Conyers of Sockburn, IN THE COUNTY OF DURHAM. ERY soon after the Norman conquest, Sockburn became, by episcopal grant, the seat of the Norman family of Conyers. The legend which accounts for their establishment is as follows: In an ould manuscript wh I have sene of ye descent of Connyers, there is writ as followeth Sr John Conyers, Knt., slew yt monstrous and poysonous vermine or wyverne, and ask or werme, wh overthrew and devoured many people in fight, for that ye sent of yt poison was so strong y no person might abyde it. And by ye providence of Almighty God this John Connyers, K, overthrew ye saide monster, and slew it. But before he made this enterprise, havinge but one sonne, he went to the church of Sockburne in compleate armour, and offered up yt his onely sonne to ye Holy Ghost. Y place where this great serpent laye was called Gray stane;* and as it is written in ye same manuscript, this John lieth buried in Sockburne church in compleat armour before the conquest. The ancient service by which the manor of Sockburn was held, proves that the legend is of no modern origin, and I will not doubt that some gallant exploit is veiled under this chivalrous tale, with at least an adumbration of truth. At the first entrance of the bishop into his diocese, the lord of Sockburn, or his steward, meets him in the middle of the river Tees, at Nesham-ford, or on Croft bridge, and presents a faulchion to the bishop with these words: "My Lord Bishop, I here present you with the faulchion wherewith the champion Conyers slew the worm, dragon, or fiery flying serpent, which destroyed man, woman, and child; in memory of which, the king then reigning gave him the manor of Sockburn, to hold by this tenure, that upon the first entrance of every bishop into the country, this faulchion should be presented." The bishop takes the faulchion in his hand, and immediately returns it courteously to the person who presents it, wishing the lord of Sockburn health and a long enjoyment of the manor. The tenure is distinctly noticed in an inquest on sir John Conyers in 1396. The observance is still continued, and the faul The grey stone is still pointed out in a field near the church. R chion has since been presented to all bishops on their first entrance. The Visitation of Durham in 1666, contains a sketch of the faulchion which was then kept at the manor house of Sockburn. The MS. already quoted, states that "Roger Conyers was by William the Conqueror made constable of Durham-castle and keeper of all the armes of y° souldiers within the castle, wh was after past to him ye saide Roger by deede to him and his heires mailes for ever, under the great seal of William de Sancto Carilepho, bishop of Durham." According to the MS. a second Roger succeeded his father, and to him followed a third. I know of no actual proof to establish this transmission of the constableship for three descents; but there is sufficient evidence from charters in the treasury to prove, that the Norman family of Conyers, lords of Bishopton (and possibly from the same early date owners of Sockburne) held the rank of nobles or barons of the bishopric, at least from the reign of Henry I. Bishop Ralph Flambard gave Rungetun in Yorkshire to Roger Conyers before 1126. His son, who is distinctly mentioned as a baron of the bishopric, was that Roger Conyers whose important services to bishop William de St. Barbara are on record in Simeon. Conyers afforded the bishop a safe retreat in his strength or peelhouse of Bishopton: and he afterwards had the address to bring the Scotch intruder Comyn a humble, kneeling penitent before the episcopal throne. To bring about this most wished conclusion, implies as much courage, and certainly more address, than if the constable had finished the contest in the usual manner with bloody hand. The constable's staff and the wardenship of Durham castle, which he had recovered from Comyn, seem a most appropriate reward; and if the green acres of Sockburn were added to the gift, he was still not overpaid.-Surtees' Durham. The veneration of the late Historian of Durham for old families. proceeded not merely from the barren taste of a geneaologist and antiquary, but by associating itself with the feelings of a benevolent heart, it ripened into a cordial pleasure in witnessing their prosperity * Dimensions: pomel, 2 inches; hilt, 4 inches; cross of the hilt, 5 inches; length of the blade, 2 feet 5 inches; breadth of the blade next the hilt. 1 inch. and into a kindly sympathy towards them in their fallen fortunes. This trait of character was strongly marked by the considerate and effectual exertions he made to shed comfort on the latter days of the descendant "of one of the most honourable houses in the north." Sir Thomas Conyers, on behalf of whom he appealed to the titled and opulent, by a letter of characteristic simplicity and feeling which appeared in the Gentlemen's Magazine for December 1809, and Supplement. Sir Thomas was the last decayed representative of the Conyers'. After stating the antiquity, noble alliances, and large possessions of the family, Mr. Surtees says, "that on the death of sir George Conyers, who had squandered the little that was left, the barren title descended to his uncle Thomas Conyers, who after a life perhaps of some imprudence, certainly of much hardship, after an unsuccessful attempt in a humble business, and a subsequent service of several years at sea, was then, in his seventy-second year, solitary and friendless, a pauper in the parish workhouse of Chester-le-Street. Sir Thomas had received from nature, in his fine manly figure and open expressive countenance, the native marks of a gentleman. He bore his lot with a degree of fortitude equally removed from misplaced pride, or querulous meanness. Accustomed to a life of hardship and labour, he wished for neither affluence nor luxury; but his then humiliating situation he felt severely." On the 26th of Feb. 1810, before the subscriptions had been received, Mr. Surtees hastened to the relief of the old Baronet, accompanied by the late Rev. Patrick George, then curate of Bishop Middleham, who used to speak with admiration of the delicate and kind manner in which he executed his commission. His own grey head uncovered, he accosted sir Thomas at once with cordiality and respect, simply stating the purpose of his visit. The old man was at first much affected. But soon, a dormant sense of pride seemed to be awakened, and he said "I am no beggar, sir, I won't accept any such offers." Mr. Surtees gently soothed this temper, assuring him, that the gentlemen by whom he was deputed were actuated by no motive that could be offensive to him, but only by feelings proper to their rank, and his own; and that, by acceding to their wishes, he could only evince his own sense of that propriety, and prove that he, in their situation, would have felt and acted as they now did. Thus his scruples were gradually overcome, and he consented to the proposed arrangement, with many expressions of gratitude to those who had so kindly interested themselves in his situation. It is pleasant to remark, that instead of any feeling of mean triumph over the remains of fallen greatness, there is, in the middle, and even lower ranks of this country, a kindly sympathy prompting them to respect and commiseration; and Mr. Surtees accordingly observes, "In justice to the officers of the workhouse, it is proper to mention, that sir Thomas receives every degree of attention compatible with the rules of the place; that he has a separate apartment, and is provided with decent clothing." Immediate enquiries, nevertheless, were made for more comfortable and respectable accommodation than such an institution could afford. But Mr. Surtees was not easily to be satisfied for the old man. At length, however, on the 1st of March, although the proposed amount of the subscription was not then filled, sir Thomas was removed to a situation of ease and comfort, which he was destined to enjoy but a short time. His strength had been for some time declining, and his constitution, naturally vigorous and robust, sunk under the increasing burthens of age and infirmity. For the last fortnight he had medical assistance; but the springs of life were exhausted; and on the morning of Sunday the 15th, he arose evidently weaker, and, under the awful impression of approaching dissolution, passed the day in religious exercises, and in taking an affectionate farewell of his friends and relations. At six in the evening, his usual hour for retiring to rest, he expressed a wish to be removed to bed, and almost immediately expired, without pain, and without a sigh. His mental faculties remained unaltered; and the closing scene of a life, chequered by more than ordinary vicissitude, was serene and unclouded. In him the last male heir of a long line of ancestry, whose origin may be traced to a period of high and romantic antiquity, the name and title expire, and the blood of Conyers must hereafter flow undistinguished in the channels of humble and laborious life. Sir Thomas left three daughters, married in very inferior situations. The result of Mr. Surtees' benevolent exertions was, that of one hundred pounds five shillings subscribed, forty-seven pounds would remain for the service of the family when the whole of the subscriptions should have been received. The tone of feeling in which Mr. Surtees here speaks of the extinction of the noble and ancient race of Conyers, is in such complete accordance with that in his beautiful description of the ruined residence of the family, or rather of the site where "etiam periere rumæ,” that the passages must not be left seperate. "From John, the son of Galfrid, descended, in a long lineal procession, gallant knights and esquires, who held Sockburn till the reign of Charles I. whilst the younger branches of this ancient stately cedar At the house of Mr. William Pybus, Chester-le-Street, whose respectful and affectionate treatment of the old Baronet deserves the highest praise. shadowed both Durham and Yorkshire. All are now fallen; and not a foot of land is held by Conyers in either county. Of the house of Conyers not one stone is now left on another. The little church, standing lonely on its level green, has survived the halls of its ancient patrons. Deep traces of foundations of gardens and orchards, a little to the south, point out the site of the mansion, and an old decaying Spanish chesnut, spared by the axe, and whose bulk and indurated bark have protected it from other injury, seems alone to connect the deserted spot with some recollection of its ancient owners."-Memoir of Mr. Surtees. The following extract is given from a Poem entitled "TEISA," descriptive of the river Tees, written by Anne Wilson, and published at Newcastle in 1778. In point of poetical merit, little perhaps can be said on behalf of the couplets; yet the relation which they bear to our present subject may, it is hoped, render their insertion not unacceptable. To Nesham TEISA has its course, Like her, so dread, so fearful to behold, Arose, whose name was Conyers, he a wight, |