The following Donations were laid upon the table :— From the United Societies. Reports and Papers of the Architectural Societies of the Archdeaconry of Northampton, the County of York, the Dioceses of Lincoln and Worcester, and the County of Bedford, 1854, Vol. III. Part 1. From the Rev. J. W. Hill, M.A. Pauli Petavi in Francorum Consilia Antiquariae Suppellectilis, Portiuncula, Paris 1614. From Alfred John Dunkin, Esq. The Archæological Mine and History of Kent, Part xxiii., May. From J. Towne Danson, F.S.S. A Statistical Abstract for the United Kingdom,— from the returns of the Board of Trade; for fifteen years 1840-54. Mr. E. J. Rogers exhibited eight etchings by De la Bella, 1661, principally views from the gardens of Versailles. Also, ten portraits of the Dukes and Electors of Saxony; a Portrait of Elizabeth Christina, Queen of Prussia; and an engraving after Vincent Gotta, -subject St. John the Baptist. Mr. Stonehouse exhibited an Italian book,* supposed to have belonged to Shakspeare, and which exhibited his autograph on the parchment inside the cover. On the subject of the genuineness of the autograph, the opinions of the members were divided. Mr. Browne exhibited a book entitled "The Sermon which Jesus made on the way to Emmaus, &c.," London, bl. let., 1578. Mr. Buxton exhibited a copy of Hudibras, with illustrations by Hogarth, 1739. Mr. Danson laid on the table Lieutenant Maury's Physical Geography of the Sea, and made some remarks on the importance of the subject, 1855. The Rev. J. W. Hill, M.A., exhibited the following in illustration of his own paper to be read. The Rectory House, Waverton; Drawing of Waverton Church; Photograph of Do.; West Door and Window of Do.; Map of the Parish; Lower Huxley Hall, Waverton; Sketches of the ancient oak trees, Hatton Hall; Fragment of bark of one of the trees; Gateway, Lower Huxley Hall; Bridge over the moat, Do. A communication was read from T. T. Wilkinson, F.R.A.S., Burnley, entitled "the Burnley Haymakers;" consisting of a local broadside ballad with explanations of the circumstances in which it originated. The following Paper was then read: PAROCHIAL NOTES RESPECTING WAVERTON, NEAR CHESTER. By the Rev. J. Wilbraham, Hill, M.A. [The following is an abstract of this very interesting paper.] The most ancient name of this parish is Wavretone, as it is thus written in Domesday Book. In Lysons's Mag. Brit. it is written variously, "Warretone, Waverton, or Warton," which is the present vulgar pronunciation. The parish consists of three townships, viz., Waverton, Hatton, and Huxley. It is agricultural, and contains 4041a. 2r. 37p, statute measure. It is celebrated for its cheese, which is made largely, and sent by railway to London. Of the parish, nearly threefourths is pasture land. There is a "Fox Covert" of 9a. Or. 2p., called "Warton Gorse," in the township of Waverton, and another in Huxley township, of 7a. Ir. 12p., both held by the Tarporley Hunt. Waverton township is four miles S. E. by E. from Chester, and is intersected by the Chester and Ellesmere Canal. The L. and N.W. Railway runs through two townships, viz., Waverton and Hatton, and the first station from Chester is at Waverton. Two coal wharves have recently been established at Waverton, one supplied by the L. and N.W. Railway, and the other by the Canal. Some Roman Cement Works have recently been erected at Egg Bridge, in this township, on land belonging to the freeholders of Waverton. At each end of the parish, viz., at Waverton and Huxley, there is a post office. Though Ormerod speaks of this parish as "flat and uninteresting," yet this is relieved by the fiue views of the Welsh Hills, in the west, of Beeston and Peckforton *Commento di Sr Agresto da Ficarvolo, sopra la Prima Ficata del Padre Siceo, 1538. Castles on the south and east, and of Helsby Tor Hill and Delamere to the north. Waverton is very healthy, having a substratum of sandstone. Close to the railway station is a quarry, (the property of the Marquis of Westminster, who is principal landlord of the township,) from which Chester Cathedral was extensively repaired in 1819. The Chapel of the Chester Training College, and perhaps the fine tower of the Parish Church, were also built of the same material. Health of the Parish. The Registers for the last 40 years have 550 deaths, or less than a yearly average of 14. Of these, 153 were above 70, 64 above 80, and 14 above 90 years of age. A head stone records John Williams as 105, and his wife Esther as 95, at the time of their death. Population. On the fly-leaf of the Registers, commencing 1755, is inserted—" On August 22, 1774, there were in the township of The Manors. The Marquis of Westminster is the present Lord of Waverton, having purchased it from the Massies, to whom it had come from the Duttons. Of Hatton Manor the Marquis of Cholmondely is the Lord, one of whose ancestors purchased it from Mr. Massie, to whom it also had come through the Duttons. The old Hall of Hatton is no longer in existence, a modern farm house having been erected on its site. Of the five oaks mentioned by Ormerod, one fell in 1851. Huxley Manor is held by Randle Wilbraham, Esq., whose grandfather purchased it from the representatives of the Bruens. There are two Halls in the township, now occupied as farm houses, one called Upper Huxley Hall, and the other Lower Huxley Hall, which latter still bears the traces of its ancient grandeur. For particulars of these manors, consult Ormerod, Lysons, Sir Peter Leycester's Antiq., Henshall's Hist. of Ches., &c. Rectors. The list of Rectors is given by Ormerod. In 1714, the Bishop became Rector, and the duties were performed by a perpetual Curate. The following is the list of Curates: William Calkin. Griffith Gardner, who had been Curate to the last Rector, Mr. Prescott. 1770. G. Salt. 1774. Will. Bissell.* 1784. Isaac Riley. J. Bateman, buried December 19, 1803. 1803. Jos. Bower, died November 21, 1844. 1844. J. Wilbraham Hill, M.A. November. The Church. It is dedicated to St. Peter, and is thus noticed in the Charter of Hugh Lupus, in 1093, relating to the grants to St. Werburgh's Abbey, in the city of Chester, Ricardus de Rullos dedit Ecclesiam et Decimam Wavertonæ." The church is * From an old Churchwarden's Account Book, it appears that in the year 1783, there must have been some trouble on the part of the parish respecting Mr. Bissell, as we find-" Paid to Charles Dean, for looking after Mr. Bissell on the Sabbath Day, 1s. Spent about Mr. Bissell at Chester, six days, 2s. 3d. Spent when the parish met about Mr. Bissell, 48. 3d." The writer has been informed that Mr. Bissell on one occasion jumped out of a window from the Rectory, and was afterwards lodged in a Lunatic Asylum. unnoticed in Domesday Survey, and was therefore probably built between that Survey and the period here specified. The present church was probably built in the reign of Henry VII. The writer is indebted to the kindness of Sir Stephen R. Glynne, Bart., of Hawarden Castle, for the following observations on its architectural style, the result of two visits, one in 1832, the other in 1851-" and the condition of the church," says Sir Stephen," was certainly very different at the two periods. Waverton has a nave, and a shortened chancel, with north and south aisles, and a lofty and handsome western tower. The latter is of good late perpendicular character, with a large west window of four lights, and a doorway having bold foliage and armorial shields in the spandrels. It is the great feature of the church, but contrasts rather unhappily with the low and inferior character of the body, which bears marks of having been chiefly constructed in a debased period, perhaps in the reign of Elizabeth. The nave has very low arcades dividing the aisles-on each side three arches, which are pointed but small-the piers octagonal. The northern arches are slightly stilted, and the capitals on this side have an ornament which resembles the nail-head. Over the arcades is a clerestory of squareheaded windows. The roof of the nave and aisles are of very fair timber work, of the latter part of the 16th century. The present east wall is said to have been built in 1606. "The church has received much improvement since the accession of the present Incumbent. The tower arch has been thrown open to the nave, and the interior put into a neat and becoming condition, which was not the case formerly." There are four good toned bells, on the largest of which is written, "1615, C. L.” A date is also on the second bell, with an inscription which the writer could not decipher, but on the fourth bell, bearing the same date, is "IHESUS BE OUR SPEED. W. R." An original certificate of the Sheriff &c. of Cheshire, respecting the bells and plate in the churches of that county, anno 1548, communicated from the Records of the Augmentation Office, by John Caley, Esq., F.S.A., shews that at that period there were only two bells. "Warton Churche in the hundred of Broxton, Chalise & Patten j..a ring of bells ij." The Living. Waverton is a Rectory, as well as perpetual Curacy, which is thus accounted for. When Chester became a separate See in 1541, the Archdeaconries of Chester and Richmond were assigned to it for a Diocese. A custom of great antiquity prevailed in the Archdeaconry of Chester, that the Bishop, who is also Archdeacon, in right of his See, should have for a mortuary* on the death of every clergyman dying therein, his best horse or mare, bridle, saddle, and spurs; his best gown or cloak, best hat, best upper garments under his gown and tippet; and also his best signet ring. (Cro. Car. 237.) In 1755, it was enacted by statute 28 Geo. II. c. 6, that these mortuaries should cease, as tending greatly to impoverish the small provision which the clergy were able to leave for the support of their families, and that in lieu thereof, the Rectory of Waverton, after the next vacancy, should be appropriated to the Bishop of Chester for the time being. This took place during the episcopate of Bishop Keene, twelve years after, on the death of the Rev. John Prescot in 1767, from which time to the present, the Bishop of Chester. as Rector, has always received the tithes of the parish, while the duties are performed by a Perpetual Curate, appointed by the Bishop, at a yearly stipend of £60. About the year 1828, however, a purchase was effected from Queen Anne's Bounty, of 12a. 3r. 13p., in augmentation of the Incumbent's income, who also occupies the Glebe and Rectory House. which Bishop Gastrell states was built in the year 1716. Valor Ecclesiasticus. The Living of Waverton is valued in the King's Book (Henry VIII., 1535) as follows R 23 06 08 Pr. A. 068 Syn 0 1 6 Tri 0 6 8 Terrier. There is an old Terrier painted on panels, in a frame in the church, which the writer discovered by the merest chance, when the church was undergoing extensive "Morturium," a gift left by a man at his death, to his parish church, for the recompense of of his personal tithes and offerings not duly paid in his life time. A mortuary was anciently called saule-sceat (soul-shot), which signifies pecunia sepulchralis, or symbolum animæ. After the conquest it was called cors-present, because the beast was presented with the body at the funeral. Jacob's Law Dictionary. repairs in 1845, and which he had reprinted and restored.* It was set up November 3, 1756. The expense of this table was-"To Richd. Vickers, for painting the Table of Fees, £5 2 0; for setting up, &c., 3/." Charities. The poor of Waverton seem to have been well cared for, but from gross negligence and unjust appropriation, much has been lost. The following table of benefactors is in the church: 1629. Hy. Wright gave 6l. y. use, to be given yearly for ever.. do. do. do. do. 20 0 0 .... do. do. 5 0 0 "Thos. Lightfoot, Jo. Iohnson, Church Wardens, Daniel Cassey, Sidesman, 1704." It is stated that a part of this money was expended in the purchase of land, but there is no evidence on the subject whatever. About two acres in Tattersall, claimed by the Churchwardens, is supposed to have been the purchase made. There is an annual sum of £1 paid to the poor, being the interest on £20 formerly borrowed from the poor's money, to be expended on the Highways of the Township. Clubs. At Huxley the farmers have instituted a Coal Club, for the benefit of the poor during the winter. There are two Clothing Clubs, the larger managed by the Incumbent, the other, a private one, instituted by Lord Henry Cholmondely, M.P., for the benefit of his cottage tenants at Hatton. The farmers have established a Cattle Club, which has been of great service. Schools. Very little attention seems to have been paid to the education of the children at an early period. So late as 1787, there is an item charged upon the church rate for two dozen "Reading Made Easy's and ten Testaments, 19/6," divided among the three townships, and "£2 7s Od. paid Benjamin Dutton, for 47 Sundays teaching." This seems to have been all that was paid for education at that time. In 1844, when the writer became Incumbent, there was no school connected with the church, except a few children collected by a Dame on Sunday mornings, who instructed them much in the manner of 1787. At present there are two Daily and two Sunday Schools in the parish, at extreme ends. The school at Waverton was built by the Marquis of Westminster, but when the children attain a larger growth, they are sent to the Endowed National School at Hargrave. The school at Huxley was built in 1851, through the assistance of the Lord of the Manor and others. This school is under Government inspection. It has been licensed, and was opened for divine service 12th March, 1852, when the late Chancellor Raikes preached. A Curate is supported by the Cheshire Rural Chapel Society and the Landed Proprietors, who performs two full services each Sunday. A Church Missionary Association was formed at Waverton in 1848, from which period to 1854, the sum of £169 8s. has been paid to the Parent Society. The Terrier is of the same nature as that of West Kirkby. Vid. p. 10*. 17th May, 1855. SCIENTIFIC SECTION. THE REV. DR. THOM, V.P., in the Chair. The Minutes of the last Meeting were read and confirmed. Mr. Thomas Warburton, of 122, Falkner Street, was duly elected a Member of the Society. The following Donations were laid upon the table : From the Society. Proceedings of the Yorkshire Philosophical Society, volume I, 1855. From Joseph Mayer, F.S.A., F.R.A.S. Notes upon some of the Antiquities of France, made during a fortnight's Excursion, in the summer of 1854. By From T. T. Wilkinson, F.R.A.S. The Lady's and Gentleman's Diary for 1855. Mr. Wilkinson exhibited a portrait of Robin O'Green, published at Lancaster in 1780. It represents him in the act of singing the ballad called the Burnley Haymakers, at the top of which is a rude but characteristic wood-cut. Mr. Johnson exhibited a silver table spoon, the assay mark on which showed the date of it to be 1726. The bowl was of the usual size of the period. The top formed a signet, with the letters "T.T." united in a heraldic knot. It was found in 1850, in the township of Bridge Trafford in Cheshire, and is supposed to have belonged to Thomas Trafford. Mr. Whitehead exhibited a piece of "meteoric iron," from the banks of the Yenissei in Siberia. It was found by Pallas, and is described as part of a very large mass, 1770. Mr. Buxton exhibited a MS Magazine, for the purpose of drawing attention to some most beautiful pen and ink etchings by Mr. William Stubs. Mr. H. S. Fisher exhibited a large collection of dried plants, in illustration of his Paper, the reading of which was postponed. The Secretary laid upon the table, a copy of the Reprint of Volume I., its price to Members will be five shillings. The following Paper was then read : An Account of the Life and Writings of the late J. H. Swale, of Liverpool, by Thomas T. Wilkinson, F.R.A.S. 24th May, 1855. MISCELLANEOUS MEETING. THE REV. DR. THOM, V.P., in the Chair. The Minutes of the last Meeting were read and confirmed. Mr. Thomas Comber, of Edge Lane, Liverpool, and Mr. Thomas Melling of Rain Hill, were duly elected Members of the Society. The following Donations were laid upon the table : From John Mather, Esq. Improvements of the Liverpool Docks, by John Grantham, Consulting Engineer, pamph. 8vo. 1853; Fifth Annual Report of the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, 1855; Report of the Proceedings on the Law of Partnership, by the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, April 1st, 1854; Index to the Local Acts affecting Liverpool and its neighbourhood. The Accounts of the Corporation of Liverpool with their Treasurer, 1834, '35 (two copies), '36, 38, 39, 40 (two copies), '41, '42, '43, '44, '45 (two copies), '46, '47. The Accounts of the Trustees of the Liverpool Docks, 1836, '38, '39, '40, '41, '42, '43, '44, '45, '46. |