEACE AND JOY TO CELEBRATE,
AND CALL TO PRAYER TO HEAV'N TO SAVE YE:
THEN KEEP THE TERMS AND E'ER REMEMBER
MAY 29{TH} YE MUST NOT RING
NOR YET THE FIFTH OF EACH NOVEMBER
NOR ON THE CROWNING OF A KING."[5]

The Harvest Bell was rung in various parts of the country; at Barrow-on-Humber it was heard very early in the morning at daybreak in the eighteenth century, and then again late in the evening during the weeks of harvest. In some parishes it used to be the custom to ring a bell at eight o'clock in the morning as a signal that people might then begin to glean. In the Louth churchwardens' accounts, in 1556, is the following:--"To william east for knylling the bell in harvest forgathering of the pescodes iiij{d}." The _Daily Telegraph_, of 1st September, 1893, says:--"The 'harvest bell' is rung at the Parish Church, Driffield, at five a.m. and eight p.m. every day during harvest, the custom is a very old one."

Advent was celebrated in some places by the ringing of the bells, usually, but not invariably, in the evening; the reason for this being that the ringers were at work during the day, and therefore it could only be done when the hours of labour were ended. On S. Thomas's Day the bells were often rung; and it was a very widely spread, though not a universal, custom to ring them very early on the morn of Christmas Day. In the Kirton-in-Lindsey churchwardens' account we see what the ringers obtained for so doing in 1630:--"It' given to the Ringers at Christenmaise day at morne xij{d}." The bells are, or were until lately, rung at five o'clock on Christmas morning at South Kelsey. In various parts of England they were rung in a great variety of ways during Lent and upon Good Friday; on Easter Sunday, too, there has always been great divergence as to the custom of bell-ringing. The Banns Peal is still to be heard in some places; this is a peal rung after the publication of banns of marriage, it is usually chimed after morning service on the first Sunday that the banns are "put up," but this is by no means the universal practice, in some parishes it is rung on the first and third Sundays, in others on the third alone, and it varies yet again at Elsham and Searby, where it is given upon all three Sundays. Peals at Baptism are much rarer, but still there are parishes where it has been from time unknown usual to ring them. The curfew is yet to be heard in many places, though the hour varies, it being often rung at nine, and in some instances at seven o'clock, instead of at eight.

In pre-Reformation times the Passing Bell, instead of being rung as it now is after death, was then really and truly a "passing-bell," for it was heard when a person was supposed to be at the point of death, in order that those in whose ears it sounded might of their charity pray for a soul so soon to be beyond human help. After the spirit had returned unto Him who gave it, the Soul Bell was rung, that the living might pray for the dead; this soul-bell, besides being rung a few hours after death, was sounded again at stated intervals, at the month's end, the three months' end, and so on. Surtees, the northern antiquary, alludes to this custom in the ballad of _Sir John le Spring_:--

"Pray for the soul of Sir John le Spring,
When the black monks sing and the chantry bells ring.
Pray for the sprite of the murdered knight,
Pray for the rest of Sir John le Spring.

* * * * *

And aye the mass-priest sings his song,
And patters many a prayer,
And the chantry bell tolls loud and long,
And aye the lamp burns there."

There are numerous ways of indicating the age and sex of the departed by the manner in which the passing-bell is tolled; we have been informed that in Lincolnshire alone there are between seventy and eighty different methods by which this is done.

Some few bells have upon them inscriptions showing they were meant to be rung as passing-bells. The third bell at Brant Broughton has on it:--

"Beg ye of God your soul to save
Before we call you to the grave."

It is possible that some of the customs here spoken of as now existing may recently have fallen into oblivion, but the term "existing" must only be taken to mean that it was in use at the place named when the note concerning it was made.

Inscriptions on Bells.

BY WILLIAM ANDREWS.

High up in the dusty belfry, whose grey shadows rarely see the face of man, the bells swing to and fro with unwearying zeal. But in addition to the lessons which pour from their eloquent mouths, should we scale the tall ladders of the bell tower and invade the regions of the owl and the bat, we shall find other teaching--that graven on the sides of the bells themselves--the inscriptions. Let us therefore glance over the wide field of interesting information thus presented to us. Allusions to the pitch of the bell are often the subject. A bell of Churchill, Somerset, has the following:--

Although my waiste is small
I will be heard amainst you all,
Sing on my jolly sisters.

While Berrow, Somerset, is more brief:--

My treble voice
Makes hearts rejoice.

Bruton has a recast bell saying--

Once I'd a note that none could beare,
But Bilbie made me sweet and clear.

And similarly Compton Martin--

My sound is good that once was bad,
Lett's sing my sisters and be glad.

Badgworth, Gloucester, has a similar inscription--

Badgworth ringers they were mad
Because Rigbe made me bad,
But Abel Rudhall you may see
Hath made me better than Rigbe.

At Blakesley, Northamptonshire, the tenor bears--

I ring to sermon with a lusty bome,
That all may come and none may stay at home.

More pronounced is the self-congratulation of a bell of East Dean--

Me melior vere,
Non est Campana sub aere,

and one of Hurstpierpoint, which says--

If you have a judicious ear
You'll own my voice is sweet and clear.

Rye Church, in Sussex, alludes in its bells to the marriage chimes induced by the liberality of the bridegroom--

In wedlock bands, all ye who join
With hands your hearts unite.
So shall our tuneful tongues combine
To bless the nuptial rite.

At other times it is the shape that is celebrated. At Combe, Somerset, a bell says--

My sound is good, my shape is neat,
'Twas Bayley made me so compleat.

Or the size, as at Bexhill, Sussex--

Although I am both light and small,
I will be heard above you all.

S. Mary's, at Devizes, has another version--

I am the first, altho' but small,
I will be heard above you all.

Again, names of donors are often inscribed upon bells, and these are handed down to us from very early dates; or sometimes the fact of subscription is mentioned in general terms of gratitude. So Bagborough, Somerset, says--

Bouth owld and young did agree full well
To pay for casting of this bell,
Because a true tale it should tell.

And Bath Abbey has a very terse bell couplet,

All you of Bath that heare mee sound
Thank Lady Hopton's hundred pound.

A Devon bell has--

Squire Arundel the great my whole expense did raise,
Nor shall our tongues abate to celebrate his praise.

These hints, or downright references on bells to the pecuniary means of their erection, may be supplemented by the inscription at Buxted, which promises as follows--

At proper times my voice I'll raise
And sound to my subscribers' praise.

But in the last two centuries such expressions of gratitude for subscriptions to casting or re-casting are common enough. So in a similar strain speaks the bell of Alderton,

I'm given here to make a peal
And sound the praise of Mary Neale.

At Binstead, too, a bell says

Dr. Nicholas gave five pound
To help cast this peal tuneable and sound.

Bells at first bore strictly religious inscriptions; afterwards that rule became more relaxed, and irrelevant matters often find expression. After 1600 the claims of religion to be alone regarded on bells may be said to be almost entirely passed over. Marlborough's victories are commemorated on the bells of S. Helen's, Worcester, and those of Ottery and S. Martin, Exeter, have medals on which are represented grotesque pieces levelled at the churchmen in the most approved style of mediaeval satire. Sometimes, nay, most often, the poetical attempts in the inscriptions are, to say the least, somewhat wanting in an indefinite something that goes to make true poetry. Yet the simple appeals of some of them do not fall unregarded. So when rich men give bells we find such an inscription as this--

Of your charite prai for the soulles of John Slutter, John
Hunt, and Willem Slutter.

An instance has been given of historical events being inscribed upon bells. A further one is that of the bell of Ashover, Derbyshire, which upon re-casting was inscribed--

This old bell rung the downfall of Buonaparte and broke, April, 1814.

At Tadcaster it is recorded on the fifth bell--

It is remarkable that these bells were moulded in the great frost,
1783. C. and R. Dalton, Fownders, York.

An extremely curious inscription appears on a bell at Pucknowle, Dorsetshire, dated 1629. It reads without stop or space--

Hethatvillpvrchashonovrsgaynemvstancientlatherstilmayntayne.

"Lather" is an old English term meaning "to make a noise." A bell at Lichfield, which was destroyed in 1652, bore the following:--

I am ye bell of Jesus, and Edward is our King,
Sir Thomas Heywood first caused me to ring.

Many inscriptions on bells are, or contain, allusions to the vigilance of monastic times. Such is one at Ashill, Somerset, which simply says--

I call to wake you all.

As pithy an inscription appears on the bell of S. Ives, which is rung early in the morning. It is--

Arise, and go about your business.

A Coventry bell, dated 1675, says--

I ring at six to let men know
When too and fro their worke to goe.

Patriotic expressions are common; among such is Brusford,

Come let us ring
For Church and King.

And Hurstpierpoint,

Ye people all who hear us ring
Be faithful to your God and King.

Sometimes a whole set of bells bore inscriptions which may be read continuously. An instance is at S. Mary's, Ticehurst, where the bells have--

1. I am she that leads the van,
Then follow me now if you can.

2. Then I speak next, I can you tell,
So give me rope and ring me well.

3. Now I am third, as I suppose,
Mark well now time and fourth close.

4. As I am fourth, I will explain
If you'll keep time you'll credit gain.

5. Now I am fifth, as I suppose,
Then ring me well and tenor close.

6. This is to show for ages yet to come
That by subscription we were cast and hung
And Edward Lulham is his name
That was the actor of the same.

Northfield bells, Worcestershire, give an account of the contest in the vestry-room which led to the completion of the peal--

1. Though once but five we now are six.

2. And 'gainst our casting some did strive.

3. But when a day of meeting there was fixed.

4. Appeared nine 'gainst twenty-six.

5. It was Wm. Kettle that did contrive
To make us six that were but five.

Another bell bears the date and churchwardens' names. At Coventry on a peal of bells, cast in 1774, are the following inscriptions--

1. Though I am but light and small
I will be heard above you all.

2. If you have a judicious ear
You will own my voice both sweet and clear.

3. Such wondrous power to music given,
It elevates the soul to heaven.

4. Whilst thus we join in cheerful sound,
May love and loyalty abound.

5. To honour both God and King
Our voices shall in concert ring.

6. Music is medicine to the mind.

7. Ye ringers all that prize
Your health and happiness,
Be sober, merry, wise,
And you'll the same possess.

8. Ye people all who hear me ring
Be faithful to your God and King.

9. In wedlock's bands all ye who join
With hands your hearts unite:
So shall our tuneful tongues combine
To laud the nuptial rite.

10. I am and have been called the common bell
To ring when fire breaks out to tell.

On the bells of S. Peter's, Nottingham, the appended lines appear:--

Our voices shall with joyful sound
Make hills and valleys echo round.

We celebrate th' auspicious morn
On which the Son of God was born.

Our voices shall in concert ring
To honour God and King.

The bride and groom we greet in holy wedlock join'd,
Our sounds are emblems of hearts in love combined.

I toll the funeral knell,
I hail the festal day.--
The fleeting hour I tell,
I summon all to pray.

The longest continuous bell inscriptions we have noted are from Bakewell, Derbyshire, and on a peal of eight bells. They run thus:--

1. When I begin Our merry Din,
This Band I lead from Discord Free;
And for the Fame of human Name,
May ev'ry Leader copy Me.

2. Mankind like Us, too oft are found
Possess'd of Nought but empty Sound.

3. When of departed Hours We toll the Knell,
Instruction take & spend the future well.

4. When Men in Hymen's Bands unite,
Our Merry Peals produce Delight;
But when Death goes his dreary Rounds,
We send forth sad and solemn Sounds.

5. Thro' Grandsires and Tripples with Pleasure men range,
Till Death calls the Bob & brings on the Last Change.

6. When Vict'ry crowns the Public Weal
With Glee We give the merry Peal.

7. Would Men Like Us join & agree
They'd live in tunefull Harmony.

8. Possess'd of deep sonorous Tone
This Belfry King sits on his Throne;
And, when the merry Bells go round,
Adds to & mellows ev'ry Sound;
So in a just & well pois'd State,
Where all Degrees possess due Weight,
One greater Pow'r, One greater Tone
Is ceded to improve their own.

During a recent visit to Bakewell church we copied an epitaph blending in a remarkable degree business, loyalty and religion:--

To the Memory of
Matthew Strutt.

Of this town, farmer, long famed in these parts for veterinary skill.
A good neighbour, and a staunch friend to Church and King. Being
churchwarden at the time the present peal of bells were hung. Through
zeal of the House of God, and unremitting attention to the airy
business of the belfry he caught a cold, which terminated his
existence May 25, 1798, in the 68 year of his age.

A beautiful Latin inscription has one--a Rutland bell--

Non clamor sed amor cantat in aure dei, _i.e._, It is not noise, but
love that sings in the ear of God.

And it is in the same county that we find the modern use of the death-bell described,

I sound not for the souls of the dead but the ears of the living.

Cheltenham, too, bears out the spirit of this inscription in the following:--

I to prayer the living do combine
The dead shall hear a greater sound than mine.

The offices of the various bells form a large proportion of their legends, particularly those uses which are the most common. Thus the death bell at Axbridge, Somerset, states,

For homesoever this bell doth toll
The Lord have mercy on that sole!

Many Somersetshire bells have the following and similar inscriptions:--

I to the church the living call,
And to the grave I summon all.

Brent, Somerset, has a bell with--

When I doth toll pray mind your souls
And in God put your trust,
As may be well with you at last
When you come to doust.

And Backwell, in the same county--

I sound to bid the sick repent,
In hopes of life when breath is spent.

A bell at Stratton, Cornwall, is shorter--

I call the quick to church and dead to grave.

A bell in Ghent describes the purposes for which it was used: it is not an uncommon form in the Netherlands. Translated it reads:--

My name is Roelant;
When I toll it is for a fire,
When I swing then there is storm in Flanders.

Religious sentiments and quotations are found in thousands on bells old and new. Such are--

Te deum Laudamus.

On the bell at Peterborough Cathedral

Venite Exultemus Domino.

In Westminster Abbey

Christie audi nos.

Sometimes a letter of the inscription is found inverted; rarely a whole word. Such, however, is the case at Clapham, in Bedfordshire, where the line runs--

God save the = hcruhC

The prayers for the dead mark the religious changes of the country, and not less the invocations to the saints, which form one branch of bell lore. Elstead has a bell inscribed--

Sancta Paule, ora pro nobis.

Washington, in Sussex, one bearing--

O Sancte Stephane.

And Balcombe, in the same county, one--

Vox Augustini Sonat in aure Dei.

The uses to which bells were dedicated may be further exampled from their inscriptions. S. Michael, Coventry, has a bell bearing--

I am, and have been called the common bell
To ring when fire breaks out to tell.

And at Sherborne, in Dorsetshire, dated 1652, a bell piously says--

Lord, quench this furious flame,
Arise, run, help put out the same.

We may here appropriately conclude with some lines inscribed upon the tower of Batley Church, Yorkshire, in memory of a former set of bells:

"The Requiem of the late three bells of Batley Church, two of which
were introduced into the tower in the 17th century, and the third or
last in the 18th century, and were taken down in the 19th century, at
the close of the year of our Lord 1851, bearing the following
respective dates and inscriptions, viz., upon the middle bell: Tho.
Deighton G. O. 1658; largest bell, 1684 Gloria in Altissimis Deo. Ric.
Mann, Churchwarden; last and least bell, Dalton of York fecit 1791. To
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost Eternal glory raise.

"Author of the following lines, Mr. Luke Blakeley, of Upper Batley;
third of that name in the family, and nephew of Mr. Luke Blakeley of
the same place, who died Jan. 17th, in the year of our Lord 1836, and
was interred in Batley Churchyard.

"One hundred years, yea almost two,
We've hung in that turret grey,
And many changes we have seen
As time has fled away.

We seen the bride and bridegroom gay,
We've chimed their joy to tell;
Alas! before the day has clos'd
We've toll'd the funeral knell.

We've merrily rung for victories gain'd
O'er Britain's enemies;
Then mourned for the brave who bled
To gain those victories.

We've highly lauded pomp and power,
Then call'd on men to pray,
A requiem rung with the weeping and sad,
Then revell'd with the gay.

We've seen the scourge of civil war
Approach where we have stood.
We've seen oppression's cruel hand
Reeking with kindred blood.

Our solemn tolling for the dead
Falls on the mourner's ear,
Then the bereav'd and aching heart
Feels desolate and drear.

Dirges we've rung for Kings and Queens
As they to the tomb went down,
Then joyfully welcom'd the heir
Who came to wear the crown.

We saw the star of Brunswick rise
And beam upon our strand,
We see its full refulgent ray
Illumine this happy land.

Victoria the sceptre sways,
And bright her virtues shine,
Long may she live, long may she reign
Best of her royal line.

We joyfully hail'd her natal day,
We hail'd her to the throne,
We blithely hail'd her nuptial hour,
For her we ne'er shall moan.

We're taken from that turret grey
Where we for long have hung,
Like worn out lumber thrown away,
Forever mute, each tongue.

And now our changes all are rung
Here ends our dying song;
Our last our final peal is done:
Farewell! Farewell! Ding Dong."[6]

Laws of the Belfry.

BY WILLIAM ANDREWS.

The ringing chambers of many old churches contain curious rules in poetry and prose for regulating the conduct of the ringer and the visitor. Some of the orders are extremely quaint, and all appear framed as a ready means of obtaining money in fines to be spent in beer. In bygone times there appears to have been a close connection between the belfry and the cellar. One of the best examples which has come under our notice is from Hathersage, Derbyshire, and dates back to about 1660:--

You gentlemen that here wish to ring,
See that these laws you keep in every thing;
Or else be sure you must without delay,
The penalty thereof to the ringers pay.

First, when you do into the bell-house come,
Look if the ringers have convenient room;
For if you do be an hindrance unto them,
Fourpence you forfeit unto these gentlemen.

Next if you do here intend to ring,
With hat or spur, do not touch a string;
For if you do, your forfeit is for that,
Just fourpence down to pay, or lose your hat.

If you a bell turn over, without delay,
Fourpence unto the ringers you must pay;
Or if you strike, misscall, or do abuse,
You must pay fourpence for the ringers' use.

For every oath here sworn, ere you go hence,
Unto the poor then you must pay twelvepence;
And if that you desire to be enrolled
A ringer here, these words keep and hold!

But whoso doth these orders disobey,
Unto the stocks we will take him straightway,
There to remain until he be willing
To pay his forfeit and the clerk a shilling.

A similar set of rules were adopted at Chapel-en-le-Frith, in the same county.

The following quaint lines are from St. Peter's, Shaftesbury:--

What musick is there that compar'd may be
To well-tuned bells' enchanting melody?
Breaking with their sweet sounds the willing air,
They in the list'ning ear the soul ensnare,
When bells ring round and in their order be,
They do denote how neighbours should agree;
But if they clam the harsh sound spoils the sport,
And 'tis like women keeping Dover Court.
Of all the music that is played or sung
There's none like bells, if they are well rung.
Then ring your bell--well if you can,
Silence is best for ev'ry man;
In your ringing make no demur,
Pull off your hat, your belt, and spur;
And if your bell you overset
The ringer's fee you must expect!
Fourpence you are to pay for that.
But that if you do swear or curse,
Twelvepence is due, pooll out your purse,
Our laws are old, they are not new,
Both clerk and ringers claim their due.

We have from Tong, Salop, the following curious dated example:--

If that to ring you do come here,
You must ring well with hand and ear;
Keep stroke of time and go not out,
Or else you forfeit, out of doubt.
Our law is so constructed here,
For ev'ry fault a jugg of beer.
If that you ring with spur or hat,
A jugg of beer must pay for that.
If that you take a rope in hand,
These forfeits you may not withstand.
Or, if that you a bell o'erthrow,
It will cost sixpence ere you goe.
If in this place you swear or curse,
Sixpence you pay--out with your purse.
Come! pay the clerk, it is his fee,
For one that swears shall not go free.
These laws are old, and are not new,
Therefore the clerk must have his due.
GEORGE HARRISON, 1694.

From the belfry of Dunster, Somersetshire, are the following lines:--

You that in ringing take delight,
Be pleased to draw near;
These articles you must observe
If you mean to ring here.

And first, if any overturn
A bell, as that he may,
He forthwith for that only fault
In beer shall sixpence pay.

If anyone shall curse or swear
When come within the door,
He then shall forfeit for that fault
As mentioned before.

If anyone shall wear his hat
When he is ringing here
He straightway then shall sixpence pay
In cyder or in beer.

If anyone these articles
Refuseth to obey,
Let him have nine strokes of the rope,
And so depart away.

The foregoing bears the date of 1787. We have a shorter set of orders from Bowden:--

You ringers all, observe these orders well!
He pays his sixpence that o'erturns a bell;
And he that rings with either spur or hat,
Must pay his sixpence certainly for that;
And he that rings and does disturb ye peal,
Must pay his sixpence or a gun of ale.
These laws elsewhere, in ev'ry church are used,
That bell and ringers may not be abused.

It is stated in Halliwell's "Dictionary of Archaisms and Provincialisms" _gun_ is a North country word for a large flagon of ale.

From All Saints' Church, Hastings, we have the following lines:--

I. H. S.

1.

This is a belfry that is free
For all those that civil be;
And if you please to chime or ring
It is a very pleasant thing.

2.

There is no musick play'd or sung,
Like unto bells when they're well rung;
Then ring your bells well, if you can,
Silence is the best for every man.

3.

But if you ring in spur or hat,
Sixpence you pay, be sure of that;
And if a bell you overthrow,
Pray pay a groat before you go.--1756.

Similar verses to the foregoing we have seen in several places. From the parish church at Grantham we have the following example, dating back to about the middle of the last century:--

He that in Ringing takes delight,
And to this place draws near,
These Articles set in his sight
Must keep if he Rings here.

The first he must observe with care
Who comes within the door,
Must if he chance to curse or swear,
Pay Sixpence to the poor.

And whosoe'er a noise does make,
Or idle story tells,
Must Sixpence to the Ringers take
For melting of the Bells.

If any like to smoke or drink,
They must not do so here,
Good reason why--just let them think
This is God's House of Prayer.

Young men that come to see and try,
And do not Ringing use,
Must Six Pence give the company,
And that shall them excuse.

So that his hat on's head does keep,
Within this sacred place,
Must pay his Six Pence ere he sleep;
Or turn out with disgrace.

If any one with spurs to's heels
Ring here at any time,
He must, for breaking articles,
Pay Six Pence for his crime.

If any overthrow a Bell,
As that by chance he may,
Because he minds not Ringing well,
He must his Six Pence pay.

Or if a noble minded man
Come here to Ring a bell,
A Shilling is the Sexton's fee,
Who keeps the church so well.

At any should our Parson sneer,
Or Wardens' rules deride,
It is a rule of old most clear
That such sha'nt here abide.

The Sabbath-day we wish to keep,
And come to church to pray;
The man who breaks this ancient rule
Shall never share our pay.

And when the bells are down and ceased,
It should be said or sung,
May God preserve the Church and King,
And guide us safely home.

In September, 1875, we visited Holy Trinity Church, Hull, to ascertain if any Ringers' Regulations were to be found in the church. We learned, on enquiry, a number of quaint orders were hung up in the ringing chamber some years ago, but a mischievous boy mutilated them with a knife, so that they were taken down. The person in charge, however, kindly submitted for our inspection the disfigured orders, and after considerable trouble, we were able to make a transcript which, we think, will prove interesting:--

ORDERS.

Agreed upon by the sexton and ringers of the Holy Trinity Church,
Kingston-upon-Hull, approved of and allowed by the Rev. William Mason,
vicar, Mr. George Maddison, and Mr. Thomas Bell, churchwardens, of
the same church, the first day of May, Anno Domini 1730, and confirmed
by the Rev. John Healey Bromby, vicar, Thomas Mitchell, and Charles
Anthy. Forrester, churchwardens, the first day of May, 1838.

It is ordered, that every person who shall ring any bell with hat or
spurs on, shall forfeit and pay sixpence for the use of the ringers.

It is ordered, that every person who shall pull any bell from off her
stay and cannot set her again, shall forfeit and pay for use
aforesaid, one shilling.

It is ordered, that every person who shall throw any bell over, shall
forfeit and pay for the use aforesaid, sixpence, and over and above
this in case anything be broken by such overthrow, such person shall
also pay the charge of repairing the same again.

It is ordered, that every person so soon as he has set his bell shall
immediately hank up the strop or rope, or in default thereof shall
forfeit and pay for use aforesaid, sixpence.

It is ordered, that if any person shall untruss himself upon the lead
in any part, or cut and mark the same with a knife or any other thing,
such offender shall forfeit and pay for the use aforesaid, sixpence.

It is ordered, that any person who shall have read any of these orders
with his hat upon his head shall forfeit and pay for the said use,
sixpence.

Next appears the names of the vicar, churchwardens, ringers, who held office in 1730, and a similar list is given for 1838, when the above orders were reprinted at the expense of Mr. W. Green, a sidesman.

The following "Articles and Orders to be Observed by Ringers" at Stow, in the county of Lincoln, were written by William Swift, school-master, and used to hang in the ringing chamber of the church:--

All you who hath a mind to Learn to Ring s. d.
Must to the sexton Admission Money bring. 2 6
These Articles observed strict must be,
Or your expelled this society.
Two Nights a Week, Sirs, you must meet, or pay
This Forfeiture to us without delay, 0 2
Or when the Sexton for you tolls a bell
You must appear, or else this Forfeit tell. 0 2
And when you come upon this Belfry
If that you noise or talk, this forfeit pay, 0 1
When you Round peals can Ring, you must pay down
To be a change man, Sirs, Just half-a-crown, 2 6
On the first change that you have Learned to Ring,
One shilling more must pay, Sirs, that's the thing, 1 0
And every Ringer must spend more or Less,
As he thinks meet, to wish you good Success, 0 2
If you would learn to prick a peal in score,
Unto these College youths you must pay more. 1 0
When you know Bob, Hunt, Single Dodge compleat
You'll not deny our College youths a treat, 2 6
On our Feast-Day, the Twenty-ninth of May,
Each member must, Sirs, just one shilling pay, 1 0
When our accompts are passed, Sirs, for Truth,
And you are stiled a College youth,
New Stewards then are chose, and by and by
If that you do the Stewardship deny,
Your fine must pay--as in the margin see, 1 6
Then from your Stewardship one year are free.
These Rules peruse well before you enter,
It's a hard task on which you venture.
When once a member you are freely made,
These Articles must justly be obey'd.
So now, my Lads, admission money bring, 2 6
And we will Learn you presently to ring.

JOHN MARSHALL, WILLIAM SMITH,
MASTER. NOTARY.

March 1st, 1770.

The following on a card was also placed in the belfry of Stow Church:--

We ring the quick to church, the dead to grave,
Good is our use, such usage let us have.
Who swears or curses, or in chol'ric mood
Quarrels or strikes, although he draws no blood,
Who wears his hat, or overturns a bell,
Or by unskilful handling mars a peal,
Let him pay sixpence for each single crime,
'Twill make him cautious 'gainst another time.
So, when the bells are ceased, then let us sing
God bless our Holy Church--God save the Queen.

The foregoing are a few examples of the many curious ringers' regulations which found a place in belfrys in bygone times. Mr. J. Potter Briscoe, in his "Curiosities of the Belfry" (London, 1883), gives a complete collection of these old-time rules in prose and poetry.

Ringers' Jugs.

BY ISAAC J. REEVE.

The old time belfry laws were the means of many persons being fined, and the money so obtained was spent in ale. Ringers' Jugs were by no means uncommon, and some were curious examples of the potters' art.

There is a curious jug or pitcher belonging to the ringers of Hadleigh. It is a "vas ansatum" having two ears, is circular in shape, swelling out in the middle, and being more contracted at the ends. It is brown earthenware glazed. It holds sixteen quarts, and bears this inscription, very rudely indented, apparently with a chisel when the clay was soft, the first word M E, or perhaps M. E. I., is in italics, the rest in Roman capitals:--

Me, Thomas Windle, Isaac Bunn, John Mann, Adam Sage, George Bond,
Thomas Goldsborough, Robert Smith, Henry West. (No doubt the names of
the eight ringers.)

Below the names,--

If you love me doe not lend me,
Euse me often and keep me clenly,
Fill me full or not at all,
If it be strong, and not with small.

Below all, in the front, is the word Hadly, underneath one handle is the date, 17 F. G. 15, and under the other, 17 R. O. 15, the letters probably the initials of the potters. The jug is in the possession of Mr. Pettitt, of the Eight Bells Inn, who holds it for the ringers, of whom he is the leader. It is still occasionally used on the occasion of any profitable wedding, and filled every Christmas by mine host, when the ringers assemble for a frolic, with strong beer, which goes by the name of old King William, and strangers going in are expected to pay sixpence to assist in keeping it full, according to its own request.

The ringers' pot--a brown glazed jug with handle, holding about two gallons--having the following inscription in rude letters--

Here you may see what
I request of Hanst (honest) Gentlemen
My Baly (belly) filed of the Bast I com
But now and then, 1716,

was formerly carried from house to house by the bell-ringers of Ixworth, in Suffolk, to receive whatever beer the liberal parishioners might be disposed to bestow. It has been disused about thirty years. It was probably made at the celebrated pottery in the neighbouring parish of Wattisfield.

A similar kind of jug, both in shape and size, to that of Hadleigh, belongs to the ringers of Clare. On one side is a crown in faint relief, under that a bell in large proportion, and on it impressed in italics:--

Campane
Sonant canore.

Beneath the clapper is this,--

Clare Ringers,
1729.

Near the base there is an aperture for a tap to draw off the beer, there being no spout or lip.

At Hinderclay, in Suffolk, is a ringers' pitcher, still preserved in the church tower, of form and size similar to the Hadleigh jug: it is thus inscribed:--

By Samuel Moss this pitcher was given to the noble society of ringers,
at Hinderclay, viz., Tho. Sturgeon, Ed. Lock, John Haws, Ric. Ruddock,
and Relf Chapman, to which society he once belonged, and left in the
year 1702.

From London I was sent
As plainly doth appear,
It was to this intent--
To be filled with strong beer.
Pray remember the pitcher when empty.

A similar pitcher is in the adjoining church tower of Garboldisham, Norfolk.

At the Mackworth Arms, at Swansea, a similar kind of jug may be seen in a niche on the staircase, but the colour is light yellow, and the workmanship of a superior order, it has but one handle, and the following inscription in two lines:--

Come fill me well with liquor sweet, and that is good when friends do
meet,
When I am full then drink about, I ne'er will fail till all is out.

Underneath were representations of flowers, birds, and fishes.

There is in the Norfolk and Norwich Museum a large jug, which was presented in July, 1831, by the Rev. G. R. Leathes, of Shrophan. It is of brown earth, glazed, dated 1676, and inscribed:--

John Wayman,
J.F.
Come Brother, shall we join?
Give me your twopence--here is mine.

This most likely belonged to a company of Shrophan ringers. It has but one handle, and is rather curiously ornamented.

NOTE.--This article was written about twenty-five years ago.--EDITOR.

Customs and Superstitions of Baptism.

BY THE REV. CANON BENHAM, B.D., F.S.A.

The present paper is, of course, in no sense a discussion of the _doctrine_ of Christian Baptism. The names by which this Sacrament has been called, however, express, to some degree, the views which have been taken of it in the Christian Church, and these names must be briefly recounted. One of the earliest titles was _Indulgentia_, "remission of sin." This is a title as old as the third century, and the idea has found expression in the Nicene Creed. _Palingenesia_, "new birth," is an expression equally old. It will be remembered that one of the earliest symbolical names of our Lord Jesus Christ was _Ichthus_, "Fish;" it is found on the walls of the Roman Catacombs. Now this is really an acrostic, the letters which made it up are the initial letters of the sentence, "Jesus Christ, Son of God, our Saviour," and Tertullian, the first writer of the Latin Church, says, "We are fishes, born in water, conformable to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Ichthus." Justin Martyr (middle of the second century) speaks of the baptismal water as "the water of life," and Cassiodorus (fifth century) calls it _fons divinus_, "the divine fountain," whence comes our name "Font." S. Chrysostom and other Greek fathers use the name "Illumination," (_Photismos_,) and S. Augustine calls it _Salus_, "Salvation," as he calls the Lord's Supper "Life." Another word was _Sphragis_, "Seal," because it was the seal of a covenant made between God and man. This title is as old as the second century. The same idea is conveyed in Augustine's expression, _Character Dominicus_, "the Divine, _i.e._, stamp mark."

Baptism was rejected by some of the early heretics, chiefly by the Gnostics, who asserted that all religion lay in knowledge, and under pretence of exalting spiritual worship, would admit of no external or corporeal symbols whatsoever, and also by the Manichaeans, who, holding that all matter is in itself evil, consistently rejected the religious use of water. Some early heretics also objected to the use of water only, asserting that this was no better than the baptism of John, whereas our Lord was to baptize also with fire, and they seem, while baptizing with water, to have also touched the ears with fire. Others, by some chemical art, created an appearance of fire on the surface of the water. (Bingham, iii. 414.)

But to come down to later times, there are curious records which tell how the matter used in the Baptismal rite was not always water as it is with us. A letter of Pope Gregory to Archbishop Sigurd of Norway (A.D. 1241) says "Forasmuch as we learnt from you, that it is sometimes the custom, on account of the want of water, for infants in your country to be baptized in ale, we hereby decree that as according to the Gospel Doctrine, it is necessary that they be born of water and of the Holy Spirit, they ought not to be accounted as baptized who are baptized in ale." And there are Bulls and decrees of Councils to the same effect. In _Notes and Queries_ (ii. 5, 524) is a quotation from an unpublished diary of the sixteenth century, telling how "at Prestone, Aug. 30, 1574, one Griffith ap Bedo Du, which dwelt at Pilleth, at the christening of his son would not have the same to be christened as the manner is, in water, but upon a proud stomach caused the water to be voided out of the font, and filled it with wine, and so caused his son to be therein christened." And the diarist goes on to say that all the country round noted from that time that "he and his continued to grow to decay in substance and credit until his race was extinguished."

Controversies concerning Infant Baptism, as well as concerning Immersion as distinguished from affusion, or pouring water upon the baptized, would be out of place here. The latter practice, rendered necessary in our northern climate, has led to the use of the font. Nevertheless, baptism by immersion is not unknown in the Church of England. Under the Church of S. Lawrence, Reading, there is a baptistery under the pews, and in 1866, these pews were temporarily removed and a family of Quakers were baptized in it. At Trinity Church, Marylebone and at Scarborough, there are records within the last few years of adults baptized by immersion. In the parish church of Cranbrook, in the Weald of Kent, is a curious bath for immersion, of which the following is the history. John Johnson, who was Vicar there at the end of the seventeenth century, found on entering upon the incumbency that there were many of his parishioners who were unbaptized, and who, though they were desirous of attending his ministry, were in favour of being baptized by immersion. The Anabaptists were strong in that district during the Commonwealth. He therefore resolved to meet their views. There was a flight of steps leading up, on the inside, into the Parvise or room over the southern porch. At the top of these steps, on the landing so to speak, he constructed a deep bath, reaching down in fact to the floor of the church, so that the minister could take the person to be baptized up the steps and there immerse him. This charitable concession to the convictions of his people is still to be seen. I believe, however, that there are only two records of it having been used since its erection. Similar baptisteries are to be seen at Ebbw Vale, Aberdare, and elsewhere.

The Canons of the Church order that the font shall be of stone. In some churches may still be seen a small vessel of plaster or earthenware, in which a little water is put for baptism, so as to save filling the font. But it is illegal, and is now rarely seen. Bishop Wilberforce, wherever he found them on Visitations, ordered their removal. In the case of private baptisms, some clergy keep a basin which they carry with them, similarly to a pocket Communion set, and use it for no other purpose. And this certainly seems the more reverent method. Others however use any basin which may be handy, and then send it back to its ordinary use with a view to prevent any feeling of superstition. It seems from the following passage in Pepys's diary, that the clergy were in the habit of performing public as well as private baptisms in private houses:--

"Lord's Day. My wife and I to Mr. Martin's where I find the company almost all come to the christening of Mrs. Martin's child, a girl. After sitting long, till the church was done, the parson comes and then we to christen the child.... After the christening comes in the wine and sweetmeats, etc...."

A statute dating from the time of Henry III. runs as follows:--"If really from necessity the child shall be baptized at home, the water on account of the sanctity of baptism shall either be poured into the fire, or carried away to the church to be poured into the Baptistery and _the vessel shall be burnt at the same time, or shall be deputed to the use of the Church_."

One of the most confessedly difficult passages in the New Testament is S. Paul's question, "What shall they do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?" (1 Cor. XV. 29). Bingham discusses this text at some length. Two main lines of interpretation have been followed by the various commentators. The one is, that there was a custom among some of the early heretics, that when anyone died without baptism, another was baptized in his stead. S. Chrysostom says that this was practised among the Marcionites with a great deal of ridiculous ceremony, which he thus describes:--"After any catechumen was dead, they hid a living man under the bed of the deceased, then, coming to the dead man, they spake to him and asked him whether he would receive baptism? And he making no answer, the other answered for him, and said, 'He would be baptized in his stead.' And so they baptized the living for the dead, as if they were acting a comedy upon the stage; so great was the power of Satan in the minds of these vain men. Afterward, when anyone challenged them upon this practice, they had the confidence to plead the apostle's authority for it." Bingham proceeds to reject this interpretation on two grounds; 1st, that it was superstitious and delusive, "Any Jew or Gentile might easily be made a Christian by having another, after his death, baptized for him." This objection, however, is not conclusive, it does not follow that S. Paul approved of the practice, no doubt he would account it a superstition. But he is employing the _argumentum ad hominem_. "What do these people mean by their practice if they do not believe in a resurrection?" The second objection is more cogent, viz.: that the interpretation in question was not accepted by any early Christian writer.

The other line of interpretation which Bingham adopts, shall be given in his own words. "But S. Chrysostom gives a much more rational account of the apostle's argument, for he supposes him to refer to the Catholic custom, of making every catechumen at his own baptism, with his own mouth declare his belief of the resurrection of the dead by repeating the creed of which that was a part, and so being baptized into that faith, or hope of the resurrection of the dead. And, therefore, he puts them in mind of this saying, 'If there be no resurrection of the dead, why art thou then baptized for the dead, that is, the body? For, therefore, thou art baptized for the dead, believing the resurrection of the dead, that the body may not remain dead, but revive again.' So that 'baptizing for the dead,' is an elliptical expression for being baptized into the faith or belief of the resurrection of the dead. And so I think Tertullian is to be understood when he says in opposition to the error of the Marcionites, "That to be 'baptized for the dead' is to be 'baptized for the body,' which is declared to be dead by baptism;--that is, we are baptized into the belief of the resurrection of the body, both whose death and resurrection are represented in baptism." And the interpretation of Epiphanius comes pretty near these, when he says, "It refers to those who were baptised upon the approach of death, in the hopes of the resurrection from the dead; for they shewed thereby that the dead should rise again, and that therefore they had need of the remission of sins, which is obtained in baptism." The same sense is given by Theodoret, and Theophylact, and Balsamon, and Zonaras, and Matthew Blastaras among the Greeks; and it is embraced by Bishop Patrick, and Dr. Hammond, as the most natural and genuine exposition of this difficult passage of the apostle."

The use of Sponsors in the administration of baptism dates from the earliest times. Their duties varied according as the baptized person were an infant or an adult. For the most part at first, parents were sponsors for their own children, and it was the exception when they were not. "The extraordinary cases," says Bingham, "in which [the baptized] were presented by others were commonly such cases where the parent could not, or would not, do that kind office for them; as when slaves were presented to baptism by their masters; or children when parents were dead, brought by the charity of any who would show mercy on them; or children exposed by their parents, which were sometimes taken up by the holy virgins of the church" (iii. 552.) Sponsors for children were called on, 1st, to answer in their name to all the interrogatories of baptism; 2nd, to be guardian of their spiritual life for the future. In the case of adults their duty was to admonish and instruct them both before and after baptism. Very commonly sponsors for adults were deacons or deaconesses. Only one sponsor originally was required, in the case of adults, a man for a man and a woman for a woman. For children there was no restriction as to the sex of the sponsor.

Sponsors were called "spiritual parents," and out of this relationship grew the practice in the Roman Catholic Church, which forbade sponsors, or godparents, from marrying within the forbidden degrees of spiritual relation. The first notice of this occurs in the laws of Justinian, which forbid a man to marry a woman, whether she be slave or free, to whom he has stood godfather, "because nothing induces a more parental affection, or juster prohibition of marriage, than this tie, by which their souls are in a divine manner, united together." This was afterwards extended to prohibition between a godfather and the mother of the child, and the prohibition took final shape in the decrees of Trent, which further forbid marriages between the sponsors themselves, nor may the baptizer marry the baptized. A host of troubles and difficulties are on record in the pages of history, arising out of these prohibitions.

It is uncertain when proxies were first allowed. The first English record appears to be the case of Jane, the daughter of Thomas Godfrey, of Grub Street, who was baptized at S. Giles', Cripplegate, in 1615. Mr. Godfrey kept a diary, in which he writes, "My gossips were Mrs. Jane Hallsye, wife of Mr. John Hallsye, one of the Citty Captains, and my sister Howlt, and Sir Multon Lombard, who sent Mr. Michael Lee for his deputy. My brother Thomas Isles afterwards bestowed a christening sermon on us."

In mediaeval times a child on being baptized was arrayed by the priest in a white robe, which had been anointed with sacred oil, and was called a Chrismale. This robe was called the Chrisom, and if the child died within a month, it was shrouded in this robe, and was called a Chrisom-child. Parochial registers very frequently have the expression applied to children who are buried, and it will be remembered by readers of Shakespeare. Sometimes the cloth was called the Christening Palm. Later, say a hundred years ago, though the arraying by the minister was not in use, a newly baptized child was arrayed in a palm or pall to be brought down to see company.

In Perthshire, it is said, a child who was about to be privately baptized was placed in a clean basket covered over with a cloth, in which was placed a portion of bread and cheese. The basket was then hung on the iron crook over the fire, and turned round three times. It was to counteract the malignant spells of witches and evil spirits. Here is an inventory of christening garments of the seventeenth century (_Notes and Queries_):--

1. A lined, white figured satin cap.

2. A lined, white satin cap, embroidered with sprays in gold coloured silk.

3. A white satin palm, embroidered to match. Size 44 in. by 34 in.