Yorkshire Almanac A Puritan talks to the gardener at York of the notorious miser and swindler, Sir Arthur Ingram

13 June 1635: A Puritan talks to the gardener at York of the notorious miser and swindler, Sir Arthur Ingram

William Brereton. 1915. The Journal of Sir William Brereton, 1635. North Country Diaries (Second Series). Ed. John Crawford Hodgson. Durham: Surtees Society. Get it:

Unedited excerpt

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On the north or northeast side of this Minster seated Sir Arthur Ingrams house and brave garden: whereof nott a third part furnished with flowers: butt disposed into little bedds whereon placed statues, the bedds all grass: verye faire high spatious walls round about this garden, and large faire trees, butt nothing well furnished with fruite. Here I observed a slopeing border a full yard high placed to the trees, which hath brought forth rootes out of the lowre part of the bodye of the tree; this border is kept green: butt the gardiner conceives itt noe advantage to the trees: which are now cutt, and dubbed, butt the gardiner dislikes that course: To keepe in order and to weede, and maintaine this garden, another spatious orchard, wherein are manye walkes, and to keepe a faire stately walke uppon the cittie walls, which doe bound and compass this orchard: to tend and dispose of his fish, to keepe which hee hath divers fishponds in this ground, and to breed, and bringe uppe young pheasaunds: there is onely allowed him £x per annum and Sir Arthur to bee att noe more chardge:

The pheasaunds are bred in this manner: when the pheasand henns begin to lay, their eggs are taken from them: kept in bran and sett, and hatcht under an hen: fed with pisimers and kept in an house:

Foure cisternes here are made of bricke about a yard deepe, and square, to keepe pikes: breames: tench: and carpes: Water is pumped into these, butt I doe nott expect these to succeed well; they are placed in an open house, walled, butt the roofe sufficiently open and yett under locke and key: This gardiner conceaves that mingleing muck with soile, and plaoeing itt to the tree rootes is verye good: butt nott muck alone:

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.