and wainscoted with oak. The whole front was of oak, bare to the weather, and therefore grown black with age, the several stories projecting one over the other, and abundance of window lights, with the old small sort of diamon glass. But timber, with mouldings between each light and the whole frames, ye whole front with pillars at the Entrance, curiously wrought and embellished with various ornaments of mouldings, carved flowers, images, &c. "There were many Blank places in the main streets of dead walls, gateways, &c., that are since filled up with Buildings, and many old single houses were so wide in front, that when rebuilt were made into several tenements. The back lanes had a very mean appearance, but few houses, and bad ones. The Little London,' in particular, which now appears so gay, had only a few old Houses as it were under Ground. The street was pitched, but very Dusty, with deep cart Ruts. The old Corn Market House stood in the North Street on the west side. It was pretty long from south to north; one side of it was close to the gutter in the Midle of the Street, and the other within about 7 or 6 feet of the Houses. It stood upon posts or framed Timbers pannelled up about Brest high. It had an Enterance on each side, but the Chief Enterance was at the South end, about half its width, next the Houses, the other half being the caige, which was boarded up brest high, and wood Barrs perpendicular above. "The streets had no paved foot-walks, only a broad stone or two at most of the Dores. The sheep market was but small, extending no further than the length of the dead wall of the Priory close, against which stood the old posts to which the wattles were tied. The road from the North Gate to the river Broyle was deep, dusty, narrow, and crooked, great parts of it not wide enough for two carriages to pass each other, and foot people went over stiles into the Fields. "Excepting the bishops, there were no more than three coaches, no post-chaise, nor any single horse Chaise let to hire but one, and that a very awkward one, by Mr. Booker, a shoemaker. No road waggon to London, goods then being carried to and from London by pack horses, a set of which went every week. "There were then many great Drinkers among all ranks of men, and Revelings and night freaks too common. Wine and very strong Beer was the run, and in the Town and subburbs there were 45 publick Houses, and now but 29. Malt was commonly at 2s. 6d. per bushel, and it was not uncommon with some farmers when they came to market to get drunk and stay two or three days till their wives came to fetch them home. The Commonalty were homely and free in their conversation, calling one another by their first name, and the lower sort rude, much given to mean diversions, such as Bull baiting, which was very frequent, and for which many bull dogs were kept, wrestling, cudgelling, footballing in the streets day after day on frosty weather, to the advantage of the glaziers, cockfighting, dogfighting, badgerbaiting, and on Shrove Tuesday the usual unmanly and cruel exercise of cockscailing everywhere, even in the High Church Litten [the cathedral churchyard], and many other places in the City and in the Countrey. Scarsely a churchyard was to be found but a number of these poor innocent birds were thus • barbarously treated. Tieing them by the leg with a string about 4 or 5 feet long fastened to the ground, and when he is made to stand fair, a great, ignorant, mercyless fellow at a distance agreed upon, who, at three throws 2d., flings a scail at him until he is quite dead, and thus their legs are broken and their bodies bruised in a shocking manner, and after they appear to be dead, they put their heads under ground, and bring them to and set them up again. And wonderfull it was that men of character and circumstance should come to this fine sight, and readily give their Children a cock for this purpose. This Cruel Practice is almost over in these parts. 'The Household Furniture of the wooden sort was with old house-keepers almost all of English oak, viz., long tables, round and triangular, Do. chest of drawers, side cupboards, with large dores at bottom, and on the top short pillars, with a kind of Piazer and small dores within, much carved arm chairs, with wood bottoms. and backs, joynt stools, cloaths chests, bedsteds, with posts and framed head, and testers, all of which were much carved with Flowers, scroles, Images, &c.; likewise the waniscoting was all of English oak, framed with a flat moulding, the pannels all cleft from the Tree. But with younger People it was now in fashion to have deal dressers with shelves over for puter, &c., their tables and Chests of Drawers of Norway oak, called waniscot. With the higher sort of Walnut tree venering was most in vogue, and esteemed for its Beauty above anything else. Mahoggany was not yet come to be in use. The best chairs were turnd ash, died or stuffed, with Turkey or of tick covers. But the cabinet makers walnut tree chairs, with French leggs, began now to be made. Bedsteads of beech or English oak began to be scarse and dear; no feetposts, but raised Head board and raised Tester hung up to the Cealing, and abundance of Laceing on the Furniture. "Spinning of Household Linnen was in use in most families, also making their own Bread, and likewise their own Household Physick. No tea, but much industry and good cheer. The bacon Racks were loaded with Baken, for little Porke was made in thease times. The Farmers wifes and Daughters were plain in dress, and made no such gay figures in our market as now-a-days. At Christmas the whole constellation of Patty Pans which adorned their chimney fronts were taken down. The spit, the pot, the oven, were all in use together. The evenings spent in jollity, and their glass guns smoking toped the Tumbler with the froth of good October, till most of them were slain or wounded, and the Prince of Orange and Queen Anne's Marlborough could no longer be resounded. And with the Higher Rank the sparkling wine had much the same effect. Forreign spirits were not then so much in use as of late years. "1724. At this election, as soon as the members were chosen, the Mayor refusing the voters signing the Return, the mob arose and brought pickaxes and other instruments, threatening to pule down the Councel House about their ears, and brought them to comply. Also an ox roasted whole on the street before the east side of the Cross, upon a large wooden spit, turned by men, and cut off the spit as it was ready and given to the populace as they stood ready with plaits and dishes to receive it; and several hogsheds of strong Beer in the streets running and distributing. The north walls, walk and ramparts, were levelled, repaired, and beautified by Lord Beauclerk, then chosen member. The row of trees at the East walls were now planted, but the row of large trees at the North walls about the time that the Prince and Princess of Orange came to the English throne. "1736. The Dark Cloisters, which continued round all four sides of the square quite to the Canon Lane, was now about taken down and laid open to the gardens, and the vicar's houses were faced and windows put in. "1740. Inoculation for the small-pox was now first practised in Chichester. About 300 were inoculated, and I think 3 or 4 died. "1745. The great alarm here of the French being landed at Pemsey Marsh, which news arived by a special messenger from Arundel about the middle of the night, and so carried on to Havant, Portsmouth, &c. Imediately Drums beat to arms all over the town. The soldiers were drawn up, the gates all shut and garded, no person admitted without being first examined. Messengers sent every way into the countrey to warn them to get ready with all weapons possable. The beacon was lighted upon the top of Rooks Hill, which alarmed the country far round. All were getting their guns ready, casting bullets, &c. Women frightend out of their wits; some fainted away; some ran from their beds into the streets without their cloaths, expecting the enemy to be upon them every moment. Many went to hideing their plate, writings, and most valuable things. "1762. The turnpike road began to be made from the West gate towards Portsmouth. "1773. The three gates, North, South, and West, were taken down, which put a stop to the keeping Hock Monday, which was the Monday fortnight after Easter, when the Porters kept the gate shut from morning till night, and every person passing through paid a penny once for the day. "1774. The footwalks in all the streets and lanes first paved, at the expense of the members of Parliament for the city. "1780. The number of dwelling houses within the walls 437, and without, total 601. "1783. The East Gate and Prison over it taken down. "1784. The great air balloon conscentric from Chichester was sent up from the Bishops Green." This worthy, simple-hearted chronicler, called his own days the golden age of Chichester, and predicted its decline; however, if it has lost much of its picturesqueness, its neighbourhood and walls contain the gentry whose absence he deplores, and its broad streets, bright and pleasant to look at on a summer's day, lead to many an interesting spot; walls planted with shady trees less modern than those of Chester; the noble choir of the Franciscan church, now, alas! grievously disfigured; the unique Hospital of St. Mary, preserving its nave, with aisles filled with the dwellings of the almsfolk, and opening by a carved screen into a chapel retaining its ancient stalls; the unrivalled market cross, and traces of the camp of its old Roman garrison on the Broyl; while from every point may be caught new and beautiful views of the tall white spire and grey campanile, grouping themselves in ever-varying combinations with the tall mass of the cathedral, the ruddy houses, and the verdure of the trees. MIRACLES. BY REV. R. WINTERBOTHAM, LL.B. No. III. IN the first of these articles I endeavoured to show that the common definition of miracles, as "violations of the law of nature," was incorrect and delusive, because the force to which they are due (the immediate will of God) is itself ranked among the laws of nature as a known and recognised power in the world, just as much as our own will is: if any one will say that the contraction of the muscles of his arm in immediate obedience to his will is a "violation of natural law," then he may say the same of the dividing of the Red Sea, but not otherwise. In the second articlé I sought to confirm this conclusion by pointing out how completely both Scripture and our Christian faith are inconsistent with the "un-natural" theory of the miraculous: so far as they constitute a revelation they make us acquainted with a whole world of the miraculous, as really existent, as lawful, and as natural as that we knew before; so far as they are something far higher than a mere revelation, they actually admit us into and make us partakers of that miraculous world: therefore for a Christian to talk of miracles as contrary to nature is an indirect avowal of unbelief. Nor does it mend the matter to say that contrary to nature means contrary to ordinary experience; for while all nations have believed in miracles, it is the special privilege of Christians that the world of miracles is as real, as natural, and as near to them as the world of physical law. Miracles are as necessarily included in the ordinary experience of those who live the life of faith as they are of course excluded from the ordinary experience of others. There is, however, a certain sense in which the 1 There could not be a more striking illustration of this than the rise and spread of spiritualism (so called). A senseless and degraded superstition, closely allied to devil-worship, and fundamentally opposed to Christianity, it is yet said to be the most popular religion in the United States; simply, I venture to believe, because it satisfies the instinctive belief in the miraculous, and affords a refuge from the wretched materialism of the age. |