Badsey (with Aldington) and Wickhamford
Parochial Magazine

1913

MARCH

HEAD-MASTERSHIP OF BADSEY SCHOOL

(See also June)

We are voicing the feelings of all who know Mr. McDonald in expressing the profoundest sorrow and regret that his continued ill-health should have rendered his resignation of the Head-Mastership of Badsey School inevitable. It is not given to every village to be so fortunate in its schoolmaster as Badsey has been, for Mr. McDonald devoted himself to something more than mere intellectual training—though the importance of this he never overlooked—and it is hard to believe that many can have passed through the school without being influenced for good, and that deeply, by the counsel and character of their master.

If anything could lighten the blow to all interested in the school it is the news that Mr. Amos, who has already won the respect and goodwill of parishioners and to whom we extend a cordial welcome, has been appointed to succeed Mr. McDonald; and to the retiring Head-Master it must be a satisfaction to know that his successor is one who will give himself whole-heartedly, to maintaining the tone and efficiency of the school at the present high level.

Mr. McDonald is, we rejoice to learn, little stronger than he was, and we trust and pray that, relieved of the responsibility and anxieties of his official position, he may long be spared to us as a friend and neighbour.

APRIL

MR JOHN SKINNER KELLAND

After several years of failing health and a long and tedious final illness borne with singular patience, Mr Kelland passed to his rest just before the bells called to evensong on Good Friday. Probably few of our readers had any idea of the busy life he had led previous to his retirement to Badsey ten years ago. Holding the position of Veterinary Inspector to the Board of Agriculture and the Norfolk County Council, and that of Veterinary Surgeon for the extensive Norfolk estates of the Duchy of Lancaster, and combining with these offices a very large private practice, it will be understood that Mr Kelland was a well-known figure in the county where the best years of his life were spent. Mr Kelland was, however, a man who avoided rather than courted publicity, although he took a deep, if quiet, interest in all questions. A consistent churchman of the old school, he was a regular church-goer, so long as his health allowed, and a devout communicant. To know him was to respect him, and he will be sadly missed by all who enjoyed the privilege of his friendship.

MAY

SOME OLD BADSEY WILLS & NOTES

(See also August and October)

Mr. E. A. B. Barnard, F. S. A., kindly contributes the following notes on some old Badsey Wills which he has been transcribing at the Worcester Probate Registry in connection with his researches concerning the history of the Rural Deanery of Evesham.

 

Smythe, Margerie, Badsey, n.d. [?1534] (Cal. Worc. Wills, Vol I. p. 7, f. 32).

My body to be buried in the Chancel of St. James at Badsey.

I bequeath to the great bell1 of the Mother Church of Evesham, 3s 4d.

To the Church of Badsey, 3s 4d. and a coverlet.

To the Church of South Littleton, 12d.

To the Church of Hampton, 12d.

To the Church of Pebworth, 12d.

To the Church of Bretforton, 12d.

To the Church of Bengworth, 8d.

To the Church of Wykhamford, 1 strike of wheat.

To my ghostly father2 to pray for me, 3s 4d.

Sir Thomas Jamys3, one of the witnesses to the Will.

NOTES ON THE WILL

1 Probably in the Bell Tower, which Abbot Clement Lichfield was then building. Similar bequests were made at this time to "the bell in the new tower."

2 His confessor.

3 The scholastic title "Sir," the translation of "dominus," applied to a person who had taken his first degree in the University. Sir Thomas Jamys is styled Chaplain in the Badsey Registers, which also record his burial, September 4, 1557. In the Churchwarden's Accounts, 1558, it is noted that, "Sir Thomas James Vicar here did give to the Church 10s. at his departing." In the Halliwell Collection was "A manuscript of medical receipts written by Sir Thomas Jamys, Vicar of Badsey, about 1450", an obviously incorrect date. Possibly he owed his appointment to the fact that as he also possessed medical knowledge his services would be useful at the Seyne House, the house for the convalescents from Evesham Abbey when they were recovering from sickness and the bleeding customary in those days.

[According to a document in the Treasury at Christ Church, Oxford, the "Curacie of Badsey" was granted by Clement, Abbot, and the Convent of Evesham to Thomas James for his life 1 Oct. 16 Hen. VIII. —Ed.]

JUNE

IN MEMORIUM — J. H. MCDONALD & E. M. SWIFT.

JOHN HENRY McDONALD.

After a long and trying illness, patiently borne, Mr. McDonald passed away early in the morning on May 8th. He was happily spared all violent pain during the last few weeks of his life, and his end was altogether peaceful. He was laid to rest in Badsey Churchyard the following Monday (Whit Monday) with every token of sorrow and respect. Surpliced choirmen bore the coffin from the School House to the church, school children lined the path as the sad procession passed through the churchyard and afterwards drew up round the grave for the concluding portion of the service, and the funeral was attended by a large and representative congregation many of whom had followed from the School House. The service was sung to Helmore's simple music, and although there had been so little time for practice, the choristers acquitted themselves most creditably. But by no means the least impressive part of the service was the reverent and sympathetic behaviour of the children above referred to; it was a most eloquent tribute to the character and influence of their late schoolmaster, and one with a wide experience in such matters said that, had he not been there to see for himself he could not have believed it possible for any such body of children to have behaved so beautifully as the Badsey children did that day.

At the conclusion of his sermon the Sunday after the funeral (Trinity Sunday) the Vicar referred to Mr. McDonald in the following terms: I cannot close to-night, you would not expect me to without saying one word about him whose mortal body was laid to rest in this churchyard on Monday last, though it is hardly necessary for me to dwell on what it has meant to the parishes to have such a man as John Henry McDonald as schoolmaster for some 20 years. On the occasion of his retirement I wrote in the Magazine what I knew to be the truth. Happy is the village with a schoolmaster such as ours was conscientious, straight, a shrewd and discriminating judge of character, like St. Paul's ideal bishop, 'vigilant,' 'patient,' 'apt to teach,' and, withal, a good Christian man and faithful son of the Church. He stands in need of no word of commendation from me or any other, for his credentials may be 'known and read of all men' in the long record of faithful work which he leaves behind.

"We had hoped that he might have been spared to spend a long period of retirement in our midst. We hoped for it, and we prayed for it. But God, Whose ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts than our thoughts, saw otherwise, and he has been called from this changeful world to the Paradise of God." R.I.P.

EVALINE MARY SWIFT.

It was with feelings of the profoundest sorrow and regret that the news of Mrs. Swift's death, which took place on Friday evening, May 16th, was received in these parishes. Mrs. Swift had only been ill for a fortnight and, although for some days her condition had been critical, the fact had not been generally realised and the news of her death came to most people as a painful surprise. For Mr. Swift the deepest sympathy is felt.

Mrs. Swift, who was a devoted Churchwoman, was deeply interested in all departments of Church work, and had for years been actively associated with the G F. S. She was Hon. Sec. of the Evesham Branch of the Society and, in conjunction with Mrs. Drysdale, had for a long time conducted weekly meetings of members resident in Wickhamford Mrs. Swift was the only daughter of the late Alderman A. H. Lock, of Dorchester (Dorset), and her widowed mother survives her. The funeral took place at Dorchester on Tuesday, May 20th, the officiating clergy being the Warden of Keble College, Oxford (Mrs. Swift's uncle and godfather) and the Rev. M. W. Kinloch, Rector of Holy Trinity, Dorchester, in which parish Mrs. Swift was for many years a diligent worker.

A Memorial Service was held in Wickhamford Church at the same hour as the funeral. The service consisted of the Burial Office, with Versicles and Responses in place of the Committal, and the musical portions were rendered by the Choir with much feeling. Helmore's music was used for the Anthems and the hymns were the same as those sung at the funeral. The church was practically filled with friends and sympathisers and the Vicar preached a short sermon on Job 26, 14, in which he spoke of the lessons of Mrs Swift's life and death. R.I.P.

JULY

WESTWARD HO!

by J. F. AGG of Toronto

(Sometime Organist and Parish Clerk of Badsey)

Here I am! installed in this city of bustle, this city of flowers and beautiful avenues—a city, too, of dust, but, above all, a city of Chinese laundrymen! They are here, there, and everywhere. After a voyage across the Atlantic, in which we experienced all the manifold vagaries of that somewhat unstable ocean, we arrived safely at the port of Halifax. Having passed through the hands of the immigration officials, who, by the way, showed us every civility, we were set at liberty on the shores of this vast, and certainly interesting continent of America, to find, what? our fortunes staring us in the face? No. What then? Why, a vast and never ending vista of snow—but then it was Canada.

Before boarding the Grand Trunk train for Toronto we spent about four hours in Halifax, getting a few things for the railway journey which was to last about 48 hours. We reached the old city of Quebec at midnight, and spent about an hour there. We had a look round, but, being night, we could not see much, with the exception of the aforementioned snow intermixed with a few Frenchmen.

It was also dark when we passed through Montreal. From Montreal onwards the snow gradually disappeared, and on arriving at Toronto we found very little left.

The trains on the Grand Trunk travel at a great rate and the stops are few and far between. They are well heated, clean and provided with a kitchen or restaurant where tea and other necessaries can be bought, but it is advisable to carry some provisions, with an enamel tea-pot, cups, spoons, knives, forks, etc., otherwise a considerable reduction in capital will be the result. All the trains in Canada are provided with a bell, about the size and tone of the bell at Wickhamford Church. They are also provided with an instrument of torture something between the foghorn of an Atlantic liner and the bellow of a mad bull. The bell rings on approaching stations or crossings, and the bull-foghorn apparatus performs whenever it feels inclined. The engines are colossal in size and height and the very embodiment of strength. The railway-stations are very dangerous owing to the general use of level-crossings.

There are many points of beauty in this city. Lake Ontario, a grand expanse of water, washes the south side of it, and the depth is such that quite large vessels from the upper lakes are able to anchor close to the docks.

The change since I came in the appearance of the city is marvellous. There was not a blade of green to be seen when I arrived, while now the flowers in the parks and gardens are a glorious sight. The avenues too, such as Spadina Avenue and Avenue Road, are very beautiful.

There are some very fine buildings here and it is a very busy city. I am a motor-man on one of the electric cars (of which there are about 1,000 here), having got through my training in two weeks. There is plenty of demand for workpeople both here and 'up west' and no one need be idle. The power for our cars comes from Niagara. When there are thunderstorms the power is occasionally 'off' and all cars are at a standstill until it returns, which is generally in a few minutes but often in as many seconds, The city is also provided with light from the same source and the same thing happens with that sometimes.

I should not compare Toronto with any of our great English cities; it is not so substantial all round, everything being done in too much of a hurry to last long, with, of course, a few exceptions as mentioned above. The ladies dress extremely smartly but have pale complexions as a rule, and the men are the same in both respects. The air is dry and the climate healthy and this is altogether a great country.

Notes from October Mr. and Mrs. J. F. Agg's many friends will be pleased to hear that Mrs. Agg and her family reached Toronto in safety on September 4th after a fairly good voyage across the Atlantic. Mr. Agg has taken a house in a locality which his children may find dull unless they have a taste for geometry and vulgar fractions. His address is 640˝, Euclid Avenue.—[Ed.]

AUGUST

MORE OLD BADSEY WILLS & NOTES

(See also May and October)

Mr. E. A. B. Barnard, F. S. A., kindly contributes the following notes on some old Badsey Wills which he has been transcribing at the Worcester Probate Registry in connection with his researches concerning the history of the Rural Deanery of Evesham.

 

Squyere, Richard, Badsey, 6 Feb. 1528 (Will in Latin).

My body to be buried in the Churchyard of the Blessed Martyr St. Egwin1 at Evesham.

I bequeath to the Mother Church of Evesham, 12d.

To Badsey Church, 3s. 4d.

To Bengeworth Church, 8d.

To Wyckhamforde Church, 4d.

To my son John, 40s.

A trental of Masses2 to be said for my soul.

NOTES ON WILL

1. This mistaken description of St. Egwin is unique so far as I am aware. There are several existing manuscripts concerning the life of the Saint, and the Evesham Chronicle (Rolls Series) there is the notable 'Life' written by Thomas Marleberge, Monk, and subsequently Abbot of Evesham, in which the last days of St. Egwin are vividly described. He was stricken by a long illness, and when he felt his end approaching he called the brethren of the Abbey round him, and spoke to them in words which showed his concern for the welfare of each and all of them. The Cotton manuscript, which is one of the oldest, gives the following summary of the Saint's valedictory address: "I pray and beseech you, reverend brethren and beloved sons, to strive to keep the commandments of God; and the vow that you have made to Him do your utmost to perform, for it is written, " 'Follow peace,' as the Apostle saith, 'and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.'"

2. Thirty Masses.

SEPTEMBER

MR RICHARD WALTER KEEN AND MRS MARGARET ELIZABETH JONES

A Sad Coincidence – July and August have been sad months for many in Badsey. On July 12th we laid to rest one who was suddenly cut off at the very outset of his career, the circumstances of whose death were the more pathetic leaving, as he did, a young wife and a little baby only four months old.

Exactly a month later, on August 12th, Badsey Churchyard was the scene of another sorrowful ceremony – the funeral of Mrs Arthur Jones, whose death was equally unexpected and hardly less tragic. Mrs Jones had certainly been far from well for some time, but she had recovered some of her old vigour and cheerfulness when the end came with appalling suddenness. Of a truth "In the midst of life we are in death". The deepest sympathy is felt for Mr Jones and his two children, and indeed for every member of the two families thrown into mourning by Mrs Jones’ death.

OCTOBER

YET MORE OLD BADSEY WILLS & NOTES

(See also May and August)

Mr. E. A. B. Barnard, F. S. A., kindly contributes the following notes on some old Badsey Wills which he has been transcribing at the Worcester Probate Registry in connection with his researches concerning the history of the Rural Deanery of Evesham.

The spelling of the Will under present consideration is somewhat involved, and so, for the benefit of the general reader, I give in modern form the various items of local interest appearing therein. The Will is that of:-

Smythe, John, Badsey, Feast of St. Egwin1 Abbot, 1535. (Cal. Worc. Wills, Vol. I. p. 7, f. 35.)

Body to be buried in the Chancel of Saint James's Church.

To the High Altar of the Mother Church of Evesham 6s. 8d.

To the bell in the new tower2 3s. 4d.

And to the two clerks a groat apiece.

To the Ordinary for a Trental3 of Masses 10s.

To every church within the jurisdiction of Saint Egwin's Diocese4 8d.

To every Vicar or Curate of the same 4d. apiece to say Mass and Dirige5 for my soul and all Christian souls.

To Bengeworth Church 12d.

To gilding of the Rood Loft6 of Badsey 6d.

To Sir William Marshall7 3s. 4d.

Sir Thomas Jamys "my ghostly father"8.

NOTES ON WILL.

1. The seven solemn feasts of Evesham Abbey were Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, the Assumption, All Saints' Day, the Deposition of St. Egwin (Dec. 30), and that of his Translation (Sep. 10). Probably the Feast of the Deposition is here intended.

2. The existing Bell Tower at Evesham, which Abbot Clement Lichfield was then building, Leland (Itinerary, Vol 4, page 72) writing just after the Dissolution, says that Abbot Clement had placed there "a great bell ... and a goodly clock." (See also Tower and Bells of Evesham," Chap. III.)

3. Thirty Masses.

4. By a decree of December 11, 1248, the Bishop of Worcester ceased to have any jurisdiction over the churches of the Vale (except Abbot's Morton), and they remained under the jurisdiction of the Abbot of Evesham until after the Dissolution. The Ordinary did not recover his natural rights over the Vale of Evesham until the anomaly was removed by an Order in Council, February, 1851.

5. Matins of the Dead, called also Dirige from its first antiphon "Dirige Domine Deus meus in conspectu tuo viam meam."

6. The loft or screen upon which the rood or crucifix was placed. (See "Badsey Churchwarden's Accounts," page 13.)

7. I cannot recall any other local reference to him. There were Marshalls at South Littleton at this time.

8. His confessor.

DECEMBER

AN INTERESTING PUBLICATION

Churchwardens' accounts of the Parish of Badsey, with Aldington, in Worcestershire

from 1525 to 1571: Transcribed from the Original Manuscript by the late Rev. W. H. Price M. A., sometime Vicar of Badsey, and edited by E. A. Barnard, F. S. A. Hampstead: The Priory Press 2s. 6d. net.

As some of our readers are aware, Badsey possesses a treasure of rare value and of more than ordinary interest in an old volume of Churchwardens' Accounts. In 1898 a considerable portion of this volume was transcribed by the Rev. W. H. Price, a work demanding both knowledge and patience. Mr. Price's transcription of the earlier entries has now been edited by E. A. Barnard and published by Mrs. Drysdale Bowden (Mr. Price's sister) as a memorial to her brother. Mr. Barnard, whose qualifications for such a task are well-known, contributes an Introduction and Notes, in the preparation of which he has had the advantage of consulting notes made by Mr. O. G. Knapp who, with Mr. C. A. Binyon, assisted Mr. Price in the work of transcription.

The extracts now published cover one of the most, critical periods in the history of the Church in England, and also throw some light on the social life of the period to which they relate. Beginning with the middle of Henry VIII's reign then carrying on through the vicissitudes of the reigns of Edward VI and Mary to what is known as the Reformation Settlement under Elizabeth. Particularly interesting are the entries for 1550-53, when images, stone altars, rood-lofts, "Judassys" and such like were sold for what they would fetch (which, was often very little), and those for 1553-57, when all such ornaments were restored at the expense of the parish. How these various reforms and counter-reforms were received by the good folk of Badsey the Accounts do not reveal. In the absence of evidence to the contrary, however, we may assume that Badsey people were of an adaptable disposition and accepted each succeeding change with resignation if not with indifference. It may be observed (though it does not appear from this transcription, the names of the wardens for 1553-54 being unfortunately omitted) that the same gentlemen, to wit Wyllyam George and Thomas Roberdys, who in 1552-53 were busy disposing of 'yrne' and 'gyldynge' and the 'rowde lofte,' were in 1553-54 equally busy buying 'Judas taperys' and a 'sawnse bell' (probably they re-purchased the original one which had been sold for old metal) and spending money on the 'peyntynge of the rowde.'

In an Appendix containing the names of churchwardens and the more important entries from 1571 to 1600 the following entry for 1571-2 occurs:-

"Item . . when the chalys was changed for a cup Receved of ouer plusse. . . 10s. 6d."

The editor notes that there are a large number of cups of this year, all of much the same pattern and ornament and apparently made from the old chalices. Archdeacon Lee found no less than 83 of them in the Archdeaconry of Worcester. It may be added that Archbishop Sandys, who was Bishop of Worcester 1559-1571, and whose eldest son, is buried at Wickhamford, is said to have been responsible for the design of these 'cups.'

The volume concludes with an Inventory of Badsey Church Goods in 1604 and two exhaustive Indexes, which considerably enhance the value of the work. The text appears to be practically free from errors other than a few misprints of no great consequence. It should scarcely be necessary, e.g., to warn readers that the bull purchased by the churchwardens in 1564-5 cost 29 shillings, not 29 pence! At the bottom of p. 46 a note is omitted which would be of little importance but for the fact that it is in the same hand as the note at the top of p. 47, and which runs, "this 6s. and 4d. is at thys acount on payed." It must have been a Badsey scribe who was responsible for these reflections on 'the men of Aunton.'

With the notes, as with the text, little fault can be found. They give just the information necessary to make the text intelligible to a person, possessed of ordinary intelligence but with no special knowledge of the subject. The editor is neither too brief not too discursive. His quotations from other Churchwardens' Accounts and similar sources are singularly apposite and to the point; e.g., if anything could possibly help the uninitiated in so intricate a problem as the 'tythyng off shepe,' it is to be found in the extract from the tithing customs of Godmanchester. The notes on such subjects as 'Church Ales,' ' Cocke Money,' and the 'gathering' of the 'yonge men' and the 'yonge mayds' throw light on one side—some would say the seamy side—of 16th century Church Finance; but it must be remembered that a considerable proportion of the funds which passed through the churchwardens' hands was applied to purposes by no means strictly ecclesiastical. We think the editor is in error with regard to the statement in note 3 on p. 11. The names, if not the date, there referred to are, in our opinion, in the same hand as a number of other notes scattered about the book, including those quoted on p. 38 (the last two of which, by the way, should be transposed) and another as late as 1707, whereas the expression 'Cum Jocunditate' looks uncommonly like part of the original. On p. 39 Siyeame' is surely a misprint for 'Siyeane.' We must also take exception to the description of Wickhamford as 'for many years united to Badsey for ecclesiastical purposes' though 'originally an independent parish.' Wickhamford is still, as it appears to have been since at least the 13th century, a distinct and separate ecclesiastical parish, with sympathies sometimes very different from those of the adjacent parish of Badsey (e.g., the Wickhamford people do not appear to have been as anxious as those of Badsey to provide their church with the Hanoverian edition of the Royal Arms), and enjoying an independence which even Ireland under Home Rule might reasonably envy. As a matter of fact Wickhamford and Badsey have not invariably been held by the same priest, nor can they ever be except by dispensation from the Archbishop of Canterbury.

It remains only to say that the volume is produced in, a style worthy of the work of the transcriber And editor, the Accounts being beautifully printed with the abbreviations in the original faithfully preserved, on paper with wide margin for MS. notes, and tastefully bound in a slip-on cover of vellum enriched with a drawing of Badsey Church by Mr. Frank Gillett, the well-known black-and-white artist. Mr. Binyon has copies of the work for sale, and all who are interested in the Badsey of other days, or who would like to possess some memento of the late vicar, should secure one. We would also suggest that a copy of this publication would prove a most acceptable, Christmas gift to old parishioners who have left the neighbourhood.