“Sir, we return you our humble and hearty thanks for your noble and illustrious benefaction to this ancient foundation; your generosity hath supplyed a defect and covered a blemish in our chapell; the other lesse eminent windows seemed to upbraid the chiefest as being more adorned and regardable than that which ought to be most splendid; till you was pleased to compassionate us and ennoble the best with the best work. Other benefactions are to be sought out in registers and memorialls, yours is conveyed with the light. The rising sun displays the gallantry of your spirit, and withall puts us in mind as often as we enter to our devotions to remember you and your good actions towards us. Nor can we salute the morning light without meditating on ye Shepherds and ye Angells adoring the true Sun. And yr holy praise and prostration by your singular favour is continually proposed, as to our sight and consideration, so to our example also. And so we do accept and acknowledge it, not only as an object moving our devotions, but as praise of ye artificer who hath not only observed much better decorum and proportion in his figures, but hath all so ingeniously contrived that the light shall not be hindred as by ye daubery of ye others.”—The letter concludes with a prayer that Dr. Radcliffe may prosper in his profession.
The following quaint “letter sent by the College to begge contributions towards the building the East Side of the quadrangle about ye end of 1674 or beginning of 1675 to the gentlemen in the North Parts” may fitly conclude our notice of this college (vide MSS. W. Smith, x. 239).
“Gentlemen,
“Your aged mother, and not yours alone, but of this whole University, if not all other such nurseries of Learning, at least in this nation, craves your assistance in the Time of her Necessity. It is not long since her walls Ruining and her Buildings, almost, after so many years, decayed; It pleased God to excite two of her sonnes in especiall manner, Mr Charles Greenwood, the tutor, and Sr Simon Benett, his pupill, to compassionate her decay, Repair her Ruins and Renew with Great Augmentation her former glory. But the late civil warrs and other alterations intervening not only interrupted that progresse which in a small time would have finished the work; But also disappointed her of the Assistance of Diverse, who were willing to contribute to her repairs.
“And we have very good Hopes that you will not be wanting to us in this our Necessity; this being a college designed for and most of the preferment in it limitted to Northern Scholars. A college which hath had the felicity to be herselfe at this present time DCCC. years old.… In recompense she may justly expect that as she hath fostered your youths, so you would cherish her age.”
Additional Notes.
[p. 9.] On Clerical Fellows.—It should be added that the statutes of 1736 provided that the two senior Fellows of the foundation of Sir Simon Bennet might study Medicine or Law. In 1854 the general ordinances of the Commissioners provided that there should be six (i. e. half of the) Fellows in Holy Orders. More recently clerical Fellowships have been practically abolished in the College.
[p. 14.] Anti-Norman feeling.—A spirit of Rivalry with Cambridge may with more reason be alleged in explanation of the acceptance of the Aluredian Legend.