“When day, with farewell beam, delays
Among the opening clouds of even,
And we could almost think we gaze
Through golden vistas into heaven;
Those hues which mark the sun’s decline,
So soft, so radiant, Lord, are thine!”--_Moore._
At length a poetic sound breaks upon the ear--the whetting of a scythe;
and how picturesque are the fields beyond! After passing through a
succession of luxurious meadows, you arrive at the humble and ivied
ruins of a <g>Piscatory</g>. This building is apparently of ancient date, and
was intended to supply the monastery during those numerous fasts in
which the good <g>abbots</g> were wont to exchange “the very best meat for the
very best fish.”[175] Soon after passing this ruin, the hitherto placid
Wye falls noisily over a broad and shallow weir, and the steep wood
encroaches upon its rocky bank. Our footsteps, therefore, pursue a
sinuous path through its deep and pensive shade, until we somewhat
suddenly emerge upon a tabular meadow, encompassed by an amphitheatre of
ivied rocks, a stupendous rampart, at whose base the Wye is winding,
and, at the same time, reflecting in its peaceful bosom the majestic
scene.[176]
<g>Climate of Tinterne.</g>--On this subject, a late intelligent medical
practitioner at Tinterne says:--“I may here remark, that I am
unacquainted with any warmer spot than this in England. Protected on the
north and west by a steep hill, it is open alone to the east and south:
it has therefore the sun upon it during the greater part of the day. On
the third of February, 1839, at half-past 2 in the afternoon,” he adds,
“while my thermometer on the mantel-shelf over the fire ranged at 60°,
it rose to 99° outside the door. At nightfall, which ushered in a severe
frost, the mercury fell to 44°. On the twenty-third of the same month,
at 3 o’clock P.M., the thermometer ranged at 109° Fahrenheit, or nearly
34° Reaumur; at half-past 11 at night, the mercury fell to 45° Fahr. On
the fifteenth of May, at 12.16 P.M., the thermometer on the mantel-shelf
indicated 50° Fahr. At 3 P.M. a violent snow-storm came on, succeeded at
nightfall by a nipping frost.” These facts sufficiently indicate
[Illustration: _The Door into the Cloister._