Page:Bills of Mortality.pdf/6

 registers, were licensed as a guild as far back as 1232 under the name of "The Fraternity of St. Nicholas." This was dissolved and reincorporated by Henry VIII. James I. gave them a charter which required that only such as were "able to sing the Psalms of David and to write" should be elected members. By a charter of Charles I. were enjoined to make weekly reports of the christenings and burials within their respective parishes, one copy whereof was required to be sent to the King and another to the Archbishop of Canterbury. A report for the whole year, complied from the weekly returns, was issued in December. These reports are the Bills of Mortality.

Bills of Mortality were prepared for isolated years long before they were issued annually. The early Bills are, however, of extreme rarity, and it is probably impossible to determine when they were first drawn up. All the usual books of reference give 1592 as the date of the first, but this is clearly an error, for there were at least three earlier than that. Among the Egerton Manuscripts in the British Museum is the following very interesting document, which has hitherto, so far as I am aware, escaped notice. It is undated, but is believed by the Museum authorities to be of the year 1532.

"Syns the xvi$t$ day of Novēbre vnto the xxiii day of the same moneth ys deed in the citie & fredom yong and old thes mayny folowyng of the plag and oder dyseases

In $th$ mys benetts g$\overline{p}$e church i of y$\overline{r}$ plag

S buttolls w$e$out bysshopsgate i corse

S nycholas flesshamuls i of y$th$ plag

S peturs in cornell i of y$e$ plag

Mary Wolnorth i corse

All halowes barkyng ii corses

Kateryn colman i of the plag

Mary Aldmanberg i corse