In two of the divisions of Cheshire the same state of things is implied more definitely. The justices say that they have ordered the collection of a stock for the setting the poor to work and for the relief of the impotent, but they find the people poor and averse to paying money for any purpose of the kind. They fear some time will elapse before these orders can be properly executed. At present these divisions have not got a House of Correction, and the justices wish to have one in the Castle in order that they may be able to subdue the people to subjection[592]. These reports seem to reveal a very primitive state of things, and recall the difficulties in the West Riding of Yorkshire in 1597, when poor relief seems to have been first enforced there, and the people greatly objected to the imposition of rates. [592] _Dom. State Papers_, Vol. 195, 21 and 31. June, 1631. Other reports show that the Book of Orders strengthened the hands of reformers; thus in the town of Wells, charities had been negligently administered, but after the issue of the orders the Recorder was able to procure information formerly withheld, and hoped to effect farther improvement by obtaining a commission of charitable uses[593]. [593] _Ib._, Vol. 194, 19. Wells, Somerset. It is thus fairly clear that before 1631 the law had not been well administered. We will now examine the evidence as to the improvement between 1631 and 1640. [Sidenote: 6. _b._ Improvement effected in 1631 and 1632.] The greater number of the reports of 1631 and 1632 point to some execution of the law before 1631 and suggest improvement rather than entire innovation. The justices generally state they have "raised rates" or have bound many more children apprentices or that stocks had been provided in the parishes where there were none before. Two reports enable us to trace the process of improvement in detail, and seem to throw considerable light on the general statements of other documents of the kind. They do not however present so favourable a view as to the execution of the law as most of the other returns. These reports relate to the district of Braughing in Hertfordshire. The overseers of thirteen places in the half hundred of Braughing made returns to the justices at six successive monthly meetings held in accordance with the provisions of the Book of Orders, between Feb. 7th and June 27, 1631. Abstracts of these returns were sent in by the justices in two documents, one of which was forwarded in April and the other in July 1631[594]. We can thus see exactly when the improvement was effected. At the first meeting four parishes provided corn at reduced rates for the poor. The Book of Orders relating to scarcity had been issued since September, and we should expect some improvement would already have been made. Six sets of overseers had already placed some children apprentices, but not very many, and only two of the largest places had stocks for setting the poor to work. At the last meeting