402
NOTES AND QUERIES. [io* s. n. NOV. 19, 1904.
my resigning the command to any Officer in case of
actual service. But this I submit to your Lord-
ship's better judgement and remain with all pos-
Your Lordship's Most humble & obliged Servant
THO. DENMAN.
Old Burlington Street, May 1, 1798.
About this time Dr. Denman issued the following warlike manifesto :
NEIGHBOURS AND COUNTRYMEN, Arguments are not required to prove the necessity of arming to repel the Enemy which threatens to invade us.
In every Country which the French have entered they have burnt and destroyed the Dwellings of the Inhabitants.
They have without any cause or reason taken away the lives and robbed, or wantonly destroyed the property of the people,
They have in the most disgraceful manner abused Wives before the faces of their Husbands, and violated Daughters in the sight of their Parents,
They have been guilty of every kind and degree of wickedness and cruelty, without regard to Age, Sex or Condition of Life.
Countrymen ! if these French Scoundrels dare to set their feet on English ground we will in God's Name attack them and
Drive them into the Sea.
On 6 May their " bear-skinned hats and trowsers " were served out to them, but this was only after a certain amount of wavering on their part had been displayed. Dr. Den- man writes :
"I found a great alteration of sentiment in the minds of many of them. This I attributed partly to the lukewarmness of many of the middling and lower class of people, partly to their being strangers to military matters of every kind, and very much to an opinion that had been industriously spread amongst them that I had a design to kidnap them. There was nothing left for me to do but to per- severe, and after explaining to them more fully my intentions, that in all probability they would never be required to move from the village, certainly not if there should not actually be an Invasion, and if they were called upon that not one of them should go into greater danger than myself, we eat our Beef and Pudding with good humour and enjoyed our Ale. I gave them their bearskinned hats and trowsers and their jackets not being made, after allotting them their tools we parted."
On 13 May the Voluntiers met on the green before the Doctor's house, and ten of the men, who were supplied with muskets, and thepikemen began to learn their exercises.
On 20 May a man from the barracks at Hounslovv had been provided to teach the drill, and the men under arms were much improved ; but there being no regular order of exercise for the pikes, one was contrived by Dr. Denman, the details of which he gives fully.
The men were exercised on 27 May by Corporal John Hargreaves, who came from Hounslow Barracks by permission of Col. Erskine.
On 3 June, Dr. Denman not being able to
attend, his son-in-law, Dr. Matthew Baillie,
acted as his deputy and gave the men 5s. to
drink the health of the king, whose birthday
it was. The same day Dr. Denman sent ta
the Marquis of Titchfield his first " Return of
Pioniers called the Loyal Lads of Feltham,
cloathed, armed, and trained sufficiently for
actual service, in case of an Invasion," which
was as follows :
1. Tho. Denman, Junr. [Afterwards Lord Chief
Justice of England, then nineteen years- old. A. D.]
2. Mr. John Bedford.
3. John Mitchell.
4. Richard Weeks.
5. James Pursey.
6. Tho. Corderoy.
7. Alexr. Galloway.
8. John Dell, Senr.
9. Tho. Quarterman.
10. William Topping.
11. James Hayes.
12. Nathaniel Jewett.
13. John Stockwell.
14. Edward Palmer.
15. Michael Appleby.
16. John Jewett.
17. William Gibson.
18. William Edwards.
19. Anthony Mitchell.
20. Peter Pullen.
21. John Dell, Junr.
22. John Holdship.
23. Robert Galloway, fifer. THO. DENMAN.
The weekly drills continued to take place without special incident until 24 June, when John Holdship, one of the Pioniers, expressed a wish to have his discharge, pleading the uneasiness of his wife ; and on 1 July Peter Pullen did likewise. Dr. Denman entered two fresh men.
On 1 July the Company consisted of
12 Men with Firelocks, Bayonets, &c., fit also to- act as Pioniers.
6 Men with Pikes, Felling Axes, and Saws ready slung.
6 Men with Pikes, Pick Axes and Spades, ready slung. 2 defective.
1 Fifer. Total 23.
On 8 July " the men were again under arms- and fired five rounds extremely well indeed. The Pioniers went on with an intrenchment on the common, in the bank of which we buried two of the plates of the corps and some copper pennies." (Have these plates- ever been heard of 1 A. D.)
On 22 July a handsome banner was pre- sented to the corps by Mrs. Denman and Mrs. Montgomery.
Dr. Denman himself taught the Pikemen the use of the broadsword, which he, no- doubt, had learnt when a naval surgeon. On the occasion of any special event they
