importance, not only to the city of Glasgow, but to the whole western
district of Scotland. Till the beginning of the sixteenth century,
however, the channel of this noble river was so incommoded by fords and
shoals, as to be hardly navigable even for the small craft of that day.
Sensible of this great evil, and aware that it admitted of a remedy, the
inhabitants of Glasgow, Renfrew, and Dumbarton entered into an agreement
to excavate the channel of the river, and, by working six weeks
alternately, succeeded in their enterprise. The principal ford and
several others of less importance were removed, so that by the middle of
the sixteenth century, flat-bottomed lighters could be floated with ease
and safety to the landing-shore at the Broomielaw, which, in the process
of time and events, has become the great commercial port of Glasgow.
A few years ago, the harbour of Broomielaw was only seven hundred and
thirty feet long on one side; it is now 3340 feet long on the north side
of the river, and 1260 on the south. Till of late years there were only
a few _punts_ and ploughs for dredging the river; there are now four
dredging-machines, with powerful steam-apparatus and two diving-bells.
The shed accommodation on both sides of the river is most ample; and one
of the cranes made by Messrs. Claud, Girdwood, and Co., for shipping
steam-boat boilers, is capable of sustaining a weight of _thirty tons_,
and may, for the union of power with elegance of construction, challenge
all the ports in the kingdom. For the space of seven miles below the
city the river is confined within narrow bounds, and the sloping banks,
formed of whinstone, in imitation of ashlar, are unequalled as a work of
beauty and utility.
From the Broomielaw, till it begins to expand into an estuary, the Clyde
is everywhere overlooked, at short intervals, by the rising hulls and
finished decks of steam-boats and other craft preparing for the launch.
Compared with the bulk of its waters, and the breadth of its stream,
this river is unequalled for the amount and stir of its navigation. Here
it is seen bearing along ships of heavy burden and deep draught of
water; there plentifully dotted with yawls and wherries, and kept in a
constant state of foaming agitation by large steam-ships, freighted with
heavy cargoes from the shores of England and Ireland--by numerous
coasting steam-vessels, careering over its surface with thousands of
human beings, and by steam tug-boats, dragging behind them trains of
sailing craft, too unwieldy to pilot their own way within its narrow
channel. First in the practical working of steam-ship architecture, the
Clyde may be safely said to maintain its pre-eminence over every other
river in the world.
THE BROOMIELAW BRIDGE, which forms so prominent a feature in the
engraving, was begun after a design by Mr. Telford, the late celebrated
engineer, and built by Messrs. Gibb and Son. It is faced with Aberdeen
granite, and has a very gentle acclivity. It is 560 feet in length over
the _newals_, and sixty feet in width over the parapets: it has seven
arches, and is wider than any river-bridge in the kingdom.
_Tides._--The tide at Greenock is two hours earlier than at Glasgow. At
places situated near the ocean, the tide flows nearly as long as it
ebbs. At Greenock it flows generally about six hours, but at Glasgow it
flows only for five hours and ebbs in about seven; this, however, is
modified by the winds. High winds in the Clyde affect the time and
elevation of high-water; and by considering the form and course of the
Frith of Clyde, it is obvious that a gale from a northerly quarter, by
opposing the flow of the tide, will cause the _time_ of high-water to be
earlier, and the _height_ of the water to be less, than would otherwise
be the case; while a gale from an opposite direction, acting in concert
with the flowing tide, will produce a contrary effect.
The merchants and citizens of Glasgow have ever been characterised as a
loyal, patriotic, and generous people. When the country was suffering
under civil war, they raised an armed force in defence of their civil
and religious liberties, and when menaced by the enemies of their
country they stood nobly forward in its defence. In times of local
distress their liberality knows no bounds; and their support of
religious and benevolent institutions has never been surpassed in any
community. That the citizens of Glasgow have done honour to departed
worth is abundantly proved by the monuments and statues erected in the
city; and that their gratitude is not confined to the dead is daily
evinced by their respect and admiration of living merit. Such is the
testimony borne to them by one of their fellow-citizens. Such they are
known to be in their intercourse with strangers; and none, we will
venture to say, have ever spent a week in the precincts of the
Broomielaw, and shared in its hospitalities, without a cordial assent to
the city motto--_Let Glasgow flourish!_
[Illustration: THE SOLWAY.
(from Harrington Harbour)]
THE SOLWAY FRITH,
FROM HARRINGTON PIER.
"The sun sets with a rosy smile
On Criffel's peak and Mona's isle;
The wave assumes a deeper blue,
The mountain wears a brighter hue,
And many a seaman on the mast
Unfurls his canvas to the blast."
Harrington is a small maritime village, about two miles from Workington,
with a commodious harbour opening on St. George's Channel, which is a
prolific source of industry to this portion of the coast. The outward
trade consists chiefly of coal and lime, in both of which the immediate
district abounds. The limekilns of Dissington, and the coal-mines of
Workington are the sources from which these exports are obtained in
excellent quality, and which employ a great number of hands in the
several departments of mining, burning, carting, and exportation to the
opposite coasts of Scotland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man, where the
cargoes are readily disposed of, and such articles selected for
importation as the season, or the peculiar state of the markets at home,
appear to recommend. In this manner a degree of local prosperity is
insured, and another efficient nursery of seamen kept up by the spirited
ship-owners in their regular intercourse with the neighbouring coasts.
It is by the combined influence of such nurseries that the maritime
power of England first acquired, and still maintains, her supremacy at
sea; and to the thousand harbours by which she is encircled she is
indebted for those naval victories which, under Providence, have
preserved her integrity and independence amidst the shock of surrounding
nations. The humblest fisherman on the waters of the Solway, if
thoroughly skilled in the management of his trim-built craft, is not
without his importance in the scale of national utility; for the same
qualifications which give him superiority among the comrades of his
hardy calling, would procure him distinction on the deck of a
seventy-four. No effort should be spared to encourage nautical science
wherever men and ships are to be found on our coasts. "Britannia rules
the waves" only by those "hearts of oak" which have been so long and
devotedly at her command, and her real strength and security consist,
not in the number of her ships or their weight of metal, but in the
education and discipline of her native seamen, whose uncompromising
gallantry has long passed into a proverb. But from this digression we
return to the subject more particularly under notice.
Harrington, it appears, was the hereditary domain of the ancient and
baronial family of that name, the title of which became extinct in 1457.
It was proposed to carry the railway, alluded to in our notice of
Maryport, across the upper part of Harrington, by means of a bridge or
viaduct; but the objections to such a measure, so far as it would affect
the maritime interests of this place are insurmountable. The report of
the committee appointed by the Lords of the Treasury to examine this
subject on the spot is as follows: "The whole extent of this harbour is
only seven hundred and sixty-two feet in length, and two hundred and
twenty in breadth, and as it is used as well for a port of refuge as for
lading, and there is an insufficiency of space for vessels to anchor and
swing in, an artificial beach has been formed at the eastern or upper
end, on which they are enabled to bring up. The proposed viaduct would
cut off about a third of the harbour. This would not only be
objectionable on account of its diminishing the capacity of the port,
but also by its depriving the shipping of the artificial beach to which
we have just alluded. The objection to curtailing the size of the
harbour will be apparent, when we state that the harbour-master supplied
us with a return, verified by the Custom-house officer, by which we find
that in the course of the year, 1839, no fewer than _five hundred and
ten_ vessels used this port; and that during the gales of wind it was
frequently so full that they were in actual contact from side to side.
After well considering this part of the subject, we are of opinion that,
whatever expense or other inconvenience it might cause, it would be
necessary to adopt some other mode of carrying the railway past
Harrington than that proposed."
The population of this port is gradually increasing. The number of
shipping is also increased; and altogether Harrington may be pronounced
as in a flourishing condition. The light now at the pier-head was first
used in 1797, and is always exhibited when there is a depth of eight
feet water in the harbour. It is a fixed light, hoisted upon a mast
forty-four feet above high water, and in clear weather may be seen at
the distance of ten miles at sea.
[Illustration: ALLONBY.]
ALLONBY.
CUMBERLAND.
"Why droops my Flower of Allerdale!
So sad, so pensive, and so pale;
Whence the tear that dims thine eye--
That downcast look and frequent sigh!
The breeze of ALLONBY shall bring
Back to thy cheek the rose of Spring."
The banks of the Solway are much frequented during the summer months by
families from the interior, who resort thither for the benefit of
sea-bathing, to which great importance is attached as a preventive, no
less than a curative, process in the economy of health. Among the
various localities selected for this enjoyment, Allonby bears a
long-established reputation, and is annually resorted to by many
families of distinction and respectability, from both sides of the
Channel, who seek, in the invigorating air of the sea, the pleasures of
social intercourse, and in the delicious walks and drives with which the
coast abounds, the restoration of health or temporary relaxation from
business. Several of the distinguished public characters of the day have
here spent the recesses of Parliament, and found in the tranquillising
atmosphere of Allonby a safe remedy for the enervating influence of the
capital, and the cares and irritations of public life. It was long a
favourite resort of the Scottish gentry, and still maintains a degree of
pre-eminence as an attractive watering-place. The accommodation at the
hotels is excellent, and they are furnished with every convenience for
hot-baths.
Allonby is only five miles from Maryport, and ten from Wigton, and is
flanked by a fine undulating country, celebrated as a field for rural
sports, and industriously cultivated by a numerous and thriving
population. The village itself is small, its permanent inhabitants being
considerably under a thousand, most of whom depend upon the annual
visitors, and a share in the herring-fishery, for the means of life. The
latter, however, has become much less productive than formerly; the
herrings are very capricious in their visits, and, according to
Hutchinson, after continuing the same annual track for ten years, change
their route, and only resume their visit after an interval of ten years.
In this respect, says our authority, they are as regular as the tides
or the vicissitudes of the seasons: but, as annual "customers" for the
net, these savoury visitors are not to be depended upon; and although,
like Owen Glendower, the anxious fisherman may call up "spirits from the
vasty deep," the question is, will they come?
Allonby has the benefit of good assembly-rooms, a reading-room, a free
school, and two other daily schools; and here too that exemplary body of
men--the Quakers--who are numerous and influential in this county, have
a meeting-house. The character of these dissenters from the Established
Church is generally praiseworthy; and in this part of Cumberland, where
they have long been established, their reputation as a moral, peaceable,
and industrious community, is established by the daily evidence of facts
and the testimony of all who have enjoyed their intimate and personal
intercourse. The Society of Friends--such as they are in this
district--bear a closer resemblance to those primitive Christians
secluded among the Alps of Piedmont than to any other religious body
with which we are acquainted.
Allonby enjoys the honour of having given birth, in 1741, to Captain
Joseph Huddart, of the Royal Society, a man of great scientific
acquirements, and eminent as a naval engineer and hydrographer. The
patronage of the chapel founded here by the Rev. Dr. Thomlinson, and
consecrated in the eventful year 1745, is vested in the representatives
of that distinguished churchman. The Gill, a seat of the Reay family;
West Newton, the ancient residence of the Musgraves; Langrigg Hall, the
fortalice of the Barwis family, are among the domestic relics of the
"olden time," which give an interesting character to this district. But,
with the fall of that despotism from which they rose, these feudal
mansions have been left to decay, except in a few instances where the
progress of dilapidation has been arrested by the taste of the
proprietor, and the Border tower of his ancestors preserved as a
landmark to indicate the vast progress which has been effected since
then in all the departments of civilised life. Crookdake Hall,
celebrated as the residence of "the worthy warrior, Adam of Crookdake,"
is now a farm-house; and in the very court, probably, where the knight
and his retainers once donned their mail for the onslaught, or displayed
their booty after a successful raid across the "marches," the spectator
sees only the homely instruments of domestic husbandry, where the sword
is literally "converted to a ploughshare, and the spear to a
pruning-hook."
[Illustration: MARYPORT.]
MARYPORT,
CUMBERLAND.
"Here Solway's silver wave expands;
There Scotia's mountains gleam;
While Skiddaw's giant crest commands
Hill, valley, lake, and stream."
Maryport derives its name from that of a patriotic lady in the
neighbourhood, the wife of Mr. Humphry Senhouse, of Netherhall,[15] who,
in 1750, took a lively interest in the place, and, with the assistance
of her family connexion and the spirited inhabitants of the place,
succeeded in raising it to the distinction of a port town; a title to
which it has added many additional claims within the last ten years. The
original name was Ellenfoot, so called from its situation at the
embouchure of the river Elne with the Solway. It is a chapelry of Cross
Canonby, or Crosby--a parochial village about three miles distant; in
the church, dedicated to St. John, are several ancient monuments of the
Senhouse family, already mentioned, one of whom, Richard Senhouse, was
bishop of Carlisle in 1624.
The commerce of Maryport, according to the last report, is decidedly on
the increase; and the many advantages it possesses for ship-building and
refitting are more and more appreciated by all trading-vessels
frequenting this coast. The exports consist principally of coal for
Scotland and Ireland, which is furnished in great abundance by
collieries in this district, and affords the means of comfortable
subsistence to a hardy race of seamen, who, in the hour of danger, have
often "done the state some service." The importations consist of timber,
flax, and iron, from the Baltic, and various articles of domestic
utility from the opposite coasts. The herring-fishery has hitherto been
prosecuted with great success; upwards of twenty boats were lately
engaged in this enterprise. In winter, the boat-crews are employed in
the taking of cod-fish, which is here caught in great abundance, and
finds a ready sale on the market-days of Tuesday and Friday. The river
Ellen, or Elne, affords no inconsiderable supply of salmon-trout during
the season; and as the daily steam-vessels running between Carlisle,
the Scottish coast, and Liverpool, generally touch at Maryport for the
convenience of passengers, there is a constant air of bustle and
activity about the pier that renders the place very agreeable as a
sojourn in the summer months. The view across the Frith is one of the
finest on the coast, and the inland scenery is proverbially beautiful.
It is only six miles from Cockermouth; and is further enlivened by the
continual traffic along the great coast-road which connects it with
Carlisle on the east, and with Workington and Whitehaven on the west.
The county of Cumberland abounds in vestiges of Roman domination, and to
the eye of the antiquary presents a fertile field of investigation. Of
all these, however, the Roman wall is the most remarkable. It was built
by the Emperor Adrian early in the second century, as a barrier against
the Caledonians, and extended across the whole island from sea to sea.
Its length was one hundred miles, and its breadth six feet, by twelve in
height. In its course it had twenty-five strong castles, planted at
regular distances; the foundations of which, as well as of the wall
itself, can still be traced, and in some places present a solid mass of
several feet above the ground. Besides these there are also Roman,
Danish, or Saxon encampments, in various parts of the county, as well as
ancient Roman and British causeways, and several remains of Druidical
circles.
The great store of antiquarian treasure lies, however, at a short walk
from Maryport, where the Romans have left abundant proofs of their long
sojourn on the banks of the Solway. The character of the present work,
however, does not permit our enlarging on this subject; but to all those
who visit Allonby or Maryport during the summer, and have a taste for
antiquarian lore, the scene thus briefly adverted to will furnish a
source of many classical reminiscences.
[15] Netherhall, the seat of Humphry Senhouse, Esq., contains a fine
collection of Roman antiquities, found at Ellenborough. It was visited,
so far back as 1599, by Sir Robert Cotton and his friend Camden.
[Illustration: MARY-PORT PIER.
Dedicated to the Rev. Humphrey Archer Hervey, Vicar of Bridekirk.]
MARYPORT PIER.
The subject of our engraving is a scene but too often visible on our
coasts, and by no means peculiar to Maryport. The storm is evidently
exhausting its fury upon the Pier and Lighthouse in vain, they are
destined to sustain the shock of many such rude assaults, and to afford
that shelter and warning to mariners so requisite in the hour of Ocean's
rage. The coast of Cumberland is at all times of the year rough and
inhospitable to the sailor; but at the equinoxes, especially the
autumnal one, its dangers are more imminent; and the trading vessels in
the Solway Frith and Irish Channel, are exposed to serious risk. Owing
to the numerous shoals and sand-banks lying at various points, the
navigation is at all times intricate; and even to those best acquainted
with its peculiarities, the passage from Ireland is frequently attended
with greater hazard than many longer voyages.
The Town of Maryport is the subject of another view, and in the notice
accompanying it will be found such particulars as we could glean in
connection with this small but bustling port. The Pier itself, though
well adapted for the purposes of illustration, is not a subject upon
which we can profitably occupy the reader's attention; we shall,
therefore, avail ourselves of the opportunity thus afforded us to say a
few words upon one of the finest of the English lakes, situated within a
few miles of Maryport, and a visit to which is a favourite excursion
with its inhabitants and visitors. It is to the far-famed Derwent Water
that we allude. It occupies a beautiful valley, surrounded by romantic
mountains; its shores and islands, covered with luxurious wood, and
towards Keswick its northern extremity opening to a spacious and fertile
plain. The mountains on the eastern side of the lake are finely broken,
in some places presenting precipices mingled with copse-wood and
verdure; the chasms of the rocks discharging a great many streams in
beautiful falls. The mountains on the western side of Derwent Water are
more regular in their forms, generally verdant, and adorned with a
profusion of wood near the water's edge. At the southern extremity of
the lake, three miles from the town, is Lowdore waterfall, the height of
which is said to be not less than 200 feet. It is a very considerable
stream, rushing through an immense chasm, and bounding over huge blocks
of stone, with which the channel is filled. Near the fall is Gowdar
Crag and Shepherd's Crag, constituting one of the finest scenes amongst
the lakes.
The manor of Derwentwater belonged to a family which derived their name
from it. In the reign of Henry VI., the heiress of Sir John de
Derwentwater married Sir Nicholas Radcliffe, of Dilston, in
Northumberland, whose descendant, Sir Francis Radcliffe, was created by
King James II. Earl of Derwentwater, &c. James, the second earl, having
been engaged in the rebellion of 1715, was beheaded on Tower-hill; and
the Derwentwater estates, becoming forfeited to the Crown, were granted
to Greenwich Hospital, by Act of Parliament. Lords' Island, in the lake,
was the residence of the earls.
The beautiful scenery of Derwent Water, said to be about ten miles in
circumference, has often been described. St. Herbert's Island is named
from a hermitage dedicated to that saint. Vicar's Island formerly
belonged to Fountain's Abbey. Rampsholm, a small island, is covered with
wood. The fish in greatest estimation in the lake is a sort of salmon
trout. The celebrated mountain Skiddaw, in this vicinity, said to be
about 3036 feet in height, extends to several townships; that part which
is in Crossthwaite parish is within the townships of Under Skiddaw and
Crossthwaite, and comprises the manor of Brundholm. The mountain is easy
of access; and, standing in some measure detached, the view from the
summit, particularly to the north and west, is not intercepted by other
mountains: it comprehends the principal part of the county, including
the coast from St. Bees Head to the head of Solway Frith, with its
several bays and promontories, the Isle of Man, and a considerable
portion of the southern part of Scotland. The summit of
Ingleborough-hill, in Yorkshire, may be seen over the range of hills
bounding the head of Ullswater; and a glimpse of the sea near Lancaster
is obtained through the gap of Dunmel Raise. Derwent Water and
Bassenthwaite lake are the only lakes seen, and but one of these from
the summit. The views from the neighbouring mountains may exceed in
grandeur the view from the summit of this, but in no other ascent are
the prospects equalled, which unfold themselves when overlooking the
lake and vale of Keswick, with Borrowdale and Newlands mountains.
[Illustration: WORKINGTON.
(Cumberland.)]
WORKINGTON,
CUMBERLAND.
When MARY lost the Scottish throne
And saw the Stuarts' sceptre fall,
She fled--but found in Workington
A friend and hospitable hall.
The town and harbour of Workington is situated on the south bank of the
Derwent, near its entrance to the Irish sea; it is about seven miles
north of Whitehaven, and thirty-four south of Carlisle. It is divided
into the upper and lower towns. Leland, in his venerable _Itinerary_,
describes "Wyrkenton" as "a lytle prety fyssher-town;" and in his day,
indeed, most of the maritime stations on this coast, which have
subsequently risen into importance, were nothing more than "pretty
little fisher-towns." It is also noticed by Camden as distinguished for
its salmon-fishery, owing to its favourable position at the mouth of the
river Derwent, whose scenery holds so distinguished a place in the
poetry of the Lakes.