I may add a word on the subject of the extinction of old mediæval families. Are they really extinct? Names are found among the peasantry which at first sight suggest a negative to that question, but I have never yet met with an authentic instance of such descent. The one that occurs to me as most probable is that of the Bushey family. Families of that name were at Leverton, Leake, and Friskney three hundred years ago, and doubtless there are descendants in the male line. The name Bushey is identical with Bussy; in fact, the pronunciation of the name at the time of the execution of Sir John Bussy, Richard II.’s favourite, in 1398, was undoubtedly Bushey, as the punning rhymes made upon it by writers of that day testify, _e.g._— “Ther is a _busch_ that is forgrow, Crop hit welle and hold it lowe, Or elles it wolle be wilde.” There is therefore some ground for supposing that these yeoman families may have descended from cadet branches of this race which held so high a position in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, though positive proof is wanting. It would be extremely interesting to trace, if possible, the descent of such families, but the difficulties are very great. The absence of wills of yeoman families prior to the fifteenth century is one great obstacle; the dearth of documents in that century is another. SPALDING GENTLEMEN’S SOCIETY BY MARTEN PERRY, M.D. “_If thou hast gathered nothing in thy youth, how canst thou find anything in thy age?_” (Motto on title-page of 1st vol. of S.G.S. Minutes.) At the very commencement of the eighteenth century, a number of gentlemen interested in antiquarian pursuits were in the habit of meeting weekly in London at various coffee-houses in the vicinity of the Temple. At one of these places Maurice Johnson was introduced by John Gay, the poet, to Pope, Addison, Steele, and other learned men. The _Tatler_ was here read and discussed, but one of the principal subjects for discussion seems to have been the resuscitation of the London Society of Antiquaries. It was then agreed that, so soon as sufficient funds should be obtained, a start should be made. Among other arrangements, Maurice Johnson was designated its first librarian. Johnson, however, having completed his studies, and been admitted a member of the Inner Temple, removed to his native town of Spalding. Born in this town (baptized June 26, 1688), a member of a very influential family in Lincolnshire, he soon met with several professional and other appointments. These led him into the society of many eminent men. He also continued in touch with his friends in London, and retained his love for antiquarian pursuits.