structure also, have been of three descriptions. (a) I applied a piece of ordinary ground glass to the outside of the coloured specimen and between it and the sun. (b) I substituted for the ground glass a circular pane of 15th or 16th century Venetian glass from a window in Titian's house at Cadore, the external surface of which has become slightly decayed and horny in character. (c.) Lastly, I ground with sand a portion of the surface of the modern coloured specimen, so as to render it more opaque and break up the rays of sunlight. In each case, but most markedly in the first and last, because the Venetian pane acts somewhat like a lens, I found that the ruby colour was no longer transmitted to a screen, though it still retained its tone to the eye. It remains to endeavour to account for this last fact of the colour being visible when received on the retina, but no longer perceptible when the light is thrown upon a screen, an apparent anomaly which seemed to perplex my critics. I confess I was at first rather puzzled to assign a reason, but the matter now seems to me simple enough and to depend merely on the far higher sensitiveness of the retina to direct impressions of colour, if, indeed, it be the retina, and not rather the interpreting brain (as Professor Ramsay has suggested in reference to colour blindness)5 which possesses the sense in question. The simple proof that there is such a difference is afforded by the fact that, on a sunless and even dull day, when no colour whatever is thrown on a screen even by a piece of modern painted glass, its tint is yet perfectly distinguishable to the eye. Now, in the case of ancient glass, the extent of diminution of light, even on a sunny day, by dispersion or scattering due to its structure and decay and consequent increased opacity, is equivalent to that caused by a gloomy day in the case of a specimen of modern glass, and the result is, in both instances, the same,-non-transmission of colour to a screen, but perception of it by the eye. But it may be asked what, even if all this be granted, is the practical outcome of it? Without claiming originality or discovery, I may reply that it seemed to me at least a curious and interesting circumstance that so apparently obvious a point should have generally escaped writers on, and students of 5" Proceedings of the Bristol Naturalists' Society," New Series, v. 119. stained glass, not to mention those daily familiar with the effects of sunlight on ancient and modern painted windows in our churches, college chapels, halls, etc. Besides, the method seems to afford a valuable and easy test of the age of glass, especially when this is not easily accessible, at any rate as far as regards the broad question of its being ancient or modern. Indeed, the fact cited, on Dr. Evans' authority, in connection with the Chartres windows, proves that it has already been practically and successfully applied in the way suggested. Of course specimens of ancient glass may occur free from decay, like those at St. Denis, for instance, and then I should not expect to meet with the effects described in this paper, unless the irregular texture of the glass, apart from devitrification, suffices to produce them. Such instances, however, must be very rare if, as so careful an observer as Mr. Fowler states (p. 137,) "It is true that much old glass does not appear to the naked eye to be decayed, but I have never examined any (exposed to the weather) under the microscope that has not been more or less so." In conclusion, I fear that I may have been somewhat tedious and technical, but I desired to do justice to the various considerations involved in the thorough discussion of my subject, and any blame for the infliction you have suffered should fairly lie, at any rate in part, at the door of our valued Secretary, Mr. Hudd, since it was solely at his bidding that I have prepared this paper which I should otherwise never have thought of imposing on your patience. NOTE. Having visited Chartres Cathedral on May 11th, 1888, a day of exceptionally brilliant sunshine, I can confirm Dr. Evans' statement referred to in the text. With the exception of a few isolated patches, all of which I was able distinctly to connect with pieces of more recent glass employed in restoration, not a ray of coloured light was projected on any part of the interior, and, whilst the superb windows glowed with the richest tints, the walls, pillars, and pavement were entirely unaffected. Notes on the Commerce of Bristol in the 15th and 16th Centuries. BY JOHN LATIMER. (Read December 20th, 1887.) THE curious and interesting documents illustrative of local commerce and civic affairs of which it is proposed to give a summary were brought to light about sixty years ago by Mr. Henry Bush, one of the leading Bristolians of his day, during a legal struggle with the old Corporation on the subject of Town Dues. Diligent search having been made amongst the records then preserved in the Tower of London, and in the account books of the corporation, Mr. Bush embodied the results in a pamphlet entitled "Bristol Town Dues: a collection of original and interesting Documents intended to explain and elucidate the above important Subject." Owing to the ephemeral form of the work, however, it has long been extremely scarce, and, as it never received the attention it deserved from local historians, some of its more salient features seem well deserving of republication. At the outset of his work, Mr. Bush states that the town of Bristol, which formed part of the royal demesne in the time of William I., but was afterwards alienated, was rescized by the crown during the reign of John, and was subsequently demised, by successive monarchs, for terms of years or for life, sometimes to the consort of the reigning sovereign, sometimes to favoured courtiers, and sometimes to "the men of Bristol "-in other words, the corporation. It is remarkable, by the way, that the fee-farm rent reserved in many of these leases declined from £245 in 1227, to £100, the sum fixed by Richard II. in 1395, when he granted the town, with the fairs, tolls on goods arriving by land or water, court fines and fees, &c., to the mayor and commonalty for a term of twelve years. In 1403, this rent, with £20 additional arising from the "flesh shambles" in the town, was granted by Henry IV. to his consort, Joanna, for life. On her decease, in 1437, the estate (the lease to the corporation having long expired) fell into the hands of Henry VI., and Clement Bagot, the major, as Escheator, accounted to the Exchequer for the moneys he had collected during the year ending Michaelmas, 1438. The full details are given by Mr. Bush from the accounts still preserved in the Record Office, but the following summary must here suffice: From the fish and flesh stalls. (The rents vary from 4/- to 24/-, Simon Canynges held a stall at 10/-.).. "Rents called Langable" in various localities. The highest is 16/for the King's Garden upon St. Michael's mount1 Langable for Trinity ward (23 small rents) .. 14 0 0 600 0 14 31 0 14 21 0 15 4 Ditto division of St. Mary of the Market-place (Le Port), 26 rents Ditto Ditto division of All Saints, 29 rents division of "St. Anthony" (Mr. Bush's copyist was misled by an abbreviation of St. Andoen or (Ewen.) In another place he converts it into St. Andrew), 28 rents .. without the walls. Brod meade and Le Redlond are the Customs arising from merchandise imported in ships or boats .. 0 14 8 216 21 16 10 8 17 10 15 6 8 9 14 0 £80 15 4 The item arising from imports is accompanied by a detailed account of the sum received from every vessel entering the port There is reason to believe that this plot of ground can be identified, and its history summarised for a period of more than 600 years. In the Patent Rolls of 6th Edward I. (m. 6; 32), is the ratification of a grant by Eleanor, Queen Consort, to the marshal of her household, of all the lands and houses, late of Isolda, daughter and heir of Peter le Clerk, of Bristol, and also of those of Christiana, Peter's wife, except a "garden under Mount St. Brandon," which the Queen reserved for her own use. How her majesty had got possession of the property is indicated by another patent on the same roll (m. 26; 16)—a “significamus" to the abbot and convent of St. Augustine's that “their house will not be burdened in any other case with any payments for support like that made, by request of the King and Queen, to Christiana le Clerc during her life." There can be little doubt that the "King's Garden" of 1438 was the plot of ground reserved in 1278, and that it came into the hands of the corporation in 1462 with the rest of the crown estate. In 1833 the corporation sold, for £3,120, the "King's Orchard" in St. Michael's; and the buildings known as the Volunteer Club and the Blind Asylum now stand upon the site. during the twelvemonth, including the names of those free from customs, and this account is unquestionably the most important in the collection, for it gives us definite and trustworthy information as to the industry and commerce of the town in the first half of the fifteenth century. The number of vessels was 130, and all of them appear to have been very small. Sixty-six are classed as "ships," and sixty-four as "boats; many of the latter being doubtless fishing boats. The bulk of the local trade was then with Ireland, the ports in the Bristol channel, and Cornwall. Only seven ships appear to have come from abroad, and as the number is so small it may be as well to describe their cargoes. The Mary, of Bayonne, brought two tons of iron and five "ton" [ten pipes] of wine; and in a second voyage two pipes of honey. The Nicholas, of Tours, had three tons and a pipe of iron. The John, of Bayonne, a pipe of resin and "100 of frankincense." The Trinity, of Bre, from Gascony, four casks wine. The St. John, of Bayonne, a cask of resin, and on a second voyage a pipe of resin. The Christopher, of Bre, three pipes, four casks, and twelve pieces of fruit. The Sous Sprus, of Bayonne, three pipes, a hogshead, and eight casks wine. The cargoes are so remarkably small that one cannot help surmising that the vessels may have also transported troops or King's stores. for the English army which at that time occupied a large portion of France. But, on the other hand, some of the Irish trading ships were not more heavily laden, one having sailed with a single ton of iron, another with "eight dozen of cloth," which meant ninety-six yards, and a third with ten barrels of salt. Upon arranging the whole of the cargoes under heads, a more complete idea may be obtained of the infant commerce of Bristol. The entire entries of wine, inwards and outwards, consisted of only sixteen pipes, one hogshead and ten casks-a quantity which would have scarcely sufficed for the yearly consumption of the aldermanic body in the convivial days of the eighteenth century. Sugar, of course, there is none, but honey figures for seven pipes. Spirits and ale are absent from the record, but it embraces two or three pipes of mead. In addition to the fruit mentioned above, there is a record of one barrel of grapes. Of animals we have only six pigs; of materials for bread only five barrels of |