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New Oxford Guide: Or Humorous Supplement To All Former Accounts, Ofthat Ancient City And University.
to have been , ought to be called , according to its ancient Latin name , Busneia , Busney , from the Greek ( 3 ss , an ox . But it should be remembered , that there are many kindred appellations in and aheut Oxford , which conduce to illustrate and confirm my hypothesis . Need I mention Bullington hundred , in which Oxford is situated , Bullock ' s Lane , and Bullstock Bridge?—Are not our frequent bull-baitings in Oxford standing memorials of this oriinal denomination ? The same
g antiquarian , in his learned preface to Robert of Gloucester , has certainly given a wrong interpretation of the orig in of a custom still subsisting at Oxford , which plainly regards the point in question . His words are these : ' 'Tis no wonder that in the jollities of the first of May , formerly the custom of blowing with , and drinking in horns , so much prevailed : which , though it be now generally disused , yet the .
custom of blowing them prevails at that season , even to this day , at Oxford , to remind the people of that part of the year , which ought to create mirth and gaiety , such as is sketched out in some old books of offices , such as the Primer of Salisbury , ' & c . I leave it to the reader , to draw the proper inference from this passage , and shall add , that I do not meanby what I have advancedto exclude Mr
, , . Hearne ' s hypothesis . Why may we not suppose , by way of reconciling both opinions , that the ford was common to horned cattle in general ? Nay , that even cows had more concern in this case than is commonly supposed , seems very probable from the name of the neighbouring village , Cowley .
Having thrown new light on a circumstance which has occasioned so much dispute , the discussion of which was aproper introduction to the ensuing history , I now proceed to a particular description . ' It is well known , that before colleges were established , the students were lodged in private houses : at length , places were set apart for their receptionunder the appellation of hospitiaor hostels ; in
, , other words , inns , or tippling-houses ; or , as our colleges are at present , places of entertainment . Many of these still subsist , and retain their ori g inal occupation . Modern writers , indeed , mention no more than twenty colleges , and five halls , in this extensive seat of learning : But from a diligent enquiry , I have discovered no less than twelve halls , never yet enumerated or described , namely , Tit-un '
Hall , Clay Hall , Cabbage Hall , Caterpillar Hall , Stump Hall , Lemon Hall , Fox Hall , Feather Hall , Kettle Hall , Tripe Hall , Westminster Hall ; lastty , to these we must add Kidney Hall , which has been long in esteem as a noted seminary , and has lately been re-founded by the name of Diamond Hall . With these halls we must mention a thirteenthformerly
distin-, guished by the name of Redcock Hall : this house has been for some years unhappily alienated from the purposes of literature , and is at present inhabited by two widow gentlewomen . The notion is equally erroneous with regard to the number of our libraries . Besides those of Radcliffe , Bodley , and the private colleges , there have , of late years , been many libraries founded in our
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
New Oxford Guide: Or Humorous Supplement To All Former Accounts, Ofthat Ancient City And University.
to have been , ought to be called , according to its ancient Latin name , Busneia , Busney , from the Greek ( 3 ss , an ox . But it should be remembered , that there are many kindred appellations in and aheut Oxford , which conduce to illustrate and confirm my hypothesis . Need I mention Bullington hundred , in which Oxford is situated , Bullock ' s Lane , and Bullstock Bridge?—Are not our frequent bull-baitings in Oxford standing memorials of this oriinal denomination ? The same
g antiquarian , in his learned preface to Robert of Gloucester , has certainly given a wrong interpretation of the orig in of a custom still subsisting at Oxford , which plainly regards the point in question . His words are these : ' 'Tis no wonder that in the jollities of the first of May , formerly the custom of blowing with , and drinking in horns , so much prevailed : which , though it be now generally disused , yet the .
custom of blowing them prevails at that season , even to this day , at Oxford , to remind the people of that part of the year , which ought to create mirth and gaiety , such as is sketched out in some old books of offices , such as the Primer of Salisbury , ' & c . I leave it to the reader , to draw the proper inference from this passage , and shall add , that I do not meanby what I have advancedto exclude Mr
, , . Hearne ' s hypothesis . Why may we not suppose , by way of reconciling both opinions , that the ford was common to horned cattle in general ? Nay , that even cows had more concern in this case than is commonly supposed , seems very probable from the name of the neighbouring village , Cowley .
Having thrown new light on a circumstance which has occasioned so much dispute , the discussion of which was aproper introduction to the ensuing history , I now proceed to a particular description . ' It is well known , that before colleges were established , the students were lodged in private houses : at length , places were set apart for their receptionunder the appellation of hospitiaor hostels ; in
, , other words , inns , or tippling-houses ; or , as our colleges are at present , places of entertainment . Many of these still subsist , and retain their ori g inal occupation . Modern writers , indeed , mention no more than twenty colleges , and five halls , in this extensive seat of learning : But from a diligent enquiry , I have discovered no less than twelve halls , never yet enumerated or described , namely , Tit-un '
Hall , Clay Hall , Cabbage Hall , Caterpillar Hall , Stump Hall , Lemon Hall , Fox Hall , Feather Hall , Kettle Hall , Tripe Hall , Westminster Hall ; lastty , to these we must add Kidney Hall , which has been long in esteem as a noted seminary , and has lately been re-founded by the name of Diamond Hall . With these halls we must mention a thirteenthformerly
distin-, guished by the name of Redcock Hall : this house has been for some years unhappily alienated from the purposes of literature , and is at present inhabited by two widow gentlewomen . The notion is equally erroneous with regard to the number of our libraries . Besides those of Radcliffe , Bodley , and the private colleges , there have , of late years , been many libraries founded in our