164
THE ESSEX NATURALIST.
The following is a report of the hearing of the case, as given
in a local newspaper of that date :—
WALTHAM ABBEY PETTY SESSIONS.
Tuesday, March 6, 1866.
Magistrates present :—J. S. Davies, Esq. (Chairman), and J. Williams, Esq.
Forest Rights.—Alfred Willingale, Samuel Willingale, and William
Higgins, labourers, of Loughton, were charged with doing damage to the
amount of 1s. 6d. each by cutting some hornbeam and beech trees on
enclosed land in the manor of Loughton, the property of J. W. Maitland,
Esq., the Lord of the Manor.—Mr. Metcalf appeared for Mr. Maitland.
The defence was that the wood cut was only loppings, which were not
the property of the Lord of the Manor. They had gone and cut the wood
merely in defence of their rights.
Mr. Metcalf addressed the Bench at some length, and explained that
the Lord of the Manor had some time since entered into an agreement
with all the freeholders, copyholders, and others, who had any rights, to
enclose certain portions of his manor, and it was in respect of one of those
enclosures that the question arose. Mr. Maitland had made most liberal
arrangements with the freeholders, etc., before he made the enclosures,
paying compensation for the various rights. Mr. Metcalf then referred
to the law upon the subject, after which he proved, by evidence, the en-
closure by the Lord of the Manor and the cutting of the wood by defendant
[sic] who, he said, had gone in a most open manner to commit the offence,
and he was present to urge the right of the Lord of the Manor to protection.
The defendant Higgins said he was a tenant of Mr. Tree's, who was
a freeholder, and he had, therefore, a right to the wood.
Mr. Williams said he knew that the Lord of the Manor had given
compensation to those who had any rights before he had enclosed. Besides
which, Mr. Maitland had entered into the arrangements at the request of
the freeholders and copyholders themselves. Several persons had been
to him (Mr. Williams) and asked his advice in the matter, and he had
explained the circumstances to them, and advised them not to get into
trouble. He knew that the Lord of the Manor had behaved very liberally
to the freeholders and others, and if the defendant Higgins had any claim
at all, it must be upon his landlord, for Mr. Tree had received £300, which
was a greater proportion of compensation than any of the other freeholders
had been paid.
The Chairman said the defendants had been acting very illegally, but
as the Bench only wished to put a stop to such proceedings, the Magistrates
would, on the present occasion, only impose the very small fine of 2s. 6d.
on each of the defendants, with 11s. for costs and damage. In default
of payment they would each be sent to prison for seven days.
The defendants, who behaved with considerable levity in Court,
appeared to treat the matter quite in the light of a joke, and said they
would each "do the seven days." They were then removed from the bar
and locked up.
The only survivor of these three men, Alfred Willingale,
now an old man of 82, still living at Loughton (present this