ndes should be charged, but at the playsure of
the frends of the Scholers, save the wages to be payde by the sayde
Gardyans." On the other hand in the Hartlebury School Statutes, 1565, it
is written "the said Schoolmaster shall ... take the profitts of all
such Cocke-fights and potations as be comonlie used in Scholes." At
Cambridge "they have a potation of Figgs, Reasons and Almons, Bonnes and
Beer at the charge of the sayed Determiners."

Such was the custom and William Clapham evidently intended by his gift
of 4_s._ 4_d._ to relieve the Master from the expense and allow the
gifts to be pure profit. Unfortunately no record has been traced of any
gifts though there are entries in the Minute-Books of payment of
expenses on March 12, 1626, "charges this day vi_s._ vi_d._," which
probably refer to the expenditure upon the scholars. Such mention is
quite exceptional up till the close of the seventeenth century. The
usual accounts are much briefer, giving no details of expenditure but
mentioning the balance only _e.g._ "their remaineth in the hands of John
Banks fifty-eight pounds eighteen shillings sixpence."

In time Clapham's bequest increased in value and was reckoned in the
Exhibition Account. Certainly from 1767 the Exhibition Account gave
something towards the cost of the Potation. In 1767 it was L1 7_s._
0_d._, in 1770, 11_s._ 3_d._ In 1782 it becomes a fixed sum of L1 10_s._
4_d._ and the Governors make up the rest from another account. In one
year 1769 it was regarded as a joint expenditure by the Governors and
Masters. During the last twenty years of the eighteenth century the
expenditure averaged L2 10_s._ 0_d._ In 1814 it was L8 1_s._ 2_d._, thus
proving independently that the numbers of the School must have increased
considerably. In 1839 figs and bread are mentioned as having been bought
and the Charity Commissioners' Report of 1825 says that beer had ceased
to be provided. The figs and bread continued to be distributed till
1861, after which the practice ceased.

The Scholarship to "some colledge in Cambridge" was gradually merged
with other gifts in a general Exhibition Account and it is only rarely
possible to distinguish a holder of the Clapham Exhibition. Indeed L4
was not a luxurious sum as time went on.

On June 29th, 1604 Henry Tennant of Cleatopp, who had already shewn
himself eager for the welfare of the School by supporting the petition
of Christopher Shute for the confirmation of the Statutes,