Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 11.pdf/40

A few Notes on Ducking Stools. 1780, says, in his MSS., preserved in the British Museum: — "In my time, when I was a boy, and lived with my grandmother in the great corner house at the bridge foot next to Magdalen College, Cambridge, and rebuilt since by my uncle Mr. Joseph Cook, I remember to have seen a woman ducked for scolding. The chair hung by a pulley fastened to a beam about the middle of the bridge, in which the woman was confined, and let down under the water three times, and then taken out. The bridge was then of timber, before the present stone bridge of one arch was builded. The ducking stool was constantly hanging in its place, and on the back panel of it was engraved devils laying hold of scolds, etc. Some time after a new chair was erected in place of the old one, having the same devils carved on it, and well painted and ornamented. When the new bridge of stone was erected, about 1754, this was taken away, and I lately saw the carved and gilt back of it nailed up in the shop of one Mr. Jackson, a whitesmith, in Butcher Row, behind the Town Hall, who offered it to me, but I did not know what to do with it. In October, 1776, I saw in the old Town Hall a third duck ing stool of plain oak, with an iron bar before it to confine the person in the seat; but I made no inquiries about it. I mention these things as the practice seems now to be totally laid aside."

23

makyng of the cucking stole, takyng by the day xiid., summa, iiij. vjd. "Item, paied to Christofer Wedy for caryage of the seid tymber to the saw-sluye, and from thense to the place where the seid cucking-stole stondeth, etc., iiijd. "Item, paied for the di. c. of iij. peny nailes, jd. ob. "Item, for a grete spykyn, to ij staples, and a haspe for the said stole, iij. Summa. xs. vd. ob. Costes for makyng of the Cokyng Stole. "Item, paid to Dodd, carpenter, for makyng of the cokyng-stole and sawing the tymbre, by grete, vs. vijd. "Item, a pair of cholls, iijs. iiijd. "Item, paid for ij. iren pynnes for the same, waying v. li. at ijd. ob. the li. xiid. ob." A very plain example, said to be the one formerly in use at Worcester, is here en graved. It is simply a box without a bot tom, and with a seat, or shelf, in it, and it has four staples, by which it would be sus pended by cords to the beam or pulley.

Of the Canterbury example, my excel lent antiquarian friend, Mr. Wright, in an excellent article in his "Archaeological Al bum," gives the following extracts from the Corporation accounts: — "Item, paied for a piece of tymber for the ladder of the cuckying stole, and staves to the same xxd. "Item, for slyttyng of the seid pece of tymber in iij. calves, with the ij. shelle calves, viijd. "Item, for a pece of tymber for the fote of the ladder, cont. xij. fote, xvd. "Item, paied for the plank and stanchons for the stole, iijd. "Item, paied for a pynne of yron waying xij. li., and ij. plates waying vij. li., price li. jd. ob summa, ijs. iiijd. "Item, paied to Harry Shepard and hys mate, carpenters, for iij. dayes and di. having and

At Banbury an excellent example was in use, and was placed, with the pillory, by the horse-pond in the market-place, and others are recorded at Shrewsbury, Litch field, Liverpool, where it was very lately used in all cases of female admission to the House of Correction; at Edgware, Stafford, Salisbury, and many other places. Examples, extracts from Corporation ac counts, notices of records, and memoran dums of allusions from the productions of