Page:The histories of Launceston and Dunheved, in the county of Cornwall.djvu/212

 192 DUNHEVED. liberality to the district was not unlikely to conciliate them. We will give an epitomized translation of the verbose Charter of 1555. It declares itself to have been obtained at the humble request of Her Majesty's "well-beloved and faithful cousin and counsellor, William, Earl of Pembroke, and of all the burgesses of her borough of Dunheved, otherwise Launceston," and confirms specifically the several Charters already set forth in this work. It then continues, " We therefore, the aforesaid King and Queen, considering and of our knowledge holding for certain, that the aforesaid borough or town is an ancient borough, and the chief town incastellated of our Duchy of Cornwall, do will, ordain, constitute, grant, and declare that the same borough be, and remain henceforth for ever, a free borough of itself." Next the burgesses are constituted a body Corporate and Politic, and are to have perpetual succession, by the name of the Mayor and Commonalty of the Borough of Dun- heved, otherwise Launceston, and are made capable in law to hold lands in fee, and exercise jurisdictions in perpetuity, and to demise and assign such lands. Thomas Hyckes* " a good man, and inhabitant of the said borough," was, by the Charter, nominated its first Mayor, and was to execute the office, by his oath, until Monday next after the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Mary the Virgin (8th September) then next. If Hyckes died before the said feast, or if he, or anyone of his suc- cessors, " departed " during his mayoralty, or unjustly governed the borough, then the Aldermen might amove Kneebone, at the corner of High Street and Broad Street ; which house probably then adjoined some of the public buildings attached to the Guildhall. The parts of it which remain, facing High. Street, fairly illustrate the character of street erections in the sixteenth century. The letters " t h " on the granite label over a window, on the Broad Street side, are comparatively modern, and may have been cut to perpetuate the memory of its original owner.
 * This gentleman is reputed to have built the house now belonging to Mrs.