The nature of the sports may be gathered from an inspection of the curious old cut taken from the frontispiece of the above-named work. Dancing, tumbling, wrestling, sword-play, quarter-staff, cudgel play, casting the hammer, dog-racing, horse-racing, coursing—must have made up a highly varied programme, while the table in the midst of the field of view shows, both by its conspicuous position and by the size of the cups and tankards in use, that the good creatures, meat and ale, were by no means neglected. The wonderful structure at the top of the picture represents the wooden castle erected every year, and called Dover Castle in honour of the founder of the sports. The artist does not appear to have quite done justice to his subject if we may credit the account of the Castle given by one of the versifiers:— {250} What Ingineere, or cunning Architect A Fabricke of such pompe did ere erect? I’ve heard men talk, of Castles in the aire, Inchanted Cells, Towers, Pageants most faire, Fortifications, Trophies, Theaters, Laborinths, Puppet-workes, strange Meteores, Of those that have their substance wholie spent To shew their Puppets dauncing with content; Of Egypts Pharoes stately glasen Tower, Built by King Ptolomies’ art magick power, Of Cheops, Pyramids; of Rhodes Colosse, Of Joves Olympick golden Ivorie Bosse. These to thy famous works compared will be Of small account; like them in no degree. The figure of the founder occupies a prominent place in the foreground. He used to appear in clothes that had belonged to King James, and it is said wore them with much greater dignity than did the King. Dover seems to have been a remarkable person in more ways than one, as may be gathered from the following quaint note, to be found in one of the editions of the _Annalia_:—“He was bred an Attorney, who never try’d but two causes, _always made up the Difference_.” The next in order of the country celebrations in which ale formed the principal drink, were the sheep-shearing feasts, formerly so common, but now in most places things of the past. Many songs have been preserved which record these old merry-makings when the day’s work was done, and the farm labourers were gathered round their master’s hospitable board. One of these, taken from the Sussex Archæological Collections, is given below. It is a sample of many. Come all my jolly boys, and we’ll together go Abroad with our masters, to shear the lamb and ewe. * * * * * And there we must work hard, boys, until our backs do ache, And our master he will bring us beer whenever we do lack. * * * * * And then our noble captain doth unto our master say, “Come, let us have one bucket of your good Ale, I pray” He turns unto our captain, and makes him this reply {252}