My thanks are due to Colonel H. Brooke Taylor, for permission to search his chambers in the Town Hall at Bakewell for hidden treasure, in the shape of pre-reformation land charters court rolls and the like; to Mr Robert Shirley of Waterhouse Farm near Longnor, for a sight of his title deeds to Hawksyard; to his son Mr Edwin Leslie Shirley of Hawksyard, for a very pleasant visit to his ancestral home in The Moorlands of Staffordshire, with its medieval tradition and interesting associations; and to Mr James R. Wigfull, for an excellent little map of Hawksyard and the surrounding country.

It is only through the kindness and good nature of others, that a systematic search for local history can proceed and although contributions accumulate in small quantities, there is no more fruitful or reliable source of information, as to people and places of bygone days, than the land charters and court rolls covering the period from the Domesday survey to the reformation.

Many bundles of old title deeds, unopened for centuries, yet lie hidden in out-of-the-way corners and on inaccessible shelves; it should be part of the work of every archÆological society to extract from all available deeds, relating to its own district, whatever useful history they may contain.

Every countryside, every village and every town becomes a more interesting place to its inhabitants, when its history is known. The names of persons and places become intelligible, dates and letters on buildings can be accounted for, disused bridle roads and paths can be traced, the heraldry of the stained glass in the church and of the tombstones in the churchyard can be read with understanding, local genealogies can be extended and long cherished family traditions can often be verified or explained.

It is therefore of importance that whenever these ancient writings make their appearance, there should be some person or association of persons ready and willing to examine them, not only with the object of extracting any local history they may contain, but also of recording it in a form suitable for future reference.

T. Walter Hall.