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PEVENSEY 117
In the peaceful village street is the Mint Houses A Mint formerly existed in Pevensey, and is mentioned in " Domesday Book," but whether on this site cannot now be ascertained. There are four coins in the British Museum struck at the Pevensey Mint, belonging to the reigns of William the Conqueror, William Rufus and Stephen. The quaint gables and tiled walls of the " Mint " house catch the eye of every visitor. Here tradition saith Edward VI., the " boy-king," came to recruit his health, and here also lived Andrew Borde, the original " Merry Andrew." He was a man who filled many parts—Court physician to Henry VIII., traveller, jester, spy, and famous for his quips and cranks. He was the author of the famous " Tales of the Wise Men of Gotham," which is believed to refer to Gotham, a manor partly in the parish of Hailsham, partly in that of Pevensey. We owe to him the anecdotes of the humble-minded magistrate, who protested that " though Mayor of Pevensey, he was but a man " ; of the " freemen of the port" who drowned an eel as a mode of capital punishment calculated to be highly effectual; and sundry other " merrie jests." Alas ! this man of mirth died a prisoner in the Fleet, 1549 AD-
The bridge at the end of the street is a pic-
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