In certaine townes where dronken Bacchus beares swaie, against Christmas and Easter, Whitsondaie or some other tyme, the churchwardens of every parishe, with the consent of the whole parishe, provide halfe a score, or twentie quarters of mault, whereof some they buy of the churche stocke, and some is given them of the parishioners themselves, every one conferring somewhat, according to his abilitie; whiche maulte being made into very strong ale or bere, is sette to sale, either in the churche or some other place assigned to that purpose. Then when this is set abroche, well is he that can gete the soonest to it, and spend the most at it. In this kinde of practice they continue sixe weekes, a quarter of a yeare, yea, halfe a yeare together. That money, they say, is to repaire their churches and chappels with, to buy bookes for service, cuppes for the celebration of the sacrament, surplesses for Sir John, and such other necessaries, and they maintaine other extraordinarie charges in their parish besides. That these ales were eminently productive, the churchwardens’ accounts of many parishes attest. Thus in Kingston-upon-Thames, the proceeds of the church-ale in 1526 are entered as 7_l._ 15_s._, not much short of 100_l._ as money goes now. We find them satirised in _Pierce Plowman_ thus:-- I am occupied everie daye, holye daye, and other, With idle tales at the ale, and other while in churches. _In churches._ Though they were not usually, if ever, held there, but in a place called the _church-house_. Thus Carew (_Survey of Cornwall_) says: ‘Whitsontide, upon which holidays the neighbours meet at the church-house, and there merily feed on their owne victuals, contributing some petty portion to the stock, which, by many smells, growth to a meetly greatness.’ In process of time of course they degenerated. The pulpits of the sixteenth century freely denounced them. A typical sermon on the abuses of the day is that of William Kethe, preached at Blandford in 1570, at which time ales must have been kept in his neighbourhood on Sunday, ‘which holy day the multitude call their revelyng day, which day is spent in bul-beatings, beare-beatings, bowlings, dicyng, cardyng, daunsynges, drunkenness, and whoredome.’ And when we remember that it is recorded of an old song, that It hath been sung at festivals, On ember eves and _holy ales_, we shall the better appreciate the nature of the fall. ‘Desinit in piscem mulier formosa supernè.’