the objections made against my late bargaine for some of his Mties coppices or colletts adioyning to the fforest of Deane.
“‘1. Ffirst, that contrarie to the intention of this bargaine, I have alredie cut downe a great number of tymber-trees, whereas to this howre not any one is felled of that kynde or any other.
“‘2. That a follower of my Ld of Worcester’s should survey those woodes is a wilful mistakinge, synce by the particules it appeares that one Mr Hervye made this survey by warrant from the late L. Trer.
“‘3. That I should gaine a 1000 li. per ann. by this bargaine is soe vayre and ympossible a thing as deserves noe Aunswere.
“‘Yet that your Lpp maye see howe much Th’ informer hath exceeded therein, himselfe or any man els shall purchase my interest for a tenth parte of his valuation. Which I write not in any sorte to capitulate with your Lpp; for wthout any consideration at all, I am redie to yealde upp this bargaine, rather then by reteyning thereof to harbour in your noblest thoughts the least ill conceipt of mee or my proceedinges. But nowe, Sr, howe profitable a bargaine you have made for the Kinge, these considerations followinge will easely demonstrate—ffor whereas in former tyme a greater proffit was never raised out of these wooddes than xxvs per ann. vntill my Ld your ffather and Sr Walter Myldemaye did let them by lease, and soe made viili rent, wthout any ffyne, your Lpp hath now made 500li ffyne, and 20li rent, wch is noe smale improvement, consideringe that these 25 yeares last past not one pennye rent or proffitt otherwise hath bene made out of them, but left as a thing forgotten. That the coppice woodd or vnderwoodd through the abuse of the last ffarmer, who never inclosed these wooddes, and the contynuall spoyle and havocke of the country thereabouts, is utterly destroyed. That there is nothinge nowe eft in 4 of those 6 coppices for wch I have bargained but old beaches, heretofore topt and lopt, whereof many of them nowe are scarce worth the cuttinge out to any man but myselfe, in respect of my iron workes beinge soe nere to them. That the other twoe coppices which are well stored have nothinge in them but younge beaches, and some other woodd of xx or xxx yeares growth. That in dyvers of those coppices there are many acres wch have noe manner of woodd standing vpon them at all. Lastly,
that the enclosinge of these coppices wth a sufficient mound will cost me 200 markes the least, beside the great quantitie of woodd that must necessarilye be spent therein, for wch no manner of allowance is made mee, &c. &c. &c.’”
The next MS. in Sir J. Cæsar’s collection seems designed to promote the extension of the iron-works, and relates several interesting particulars. It is headed “Reasons to move his Mtie to make vse and profitt of the woodes within the fforest of Deane.” The Forest woods are said to “containe of great standing woodes, though of severall and different sortes, 15,000 acres, parte beinge tymber, and parte other, the most parte well sett, the lawndes not accompted. The same fforest is a forest for waste, and of soe ill condicõn for hunting, as that the preservinge the woodes thereof will nether yield pleasure to the hunter nor profitt to the owner; and the woodes thereupon soe subject to waste, will dayly grow worse and worse. The fforest is for II. or III. myles vpon the skirts soe exceedingly wasted, as well by the inhabitants as other the borderers adiacent, that yt is grief to see soe many goodly trees to be spoiled, the vse whereof hath bene such as yt hath converted the tymber trees to Dotards, and that almost generally vpon the borders of the same fforest. The liberty of makinge sale of the wood hath bred in the same such a multitude of poore creatures, as it is lamentable to thinke soe many inhabitants shall lyve vpon soe bare provision as vpon spoile of the fforest woodes, wch yf in tyme yt be not forseene, will consume all his Mties woodes without accompte. It appeareth by Recorde, that in the raigne of Henry III., Edward I., II., and III., and longe sithence, there were divers forges within the fforest, and noe other but the Kinge’s only; and of these there were VIII. at one tyme, as appeareth by the accompt of Maurice de Scto Amando, and the rest were Forgium Itinerans ad siccum in bosco de, &c. All lyberty beinge prohibited for cuttinge of greene wood but to his Mates owne forge. And whosoever cutt greene wood was by the officer of the Bayliwycke attached for the same. Also by negligence of former officers the inhabitantes of the said forest have much insulted by cuttinge of trees in the said forest, whereas by Recorde it appeareth the Kynge’s Warrant was in former tymes obtayned for cuttinge of deade trees, and who soe cutt, shredd, or lopped great wood wthout good warrant, was from tyme to tyme attached, presented, and made to paye for ye same. There are, to
keepe and preserve the woodes of the said forest, tenn woodwardes, or Baylyfes of ffee, who hould Landes by that service, viz. Per servitum custodiendi boscum Domini Regis infra Ballinam, &c. Yet late experience proveth that they, their Tenauntes and Servantes, are as great spoilers as any others. And the antient Recordes make mencõn, that some of these woodwardes have forfeyted their Bayliwyckes, and have compounded wth the Kinge to have them againe regranted. It appeareth alsoe by Recordes, that the King hath bene answered of Browsewood wthin the Forest of Deane, and therein is sett downe what ffees were from tyme to tyme allowed to the keeper and what not. The profitt to be made of the said woodes is either by convertinge the same to coles, and soe for makinge iron or otherwise by sellinge of the tymber by the tonne. In wch disposition of the woodes there wil be lytle or noe difference in advantage. But of the two the makinge of coles will be lykely to yield most profitt.”
These succeeding papers, preserved with those already given, have also their interest:—
“Certain lands and tenemts holden by the face, and called new sett landes, wch the tenantes doe passe from partie to partie in the Kinge’s Court at St Breuills, being all the Kinge’s lands liing in the fforest of Deane in com’ Glouc., every tenante there payeing a certein yerely rent to his Mts Bailiff. Imprimis, the parke of Thomas Baynham, Esqr, called Noxon, is parcell therof, except from the gutter to the pale towards his house, holden by the tenure aforesaid, 50li per ann.