The British nation a history / by George MWrong . sea, the farm, orthe mine—flesh and fish, wool andhides, lead and tin; in manufac-tures England had as yet no impor-tant place. The wares not locally produced were either bought from travelling peddlers or were dis-tributed by means of the fairs heldsometimes annually, sometimesthree or four times in the great annual fair at Stour-bridge, which lasted for three weeks in every September, rivalled that of Novgorod inRussia. To it came sellers and buyers from all parts ofEngland and from almost every country in , barons,
The British nation a history / by George MWrong . sea, the farm, orthe mine—flesh and fish, wool andhides, lead and tin; in manufac-tures England had as yet no impor-tant place. The wares not locally produced were either bought from travelling peddlers or were dis-tributed by means of the fairs heldsometimes annually, sometimesthree or four times in the great annual fair at Stour-bridge, which lasted for three weeks in every September, rivalled that of Novgorod inRussia. To it came sellers and buyers from all parts ofEngland and from almost every country in , barons, townsmen, and others who couldafford it, secured at the fairs the years supplies of spices,wines, clothing, furs, and other commodities, and thechief product which the foreign traders carried away wasthe English wool, already in the thirteenth century highlyesteemed. There was much travel in media^al England. Theking, the great lords, abbots and bishops, and the stewardsin their service, went constantly from manor to manor, Peddlers andfairs,. Pilgrim, Thirteenth Cex- Ti:nY. TIr- usual outdoor dross. CIVILIZATIOX IN THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY 151 The extentof travel, often carrying considerable sums of money. To enablethe king to live on the spot off the produce of his many estates, the court was necessarily migratory. Pilgrimage, too, was a devout fashion of the J 01 travel, o o 7 ^ age. Besides the monasteries, which received travellers, there were many inns. Since in the wet seasonsof the year tlie roads were bad, and, for want of bridges,streams had sometimes to be forded, travellers were re-stricted to the main highwayswere reasonably secure,but there were greatstretches of forest, andin these the lawlesselement found if only accusedof crime, a man whofailed to appear whensummoned five timesin the County Court,was outlawed; thenhe could be hangedwithout trial whereverfound. Such outlawsfled to the waste placesof the country, and inreal life were less
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