the cup into the air, and reversing the hat, to catch the cup in
it as it fell. If he failed to perform this operation, the fellow
workmen who were closely watching him, made an important alteration in
the last line of their chant, which in that case ran thus:

The liquor's drink'd up and the cup _aint_ turned over.

"The cup was then refilled and the unfortunate drinker was compelled to
go through the same ceremony again. Every one at the table took the cup
and 'turned it over' in succession, the chief shepherd keeping the pail
constantly supplied with beer. The parlour guests were of course invited
to turn the cup over with the guests of the kitchen, and went through
the ordeal with more or less of success. For my own part, I confess that
I failed to catch the cup in the hat at the first trial and had to try
again; the chairman, however, mercifully gave me only a small quantity
of beer the second time."

[Sidenote: THE MAYOR'S PRETTY LAMENT]

The civic life of Hastings would seem to encourage literature, for I
find also in one of the Archaeological Society's volumes, the following
pretty lines by John Collier--Mayor of Hastings in 1719, 22, 30, 37, and
41--on his little boy's death:

Ah, my poor son! Ah my tender child,
My unblown flower and now appearing sweet,
If yet your gentle soul flys in the air
And is not fixt in doom perpetual,
Hover about me with your airy wings
And hear your Father's lamentation.

Hastings has two advantages over both Brighton and Eastbourne: it can
produce a genuine piece of antiquity, and seen from the sea it has a
picturesque quality that neither of those towns possesses. Indeed, under
certain conditions of light, Hastings is magnificent, with the craggy
Castle Hill in its midst surmounted by its imposing ruin. The smoke of
the town, rising and spreading, shrouds the modernity of the sea front,
and the castle on its commanding height seems to be brooding over the
shores of old romance. Brighton has no such effect as this.

[Sidenote: THE FIRST TOURNAMENT]

Of the Castle little is known. It was probably built on the site of
Roman fortifications, by the Comte d'Eu, who came over with the
Conqueror. The first tournament in England is said to have been held
there, with Adela, daughter of the Conqueror, as Queen of Beauty. After
the castle had ceased to be of any use as a stronghold it was still
maintained as a religious house. It is now a p