EARTHWORKS, MOUNDS, BARROWS, ETC.
1. There are still remaining, in many parts of the country, curious
mounds and stones. We can say very little about them here; but though
learned men have discovered much, there is still a good deal to
be explained concerning them. Old-world stories put most of these
strange objects down to the work of witches, fairies, or giants; some
ascribe them to the Romans, or to Oliver Cromwell; others even to the
devil. But most of them really belong to this period of which we are
speaking--the very early part of our history, of which there is no
written record.
2. =Earthworks= are of many kinds, but the very earliest are usually
found on hilltops. There are some which enclose considerable spaces of
ground, bounded by an earthen rampart, with a ditch outside. Sometimes
there are two such ramparts. Frequently they are spoken of as =British
Towns= or =British Camps=. They appear to have been enclosures into
which the cattle were driven in time of danger, and in which a whole
tribe could take refuge and hold out against their enemies.
3. Then there are big mounds or heaps, called =Barrows=. Some of these
are oval in shape, and are called =Long Barrows=; others are round, and
are called =Round Barrows=. The Long Barrows are thought to be the
older kind, and were apparently the burial-places of great leaders. The
Round Barrows were also burial-places; but those who raised them burned
their dead. The great pyramids of Egypt are barrows, only they are made
of stone, not of earth.
[Illustration: Round Barrow]
[Illustration: Long Barrow]
[Illustration: Twin Barrow]
4. The =circles of stones= at Stonehenge and Avebury seem to have been
connected with the worship of these early people. There are many single
stones, especially in Cornwall and Wales, which also seem to have
been connected with religious rites; but of this we know nothing for
certain. In later times they have served as boundary marks.
[Illustration: White Horse Hill]
5. In various parts of England there are deep lanes or cuttings, which
have received curious local names. There are no less than twenty-two
such cuttings in different parts of England all known as =Grim's
Ditch=. These, no doubt, formed boundaries, separating various tribes.
6. The =White Horse=, cut out of the slope of Uffington Hill, and
several similar objects in Wiltshire, as well as the crosses--also cut
in the turf--at Whiteleaf and Bledlow, may also belong to this period.
Some learned men, however, have thought that they are of a later date.
7. From these early men then the =Ancient Britons= appear to have
descended, and they were settled here a good many centuries before the
coming of the Romans. Many of the wild tales and legends, still told in
country villages, about giants and fairies, have come down to us from
these early times.
=Summary.=--There are many curious mounds and stones, about which
wild tales are told. _Earthworks_ are of various kinds. Those
enclosed by an earthen wall or rampart are often called British
towns or camps. They were places of refuge. There are two kinds
of _mounds_, called Long Barrows and Round Barrows. Both were
burial-places. The Long Barrows belonged to the older race. _Stone
circles_, like those at Stonehenge and Avebury, had something to
do with worship, and there are many stones in Cornwall and Devon
which most likely were put to the same use. There are twenty-two
old trackway boundaries in England all called Grim's Ditch. The
_White Horse_ and several other cuttings in the turf possibly
belong to this same period. The old legends and tales about all
these are worth keeping in mind, though at present we do not
understand them.