These Acts I came across when hunting for the Statutes referred to by the _Boke of Curtasye_ as fixing the hire of horses for carriage at fourpence a piece, and they caused me some surprise. They made me wonder less at the energy with which some people now are striving to erect “barriers against democracy” to prevent the return match for the old game coming off.--However improving, and however justly retributive, future legislation for the rich by the poor in the spirit of past legislation for the poor by the rich might be, it could hardly be considered pleasant, and is surely worth putting up the true barrier against, one of education in each poor man’s mind. (He who americanizes us thus far will be the greatest benefactor England has had for some ages.)--These Statutes also made me think how the old spirit still lingers in England, how a friend of my own was curate in a Surrey village where the kind-hearted squire would allow none of the R’s but Reading to be taught in his school; how another clergyman lately reported his Farmers’ meeting on the school question: Reading and Writing might be taught, but Arithmetic not; the boys would be getting to know too much about wages, and that would be troublesome; how, lastly, our gangs of children working on our Eastern-counties farms, and our bird-keeping boys of the whole South, can almost match the children of the agricultural labourer of 1388. [Headnote: NO BONDSMAN’S SON TO BE AN APPRENTICE.] The early practice of the Freemasons, and other crafts, refusing to let any member take a bondsman’s son as an apprentice, was founded on the reasonable apprehension that his lord would or might afterwards claim the lad, make him disclose the trade-secrets, and carry on his art for the lord’s benefit. The fourth of the ‘Fyftene artyculus or fyftene poyntus’ of the Freemasons, printed by Mr Halliwell (p. 16), is on this subject. _Articulus quartus_ (MS. Bibl. Reg. 17 A, Art. I., fol. 3, &c.) The fowrthe artycul thys moste be, That the mayster hym wel be-se That he _no bondemon_ prentys make, Ny for no covetyse do hym take; For the lord that he ys bond to, May fache the prentes whersever he go. Ȝef yn the logge he were y-take, Muche desese hyt myȝth ther make, And suche case hyt myȝth befalle That hyt myȝth greve summe or alle; For alle the masonus that ben there Wol stonde togedur hol y-fere. Ȝef suche won yn that craft schulde dwelle, Of dyvers desesys ȝe myȝth telle. For more ȝese thenne, and of honesté, Take a prentes of herre[A] degré. By olde tyme, wryten y fynde That the prentes schulde be of gentyl kynde; And so sumtyme grete lordys blod Toke thys gemetry that ys ful good. [Text Note: A: higher.] I should like to see the evidence of a lord’s son having become a working mason, and dwelling seven years with his master ‘hys craft to lurne.’ [Headnote: POST-REFORMATION CATHEDRAL SCHOOLS.]