form several assignments of moots, each con sisting of three or four moots or exercises. These moots were performed at the various Inns at different times. Some came in the afternoons, but the favorite time was in the evening at meal time in the presence of the whole house. Often long cases, begun in the library, were completed in the Hall. In these cases all grades of the Inn took part. Tue two barristers who were assigned to the case prepared the pleadings, which were orally re cited by two of the students. These cases were usually made up by the barristers, and contained two questions, which, after the bar risters had argued, were reargued by some of the Benchers. The members of the Inns who had not received their call to the bar took part in these moots only in the plead ings, but were trained in the lesser moots of the Inns of Court and Chancery. The moots were conducted with ceremony, and there were forfeits provided for any neglect by the parties. Next in importance for the actual training derived by the students, but held to be the great events of the year, were the readings, which, with the moots formed the principal modes of instruction. There were readers in the Inns of Chancery as well as in the Inns of Court. In the former they were chosen from lists prepared by the Benchers of the Inns of Court from the barristers of about eight years' standing. These readers had charge of the exercises of the Inns of Chancery, and proceeded on much the same plan as the Readers in the greater Inns. In each of the Inns of Court two Reader? were chosen yearly by the Benchers from among the oldest of the barristers. In the Middle Temple the four oldest barristers were called the cupboard men, and were of quite long standing at the bar. After the Readers were elected they attended at the next feast day of All Saints, and with great ceremony met the judges and sergeants, and feasted them in the Hall of the Inn. The
Readers were expected to take a leading part in the conduct of the moots, but the read ings themselves, which came once for each of the Readers in the year, were their chief duty. The readings were attended' with much form and solemnity. The Reader usually se lected as his topic some statute, and pro ceeded, during three weeks, to point out its meaning and to draw learned analogies. His theses were supplemented and supported by carefully selected authorities, and each day, after the reading, these cases were duly ar gued by certain of the barristers who were nominated by the Reader as assistants. Lord Bacon, when a Reader of Gray's Inn, delivered a weighty discourse on the Statute of Uses, and Lord Coke read on a subject of equal possibilities. Blackstone was a Reader at the Middle Temple, as were others well known as judges and advocates. The office of Reader was one of great dig nity and attended by burdensome expenses. During the time of his service he practically kept open house at his Inn, feasting the no bles and judges and great men of the realm. It was a rule of the Benchers at one time that no Reader could use less than fifteen bucks at his feasts, and generally this number was greatly exceeded, and augmented by red doe. There were savory pasties of game, and other equally toothsome viands, and vast quantities of ale and wine were consumed. The Revels incident to the readings were carried out with great merriment and elabora tion, the whole society zealously joining in the treading of measures and the drinking of copious bumpers of a mixed wine called hypocras. During one of the Revels a play of Shakes peare's was produced in the Hall of the Mid dle Temple, and masques were frequently performed by members of the Societies. In the genial times of King Charles II. the Rev els became quite riotous and scandalized the soberer element. One old writer, after a min
