Some years ago I asked the meaning of _Grindle_ or _Grundle_, as applied
to a deep, narrow watercourse at Wattisfield in Suffolk. The Grundle
lies between the high road and the "Croft," adjoining a mansion which
once belonged to the Abbots of Bury. The clear and rapid water was
almost hidden by brambles and underwood; and the roots of a row of fine
trees standing in the Croft were washed bare by its winter fury. The
bank on that side was high and broken; the bed of the Grundle I observed
to lie above the surface of the road, on the opposite side of which the
ground rises rapidly to the table land of clay. My fancy instantly
suggested a river flowing through this hollow, and the idea was
strengthened by the appearance of the landscape. The village stands on
irregular ground, descending by steep slopes into narrow valleys and
contracted meadows. I can well imagine that water was an enemy or
"fiend" to the first settlers, and I was told that in winter the Grundle
is still a roaring brook.
I find I have a Note that "in Charters, places bearing the name Grendel
are always connected with water."