or, and his mathematical writings were long the
standard text-books in the University. At the time of his death in 1839
he held, with his mastership, the Deanery of Ely and the Rectory of
Freshwater in the Isle of Wight. He made the College his residuary
legatee, but during his life had handed over large sums for College
purposes, and the total of his gifts cannot have been less than L60,000.

In Wood's time we find the first movement in favour of change taken by
the College itself. St. John's then suffered under a specially awkward
restriction arising from the joint effect of the general statutes and
the trusts of private foundations. By the statutes not more than two
Fellows could come from any one county in England, or more than one from
each diocese in Wales.

There were thirty-two foundation Fellows, and twenty-one founded by
private benefactors, the latter having all the privileges and advantages
of the former. Each of these private foundations had its own special
restriction; the holders were to be perhaps of founder's name or kin, or
to come from certain specified counties, parishes, or schools. The
effect of these special restrictions was that many fellowships had to be
filled by men possessing the special qualification without, perhaps, any
great intellectual distinction. But once a county was "full" no Fellow
could be elected who had been born in that county; and even if a vacancy
occurred a promising man might be again cut out by some special
restriction. Dr. Wood and the Fellows addressed themselves to this point
and obtained in 1820 the Royal consent to a statute throwing open the
foundress' fellowships without restriction as to county; the private
foundations were left untouched, but the College was empowered to
transfer a Fellow on the foundress' foundation to one of the special
foundations, if qualified.

Dr. Wood was succeeded as Master by Dr. Ralph Tatham, whose father and
grandfather (of the same names) had been members of the College. He was
Public Orator of the University from 1809 to 1836, an office for which
he was well qualified by a singular dignity of person and courtesy of
manner. "He brought forth butter," said the wags, "in a lordly dish." In
the year 1837 the Earl of Radnor and others raised the question of
University reform, and tried to induce the House of Lords to pass a bill
for the appointment of a University Commission. In the end the matter
was shelved, the friends of the Universi