New Palace Yard has been the scene of many eventful episodes in history. Take, for instance, the history of the fight between the men of London and the men of Westminster. From this story may be learned the difficulty of controlling a mob, and that a London mob--and a mob fired with a sense of wrong: that kind of wrong that always fires an Englishman’s blood, when the game is played against the rules. Sport of all kinds must be played by rule. Here were the men of Westminster fairly and honestly beaten. That they should seek to revenge themselves in so mean and treacherous a fashion--oh! it was intolerable! How would the men of Yorkshire be fired with rage if, after a football match, the conquerors should be treacherously assailed and murdered? Yet this is exactly what happened. Let Stow tell the tale: <f>On</f> Saint Iames <f>day, the Citizens of</f> _London_ <f>kept games of defence and wrestling, neere vnto the Hospital of</f> Matild, <f>where they got the maisterie of the menne of the Suburbes. The Baylie of</f> _Westminster_ <f>deuising to be reuenged, proclaymed a game to be at</f> _Westminster_ <f>vppon</f> Lammas <f>daye, wherevnto the Citizens of</f> _London_ <f>repayred, and when they had played a while, the Baylie with the men of the suburbs harnised themselves and fell to fighting, that the Citizens being foully wounded, were forced to runne into the Citie, where they rang the common Bel, and assembled the Citizens in gret number, and when the matter was declared, euery man wished to reuenge the fact. The Maior of the Citie being a wise man and a quiet, willed them firste to moue the Abbot of</f> _Westminster_ <f>of the matter, and if he wold promise to see amendes made, it were sufficient: but a certaine Citizen named</f> Constantine Fitz Arnulfe, <f>willed that all houses of the Abbot and Baylie should be pulled downe, whiche word being once spoken, the common people issued out of the Citie without anye order, and fought a ciuil battaile: for</f> Constantine <f>the firste pulled downe many houses, and ofttimes with a loude voyce cryed in prayse of the sayd</f> Constantine, <f>the ioye of the mountaine, the ioy of the mountaine, God helpe and the Lord</f> Lodowike.