onth when the
divide between rich and poor became most apparent. The rich could
survive on the contents of their barns, but the poor tried to
survive by grinding up the coarsest of wheat bran and shriveled
peas and beans to make some sort of bread. Grain and bread prices
soared during July. Farming still occupied the vast majority of
the population. Town inhabitants and university students went into
the fields to help with the harvest in the summer. Parliament was
suspended during the harvest.

Town people had more wealth than country people. Most townspeople
slept in nightgowns and nightcaps in beds with mattresses,
blankets, linen sheets, and pillows. Beds were made every morning.
Bathing was by sponging hot water from a basin over the body,
sometimes with herbs in it, rinsing with a splash of warm water,
and drying off with a towel. Tubs used only for baths came into
use. There were drapery rugs hung around beds, handheld mirrors
of glass, and salt cellars. The first meal of the day was a light
breakfast, which broke the fast that had lasted the night. Meals
were often prepared according to recipes from cook books which
involved several preparation procedures using flour, eggs, sugar,
cheese, and grated bread, rather than just simple seasoning. Menus
were put together with foods that tasted well together and served
on plates in several courses. Sheffield cutlery was world famous.
Table manners included not making sounds when eating, not playing
with one's spoon or knife, not placing one's elbows on the table,
keeping one's mouth clean with a napkin, and not being boisterous.
There were courtesies such as saying "Good Morning" when meeting
someone and not pointing one's finger at another person. King
Richard II invented the handkerchief for sneezing and blowing
one's nose. There were books on etiquette. Cats were the object of
superstition, but there was an Ancient and Honorable Order of the
Men Who Stroke Cats.

New burgesses were recruited locally, usually from within a 20
mile radius of town. Most of the freemen of the larger boroughs,
like Canterbury and London, came from smaller boroughs. An
incoming burgess was required to buy his right to trade either by
way of a seven year apprenticeship or by payment of an entry fee.
To qualify, he needed both a skill and social respectability.

Towns started acquiring from the king the right to vacant sites
and other waste places, which previously was the lord's right.