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Biostatistical Analysis

Jerrold H. Zar
Fifth Edition
Pearson Education Limited
Edinburgh Gate
Harlow
Essex CM20 2JE
England and Associated Companies throughout the world

Visit us on the World Wide Web at: www.pearsoned.co.uk

© Pearson Education Limited 2014

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without either the
prior written permission of the publisher or a licence permitting restricted copying in the United Kingdom
issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.

All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. The use of any trademark
in this text does not vest in the author or publisher any trademark ownership rights in such
trademarks, nor does the use of such trademarks imply any affiliation with or endorsement of this
book by such owners.

ISBN 10: 1-292-02404-6


ISBN 13: 978-1-292-02404-2

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data


A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Printed in the United States of America


P E A R S O N C U S T O M L I B R A R Y

Table of Contents

1. Data: Types and Presentation


Jerrold H. Zar 1
2. Populations and Samples
Jerrold H. Zar 17
3. Measures of Central Tendency
Jerrold H. Zar 23
4. Measures of Variability and Dispersion
Jerrold H. Zar 35
5. Probabilities
Jerrold H. Zar 53
6. The Normal Distribution
Jerrold H. Zar 71
7. One-Sample Hypotheses
Jerrold H. Zar 103
8. Two-Sample Hypotheses
Jerrold H. Zar 137
9. Paired-Sample Hypotheses
Jerrold H. Zar 189
10. Multisample Hypotheses and the Analysis of Variance
Jerrold H. Zar 201
11. Multiple Comparisons
Jerrold H. Zar 239
12. Two-Factor Analysis of Variance
Jerrold H. Zar 263
13. Data Transformations
Jerrold H. Zar 301

I
14. Multiway Factorial Analysis of Variance
Jerrold H. Zar 313
15. Nested (Hierarchical) Analysis of Variance
Jerrold H. Zar 327
16. Multivariate Analysis of Variance
Jerrold H. Zar 337
17. Simple Linear Regression
Jerrold H. Zar 351
18. Comparing Simple Linear Regression Equations
Jerrold H. Zar 387
19. Simple Linear Correlation
Jerrold H. Zar 405
20. Multiple Regression and Correlation
Jerrold H. Zar 447
21. Polynomial Regression
Jerrold H. Zar 487
22. Testing for Goodness of Fit
Jerrold H. Zar 497
23. Contingency Tables
Jerrold H. Zar 523
24. Dichotomous Variables
Jerrold H. Zar 553
25. Testing for Randomness
Jerrold H. Zar 623
26. Circular Distributions: Descriptive Statistics
Jerrold H. Zar 645
27. Circular Distributions: Hypothesis Testing
Jerrold H. Zar 665
Literature Cited
Jerrold H. Zar 713
Index 751

II
Data: Types and Presentation

1 TYPES OF BIOLOGICAL DATA


2 ACCURACY AND SIGNIFICANT FIGURES
3 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTIONS
4 CUMULATIVE FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTIONS

Scientific study involves the systematic collection, organization, analysis, and presen-
tation of knowledge. Many investigations in the biological sciences are quantitative,
where knowledge is in the form of numerical observations called data. (One numeri-
cal observation is a datum.*) In order for the presentation and analysis of data to be
valid and useful, we must use methods appropriate to the type of data obtained, to the
design of the data collection, and to the questions asked of the data; and the limita-
tions of the data, of the data collection, and of the data analysis should be appreciated
when formulating conclusions.
The word statistics is derived from the Latin for “state,” indicating the historical
importance of governmental data gathering, which related principally to demographic
information (including census data and “vital statistics”) and often to their use in
military recruitment and tax collecting.†
The term statistics is often encountered as a synonym for data: One hears of col-
lege enrollment statistics (such as the numbers of newly admitted students, numbers
of senior students, numbers of students from various geographic locations), statistics
of a basketball game (such as how many points were scored by each player, how
many fouls were committed), labor statistics (such as numbers of workers unem-
ployed, numbers employed in various occupations), and so on. Hereafter, this use
of the word statistics will not appear in this text. Instead, it will be used in its other
common manner: to refer to the orderly collection, analysis, and interpretation of data
with a view to objective evaluation of conclusions based on the data.
Statistics applied to biological problems is simply called biostatistics or, sometimes,
biometry‡ (the latter term literally meaning “biological measurement”). Although

*The term data is sometimes seen as a singular noun meaning “numerical information.” This
book refrains from that use.
† Peters (1987: 79) and Walker (1929: 32) attribute the first use of the term statistics to a German
professor, Gottfried Achenwall (1719–1772), who used the German word Statistik in 1749, and the
first published use of the English word to John Sinclair (1754–1835) in 1791.
‡ The word biometry, which literally means “biological measurement,” had, since the nine-
teenth century, been found in several contexts (such as demographics and, later, quantitative genet-
ics; Armitage,1985;Stigler,2000),butusingittomeantheapplicationofstatisticalmethodstobiological
information apparently was conceived between 1892 and 1901 by Karl Pearson, along with the name
Biometrika for the still-important English journal he helped found; and it was first published in the
inaugural issue of this journal in 1901 (Snedecor, 1954). The Biometrics Section of the American

From Chapter 1 of Biostatistical Analysis, Fifth Edition, Jerrold H. Zar. Copyright 


c 2010 by
Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Pearson Prentice Hall. All rights reserved.
1
Data: Types and Presentation

the field of statistics has roots extending back hundreds of years, its development
began in earnest in the late nineteenth century, and a major impetus from early in
this development has been the need to examine biological data.
Statistical considerations can aid in the design of experiments intended to collect
data and in the setting up of hypotheses to be tested. Many biologists attempt the
analysis of their research data only to find that too few data were collected to enable
reliable conclusions to be drawn, or that much extra effort was expended in collecting
data that cannot be of ready use in the analysis of the experiment. Thus, a knowledge
of basic statistical principles and procedures is important as research questions are
formulated before an experiment and data collection are begun.
Once data have been obtained, we may organize and summarize them in such
a way as to arrive at their orderly and informative presentation. Such procedures
are often termed descriptive statistics. For example, measurements might be made
of the heights of all 13-year-old children in a school district, perhaps determining
an average height for each sex. However, perhaps it is desired to make some gen-
eralizations from these data. We might, for example, wish to make a reasonable
estimate of the heights of all 13-year-olds in the state. Or we might wish to con-
clude whether the 13-year-old boys in the state are on the average taller than the girls
of that age. The ability to make such generalized conclusions, inferring characteris-
tics of the whole from characteristics of its parts, lies within the realm of inferential
statistics.

1 TYPES OF BIOLOGICAL DATA


A characteristic (for example, size, color, number, chemical composition) that may
differ from one biological entity to another is termed a variable (or, sometimes, a
variate∗ ), and several different kinds of variables may be encountered by biologists.
Because the appropriateness of descriptive or inferential statistical procedures de-
pends upon the properties of the data obtained, it is desirable to distinguish among
the principal kinds of data. The classification used here is that which is commonly
employed (Senders, 1958; Siegel, 1956; Stevens, 1946, 1968). However, not all data
fit neatly into these categories and some data may be treated differently depending
upon the questions asked of them.

(a) Data on a Ratio Scale. Imagine that we are studying a group of plants, that the
heights of the plants constitute a variable of interest, and that the number of leaves
per plant is another variable under study. It is possible to assign a numerical value
to the height of each plant, and counting the leaves allows a numerical value to be
recorded for the number of leaves on each plant. Regardless of whether the height
measurements are recorded in centimeters, inches, or other units, and regardless of
whether the leaves are counted in a number system using base 10 or any other base,
there are two fundamentally important characteristics of these data.
First, there is a constant size interval between adjacent units on the measurement
scale. That is, the difference in height between a 36-cm and a 37-cm plant is the same

Statistical Association was established in 1938, successor to the Committee on Biometrics of that
organization, and began publishing the Biometrics Bulletin in 1945, which transformed in 1947 into
the journal Biometrics, a journal retaining major importance today. More recently, the term bio-
metrics has become widely used to refer to the study of human physical characteristics (including
facial and hand characteristics, fingerprints, DNA profiles, and retinal patterns) for identification
purposes.
∗ “Variate” was first used by R. A. Fisher (1925: 5; David, 1995).

2
Data: Types and Presentation

as the difference between a 39-cm and a 40-cm plant, and the difference between
eight and ten leaves is equal to the difference between nine and eleven leaves.
Second, it is important that there exists a zero point on the measurement scale
and that there is a physical significance to this zero. This enables us to say something
meaningful about the ratio of measurements. We can say that a 30-cm (11.8-in.) tall
plant is half as tall as a 60-cm (23.6-in.) plant, and that a plant with forty-five leaves
has three times as many leaves as a plant with fifteen.
Measurement scales having a constant interval size and a true zero point are said
to be ratio scales of measurement. Besides lengths and numbers of items, ratio scales
include weights (mg, lb, etc.), volumes (cc, cu ft, etc.), capacities (ml, qt, etc.), rates
(cm/sec, mph, mg/min, etc.), and lengths of time (hr, yr, etc.).

(b) Data on an Interval Scale. Some measurement scales possess a constant interval
size but not a true zero; they are called interval scales. A common example is that
of the two common temperature scales: Celsius (C) and Fahrenheit (F). We can see
that the same difference exists between 20◦ C (68◦ F) and 25◦ C (77◦ F) as between 5◦ C
(41◦ F) and 10◦ C (50◦ F); that is, the measurement scale is composed of equal-sized
intervals. But it cannot be said that a temperature of 40◦ C (104◦ F) is twice as hot
as a temperature of 20◦ C (68◦ F); that is, the zero point is arbitrary.∗ (Temperature
measurements on the absolute, or Kelvin [K], scale can be referred to a physically
meaningful zero and thus constitute a ratio scale.)
Some interval scales encountered in biological data collection are circular scales.
Time of day and time of the year are examples of such scales. The interval between
2:00 p.m. (i.e., 1400 hr) and 3:30 p.m. (1530 hr) is the same as the interval between 8:00
a.m. (0800 hr) and 9:30 a.m. (0930 hr). But one cannot speak of ratios of times of day
because the zero point (midnight) on the scale is arbitrary, in that one could just as
well set up a scale for time of day which would have noon, or 3:00 p.m., or any other
time as the zero point. Circular biological data are occasionally compass points, as
if one records the compass direction in which an animal or plant is oriented. As the
designation of north as 0◦ is arbitrary, this circular scale is a form of interval scale of
measurement.

(c) Data on an Ordinal Scale. The preceding paragraphs on ratio and interval scales
of measurement discussed data between which we know numerical differences. For
example, if man A weighs 90 kg and man B weighs 80 kg, then man A is known
to weigh 10 kg more than B. But our data may, instead, be a record only of the
fact that man A weighs more than man B (with no indication of how much more).
Thus, we may be dealing with relative differences rather than quantitative differences.
Such data consist of an ordering or ranking of measurements and are said to be on
an ordinal scale of measurement (ordinal being from the Latin word for “order”).
We may speak of one biological entity being shorter, darker, faster, or more active
than another; the sizes of five cell types might be labeled 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, to denote

∗ The German-Dutch physicist Gabriel Daniel Fahrenheit (1686–1736) invented the thermome-
ter in 1714 and in 1724 employed a scale on which salt water froze at zero degrees, pure water froze
at 32 degrees, and pure water boiled at 212 degrees. In 1742 the Swedish astronomer Anders Cel-
sius (1701–1744) devised a temperature scale with 100 degrees between the freezing and boiling
points of water (the so-called “centigrade” scale), first by referring to zero degrees as boiling and
100 degrees as freezing, and later (perhaps at the suggestion of Swedish botanist and taxonomist
Carolus Linnaeus [1707–1778]) reversing these two reference points (Asimov, 1982: 177).

3
Data: Types and Presentation

their magnitudes relative to each other; or success in learning to run a maze may be
recorded as A, B, or C.
It is often true that biological data expressed on the ordinal scale could have been
expressed on the interval or ratio scale had exact measurements been obtained (or
obtainable). Sometimes data that were originally on interval or ratio scales will be
changed to ranks; for example, examination grades of 99, 85, 73, and 66% (ratio scale)
might be recorded as A, B, C, and D (ordinal scale), respectively.
Ordinal-scale data contain and convey less information than ratio or interval data,
for only relative magnitudes are known. Consequently, quantitative comparisons are
impossible (e.g., we cannot speak of a grade of C being half as good as a grade of
A, or of the difference between cell sizes 1 and 2 being the same as the difference
between sizes 3 and 4). However, we will see that many useful statistical procedures
are, in fact, applicable to ordinal data.

(d) Data in Nominal Categories. Sometimes the variable being studied is classified
by some qualitative measure it possesses rather than by a numerical measurement.
In such cases the variable may be called an attribute, and we are said to be dealing
with nominal, or categorical, data. Genetic phenotypes are commonly encountered
biological attributes: The possible manifestations of an animal’s eye color might be
brown or blue; and if human hair color were the attribute of interest, we might
record black, brown, blond, or red. As other examples of nominal data (nominal is
from the Latin word for “name”), people might be classified as male or female, or
right-handed or left-handed. Or, plants might be classified as dead or alive, or as with
or without fertilizer application. Taxonomic categories also form a nominal classi-
fication scheme (for example, plants in a study might be classified as pine, spruce,
or fir).
Sometimes, data that might have been expressed on an ordinal, interval, or ratio
scale of measurement may be recorded in nominal categories. For example, heights
might be recorded as tall or short, or performance on an examination as pass or fail,
where there is an arbitrary cut-off point on the measurement scale to separate tall
from short and pass from fail.
As will be seen, statistical methods useful with ratio, interval, or ordinal data gen-
erally are not applicable to nominal data, and we must, therefore, be able to identify
such situations when they occur.

(e) Continuous and Discrete Data. When we spoke previously of plant heights, we
were dealing with a variable that could be any conceivable value within any observed
range; this is referred to as a continuous variable. That is, if we measure a height of
35 cm and a height of 36 cm, an infinite number of heights is possible in the range
from 35 to 36 cm: a plant might be 35.07 cm tall or 35.988 cm tall, or 35.3263 cm tall,
and so on, although, of course, we do not have devices sensitive enough to detect this
infinity of heights. A continuous variable is one for which there is a possible value
between any other two values.
However, when speaking of the number of leaves on a plant, we are dealing with a
variable that can take on only certain values. It might be possible to observe 27 leaves,
or 28 leaves, but 27.43 leaves and 27.9 leaves are values of the variable that are
impossible to obtain. Such a variable is termed a discrete or discontinuous variable
(also known as a meristic variable). The number of white blood cells in 1 mm3 of
blood, the number of giraffes visiting a water hole, and the number of eggs laid by
a grasshopper are all discrete variables. The possible values of a discrete variable
generally are consecutive integers, but this is not necessarily so. If the leaves on our

4
Data: Types and Presentation

plants are always formed in pairs, then only even integers are possible values of the
variable. And the ratio of number of wings to number of legs of insects is a discrete
variable that may only have the value of 0, 0.3333 . . . , or 0.6666 . . . (i.e., 06 , 26 , or 46 ,
respectively).∗
Ratio-, interval-, and ordinal-scale data may be either continuous or discrete.
Nominal-scale data by their nature are discrete.

2 ACCURACY AND SIGNIFICANT FIGURES


Accuracy is the nearness of a measurement to the true value of the variable being
measured. Precision is not a synonymous term but refers to the closeness to each
other of repeated measurements of the same quantity. Figure 1 illustrates the differ-
ence between accuracy and precision of measurements.

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 kg 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 kg
(a) (b)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 kg 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 kg
(c) (d)

FIGURE 1: Accuracy and precision of measurements. A 3-kilogram animal is weighed 10 times. The 10
measurements shown in sample (a) are relatively accurate and precise; those in sample (b) are relatively
accurate but not precise; those of sample (c) are relatively precise but not accurate; and those of sample
(d) are relatively inaccurate and imprecise.

Human error may exist in the recording of data. For example, a person may mis-
count the number of birds in a tract of land or misread the numbers on a heart-rate
monitor. Or, a person might obtain correct data but record them in such a way (per-
haps with poor handwriting) that a subsequent data analyst makes an error in reading
them. We shall assume that such errors have not occurred, but there are other aspects
of accuracy that should be considered.
Accuracy of measurement can be expressed in numerical reporting. If we report
that the hind leg of a frog is 8 cm long, we are stating the number 8 (a value of a
continuous variable) as an estimate of the frog’s true leg length. This estimate was
made using some sort of a measuring device. Had the device been capable of more
accuracy, we might have declared that the leg was 8.3 cm long, or perhaps 8.32 cm
long. When recording values of continuous variables, it is important to designate the
accuracy with which the measurements have been made. By convention, the value
8 denotes a measurement in the range of 7.50000 . . . to 8.49999 . . . , the value 8.3
designates a range of 8.25000 . . . to 8.34999 . . . , and the value 8.32 implies that the
true value lies within the range of 8.31500 . . . to 8.32499 . . . . That is, the reported
value is the midpoint of the implied range, and the size of this range is designated
by the last decimal place in the measurement. The value of 8 cm implies an ability to
∗ The ellipsis marks (. . .) may be read as “and so on.” Here, they indicate that 2 and 4 are
6 6
repeating decimal fractions, which could just as well have been written as 0.3333333333333 . . . and
0.6666666666666 . . . , respectively.

5
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Data: Types and Presentation

determine length within a range of 1 cm, 8.3 cm implies a range of 0.1 cm, and 8.32 cm
implies a range of 0.01 cm. Thus, to record a value of 8.0 implies greater accuracy of
measurement than does the recording of a value of 8, for in the first instance the
true value is said to lie between 7.95000 . . . and 8.049999 . . . (i.e., within a range of
0.1 cm), whereas 8 implies a value between 7.50000 . . . and 8.49999 . . . (i.e., within a
range of 1 cm). To state 8.00 cm implies a measurement that ascertains the frog’s limb
length to be between 7.99500 . . . and 8.00499 . . . cm (i.e., within a range of 0.01 cm).
Those digits in a number that denote the accuracy of the measurement are referred
to as significant figures. Thus, 8 has one significant figure, 8.0 and 8.3 each have two
significant figures, and 8.00 and 8.32 each have three.
In working with exact values of discrete variables, the preceding considerations do
not apply. That is, it is sufficient to state that our frog has four limbs or that its left
lung contains thirteen flukes. The use of 4.0 or 13.00 would be inappropriate, for as the
numbers involved are exactly 4 and 13, there is no question of accuracy or significant
figures.
But there are instances where significant figures and implied accuracy come into
play with discrete data. An entomologist may report that there are 72,000 moths in
a particular forest area. In doing so, it is probably not being claimed that this is the
exact number but an estimate of the exact number, perhaps accurate to two significant
figures. In such a case, 72,000 would imply a range of accuracy of 1000, so that the true
value might lie anywhere from 71,500 to 72,500. If the entomologist wished to convey
the fact that this estimate is believed to be accurate to the nearest 100 (i.e., to three
significant figures), rather than to the nearest 1000, it would be better to present the
data in the form of scientific notation,∗ as follows: If the number 7.2 × 104 (= 72,000)
is written, a range of accuracy of 0.1 × 104 (= 1000) is implied, and the true value is
assumed to lie between 71,500 and 72,500. But if 7.20 × 104 were written, a range of
accuracy of 0.01 × 104 (= 100) would be implied, and the true value would be assumed
to be in the range of 71,950 to 72,050. Thus, the accuracy of large values (and this
applies to continuous as well as discrete variables) can be expressed succinctly using
scientific notation.
Calculators and computers typically yield results with more significant figures than
are justified by the data. However, it is good practice—to avoid rounding error—to
retain many significant figures until the last step in a sequence of calculations, and on
attaining the result of the final step to round off to the appropriate number of figures.

3 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTIONS
When collecting and summarizing large amounts of data, it is often helpful to record
the data in the form of a frequency table. Such a table simply involves a listing of all
the observed values of the variable being studied and how many times each value is
observed. Consider the tabulation of the frequency of occurrence of sparrow nests
in each of several different locations. This is illustrated in Example 1, where the
observed kinds of nest sites are listed, and for each kind the number of nests observed
is recorded. The distribution of the total number of observations among the vari-
ous categories is termed a frequency distribution. Example 1 is a frequency table
for nominal data, and these data may also be presented graphically by means of a
bar graph (Figure 2), where the height of each bar is proportional to the frequency
in the class represented. The widths of all bars in a bar graph should be equal so

∗ The use of scientific notation—by physicists—can be traced back to at least the 1860s (Miller,
2004b).

6
Data: Types and Presentation

EXAMPLE 1 The Location of Sparrow Nests: A Frequency Table of


Nominal Data
The variable is nest site, and there are four recorded categories of this variable.
The numbers recorded in these categories constitute the frequency distribution.

Nest Site Number of Nests Observed


A. Vines 56
B. Building eaves 60
C. Low tree branches 46
D. Tree and building cavities 49

60

50
Number of Nests

40

30

20

10

0
A B C D
Nest Site

FIGURE 2: A bar graph of the sparrow nest data of Example 1. An example of a bar graph for nominal
data.

that the eye of the reader is not distracted from the differences in bar heights; this
also makes the area of each bar proportional to the frequency it represents. Also,
the frequency scale on the vertical axis should begin at zero to avoid the apparent
differences among bars. If, for example, a bar graph of the data of Example 1 were
constructed with the vertical axis representing frequencies of 45 to 60 rather than 0
to 60, the results would appear as in Figure 3. Huff (1954) illustrates other techniques
that can mislead the readers of graphs. It is good practice to leave space between
the bars of a bar graph of nominal data, to emphasize the distinctness among the
categories represented.
A frequency tabulation of ordinal data might appear as in Example 2, which pre-
sents the observed numbers of sunfish collected in each of five categories, each cate-
gory being a degree of skin pigmentation. A bar graph (Figure 4) can be prepared for
this frequency distribution just as for nominal data.

7
Data: Types and Presentation

60

Number of Nests
55

50

45
A B C D
Nest Site

FIGURE 3: A bar graph of the sparrow nest data of Example 1, drawn with the vertical axis starting at
45. Compare this with Figure 1, where the axis starts at 0.

EXAMPLE 2 Numbers of Sunfish, Tabulated According to Amount of Black


Pigmentation: A Frequency Table of Ordinal Data
The variable is amount of pigmentation, which is expressed by numerically
ordered classes. The numbers recorded for the five pigmentation classes compose
the frequency distribution.

Pigmentation Class Amount of Pigmentation Number of Fish


0 No black pigmentation 13
1 Faintly speckled 68
2 Moderately speckled 44
3 Heavily speckled 21
4 Solid black pigmentation 8

70

60
Number of Fish

50

40

30

20

10

0
0 1 2 3 4
Pigmentation Class

FIGURE 4: A bar graph of the sunfish pigmentation data of Example 2. An example of a bar graph for
ordinal data.

8
Data: Types and Presentation

In preparing frequency tables of interval- and ratio-scale data, we can make a pro-
cedural distinction between discrete and continuous data. Example 3 shows discrete
data that are frequencies of litter sizes in foxes, and Figure 5 presents this frequency
distribution graphically.

EXAMPLE 3 Frequency of Occurrence of Various Litter Sizes in Foxes: A


Frequency Table of Discrete, Ratio-Scale Data
The variable is litter size, and the numbers recorded for the five litter sizes make
up frequency distribution.

Litter Size Frequency


3 10
4 27
5 22
6 4
7 1

30

25
Number of Litters

20

15

10

0
3 4 5 6 7
Litter Size

FIGURE 5: A bar graph of the fox litter data of Example 3. An example of a bar graph for discrete,
ratio-scale data.

Example 4a shows discrete data that are the numbers of aphids found per clover
plant. These data create quite a lengthy frequency table, and it is not difficult to imag-
ine sets of data whose tabulation would result in an even longer list of frequencies.
Thus, for purposes of preparing bar graphs, we often cast data into a frequency table
by grouping them.
Example 4b is a table of the data from Example 4a arranged by grouping the data
into size classes. The bar graph for this distribution appears as Figure 6. Such group-
ing results in the loss of some information and is generally utilized only to make
frequency tables and bar graphs easier to read, and not for calculations performed on

9
Data: Types and Presentation

the data. There have been several “rules of thumb” proposed to aid in deciding into
how many classes data might reasonably be grouped, for the use of too few groups will
obscure the general shape of the distribution. But such “rules” or recommendations
are only rough guides, and the choice is generally left to good judgment, bearing in
mind that from 10 to 20 groups are useful for most biological work. (See also Doane,
1976.) In general, groups should be established that are equal in the size interval of
the variable being measured. (For example, the group size interval in Example 4b is
four aphids per plant.)

EXAMPLE 4a Number of Aphids Observed per Clover Plant: A Fre-


quency Table of Discrete, Ratio-Scale Data

Number of Aphids Number of Number of Aphids Number of


on a Plant Plants Observed on a Plant Plants Observed
0 3 20 17
1 1 21 18
2 1 22 23
3 1 23 17
4 2 24 19
5 3 25 18
6 5 26 19
7 7 27 21
8 8 28 18
9 11 29 13
10 10 30 10
11 11 31 14
12 13 32 9
13 12 33 10
14 16 34 8
15 13 35 5
16 14 36 4
17 16 37 1
18 15 38 2
19 14 39 1
40 0
41 1
Total number of observations = 424

Because continuous data, contrary to discrete data, can take on an infinity of val-
ues, one is essentially always dealing with a frequency distribution tabulated by
groups. If the variable of interest were a weight, measured to the nearest 0.1 mg, a fre-
quency table entry of the number of weights measured to be 48.6 mg would be inter-
preted to mean the number of weights grouped between 48.5500 . . . and 48.6499 . . . mg
(although in a frequency table this class interval is usually written as 48.55–48.65).
Example 5 presents a tabulation of 130 determinations of the amount of phosphorus,
in milligrams per gram, in dried leaves. (Ignore the last two columns of this table until
Section 4.)

10
Data: Types and Presentation

EXAMPLE 4b Number of Aphids Observed per Clover Plant: A Frequency


Table Grouping the Discrete, Ratio-Scale Data of Example 4a

Number of Aphids Number of


on a Plant Plants Observed
0–3 6
4–7 17
8–11 40
12–15 54
16–19 59
20–23 75
24–27 77
28–31 55
32–35 32
36–39 8
40–43 1
Total number of observations = 424

80

70
Frequency of Observations

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
0–3 4–7 8–11 12–15 16–19 20–23 24–27 28–31 32–35 36–39 40–43
Observed Number of Aphids per Plant

FIGURE 6: A bar graph of the aphid data of Example 4b. An example of a bar graph for grouped discrete,
ratio-scale data.

11
Data: Types and Presentation

EXAMPLE 5 Determinations of the Amount of Phosphorus in Leaves: A


Frequency Table of Continuous Data

Cumulative frequency
Frequency
Phosphorus (i.e., number of Starting with Starting with
(mg/g of leaf) determinations) Low Values High Values
8.15–8.25 2 2 130
8.25–8.35 6 8 128
8.35–8.45 8 16 122
8.45–8.55 11 27 114
8.55–8.65 17 44 103
8.65–8.75 17 61 86
8.75–8.85 24 85 69
8.85–8.95 18 103 45
8.95–9.05 13 116 27
9.05–9.15 10 126 14
9.15–9.25 4 130 4
Total frequency = 130 = n

In presenting this frequency distribution graphically, one can prepare a histogram,∗


which is the name given to a bar graph based on continuous data. This is done in
Figure 7; note that rather than indicating the range on the horizontal axis, we indicate
only the midpoint of the range, a procedure that results in less crowded printing on
the graph. Note also that adjacent bars in a histogram are often drawn touching each
other, to emphasize the continuity of the scale of measurement, whereas in the other
bar graphs discussed they generally are not.

30

25
Frequency

20

15

10

0
8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 9.0 9.1 9.2
Phosphorus (mg/g of leaf)

FIGURE 7: A histogram of the leaf phosphorus data of Example 5. An example of a histogram for con-
tinuous data.

∗ The term histogram is from Greek roots (referring to a pole-shaped drawing) and was first
published by Karl Pearson in 1895 (David 1995).

12
Data: Types and Presentation

30

0.20
25

Relative Frequency
Frequency
20 0.15

15
0.10
10

0.05
5

0 0
8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 9.0 9.1 9.2
Phosphorus (mg/g of leaf)

FIGURE 8: A frequency polygon for the leaf phosphorus data of Example 5.

Often a frequency polygon is drawn instead of a histogram. This is done by plotting


the frequency of each class as a dot (or other symbol) at the class midpoint and then
connecting each adjacent pair of dots by a straight line (Figure 8). It is, of course, the
same as if the midpoints of the tops of the histogram bars were connected by straight
lines. Instead of plotting frequencies on the vertical axis, one can plot relative fre-
quencies, or proportions of the total frequency. This enables different distributions to
be readily compared and even plotted on the same axes. Sometimes, as in Figure 8,
frequency is indicated on one vertical axis and the corresponding relative frequency
on the other. (Using the data of Example 5, the relative frequency for 8.2 mg/g is
2/130 = 0.015, that for 8.3 mg/g is 6/130 = 0.046, that for 9.2 mg/g is 4/130 = 0.030,
and so on. The total of all the frequencies is n, and the total of all the relative fre-
quencies is 1.)
Frequency polygons are also commonly used for discrete distributions, but one can
argue against their use when dealing with ordinal data, as the polygon implies to the
reader a constant size interval horizontally between points on the polygon. Frequency
polygons should not be employed for nominal-scale data.
If we have a frequency distribution of values of a continuous variable that falls
into a large number of class intervals, the data may be grouped as was demonstrated
with discrete variables. This results in fewer intervals, but each interval is, of course,
larger. The midpoints of these intervals may then be used in the preparation of a
histogram or frequency polygon. The user of frequency polygons is cautioned that
such a graph is simply an aid to the eye in following trends in frequency distributions,
and one should not attempt to read frequencies between points on the polygon. Also
note that the method presented for the construction of histograms and frequency
polygons requires that the class intervals be equal. Lastly, the vertical axis (e.g., the
frequency scale) on frequency polygons and bar graphs generally should begin with
zero, especially if graphs are to be compared with one another. If this is not done, the
eye may be misled by the appearance of the graph (as shown for nominal-scale data
in Figures 2 and 3).

13
Data: Types and Presentation

4 CUMULATIVE FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTIONS


A frequency distribution informs us how many observations occurred for each value
(or group of values) of a variable. That is, examination of the frequency table of
Example 3 (or its corresponding bar graph or frequency polygon) would yield infor-
mation such as, “How many fox litters of four were observed?”, the answer being
27. But if it is desired to ask questions such as, “How many litters of four or more
were observed?”, or “How many fox litters of five or fewer were observed?”, we are
speaking of cumulative frequencies. To answer the first question, we sum all frequen-
cies for litter sizes four and up, and for the second question, we sum all frequencies
from the smallest litter size up through a size of five. We arrive at answers of 54 and
59, respectively.
In Example 5, the phosphorus concentration data are cast into two cumulative
frequency distributions, one with cumulation commencing at the low end of the mea-
surement scale and one with cumulation being performed from the high values toward
the low values. The choice of the direction of cumulation is immaterial, as can be
demonstrated. If one desired to calculate the number of phosphorus determinations
less than 8.55 mg/g, namely 27, a cumulation starting at the low end might be used,
whereas the knowledge of the frequency of determinations greater than 8.55 mg/g,
namely 103, can be readily obtained from the cumulation commencing from the high
end of the scale. But one can easily calculate any frequency from a low-to-high cumu-
lation (e.g., 27) from its complementary frequency from a high-to-low cumulation
(e.g., 103), simply by knowing that the sum of these two frequencies is the total fre-
quency (i.e., n = 130); therefore, in practice it is not necessary to calculate both sets
of cumulations.
Cumulative frequency distributions are useful in determining medians, percentiles,
and other quantiles. They are not often presented in bar graphs, but cumulative fre-
quency polygons (sometimes called ogives) are not uncommon. (See Figures 9 and 10.)

140
1.00
120 0.90

0.80
Relative Cumulative Frequency

100
Cumulative Frequency

0.70

80 0.60

0.50
60
0.40

40 0.30

0.20
20
0.10

0 0
8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 9.0 9.1 9.2
Phosphorus (mg/g of leaf)

FIGURE 9: Cumulative frequency polygon of the leaf phosphorus data of Example 5, with cumulation
commencing from the lowest to the highest values of the variable.

14
Data: Types and Presentation

140
1.00
120 0.90

0.80

Relative Cumulative Frequency


100

Cumulative Frequency
0.70

80 0.60

0.50
60
0.40

40 0.30

0.20
20
0.10

0 0
8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 9.0 9.1 9.2
Phosphorus (mg/g of leaf)

FIGURE 10: Cumulative frequency polygon of the leaf phosphorus data of Example 5, with cumulation
commencing from the highest to the lowest values of the variable.

Relative frequencies (proportions of the total frequency) can be plotted instead of


(or, as in Figures 9 and 10, in addition to) frequencies on the vertical axis of a cumu-
lative frequency polygon. This enables different distributions to be readily compared
and even plotted on the same axes. (Using the data of Example 5 for Figure 9, the
relative cumulative frequency for 8.2 mg/g is 2/130 = 0.015, that for 8.3 mg/g is
8/130 = 0.062, and so on. For Figure 10, the relative cumulative frequency for 8.2
mg/g is 130/130 = 1.000, that for 8.3 mg/g is 128/130 = 0.985, and so on.)

15
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Populations and Samples

From Chapter 2 of Biostatistical Analysis, Fifth Edition, Jerrold H. Zar. Copyright 


c 2010 by
Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Pearson Prentice Hall. All rights reserved.
17
Populations and Samples

1 POPULATIONS
2 SAMPLES FROM POPULATIONS
3 RANDOM SAMPLING
4 PARAMETERS AND STATISTICS
5 OUTLIERS

The primary objective of a statistical analysis is to infer characteristics of a group of


data by analyzing the characteristics of a small sampling of the group. This generaliza-
tion from the part to the whole requires the consideration of such important concepts
as population, sample, parameter, statistic, and random sampling. These topics are
discussed in this chapter.

1 POPULATIONS
Basic to statistical analysis is the desire to draw conclusions about a group of mea-
surements of a variable being studied. Biologists often speak of a “population” as a
defined group of humans or of another species of organisms. Statisticians speak of
a population (also called a universe) as a group of measurements (not organisms)
about which one wishes to draw conclusions. It is the latter definition, the statistical
definition of population, that will be used throughout this text. For example, an inves-
tigator may desire to draw conclusions about the tail lengths of bobcats in Montana.
All Montana bobcat tail lengths are, therefore, the population under consideration.
If a study is concerned with the blood-glucose concentration in three-year-old chil-
dren, then the blood-glucose levels in all children of that age are the population of
interest.
Populations are often very large, such as the body weights of all grasshoppers in
Kansas or the eye colors of all female New Zealanders, but occasionally populations
of interest may be relatively small, such as the ages of men who have traveled to the
moon or the heights of women who have swum the English Channel.

2 SAMPLES FROM POPULATIONS


If the population under study is very small, it might be practical to obtain all the
measurements in the population. If one wishes to draw conclusions about the ages
of all men who have traveled to the moon, it would not be unreasonable to attempt
to collect all the ages of the small number of individuals under consideration. Gen-
erally, however, populations of interest are so large that obtaining all the measure-
ments is unfeasible. For example, we could not reasonably expect to determine the
body weight of every grasshopper in Kansas. What can be done in such cases is
to obtain a subset of all the measurements in the population. This subset of mea-
surements constitutes a sample, and from the characteristics of samples we can

18
Populations and Samples

draw conclusions about the characteristics of the populations from which the samples
came.∗
Biologists may sample a population that does not physically exist. Suppose an
experiment is performed in which a food supplement is administered to 40 guinea
pigs, and the sample data consist of the growth rates of these 40 animals. Then the
population about which conclusions might be drawn is the growth rates of all the
guinea pigs that conceivably might have been administered the same food supple-
ment under identical conditions. Such a population is said to be “imaginary” and is
also referred to as “hypothetical” or “potential.”

3 RANDOM SAMPLING
Samples from populations can be obtained in a number of ways; however, for a sam-
ple to be representative of the population from which it came, and to reach valid con-
clusions about populations by induction from samples, statistical procedures typically
assume that the samples are obtained in a random fashion. To sample a population
randomly requires that each member of the population has an equal and independent
chance of being selected. That is, not only must each measurement in the population
have an equal chance of being chosen as a member of the sample, but the selection
of any member of the population must in no way influence the selection of any other
member. Throughout this text, “sample” will always imply “random sample.”†
It is sometimes possible to assign each member of a population a unique number
and to draw a sample by choosing a set of such numbers at random. This is equivalent
to having all members of a population in a hat and drawing a sample from them while
blindfolded. Table 41 from Appendix: Statistical Tables and Graphs provides 10,000
random digits for this purpose. In this table, each digit from 0 to 9 has an equal and
independent chance of appearing anywhere in the table. Similarly, each combination
of two digits, from 00 to 99, is found at random in the table, as is each three-digit
combination, from 000 to 999, and so on.
Assume that a random sample of 200 names is desired from a telephone directory
having 274 pages, three columns of names per page, and 98 names per column. Enter-
ing Table 41 from Appendix: Statistical Tables and Graphs at random (i.e., do not
always enter the table at the same place), one might decide first to arrive at a random
combination of three digits. If this three-digit number is 001 to 274, it can be taken
as a randomly chosen page number (if it is 000 or larger than 274, simply skip it and
choose another three-digit number, e.g., the next one on the table). Then one might
examine the next digit in the table; if it is a 1, 2, or 3, let it denote a page column (if a
digit other than 1, 2, or 3 is encountered, it is ignored, passing to the next digit that is
1, 2, or 3). Then one could look at the next two-digit number in the table; if it is from
01 to 98, let it represent a randomly selected name within that column. This three-
step procedure would be performed a total of 200 times to obtain the desired random
sample. One can proceed in any direction in the random number table: left to right,
right to left, upward, downward, or diagonally; but the direction should be decided
on before looking at the table. Computers are capable of quickly generating random
numbers (sometimes called “pseudorandom” numbers because the number gener-
ation is not perfectly random), and this is how Table 41 from Appendix: Statistical
Tables and Graphs was derived.
∗ This use of the terms population and sample was established by Karl Pearson (1903).
† This concept of random sampling was established by Karl Pearson between 1897 and 1903
(Miller, 2004a).

19
Populations and Samples

Very often it is not possible to assign a number to each member of a popula-


tion, and random sampling then involves biological, rather than simply mathemati-
cal, considerations. That is, the techniques for sampling Montana bobcats or Kansas
grasshoppers require knowledge about the particular organism to ensure that the
sampling is random. Researchers consult relevant books, periodical articles, or reports
that address the specific kind of biological measurement to be obtained.

4 PARAMETERS AND STATISTICS


Several measures help to describe or characterize a population. For example, gener-
ally a preponderance of measurements occurs somewhere around the middle of the
range of a population of measurements. Thus, some indication of a population “aver-
age” would express a useful bit of descriptive information. Such information is called
a measure of central tendency (also called a measure of location).
It is also important to describe how dispersed the measurements are around the
“average.” That is, we can ask whether there is a wide spread of values in the popula-
tion or whether the values are rather concentrated around the middle. Such a descrip-
tive property is called a measure of variability (or a measure of dispersion).
A quantity such as a measure of central tendency or a measure of dispersion is
called a parameter when it describes or characterizes a population, and we shall be
very interested in discussing parameters and drawing conclusions about them.
Section 2 pointed out, however, that one seldom has data for entire populations, but
nearly always has to rely on samples to arrive at conclusions about populations. Thus,
one rarely is able to calculate parameters. However, by random sampling of popu-
lations, parameters can be estimated well. An estimate of a population parameter is
called a statistic.∗ It is statistical convention to represent population parameters by
Greek letters and sample statistics by Latin letters; will demonstrate this custom for
specific examples.
The statistics one calculates will vary from sample to sample for samples taken
from the same population. Because one uses sample statistics as estimates of popula-
tion parameters, it behooves the researcher to arrive at the “best” estimates possible.
As for what properties to desire in a “good” estimate, consider the following.
First, it is desirable that if we take an indefinitely large number of samples from a
population, the long-run average of the statistics obtained will equal the parameter
being estimated. That is, for some samples a statistic may underestimate the parame-
ter of interest, and for others it may overestimate that parameter; but in the long run
the estimates that are too low and those that are too high will “average out.” If such
a property is exhibited by a statistic, we say that we have an unbiased statistic or an
unbiased estimator.
Second, it is desirable that a statistic obtained from any single sample from a pop-
ulation be very close to the value of the parameter being estimated. This property of
a statistic is referred to as precision,† efficiency, or reliability. As we commonly secure
only one sample from a population, it is important to arrive at a close estimate of a
parameter from a single sample.

∗ This use of the terms parameter and statistic was defined by R. A. Fisher as early as 1922 (Miller,
2004a; Savage, 1976).
† The precision of a sample statistic, as defined here, should not be confused with the precision
of a measurement.

20
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different content
Emily Maria, born August 17th, 1847,
died April 13th, 1656.
Phœbe Catharine, born August 10th, 1848,
died April 14th, 1856.
James Bulkley Phillips, born Aug. 7th, 1850,
died April 16th, 1856.
Clara Artemisia, born Oct. 10th, 1852,
died April 21st, 1856.
“The voice said cry, and he said what shall I cry? all flesh is
grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the
field. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of
our God shall stand for ever.”
Isaiah xl. 6–8.
It is the Lord: let him do what seemeth him good.
I. Samuel iii. 18.
Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
Genesis xviii. 25.
In Affectionate Memory of
Richard Cecil Henry,
The second beloved son of
James Henry Gwyther, M.A., Vicar of this Parish,
And Mary Catharine his wife.
Born Sep. 21st, 1851. Died April 4th, 1855.
Yes, Thou art fled and saints a welcome sing,
Thine infant spirit soars on angels’ wing,
Our dark affection might have hop’d thy stay,
The voice of God has called his child away.
Sweet Rose of Sharon, plant of holy ground,
Like Samuel early in the temple found;
Oh; more than Samuel blest, to thee ’tis given,
The God he served on earth, to serve in heaven.
Benefactions.
1706. May 28th, Basil Brooke, Esq. of Madeley gave by will £40, to
which an addition of £60 was made by unknown Benefactors,
wherewith certain Cottages and Premises were purchased and
conveyed to Trustees for the benefit of the Poor of this Parish.
1800. The yearly sum of five shillings was given to the Poor of this
Parish to be paid out of the Rates of the Premises lately belonging to
Mr. Richard Beddoes, but now in the possession of Walter Bowdler,
of Madeley.
1825. Joseph Reynolds, Esq., of the Bank House, presented a
Service of Communion Plate for the use of this Church, of the value
of £100.
1810. Sept. 6th, Mr. William Yate, of this Parish, gave by will to the
Churchwardens for the time being in Trust, four kneelings in his Pew,
No. 13 in the Gallery, for the benefit of the Sunday Schools of this
Parish.
1852. Thomas Lister, Esq., of Broseley, gave £100 to the Sunday
and National Schools connected with the Parish Church of Madeley,
which sum was invested in the three per cent Consolidated
Annuities, on the 19th day of January, 1853, in the names of Rev. J.
H. A. Gwyther, John Anstice, and Thomas Smith, Vicar and
Churchwardens, Managers of the said Schools.

The Foundation Stone of this Church


was laid by the Rev. George Pattrick, L.L.B.,
September 22nd, 1794.

Divine Worship first performed therein by the Rev. Samuel Walter, A.


M., Curate of this parish, on Easter Day, being
April 16th, 1797.
William Purton, Thomas Wheatly, } Churchwardens.
MADELEY.
Extinct and ancient names.
An old book containing tithe charges has names of places now no
longer known. In 1786, for instance, Mr. Botfield is stated to occupy
under the family of the late Sir Joseph Hawley some pieces of land
called the Hoar Stones. The Rev. Charles Hartshorne in his Salopia
Antiqua describes hoar stones at some length and quotes passages
from sacred and profane writers to shew that they were in some
cases memorial, and in others division marks between property.
They occur at a place called Hoar, or “Whure Edge,” on the
Titterstone Clee, and in several other places in Shropshire and
neighbouring counties, whilst in Wales, both north and south, they
are still more numerous.
Among old names of places applying to portions of Madeley Court
property we find the Hopyard, adjoining “the slang,” a piece of 11
acres, 2 perches, and 16 roods, formerly in the occupation of Mr. W.
Purton, and belonging to Richard Dyott Esq.; and the Coneberry, and
Coneygrey; Deer Close, and Battlefield, all belonging to the same in
1787.

MADELEY MARKET.
Grants of markets and fairs appear to have been made by kings in
former times by way of favour to the holders of manors, rather than
from a wish to accommodate the people who shared the privileges.
Madeley market was granted by the necesstous king, Henry III., to
the Prior of Wenlock, July 6, 1269. He also granted an annual fair,
to be held on three days; namely, on the vigil, the day, and the
morrow of St. Matthew the apostle. The market was to be held on
Tuesdays, but it fell into disuetude, and was either removed to or
revived in another portion of the same manor; and the inhabitants of
the village for many years, had no market nearer than Ironbridge or
Dawley. The old market was at one time held at Cross Hill, in an
open space where a group of cottages now divide the roads. It was
also held at one time in a building which served as a market hall,
now the property of Mr. Legge, adjoining the barn in which king
Charles was lodged. Subsequently it was removed to Madeley
Wood; and afterwards to Ironbridge, which was at that time a rising
place. Ineffectual attempts were made in 1857 to re-establish a
market, but nothing effectual was done till 1869, when an energetic
committee was appointed, of which Mr. Legge was Treasurer and the
writer of this article was Sec., which succeeded in establishing the
market, first in the open street and secondly in treating with the lord
of the manor, through his agent, W. R. Anstice, Esq., for the erection
of a suitable building, on condition that a scale of tolls was adopted
sufficient to cover the outlay. The market has proved of great
advantage to the town; not only to purchasers but to tradesmen, by
causing more ready money to be spent in the town than formerly.

Madeley as a part of the Franchise of Wenlock.


Madeley for the last 900 years has been associated with Wenlock. It
formed part of the possessions of the Church of St. Milburgh in the
time of King Edward (son of the Great Alfred) at the commencement
of the tenth century, and is mentioned as such in Domesday. It
shared the privileges which the many franchises obtained by the
Prior of Wenlock conferred. These privileges and exemptions from
taxation gave, Mr. Eyton observes, to each acre of land a two-fold
value. On the other hand it suffered from the occasional extortions
of the Priors, and inconveniences from being subject, as all lands of
the Borough were, to the Mother Church of Holy Trinity, Wenlock. It
was subject to the Courts of Wenlock, and as early as 1267 a case is
mentioned in which the Provost of Wenlock and the Prior were
engaged in disseizen one of the tenants of the Prior at Madeley.
The Bailiff and his peers, together with the Recorder, were Justice of
the Peace, with a Jurisdiction co-extensive with the Borough.
These officers had Constables in the several divisions of the
Borough, termed Allotments, sometimes Constablewicks. The men
selected for the office appear to have been men of substance,
standing, and integrity; and upon them devolved the duties of
maintaining the laws, of collecting monies for the king &c.
Here, for instance, are the “Articles which the constables” of Madeley
and Little Wenlock were called upon “to present upon oath.”

1.—What felonies have been committed and what default . and


by and in-whom.
2.—What vagrant p’sns. and sturdy beggars have passed
through yo’r. limitts unpunished, and whether the same and
impotent poor of yo’r. p’ share provided for, and poor children
bound apprentices according to Law.
3.—What Recusants of about the age of sixteen are in yo:e
limitts, and who absent themselves from church on ye Lord’s
Day, and how many sabbaths.
4.—Who have profaned the Sabbath by swearing, labouring or
otherwise.
5.—What Ingrossers, forestalled, or . . . of the market, of cow or
cattle, or other dead victuals are within yo’r limitts, or any
Badgers or Drovers of cow or cattle.
6.—Who make mault to sell of corn or grain or tythe or tylth not
being their own . and are not licensed thereunto.
7.—What Masters or Servants give or take greater wages than is
appointed by Justices of the Peace according to Law.
8.—What cottagers or inmates are evicted, removed or
maintained, and by whom, and how long.
9.—What unlawful games, drunkenness, tipling other evil rule or
disorder hath been in Inns, ale houses &c. and by whom.
10.—What Servants have departed from their masters, and what
masters have put away their servants within the compass of
their time.
11.—Who use gunns, or take or destroy hawks or hawk’s eggs,
of pheasants, partridges, younge deer, hares, snipes, fish, or
fowl, with snares or other engines whatsoever for that purpose
against the Law.
12.—Who use unlawful weights or measures or buy by a greater
and sell by a lesser weight or measure.
13.—Whether watch and ward be duly observed and kept
according to ye statute; that is to say, between Ascension Day
and Michaelmas in convenient places, and who has made
default therein.
14.—What highways have been repaired and what have been
neglected.
15.—Who have sold beer, or syder, or perry, &c. unlicensed, or
who hath evaded ye assize of bread and drink unlawfully, either
the bakers or assizers.
16.—What butchers have killed or sold meate on the Lord’s Day,
or sold any unwholesome flesh at any other time.
17.—Who have any assault, battery, or bloodshed.
18.—Who have profanely sworn or cursed, and how often.
19.—What common brawlers, drunkards, scoulds,
eavesdroppers, talebearers, and such disordered p’sns are
within y’re limits.
20.—Who have sold ale or beer on the Sabbath day, or who
have been drinking or tipling in any alehouse on that day.
As the reader may surmise, from references to recusants and others
who refused or neglected to attend church, or to acknowledge the
supremacy of the King as the head, these instructions were drawn
up and submitted by the Bailiff to the Constables of Madeley, Little
Wenlock, Beckbury, and Badger, in the early part of reign of William
and Mary.
Vagrants and sturdy beggars, it appears, were to be strictly looked
after; they swarmed through the country, giving themselves up to
pilfering; the women breeding children whom they brought up to the
same idle way of living, so that, according to a writer about that
period, (1677) there were 100,000 paupers in England. Harsh
measures were therefore resorted to: the law of Settlement was
passed, and once more the poor were reduced to bondage to the
soil from which they had been emancipated a century or two
before. By this law, which remained in force 130 years, and which
was not repealed till the close of the last century, the poor were
imprisoned within their allotments; and upon the complaints of the
Churchwardens or Overseers, any two Justices of the Peace had
power to lay hold of the new comer and within forty days remove
him to the Parish in which he was last settled, unless he could prove
that he was neither a pauper nor a vagabond, or that he rented a
tenement of the value of £10 per annum.
Here, for instance, is a copy of a letter addressed to the constables
of Madeley.

Wenlock
To the Constables of the p sh. of Madeley,
Greeting.
Whereas I have been informed yt. Thomas Richasson doth
endeavour to make a settlement within the s’d p’ish of Madeley,
contrary to the laws &c. I am therefore in the King and Queen’s
Ma’ties names, of England that now are, to will and require you
the said Constables, or one of you that you bring before me or
some other of their Ma’ties Justices of the Peace for the said
Town and lib’ties, the body of the said Thomas Richasson, to
the Serjeant’s House in Much Wenlock, upon Tuesday the tenth
day of this instant month of March, to answer to such matters
as shall be objected against him by the overseers of the poor of
the parish of Madeley. And you, the said constables, are
required to give notice to John York of yo’r p’sh, Smith, that he
be and appear before me &c. at the time and place above said,
by nine o’clock in the morning, to put in sureties for his and his
wife’s good behaviour towards Elinor Alnord, Widdy, and all their
Ma’ties loyal people. And you are to make due returns of this
warrant at the time above stated &c. Given under my hand and
seal this second day of March, Anno domini 1690.
You must give notice to Thomas Cope, Anne Cludd, and
Elizabeth Morris to appear to testify the truth of their
knowledge.
Lan. Stephens.

Probably there were other reasons for these strict enquiries, as the
feudal bondage to which the poor were reduced was closely
interwoven with another evil, the thriving-traffic of Shipping likely
young paupers to American Plantations, as was done by the Bristol
Corporation, which held out to the poor wretches the alternative of
leaving England or being flogged or imprisoned.
It may perhaps be a redeeming feature in the character of that
“ermined iniquity and prince of legal oppressors,” as Judge Jeffreys,
who was not unconnected with Shropshire, was called, to say that as
Lord Chief-Justice he exerted himself successfully to put down this
abomination.
Another summons from Wenlock to the constables requires them by
virtue of an Act of Parliament (fifth of William and Mary) to give
notice to all householders, and to all others they may believe to be
disaffected, inhabiting within their “Constablewick,” being sixteen
years of age and above sixteen, to appear at the house of,
Humphrey Powell, Sergent-at-mace, at Wenlock &c. to take the
oaths of allegiance and supremacy to their Ma’ties, and to subscribe
the declaration in the Act &c. Dated 16th June, 1692.
Signed Thos. Crompton, Bailf.
Chas. Rindar. Recorder.
Lan. Stephens.
John Mason.
This summons does not appear to have brought the parties to book,
for we find a large number charged with contempt, and again
summonsed under a fine of 40s. to appear before the Sergeant-at-
mace.
In 1693, William Hayward, Roger Brooke, Gent., and John
Smytheman, Gent., and others are applied to, as assessors for
Madeley, Beckbury and Little Wenlock, in carrying out the Act passed
in the fifth year of the reign of William and Mary, entitled “an Act for
granting to their Majesties an aid of Four Shillings in ye pound for
one year, for carrying on a vigorous War against France.” After
giving the nature of the property to be taxed, the Bailiff and his
Officers call upon the assessors to levy a double tax upon “every
papist, or reputed papist, of ye age of 16 years or upwards, who
hath not taken the oath mentioned and required to be observed in
an Act of Parliament passed in the first year of that reign, entitled an
Act for abrogating the oaths of Supremacy and allegiance,” unless
they then take the oath they shall administer. The papists however
were not alone in this respect; others who had not taken the oaths,
or who refused to take those tendered, were to be similarly rated or
assessed.
In some cases the Constables were required to look after and to
report upon all young men of a certain age and height, likely to be
of use to his Majesty in war times, &c.
Here is a specimen.
(To the Constables of Madeley.)
“We whose names” &c., His Ma’ties Justices of the Peace,
having received a summons from the Deputy Lieutenant of the
county, together with a copy of a letter from the Lords of the
Privy Council &c., Command you to make diligent search for all
straggling seamen, watermen, or seafaring men, and to impress
all such, giving each one shilling, impressment money, and to
bring the same before us, to the intent that they may be sworn
and provided for, as by the said letter directed; and You, the sd.
Constables are not to impress any very old, crazy, or unhealthy
men, but such as are younge, and of able healthy bodies, fit for
se’vice; and herein you are to use yo’e: best endeavours as you
and any of you will answer the contrary. Given under our hands
&c.
“You are to take notice that what monye you shall lay out of
yo’e: purse upon this service we will take care the same shall be
speedily repaid you according to the order of their Majesties
Privy Council.”
Jas: Lewis, Balf.
Geo: Weld.
Tho: Compton.

Turning back to the period when great political, religious, and moral
changes were taking place in the country, when Royalists and
Republicans had been struggling for the mastery, and the latter were
victorious, to ascertain their reflex and influence upon the little local
parliaments sitting in the Guildhall at Wenlock, we found some
characteristic presentments by those then important officers the
constables, from the several constablewicks within the franchise,
with other matters coming before the bailiffs and Justices of the
Peace, and instructions issued by them such as may be of interest in
shewing the intermeddling spirit of Puritanism in its then rampant
attitude, when the neglect of public worship, and the walking out of
sweethearts, and even husbands and wives, during sermon time,
was punished with fines, imprisonments or the stocks. The stocks in
fact appear to have been in frequent requisition, and fines as
frequently imposed for such trivial offences as hanging out clothes
on a Sunday, being seen in an ale house on the Sabbath, and for the
very mildest form of swearing, or for the least utterance of
disaffection or disrespect of the Commonwealth. Here, for instance,
is the presentment of

“Articles of evil behaviour of Edward Jeames, of Long Stanton


Clee, in the Liberties of Much Wenlock, xiiiith day of September,
1652, John Warham, gent., Bailiff.
“First, that the said Edward Jeames is a common disturber of
the Publike Peace, of this Commonwealth, by stirring up strife
and sedition among his neighbours.”

The presentment then proceeds to state that the said Edward


Jeames doth often quarrel with his owne wife and family.

“Secondly That the said Edward Jeames doth take abroade wh.
him a Welsh servt. Lad wch. he keepeth, to the end yat if any
neighboure being by him abused by opprobvious and unseemely
language and word of provocation, doe make any answeare or
reply to him, out of which any advantage may be taken, the
said Lad shall verify ye same upon oath on purpose to vex and
molest the same neighboure and to gaine revenge against him.
Thirdly that the said Edward Jeames, in September, 1651, when
the titular king of Scotte invaded yis land wh. an army, saied
openly in ye heareing of divse persons yt he was glad yt ye
kinge was comen into ye land, for if he had not come he
thought yt ye pesent. government would have altered religion &
turned all unto Popery.”

We did not turn to other old parchments containing the decisions of


the Justices to see what punishment, if any, was meted out to Mr.
Jeames for his evil behaviour, but turned to note some of the
Informations laid against ale house keepers, and persons
frequenting ale houses on the Sabbath. Here is one from Barrow,
not from the Constable, or from one living within the franchise; but
from a gentleman who first proclaims his own goodness by telling us
that he himself had attended service twice on the Sunday, but who,
like many others just then, felt it to be his duty to look after others.
He commences by saying

“that yesterday, being Lord’s Day, I was at Wenlock morning and


evening prayer, and going home by the house of John
Thompson of Barrow, ale seller, both the doors being open I
saw both hall and parlour full of people, both men and women
drinkeinge and some drinkeinge forth of dores. There is a
private house standing farr from any rode and hath the report
to bee a verye rude house on ye Lord’s Day. I am Louth to be
the informer, because I doe nott live wthin ye franchise, but
leave yt to ye worshps. consideration hoping you will take som
course whereby God may bee better honoured, and his
Sabbathes less defamed in that house. What I can speke of
that man further I forbear, for ye pesent.

Yours to command,
WILLIAM LEGG, senr.”
“Sworn before the Bailiff, John Warham, gent.”
The above John Thompson appeared, and we find

“& is ordered to appear at any tyme hereafter when Mr. Bailiff


shall requyer.
6th September, 1652.”

The next is an information against John Aston, of Madeley, in the


county of Salop, in which the said John is summonsed to appear
before the Bailiff, John Warham, gent., and Justices of the Peace of
the said town and liberties. The information appears to have been
sworn to by Thomas Smytheman, of Madeley, husbandman, who
states that Lawrence Benthall, and William Davies, of Madeley, were
seen drinking on the Lord’s Day, at Aston’s ale-house. The summons
appears to have been issued by John Weld the younger, of Willey.
The case is now brought before the Bailiff who says:

“Let a warrant issue forth to the officers for the leviing of the
monies forfeited for the said offence, according to the Act of
Parliament in that behalf; signed, John Warham, Bailiff.”

We find similar informations as to ale-houses from Broseley and


other parts of the franchise about the same time.

SHEEP STEALING IN SHIRLETT: CUNNING


DEVICE.
“The information upon oath of John Eabs of Shurlett, taken upon
oath the xxvth day of May, 1648, conserninge some Sheepe stolne
from him of late.
“Deposeth that upon ffriday night last he had a Lamb feloniously
stolne from him either out of his yearde or out of the pasture, and
alsoe upon Wensday night he had likewise a weather sheepe stolne,
and upon search made for the same yeasterday being Saturday he
wh. Edward Buckley the Deputy Constable, found in the house of
Willm. Wakeley in Shurlett a qter. of lambe hyd in a Milkepan, wh. a
brest and halfe a brest, a neck not cutt from the brest of lambe, all
covered upon wh. flower, yis said Edward Wakeleye’s Wife denynige
soundly yat there was any Mutton or lambe in the house or whin. yat
Milkepane, and desieringe ye searchers not to shead her flower in ye
pan wh. ye meate was hyd in, and indeavouringe to obscure ye
place, beinge a Cobard, in wh. ye lambe was, and further cannot
informe but yat he verily beleiveth in his conscience ye said meate
was feloniously stolne by ye said Wakely or his people.
Sworn before Audley Bowdler.
Edw. Wakeley upon being examined says that the lambe was one of
his own which he killed on Friday night, and that parte of it was
eaten by his own people before search was made next morne;
“being demanded why it was hid and hid over with flower in such
obscurity in his house, he says he knoweth not whether it was hid or
not, but if it was it was wht. ye privity of ye said Examind, and done
by his people unknown to him.”
This puts us in mind of another famous old sheep stealer of Shirlett,
who having stolen a sheep hid it in the baby’s cradle, and when the
Constables called to search his house, with the greatest nonchalance
told them they might search away; but added, “don’t make a noise
or else you’ll wake the baby”; and he continued to smoke his pipe
and rock the cradle till the search was completed, and the officers
departed without finding any “meate.”
The Constables appointed by the Corporation of Wenlock, were
officers who within the Constablewicks or allotments into which the
Borough was divided, were entrusted, under the Bailiffs with very
many important duties, such as collecting monies for the king, and
carrying into execution acts of parliament, as well as executing
summonses and bringing up defaulters. They were a superior class
of men, selected from such as held land, or were persons of
property. Later on quite a different class of men were appointed;
still, sometimes from small tradesmen, but at others from men who
sought the office for the sake of its emoluments, and who often
became the tools of unscrupulous men in office, whether Bailiffs or
Justices of the Peace; as in the case of Samuel Walters, a broken-
down tradesman, whose doings at last, together with that of the
Justices, attracted the attention of parliament. Walters, was the son
of the Rev. Mr. Walters, incumbent of Madeley, and it may serve to
give an idea of the estimation in which he was held in the parish to
mention, that he on one occasion attempted to enlist his own father,
by giving him the shilling in the dark.
The powers exercised by the borough justices were often most
arbitrary, especially when the individual who came within their power
happened to be a dissenter, or “a dangerous radical.” On the merest
pretence blank warrants were issued, which unscrupulous
constables, like “Sammy Walters,” as he was called, carried in their
pockets, and filled as occasion required. One notorious instance was
that of three Dutch girls, (Buy-a-Brooms, as they were called),
whom Walters overtook in his “Teazer,” between Wenlock and
Shrewsbury, and invited to ride with him. Calling at a public-house
on the road he went in, filled up three of his warrants, and then
drove them straight to Shrewsbury gaol. This case came before the
House of Commons, and was inquired into by the Home Secretary,
and the system of granting blank warrants was abolished throughout
the kingdom. Madeley is one of the three Wards into which the
borough is divided. For parliamentary purposes Beckbury and
Badger are included, these having been, like Madeley, part of the
extensive possessions of the church of St. Milburgh. Madeley also
formed part of the wide extending parish of Holy Trinity of Wenlock,
a parish which embraced Broseley, and was not limited even by the
Severn. The words of the charter granted by Edward IV. to Sir John
Wenlock were these:—

“That the Liberty of the Town or Borough shall extend to the


Parish of the Holy Trinity, and through all the limits, motes, and
bounds of the same parish, and not to any other Towns or
Hamlets which are not of the Parish aforesaid.”

The charter granted by Charles I., in the seventh year of his reign,
added somewhat to the privileges previously possessed, and either
gave or confirmed the right of the burgesses to send one member to
parliament. Originally it seems to have been the prior who had the
right of attending parliament; for we find in 1308 Sir John Weld
holding Willey by doing homage to the prior by “carrying his frock to
parliament.” How the burgesses obtained the further privilege of
sending two members to parliament no one seems to know, and
there is no document, we believe, in the archives of the corporation
tending to throw light on the subject; but they appear to have
enjoyed that privilege as far back as Henry VIII’s time.
The burgesses of Madeley were not numerous, we fancy; some well
known Madeley names, however, occur, both as burgesses and as
bailiffs, like those of Audley Bowdler and Ffosbrooke de Madeley; the
former was “Bailiff of the town and liberties” in 1655 and 1678. In
1661 Thomas Kinnersley de Badger, Armiger, was bailiff, which would
seem to indicate that the burgesses of Badger at that time shared in
the municipal duties and privileges of the borough. In 1732 Mathew
Astley de Madeley, Gent, was bailiff. The Astleys lived in the old hall,
a stone building partly on the site of Madeley Hall, now the
residence of Joseph Yate, Esq., a portion of which building is
supposed now to form the stable. The names of the Smithemans,
one of whom married the co-heir of Cumberford Brooke, Esq., of
Madeley Court and Cumberford in Staffordshire, occur among the
bailiffs. Later on we get that of George Goodwin, of Coalbrookdale
and the Fatlands.
At the passing of the Municipal Reform Act in 1835–6 mayors were
substituted for bailiffs; the last elected under the old title and the
first elected as chief magistrate under the new title was likewise a
Madeley gentleman, William Anstice, Esq., father of the present
William Reynolds Anstice, Esq., of Ironbridge. Mr. Anstice was
elected bailiff in 1834; in 1835 there appears to have been no
election, but in 1836 he was the first gentleman elected, as we have
just said, under the new title. Subsequently the names of other
parishioners, as Henry Dickinson, Charles James Ferriday, John
Anstice, Charles Pugh, John Arthur Anstice, and Richard Edmund
Anstice, Esquires, occur. The present (1879) Aldermen and
Councillors for the Ward are Egerton W. Smith, first elected
Alderman 1871, and John Fox elected Alderman 1879; John Arthur
Anstice first elected Councillor 1869; Alfred Jones 1873; John
Randall 1874; Richard Edmund Anstice 1876; Andrew Beacall Dyas
1878; [235] and William Yate Owen 1879.
The electors for parliamentary purposes prior to the passing of the
Reform Rill in 1832 were few in number so far as Madeley was
concerned. They consisted of freemen, men who acquired the right
to vote for members of parliament either by birth, servitude, or
purchase. Such freemen however could live many miles distant;
they were often brought at a closely contested election even from
the continent, at considerable expense; and the poll was kept open
for weeks.
The Act of 1832, 2 William IV., limited this right to persons resident
within the borough for six calendar months, or within seven statute
miles from the place where the poll was taken, and this was
uniformly taken at Wenlock. It limited the right of making freemen
to those whose fathers were already burgesses, or who were
entitled to become such prior to the 31st March, 1831. The twenty-
seventh clause of the act, which conferred the right to vote upon
ten-pound occupiers of houses or portions of buildings, added
greatly to the franchise in Madeley as compared with other portions
of the borough. The alterations effected by the act of 1867 in the
borough franchise were, of course, very much greater, as it gave the
right of voting to every inhabitant occupier as owner or tenant of
any dwelling house within the borough, subject to the ratings and
payment of poors rates; also to occupiers of parts of houses where
rating was sufficient and separate.
Contests were not very frequent under the old state of things; when
they did occur they arose more out of rivalry or jealousy on the part
of neighbouring families than from anything else. The most fiercely
fought contests that we remember, under the old limited
constituency, were those of 1820 and 1826; when Beilby Lawley and
Beilby Thompson put up. The most memorable under the ten pound
franchise were those when Bridges put up in 1832; and on a
subsequent occasion Sir William Sommerville, in 1835. Bridges and
Sommerville came forward in the liberal interest, and the numbers
polled from Madeley, were—

Sommerville 111
Forester 67
Gaskell 45

Among Sommerville’s supporters were many plumpers.


The more recent contests under the extended franchise were when
C. G. M. Gaskell, Esq. came forward, and only polled 846 votes
against 1,708 polled by the Right Hon. General Forester, and 1,575
by A. H. Brown, Esq., and the more recent of 1874, when Sir Beilby
Lawley came forward.

PETTY SESSIONS.
Madeley with its two sister wards has Petty Sessions once in six
weeks, which are held in the large room built for that purpose over
the Police Office at Ironbridge. In the lower story are cells for
prisoners, very different indeed as regards cleanliness and
conveniences of all kinds to the old Lock-up, which many may
remember near the potato market. The justices for the borough
generally sit here, the Mayor being chief magistrate presiding. The
first batch of magistrates, in the place of the borough justices, took
place in the 6th year of the reign of William IV., those for Madeley
being William Anstice, Esq., of Madeley Wood, and John Rose, Esq.,
of the Hay. Others have been appointed from time to time as
circumstances seemed to require.
The borough from the first period of incorporation had its General
Sessions, and its Recorder, who, being a lawyer or other fit person,
was chosen by the burgesses to sit with the Bailiff to be justices of
the peace, to hear and determine felonies, trespasses, &c., and to
punish delinquents therein; and King Charles’s Charter fixed this
court to be held once in two weeks. There was also a General
Sessions. The same charter states

“That there shall be a General Sessions of Peace to be holden


by the said Bailiff and Justices in any place convenient within
the Borough aforesaid, from time to time for ever; so that they
do not proceed to any matter touching the loss of life or
member in the said Borough, without the presence, assistance,
and assent of the Recorder of the said Borough. That they shall
have all fines, &c., imposed as well in the said Sessions
aforesaid as in all other Courts to be held within the said
Borough.”

In our “History of Broseley,” p.p. 38 and 39, we have given the


names of the bailiff, recorder, justices of the peace, those of the
constables, and grand jury, who sat in cases heard at Wenlock July
21st, 1653. The right to hold such Sessions was originally granted
by Edward IV. in 1468. When the reconstruction of the borough
courts took place in consequence of the changes effected by the
passing of the Municipal Act in 1836, this institution of General
Sessions appears to have been overlooked: but the privilege was
afterwards granted upon petition by the council, in the 6th year of
the reign of her present majesty.
The magistrates resident in the parish at present are—

Appointed.
John Arthur Anstice, Esq. 1869
William Gregory Norris, Esq. 1869
Charles Pugh, Esq. 1871
Richard Edmund Anstice, Esq. 1877

COURTS FOR THE RECOVERY OF DEBTS,


COUNTY COURT, &c.
A County Court or sciremote was instituted by Alfred the Great, and
gradually fell into disuse after the appointment of Justices of Assize
in the reign of Henry II. Courts of Request were afterwards
created. The charter already quoted, for instance, speaking of the
burgesses says:—

“That they may have a Court of Record upon Tuesday for ever,
once in two weeks, wherein they may hold by plaint in the same
court all kinds of pleas whatsoever, whether they shall amount
to the sum of forty shillings; the persons against whom the
plaints shall be moved or levied, to be brought into plea by
summons, attachment, or distress.”

This court was held at Broseley, before Commissioners, of whom


there were eight chosen, to represent the eight parishes over which
it had jurisdiction. It was held at the Hole-in-the-Wall public house,
and Jeremiah Perry (Jerry the Bum as he was called) was bailiff, and
after him Henry Booth, when we remember it. It was abolished
when the Act for the recovery of small debts was passed and the
present system of County Courts established in 1847. The books
and documents, three tons in weight, were transferred to the court
at Madeley, afterwards to London, and were sent to the Government
paper mills, we believe.
The County Court at Madeley was formerly held in the Club Room of
the Royal Oak Inn; but a county court house was erected in 1858.
The building is in the Grecian style, and comprises a large court
room, registrar’s and bailiffs office, and dwelling house for the court
keeper. The present judge of the circuit, which comprises twelve
courts, is Arundel Rogers, Esq.; Registrar and High Bailiff, E. B. Potts,
Esq.; Chief Clerk, Mr. E. A. Hicks, with an efficient staff of bailiffs.
The court has jurisdiction in ordinary cases up to £50, in equity to
£500; and divides with Shrewsbury the whole bankruptcy business
of the county. A bill has already passed the House of Lords
proposing to greatly increase the jurisdiction of all county courts.
Scale of fees: summary—

Under £2 1s. in the £.


Above £2 1s., and 1s. extra.
Hearing Fees 2s. in the £.
Executions 1/6 do. do.

There are between 2000 and 3000 new cases annually.

MANORIAL COURT.
This court was originally held at the Court House, by the Prior of
Wenlock, as lord of the manor of Madeley, as shewn on page 9,
where the pleas and perquisites of the said court are mentioned as
being entered in 1379 at 2s. The right to hold such court, a Court
Leet, as it was called, was transferred, together with other
privileges, by Henry VIII. to Robert Brooke when he sold the manor.
It passed to John Unett Smitheman, Esq., who married Catherine
Brooke, daughter and co-heir of Cumberford Brooke, Esq., of
Madeley, and Cumberford in Staffordshire. The Smitheman’s sold
the manor to Richard Reynolds, from whom it passed to his son
William. The property belongs now to the devisees of the late
Joseph Gulson Reynolds, and those of his brother William Reynolds,
M.D.. Esq.
The Court Leet has not been held of late years. It had jurisdiction
over various offences, extending from nuisances, eaves dropping,
and various irregularities and offences against the public peace.

THE DISPENSARY.
This useful and valued institution was established in 1828. At its
fiftieth anniversary, held July, 1878, the president was the Right Hon.
Lord Forester. The vice-presidents: the Hon. and Rev. Canon
Forester; W. O. Foster, Esq.; the Rev. G. Edmonds; C. T. W. Forester,
Esq., M.P.; A. H. Brown, Esq., M.P.; C. G. M. Gaskell, Esq.; and the
treasurer, John Pritchard, Esq. The surgeons include E. G. Bartlam,
Esq., Broseley; T. L. Webb, Esq., Ironbridge; C. B. H. Soame, Esq.,
Dawley; J. Procter, Esq., Ironbridge; Dr. Thursfield, Broseley; H.
Stubbs, Esq., Madeley; and J. J. Saville, Esq., Cressage.
At this meeting the following subscribers, together with the
president, vice-presidents, and treasurer, were appointed a
committee for the ensuing year:—
William Reynolds Anstice, Esq.
Mr. Alexander Grant.
Mr. Edward Burton.
Mr. Egerton W. Smith.
W. Gregory Norris, Esq.
Arthur Maw, Esq.
John Arthur Anstice, Esq.
Richard Edmund Anstice, Esq.
Edward Roden, Esq.
Rev. Frederick Robert Ellis.
Rev. George Fleming Lamb.
Mr. Francis G. Yates, (since deceased).
George Burd, Esq.
John Pritchard, Esq., Chairman.

MADELEY UNION.
Prior to the passing of the New Poor Law in 1836 each parish
maintained its own poor, a system which had been acted upon, we
suppose, from the time of Queen Elizabeth. But how the Madeley
poor were housed or treated prior to the erection of the Old “House
of Industry,” or “Workhouse,” which stood on the hill overlooking the
valley of the Severn, now in course of demolition and conversion into
cottages, we are unable to say. [242] In all probability out-door relief
alone was administered. At all times there have been kind and open
hearted men of means who out of their worldly store have taken
care to make some provision for their less fortunate brethren, either
during their lifetime or by way of devise at their death. In this way,
as we have seen on page 217, there were two principal charities,
called the Brooke and Beddow charities which amounted altogether
to £100. At the latter end of the last century the trustees appear to
have invested this in the purchase of several small leasehold
cottages and lands, chiefly at Madeley Wood. When it was resolved
to build a house of industry in 1787 these properties were sold by
the trustees for that purpose. They consisted of two messuages and
15 perches of land situate at the Foxholes, which produced £45.
One messuage and garden containing 6¼ perches in the possession
of Samuel Hodghkiss, which produced £24. An old messuage and
garden in Madeley Wood containing 17 perches and a piece of
garden ground containing 2½ perches, which produced £53 10s. A
stable in Madeley Wood which produced £10. And two messuages
and gardens in Madeley Wood containing a quarter of an acre, and a
piece of garden ground containing five perches, which produced
£83; also another which fetched £23; making a total of £235 10s.
The investment itself seems to have been so far a good one; the
value of the property having increased, owing to the works springing
up in the neighbourhood; and it was resolved to raise a subscription
in the parish to be added to this £235. The further amount of £806
13s. 6d. was thus raised, making altogether £1,042 3s. 6d., which
sum was applied in the erection on a part of the charity land of a
house of industry, the cost of which was £1,086 13s. 7¼d.; and a
lease of that piece of land, with the house so erected upon it,
containing 3r. 12p. or thereabouts, was at the 2nd of January, 1797,
granted by the vicar and the major part of the trustees to the then
churchwardens and overseers for the use of the parish for a term of
999 years, at the yearly rent of £18. The Charity Commissioners say
that the premises described in the leases do not appear to tally
exactly with the parcels contained in the two deeds of purchase; and
add:—

“Nor are we able to trace the variations of the property which


have taken place; as far as we can judge, however, nothing has
been lost to the charity. It appears indeed to us that in former
times there must have been considerable inattention in the
trustees of the affairs of the charity, for we find that previously
to the leases granted in 1797, the holders of the tenements
claimed the property in them on payment of the interest of the
£100 which had been vested in the purchase, and the trustees
were obliged to establish their right by an action of ejectment, a
state of things which could scarcely have taken place without
much previous remissness on their part. Whether the trustees
were strictly justified in making the disposal of the property
which they did in 1797 may be questionable. In effect they
have sold original property of the charity, and have purchased a
rent-charge on the house of industry. Under the circumstances
of the case, however, it does not at present appear to us that
they could have made a more beneficial arrangement. The
income of these premises, amounting to £18 4s. 6½d., together
with 5s. a year derived from another fund, has been for many
years applied in providing clothing for the poor. At Christmas
1818, tickets of 5s. value were distributed to 71 poor persons,
which were received in payment by the different tradesmen for
such articles of clothing as were wanted. In 1817 the
distribution was wholly suspended, and in the preceding year
partially, in order to raise a fund for defraying the expense of a
new trust deed. This had occasioned a balance in hand at the
time of our inquiry of £23 15s. The deed was prepared and
paid for, and it was intended that the whole of the remaining
balance with the accruing rents should be given away at the
ensuing Christmas.”
For some years the proceeds of the charity were given away to the
poor—blankets were bought and distributed; but for over forty
years, prior to the last distribution in 1879, it had been
accumulating, excepting that on the first and second visitations of
the cholera, it was made use of for the purpose of alleviating the
distress then existing; and it had been thought advisable to permit
its accumulation for the purpose of forming a reserve fund on which
to fall back in times of urgent distress, whether arising from
contagious disease or depression of trade.
The charge of £18 per annum upon the old poor-house was
transferred to the new, and is still paid to the trustees; and to the
sum accumulated has been added the £750 which the old
workhouse sold for, and it was out of the interest of the whole that
the last distribution of the funds of the charity took place in 1879,
when blankets to the value of £70 or thereabouts were given away.
The union of parishes was formed in 1836, and Wm. Anstice, Esq.
was chosen chairman. He held office for fifteen years, and was
succeeded by G. Pritchard, Esq. who held it for eleven years. At his
death W. Layton Lowndes, Esq. was elected, and held the office for
seventeen years. John Arthur Anstice, Esq., who succeeded Mr.
Lowndes on his retirement in April 25th, 1879, now discharges the
duties of the office.
A building erected and designed for the poor of one parish was
scarcely likely to be suited to the wants of a number of parishes, like
Barrow, Benthall, Broseley, Buildwas, Dawley, Linley, Little Wenlock,
Madeley, Posenhall, Stirchley, and Willey, which formed the new
Union; and although additions were made from time to time the
building was evidently inadequate for the accommodation of the
number of paupers, tramps, &c., who sought aid or refuge within its
walls. It was some time however after the subject was broached
before anything was decided. Some Guardians advocated the
further enlargement of the old building, whilst others were for a new
one entirely; but these even differed among themselves, some being
in favour of a new building on the old site, whilst others advocated
another site and a new plan altogether. The Poor Law
Commissioners at Somerset House accelerated the issue by
threatening to close the old building, as unfit for the uses to which it
was put; the result being that a site was purchased and the present
extensive and well arranged suite of rooms, wards, &c., with their
various conveniences, were erected. The original loan of £6,000
obtained in 1870 towards the purchase of the site and the erection
of the building was to be paid back by instalments out of the rates
levied in the several parishes of the Union, according to the
proportions of the rating. The loan altogether has been £10,000,
and, with interest, the cost of the erection may be said to have been
£13,800; but a further sum of £600 is required for the erection of
tramp wards. The building stands upon 7¾ acres, which was
purchased at a cost of £1,700; and six acres, previously very rough
ground, is under cultivation, and made productive, and in part highly
ornamental, by the judicious labour of the inmates of the house.
Altogether the grounds and building have a pleasing rather than that
forbidding appearance such institutions sometimes have. The
building consists of a front range, with central entrance, with
master’s sitting room, board room, and clerk’s offices, on the right;
whilst on the left are the visitor’s rooms, and one for the porter, with
male and female receiving wards, bath room &c.
Inside the quadrangle we get central offices of various kinds,
cooking and dining rooms, pantry, clothing room, master and
matron’s offices. On the right are the laundry, the washhouse, work
rooms, able bodied women’s rooms, children’s room, old infirm
women’s room, and three small apartments for married couples.
There is also a dormitory on the ground floor for old and infirm
women; and over the whole of the offices and rooms mentioned are
bedrooms. On the left are similar arrangements to those we have
mentioned for the men, but with workshops for carpenters and
tailors. On the east is the infirmary, a detached building, with male
and female apartments, nurses, &c.; and below this a fever
hospital. The whole building is capable of giving accommodation to
225 inmates; but at the time we write 88 are the total number,
notwithstanding the very depressed state of trade; and 90, we learn,
is about the average.
We visited many of the rooms, that in describing the building we
may be able to give our own impressions of the appearance of the
inmates. The bedrooms were tenantless, but clean, well lighted and
airy; we could not say however what they would be from the breath
of so many sleeping in them at night time. Many of the old people
we saw in the day rooms were very old, and a large number
imbecile, several having been recently brought here from Bicton
Heath Asylum. And although this was the case with the women
there seemed something about the internal domestic arrangements,
which, in giving them employment, seemed to create interest.
There was a cheerful alacrity among the female workers, in washing,
ironing, mending, making, and scrubbing, and a readiness in
replying to questions put by the matron which seemed to speak
favourably of the way in which she discharges her duties amongst
them. In the “day-rooms” of the men too, although we saw
feebleness and age, we saw little of that torpid inanimateness,
helplessness, and hopeless looking withered faces one is apt to look
for in workhouses. Some were dim-eyed with age, but others were
reading books, and more would read no doubt if they had something
to read which was interesting. And why should they not have? Here
were old men 75, 80, and “going of 85,” sitting round a good
cheerful fire in a snug room to whom a few illustrated books or
newspapers, which everybody could spare, would be a godsend. If
all cannot read some can, and they would be pleased to amuse or
interest their fellows. We suggested as much to Mrs. Hayes, the
matron, who approved of the suggestion of these and of a few prints
hung up in the bedrooms, as well as the day and school rooms; as
also did the Rev. H. Wayne, one of the Guardians, who wished we
had been in time to make the suggestion to the board. We mention
it here that it may be acted upon by others, if the board, or to the
master, to whom all such books, prints, or papers should be
submitted, approve. Age and infirmity require as much
commiseration as childhood, and in very many respects the same
means will comfort and solace the aged and impotent as the young
child. We ought at any rate to try to make old age endurable. If we
do not do this we but add to the weight of old age already bent
down with infirmities, and—

‘We furnish feathers for the wing of death.’

One thoughtful lady had, we found, kindly furnished the school-room


with some really good prints and drawings. On sunny and suitable
days Mr. Hayes employs the men in the grounds, and by the growth
of vegetables contributes to the maintenance of the establishment,
of which we might say much more if space permitted.
The amount administered in out-door relief at present is a little over
that of in-door maintenance, which for the half year ending
Michaelmas, 1878, was £544 11s. 2¼d
We have already mentioned Master and Matron: Clerk to the Board
Mr. H. Boycott; Chaplain Rev. G. Wintour. Relieving officers Mr. W.
Morris and Mr. W. T. Jones.

THE CHOLERA.
If some memorable occurrences in local history may be termed ‘red
lettered,’ the fearful visitations of this epidemic in 1832 and 1848
may be said to have been black, and very black lettered events
indeed. The steady march of this dire disease from Asia over the
continent of Europe towards our shores in 1831 created the utmost
alarm of approaching danger, and led to precautionary measures
being taken. Medical science however was at fault; contradictory
advice was given; orders in council were issued and withdrawn; and
people were at their wits’ end what steps to take. A rigid system of
quarantine was at first enforced; and when the enemy did arrive it
was ordered that each infected district or house was to be isolated
and shut up within itself, and the inhabitants cut off from
communication with other parts of the country; and ‘all articles of
food or other necessaries were to be placed in front of the house,
and received by the inhabitants after the person delivering them had
retired.’ It was in fact the exploit over again of the gallant
gentleman who proposed, as Milton says, to ‘pound up the crows by
shutting his park gate.’ Clinging to the belief that the disease was
imported and spread by contagion, few really remedial measures
founded on the hypothesis of the low sanitary condition of the
population—as bad drainage, ill-ventilated and overcrowded
dwellings, offensive sewers, unwholesome water, and the thousand
other kindred abominations which afflict the poor, were suggested.
But feelings and sympathies were naturally with the patient and
against the unchristian edict which said to him—‘Thou art sick, and
we visit thee not; thou art in prison, and we come not unto thee’.
Gradually too it dawned upon the minds of the authorities—as the
result of observation and experience—that it was not so much from
direct communication that persons were affected, as from bad
sanitary conditions;—for persons were not consecutively affected
who lived in the same house or slept in the same bed with the sick;
and that children even suckled by mothers labouring under the
disease escaped. On Wednesday, the 21st of March, 1832, there
was a general fast for deliverance from the plague, as it was called,
but it was pretty much the same as Æsop’s case of the carter who
prayed Jupiter to get his cart wheel out of the rut; and the answer
vouchsafed by Providence was similar—‘put your own shoulder to
the wheel’, do what you can first to make the people clean and
wholesome. We have no statistics or recorded facts to fall back
upon, but so far as our knowledge and experience serves us we
should say that the first victims in this neighbourhood were among
men and women who led irregular lives, and who lived in dirty ill-
ventilated homes, and in the decks and cabins of barges going long
voyages, in which men slept and ate their meals; and persons on the
banks of the Severn, who drank the polluted water of the river. A
case occurred at Coalport, on the 21st of July, 1832, on board a
barge on the Severn, which belonged to owner Jones; and it was
thought prudent to sink the vessel to destroy the contagion. A man
named Richard Evans also was taken with the cholera on board a
Shrewsbury barge, and was removed to the “Big House,” as it was
called, at the Calcutts, which had been hired and set apart by Mr.
George Pritchard and others for the reception of victims. On the
23rd, Thomas Oakes, son of John Oakes, died on board Dillon
Lloyd’s vessel, and during that month and the next the plague
continued its ravages by the Severn. From an old diary we learn
that a man named Goosetree, his wife, and three children, were
seized on the 14th of August at the Coalport Manufactory, and died
the same day; as also did a Mrs. Baugh and her mother.
The more ignorant of the people were suspicious of the doctors; Mr.
Thursfield on the 23rd of July visited a house at Coalford, and
offered a draught to a woman whom he suspected of shewing
symptoms of the disease, but was beaten off by her daughter Kitty,
who said her mother wanted food and not medicine. The doctor
does not appear to have been popular judging from doggrel lines in
circulation at the time—

‘The cholera morbus is begun


And Dr. Thursfield is the mon
To carry the cholera morbus on.’

A man named William Titley, whilst drinking, dancing, and singing


this to a public house company, was taken with the disease, and
died next day. William Fletcher, a carpenter, whilst employed in
making the coffin intended for Titley, was seized, and died next day,
and was buried in the coffin he had made for another. A few days
after, on the 14th of September, Israel Weager, a barge block-maker,
who wore dirty and greasy clothes, who was grimy and dirty also in
his person, and worked in a wretched shed by the Robin Hood public
house, was another taken about the same time who died. During
the remainder of the same month, and those of October, November,
and December, the cholera continued to find victims. Men drank
hard to ward off the disease and sowed the seeds which brought it
on. Men and women were taken ill, died, and were buried the same
day; and some were probably buried before they were dead. One

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