Title: The Ports, Harbours, Watering-places and Picturesque Scenery of Great Britain Vol. 1
Author: Finden, William
Language: English
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*** Start of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "The Ports, Harbours, Watering-places and Picturesque Scenery of Great Britain Vol. 1" ***


FINDEN'S VIEWS

_OF THE_

PORTS, HARBOURS & WATERING PLACES

_OF_

GREAT BRITAIN,

Continued by

W. H. BARTLETT.

       *       *       *       *       *

[Illustration: TYNEMOUTH PRIORY AND LIGHT-HOUSE.

_THE LIFE-BOAT_]


       *       *       *       *       *


THE

PORTS, HARBOURS, WATERING-PLACES,

And Picturesque Scenery

OF

GREAT BRITAIN.

ILLUSTRATED BY VIEWS TAKEN ON THE SPOT,

BY

W. H. BARTLETT, J. D. HARDING, T. CRESWICK,

AND OTHERS.

       *       *       *       *       *

WITH DESCRIPTIONS, HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL.

       *       *       *       *       *

VOL. I.

VIRTUE AND CO., LIMITED, CITY ROAD AND IVY LANE, LONDON.



LIST OF PLATES.

    The arrangement adopted in this List is that of starting from
    the metropolis, and following the line of the Eastern coast of
    Great Britain as far northward as Banff, and then returning
    westward to the River Thames. But as the description of each
    plate is complete in a single leaf, and there is not any series
    of folios, the order can be varied at the taste of the
    purchaser, if directions to that effect be given to the binder.


VOLUME I.


FRONTISPIECE--LONDON, SOUTHWARK, AND BLACKFRIARS BRIDGES.

VIGNETTE--TYNEMOUTH PRIORY AND LIGHTHOUSE, WITH LIFE-BOAT.

HARWICH.

YARMOUTH, NORFOLK.

--------- WITH THE QUAY AND SHIPPING.

--------- WITH NELSON'S PILLAR.

CROMER, NORFOLK.

HULL--KINGSTON-ON-HULL.

BURLINGTON QUAY.

FLAMBOROUGH-HEAD, WITH THE LIGHTHOUSE.

SCARBOROUGH, WITH THE HARBOUR, CASTLE, &c.

WHITBY, WITH MONASTIC RUINS.

------- FROM THE NORTH-WEST.

ROBIN HOOD'S BAY, YORKSHIRE.

HARTLEPOOL.

SUNDERLAND, WITH THE LIGHTHOUSE, SOUTH PIER.

----------- THE BRIDGE FROM THE WEST.

SHIELDS, ENTRANCE TO THE HARBOUR.

NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, TOWN AND HARBOUR.

BLYTH, NEAR THE HARBOUR.

TYNEMOUTH CASTLE, WITH VESSEL ON THE ROCKS.

CULLERCOATS.

DUNSTANBOROUGH CASTLE, FROM THE EAST.

---------------------- BY MOONLIGHT.

BAMBOROUGH CASTLE, FROM THE SOUTH-EAST.

------------------ FROM THE NORTH-WEST.

CASTLE OF HOLY ISLAND AND ABBEY OF LINDISFARN.

--------------------- FROM THE WESTWARD.

BERWICK FROM THE SOUTH-EAST.

LEITH, WITH THE DOCKS, AND EDINBURGH IN THE DISTANCE.

NEWHAVEN, WITH THE PIERS, EDINBURGH.

DUNDEE, ENTRANCE TO THE PORT.

------- FROM THE FIFE SIDE OF THE TAY.

ABBEY OF ARBROATH.

MONTROSE, WITH THE HARBOUR AND CHAIN-BRIDGE.

DUNNOTTAR CASTLE, NEAR STONEHAVEN.

STONEHAVEN, WITH THE TOWN AND HARBOUR.

ABERDEEN, ENTRANCE TO THE HARBOUR.

--------- FROM ABOVE THE CHAIN-BRIDGE.

--------- THE LIGHTHOUSE.

SLAINES CASTLE, SEAT OF THE EARL OF ERROLL.

BULLERS OF BUCHAN.

PETERHEAD, TOWN, HARBOUR, AND LIGHTHOUSE.

MACDUFF, TOWN AND HARBOUR.

BANFF.

PORT-GLASGOW, WITH THE PIER AND DOCKS.

GREENOCK, WITH THE CUSTOM-HOUSE.

BROOMIELAW, WITH THE NEW BRIDGE, GLASGOW.

THE SOLWAY, VIEW ACROSS THE FRITH.

ALLONBY, WATERING-PLACE, WITH FISHING-BOATS.

MARYPORT, TOWN AND HARBOUR, ENGLISH COAST.

MARYPORT-PIER, IN A STORM.

WORKINGTON, CUMBERLAND.

WHITEHAVEN, CUMBERLAND.

----------- THE HARBOUR.

ST. BEES' COLLEGE, WITH THE VILLAGE.

ST. BEES' HEAD AND LIGHTHOUSE.

FLEETWOOD-ON-WYRE.

BLACKPOOL, WATERING-PLACE.

BLACKPOOL SANDS.

LYTHAM, LANCASHIRE.

SOUTHPORT SANDS, LANCASHIRE.



THE

PORTS AND HARBOURS

OF

GREAT BRITAIN.



TYNEMOUTH LIGHTHOUSE AND PRIORY.


Our present engraving is a view of Tynemouth Lighthouse and Priory, with
the life-boat in the act of saving the crew of a vessel, which has
struck upon the rocks at the foot of the cliff on which the lighthouse
is built. This incident, so effectively and appropriately introduced by
the artist, Balmer, who has frequently witnessed the scene which he has
depicted, is peculiarly characteristic of the neighbourhood of
Tynemouth; for, in consequence of the danger of the entrance to Shields
Harbour in stormy weather, with the wind from the eastward, more vessels
are there lost than at the entrance of any other harbour in Great
Britain; and in no part of the kingdom has the value of the life-boat
been more frequently experienced.

The view is taken from the entrance to Shields Harbour, about half a
mile to the south-west of the lighthouse, which is seen rising from
behind the extremity of the cliff which overlooks the entrance to
Prior's Haven. Towards the centre of the land view are the ruins of
Tynemouth Priory; while farther to the left, in the same distance, is
seen the castle, now modernised and occupied as a garrison. The
fore-ground to the left is the bank which forms the south-western
boundary of Prior's Haven; and the rocks which are seen at its foot are
a portion of the formidable _Black Middens_, which lie on the north side
of the entrance to the harbour.

The principal feature of the engraving under observation is the view of
the life-boat, which is introduced with a thorough knowledge of the
subject, and with a feeling and a character of truth which mere
imagination can never inspire. The downward plunge of a boat's bows
among broken water, while her stern is at the same time elevated by a
slanting wave, was never more happily represented. A person who has been
at sea, may almost fancy that he hears the resounding dash of the water
against the curved bow, and the seething of the angry wave as it rises
on each side. The idea of motion is admirably conveyed in the
representation of the wave lashing over the floating mast, which is
tossed about like a light spar by the violence of the sea; and the
continued inward roll of the water, from the side and bow of the boat
towards the shore, is no less naturally expressed.

Part of the life-boat's crew, with most of the oars double-manned, are
seen "giving way," with strenuous efforts, through the breakers, while
others are endeavouring to save the shipwrecked seamen; and one of the
men at the steer-oar appears to be encouraging the sailor who clings to
the floating mast. The position of the boat, with her stem towards the
harbour, and the shipwrecked men seated towards her stern, indicate that
she is returning from the vessel, the top of whose masts are seen, and
that she is now endeavouring to save such men as were washed overboard
when the vessel sunk. The flying of the spray declares the loudness of
the wind; and though a cheering glimpse of sunshine appears to illumine
the land, yet the dark cloud, which seems to rest upon the waters to the
right, sufficiently informs us of the gloominess of the prospect when
looking towards the sea.

In consequence of a bar of sand, which stretches across the mouth of the
Tyne, where the outward current of the river at ebb tide is met by the
inward roll of the sea; and from the Herd Sand on the south, and the
Black Middens on the north, the entrance to Shields Harbour is attended
with great danger when the wind is blowing hard from the eastward and a
heavy sea running. In crossing the bar, at such a time, a loaden ship,
with rather a heavy draught of water, will sometimes strike, and unship
her rudder; and a light one, in consequence of being struck by a heavy
sea will sometimes broach to. A vessel thus rendered unmanageable, is
almost certain, with the wind from the north-east and a flood tide, to
be driven on the Herd Sand; and, should the wind be blowing strong from
the south-east, she is extremely liable to be thrown either on the Black
Middens or on the rocks at the foot of Tynemouth Castle; more especially
in attempting to gain the harbour after the tide has begun to ebb. In
the latter case, when vessels have been too late to save tide and are
land-locked, and when it may seem less hazardous to attempt to pass the
bar than to bring up, with evening approaching, on a lee shore, the
danger of being wrecked on the rocks to the northward is more especially
imminent.



LONDON:

THE BRIDGES OF LONDON, SOUTHWARK, AND BLACKFRIARS, FROM THE SURREY SIDE.


    "O could I flow like thee, and make thy stream
    My great example as it is my theme;
    Though deep, yet buoyant,--gentle, yet not dull,--
    Strong, without rage,--without o'erflowing, full."

        DENHAM.


The New London Bridge, which forms so striking a feature in this View,
is justly considered the finest specimen of bridge-building in Europe.
It is alike the admiration of strangers and natives, and unites in the
highest degree the useful and ornamental--elegance of design with
solidity of structure. The first pile of this superb structure was
driven on the 15th of March, 1824; and on the 27th of April, the
following year, the first stone was laid by his Royal Highness the Duke
of York, attended by the Lord Mayor, a distinguished party of noblemen,
gentlemen, and citizens, and a great concourse of strangers, who had
assembled to witness the imposing ceremony. The contracts amounted to
five hundred and six thousand pounds, but the total expenditure more
than trebled that sum. The clear water-way is six hundred and ninety
feet out of seven hundred and eighty-two--the actual width. The
carriage-way is thirty-five feet wide, and the foot-paths nine feet
each. The central arch, of the five of which it consists, is one hundred
and fifty-two feet in span--one of the largest ever known--it is
twenty-nine feet and a half in height; and there is no _weir_, or fall,
as in the Old London Bridge. We are thus particular in the measurements
that the reader may more readily comprehend the magnificent scale upon
which this great national structure has been finished; and it may be an
additional facility to this purpose to state, that of granite alone one
hundred and twenty thousand tons were consumed in the building.

After six years of incessant labour, it was happily brought to a
successful termination under the direction of the late John Rennie,
Esq., of whose genius as an architect it is a splendid monument. The
opening of the bridge took place on the 1st of August, 1831, and gave
occasion to a magnificent festival, which was honoured with the presence
of his late Majesty William the Fourth and Queen Adelaide, the Lord
Mayor, and all most remarkable for rank and station who were at that
time in London. The ceremony was of the most gorgeous and gratifying
description; and the water-pageant which accompanied it was the finest
ever remembered on the Thames. The bridge was lined with tents and
marquees, from which proudly floated the national standard, with
numerous flags of societies and corporations, which gave the whole a
strikingly gala-like effect. Under these a superb _déjeûner_, consisting
of all the luxuries of the season, was served to the numerous assembly;
and, to give additional novelty to the scene, Mr. C. Green, the
celebrated aëronaut, ascended from the bridge in his balloon, much to
the gratification of the spectators.

Immediately adjoining the Bridge, on the right, is the Steam-packet
Wharf, which, from the constant landing and embarkation of passengers to
and from all parts of the river, is a scene of uninterrupted stir and
animation. On the left are the Bridges of Southwark and Blackfriars,
with the magnificent Cathedral of St. Paul's in the centre of the
picture.

The Monument (a conspicuous object on the right hand of the engraving)
is a magnificent pillar, erected to commemorate the great fire of the
city of London, in 1666, on the spot where it first began. It is of the
fluted Doric order, and the material employed in its erection is
Portland-stone of the best quality. It is one of the boldest specimens
of the kind ever attempted, being two hundred and two feet in height,
and fifteen in diameter, and stands on a pedestal forty feet high and
twenty-one feet square; and within the shaft is a spiral staircase,
consisting of three hundred and forty-five steps, formed of black
marble. It was begun in 1671, but not completed till seven years after,
as the great demand for stone in the restoration of London and the
Cathedral of St. Paul's absorbed nearly all that the Portland quarries
could furnish. Mr. Elmes, in his _Life of Sir Christopher Wren_, informs
us that the Monument was at first used by the members of the Royal
Society for astronomical experiments; but was abandoned on account of
its vibrations being too great for the nicety required in their
observations. This occasioned a report--extensively circulated at one
time--that it was unsafe; but its sound foundation and scientific
construction may bid defiance to all attacks, but those of earthquakes,
for centuries to come.

This View of the Metropolis, from Southwark, is exceedingly grand and
impressive, and presents a faithful picture of the every-day scenes
which are here passing before the eyes of the spectator--dazzling his
eye, and filling his mind with those images of unbounded wealth, power,
and magnificence, of which there is no precedent in ancient or modern
history.



[Illustration: HARWICH.

_ESSEX._]



HARWICH.


Harwich is in the county of Essex, and lies on the south side of the
estuary formed by the confluence of the Stour and the Orwell, about
sixty-two miles to the north-eastward of London. The view in the
engraving is taken from the southward, and comprises three of the most
conspicuous objects in the town--the church, which is of modern
erection, and the upper and the lower light-houses. In the distance, to
the right, is perceived Landguard Fort, which lies on the Suffolk shore,
on the opposite side of the channel.

In 1318, Harwich was incorporated by Edward II., at the request of his
brother, Thomas de Brotherton, Earl of Norfolk. In 1347, the town
supplied 14 ships and 183 mariners to the grand fleet of Edward III.;
and in the 17th and 18th years of that king's reign, Harwich returned
two members to Parliament; but the exercise of this privilege was
discontinued till 1616, when it was restored by James I.

The trade of Harwich never appears to have been extensive; and its
prosperity seems to have greatly depended on the Post-office packets,
which formerly used to sail from the place with passengers and letters
for the northern parts of Europe. The introduction of steam-packets has,
however, rendered Harwich a place of no further importance as a
packet-station, and for several years past the town has been in a
declining state. The fishery, which formerly contributed to the
prosperity of the place, has greatly diminished since the commencement
of the present century. Harwich is the only harbour between Yarmouth
Roads and the mouth of the Thames that is capable of affording refuge,
in gales of wind from the eastward, to vessels navigating the eastern
coast. During the prevalence of strong north-east winds, sometimes from
200 to 300 light colliers, and other vessels proceeding northward, are
to be seen anchored in the harbour.

On the south of the town a cliff divides Orwell Haven from the bay, that
extends to Walton-on-Naze. This cliff is observed to be constantly
giving way to the action of the sea, which, it is expected, will at some
future period force a passage to the opposite shore, and insulate
Harwich and its vicinity. The cliff contains many acres of land, and its
greatest height is about fifty feet. At the bottom, a bed of clay, of a
bluish colour, about one foot thick, is succeeded by a bed of stone of
nearly the same colour and thickness. Within the latter, shells and
petrifactions, of various descriptions, have been found embedded. Above
the stone are several beds of clay similar to that under the stone,
rising to more than twenty feet. This clay, on exposure to the air,
hardens into stone, and the streets of Harwich are paved with it. The
town walls were formed of this material, as were also the castles of
Orford and Framlingham.

During the fashionable season the town is visited for sea-bathing, and
excellent accommodations are now provided, bathing-machines having been
introduced, and the private baths rendered most convenient. They stand
in a large reservoir of sea water, which is changed at every tide, and
supplied with fresh water every hour, by a contrivance on the principle
of a natural syphon. In some of these baths, the water is made hot for
invalids, who, if they have neither strength nor courage to plunge
themselves into the water, are assisted with a chair. There are also
vapour baths, and machinery to throw the sea water, either hot or cold,
on any part of the body.

There is a delightful walk, called "the Lawn," much frequented in fine
weather as a promenade; and not far distant from it is the Beacon Cliff,
on which were formerly the signal-house and telegraph, which were, some
time ago, destroyed by the encroachments of the sea. This eminence
commands a grand, interesting, and extensive prospect. Parties are also
frequently made by the visitors for sailing or steaming up the Orwell
and Stour, and making excursions on the bosom of the ocean. The scenery
of the Orwell possesses peculiar interest, the banks being studded with
elegant villas and pleasure grounds.



[Illustration: YARMOUTH.

_NORFOLK._]



YARMOUTH.


Yarmouth, in the county of Norfolk, sometimes called Great Yarmouth, to
distinguish it from Yarmouth in the Isle of Wight, lies about 123 miles
north-east of London, and about twenty-four to the eastward of Norwich.
In the Vignette Engraving, from a beautiful painting by E. W. Cooke, the
view is taken from the shore a little to the northward of the Jetty,
which is seen extending into the sea. Nearly in the centre of the
engraving is seen the column erected by the county of Norfolk to the
memory of Nelson; and to the right are perceived several _look-outs_,
like so many elevated scaffolds, from which, as the shore is very low,
the pilots are enabled to take a wider survey when looking out for ships
which may require their assistance.

The name of Yarmouth obviously alludes to the situation of the town near
the mouth of the river Yare; the word Yare, according to Druery, in his
_Historical Notices of Great Yarmouth_, is derived from the Celtic
_Iar_, dark, supposed to have been given to this river from the dark
colour of its waters. According to Sir Henry Spelman, the ground on
which Yarmouth stands became firm and habitable in the year 1008, from
the recession of the sea, and the accumulation of the sands. If this
account be correct, it would appear that the town began to be built
almost immediately afterwards; for in the _Domesday-book_, which was
compiled between 1080 and 1086, the place is mentioned, with the usual
carelessness of the Norman scribes, by the name of Cernemude; and the
entry further records that the place had been held by King Edward [the
Confessor], and that it "always had seventy burgesses."

In 1208, Yarmouth received a charter of incorporation from King John;
and the privileges of the town were confirmed and enlarged by several
succeeding kings. In 1228, in the reign of Henry III., Yarmouth had
become a considerable port, both for the importation and exportation of
merchandize; and in a charter of Edward I., granted in 1306, it is
especially mentioned as a place where fishing-vessels, from an early
period, had been accustomed to land the herrings which they caught
during the season of the fishery. In 1347, Yarmouth supplied 43 ships
and 1,095 mariners to the grand fleet of Edward III. and in 1349, the
town was visited by a dreadful plague, which carried off seven thousand
of the inhabitants. In the 31st of Edward III., an act was passed
regulating the annual herring fair at Yarmouth, and appointing it to be
governed by the barons of the Cinque Ports, according to the composition
made between them and the inhabitants of the town in the reign of Edward
I., the king's grandfather. One William Beukelem, of Biervliet, in
Flanders, who died in 1397, according to Anderson, in his _History of
Commerce_, is said to have been the inventor of the method of pickling
herrings: but this cannot be correct; for though he may have introduced
some improvements in the mode of cleaning and barrelling the fish, the
inhabitants of Yarmouth and other places on the eastern coast were
accustomed both to pickle and smoke herrings long previous to the time
when the practice is said to have been introduced by Beukelem. Yarmouth
is still the principal place of resort on the eastern coast of England
for vessels engaged in the herring fishery, which there commences about
the 21st September, and concludes about the 14th December. Most of the
Yorkshire five-man boats come to Yarmouth in the herring season, and
make their fishery from that place, disposing of all the herrings which
they catch to curers who live in the town.

The quay at Yarmouth is one of the longest and most spacious of any in
the kingdom; but from the shallowness of the entrance of the harbour,
there being only fourteen feet of water on the bar at spring tides, the
trade of the place is chiefly carried on in small vessels. It is high
water in Yarmouth Roads at forty minutes past eight, and at Yarmouth
Sands at thirty minutes past ten, on the full and change of the moon.

The column erected to the memory of Nelson stands on the low sandy flat,
called the Denes, to the south of the town. Its total height, including
the basement and the figure of Britannia at the top, is 144 feet, and it
is ascended by a staircase consisting of 217 steps. It forms a
conspicuous object when seen from the sea; and to the crews of vessels
passing through Yarmouth Roads it is a proud memento of Nelson's fame
and the naval glory of their country.

    "O England!--dearer far than life is dear,
      If I forget thy prowess, never more
    Be thy ungrateful son allowed to hear
      Thy green leaves rustle, or thy torrents roar!"



[Illustration: THE QUAY, YARMOUTH.]



YARMOUTH QUAY.


    'Twas from the "craft of sail and oar"
    That states and kingdoms sprang of yore;
    When Commerce ceased to woo the wind,
    Their wealth decreased--their power declin'd--
    Then, thou who lov'st thy native shore,
    Pray Heaven to bless "the sail and oar!"

The subject of the annexed View, representing the Quay at Yarmouth,
conveys a faithful idea of that interesting and important locality. It
is considered by competent judges as the finest quay in England, and in
point of length exceeds every other in the United Kingdom. It is one
hundred and fifty yards in breadth, contains in its centre a delightful
promenade--planted on each side with trees, protected from the east wind
by a row of handsome and well-built houses--and presents in all its
aspects a striking combination of commercial activity and ornamental
beauty. To the elegant Town Hall, which occupies the centre of this
space, and to other public buildings, we have briefly alluded elsewhere.
As a grand panorama of commercial life, it would be difficult to point
out a finer scene than what is every day presented on the Quay at
Yarmouth. Its principal foreign connexion is with the Baltic; and its
trade in coal, corn, and other merchandise, coastwise, is very
extensive. By means of the navigable rivers Yare, Waveny, and Bure, it
possesses great facilities of intercourse with the interior of the
county.

In Yarmouth Roads--so renowned for the safe riding they afford to
shipping--the anchorage is extensive, and there is room for any number
of ships. The Roadstead, however, is better calculated for summer than
winter, for to large vessels it is only accessible in the daytime with
safety.

The trade for which Yarmouth is peculiarly noted is its fisheries, which
are an unfailing source of wealth and employment to the inhabitants, and
have proved an invaluable nursery for those hardy and gallant seamen who
have so often fought and conquered in the battles of their country. The
mackarel[1] fishery begins in the end of April, and ends in the
beginning of July. The herring[2] fishery commences at Michaelmas, and
continues till the end of November; during that interval, it affords
constant employment to sixteen hundred fishermen, besides six or seven
hundred men and women who are engaged in the curing-houses.[3] In
addition to all these, many others are occupied in the various
manufactures connected with the fishery--in the preparation of nets,
rope, twine, baskets, coopering, &c.

The number of registered vessels belonging to the Port of Yarmouth is
about six hundred, exclusive of fishing-smacks and other small craft.
Ship-building is carried on to a great extent; and the artificers in the
various departments of the building-yards are considered eminently
skilful. There are several private bonding-warehouses, besides that on
the South Denes belonging to the Custom-house. On the North Denes are
the silk-mills of Messrs. Grout and Co.; and on Cobham Island are
considerable salt-works for the use of the town and fisheries. At South
Town, or Little Yarmouth, the banks of the Yare--besides the handsome
houses by which they are lined on the south--are occupied by docks,
timber-wharfs, and shipbuilding-yards, in which a large proportion of
the vessels belonging to Yarmouth are constructed and fitted out for
sea.

[1] Mackarel is found in large shoals, especially on the French and
English coasts. This fish enters the English Channel in April, and, as
the summer advances, is found on the coasts of Cornwall, Sussex,
Normandy, Picardy, &c., where the fishing is most considerable.

[2] Herrings are also remarkable as appearing in immense shoals--many
miles in extent, and several fathoms in depth. Their presence is easily
discovered by the flights of sea-fowl which accompany them, by the
unctuous matter with which the water is covered, and in the night by the
brilliant phosphoric light which they emit. They are very plentiful
about the Orkney Isles in June and July, in the German Ocean in
September and October, and in the English Channel in November and
December.

[3] The London fishmongers are said to prefer the Lowestoff herrings to
those cured at Yarmouth, although they are generally retailed under the
name of "Yarmouth Herrings."



[Illustration: YARMOUTH, WITH NELSON'S MONUMENT.

(from the Lowestoft Road.)]



YARMOUTH, WITH NELSON'S PILLAR,

(FROM THE LOWESTOFT ROAD).


    "A fertile soil, a fruitful sea,
    And wealth amassed by Industry;
    And patriot virtues that sustain
    Their 'Meteor-flag' on land and main;
    A scene where Nelson's gallant name
    Is 'watch-word' to immortal fame:
    And here,--with grateful triumph crown'd,--
    Imparts a charm to all around."

        YARMOUTH PILLAR.

Yarmouth, as a market-town and sea-port, enjoys many natural advantages;
and, aided by the public spirit of its inhabitants and a train of
successful enterprise, has long enjoyed a well-merited distinction in
the chart of the British Empire. It is a borough, both corporate and
parliamentary, situated at the eastern extremity of the county, near the
mouth of the river Yare, from which it derives its name, and which is
navigable as far as Norwich. Joined by its tributaries, the Waveney and
Bure, a short distance to the west of the town, in a fine sheet of water
called the Breydon, it proceeds in a copious stream to the sea. The
Waveney and the Bure are both navigable rivers--the former as far as
Bungay, and the latter to Aylsham.

The town, extending upwards of a mile along the river, from north to
south, occupies an area of at least a hundred and thirty acres. On the
western side it is bounded by the river, over which there is a handsome
drawbridge, communicating with South Town or Little Yarmouth, one of its
populous suburbs, where extensive business is carried on. The principal
streets, running north and south--Regent-street and South-street
excepted--are all indicative of the stir and animation which pervade
every place of trade, and evince in their construction both taste and
comfort, with an occasional air of the picturesque. The market-place of
Yarmouth is extensive, covering an area of nearly three acres, and
inclosed on the west side with a range of handsome and well-furnished
shops.

Among the public edifices of Yarmouth, which merit especial notice, is
the Town Hall, which stands near the centre of the quay. It is an
elegant modern structure, with a portico admirably proportioned, and
supported by pillars of the Tuscan order. The interior consists of a
noble room, finely designed and ornamented, with a richly embossed
ceiling in stucco, from which are suspended three massive and superbly
cut lustres, containing seventy-six lights, which are used on festive
nights, when, with permission from the mayor, public assemblies are held
within its walls. Over the chimney-piece is a full-length portrait of
George III., in which is preserved a faithful resemblance of that
sovereign. The theatre, erected about sixty years ago, and the
bathing-establishment, with a spacious public room adjoining, where the
company are supplied with refreshments, are among the other places of
public resort. A jetty, twenty-four feet wide, secured by a strong
railing, and extending four hundred and fifty-six feet into the sea, on
piles of wood, forms a delightful promenade, where health of body and
exhilaration of mind may be greatly promoted by the salubrious sea
breezes by which it is constantly visited. Near this, and commanding a
magnificent view over the German Ocean, the stranger is particularly
struck with the appearance of a marine villa, which harmonises admirably
with the scene.

At a short distance from the pier is a noble pile of buildings,
belonging to the barrack department and erected on a portion of the
South Denes. In the centre of the latter rises the triumphal Pillar,
which forms so striking a feature in the landscape, and awakens so many
proud and heroic associations in the heart of the spectator. This
monument, raised to commemorate in his native county the services of the
immortal NELSON, is worthy of the virtue and valour it was designed to
celebrate. It was erected in 1817, by W. Wilkins, Esq. Both in the
design and execution great solicitude was evinced by the public that a
monument, bearing the name of the greatest of our Naval Heroes, should
present everything that classical taste and national gratitude could
suggest--and in this respect his countrymen have been fully gratified.
It is of the Doric order, fluted and ornamented with appropriate
decorations and title-inscriptions--illustrating the Hero's most
celebrated battles--and surmounted with a ball and an exquisitely cast
figure of Britannia, supporting her trident and laurel wreath. The
ascent is by an easy flight of two hundred and seventeen steps, and the
whole is built of white Scottish marble. Its height from the ground is
one hundred and forty-four feet; the diameter of the column or shaft is
twelve feet six inches; and the pedestal is twenty-three feet square by
twenty-seven feet in height.



[Illustration: CROMER.]



CROMER.


Cromer is a fishing village, situated near the north-eastern extremity
of the county of Norfolk. It lies about 129 miles north-north-east of
London, and about 22 miles nearly due north of Norwich. The view in the
engraving is taken from the sands, looking to the westward. Some years
ago, part of the cliff, with two or three houses beyond those which are
now seen standing on its extremity, fell down in consequence of the
encroachments of the sea. At that time a subscription was entered into
by the inhabitants of the place, and by several of the neighbouring
gentry, for the purpose of forming a breakwater; for without some such
protection it was apprehended that at no very distant period many more
houses, with the fine old church, would fall a prey to the violence of
the sea.

It is supposed that Cromer was formerly a place of much greater
importance than it is at present; and that at the time of the Domesday
survey it was included in the town of Shipden, which, with its church,
is supposed to have been destroyed by the sea in the reign of Henry IV.
At low water many large portions of wall are to be seen, which have
evidently formed part of the houses of the old town of Shipden. "The set
of the great tidal current of the German Ocean," says Mr. R. C. Taylor,
in his _Geology of East Norfolk_, "is from the north-west, along the
eastern shores of this island. In their progress southward, the tides
meet with an extensive obstruction in the projecting county of Norfolk.
About twenty miles of its coast has been subjected, from time
immemorial, to the abrasive action of ocean currents. The ancient
villages of Shipden, Wimpwell, and Eccles, have disappeared; several
manors, and large portions of neighbouring parishes, have, piece after
piece, been swallowed up by the encroaching waves; and their site, some
fathoms deep, now forms a part of the bed of the German Ocean."

The sea in this neighbourhood, and on the whole of the Norfolk coast, is
particularly dangerous. Between Flamborough and Spurn Heads, and
Winterton Ness, the most easterly points of land on this side of the
island (excepting the North Foreland), the land retreats inward, forming
a large bay. If vessels leaving Flamborough Head proceed southward and
meet with a hard gale from any point between north-east and south-east,
or of leaving Yarmouth Roads, proceeding northwards, they are retarded
by the wind blowing hard from the north-east; so that as they cannot
weather Winterton Ness, they become embayed, and the only chance of
safety is to run for Lynn Deeps, in attempting which they are in danger
of foundering on the rocks near this town or stranding upon the flat
shores between Cromer and Wells.

Cromer is much frequented in summer by visitors for the sake of
sea-bathing, for which the fine sandy beach to the eastward affords
great convenience. It is a place of very little trade, and is chiefly
dependent on the fishery. Cromer light-house stands on an eminence,
about three-quarters of a mile to the eastward of the village. It is a
revolving light, and is visible, in clear weather, at a distance of five
or six leagues. It appears in its brightest state once in every minute,
and then gradually becomes eclipsed.



[Illustration: HULL.]



KINGSTON-ON-HULL.


Hull, though one of the most considerable ports of the kingdom, is also
one of the least picturesque. From its low situation, little more of the
town can be seen than the modern houses near the banks of the Humber;
and though jetties, dock-gates, and pier-heads, are sometimes useful as
accessories in a picture, yet where such occupy almost the entire line
of the foreground, with a row of brick buildings behind them, the
painter must manage his subject as he best can, and be content with
giving correctly that which his art cannot improve:--"Res ipsa negat
ornari." The view of Hull, from a painting by Balmer, is taken from the
Humber, looking towards the north. Beyond the river-craft, which are
seen in front, is the entrance to the Humber dock; and the jetty to the
right, which appears crowded with people, is a favourite promenade with
the inhabitants of Hull, who sometimes assemble there in crowds to watch
the sailing and arrival of the steam-packets. The most distant building
to the right is the citadel, at the entrance of the river Hull, which
then discharges itself into the Humber. Towards the middle of the
engraving is seen the tower of Trinity Church, the only object which, at
the distance of a mile, commands the attention of the stranger, and
gives an individual character to the river.

The town of Hull, or, as it is sometimes called, Kingston-upon-Hull, is
in the East Riding of Yorkshire, and lies about one hundred and seventy
miles northward of London, and about thirty-nine to the south-east of
York. On the south it is bounded by the Humber, and on the eastward by
the small river Hull. The old town, which was formerly protected on the
north and west by a wall running from the Hull to the Humber, is now
wholly insular, as a line of wet-docks occupies the site of the old
fortifications. The suburbs, of Sculcoates on the north, and Drypool on
the east, may be considered as forming, with the old borough of Hull,
but one large town.

The Hull, which is but a small river, has its source near the village of
Lissett, about five miles from Burlington, and after running about
twenty-six miles, in a southern direction, discharges itself into the
Humber, on the east side of the town to which it gives name. It is
navigable for small craft as far as Elmotlands about sixteen miles from
its mouth. It contains many fish, such as roach, perch gudgeon, eels,
and pike; and Driffield Beck, one of its tributaries, is famed for the
size and excellence of its trout.

The Humber, which opposite to Hull, is nearly three miles broad, and
about six fathoms deep in mid-channel, is formed by the junction of the
Trent and the Ouse, about sixteen miles above Hull, and it discharges
itself into the sea about twenty-four miles below that town. From the
rapidity of the current, which at spring tides runs at the rate of five
miles an hour, and from the numerous sand-banks which are in the river,
the navigation of the Humber is both intricate and dangerous; for should
a vessel get aground on one of the sands, she is extremely liable to be
overset by the force of the tide. Such accidents are, indeed, by no
means uncommon, for almost every year affords instances of vessels, both
ships and river-craft, being lost in the Humber in this manner. In the
upper part of the Humber, in the Trent, and in the Ouse between
Trent-falls and Selby, the flood tide, more especially in a strong
easterly wind, frequently rushes up the river like a wave, considerably
raised above the water which it meets. This tidal wave is called by the
people of Hull and its vicinity the "_Ager_,"--the _g_ being pronounced
hard; and from the murmuring sound which it makes, as it rolls onward
and dashes against the shore, it has been supposed that the river was
called the "_Humber_." Drayton, in his Poly-Olbion, thus notices the
"_Ager_," or as he spells it, the "Higre," in his description of the
Humber:--

    "For when my Higre comes, I make my either shore
    Ever tremble with the sound that I afarre doe send."

Taylor, the water-poet, observed this tidal wave in the estuary of the
Wash below Boston:--

    "It hath lesse mercy than beare, wolfe, or tyger,
    And, in those countries it is called the Hyger."

Dryden, who had noticed it in the river Trent, calls it the "_Eagre_."

    "But like an Eagre rode in triumph o'er the tide."



[Illustration: BURLINGTON QUAY.]



BURLINGTON QUAY.


The Engraving of Burlington Quay, from a painting by Balmer, presents a
view of the entrance to the Harbour from the eastward. To the right is
seen the inner part of the Old Pier, as it appeared after the great
storm of 17th and 18th February, 1836. In front are the houses at the
end of Quay Street, and to the left is the South Pier; between this and
the shore two ships are perceived aground at the entrance of the inner
harbour, which is nearly dry at low water. In the storm above alluded
to, great injury was done to the old North Pier, and part of one of the
houses to the right was washed down by the violence of the sea.

Burlington Quay lies about a mile to the north-east of the market-town
of Burlington, and at the bottom of a bay of the same name. It is in the
East Riding of Yorkshire, and is about two hundred and eight miles from
London, forty from York, and twenty from Scarborough. The earliest
mention of it as a harbour occurs in a mandate of King Stephen,
addressed to the Sheriff of Yorkshire, commanding him to allow the Prior
of Burlington to hold it on the same terms as Walter de Gaunt, and
Gilbert, his ancestor, had held the same. During the time that it was in
the possession of the Priors of Burlington, it seems to have been an
inconsiderable place; but subsequently, as the coal trade between London
and the northern parts of the kingdom increased, it began to be of
greater importance as a harbour, in consequence of its affording shelter
in stormy weather to vessels engaged in that trade. In 1546, an act was
passed imposing a duty for erecting the piers and keeping them in
repair; and, in 1614, a second act was passed, upon a petition from the
merchants and ship-owners of the eastern coast, imposing a duty, for the
same purposes, on all coals shipped at Newcastle. Since 1614, several
other acts have been obtained, authorising the levy of duties and tolls
for the purpose of improving the harbour and repairing the piers; and
since 1816, the sum thus collected has averaged about £1,750 per annum.

The harbour at Burlington Quay is almost entirely the work of art, as
the small stream which there runs into the sea is scarcely sufficient to
turn a mill. Its locality seems to render it one of the most appropriate
stations for a harbour of refuge between the Frith of Forth and Yarmouth
Roads, more especially in gales of wind from the north-eastward; but
unfortunately it can only be entered by comparatively small vessels, as
the depth of water at the entrance is only from ten to twelve feet at
neap-tides, and from fourteen to sixteen feet at springs. The harbour is
also so small, that fifty sail of colliers taking shelter there would
render it extremely crowded.

The history of Burlington Quay, considering it as a separate place from
the town of Burlington, is extremely meagre. The most remarkable event
which its annals record is the landing there of Henrietta Maria, Queen
of Charles I., on her return, in 1643, from Holland, whither she had
been to conduct her newly-married daughter to her husband, the Prince of
Orange, and where she pledged part of the crown jewels in order to
obtain money to purchase arms for the Royalists. The Queen, who was
attended by a convoy of Dutch men-of-war, under the command of Admiral
Van Tromp, landed at Burlington Quay, on the 22nd of February. The
Parliamentary admiral, Batten, who had been cruising, with four ships,
for the purpose of intercepting her, having received intelligence of her
arrival, sailed into the bay and began to cannonade the town. Several of
the shot struck the house in which the Queen was lodged, so that she was
obliged to leave it, and take shelter in a ditch in a neighbouring
field. A serjeant was killed near her, and the Parliamentary admiral
continued his fire until the reflux of the tide and the threats of Van
Tromp compelled him to desist.

Burlington Quay is much frequented in summer as a bathing-place; and
many persons prefer its quiet and retirement to the greater gaiety of
Scarborough. The beach, to the northward of the quay, affords excellent
opportunities for bathing, and the walks and rides in the vicinity are
extremely pleasant. A visit to Flamborough Head, which is only about
five miles distant, forms a highly interesting excursion either by land
or water.

The market-town of Burlington, or, as it is frequently spelled,
Bridlington, is situated about a mile to the north-westward of the
quay.



[Illustration: FLAMBOROUGH HEAD.]



FLAMBOROUGH HEAD.


The view of Flamborough Head, drawn by Balmer, is taken from the cliffs
to the north-west. To the left is the promontory properly called "The
Head," at a short distance from which stands the lighthouse. Between the
Head and the nearer cliffs is a small haven, which is used as a landing
place by the fishermen of the village of Flamborough, which lies about a
mile to the south-west of the lighthouse.

Flamborough Head, which lies about eighteen miles southward of
Scarborough, and four and a half miles northward of Burlington, is one
of the most remarkable promontories on the eastern coast. It projects
about five miles into the sea, from a line drawn between Burlington Quay
and Filey; and its southern side forms the northern boundary of
Burlington Bay. The cliffs, which are of limestone rock, are from three
hundred to four hundred feet high, and their crumbling sides form the
haunt and the breeding place of innumerable flocks of sea-birds: among
which are cormorants, puffins, razor-bills, and guillemots, with gulls
and terns of several species. Guillemots, which are here extremely
numerous, are known to the seamen of Shields and Newcastle by the name
of "Flamborough-head pilots," as their presence in considerable numbers
is almost a certain indication of the ship being "off the Head." Great
numbers of those feathered denizens of the cliff are killed every year
by "parties of pleasure," from Burlington, Scarborough, and other
places, who visit the "Head" for the sake of indulging in the heartless
sport, which requires neither skill nor courage, of killing birds by
wholesale. At the foot of the cliff, which to the north-west is much
indented, there are several caverns and large insulated masses of rock.
The largest of those caverns, called Robert Lyth's Hole, has two
openings, the one communicating with the land and the other exposed to
the sea. The roof, though low at the landward entrance, is in some
places fifty feet high; and the view, looking through the rocky vault
towards the sea, is extremely grand.

Flamborough Head, which is a most important land-mark for vessels
navigating the eastern coast, lies in 54° 8' north latitude; longitude
2' 30" west. A revolving light is displayed from the lighthouse from
sunset to sunrise, and presents, first the appearance of two lights on
the same tower, and next a brilliant red light. Each of those lights
appears at intervals of two minutes; and after gradually attaining their
greatest lustre, they in the same manner decline and become eclipsed.

Between Flamborough Head and Burlington Quay, is situated Burlington
Bay, a secure roadstead in north-east gales; and, during the prevalence
of such winds, it is not unusual for three hundred ships to be riding
there at the same time, sheltered from the violence of the wind and sea
by the lofty promontory. On the south-east, the Bay is partially
sheltered from the violence of the sea by the Smithwick Sands, which run
nearly in a line with the coast, from Burlington Quay to Flamborough
Head. At each extremity of those sands there is a channel leading into
the Bay; that towards the Head is called the North Sea; and the other,
towards Burlington, the South Sea. Though the Smithwick Sands
effectually break the violence of the sea at low water, yet at high
water, when they are covered to a considerable depth, the protection
which they afford, in gales of wind from the south-eastward, is not to
be depended on. Vessels, therefore, leave the Bay as soon as the wind
changes to east or south-east, as it no longer affords them sufficient
security; the protection of the Smithwick Sands not being equivalent to
the risk of the lee-shore, to which they would be exposed in a gale from
the south-east. Were the harbour of Burlington, which is situated to the
westward of the Bay, enlarged and deepened, its importance, as a place
of refuge for vessels compelled to leave the Bay from the wind changing
to the eastward, would be very greatly increased. Could it be so
enlarged as to admit one hundred vessels, of from 200 to 300 tons each,
it would, with the Bay, afford a place of refuge in all storms from
north-east to south-east, which are generally the most destructive on
the eastern coast.



[Illustration: SCARBOROUGH.]



SCARBOROUGH.


In this view of Scarborough, by Harding, which is taken from the
southward, the most conspicuous object is the Lighthouse on the Old
Pier, or, as it is sometimes called, Vincent's Pier, from the name of
the engineer, by whom the outer portion was erected about the year 1750.
Beyond the pier are seen the masts of vessels lying in the harbour; to
the left are the houses, which are built near the shore between West
Sand-gate and Bland's Cliff; and on the height are the barracks, with
the ruins of the old castle, a little further distant, to the left.

Though the name of Scarborough appears to be of Saxon origin, yet as the
place is not mentioned in any author who wrote before the Conquest, nor
in the Domesday-book, we cannot reasonably suppose it to have been of
much importance, either during the Saxon period, or at the time when the
Conqueror's survey was made. The castle of Scarborough was built about
1163, by William le Gros, Earl of Albemarle and Holderness; and from
that period the authentic history of the town commences. The castle is
situated to the north-eastward of the town, and is built on the isthmus
of a peninsula, which comprises an area of about sixteen acres, and is
bounded on the north, east, and south by inaccessible cliffs, whose
summits are about 300 feet above the level of the sea. The western
boundary, overlooking the town, is also formed by an elevated rock; and
the only means of approach to the castle is by a steep path near the
edge of the cliff forming the north side of the isthmus. On passing
through a gateway, and over a draw-bridge, we arrive at the castle,
which, previous to the introduction of cannon, must have been almost
impregnable. The keep or principal tower is ninety-seven feet high, and
though greatly dilapidated, is yet a striking object, more especially
when viewed from the sea, at about two miles' distance from the north
cliff.

There is no river at Scarborough; and the harbour, which is formed by
the piers, is only accessible towards high water. It is high water at
Scarborough at forty-five minutes past three o'clock at the full and
change of the moon; and at spring tides there is about twenty-two feet
water at the end of the pier. At night a light is shown from the
lighthouse as long as there is twelve feet water at the entrance to the
harbour; and during the same period a flag is hoisted by day.

About 1620 the sanative virtues of the Spa-well were discovered by Mrs.
Anne Farrow, who "sometimes walked along the shore, and observing the
stones over which the water passed to have received a russet colour, and
finding it to have an acid taste different from the common springs, and
to receive a purple tincture from galls, thought it probably might have
a medical property." The lady having tried the water herself, and
persuaded others to do the same, it was in a short time pronounced an
all-heal, and the people of the place took it as their usual physic.
Before 1670 these waters had become celebrated, and many persons
resorted to Scarborough for the sake of drinking them. Medical men,
however, disagreed both as to their composition and effects; and the
opinions of Dr. Witty, a resident physician, who recommended them in
every case, were controverted by Mr. Simpson and Dr. George Tonstall.
The latter says of the Spa-water, "The essence is fit for the cup of a
prince; the _caput mortuum_, which is sand and clay, is fit for nothing
but the bricklayer's trowel. Hence it doth follow that those who are
weak in their digestive faculties, and strong in their distributive, may
find good by drinking this water; but those who are weak in both will
experience the contrary." From the following anecdote related by the
doctor, we may infer that the spa-drinkers of that period were
accustomed to indulge in rather copious draughts. "Mr. Westro came to us
at Scarborough only to visit his friends, and the two or three days he
drank the waters (_not above two quarts at a time_), did so far put him
out of tune, that he made his complaint to me he could neither eat nor
sleep; and it took me a week's time before I could reduce him to the
state of health which he had before he meddled with the waters." He
would have been a person of strong constitution indeed not to have been
"put out of tune" by such drenching; and it is no small proof of Dr.
Tonstall's skill that he should have been able to restore Mr. Westro the
blessings of sound sleep and a good appetite in so short a time as a
week. From the double advantage which Scarborough presents to visitors,
of drinking the waters and enjoying the benefit of sea bathing, it is
much frequented during the summer season; and a more agreeable place is
not to be found on the coast betwixt the Humber and the Tyne.



[Illustration: WHITBY.]



WHITBY.


This engraving of Whitby, from a drawing by Harding, presents a view of
the entrance to the harbour, as seen from the northward. Towards the
middle of the plate is seen the end of the east pier; on the top of the
cliff are the ruins of the abbey and the parish church; while, farther
to the right, part of the town is perceived.

Whitby is in the North Riding of Yorkshire, and lies about 246 miles
north of London, 22 north-north-west of Scarborough, and 47 north-east
of York. It is chiefly built on the sloping banks of the river Esk, by
which it is divided into two parts; that on the west side being the most
populous. The opposite parts of the town are connected by means of a
bridge, the middle of which is moveable for the purpose of allowing
ships to pass through. In the old bridge, which has been pulled down,
the opening in the middle was upon the principle of a drawbridge, in
which the roadway is raised and lowered by means of beams and chains. At
high-water the river above the bridge expands into a spacious harbour,
where ships can lie in perfect security; but at ebb tide, except in the
mid-channel, the harbour is nearly dry. In the outer harbour, as it is
called, below the bridge, vessels cannot ride with safety in gales of
wind upon the land.

The piers at the entrance to Whitby harbour are not built and maintained
at the sole expense of the place, but by a duty on coals shipped at
Newcastle, Sunderland, Blyth, and their dependencies--Yarmouth vessels
only being exempt--and the sum thus raised amounts to upwards of £2,000
per annum. It is doubtless a great advantage to the people of Whitby to
have their piers built and kept in repair at the expense of other ports;
but it is equally certain that the same sum might be employed more to
the advantage of those by whom it is paid in improving other
places--Scarborough and Burlington, for instance--as harbours of refuge
on the eastern coast. In a gale of wind from the eastward, Whitby is
perhaps one of the most dangerous harbours that a vessel can attempt to
take between Yarmouth roads and the Frith of Forth, and captains of
coasting vessels cannot be too frequently warned to avoid it. As the
flood tide sets strong to the southward across the entrance to the
harbour, vessels in attempting to enter with a gale of wind from the
north-east are extremely liable to be driven on the rocks and wrecked at
the foot of the cliff beyond the east pier.

A singular customary duty, called "making the penny-stake hedge," is
annually performed at Whitby, by certain tenants of the Lord of the
Manor. It consists in driving a certain number of stakes, which,
according to the ancient prescribed form, were to be cut with a knife of
the value of one penny, on the shore of the south side of the Esk, at
low-water mark, at nine o'clock on the morning of the day before
Ascension-day, while a man with a horn blows, "Out on you! Out on you!"
to the shame of the persons whose duty it is to drive the stakes. When
it shall be full sea or high-water at nine o'clock on the day of
performing this service, it was to cease; but as Ascension-day is
regulated by the change of the moon this can never happen. This custom
is of great antiquity, as the _horngarth_, the enclosure formed by the
stakes, is mentioned about 1315 in the registers of the Abbey, in an
account of certain disputes between the abbot, Thomas de Malton, and
Alexander de Percy, of Sneaton. Tradition reports that this custom was
imposed as a penance on three persons of the families of Percy, Bruce,
and Allatson, who held lands of the Abbey, for having killed a hermit in
the chapel of Eskdale-side, when hunting a wild boar which had there
taken refuge. The penance imposed was the tenure by which they and their
successors were to hold the Abbey lands.

Leland, who visited Whitby a few years before the suppression of the
monastery, describes it as a "great fisher town;" and he mentions that
when he was there a new quay and pier were in course of erection. Until
the establishment of the alum works in its neighbourhood, towards the
latter end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Whitby appears to have been
a place of little trade. As this new branch of commerce extended, the
trade and population of Whitby steadily increased until it has attained
its present importance.



[Illustration: WHITBY.

_FROM THE NORTH WEST_]



WHITBY,

FROM THE NORTH-WEST.


The view of Whitby from the north-west, by Balmer, is taken from the
sands near Upgang, between Whitby and the village of Sandsend. From this
point nearly the whole of the west pier is seen, extending directly from
the shore, and having a light-house near its outer extremity. Beyond the
pier, and on the other side of the river, are seen the houses built on
the sloping side of the cliff, and on its top the ruins of Whitby abbey,
which

    "In solemn grandeur, calm and still,
    O'erlook the restless flood."

The first authentic notice that we have of Whitby, is contained in
Bede's Ecclesiastical History. In the time of the venerable historian it
was called in the Anglo-Saxon language _Streoneshalh_, a name which he
interprets in Latin by the words _Sinus Fari_; that is, in English,
"Light-house bay." Subsequently it received from the Danes its present
name of Whitby, a word which is probably derived from _hvit_ or _whit_,
white; and _by_, a dwelling, or in its more extended sense, a village or
town. It has been supposed that this name might be given to the village
in consequence of its being built chiefly with stone taken from the
ruins of the monastic buildings; but the supposition is untenable,
unless we at the same time presume that the stones, which were taken
from buildings which had been destroyed by fire, were rendered white by
being burnt. In Domesday Book the place appears to be called
_Prestebi_--Priestby--as well as _Witeby_--Whitby. The name Priestby,
which soon became obsolete, probably denoted that part of the village
which lay on the east side of the Esk, and was more immediately
dependent on the monastery.

The abbey of Whitby, founded by St. Hilda in 658, acquired considerable
importance as the residence of this saint, of whose miracles certain
marvellous traditions are still current in this vicinity. At the
dissolution, under Henry VIII., Richard Cholmley, Esq., obtained a lease
for twenty-one years of the site of the abbey and several parcels of its
lands. In 1550 those lands were sold by the crown to John, earl of
Warwick, who again sold them to Sir John Yorke, of whom they were
purchased by the original lessee, then Sir Richard Cholmley, in 1555.
Since that time the property has continued in the family of Cholmley,
who enjoy many valuable rights and privileges as lords of the manor of
Whitby. On the dissolution of the monastery, the abbey was stripped of
every thing that was valuable. The bells were taken down, and the church
was unroofed for the sake of the timber and lead. The walls only were
spared, as the cost of taking them down would probably have been greater
than the value of the stones. Though time has destroyed much of Whitby
Abbey, yet the ruins still form a conspicuous and interesting object
when viewed from the sea. The tower, which for several preceding years
had been in a tottering state, fell down 25th June, 1830. The parish
church, a plain structure, probably founded about the beginning of the
twelfth century, stands at a short distance to the north-westward of the
abbey. The direct foot-way to the church-yard from the town is by a
steep ascent of one hundred and ninety steps.

It is worthy of remark that the number of ships registered at Whitby by
no means affords a criterion of the trade of the place, for the greatest
part of them are freighted to and from other ports. Perhaps no port in
the kingdom presents so great a difference as Whitby between the number
of ships registered at the port, and the number annually entered and
cleared. This discrepancy between the trade and the tonnage of the port
arises from the circumstance of many wealthy persons who live there
having their ships built and registered at Whitby, but chiefly employed,
on freight, in the trade of other places. When speaking of the shipping
of Whitby, it would be unpardonable not to mention that Captain James
Cook one of the most distinguished of British circumnavigators, served
an apprenticeship in a vessel belonging to that port.

The principal trades carried on at Whitby are ship-building, and the
manufacture of sail-cloth. Its chief imports are coals from Newcastle
and Sunderland, and timber, hemp, flax, tar, iron, and tallow, from the
Baltic. Alum manufactured in the neighbourhood is shipped at Whitby, but
the principal article of export is at present stones for building, of
which great quantities are sent to London.

From the light-house, on the western pier, a tide-light is displayed at
night time, as long as there is eight feet water on the bar. The light
is stationary, and is visible at the distance of two leagues in clear
weather. During the same period of tide, in the day, a flag is hoisted
on the west cliff. It is high water at Whitby pier at forty minutes past
three o'clock at the full and change of the moon.



[Illustration: ROBIN HOOD'S BAY.]



ROBIN HOOD'S BAY.


The above is the name of a fine bay on the Yorkshire coast, between
Whitby and Scarborough, and also of the fishing village, situated
towards its northern extremity. In the view, which is taken from the
north, several of the houses are seen standing upon the very edge of the
cliff. The promontory to the left is called Ravenhill, and forms the
south-eastern extremity of the bay. From an inscription dug up at
Ravenhill in 1774, it appears that there had formerly been a Roman camp
there.

The ancient name of the bay was Fyling, and from what reason or at what
period it first received the name of Robin Hood's Bay is uncertain. That
it ever was the resort of the famed outlaw of that name is extremely
questionable; although two or three tumuli on the moor, about two miles
to the southward of the village, are said to be the butts, in shooting
at which he exercised his men in archery. Near Whitby Lathes, about five
miles to the north-west of Robin Hood's Bay, are two upright stones,
which are said to mark the spots where the arrows of the bold robber of
Sherwood Forest, and his man Little John, fell, when, in a trial of
strength, they discharged them from the top of Whitby Abbey in the
presence of the abbot. As the distance from these stones to the abbey is
rather more than a mile and a half, it is evident that a _long_ bow must
have been drawn by some one, if not by Robin Hood. It has been supposed
that the place was originally called Robin Wood's Bay, from a fisherman
of that name, who formerly resided there; but this conjecture rests on
no better ground than the fact of two or three fishermen of the name of
Wood having lived there in modern times. A family of fishermen of the
name of Wood, with whom "Zebedee" appears to have been a favourite
"fore-name," have resided at Runswick, a fishing village, about seven
miles northward of Whitby, for several generations.

Leland, in his Itinerary, written about three hundred years ago, calls
the village by its present name, Robin Hood's Bay, and describes it as
"a fisher townlet of twenty boats." It is still, as in his time, almost
entirely inhabited by fishermen. The houses forming the principal street
are built on each side of a steep road, leading down to the shore; while
others, as may be seen in the view, are built upon the very extremity of
the cliff. The approach to the village is by a steep descent, which is
extremely inconvenient for carriages. It is about fourteen miles
north-west of Scarborough, and seven south-east of Whitby; and the
population is about a thousand.

Robin Hood's Bay, Filey, Runswick, and Staithes, are the principal
fishing villages on the Yorkshire coast. Filey is about eight miles
south of Scarborough; Runswick, as has been previously observed, is
about seven miles northward of Whitby; and Staithes is about three miles
northward of Runswick. At each of those places the fishery is carried on
both by cobles and by five-man boats. At most of the other fishing
stations on the Yorkshire coast cobles only are employed. A description
of the last named species will be found in our notice of Bambrough from
the South-east; and of the five-man boats, we propose to say a few words
on the present occasion.

The vessels now called five-man boats are about forty-six feet long,
sixteen feet eight inches broad, and six feet three inches deep. They
are clinker-built, sharp at the bows, and have a deck with a large
hatchway in midships, and a cabin towards the stern for the men. They
have three masts, on each of which they carry a lug sail. Their other
sails are a jib, and, in fine weather, a top-sail set on a shifting
topmast, above the main-mast. As the sails are all tanned, a five-man
boat forms a picturesque object at sea, more especially when viewed in
contrast with a square-rigged vessel with white sails. The crew of each
five-man boat consists of seven persons, five of whom, called
_shares-men_ have equal shares of the proceeds of the voyage, or the
season, after the boat's share is paid. The sixth person is often a
young man who receives half a share, and is a kind of apprentice to the
captain or owner of the boat. The seventh is generally hired at a
certain sum per week, and not sharing in the profits of the fishery.

To each five-man boat there are two cobles, which in proceeding to the
fishing ground are generally hauled up on the deck. On arriving at the
place where it is intended to fish, the boat is anchored, and the cobles
being launched, three men proceed in each to shoot their lines, while
one remains on board. The lines used for this more distant fishery are
called _haavres_. They are about the same length as those used in the
coble fishery nearer the shore, though thicker, and having the hooks
placed at greater intervals. As the six men who fish have each two sets
of lines, they are thus enabled to shoot one set immediately after they
have hauled the other. In the five-man-boat fishery the hooks are always
baited at sea.



[Illustration: HARTLEPOOL.]



HARTLEPOOL.


The view of Hartlepool, painted by T. Creswick, from a drawing by G.
Balmer, is taken from the northward. To the right, between the
foreground and the town, are seen the sands of what is called the
"Slake;" to the left are the cliffs, at the foot of which are the
excavations called "Fairy Coves;" and beyond the town part of the
southern coast of Durham is perceived, which extends from Hartlepool
southward to the mouth of the Tees. The figures in the foreground are
characteristic of the place; for there is no obtaining a view of
Hartlepool from the land-side without seeing a group of fishwomen.

The town of Hartlepool stands on a small peninsula on the southern coast
of Durham, and is about nine miles north-east of Stockton-upon-Tees.
From the "Slake," or Pool, which is between the town and the mainland to
the west, it probably received the appellation of "_Le Poole_," to
distinguish it from the village of Hart, which is about four miles and a
half to the north-west. The word Hart, according to Ducange, signified,
in Teutonic, a forest; and, if the name of the parish of Hart be of the
same origin, the reason why the place should have been so called is
obvious. The old town-seal of Hartlepool contains a rebus of the name--a
hart up to his knees in a pool--which assigns to the first part of it a
different etymology. Previous to receiving the name of Hartlepool the
place was called Heortu, and sometimes Heortness; the terminating _u_ is
perhaps an abbreviation of _eau_, water; and the name Heortu synonymous
with Hart-le-pool. The termination _ness_ is expressive of the place
being built on a point of land which projects into the sea. "At or near
this place," says Bishop Tanner, in the _Notitia Monastica_, "was the
ancient monastery called Heorthu, founded upon the first conversion of
the Northumbrians to Christianity, about A.D. 640, by a religious woman
named Hieu, or, as some have it, St. Bega, whereof St. Hilda was some
time abbess." This ancient convent was destroyed by the Danes about 800,
and its site is now unknown, though it is supposed to have stood on the
spot which was subsequently occupied by a Franciscan monastery, founded
by one of the Bruce family about 1250, and suppressed by Henry VIII. Of
this monastery or its church there is at present no part remaining,
though some old houses, called the Friary, probably built out of the
ruins, still indicate its situation. The church of Hartlepool, which is
dedicated to St. Hilda, is a large building, and, from the various
styles of its architecture, has evidently been built at different
periods.

About the time of the Conquest, the manors of Hart and Hartness belonged
to Fulk de Panell; and, upon the marriage of his daughter Agnes with
Robert de Brus, one of the Norman followers of William I., they came,
with other rich manors in Yorkshire and in Durham, into the possession
of that family. Upon Robert Bruce, a descendant of the above-named
Robert de Brus, succeeding to the crown of Scotland in 1306, all his
English estates were confiscated by Edward I., who granted the manor of
Hart and the borough of Hartlepool to Robert de Clifford, "saving the
rights of the Bishops of Durham," under whom, since 1189, the property
had been held.

In 1201, King John granted a charter to Hartlepool, conferring upon the
burgesses the same privileges as those of Newcastle-upon-Tyne; and in
1230, Richard le Poor, Bishop of Durham, granted another charter,
appointing a mayor and other officers for the government of the town. In
1593, Queen Elizabeth granted a new charter, under which the affairs of
the borough have been since regulated.

From the reign of King John to that of James I., Hartlepool was the most
considerable port in the county of Durham; but from the latter period
till about seven years ago, its importance as a place of trade appears
to have greatly declined: and from 1730 to 1832, its condition was that
of a small fishing town, scarcely visited by any ships, except colliers
belonging to Sunderland and Newcastle, which occasionally sought refuge
in its harbour during a storm. In 1832, a bill was obtained for the
purpose of improving the harbour and forming a dock at Hartlepool; and
since that period a considerable portion of the projected works have
been finished. A railway has since been formed, by which coals are
brought to the town; and a considerable quantity are now shipped there
for the London and other markets; and from the advantageous situation of
the harbour, and the facility with which vessels can be loaded, there
seems great probability of Hartlepool becoming, in a few years, one of
the principal ports for the shipment of coals in the county of Durham.



[Illustration: SUNDERLAND.

_THE LIGHT HOUSE ON THE SOUTH PIER._]



SUNDERLAND,

THE LIGHTHOUSE ON THE SOUTH PIER.


The view of the Lighthouse on Sunderland South Pier is taken from the
south-east. The entrance to the harbour lies beyond the pier-head, to
the right, on which a crane, and a capstan used in warping out ships,
are perceived. The large D on the fore-topsail of the collier lying
within the pier is a distinguishing mark adopted by the owner that his
vessels may be more readily known. To the left is seen the higher
lighthouse, of stone, which stands on the north pier, on the opposite
side of the river.

The erection of a pier on each side of the entrance to Sunderland
harbour has been rendered necessary in consequence of the constant
tendency of the bar of sand at its mouth to accumulate. The piers, by
contracting the channel of the river, have deepened the water, and
increased the velocity of the current at ebb tide, which thus scours the
entrance to the harbour, and prevents the accumulation of sand upon the
bar.

In 1669, Charles II. granted letters patent to Edward Andrew, Esq.,
empowering him to build a pier, erect lighthouses, and cleanse the
harbour at Sunderland, and also to raise funds for these purposes by a
tonnage-duty on ships. At a subsequent period, commissioners were
appointed for the same purposes by an act of parliament; and under their
authority three hundred and thirty-three yards of the north pier were
built, between 1716 and 1746. From a report of the commissioners made in
1765, it appears that £50,000 had been expended on the south pier up to
that time, and it was estimated that to finish it would cost as much
more. It is now extended to the length of six hundred and twenty-five
yards. The north pier, which is entirely of stone, was commenced about
1785, but additions have been recently made to its eastern extremity.

The lighthouse on the north pier was erected in 1803. The light, which
is stationary, is exhibited from sunset to sunrise, and is visible in
clear weather at the distance of twelve miles. The light on the south
pier is a tide light, and is only shown when there is sufficient depth
of water on the bar for ships to enter. This light is of a red colour.
By day a flag is hoisted during tide-time.

Since the year 1200--and probably from a much earlier period--the
harbour at the mouth of the Wear appears to have been generally known as
that of Sunderland, the present name of the port and of the
parliamentary borough. "Various conjectures," says Mr. Surtees, "have
been formed as to the derivation of this name; the simplest and most
obvious seems to be, that it marked the original situation of the place
on a point of land almost insulated by the Wear and by the sea, which
has probably flowed much higher than at present up some of the deep
gullies on the coast, particularly Hendon-Dene, which, it seems,
contained, as late as 1350, water sufficient for vessels to ride at
anchor in the bay."

In 1719 an express distinction was made by an act of parliament, which
constituted Sunderland a separate parish from that of Bishop-Wearmouth,
in which it had formerly been included. This act was passed on the
petition of the inhabitants of Sunderland, who, between 1712 and 1719,
had built a new church. The old church of Bishop-Wearmouth--which was
pulled down and rebuilt in 1808--was probably founded shortly after the
date of Athelstan's grant. The rectory of Sunderland is but slenderly
endowed; that of Bishop-Wearmouth is one of the richest in the kingdom,
and was at one period held by the Rev. Dr. Wellesley, a brother of the
Duke of Wellington. Dr. Paley--whose "pigeon illustration," in his
_Moral Philosophy_, of the basis of political authority, is said to have
kept him out of a bishopric--was rewarded by Dr. Barrington, bishop of
Durham, with the rectory of Bishop-Wearmouth, where he died in 1805.



[Illustration: SUNDERLAND.

(_THE BRIDGE FROM THE WESTWARD._)]



SUNDERLAND.

THE BRIDGE FROM THE WESTWARD.


Under the general name of Sunderland, the three townships of
Monk-Wearmouth, Bishop-Wearmouth, and Sunderland are usually comprised.
Monk-Wearmouth is situated on the north side of the river Wear, at a
short distance from its mouth. Sunderland and Bishop-Wearmouth, which
form one continuous town, lie on the south side of the river;
Sunderland, properly so called, extending from the line of junction of
the two parishes, eastward to the sea; and Bishop-Wearmouth extending
towards the west. Sunderland--which has given its name to the port and
to the borough--is 269 miles distant from London; fourteen from Durham;
and thirteen from Newcastle-on-Tyne.

The great boast of Sunderland is the beautiful iron bridge, of a single
arch, which connects it with Monk-Wearmouth. This noble structure, which
is at once highly ornamental and useful, was projected by Rowland
Burdon, Esq., of Castle Eden, who in 1792, he being then M.P. for the
county of Durham, obtained an act of parliament empowering him to raise
money for its erection; the sums advanced to be secured on the tolls,
with five per cent. interest, and all further accumulation to go in
discharge of the capital. The abutments, from which the arch springs,
are nearly solid masses of masonry, twenty-four feet thick, forty-two
feet broad at bottom, and thirty-seven feet broad at top. That on the
south side is founded on a solid rock, which rises above the level of
the Wear; the foundation of that on the north side, owing to the
unfavourable nature of the ground, was obliged to be laid ten feet below
the level of the river. The arch, which is a segment of a large circle,
is of 236 feet span, and its centre is ninety-four feet above the level
of the river at low water. From the height of the arch and its
comparative flatness--its versed sine, or perpendicular height from its
centre to a line joining its extremities, being only thirty-four
feet--ships of 300 tons burden can pass underneath not only directly
below the centre, but also to the extent of fifty feet on each side. The
navigation of the river thus remains unobstructed--for many vessels
proceed to the staiths above the bridge for the purpose of taking in
their coals--while the inhabitants on each side enjoy all the advantages
of facilitated intercourse. The breadth of the bridge at the top is
thirty-two feet including the footpaths on each side; and the
carriage-way is formed of lime, marl, and gravel, above a flooring of
timber, which is laid across the iron ribs of the arch. The iron ribs
and blocks were cast and prepared at the foundry of Messrs. Walker, at
Rotherham, near Sheffield. The whole weight of the iron is 260 tons; of
which 46 tons are malleable, and 214 cast. The foundation-stone[4] was
laid on the 24th September, 1793, and the bridge opened to the public on
the 9th August, 1796, having been completed under the superintendence of
Mr. Thomas Wilson, of Bishop-Wearmouth, in less than three years. The
total expense was £26,000, of which sum £22,000 was subscribed by Mr.
Burdon.[5]

Although many ships are loaded direct from such staiths as are at a
short distance above the bridge, yet the greater part of the coals are
brought down in keels from staiths situated higher up the river. The
keels of the Wear, though of the same tonnage as those of the Tyne, are
somewhat differently built, being flatter in the bottom, and of a
lighter draught of water. The Sunderland keels are managed by only one
man, who usually has a boy to assist him. In the Wear the coals when in
bulk are cast from the keel into the ship by men called coal-casters;
while on the Tyne, where the crew of each keel consists of three men and
a boy, the coals are always cast by the keelmen. Within the last few
years, a considerable quantity of coals, in order to prevent the
breakage occasioned by discharging them into the keels from the spout,
and then casting them into the ship, have been put on board the keels in
_tubs_, which are afterwards raised by machinery to the vessel's deck,
and then discharged into the hold. These tubs are exactly like coal
waggons without their wheels, and contain the same quantity--one
Newcastle chalder, or fifty-three cwt.[6] Each keel carries eight of
these tubs. The number of keels employed on the Wear is above 500.

[4] The inscription on the foundation-stone contains a bad pun: "Quo
tempore civium Gallicorum ardor vesanus prava jubentium gentes turbavit
Europeas _ferreo_ bello, Rolandus Burdon armiger, meliora colens, Vedræ
ripas, scopulis præruptis, ponte conjungere _ferreo_ statuit."

[5] Surtees's Hist. of Durham, vol. 1, p. 226.

[6] Evidence of Sir Cuthbert Sharp before the Lords' Committee on the
Coal Trade, 1829, p. 23.



[Illustration: ENTRANCE TO SHIELDS HARBOUR.]



SHIELDS.

ENTRANCE TO THE HARBOUR.


The view of the entrance to Shields Harbour is taken from the bank a
little below the Spanish Battery, on the north side of the Tyne, and
about a quarter of a mile to the south-westward of Tynemouth lighthouse.
To the left, a part of South Shields is seen, with a vessel "dropping
up" the Narrows, just before entering the harbour. Towards the middle of
the Engraving are the two lighthouses at North Shields--distinguished by
their flag-staffs--which, when taken in a line, are a guide for vessels
in passing the bar. To the right of the low lighthouse is Clifford's
Fort, enclosed by the line of embrasures, and commanding the entrance to
the harbour. To the right are the banks, of clay, which extend from the
Spanish Battery to the Low Lights, and upon which the sea is every year
gradually making encroachments. The present Engraving, independent of
its beauty as a work of art, possesses the merit of containing the only
correct view of the entrance to Shields Harbour which has hitherto
appeared.

That portion of the river Tyne which may be considered as Shields
Harbour is about a mile and a half in length, supposing it to commence
at the Low Lights, on the north side, and to terminate at the lower end
of Jarrow Slake, at the head of South Shields; its direction is from
east by north to west by south; and the towns of North and South Shields
are built on the banks and by the shore on each side of it. As the Low
Lights are about a mile within the bar, the swell of the sea is not felt
within the harbour.

The river is of unequal width, being in some places not more than 400
yards broad, while in others, when the sands are covered with the tide,
its width is upwards of 600. From the shoals and varying width of the
river, the velocity of the current differs with the breadth of the
harbour. Opposite to the New Quay at North Shields, the average velocity
in the middle of the tide-way is, at half flood, about three miles an
hour; and, at half ebb, about three miles and three quarters an hour. As
the easterly wind blows directly into the harbour, vessels formerly were
often hindered from getting out to sea, even in fine weather, when the
wind was in that quarter, more especially if they were of considerable
draught of water; for frequently before such a vessel could drop down
with the ebbing tide as far as the bar, there was not sufficient depth
of water on it to allow her to proceed to sea. The general introduction,
however, of steam-boats for the purpose of towing vessels, when the wind
is shy or contrary, has, in a great measure, remedied this
inconvenience, and vessels now proceed to sea at any time, in favourable
weather, when there is a sufficient depth of water on the bar.

The town of South Shields is very irregularly built; and the principal
street for business extends from the market-place to the lower end of
the town. The market-place, in the centre of which stands the town hall,
is spacious, but the market is very indifferently supplied with every
thing except fish. Westoe, anciently Wivestoe, is a pleasant village
about a mile southward of South Shields, where several ship-owners and
persons of property reside. Jarrow, so famous in days of yore for its
monastery, is about a mile and a half to the westward of Westoe; and in
the vestry an old chair is still preserved, which is said to have been
the seat of the venerable Bede.

The town of North Shields lies on the north side of the river Tyne, and
is in the county of Northumberland. The principal street for business,
and which may be considered as forming the greater part of the old town,
is the Low-street, running nearly parallel with, and at a short distance
from, the river, and extending from the New Quay to the Low Lights. The
greater part of the town, which is built on the bank top, extending in
regular streets towards the north, has been erected within the last
fifty years.

At the New Quay there is a commodious wharf, with warehouses at each
end, where trading vessels load and unload, and where steam-boats leave
for Newcastle. A little above the New Quay is the landing for the steam
ferry-boat, which plies between North and South Shields, and leaves each
place four times an hour, from seven in the morning till dusk, carrying
passengers across the river at the charge of a penny each. This ferry,
which was only established in 1829, is a great accommodation to both the
towns. Previous to its establishment, the conveyance of sheep, cattle,
and horses across the Tyne, in an awkward flat-bottomed boat, managed by
a single man, was attended with great inconvenience. The barge steam
ferry-boats now employed are surrounded with a strong railing; and
sheep, cattle, and horses can be driven on board with little trouble,
and conveyed across the river without risk.



[Illustration: NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE.]



NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE.


The view of Newcastle is taken from the Gateshead shore, on the south
side of the river Tyne, about a quarter of a mile below the bridge. From
the point chosen by the artist, a better and more _characteristic_ view
of the town is obtained than from any other station. The line of
vessels, extending from the right of the engraving to the bridge,
indicates the quay--the longest in England, except that of Yarmouth--and
which, on a Saturday, when the country people come in to market, is one
of the most crowded thoroughfares in the kingdom. The steeple that rises
above the houses to the right is that of All Saints. Between All Saints
and the Castle--which is distinguished by its modern turrets and
battlements--is the famed steeple of St. Nicholas; this the Rev. Dr.
Carlyle, vicar of Newcastle, in 1804, declared to be, in his opinion,
"the most beautiful fabric existing in the world: surpassing the
Cathedral of St. Sophia, at Constantinople; the Mosque of Sultan
Saladin, at Jerusalem; the Church of St. Peter, at Rome; and even the
Temple of Minerva, at Athens." The modern building, with a Grecian
portico, in front of the Castle, is the County Court, where the assizes
for the county of Northumberland are held. The Exchange is hidden by the
sails of the large vessel, towards the middle of the engraving; and the
bridge excludes a view of the Mansion House, which stands in friendly
neighbourhood with a glass-house and a soapery, in a narrow street, with
a most expressive name--the "Close."

The town of Newcastle, though its present name is not older than the
reign of William the Conqueror, claims to be a place of great antiquity.
The Roman Wall--which extended from Wallsend, about four miles eastward
of Newcastle, to Bowness on the Sands, in Cumberland--crossed the site
of the present town; and it is certain that there was a Roman station
here, the southern wall of which probably ran along the high ground
overlooking the river in front of the old castle. In the list of
stations, with their garrisons, on the line of the wall, as given in the
_Notitia_, _Pons Ælii_ occurs as the next station to _Segedunum_; and
our best informed antiquaries appear to agree in assigning the latter
name to the station at Wallsend, and the former to the station at
Newcastle. The name _Pons Ælii_, however, occurs in no other ancient
work as the name of a station on the line of the wall, and no
inscription has been discovered which might confirm the opinion of its
being the name of the station at Newcastle. Different writers also have
interpreted the list of stations in the _Notitia_ from different ends,
and at the present time the situation of several places remains
undecided.

The Tyne is navigable as high up as Newcastle, about ten miles from its
mouth, for vessels of 250 tons burden, though in some places between
Newcastle and Shields, even in the middle of the stream, its depth does
not exceed four feet at low water. A little below Hebburn quay, about
half-way between Newcastle and Shields, it is not unusual to see three
or four small steam-boats, which do not draw more than three feet water,
lying aground in the very mid-channel at the last quarter ebb, and
waiting for the flood tide to set them afloat. A few years ago, the
corporation of Newcastle, as conservators of the river Tyne, employed a
steam-boat to _scratch_ away the sand in shallow places, by means of a
kind of harrow, which she towed after her. Since the accession of the
present corporation to office, a dredging machine has been employed, and
if they proceed in their plans for the improvement of the river as they
have begun, they will merit the thanks of every person interested in the
trade of the town.

But, however praiseworthy may be their efforts for the deepening and
cleansing the bed of the Tyne, the present year (1853) has exhibited
melancholy testimony that the streets, lanes, and alleys of Newcastle
call aloud for the expenditure of the municipal funds--if the lives of
the inhabitants are not of less value than the commerce of the port. The
ill-drained and badly-ventilated dwellings of some of the more
densely-peopled portions of the town have suffered more from the attacks
of cholera than any other place in the kingdom.

The chief exports from Newcastle, besides coals, are pig and sheet lead;
anchors, and chain cables, with other articles of wrought iron; bottles,
plate and crown glass; brown and white paper; common leather gloves,
manufactured at Hexham; leather; hams and butter; grindstones, obtained
on Gateshead Fell; fire-bricks; alkalies; soap; and Epsom salts. This
list comprises the principal articles which constitute the cargo of a
Newcastle trading vessel proceeding to London.



[Illustration: BLYTH.]



BLYTH.


The view of Blyth, or more properly of the entrance to the harbour, is
taken from the north side of the river, and looking towards the
south-east. The cottages seen in the foreground are in North Blyth,
which consists only of a few houses, chiefly occupied by fishermen and
pilots. On the opposite side of the river are seen the lighthouse of
stone, and the "basket light" to the left of it, in which lights are
exhibited at night when there is eight feet water on the bar.

Blyth, which is a small seaport town on the coast of Northumberland, and
about thirteen miles north-east of Newcastle, derives its name from the
river Blyth, on the south side of which it is built. The principal trade
of Blyth is in coals, of which more than 120,000 tons are now annually
exported. The earliest notice of Blyth as a harbour occurs in _Bishop
Hatfield's Survey_ in 1346, from which it appears that the Bishop of
Durham claimed fourpence for every ship which anchored there, and that
the sum received for that year was 3_s._ 4_d._ At what time the
coal-trade was first established there is uncertain, but so early as
1610 a complaint appears to have been made to Parliament on account of a
late imposition of a shilling a chalder levied on coals shipped at Blyth
and Sunderland, "not by virtue of any contract or grant, as in the coals
of Newcastle, but under the mere pretext of his majesty's royal
prerogative." In 1624, Blyth is again mentioned in a proclamation, as a
place exporting sea-coals; and in 1643 an order of Parliament prohibits
ships from bringing coals or salt from Newcastle or Blyth, as those
places were then in the hands of the Royalists.

Within the last forty years the trade of Blyth has much increased in
consequence of the opening of new collieries in the neighbourhood. A
commodious dry dock was formed in 1811; and there are several slips for
the building and repairing of ships. A considerable quantity of articles
of cast and malleable iron, manufactured at Bedlington, about three
miles up the river, are shipped at Blyth.

Blyth is a member of the port of Newcastle; and a number of vessels
belonging to persons residing there are registered at the latter port.
Nearly the whole of Blyth is the property of Sir M. Ridley, Bart. At
spring tides there is about fourteen feet water on the bar, and about
twelve at neaps; but at low water the bar is nearly dry.

It may be interesting to contemplate a few facts and figures in
connexion with that trade which forms the principal occupation of Blyth
and its neighbouring ports. From the evidence of an experienced
coal-engineer,[7] given a few years since before a Parliamentary
Committee, we learn, "that the number of persons employed under-ground
on the Tyne are--men, 4,937; boys, 3,554; together, 8,491:
above-ground--men, 2,745; boys, 718; making 3,463: making the total
employed in the mines above and below ground, 11,954, which in round
numbers I call 12,000, because I am pretty sure there were some
omissions in the returns. On the river Wear, I conceive there are 9,000
employed; making 21,000 employed in digging the coal, and delivering it
to the ships on the two rivers. From the best calculations I have been
able to make, it would appear that, averaging the coasting-vessels that
carry coals at the size of 220 London chaldrons each vessel, there would
be 1,400 vessels employed, which would require 15,000 seamen and boys. I
have made a summary. There are, seamen, 15,000; pitmen and above-ground
people employed at the collieries, 21,000; keel-men, coal-boatmen,
casters, and trimmers, 2,000: making the total number employed in what I
call the Northern Coal Trade, 38,000. In London, whippers, lightermen,
and so forth, 5,000; factors, agents, &c., on the Coal Exchange,
2,500;-7,500 in all, in London. Making the grand total in the North
country and London departments of the trade, 45,500. This does not, of
course, include the persons employed at the outports in discharging the
ships there."

[7] Mr. Buddle, of Wallsend, whose statistics of the coal-trade have
been quoted by McCulloch and other writers on the subject.



[Illustration: TYNEMOUTH CASTLE.

_VESSEL WRECKED ON THE ROCKS._]



TYNEMOUTH.

VESSEL ON THE ROCKS.


The engraving presents a view of a vessel on the rocks, at the foot of
the cliff, to the north-east of Tynemouth castle, as seen from the
Ox-fall, in coming from Cullercoat Sands. On the top of the cliff is the
lighthouse; in the foreground are various indications of a wreck;
towards the middle of the engraving is the vessel "high and dry" upon
the rocks; and in the distance, on the left hand, is seen Souter Point,
in the county of Durham, about four miles distant from Tynemouth.

The village of Tynemouth, which gives name to an extensive and populous
parish, is situated near the mouth of the river Tyne, at the southern
extremity of the county of Northumberland. It is a short mile distant
from North Shields, about nine miles to the eastward of Newcastle, and
two hundred and seventy-six from London. It consists chiefly of one wide
street, which runs nearly east and west, with one or two smaller streets
to the northward, nearly in the same direction.

The ruins of Tynemouth priory, which, with the adjacent lighthouse, form
one of the most conspicuous landmarks on the eastern coast of England,
lie to the eastward of the village. The priory is built on a small rocky
peninsula, which is bound, from south-west to north-east, by a steep and
lofty cliff; and the entrance to this enclosure, which is of about six
acres area, is through the gateway underneath the castle. The whole of
the enclosed space is fortified according to the rules of modern
defensive warfare, and a party of artillery are always stationed at the
castle. There is a public walk round the whole of the castle-yard; and
the view of the coast, looking either to the north or south, is
extremely interesting. From the top of the lighthouse, which stands at a
short distance to the north-east of the priory, the Cheviot Hills, on
the borders of Scotland, can be plainly seen; and, looking southward,
the view extends across the Durham coast as far as Huntcliffe Fort, in
Yorkshire; and, in very clear weather, Flamborough Head, which is about
seventy-two miles distant, may be perceived.

Although the present castle of Tynemouth, the appearance of which has
been considerably altered within the last thirty years, may not be of
very great antiquity, yet it is certain that Robert de Mowbray, in
1095, when he entered into a conspiracy to dethrone William Rufus, had a
castle at Tynemouth, and that he converted the peninsular area on which
it was built into a place of great strength. After a siege of two
months, the castle was taken by the king, and the earl escaped to
Bamborough. Mowbray, subsequently, being pursued by the king's party,
when endeavouring to gain admission into the castle of Newcastle, took
sanctuary in Tynemouth church, from which, however, he was dragged by
his enemies, and made prisoner.

In 1090, Malcolm III., King of Scotland, and his son Edward, having been
slain when besieging Alnwick, were interred at Tynemouth. In 1298,
Edward I. visited Tynemouth, and offered a clasp of gold at the shrine
of St. Oswald; and, in 1303, his queen resided there while he proceeded
into Scotland. In 1381, some monks of St. Albans, who had been engaged
in Wat Tyler's insurrection, fled to Tynemouth for refuge on the death
of their leader. On the suppression of Tynemouth priory, by Henry VIII.,
in 1539, the monks were possessed of twenty-seven manors in the county
of Northumberland, with various advowsons, impropriations, and other
property, both in that county and in Durham. Their annual revenue was
valued by Speed at £511 4s. 1½d.; and by Dugdale at £397 10s. 5½d.

The church of Tynemouth priory continued to be used for divine service
till about 1659, when, in consequence of its dilapidated state, the
foundation of a new church was laid, near to North Shields, on the
Newcastle-road. In the reign of Charles II., the lead was stripped off
the roof of the old church, by Colonel Edward Villiers, then governor of
Tynemouth castle, who also pulled down part of the priory, in order to
obtain stones for the erection of a lighthouse and other buildings.

By a grant from Charles II., dated 30th June, 1677, Colonel Villiers, in
consideration of building the lighthouse and providing a light, was
authorised to demand one shilling from each British, and sixpence from
each foreign, vessel entering the Tyne. Since the time of Colonel
Villiers, the lighthouse has undergone considerable alterations, and it
has also been greatly elevated. Its correct geographical situation
is--north latitude, 55° 0' 55"; west longitude, 1° 24' 31". The light,
which is a revolving one, is displayed from sunset to sunrise, and may
be seen, in clear weather, at the distance of five or six leagues. The
light appears in its greatest lustre, like a star of the first
magnitude, once a minute; its brilliancy then begins to decline, and at
length it becomes totally obscured.



[Illustration: CULLERCOATS.]



CULLERCOATS.


In the Engraving is given a view of Cullercoats, as seen from the
southward. On the sand, in the foreground, is a coble, a light kind of
boat, generally employed by the fishermen on the coast of
Northumberland; near the coble, to the right, is a _dand_ or buoy, used
by the fishermen to mark the place where they have cast their lines or
nets. It is formed of an inflated bag of tanned skin, through which a
light pole passes, and to which pole the ends forming the openings of
the bag are tightly tied with cord. The lower end of the pole is
sometimes rendered heavy by lead, so that the _dand_ may float upright,
and it has also a loop, or a ring, to which the rope connecting it with
the nets or lines is fastened; and a piece of _bunting_, or coloured
cloth, is attached, as a small flag, to the upper end, in order that it
may be more perceptible at a distance.

The village of Cullercoats, which lies about a mile to the northward of
Tynemouth, is mostly inhabited by fishermen. The duties performed by the
wives and daughters of the Cullercoats fishermen are very laborious.
They search for the bait--sometimes digging sand-worms in the muddy sand
at the mouth of the Coble-dean, at the head of North Shields; gathering
muscles on the Scalp, near Clifford's Fort; or seeking limpets and
dog-crabs among the rocks near Tynemouth;--and they also assist in
baiting the hooks. They carry the fish which are caught in North Shields
in large wicker baskets, called _creels_, and they also sit in the
market there to sell them. When fish are scarce, they not unfrequently
carry a load on their shoulders, weighing between three or four stone,
to Newcastle, which is about ten miles distant from Cullercoats, in the
hope of meeting with a better market. The fish principally caught by the
fishermen of Cullercoats are codlings, cod, ling, (_Gadus molva_),
halibut, usually called turbot in Northumberland, haddocks, and
whitings. Herrings are also taken in the season; and the colesay (_Gadus
carbonarius_), is occasionally caught, but it is a fish which is hardly
worth the bait, as it is scarcely saleable at any price. The most
valuable sea-fish caught by the fishermen of Cullercoats, is the _bret_,
or turbot of the London market. But this fish, when caught by them, is
mostly sold to the bret smacks, by which it is conveyed to London.
Gentlemen residing at Cullercoats or Tynemouth during the bathing
season, may often obtain excellent sport in fishing for whitings, in
fine weather, off the north-eastern end of the Herd Sand. The best time
is in the evening, towards high-water; and the best bait is sprats cut
into small pieces; it is no extraordinary feat for a party of three,
with half a dozen lines, to take twelve or fifteen dozen of whitings in
three hours, on a summer's evening.

For the amateur sea-fisher, in the neighbourhood of Tynemouth, there is
no bait generally so good when fishing within six or eight miles of the
shore, as the small dog-crab, called in the neighbourhood of Shields a
_pillan_. It is known from the common dog-crab by the facility with
which its shell may be stripped off; for instance, in breaking the shell
round one of its claws, the broken portion may be withdrawn from the
member as a glove from the hand; and the shell of the back may also be
stripped off in the same manner. From this facility of _peeling_, it is
probable that the crab derives its local name of _pillan_. Pillan,
however, are not plentiful; and when such are not to be got, then
sand-worms, muscles, and common dog-crabs are the most likely bait.
Codlings and rock-codlings are plentiful a little to the eastward of
Tynemouth; but, haddocks and cod, the staple of the Cullercoats
fishermen, are not often caught in any great quantity within seven miles
of the shore. The young of the colesay, called a _hallan_, a beautiful
little fish, is frequently caught with a rod, from the rocks in the
neighbourhood of Tynemouth. The weaver, (_Trachinus draco_,) or
stinging-fish as it is called at Shields, is often caught when fishing
off Tynemouth Bar; and strangers, who are unacquainted with the
formidable character of this little fish, are sometimes pricked by it
when taking it off the hook. The men who are employed in the salmon
fishery, at the end of the Herd Sand, have sometimes their bare feet
stung by it when hauling their nets. The average length of this fish, as
caught at the mouth of the Tyne, is about five inches; though some are
occasionally caught there three or four inches longer. The dangerous
spines are those of the first dorsal fin; and the best remedy for the
wound is to rub it well with sweet oil.

Cullercoats is a kind of land-mark for vessels leaving Shields Harbour;
for as soon as the man at the helm can see the village opening behind
Tynemouth Cliff, the ship is over the bar.



[Illustration: DUNSTANBOROUGH CASTLE.

_FROM THE EASTWARD._]



DUNSTANBROUGH CASTLE,

FROM THE EASTWARD.


Dunstanbrough Castle, in the county of Northumberland, is situated about
seven miles north-east of Alnwick, and about two miles north by east of
Howick, the seat of Earl Grey. Of the keep there are no vestiges
remaining; and it is even questionable if it was ever completed. Thomas,
Earl of Lancaster, who is generally considered to have been the founder
of the present castle, only obtained the king's licence to crenelate, or
fortify, his house at Dunstanbrough in 1316: and as he was beheaded at
Pontefract in 1321, and in the intermediate years had been much engaged,
in the south, in rebellion against Edward II., it is not unlikely that
the keep might be unfinished at his decease, and never afterwards
finished. Of Dunstanbrough Castle history records little that is
interesting. In 1464 it was held, after the battle of Hexham, for Henry
VI., by Sir Peter de Bressy, and a party of Frenchmen; but was taken,
after a vigorous defence, by Ralph Lord Ogle, Edmund and Richard de
Craster, John Manners, and Gilbert de Errington, all Northumbrians, and
partisans of Edward IV. From this period the castle, which was
dismantled by the victors, is never mentioned in the history of the
county as the scene of any memorable event. It was in the possession of
the crown in the 10th of Elizabeth, but was granted by James I. to Sir
William Grey, afterwards Lord Grey of Wark. It is now the property of
the Earl of Tankerville, whose ancestor, Charles Lord Ossulston, became
possessed of it in 1701, through his marriage with the daughter and
heiress of Lord Grey, Earl of Tankerville, son of Lord Grey of Wark.

In the present engraving a view is presented of the principal remaining
tower of Dunstanbrough Castle, as seen from the sea at the distance of
about a mile; and whoever has seen it at that distance in a blustering
day, towards the latter end of October, will immediately acknowledge the
fidelity of the artist's delineation. Though the Abbess of Whitby and
her nuns, in their fabled voyage to Holy Island, passed the place in
summer, and in fine weather, yet they seem to have been near enough to
be sensible of the danger of too close an approach to its "wave-worn
steep;" for Sir Walter Scott, in _Marmion_, Canto II., relates that,--

          "They crossed themselves, to hear
    The whitening breakers sound so near,
    Where, boiling through the rocks, they roar
    On Dunstanborough's caverned shore."

The contemplation of Dunstanbrough Castle, like that of many similar
edifices, the ruins of which still frown upon the promontories and
headlands of our coast, cannot but awaken feelings little favourable to
what are frequently called the "good old times." If we may compare what
our ancestors have left with what the present generation is exerting
itself to accomplish, antiquity has little to boast of. Our forefathers
crowned the cliffs of the land with strongholds, bristling with lofty
towers and warlike battlements, nominally for their own defence from the
incursions of foreign foes, but too often diverted into engines of
tyranny and oppression to their fellow-citizens. The shipwrecked mariner
of those days had often more to dread than to hope for in the approach
to such beacons as Dunstanbrough; and if unhappily thrown upon the mercy
of its owners, they were only too ready to seize upon what the waves had
spared, and deem that in permitting him to depart unharmed, they had
done all that could be expected from them. In our days, we no longer
erect castles on our coasts; we rather stud them with lighthouses, and
thus mark out the track of safety, not only for the ships of our own
nation, but confer equal benefits upon those of every other maritime
power. We no longer pour down upon the distressed seamen with armed
bands, whose only aim is plunder; but we rush to the beach, and with
life-boats constructed in the best manner, and manned by the bravest and
most skilful of our countrymen, we hasten to succour and to save those
whom the elements are threatening to destroy. Of a truth, the ruins of
these fortresses of old might instil a spirit of thankfulness in the
minds of many of those who profess to admire the days which are gone,
and render them grateful that their lot has been cast in happier
times.



[Illustration: DUNSTANBOROUGH CASTLE.]



DUNSTANBROUGH CASTLE.

MOONLIGHT.


In the vignette engraving of Dunstanbrough by moonlight, the incident of
a wreck coming ashore among the rocks at the foot of the castle is
introduced with striking effect. The masts of the vessel are seen
dashing against the rocks. To the left are fishermen assisting such of
the crew as have escaped to ascend the cliff; while to the right are
seen people with torches from the adjacent country hastening towards the
scene of destruction. The moon appears as if "wading"[8] through the
clouds, and the old tower--itself the wreck of time--appropriately
occupies the centre of the view.

"On the brink of the cliff, to the sea," says a writer, describing
Dunstanbrough Castle, "appear the remains of a very strong wall; indeed
it is probable the whole area was originally so enclosed. The heavy seas
which break upon the rocks of the north-west point have torn them much,
and it appears as if the area had been originally of greater extent than
at present, many separate columns of rock standing near the cliffs,
which, some ages ago, may have been joined to the mainland....
Immediately below this tower" [that which is seen in the engraving] "is
a gully or passage, of perpendicular sides, formed in the rocks, about
sixty yards in length, and forty feet deep, where the sea makes a
dreadful inset, breaking into foam with a tremendous noise: the spray
occasioned thereby is driven within the Castle walls. This place is
called by the country people the _Rumble Churn_[9]." It is to this chasm
that Sir Walter Scott alludes when he speaks of "Dunstanbrough's
caverned shore," in the popular poem of _Marmion_.

In the neighbourhood of Dunstanbrough there is a legendary tale yet
current, though no longer at its ancient value, of a knight who, many
centuries ago, discovered a place of enchantment in the vaults of the
castle, but who, failing to break the spell, through inattention to
certain mysterious instructions given to him, was doomed to seek for
ever amid the ruins for the entrance to the enchanted apartment. Mr. G.
Lewis, in the _Tales of Wonder_, has versified this story under the
title of "Sir Guy, the Seeker," adding to it certain embellishments of
his own, and among other matters, introducing a description of the
Rumble Churn.

The principal parts of Dunstanbrough Castle at present standing are the
outer walls to the south and west, with the tower overlooking the sea,
and a gateway towards the south, defended by two circular towers. The
area inclosed by the walls and the cliff is about nine acres. It is
under cultivation; and in the additions to _Camden_, it is said to have
produced in one year two hundred and forty bushels of corn, besides
several loads of hay.

Howick House, the seat of Earl Grey, is situated in the vicinity of
Dunstanbrough. It is a noble mansion, built in 1787 from designs by
Paine; and is surrounded by a beautiful park, watered by two streams
which unite in the grounds. Near the eastern side of the park are the
remains of a Roman encampment, where numerous coins and antiquities have
been found. The family of Grey is ancient in Northumberland; and first
obtained the peerage in the reign of Edward IV. It is observable that
the Greys of this district bear the same heraldic distinction as the
Grey family in Scotland, and are both probably descended from the same
stock,--one of the martial followers of the Norman conqueror.

Alnwick Castle, about seven miles from Dunstanbrough, is the residence
of the Duke of Northumberland: it is an immense pile covering nearly
five acres of ground; and built upon an elevated spot on the southern
side of the river Aln.

[8] The moon is said to "wade" when she seems as if toilfully making her
way through a succession of clouds, which flit rapidly past her.

[9] _History of Northumberland_, vol. i. _p._ 594. Edit. 1810.



[Illustration: BAMBOROUGH.

_FROM THE SOUTH-EAST._]



BAMBROUGH CASTLE.

FROM THE SOUTH-EAST.


Sir Walter Scott, in his description of the voyage of the abbess of
Whitby and her nuns to Holy Island, in the second canto of Marmion, thus
speaks of them as noticing Bambrough Castle:

    "Thy tower, proud Bambrough, marked they there,
    King Ida's castle, huge and square,
    From its tall rock look grimly down,
    And on the swelling ocean frown."

The view which Balmer, with his usual effect, has given of Bambrough
Castle from the south-east, is that which the reverend mother and her
five fair nuns might be supposed to contemplate on entering the channel
between the Great Farn Island and the mainland, and when about half a
mile from the shore. The stranded vessel, however, must not be supposed
to be of the age of Henry VIII., when the abbess made her voyage; for she
is evidently a light collier of the present day, whose captain,
probably, in running for Skate Roads in a strong south-east gale, had
stood too close in shore in passing through the Fareway, and laid her
snugly up on Bambrough Sands. The Holy Island fishing-boats that are
seen--for no fishermen dwell at the village of Bambrough--would seem to
indicate that their owners expect a job in assisting to get her off.

These hardy and industrious men follow an occupation in which the
hazards and dangers are but poorly recompensed by their gains; and the
sums they occasionally obtain from the owners of colliers and other
coasting vessels, form rich prizes in the humble lottery of their life.
Having in our remarks on "Bambrough, from the north-west," described the
principal features of this sea-girt fortress, we cannot better employ
the present page than in a notice of the fishery which is carried on in
its vicinity. The boats principally used for this purpose are called
cobles, and their fishing ground is from eight to sixteen miles from the
shore. In winter, however, they do not venture so far out as in summer,
but usually shoot their lines between six and ten miles from the shore.
There are usually three men to a coble. When the wind is not favourable
and they cannot set their sail, they use their oars; the two men seated
nearest the head of the boat row each a single large oar, while the man
on the thwart nearest the stern rows a pair of smaller size. The fish
are not caught, as on some parts of the south-western coast of England,
by hand-lines, which are suspended over the side of the boat, and pulled
up when the fisherman feels that he has a bite. The mode of proceeding
is to make fast a number of lines together, and shoot them across the
tide; and after they have lain extended at the bottom of the sea for
several hours--usually during the time of a tide's ebbing or flowing,
that is about six hours--they are hauled in. While the lines are shot,
one man keeps a look-out, and the other two usually wrap themselves in
the sail, and go to sleep in the bottom of the coble. Each man has three
lines, and each line is from 200 to 240 fathoms long. The hooks, of
which there are from 240 to 300 to each line, are tied, or _whipped_, as
the fishermen term it, to lengths of twisted horse-hair called _snoods_;
each snood is about two feet and a half long, and they are fastened to
the line at about five feet apart. Each man's lines, when baited, are
regularly coiled upon an oval piece of wicker work, something like the
bottom of a clothes-basket, called by the Yorkshire fishermen a _skep_,
at Hartlepool, in the county of Durham, the same thing is called a
_rip_. In this mode of fishing the hooks are all baited, generally by
the fishermen's wives and children, before the coble proceeds to sea.
The lines when shot are all fastened together; and when each is 240
fathoms long, the length of the whole is nearly two miles and a half.
There is an anchor and a buoy at the first end of the line, and the same
at the end of each man's set of lines. There are thus four anchors and
four buoys to each coble's entire line. The buoys at the extremities of
the line are usually formed of tanned dog-skin, inflated in the manner
of a bladder, and having a slight pole, like the handle of a mop,
passing through them, to the top of which a small flag is attached to
render them more conspicuous. The intermediate buoys are generally made
of cork. The anchors for sinking and holding the lines are mostly large
stones; as an iron anchor, with arms like a ship's, is liable to get
fast among the rocks at the bottom of the sea, and be lost in
consequence of the buoy rope being too weak to force it loose.



[Illustration: BAMBOROUGH.

_FROM THE NORTH WEST._]



BAMBROUGH CASTLE.


Bambrough, which is now a small village, was a place of considerable
importance during the Saxon period. King Ida, who ascended the throne of
Bernicia in 559, first built a castle there, which he is said to have
named Bebban-burgh in honour of his queen Bebba. It has been conjectured
by Wallis in his History of Northumberland, that the Keep or great
tower, is of Roman origin; but Grose, with greater probability,
considers it to have been built by the Normans. In 1095 Robert Mowbray,
Earl of Northumberland, having rebelled against William Rufus, retired
to Bambrough Castle, whither he was followed by Henry, the King's
brother, and closely besieged. After the siege had continued some time,
Mowbray left the castle in the charge of his kinsman Morel, who
continued to defend it with great bravery. The Earl being afterwards
seized at Tynemouth, where he had taken sanctuary, Henry caused him to
be brought to Bambrough, and there showing him before the walls of the
castle, he threatened to put out his eyes if it were not immediately
delivered up--a proceeding which caused Morel to surrender the place
forthwith.

From the reign of William Rufus till about the middle of the fifteenth
century, Bambrough Castle, as if it were a place too important to be in
the hands of a subject, appears to have continued in the possession of
the crown, by whom a governor was appointed. In the frequent contests
between the houses of York and Lancaster, it sustained great damage; and
as it was not repaired either by Henry VII. or his successor, it ceased
about the beginning of the sixteenth century to be a fortress of
importance. In 1575 Sir John Foster, warden of the Middle Marches was
governor of Bambrough Castle; and one of his descendants received a
grant of the old building from James I. It continued in the possession
of this family till the commencement of the reign of George I., when it
was forfeited through the treason of Thomas Foster, Esq., M.P. for
Northumberland, better known as General Foster, who in 1715 took up arms
in favour of the Pretender.

The Manor and Castle of Bambrough were afterwards purchased of the
crown, by Nathaniel, Lord Crewe, Bishop of Durham, who was married to
Foster's aunt. Lord Crewe, at his decease in 1720, left the above
property, with other valuable estates, to trustees to be applied to
charitable uses. In compliance with the intentions of the testator, a
noble charity is established at Bambrough for the succour of shipwrecked
seamen, the education of children, and the relief of indigent persons.
In 1757 part of the Keep being ready to fall down, the Rev. Thomas
Sharp, Archdeacon of Northumberland, and one of Lord Crewe's trustees,
caused it to be repaired, "merely because it had been a sea-mark for
ages, and as such beneficial to the public." The Rev. Thomas Sharp being
succeeded in the trusteeship, as well as in the archdeaconry, by his
son, the Rev. John Sharp, D.D., the latter, who was also perpetual
curate of Bambrough, continued to make further repairs; and he also
caused an immense quantity of sand, which he had accumulated in the
castle-yard, to be cleared away. To this gentleman, who was a brother of
the amiable Granville Sharp, the present arrangements of the charity are
chiefly owing. At the castle, blocks and tackles, anchors, cables,
warps, and other articles are kept for the use of stranded vessels. In
stormy weather, two men patrol the coast for eight miles, day and night,
in order to look out for vessels in distress, and during a fog a bell is
rung at intervals from the castle, and a gun fired every quarter of an
hour, as a warning to such ships as may be near the coast. Flour and
groceries are sold to poor families at a reduced rate, and twenty poor
girls are boarded and educated within the castle.



[Illustration: HOLY ISLAND CASTLE.

St. Cuthberts.]



CASTLE OF HOLY ISLAND, AND LINDISFARN ABBEY


In the present engraving the view is taken from the eastward on entering
the harbour. To the right is the castle; beyond which, towards the
centre of the view, are seen the ruins of the abbey. The setting sun
sheds a warm, yet mellow light, over land and sea; and as evening is
approaching, and the breeze freshening with the flood tide--for it is
evident from the inward swell that the tide is flowing--the fishermen
are seen making for the shore. The boats bound merrily before the wind,
and

    "----the waves, that murmur in their glee,
    All hurrying in a joyful band,
    Come dancing from the sea."

The painter when he made his sketch must have thoroughly felt the beauty
of the scene, and been touched with the influence of the hour:--

    "O Hesperus, thou bringest all good things!"

and inspirest poets to sing, and artists to paint the charms of eve's
sweet hour in words and colours that never die--for once felt and
communicated, they become impressed on the heart and soul of man, and
live and bloom there for ever.

Holy Island, which is about two miles and a half long, and about two
miles broad, lies off the Northumberland coast. On the south it is
separated from the mainland by a deep channel about a mile broad. To the
north-west it is connected with the mainland by a sand, which is dry at
low water, and by which carts and passengers can pass to and from the
island. Speed says that the Britons named it "Inis Medicante, for that,
in manner of an island, it twice every day suffreth an extraordinarie
inundation and overflowing of the ocean, which, returning unto her
watery habitation, twice likewise makes it continent to the land, and
laies the shoare bare againe, as before." It was called Lindisfarn by
the Saxons; and in after times, from the celebrity of its monastery, and
the holy men who had lived there, it acquired the name of Holy Island.

About 635, a church, of wood and thatched with reeds, was first built in
Lindisfarn, by Aidan, a Scottish monk from the Isle of Iona, who
exercised the office of bishop in Northumberland. It was afterwards
built of stone, and gave title to a bishop, until the see was removed to
Durham in 995. The monastery continued as a cell, dependent on Durham,
till it was suppressed by Henry VIII. A considerable part of the old
church, with circular arches in what is termed the Saxon style, is yet
standing, and forms, with the adjacent ruins, a most picturesque object.
The village, or as it is usually called "the town," lies at a short
distance to the northward of the ruins of the monastery, and is chiefly
inhabited by fishermen, about two-thirds of whom are also licensed by
the Trinity-house at Newcastle to act as pilots for their own harbour
and the adjacent coast.

The fishery for cod, ling, and haddock is usually carried on in cobles.
These boats are very generally employed in the coast fishery from the
Tweed to the Humber. They are sharp and wedge-shaped at the bow, but
flat-bottomed towards the stern. They have only one mast, stepped close
forward, on which a lug sail is set. They are excellent sea boats, and,
for their size, carry a large sail. The usual length of a Holy Island
coble is from twenty-five to twenty-seven feet, of which there are about
sixty belonging to the island. A great quantity of the fish thus caught
is sent to London in smacks, employed by fishmongers or salesmen there,
who annually contract with the fishermen to pay them so much per score
for all the fish sent during the season. From December to April many
lobsters are caught off Holy Island, nearly the whole of which are sent
to London.

For the herring-fishery, boats of a larger size are employed. They are
from thirty to thirty-six feet long, about eleven feet broad, and from
four and a half to five feet deep. They carry two lug sails, and have no
deck. The herring-fishery commences off Holy Island about the 20th of
July, and usually terminates early in September. Many herrings are
caught in the Fare-way, between the Farn islands and the main-land; but
the principal fishery for them is generally a little to the southward of
the Staples, a cluster of small islands which lie from two to three
miles to the eastward of the Farns. Most of the herrings caught by the
Holy Island fishermen are taken to Berwick to be cured, and are thence
chiefly exported to London, Hull, and Newcastle.

On the beach to the westward of the island, the fossils called St.
Cuthbert's beads--the _entrochi_ of naturalists--are found. They are
also to be observed in the cliff to the north-east. A rock which lies at
a short distance from the south-west point of the island is called St.
Cuthbert's rock, where in former times superstition feigned that the
saint was wont to sit and

                    "----frame
    The sea-born beads that bear his name."

This article of popular credulity has, however, been long exploded, and
the fisherman when he hears the stones rattle on the beach from the
force of the waves, no longer imagines that the sound proceeds from the
saint's hammer.



[Illustration: CASTLE ON HOLY ISLAND.

_FROM THE WEST._]



CASTLE OF HOLY ISLAND.


FROM THE WESTWARD.


The Castle of Holy Island stands on a steep rock, about half a mile to
the eastward of the Abbey. It is wholly inaccessible, except by a
winding pass cut through the rock on the south side. The date of its
foundation is unknown; but it is supposed to have been first built by
the monks, as a place of refuge against the piratical attacks of the
Danes, who frequently annoyed them, and twice burnt their abbey. The
most memorable event in the meagre history of this castle is its capture
for the Pretender, by two men, Launcelot Errington, and his nephew Mark,
in 1715. The garrison at that time consisted of a sergeant, a corporal,
and ten or twelve men. Errington, who was master of a little vessel then
lying in the harbour, invited the sergeant, and such of his men as were
not on duty, to drink with him on board of his ship. The invitation
being accepted, he plied them so well with brandy as to render them
incapable of opposition. Framing an excuse for going ashore, he
proceeded to the castle with his nephew, and succeeded in turning out
the old gunner, the corporal, and two soldiers, being all that were on
duty. He then shut the gates, and hoisted the Pretender's colours, but
being disappointed in the succour which he expected, and a party of the
king's troops arriving from Berwick, he and his nephew made their escape
over the castle walls, and endeavoured to conceal themselves among the
rocks and sea-weed, to the south-eastward of the castle till it was
dark, when they intended to swim to the mainland. In consequence of the
rising of the tide, they were obliged to swim while it was yet light,
and, being perceived by the soldiers, they were taken, and conveyed to
Berwick gaol, from which, however, they broke out before they were
brought to trial, and escaped to France. On the suppression of the
rebellion they took the benefit of the general pardon, and returned to
England.

Holy Island is of an irregular form. Its greatest length, including a
low sandy point, which stretches out towards the west-north-west, is
about two and a half miles. Its mean breadth does not exceed a mile and a
half.

Holy Island harbour is a small bay or haven on the south side of the
island, between the castle and the ruins of the monastery. On the bar,
which is about a mile distant from the town, there is about nine feet at
low water at spring-tides. The flood then sets with a strong current in
the channel between the island and the mainland; and at high-water there
is twenty-four feet on the bar. There is no lighthouse on Holy Island,
but there is a beacon on the "Heugh"--a hill between the town and the
harbour--on which, in bad weather, when pilots cannot get off, a flag is
hoisted during the time of tide that ships may safely enter. In gales of
wind from the eastward, coasting vessels sometimes seek shelter in Holy
Island harbour, and find good anchorage before the town in three fathoms
at low-water.

The Staples and Farn islands, with the rocks and shoals between them and
Holy Island, render the in-shore navigation of the coast of
Northumberland, from North Sunderland point to the mouth of the Tweed,
extremely intricate and hazardous; and the corporation of the Trinity
House, London, caution all masters of ships, and especially strangers to
the coast, not to attempt sailing within those islands and shoals; more
particularly on account of the various settings of the rapid tide which
runs in the different sounds between the islands.

A visit to the Farn and Staple islands, from Bambrough or Holy Island,
forms a pleasant excursion in fine weather, more especially when the
eider ducks are sitting, which is from about the middle of May to the
latter end of July. These birds, which are seldom seen, and do not breed
to the southward of the Farn islands, are also known in the
neighbourhood by the name of St. Cuthbert's ducks. Their eggs, and the
fine down with which they line their nests, are collected and sold by
the person who rents the islands, which are also the haunt of several
other species of water-fowl, such as the sheldrake, the cormorant, and
the shag, with auks, guillemots, terns, and gulls. Solan geese also
visit the Farn islands, but do not breed there, commonly making their
appearance early in spring, and departing before May.



[Illustration: BERWICK.

_FROM THE SOUTH-EAST_]



BERWICK.

FROM THE SOUTH-EAST.


The view of Berwick from the south-east is taken from the Tweedmouth
shore, at low-water, about a quarter of a mile below the bridge. In the
foreground is a group of salmon-fishers on the shore examining the
produce of their last haul, while two others in a coble are shooting the
net. To the left are seen the chapel and some of the houses of
Tweedmouth; to the right a few ships are perceived lying on the shore
near Berwick quay, where the smacks usually take in, and discharge,
their cargoes. The spire which towers above the houses, like the steeple
of a church, is that of the town-hall. As Berwick church, which stands
towards the north side of the town, is without a steeple, it would seem
that the inhabitants had determined to make amends for the deficiency by
giving their town-hall a steeple like a church.

The town of Berwick stands on the north side of the Tweed, by which it
is separated from the county of Northumberland, and about half a mile
from the mouth of that river. It is 336 miles north by west from London,
and 54 south by east from Edinburgh. As a great part of the town is
built on a declivity, which slopes down towards the river, and as most
of the houses are covered with red tiles, the view that is first
obtained of it, in approaching from the south, on a clear bright day, is
very striking, though not very grand. It is almost the only town on the
Scottish side of the Tweed in which the houses are so covered; in all
the others the houses being, for the most part, roofed with slate.

Chalmers, in his _Caledonia_, vol. ii, p. 217, speaking of Berwick,
says, "this place, lying at the mouth of the Tweed, on a dubious
frontier, has an origin obscure, undignified, and recent." That its
origin, like the origin of most other towns in Great Britain, is
obscure, may be admitted; but the term "recent" can scarcely be applied
with propriety to a town which was of such consequence in the reign of
David I. as to be appointed one of the "_Four Boroughs_,"[10] which, by
their Commissioners, met annually at Haddington, where, under the
presidency of the King's Chamberlain, they formed a Court of Appeal from
the jurisdiction of other boroughs, and exercised an authority in
commercial affairs. As nothing is positively known respecting the origin
of Berwick, it is impossible that an uninspired antiquary should be able
to decide whether it was "undignified" or not. Its first "kirk and
mill"--the primary conditions of a town--were more likely to be founded
by a noble than by a serf.

In 1174, Berwick, with the castles of Jedburgh, Roxburgh, Stirling, and
Edinburgh, was delivered up to Henry II. as security for payment of the
ransom of William the Lion, King of Scotland, who had been taken
prisoner when besieging Alnwick; and it remained in the possession of
England until 1189, when Richard I. restored it with the other castles
to William for the sum of 10,000 marks. In 1216, Berwick was plundered
and burnt by King John, but in a short time was rebuilt by the Scots, in
whose uninterrupted possession it continued until 1296, when it was
taken by Edward I. at the commencement of the Scottish war of
independence, which was first waged by Wallace, and afterwards by Bruce,
against Edward and his successor; who, laying claim to the sovereignty
of Scotland, endeavoured to reduce that country to a state of vassalage,
and to compel her kings to do homage to England for their crown. From
this war may be dated that jealous and hostile feeling with which the
two countries continued to regard each other for nearly three centuries
afterwards, and was only modified in the reign of Elizabeth--when there
was a prospect of a Scottish king succeeding to the English throne, and
when open warfare was succeeded by political intrigue--but which was not
wholly extinct at the Union of the two kingdoms in 1707.

In 1484, it was agreed on, by commissioners appointed by the two
kingdoms, that the debatable ground in the neighbourhood of Berwick
should remain without culture, buildings, or inhabitants; and by a
treaty, concluded at Norham, 10th June, 1551, between Edward VI. and
Mary Queen of Scots, Berwick was declared to be a free town, independent
of both kingdoms. Notwithstanding this declaration, Berwick continued
subject to English authority, and, during the reigns of Mary and
Elizabeth, was garrisoned with English soldiers. At the Union of the two
kingdoms in 1707, Berwick, as a salvo to national pride, was considered
as a separate and independent territory; and it is to this cause that,
in Public Acts and Forms of Prayer, the "Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed" is
especially mentioned.

[10] The other three were Roxburgh, Stirling, and Edinburgh.



[Illustration: LEITH PIER AND HARBOUR.]



LEITH.


     This view is taken from the pier, with Edinburgh, the Castle,
     the Calton-hill, Salisbury-crags, and Arthur's-seat in the
     background.

Leith, which performs nearly the same important services to the "Modern
Athens" as the "Piræus" did to the Ancient, has long served as the port
and harbour of Edinburgh, to the prosperity of which, as well as to that
of the whole country, it has greatly contributed. As early as the
beginning of the fourteenth century the citizens of Edinburgh received
from King Robert I. a grant of the harbour of Leith; but, owing to the
resistance of a powerful family, to whose interests it was prejudicial,
the royal grant was of little or no value to the city. As soon, however,
as the difference was adjusted, and the corporation of Edinburgh had
obtained undisturbed possession of the harbour, symptoms of mercantile
prosperity became visible. But as this prosperity was confined to the
corporation, the inhabitants of Leith were naturally incensed at the
monopoly; they felt themselves debarred from the natural advantages,
profits, and employments of their maritime position, and daily beheld
the wealth which flowed into their port transferred to the hands of
those who were neither resident nor proprietors in the place. In 1555 a
strong effort was made by the inhabitants of Leith to throw off their
humiliating dependence. With this object in view they petitioned the
Queen Regent of Scotland, Mary of Lorraine, for the royal sanction and
assistance; and succeeded as far as to get Leith erected into a burgh of
barony, a preparatory step to its being raised to the independence of a
burgh royal. From this epoch, however, having obtained letters patent,
empowering the inhabitants to elect magistrates, and charters for
erecting divers of their trades and arts into corporations, Leith
acquired the name and distinction of a town. By these charters the
people were divided into four classes, each of which became an
incorporated body, known as the shipmasters, the traffickers or
merchants, the maltmen, and the trades' companions; the last of which
possesses exclusive privileges.

The port and harbour of Leith have always been an object of paramount
interest to the country at large, and, from time to time, various plans
for their improvement and extension have been carried into effect. There
are now two dry-docks for building and repairing vessels--a branch of
the craft which is here brought into extensive operation--and two
wet-docks, each three hundred feet wide by upwards of seven hundred feet
long, and occupying, with their appurtenances, a space of about three
hundred acres. On these important works upwards of two hundred and fifty
thousand pounds have been expended. The basins are enclosed by
well-constructed quays and capacious warehouses for the reception of
merchandise. The Custom-house, the Exchange, the Trinity-house, the
Bank, the Court-house, the Baths, the Grammar-school, &c., are all
elegant buildings, designed with classic taste, and of modern erection.

Leith enjoys an extensive commerce with the Baltic, the northern parts
of Europe, Holland, France, Spain, Portugal, the Mediterranean, North
America, and the West Indies; besides a widely ramified coasting-trade,
and a share in the whale and herring-fisheries. The Leith smacks have
been famous for their safety and swift-sailing properties; and the
powerful steam-ships, which now maintain an almost daily intercourse
with London, are proverbial for their speed and accommodation.

The growing prosperity of Leith is fully evinced by the number of
trading vessels in its port, the mercantile business carried on in every
street, the crowded warehouses and ships, its rope-works, canvas
manufactories, sugar-refining-houses, breweries, distilleries,
soap-works, iron-foundries, glass-works, and other establishments of
local industry. But the tide of prosperity, it is said, is prevented
from reaching its height by the corporation of Edinburgh, who, by
increasing the rate and number of the port-dues of Leith, have caused
various branches of commerce to seek encouragement in Kirkcaldy, Dundee,
Aberdeen, and other places.

The depth of water in the harbour of Leith is stated at only sixteen
feet at spring-tides, and ten feet at neap-tides; so that very large
vessels cannot enter the port; but at a mile from the mouth of the
harbour there is excellent anchorage in what is called Leith Roads. The
fort, garrisoned by the royal artillery, is a place of great strength.

The municipal government of Leith is vested in a provost, four baillies,
a treasurer, and ten common-councillors, and, in connexion with
Portobello and Musselburgh, returns one member to Parliament.



[Illustration: NEWHAVEN PIER.

(Frith of Forth.)]



NEWHAVEN.


Newhaven derives its name and origin from James the Fourth, the most
accomplished monarch of his day: here he created a yard for
shipbuilding, a harbour for the reception of vessels, and a chapel
dedicated to the Virgin Mary and Saint James. The superior advantages
which the new harbour possessed in depth of water was sufficient to give
it a decided superiority over Leith, from which it is only a mile
distant; but, as this result was easily foreseen, measures were promptly
adopted for its prevention, and the people of Edinburgh--to whom the
prosperity of Leith was of vital importance--succeeded in purchasing the
town and harbour, with all rights and privileges thereto belonging. Thus
the rising importance of Newhaven was completely checked, and its rival
trade restored to Leith.

The great natural advantages of Newhaven as a harbour, however, were not
lost sight of; and in recent times the subject was once more revived by
the city of Edinburgh, and arrangements for its improvement unanimously
agreed to. A pier and harbour have been erected, beautiful in design and
substantial in execution, affording abundant accommodation and shelter
for the large steam-vessels and other craft frequenting this part of the
coast, and to which the depth of water affords for the most part, an
easy entrance or exit, at all states of the tide.

To the westward of Newhaven is the elegant chain-pier, erected for the
special accommodation of steam-vessels; and along the coast, and the
intervening space between that and the city, numerous villas, cottages,
and gardens, contribute great beauty and animation to the scenery, which
is here peculiarly rich and variegated. On the opposite shore of Fife is
seen the picturesque village of Aberdour, with its feudal keep and
richly-wooded declivities. Half-way across the frith stands the
venerable ruins of Inchcomb, the ancient Æmonia, one of the earliest
monastic establishments in the kingdom, and the subject of many a pious
and monastic legend. On the south the bulwarks of Edinburgh Castle, the
blending structures of the "new city and the old," the Calton-hill, with
its Acropolis-like finish of monumental splendour, Salisbury Crags and
Arthur's Seat, refresh the eye and fill the mind with such striking
combinations of nature and art, as are nowhere to be met with but in the
precincts of the Scottish "Athens."

Although the establishment of a harbour has operated greatly to the
advantage of Newhaven, by giving additional value to every rood of
ground in its vicinity, it has not materially interfered with the
internal economy of the village, which retains most of those ancient
characteristics which for ages has given its inhabitants an isolated
position in the community. A stranger cannot enter it without being
struck by the singularity of everything around him--men, women,
children, the fish-"creel" and the fishy cabin make their appeal to his
senses in a manner not to be misunderstood. The remotest village in the
Alps has not been left by the "march of improvement" more decidedly in
the back-ground than that of the fish-dealing denizens of Newhaven.

These fish-wives of Newhaven dress themselves in a manner which, however
coarse or homely in appearance, is not uncostly. They are unable to wear
any head-dress except a napkin, on account of the necessity of
supporting their burden by a broad belt which crosses the forehead, and
must be slipt over the head every time they take off their merchandise.
They usually wear, however, a voluminous and truly Flemish quantity of
petticoats, and several fine napkins enclosing the neck and bosom. Their
numerous petticoats are of different qualities and colours, as in the
Netherlands; and it is customary, while two or three of these are
allowed to hang down to the ancles, to have as many more bundled up over
the haunches, so as to give a singularly bulky and sturdy appearance to
the wearer. Thirty years ago, the _poissardes_ of Newhaven wore neither
shoes nor stockings; but in this particular they have at last yielded to
the force of example, and clothed their nethermost extremities in
comfortable worsted stockings and neat's-hide. Along with the fishermen
occupying the village of Fisherrow, those of Newhaven supply the fresh
fish consumed in Edinburgh and Leith; while their wives, sisters, and
daughters carry them to market, or hawk them about the streets in
baskets. They generally ask, like their sisters in the Courgain of
Calais, three times the value, but their customers, aware of this
propensity, have little difficulty in reducing the "upset price" to the
estimate of the buyer.



[Illustration: ENTRANCE TO THE PORT OF DUNDEE.]



DUNDEE.

ENTRANCE TO THE PORT.


    "Here busy commerce spreads her sail;
      The Tay flows broad and free;
    And sea and river, hill and dale.
      Pay tribute to DUNDEE."

Highly favoured by nature in point of situation, Dundee has enjoyed,
from the remotest period of our national history, many facilities for
the encouragement of trade. But it is only in more recent times that she
has risen to that eminence which now places her among the first-rate
commercial towns of the empire. That laudable spirit of enterprise which
has encircled the whole island with new or improved ports and harbours,
has operated most beneficially for those of Dundee; where, within the
last twenty or thirty years, almost every improvement which either
science could suggest or wealth accomplish has been carried into effect.

On the return of peace in 1815, the first great impulse was given to the
manufactures and commerce of Dundee, by the renovation and extension of
the harbour. Prior to that epoch, the accommodation provided for
shipping was adapted to the most limited commerce only. One small pier
and two or three clumsy erections in a state of dilapidation, and which
it required a boat to reach, constituted the sole protection afforded to
the shipping, and the only convenience for discharging or loading.
Although the spirit of enlightened enterprise had been at work for
several years, it was only at this late period that application was made
to Parliament, and a bill obtained for separating the harbour from the
other branches of the common good, and for investing the management of
it for a term of years in district commissioners, who were selected
partly from the magistrates, and partly from the public bodies of the
town. Great pains were taken to procure the best plans; and after all
preliminaries had been settled, the work was begun and carried on with
such extraordinary activity, that, although everything was finished in
the most substantial manner, all was accomplished within the time
specified. The plan comprised the new harbour, consisting of a wet-dock
of about six acres; a tide-harbour of much greater extent; a
graving-dock, capable of containing three of the largest
merchant-vessels frequenting the Tay; extensive carpenters' and other
yards for ship-building; wide and capacious quays, affording berthage
for about thirty vessels to load or discharge at the same time. From the
first moment that measures were taken to ensure this superior
accommodation, the number and tonnage of the ships were increased by
their owners, and the trade and commerce of the port most materially
improved. The expenditure incurred by these great public works, though
amounting, from 1815 to 1833, to £242,000, or upwards, was judiciously
(says our Statistical authority) applied, and with great advantage both
to the private trust and to the public at large.

When the plan for the new harbour was adopted in 1815, it was considered
to be so extensive, especially when compared with what preceded it, that
it was generally believed that the accommodation it promised would
exceed the necessities of the trade of Dundee for many years; but this
was so far from the fact, that some years ago the want of sufficient
berthage became so much a subject of complaint, that measures were taken
as soon as possible to remedy the evil. A new harbour-bill was applied
for, and obtained, vesting the shore-dues permanently in a board of
trustees. A plan was adopted for extending the tide-harbour, and for
converting the greater part of it into a wet-dock, and for other
improvements, rendered necessary by the rapidly increasing trade and
commerce of the town, all of which have been completed.

In population, trade, and manufactures, as above stated, Dundee has
advanced faster perhaps than any town so situated in the United Kingdom.
There are men now living who remember when its population was less than
one-fifth of what it now is; and when its harbour was a crooked wall,
affording shelter to only a few fishing or smuggling-craft; when its
spinning-mills were things unknown and unthought of; and when its trade
was hardly deserving of the name.[11]

[11] For many of the preceding facts we are indebted to the New
Statistics of the Town and Port of Dundee, a work indispensable to all
who desire correct information on the subject.



[Illustration: DUNDEE, FROM THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE TAY.]



DUNDEE.

FROM THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE TAY.


Our present engraving depicts a scene of great natural beauty, and a
faithful picture of one of the most thriving of the Scottish seaports.
Few towns in the United Kingdom have advanced so rapidly in commercial
importance. The manufactures of Dundee have become of great interest not
only to the town, but to the nation at large. The proportion which they
bear to the general produce of the industry of the state is very high;
and their rapid and continued progress holds out the most encouraging
prospect of still greater accessions in every department of trade. Of
these manufactures, the linen trade holds the first place; it employs
the greatest number of hands and the greatest capital, and gives a
stimulus to all other branches of trade and commerce. The materials for
this branch of manufacture are imported from Russia, Prussia, Holland,
and Brabant, and thus employ a great number of ships and seamen. Up to
the beginning of the present century, all the linen yarns manufactured
here were hand-spun; and in 1811 there were only four spinning-mills
driven by steam: at the present time there are upwards of 100 flax
spinning-mills, employing more than 8,000 hands, of whom nearly one half
are females. The following figures exhibit the progressive increase of
this trade:--The importation of flax in 1790 was 2,700 tons; in 1850,
55,000 tons. The export of linen in 1790 was 8 millions of yards; in
1850, 85 millions of yards. The yarns thus manufactured are generally
sent from the mills direct to the bleach-fields, or to the wash-mill,
where they are scoured or whitened, and prepared for the loom. In
weaving sail-cloth, and other heavy goods, men only are employed; but,
in the lighter fabrics, women perform the work as well as the men.
Formerly, the women were employed in spinning only; but here, as
everywhere else, where steam is employed, the introduction of machinery
has wholly superseded the use of the domestic wheel and distaff, and
compelled the females to earn a scanty subsistence in a much less
appropriate labour.

Within the last thirty years the population of Dundee has been more than
doubled; its charitable contributions have risen from under £2,000 to
nearly £12,000 per annum; its shipping has increased fourfold; while its
linen trade has been called almost entirely into existence. But the
reverse of the picture must not be concealed--the assessment of the
poor has advanced tenfold; in 1791, it was £400, it is now upwards of
£10,000. This is an evil, it has been said, inseparable from prosperous
communities, for the poor generally flock to, or are increased in them;
and where multitudes are gathered together at various employments,
example does not always favour economy, industry, and virtue. Nor is it
easy, amidst the spirit of enterprise which is now abroad, to suggest
any improvement for the town which the resident authorities have not
already in contemplation.

Full tide in the estuary of the Tay is generally said to occur, on the
days of the new and full moon, at a quarter past two o'clock, but in the
harbour of Dundee it flows till about half-past two. The average height
of the spring-tides, as measured by an index at the entrance to King
William's Dock, is about seventeen feet, while that of the neap-tides is
about eleven feet. The water opposite the town, though saline, is not
wholly marine, but considerably diluted by the fresh water flowing down
the river; and this is the reason, probably, why sea-water insects never
attack the piles, buoys, or beacons about the harbour. Opposite the
town, the river Tay is very nearly two miles broad. The channel across
is much interrupted by a sand-bank, which, though formed within the last
forty years, has now at full spring-tides only about ten feet water over
its surface, and at neap-tides scarcely more than four. Its position is
not far from midway across; its form is spindle-shaped; its length, as
seen at low water, upwards of a mile; and its course parallel with that
of the river. At present, its lower or eastern extremity is stretching
down in the form of a curve, concave towards the harbour of Dundee; but
it is so constantly altering its features, that no further remark need
be made upon it than this, that it is always accumulating, and slowly
moving down the river. This sand-bank, in reference to the navigation of
the Tay, is naturally an object of no small interest and solicitude.



[Illustration: ABBEY OF ARBROATH.]



THE ABBEY OF ARBROATH.


The Harbour, which was originally at the end of the East Causeway, was
formed about the remote period of 1194; but being ill-constructed for
the craft and increasing traffic of more modern times, a brief or bill
was obtained for building a new pier in 1725, and which is situated a
little to the westward of the old one. It is strongly built of stone,
and, though not capacious, is sufficiently commodious to admit of
vessels lying close to any part of it, either to receive or discharge
their cargoes. During spring-tides there is a depth of from fifteen to
sixteen feet of water at the entrance, and at neap-tides of from nine to
ten feet; but it is dry at low water. Here, as in most of the other
ports of this coast, there is a considerable foreign trade carried on
with Russia, Norway, and Sweden, as well as a home-trade in lime, coals,
and agricultural produce. The trade at this port is now so rapidly
increasing, that great improvements in the harbour are contemplated. It
counts seventy-seven vessels of its own, registering 6700 tons.

Near the south side of the harbour of Arbroath is a handsome
signal-tower fifty feet high, which is used for communicating with the
keepers of the Bell Rock Lighthouse. On a clear day this gigantic column
may be seen rising from the sea at the distance of about twelve miles.
The Bell Rock, so long known and celebrated in history, tradition, and
poetry as the "Inchcape," is thus described by an ancient chronicler:
"By east the Castle of May twelve miles from all land, in the German
Sea, lies a great hidden rock called Inchcape, very dangerous for
navigators, because it is overflowed every tide. It is reported that in
old times, upon the said rock, there was a bell fixed upon a tree or
timber, which rang continually, being moved by the sea, and thus gave
notice to sailors of their danger. This bell, or _cloche_, was put thus,
and maintained by the pious Abbot of Arbroath, and being taken down by a
sea-pirate a year thereafter, he perished upon the same rock, with ship
and cargo, in the righteous judgment of God."[12]

But the glory of Arbroath, as every reader knows, is its ABBEY, which,
as seen in the accompanying view, presents one of the most imposing
monastic ruins in existence. It was founded in 1178, by King William
the Lion, who was buried here, and dedicated to St. Thomas à Becket, of
Canterbury. The monks, to whose ministry this sumptuous temple was
consigned, were of the Benedictine or Tyronensian order, and brought
from the Abbey of Kelso, the abbot of which declared them, on their
first instalment, free from his jurisdiction. The monastery, thus
tenanted, soon obtained those great and peculiar privileges which it
long continued to enjoy. Its abbots were frequently the first churchmen
of the kingdom; and a charter from King John of England, under the great
seal, is still extant, by which the monastery and the citizens of
Aberbrothock are exempted _a teloniis et consuetudine_, in every part of
England, except London and Oxford.

It was inferior, perhaps, in architectural elegance to Melrose, Elgin,
and some others; but, with the exception of Holyrood, it was probably
the most wealthy monastic establishment in Scotland. The monks did not
exceed twenty-five in number; and some idea may be formed of the abbot's
charity and hospitality from this fact, that one of the orders issued
for the yearly provision of the abbey is thus particularized:--eight
hundred wedder sheep, one hundred and eighty oxen, eleven barrels of
salmon, twelve hundred and five dried cod-fish, eighty-two chalders of
malt, thirty chalders of wheat, and forty chalders of meal; these
supplies, it is to be observed, were in addition to the rents paid in
kind by the abbot's tenants.

The Abbey of Arbroath appears to have been demolished some time
previously to the general destruction of the religious houses at the
Reformation. Tradition ascribes its early fate to a quarrel between the
monks and Ochterlony, Laird of Kelly, at whose instigation a lawless mob
attacked and set fire to the abbey, till the neighbouring streets, it is
said, "were deluged with the melted lead that streamed from its roof."

After the destruction and spoliation of the abbey, Arbroath lost all its
importance as a royal burgh, and continued in a very depressed state
till the building of the new pier, when commerce began to repair the
loss and recover some portion of its ancient prosperity. The population
is about 7000, or upwards.

[12] Monipennie's _Scots Chronicles_. London, 1612.



[Illustration: MONTROSE.]



MONTROSE.


    "Mare ditat: Rosa decorat."

     "Montrose--a beauty that lies concealed, as it were, in the
     bosom of Scotland; most delicately dressed up, and adorned with
     excellent buildings, whose foundations are laid with polished
     stone, and her ports all washed with silver streams that
     trickle down from the famous Ask."--RICHARD FRANK, A.D. 1658.

Montrose, a royal burgh and sea-port town of Forfarshire, is agreeably
situated on a level plain, or peninsula, bounded on the north-east by
the German Ocean, on the south by the river South Esk, and on the west
by a large expanse of this river, called the Basin of Montrose. The
erection of this town into a royal burgh has generally been referred to
the year 1352, being the twenty-third of the reign of David II.; but it
appears to have been a place of some note long before it acquired this
dignity, and is connected with many important events in the history of
Scotland. It is mentioned by Froissart, as the port from which the
gallant Sir James Douglas embarked in 1330, for the Holy Land, attended
by a numerous and splendid retinue, and carrying with him the heart of
King Robert Bruce. This, as the reader knows, was in execution of the
last charge committed to him by his royal master, namely, to carry the
heart of the deceased monarch to Jerusalem, and there deposit it in the
holy sepulchre. The disastrous failure of this pious enterprise is too
well known to require further notice in this place.

The principal manufactures carried on in Montrose are the spinning and
weaving of flax. For this purpose there are several steam-mills for
spinning, and one on the North Esk driven by water. These steam-mills
produce annually upwards of 800,000 spindles. There are also in the town
soap, starch, rope, and sail manufactories; and others for making
steam-machinery. Ship-building is carried on to a considerable extent,
and there is a patent slip, introduced for repairing ships. There are
also in addition various breweries, tan-works, candle-works, a foundry,
and a steam-mill for grinding meal and flour.

Montrose is the port of the Custom-house, and, as such, comprehends
within its bounds all that district between the lights of Tay on the
south, and the Todhead on the north, thereby including Arbroath, and
other places of less importance.

The principal foreign imports into Montrose consist of flax, hemp,
tallow, whale-fins and oil, fir-timber, oak and oak-planks, deal and
deal-ends. But as the goods manufactured here are sent coastwise to
London, Glasgow, Dundee, and other towns, there are few or no _exports_
to foreign places from Montrose. Owing, however, to the bonded system
having been extended to this port, nearly all the foreign wines and
spirits consumed in the district, are brought coastwise to the bonded
warehouses, and pay duty at the Custom-house when taken out for
consumption.

The _exports_ from this district by the coasting-trade consist of wheat,
oats, barley, rye, peas, beans, and potatoes; salmon, codfish, and pork,
the latter chiefly for the London market: great coal, culm, parret,
lime, blue slate, iron, tallow, rosin, barilla, kelp, salt, and herrings
from the Moray Frith, chiefly smoked and sent to the Hull and London
markets. The principal import from the English coast is coal; but
various other articles are imported and exported by regular traders to
London, Glasgow, and Leith.

Montrose contains several public edifices, all designed with
considerable taste and substantially executed. Among these are the
church, with a fine gothic tower, St. John's church, St. Peter's
episcopal chapel, the Town-hall, the Academy, the Lunatic Asylum, and
the Jail. The finest object, however, and which combines ornament with
utility, is the new Chain-bridge, erected, like many others in the
United Kingdom, after a plan by Captain James Brown, of the Royal Navy.
The foundation-stone of this admirable structure was laid on the 18th of
September, 1828, and the whole was completed before the close of the
following year. The distance between the towers at the two extremities
of the bridge, measured from the centre, is four hundred and thirty-two
feet. The height of each tower is seventy-one feet, namely, twenty-three
and a half from the foundation to the roadway; forty-four from the
roadway to the top of the cornice; and three feet and a half forming the
cornice. It spans the river, South Esk, and is justly considered the
finest specimen of the kind in Scotland. The whole cost is stated at
twenty thousand pounds.

The population of Montrose continues rapidly to increase. The society is
very superior to that of most country towns, and includes amongst its
members men who have distinguished themselves in every department of the
state. It was formerly represented in Parliament by Joseph Hume, Esq., a
native of the place, and so well known as a leading member in the House
of Commons.



[Illustration: DUNOTTAR CASTLE, NEAR STONEHAVEN.]



DUNNOTTAR CASTLE.


    "High on a rock, half sea-girt, half on land,
    The castle stood, and still its ruins stand.
    Wide o'er the German main the prospect bent,
    Steep is the path and rugged the ascent:
    There hung the huge portcullis--there the bar
    Drawn on the iron gate defied the war."

_"Dunnottar Castle," by Mrs. Carnegie, 1796._

The view of Dunnottar Castle, which so happily illustrates this portion
of the work, represents one of the most remarkable features that are
anywhere to be met with on the coasts of the British empire. The drawing
was taken on the spot, and shows with admirable effect and precision
those striking combinations of nature and art which, during a long
series of ages, rendered the fortress of Dunnottar impregnable. But
those rocky foundations from which it once rose in all the strength and
grandeur of feudal architecture are fast yielding to the encroachments
of the sea; its crested summits, once brilliant with arms and bristling
with cannon, seem ready to drop from their precipice. Unroofed,
unlatticed, untenanted, with not an ember left on its once capacious
hearth, desolation and ruin are vividly pictured in its dreary solitude.
The floors are covered with crumbling fragments of varied and costly
decorations in sculpture, painting, and fretwork. Once a
palace--commanding all that could minister to the security and luxury of
its almost royal possessors, its battlements gay with standards, crowded
with retainers, mailed guests in the hall, and minstrels in the
court--it is now dark as a sepulchre;--banners, retainers, guests,
minstrels, and the master of the feast himself--all are gone! The hoarse
dash of the waves, the shrill scream of the stormy petrel, the crash of
some disjointed and falling rock, or the whistling of the coming
tempest, are almost the only sounds that now alternate among these
embattled heights, where the curious stranger retraces with melancholy
interest the days and deeds of antiquity. To him who is familiar with
its history, Dunnottar speaks with an audible voice; every cave has a
record--every turret a tongue; his ear is struck with "wandering
voices," and words that never die seem at every step to arrest his
attention.

The Castle of Dunnottar--now the stately and magnificent ruin thus
feebly sketched--stands on an isolated rock two hundred feet
perpendicular, washed on three sides by the sea, and on the other
separated from the adjacent land by a wide and deep chasm, from which by
a gate in the wall, nearly forty feet high, there is an entrance to the
fortress. Leading upwards from this gate there is a long steep passage,
partly arched over, and formerly secured by two drawbridges, the grooves
for which are still visible. At the inner end of this passage is another
gate, opening into the castle area, which is enclosed by a wall, and
occupied by buildings of various epochs. But of all the buildings on
this rock the chapel is the most ancient, and there is reason to believe
that it originally served as the parish church of Dunnottar. The Castle,
or the peninsular rock on which it stands, makes its first appearance in
Scottish history during the wars of Bruce and Baliol, when, it is
alleged by some modern authorities, the castle was erected by Sir
William Keith as a place of safety for himself and friends. According to
Blind Harry and Hector Boece, Dunnottar was surprised and taken by Sir
William Wallace in 1297, and the Blind Historian relates that Dunnottar
was occupied by four thousand English troops, who had fled before the
victorious arms of the Liberator; and that when Wallace made the
onslaught, as many of them as the church would contain took shelter
there, in the hope that consecrated ground would not be violated by
their slaughter; but, says the bard,--

    "Wallace on fyre gart set all haistely,
    Brynt up the kyrk and all that was thairin."

In the year 1336 Dunnottar was fortified and garrisoned by Edward III.;
but immediately after his departure for England it was attacked and
carried by the gallant Sir Andrew Moray, who destroyed the
fortifications of the Castle, so that it might not again afford ready
protection to an enemy.



[Illustration: STONEHAVEN.]



STONEHAVEN.


    "The flocks are white upon the moor,
      The forest's filled with deer;
    There's industry at every door,
      And shipping at the pier."

Stonehaven, like Aberdeen, has its old town and its new; but "with this
distinction, that of the latter, the new town is the older of the two."
The old town of Stonehaven, or Steenhive as it was formerly written, was
built on _feus_ granted by the "Earls Marischal," by one of whom it was
erected into a burg of barony. The new town, or "Links of Arduthie," is
separated from the old town by a brook, called the water of Carron, and
is built upon the estate of the patriotic Mr. Barclay Allardyce, of Ury.
It is the county-town; and hither, in 1660, the sheriff-court was
removed from Kincardine by Act of Parliament.

On the south-west of a bare rocky promontory, called Garron-point, at
the entrance of Stonehaven Bay, are seen the ruins of Cowie Chapel,
which is said to have been dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. From this
point on the north, called Garron, to that of Downie on the south, is
what is termed the Bay of Stonehaven. The town stretches from the bridge
over the Cowie river, on the north, to the above-mentioned headland,
Downie Point, on the south; but it is divided, as already stated, into
two parts by the "Carron;" the north part being the new, and the south
the _old_, or sea-town; close to which last, and to Downie Point, which
is a protection to it from south-east gales, stands the Harbour,
erected, like most others on the east coast, _sea_-ward. It is a
capacious basin, and would contain a great number of vessels, but until
lately, when two cross-jetties were built, it was very insecure, or
afforded little protection to vessels during north-east and east gales,
to which it is much exposed, the entrance being to the east. It is now,
however, comparatively secure; and gas-lights being erected, the one
bearing on the other, vessels bound southward in winter find it a very
agreeable retreat, and about thirty so situated have been seen in it at
one time.

The exports consist of grain, timber, herrings, and other fish; the
imports are principally coals and lime, of which a great quantity is
required for agricultural purposes.

The Harbour, in spring-tides, will admit vessels drawing fourteen feet
water, sometimes upwards; but in ordinary tides the depth can hardly be
reckoned at more than from ten to eleven feet.

The trade of curing fish by smoke-drying, in imitation of the _Finnan
haddies_, is carried on with much spirit: several large houses have been
fitted up for this purpose and for red-herrings; and a stranger would
scarcely believe the extent done in this business, the haddocks thus
cured being sent to London, Edinburgh, and other markets in the south,
by all conveyances.

The other trade of the place is principally in manufacturing woollen,
linen, and cotton cloths, a branch of native industry in which great
numbers of people are employed. The Glenury distillery is a large
concern, and close to the town, from which a great quantity of whiskey
is constantly shipped off.

Among the disasters which, in its day, Stonehaven has had to deplore, we
may cite the following, as characteristic of those unhappy times when
the country was torn by the violence of faction, and fire and sword laid
waste this ill-fated district. On the 20th of March, 1645, the Marquis
of Montrose, then quartered at Stonehaven, addressed a letter to Earl
Marischal, at his castle of Dunnottar, about two miles from this,
exhorting him to espouse the royal cause; but receiving no answer, he
proceeded to wreak his vengeance on the earl's lands and dependants.
"Thereafter," says the historian Spalding, "he fires the Tolbooth, a
prison of Stonehaven, wherein there was store of grain, and the whole
town, with all the barnyards, houses, and other buildings, except those
of James Clark, wherein Montrose himself was quartered. They plundered a
ship lying in the harbour, then set fire to her, as well as to all the
fishing-boats then in the harbour. They burnt up the whole town of
Cowie, houses, buildings, corn, and corn-yards; and in like manner
plundered the whole goods, gear, horses, oxen, sheep, which they could
get; plundered the parson of Dunnottar's house and set it on fire. The
people of Stonehaven and Cowie, it is said, came out, men, women, and
children at their feet and children in their arms, crying, howling, and
weeping, praying the earl, for God's sake, to save them from this fire
as soon as it was kindled; but these poor people got no answer, nor knew
they where to go with their children. How lamentable to behold!"



[Illustration: ABERDEEN.]



ABERDEEN.

GENERAL VIEW.


The city of Aberdeen, the seat of two celebrated universities, is
divided into the old and the new towns, at an interval of about a mile.
Of these, the former--now reduced almost to a village--appears to have
been a town of some note as early as the ninth century, but gradually
fell into decay after the great epoch of the Reformation. The Cathedral
of St. Machar was founded at the remote era of 1164, and repaired in the
beginning of the fourteenth century. But a new building of more elegant
design was founded by Bishop Kinnimond, the second prelate of that
family, and finished by Bishop Leighton. The Reformation, however,
suspended all further operations, and left the pile a monument of
premature decay. Of King's College, founded at the close of the
fifteenth century, the learned Hector Boethius was the first principal.

New Aberdeen, though irregularly built, is a handsome city, and
beautifully situated on three gentle eminences at the mouth of the Dee.
The streets are spacious, and many of the public buildings of elegant
design. In ancient times, several religious establishments flourished
here, belonging to the different orders of Dominicans, Carmelites, and
Grey Friars, with an hospital, or _maison-Dieu_. Marischal College, so
named from its liberal founder, George, Earl Marischal of Scotland, has,
like its predecessor, been long celebrated as a seat of the muses. Its
professors and lecturers--twenty-seven in number--have shone conspicuous
in every department of human learning, and are continually sending forth
in their pupils the living proofs of that zeal and assiduity with which
their important functions are discharged. With the fame of this
university, the names of Campbell and Beattie are more especially
associated, as the champions of religion and the ornaments of our native
literature.

The environs of this ancient city exhibit many pleasing indications of
commercial improvements, which are daily acquiring fresh impulse, adding
new embellishments to the landscape, and evincing an increase of comfort
and independence among the inhabitants, who amount to about fifty
thousand.

There are few springs of any consequence in Aberdeen or the
neighbourhood, and although a supply of water can be had in most places,
by digging to a depth of from ten to thirty feet, it is generally so
hard as to be of comparatively little value. Close by the boundary of
the parish, on the west side, are two springs, quite contiguous, which
have been long known as the "Well of Spa." Both these springs, but
especially the least copious one, are impregnated with carbonate of
iron, and on that account have been long noticed as medicinal. Early in
the seventeenth century an account of the properties and powers of these
springs was published by Dr. Barclay, under the title of _Callirhöe,
commonly called the Well of Spa, or the Nymph of Aberdene_. A building,
which at that time protected the spring, having fallen into decay, was
repaired by the celebrated painter George Jamieson, but was not long
afterwards demolished by a flood of the Den-burn, which runs close
beside it. In 1670, another building was erected over the spring, which
still remains, consisting of a stone enclosure, with steps or benches,
and an entablature bearing these inscriptions:--

    "As Heaven gives me,
    So give I thee."

    "Hoc fonte derivata salus in Patriam populumque fluat,
    Spada Rediviva 1670."

Within the last two centuries both these springs have repeatedly
disappeared and been recovered, and always retaining their chalybeate
qualities till of late. Within the last few years, however, while
digging upon the adjacent eminence for the foundations of the west wing
of the new infirmary, it would seem as if the course of the water had
been disturbed, or some other change produced, the consequence of which
is, that now the larger spring appears to possess hardly any chalybeate
impregnation, whilst the smaller one is much weaker than formerly.



[Illustration: ABERDEEN, FROM ABOVE THE CHAIN BRIDGE.]



ABERDEEN,

FROM ABOVE THE CHAIN BRIDGE.


    "Blyth Aberdein! thou beriall of all tounis,
      The lamp of bewtie, bountie, and blythnes;
    Unto the heaven ascendit thy renown is
      Off vertew, wisdom, and of worthines;
    Benottit is thy name of nobilnes;--
      Be blyth and blissful, burgh of Aberdein!"--DUNBAR.

The Port of Aberdeen is now universally known among seafaring men as one
of the safest and most commodious in Scotland. The skill and practical
efforts of both Smeaton and Telford were successively employed upon it;
and after an arduous and extensive enterprise, the grand object has been
fully obtained. To those who are only acquainted with the harbour under
its present aspect it will be difficult to convey a correct notion of
its appearance in ancient times. There is reason to suppose that at a
period beyond the reach of history, the river Dee must have discharged
its waters into the sea at the Craiglug--where the Chain Bridge is seen
in the engraving--and that by their alluvial deposits, and the effects
of the north-east winds, in accumulating the sands in the neighbourhood,
the ground now occupied by the village of Footdee, the shorelands and
Sandilands, the Links and the islands in the estuary were gradually
raised above the level of the sea. At a less remote period it is
believed that the river Don poured its floods into the frith of the Dee:
and the conjecture derives strength from the notices of Roman
geographers. The occurrence of great changes is attested by various
remains which have been disinterred at different periods. Thirteen feet
under low-water mark in spring-tides, and twenty-eight feet below the
general surface of the Inches, were discovered two human skulls, a large
piece of flint, and great quantities of shells and other marine
deposits; and in excavating the canal, at a considerable distance from
the shore, anchors and other articles of shipwreck were found deeply
imbedded in the earth.

The entrance to the harbour of Aberdeen is naturally bad, owing to a bar
at the mouth of the river, where, at ebb-tide, the depth of water was
often not more than two feet. To remedy this evil was, from a very early
period, the ardent desire of the citizens, and to some of their first
efforts in this direction we have alluded in our notice of Aberdeen
Light-house. But it is since the commencement of the seventeenth century
that the most effective improvements have been made, amongst which we
may name the erection of a bulwark on the south side of the entrance,
and the removal of a great stone, called "Knock-Maitland," which lay
nearly in the middle of the river, both of which were accomplished in
succession; the first in 1608, and the latter in 1618. Between 1623 and
1658, the quay was extended eastward, towards Futtie; by which means a
considerable portion of ground was redeemed below the Castle-hill, and
is now covered with buildings. In 1755 an additional quay was built a
good way further down, opposite the village of Torrie. In 1770, further
improvements were projected; and, on a report from Mr. Smeaton,
recommending the erection of a pier on the north side of the entrance,
so that the influx of sand from the north might be prevented, and the
removal of the _bar_ effected, by confining the waters of the river Dee
within narrower bounds, the work was commenced in 1775, and finished in
less than six years. The length of this pier was twelve hundred feet,
and it terminated in a round head of sixty feet in diameter. Owing,
however, to a departure from Mr. Smeaton's plan, by which the pier was
founded too far to the north, it was found that a heavy swell entered
the harbour; and to obviate this formidable inconvenience, a bulwark was
projected from the pier, to about one-third across the channel.

By these means considerable improvements were effected; but as the trade
of the city increased, inconvenience was still felt from a deficiency of
water on the bar; and Mr. Telford, having been consulted in 1810, on the
means of remedying this evil, recommended that the pier should be
extended, and that wet-docks should be formed in the harbour. These
works were commenced forthwith, and the pier, carried on to the extent
of nine hundred feet beyond the head of Smeaton's pier, and again
finished with a round head, was completed in 1816. In the course of the
following winter, however, this head was destroyed by the storms; but
being rebuilt with a slope towards the sea, it has since stood without
very material damage. A breakwater, extending to the length of eight
hundred feet, was also built on the south side, by which the mouth of
the channel was narrowed, and the entrance protected from the storms of
the south-east. Wharfs were built along the south-west side of Futtie;
the pier opposite Torrie was enlarged; and, latterly, the quay has been
extended westward from the old quay-head; and by raising embankments on
the Inches, a considerable range of quay-room has been gained there,
which is connected with the town by a swivel-bridge, opposite
Marischal-street. By all these combined measures, quay-room has been
provided to the extent of about four thousand feet; a tide-harbour has
been formed, in which, at spring-tides, the depth of water is about
_eleven feet_ at the west-end, gradually increasing to _fifteen feet_,
where it joins the course of the river; while the depth of the water on
the bar has been increased to about nineteen feet.



[Illustration: THE LIGHT HOUSE, ABERDEEN.]



ABERDEEN LIGHTHOUSE.


Immediately to the south of the small bay of Greyhope stands the
Girdleness Lighthouse; an erection by which the trade of Aberdeen has
been greatly benefitted. The Girdleness, from which it takes its name,
is a conspicuous promontory of which the Commissioners of the Northern
Lights took advantage to erect this monitory beacon: it was lighted up
for the first time on the night of the 15th of October, 1833, and is a
lofty, circular tower, built of granite, and crowned with two copper
domes, one within the other, in order to prevent the effects which would
follow from the condensation of vapour from the heated air of the lamps.
The dwelling-houses of the keepers are at the bottom of the tower; and a
field of considerable extent has been walled in and cultivated for their
accommodation. It is on the larboard, or left-hand side, as we enter the
port, and is known to mariners as a _double-light_, a distinction
produced by placing two lights in the same tower, the one above the
other. Of these, the lower light is visible in clear weather at the
distance of thirteen, and the higher at that of sixteen miles. They are
under the charge of two keepers, one of whom mounts guard at sunset, and
in case of emergency can summon assistance by means of an alarm-bell,
placed in the sleeping apartments, which may be rung from the
light-room, by means of an air-blast, through tubes laid for that
purpose. This edifice, of incalculable benefit to the cause of humanity,
was erected after the design of Robert Stevenson, Esq., and does great
honour to his talents. The bay of Greyhope, above-named, is memorable as
the scene of many a disastrous shipwreck, particularly that of the
Oscar, in which, out of a crew of forty men, only two were saved. This
occurred on the 1st of April 1813.

For many centuries after the foundation of Aberdeen, the harbour was
nothing more than an open expanse of water, washing the base of the
Castle-hill on the north, the rising grounds of Torrie on the south, and
communicating with the sea by the narrow and shallow mouth of the river.
Of this basin the greater part was left dry at ebb of tide; while
several large, but low islands, were never wholly overflowed. The most
ancient, and during many years the only erection within the port, was a
bulwark extending from the Ship-row southwards, and now known as the
Shore-area. Its extremity was called the Quay-head, a name afterwards
applied to the wharfs extending from the vicinity of the Trinity Kirk
eastward, beyond the present weigh-house. At what time it was built is
altogether unknown; but it was in existence in the fourteenth century,
and was probably constructed in the preceding age. In 1484, having
become ruinous, it was either repaired or rebuilt; and about the same
time, beacons for the guidance of ships were erected, and the wreck of a
Spanish galley on the southern shore, which had long obstructed the
channel, was removed. In 1512, the quay was again repaired; and in 1526,
still further operations became necessary, and a great portion of the
wharfs was reconstructed. In 1549, repairs being once more required, a
stair was added; and in 1582 a crane was erected. In 1621, two
corn-mills were built within flood-mark; and about thirteen years later,
a weigh-house, which served also for a custom-house, was erected. In the
course of the same century, various other additions were made to the
wharf, and several municipal statutes introduced for the better
regulation of the port. In 1566, a lighthouse, containing "three great
flaming lights, to burn from daylight to daylight, between the first day
of September and the last day of March," was erected on St Ninian's
Chapel, on the Castle-hill.



[Illustration: SLAINES CASTLE,--NEAR PETERHEAD.]



SLAINES CASTLE.


Slaines Castle, the feudal residence of the Hays of Erroll, covers a
peninsular rock, boldly projecting into the German Ocean and forming an
abrupt and imposing landmark on this iron-bound coast. Its position is
remarkable: the huge precipice over which it projects on one side, and
of which it seems an integral part, descends perpendicularly to the sea,
where the water is so deep that vessels of large burden may float within
a yard of the rock. It is said, indeed, that a tankard of wine may be
lowered down from the Castle window to the yard-arm of a man-of-war
under sail. Whether this experiment has been tried we know not; but this
we can readily admit, that much good wine has taken the opposite
direction.

The situation of this family fortress is rather bleak and cheerless,
presenting no leafy bowers, no clumps of trees, few masses of verdure or
vegetation, to refresh the eye or flatter the imagination.

    "La nature marâtre, en cet affreux climat,
    Ne produit, au lieu d'or, que du fer des soldats."

The prospect, however, which is bounded only by the horizon seaward, is
grand and imposing, and fills the mind with corresponding ideas. For a
Trappist convent, with Baron Geramb at its head, nothing finer could be
imagined; for their nearest neighbour in one direction is the "King of
the Norse;" and the hills, on the other hand, are wild and solitary
enough to shut out the world and its vanities.

The following is the traditional origin of the Hays of Erroll:--In the
year 980, and reign of Kenneth III., the Danes having invaded the
country, gave battle to the Scots at Loncarty, near Perth. The latter,
being worsted in the fight, gave way; but, while passing a defile in
their flight, were stopped by a countryman and his two sons, who
encouraged the fugitives to rally and renew the struggle. The example,
resistance, and reproaches of these three brave men, armed only with the
implements snatched hastily from their ploughs, inspired the routed
Scots with new life. They rushed back upon their pursuers, encountered
the Danes afresh, defeated them at every point, and delivered their
country from servitude. The victory being complete, the father,
afterwards known by the name of Hay, was ennobled by the king, and
rewarded with the best part of the enemy's baggage, and a grant of land
in the rich Carse of Gowry, containing as much as "a falcon flew over
without alighting." The march stones, being about seven miles apart, are
to this day called the "Falcon Stones."

The first of this ancient family who did honour to the Scottish peerage
was created Earl of Erroll by James II., in 1452, in recompense of his
faithful services, and died at this castle in 1470.

The baronial fortress of Slaines was afterwards demolished by order of
James VI., on the rebellion of the Earl of Huntly, and long continued in
ruins.

Dr. Johnson thus records his visit and reception within these
walls:--"We came in the afternoon to Slaines Castle, built upon the
margin of the sea, so that the walls of one of the towers seem only a
continuation of a perpendicular rock, the foot of which is beaten by the
waves. To walk round the house seemed impracticable; from the windows,
the eye wanders over the sea that separates Scotland from Norway, and
when the winds beat with violence, it must enjoy all the terrific
grandeur of the tempestuous ocean. I would not for my amusement wish for
a storm, but as storms, whether wished for or not, will sometimes
happen, I may say, without violation of humanity, that I should
willingly look out upon them from Slaines Castle."

The caves and grottoes along this coast are numerous and interesting.
The Dropping, or White Cave of Slaines, extends about 200 feet
underground; and through a natural vault the water oozes forth, and
forms fantastic pyramids of incrustations or stalactites. The cave, by
this natural process, would soon be filled up, were not the petrified
substance frequently cut away and burnt for lime. In this, as in many
other caves along the shore, the ancient inhabitants of the district are
supposed to have taken refuge when repeatedly harassed by the sudden
descent of Danish marauders; and in later times it may have often served
as a secure retreat for smugglers, who formerly abounded in this
neighbourhood, and carried on their illegal traffic in comparative
safety.



[Illustration: THE BULLER OF BUCHAN.

(near Peterhead)]



THE BULLER OF BUCHAN.


     "If I had any malice against a walking spirit, instead of
     laying him in the Red Sea, I would condemn him to reside in the
     _Buller of Buchan_."--SAMUEL JOHNSON.

The Buller of Buchan, one of the most remarkable natural curiosities in
Scotland, is about six miles south from Peterhead. It is a vast hollow
in a rock projecting into the sea, open at the top, and communicating
with the water by means of a natural arched passage, about fifty yards
high. The basin within is nearly circular, about thirty yards in
diameter; and around the extreme edge of the chasm is a narrow footpath,
from which to the water in the abyss below, measures about thirty
fathoms,[13] more or less, according to the state of the tide. It is a
scene upon which all travellers dwell with feelings of mixed awe and
admiration. Even Dr. Johnson, the learned philologist from whom we take
our motto, visited and retired from the spot with amazement. "We soon
turned our eyes," he observes, "to the Buller, or _Bouilloir_, of
Buchan, which no man can see with indifference, who has either sense of
danger or delight in rarity. It is a rock perpendicularly tubulated,
united on one side with a high shore, and on the other rising steep to a
great height above the main sea. The top is open, from which may be seen
a dark gulf of water, which flows into the cavity through a breach made
in the lower part of the enclosing rock. It has the appearance of a vast
well, bordered with a wall. The edge of the Buller is not wide, and to
those who walk round appears very narrow. He that ventures to look
downward sees that, if his foot should slip, he must fall from his
dreadful elevation upon stones on one side, or into water on the other.
We, however, went round, and were glad when the circuit was completed.
When we came down to the sea, we saw some boats and rowers, and resolved
to explore the Buller at the bottom. We entered the arch which the water
had made, and found ourselves in a place which, although we could not
think ourselves in danger, we could scarcely survey without some recoil
of the mind. The basin in which we floated was nearly circular, perhaps
thirty yards in diameter. We were enclosed by a natural wall, rising
steep on every side, to a height which produced the idea of
insurmountable confinement. The interception of all lateral light
caused a dismal gloom. Round us was a perpendicular rock; above us, the
distant sky, and below, an unknown profundity of water."[14]

To the above description, written in the autumn of 1773, little needs to
be added: the wild features of the scene, and the effect produced upon
the minds of travellers, continue to present nearly the same aspect and
to awaken the same impressions as in the days of the great
lexicographer. The scene of horror, however, is often enlivened by
pic-nic parties from Peterhead, during the fine season, and is
deservedly considered as one of the great "lions" on this coast, a title
to which its continual "roar" gives it a more especial title.

The geological features of this locality are very interesting. The rocks
are of primitive granite, and appear to have been upheaved to the
surface by some internal expansive force, and have an inclination from
east to west of 25 degrees. Reposing upon the granite, is a bed of
diluvial clay, of from ten to fifteen feet deep, containing numerous
small water-worn stones, of different species of the secondary
formation; besides large quantities of flint, originally imbedded in
limestone, which must have been rolled from a great distance, as there
are no beds of limestone on this coast, or in any of the neighbouring
districts. From atmospheric action and other causes the rocks are
rapidly disintegrating; and great quantities of _débris_ are annually
accumulating at the bottom of the precipices, where wild grasses and
lichens springing up produce, by their decomposition, a vegetable mould
which is gradually increasing.

[13] Two hundred and fifty feet, according to more recent admeasurement.

[14] The accompanying view has been justly pronounced as by far the best
that has ever appeared of this remarkable scene, and is taken at the
same point from which it was contemplated by Dr. Johnson, after his walk
from Slaines Castle, about two miles distant. Sir Walter Scott, when on
his excursion to the Shetland Isles, and while becalmed off this coast,
paid a visit to the Buller; and we are of opinion (says Mr. Mackie),
that in his description of the Cavern of Staffa, we can discover some of
the general features of the scene described, shadowed forth in the _Lord
of the Isles_. It is proper to mention, that although now generally
written Buller, it is uniformly known in the district as the
_Bullers_--_Les Bouilloirs_, or boiling caldrons.



[Illustration: PETERHEAD.]



PETERHEAD.


    "No scene for me like the bounding sea;
      No couch like my cabin pillow!
    No fair domain like yon ocean's plain--
      And my coursers, the breeze and billow!"

        _The Heliotrope._

Peterhead, like the neighbouring ports already noticed, has rapidly
increased, within the last twenty years, in all those means which
facilitate and secure the advantages of trade and commerce. Though long
and deservedly resorted to as a delightful watering-place, remarkable
for the salubrity of its air, and the beauty of its situation, the
activity of trade was still unknown to its inhabitants. Its only
harbour, a small basin dug out of the rock, was rarely enlivened by
anything that could aspire to the title of shipping; for in Cromwell's
time, about twenty tons of boat-freight was all that its diminutive port
could lay claim to. The spirit of its inhabitants, however, with an
accurate perception of the natural advantages of the Port, and aided by
government in the preparation for a new era in commercial enterprise,
has achieved wonders. An air of prosperity animates the whole town: the
harbour is filled with goodly traders; imports and exports cover the
quays: industry has received a stimulus which communicates its happy
influence to everything around; and Peterhead now holds an enviable
station among the Ports and Harbours of Great Britain.

The point of land on which the town is built, is the most easterly of
the mainland of Scotland. It forms the north-east side of a bay, and is
connected with the country, on the north-west, by an isthmus eight
hundred yards in breadth. On Keith-Inch, so called from the Earl
Marischal, are many elegant and substantially-built houses; and on its
south-side is an old Castle, erected in the sixteenth century, by
George, Earl Marischal, after the model of one which he had seen in
Denmark. Down to the close of the sixteenth century, Peterhead was only
a small fishing-village, and the stranger who now passes through its
populous streets, and busy harbours, will readily perceive how much has
been accomplished in the interval.

The Harbours are both handsome and commodious; and, having two entrances
from the south and north, and being equidistant from the Forth and
Moray Friths, are much resorted to by vessels frequenting the east coast
of Scotland. The annual revenue is under the management of commissioners
incorporated by Act of Parliament. The South Harbour has a depth of
between twelve and fourteen feet water at medium springs, and from eight
to ten at neap-tides; but the North Harbour, during spring-tides, has
full eighteen feet water, and at no tide less than fourteen. The Quay
extends to 3350 feet in length; and connected with the harbour is an
excellent graving dock. The shipping belonging to the port amounts to
about 12,000 tons; and the number of vessels that annually take shelter
in these harbours, may be estimated at two hundred and forty. The
leading articles of export are grain, meal, eggs, butter, cattle, fish,
and the produce of the fisheries: the imports are groceries, clothing,
flour, salt, iron, timber, coal, lime, and bone-manure. Shipbuilding has
long been carried on to a considerable extent; and in the present day no
port of the kingdom sends out vessels more remarkable for fine
proportion and elegant combination of strength and beauty. During the
last half century, Peterhead has carried on an extensive trade with
Greenland, and Davis' Straits; and takes rank next to Hull in the whale
fishery.

The lighthouse, which stands on the Buchan Ness, at the extremity of the
south bay, is of the utmost importance, both as regards the interest of
the general trade of the port, and the prosecution of the herring
fishery, which is carried on with great success.

The neighbourhood of Peterhead is renowned for its granite, which is of
a reddish colour and closely resembles that on the west bank of the Lago
Maggiore in Italy. The beautiful pillars in the British Museum, and the
Duke of York's column in Waterloo-Place, are specimens of it; and
materials for many of our public buildings, such as the docks at
Sheerness, have also been furnished from the quarries of Peterhead.



[Illustration: MACDUFF, NEAR BANFF.]



MACDUFF.


    "... A place, where industry and health
    Their sure abode have found;
    Where want has ripened into wealth,
    And gladdened all around.
    How sweet on that romantic bay
    To spend the live-long summer-day!"

Macduff, which in the course of a century has emerged from its humble
origin of a few fishermen's huts into a town and harbour of no little
importance on this coast, is now an object of increasing interest to all
who delight in tracing the gradual rise and progress of national
prosperity, in the ramifications of our trade and commerce. The town is
situated about a mile and a half to the east of Banff; and in the
grouping of its buildings presents an aspect sufficiently romantic to
arrest the attention of every stranger who has a taste for the
picturesque. The Earl of Fife, on whose property it is built, has
greatly contributed to its advancement in all that regards the comfort
of the inhabitants, and the improvement of its harbour, which is now
considered one of the best in the Moray Frith. At the instance of this
patriotic nobleman, Macduff was created a burgh of barony by his Majesty
George III.; and from that time large sums of money have been annually
expended in improving the town, encouraging industry, and extending the
harbour. The import and export traffic of this port continues on the
increase, and employs numerous vessels that carry on a regular trade
with London and the ports of the Baltic. The exports consist chiefly of
corn, salmon, cod-fish, and granite, for which the quarries of this
coast have been so long known and appreciated. It is also a favourite
fishing-station, and possesses a numerous fleet of boats engaged in the
herring-fishery, which is here prosecuted during the season with great
activity and success; an occupation that has been the means of training
up a larger number of hardy seamen, and thus contributing to the naval
supremacy of our country in a greater degree than any other branch of
the coasting-trade. It has at the same time been instrumental in
providing an important portion of the subsistence of the peasantry in
the district, as well as furnishing a supply for transmission to the
metropolis and the southern part of the Kingdom, and successfully vieing
with the far-famed staple of Yarmouth. The herring-fishery on the coast
of Scotland was long confined, almost exclusively, to the coasts of
Caithness and Sutherland; but owing to the encouragement afforded by
government at the termination of the war, the fishing of herrings was
commenced on the Aberdeen, Banff, Moray, and Rossshire coasts; and it
was soon discovered that the herrings were both as good in quality and
as abundant on the south side of the Moray Frith as on the north. This
trade, from a small beginning, has now become flourishing and extensive;
and although the government bounties have been withdrawn, it is still
carried on with great spirit and activity. The quantity cured within the
district amounts in favourable years to about thirty thousand barrels.

The town contains a thriving and industrious population of nearly two
thousand: it has a grammar-school, a town-hall, and a jail. The church,
which forms so prominent a feature in the picture, occupies a
conspicuous situation on the eminence, and owes much to the taste and
munificence of Lord Fife, who has erected a fine massy cross in its
immediate precincts, and thereby contributed an ornament which, by its
peculiar elevation, gives additional interest and effect to the whole
scene.

The bridge across the Devon, by which Macduff communicates with Banff
and the surrounding scenery, is described in our notice of the latter
town and harbour. Owing to the acknowledged excellence of its
accommodation for shipping, Macduff is gradually acquiring fresh
testimony in its favour as a seaport, and promises to insure to its
inhabitants, at no remote period, their full proportion of maritime
prosperity. So be it; and in this wish and prospect every one, who is
acquainted with the place or the people, will cordially sympathize; and
from their known energy and perseverance, there is no reason to doubt of
their securing that commercial success which they labour so strenuously
to obtain, and to which their natural position so much entitles them.



[Illustration: BANFF.]



BANFF.


The ancient town of Banff consists of two distinct parts, the first of
which, called the body of the town, lies partly on the lower extremity
of the plain, skirting the river, and partly on the declivity. The
second portion, called the sea-town, stands on an elevated level which
terminates abruptly within a short distance of the sea, by which it is
bounded. When viewed from the low ground beyond the river, the sea-town
appears to stand on a long elevated ridge, as seen in the engraving, and
having the battery on its northern extremity. On a piece of table-land,
projecting midway between the town proper, and sea-town, and nearly
opposite the mouth of the river, stands the Castle, a plain, modern
edifice, but commanding an extensive and varied prospect of the sea, the
town, the hill of Macduff, the sweep of the river, and the beautiful
slope opposite, surmounted by the woods of Mount Coffer.

The streets of Banff, though composed of houses varying much in size,
are generally straight and of a convenient width. The High-street,
Castle-road, and a street in the sea-town, terminating in the battery,
form a continuous line from south to north, of about half a mile in
length. In the progress of recent improvements, many of the old houses
have been pulled down and replaced by others, so that now scarcely a
feature of primitive architecture is left to remind the spectator of the
olden time--the characteristic dwellings of our forefathers--

    "When walls of oak and hearts of steel
    Stood surety for the public weal."

About twenty years ago the comfort and convenience of the inhabitants
were greatly promoted by the addition of an excellent market-place, laid
out in a central part of the town and furnished with every necessary
accommodation. Public baths have also been erected by a joint-stock
company, and the town is lighted with gas.

In the southern approach to Banff, the road is carried over the Doveran
by means of an elegant and substantial stone bridge, consisting of seven
semicircular arches, with a clear water-way of one hundred and forty-two
yards. This handsome structure was finished at the expense of government
in 1779, and is highly ornamental to the town and neighbourhood. From
this point the view of Duff House, in the centre of a beautiful park, is
seen to great advantage. In proof of this, the reader has only to cast
his eye over the engraving, which, to those who have not seen the
original, conveys a faithful and striking resemblance to Banff and its
vicinity. Seen so near as to render its elaborately carved ornaments
visible, the appearance of Duff House is particularly rich, graceful,
and majestic. It contains a fine gallery of paintings, many of them by
the first masters of the art. This baronial mansion, was built nearly a
century ago, after a design by Adams, in the Roman style, but has never
been finished in its original detail. The body of the house is an
oblong, consisting of four lofty stories; the first of which is a rustic
basement, over which rise two stories, adorned with fluted pilasters,
and an entablature in imitation of that on the temple of Jupiter Stator,
in the Campo Vaccino at Rome. Over this entablature, which surrounds the
whole structure, is an attic story, surmounted by a balustrade. The four
corners of the building have projections resembling towers, which break
and vary the outline, overtop the attic story, and are adorned at the
angles by an upper range of pilasters with an entablature of the
Composite order, and crowned by dome-like roofs, on which are placed
octagonal pedestal-chimneys.

The town of Banff has much to recommend it as a residence. It possesses
both coast and inland scenery of a superior description, and is
particularly healthy. It has excellent schools, classical and
commercial; various places of public worship, as observed by the
established Presbyterian, the Episcopalian, the Seceder, and others. It
has abundant markets, frequent and regular mails, public baths,
literary, scientific, and benevolent institutions; boarding-schools, and
society equal at least to what is generally met with in a remote
provincial town.



[Illustration: PORT GLASGOW.]



PORT GLASGOW.


    Here, safely moored, our vessels ride,
      Here plies the busy oar;
    And every ship that stems the tide
      Brings treasures to our shore:
    Here trade and industry command
    The trusty heart and steady hand.

The ground on which this town has been erected belonged originally to
the estate of Newark, and was purchased by the magistrates of Glasgow,
in 1668, in order to provide a convenient harbour for the
merchant-vessels belonging to that city--hence the name of Port Glasgow.
In 1775, a charter was obtained from parliament, conferring on the town
the privilege of a burgh of barony, and granting a constitution, which
vested the management of its municipal affairs in a council of thirteen,
including two baillies. By the Burgh-Reform Act, the number was reduced
to nine, consisting of a provost, two baillies, and six councillors. The
Reform Bill elevated it to the rank of a parliamentary burgh; and, in
connexion with Kilmarnock, Rutherglen, Dumbarton, and Renfrew, it sends
one member to parliament.

In its general appearance, Port Glasgow presents an air of much neatness
and regularity. The streets are straight, and for the most part cross
each other at right angles; while the houses, nearly uniform in size,
and generally whitewashed, give to the whole a light and regular
appearance. Among the modern buildings the town-house, and parish-church
are chiefly deserving of notice. The town-hall, of plain but substantial
workmanship, is ornamented in front with a portico, resting on four
massy fluted pillars, and surmounted with a handsome spire, which rises
from the centre. Of this edifice, the ground-floor has been laid out
chiefly in shops; but the upper story, in addition to the chambers of
the council and town-clerk, contains a large and commodious
reading-room, with several apartments occupied as mercantile
counting-rooms. The church was finished seventeen years ago, and affords
accommodation for about twelve hundred persons. It is square in form,
and plain in its exterior; but is much and deservedly admired for the
simplicity and elegance of its internal arrangement. The wealthy
inhabitants of the place did themselves great honor, and at the same
time set a valuable example to others, by gratuitously contributing a
sum of fifteen hundred pounds to assist in the expenses of its
erection.

Attached to this Port are two capacious harbours, substantially built,
and so completely sheltered from storms, that the vessels moored within
them have rarely been found to suffer injury even in the severest
weather. These harbours are furnished with ample quay and shed-room, and
also with a commodious graving-dock--the oldest in Scotland. The largest
vessels that trade to the Clyde are found at this port; such is the
facility of access to this harbour, that vessels which draw twenty-one
feet of water are towed up and down the channel with the greatest ease
and safety.

A very important addition to the harbour accommodations of Port Glasgow
was obtained a few years back in the erection of wet-docks. The then
existing harbours having been found much too small for the increasing
number of ships belonging to the port, the inhabitants of the town
resolved to avail themselves of their local advantages, by converting
the Bay of Newark, naturally adapted to the purpose, into a spacious
dock, where vessels of the largest class might lie securely afloat in
every state of the tide. The trustees of the harbours obtained an act of
parliament, investing them with the necessary powers for carrying this
desirable object into effect; and funds having been secured, they were
enabled to commence the work, which was soon in rapid progress, and
completed about twelve years ago. This dock, having spacious quays, with
a twenty-five feet depth of water alongside, holds out special
advantages to the trade, both in point of safety and convenience.

The charges levied at this port are on the most moderate scale, and
considerably below the rates imposed at the neighbouring ports. To
merchants engaged in trade with the Clyde, Port Glasgow thus presents
the double advantage of low charges and very superior accommodation;
while, at the same time, the privileges of the warehousing system are on
a footing equal to those of any other port in the kingdom.
Warehouse-room is provided on a very extensive scale, and is open for
the general accommodation of the trade, on very moderate terms. In
addition to the regular bonded warehouses, there is a large area for
receiving wood into bond, and an excellent warehouse for crushing
refined sugars, in which large quantities of that article are prepared
for exportation to the Mediterranean markets.

Shipbuilding is also carried on at this port to a considerable extent:
of late years the builders have been chiefly employed in the
construction of steamboats, of which they have produced a great number,
some of them of the largest class, and all of very superior workmanship.
From the nature of the trade, the rope-work and canvas factory are here
in a state of constant activity, and give employment to a great number
of hands. The vast improvements effected within the last few years, by
deepening the river, and extending the harbours and docks as already
mentioned, give Port Glasgow just cause to anticipate all the advantages
arising from a prosperous and extending commerce.



[Illustration: GREENOCK.]



GREENOCK.


     "The Clyde, always spacious, and always covered with its
     shipping, offers a scene of life and brilliancy unparalleled on
     any of our sea-shores; and enhanced by a majestic screen of
     mountains to the north, for ever varying under the change of a
     restless atmosphere, but under all these changes, for ever
     magnificent!"

Among the principal sea-ports of the United Empire, Greenock is justly
entitled to a distinguished place. Although of comparatively modern
date, it has left many of its ancient predecessors and modern rivals in
the background, and at this moment continues to advance rapidly in
commercial enterprise and prosperity.

The recent formation of quays and docks of corresponding dimensions,
affords to this harbour every facility for vessels of heavy burthen. The
town possesses several handsome buildings, the principal of which are
the church, the Tontine, or great hotel, and the CUSTOM-HOUSE. Of the
latter, with the immediate scene of commercial activity and forest of
masts by which it is surrounded, the engraving opposite presents a vivid
and faithful representation. It is a structure of great elegance, and,
as an illustration of the chastest style of Grecian architecture, it
would be difficult to point out a finer specimen either at home or
abroad. The quality of the materials too is every way worthy of so fine
a monument of national prosperity; and a fair estimate may be formed of
the superiority of the workmanship, when we state that a sum of not less
than twenty thousand pounds was expended in its erection; a fact which
evinces at the same time the high importance attached to Greenock as a
depot of the national revenue. The river Clyde is here about three miles
broad; but, as also at Port-Glasgow, the navigable channel is little
more than three hundred yards across. The bay is formed by an expansion
of the Clyde, into which several bold points of land project from the
northern bank, over which the mountains of Argyll, gradually receding
till their summits are lost in the sky, present a landscape of almost
Alpine beauty and magnificence.

In conjunction with the native grandeur of the scenery, the spirit of
commercial enterprise, which is everywhere visible on the banks, as well
as on the bosom of the water--transforming the one into a garden, and
the other into a "high road" to prosperity,--impresses every spectator
with the strongest evidence of its magical influence. Industry and
activity pervade and animate everything around, and extend their
influence into the remotest parts of the country. For several years
past, Greenock has been the principal port in immediate connexion with
America, to which the annual tide of emigration from the Highlands still
flows, though with abated force, and a divided stream, since the golden
hills of Australia have offered to thousands the vision of wealth to be
acquired in a few months, and an independence to be realized in a single
year. Here, grouped on the quay, sauntering along the streets, or
viewing the distant mountains to which they are soon to bid adieu, the
voice and features of the Gaël awaken a lively interest and attention on
the part of every stranger. They have left their humble dwellings in
those mountains, which still look invitingly in the distance, and which
through innumerable generations had afforded shelter and sustenance to
their ancestors, but whence they are driven at last, not by choice, but
imperious necessity.

When tired or satisfied with the tumultuous scene on the quays, the
traveller may ascend in half an hour the heights above the port, and
there behold one of the finest views in Scotland. The gigantic screen of
Argyllshire mountains, rising peak over peak till they vanish in the
sky, forms a magnificent distance to the picture; while the middle
ground is occupied by the broad expanse of the Clyde, gay and studded
with shipping in every direction. Still nearer, the port of Greenock
itself, crowded with masts and sails, and steam chimneys and buildings,
forms an appropriate foreground to a panorama as variegated as it is
picturesque.

That generous spirit of enterprise which characterises the merchants of
Greenock has given birth to one of the most remarkable efforts of
science and art which have been accomplished in modern times. This is
the admiration of every stranger, and well known to the public under the
name of Shaw's Water-works. By a singular combination of ingenuity and
skill, a small stream of water is made to travel along the faces of
mountains, and across ravines, for the space of six miles and a half,
till it reaches the brow of a hill about a mile above Greenock, at an
elevation of more than five hundred feet above the level of the sea.
Here it is received into a small reservoir, and managed in such a manner
as to produce, by this stupendous fall, a two-thousand-horse power,
greater, says Mr. Brown, than that produced by all the united
steam-engines in Glasgow. This splendid scheme was designed and
completed under the personal superintendence of Mr. Thom, of Rothesay,
to whose scientific and inventive genius it is a noble and lasting
monument. The immense power thus provided is rendered more secure and
certain than that of steam, because there exists no doubt whatever that
a full supply of water commensurate with the power, can be had at all
times and seasons.



[Illustration: NEW BRIDGE AND BROOMIELAW GLASGOW.]



THE BROOMIELAW, GLASGOW.


The river Clyde, in a commercial point of view, is of the greatest
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.

The public buildings of Workington are chiefly of modern date, and the
houses disposed into two clusters in that called the Upper town. In the
area of the new square is the corn-market, and at a short distance are
the assembly rooms and theatre, both of which, though small, are by no
means destitute of taste and elegance. It has a weekly market on
Wednesday for corn, and on Wednesday and Saturday for butchers' meat.
The church of St. Michael, forming a prominent object in the centre of
the Engraving, is a rectory in the patronage of the Curwen family, and
contains a monument of Sir Patrick Curwen, Bart., who died in 1661. The
chief source of industry here, as at Whitehaven and other towns of the
coast, is the coal-mines, which, in the vicinity of Workington, amount
to sixteen or upwards, with a depth of from forty to ninety fathoms. The
coal lies in bands or seams, divided from each other by intermediate
strata. Of these the uppermost is generally three feet thick, the second
four, and the third, or lowest, from ten to twelve feet. The extraneous
matter that separates the former varies considerably; but the covering
of the main coal is of the finest white freestone, about twenty yards
thick. When the "new seam," as it was then called, was first discovered
at Chapel-bank, the event was celebrated by the late proprietor, Mr.
Curwen, by a splendid festival, and a vast concourse of the inhabitants
and neighbours assembled to drink success to the "black diamond."

The quantity of coal shipped from this port, per week, amounted latterly
to two thousand tons or upwards, and the raising of which, with the aid
of several steam-engines, afford employment to between six and seven
hundred workmen. The agricultural society of Workington has contributed
much to the improvement of the county, and owes its origin to the
spirited and indefatigable example of the late proprietor of these
mines. A staith or loading stage for collier vessels is seen on the
right hand of the illustration. It is an object more valuable for its
utility than for any beauty in an artistic point of view; but it is a
distinguishing characteristic of all the ports engaged in the
coal-trade, and, wherever it can be rendered available, reduces the
expenses of the coal-owner, by obviating the necessity for keels or
lighters.

The mansion of the Curwen family--or hall, as it is more generally
designated--was formerly a castle of great strength; and,
notwithstanding the numerous alterations it has undergone since the
feudal epoch, still presents a noble and imposing feature in the
landscape. In this hospitable fortalice Queen Mary was received and
entertained by its generous owner, the ancestor of the present Mr.
Curwen, till the royal pleasure of Elizabeth could be ascertained as to
her future disposal. The chamber in which she slept is still a recording
testimony of the fact, and retains the name of the "Queen's chamber,"
where we may well believe--

    "Uneasy lay the head that wore a crown."

The mountains of Cumberland--some of which form the background in the
present view--are exceedingly numerous, lofty, and of striking
conformation. Around the lakes they are often finely grouped, generally
clothed with copse-wood: here pastoral, and dotted with flocks; and
there rugged, precipitous, and hewn into deep ravines by those
thundering torrents which convey their foaming tribute to the lakes.
Every mountain in Cumberland has its name celebrated in poetry--every
lake has been the subject of some inspired lyric; and such was the
favour in which the charming scenery of this county was held by several
of the master-spirits of the age, that the lakes of Cumberland and the
adjoining county were adopted as their residence, and from their banks
the strains of Wordsworth and Southey were welcomed as the genuine
emanations of inspired minds.



[Illustration: WHITEHAVEN,

(with St. Bees-head.)]



WHITEHAVEN,

CUMBERLAND.


    "The town beneath, the sea before thee;
      Fruitful groves and flow'ry dells;
    Rocks and headlands tow'ring o'er thee,
      All behind thee--lakes and fells!

    "Look around thee, gentle stranger,
      On harvest fields and pastures green;--
    In lands where thou hast been a ranger,
      Fairer hast thou ever seen!"

The town of Whitehaven may be considered as a national monument to the
creative influence of trade. Favoured by the geological character of its
soil, and fostered by native industry, it has risen in the comparatively
brief interval of a hundred and eighty years, to a position of eminence
among the minor ports and harbours of Great Britain. What in the middle
of the seventeenth century consisted, according to written testimony, of
only six fishermen's huts and one small bark, is now a flourishing town,
enlivened by trade and commerce, with a commodious harbour, extensive
shipping, and enterprising merchants.

The bay on which the town of Whitehaven is erected is so deeply seated,
that the adjacent shore, rising like the grades of a magnificent
amphitheatre, appears to enclose it on every side. In approaching it
from the north, the stranger is uniformly struck with its sheltered
position, and from the heights looks down upon it as on a map spread at
his feet. From the south the view is particularly beautiful. The town is
well built, the streets wide and enlivened with well-furnished shops,
and inhabited by a cheerful and thriving population. Like Longtown, on
the Border, Whitehaven is built after a correct plan; the streets cross
each other at right angles, presenting much architectural regularity,
and combining with the air of internal comfort the outward signs of
taste and elegance. The public improvements continue to advance in
proportion to the extent of commercial intercourse, and to this,
apparently, every succeeding year throws open some new channel. The
introduction of steam-navigation between all the adjacent as well as
opposite coasts, has powerfully contributed to stimulate the native
industry of the place, by increasing the demand for coal--its staple
produce--to which we shall more particularly advert in our notice of the
harbour.

The situation of Whitehaven in a narrow valley, extending to the village
of St. Bees--a distance of several miles--unites with the appearance of
seclusion much of that picturesque beauty for which the inland districts
of the county are so justly celebrated. St. Bees'-head is a bold and
striking feature, and contrasts admirably with the softer scenes from
which it projects, as the most imposing landmark on this part of the
Channel.

The population of Whitehaven has greatly increased within the last ten
years. The neighbouring villages, farms, and pastures, all indicate
progressive advancement in the several branches of domestic industry.
The land is highly cultivated, and in many instances fertile and
productive; while the orchards and gardens, by the nature and abundance
of their produce, bear friendly testimony to the mildness of the
climate.

To the Lowther family, who have a handsome castle here, Whitehaven owes
its foundation as a borough, and much of its prosperity as a trading
port. To the munificence of its patrons--and especially to the Earl of
Lonsdale, who has spared neither personal expense nor political
influence to facilitate every object which held out the promise of
permanent advantage to the inhabitants, it is eminently indebted. And in
return, it may be justly observed, that whatever the patron has expended
in improving the town and harbour, the people have repaid by increased
attachment to the interests of their benefactor. The inhabitants of
Whitehaven are noted for their public spirit, honourable conduct in
trade, and for that indefatigable attention to business which has so
happily distinguished them through a long series of years. It has
several schools, two weekly papers, and the study of literature and
science is much cultivated and encouraged by the families of affluence
and respectability who reside in the town and vicinity. Social and
hospitable intercourse, with balls, assemblies, and public fetes, render
the stranger's residence at Whitehaven extremely agreeable. It offers,
in general, all the luxuries of a country town, with few or none of its
disadvantages; and presents at all times the means of prompt intercourse
with the great commercial emporium of Liverpool, the coasts of Scotland,
Ireland, Wales, and the Isle of Man. Independently of its immediate
vicinity to the Lakes, it would be difficult to point out any situation
in the northern counties which enjoys so many attractions in regard to
situation, scenery, and society, as the picturesque and prosperous town
of Whitehaven.



[Illustration: WHITEHAVEN HARBOUR.]



WHITEHAVEN HARBOUR.


In another article we have given some descriptive particulars of the
town of Whitehaven and its vicinity, and have therefore in the present
instance to confine our attention to the harbour, an excellent view of
which forms the subject of our engraving.

We have previously stated that Whitehaven is mainly indebted to the
Lowther family for its rise and progress as a trading port. By Sir John
Lowther, an ancestor of this house, the lands of the dissolved monastery
of St. Bees were purchased for his second son, Sir Christopher, early in
the reign of Charles the First; and, as the use of coals first became
general at this period, the new proprietor determined on improving his
estate by opening a colliery. In this, however, little progress was made
till after the Restoration, when Sir John Lowther, his successor, formed
a plan for working the mines on a very extensive scale, and with this
view obtained considerable grants of unappropriated land in the
district, which was secured to him in 1666. Two years later he obtained
a further accession of property, including a parliamentary gift of the
whole sea-coast for two miles northward, between high and low
water-mark. He next turned his attention to the port, which was neither
large nor convenient, and by his judicious schemes laid the foundation
of the present haven. Since that important epoch it has been greatly and
gradually improved, particularly since an act of parliament was obtained
to finish the original plan, and to keep it in repair, by a moderate
tonnage on shipping. In its present form it is protected and
strengthened by several piers, or moles, of compact stonework, three of
which project in parallel lines from the land; a fourth, bending in the
form of a crescent, has a watchhouse and battery, with a handsome
lighthouse at its extremity. At low water, the port is nearly dry, so
that the shipping within the moles lie as if in dry docks.

Adjoining the harbour, on the west side of the town, is the
coal-_staith_, or magazine, where coal for exportation is deposited to
the amount of several thousand waggon-loads. Eight or ten, and
occasionally twelve, vessels, each carrying a hundred tons and upwards,
are commonly loaded at one tide, at an expense of only ten shillings
each, so great are the facilities contrived for this purpose. The method
is this: the greatest part of the road from the pit runs along an
inclined plain, on which are railways communicating with covered
galleries, which terminate in large flues, or _hurries_, placed sloping
over the quay. When loaded, the waggons run by their own weight from the
pit to the magazine, where, their bottoms being struck out, the coals
are dropped into the _hurries_, and thence with a noise like thunder
descend into the holds of the vessels.

Whitehaven forms one of a chain of ports on the north-western coast of
England, which owe their commercial importance to the demand for coals.
This branch of trade has long been famous as a nursery of hardy and
intelligent seamen, and the naval service of the country has, in times
of war, been chiefly indebted to the numerous body of men who have,
either voluntarily or by compulsion, exchanged their services from the
humble collier to a more distinguished, though less lucrative, position
on the deck of a line-of-battle ship. Years have now passed since there
has been any occasion to disturb the arrangements of our commercial
marine for this purpose; and it is to be fervently hoped that the
advancing civilisation of the age will preclude the re-enactment of such
scenes of misery and crime as must ever accompany the system of
impressment and forced service.

Most of the coal exported from this haven is conveyed to Ireland; and
the annual quantity raised, on an average of twenty years, was formerly
under 100,000 chaldrons; but of late years the export trade in this
department is understood to have greatly increased. In the Whitehaven
coal-mines there have happened from time to time lamentable catastrophes
by the explosion of foul air, attended by great sacrifice of life. It is
painful to reflect, that, with all the means which, in this scientific
and inventive age, have been recommended and adopted, no effectual plan
has hitherto been devised for the prevention of these sad and appalling
accidents.



[Illustration: ST. BEES COLLEGE.]



ST. BEES' COLLEGE.


            "C'est-là qu'amante du désert,
    La méditation avec plaisir se perd
    Sous ces portiques saints."

        DELILLE.

The village of St. Bees is a place of great antiquity, and holds a
distinguished place among the theological seminaries of the kingdom,
owing to the high reputation of the late Dr. Ainger, and his able and
distinguished successor, the Rev. W. Buddicom, principal of the college.
The chapel, which is built of freestone, is part of an ancient church
belonging to a monastery, founded here by St. Bega, a holy woman of the
seventh century. The form of the building is that of a cross. The
western portion, or nave, is now fitted up as the parish church, the
great door of which is ornamented with grotesque heads, chevron
mouldings, and other ornamental work in the ancient ecclesiastical
style. It formerly contained a large wooden statue of Anthony, the last
Lord Lucy of Egremont.

The original building having been destroyed by the Danes, William, son
of Ralph de Meschines, Earl of Cumberland, undertook its restoration in
the reign of Henry the First, and made it a cell for the prior and six
Benedictine monks to the Abbey of St. Mary, at York. It was endowed, at
the dissolution of monasteries and religious houses, with a hundred and
fifty pounds, and granted by Edward the Sixth, along with the manor,
rectory, and other estates, to Sir Thomas Challoner; but afterwards
revoked, and given by Queen Mary to the Bishop of Chester and his
successors.

The eastern part of the abbey, built in the thirteenth century, was
fitted up about twenty-four years ago as a college, containing a public
hall and lecture-room for the students, the end of the ancient
cross-aisle being converted into a library, with an excellent collection
of approved works on divinity. This valuable institution was commenced
under the auspices of the late Bishop of Chester, Dr. Law. Its object is
to afford such young men of the northern provinces as have not the
opportunity of prosecuting their studies at Oxford or Cambridge, the
means of fitting themselves for entering into holy orders; and the
success which has already attended this pious and patriotic measure has
been highly gratifying. Previous to admission, it is expected that every
candidate shall furnish evidence of his having received a classical
school-education, with testimonials of moral character; and, after two
years' study, he is entitled to be received on trial for ordination. A
gentleman who lately studied here, and who is now a most efficient and
zealous minister of the Church, speaks in very favourable terms of the
judicious arrangement which has latterly marked the theological course
at St. Bees; and improvements still more decided, it appears, are in
contemplation under its present administration.

Edmund Grindall, Archbishop of Canterbury, was a native of Hensingham,
in this parish; and, in 1583, obtained letters-patent for the foundation
of a free grammar-school at St. Bees, in which gratuitous instruction in
the classics was provided for a hundred boys. This institution is under
the management of a corporation of seven governors, two of whom are the
provost of Queen's College, Oxford, and the rector of Egremont.

It has produced several learned characters, among whom was the pious Dr.
Hall,[16] bishop of Norwich, whose eventful life is familiar to every
reader of ecclesiastical history. Much of the prosperity of the village
of St. Bees depends on the lodgings which it supplies to the students
during term.

The parish of St. Bees is of great extent; and, judging from the ruins
still observable, must have been fortified by the Romans at all the
convenient landing-places along the shore, which here, and particularly
to the northward, presents many vestiges of their military occupation.
The village stands on the margin of the bay formed by the southern
promontory of St. Bees'-head.

[16] Dr. Hall was born in 1574, and, in 1624, refused the see of
Gloucester; but three years afterwards accepted that of Exeter, from
which he was translated, in 1641, to that of Norwich. A few years
subsequent to this event he was sent to the tower, with twelve other
prelates, for protesting against any laws passed in Parliament during
their forced absence from the House. In June of the following year he
obtained his release; but shortly after suffered much persecution from
the Puritans, who plundered his house and despoiled the cathedral. His
private estate was also sequestered; and thus in his old age he was
reduced to poverty, which he bore with great fortitude, and continued to
preach as long as his health permitted. He was author of the well-known
_Meditations_, was a poet of considerable genius, and with great wit and
learning united a spirit of true meekness and piety. His works have
gained for him the appellation of "the Christian Seneca." He died in
1656.



[Illustration: ST. BEES HEAD.]



ST. BEES'-HEAD.


    "When tempests rage, and nights are long and dark,
    The 'Light of Barath' guides the wilder'd bark."

This lofty headland, anciently known as the "Cliff of Barath," is a
conspicuous object to vessels in the north-east part of the Irish
channel--bold, abrupt, and precipitous towards the sea; but presenting,
as it slopes inland, a fine undulating and pastoral mass of verdure,
through which, at intervals, projecting fragments of rock discover its
geological character. The succession of deeply indented and rugged
precipices which it presents seaward, is singularly wild and
picturesque; and during gales from the southward the scene is one of the
most sublime that can be conceived.

The lighthouse which occupies the summit, was first erected in 1718,
with a fixed light at an elevation of three hundred and thirty-three
feet above high water, which in clear weather is visible at a distance
of twenty miles. But in January, 1823, a new light, consisting of nine
reflectors, was first exhibited, which has doubtless been the means of
rescuing from destruction many lives and much valuable property.

The view from the summit of this cliff is particularly
striking--embracing all the bolder features of the Scottish shore--the
Isle of Man, and an expanse of sea which, however the wind may blow, is
always enlivened with shipping. Besides the exportation of coal, which
is immense, there are several vessels employed in the exportation of
lime, freestone, alabaster, and grain, and in the importation of West
Indian, American, and Baltic produce, flax and linen from Ireland, and
pig-iron from Wales.

The parish of St. Bees, is very extensive, and includes some picturesque
mountain scenery, among which may be enumerated the views from those
peculiarly named hills Hard-knot, Wry-nose, and Scafell. The highest
point of this range, Scafell, is three thousand one hundred and sixty
feet above the level of the sea, at this height very little vegetation
is met with; huge masses of stone piled one upon the other, in
alternations of different strata, give to the whole a ridged or furrowed
appearance of a singular character. The visitors to "the Lakes" may here
gratify their taste for the romantic by visiting the beautiful valley of
Buttermere, situated about midway between St. Bees and Keswick. This
lake or mere, so widely known and so highly praised, is about a mile and
a quarter in length, and nearly half a mile in breadth; it is connected
by a little stream with Crummock lake, which has three or four small
islands, but these are placed too near the shore to add much to its
beauty. The best general views of the lake are from the Hause, a rocky
point on the eastern side, and from the road between Scale-hill and
Lowes-water. Both lakes are well stocked with trout and char. Scale
Force, near Buttermere, has a fall of more than one hundred and fifty
feet, and is very nearly perpendicular, besides uniting its waters with
a small fall below: it is said to be the deepest in the lake district.
The water is precipitated into a tremendous chasm between two mural
rocks of sienite, beautifully overhung with trees, which have their
roots in the crevices, and the sides are clad with a profusion of plants
which glitter in the spray of the fall. At Buttermere is situated the
Sour Milk Gill, a waterfall so termed from the frothy whiteness of its
surface, which has been supposed to resemble butter-milk fresh from the
churn. The temptation to indulge in reminiscences of the innumerable
views of interest with which this vicinity abounds, has led us to ramble
far from the description of the promontory which forms our subject; but
this is less to be regretted as it has afforded us an opportunity of
calling the reader's attention to a country that yields to none in the
United Kingdom in point of natural beauties, and which is every
succeeding year becoming a more fashionable resort.



[Illustration: SCENE AT FLEETWOOD, ON WYRE]



FLEETWOOD-ON-WYRE,

LANCASHIRE.


    "The day shall come when FLEETWOOD's port shall be
    The favour'd Harbour of the great and free;
    Hither, when vex'd with boist'rous wave and wind,
    The struggling mast a safe retreat shall find;
    Here, from the sunny land of conch and pearl,
    The stately bark her weary sail shall furl."

        _Fleetwood: A Poem._

The name of Fleetwood is associated, prospectively, with the first
commercial ports of the kingdom. The illustration prefixed sufficiently
indicates the use to which it is applied; but the rapidly increasing
importance of this new maritime station is entitled to a more particular
notice than the detached "scene" would appear to demand. Situated at the
entrance to Morecombe Bay, on the river Wyre, the great natural
advantages which it presents are hardly to be surpassed; and from the
liberal spirit with which the operations are carried on, Fleetwood must
shortly become one of the most frequented sea-ports on the British
coast; combining, at the same time, all the recommendations of a
commercial town, and a delightful watering-place. With Preston, from
which it is distant only eighteen miles, it is connected by means of the
railway through Poulton and Kirkham.

The limits of the Port of Fleetwood, as determined by the Commissioners
from the Court of Exchequer, are to "commence at a run of water called
the Hundred-End, about two miles to the west of Hesketh-Bank, continuing
up to Preston; thence along the coast, on the north side of the river,
to Lytham; round the coast to Blackpool, and on to Fleetwood; thence to
the river Broadfleet, four miles from Sea-Dyke, including both sides of
the Wyre, and the river Broadfleet."

The Commissioners appointed by Government to investigate the most
eligible routes by railway, to facilitate communication between London,
Ireland, and Scotland, reported that the harbour at Fleetwood--which by
the Preston and Wyre Railway is put in communication with
London--appears to them likely to form a good point of departure for the
north of Ireland and the west of Scotland. Since this report was
published, experiment has fully justified the opinion thus expressed.
The capabilities of Fleetwood as a commercial port are of the first
order; and the plans to render it such can be executed at a
comparatively small expense. Its fine spacious harbour, extensive dock,
cheap port-dues and dock-charges, cannot fail to attract a large share
of the American cotton, timber, and other foreign trade; while the great
recommendation of low charges induce the regular Belfast and Glasgow
steam-vessels to frequent the port. There is a custom-house, with bonded
warehouses for all ordinary merchandise, except East India goods and
tobacco--unless removed coastwise for home use and ship's stores. In a
very advantageous situation seaward, a very elegant and finely contrived
light-house has been erected; and, in pursuance of the comprehensive
schemes of Sir Hesketh Fleetwood, Bart., M.P., proprietor of the
harbour, numerous buildings have sprung up in all directions, and upon
ground which recently consisted of only a warren for rabbits. Among
these buildings are a handsome church, and a large and beautiful hotel,
the centre of which has seventy feet of frontage, besides two spacious
wings of ninety feet each; the whole forming one splendid edifice of two
hundred and ninety feet in length, and commanding an extent of marine
scenery not to be surpassed in any part of the kingdom.



[Illustration: BLACKPOOL.]



BLACKPOOL.


In referring to this watering-place for a second time we feel some
difficulty; not that we have said all that can be put forth in connexion
with its claims to the patronage of the health-seeking and
pleasure-loving population of Lancashire and the surrounding counties,
but because our desire has been to introduce, wherever possible, some
historical notice of the places which form the subject of our artist's
pencil, especially where, as in the present instance, more than one
illustration has been given of the same town or port. We must, however,
confess, that of Blackpool, historically considered, we have nothing to
record. Its chronicles, if ever it possessed any, have been swallowed up
by the encroaching waves, which have taken a large portion of what was
once dry land to augment their liquid domains.

About half-a-mile from the beach, the stranger's attention is directed
to a small rock in the sea, called the "Pennystone," which, according to
local tradition, marks the place where a public-house once stood on dry
land. In this stone, it is added, were fixed iron hooks, to which
travellers usually fastened their horses' bridles while they alighted to
refresh themselves with "penny pots of beer,"--a circumstance
perpetuated in the name which it still retains.

At the south end of the town is the now dilapidated building called
Vauxhall, where, in 1715, the Chevalier St. George lay for some time
concealed, while the secret measures were concocting by his adherents
for a general insurrection. This house belonged to the family of the
Tyldesleys, who at that time, and long previously, had considerable
possessions in this country; but being faithful adherents of the House
of Stuart, they embraced the desperate cause of the royal exile with
undissembled zeal. Sir Thomas Tyldesley, the head of the family at that
moment, prepared this house for the reception of the royal adventurer;
but this open declaration of his attachment proved ruinous to himself
and his descendants. The last male heir joined the standard of the
Chevalier in 1745. One of his ancestors was slain at the battle of Wigan
Lane, in that county, while marching to the assistance of Charles II.; a
monument to his memory was erected by one of his officers in 1679. It is
still in tolerable preservation, and bears an appropriate inscription.

East of Blackpool are situated the townships of Great and Little Marton,
where a subterraneous forest has been discovered, by digging out the
timber from which many of the peasantry obtain considerable sums. Some
of the trees are sound enough to make agricultural instruments, barn
roofs and fences, and even articles of ornamental furniture. Much of the
land in this neighbourhood has been reclaimed from a state of marsh; and
there are still remaining, within a few miles, a Moss comprising several
thousand acres--so extensive, indeed, as to have passed into a local
aphorism, "As inexhaustible as Pilling Moss," being an ordinary mode of
expressing anything that is supposed to be without limit. This moss is
reported to have, as lately as 1745, altered considerably in its level,
and, by a movement to the south, to have destroyed one hundred acres of
improved land. It affords a large supply of fuel for the district, and
seems likely to continue to do so for generations to come.

The little watering-place, from which we have thus wandered away, owes
its name to a pool of water of more than ordinary darkness of colour,
caused by the decaying vegetation of the marshes. It has now, however,
disappeared under the hand of modern improvement, and given place to a
supply of water more than usually pure, and which is not to be often
found in such close proximity to the coast.



[Illustration: BLACKPOOL SANDS.]



BLACKPOOL.

THE SANDS.


    "Southward--old Cambria's Alpine charm
    Cast their broad shadows o'er the plain;
    Northward--the Cambrian summits swell
    In many a glittering pinnacle;
    In front--the waves, so darkly blue,
    Refresh the heart and cheer the view;
    While further--Mona's mountains swim
    Like clouds upon the horizon's rim."

Blackpool is a favourable instance of that spirit of enterprise which is
at work on almost every point of the British coast, and under the
creative influence of which so many obscure or little-frequented
localities have suddenly risen into provincial, and even national
importance. Wherever nature had thrown out any encouraging hint, it has
been eagerly taken advantage of by the hand of art, and, under the
guidance of taste and liberality, been turned into a source of public
emolument. It is, comparatively, only a few years ago since Blackpool
exhibited in its appearance nothing superior to that of an
inconsiderable hamlet, with few visitors, less trade, and little
opportunity of extending the sources of native industry. It is now a
fashionable and well-frequented watering-place, deriving a certain
annual revenue from its visitors, and enjoying a considerable share of
trade, with every reasonable prospect of a progressive increase. These
are gratifying facts which abundantly prove the healthful vigour with
which the country is animated, and the boundless resources which are
everywhere thrown open to native industry and talent.

The line of coast at Blackpool runs in a nearly straight direction for
several miles; and the cliffs which form the sea boundary, mostly clay,
rise to various heights--the greatest elevation above high-water mark
being about twenty yards. The sea-bank is lined with houses at
considerable intervals to the extent of a mile or more; not grouped
together as in villages, but each occupying a position independent of
its neighbour. Most of those houses intended for the accommodation of
visitors have an aspect due west, so as to command an uninterrupted
marine view, which at this point presents a field of interest of which
the mind and the eye are never weary. The land, gradually rising as it
recedes from the beach, acquires a degree of elevation which excludes
the eastern landscape; but for this defect the other points of the
compass make ample amends, and present landscapes so varied and
extensive as can be rarely met with on the coast of Great Britain. To
the southward, at the distance of fifty miles or more, and gradually
stretching forward till lost in the horizon, the "Cambrian Alps" present
a grand and imposing feature, connected with glimpses of Cheshire,
Flint, Caernarvon, and the Isle of Anglesea. On the north, the
promontory of Furness, the mountainous features of Westmoreland,
Cumberland, and the craggy summits of Lancashire, give a bold transition
to the picture; while in front the dimly-visioned Mona finishes the
panorama, and conjures up many a slumbering image and recollection of
the past.

The sea on this point of the coast retreats nearly half a mile at
ebb-tide, so that an ample space of nearly twenty miles, on a bed of
hard sand, is left for the enjoyment of pedestrian, horse, and carriage
exercise. These, indeed, are the principal out-door resources during the
fine season, and, with the additional luxury of a salubrious and bracing
atmosphere, produce a highly invigorating effect upon the constitution
of invalids,--particularly dyspeptics, who derive great and almost
uniform benefit from this new and salutary mode of life. The air of
Blackpool is proverbial for its salubrious quality; the best evidence of
which is afforded by the patriarchal age of many of its inhabitants.



[Illustration: LYTHAM]



LYTHAM.


    "All places that the eye of Heaven visits
    Are to the wise man ports and happy havens."

        SHAKESPEARE.

Lytham is another of those delightful watering-places to which, in our
brief survey of the Lancashire coast, we have so often had occasion to
refer. There is not a bay, indeed, along the whole line of sand which
forms our ocean frontier on the west, but offers some pleasing summer
retreat, where the invalid may repair his constitution, and return with
renovated strength to the active duties of life.

Lytham is about twelve miles west from Preston, and offers every
accommodation to visitors which is either usual or desirable in
sea-bathing quarters. The town is cheerful, well-built, containing about
fifteen hundred inhabitants, and is a place of considerable antiquity.
It was here, that in the reign of Richard the First, Baron Fitz-Roger
founded, in honour of the Virgin Mary and St. Cuthbert, a cell of
Benedictine monks; the annual revenues of which, at the dissolution of
religious houses, amounted to fifty-four pounds--equal in the present
day to at least three hundred and twenty pounds. The site of this
ancient cell was shortly after granted by Parliament to Sir Thomas
Holcroft. Lytham Hall, the seat of John Clifton, Esq., is an object of
considerable interest in the neighbourhood, and familiar to all who have
ever listened to the "Lass of Lytham Hall."[17]

The country around Lytham abounds in fine drives; and, independently of
the minor points, which cannot fail to engage the attention of visitors,
the ancient town of Preston will offer a full day's entertainment to all
who are curious in historical sites. The lordship of Preston was granted
by Richard the First to Theobald Walter, seneschal of Ireland, ancestor
of the dukes of Ormond, and sheriff of Lancashire; and by Edward the
Third it was constituted the chief seat of the duchy and palatinate
courts. King James the First honoured it with a visit in his progress to
Scotland, in 1617; and on Ribbleton Moor, on the east side of the town,
the Scottish forces, under the Duke of Hamilton, sustained a serious
defeat in 1648--the last operation of the civil war in this country. In
1715 the Chevalier de St. George was proclaimed at the Market-cross, by
the title of James the Third; and in 1745 the troops, under Prince
Charles Edward, marched through the town to the Jacobin air of "The king
shall have his sin again." This lively tune, however, as the reader
knows, was changed into a melancholy dirge on his return through
Preston--only a fortnight afterwards. The celebrated Preston Guild,
which is held once in twenty years, is considered to be one of the most
splendid provincial festivals in England. The institution of this
ancient and unique pageant is five centuries old, the first having taken
place in the reign of Edward III. It commences on the Monday after the
day set apart by the Church in commemoration of the beheading of St.
John the Baptist (the 29th August), and continues about a fortnight. By
the charter which renders the celebration necessary twenty-eight days
are allowed to all who are disposed to renew their freedom. On the first
day the different trades muster in number, form processions, and attend
the mayor and corporation to church; the following day the ladies of
Preston, with the mayoress, are escorted in the like manner, and various
festivities are encouraged during the time. On Wednesday the races
commence; the race ground is about two miles distant, on Falwood Moor,
anciently a part of the royal forest of the same name. Preston Guild was
celebrated three times during the reign of George III., an event that
never occurred in the reign of any other king of England.

[17]

    "I've climb'd the Alps,--I've cross'd the seas,
      And travers'd many a land,
    Where summer smiles on spicy isles,
      And coral decks the strand:
    But the fairest spot that Earth can boast,
      Is here, by the blue sea-wall,
    And the fairest maid on her native coast
      Is the Lass of Lytham Hall," &c. &c.



[Illustration: THE SANDS AT SOUTHPORT.]



SOUTHPORT SANDS.

LANCASHIRE.


    There's Buxton bath for gout and spleen;
      There's Cheltenham for wealth;
    There's Matlock vale for Beauty's queen;
      And SOUTHPORT SANDS for health.

Southport--formerly South Hawes--is about two miles to the southward of
North Meols, near the estuary of the Ribble, and opens upon a
magnificent bay. Its situation among the dry sand-hills, or _meols_,
contributes much to the salubrity of the place, and it appears to gain
in popularity as it becomes more generally known.

This popular watering-place is of modern erection, as in the year 1809
it contained only eighty-eight houses, but it no sooner obtained the
patronage of the wealthy and active merchants of Lancashire, than it
sprung up with rapid strides, and those numerous appliances of luxury
which its patrons know so well how to appreciate were produced in
abundance, while the low, barren sand-hills of this part of the coast
were soon covered with spacious hotels, boarding-houses, baths, and all
the essentials of a fashionable sea-bathing town. There is no doubt but
that at some period the sea must have covered much of what is now dry
land, as in the churchyard of North Meols, sea shells, in considerable
numbers, are frequently found when the ground is opened for graves, to
the depth of five or six feet.

In the vicinity of Southport, and forming part of the same parish, is
Martin (or more properly Merton) Meer, once an extensive morass. In
Leland's time, it was four miles long and two broad, and emptied itself
into the sea. About 1692, Mr. Fleetwood, of Bank Hall, commenced
draining this meer by a sluice, shutting and opening with the tide, and
died with the idea that he had completed the work. When the water was
drained off, eight canoes were found, scooped out of the trunks of
trees, in the same mode as they are made among the Indians of the
Pacific at this day; one of them had plates of iron fixed upon it, and
all were constructed probably before the Roman possession of Britain. In
1755, the Meer was again inundated by a very high tide, owing to the
insufficiency of the sluice-gates, and Mr. Eccleston, of Scarisbrick,
made a second attempt to drain it, and succeeded until 1789, when a
partial inundation from the river Douglas did some mischief, but more
extensive injury was prevented by the action of some floodgates, which
had been erected to guard against such accidents. In 1813, the sea-gates
were again swept away, but the land was protected by the stop-gates as
before. Since that time a great improvement has taken place in the Meer,
and much of it is now good land.

The practice of sea-bathing--if we may judge by the much improved
accommodations at Southport and along the coast--appears to be on the
increase. There are many, indeed, who a few years ago would hardly have
been persuaded to dip their fingers in salt-water; but, having once
become converts to that salutary habit, they would now suffer many
privations rather than forego their annual visits to the cheerful
"sands" and sea-breezes of their native coast. After an indulgence of
this nature, the man of business returns fresh-braced to his
counting-house, the student to his books, each with renewed strength and
resolution to perform their several duties in the great drama of active
life. We are in hopes that those of our compatriots who have really the
means of such enjoyment at their command, will at length do justice to
the beauty of their own shores. The millions that are squandered in
perambulating foreign lands, under the specious pretext of recovering
health, or in pursuit of amusement, if spent in England would secure for
their owners at least something like an equivalent for their money, and
testify in their own persons and in everything around them, not only
proofs of good judgment, but praise for their patriotism. This mania,
which for so many years has deprived our native watering-places of their
legitimate revenue, is certainly on the decline; and we speak from much
experience in foreign travel, when we state that, to a well regulated
mind, England alone presents, in the greatest proportion, the true
requisites for health and rational enjoyment. In no other country of the
world is the word "comfort" so well understood; and in no other
climate--"damp and dripping" as it has been pronounced by certain morbid
peripatetics--can we promise ourselves so much out-door luxury and
enjoyment as at "home." But to him who still entertains a doubt on this
point, and prefers, with Lucullus, to change his quarters, we recommend
Southport by way of experiment, and have no doubt that he will soon make
a voluntary surrender of his prejudices.





*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "The Ports, Harbours, Watering-places and Picturesque Scenery of Great Britain Vol. 1" ***

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