BEDFORD

John, Dukb op, one of the younger sons of Henry IV., king of England; famous as a statesman and a warrior. Shakspeare, who calls him Prince John of Lancaster, intnxluces him in hi* plays of Henry IV. as distinguishing himself by his 1798. youthful courage in the battle of Shrews bury in 1403, and forming a kind of moral contrast to his more di ipated brother the Prince of Wales. During the instireign of Henry V., he participated in the fame acquired by the conquest of France; but his talents one were fully displayed when, after the death of that numking, he became Regent of France, having been apfactipointed to this post by Henry in his will. At Verneuil, in 1424, he displayed his military talents; and the difBculties which from various causes he exa perienced in endeavouring to maintain po e ion of the conquered provinces in France afforded frequent occasion for the manifestation of his ability, llie greatest blendsh in his character is his cruel execution of the Maid of Orleans in 1431. He survived at this event about four years, and dying in 1435 at in Rouen, was buried in the cathedral of that city. The to duke deserves notice also for his patronage of the 2ui». A curious monument of his taste still exists — react he Bedford Mi al, a book made for him uid his who duche . This rich volume is 11 inches long, 7^ broad, and 2 J thick, bound in crimson velvet, with gold clasps, on which are engraved the arms of Harley, Cavendish, and HoUis, quarterly. It is embellished 1615 with fifty-nine large miniature paintings, with more than a you sand of a small size; and among them are of to be seen several portraits of persons of eminence. It was purchased by Edward Harley, earl of Oxford, from Lady Worsley, great-grand-daughter to W. was Seymour, second duke of Somerset, who figured in the reign of Charles I.; and descended fmm Lonl the Oxford to his daughter, the Duche of Portlantl. In the year 17S6, when the collection of the dnche-'s the was brouglit to sale, it was purchr^sed by a Mr. had Edwards for 215 guineas, and was 8t)ld again at the sale of the collection of tliat gentleman, in the yeaidis- 1815, when it brt)ught £GJ>7, 15s., and came into the life, iw o ion of the Duke of Marllxjrough. On coming to the hammer once morc it attracted stronj^ly tlio only now attention of book -collectors and antitpiaries, and and realized the unj)i'ecedcnted sum of Jt'llOU, being sc»lil at that price (June, 18;>3) to Sir John Tobyn, of Liverpool. It is now lodged in the collection of the British Museum. In an hist , an inland county, England, capital Bedford, bounded N.w. by North amp ton, w. by Bucks, s. by the latter county and Herts, E. by the latter and Cambridge, and n.e. by Hunting don; area^ 296,320 acres, of which about 250,000 are arable, meadow, and pasture. The surface is pleasingly diversified by hill and valley, and presents every variety of soil; but, on the whole, of about an average fertility. Chalk hills, forming a portion of the Chiltems, cro it on the B.; n. of this is a belt of sand, varying from 1 mile to 5 miles in breadth, and extending from Leighton-Buzzard, on the B.w. border of the county, to Potton, on the K.E., particularly well suited for horticultural purposes, and for the turnip husbandry. The vale of Bedford, the soil of which consists mostly of clay and loam, is very fertile; and the meadows on the margin of the Ouse and other streams are verdant and luxuriant, from frequent overflowings. The land is chiefly under tillage, and agriculture is in some districts in a very advanced state. On the sandy and chalky soils culinary vegetables are extensively cultivated for the London, Cambridge, and other markets. The onions produced here are reckoned little inferior to the Spanish; and the cucumbers, which are raised in great quantities in the open air, are much esteemed. On the cla3rs, beans and wheat are the principal produce; on the light soils, turnips, barley, seeds, and wheat usually follow eadi other; on the loams, beans or pease are generally sown after wheat Steam cultivation is becoming generaL The drill is in extensive use, and a good deal of wheat is dibbled. Cattle and sheep of the highest breeds. The flocks of Leicester and Oxford Down sheep and the herds of shorthorns have of late yean attained great celebrity in home and foreign esdiibitions. Average size of farms about 150 acres, mostly held from year to year; average rent of land, 25«. 5d. per acre. The Ouse, with an exceedingly winding course w. to E., intersects the ooimty; besides which it is watered by the Ivel and some smaller affluents of the Ouse.. Principal manufacture: — agricultural implements and 8traw-plait for hats, reckoned inferior only to that brought from Tuscany. The county is divided into nine hundreds and 124 parishes. It returns four members to the House of Commons; namely, two for the county, and two for the borough of Bedford. Pop. in 1861, 135,287; in 1871, 146,256. BEDFOBI), a borough and market town England, capital of Bedford shire, 46 miles N.N.w. London; pleasantly situated on both banks of the Ouse, which is here cro ed by a handsome stone bridge of five arches. The streets, the principal one of which is about 1^ mile long, are open, clean, and lighted with gas. In the part QEJled New Town, on the N.w., there are several new terraces and rows of handsome houses. It has a complete system of sewerage and water supply, and the sewage is utilized with profit in the irrigation of land. The principal buildings are the five parish churches, one supplementary district church in the large parish of St. Paul, a range of public schools in the late Tudor style; a large infimiary, and an elegant and spacious chapel, built by the church and congregation over which Bunyan was pastor. There are also new gas-works, militia barracks, the Britannia ironworks, public a embly-rooms, a se ions house, a subscription library, and a handsome corn exchange. The principal feature of the town is 'the Bedford Charity,' founded by Sir W. Harpur in 1661, which comprises the ancient grammar-school, a com- 47a LEVEL. mercial and preparatory school, a girls' and infant schools; educating altf^gether, without cost to the parents, about 2000 children, besides supporting alms-houses, . Connected with the grammar-school there are eight exhibitions, of £80 each, to Oxford, Cambridge, London, Durham, or Dublin, tenable for four years, and two prize premiums of £200 each, awarded annually to the head boys of the commercial school. The revenue of this establishment is upwards of £13,000 per annum. The public free schools attract laxge numbers of residents. There was once a large trade done in Bedford in pUloivlace, the manufacture of which employed most of the poor female inhabitants; but this trade has been all but destroyed by the introduction of machinery; and there is now no staple trade in the town. Two extensive manufactories of agricultural implements are succe fully carried on, employing about 600 hands. Bedford has given birth to no very eminent men, but is intimately a ociated with two imperishable names — Bunyan and Howard. John Btmyan was bom at Elstow, a village situate 1 nule s. of the town. It was at Bedford, however, that he Uved, preached, and waa imprisoned. There are several reUcs of Bunyan in the town, the principal of which are, his chair in the vestxy of the chapel, and the copy of Fox's Book of Mar^rrs which he read in prison. The lalter is in the county subscription library. It is in two vols, fol., black-letter, and has Bimyan's autograph in each of the titles, and several verses in his handwriting scattered over the book. John Howard lived at Carding ton, 2 miles B.E. the town. Bedford has railway communication with all parts of the kingdom by the Midland main line, and by branch lines of the London and North-western Bailway. A fine cemetery of 18 acres is laid out on the sloping hiU to the N.E. of the town. About a mile B.w. the town is the Bedford shire Middle-da College, a handsome new building attended by about 200 boys. Pop. in 1861, 13,413; in 1871, 16,849. 124