A History of Horncastle Part 12

After Mr. Myddelton the next Under Master was William Hutchinson. He was the son of the landlord of the princ.i.p.al inn in the neighbouring town of Wragby, and had been educated at the small grammar school there. He was appointed about 1845. He graduated at Trinity College, Dublin, as B.A., in 1848, keeping his terms there by permission, while acting as Usher at Horncastle. In that year he left Horncastle, and was elected Master of Howden Grammar School in Yorks.h.i.+re, where he was also appointed Curate in 1848, being ordained Deacon in 1848 and Priest in 1849. While at Horncastle he had married Miss Caroline Dixon, daughter of a corn merchant; there were five daughters, all clever, the youngest being Miss Annie Dixon, who became distinguished as a miniature painter, exhibiting in the Royal Academy, and becoming a favourite of the late Queen Victoria. He held the Head Masters.h.i.+p at Howden for several years; holding also the Perpetual Curacy of Laxton near Howden from 1850 to 1855, the Perpetual Curacy or Vicarage of Airmyn from 1855 to 1862, when he was appointed Vicar of Howden, which benefice he held till his death in 1903.

It was somewhat remarkable that he began professional life in Horncastle, famed for its great horse fairs, and pa.s.sed the rest of his life at Howden, also noted for its great horse fair. His wife is buried, with two sisters, in the cemetery at Horncastle.

The next Under Master to be mentioned about this period was Francis Grosvenor. He was the son of a respectable tradesman in the town, and had been educated at the Grammar School. At first he was employed by Dr.

Smith as a supernumerary teacher of the junior boys, and became useful in the temporary absences of Mr. Hutchinson, at Dublin University. He was a conscientious and dependable youth, thoughtful beyond his years, and was much valued by the Head Master, who was a shrewd judge of character. He also graduated at Trinity College, Dublin, taking honours; and was ordained Deacon in 1847, and Priest in 1848. He remained as Second Master for some years at the Grammar School, being much esteemed among neighbouring clergy for his unostentatious manners and general worth. He frequently officiated in the Parish Church. Eventually he went to Chester, as Curate of St. John's Church in that city, where he remained many years, taking pupils. There was probably a talismanic attraction in the name of Grosvenor; Eaton Hall, the seat of Lord Grosvenor (now Duke of Westminster) being in the immediate vicinity. He was consequently very successful in obtaining pupils; and made money, whereby he acquired considerable house property there and elsewhere. He was devoted to archaeological pursuits, and published a learned paper (of 16 pp.) on "The early connection between the County Palatine of Chester and the Princ.i.p.ality of Wales," which he read before the County Antiquarian Society. {99a} After many years' residence in Chester, he retired on a competency to Epsom, in Surrey, where his mother, brother and sister resided with him; and where he acted as Chaplain to the Union, until his decease, about 1880.

The last a.s.sistant Master, under Dr. Smith, whom we may name was John Burton, born of humble parents in Peterborough. He was appointed about 1848, and served Dr. Smith faithfully about three years. He was not, however, a strong man, either physically or mentally. His weakness of character was shewn in an incident which might have had a tragic termination. Having formed an attachment for a young lady, living near the schoolhouse, and being rejected, he declared that he would commit suicide; and he fired off a pistol under her window at night, taking care, however, not to wound himself. On leaving the school he entered at Jesus College, Cambridge, and graduated in 1853, dying soon afterwards.

On the appointment of the Rev. Samuel Lodge, to the Head Masters.h.i.+p in 1854, Thomas White, a graduate of St. John's College, Cambridge, became Under Master. He had taken cla.s.sical honours, and was an efficient teacher, and rather strict disciplinarian. He was the first Under Master allowed to take private pupils as boarders. He continued at his post six years, taking Holy Orders, and in 1860 was presented by the Bishop of Lincoln to the Vicarage of Scamblesby, which he held until his death in 1891.

It may be of interest if we here give some of the customs of the school at this period, as samples of a state of things which is now past and gone. The morality of some of them might be questioned in these days of advanced ideas on civilization, but, under the guidance of a man of Dr.

Smith's mental calibre, their effect was the rearing of a generation of manly youths, capable of much intellectual, as well as physical, activity and endurance.

The Head Master was himself a remarkable instance of this. Punctually at 7.30, without fail, he was every morning in his desk at the school, to open proceedings with prayer, it being frequently a race between himself and his boarder pupils, as to who should arrive first, his residence being some quarter mile from the school. When he closed the school, with "abire licet," {99b} in the afternoon, he as regularly went for his "const.i.tutional" walk. Furious indeed must be the weather if Dr. Smith was not to be seen on Langton Hill, summer and winter, rain or fair; if the former he would brave the elements, wrapt in a large blue cloth cloak, waterproof as his leather gaiters. If the latter, he would often saunter slowly, rapt in meditation, or composing verses, an occupation of which he was very fond, leaving behind him at his death several vols. of MS. poetry. {99c}

The school hours were from 7.30 to 9, before breakfast; 10 to 12.30 midday; afternoon 3 to 5; while the boarders at his own house worked with the a.s.sistant Master from 7 to 9; the day boys, in the town, preparing exercises and repet.i.tion for the next morning, at their own homes. It was an amus.e.m.e.nt, for some of the more active, to get up some quarter of an hour earlier than the others, and hurry down to St. Mary's Church, to help old Dawson, the s.e.xton, to ring the Grammar School bell. {100a} As the Doctor was very active in his movements, any boarders who were late in starting, could only reach the school in time, by running across the fields between the two branches of the ca.n.a.l, called "The Holms." Woe betide those who were late!

From the Doctor's energy of character it would be expected that he would encourage active healthy recreations. The days of cricket were not yet, {100b} although "single wicket" was sometimes practiced. Nor was football popular, as it is now. The game was indeed played, but we had, in those days, no Rugby rules, and the ball was composed of a common bladder, with a leather cover made by the shoemaker. In the school yard the chief game was "Prisoner's Base," generally played by boarders against day boys; in this swiftness of foot was specially valuable.

There was also a game named "Lasty," in which one boy was selected to stand at the upper end of the yard, while the rest gathered at the lower end. After a short interval, the one boy darted forward towards the others, who all tried to avoid him; his object was to catch one of the other boys, and when he succeeded in this, the boy whom he caught took up the running to catch another, and this could go on for any length of time. There was another exciting game called "Lug and a Bite." In the fruit season a day boarder, from the country, frequently brought his pocket full of apples; he would throw an apple among the other boys, one of whom would catch it, and run away biting it; the others would chase him, and seize him by the lug (ear), when he would throw it away, and another would catch it, and continue the process, he being, in his turn, caught by the ear, and so on. This afforded much amus.e.m.e.nt, and many apples would in this way be consumed. There were large slabs of stone laid down in the yard, on which marbles were played with, and peg tops were spun. Hockey, or s.h.i.+nty, as it was commonly called, was also a favourite game; but these amus.e.m.e.nts were chiefly confined to the sons of tradesmen in the town.

Among the boarders archery was practised, and by some of them with a skill almost rivalling that of Locksley in Sir Walter Scott's novel of _Ivanhoe_. A carpenter in the town made for us bows of lancewood, and arrows of poplar, tipped with spikes of iron. With these we could not only split our "willow wand" at 80 yards distant, but the more skilful deemed an arrow hardly worth having until it had been baptized in the blood of blackbird or pigeon, and some of the neighbouring pigeon cotes suffered accordingly. The writer was presented with a bow made of bamboo, and arrows said to be poisoned, which a great traveller, then residing in Horncastle, had brought from the South Sea Islands. He lent these to a brother archer, who by mistake shot another boy in the calf of the leg. Great alarm was the result, but the poison must have lost its power, for no evil consequences ensued, except that the wounded party almost frightened himself into a state of fever.

[Picture: Successive Head Masters, from 1818 to 1907]

These, however, were among the less hardy of our sports. The good old Doctor's great aim was to get us healthily engaged in the country. With this object he would say on a Monday morning to the bigger boys of the two highest cla.s.ses, "Now, lads, if you will translate this book of Virgil, or Homer, or this Greek play, as quickly as you can, you shall have the rest of the week to spend as you like." Put upon our mettle by such a challenge the work would be completed, by us perhaps on the Wednesday, and three days of varied enjoyment in country rambles would follow. In these days, when bird-nesting is forbidden as being "cruelty to animals," it may horrify some of our readers to learn that the Doctor encouraged his pupils to collect eggs. On our excursions in early summer every hedge was carefully examined for many miles round, the tallest trees were climbed, or, as it was then called "swarmed," in search of the eggs of hawk, carrion crow, woodp.e.c.k.e.r, &c.; those of the owl were found in the thick fir plantations, or those of the jackdaw in old ruins; the rarest specimens being presented to the Doctor himself, while commoner kinds were hung in festoons from the ceiling of our study at his residence. The two chief holidays at this season were the Queen's Birthday, May 24th, and "Royal Oak Day," May 29th. On these two days the boys were expected to decorate the school in the early hours of the morning; a _sine qua non_ being, that, on the Doctor's arrival at 7.30 a.m., he should find his desk so filled with floral and arboreal adornments, that he could not enter it; whereat he would make the remark, repeated annually, "Well, boys! you have shut me out of my desk, so we must give up work for the day." He also, on these occasions, often brought with him a daughter, and the two carefully looked into the decorated desk, when they were rewarded by finding the nest and eggs of a "feather-poke" (long-tailed t.i.t), or some other rare bird, which he always took home and preserved in his study, as a trophy till the following year. No questions were asked as to _how_ the decorations were obtained, but in practice the process was as follows. On the day before, between school hours, certain of the younger boys were sent round the town to beg flowers, and then, later on, followed what, as we should have said, the present hypercritical generation would call, at the very least, "dishonest pilfering." After retiring to rest, and when the final visit of the a.s.sistant Master had been made to the dormitories, all became excitement; boots and caps had been carefully concealed under the beds.

The elder boys were quickly re-clothed, booted and bonneted; and we crept down, by back stairs, to the kitchen, with the connivance of the cook and housekeeper; those good souls also providing some refreshment for us, to be taken either before we went out, or after we returned; and then, stealthily emerging by the back door, we separated into small companies of twos and threes; some re-visiting gardens in the town, and taking without permission further flowers; others going into the country; sometimes even taking a light cart from one yard and a pony or horse from another, and then visiting gardens or parks in the neighbourhood, and returning laden with branches of horse-chesnut flowers, pink may, &c., which were quietly conveyed to the school; and by the appointed hour the work of decoration would be completed; and we, having returned to our dormitories, refreshed through the cook's kindness the inner man, and washed the outer, were ready to greet the good Doctor and his daughter on their arrival. The only difference between the decorations on the 24th and 29th was, that on the latter day oak leaves and acorns were a distinguis.h.i.+ng feature, some of the sprays having been gilded on the previous day for presentation to the young lady.

There was another great day called the "Treasurer's holiday." Once a year the one of the Governors, who held that office, was ent.i.tled to ask the Head Master to give us a whole holiday, which he was always pleased to grant. The custom was for one of the senior boys to call upon, or write to, the Treasurer, usually after some period of extra hard scholastic work, asking him to exercise this privilege. The way in which these holidays were spent varied. Sometimes we had a "Paper Chase," or "Fox and Hounds." One boy was sent out as fox, sometimes accompanied by another boy, both carrying in bags a supply of paper, torn into small shreds, which formed the scent. In this sport the Doctor sometimes offered a reward of five s.h.i.+llings to the "fox" who should manage to elude his pursuers until he had reached the bank of the river Witham, a distance of about six miles, but increased to 10 or more miles by the different ruses practised to escape capture; a similar reward being offered to the "hound" who should effect his capture after a run of a stipulated number of miles.

Sometimes we had a picnic to the Tower-on-the-Moor, going there on foot, through "the Wilderness," and other woods, and having our luncheon brought to the Tower in the carrier's cart, which pa.s.sed daily on its way to Kirkstead wharf. This was usually a bird-nesting excursion. More than one of us accomplished the hazardous feat of climbing to the top of the tower, whence a fine view could be obtained, on a favourable day, across the Wash into Norfolk. On one of these occasions we extended our ramble to Kirkstead wharf, some adventurous spirits took forcible possession of the ferry boat, and carried over women returning home, with their marketings, free of charge. The owner of the boat was, however, compensated by our calling at his small hostel close by, and patronising his lemonade, bread and cheese. Sometimes the excursion was to Tattershall Castle, and if this was in the winter we skated there in the morning, along the ca.n.a.l, returning on our "runners" by moonlight; the Doctor being himself a good skater, encouraged it in his boys. On these occasions we sometimes amused ourselves on the return journey by firing pistols, to disturb the inhabitants of houses near the ca.n.a.l; when, if anyone put his head out of a bedroom window, some one of us would shout, "your money or your life;" the usual response being "Go along, ye bulldogs," the name by which we were commonly known throughout the country side.

On one of these return journeys, while skating in single file, we approached the third lock, and the boy in front forgetting that there would be no ice for a few yards below the lock, because the water there was kept in agitation by the stream always falling from the lock, suddenly found himself floundering in an icy cold bath, while himself in a state of great heat. The shock, and the fact that he was c.u.mbered by his skates, made him almost helpless, and he would probably have been drowned, but that a fine fellow (I give his name, Edward Sharpe, for he has long ago put "off this mortal coil"), who was a great athlete, plunged in, skates and all, regardless of the risk, and like a Newfoundland dog, panting brought his friend to sh.o.r.e, with no worse effects than the drenching to both. And here I may say that one of the accomplishments specially encouraged by the Doctor was that of swimming; the very youngest were taught to swim by the Under Master, in a small pool in the river Bain, called "Dead Man's Hole," about 100 yards from the first lock of the ca.n.a.l. After gaining proficiency we bathed in the ca.n.a.l and lockpit itself. The Doctor gave a reward of 5/- to any boy who could dive across the ca.n.a.l, the same sum when he could swim 100 yards on his back.

On one occasion a bully, among the bigger boys, threw a timid little fellow into the lockpit when full, saying "Now, you'll learn to swim, or sink." The little fellow did sink, rose to the surface, and sank again; and would certainly have been drowned, but a shout from other indignant youngsters, looking helplessly on, brought the same Edward Sharpe to the rescue (he was bathing below the lock, not aware of what was going on), and he at once plunged into the lock, dived to the bottom (18 or 20 feet), and brought up the poor half-conscious boy, who would otherwise have perished.

It may here be mentioned that the present writer once swam from the junction of the two branches of the ca.n.a.l (close to the present bathing place) to the first lock, then pa.s.sed on and swam to the second, and so continuing, swam to the third lock, his clothes being carried by a school fellow who accompanied him; this being a distance of some two miles, for this the Doctor rewarded him with 10/- and a whole holiday. He also, it may be added, as a reckless feat, when bathing, leapt stark naked across the first lock; a performance which the slightest slip might have made fatal.

Many are the anecdotes which could be here told of our adventures; as of policemen or keepers eluded, or put off the scent, by various ruses, &c., &c., on our various marauding expeditions, but I will mention only two more incidents.

From the same feelings of jealousy, doubtless, which produce the "Town and Gown" antagonism at the University, there was much ill-feeling among the lower cla.s.s of boys in the town towards ourselves, and free fights occasionally occurred between them and the hated "bull-dogs." At dusk stones were thrown at us, which it was difficult to avoid in the then badly lighted streets. Sudden sorties were made from alleys, to take us unawares, and send us sprawling on the coggles. Especially in snowy weather we were a.s.sailed with s...o...b..a.l.l.s on our way from school to the Doctor's house, and although we stood shoulder to shoulder and made a spirited resistance, it not uncommonly occurred that these missiles were (doubtless purposely) made to contain a piece of ice, or even a sharp flint. In one of these skirmishes the writer himself was struck on the temple, his eye only just escaping, by a s...o...b..ll, which a comrade picked up, on seeing that the wound was bleeding, and a fragment of gla.s.s was found inside it; this, surely, an extreme ill.u.s.tration of the principle that "all is lawful in war."

One great event, of yearly re-occurrence, was our bonfire with fireworks, on the 5th of November. Pocket money was h.o.a.rded up several weeks beforehand, to provide for the latter; some boys even made their own squibs and crackers, and these were considerably larger and more formidable than those which were bought. The scene was usually a field on Langton Hill, which belonged to the school. Subscriptions were raised to purchase 100 f.a.ggots, locally called "kids;" but here again our custom would, in strictness, have been condemned, for, in addition to the purchased fuel, for sometime beforehand, we had been searching the hedges around, armed with axes, and so had got together probably as much to which we had no right, as that which had been bought. The bonfire was thus doubled in size, and made a blaze which, on the hill, would be seen for many a mile. We had a whole holiday to give us time to pile up the heap; and in the evening parents and many other friends crowded to the field as spectators. Sometimes a lighted balloon or two, of varied colours, would be sent up, which were watched by the bright eyes of sisters and cousins, until they were lost in the distance.

At length the conflagration was reduced to smouldering ashes, and all retired; but on our way back to the school house there were often rough doings, between the town boys and bull-dogs; free vent was given to spite, and a broken or bruised head, or body, might be the result; but we made no complaint; as loyal subjects we had done our duty in protesting against all such underhand doings as "Gunpowder Plot;" and, after a hearty supper, given by our kind Head Master, we enjoyed the rest, well earned by the exertions and trials of the day.

We have now said enough of the school, its inst.i.tutions and customs, under a regime which has pa.s.sed away, doubtless never to return; _tempora mutantur_.

Of the modern school we may here say that it is now doing useful work, although with a different cla.s.s of pupils to those above referred to; and in the near future, it is hoped, that further changes will give it a still higher position in educational work. Under Dr. A. G. Madge, who retired and accepted church preferment in 1907, the school was made to meet the requirements of the Oxford and Cambridge local examinations, the London University Matriculation, and the South Kensington Science and Art Departments.

In late years boys from the school have filled posts in various parts of the world with credit. A considerable number have obtained clerks.h.i.+ps in banks, or in the Civil Service; one boy, Richard Gordon Healey, pa.s.sed 7th among more than a hundred candidates for the General Post Office service, London, and is now in the excise service. Another, Fairburn, is a.s.sistant Inspector of Police at Singapore. Another, Isle, is a Civil Engineer, and has taken the B.Sc. degree. A summary of successes at the school, kindly supplied to the writer by Dr. Madge, shows that in the last seven years (1906) five boys have pa.s.sed the London University Matriculation, 19 the Cambridge local examination, 34 the South Kensington examination, while four have qualified for the public Civil Service; a creditable result for a town of the size of Horncastle.

[Picture: The Seal of the Grammar School]

A recent change has been the admission of pupil teachers to cla.s.ses specially adapted to their requirements, and with this accession to the numbers receiving instruction, there are now more pupils in the school, male and female together, than at any period within the last 30 years.

The latest changes, in the direction of progress, have been as follows: A new governing body has been created by the Board of Education, consisting of 13 members; the Lord of the Manor, the Honble. R. Stanhope, being _ex officio_ one of them; eight representative Governors holding office for three years; two being appointed by the Lindsey County Council, three (one of them a female) by the Urban Council, two by the Guardians, one by the Justices of the Peace at the Lindsey Quarter Sessions. There are also four co-optative Governors (among them one female at least), appointed by the Governors for five years. It is further ordered that the Head Master need not be in Holy Orders; under which rule has been appointed the present Head Master, Mr. Arthur N. Worman, B.A., London, late a.s.sistant Master at King Edward VII. Grammar School, King's Lynn, who was selected by the Governors from 150 candidates for the post.

Addendum I.

It will have been observed that we have so far adopted the prevalent nomenclature, and spoken of this school as an Elizabethan inst.i.tution, founded in 1571. It must now be added that, venerable as that date of origin would make it, it has a higher claim to our veneration still.

_Vixere fortes ante Agamemnona_. There were grammar schools before that date. Edward VI. is said to have established several, in various parts of the country, and we have already named two such in our own neighbourhood, viz., those of Spilsby and Louth; but it is now known that even these were, strictly speaking, revivals of still other inst.i.tutions.

It is now known that not a few of the charities, or public inst.i.tutions, supposed to have been founded by Queen Elizabeth, were really of older date, but revived, confirmed, or augmented, under her wise rule. In a published account of the old grammar school of Giggleswick, Yorks.h.i.+re, {106a} commonly reputed to be a foundation of Edward VI., is the following statement, "a large number of schools bear the name of Ed. VI., who undoubtedly desired to strengthen the grammar school system. His good intentions were, however, frustrated by the Commissioners; and very few of the so-called Edward VI. grammar schools had their origin in his reign, being older foundations with a new name." {106b}

It seems certain that Horncastle Grammar School is an a.n.a.logous case.

Doc.u.ments have recently been brought to light in the archives of the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln, which prove that, acting for the Chancellor (who was _ex officio_ "Magister Scholarum"), during a temporary vacancy of that office, they appointed Masters to the grammar schools of Boston, Partney, Horncastle, and elsewhere, in the year 1329; the Horncastle Master, so appointed, being one John of Beverley. This mode of appointment being exceptional, was only to be valid for one year; but the Chancellors.h.i.+p continuing vacant, the Masters were confirmed in their positions by the Dean and Chapter, in the following year 1330, and again in 1331; and so on, in successive years. {106c}

Now this mode of appointment being only in lieu of appointment by the Chancellor, while his office was in abeyance, it follows that these schools were in existence, as public inst.i.tutions under the Chancellor, before the dates named. Although, therefore, we are unable to fix the exact period of the school's existence, it may be satisfactory for Horncastrians to know that, in addition to the various interesting a.s.sociations which we have already given as connected with the school, there is proof that before Shakespeare had composed one of his immortal plays, before Spenser had written a line of his _Faerie Queen_, before Bacon had even thought of his _Advancement of Learning_, there had existed a "seat of learning" in the small provincial town of Horncastle, which had then attained to the respectable age of more than two centuries.

We have been accustomed to consider the foundation of William of Wykeham, at Winchester, in 1373, as one at least of our very oldest, but Horncastle Grammar School may even be of still earlier date than that.

The oldest school of all is King's School, Canterbury, attributed to Archbishop Theodore, A.D. 670, but which may probably be traced to St.

Augustine. St. Peter's School, York, is the next oldest.

Addendum II.

The Governors of the Grammar School are about to erect, in this year, 1908, new and more commodious premises for the school, in the grounds of what is now called "The Chestnuts," near the west end of West Street.

CHAPTER VII.

WATSON'S FREE SCHOOL.

Next in importance to the Grammar School, and prior to the existence of the two well appointed National Schools, Church and Wesleyan, possibly even of greater utility than at present, is Watson's Free Infant School; the founder of which placed it under the control of the Grammar School.

The t.i.tle deeds of this Inst.i.tution are in the keeping of Mr. H. Tweed, Solicitor, who is Clerk to the Governors; and from these we gather the following particulars of its history. Richard Watson in the latter half of the 18th century was a resident in, and a native of, Horncastle, being the son of James Watson, who had made money by tanning, at that time a staple business in the town. Although engaged in trade he ranked with the resident gentry, his sister, Frances, marrying James Conington, Esq., belonging to a family of good position, not only in the town, but in the county; members of which have also distinguished themselves at the Universities, the name still surviving. She is referred to in an Indenture of date 22nd Sept., 25 George III. (1785), as "Frances Conington, of Boston, widow, formerly Frances Watson, spinster, surviving sister and heir of Richard Watson, late of Horncastle, gent., deceased, tanner, and his wife Elizabeth." By her marriage she had a son Francis Conington, who as nephew of Richard Watson, was the sole executor of his will and testament. The princ.i.p.al deed has the following external inscription: "t.i.tle deeds of the school, signed, sealed and delivered, by Benjamin Handley (afterwards called "of New Sleaford"), {108a} in the presence of Williom Swallow, {108b} supervisor, and Abraham Hanson, of Horncastle."

The following is the heading within, "Sealed and delivered by Frances Conington, being first duly stamped, in the presence of Caleb Preston, and Bowlin Kelsey of Boston." This is further confirmed, as follows: "Sealed and delivered by Frances Conington, in the presence of William Swallow, supervisor, and Abraham Hanson, of Horncastle."

Then follows a "Release of lands in Lincolns.h.i.+re to found a school (dated 22nd Sept., 1785), inrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery, the 8th day of March, in the year of our Lord 1786, being first duly stamped according to the tenor of the statutes made for that purpose." (Signed) Thomas Brigstock.

[Picture: The Market Place]