of the law which the Universities did not profess to give. Now, if his own Society had been founded only in 1420, or within fifty years of that date, the facts must have been in his knowledge; and as he makes in the course of his Treatise no less than four references to different matters in his professional recollection, it is difficult to account for no hint being given of his knowledge of the date and circumstances of the founding.
It appears, therefore, safe to infer that the Society was founded many years previous to 1420, and that the books do not contain the names of the first or original Members.
Admissions to the Society were of various kinds.
Admission as a Member of the Fellowship (ut socius) was the ordinary form of admission (see p. 8, and elsewhere). The person thus admitted sat at the Fellows' Commons.
Special admissions were admissions granted with certain privileges: such as exoneration from keeping vacations or serving certain offices ; the right of sitting at the Masters, i.e., Benchers' Commons, instead of, as usual, at the Fellows' Commons until call, or the right of taking meals in the Inn without the necessity of going through any legal exercises, styled an admission "ad repasta" (Sir J. Lowther, p. 37).
Admission "ut clericus" (see p. 8, and elsewhere), was granted to students who sat at the Clerks' Commons with the Clerks of the Benchers, each Bencher being allowed to have a Clerk in Commons. The charges for Clerks' Commons were less than those for Fellows' Commons. At the Temples, the Students at Clerks' Commons had to assist in serving the meals, and it is probable the like rule obtained at Lincoln's Inn. The student admitted as a Clerk probably was poor, and held the same position as the batteller at Oxford, or the sizar at Cambridge.
The form of description on admission has changed from time to time. The earlier entries only give the name of the person admitted. In 1440 the first mention of the parentage of the person admitted occurs, when one Stanshaw "le Tierce," is mentioned as having as surety his father, Nicholas Stanshaw. Like entries occur for the most part when the father was a Member of the Inn. About 1608 it becomes the ordinary practice to mention the father's name; in 1612, the description "son and heir" marks the eldest or only son, and a few years later persons admitted are described as second or third sons, as the case might be. After 1563 the county of origin is generally mentioned, and in 1805 the age of the Student is first included in the entry of admission. Persons described as Barristers of the Inns of Chancery, first appear among the admissions in 1573 (p. 80).
Mr. W. Paley Baildon, F.S.A., a Member of the Society, has been engaged by the Society to prepare for publication the extracts from the Black Books already mentioned, and his assistance has been given in the publication of this and the succeeding volume of admissions. These two volumes had been printed from a transcript of admissions made by Mr. Joseph Foster, the proof sheets for the period during which admissions are comprised in the Black Books were laid before Mr. Baildon, and the Register for this period has thus an accuracy which it would not otherwise have attained. He has brought together the facts contained in this Preface, and supervised the sheets as they went through the Press.
