Ordsall Hall; the access from Deansgate is marked by stately Aldport Park and lodge, and the top of Market Street Lane leads up to Garrett Hall, owned by the Traffords. The leading hostelries are the Bull's Head Inn, in the Market Place, and the Eagle and Child, situate at St. Mary's Gate, both bearing the respective crests of the Radcliffes, of Ordsall Hall, and of the Derby family, painted on their signboards.

TRADE IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.

The chapmen do already a busy trade in their local manufacture, and regularly visit the great fairs of Chester, London, and Stourbridge, near Cambridge. Richard Nugent, of Manchester, in his journey to London fair in 1589:

Manchester frieze, rug, and cotton men. At the close of the London fair he travelled to the Stourbridge fair and:

The roads which radiate from the town are the king's high road, which, crossing Milne Bridge, up Smedley, past the Peel and Stocks, goes into Yorkshire. From Market Sted Lane, past Garrett Hall, the route winds. through Stockport to Derby and London, which, however, is the more intractable road to the metropolis. From

Deansgate, then in an impassable, broken condition, and marked by holes and ruts, across Knot Mill, Cornbrook, and Cross Ferry Bridge, past Knutsford, to Cranage, we link on to the great Holyhead Road, taking us likewise to London, and altogether a more comfortable road, leading through level country.

Another road passes, viâ Salford, through Pendleton, to Warrington, and from thence also striking both to Chester and Liverpool. At that time there were no real regulated posts available for the traders and the carriage of post-letters, but only foot and horse messengers, who followed the king's court from place to place, and any letters, packets, invoices, or accounts were entrusted to the care of the slow carrier who despatched the goods of the Manchester people to their destination. In 1588 Chadwick, in the employ of a Salford clothier, is mentioned. The chapmen and merchants went to the fairs and trading towns on horseback, or engaged, when necessary, post-horses.

Not only did the Manchester traders attend the great fairs, but their business transactions also extended far away to Hull, Worcester, Bristol, and Salisbury, &c., and their cottons found even their way already in 1580 to Rouen.

Canon Raines has copied some letters in his introduction to the Derby Household Books, which show us the particular style of address used. It includes the request:

1580, geve this with convenient speed, from Oxford to Handley.
1582, gyve theise, from Preston to Worden in Lancashire.
1584, de. with speed & theise d. d. (=dedi), from Chisnall to

Worden in Lancashire.

1588, theise dd. (= dedi), from Newfield to Worden in Lancashire.

Unfortunately, he does not state whether any charge for post-carriage is indicated on these letters. We emerge

now from the sixteenth century. Camden still makes a passing allusion to the condition of the town which, in 1582, he says, "far excelleth the towns, lying about it, for resort unto it & for clothing."

MANCHESTER IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.

At the opening of the seventeenth century the frieze and woollen industry begins gradually to dwindle away, already hinted at by Camden. Instead, we are faced with a steady growth of the linen industry and a vigorous development of the fustian manufacture, which we find well established in the second decade. The linen websters were in full activity and the linen yarn trade with Ireland in a flourishing condition; while there existed a growing demand for Cyprus and Smyrna cotton wool required for the weft of the fustian-makers. It was purchased and brought from London. Humphrey Chetham was one of the leading buyers and chapmen, and employed, as we see from his account books, a large number of carriers for the conveyance of his merchandise to the different parts of Lancashire and the great fairs and markets. Manchester waggon-men were to be seen with their heavy loads of packs travelling in all directions. From the Carriers' Cosmography, published in 1637, we learn that:

The carriers of Manchester do lodge at the Bear in Bassishaw, they do come on Thursday & Friday, they likewise also lodge at the sign of the Axe, in Aldermanbury, they do also lodge at the Two-necked Swan, in Lad Lane. There come every second Thursday, also there do lodge carriers that do pass through divers other parts of Lancashire.

The Axe and Bear were the habitual inns of the Yorkshire and Derbyshire carriers; while the Two-necked Swan and the Bell were patronised by the carriers

from North Lancashire, Warrington, and Cheshire. It appears, therefore, that both the routes through Derbyshire and Cheshire were used for London by the Manchester traders, "affording," as Ogilby remarks, "through Cheshire no ill way, but mostly sandy; through Lancashire somewhat deep, hardy, and hilly."

Some light is thrown on the industrial status of the town in 1641: "The town of Manchester must be remembered and worthily for their encouragement commended who buy the yarn of the Irish in great quantity & weaving it, return the same again in Linnen into Ireland to sell. Neither does the industry rest here, for they buy Cotton in London & at home work the same & perfect it into Fustians, Vermillions, Dymities & other such stuff & thus return it to London where the same is vended & not seldom sent into forraine parts."

About 1650,† we are informed: "The trade consists in woollen friezes, fustians, sack cloth, mingled stuff, caps, inkles, tapes, points, etc. whereby not only the better sort of men are employed, but also the very children by their labour can maintain themselves. There are besides all kinds of foreign merchandize brought & returned by the merchants of the town, amounting to the sum of many thousands of pounds weekly.”

The town continued to increase steadily. People crowded to it from the surrounding counties, and its boundaries in Deansgate, Market Stead Lane, and Long Mill Gate grew in extent. The seed of commercialism and a wide intercourse had sharpened and expanded their

*The Treasure of Trafficke. Lewis Roberts. 1641.
† On Berry's Plan of Manchester.

political and religious views: it was the first town in the North which supported the Commonwealth and Nonconformity, and affording an early forecast of the Manchester School, made itself already felt in the country.

POSTAL DEVELOPMENT.

Our first information begins a little previous to the time when Thomas Witherings (1635-44) farmed the post-roads. In 1631 the Constable's Accounts* have an entry:

Feb. 22 pd Richard Halliwell's man for meale for 3

post horses for Mr Cotton oo. 02. 02.

Richard Halliwell was the keeper of Bull's Head Tavern, and to all appearances postmaster in the time of Charles I. (1625-48). I give now:

THE RATES OF POST-LETTERS, INLAND, IN 1635.

This was the introduction of postage,† and for every letter sent by post, a "port" or charge for carriage was levied, according to above scale. The posts were now thrown open to all. Every postmaster was to have ready

* Vol. i., p. 279.

† See History of the Post-office, Herbert Joyce, London, 1893, p. 18.