HAVING described the antient state of the Wall, and manners of the inhabitants, I shall now take the liberty of giving my introductory approach to this once grand object, and describe its present state.
Thirteen months elapsed after we had resolved upon our journey, when our friends declined the adventure; but we, having fed upon the imaginary but delightful repast, could not relinquish it.
I procured for myself the exclusive privilege of walking; which, of all the modes of travelling, I prefer. My daughter rode behind her servant; and we agreed not to impede each other on the way, but meet at certain inns, for refreshment and rest.
I was dressed in black, a kind of religious travelling warrant, but divested of assuming airs; and had a budget of the same colour and materials, much like a dragoon's cartridge-box, or post-man's letter pouch, in which were deposited the maps of Cumberland, Northumberland, and the Wall, with its appendages; all three taken out of Gough's edition of the Britannia; also Warburton's map of the Wall, with my own remarks, &c.
To this little pocket I fastened with a strap, an umbrella in a green case, for I was not likely to have a six weeks tour without wet, and slung it over that shoulder which was the least tired.—And now, July the 4th, 1801, we began our march.
SUTTON.
AT the end of eight miles, we arrived here, situated upon an eminence, pleasant and healthful. It is said, "Ireland is free from venomous animals;" this is free from dirt. The town is neat, consists of two streets, or rather one, and the limb of another, forming a figure resembling the letter Y, and is about one hundred and fifty yards long. It is silent as night; except, as being a thoroughfare between Birmingham and the North, the inhabitants are entertained with the thunder of horses feet, and the rumbling of carriages.
I was once asked by a grocer of this place, "If I could recommend him to a good wife?"—"It is totally out of my way; I had the fortune to procure a good one for myself, whom I value highly; but have never traded in so precarious an article. But cannot you accommodate yourself at home?" He replied, "There is not one woman in Sutton that will suit me;"—whether the remark redounds to the honour of the fair sex, I leave to them.
LICHFIELD
IS eight miles more; low, flat, and compact, consisting of fourteen short and dull streets, besides one that is long and lively, owing to its being the great road from London to Ireland, and the West of Scotland. Perhaps there are eight hundred houses.
The cathedral is large, and grand; and, as a national building, is a credit; but considered as a place of divine worship, there is more of ostentation than of use; for the devotional part is small, compared to the remainder. The internal walls are in some places covered with green mould. Perhaps our pious ancestors thought their prayers would rise with double effect from stone fret-work and gilt timber. Simplicity is characteristic of Christianity. We have reason to conclude, that the church of the Apostles was a private room, not worth ten shillings a year.
I have been struck with an historical incident which occurred in the boisterous reign of Charles the First. The Close, in which the cathedral stands, was a garrison for the King. Lord Brook, by order of parliament, besieged it; and while surveying the works, through the peep-hole in the side wall of a porch, belonging to a small house in Dam-street, his face was observed by a dumb gentleman upon the battlements of the great steeple, whose name was Dyott, of a respectable family now in the neighbourhood; he levelled his piece, and, though I believe the distance is more than one hundred yards, shot him in the face and killed him. Mine has been at the hole, but (thank Heaven!) in peaceable times.
The porch is removed; but its dimensions are exactly marked upon the pavement. My late worthy friend Mr. Greene, proprietor of an admirable cabinet of curiosities, caused an inscription to be placed upon the wall, when he was chief magistrate, to perpetuate the event.
RUDGLEY,
SEVEN miles, is low and level; has, perhaps, three hundred houses, and consists of one street, extending about three quarters of a mile, which, like a pack-thread string, is length without width.
STONE,
FIFTEEN miles, a thorough-fare also of one street, like the former, and nearly as long, but better built, and about the same number of houses. The accommodations are good, and the people civil.
A person of my appearance, and stile of travelling, is so seldom seen upon the high road, that the crowds I met in my whole journey viewed me with an eye of wonder and inquiry, as if ready to cry out "In the name of the Father, &c. What ar't!" and I have reason to believe, not a soul met me without a turn of the head, to survey the rear as well as the front.
NEWCASTLE UNDER LINE,
NINE miles, is elevated, compact, well built, has ten streets, and nine hundred houses; is smoak-dried by the surrounding works. The Marquis of Stafford's interest sends two members into the House of Commons, from whence their own sometimes sends them into that of the Lords.
HULME'S CHAPEL,
SIXTEEN miles, a pretty smart church, inclosed in a smart square of about seven houses. The village consists of about twice that number, in a situation delightful.
WARRINGTON,
EIGHTEEN miles, a crowded place, without room for a crowd to exert itself. It consists of fourteen streets, chiefly narrow; about two thousand houses, and ten thousand persons. Their shops are so closely squeezed together, as scarcely to admit a customer.
The most spacious street, but the worst built, is Old Warrington, the end of which joins the present town. This street was, about three hundred years ago, the Whole of the place, to which the traveller was ferried over the river Mersey. But, Henry the Seventh expressing a wish to visit his mother, the Countess of Richmond, who had married the Earl of Derby, and resided at Latham, to facilitate the King's passage over the river, the Earl is said to have erected this bridge. Hence the present Warrington took its rise. The visit must have been long in agitation, for one year could not compleat the work.
PRESCOT,
NINE miles, seems to have risen from an antient and obscure village to a modern, handsome, and pleasant market-town, from its vicinity to Liverpool.
LIVERPOOL,
A PLACE of wonder! It is an old remark, "That a spirited, active, and commercial people, who have seen the world, are more civilized and humane than those of recluse life." When my daughter and servant had nearly arrived at Liverpool, they were caught in a shower, and obliged to dismount; one took shelter under a scaffold; the other, under a tree. The lady of the mansion invited man, woman, and horse, under cover, treated all three with the greatest hospitality, and, what was preferable, with a smile.
We had been recommended to the King's Arms in Water-street; but, though we could not be admitted, the master sent his servant to procure us an abode.
The hill, as I descended to the town, abounded with windmills; but the houses, afterwards, rising round them, I observed, had obliged them to shorten sail. The stranger is surprized to see the street crowded with shipping! The stile of business is amazing, and is enough to ruin Bristol, and eclipse London.
The sea seems about a mile over. The churches are beautiful, the buildings grand, the Exchange a superb work. Here are 580 streets, lanes, and courts, 11,784 houses, and 77,653 persons, exclusive of sailors, about 4000. There arrived from the 24th of June 1800, to the 24th of June 1801, 5060 ships, which unloaded 489,719 tons, and which paid dock dues 28,365l. 8s. 2d. Hence we infer a rich Corporation.
I went on board a vessel of 500 tons, 110 feet long, which was allowed to carry 365 slaves. It is easy to discover, by the buildings and the streets, the old from the new part of the town.
Among the curiosities I saw, was the famous Dr. Solomon, whom I knew, many years ago, in very different circumstances. We should be apt to conclude, that man must sell a large quantity of health, who accumulates sixty thousand pounds by the sale, as it is said the Doctor has done.
ORMSKIRK,
THIRTEEN miles, consists of two streets, or four, if you please, for they cross at right angles, about four hundred and fifty houses, and eighteen hundred inhabitants. The town is elevated and pleasant, the people agreeable, and the country delightful.
PRESTON,
TWENTY miles, a large, compact, and populous place, and one of the handsomest I ever saw, is in an elevated situation, and florishing state, contains 11,887 inhabitants. The market is thronged. I believe I saw at least five hundred carts, which brought supplies. The market-place is beautiful. The inhabitants are said to be proud, which I did not observe, except in one person, dressed like a clergyman, who refused a civil answer to the trifling inquiries of a stranger. I was pleased with Lord Derby's house, an elegant building, with the conveniencies of a large town, and the prospects of a charming country.
GARSTANG,
ELEVEN miles, has four streets, or rather one, for the other three do not deserve the name; has about two hundred houses, thirteen of which are public, and fifteen hundred souls.
Our arrival was on the evening of the Fair-day, Saturday, July 11, 1801, which becoming rainy, we were amused from the windows with the country lasses, large as troopers, in their best array, with their garments tucked up to avoid the wet, which exhibited limbs of a gigantic size, well adapted for working, running, or kicking. The men also bore the same characteristics; and we could scarcely forbear concluding, the human race was of a superior size.
LANCASTER,
ELEVEN miles, has about eleven streets, eight hundred houses, of stone, and nine thousand and thirty inhabitants; is a genteel place, and abounds with elegant buildings; but the streets are narrow, according to the old fashion of street-making. Our ancestors built for themselves, they never thought of posterity. The Castle, which is in good repair, carries the face of antient grandeur. This, and the great church, are together, and on a high hill, which commands an extensive and beautiful view. I saw the foundation of Wery Wall, a Roman work, which seems to have surrounded the Castle-hill.
HEYSHAM.
SIX miles, a watering place, its rocky promontory projecting into the sea, inclosed with wood. It has an admirable effect upon the mind, when we burst upon it by turning the corner, in the road, half a mile distant. There are sixty-nine houses, and three hundred and eighty inhabitants. It will probably rise into esteem, for here we find united, the mild aspect of England, with the rough hand of Nature, which is spread over North Wales. These rude parts are capable of great improvement.
Upon the crown of a rock, joining the church-yard, is a flat, thirty yards diameter, which precipitates into the sea, where stand the remains of a chapel. In this repository of the dead was taken up a stone coffin, which now lies above ground, and seems to fit a corpse five feet ten, and to have stood the test of a thousand years. A hollow is cut in the hard grit, for the head, neck, shoulders, &c.
Upon this bare rock is a level part, six yards by three and a half, in which have been cut six hollows, or coffins, in a row, in the form of the human body, about twelve inches deep, with a groove round each, to admit a lid. This was probably the depositary of one family, who, instead of sinking, may be said to rise into the grave. The West side of this rock is washed by the waves, and elevated about fifty feet above them. These receptacles of the dead look like half a dozen mummies, in rank.
At Heysham we meant to fix our head-quarters for bathing; but our road over the sands leading us to Hest Bank, we marched, after a stay of two nights.
HEST BANK, AND KENT SANDS.
SIX miles along the shore brought us to this place, a small hamlet three miles North of Lancaster, of very few houses; but chiefly one, and that for the reception of company, who visit for pleasure, or sea-bathing.
As strangers, we felt a small degree of anxiety about crossing the Kent Sands, an arm of the sea, which lay at our feet, and which we designed to attempt the next morning. The Guide told us they were twelve miles over, some said eleven, others nine; but the real truth, I believe, is eight.
We agreed with our landlord to take us over for five shillings, and some grog, though the carrier's price is eighteen pence without grog. Our vehicle was a little cart, in which was slung a chair and cushion that would hold two people, with a bag of straw by way of mat for the feet.
We were drawn by something in the form of a little horse, which had almost learnt to live without eating, and of whose ability we had some doubt.
These sands, to the distant eye, appear level; but are very uneven. Every tide changes their face, and leaves hills and vallies. Whatever marks of feet, or wheels, are left in the vacancy of one tide, are washed out by the next. Nor has the stranger any object before him for a guide, because his journey is curved like a bow. A few bushes are pricked into the sands to direct the traveller; but they are small, and the line is often broken, The spring-tides rise about nineteen feet.
The eye, continually moving forwards, and engaged upon the same flat object as the sands are, is apt to cause a giddiness in the head. This was experienced by my daughter, with me in the cart, and the servant who followed the track.
Two rivers, from the mountains, run along the sands, the Kier, and the Kent, which frequently change their course; sometimes they are several miles asunder, and at others, both run in one bed, according to the caprice of the waves.
We found the water up to the ancles a great part of the way. When we had passed about a mile, we crossed the Kier, a brisk stream, upon a wide and flat bottom, reaching to the calf of the leg. Near the North shore, six or seven miles farther, we crossed the Kent. We requested the Guide, who had passed over and waited for us, to go before. It took his horse full to the knee.
He appeared a civil and intelligent veteran, who had stood the cold blast, had passed between wind and water forty years, and knew to an inch whether his horse must walk or swim. He was extremely willing to attend, and it would have been unkind not to have rewarded him. During our short time together, he gave us the history of his profit, and employment. His annual allowance from Government is ten pounds six and eight pence, and a piece of land for his horse, worth nine pounds more; the rest is the uncertain perquisite of the stranger. His emoluments, he remarked, had much declined since the stage-coaches ran, because they not only conveyed passengers, who would otherwise have rode, but carriages and horse-men generally attended the stage, for their own safety; this we had remarked during our short stay.
The general voice of the country is, "the passage is safe," and I believe a man may pass it a thousand times without injury; but I think, to venture over once in his life for pleasure is enough; for, if he is obliged to finish his journey in a given time, there must be danger. As there is no road, he is liable to be lost. He may be caught in a fog, or in the night. If on foot, he may wade half the way, and be retarded; if on horse-back, his horse may fail him, or he fall sick; if in a carriage, it may break down, and he lamed; any accident brings him into a dangerous situation, besides the evil of being caught in a storm without shelter.
Our landlord, who pretended to understand the passage well, was not, we could perceive, guided so much by his own judgment, as by the mark of the stage-wheels, which had passed an hour before us; and whereever they were obliterated, he could not rest, but turned to the right, or left, till he found them, and rejoiced with us when the Guide came to meet us.
In an hour and forty minutes, however, and five hundred lashes, instead of corn, given to the poor horse, we were not displeased to arrive at the opposite shore. We were so charmed with the situation of Hest Bank, that we determined, on our return from the Lakes, and the Wall, to order our chattels from Heysham, make this our abode, and proceed thither by land.
NEWBY-BRIDGE, AT THE FOOT OF WINDERMERE,
EIGHTEEN miles from Hest Bank. At the end of twelve miles, we passed through the little, but beautiful town of Cartmel, in a rich country; perhaps there are one hundred houses, and 500 inhabitants, who occupy four streets. The church is noble. The town is the property of Lord John Cavendish, whose residence is near. From hence to Newby-Bridge, six miles, consisting of an agreeable inn, and five houses; a sweet spot, nearly surrounded by the water of Windermere, where it quits the name of Lake, and becomes a river, nearly the size of the Derwent at Derby.
I had now to walk up this charming Lake, in one of the finest mornings Nature ever made, upon one of the best roads ever constructed, though uneven, and composed of the best materials the earth could produce.
To form an idea of the scene before me, the stranger may imagine to himself a valley between two mountains, which range parallel to each other, and extend more than twelve miles, and whose summits of barren rock are about four miles asunder.
Their declivities are woody, and sometimes rough; sprinkled with farms in high cultivation, of perhaps one hundred acres each, and houses which indicate plenty and ease. The bottom, which is from one to three miles over, is the height of rural beauty, extending to the verge of the Lake, and consisting of woods, fertile meadows, and gentlemen's seats. In this centre lies the charming Lake, whose surface was as smooth, pleasant, and clear, as a looking glass, with a smiling face before it. Not a breath of air to cause a wrinkle, but a bright sun illuminated the view. If an assemblage of mountains, romantic rocks, extensive prospects, fertile vallies, ornamental woods, elegant seats, with a grand expanse of water, can compleat a landscape, it may be found here.
The Lake is said to be ten miles and a half long; I have reason to think it is twelve, and from a quarter of a mile to one mile and a half wide, not varying much from a strait line. The head, near Ambleside, seems as wide as any other part; but the foot, at Newby-Bridge, is narrow.
Exclusive of its original source, which is in the Kirkstone mountains, it is supplied perhaps by a thousand rills from the surrounding eminences, some deserving the name of River, some Cascade, but all clear as crystal; which proves that this grand reservoir is composed of rock-water. I saw a clear bottom at twelve feet deep.
There are many islands, chiefly on the upper part. One of forty-two acres, the property of Mr. Curwen, converted into pleasure ground, and which merits the name of an earthly paradise. I visited this delightful spot; examined every part, after delivering in my name; and though I could not call it mine, I could enjoy its beauties as well as the owner.
Near the centre, upon a rising ground is a new and expensive house, which I have heard censured as void of taste; but I see no error except its singularity. We are apt to find fault with the ways of another when they differ from our own: this implies a compliment to our judgment.
In a cove formed by the Lake, and a recess formed by the mountains, is situated the pretty village of Bowness, having about forty houses. Here we dined, in the summer-house; took an excursion upon the water to see a boat-race, which collected the whole country; but the rain put a stop to the farce.
Our route still continued up the border of the Mere. I frequently ascended the rocks on my right, to improve my view of this grand expanse of water, which gave me a prospect of six or eight miles. Sometimes the road led me nearly level with the water; at others, one or two hundred yards above it: again, I was within a few yards of its margin, and afterwards found myself three hundred yards distant.
At the head of Windermere, near Ambleside, is a fortification, which the people call a Roman Station. This is an error into which they have been led by the great Camden; who, because Amboglana, a real Roman Station, had some affinity of sound with Ambleside, concluded this was the place; and though it afterwards appeared to appertain to Burdoswald, yet the world could not quit the idea. It probably has been a Roman castle, and the place is extremely well adapted for one, as it commands a pass through the mountains. The buildings are totally gone; and it was with difficulty I could find the remains of the old ramparts and ditches. I apprehend it was one of the out-guards to the Wall.
AMBLESIDE,
FIFTEEN miles, a small scattered market-town, surrounded by romantic views; but the place is without form or comeliness, smothered with mountains; to which I shall add nothing, except my gratitude for the attention paid us.
From hence we ascend a very long and steep hill, called Kirkstone; which, for five miles, is a remarkably rough and stony road. Camden might, with the shadow of plausibility, have derived the name of Ambleside from this road, being so extremely bad, that the traveller can scarcely amble along, and, lying by its side.
Rising and descending this hill, brought us to Patterdale, where is a pool in the valley, half a mile square, called Broad-Water; which, had it been alone, might have excited notice; but, situated between two grand Lakes, Windermere and Ulls-Water, which raise the wonder of the traveller, it excites none.
ULLS-WATER,
THIS is the sister lake to Windermere, and, like that, is composed of rock-water, clear as crystal, and well tasted. It is upwards of eight miles long. The average width is perhaps three-quarters of a mile, and the depth from thirty to one hundred and twenty yards. The road is on the left bank, good, and shaded with trees; and the Lake fed by a great number of rills, tumbling from the mountains on the left.
On the right, or opposite bank, the rocky mountains for several miles dip into the water, shew, above, their barren sides, and are strangers to cultivation. They afterwards soften into verdure, are less elevated, with inclosures of beautiful farms down to the lower end, which terminates in a river called the Emont, at Pooley-Bridge.
On the left fide, pursuing our road, we first pass a handsome house, in a recess, or glen, the property of William Mounsey, Esq. a gentleman of wealth and character, on whom the world has conferred the title of King of Patterdale.
The next building is Lyulph's Castle, a neat little building; and Garbarrow Park, both the property of the Duke of Norfolk. The Castle is beautiful, the grounds neglected. Then, the Seat of ——— Robinson, Esq.
At Pooley-Bridge, the foot of the Lake, is a high circular hill called Dunmallard, upon which are the remains of a Roman castle and fortification. The situation is suitable for guarding the defile. This is another out-guard to the Wall.
Four miles short of Penrith, we pass the charming premisses of William Hassell, Esq. of Dalemain.
PENRITH,
TWENTY-FIVE miles from Ambleside, is a handsome and spirited town, with about thirteen streets, seven hundred houses, and seven thousand five hundred people. It lies in a flat, through which runs a rivulet, and is situated under the Beacon-hill. A mile to the South, runs the Emont.
We read in an old author, that "Perith is sixty miles South of Carlisle." The traveller will find it near eighteen. This shews the necessity of correct history.
We visited, like other strangers, The Giant's Grave, of which no certain account is given, either by tradition, or history. It lies on the North, within four or five yards of the Church. One stone stands at the head, and another at the feet, not shaped alike, thick as a moderate human body, twelve feet high, and fourteen asunder, ornamented with carvings, which time has nearly obliterated. The sides of the Grave are bordered with semi-circular stones, two feet high, wrought in the same manner.
Blind tradition ascribes this Grave to Sir Ewan Caesar, said to have been as tall as the columns, who killed the wild boars, and robbers in Inglewood Forest, of which Penrith is a part.
This Grave was opened about forty-five years ago, but nothing found. The stones were replaced. It was opened also about a century prior to that, when, it is said, the large bones of a man's hand were found, and a broad-sword. If this be true, why has the tradition of the inhabitants lost it, and why was not the sword preserved?
The appearance of the stones, however, stamps an age of five hundred years, at least, upon the Grave.
The Castle, upon a delightful spot, is in ruins. This was another guard against that patroling enemy, the Scots; who, in the 19th of Edward the Third, 1346, burnt the town; and again in the next reign, the eighth of Richard the Second.
Richard the Third, while Duke of Gloucester, repaired the Castle; and resided there, to keep the marauders quiet, which had the desired effect.
Here I parted with my daughter, who bore to the left for the residue of the Lakes; and I to the right, for the Wall.
The first eight miles towards Carlisle, is one continued common, of excellent land. Pity the times do not call it into cultivation! The road is fine, and most beautiful.
CARLISLE,
EIGHTEEN miles, a city with which I was much pleased. There are thirteen streets, eleven hundred and ninety-six houses, and nine thousand five hundred and twenty-one inhabitants. The streets are rather more spacious than are generally found in antient cities.
I am now arrived at the long-wished-for Wall. New scenes, and a new task must open. I must appear in the character of an exciseman, with an ink-bottle at my bosom, and a book in my hand; must meet and dine in public with a supervisor, who could not conceive "to what district I belonged," and was too timid, from my appearance, to ask.
I crossed the Eden to Stanwix, a Station, where I slept; then penetrated down to Boulness, the extremity of the Wall; returned through Carlisle, and Newcastle, to the Wall's end, then down again to Carlisle, where I first entered. But although I travelled the Wall twice, I cannot give two descriptions, lest I confuse the ideas of a reader; but I shall begin at the Wall's end, as all my predecessors have done, and proceed to Boulness.