iterary wealth of monastic establishments, and
thereby greatly extending the advantages of their otherwise scanty
stores. Both are executed with all the legal forms used in the most
important transactions, which would support the opinion of their not {23}
being special instances: but they are, in either case, curious and
satisfactory evidence of the care and caution exercised by the monks in
cases where their books were concerned; and one cannot but regret that
when the time came that the monasterias were destined to be dissolved,
and their books torn and scattered to the winds, no attention was paid
to Bale's advice for the formation of "one solemne library in every
shire of England."

JOSEPH BURTT

[1] The information given of this house by Dugdale is very
scanty. It could surely be added to considerably.

[2] London, 1831. quarto. See also a Paper by Mr. Halliwell in
the _Archaeologia_, xxvii. p. 455., and Sir Francis Palgrave's
Introduction to _Documents and Records illustrating the History
of Scotland_, pp. xcvi.--cxvi., for extracts from the
historical chronicles preserved in the monasteries, &c.

[3] The formula of this date, "anno R.R.E. septimo," would at
first sight be considered to refer to the preceding reign; but
the list is merely a memorandum on the dorse of a completely
executed instrument dated A.D. 1300, which it is highly
improbable that it preceded. The style of Edward II. is often
found as above, though not usually so.

* * * * *

PEDLAR'S SONG ATTRIBUTED TO SHAKSPERE, AND TRADITION CONNECTED WITH
SHAKSPERE'S "HAMLET."

The following verses, which would form a very appropriate song for
Autolycus, were arranged as a glee for three voices by Dr. Wilson about
the year 1667. They are published in Playford's _Musical Companion_ in
1673; in Warren's _Collection of Glees and Catches_; and in S. Webbe's
_Conveto Harmonico_. The words were, I believe, first ascribed to
Shakspere by Clark, in 1824, in his _Words of Glees, Madrigals, &c._;
but he has not given his authority for so doing. It has been stated that
they have since been discovered in a common-place book written about
Shakspere's time, with his name attached to them, and with this indirect
evidence in favour of their being written by him, that the other pieces
in the collection are attributed to their proper writers. The late Mr.
Douce, who was inclined to be