commons; from Wokingham the road is more enclosed with hedges. Eversley
Church and rectory stand almost alone, save for a farmhouse and barns,
being nearly a mile from the other portions of the village. The church
is very picturesquely situated on sloping ground, an avenue of yews
leading from the lych gate to the porch. Inside, the building has
suffered a good deal from restoration, but the pulpit from which
Kingsley preached his stirring sermons remains unaltered. The rectory is
a very old building which has been modernised on the side fronting on
the road. On the lawn stands the group of glorious Scotch firs which
Kingsley was never tired of watching. Their boughs sweep downwards and
almost touch the grass, and their great red trunks are a strong contrast
to the dense green of the surrounding foliage.
In one of the sitting-rooms is a set of drawers in which Kingsley kept a
collection of fossils. His grave is on the side of the church yard
nearest the overshadowing branches of the Scotch firs. The Runic cross
of white marble is a beautiful one. The head is ornamented with a spray
of passion flower and bears upon it the words "God is Love." On the base
are the words "Amavimus, amamus, amabimus."
The neighbouring district of Bramshill has still the little thatched
cottage where Kingsley used to conduct a little simple service on Sunday
afternoons. The whole of the country surrounding Bramshill Park is
closely covered with self-sown firs, and the commons interspersed among
the forest lands are covered with heather and gorse. This was the
country Kingsley loved, whether he was riding over it with the local
pack of foxhounds or on a visit to one of his parishioners.
[Illustration: EVERSLEY RECTORY.
The scene of the labours of Charles Kingsley.]
FARNHAM, SURREY
THE HOME OF WILLIAM COBBETT
=How to get there.=--Train from Waterloo. South-Western Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Farnham.
=Distance from London.=--37-3/4 miles.
=Average Time.=--1-1/2 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 6s. 3d. 4s. 0d. 3s. 1-1/2d.
Return 10s. 0d. 7s. 0d. 6s. 3d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--"The Bush," "The Railway Hotel,"
"The Lion and Lamb," etc.
=Alternative Route.=--None.
In 1762 William Cobbett, one of the great writers and reformers of the
eighteenth century, was born at Farnham, in Surrey. The house is still
standing, and is now known as the "Jolly Farmer" Inn. Cobbett gives a
very clear account of his early years at Farnham, and some of his
youthful escapades are very amusing. One game which he and two of his
brothers were never tired of playing was that of rolling each other like
barrels down the very steep sandy hill which one may see rising sharply
from the back of the "Jolly Farmer." Cobbett left Farnham for London
when he was twenty-one, but often revisited his native town in later
years. When he died, in 1835, he was buried in Farnham churchyard. The
grave faces the porch on the north side of the church. The Rev. Augustus
Toplady, who wrote the universally known hymn "Rock of Ages," was born
in a little house in West Street, Farnham, which was rebuilt some years
ago.
Overlooking the town from the hills to the north is Farnham Castle, the
historic seat of the Bishops of Winchester for many generations past. A
portion of the buildings, including the keep, are of Norman origin, the
rest having been chiefly built by Bishop Fox in the early part of the
sixteenth century. During the Parliamentary war Farnham Castle was for
some time the headquarters of the Roundhead army operating in this part
of the country, Sir William Waller having overcome the garrison placed
there by the High Sheriff of Surrey.
Vernon House, in West Street, is notable by reason of the visit paid to
it by Charles I. when on his way to London as a prisoner in the hands of
the Parliamentary troops. The silk cap which King Charles presented to
his host is still preserved in the house by the present owner, a
descendant of the Vernon family.
[Illustration: THE BIRTHPLACE OF WILLIAM COBBETT AT FARNHAM.]
HINDHEAD, SURREY
=How to get there.=--Train from Waterloo. L. and S.W. Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Haslemere.
=Distance from London.=--43 miles.
=Average Time.=--1-1/2 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 7s. 2d. 4s. 6d. 3s. 7d.
Return 12s. 6d. 8s. 0d. 6s. 8d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--"Old Swan Hotel," "The Hindhead
Beacon," "White Horn Hotel," Haslemere. "Hindhead
Hotel," "Royal Anchor Hotel," Liphook, etc.
The Hindhead district, not long ago one of the wildest in the home
counties, has of late been much encroached upon by the erection of
modern villas and houses. A few years back there was scarcely a vestige
of human habitation to be seen from the road skirting the "Devil's
Punchbowl," or the descent on the other side, but since the time
Professor Tyndall built his house there, the aspect of the country has
been in places considerably changed.
From Haslemere Station one may take a direct road to the Hindhead
summit, but the most interesting route is through Shottermill, about a
mile distant (see p. 64). From here an easy walk takes one into the main
Portsmouth road close to the Seven Thorns Inn, where there is a long
ascent to the summit of Hindhead, with its inn, the Royal Huts Hotel.
Close by is the village of Grayshott, now fast growing into a place of
considerable residential importance. Following the road Londonwards, one
arrives in a few hundred yards at the very highest point of the road
over Hindhead, after which it drops gently, skirting the magnificent
hollow known as the "Devil's Punchbowl." On the left-hand side, in the
loneliest part of the road, is the gruesome tombstone which marks the
spot where an unknown sailor was murdered and robbed while tramping from
Portsmouth to London. This stone and its surroundings, it will be
remembered, are mentioned in _Nicholas Nickleby_, in the account of the
walk of Nicholas and Smike from London to Portsmouth. Close by, on the
opposite side of the road, there is a rough sandy track--once the old
coach road--which leads up to the stone cross on the extreme summit of
the Hindhead--900 feet above sea-level--where the murderers of the
sailor were executed, and hung in chains. The view from this point,
aptly named Gibbet Hill, is quite magnificent for Surrey.
On the northern slope of Blackdown--the high ridge of hills towards the
south-east--is Aldworth House, where Tennyson resided in his latter
years.
[Illustration: THE PORTSMOUTH ROAD.
Near the highest point, where it crosses Hindhead.]
SHOTTERMILL
THE HOME OF GEORGE ELIOT
=How to get there.=--Train from Waterloo Station. L. and S.W.
Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Haslemere (1 mile by road from Shottermill
village).
=Distance from London.=--43 miles.
=Average Time.=--From 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 7s. 2d. 4s. 6d. 3s. 7d.
Return 12s. 6d. 8s. 0d. 6s. 8d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--At Haslemere--"White Horse Hotel,"
"Swan Hotel," etc. "Oakland's Mansion Private Hotel."
This lovely little village, on the slopes of Hindhead, with its breezy
uplands, its hills covered with Scotch firs and its undulating tracts of
land, so beautiful in the autumn with the glorious purple heather, was
much beloved by George Eliot, known to the whole world as the writer of
_Adam Bede_ and the _Mill on the Floss_. In 1871, while _Middlemarch_
was appearing in parts, George Eliot, who as Mr. Lewes said, "never
seemed at home except under a broad sweep of sky," spent part of the
spring and summer at Brookbank,--an old-fashioned gabled cottage in the
village (close to the church) with delightful lattice-paned
windows,--belonging to a Mrs. Gilchrist. At this time George Eliot was
in a delicate state of health and scarcely equal to finishing her new
story. One cannot call it a novel, for it had no plot. It was simply a
remarkable picture of provincial life in the first half of the
nineteenth century. George Eliot greatly enjoyed her quiet life at
Shottermill, although many of her friends thought it incomprehensible
that she could endure such a secluded life. One can scarcely read her
graphic description of the sweet beauty of a Warwickshire lane, with its
hedgerows all radiant in summer beauty, without feeling how much this
remarkable woman loved it all, and in some degree one may understand how
restful were the village surroundings. They led a most uneventful life,
but occasionally would pay a visit to Tennyson, whose house at Aldworth
was only 3 miles off. George Eliot rarely went out in the daytime, but
sometimes she would go to see some cottagers and have a chat with them.
A farmer's wife was greatly astonished at her knowledge of
butter-making, and of the growth of fruit and vegetables, little
imagining that in her early days, after her mother's death, the great
authoress had managed the dairy in her own home at Griff House.
[Illustration: BROOKBANK.
George Eliot's cottage at Shottermill, near Haslemere.]
PENN'S CHAPEL AT THAKEHAM, SUSSEX
=How to get there.=--Train from Victoria or London Bridge. L.B.
and S.C. Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Billingshurst (3 miles from Thakeham).
=Distance from London.=--44 miles.
=Average Time.=--1-1/2 to 2-1/2 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 7s. 2d. 4s. 8d. 3s. 6-1/2d.
Return 11s. 5d. 8s. 2d. 7s. 1d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--None at Thakeham. "King's Arms"
at Billingshurst.
The little chapel where the great William Penn used to worship when he
lived at the old mansion of Warminghurst is so entirely buried in the
country that one must make careful inquiries in order to find one's way
to it from Billingshurst. When one reaches the cottage at last, one
finds a gate right across the road, for beyond it the lane gradually
deteriorates to a mere grassy track between hedges. Locally this
Thakeham meeting-house is known as the "Blue Idol," a name not
altogether explained when one discovers that for a long period the
interior of the chapel had blue-washed walls.
As one may see from the drawing given here, it is an exceedingly quaint
old building, the portion shown being used as a meeting-house, the other
half being a cottage occupied by the family who act as caretakers. The
cream-washed walls are broken up by the richly mellowed half-timber
work, and above is the roof of grey green Horsham slabs splashed over
with bright orange lichen.
Inside there are the very old oaken settles as well as less ancient
ones. The timber framing shows on the walls and roof, here, as on the
exterior, and the general quaintness of the place is enhanced by the old
stone-flagged floor. Of William Penn's house at Warminghurst no traces
whatever remain, but this only helps to increase the interest in the
little chapel which has remained entirely unaltered for over two
centuries. Penn, who bought the house in 1682, probably chose its site
on account of its remoteness, for those were the days when their
meetings were at any moment liable to interruption--when the members of
the congregation met together knowing well that discovery meant
imprisonment. In the quaint little meeting-house it is easy to feel the
spirit of the Quakers, and one may almost imagine that one hears outside
the rumble of the wheels of the heavy ox-waggon in which Penn drove over
from Warminghurst Place.
[Illustration: THE OLD CHAPEL AT THAKEHAM NEAR BILLINGSHURST.
Where William Penn used to worship.]
CHAWTON THE HOME OF JANE AUSTEN
=How to get there.=--Train from Waterloo. L. and S.W. Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Alton (1 mile from Chawton).
=Distance from London.=--46-1/2 miles.
=Average Time.=--Varies between 1-3/4 to 2 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 7s. 9d. 5s. 0d. 3s. 10-1/2d.
Return 13s. 6d. 8s. 8d. 7s. 9d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--At Alton--"Swan Hotel," "Crown
Hotel," etc.
Situated about a mile from Alton Station, on the main line of the
South-Western Railway, is the little village of Chawton, the residence
of Jane Austen at the time when she was producing her best literary
work. A walk along the main Winchester road brings one to the charming
old-world place, and, keeping on past the thatched cottages of the
village, one reaches a small brick house on the right-hand side, near a
pond, just before the road divides for Winchester and Gosport. This
building, which is now tenanted by a workman's club, was Chawton
Cottage, where Jane Austen spent some of the brightest days of her life,
and wrote her most successful novels, books which are more highly
appreciated at the present day than they were during the lifetime of the
authoress.
Her father was rector of Steventon, another Hampshire village, at which
place his daughter was born in 1775, and where her early days were
spent. Jane Austen's novels are remarkable for the truthfulness and
charm with which they reproduce the everyday life of the upper middle
classes in England in her time, and for delicate and yet distinct
insight into every variety of the human character. Miss Austen's first
four novels, _Sense and Sensibility_, _Pride and Prejudice_, _Mansfield
Park_, and _Emma_, were published anonymously.
A short distance along the Gosport road is Chawton Park, a remarkably
fine Elizabethan mansion, occupied in Miss Austen's time by Edward
Knight, the lord of the manor. This country seat, which is not
accessible to visitors, was most probably the original of _Mansfield
Park_, and in the little church close by are several monuments to the
Knight family. Miss Austen died at Winchester on July 24, 1817, and is
buried in the cathedral. The brass to her memory is in the north aisle.
Within easy walking distance is Gilbert White's home at Selborne, which
is treated under a separate heading (p. 70).
[Illustration: JANE AUSTEN'S COTTAGE AT CHAWTON.
_Sense and Sensibility_, _Pride and Prejudice_, and _Northanger Abbey_
were revised and partly rewritten here; and _Emma_, _Mansfield Park_,
and _Persuasion_ were entirely produced at the cottage.]
SELBORNE
THE HOME OF GILBERT WHITE
=How to get there.=--Train from Waterloo. L. and S.W. Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Alton (4 miles from Selborne).
=Distance from London.=--46-1/2 miles. East Tisted, 2 miles from Selborne,
shortly to be available.
=Average Time.=--1-3/4 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 7s. 9d. 5s. 0d. 3s. 10-1/2d.
Return 13s. 6d. 8s. 8d. 7s. 9d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--At Alton--"Swan Hotel," "Crown
Hotel," etc.
Selborne, the birthplace of the famous naturalist, Gilbert White, is
situated in the extreme eastern corner of the county of Hampshire. A
vast chalk hill rises some 300 feet above the south-western side of the
village, part of which is covered with an extensive beech wood, called
"The Hanger," and a down or sheep-walk. This down is a beautiful
park-like spot, with a delightful woodland, now bounded by the Sussex
Downs. The village lies at the foot of the chalk hill parallel with the
Hanger, and contains only one straggling street, nearly a mile in
length, a small rivulet rising at each end. The stream at the
north-western end often fails, but the other, known as the "Well-Head,"
is a fine spring, seldom influenced by drought. Wolmer Forest, near by,
is famed for its timber. In the centre of the village, on a piece of
ground commonly known as "The Plestor," there stood, until the fearful
storm of 1703, a colossal oak tree, with a short body and enormous
horizontally spreading arms. The stone steps, with seats above them,
surrounding the tree, formed a favourite resort for both old and young
during summer evenings. This oak, together with an equally large elm
tree, are mentioned by White.
Gilbert White was born in 1720. He began his education at Basingstoke,
from whence he proceeded in 1739 to Oriel College, Oxford, and finally
became one of the senior proctors of the university in 1752. On his
father's death, White became the occupier of his house in Selborne known
as "The Wakes," and afterwards became curate of the parish. He never
married, but lived a happy and uneventful life, wrapped up in the
wonderfully exact observations of nature which were the basis of his
numerous letters forming _The Natural History of Selborne_. His final
resting-place is unobtrusively marked by a simple grey stone bearing the
initials "G.W.," a monument entirely in keeping with Gilbert White's
quiet and retiring nature and refreshingly simple style of writing.
[Illustration: THE WAKES.
Gilbert White's house at Selborne.]
ELSTOW
THE HOME OF JOHN BUNYAN
=How to get there.=--Through train from St. Pancras. Midland Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Bedford (1 mile from Elstow).
=Distance from London.=--50 miles.
=Average Time.=--An hour.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 6s. 7d. ... 3s. 11-1/2d.
Return 13s. 2d. ... 7s. 11d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--"Embankment Hotel," "Lion Hotel,"
"Swan Hotel," etc., at Bedford.
=Alternative Route.=--Train from Euston. L. and N.W. Railway.
The little village of Elstow, near Bedford, will always be remembered as
the birthplace of John Bunyan, and the cottage is still shown where the
"immortal dreamer" was born. It was while in Bedford jail for
"conscience' sake" that Bunyan ministered to all posterity by writing
the _Pilgrim's Progress from this World to the World to Come_, under the
similitude of a dream. As an allegory of the soul's conflicts and
struggles with evil in its journey through life, it is unsurpassed. It
is believed that no other book except the Bible has gone through so many
editions or attained such a popularity in all languages. It has been
generally understood that Bunyan's early life was a very profligate one,
but some have thought that his terrible self-accusations in after years
may have arisen from the height of his religious fervour and Puritan
strictness, which made him look on dancing and bell-ringing as deadly
sins. This idea is satisfactorily given by Macaulay.
Bunyan was of poor parentage, his father being a tinker. At one time he
was in the Parliamentary Army, and in 1645, was present at the siege of
Leicester. Having left the army, he married. Then after a time of great
spiritual agony and doubt, with quieter intervals, he became a member
and then minister of the Baptist congregation at Bedford. His labours
were stopped by the Act of Conventicles, and Bunyan was a prisoner in
Bedford jail for twelve years. While in prison Bunyan assisted in
providing for the wants of his wife and family by making tagged laces.
The only books he had during his confinement were the Bible and Foxe's
_Book of Martyrs_. Through the kind interposition of Bishop Barlow of
Lincoln, Bunyan was released, and resumed his work of a preacher until
his death from fever in London in 1688. Bunyan also wrote the _Holy War_
and _Grace Abounding_, an autobiographical narrative.
[Illustration: _Valentine & Sons, Ltd._
BUNYAN'S COTTAGE AT ELSTOW.
The cottage is structurally the same as in Bunyan's time.]
LEWES, SUSSEX
=How to get there.=--Train from London Bridge or Victoria. London,
Brighton, and South-Coast Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Lewes.
=Distance from London.=--50 miles.
=Average Time.=--Varies between 1-1/4 to 2-1/4 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 8s. 6d. 5s. 0d. 4s. 2d.
Return 15s. 0d. 9s. 0d. 8s. 4d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--"The White Hart Hotel," "Crown,"
"Commercial," "Temperance Hotel," etc.
Lewes, a prosperous agricultural centre, situated on the Sussex Ouse, is
a place of great antiquity, in spite of its present modern appearance.
Its early history is vague, but it is known that it was of importance
even under the Saxon kings, and was fortified in Alfred's time. William
the Conqueror gave Lewes to Earl William de Warenne, who had married
Gundrada, said to be the daughter of Queen Matilda and the Conqueror. De
Warenne built the castle, or considerably enlarged the old Saxon
fortress, which is now in ruins. The castle possessed a curious feature,
of which no other examples now remain, in having two keeps, each built
upon a mound. Only one of these keeps (admission 6d.) still exists, its
towers covered with ivy. From its summit a splendid view of the
surrounding country can be obtained towards the chalk bluffs of the
South Downs and the valley of the Ouse. The great gateway of the castle
still stands, and in Southover, the suburb of Lewes, are the remains of
the once large and wealthy Priory of St. Pancras. This was the first
Cluniac establishment in England. It was founded by De Warenne and
Gundrada, and continued to be of great importance up to the dissolution.
Until about sixty years ago the old pigeon-house of the priory,
containing 3228 pigeon-holes, was still standing. When excavations were
going on during the construction of the railway, which passes through
the priory grounds, the workmen came upon two leaden coffins, which were
discovered to be those of William de Warenne and his wife. These were
removed to Southover Church, and Gundrada's grave has now its original
tombstone of black marble, which was found in Isfield Church. On the
site of the race-course was fought in 1264 the battle of Lewes, between
Henry III. and the insurgent barons, led by Simon de Montfort, Earl of
Leicester. There are a few old houses left, and the modern town hall
contains a beautiful oak staircase and panelling taken from the old Star
Inn.
[Illustration: _Photochrom Co., Ltd._
THE BARBICAN AT LEWES CASTLE.
The castle was built by William de Warenne, who had received Lewes from
William the Conqueror.]
BODIAM CASTLE, SUSSEX
=How to get there.=--Train from Charing Cross, Cannon Street, or
London Bridge. South-Eastern and Chatham Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Robertsbridge (4 miles from Bodiam). From
Robertsbridge take train to Bodiam Station (which is close to
the castle) on Rother Valley Light Railway.
=Distance from London.=--51 miles.
=Average Time.=--Varies between 1-1/2 to 3 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 8s. 4d. 5s. 3d. 4s. 2-1/2d.
Return 14s. 8d. 10s. 6d. 8s. 5d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--"Castle Hotel."
=Alternative Route.=--None.
Bodiam Castle is open to the public every day of the week except Sundays
(tickets, obtainable at the keeper's cottage, 6d. each; Thursdays, 1s.
each).
There is practically no other moated castle in England which compares
with Bodiam in its completeness. It was built about the year 1386, but
its usefulness for defensive purposes, in view of the increasing
destructiveness of weapons at that time, has been doubted. However, the
knight who was responsible for its construction was Sir Edward
Dalyngrudge, who fought at both Crecy and Poictiers, and must therefore
have seen the primitive forerunner of the modern field-gun in use. The
walls of the castle now enclose a grassy quadrangle, to which access is
gained through a fine gateway, which still retains its outer iron
portcullis. The three others, through which an attacking force was
obliged to penetrate, have all disappeared. Although it has been stated
that the parliamentary forces under Waller captured Bodiam Castle during
the Civil War, it seems to be unlikely that such an attack was ever
made; for in March 1645 the property was conveyed by the Earl of Thanet
to one Nathaniel Powell of London, who was strongly in favour of the
Commonwealth.
Lord Ashcombe, the present owner, has restored the walls very carefully,
and the chapel and various private apartments with their fireplaces
remain intact.
The castle buildings as a whole are a rectangular block entirely
surrounded by the wide moat shown in the illustration. One crosses to
the main gateway by a narrow raised pathway. The surface of the water
during the summer is generally bright with water-lilies.
Bodiam Church is an Early English structure, now very much restored. It
is on the hill, a few minutes' walk from the castle.
[Illustration: BODIAM CASTLE.
One of the most perfect moated castles in England.]
COLCHESTER, ESSEX