Naturam expellas furca, tamen ufque recurret, for they will throw them down as faft as you lay them. The Caftom of fitting at Arm's Length from the Table, is an inbred Distance derived from their Ancestors, whofe gouty Legs to their Tables would not fuffer Men to come nearer; but in these more modern and shapeable Times quite unneceffary. That these were the prudent and even neceffary Cuftoms of their Saxon or Danish Ancestors, or both, is very evident; and that they were delivered down to their Posterity in the Channel I have mentioned, feems very probable; for nothing but the Force of firft, or second Nature, which goes its own Way, in Defiance of Fashion or Ridicule, could continue Cuftoms, now fo apparently unneceffary, troublesome, and indelicate. Nothing fince the Conqueft of this Island by the Duke of Normandy, commonly called WILLIAM the Conqueror, has happened to this Village in particular; in general he, and, for his fake, his Ancestors, seem to have been great Favourites here, as well as all over England. The famous Clameur de HA-RO is a Proof of it; for, though now fallen among Carters and Ploughmen, and by them converted into a Language, like Pedlar's French, HA, HO, HAYT, HO, &c. to their Horfes, it was at first an Invocation, by all Ranks of Men, upon Duke ROLLO, under any Difficulties, even by Carters themselves, when their Waggons were fet in bad Roads; RO being a current and eftablifhed Abbreviation of the Duke's Name. The Invocation was [p] HARO al' aide, mon Prince! The latter Part of which has been here, (Iliacos intra muros peccatur et extra) as well as elsewhere, profaned, by a very falfe Interpretation, to fome little Curfes and Imprecations; it being almost a general Belief among the Vulgar, that when Men fpeak French, or any Outlandish Linguo, they fwear, or talk Bawdy. The Corfew Bell is not rung here, because there is not one in the Steeple that has voice enough to be heard throughout the Parish; but the Order and Custom is obferved by all the better Sort; the Poor, by a Fatality that runs through their whole Oeconomy, are the only People that burn Fire and Candle after eight o'clock at Night; by which Mismanagement they waste a Penny to earn an Half-penny, if they work; but too often their Farthing Candle ferves only to make Darkness vifible for much worse Purposes. For this Reason I have often thought, that if Authority would order the Corfew Bell to be rung, or a Bell-man to go round every Parifh, at eight at Night, throughout the Kingdom, (inftead of disturbing us in our Beds at twelve or one in the Morning) with a Veto effe tale Luminis commercium, Put out your Lights, at every Man's Door, who does not pay Scot and Lot, it would be better for the Poor, for their Neighbours, and for the Commonwealth. The prefent State of this Parish differs nothing from the ancient in Point of Fruitfulness. The People by Intermarriages, and other ways, have paffed through fo many Combinations, that they all fit down under the common Denomination of English. They are Chriftians, as appears most evidently from the Parish Register; and all of them, when they do not ftay at Home, go to the fame Place of Worship; except one - who re taining fome Tenets of his British Paganism, pays his Devotions under an Oak, or a Walnut-Tree, with a modern Druid, every Sabbath-Day.-There have been but two Houses erected of late Years; the one feemingly contrived by Eli, a Jew-Chriftian Family fettled here; for it is built without a Stair cafe, upon the Jewish Model of climbing, not walking up, to Bed. The other I know not by whom; but it is upon a very inhospitable Plan (quite contrary to the Tempers of the late Inhabitants) for the Chimnies are so placed, it is difficult to get in at the Door. The prevailing Tafte runs much upon building Temples to Cloachina, and Menageries for WildBoars; Structures in themselves beautiful, but at the Expence of that noble Roman Way, the Via Icenarum that leads through the Parish, which they narrow and obumbrate.-The Morals of the People are like the Morals of other Men, of the fame Rank; not the worse perhaps for the Advice of their Parfon, of whom they feem to entertain a tolerably good Opinion Opinion. The Parfon [9] has begot himself Children, made himself Gardens and Orchards, and planted Trees in them of all Kinds. He hath made himself Pools of Water, to water therewith the Trees; and he has had Poffeffion of great Cattle above all that were in WHEATFIELD before him. VALEAT RES LUDICRA. [9] This Paffage alludes to the Rector's numerous Family of nine Children-To his Love for Gardens and Plantations-To his making fome small Pieces of Water, and to his very accidental Breeding and Feeding a large Bullock, that, after Sale, was made a Shew of. |