Excursions in the County of Cornwall, by F. W. L. Stockdale

MARQUIS OF HARTINGTON, LORD LIEUTENANT
AND CUSTOS ROTULORUM OF DERBYSHIRE, HIGH
STEWARD OF DERBY, AND D.C.L.

The kind attention which I have received from your Lordship on several occasions, will never be forgotten; and as a small token of gratitude, I beg leave to dedicate this further proof of my humble endeavours, to your Lordship.

Considering the great improvements which have been made in the Fine Arts, within the last fifty years, it is greatly to be regretted that many deserving artists have gone unrewarded, at least their endeavours have not been properly and liberally encouraged. It is true, my Lord, there are many public exhibitions for the sale of works of art; but the privileges of them have been so vimuch abused, that many artists of considerable eminence, decline sending their performances to them. If the Nobility of this kingdom were to employ artists to make drawings of the antiquities and picturesque scenery of the several counties, from which their titles are derived, it would not only be a considerable benefit to them, but their works would become more generally known and admired.^[1]

Although his Majesty’s Government has lately voted the expenditure of a considerable sum, for the erection of a National Gallery, and the purchase of Mr. Angerstein’s Pictures, which is highly to be commended; yet still there is much want of an institution, whereby the artists of this country could find a certain sale for their performances, at such prices as would enable them to live in some degree of respectability: at present many of them are obliged to have recourse to the picture dealers, who, in most instances, take every advantage of their necessities: but in expressing this opinion, I hope, my viiLord, I may not be deemed invidious, and trust those persons who are acquainted with the Arts, will coincide with me.

The liberal encouragement which your Lordship has shewn, in promoting not only the Fine Arts, but every other science, merits the highest commendation; and I sincerely hope your Lordship’s example will be followed by many other Noblemen, who possess the means of promoting them.

Wishing your Lordship every success in your endeavours to collect the most choice and rare works of art,

On the completion of the present volume, the Author begs to observe, that owing to the great distance of the County of Cornwall from the Metropolis, its hilly surface, and other unforeseen circumstances, his endeavours have been greatly retarded; the great interest, however, which is attached to the county in a commercial point of view, much more its importance to the antiquarian and geologist, will, it is presumed, render the work highly interesting. Although much has already been written upon this county, most of the works extant are either calculated as books of reference, or deficient in graphical embellishments. The trouble and expense which has attended the collection of the several views contained in the work, has been very great; for as the Author was desirous of selecting the most picturesque subjects, he has been compelled to visit almost every place in the county.

When the work was first announced, the Author regrets to state that many gentlemen declined to promote his endeavours, from the circumstance of his being a stranger to them; and many unforeseen difficulties have also presented themselves; but perseverance xwill, it is presumed, overcome most impediments. It is to be regretted that Cornwall contains so few Noblemen and Gentlemens’ Seats, compared with other Counties; but the kind assistance the Author has received from several eminent characters, will always be remembered. To Sir William Lemon, Sir Christopher Hawkins, the late Sir A. Molesworth, Joseph Carne, Esq., J. T. Austin, Esq., Colonel Trevanion, the Rev. George Moore, Jun., and the Rev. John Wallis, of Bodmin, he feels particularly indebted.

Owing to ill health a few years ago, the Author was unfortunately compelled to relinquish the situation of Assistant to the Military Secretary, East India Company; but from the feeling which he has always possessed for the picturesque, and as travelling agrees much better with his health, it is the Author’s intention to endeavour to bring to light many of the hidden Relics of Antiquity, which the several Counties of England contain. Much has already been done; and considering the improved state of the Arts, there is now sufficient talent in this country for the publication of works in any branch. It is also the Author’s intention, with some exceptions, to retrace the steps of the late Francis Grose, the celebrated antiquarian; for since his time, many antient buildings have been considerably altered; and such as were published in his work upon antiquities, were made when the art of engraving was not so generally known. The completion, however, of any work upon a similar plan to the present volume, is certainly most preferable; and will, it is xipresumed, be found not only useful to the tourist, but valuable to the lovers of the picturesque.

As an Antiquary, few Gentlemen possessed a higher claim to notice than the late Samuel Lysons, Esq., F. A. S.; and the Author cannot but participate in the feelings which exist with every one who knew him; especially in deploring the great loss the country has sustained by his lamented death.

In concluding, the Author begs to return his grateful acknowledgments to those Noblemen and Gentlemen who have been pleased to subscribe to the work; and takes the liberty of stating, that he is now engaged in completing a similar one, relative to the County of Devonshire, which he hopes will also meet their approbation.

Cornwall is the most western county in England, and is almost wholly surrounded by the sea, excepting the eastern side, which is partly separated from Devonshire by the Tamar river. The greatest length of the county from Moorwinstow to the Land’s End, is nearly 90 miles; but its greatest breadth from Moorwinstow on the north, to Ram Head on the south, does not exceed 43 miles, and diminishes gradually till it is only, from Mount’s Bay to St. Ives, little more than seven miles. Its form, therefore, nearly resembles a horn, or as some historians term it, a cornucopia.—The surface of the county being extremely difficult to compute, owing to the many promontories and juttings on the coast, is stated at about 210 miles, containing 758,484 acres, but is supposed to have been much larger in former times.

According to the works of the most respectable historians, the original name of Cornwall was Cerwyn, and so called from its peculiar shape. The antient inhabitants were also called Carnibii, or Cerwyn and Gwyr, or Men of the Promontory; but after the Roman invasion, that name is supposed by Borlase, to have been latinized into Cornubia, which it retained till the Saxons imposed the name of Weales on the Britons driven by them west of the rivers Severn and Dee, calling their county in the Latin tongue, Wallia; after which, finding the Britons had retreated not only into Wales, but into the more western extremities of the island, the Latinists changed Cornubia into Cornwallia; a name not only expressive of the many natural promontories 2of the county, but also that the inhabitants were Britons of the same nation and descent as those of Wales; and from this Cornwallia, the name of Cornwall is derived.

The population of the county, according to the returns of 1811, was 216,667, and 28,398 greater than it was 10 years previous; but by the late census, amounts to 261,000, the extraordinary increase of about 45,000 in the last 10 years.—It is divided into nine hundreds, 203 parishes, (of which 85 are Rectories, 100 Vicarages, and 18 Curacies,) 30 market towns, and now returns forty-two members to Parliament.

The climate of this county has long been noted for its mildness and salubrity. Its inhabitants in respect to longevity, are said to surpass every other county in England, and Carew says, “that 80 and 90 years is common in every place, and in most persons accompanied with an able use of the body and senses.” In the parish where he resided, an instance is mentioned of the decease of four persons, within 14 weeks space, whose united ages amounted to 340 years. Various instances of the longevity of the inhabitants of Cornwall, are also recorded by Borlase and other subsequent writers. As a proof of the mildness of the climate, even the most tender shrubs and plants, such as myrtles, hydrangea, geraniums, Balm of Gilead, &c. live and thrive the whole year in the open ground, and in many parts, grow to the greatest state of perfection. Notwithstanding so much rain falls in Cornwall, heavy showers are not, however, so frequent as in other counties.—The storms which occur, are very severe, but are considered extremely conducive to the healthiness of the inhabitants, by clearing the air of the pernicious vapours which exhale from the mines, leaving in their room, the vivifying qualities wafted by the genial breezes of the ocean.—The winters, in general, are very mild; frosts are of short duration; and snow seldom lies upon the 3ground more than three or four days. Mr. Worgan, the author of a work upon the Agriculture of Cornwall, says, “a kind of languid spring prevails through the winter, which brings forth early buds and blossoms, raising the expectations of agriculturists, to be too often disappointed by blighting north-east winds, in March, April, and even so late as May.”

The cause of such frequent rains in Cornwall is, that for three-fourths of the year, the wind blows from the intermediate points of the south and west, and sweeping over a vast tract of the Atlantic Ocean, collects large bodies of clouds, which being intersected in their passage by the hills, descend in frequent showers. Notwithstanding the salubrity of the climate of Cornwall, the harvests in general, are much later than in midland counties; but owing to the great improvements which have been made of late years in agriculture, the corn which it produces, is equal, if not superior, to any other.

The sterile and rugged aspect of many parts of the county, (especially the road from Launceston to Truro, which presents, excepting the town of Bodmin, almost nothing but extensive and waste moors,) impresses the minds of travellers with a very unfavourable opinion of the county; but the admirers of the picturesque will always be delighted with the beauty of its numerous valleys and more cultivated parts. On the other hand, Cornwall, from its maritime situation, and the numerous mines with which it abounds, possesses many advantages. To an antiquarian it will always be highly interesting, as few other counties contain so many Druidical and Roman remains. The mineralogist will always have an endless source for amusement in the great variety of mineral specimens which it presents to his notice.

The north and south parts of the county are divided by a ridge of barren and rugged hills, running from east to west, like a distorted back bone. The most remarkable 4hills are Brown-Willy, Roughton, and Henborough; the first being no less than 1,368 feet above the level of the sea.

The most considerable rivers in the county, are the Tamar, the Lynher, the Looe, the Fowey, the Fal, and the Camel or Alan.

The Tamar rises in the northern side of the county, in the parish of Moorwinstow, and with little variation, pursues a southerly direction, for nearly 40 miles, when it unites with the Lynher Creek, and ultimately forms the spacious harbour of Harmoaze, between Plymouth Dock and Saltash. The banks of this river, which is the most considerable in the West of England, are richly diversified with rocks and woods, and the scenery in many parts of its course is extremely beautiful.^[2]

The Lynher rises in the parish of Alternon, eight miles north-west of Launceston, and after running a circuitous course of 24 miles, spreads itself into the form of a lake, near St. Germains, (called Lynher Creek) and ultimately unites with the Tamar, about a mile below Saltash.

The Looe rises in the parish of St. Cleer, and taking a course of seven or eight miles, meets the tide at Sand Place, becomes navigable, and at the distance of three miles empties itself into the sea, between the towns of East and West Looe.

The Fowey rises from a well near Brown-Willy, one of the highest hills in Cornwall, between Lanson and Bodmin. It flows for some miles in a southerly direction, turns suddenly to the west, and pursues a course of some miles, till it meets the tide at Lostwithiel, and ultimately falls into the sea at Fowey. The scenery on the banks of the river from Lostwithiel to Fowey, is remarkably beautiful and picturesque.

5The Fal, which is the most considerable river in the centre of the county, rises about two miles west of Roche Rocks, and after a course of 12 miles, meets the tide below Tregony, and passing Tregothnan Park, joins Truro and St. Clement’s Creeks, which are navigable to Truro Quay and Tresilian Bridge; from its junction with those creeks, after flowing four or five miles, it forms the principal branches of Falmouth Harbour, named Carrick and King’s Road.

The river Alan or Camel, rises on the north-east side of the county, near Camelford, and after a circuitous course of 12 miles, becomes navigable for barges at Egleshale, near Wadebridge, from whence it flows into the harbour of Padstow. On all these rivers, as well as others of less note, great quantities of sea sand are carried in barges for manure, and sold to the farmers at a very reasonable rate.

The most considerable lake in Cornwall, is the Loo Pool, near Helston, and which is about two miles long and a furlong wide, formed of a bar of pebbles, sand, and shingles, forced up against the mouth of the creek, by the south-west winds; but in the winter time, the whole valley between the sea and Helston, is frequently covered with water.

Dosmery Pool, is a piece of water about a mile in circumference, lying in the parish of Alternon, on the borders of St. Cleer parish, and said by Leland, to be 15 fathoms deep, but which, upon trial, a few years back, was found to be only nine feet. It is formed and supplied by water which drains from the neighbouring hills.

Between Budock and Falmouth is a piece of water, near half a mile in length, and secured from the sea, by a bar of sand and shingles, called Swan Pool, from the circumstance of its having had many swans kept on it some years ago.

The Soils of Cornwall chiefly consist of three species: first, the black growan or gravelly; second, the shelfy or 6slaty; third, loams differing in texture, colours, and degrees of fertility.

The first abounds in the high lands, and consists of a light, moory, black earth, intermixed with small particles of granite or gravel. The earthy parts of this are so exceedingly light, that in a dry summer, as Dr. Borlase observes, the sun quickly exhales its moisture, and in a wet summer or winter, much of the vegetable soil is washed from the tilled grounds. This soil is in general very productive, and fit for any kind of grain. The shelfy or slaty soil is far the most prevalent, and is distinguished by this name from having a large proportion of the schistus, or rotten slaty matter mixed with the light loam, of which its soil is composed. With sand and more viscuous earths, it makes an excellent compost, and produces great crops of wheat and barley. In congenial situations, barley has frequently been sown, reaped, and threshed, in less than nine weeks. This soil is not unfrequently mixed with quartz, provincially called spar, and according as this prevails, its value is lessened. When a dun or ironstone is found, it is considered a fortunate circumstance, being a certain indication of the incumbent soil.

Of the Loamy Soils, there are many very rich and fertile patches, interpersed in different parts of the county; and the low grounds, declivities, banks of the rivers and town-lands are composed of them. Some of these are incumbent on a subsoil of clay, and partake more or less of it in their composition. With respect to Clays, Cornwall presents endless varieties; good bricks are made from some of them, and in the parish of Lelant, there is an excellent species for making furnaces and ovens. A clay of a slaty nature, but soapy to the touch, is found near Liskeard, and has fertilizing powers; but the Serpentine, with veins of steatite, near the Lizard, is the most curious of all the earthy substances found in Cornwall, although very little of it has 7been used for some years in the porcelain manufactures. Large quantities of a fine white clay, found in the parish of St. Stephen near St. Austell, is exported annually, and is now become an important article of commerce.

The mineralogical substances of Cornwall are more abundant than any other county in England, and the variety and beauty of them affords an abundant source for the scientific enquirer. Of the stones most entitled to precedence, is the granite, or moor stone, which abounds in great quantities in almost every part of the county. Granite is an aggregate of felspar, quartz, and mica, and is found of different colours and texture. Most of the churches and gentlemen’s seats in the county are built with this stone, also the Waterloo Bridge in London, and which was exported at a very great expense. It is frequently cut into pillars, as supporters to buildings, and is very serviceable as gate posts, bridges over rivers, rollers, troughs, and many other purposes.

Another species of stone very prevalent in Cornwall, is distinguished by the name of Killas. It is a schistus, and forms the most considerable substratum in the county. It varies in texture and colour, some being hard, others more pliable and laniated, and of a blueish yellow, and ferrugineous brown; but either forms an excellent material for building.

The worst sort of stone found in Cornwall, is an opaque whitish debased crystal, generally called spar, and lies loose on the surface of the ground, in almost every parish. It is, however, useful for making fences and for repairing the roads.

On the north and south coasts of the county, there are several Slate Quarries, the slate from which is generally adopted for the roofing of houses; but the best species is found in the celebrated quarry of Delabole near Camelford, which is said to produce the finest and largest slates in England.—“The quarry is about 300 yards 8long, 100 broad, and upwards of 40 fathoms deep. The slate is first met with about three feet below the surface of the ground, in a loose shattery state, with short and frequent fissures, the laminæ of unequal thickness, but not horizontal.—Thus it continues to the depth of 10 or 12 fathoms, when a more firm and useful stone is procured, the largest pieces of which are used for flat pavements. This is called the top-stone, and continues for 10 fathoms, after which the quality improves with increasing depth, till at the 24th from the surface, the workmen arrive at the most superior kind, called the bottom-stone.—The colour is grey-blue, and the texture is so close, that it will sound like a piece of metal. The masses are separated from the rock by wedges driven by sledges of iron, and contain from five to 14 superficial square feet of stone. As soon as this mass is freed by one man, another stone cutter, with a strong wide chisel and mallet, is ready to cleave it to its proper thinness, which is usually about one eighth of an inch; the pieces are generally from a foot square, to two feet long, by one wide, but the flakes are sometimes large enough for tables and tomb stones.”^[3]

The art of husbandry, three centuries ago, appears to have been little practised in this county; the grounds, says Carew, “lay all in common, or only divided by stiche meale, and their bread corn very little; their labour horses were only shod before, and the people devoting themselves entirely to tin, their neighbours in Devonshire and Somersetshire hired their pastures at a rent, and stored them with the cattle they brought from their own homes, and made their profit of the Cornish by cattle fed at their own doors. The same persons also supplied them at their markets, with many hundred quarters of corn and horse loads of bread.” But he also observes, “that the people increasing, and 9the mines sometimes failing, the Cornish felt the necessity of applying themselves to husbandry, and their improvements answered their expectations; for in the latter end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, they found themselves not only in a capacity to support themselves, but also to export a great quantity of corn to Spain and other foreign parts.”

Within the last 50 years, a considerable quantity of the waste lands has been enclosed and cultivated; but after the growth of two or three crops of corn, much of these lands have again been neglected on account of the great expense of manuring them. A very considerable quantity of waste land has, within these few years, been enclosed by Charles Rashleigh, Esq., of Deeporth, near St. Blazey, and which is likely to prove a considerable benefit; E. I. Glynn, Esq., of Glynn, near Bodmin, has also had a large quantity of waste land enclosed, for permanent cultivation. In making enclosures, the fences generally consist of a stone hedge, or layers of turf, planted with thorns, nut hazles, and furze. In many parts of the county on the coast, where there is an opportunity of procuring sea sand for manuring the land, great quantities of corn have been grown, particularly in the western and eastern districts. It is usual after a crop of wheat, to sow the ground with barley, after which, turnips or potatoes; but the general course of crops in Cornwall, is considered extremely reprehensible by the author of the Agricultural Survey of the county, owing to the wretched, exhausted, and foul appearance of the grounds laid down with grass seeds. This may, however, be partly accounted for, by Cornwall not being a dairy county, and milch cows being generally kept for rearing the young stock.

The soil and climate of Cornwall are peculiarly adapted to the growth of potatoes, and these are at all times a standing dish at the humble repast of the labourer. 10Of the sorts most cultivated, which have been long established, the painted lord and painted lady are much approved; but a kind of apple potatoe, entirely red, called Carolines, are grown in great abundance, as the standing winter crop. The most early potatoe produced, is the kidney sort, and as a proof of the goodness of the soil and climate, in the neighbourhood of Penzance, two crops are frequently produced in a year, and one acre of ground has been known to yield 300 bushels, Winchester measure, for the first, and 600 for the second crop! Many thousand bushels of potatoes are exported annually from Cornwall to London, Plymouth, Portsmouth, and other places. A Cornish bushel of potatoes, generally weighs 220lbs., and are sold from 4 to 5s. a bushel.—Most of the labourers in the county keep a pig or two, and as potatoes are so easily cultivated with advantage, they frequently use them to fatten their pigs.

The Cattle in Cornwall are chiefly of the Devonshire breed, and large quantities of the best oxen are annually sold to graziers and contractors, and sent out of the county to be slaughtered. Many of them are used by the farmers for agricultural purposes. They are shod, or cued, as it is provincially termed, and are extremely docile and active, while they are often driven by boys, who cheer and excite them by the song and the goad.

The Sheep of Cornwall are also, generally speaking, of the Devonshire species; and some of the Leicestershire breed have been introduced of late years, with great advantage. Mr. Worgan says, “a pure Cornish sheep is now a rare animal; nor from its properties, need their total extinction be lamented.”

With respect to Horses, few are kept in Cornwall for ostentation, or to live in idleness or luxury. The gentleman’s horse is often put to the cart or plough. The farm horses are well adapted to the hilly surface of 11this county, being a hardy and active sort. Most of the farmers keep up their stock by breeding a colt or two annually; but one-eighth of the horses for saddle and draught are supposed to be brought into the county by eastern dealers.^[4]

Mules are bred in Cornwall, but are mostly employed in carrying supplies to and from the mines. Troops of 50 at a time are frequently to be met on the roads in the mining country, loaded with copper or tin ore.

The trade of Cornwall is mostly confined to the exportation of Pilchards, Tin, and Copper, the three great staple commodities of the county. The imports chiefly consist in groceries and bale goods, from London, Bristol, and Manchester, and coals from Wales. Large quantities of flour are also imported at Falmouth and Penryn, chiefly for the miners.—The manufactures in Cornwall are but trifling, compared with other counties. Some coarse woollen, a paper mill or two, and a carpet manufactory, is all that can be enumerated.

The most important objects connected with the History of Cornwall, are its numerous Mines and Fisheries, and which for centuries past, have given employment to nearly one half of its inhabitants, and yielded a considerable revenue to government.

The Pilchard Fisheries, which are mostly confined to East and West Looe, Polparrow, Fowey, Charles Town, near St. Austell, Mevagissey, the Creeks of Falmouth Harbour, Mount’s Bay, on the southern coast, and St. Ives, on the northern coast, generally commence in July and end in November.

The Pilchard, in form and size, very much resembles the Herring, except that it is smaller, and not so flat sided. “The dorsal fin of the Pilchard,” says Dr. Maton, “is placed exactly in the centre of gravity, so that the ordinary mode of distinguishing it from the 12Herring, is to try whether, when taken up by the fin, it preserves an equilibrium, or not. The body of the Herring dips towards the head, and the scales are also observed to drop off, whereas those of the Pilchard adhere very closely.” They mostly arrive from the North Seas at the Islands of Scilly and Land’s End, about July, and shift their situation as the season prompts and the food allures them; but unfortunately the fish have for the last two seasons been exceedingly scarce, which has been a great loss to the fishermen. They are generally caught in large nets of a peculiar make, called seans, and the fishermen are directed to the shoals of fish by persons stationed on the high lands near the shore, who discover them by the colour of the water. The nets in general, are managed by three boats, containing 18 persons. The seans are about 220 fathoms long, 16 fathoms deep in the middle, and 14 at each end, with lead weights at the bottom and corks at the top. The cost of these seans is very great, sometimes as high as £300 each; and a track sean of about 108 fathoms long and 10 deep, costs £120. The boats for carrying the seans, cost about £60, and the expenses incident to the first out-fit, (including every thing that is necessary,) may be estimated from £1000 to £1200, exclusive of salt.

The fish, immediately upon being brought on shore, are carried to the store-houses or cellars, where the small and damaged fish are picked out by women, and carried away and sold to the poor, or used for manuring land. The remainder are laid up in broad piles and salted. In this state they lie soaking 20 or 30 days, during which time a great quantity of dirty pickle and bittern drains from the fish: when the piles are taken up, the chief part of salt remaining at the bottom, is added to some fresh salt, and serves for another pile. The next process is to wash the fish in sea water, and place them in hogsheads, where, with great weight, 13they are pressed together as compact as possible, by which operation a great quantity of oil issues through the holes at the bottom of the casks.

The number of fish packed in each hogshead generally amounts to about 3000; and the quantity of salt used annually exceeds 50,000 bushels, each bushel weighing 84lbs. and one hogshead requires 420lbs. of salt; but nearly one half of this quantity is spoiled and sold to the farmers for manure at the rate of 10d. per bushel. Forty-eight hogsheads of Pilchards generally yield a ton or 252 gallons of oil, the price of which varies according to the times, but generally fetches about £25 a ton.

In some instances one sean has been known to take and cure near 1,500 hogsheads in a season; but the fishermen are more fortunate at some places than they are at others. The quantity taken in a season may be estimated at from 40,000 to 60,000 hogsheads of 40 gallons each.

The number of persons employed on the fisheries, cannot be estimated at less than 14,000; and the capital engaged is said to amount to upwards of £350,000. The tythe of each sean is £1 13s. 4d. yearly, exclusive of the duty paid to government for salt.

“The sea,” says Borlase, “is the great store house of Cornwall, which offers not its treasures by piece meals, nor all at once, but in succession, all in plenty in their several seasons, and in such variety, as if nature was solicitous to prevent any excess or superfluity of the same kind.”—Among those which visit the coasts of Cornwall, the following may be enumerated.

The Blower or Fin Fish, (the Physeta of the ancients,) and so called from the quantity of water which it blows into the air through a hole in its head.

The Grampus, the next in size, is usually about 18 feet long, and sometimes large enough to weigh 1000lbs.—The voracity of this fish is so remarkable, that it has been observed to prey upon the Sea Hog.

14The Blue Shark is frequently seen during the Pilchard season.—It has no gills, but breathes through holes or pipes, situated betwixt the mouth and the pectoral fins.

The Monk or Angel Fish, is a flat species which seems to partake both of the nature of the Dog Fish and the Ray. The back is coloured like the Seal, without streaks, and has a white belly.

The Sea Adder is a kind of nettle-fish, about 16 inches long, and has a back and tail fin, with scales shaped like those of a land adder.

The Sun Fish, so called from being round and emitting a kind of lucid splendour in a dark apartment, is very rarely seen.

Turbot are caught in great plenty during the summer season. In Mount’s Bay particularly, there have been instances of 30 being taken in an evening, with the hook and line. When plentiful, they are generally sold from 4d. to 6d. per pound.

Red Mulletts and John Dory’s, which are very delicious fish, are very plentiful, but seldom caught eastward of Plymouth.

Conger Eels, of an extremely large size, weighing from 60 to 120lbs. each, and which with their adder-shaped heads, have a very disgusting appearance.

All sorts of shell fish are very plentiful, particularly Oysters; but in general they are not so good as those found on the Kentish and other coasts. The best sort are found in the creeks in Constantine parish, on the river Heyl.

Respecting the Mines, the author of the General View of Cornwall, says, “in a narrow slip of barren country, where the purposes of agriculture would not employ above a few thousand people, they alone support a population, estimated at nearly 60,000, exclusive of the artizans, tradesmen, and merchants, in the towns of St. 15Austell, Truro, Penryn, Falmouth, Redruth, Penzance, and others.”

The tin of Cornwall constituted a branch of commerce at a very early period; the Phenicians and Grecians are said to be the first persons who came to Britain to traffic for that article, but how long they enjoyed the advantage cannot be exactly ascertained. On the discovery of the secret that the Phenicians and Grecians had the means of procuring this valuable metal in Britain, the Romans under Cæsar were induced to undertake an invasion. Though they had possession of the mines for a long period, it does not appear they made much progress in working them. During the Saxon government, the tin mines are said to have been altogether neglected, and the subsequent wars with the Danes and antient Britons prevented the possibility of much progress being made in mining concerns. After the Conquest, the mines were of little value to the proprietors, and even in the reign of King John, the product of them was so trivial, that the Tin Farm amounted only to 100 marks, and the King, with whom the right of working the mines solely rested, was so sensible of their low state, that he bestowed some valuable privileges on the county, by relieving it from the arbitrary forest laws, and granting a charter to the tinners, &c.

During the time of Richard, King of the Romans and Earl of Cornwall, the revenue of the tin mines yielded an immense return; at which time many Jews appear to have been employed in working them. Notwithstanding this success, the latter were banished from the kingdom in the 18th year of the reign of Edward I., when the mines again became much neglected. Shortly after a charter was granted (through Edmund, Earl of Cornwall) to the gentlemen of Blackmoor, proprietors of the Seven Tithings, affording the greatest quantities of tin; by which charter, more explicit grants of the privileges of keeping a court of judicature, holding pleas of action, 16managing and deciding all stannary causes, of holding parliaments at their discretion, and of receiving as their own due and proportion, the toll tin, or one-fifteenth of all tin raised, were defined. At the same time, the right of bounding or dividing tin grounds into separate portions, for the encouragement of searching, appears to have been regulated; by which the labouring tinner, who might discover tin in waste or uncultivated lands, became entitled to a certain interest in the land, upon giving proper notice in the Stannary Court to the proprietor thereof. The bounds limited the particular portions of ground to which the claim was made, and were formed by digging a small pit at each angle, so that a line drawn from each, determined the extent of the claim. This practise still exists, and the bounder is obliged to renew the pits every year, by removing any dust or rubbish that might otherwise hide his land marks.

Carew says, that “this charter had a seal affixed to it, with a pick axe and shovel in saltier.”

In consideration of the privileges granted by this charter, the gentlemen tinners undertook to pay to Edmund and his successors, Earls of Cornwall, the sum of 4s. for every hundred weight of white tin. To secure the payment of that tax, they agreed that all tin should be brought to places appointed by the Prince, and there weighed, coined, and kept till the duties were paid.

In the 33rd of Edward I., this charter was confirmed, and the tinners of Cornwall were made a distinct body from those of Devonshire, having before been accustomed to assemble on Hengston Hill, every seventh or eighth year, to arrange their concerns and property in the mines. The laws and privileges of the Cornish miners were further enlarged in the 15th year of the reign of Edward III., and subsequent acts passed in the reigns of Richard II., and Edward IV., which confirmed 17the previous privileges, and the tinners divided into four bodies, and placed under the superintendance of one Warden, reserving them an appeal from his decisions, in suits of law and equity to the Duke of Cornwall in council, or should the title be held in abeyance, then to the Crown.

A Vice Warden is appointed by the Lord Warden, to determine all stannary disputes; he also constitutes four Stewards, (one for each precinct) who hold a Stannary Court every three weeks, and decide by juries of six persons, with a right of progressive appeal to the Vice Warden, Lord Warden, and the Lords of the Prince’s Council. The original Stannary Towns were Launceston, Lostwithiel, Truro, and Helston; to these places the miners were obliged to bring their tin every quarter of a year. But in the time of Charles II., Penzance was added for the convenience of the western tinners.

All tin ores are wrought into metal in the county, and are afterwards cast into blocks, weighing from 2½ cwt. to upwards of 3 cwt. each. They cannot be disposed of till assayed by the proper officers, and stamped with the Duchy seal, which bears the arms of Richard, Earl of Cornwall, viz. a lion rampant, gules, crowned or, with a border sable garnished with bezants.

Since the reign of Henry VIII. the coinages have been held quarterly. The average annual produce of the tin mines is about 25,000 blocks, which, exclusive of duties, may be valued at £260,000, and yielding a revenue to the Duchy of Cornwall of about £10,000 annually. The most considerable tin mines now working, are in the neighbourhood of St. Austell, St. Agnes, and Piranzabuloe. The celebrated Polgooth Mine, near the former place, however, has not been worked for upwards of 20 years past.

There are also many other valuable tin mines in the western districts, north-west of Truro.

Besides the mines, there are several stream works in 18the county, which have yielded immense quantities of tin.

“In digging a mine,” says Dr. Maton, “the three material points to be considered, are the removal of the barren rocks or rubbish, the discharge of water, (which abounds more or less in every mine,) and the rising of the ore. Difficulties of course increase with depth, and the utmost aid of all the mechanical powers is sometimes ineffectual, when the workings are deep and numerous. Mountains and hills are the most convenient for working, because drains and adits are then easily cut to convey the water away into the neighbouring valleys. These adits are sometimes driven (as the miners term it) to the distance of one, or even two miles; and though the expense is enormous, these are found a cheaper mode of getting rid of the water than by raising it to the top, especially when there is a great influx, and the mine very deep. It seldom happens, however, that a level can be found near enough for an adit to be made to it from the bottom of a mine; recourse must be had then to a steam engine, by which the water is brought up to the adit, be the weight of it what it may. As soon as a shaft is sunk to some depth, a machine, called a whim, is erected, to bring up either rubbish or ore, which is previously broken into convenient fragments, by pickaxes and other instruments. The whim is composed of a perpendicular axis, on which turns a large hollow cylinder of timber, (called the cage) and round this a rope winds horizontally, being directed down the shaft by a pulley fixed perpendicularly over the mouth of it. In the axis a transverse beam is fixed, at the end of which two horses or oxen are fastened; and go their rounds, hauling up a bucket or kibbul, full of ore or rubbish, while an empty one is descending. The ore is blown out of the rock by means of gunpowder, and when raised from the mine, is divided into as many shares or doles as there are lords 19and adventurers, and these are measured out by barrows, an account of which is kept by a person who notches a stick for that purpose. Every mine enjoys the privilege of having the ore distributed on the adjacent fields. It is generally pounded or stamped on the spot, in the stamping mill. If full of slime, it is thrown into a pit called the buddle, to render the stamping more free, without choaking the grates, (thin plates of iron full of small holes.) If free from slime, the ore is shovelled into a kind of sloping canal of timber, called the pass, whence it slides, by its own weight, and the assistance of a small stream of water, into the box, where the lifters work. The lifters are raised by a water wheel, and are armed at the bottom with large masses of iron, about one hundred and a half in weight, which pound or stamp the ore small enough for its passage through the holes of an iron grate, fixed in one end of the box. To assist its attrition, a rill of water keeps it constantly wet, and it is carried by a small gutter into the fore pit, where it makes its first settlement, the lighter particles running forwards with the water into the middle pit, and thence into the third, where what is called the slime, settles. From these pits the ore is carried into a large vat, called the keeve, where it is washed and rendered clean enough for the smelting house. Most of the tin mines now working have steam engines, the advantages of which have proved a great benefit to the proprietors of them.”

The famous Wood Tin, as it is called, has frequently been found in the stream works. It nearly resembles the colour of Hæmatites, with fine streaks, or Striæ, converging to the different centres like the radiated zeolite. From the experiments of the celebrated Klaproth, wood tin was found to yield 63 parts in a hundred of tin. The most general state in which the tin of Cornwall is found, is the calciform, the greater quantity of ore being indurated, or glass-like; and its most prevalent 20matrix is either an argillaceous or a silicious substance, or a stone composed of both, and called by the miners caple: none of the calcareous genus ever appear contiguous to the ore, except the fluors.”

The discovery of the Copper Mines in Cornwall is of a much later date than those of tin, being about the year 1690. Although the propriety of searching was strongly recommended by Norden to King James, many years expired before the real value of the copper mines was discovered. Subsequent improvements and perseverance have rendered the copper mines one of the most important branches of commerce in this county; and the quantity of that valuable ore, now annually raised, is said to be worth, upon a moderate calculation, the sum of £350,000, or £90,000 greater than the value of tin. Copper ores are found in Cornwall, in great abundance and variety. Native copper is sometimes found on the sides of fissures in thin films, deposited by the impregnated water that runs from the lodes. Veins of copper are also frequently discovered in cliffs that are left bare by the sea, but the most certain sign of a rich ore is an earthy ocherous stone, called Gossan, of a ruddy colour, and crumbles like the rust of iron. Another sign of the presence of copper is, when the ground is inclinable to an easy free working blue Killas, intermixed with white clay. A white crystaline stone is also found to contain a great quantity of yellow copper. The lodes of copper ore generally lie deeper than those of tin, and its ores are mostly of the pyritous and sulphurated kinds, with more or less arsenic. “The lodes, both of tin and copper, appear most frequently to have granite for their country, and to make an angle from 60° to 76° with the horizon.” The matrices of copper ore are very numerous. Among the blue ores, there is one of an extremely fine blue earth. The grey ore is frequently spotted with yellow and 21purple, but is deemed richest when of an uniform colour throughout.

The copper ore is cleansed and dressed by the same process as that adopted for tin, but as it generally rises in large masses, requires less washing. Owing to the expense of importing coal, the ore is disposed of after it is prepared for the smelting houses, and owing to the expense of importing coal, the Smelting Houses at Hayle have ceased working for a considerable time past. “Nothing,” says Dr. Maton, “were so deleterious as the fumes of arsenic constantly impregnating the air of these places, and so profuse is the perspiration occasioned by the heat of the furnaces, that those who have been employed at them a few months, became most emaciated figures, and in the course of a few years are generally laid in their graves.”

The principal copper mines now working, are mostly in the neighbourhood of Redruth, of which the Gwennass, United, Poldice, Huel Unity, Cook’s Kitchen, and Dolcooth Mines, have yielded an abundant source of gain to their numerous adventurers.

A very accurate and well executed geological map of the mining districts, by Mr. Richard Thomas, was published in the year 1819.

Lead is found in several parts of Cornwall, but not in any great abundance. The ores are very dissimilar, but the sort most frequently discovered is galena, or pure sulphuret of lead, which is found both crystallized and in masses. Its colour is most of a bluish grey, and the form of its crystals is generally the cube. The most common varieties are the cube, truncated at the angles and corners, and the octahedron of two four-sided pyramids, applied base to base. The principal mines are Huel Pool and Huel Rooe, near Helston. There are also a few others on the north coast, in the neighbourhood of Endellion and St. Minver, but of little consequence. 22The oxides of lead are valuable for painting and dying, and also for medicinal uses.

Among the numerous mineral productions of Cornwall, Gold and Silver ought not to be omitted; the former has been frequently found in extremely small granules, generally intermixed with the tin ore, in the stream works. The largest piece ever found, is mentioned by Borlase to have weighed 15 pennyweights and 16 grains. The latter has been found at different periods in considerable quantities, particularly in a mine called Huel Mexico, some years ago, near St. Agnes; also in the Herland Copper Mine, in the parish of Gwinear.—A particular account of the discovery of silver in the Herland Mine, was furnished by the Rev. Malachy Hitchins, and printed in the transactions of the Royal Society for 1801. But it appears that after the mine was sunk to a considerable depth, the works were abandoned, the expenses of the mine having considerably exceeded the receipts.

Within the last three years, a considerable quantity of silver has been discovered in a mine belonging to Sir Christopher Hawkins.

Iron, in rich lodes of red and brown ore, has been found in great abundance, in many parts of the county, but there are not any iron mines which have been much worked.—Iron Pyrites, or sulphuret of iron, occur in most of the veins of copper, as well as some magnetical iron ore at Penzance, and specular iron ore at Tin Croft Mine, in Illogan, Botallack Mine, near the Land’s End, and other places.

A variety of other semi-metals are found in Cornwall; the most remarkable of these are Bismuth, Zinc, Antimony, Cobalt, Arsenic, Wolfram, Menachanite, and Molybdena, or Sulphuret of Molybdenum; but a description of the places where they are found, or of their several properties, has already been published in most of the works relating to this county.

23Notwithstanding the early part of the History of Cornwall is enveloped in obscurity, there is little reason to doubt that (particularly from the writings of Leland) a battle was fought between the renowned King Arthur and his nephew Mordred, in the neighbourhood of Camelford, in which the former was slain; and that on the spot where the battle is said to have taken place, several warlike antiquities have been found.

That during the incursions of the Saxons, several engagements took place between them and the Cornish Britons, particularly in the time of Athelstan, who in the year 926, is said to have completely defeated this county and subdued the Scilly Isles, when considerable havoc and depredations were committed. At subsequent periods, the Danish pirates frequently landed, and committed great mischief in many parts of the county, particularly in plundering the monasteries.

During the captivity of Richard I., several commotions took place in Cornwall, and St. Michael’s Mount was seized upon, but afterwards given up, and Henry de lu Pomeroy died through fear of the King’s anger.

In the year 1322, many of the Cornish people were smitten with an enthusiasm of conquering the Holy Land, and left the county; but some were executed, and others returned and repented of their folly.

When Queen Margaret landed at Weymouth in the year 1471, the people of Cornwall and Devonshire, under the persuasions of Sir Hugh Courtenay, of Boconnoe, and Sir John Arundell, of Langhorne, marched to Exeter and accompanied her to Tewkesbury, when her troops were completely defeated, and the Queen, after being ransomed, died a few years after in France. At the latter end of the same year, John Vere, Earl of Oxford, took possession of St. Michael’s Mount, and retained possession of it till the February following, when (on his life being spared by the King) it was surrendered to Sir John Fortescue.

24In 1497, the people in Cornwall rose in rebellion, and marched to Blackheath, in Kent, where they were defeated by Lord Dauberry, and their ringleaders executed. Lord Bacon, says, “on this occasion, they were armed with a strong and mighty bow, and had arrows the length of a tailor’s yard.” Shortly after another rebellion broke out in Cornwall, and no less than 3000 men joined the notorious Perkin Warbeck, and marched to Exeter; but his wife, Lady Catherine Gordon, was taken a prisoner from St. Michael’s Mount. A subsequent rebellion broke out in the year 1548, under Humphry Arundell, who was defeated and executed, together with many of his supporters.

During the civil wars in the 17th century, the inhabitants of Cornwall greatly distinguished themselves by their bravery and loyalty; but during the severe contests which took place, many valuable lives were lost on both sides; especially as the insurgents had taken possession of some of the antient fortifications in the county. Cornwall now furnishes a regiment of militia, a corps of miners, and several troops of yeomanry. During the late war with France, many volunteer corps were raised, but fortunately their services were not required.

From Plymouth to the Land’s End; through Looe, Fowey, Lostwithiel, St. Austell, Mevagissey, Tregony, Grampound, Truro, Penryn, Falmouth, Helston, Marazion, and Penzance.

The great importance attached of late years to the towns of Plymouth, Stonehouse, and Dock, in a commercial and nautical respect, has not only tended to render those places of great consequence in the West of England, but as travellers proceeding into Cornwall, generally take this direction in preference to the one which enters the county near Launceston, the following Excursion has been considered the most likely to interest, and display the beauties of the southern part of the county. The scenery of Plymouth and its vicinity are highly pleasing and picturesque, particularly the views of Mount Edgecumbe and those on the banks of the Tamar, which contrasted with the majestic appearance of the numerous fine ships of war riding at anchor, form a picture truly sublime. Previous to quitting this neighbourhood, however, the admirers of the fine arts will derive much pleasure from visiting Saltram, the magnificent seat of the Earl of Morley, which abounds with a great variety of valuable paintings, the most eminent of which are the following:

St. Faith, by Guido—In her right hand she holds her emblem of a white flag, which forms the back ground of the head.

Peasants playing at cards, by John Lingleback; with a view of the neighbourhood of the Forum at Rome, in the back ground.

26Galatea surrounded by Nymphs—Domenichino; copied from the exquisite Fresco, by Raphael, in the Farnesine Palace at Rome.

Virgin and Child, by Sassoferrato—This picture recalls the idea of the celebrated Madonna Della sedia of Raphael, of whom the painter was a close imitator.

Three Female Figures, as Huntresses, by Rubens; supposed to be his three wives.

Mercury—Weenix. There are also near 20 fine productions by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

A catalogue of the pictures has been printed at the expense of their noble owner, for the use of strangers, who are at all times allowed to have access to them. The situation of the house is one of the most enchanting spots in England, and commands a number of diversified prospects.

Mount Edgecumbe, the seat of the Right Hon. the Earl of Mount Edgecumbe, is another beautiful spot embellished with fine promenades, gardens, and shrubberies, perhaps equal to any in England. The house is a very low building, erected about the year 1550, with battlements and an octagonal tower at each angle. It contains a few fine family portraits by Sir Joshua Reynolds. The beauty of this spot has often awakened the ideas of the poet; and who can quit it without enjoying the same feelings which inspired the following lines?

After crossing the harbour to Tor Point, on the right, is Thankes, a seat of the noble family of Graves, which commands a pleasing view of the Harmoaze and surrounding country.

Antoney House, the seat of the Right Hon. Reginald Pole Carew, is an elegant mansion beautifully situated on a branch of the Lynher Creek. It contains a great 28variety of family portraits, and a few other fine paintings, by Holbein, Vandyke, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and other artists.

The village of Antoney is about three miles from Plymouth, and has a very picturesque appearance from the road.—The Church is a small fabric situated on an eminence, and contains several handsome memorials of the Carew family; one of which to the memory of Richard Carew, the author of the Survey of Cornwall, has a long Latin inscription and the following curious verses:

The prospects from the church-yard are extremely pleasing, and justly merit the eulogium of one of our modern poets:

About four miles from Antoney, to the right of the road after passing Craft Hole, is Sheriock Church, an antient building containing some curious tombs of the Dawnay’s, and a superb monument to the memory of 29Sir Edward Courtenay and his Lady. The following beautiful lines are also engraved on a memorial for one of the Duckworth Family, who died at an early age:

Passing from hence through the hamlet of Hessingford, at a short distance is Bake, the seat of Sir J. S. Copley, Bart., His Majesty’s Solicitor General, which is a handsome modern edifice, built on the site of an antient mansion noted in former times as the residence of the Moyle’s, and which was destroyed by fire a few years ago.

On approaching the towns of East and West Looe, the scenery becomes highly romantic. These towns derive their appellation from the river, on the banks of which they are built, and over which is a low narrow stone bridge of 12 arches. Both places return members to Parliament, but in themselves contain little to interest the traveller. Several delightful modern residences have been built on the banks of the Looe river; among the most prominent, is Col. Lemon’s, near Polvellan. The population of both towns amounts to about 1300, and the inhabitants are mostly engaged in maritime employments.

About three miles west of Looe, is Trelawny House, the seat of the Rev. Sir Harry Trelawny, Bart., a venerable mansion, but built at different periods. It contains a few good family portraits, particularly one by Sir Godfrey Kneller, of Sir Jonathan Trelawny, Bishop of Winchester.

In Pelynt Church, which is not far distant from the 30house, there is a very curious monument to the memory of Francis Buller, Esq., who died in l6l5.

About five miles from hence, is Fowey,^[5] an antient Borough and market town, situated in one of the most delightful and romantic parts of the county, on the western bank of the river, from which its name is derived. It is distant 24 miles from Plymouth, and 244 from London. The houses are very irregularly built, with foundations composed of a hard bluish slate, (termed by Mineralogists, Fat-quatz, from its greasiness to the touch,) and the principal street extends nearly a mile in length.

Fowey has returned members to Parliament since the 13th year of the reign of Elizabeth, and the right of election is now chiefly vested in the inhabitants paying scot and lot. The Corporation consists of a Mayor, eight Aldermen, a Recorder, and Town Clerk. The number of inhabitants, by the late census, amounts to 1455.

The Church, a handsome fabric, is composed of three aisles, with a lofty pinnacled tower at the west end. In the north aisle is a noble altar-tomb of marble, with a full-length figure of the deceased, in alabaster, richly 31carved, and inscribed to the memory of John Rashleigh, Esq., who died Aug. 11, 1582, with the following curious inscription:

There are also several other memorials of the Rashleigh and the Trespy families in this church.

On an eminence near the church, is Place or Trespy House, a very antient building, and which is said to have been partly rebuilt in the reign of Henry VI., by one of the Trespy family. It is an interesting building and displays some rich Gothic work on the southern front; yet has been greatly altered by modern improvements. The owner, J. T. Austen, Esq., is a gentleman of considerable ability, and has furnished Mr. Lysons with much information respecting this county.

The Harbour of Fowey is spacious and well secured from the destructive effects of storms, by the hills encircling it; and on rising ground near the sea, are the remains of two Towers, said to have been erected in the reign of Edward IV. There are also two other embattled square Towers on each side the harbour, now fast mouldering to decay, and which in former times supported a chain across its entrance.

Fowey, like many other sea-port towns in early times, has suffered much during the wars: at present its chief dependance is on the pilchard fisheries. Other kinds of fish are also to be purchased in season, at very reasonable rates, and the river abounds with fine salmon.

On the opposite side of the river, is Polruan, said by Leland, to have been in former times, a place of 32considerable note; but now it consists only of a few picturesque cottages. The ruins of an antient Chapel and an old well, surmounted by a stone cross.

Menabilly, about three miles west of Fowey, the seat of William Rashleigh, Esq. late M.P. and Sheriff for the county, in the year 1820, is a neat edifice of moor stone. The southern or principal front, commands a view of the sea, but it is chiefly remarkable as containing a very valuable cabinet of minerals,^[6] and said to be the finest in England. There are also many other curiosities in the house, and a few fine drawings and portraits.

About a mile from this place, in a very sequestered spot, called Polredmouth, stands an octagonal Grotto of curious workmanship, close to the sea, composed of an immense number of minerals, fossils, &c. In the centre of it stands a very handsome table of 32 species of polished granite.

As the parish church of Tyarwardeth is more than two miles distant from Menabilly, a neat Chapel has been built at the expense of Mr. Rashleigh, adjoining his grounds.

The road from hence to Lostwithiel, is extremely dreary; the Church Tower of Lanlivery, a small village to the left, forms a pleasing object.

Lostwithiel is a very ancient Borough and market town, situated on the high road to Falmouth from Plymouth, and 28 miles west of Tor Point. The Corporation, consisting of a Mayor, six Aldermen, and 17 Burgesses, have the right of electing the members to serve in Parliament.

33The Church is rather a handsome edifice, with one very lofty aisle and two small ones; the tower at the western end is surmounted by a singularly beautiful Gothic spire. The chief attraction of the interior is a very curious and antient octagonal Font. It is supported by five clustered columns, and charged with a representation of a huntsman riding an ass, accoutred in a short jacket with a sword by his side, a horn in his mouth, a hawk on his finger; a dog seizing a rabbit; an ape’s head entwined with a snake; a representation of the crucifixion, with a female figure on each side; and the arms of the Earl of Cornwall: but the whole has been much obliterated and disfigured by a thick coat of whitewash. The accompanying engraving, it is presumed, will be found an accurate representation of this interesting relic of antiquity.

Lostwithiel is at present a town of little trade, although barges are navigable to the quay, every tide, from Fowey. The houses are chiefly built of stone with slated roofs, and amount to about 150 in number, and the parish contains, according to the late census, 933 inhabitants.

At a short distance south of the church, are some considerable remains of an antient Exchequer or Shire Hall. It was no doubt formerly a magnificent building; the walls are of great thickness, supported by massy buttresses, and the interior contains a number of gloomy apartments, ill calculated for the purpose for which it is now converted into a Stannary Prison. On the exterior are the arms of the Duchy of Cornwall with supporters, surmounted with the Prince’s plume well carved. There is also here a neat Town Hall, erected in 1740, at the expense of Richard Edgecumbe, Esq., in which the Summer Quarter Sessions for the county are held.

The weekly market is well supplied with all kinds of provision, and there are three fairs annually in this place.

34About a mile and a half of Lostwithiel, on the summit of an artificial mound, stand the venerable remains of Restormel Castle,^[7] which in former times was a place of considerable importance. History, however, is silent as to the origin of this highly interesting fortification; and as it is not even mentioned in the Doomsday Survey, it is generally supposed to have been erected by Robert, Earl of Mortaign, and was the principal residence of himself, and the subsequent Earls of Cornwall. Prior to the reign of Henry the VIII., this place is said to have been in a dilapidated state. The present remains chiefly consist of a circular area of 110 feet diameter; the walls of which are nine feet thick, secured by a deep moat, now choaked up with brambles and wild plants. The entrance, on the south side, (which had formerly a draw-bridge,) has an outer and inner arch supporting a square tower in ruins. Round the area, the foundations of three regular suites of apartments are easily traced, connected by two dark narrow stone staircases leading to the top of the ramparts. The ruins are richly overgrown with ivy, and being almost embosomed in wood, are very pleasing objects to the lovers of the picturesque. It is now the abode of owls, bats, and jackdaws; and unless disturbed by the occasional visits of the curious traveller, they have seldom reason to complain of

35Restormel House, the residence of John Hext, Esq. is a low embattled structure, said to have been erected on the site of an antient chapel. The demesne attached thereto, is now the property of the Earl of Mount Edgecumbe. The valley in which Restormel House is built, with the castle on the eminence, form for the artist a very pleasing picture, and have often been admired.

Boconnoc House, formerly the seat of the late Lord Camelford, is now the property of the Right Hon. Lord Grenville. It is a large plain building, situated about three miles east of Lostwithiel, in a richly wooded park well stocked with deer. The interior contains many handsome suites of apartments, a good library, and among other works of art, a fine bust of the late Earl of Chatham, on which the following panegyric lines have been written:

On a commanding eminence, a short distance from 36the house, stands an elegant-proportioned obelisk, 123 feet in height, with the following inscription carved on the pedestal.

The country between Lostwithiel and St. Austell is pleasing, and most delightful views of the ocean occasionally present themselves.

On approaching the village of St. Blazey, about half a mile to the right, is Prideaux Place, at present the residence of David Howell, Esq.; but what perhaps engrosses the particular attention of the traveller, is a very fine bold promontory, nearly opposite the house, and the lands about it are ornamented with young plantations. The Church is a small antient fabric, standing on an eminence close to the mail road. From hence to St. Austell the distance is four miles.

Within one mile of that town, on the left, is Porthmear or Charlestown, now become of some considerable consequence, owing to the spirited and laudable exertions of Mr. Charles Rashleigh. Since the year 1791, a Pier has been built, and the pilchard fishery carried on. Some pilchard seans have been put on, and several buildings erected for that purpose. Here from this place also, most of the China clay brought from St. Stephen’s is exported.

St. Austell is situated in a highly cultivated part of the county, on the side of a hill. It is now become a very considerable and populous market town, and with the parish, which is one of the largest extent, contains no less than 6175 inhabitants. Although it has no claim to antiquity, it is noticed only as a poor 37village in Leland’s times; but the numerous Mines in its vicinity,^[8] have caused its present rapid rise. The Church, which stands nearly in the centre of the town, is a handsome fabric, ornamented with fanciful and grotesque sculpture.^[9] Over the principal entrance on the south side, are some curious cyphers, the meaning of which has not been satisfactorily explained, by the most intelligent antiquarians. The interior is commodious, and contains a few good monuments. The Font resembles that in Bodmin church.

The benefices of St. Austell and St. Blazey, are coupled together, and are in the gift of the crown: it is now enjoyed by the Rev. Richard Hennah. St. Blazey is famous for being the landing place of Bishop Blaze, the patron of the woolcombing trade; whose effigy is in the parish church, to whom it was dedicated, and from whom its name was derived. In this parish also is held an annual festival, on the very period which is observed for the commemoration of the great blaze by all the woolcombers in the kingdom. In a field near the church is a stone above seven feet high, and not above 18 inches square, whose inscription is totally obliterated; but tradition says it was a sepulchral monument of a West Saxon Chief. On it are several crosses engraven.

The market of St. Austell is held on Friday, the charter for which was first bestowed by Oliver Cromwell, as a grateful reward for the heroic exertions of one May, who had a seat near the town; and for his particular gallantry displayed in a battle fought near Boconnoc, in 38Cornwall. It is plentifully supplied with all sorts of provisions. A large market, equal to a fair, is held annually on the day preceding Good Friday. It has two fairs for bullocks, sheep, coarse woollen goods, &c. The first is held on Whit Thursday, and the other on the 30th of November. Since the year 1792, there have been two additional fairs, or shows of cattle, held annually at this place; the one to be constantly on the third Tuesday in July, and the other on the third Tuesday in October. Both these last mentioned fairs are for horses, bullocks, sheep, &c.

Although the manufactured commodities in St. Austell are not deserving of mention, except it be in coarse woollens; yet its commerce in various branches is very considerable, and its inhabitants numerous. They are in general remarked for an industrious thriving people, deriving their subsistence from trade.

Not far from the western parts of the town, are three very spacious Blowing Houses. In two of them, cylinders are adopted instead of the common-formed bellows, and this mode of operation is considered preferable to the other.

There are Quarries in this neighbourhood, which produce what is commonly called china clay. Sometimes not less than 1000 tons per year is shipped at Porthmear, and conveyed to Bristol, Liverpool, and Wales, and from those places to Staffordshire; where it is manufactured into porcelain.

Near this town, at a place called Menacuddle, is a waterfall, over which is a small dilapidated arched Chapel, supposed formerly to have been used as a place of retirement, for the sake of holy purification. Although it is near the road, yet, being in a wood, is not easily seen. It is a very pleasing subject for the pencil as a vignette, and has been engraved on more than one occasion.

Penrice, which is only two miles south of St. Austell, is an antient mansion, but has lately undergone a complete 39modernization by the proprietor, Joseph Sawle Sawle, Esq.: it contains a few good family portraits.

The ride from St. Austell to Mevagissey, a distance of six miles, is very pleasing. The opening bay of the sea is a striking feature, and bursts suddenly upon the traveller at a place called Portuan, within two miles of Mevagissey.

As a fishing town, Mevagissey ranks before any other in the county. It has a spacious Harbour; and the town, having very narrow streets, is chiefly built in a bottom; but has an imposing appearance when viewed from the neighbouring heights, with the beautiful mansion and plantations of Helegan forming the back ground.

The Church is a small edifice, standing at the north-east entrance of the town; but the tower has not been rebuilt, since it fell down a few years back. The interior contains a handsome monument, with effigies of the deceased, erected to the memory of Otwell Hill, Esq., and his wife, who died in 1614, with the following curious inscription:

Mevagissey contains near 400 houses, and according to the late census, 2450 inhabitants. About two miles from the town, is Helegan, the seat of the Rev. Henry Hawkins Tremayne, a very elegant and substantial residence, most beautifully situated and embellished with fine gardens and shrubberies, and when perfectly finished, will be as handsome a residence as any in the 40county. The present liberal proprietor possesses great taste, and is daily improving the grounds, &c. The walk to the Battery close to the sea is really delightful, and the woody plantations add greatly to the beauty of this residence.

Caerhays, the seat of John Bettesworth Trevanion, Esq. Lieutenant Colonel in the Cornish Militia, is another beautiful mansion of a castellated form, lately rebuilt at a very considerable expense from designs of that eminent architect Nash.

About four miles from hence is Tregony, a very antient Borough-town, and in former times a place of some consequence. It formerly had two Churches, a Castle, and Priory; but one of the former has long since gone entirely to decay, and the one now remaining at the head of the town, though very small, has a respectable and venerable appearance. Scarcely a vestige remains of the Castle, which stood at the lower end of the town. This is said to have been built by Henry de Pomeroy, on behalf of John, Earl of Cornwall, at the time that King Richard I. was in the Holy Land: it was standing, and was the seat of the Pomeroys, in the reign of Edward VI.

In the year 1696,^[10] Hugh Boscawen, Esq., founded an Hospital for decayed housekeepers, and endowed it with lands, now let at 30£. per annum, but capable of being soon raised (at the expiration of the present lease) to about three times that sum.

Tregony returned members to Parliament in the reign of Edward I., and the right of election is vested in the principal housekeepers paying scot and lot. According to the late census, the inhabitants amount to 1035, being an increase of only 112 since the year 1811. Tregony has a market weekly, and five fairs annually.

On the north side of the town stood what is called Old Tregony, where was a church dedicated to St. 41James, the walls of which were standing when Tomkin made his collections about the year 1736: part of the tower remained many years later. This church was a rectory, the advowson of which belonged to the Abbey de Valle, in Normandy, and was given by that convent, in the year 1267, to the prior and convent of Merton, in Surrey, in exchange, together with the Priory of Tregony, a small cell to that alien monastery. Mr. Whitaker says, that the site of the Priory of Tregony was opposite the old mount of the castle, and speaks of a doorway belonging to a stable, as having been the gateway of the Priory. The rectory of St. James is held with the vicarage of St. Cuby.

There was also in the Borough of Tregony, a chapel of St. Anne, which was a chapel-of-ease to the church of St. James.

Trewarthenick, about two miles from this place, the seat of the late Francis Gregor, Esq., formerly M.P. for the county, is a pleasant and comfortable residence, with a good library and a few portraits; one, of Oliver Cromwell, is very fine.

Ruan Lanyhorne, a small village two miles south-west of Tregony, is remarkable as having been for upwards of 30 years, the residence of the Rev. John Whitaker, the learned author of the Ecclesiastical History of the Cathredral of Cornwall, who died in the year 1808, aged 73 years.—A few days after his decease, the following lines appeared in the Cornwall Gazette, and are supposed to have been written by the late Fortescue Hitchins, Esq. author of the poem called “Tears of Cornubia,” founded on the melancholy loss of the St. George, in which Admiral Reynolds and many Officers perished.

From Tregony to Grampound the distance is about two miles, within half a mile of which, on the left, is the parish church called Creed, a neat embattled structure, pleasantly surrounded by foliage. Here, till very lately, as rector, lived the Rev. William Gregor, one whom fame will ever eulogize as a being of a superior order; he is well known as a very scientific gentleman, and was the intimate friend of Mr. Whitaker. In this parish is a capital modern-built house, with beautiful gardens and fish ponds, the residence of the Rev. George Moore.

Grampound is remarkable as having been, till lately, one of the Borough-towns of the county.^[11] It principally consists of one street, the houses having a decayed and mean appearance. Nearly in the centre stand a very antient Chapel, and Market-house: the former, now fast mouldering to decay, has a small septangular cross 43in front of it. Grampound contains, according to the late returns, 668 inhabitants, being an increase of only 67 during the last 20 years.

Crossing an antient bridge over the Fal at the bottom of the town, from which its name is derived, the distance to Probus is two miles and a half, and within one mile of that village, on the left, is Trewitham, the seat of Sir Christopher Hawkins, Bart., M.P. It is a spacious mansion, commanding a number of diversified prospects; the interior is embellished with a few good paintings and portraits, and also contains a very valuable selection of books. Much praise is due to its owner, for his unwearied endeavours to promote the mining interests of the county. He is a scientific gentleman, and has written a small interesting Treatise on Tin, &c.

The Church of Probus has often been noticed for the simplicity of its architecture, the tower of which rises majestically to the height of 108 feet, which, contrasted with the low humble thatched cottages surrounding it, has a very picturesque appearance. Each angle of the tower is supported by a double buttress, diminishing in size as they approach the top, which is embellished with embrasures, and 40 pinnacles in eight clustres. The plinth, cornices, and upper story, are decorated with a variety of sculpture, consisting of small figures, foliage, fleurdelis, animals, and other objects. On the north and south sides are three Gothic niches.^[12] The interior contains a large marble monument to the memory of Thomas Hawkins Esq., of Trewitham, on which is a female figure reclining on an urn. The accompanying view of the church was engraved from a drawing by the Rev. George A. Moore, of Garlennich, near Grampound.

At a distance of two miles north from Probus, in the parish of Ladock, in one of the most picturesque vales 44in the county, stands Pessick, which, though a very small village, possesses great beauties.

Tregothnan, the seat of the Earl of Falmouth, is indeed a beautiful mansion lately erected at a very considerable expense, from the designs of W. Wilkins, Esq., and, in point of beauty, is surpassed by none in the county. The situation of the house is really delightful, and may be considered as one of the most enchanting spots in the kingdom. It is built on a gentle eminence commanding a great variety of extensive prospects, which are enlivened by the winding courses of the river Fal.

In the construction of this mansion, the architect has made a very choice selection of the most perfect examples extant. Its irregularity of form, and variety of ornament, closely resemble the style of the buildings erected during the reign of Henry VII. The great staircase is 42 feet in height, and occupies the large central tower, around which are placed the drawingroom, (54 feet long by 28 feet wide,) book room, dining room, billiard room, &c. A wide terrace with a parapet extends round the south-western part of the building; the Park is embellished with some very fine timber, and a very pleasant ride has been formed along the banks of the river, extending some miles.

The Church of St. Michael Penkervil, which almost adjoins the park, is an antient fabric, and contains a handsome monument by Rysbrach, to the memory of the late Admiral Boscawen.

From Tregothnan, after passing Nopus Passage, the distance to Truro is two miles.

The town of Truro, which is generally and not improperly denominated the metropolis of the county, is pleasingly seated in a valley, at the conflux of the rivers St. Allen and Kenwyn, which (united with a branch of the river Fal) become navigable for vessels of 100 tons. This town appears to have been a place of some consequence even prior to the Conquest, and, 45according to Leland, once possessed a Castle, and enjoyed many privileges. Truro has returned members to Parliament since the reign of Edward I.: the right of election, however, like most other Boroughs in this county, is confided to the privileged few: the Mayor and others of the Corporation, to the number of 18 or 20, are the only voters.

The alterations and improvements made of late years at Truro, have certainly given the town a very respectable and handsome appearance; the streets being also well paved and lighted, this town is rendered more comfortable than any other in the county. The Rev. Mr. Warner, in his Tour through this county, published in the year 1809, says, “here all the modes of polished life are visible in genteel houses, elegant hospitality, fashionable apparel, and cautious manners;” which observation, although not incorrect, may be attributed to the success of the inhabitants in mining transactions.^[13]

The Church is a very beautiful Gothic fabric. It consists of three aisles, with a modern tower at the west end, surmounted by a lofty spire. On the north side the chancel is a monument, with a long inscription to the memory of the courageous Owen Phippen, who died in March, 1636:

There are several other memorials in this church, but none particularly deserving of notice. Besides the church, there are no less than seven other places of worship, for the different denominations of Christians.

Near the town, on a commanding healthy spot, stands 46the County Infirmary, opened in the year 1799, under the patronage of his present Majesty, but maintained entirely by voluntary subscriptions and contributions. Truro has also a neat Assembly Room, convertible into a Theatre; besides a County Library, established in the year 1792. A Literary Society has lately been set on foot, and their Museum is already worth seeing. The Easter Quarter Sessions are also held in this town; and the markets, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, are well supplied with all kinds of provisions. The parish of St. Mary’s, with the adjoining streets, contained, according to the late returns, 2712 inhabitants, or an increase of 230 since the year 1811.

The scenery in the immediate vicinity of Truro, is particularly beautiful, and such as must delight every traveller; the town itself has a very picturesque appearance, particularly so, when viewed from the spot exhibited in the accompanying engraving.

The Smelting house for tin, about a mile from Truro, on the Falmouth road, is well deserving of notice, as it contains no less than 10 furnaces. Culm coal is used as the flax in the proportion of about one-eighth to the ore, of which nearly 600 cwt. is smelted within six hours, and yields about 350 cwt. of tin.^[14]

About seven miles from Truro, is Carclew, the seat of Sir William Lemon, Bart., M.P. and one of the most beautiful mansions in the county. It is situated on an eminence in an extensive and rich wooded park, rising from the valley through which the celebrated Carnon Stream Works are conducted, and commands a number of delightful prospects. The house is an elegant building of the Ionic order, composed of granite. The portico in the centre, is connected with the wings, by colonnades. The interior is not so spacious as many 47other residences in this county, but contains some very handsome apartments, and the following paintings:

Penryn is a large antient Borough and market town, pleasantly situated about nine miles from Truro, at the head of a branch of Falmouth Harbour. It was formerly embellished with a College, founded in the thirteenth century, by Walter Stapeldon, Bishop of Exeter, for 12 prebends, which continued until the dissolution of religious edifices in the reign of Henry VIII., when its annual revenues were valued at £205 10s. 6d. This building is said by Leland, to have covered a space of three acres, and to have been surrounded by embattled walls; but every vestige of it has long since been entirely obliterated. Penryn was incorporated in the 18th year of the reign of James I. and is governed by a Mayor, eight Aldermen, 12 Common Councilmen, a Recorder, and inferior officers. The right of returning two members by the same charter, is vested in the Mayor, Aldermen, and all the inhabitants paying scot and lot.—There is a silver cup and cover belonging to the corporation, given by Jane, Lady Killigrew, with this inscription, “From maior to maior to the town of Permarin, when they received me that was in great misery, J. K. (Jane Killigrew) 1633.” Hals says, that this lady had gone on board two Dutch ships with a party of ruffians, and having slain two 48Spanish merchants, their owners, robbed them of two barrels of Spanish pieces of eight. The lady, he adds, was by means of great interest pardoned; but her accomplices all executed. Hals’s stories are not much to be depended upon; it is more certain that she was divorced from her husband, and that in consequence she was protected by the inhabitants of Penryn, who bore no good will to Sir John Killigrew, and his rising town of Smithick. Jane, Lady Killigrew, was daughter of Sir George Fermor, Knt. of Easton Neston, ancestor of the Earl of Pomfret: she died in 1648.^[15]

In the centre of the principal street, which is composed of many antient and irregular built houses, stand the Market House and Town Hall, the appearance of which is not very pleasing.

St. Gluvias, or the Parish Church, is over a branch of the river, the tower of which, with the surrounding scenery, appears highly picturesque, and attracts the attention of every one passing. The interior contains a variety of handsome memorials to the Pendarves family, once of Roscow, in this parish, and the following lines are inscribed on a monument to the memory of the Rev. John Penrose, who died in 1776, aged 63, after being 35 years vicar of this parish.

Eny’s House, the seat of Francis Ens, Esq., near Penryn, which was erected before the reign of Edward 49I., has been in his family from that time, and is noticed by Camden for its fine gardens and shrubberies: it is still a residence of great respectability.

Falmouth, which is now become a very important and populous sea-port town, is distant from Plymouth 55 miles, and 269 west of London. The Harbour, which is considered one of the very best in England, is so commodious and sheltered, that the most numerous fleet may ride here in safety; and when it was surveyed a few years ago by Commissioner Bowen, buoys for 16 sail of battle ships were laid down.^[16]

Much disquisition and doubts have arisen regarding the origin of this town; but it seems to be generally admitted, that it was a place of but little consequence until the reign of James I., when the greater part of the town was then built; neither was it incorporated until the 13th of Charles II.

The town is chiefly built along the western shore of the harbour, the houses forming a street nearly half a mile in length. Owing to the improvements which have been made of late years, Falmouth has a very prepossessing appearance, and is now inhabited by many respectable families; but although the population of the parish amounts, by the late census, to 6374, it is not represented in Parliament, whilst St. Mawes, a mean fishing cove, on the opposite side of the harbour, possesses that advantage.

The entrance to the harbour of Falmouth is fortified on each side, by the Castles of St. Mawes and Pendennis. The latter has a very magnificent appearance, being built on a rock, rising upwards of 300 feet above the level of the sea, and is almost insulated. This castle was first erected in the reign of Henry VIII., but the works were materially altered and strengthened in the reign of Elizabeth. It is now strongly fortified, and contains 50commodious barracks for troops, good storehouses, and magazines, besides a comfortable residence for the Lieutenant Governor. In the time of the civil wars this fortress was bravely defended against the Parliament forces, by John Arundell, of Trenie, and was only surrendered on the same conditions as were granted to other places.

St. Mawes Castle, although erected in the same reign as Pendennis, is very inferior both in size and situation. The hamlet adjoining, is remarkable only as being one of the Boroughs of Cornwall, and has returned members to Parliament since the year 1562. The manor is now vested in the Marquis of Buckingham, but the right of election is confined to the freeholders only.

The Church of Falmouth is a modern building, with a handsome altar, &c. It contains several memorials, but none very remarkable. There are several meeting houses in the town, for different sects, a small Roman Catholic Chapel, and a Jew’s Synagogue; also a Public Dispensary and Hospital for the relief and support of disabled seamen, their widows, and children, which is liberally patronized.

The trade of this town, and its prosperity, have much increased by the establishment of the packets that sail from hence every week to Lisbon, Portugal, the West Indies, and other places; also by the detention of fleets of ships, (particularly those outward-bound) which seek refuge in its capacious harbour, and frequently remain many weeks till the gales are more favourable.—Falmouth has a good weekly market, and two fairs annually.

Arwenack House, remarkable as having been the residence of the Killigrews, (one of whom, Sir William Killigrew, of notoriety in the civil wars, lies buried in the church,) has been much altered from its original plan, yet still possesses an antient appearance. A manuscript history of the Killigrews, written by one of the family, says, that there was only a single house at 51Falmouth, besides Arwenack (the seat of the Killigrews,) when Sir Walter Rayleigh, being homeward-bound from the coast of Guinea, put in there; that he was entertained at Arwenack, and his men poorly accommodated at the solitary house, which, it is probable, had been originally built for the entertainment of sea-faring persons; that this celebrated navigator, being struck with the utility of providing more extensive accommodations at the mouth of Falmouth Harbour, for the officers and crews of homeward-bound ships, laid before the council a project for erecting four houses for that purpose. It is probable, that the single house here spoken of, was single as a house of entertainment, and that there were also a few fishers’ cottages, though too inconsiderable to have been described by Norden, even as a village.

The Church of the village of Maylor, near Falmouth, is a very picturesque building, containing a number of memorials, among which there is a monument for Capt. Yescombe, of the King George Lisbon Packet, who was killed in defending his ship against the enemy, in 1803.

Trefusis House, the property of Lord Clinton, in this neighbourhood, is a very antient building, most delightfully situated; but not having been inhabited for many years, is going rapidly to decay. Part of it is now occupied as a farm-house.

On the right of the road from Penryn to Helston, in the parish of Constantine, is a very curious massy rock, called a Tolinen; it is 33 feet long by 14½ feet wide, 18 feet high, and 97 feet in circumference. In form it resembles an egg, and is poised on two natural rocks. Much has been said as to the origin of this curious pile, but it is generally supposed to have been erected by the Druids.

Helston, situated about 10 miles from Penryn, is a large respectable town, built on the side of a hill, gradually sloping to the River Cober, and is noticed by 52historians as a place of considerable antiquity, and as having once possessed a Castle.^[17]

It now principally consists of four streets built in the form of a cross, with a handsome Market-house and Town Hall. The Church, a handsome fabric standing on an eminence, on the north side of the town, was rebuilt in the year 1762, at an expense of £6,000, defrayed by the then Earl of Godolphin. It contains a number of monuments, and a neat altar-piece painted by Lane.

Helston has returned members to Parliament since the reign of Edward I., and the government of the town is vested in the Mayor, four Aldermen, and 24 Assistants: they have exclusively the right of election and other privileges.

The number of inhabitants, according to the late census, amounts to 2671, or an increase of 374 since the year 1811.

This town has long been noted for its remarkable Jubilee on the 8th of May, on which day it has been customary with the inhabitants for ages past, to cease from their labours, and participate in the rural pleasures of the peasantry. Yet many of the foolish customs 53on this occasion, have vanished before modern refinement, and even the genteelest classes engage in the pleasures of the day, when the greatest harmony usually prevails, and dancing with its consequent hilarity, is kept up until a very late hour.

The scenery about the Loo Pool is peculiarly fine and picturesque; it combines every characteristic excellence for forming a good picture, and affords many an interesting study for the landscape painter. The rocks start abruptly from the margin of the lake, and a fine hanging wood clothes the sides of the neighbouring hills. On the south, the prospect is only terminated by a narrow bank of sand, which appears almost to unite the sea with the lake: and indeed upon certain occasions, when the pool is so full of water as to endanger the submersion of property on the valley above, it has been found necessary to cut through this sandy partition, and allow the overplus water of the lake, to flow away into the main ocean. This indulgence, with the privilege of fishing for a peculiar and valuable species of trout, is readily granted, on application to the Lord of the Manor, John Rogers, Esq., of Penrose.^[18]

On the western side of the Loo Pool, about two miles from Helston, is Penrose, the seat of John Rogers, Esq., which has been considerably improved, since it came into the possession of that gentleman.

A ride to the Lizard Point from Helston, a distance of 14 miles, will be highly gratifying to the lovers of romantic scenery, and which, to use the expression of a celebrated tourist, “is rarely to be surpassed in England.” The immense rocks which here rise in awful dignity to a very considerable height, resisting the mighty violence of the ocean, cannot fail to make a lasting impression on the minds of those who visit this interesting spot.

The first place of any note, at about the distance of six miles from Helston, is the little fishing village of 54Mullion. The tower of the Church forms a conspicuous feature in this part of the county.

Three miles from hence, is the celebrated Steatite or Soap Rocks,^[19] which have been of great use to the china manufacturers.

Kynan’s Cove, situated within a mile of the Lizard Point, is highly deserving of notice, and is considered one of the most extraordinary spots on the coast. It is composed of huge rocks of immense height, partly projecting into the sea, and in one place so singularly formed, as to resemble an arched grotto.^[20]

In Lanerwednack Church, almost adjoining the Lizard, is a curious antient Font.

The Lizard Point, is remarkable as being the spot from which all ships leaving the Channel, date their departure; and notwithstanding two Light-Houses have been built, as beacons to warn the mariner of the danger of steering too close to the shore, shipwrecks are not unfrequent, particularly among foreign vessels, whose commanders may be supposed to be unacquainted with the dangers of this part of the coast.^[21]

Returning to Helston over Goonholly Downs, in the parish of Mawgain, is Trelowarrens, the seat of Sir Richard Vyvyan, Bart., a very curious and antient embattled mansion, containing fine portraits by Vandyke.^[22] 55The house and grounds were much improved by the late Sir Vyell Vyvyan, and adjoining the house is a very neat Chapel, well fitted up with an organ, &c.

In Mawgan Church, is a very antient tomb to the memory of the Carminoe family, with the mutilated effigies of a crusader and his lady.

About five miles north of Helston, on the left of the road to Redruth, is Clowance, the property of Sir John St. Aubyn, Bart. It is an antient building standing in an extensive park, surrounded by high walls. This estate is said to have been in possession of this family, ever since the reign of Richard II. Great improvements have been made by the present noble proprietor, although he seldom resides here: the plantations and grounds are arranged with great taste and judgment, and tend greatly to enliven the dreariness of this part of the county. The interior contains a number of fine family portraits, by Sir Peter Lely and other eminent artists, besides a valuable selection of rare and choice prints.

Godolphin House is one of the most interesting mansions in the county, and although going rapidly to decay, displays much of its former grandeur. It is situated two miles and a half from Clowance, and about a mile from the direct road to Marazion. The Godolphin family are said to have possessed the manor, as far back as the time of William the Conqueror; but the present mansion was built in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, by Sir Francis Godolphin. It also appears, that by his successful adventures and perseverance in mining concerns, the customs were increased above £10,000 per annum. Charles II. created Sir William Godolphin a Baronet in 1663, 56and his son Sidney was made Baron Godolphin of Rialton, in 1689. This nobleman displayed great ability in the House of Commons, and filled several distinguished offices under the crown. He died in the year 1712, and was succeeded by his son Francis, whose youngest daughter married, in 1744, the Duke of Leeds, by which event the Godolphin estates, are now become the property of the Osborne family.^[23]

Pengersick Castle, the remains of which chiefly consist of the keep, and a machicolated gate, are highly deserving of notice. History is silent as to the origin of this fortress; it however appears that the manor and barter were purchased in the latter end of the reign of Henry VIII., by a Mr. Milliton, (Job Milliton, who is mentioned as possessor of St. Michael’s Mount, in the time of Edward VI.,) who having slain a man privately, made the purchase in the name of his son, and immured himself in a secret chamber in the tower, where he died without being called upon to account for the offence! The remains are situated at the bottom of an eminence, on the borders of a creek near the sea, and although not very extensive, form a very interesting and picturesque subject for the pencil of an artist.

The manor is chiefly the property of the Duke of Leeds, and William Aremdell Harris, Esq.

Marazion or Market Jew, is a small town distant 286 miles from London, and exactly 10 from Helston; but few places in England surpass it for mildness of climate and agreeable prospects. This town is stated in former times to have been a place of some consequence, and to have suffered more than once by conflagration. It now consists of about 200 houses, chiefly built at the bottom of a hill, which shelters the town from the cold north winds, and, by the late returns, contains about 1300 57inhabitants. This town is governed by a Mayor, eight Aldermen, and 12 Burgesses, according to a charter granted in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, although it does not return members to Parliament.—It has a weekly market, and two fairs annually.

The majestic appearance of St. Michael’s Mount, which has for ages past been so much extolled for its singularity and beauty, cannot fail to arrest the attention and admiration of every traveller.^[24] Regarding the origin of this wonderful object, much dispute has arisen among antiquarians; but the circumstance that the mount was partly, if not wholly, covered with wood, seems to be generally credited. When the mount first became a religious spot, is uncertain; but a Priory of Benedictine Monks was founded by Edward the Confessor, which after the conquest was augmented by Robert Earl of Mortaign, and continued until the dissolution of religious houses in the reign of Henry VIII., when its revenues were valued at £110 12s. per annum! The monks however were frequently disturbed in their religious avocations, during the turbulent state of early reigns; particularly by one Henry de la Pomeroy, who treacherously took possession of this priory, during the imprisonment of Richard I. in Germany, but who fearing the king’s anger, is said shortly after to have died through grief.^[25] From this and other circumstances, 58the mount was fortified in a castellated manner, and in after times became a place of considerable notoriety, particularly during the contentions in the reign of Charles I.^[26] After the dissolution, it was granted to Humphrey Arundell, of Lanherne. In the reign of Edward VI. it was leased to Job Milliton, Esq. Sheriff of Cornwall, and passed through the hands of several persons, until it became the property of the St. Aubyn family, and now belongs to Sir John St. Aubyn, Bart., of Clowance, who has converted the remains of the priory into an occasional summer residence. Attached to it is a very pretty Chapel, in which divine service is occasionally performed; the seats are extremely well carved and ranged on each side, much in the manner of stalls in cathedrals. At the western end, an organ has been recently erected, and may be considered one of the finest instruments in the county. In the alterations which have taken place, great attention has been paid to preserve the original character of the buildings, and the dining room (which was the refectory of the convent) has a curious frieze in stucco, displaying the mode of hunting several wild animals.

59The mount is chiefly composed of granite, and the passage to its summit, which is on the north side, is extremely steep and craggy. At high water it appears a complete insulated mass of rock, gradually diminishing in size from the base, until it forms a pyramid, nearly 240 feet high. The prospects from the summit cannot fail to raise the most lively emotions, as the eye ranges over a vast range of the ocean, and which appears the more noble, when contrasted with the humble dwellings of the poor fishermen beneath.

During the early part of the last century, the Pier was rebuilt and enlarged, and is now capable of affording great shelter to vessels; the advantage of which to the fishermen on the coast is incalculable, as they often put in here for safety in stormy weather. Most of the persons who have taken up their abode on the north side of the mount, are engaged in fishing pursuits, where many cottages have been erected for them.

After proceeding about three miles over the sands of Mount’s Bay, is Penzance. This town has long been noted for the pleasantness of its situation, the salubrity of its air, and the beauty of its natives; and is in consequence much resorted to by travellers, who, in most instances, have derived more benefit than they had anticipated. Indeed the mildness of the climate of Penzance, is often compared to that of Italy. It is situated on the north-west side of Mount’s Bay, and distant little more than 10 miles from the Land’s End, and 283 from London.—Owing to the improvements made of late years, Penzance is now become a very populous and highly respectable place,^[27] and altogether possesses as many claims as any watering place in the kingdom. The Corporation consists of a Mayor, eight Aldermen, 6012 Assistants, and a Recorder; but, like Marazion, does not return members to Parliament.—Beside the chapel dedicated to St. Mary, there are separate meeting-houses for Methodists, Quakers, and Jews.

A very considerable trade is carried on here in the pilchard fisheries, and from thence great quantities of tin and copper are also exported. The market here is abundantly supplied with fish, and all kinds of provisions are remarkably plentiful and reasonable.

About half a mile from the town, is the celebrated Wherry Mine, which has not been worked since the year 1798, owing to the great danger attending the progress of the works. The opening of this mine, says Dr. Maton, “was an astonishingly adventurous undertaking. Imagine the descent into a mine through the sea, the miners working at the depth of 12 fathoms below the waves; the rod of a steam engine extending from the shore to the shaft, a distance of nearly 120 fathoms; and a great number of men momentarily menaced with an inundation of the sea, which continually drains in no small quantity through the roof of the mine, and roars loud enough to be distinctly heard in it.” Tin is the principal produce of this mine, and the ore is extremely rich.

On the western side of Mount’s Bay, about a mile and a half from Penzance, is the small fishing town of Newlyn, and the village of Mousehole; the latter remarkable only as having been the residence of Old Dolly Penkeath, the last person said to have spoken the Cornish dialect, and who died at the age of 102 years, in the month of January, 1778.

About three miles from hence, at a place called Boscawenun, 61close to the sea, is a very curious piece of antiquity, composed of two large flat stones, one resting on a natural rock, and the other on three large stones; but whether this singular pile is the remain of some Druidical monument, or may be classed under the denomination of Roman Antiquities, is a matter not easily determined. The most interesting Druidical remains in this neighbourhood, are a pile of stones, between St. Burian’s and Sarund, consisting of 19 in number, set upright in a circle 25 feet diameter, one large stone being in the centre.

St. Burian, the next place of any note, was once remarkable as having possessed a college of Secular Canons, said to have been founded by King Athelstan, after the conquest of the Scilly Isles; but not a vestige of this antient edifice now remains. St. Burian’s, however, is an independent deanery, in the gift of the King, and under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Exeter.

The Church, which stands on a commanding eminence, and serves as a land mark, is a spacious fabric, consisting of three aisles, and contains several curious monumental remains; but when it was repaired in 1814, a handsome carved screen and other relics of antiquity were removed. Near the south porch, which is ornamented with embrasures and pinnacles, is a small cross,^[28] raised on four steps, with a circular head perforated with four holes, and on one side is a representation of the Crucifixion. In this parish are several decayed seats, now mostly occupied by farmers, which formerly belonged to several eminent persons in the county.

The celebrated Logan or Rocking Stone at Treryn Castle, in the parish of St. Levan, is highly deserving 62of notice, and indeed is considered as great a curiosity as any thing in Cornwall. This extraordinary stone, or immense block of granite, supposed even to weigh 90 tons, is so balanced on the summit of an immense pile of rocks, that one individual, by placing his back to it, can move it to and fro easily.

The stupendous and majestic appearance of the rocks which form the Promontory of the Land’s End, the raging of the ocean beneath, the incessant screaming of sea gulls and other wild birds, when disturbed by the sight of man, raise the strongest emotions of admiration and astonishment. On a ridge of rocks, called the Long Ships, a Light-House was erected in the year 1797, by a Mr. Smith, under the sanction of the Trinity Board.

From the Land’s End to Stratton; through St. Ives, Camborne, Redruth, St. Columb, Padstow, and Camelford.

St. Just, about five miles from the Land’s End, is the first place of any note in this direction, and is situated about seven miles from Penzance; but chiefly remarkable as the birth-place of the celebrated Dr. Borlase, the historian of the Natural History and Antiquities of this county.^[29]

64“The road to St. Ives,” says Dr. Maton, “when returning from the western part of the county, passes near numerous shafts of mines, which render a journey over this part of the country by night extremely dangerous. The moor stone or granite lies dispersed in detached 65blocks, many of them huge enough for another Stone Henge. Scarcely a shrub appears to diversify the prospect, and the only living beings that inhabit the mountainous parts are the goats, which browse the scanty herbage.”

66St. Ives is a very antient and populous sea-port town, situated near the north-east angle of a very fine bay, about eight miles from Penzance; seven from Marazion; 13 north-west from Helston; 14 west from Redruth; and 277 from London. In antient records, this town was called Porth-Ia; and it is said to have derived its name from St. Hya, or Ia, an Irish saint, who came over to Cornwall accompanied by St. Breaca and others, and was buried in the church at this place.

It has a good Pier, erected by Smeaton, about 40 years ago; but the streets being very narrow, irregular, and dirty, the town has but a poor appearance in 67itself, yet when viewed from the environs, it has a very picturesque effect. It is also one of the Borough-Towns of Cornwall, and the right of electing the Members of Parliament, is vested in the Corporation and all the inhabitants of the town and parish paying scot and lot. According to the late returns, the parish contains upwards of 3000 inhabitants. A considerable traffic is carried on at St. Ives, with the Bristol merchants, besides the Pilchard Fisheries; but this port, like most others on the north coast, is much incommoded by the quantity of sand driven in by the north-west winds.

Speaking of St. Ives, Leland observes that “most part of the houses in the peninsula be sore oppressid or overcovered with sandes that the stormy windes and rages castith up there. This calamte hath continuid ther litle above 20 yeres.” Again he says, “the best part of the toun now standith in the south part of the Peninsula, toward another hille for defence from the sandes”. Norden describes the haven as much annoyed with sands, and unfit for receiving ships of any burden. “The town and port of St. Ives,” says Carew, “are both of mean plight; yet with their best means (and often to good and necessarie purpose) succouring distressed shipping. Order hath been taken,” he adds, “and attempts made for bettering the road with a peer; but eyther want or slacknesse, or impossibilitie, hitherto withhold the effect: the whiles plentie of fish is here taken and sold verie cheap.” Holinshed has mention of a light-house, and block-house, near St. Ives, to the following effect. On “a little byland cape or peninsula, called Pendinas, the compass not above a mile, standeth a Pharos or light for ships that sail by those coasts in the night. There is also a block-house and a peer on the east side thereof, but the peer is sore choaked with sand, as is the whole coast from St. Ives unto St. Carantokes.” There is still a battery on the eastern side, and the old pharos, which still exists, is used for depositing government stores.

68Sir Francis Basset, member for this town in the reign of Charles I., gave the Corporation a handsome cup, on which is the following singular inscription:

This Sir Francis Basset, (who was of Tehiddy) procured for St. Ives, from King Charles, in the year 1639, its first charter of incorporation; under which the body-corporate consisted of a Mayor, 12 capital Burgesses, and 24 inferior Burgesses: but by the subsequent charter of James II., granted in 1685, the Corporation consists of a Mayor, Recorder, Town clerk, 10 Aldermen, and 12 Common-council-men. Four of these are Justices of the Peace, and hold a Sessions. It appears that before the incorporation, the chief officer of this town was called the Mayor or Portreeve; and it is said that one Payne, who held that office in the reign of Edward VI., was executed by order of Sir Anthony Kingston, for being concerned in Arundell’s rebellion.^[30] The Borough has sent members to Parliament ever since the reign of Philip and Mary.

The Rev. Jonathan Touss, the learned annotator on Sudidas, and editor of Longinus, was born at St. Ives, and died at the age of 72, in the year 1785, after being 34 years rector of St. Martin’s, near Looe.

The Church is a low antient fabric, situated near the seashore, and contains a curious Font, the body of St. Ia, the foundress of the church, and the patroness of the town.

On the summit of a hill, near the town, is Treguma, a modern castellated building, the seat of S. Stephens, Esq. which commands a fine prospect of the sea. About a 69mile from the house, is a pyramid erected to the memory of the late John Knill, Esq., of Gray’s Inn, London, and secretary to Lord Hobart, when Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, who by will, directed that at the end of every five years, an old woman, and 10 girls under 14 years of age, should walk in procession with music, from the market-house at St. Ives, to this pyramid, round which they should dance and sing the 100th Psalm, and for which purpose he gave some freehold lands.^[31]

About four miles from St. Ives, at a place called Hayle, situated on the eastern bank of the river of that name, were, till lately, several houses for smelting copper, but which have been discontinued, owing to the too great expense necessary to be incurred. The process of smelting the ore and rolling the metal, was brought to great perfection at these works, but materially effected the constitution of the poor men employed in them. A very considerable trade is however carried on at Hayle, in timber, iron, limestone, and Bristol wares.

On the west side of the harbour, is Trevethoe, the property of Wm. Praed, Esq. The house stands in a very pleasant situation, and the grounds have been much improved by the introduction of the pine-aster fir, which flourishes extremely well in this part of the county.

The county between this place and Redruth, has long been celebrated for its numerous mines, some of which have produced a golden harvest for their proprietors, and have given employment to many hundred persons.

In the midst of them stands Camborne, which has in consequence become a considerable market town, and has four fairs annually. The market-house was erected at the expense of Lord de Dunstanville.

The Church is an antient fabric, and contains some elegant memorials of the Pendarves family, a handsome marble altar-piece, and a curious carved stone pulpit; but its antient font has been removed to the gardens at 70Tehiddy. According to the late returns, the population of Camborne is stated at 6219, or an increase of 1005, during the last 10 years.

Pendarves, in this parish, the seat of Edward William Wynne Pendarves, Esq. is a large handsome building, situated on a commanding eminence, and has lately undergone many judicious improvements.

About four miles to the left of the road to Redruth, and the same distance north-west of that town, is Tehiddy Park, the seat of the Right Hon. Lord de Dunstanville, which forms a noble feature in this part of the county. It is a handsome edifice, chiefly built of Cornish free-stone, with detached wings at the angles, and erected in the early part of last century. It is embellished with a number of fine paintings, of which the following are most worthy of notice.

The extent of Tehiddy Park amounts to about 700 acres, and the grounds have been much improved and beautified by extensive plantations, since the present nobleman succeeded to this estate.

Two miles south of Tehiddy, and within the same distance of Redruth, is Carn-bre’ Hill, a very interesting spot, and considered by Borlase, (from the numerous remains of cromlechs, basons, circles, and kairs, in its vicinity) to have been the principal seat of Druidical worship in this neighbourhood. Notwithstanding many other writers have coincided in this opinion, yet it is evident from the observations of one of the most learned Antiquarians, that these remains do not exhibit a complete system of Druidical worship, and Dr. Maton also observes, “these rocks exhibit awful vestiges of convulsions, and the immense detached masses of granite, which appear about to roll down their declivities, awaken sublime ideas in the mind of a spectator.” Neither is there any appearance of systematic designs in the remains alluded to.

On the eastern side of the hill, stands Carn-bre’ Castle, erected on a vast ridge of rocks, which not being all contiguous, are connected by arches turned over the cavities. One part of this fortress is very antient and pierced with loop holes, but the other seems more modern, and is supposed to have been erected to embellish the prospect from Tehiddy, and from its elevated situation, being nearly 700 feet above the level of the sea, commands 72a most extensive view of the surrounding country. In the year 1749, several gold coins and other relics of antiquity, were found in digging a part of the hill, and a plate of them is given in Borlase’s Work.

Redruth, which is supposed to be one of the most antient places in the county, is now become a very considerable and populous market town. It principally consists of one long street, built on the side of an eminence, in the very bosom of the mining district.

The Church, which was rebuilt about 50 years ago, is a neat edifice, standing nearly a mile from the town; and the rectory is in the gift of Lord de Dunstanville.

Redruth has two markets weekly, and three fairs annually. The population of the parish, according to the late returns, amounts to 6,000.

Scorrier House, about two miles from Redruth, the seat of John Williams, Esq., contains a very valuable collection of minerals.

The country between Redruth and St. Agnes, appears extremely desolate and barren, as a late writer has observed—“like the shabby mien of a miser, it’s aspect does not correspond with its hoards;” since there are more mines in this part of the county, than any other.

St. Agnes is a small town, on the northern coast, nine miles from Truro, and 267 from London, and had formerly a considerable harbour, now choaked up with sand; and the quay has been partly washed down by the impetuosity of the waves, but is now in tolerable repair.

The lover of the picturesque, however, will be highly pleased at the grandeur of the rocks, which face the shore at this part of the coast; and here is a remarkable stupendous mountain, called St. Agnes’ Beacon, rising pyramidically to the height of more than 600 feet above the level of the sea. The beacon on the top is greatly dilapidated, yet is particularly valuable to vessels passing this coast. An antient well at this place, has been 73much extolled, and many miraculous stories are told regarding its virtues.

St. Agnes has to boast of the birth of that celebrated painter, Opie, and one of the members of the Royal Academy, who died so much lamented, at an early age. His Lectures on Painting have since been published, with his portrait, and are highly interesting and useful to the artist.

The Church is an antient edifice, and is consolidated with the vicarage of Piranzabuloe, being in the patronage of the Dean and Chapter of Exeter. There are also several antient manors in this parish. The population, according to the late returns, amounted to 5,762, being an increase of 738, since the year 1811.

In Piranzabuloe, the adjoining parish, is of a circular amphitheatre, with a rampart and fosse surrounding it, called Piran Round. The area is about 130 feet in diameter, and it is supposed to have been originally designed for the performance of Cornish interludes, or where plays were acted.

Perraw Porth in this parish, is much resorted to during the bathing season, on account of its fine sandy beach, &c.

Trerice in Newlyn, is one of the most interesting antient buildings in the county, and although going to decay, still displays much of its original grandeur. The principal entrance hall being very spacious, is lighted by a fine large window of 24 compartments, and over the chimneypiece in the drawing-room, (which is in a very deplorable state,) are the arms of the Arundel family, who resided here at a very early period. It is now the property of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, Bart., and at present is occupied by a respectable farmer.

About three miles from hence, in the parish of St. Columb Minor, are some considerable remains of Railton Priory, and which is said to have been founded 74by Prior Vivian of Bodmin, who is noticed in a subsequent part of this work.

The remains are seated in a romantic valley, and principally consist of the entrance gateway, and an inner court with an embattled dwelling, lighted with three Gothic windows. There is also a very antient Well, at the back of which is a curious carved niche, with a pedestal for an image. At different parts of the building are several coats of arms of the founder, and a stone with some curious characters upon it. The accompanying view exhibits the most interesting and entire part of this religious building.

Quitting this sequestered spot, on ascending the hill leading to St. Columb, on the left, stand the ruins of Nanswhyden House, the seat of the late Robert Hoblyn, Esq., and which was unfortunately destroyed by fire, in 1803, together with the whole of the furniture in it. The house was one of the handsomest buildings in the county, and erected from the designs of Potter, at an expense of upwards of £30,000. It had a very valuable library, which fortunately escaped this catastrophe, having been sold before by auction in London, after the sale lasting 25 days. The catalogue was embellished with a portrait of the owner, and is now a valuable relic of literature.

At Mawgan, a romantic village three miles north-west from St. Columb, is Lanherne, formerly the residence of the Arundels; but remarkable as being the abode of several Carmelite Nuns from Antwerp, and the only nunnery now existing in this county. It is a very antient building, and contains a neat Chapel adorned with a few good paintings, brought hither at the time the nuns emigrated to this country. The east front of the house being the principal, displays much of its original character, but the whole is an interesting pile of building. It is now the property of Lord Arundel, 75of Wardour Castle, who takes great pleasure in affording an asylum, and attending to these unprotected women:

The nuns are very strict and regular in their devotions, and employ their leisure time in the manufacture of fancy articles, which are disposed of to those persons who visit the place. Although this indulgence is allowed, the nuns are seldom seen, except at a funeral, when the whole of them attend the corpse, to the end of the lawn in front of the house.

The Church of Mawgan almost adjoins Lanherne, and is a very antient fabric, containing a great variety of curious brass monumental inscriptions, but several of them have been defaced. The carving of the screen which separates the chancel, is a fine piece of workmanship. In the church-yard stands a very curious and antient Gothic Cross, on the east side of which is a niche containing the Crucifixion, sculptured in pretty high relief. In the niche on the west side, is carved a subject, taken no doubt from some legend, consisting of the figures of a king and queen; the latter in the dress of the fourteenth century, kneeling on one side before a desk. On the other side, is a large bolt with a serpent coiled round it, which seems to be biting the face of the king, whilst an angel holds its tail.^[32] The whole is in tolerable fine preservation, but for whom, or for what purpose it was erected, has never been ascertained.

Carnanton, in this parish, the seat of James Willyams, Esq., is a neat and commodious building, but almost surrounded by trees. An earthen vessel was lately found near this house, containing near 700 silver English coins of different reigns, in fine preservation.

76Trewan, the seat of Richard Vyvyan, Esq, the late Sheriff for the county, is situated on the brow of a hill facing the south, commanding a fine view of the town of St. Columb. It is an irregular building of granite, said to have been erected in the year 1633, and the interior contains several handsome apartments; but the drawing room being richly ornamented with sculpture, representing the principal events of the Book of Genesis, is highly deserving of notice.—There are also a few good portraits, and a fine picture of a Shipwreck, by Vandervelde.

St. Columb Major, as it is called, to distinguish it from a parish of the same name adjoining the village, but of less consequence, is a considerable market town; and although not situated on the high mail road to Truro, yet is a town of some importance on the northern side of the county. It is built on an eminence, and contains a few good houses; the Market-house has an antient appearance. It is situated 11 miles north-west of Bodmin, and 15 from Truro; but after leaving the regular high mail road, the other roads winding to the town are very bad and dirty.

The Church is a large antient fabric; but has, perhaps, been injudiciously altered from its original design. The interior contains a variety of memorials, one of which has a handsome bust of the deceased Robert Hoblyn, Esq. of Nanswhyden, who represented the City of Bristol in three Parliaments, and died in the year 1756. The living of St. Columb is the best in the county, and computed to be worth at least £2000 per annum, and in the gift of the Rev. George Moore, of Garlennick, near Grampound.

The population of the parish, according to the late returns, amounted to about 2,493. It has a market every Thursday, and two fairs annually.

About two miles from the town, to the left of the road leading to Bodmin, but in St. Columb parish, is Castle-an-Dinas, a noble entrenchment, originally fortified with 77three circular walls, and an immense ditch. It is generally supposed to have been constructed by the Danes, and was a permanent fortified residence of some Scandinavian Chief. The diameter of the space enclosed, is 400 feet; and the principal ditch is 60 feet wide. Castle-an-Dinas, Dr. Borlase says, consisted of two stone walls, built one within the another, in a circular form: the ruins he describes as fallen on each side the wall, shewing the work to have been of great height and thickness: he also mentions a third wall, built more than half way round, but left unfinished. This remain is seated on the highest hill in the hundred of Penwith.

From St. Columb to Padstow, the distance is eight miles, but the country between those places does not present any thing deserving particular observation.

Padstow has long been noted as the principal sea-port town on the north coast of Cornwall, and in a commercial point of view is of the greatest advantage to the county. Here also the first religious house was founded by St. Petreock, as early as the year 432. It is situated 11 miles from Bodmin, and about 243 from London, and is noted as one of the most antient places in England. The town is built on the western side of the harbour, sheltered by an immense hill, and at high water has a pleasing appearance.

A very considerable trade is carried on here in iron, coals, timber, groceries, and merchandize in general. Padstow has a market weekly, and two fairs annually. These are now little more than mere holiday fairs; though within these 60 years they were well supplied with cattle, cloth, hats, &c. Leland, speaking of this town, says—“There use many Britons with smaul shippes to resorte to Padestowe, with commodities of their countrey, and to by fische: the town of Padestowe is ful of Irisch men: there is a large exporte of corne.” Carew again says—“It hath lately purchased a corporation, 78and reapeth greatest thrift by traffiking with Ireland, for which it commodiously lieth.” We have not been able to learn any thing about the charter of corporation alluded to by Carew, and are assured that the town has no such charter. The principal import-trade, for iron, is from Cardiff; coals, from Wales; timber, from Norway; and groceries, and bale goods, from Bristol: and considerable quantities of corn are still exported; the other principal exports are malt and block-tin.

In the Church, an antique building, situated at the head of the town, are several handsome memorials: that of Sir Nicholas Prideaux, Knt., who was Carew’s contemporary, and died in 1627, commemorates also Sir William Morice, who married a daughter of Humphrey Prideaux: “he was knighted,” says his epitaph, “by King Charles II., on his landing at Dover, and afterwards made Secretary of State and a Privy Counsellor, in consequence of his great services in bringing about the Restoration, by his influence with General Monk. He died at Werrington, in 1676, aged 75.” The learned Dr. Humphrey Prideaux, Dean of Norwich, was a grandson of Sir Nicholas above-mentioned, and was born at Padstow, in 1648. Dr. Prideaux, who was educated at Liskeard school, besides his well-known work on the connexion between the Old and New Testaments, published “The True Nature of Imposture fully displayed in the Life of Mahomet.”—The Font, in this antient building, is in itself a curious relic of antiquity, decorated with effigies of the twelve Apostles.

There are several antient Chapels in this parish. That of St. Saviour, of which the east wall remains, stood on the brink of the precipice which overlooks the town: near Place-house, at the top of the town, was St. Sampson’s chapel: at Trethyllic, near Place grounds, was a chapel with a cemetery: between St. Saviour’s, and Stepper-point, was another chapel, the name of 79which is not known: and about a mile and a half from the town, that of St. Cadock, which had a tower, the pinnacles of which were used in rebuilding that of Little Petherick church.

One of the schools founded by the trustees of the Rev. St. John Elliot’s charitable donations (1760;) and endowed with £5 per annum each, was established in Padstow. Two Sunday-schools, and several Day-schools, have also been established; by which several institutions for relieving the poor, and encouraging the industrious, are supported.

Padstow contains, according to the late returns, 1702 inhabitants, or an increase of 204, since the year 1811.

On Sander’s Hill, a handsome residence was erected a few years ago, at a very considerable expense, by the late Thomas Rawlings, Esq., but which is about to be taken down, owing to the death of that gentleman, and as the property cannot be disposed of.

Place-House, the seat of the Rev. Charles Prideaux Brune, situated a little distance above the church, is an antient embattled mansion. It contains a few remarkable fine family portraits, and other works of art. The house has been lately beautified and enlarged at a considerable expense, and may now be ranked as one of the finest residences in the county. The western front with its circular tower and Gothic library window, has a very handsome effect.

The Rocks off the coast in the neighbourhood of Padstow, and the sand banks on the coast, not always visible at low water, have been the cause of many shipwrecks, and scarcely a winter passes without the occurrence of such dreadful calamities. The Rev. Mr. Warner, in his Tour through Cornwall, speaking of the dangerous rocks off this coast, says, “their black perpendicular heads frown inevitable destruction on every 80vessel that approaches them, and seldom does one of the unhappy crew survive to tell the horrors of the wreck.”

Quitting Padstow, the lover of the picturesque will be much delighted with the village of Little PETHERICK, where a bridge across the road, an old mill, the church, a few rustic cottages, and some luxuriant foliage, form a picture highly interesting.

After crossing the river Camel at Wadebridge, over which there is a bridge, built in the year 1485, of 17 Gothic arches, and 320 feet long, in the parish of Egleshale, is Peucarrow, the handsome seat of Sir Arscott O’Molesworth, Bart. The house has lately undergone a complete repair, and is fitted up in an elegant style, with a good library, billiard room, and the usual comforts attached to a gentleman’s residence. Here are also a few good pictures, but mostly portraits. The gardens and hot-houses are very beautiful, and kept in excellent order.

In the Church of Egleshale, is a very handsome carved stone pulpit, and a neat monument to the memory of Sir John Molesworth and his lady.

The road from hence to Camelford, a distance of 11 miles, contains little to interest the traveller, excepting perhaps, the celebrated Slate Quarry of Delabole, in the parish of St. Teath, and which has been already described in page 7.

The town of Camelford is a place of considerable antiquity, and has returned members to Parliament, 81since the reign of Edward VI. The right of election is vested in the freemen, and the town is governed by a Mayor and eight Burgesses.

Although it is a place of but little trade, yet it has a market weekly, and four fairs annually, at which great quantities of cattle are bought and sold.

The Town Hall is a neat structure, built a few years ago, at the expense of the late Duke of Bedford.

According to tradition, the neighbourhood of Camelford is remarkable as having been the site of a memorable battle fought between King Arthur and his treacherous nephew, Mordred; in which the former was slain, and his troops routed with considerable loss.

About five miles north-west of Camelford, is Tintagell, in which parish, the small Borough-town of Bossiney is situated; but as far as regards appearances, this town can only rank as a village of the meanest description, although it has returned members since the reign of Edward VI. It contains about 140 houses, but the number of voters seldom exceed 14 or 15, the right of election being chiefly confined to certain individuals possessing the property.

Among its noble representatives are ranked the great Sir Francis Drake, Sir Thomas Cottington, Secretary of State to Charles I., and Sir Richard Weston, afterwards Earl of Portland and Lord Treasurer in the same reign.^[33] But the most interesting circumstance relative to Tintagell, is its being the reputed birth-place of the renowned King Arthur; respecting whom, it was the opinion of Lord Chancellor Bacon, that there was truth enough in history to make him famous, besides that which was fabulous. His history, however, has been so blended with the marvellous, by the monkish historians, that some authors have been disposed to doubt even his having ever existed; and certainly the circumstances connected with his asserted birth at Tintagell, 82are not among those parts of his story which are most entitled to credit.

The certainty, however, that there has been a Castle at this place, cannot be imaginary, even if we only judge from the ruins now existing; but as far as regards its origin, there are many different accounts, and none, perhaps, whose authority can be relied on. That there should have been a castle erected here, in the time of the antients, is very probable, as few places are so well calculated for the mode of warfare then in practice. The commanding and open situation of this spot, with other concurrent circumstances, leave but little doubt that this fortress was erected long previous to the Conquest. “The ruins now existing, consist of two divisions, one scattered over the face of the main promontory, and another over the peninsula, which is severed from it. The walls of the former are garetted and pierced with many little square holes, for the discharge of arrows. They seem to have included within them, two narrow courts. At the upper end of the most southern of them, are the remains of several stone steps, leading probably to the parapet of the walls. Here the ramparts were high and strong, this being the quarter overlooked by the neighbouring hill. As they wound round to the west, however, less labour had been expended upon their structure, for a hideous precipice of 300 feet deep, to the edge of which they were carried, prevented the fear of any assault in that quarter. The works on the peninsula had been anciently connected with those on the mainland, by a draw-bridge thrown across the chasm, in the division above mentioned.”^[34] This however had gone to decay in Leland’s time, and the only means of approaching this part are by a dangerous and narrow ascent, winding up the cliffs on the western side.

Leland’s description is curious.—“This castelle hath 83bene a marvelus strong and notable forteres, and almost situ loci inexpugnabile, especially for the dungeon, that is on a great high terrible cragge, environed with the se, but having a draw-bridge from the residew of the castelle unto it. There is yet a chapel standing withyn this dungeon of S. Ulette alias Ulianne. Shepe now fede within the dungeon. The residew of the buildinges of the castel be sore wetherbeten and yn ruine, but it hath beene a large thinge.” In another place he says—“The castel had be lykhod three wardes, wherof two be woren away with gulfing yn of the se: withowte the isle renneth alonly a gate howse, a walle, and a fals braye dyged and walled. In the isle remayne old walles, and yn the est parte of the same, the grownd beyng lower, remayneth a walle embatteled, and men alyve saw ther yn a postern, a dore of yren. There is in the isle a prety chapel, with a tumbe on the left syde.” Carew’s and Norden’s accounts of Tintagell castle are nearly similar; the latter of these, indeed, appears to have been taken from the former. “Half the buildings,” says Carew, “were raised on the continent, and the other halfe on an iland, continued together (within men’s remembrance) by a drawebridge, but now divorced by the downefaln steepe cliffes, on the farther side, which, though it shut out the sea from his wonted recourse, hath yet more strengthened the iland; for in passing thither you must first descend with a dangerous declyning, and then make a worse ascent, by a path, through his stickleness occasioning, and through his steepnesse threatning, the ruine of your life, with the falling of your foote. At the top, two or three terrifying steps give you entrance to the hill, which supplieth pasture for sheepe and conyes: upon the same I saw a decayed chappell. Under the iland runs a cave, through which you may rowe at full sea, but not without a kinde of horrour at the uncouthnesse of the place.” Norden is rather more particular in his description of the ascent to the island “by a 84very narrow rockye and wyndinge waye up the steepe sea-clyffe, under which the sea-waves wallow, and so assayle the foundation of the ile, as may astonish an unstable mayne to consider the perill, for the least slipp of the foote sendes the whole bodye into the devouringe sea; and the worste of all is the highest of all, nere the gate of entraunce into the hill, where the offensive stones so exposed hang over the head, as while a man respecteth his footinge, he indaungers his head; and lookinge to save the head, indaungers the footinge accordinge to the old proverbe; Incidit in Scyllam qui vult vitare Charybdim. He must have his eyes that will scale Tintagell. Most of the iland buyldings are ruyned.” It appears by the view of Tintagell annexed to Norden’s description, that a great part of the building on the main land was in his time standing.

The immense height of the cliffs on which these ruins are situated, the desolated aspect of the surrounding country, and the grandeur of the ocean raging beneath, all conspire to form a scene truly sublime, and cannot fail to make a lasting impression on the mind of those who have visited this interesting spot.

After the Conquest, Tintagell Castle became the occasional residence of several of our English Princes, and here Richard, Earl of Cornwall, entertained his 85nephew, David, Prince of Wales, when the latter rebelled against the King in 1245.

In subsequent centuries, almost within a few years of the commencement of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it had, like other fortresses in this county, a governor, (being annexed to the Duchy of Cornwall) and was occasionally used as a state prison. The remains are now fast mouldering to decay; and in a few years, perhaps, not a vestige will be standing, to shew where grandeur had once usurped its despotic power.

The Church of Tintagell was formerly appropriated to the abbess and convent of Fontevralt in Normandy, and having passed in the same manner as Leighton-Buzzard in Bedfordshire, was given by King Edward IV. to the collegiate church at Windsor; the Dean and Chapter of which church have now the great tithes, and are patrons of the vicarage. There were chapels in this parish dedicated to St. Piran and St. Dennis, besides that in the castle of Tintagell.

At Tintagell is a Charity-school, supported by the mayor and free burgesses, who pay a salary of £10 per annum to the master.

About two miles from hence, over a rocky road, is Boscastle, a small village, in a very romantic situation. Here a pilchard fishery has been established some years, but with little success to the adventurers.

The Quay has been greatly improved, and several new buildings erected.—This place had formerly a Castle, the antient residence of the Bottreaux family; but it was entirely gone prior to Leland’s time.

In the Church is the following epitaph for the Rev. W. Cotton and his wife, who died within a short time of each other.

86The road from hence to Stratton, is highly pleasing, and presents many fine prospects of the surrounding country.

The village of St. Mary Week is noticed by Carew, as the birth-place of Thomasine Bonaventure, who, although a poor cottager’s daughter, had the good fortune to marry for her last husband, (the last of three,) Sir John Percival, a wealthy merchant, and Lord Mayor of London; at whose death she became possessed of a large property. She retired to this, her native village, where she spent the remainder of her life and fortune in acts of unbounded charity.

Stratton is a small market town, standing rather in a low situation, 223 miles from London, and 18 from Launceston, but noted in history as the place where a great victory was obtained during the civil wars by the King’s forces, in consideration of which, Sir Ralph Hopton was in 1643, created Lord Hopton of Stratton. The parliamentary force amounted to upwards of 5000 men, with 13 pieces of ordnance, and although the troops of the King were very inferior, they fought with such desperate fury, that the enemy were completely defeated, their baggage, ammunition and ordnance, being all lost. A few years after the death of Lord Hopton, Sir John Berkeley was created Baron Berkeley of Stratton, but the title became extinct in 1773. In the year 1797, Lord de Dunstanville was created Baron Basset of Stratton, with remainder to his daughter and her issue male.^[35]

The market is on Tuesday, and there are here held three fairs annually. The former appears to have been held by prescription: it is for corn and provisions. Camden states this parish to have been famous for gardens and garlick: there are now no gardens in the neighbourhood, but such as are cultivated for private use, nor is it remarkable for the culture of garlick, 87although it is occasionally to be seen in the market, where it is purchased by the cattle doctors.

The manors of Stratton and Binamy belonged, at an early period, to an antient family, called in various records, De Albo Monasterio, Blanchminster, and Whitminster. Sir John de Blanchminster dying without issue, towards the latter part of the fourteenth century, these estates passed to Emmeline, only daughter and heir to Sir Richard Hiwis, who had married Alice, daughter of Sir Ralph de Blanchminster, and aunt of Sir John: this Emmeline first married Sir Robert Tresilian, Chief Justice of the King’s Bench, and after his death, Sir John Coleshill, to whom Guy de Blanchminster, rector of Lansallos, released in 1393 all right in the manors of Stratton, Binamy, &c. Sir John Coleshill, son of the above, who was killed in the battle of Agincourt in 1415, left an infant son; after whose death, in 1483, the large estates of this family passed by a female heir to a younger branch of the Arundells, soon extinct, and were afterwards in severalties among its numerous representatives. The manors of Binamy and Stratton, having been purchased by the Grenville family, passed with the Kilkhampton estate, and are now the property of Lord Carteret. Binamy Castle, which appears to have been built by Ralph de Blanchminster, in or about the year 1335, is spoken of as a seat of the Coleshills by William of Worcester, who made a tour through Cornwall in the reign of Edward IV. Borlase describes the house of the Blanchminsters as having been situated half a mile from Stratton, and a furlong from the antient causeway made by that family: on this estate, now called Binhamy, is a farm-house, a little to the west of which is a moated orchard, described in Camden’s map as a square fort, and called Binnoway.

The Church contains several antient memorials, one of which, with the effigy of a knight in armour, is supposed 88to be intended for Ralph de Blanchminster, who was Lord of the Manor at a very early period. In the parish-register occurs the following remarkable instance of longevity:—“Elizabeth Cornish, widow, buried March 10th, 1691. This Elizabeth Cornish was baptized in October, 1578: her father’s name was John Veale: she was, when she died, in the 114th year, having lived at least 113 years, four months, and 15 days.” It appears also by the register, that not less than 153 persons died of the plague in this small town, in the year 1547: and in 1729, out of 49 persons buried, 42 fell victims to that destructive distemper the small-pox.

The lands given to the church of Stratton, for the maintenance of the poor of the parish are very considerable, and chiefly vested in eight persons, who have the appropriation of the rent of them.—There is also in the church, the following epitaph, to the memory of one of these eight trustees, and which is rather a curious piece of composition.

About two miles north from Stratton, is the small port of Bude, which is much resorted to in the summer 89season for sea-bathing. The trade of this place will be greatly increased when the Canal, now making, is completed: the chief exports are timber, bark, and oats; the imports, coal and lime-stone from Wales, and groceries, &c., from Bristol. The harbour, on account of its sands, is best adapted to vessels not exceeding 60 tons burden: but occasionally, vessels of from 80 to 90 tons enter it; and one of more than 90 tons was built at Bude in 1813 for the trade of this port. Great quantities of sea sand are carried from hence for manure, not only into the neighbouring parishes, but into the north of Devonshire, to the distance of 20 miles and upwards.

Kilkhampton, about four miles north of East Stratton, is remarkable for the singular beauty of its Church. It is a large edifice, said to have been erected by a Baron of the Grenville line, who came into England with William the Conqueror, and whose arms are sculptured in many parts of the building.

The whole fabric is a light and rich piece of workmanship, particularly the southern entrance, a semicircular arch, round which is a very curious zig-zag Anglo-Norman moulding, in fine preservation. The interior contains three aisles, divided by slender pillars, supporting obtuse Gothic arches, and has an elegant appearance. It is embellished with several handsome memorials, but the most remarkable one is, the monument of Sir Beville Grenville,^[36] who was slain in the civil wars; and as Hervey says, “swords and spears, murdering engines and instruments of slaughter, adorn the stone with formidable magnificence.” It bears the following inscription:

“Here lyes all that was mortal of the most noble and truly valiant Sir Beville Grenville, of Stowe, in the county of Cornwall, Earl of Corbill, and Lord of Thorigny 90and Grenville, in France and Normandy, descended in a direct line from Robert, second son of the war-like Rollo, first Duke of Normandy, who, after having obtained divers signal victories over the rebels in the West, was at length slain, with many wounds, at the battle of Lansdowne, July 5, 1643. He married the most virtuous Lady, Grace, daughter of Sir George Smith, of the county of Devon, by whom he had many sons, eminent for their loyalty and firm adherence to the crown and church; and several daughters, remarkable examples of true piety. He was indeed an excellent person, whose activity, interest, and reputation, were the foundation of what had been done in Cornwall; his temper and affections so public, that no accident which happened could make any impression upon him, and his example kept others from taking any thing ill, or at least seeming to do so. In a word a higher courage and a gentler disposition were never married together, to make the most cheerful and innocent conversation.”

“To the immortal memory of his renowned grandfather, this monument was erected by the Right Honourable George Lord Lansdowne, Treasurer of the Household to Queen Anne, and one of Her Majesty’s most honourable Privy Council, &c., in the year 1714.”

Clarendon, in his History of the Rebellion, speaks of Sir Beville Grenville’s death as “that which would have clouded any victory, and made the loss of others less spoken of: and the monument is indebted to that noble author’s own words for all the latter part of the panegyric it is so properly intended to perpetuate.

The magnificent and old residence of the Grenville family, called Stowe, in this parish, has been pulled down many years, and the park dismantled. It was one of the most superb residences in England, and the beauty of the grounds and scenery adjacent, have been frequently eulogized. John Grenville, Earl of Bath in the reign of Charles II., erected it. It stood on an eminence, overlooking a well-wooded valley; but not a tree near it, says Dr. Borlase, to shelter it from the north-west. That writer speaks of it as by far the 92noblest house in the west of England, and says that the kitchen offices fitted up for a dwelling-house, made no contemptible figure. It is a singular circumstance, that the cedar wainscot, which had been brought out of a Spanish prize, and used by the Earl of Bath for fitting up the chapel in this mansion, was purchased by Lord Cobham at the time of its demolition (the house being then sold piecemeal) and applied to the same purpose at Stowe, the magnificent seat of the noble family of Grenville in Buckinghamshire, where it still remains.

Kilkhampton is noticed in history, as the place where the renowned and pious Harvey conceived his Meditations among the Tombs.

From Stratton to Bodmin; through Launceston, Callington, Saltash, St. Germains, and Liskeard.

The country between Stratton and Launceston, a distance of 12 miles, does not present anything requiring particular notice, except perhaps, within a few miles of the latter place bordering on Devon, Werrington Park, the seat of his Grace, the Duke of Northumberland. The house is rather a low building, and in point of architecture, is by no means imposing. The situation of the park, however, is particular fine, being highly diversified and embellished with some of the finest trees and foliage in the kingdom.

On entering St. Stephen’s, the attention of the traveller is immediately arrested by the handsome appearance of its Church, which is embellished with a handsome Gothic Tower, of great height. This edifice was rebuilt in the sixteenth century, and before the Conquest, was made collegiate; but suppressed through the influence 93of William Warlewast, Bishop of Exeter, who founded a Priory of Austin Monks in the adjoining parish of St. Thomas. This continued until the dissolution of religious houses in the reign of Henry VIII., when its annual revenues were valued at 354£. 0s. 11½d.; yet not a vestige of it has been in existence for many years.

A most interesting view of Launceston presents itself from the bridge of Newport, and the Keep of its venerable castle rises with awful dignity over the surrounding houses. The accompanying view is taken from the position alluded to.

Newport Church, generally called St. Thomas, is a small fabric of a very antient appearance, and here are several decayed houses, which exhibit the nature of domestic architecture a few centuries past.^[39]

After ascending a steep hill, and passing through the north gate, stands Launceston, one of the most antient towns in the county, on the great western road to the Land’s End, distant 214 miles from London. This town ranks as one of the principal in the county, and from the influence it formerly possessed, from being fortified with a noble castle and embattled walls, it has enjoyed in early reigns, many privileges and immunities; but was not, however, incorporated until the reign of Queen Mary, in the year 1555. It has returned members to Parliament, however, since the reign of Edward I. The right of election is in the Corporation and free Burgesses.

The assizes for the county were formerly held wholly in this town; but an act was passed in the first of George I. to empower the proper authorities to hold the summer assizes at Bodmin.

The magnificent ruins of the Castle are still highly 94interesting to the antiquary, and few subjects are better calculated for the pencil of the artist; their form being highly picturesque, and which are highly pleasing from being richly over-grown with ivy. The accompanying view exhibits the remains of the principal entrance, with the majestic and venerable keep rising above, together with the walls now fast falling to decay.

Regarding the origin of this antient fortress, little is known that may be deemed authentic; but, according to historians, it is said to have been in existence long prior to the conquest, which opinion is materially strengthened, from this neighbourhood having been the scene of many severe contests with the antient Britons and Saxons. After the conquest, it was given to the Earl of Morteyne, to whom no less than 288 manors in this county were also granted by William the Conqueror.

The remains chiefly consist of a Gateway, a small Tower at the south-east angle, some decayed walls and the keep. The latter is 93 feet in diameter, and the height of the parapet from the base of the conical rocky mount on which the keep stands, is upwards of 100 feet. The ascent to it is on the south side, but the steps are mostly wanting, and to get its summit is now become even dangerous. It consists of three wards, each surrounded by a circular wall; the outer one, or parapet wall, is not more than three feet thick; the second wall is about six feet from the former, near four times as thick, and considerably higher; but between these two, a staircase leads to the top of the ramparts. The inner wall is 10 feet thick, and 38 feet high, and the diameter of the inclosed area is about 18 feet. This is said to have been divided into two apartments, and the lower one, having no light, is supposed originally to have been a dungeon, but the whole pile has become so extremely ruinous, that it is impossible to state exactly how, and for what purpose it was originally constructed. The doorways of the keep are chiefly composed of round arches, 95and a curious Saxon doorway, now forming the entrance to the White Hart Inn, is supposed to have belonged formerly to the castle. Lysons, however, concludes that it came from the antient priory at St. Thomas, above alluded to.

This fortress, like most others in the county, had in former reigns a governor; but the mode in which buildings of this kind are in general constructed, render them ill calculated as places of residence. It appears that Launceston Castle was in ruins as early as the reign of Edward III., although it was a post of much consequence during the civil wars in after times. At the Restoration it was granted to Sir Hugh Pyper, Knt. (who lies buried in the church here,) and was in the possession of his grandson, till the year 1754. It now belongs to his Grace, the Duke of Northumberland.

The Church is a large handsome structure, composed of square blocks of granite, each of which is enriched with carved ornaments. The porch on the south side is particularly beautiful, and has a very striking appearance from the street adjoining. At the eastern end, also highly sculptured, is a curious figure of a Magdalene, in a recumbent posture. The interior contains several monuments, but none meriting particular observation. On the north side of the church is a very pleasant promenade sheltered by an avenue of trees, which is enlivened by a very extensive and beautiful prospect of the distant country.

Part of the old wall that surrounded the town and two Gateways still remain: the one on the eastern or Exeter road, has a very antient and interesting appearance. The accompanying view which represents this gateway, is taken from the road leading to Callington.

The houses in the town are in general well built, but the streets are very narrow and badly paved. There are two Charity-Schools maintained by voluntary subscriptions, and a Free School founded in the reign of 96Queen Elizabeth, and endowed with an income payable out of the revenues of the Duchy of Cornwall.

The market at this town is well supplied with all kinds of provision, and remarkably cheap. There are also no less than six fairs, held here annually. The town suffers much inconvenience in the summer season, from a scarcity of water.

The number of inhabitants, according to the late returns, amounted to 2163, and in 1811 to 1758, exclusive of the adjoining parishes of St. Thomas and St. Stephen’s.

Trebursy, near this town, a handsome modern residence, erected some distance from the site of the old house, is the property of the Hon. W. Eliot, M.P. late Colonel of the Cornwall Militia.

From Launceston to Callington, the distance is about 12 miles, and the country, as far as the first nine miles extend, is very beautiful and romantic. About three miles from Callington, in the parish of Stoke Clainsand, is Whiteford House, the seat of Sir William Pratt Call, Bart. It is a handsome building, standing in a beautiful and luxuriant valley, which, with the meandering water in front, has a very pleasant aspect. The fish ponds and gardens here are extremely fine, and kept in a high state of cultivation.

Callington is a market and Borough-town, situated in a flat and open part of the county, distant 214 miles from London. The houses are chiefly disposed in one broad street, and being very irregularly built, have rather a poor appearance.

The Church is an antient and spacious fabric, consisting of three aisles, the centre one very lofty, and was built chiefly at the expense of Nicholas de Asheton, one of his Majesty’s Justices of the Court of King’s Bench, who died in the year 1645, and lies buried in the chancel, where there is a handsome brass plate with effigies of himself and lady.

97There is also a handsome alabaster tomb, to the memory of Lord Willoughby de Broke, lord of the manor, who died in the year 1502. In the church-yard is a very antient octagonal cross, surrounded with some antient sculpture, but it has been most shamefully defaced.

This town is governed by a Portreve, who is chosen annually, at the court leet of the lord of the manor. The elective franchises of the inhabitants were lately determined by a committee of the House of Commons, but the members are usually returned by the freeholders and resident leaseholders.

The prospects from the summit of Kitt Hill on Hengeston Downs, near Callington, are very extensive; comprehending the windings of the Tamar, the Hamoaze, Plymouth Sound, Mount Edgecumbe, and surrounding country. About five miles from Callington, in the parish of Calstock, is Cotehele or Cuttayle House, one of the most antient and curious constructed mansions in England. It is situated on a pleasing eminence on the western bank of the Tamar; but being almost surrounded with wood, the river can only be seen from some of the windows of the higher apartments. There is no account when this mansion was erected; but from the style of architecture, is supposed to have been built about the time of Henry VII. It is a very irregular pile of building, inclosing a small quadrangle, the approach to which is through a square gateway tower on the south side. At the north angle, is a large square tower, which contains the principal apartments.

This place from the beauty of its situation and other local circumstances, has excited great curiosity, and parties of pleasure make frequent water excursions to it in the summer: boats for such purposes are to be hired at Plymouth or Saltash.

98The entrance hall opening from the quadrangle, is embellished with a collection of antient armour, and warlike instruments; and gives a true picture of the feudal dignity of antient times. The several apartments in the house are enriched with a great variety of curious old articles of furniture, such as carved ebony chairs, cabinets, &c. There is besides, some very fine tapestry, ornamented with the figures of Romulus and Remus, &c., in good preservation. The chapel connected with the dining room is small, and was originally ornamented with painted glass windows. The altar cloth, composed of rich velvet embroidered, is ornamented with the figures of the Twelve Apostles, and other appropriate embellishments.

This mansion has belonged to the Edgecumbe family since the reign of Edward III.; and here Sir Richard Edgecumbe, who was attached to the House of Lancaster, concealed himself from the tyranny of Richard III. In remembrance of his miraculous escape, he erected the small chapel which stands on a rocky precipice, close to the river.

In the month of August, 1789, their late Majesties, with the Princess Royal and the Princesses Augusta and Elizabeth, honoured this old mansion with a visit, and breakfasted with the Earl and Countess of Mount Edgecumbe.

Calstock Church stands about half a mile from the village, on a commanding eminence, and is a small antient fabric, containing several memorials of the Edgecumbes.

About a mile from the church, is Harewood House, the seat of Salisbury Trelawney, Esq. It is a handsome building, erected on one of the most delightful spots of the banks of the Tamar. Mason in his poem of Elfrida, has made Harewood the scene of the loves of Ethelwold, and of the misfortunes consequent to his union with the fair daughter of Edgar.

99The village of Calstock is situated close to the side of the river, and here is a regular ferry to Beer Alston, in Devonshire.

About three miles from hence, is Pentillie Castle, the seat of John Tillie Coryton, Esq. which was erected a few years ago, from designs by Wilkins, on the site of an old family mansion. It is a very beautiful Gothic structure, with a majestic portico on the south side, surmounted with pinnacles, and being built on a bold eminence rising abruptly from the river Tamar, it really possesses a commanding and dignified appearance. The interior contains a number of spacious apartments finished in a handsome and costly manner.

The approach to the house is embellished with a neat Gothic Lodge, on the road leading to Saltash; and the grounds are enriched with a variety of beautiful plantations. In the grounds is a Tower or Sepulchral Building, erected for Sir James Tillie, whose interment here has given rise to a tale, that being of Atheistical principles, he had directed himself to be placed after his death, in a chair therein, with bottles, glasses, &c. to perpetuate his derision of a future existence. The fact however, of his being buried in a coffin, was proved a few years ago; and from his will, it is clear that he died in the “hope of a glorious immortality.”

From hence to Saltash, the distance is six miles, and about a mile and a half to the left, in the church of the village of Landulph, is the following remarkable inscription:

There is also a large tomb in the chancel, with a handsome marble slab to the memory of Sir Nicholas Lower and his lady.

The Parsonage House has been greatly improved, and commands a beautiful prospect of the river and Saltash. It contains a good library, and a few paintings by some of the antient masters. Much praise is due to the present incumbent, the Rev. F. V. I. Arundell, for having raised an embankment round the house, and for bringing the grounds into a high state of cultivation, and for improving the plantations.

About two miles from hence, in the parish of Botus Fleming, is Moditonham, the seat of Charles Carpenter, Esq. a commodious modern building, most delightfully situated, and commanding some extensive views of the surrounding country.

In the Church, a small venerable pile, is a recumbent figure of a crusader with a sword and target, which was accidentally discovered about three years ago, on the removal of some old wainscot.

In the centre of a field, at the north side of the village, stands a pyramidical monument, erected in memory of Dr. William Martin, of Plymouth, who died in the year 1762.

The town of Saltash principally consists of one long street rising abruptly from the Tamar, to a considerable eminence, and the houses in general have an antient appearance. It is a place, as Carew observes, which, owing to the steep ascent on which it is situated, “every shower washes clean.” It is also of great antiquity, and in the year 1393, the assizes for the county are said to have been held here. During the civil wars it was considered of much importance, being one of 101the principal passes into the county. It was first garrisoned by the Parliament, and surrendered without opposition to Sir Ralph Hopton, in the autumn of 1642. General Ruthen, finding it open after his defeat at Bradock-down, in January, 1643, took possession, and hastily fortified it; but it was soon afterwards taken by assault, by Lord Mohun and Sir Ralph Hopton: a garrison was left in it in the month of May that year, but on the approach of the Earl of Essex, it was given up the latter end of July, 1644. We are told that on this occasion Sir Edward Waldegrave gallantly defended the pass, and, as it appears, with temporary success. After the capitulation of Essex, Saltash was again taken possession of by Sir Richard Grenville: in the month of October following, it was taken by a detachment from the garrison at Plymouth: Sir Richard Grenville afterwards recovered it by assault: and it was finally abandoned by the King’s troops in the month of February, 1646.

Saltash is governed by a Mayor, six Aldermen, and an indefinite number of burgesses; but they generally amount to about 30. It was made a free borough in the reign of King John, or that of Henry III., by Reginald de Valletort, who confirmed to the burgesses various privileges which they had enjoyed under his ancestors: these privileges were confirmed by King Richard II. In the year 1682, Charles II. granted this borough a renewed charter of incorporation, under which the body-corporate was defined to consist of a Mayor and six Aldermen, styled the council of the borough, who had liberty to chose a Recorder: but the charter first mentioned, in virtue of which the town is now governed, was procured in 1774. It has returned members to Parliament since the reign of Edward VI. The right of voting is confined to the freeholders of the borough, amounting to about 70 persons. Some names of eminence appear in the list of its representatives; as 102Sir Francis Cottington, Edward Hyde, afterwards Earl of Clarendon, and Edmund Waller the poet.

The Chapel is an antient structure, having Gothic windows and a massive tower. It contains a handsome altar piece. In the north aisle there is a superb monument to the memory of three brothers, named Drew, officers in the navy, who were unfortunately drowned.

Saltash has a market weekly, and four fairs annually; and over the river is a constant ferry; boats are to be had at a short notice, for Plymouth Dock, or any place in its vicinity. The market mentioned as attached to the castle of Trematon, when the survey of Domesday was taken, was probably held at Saltash: it is spoken of in that survey as a new market of the Earl’s, which had been prejudicial to the Abbot’s market at St. Germain’s. The small weekly market for butcher’s meat is held on Saturday: an old writer says, that the burgesses claimed another market on Tuesday, but that it was not in his time held. The present fairs are on the Tuesday before each quarter-day, (the remnant, probably, of the Tuesday’s market,) February 2, and July 25: the two last are for horned cattle and sheep. The tolls of the market and fairs belong to the Corporation, who are entitled to the proceeds of the ferry over the Tamar, the privilege of dredging for oysters, the farm and tolls of oysters, and certain duties payable by masters of ships; which altogether produced about £300 per annum in 1714.

Leland speaks of “Asche (Saltash) as a praty quick market town. The tounesmen,” he says, “use boothe merchandise and fischery.” Norden says, “the towne increaseth daylie in merchandise and wealth: there belonge unto the towne some 8 ships besydes small boates. The haven is capable of anie burden. The great carrack that Sir Frauncis Drake browghte home so rich, arrived here, and was here disburdened, and after fatally fyred.”

103The remains of Trematon Castle are situated on a commanding eminence on the northern bank of the river Lynher, just below Saltash, but the carriage road to it, a very pleasing ride, extends at least two miles from the town. Proceeding in the latter direction, about half way, the tower of St. Stephen’s Church has a conspicuous appearance. It is remarkable as containing a variety of antient memorials, but many of them are much defaced. Carew relates, that in the church of St. Stephen’s a leaden coffin was found about the middle of the sixteenth century; but the grounds on which he supposes it to have been that of Orgarius, Duke of Cornwall, are very weak; for it appears that all he learned from his informant, who had been an eye-witness of the discovery fourscore years before, was, that an inscription on the lead imported it to contain the body of a Duke, whose heiress married a Prince. One of the monuments in this church, is for Master Hechins, as Carew calls him, lessee of the great tithes in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. The church was given to Windsor College by Edward the Black Prince.

On approaching the Castle, its venerable Keep arises majestically amidst the surrounding foliage, and with the little bridge and cottages in the valley, forms altogether a very picturesque subject. The entrance is through a small arch on the north side, and a circular road, leading to it, has been lately cut through the hill on which it stands. The site of the area covers more than an acre of ground, and is enclosed by embattled walls, six feet in thickness. The keep stands on the summit of a conical mound at the north-west angle, embattled with walls 10 feet thick and 30 high. The space enclosed is of an oval form, and was formerly divided into apartments, but as there are no marks of windows, they would appear to have been lighted from the top. The entrance to it was through a circular arched doorway on the western side, from whence an 104irregular path leads to a small sally-port; but the most perfect part of the building is the principal gateway, composed of three strong arches, with grooves for portcullises between them. These arches support a square tower, embattled, containing an apartment, which has been fitted up as a museum for natural curiosities. The walls are decorated with some of the finest tapestry in England, the colours being as bright as if it had only lately been finished.

Regarding the origin of this antient fortress, little is known, that may be deemed authentic; but it is generally believed, like most other buildings of a like nature, to have been originally erected prior to the Conquest. Afterwards it was given to Robert, Earl of Moreteyne and Cornwall, and in subsequent reigns was annexed to the Duchy of Cornwall. During the civil wars of the eighteenth century, we find no account of this castle’s having been occupied by either of the contending parties: but Carew relates, that during the Cornish commotions in 1549, Sir Richard Grenville held Trematon for a while against the rebels; but that having been induced to quit it, for the purpose of holding a parly with the beseigers, they intercepted his return, seized on the castle, sent him a prisoner to Launceston gaol, and plundered and ill-treated his lady and her attendants.—A few years ago it was leased to Benjamin Tucker, Esq. Surveyor General of the Duchy of Cornwall, and who was for many years Secretary to the gallant Admiral, Earl St. Vincent. This gentleman has erected a very comfortable residence within the area, and embellished it with a great variety of choice paintings and other works of art. Among the most valuable is “La fameuse Aurore de Natier,” a picture well known on the Continent, besides the Twelve Cæsars, by Goltzius. There is also the celebrated organ which was made by Mr. Moore, of Ipswich, for the Empress of Russia, at the price of £16,000, and a most beautiful 105specimen of shell-work, which was formed in the Brazils, and the construction of which is said to have occupied two nuns the whole of their lives. The garden round the house, is laid out with great taste, and embellished with a good hot-house. In one part of it, on a marble slab, is a bust of Admiral St. Vincent, with the following inscription from the eclogues of Virgil.

A short distance from the castle, near the ferry across Anthoney Passage, are some small remains of an antient Chapel, called Shillingham, which is richly over-grown with ivy.

The manor of Ashe-torre, or Esses-torre, the site of which is a rock at the bottom of Saltash town, abutting on the water, has an extensive jurisdiction, although it was itself held as seven fees under the honor of Trematon. Carew speaks of this rock as “invested with the jurisdiction of a manor, and that it claymed the suites of many gentlemen as his freeholders in knights’ service.” This manor, which extends its jurisdiction into several parishes in Cornwall and Devonshire, belonged to the ancient family of Fleming of Devonshire, Barons of Slane in Ireland: it was sold in the sixteenth century, by Nicholas and Robert Dillon, sons and heirs of Anne, one of the sisters and co-heiresses of Christopher Fleming, Baron of Slane, to Thomas Wyvell, Esq. from whose family it passed, by a female heir, to the ancestor of Francis Wills, Esq. of Saltash. The site of this manor is thus described in old papers:—“All that messuage, dwellinghouse, palace, &c. and waste ground in and nigh Ashe-torre Rock, with the remains of houses, on which premises manor-courts were held, all unconnected with any other person’s land, and forming a peninsula, situated at the bottom of Fore street or road, in the borough of Saltash, on a rock, part of which abutteth 106into the sea.”—A record of the year 1620 is said to have claimed Wadsworthy as parcel of the demesne of the manor of Ashe-torre.

Ince Castle, the seat of Edward Smith, Esq. is an interesting building, situated on the banks of the Lynher, and forms a conspicuous object in this part of the county.

Returning to the high road at the distance of three miles, is Landrake, the Church of which is remarkable for its high tower, which is visible for many miles round. In the interior is a curious brass plate, dated 1509, with an effigy of Edward Courtenay, Esq., and a monument to the memory of Nicholas Wylls, Gent., who died in the year 1607.

Wootton, an antient seat in this parish, has long since gone entirely to decay.

Near Landrake is Stockton, the seat of Admiral de Courcy, a modern mansion, commanding many interesting views. The interior contains a number of war-like instruments, and a variety of natural curiosities.

From Landrake to St. Germains, a decayed market and Borough-town, the distance is three miles. This place is remarkable as having been in early time, the seat of the episcopal government of the diocese of the county; and it takes its name from St. Germain, Bishop of Auxerre, who is said to have resided here for a time, during his visit to England. It is situated in a very romantic dell, on the borders of a creek formed by the river Lynher, about nine miles from Plymouth and eight from Liskeard; but is one of the largest parishes in the county, being 20 miles in circumference. It has been represented in Parliament since the year 1562; the right of electing the members being vested in the inhabitant householders, who have resided 12 months within the Borough. The town, as it is called, which contains less than 100 dwellings, is governed by a Portreve, chosen annually at the Court Leet. Leland 107spoke of it as “a poor fischar town,” and he adds, that “the glory of it stood by the priory.” Carew observed, “the church-towne mustereth many inhabitants and sundry ruines, but little wealth, occasioned eyther through abandoning their fishing trade, as some conceive, or by their being abandoned of the religious people, as the greater sort imagine.” Its market scarcely existed even when the survey of Domesday was taken; having been reduced almost to nothing in consequence of the Earl of Moreton’s market (most probably Saltash) then lately established in the neighbourhood. This market was at that time held on Sundays; but the day was afterwards altered to Friday: in Browne Willis’s time it was very inconsiderable, and has long been wholly discontinued. There are two cattle fairs, held May 28, and August 1.

Whitaker supposes the bishop’s see to have been established at this place, so early as the year 614. That St. Germains was the episcopal see as long as an episcopal see existed in the county of Cornwall, he has proved in the most satisfactory manner; but of its existence at that early period, his learned volumes on the subject of the Cathedral of Cornwall afford no proof; nor have we any intimation from history of any Bishop of St. Germains before the year 910, when Athelstan was appointed to that see. King Athelstan, who founded a college of Seculars here, made Conan Bishop of St. Germains in 936. After the death of Bishop Burwold, Livingus, Bishop of Crediton, procured this bishopric to be annexed to his own, and his successor Leofric made interest to have them both united to that of Exeter. Leland says, that Bartholomew (Iscanus) Bishop of Exeter, who died in 1172, changed the Monks of St. Germains into Canons Regular, on account of the laxity of their lives. At the suppression of this monastery in 1535, it was valued at £227. 4s. 8d. clear yearly income. King Henry VIII. 108leased the site of the priory and other lands to John Campernown and others; relative to which grant, Carew has the following story. “John Champernowne, sonne and heir apparent to Sir Philip of Devon, in Henry the Eighth’s time, followed the court, and through his pleasant conceits, of which much might be spoken, wan some good grace with the King. Now when the golden showre of the dissolved abbey lands rayned wellnere into every gaper’s mouth, some two or three gentlemen (the King’s servants,) and Master Champernowne’s acquaintance, waited at a doore where the King was to passe forth, with purpose to beg such a matter at his hands: our gentleman became inquisitive to know their suit; they made strange to impart it. This while, out comes the King: they kneel down; so doth Master Champernowne. They preferre their petition; the King grants it: they render humble thanks; and so doth Master Champernowne. Afterwards, he requireth his share; they deny it: he appeals to the King: the King avoweth his equal meaning in the largesse; whereon, the overtaken companions were fayne to allot him this priory for his partage.” Norden has strangely mistaken this story, and says, that King Henry VIII. bestowed the priory of St. Germains upon an ancestor of the Eliots, “being full of pleasant conceytes wherewith the Kinge was delited.” It is certain that the Champernownes became sole possessors of the priory estate, and that in 1565 they conveyed it to Richard Eliot, Esq., of Coteland, in Devonshire, in exchange for that manor. Sir John Eliot, son of Richard, was a distinguished patriot in the reign of James I., and an active opposer of the Duke of Buckingham and the court measures, particularly that of raising taxes without the consent of Parliament: for some bold speeches on this subject he was committed to the tower, where he died in the year 1632. Daniel Eliot, his grandson, left an only daughter, married to Browne Willis, the celebrated 109antiquary, by whom we are informed that his father-in-law, in order to keep up the family name, bequeathed his estates of Edward Eliot, grandson of Nicholas, fourth son of Sir John above-mentioned, from whom they descended to the present possessor.

It appears that the Cathedral, now the Parish Church, was first built in the reign of Athelstan, when it formed a part of the Priory, founded at the same time for Secular Canons. On the removal of the diocese to Exeter, the manor of St. Germains was divided between the Bishop and the Prior of the convent. On the Priory site a spacious mansion has been erected for the residence of the Eliot family, and is now the property of the Right Hon. the Earl of St. Germains. It is called Port-Eliot, but was formerly called Porth-Prior. The exterior is not very striking; perhaps “its simplicity,” says a late writer, “is more correspondent to the scenery by which it is surrounded, and which is rather to be called pleasing than picturesque or grand.” The interior, however, is embellished with some fine portraits by Sir Joshua Reynolds, Rembrant, Opie, &c.

The Church almost adjoins Port Eliot House, and in point of architectural beauty, is equal, if not superior to any in the county.

At the west end are two towers, both of which are said formerly to have been octagonal, but the south one is now of a square form, and contains the clock. Between the towers is a remarkably fine entrance doorway, or circular receding arch, 20 feet wide, with four pillars on each side, having plain square bases and capitals. The arch contains seven mouldings, with alternate zig-zag ornaments, which is also continued between the pillars. Over the arch is a pediment, with a cross at the top resembling an heraldic cross. Above are three narrow round-headed windows, and as great part of the edifice is richly mantled with ivy, it forms a very interesting and beautiful subject for the pencil. The interior 110is spacious; and the capitals of the pillars which divide the aisles from the nave, are curiously ornamented with Saxon sculpture. It contains a great variety of memorials, but the most remarkable are those for the learned Walter Moyle, who died at the age of 49, in the year 1721, and the superb monument by Rysbrack, in memory of Edward Eliot, Esq. who died in the following year. A white marble tablet, to the memory of Elizabeth, wife of John Glanville, Esq., has the following beautiful lines inscribed on it.

In the south aisle is a low ornamented recess, said to have contained the effigy of an abbot of the convent. Another recess is called the Bishop’s throne; and among other relics of antiquity, is preserved a curious carved oaken chair, supposed to have belonged to one of the monks.—“A great part of the chauncell” of this church, as Carew relates, “fell suddenly downe upon a Friday, very shortly after the publick service was ended, which heavenly favour, of so little respite, saved many persons’ lives, with whom immediately before it had been stuffed; and the devout charges of the well-disposed parishioners quickly repayred this ruine.”

Cuddenbeck the antient seat of the Bishops, has long been occupied as a farm, and now exhibits but little of its ancient episcopal grandeur.

Quitting St. Germains, at the distance of about a mile, is the direct coach road from Tor Point, and within four miles of Liskeard is Catchfrench, the seat of Francis Glanville, Esq., which being built on an eminence, has 111a commanding effect; although it is a very comfortable and spacious building, yet it does not possess much architectural beauty. The west front is embattled and faced with slate, and at a distance, with the surrounding scenery, has a pleasing effect.

The road from Tor Point to Liskeard is extremely hilly, and in many places even dangerous.

Coledrimick, another spacious mansion like Catchfrench, is also in the parish of St. Germains. It stands about a mile from the road, and within three miles of Liskeard.

Near this also on the right, is the village of Menheniot, the Church of which is a very large edifice with a lofty spire, visible at a considerable distance. This building contains memorials for the families of Carminow and Burell; J. Trelawney, of Coldrinnick, Dean of Exeter; and Lady Charlotte, daughter of James, Earl of Errol, Lord High Constable of Scotland, and wife of William Holwell Carr, B. D., incumbent of the parish, who died in 1801. The vicarage is one of the most valuable benefices in Cornwall, being endowed with the great tithes, subject only to an annual payment of £20 to Exeter College, Oxford. The Dean and Chapter of Exeter are patrons, but pursuant to the directions of Bishop Courtenay, must nominate a fellow of Exeter College. William of Wykham was vicar of this parish: and Dr. Moreman, a learned divine, who was instituted to the vicarage in the reign of Henry VIII., is said to have been the first in these parts who taught and catechised his parishioners in the English language.

The parish of Menheniot abounds with beautiful scenery; its numerous vallies being pleasingly diversified with rock and wood.

Here is a very antient and curious building called Pool, now occupied by the poor of the parish; but remarkable as having been the seat of the ancestors of the present Sir Harry Trelawny; though Carew speaks 112of it as being far beneath the worth and calling of its then possessor, Sir Jonathan Trelawny. It is now fast mouldering to decay, but displays some very interesting specimens of antient architecture. On the south front, which was the principal entrance, (and exhibited in the accompanying view) is a massive chimney, which age and other circumstances have inclined three feet from its perpendicular; and at this time perhaps, it is chiefly, if not wholly, supported by the ivy which grows about it.

Liskeard is a large and populous market town, situated on rocky hills, and partly in a bottom, about 16 miles from Plymouth, and 223 from London. This place ranks as one of the oldest towns in the county; and it had once a Castle, supposed to have been erected by one of the Earls of Cornwall. It stood on the north side of the town, and its site is still called the Castle Hill; but, even in Leland’s time, it was little more than a heap of ruinous walls. The manor of Liskeard formed a part of their ancient possessions; Liskeard having been made a free borough in 1240, by Richard Earl of Cornwall and King of the Romans, who bestowed on the burgesses the same privileges which he had already granted to those of Launceston and Helston. His son Edmund, in 1275, granted them the fee of the borough, with the profits arising from the markets, fairs, &c., subject to a rent of £18 per annum, which rent King William III. granted to Lord Somers: it is now paid to Lord Eliot, who purchased it of the late Lord Somers.

The Church is a spacious edifice, standing on an eminence at the eastern entrance to the town. It is composed of three aisles, with a low embattled tower at the west end, on which are some curious grotesque heads. The southern part of the building is the most handsome, and over the porch are three Gothic niches. It contains but few monuments worthy of notice.—In 113the south aisle, is a neat cenotaph to the memory of Lieut. Joseph Hawkey, who was killed in action with some gun boats in the Gulph of Finland, in July 1809, in the 23rd year of his age. There is another for Joseph Wadham, who died in 1707, “being the last of that family, whose ancestors were the founders of Wadham College in Oxford.”

Liskeard has returned members to Parliament, since the reign of Edward the I.; the right of election being vested in the corporation and freemen. The former, according to the charter of Elizabeth, consists of a Mayor, Recorder, eight capital Burgesses, and 15 Assistants.^[40] In the list of representatives for this borough, we find the name of Lord Chief Justice Coke.

Leland speaks of the Market at Liskeard as “the best in Cornwall, savyng Bodmyn.” In his time the market was held on Monday, and there are still three great markets on that day; Shrove-Monday, the Monday after Palm Sunday, and the Monday after St. Nicholas’s Day. Browne Willis tells us that this market much exceeded that of Bodmin: it was then held, as it now is, on Saturday. It is most amply supplied with all sorts of provisions; a great portion of which is purchased for the supply of the market at Plymouth Dock. There are three large cattle-fairs; upon Holy Thursday, the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, and St. Matthew’s Day. Liskeard is one of the four towns for the coinage of tin; but there has been no coinage held there of late years.

The Town Hall was erected about the year 1707, at the expense of Mr. Dolben, one of the representatives for the borough. It is a curious structure supported by granite columns; and the meat market is held in the space between them.

The trade of the town is not of any particular description; but such as most country towns enjoy, where the neighbouring agriculturists carry on the farming business to a great extent. There is, however, a Paper Mill in the neighbourhood, which perhaps does not so particularly affect the place.

The population of the town, according to the late census, amounts to 1896, being an increase of but 101 persons, since the year 1811. Browne Willis speaks of Liskeard as the largest town in Cornwall, containing as he was informed, 1000 houses. He must have been much misinformed; as the population appears, by the parish-register, to have been considerably increased within the last century, and in 1801 there were but 323 houses, and 1860 inhabitants.

The town consists of several streets very irregularly built; still the houses are in general substantial, and slate-roofed. It has two good Inns, called the Bell, and the King’s Arms.

Here was formerly a Nunnery of Poor Clares, founded and endowed by Richard, Earl of Cornwall and King of the Romans, but of which we have not been able to obtain any further account. A great part of the conventual buildings, known by the name of the Great Place, yet remains, converted into dwelling-houses; and the Chapel is now a bake-house.

A battle was fought near Liskeard on the 19th of January, 1643, between Sir Ralph Hopton, and the Parliamentary forces, in which the latter were defeated; Sir Ralph marching into the town with his army that night. King Charles, on his entrance into Cornwall in 1644, halted at Liskeard on the 2nd of August, and stayed there till the 7th.

A survey of the year 1337, in the Treasurer’s Remembrancer’s Office, speaks of a new Park at this 115place, in which were then 200 deer: it was disparked by Henry VIII., and the land which it comprised (still called the Park) is now held on lease by Lord Eliot. There was formerly a chapel in this park, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, to which there was a great resort of pilgrims.—There are three Meeting-houses in the town, belonging to the Independents, Quakers, and Methodists: the former was originally built by the Johnson family, for the Presbyterians. Defoe, in his Tour through Great Britain in the early part of the last century, speaks of it as a large new-built meeting-house; and observes, that there were only three more in Cornwall. A volume of Poems by the Rev. Henry Moore, some time minister of this Meeting, was published after his death, under the superintendance of Dr. Aikin.—The Grammar-School here is supported by the corporation, with a salary of £30 per annum: Dean Prideaux, and Walter Moyle, were educated at this school. A Charity-School for poor children, in which 10 girls are now taught, was founded by the trustees of the charitable donation of the Rev. St. John Eliot, who died in 1760, and endowed by them with £5 per annum.

The Church of St. Cleer, a village three miles north-west of the town, is an interesting fabric, with a lofty tower, surmounted with pinnacles at the angles, and the buttresses which support it are embellished with purfled fineals. The antient Well of St. Cleer, about a mile from the church, is a pleasing subject for the pencil, the top being richly overgrown with ivy. Near it is a Stone Cross, ornamented at the top with some rude sculpture.

In this neighbourhood are several other objects highly interesting to the antiquary. The Hurlers, when perfect, consisted of three circles of upright stones from three to five feet high, but several of them have been removed. According to historians, these monuments of antiquity are said to have been of Druidical 116origin; but the name of hurlers is most probably derived from an opinion among the common people, that the stones were once men, who were transformed for Hurling (a favorite game among the antient Cornish people) on the sabbath day.

The Cheese-Wring is a natural pile of rocks 32 feet high, of eight stones, or layers, apparently placed one above another, the largest at the top: considering its perilous form and exposed situation, how this pile has withstood the rage of storms for so many ages, is a matter of just astonishment.

The Cromlech, or Trewethy Stone, as it is generally called, standing on an eminence some distance from the Cheese-Wring, may be ranked as one of the greatest antiquities in the county. It consists of six upright stones, and one large slab, covering them in an inclined position. This impext measures 16 feet in length, and 10 broad, and is, at a medium, about 14 inches thick. It rests on five of the uprights only, and at its upper end it is perforated by a small circular hole. No tradition exists as to the time of its erection; but, its name at once designates its being a work of the Britons, and sepulchral.^[41]

The village of St. Neot’s, four miles from Liskeard, has long been celebrated for possessing a church, embellished with some of the finest painted glass windows in the kingdom. They amount to 17, and display various subjects connected with the legend of St. Neot, Portraits of Saints, the History of the Creation, &c., but some of them have unfortunately been defaced by ignorant or malicious depredators.

The Church is a handsome fabric, built of granite, and from the style of architecture is supposed not to be older than the reign of Henry VI. It stands on a rising ground at the head of the village, and has a dignified appearance, especially when contrasted with the humble dwellings near it.

117A correspondent has favoured us with the following additional particulars relative to St. Neot’s:—

This village is about four miles west of Liskeard. Until the close of the ninth century, it was called Ham-stoke; from that period till the Conquest, or later, it had the name of Neot-stoke; it received its present name soon after. About the middle of the ninth century, St. Neot (a pious hermit, who had been Sacristan at Glastonbury Abbey) retired here. His pool is still shown; respecting which there are some curious traditions.^[42] The Saint erected a College of Priests, and a church here, (on the site of the more antient Chapel of St. Guerir,) in which he was buried in 877: the edifice was rebuilt in 884. The present Church was erected in 1480.^[43] It is an elegant building, consisting of a nave and two side aisles. Its greatest ornament is its beautifully stained glass; of which a considerable portion remains in a mutilated state. Many of the legends of these richly “storied windows,” have perished: Mr. Gorham ^[44] has preserved 85: in 1786, Mr. Forster published a coarse outlined engraving of the windows, containing the legends of St. Neot, and of St. George.

On the north side of the Chancel (where was doubtless the Saxon Chapel) is a small recess, from which projected one end of a stone casket, 18 inches by 14. Here were preserved some remains of Neot; the founders of St. Neot’s Priory in Huntingdonshire, having left “one arm”^[45] of the Saint for the Cornish Church, when 118they stole the greater part of the treasure about 974! In October, 1795, this little cemetery was broken open by some intoxicated workmen, whose curiosity had been excited by a visit of Mr. Whitaker. The casket above-mentioned, was found to be a shallow cenotaph: behind it was a stone, closing the mouth of an aperture rudely formed in the solid wall; in this inner recess was discovered “about a quart of mould-earth, very fine in itself, yet adhering in clots, and dark in colour.”^[46] By the side of this cavity is a wooden tablet; on which are inscribed some quaint and puerile verses, supposed to have been written just before the Reformation: the narrative which they detail, is extremely inaccurate.

Returning from St. Neots to the high road, within four miles of Bodmin is Glynn House, the residence of E. J. Glynn, Esq., which has lately been rebuilt on the site of an elegant mansion, unfortunately destroyed by fire, about three years ago. This misfortune not only was a great loss to its worthy owner, but the literary world has suffered an irreparable one; for it contained one of the finest libraries in the county. The family also narrowly escaped, being all in their beds at the time, but were luckily apprized of their dangerous situation by a female domestic.—The present mansion is built at the bottom of a gentle declivity, in a very pleasing valley, and is therefore sheltered from the violence of the north-east winds. It is certainly a low structure, but contains a number of commodious apartments. The grounds round the house have been greatly improved, and now have a very pleasing aspect from the road.

After crossing an antient bridge over one part of the river Fowey, at Resprin, the antient mansion of Lanhydrock, situated at the head of a noble avenue of trees, nearly a mile in length, has a very striking effect. It is an embattled structure of granite, occupying three 119sides of a quadrangle, and the windows are divided by stone mullions. On the north side is a gallery 116 feet long, covered with a profusion of uncouth and ill-executed plastered figures. There are, however, a few family portraits, but none remarkable. In front of the house, is a large irregular building, with a fine circular arch, once a porter’s lodge; but as the owner of it, the Hon. Mr. Bagnal Agar, has not resided here for some years, the whole building is getting much out of repair, though as interesting a spot, perhaps, as any in the county.

The Church of Lanhydrock, almost adjoining the house, is a beautiful small edifice, with an embattled tower, finely mantled with ivy. The whole fabric has recently undergone a complete repair, and at the same time the antient character of the building has been judiciously preserved as much as possible.

The plantations in the grounds near the grand entrance lodge, are daily improving; and in a few years time will tend materially to the beauty of the domain.

About three miles from hence, is Bodmin, a large town, situated on the high western road, 243 miles from London, 30 from Plymouth, 21 from Launceston, and about 12 from the two channels on the north and south sides of the county. The late learned Mr. Whitaker, in his History of the Cathedral of Cornwall, has with much ability, proved the fallacy of the grounds upon which it was supposed to have been a bishop’s see; an error into which Dr. Borlase, Browne Willis, and other eminent antiquaries, had fallen; and has shewn very satisfactorily, that it was not the monastery at Bodmin, but another religious house dedicated to St. Petroc, near the sea-side, at Padstow, that was burnt by the Danes.

In early times, however, Bodmin possessed a Priory, a Convent of Grey Friars, and several other religious structures, of which there are now but few remains.

The Priory, which stood near the church, has gone 120entirely to decay, but a handsome modern house, called the Priory, erected on its site, is now the residence of Walter Raleigh Gilbert, Esq. This spot was first selected for religious retirement as early as the sixth century, by St. Guron and St. Petroc. It owed its origin to the circumstance of St. Petroc, its founder, having taken up his abode in a valley, now occupied by the town of Bodmin, but then the residence of St. Guron, a solitary recluse, who having resigned his hermitage to St. Petroc, it was by him enlarged for the residence of himself and three other devout men, who accompanied him with the intention of leading a monastic life according to the rules of St. Benedict. Here St. Petroc died before the middle of the sixth century. His shrine was preserved in a small chapel, attached to the east end of Bodmin church, as we learn from Leland and William of Worcester. The hermitage which he had founded, continued to be inhabited by monks of the Benedictine Order, till the reign of King Athelstan, who, in 926, founded, on or near the same spot, a priory of Benedictines: but this convent having been dissolved at an early period, and its possessions fallen into the hands of secular canons, Robert, Earl of Moreton and Cornwall seized them for his own use, and, after the death of his son William, Earl of Moreton and Cornwall, they became vested in the crown. Algar, to whom it is probable they had been granted, with the King’s license, and that of William Warlewast, Bishop of Exeter, re-founded the monastery, and replenished it with Austin Canons, who continued till the general dissolution of religious houses, when its revenues were valued at 270£. 0s. 11d. clear annual income. The Prior had, among other privileges, a market and fair, gallows, pillory, &c. as proved in a quo warranto, in the reign of King Edward I. The site, with the demesnes, was granted to Thomas Sternhold, one of the first English translators of the Psalms.—Various relics of antiquity have been found at different 121times on this consecrated spot; among which were some columns with ornamented mouldings and a mutilated effigy of a skeleton, finely executed, which has been placed against a gateway in the garden belonging to the Priory House.

The Convent of Grey Friars is said to have been founded in the year 1239, under the patronage of Edmund, Earl of Cornwall, and principally supported by the benefactions of Sir Hugh and Thomas Peverell, of Egloshale, who were buried in the friary church. In the year 1565, it was conveyed to the Corporation of Bodmin, to whom it still belongs. Since the early part of last century, it has been fitted up as an Assize Hall, 150 feet long and 60 in height; but the removal of its two beautiful Gothic windows is to be lamented. The two ends are appropriated for the Courts of Assize, and the intermediate space for the business of the Corn Market, &c. Above is the Grand Jury Room, and a large Ball Room, often used during the races in August.

The only remains of the Chapel of Bery, is a ruinous tower, standing on a hill north of the town.

Some ruins of St. Leonard’s and St. Nicholas’ Chapels were standing when Dr. Borlase published his work on the Antiquities of the County; but they have long since been entirely removed.

The Church, which is the largest in the county, and stands at the north-east end of the town, on rising ground, was rebuilt in 1472, as appears by the inscription on the cornice of the south chancel, viz.

It is a handsome edifice, consisting of a lofty nave and side aisles, separated by clustered columns and pointed arches. The capitals of the pillars, which are of very fine moorstone, are ornamented with roses.

The Tower stands on the north side, and has a venerable appearance. Over the porch on the south side, 122there are three handsome niches. The whole building (particularly the interior) has, within the last seven years, undergone a thorough repair. It contains a fine altar-tomb, erected in memory of Prior Vivian, Suffragan Bishop of Megara, in Greece, who died in the year 1533, and on which is the effigy of the deceased in his pontifical robes, with a mitre and crozier, his hands clasped on his breast, and two angels supporting shields charged with the Vivian and Priory arms.

The Font is the most interesting piece of antiquity in the church, and of large dimensions. It is supported by a pedestal in the middle, and four pillars on the outside, with angel’s heads for capitals; and the basin in the centre is highly ornamented in the Saxon style, with grotesque animals, foliage, &c. A handsome painted window, by Lowe, of London, representing the Resurrection of our Saviour, will be put up in the course of a short time. It is the gift of Lord de Dunstanville, who is the patron of the vicarage.

A very particular account of the expense of rebuilding the church, is preserved among the town records. The whole cost, exclusive of presents of timber, amounted only to 194£. 3s. 6½d. The timber for St. John’s aisle cost 20£. 13s. 4d. Sir John Arundell gave several timber-trees for the building. The lead for roofing, came to 16£. 2s. 3½d. The rate of wages at this time appears to have been, for a labourer, four-pence by the day; for a mason, hewing stones, five-pence; for making the pillars, &c. sixpence; for a plasterer, five-pence half-penny. The following is a specimen of some of the charges:—“Forty-nine journeys (days work) for the windows above the Vyse, 24s. 6d.; fourteen journeys on the gabell window, 7s.” There was formerly a spire on the tower, said to have been built by Prior Vivian, and esteemed, as Tonkin tell us, the loftiest and finest in the West of England. It was destroyed by lightning in 1699.—Jasper Wood, 37 years vicar of Bodmin, who 123died in 1716, a man, it may be supposed, of deranged intellects, fancied himself bewitched, and that he was delivered from the witches’ power by his guardian-angel. Tonkin says there was a printed account of this man, and various traditions relating to him are still current in the town.

The Corporation consists of a Mayor, 11 Aldermen, 24 Common Councilmen, and a Town Clerk. This town was regularly incorporated by charter of Elizabeth, which was lost, by lapse, previously to the year 1798, when a similar charter was granted by his late Majesty.

The right of electing two representatives in Parliament is vested solely in the 37 members of the Corporation.

Among the antient corporation accounts, are the following curious items, relating to the election of members of Parliament, and the payment of their wages, in the reign of Henry VII.

“19, 20 Hen. VII, paide to Richard Watts and John Smyth, burgesses of the Parliament for the towne, 13s. 4d.

“It. Paide to Sir Richard Downa, the wich was promysed by the maier and the worshipfull in a reward towardes his wagys, 13s. 4d.

The town principally consists of one long street, running nearly a mile from east to west; the houses in general, are low, decayed, and irregular; but much improvement has been made within the last 20 years. Some centuries ago, Bodmin appears to have been of 124much greater extent, and more populous, than at present: it was probably largest, and contained the greatest number of inhabitants, about the fourteenth century. It is now smaller than either Helston, Liskeard, Megavissey, and Penryn; and considerably smaller than St. Austell, Truro, Redruth, Penzance, or Falmouth; yet in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it appears to have still taken precedence of all the other Cornish towns.

The Grammar School, said to have been founded by Queen Elizabeth, and endowed with 5£. per annum, (which the Corporation have increased to 100£. per annum) was held in an old chapel, in the church-yard, until the last year, when a new school-room was opened in a more commodious situation.

The population, according to the late returns, amounts to 2902, but the whole parish contains 3278, being 802 more than the number returned in 1811.^[47]

The market on Saturday is much frequented, and well supplied with provisions; but some judicious regulations are necessary, (particularly to remedy the want of a market house,) which would render it more generally useful and commodious. There are also three fairs held here annually, chiefly for cattle.

There was a market at Bodmin when the survey of Domesday was taken, the profits of which, belonging to the Prior, were then valued at 35s. per annum: the tolls were afterwards let at a fee-farm rent to the burgesses, in whom the market and fairs are now vested. Leland speaks of the market at Bodmin as being like a fair for the confluence of people; and Hals compares it, in point of supply of all kinds of provisions 125&c., to those of Exeter and Tavistock. The fairs, which are great marts for cattle and horses, are on the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Saturday after Midlent Sunday, Saturday before Palm Sunday, Wednesday before Whitsuntide, and on the feast of St. Nicholas the Bishop (December 6.) Leather-shoes are made in great quantities at this town, and exposed to sale in standings at the markets and fairs.

Bodmin is said to have been one of the coinage towns which had the privilege of stamping tin; but it appears that it had been lost before the year 1347, when the burgesses petitioned parliament, complaining, that although by royal charter they were authorised to deal in all kinds of merchandise, tin as well as other, in the county of Cornwall, they had of late been hindered by the Prince and his men from buying or coining tin: they were unsuccessful in their application, the answer of Parliament being, that the Prince might order the tin to be sold where he pleased.

The Summer Assizes for the county have been held in this town, with few exceptions, since the year 1716, and the Michaelmas Quarter Sessions are also held here.

The races usually commence the week following the assizes, and are held about a mile and a half from the town, on the left of the road leading to Launceston. The course is considered one of the finest in England.

The County Gaol was erected in the year 1780, from the designs of Sir John Cull, on the principles recommended by the great philanthropist, the late John Howard, Esq. It stands in a healthy situation, on the side of a hill, to the north of the town.

Within the last three years a very handsome and commodious Lunatic Asylum has been erected at the western end of the town, and is fitted up in a very comfortable manner, for persons afflicted with that dreadful malady.

The earliest historical event, of any importance, connected 126with this place, is, that it became the head-quarters of Thomas Flanmauck and Michael Joseph, the ringleaders of the rebellion of 1496, both of whom indeed appear to have been inhabitants of this parish.—Perkin Warbeck, after his landing in Cornwall, in the year 1498, assembled at Bodmin a force of 3000 men, with which he advanced to attack Exeter.—In 1550, the Cornish rebels, under the command of Humphry Arundell, encamped at Castle-Hynock, near this town, and marched thence to the siege of Exeter. After the suppression of this rebellion, which soon followed, Sir Anthony Kingston, the Provost-marshal, came, with the King’s commission, to punish some of the chief offenders; and, it is said, he hanged the mayor at his own door, after partaking of the hospitalities of his table.—Bodmin does not appear to have had any garrison during the Civil War, though it was occasionally occupied by both parties. General Fairfax finally took possession of it for the Parliament in 1646, a few days before the capitulation with Sir Ralph Hopton, near Truro.

At St. Lawrence, about a mile north-west of Bodmin, are some remains of the Hospital for Lepers, founded by Queen Elizabeth, in the year 1582, but which was abolished a few years since owing to certain abuses, and the lands belonging to it, worth about £140. per annum, appropriated to the Infirmary at Truro. The remains chiefly consist of three fine arches, springing from clustered columns, with ornamented capitals, and some ruinous walls, now fast mouldering into decay. On one part of the old buildings, is the following inscription:

127The seal of this hospital is a curious relic of antiquity, containing the figure of St. Lawrence, under a Gothic canopy, and another figure below it, in the attitude of prayer, with this inscription:—“S. Sci Lawrencie Bodmons de peupo.”

St. Lawrence is merely a hamlet to Bodmin, but is remarkable as having two very large fairs for cattle annually.

At Lanhwit, the adjoining village, about three miles from Bodmin, are some remains of an antient Monastery, called St. Bennet’s, which, although greatly defaced some years ago, by the removal of the cloisters, still displays a fine tower, richly mantled with ivy. The other parts have been fitted up at the expense of the proprietor, the Rev. F. V. I. Arundell, as a family residence. The remains are seated in a narrow valley, almost surrounded by wood, with a rapid stream in the front, which adds greatly to the beauty of this romantic spot.

Tremere, an ancient seat of the Courtenays, in this parish, is now a farm-house.

A ride from hence to the Roach Rocks, will be highly gratifying to the curious traveller, or an admirer of natural curiosities. They consist of three immense piles of craggy ponderous stones, rising to a considerable height, and at a distance resembling an antient castle. On the summit of the pile, in the centre, stand the remains of a small building, which formerly contained two apartments, and is supposed to have been erected for religious purposes.

These rocks, says Dr. Maton, “consist of a white sparry quartz, mixed with schoerl, which appears in innumerable needle-like crystals. Two or three varieties of this substance are observable; in one the schoerl being more sparingly interspersed, and in another more abundantly.” A pile of rocks starting abruptly out of a wide green surface, and covering 128some space with enormous fragments, on which there are only a few vestiges of incipient vegetation, form a singular scene, exhibiting a kind of wild sublimity, peculiar to itself. The accompanying view was taken from the south side, and the chapel on the summit is a very beautiful and picturesque feature in the picture.

In a former part of this work, we gave a list of the principal Tin and Copper Mines in this county; but as we apprehended the limits of it would not allow a particular description of them, we have since, at the suggestion of some of our subscribers, curtailed the historical and topographical notices, with the view to enable us to present our readers with some little particulars as to the situation and nature of the most valuable mines now working. In passing through the county according to the plan of our several Excursions, there are not any mines deserving of particular attention, until the traveller arrives at St. Austell; here it is necessary that he should make some stay, as the vicinity of the town possesses many attractions, and the numerous works now in progress will amply gratify his curiosity.

The most considerable Tin Mine in the county is Polgooth, which is situated about two miles south-west of St. Austell; and even in Borlase’s time, is said to have yielded to its proprietors a profit of £20,000 132annually for some years. Owing, however, to some unfortunate disputes, the operations have been suspended for nearly 20 years, but have lately been resumed with increased vigour. From the extensive nature of the works carried on in this mine, the whole surface of the country in its vicinity, has been completely disfigured, and presents a very gloomy aspect. The quantity of ore which has been raised from this mine, during the progress of its workings, is far beyond calculation: the immense piles of earth, which have been excavated and thrown up, have quite a mountainous appearance: roads have been formed in several directions leading to the places or shafts, where the miners are at work; and the dreariness of the scene is only enlivened by the humble cottages, which have been erected for their residence. The number of shafts which have been sunk in this mine, amount to near 50, and the greater part of them are mostly working; but since the introduction of steam engines, the operations have been considerably increased, as the water is now raised to the level of the adits, and which before had in some cases overflowed certain parts of the mine.

The introduction of steam engines for drawing off the water from the mines in Cornwall, is one of the most valuable discoveries imaginable; and the greatest advantages have attended these powerful machines, while on the other hand few accidents have been occasioned by their adoption.^[48]

133In Dr. Maton’s Observations on the Western Counties, is the following description of a Steam Engine; but since that time, their powers of acting have been considerably augmented; and on some occasions they are now made on a very large scale, with cylinders even 90 inches in diameter.

“The Steam Engine is one of the most curious, and perhaps most useful machines that owe their origin to the discoveries of philosophy; without it many of the mines in Cornwall must long ago have ceased to have been worked; and among other purposes to which it has elsewhere been most advantageously applied, should be mentioned, the supplying of towns with water, the grinding of corn, the turning of the wheels of machines in woollen manufactories, and the blowing of bellows to fuse ores and metals; we have to boast of this grand machine, being invented, as well as perfected, in our own country: Captain Savery is said to have first discovered the method of raising water by the pressure of air, in consequence of the condensation of steam; or at least he was the first person that put any method of this sort into practice: he obtained a patent, in the year 1698, for a machine contrived in the following manner; the air was expelled from a vessel by steam, and the steam condensed by the admission of cold water, which causing a vacuum, the pressure of the atmosphere forced the water to ascend into the steam vessel through a pipe 24 or 26 feet high: by dense steam brought from the boiler, the water in the steam vessel was elevated to the requisite height. This construction, however, did not answer, because very strong vessels were wanted to resist the expansive violence of the steam; an enormous 134quantity of which was, besides, condensed by coming in contact with the cold water in the steam vessel. The danger of bursting the vessels was avoided soon afterwards by the invention of Messrs. Newcomen and Cawley, of Dartmouth. These gentlemen employed for the steam vessel a hollow cylinder, shut at the bottom and open at the top, and furnished with a piston sliding easily up and down in it, but made tight by oakum or hemp, and covered with water: the piston was suspended by chains from one end of a beam moveable on an axis in the middle of its length; to the other end of this beam hung the pump rods. Some imperfections still remained; but the most important were at length wholly removed by the discoveries of Mr. Watt, and the construction made use of by that gentleman and Mr. Bolton, of Soho, near Birmingham; who obtained a patent for 25 years, in addition to the term granted to Mr. Watt alone, in the year 1768. One of these machines will work a pump of 18 inches in diameter, and upwards of 100 fathoms in height, at the rate of 10 or 12 strokes, of seven feet long each, in one minute. It will raise to the height of 80 feet, in that same space of time, a weight equal to 18,000 pounds; the combined action of 200 horses could not effect more. In Newcomen’s engine this would have required a cylinder 10 feet in diameter; but as, in the new engine, the steam acts, and a vacuum is made, alternately above and below the piston, the power exerted is double to what the same cylinder would otherwise produce; and is farther augmented by an inequality in the length of the two ends of the lever. It must be considered too, that one-third part only of the coals which the old engine would 135have required, is used for the same portion of work.” The expense of erecting the first steam engine in the Polgooth Mine, amounted to nearly £20,000; and the quantity of coals consumed by it, in the short space of 24 hours, is stated to amount to 144 bushels.

According to Borlase, the main vein of ore in this mine, was about six feet thick, running from east to west, and dipping to the north, at the rate of about six feet in a fathom; towards the east it divides into two branches, and there is another that cuts the former nearly at a right angle, and consequently runs north and south, but dipping to the east. The ore is disseminated in general through a matrix of Caple,^[49] accompanied with a yellow cupreous pyrites, and sometimes a ferrugineous ochre; it is of the vitreous kind, but rarely found in crystals, the colour for the most part being of a greyish brown.

Crennis Copper Mine, which is situated about two miles east of St. Austell, is highly deserving of notice: here also steam engines have been introduced with the most beneficial effects; but although the ore found in this mine is extremely rich, it was not discovered till within the last few years, but is stated in some instances to have yielded a clear profit to its proprietors of £84,000 in one year.

The several Tin Stream Works also in the neighbourhood 136of St. Austell, are particularly deserving of notice; the one on the left of the road near Pentuan, has proved a considerable benefit to the adventurers concerned in it. In Luxilian parish, through which the road leading from St. Austell to Bodmin has been formed, there are several works of a similar nature; but owing to the number of excavations which have been made for the discovery of ore, it is desirable that strangers should avoid travelling in this direction after dusk. The celebrated Wood Tin, as it is called, is mostly found in the Stream Works, and which although extremely valuable, appears far from prepossessing in the minds of those persons who are unacquainted with mineralogy.

Small particles of gold are frequently found in the Stream Works, but they are mostly incorporated with tin crystals in streaks.

The celebrated Clay Works in the parish of St. Stephen’s are also well deserving of attention; as they are now conducted upon a very extensive scale. In a commercial point of view, the discovery of this clay, or china stone, has been attended with the greatest advantages, besides being the means of affording employment to many men, women, and children. The value of this clay, or china stone, as it is generally called, was accidentally discovered about 60 years ago; since which time, immense quantities have been exported for the porcelain manufactories in Staffordshire and Wales. It is a decomposed granite, the felspar of which has lost its properties of fusibility; but, in the manufacture of china and earthenware, it is of the greatest value. In the manufacture of crucibles at Truro, it has been found of much value. Notwithstanding, however, the 137great success which has attended the progress of the china stone works, it is to be lamented, the wages allowed to the several persons employed in them, are so trifling. Little occurs to interest the traveller in regard to mines, after leaving St. Austell, until his arrival at Truro.

The Carnon Stream Works, on the left of the road leading to Falmouth, are the most considerable in the county, and merit particular observation. It is now nearly 40 years since they were first discovered; and the quantity of tin which they have yielded, has proved a golden harvest to the proprietors of them. The works occupy a considerable extent of ground, and appear to have been gained from the sea; the mud and other matter washed down by the stream, having raised a sort of embankment, which, by its continual extension, and some assistance from art, has gradually contracted the boundaries of the tide.^[50] The bed of pebbles from which the tin is extracted, is about 30 feet below the surface of the ground, and from four to six feet thick. As a proof that these works must have been known in very early times, a wooden shovel, and picks made of deers’ horns, together with some human bones and skulls, have been found at different periods. Great improvements have been lately made in the works for drawing off the water, and which has also, from the lowness of their situation, been attended with considerable benefit to several other mines in the neighbourhood.

When at Helston, the traveller will derive much gratification from visiting the celebrated Tin Mine, called Huel Vor, which is situated about three miles 138west of that town. This mine is allowed to be one of the most valuable in the county; and its proprietors are said to have gained a clear profit of upwards of £10,000, in the short space of three months, notwithstanding the monthly charges amount to £5,000. Here are no less than five large steam engines for drawing off the water, besides several others of less magnitude for raising the ore, &c. There are also four large stamping mills worked by steam. The operations of this mine extend more than a mile and a quarter below the surface of the earth, and about 1300 persons are employed in conducting the different works. The ore is smelted and roasted on the spot; and when properly cleansed, is ladled from the furnaces into moulds of 370lbs. each. The principal lode in this mine is said to be of the enormous width of 30 feet, and extremely rich. The expenses incident to carrying on the working of this mine are very great; especially in the consumption of candles and gunpowder, which far exceeds any estimate a stranger to mining concerns could form. In this mine, no less than 3,000lbs. of candles, and about 3,500lbs. of gunpowder are consumed every month.

The Botallack Tin and Copper Mine, in the parish of St. Just, near the Land’s End, is one of the most surprising undertakings in the county, as the operations of the miners extend for nearly 70 fathoms under the bed of the sea; and the entrance to the works is at least 200 feet below the cliffs.

As a late writer ^[51] justly observes, that on descending to the surface of the mine, “You will then behold a combination of the powers of art with the wild sublimity of nature, which is quite unparalleled; the effects of the whole being not a little heightened by the hollow roar of the raging billows which are perpetually lashing the cliff beneath. In looking up you will observe troops of mules laden with sacks of coals, for the supply of the engine, with their undaunted riders, fearlessly trotting down the winding path which you trembled at descending even on foot. As you approach the engine, the cliff becomes almost perpendicular; and the ore raised from the mine is therefore drawn up over an inclined plane, by means of a horse engine placed on the extreme verge of the overhanging rocks above, and which seems to the spectator below, as if suspended in “Mid Air.”

The ore of this mine is the grey and yellow sulphuret of copper, mixed with oxide of tin. Here a great variety of interesting minerals have been collected, among which are several varieties of jasper; arborescent native copper; jaspery iron ore; arseniate of iron; sulphuret of bismuth, imbedded in jasper; beautiful specular iron ore; lamatitic iron, and the hydrous oxide of iron, in prisms terminated by pyramids.

The neighbourhood of Redruth is, as before stated in a preceding part of this work, the very centre of the mining district; and there are more mines in the 140vicinity of that town than in any other part of the County. We therefore recommend travellers, especially those who are interested in mining transactions, to make some stay at Redruth, and we can venture to say that they will derive much gratification in consequence.

About two miles west of that town is the noted Copper Mine of Dolcoath, which from its situation on the brow of a hill, enables the visitor to see at one view, all the principal machinery by which its working is conducted. As the same writer justly observes; “it is quite impossible to convey an idea of this singular and interesting scene; steam engines, water wheels, horse whims, and stamping mills are all in motion; while in the glen beneath, many hundred labourers are to be seen busily engaged in the different operations of separating, dressing, and cleansing the ore. In the whole circle of human inventions, there is nothing which so fully manifests the resources of intellect, for the production of immense effects, as the stupendous art of mining, and it is impossible that the workings of Dolcoath Mine, can be viewed without exciting the strongest sensation of wonder and exultation.” The works of this mine extend upwards of a mile in length, from east to west, and in depth, 1050 feet below the level of the sea; being much deeper than any other mine in the county.

Cook’s Kitchen in Illogan, another rich copper mine, is also situated on the summit of the same hill, and from the extent of its operations presents a grand scene, the picturesque effect of which is materially heightened by the solemnity of Carnbre’ Hill, and the numerous ponderous masses of rock which lie scattered about its base

141In the Chacewater Mine, which is situated three miles south of Redruth, is one of the largest steam engines now in use; and when erected in the year 1813, was then the most powerful engine ever made. As a proof of its immense power, if it were applied as a mill, it could grind a bushel of wheat in a minute; and notwithstanding its velocity, and the complex nature of its several parts, the engineer in charge of it, can in one instant put a stop to its motion, by the mere act of turning a screw. This engine is made upon the improved system, by Bolton and Watt, and finished with much elegance. The cylinder is 66 inches in diameter; the depth of the engine shaft is 128 fathoms; from the adit to the bottom, 90 fathoms. It makes eight strokes in a minute, and at every stroke raises 108 gallons of water to the adit, and at the same time also, 60 gallons 10 fathoms high, for the purpose of condensing the steam. The quantity of coals which it consumes in 24 hours, is estimated at about eight chaldrons.

About two miles from hence, in a southerly direction, are the Consolidated Mines, which have only lately been re-established.^[52] Here are two very powerful steam engines, with cylinders 90 inches in diameter. The expenses attending the resumption of the workings of these mines, are said to have amounted to the enormous 142sum of nearly £70,000; but owing to the immense quantity of copper ore which has been raised, and other advantageous circumstances, the shares are now selling in London at more than £100 per cent. The monthly charges for workmen, &c. amounts to no less a sum than £7000. These mines are now under the management of Mr. Taylor and a London Company.

Huel Unity and the Poldice Mines are also situated in this neighbourhood; the former produces copper, and the latter tin and copper. Both have been very profitable to their adventurers, and are said to have yielded them a profit of from 12 to £16,000 annually. The Poldice Mine is one of the oldest in the county, and yields a yellowish copper ore, a rosin tin, and a few stones of galena. In both of these, steam engines have been long erected, but they are not on so extensive a scale as those used in some of the mines above noticed. In these mines, some of the most beautiful specimens of arseniate of copper and lead have been discovered. A whitish grey copper, crystallized, in triangular and quadrangular pyramids, has also been found here.

Huel Alfred Copper Mine, which, some years ago, was the richest and most profitable mine in Cornwall, is situated about a mile and a half south-east of Hayle. In former times the adventurers in this mine are said to have gained £130,000; but owing to some misunderstanding, the operations have been discontinued since 143the year 1816, until within the last six months. It is in contemplation to erect two steam engines in this mine, with cylinders of the largest dimensions; when, no doubt, from the favourable appearance of the lodes, the proprietors will be amply repaid the expenses incident to such an undertaking. To the Mineralogist this mine is highly interesting, as several very rare and curious minerals have been discovered; viz. stalactitic swimming, and cubic quartz, carbonate and phosphate of lead, stalactitic, cotryoidal, and investing calcedony, &c. If a stranger should be desirous of descending into a mine, he cannot select a better opportunity than here presents itself, owing to the extensive scales of the lodes. On these occasions, it is always customary to put on a suitable dress; viz. a flannel jacket and trowsers, a close cap, an old broad brimmed hat, and a thick pair of shoes; thus accoutred, a lighted candle is put into his hand, and another suspended to a button of his jacket. A few years ago the Duke of R—d gratified his curiosity in this respect, and many others have followed his example; but as a satisfaction to our readers, we insert Dr. Forbes’s observations on the subject. “A person unacquainted with the details of mining, on being informed of many hundreds of men being employed in a single mine, might naturally imagine that a visit to their deep recesses, would afford a picturesque and imposing spectacle of gregarious labour and bustle; tremendous noise, and much artificial brilliancy to cheer the gloom: nothing, however, is further from the truth, as far as regards the mines of Cornwall; for, like their fellow labourers, the moles, the miners are solitary in their operations. Seldom do we find more than three 144or four men in one level or gallery, at a time, where they are seen pursuing the common operations of digging, or boring the rock, by the feeble glimmering of a small candle, stuck close by them, with very little noise or more latitude for bodily movement; besides whom, there are generally one or two boys employed in wheeling the broken ore, &c. to the shaft. Each of these boys has also a candle affixed to his wheelbarrow by the universal subterranean candlestick, a piece of clay. A certain band of men, who, however numerous, are always called “a pair,” generally undertake the working of a particular level. These subdivide themselves into smaller bodies, which by relieving each other at the end of every six or eight hours, keep up the work, uninterruptedly, except on Sunday. By means of this subdivision of the pairs, there is in general not more than one third of the under-ground labourers below at any one time. Very seldom are the miners within the sound of each other’s operations, except occasionally they hear the dull report of the explosions. In the vicinity of the main shaft, indeed, the incessant action of the huge chain of pumps, produces a constant, but not very loud noise; while the occasional rattling of the metallic buckets against the walls of the shaft, as they ascend and descend, relieves the monotony both of the silence and the sound; still every thing is dreary, dull, and cheerless; and you can be with difficulty persuaded, even when in the richest and most populous mines, that you are in the centre of such extensive and important operations.

The Herland Mines are situated about a mile east of Huel Alfred, and are chiefly remarkable for the beautiful 145specimens of native silver, vitreous silver ore, and black oxide of silver, which they have produced, and which has been noticed in a former part of this work.

After an interval of nearly 20 years, the workings of these mines have lately been resumed, under the management of a London Company; who have had two steam engines erected, with cylinders 80 inches in diameter. The copper ore found in the Herland Mines is extremely rich; but although the lodes are more numerous than in Huel Alfred, they are not so large. All mines are placed under the superintendance of a foreman, called the Captain, who keeps the accounts, and pays, and regulates the workmen; they are in general men of respectability, and get liberally paid. The designation of Captain, however, is very absurd; for in many instances, even strangers are frequently accosted as such by the Cornish people. There are also inferior superintendants, who are employed to superintend the internal operations of the miners.

The miners, in general, are a civil, honest, and active class of beings, and since the extension of the Wesleyan system, have become very religious. The hardships many of them endure is beyond belief, particularly such as have large families; and who, in most cases, live in little huts in the immediate vicinity of the mines. Their mode of living is very hard, as they seldom taste animal food; indeed, the reduced scale of their wages is such as scarcely to allow bread, and that in many instances composed of ground barley only. In some cases, many of the miners work like slaves, and are obliged to wheel barrows a considerable distance, filled with ore to the extent of four cwt.; while on the 146other hand, those who are employed under ground, have a wretched emaciated appearance, and mostly die at an early age, in pulmonary consumptions.

The Iron Foundries at Hayle are well deserving of notice, and here some of the largest engines used in the mines were cast. The Water Dam which was constructed about 30 years ago, (near the house where the copper was formerly smelted,) for scouring out the sand from the harbour, has been attended with the most beneficial effects. It is now in contemplation to have a causeway built across the Hayle, the estimate for which amounts to about £5,000; and which, if accomplished, will be highly beneficial.

The singular and desolate appearance of the whole surface of the country in this neighbourhood, which, with few exceptions, extends even as far as Padstow, excites the attention of every stranger. The immense banks of sand which have been thrown up on the coast, have been a great injury; and in some instances, many dwellings have even been buried by the shifting of the sands; here human bones have also been frequently discovered, supposed to have belonged to cemeteries which have been inundated during violent hurricanes.

Many of the above particulars were obligingly communicated by Sir Christopher Hawkins, Bart., M.P., and Recorder for St. Ives; and who also has a seat, called Trewinnard, in this part of the county.

Tredea, which is near to Trewinnard, is the property of Davies Gilbert, Esq., M.P. for Bodmin, and President of the Royal Geological Society at Penzance.

With the view to enable mineralogists to prosecute their endeavours, it is necessary on their proceeding 147into Cornwall, that they should visit the most interesting collections in the county. Of these may be ranked the valuable collection belonging to William Rashleigh, Esq., at Menabilly, near Fowey, which has been noticed in a former part of this work. In this splendid collection are some very magnificent oxide of tin, fluors, melachite, and some very rare varieties of sulphuret of copper; wood tin forming a vein in a matrix of quartz, to one side of which adheres a fragment of rock. An account is given in the first volume of the transactions of the Penzance Geological Society. Here are also some fine specimens of yellow copper ore, with opal; triple sulphuret of antimony; copper and lead in various forms; ruby copper in cubes; quartz with water in globules; topazes of beautiful lustre; and green fluor, in crystals with 24 sides. Many of the specimens above enumerated are of considerable value and scarcity, besides which there are also many others highly interesting. They are contained in a spacious apartment, which has been fitted up in the most elegant manner, with glass cases to prevent them from being injured. Mr. Rashleigh takes great pleasure in allowing strangers to visit his collection, and is entitled to every mark of commendation for his politeness on such occasions.

In the collection of Joseph Carne, Esq. at Penzance, may be seen prehnite in a variety of forms, axinite in its usual form, stilbite in flat four-sided prisms terminated by pyramids, mesotype radiated, garnets in 12 and 24 sided, crystals, pirite in six and 12 sided prisms, uranite in quadrangular tables with the angles in some cases truncated, and also in forms much resembling cubes and octohedrons, uranochre, native bismuth, and 148specular iron ore, very simular to that found at Elba; grey sulphuret of copper, the best defined crystals of which are very obtuse dodecahedrons, and six-sided prisms; in some specimens the dodecahedrons are so placed upon the summit of the prisms, as to resemble a nail: this is one of the most rare specimens ever found in Cornwall, and is much sought after by mineralogists. Here are also two very rare and curious specimens of yellow and grey sulphuret of copper, in forms resembling a cube, the latter being pseudomorphous.

The Royal Geological Society at Penzance possessed many valuable and rare specimens; among the earthy species may be enumerated, calcedony, sodalite, haiiyne, petalite, colophonite, vesuvian, &c. In the metallic branch, is carbonate of lead, specular iron, arseniate of iron, the oxide, carbonate, arseniate and phosphate of copper, native gold, found in the Cornish Tin Stream Works; arsenical pyrites, uranite, uran ochre, native nickel, &c. besides a mineral but little known, viz. subcarburet of iron, and which was analyzed by the late Rev. W. Gregor.

The cabinet of John Williams, Esq. at Scorrier House, near Redruth, is unrivalled in its specimens of red oxide of copper in octohedrons, cubes, and capillary crystals; there are also some fine specimens of arseniate of copper in very perfect obtuse octohedrons; a mass of uranite, which for size and beauty surpasses any that has ever been found: blende in octohedrons and cubes, native and ruby silver, besides a very rare and highly valuable specimen of the muriate of horn silver and arseniate of lead in six-sided prisms.

149Such strangers as are desirous of forming a collection of the several minerals which have been found in this county, cannot adopt a better plan than applying to the different dealers; they are, however, sometimes to be had of the miners. The most respectable dealers in minerals are, at St. Austell, Mr. Hennah, Bookseller; at Truro, Tregoning and Mudge; at Falmouth, Mr. Trathan; at Penzance, Mr. Jacobs; at Redruth, Mr. Bennett; at Gwenap, Mr. Michell; at St. Agnes, Mr. Argall; and the landlord of the Tamar Inn, Calstock; who was once a superintendant of some of the mines near St. Austell.

Such travellers as may be desirous of making an excursion to these islands, will not only be much gratified by the voyage, but their health will be materially benefited by the congenial breezes of the ocean, and the mild temperature of the atmosphere, which is so peculiar to this part of the coast. The beauty also of the several marine prospects which such an excursion presents to notice, cannot fail to excite the most lively emotions: yet who can enjoy it, without reflecting on the many dreadful shipwrecks which have occurred off the Scilly Islands; especially the melancholy fate of Sir Cloudesly Shovel and his brave companions. Owing, however, to the erection of light-houses, and other salutary measures, such disasters have not been so frequent as formerly. The difficulty of navigating the passage round the Land’s End, is nevertheless very great, and, in many instances, attended with much danger.

The contiguity of these islands to the county of Cornwall, renders it necessary that some little notice of them should be given in the present work. From the Land’s End they are distant about nine leagues, and on a clear day are distinctly visible; but from Penzance, from whence the packet sails every Friday, the distance is fourteen leagues. With a fair wind the voyage is generally 152accomplished in six hours; but on some occasions has lasted two days.

According to the most eminent historians, these islands were originally denominated the Cassiterides, or Tin Isles, and their number not to have exceeded ten; but their original appearance has been greatly altered, either by the violence of the sea, or some other convulsive effort of nature. At present their number amounts to one hundred and forty, although the following only appear to be inhabited; viz. St. Mary’s, St. Agnes, St. Martin’s, Trescow, Bryher, and Sampson. The population of the whole of them, (more than half of which reside in St. Mary’s,) does not exceed 2000.

St. Mary’s is the largest and most cultivated, possessing three towns, a pier, a garrison, custom-house, &c. The length of this island is about two miles and a half; and its circumference is about 10 miles. The prospects from some of the hills are extremely fine; and from their rocky character and other local circumstances, present a very singular and interesting appearance. “The principal settlement is Heugh Town, so called from the neighbouring peninsula, on which, during the pilchard fishery, a man is stationed to watch the coming of the fish, and give notice of their approach by heughing to the boats below. On the summit of the peninsula is a small fort, erected in 1793, by Sir Francis Godolphin, and called Star Castle, from having eight points projecting like the rays of a star. In the centre is the governor’s house, having a foss between it and the outer rampart; where, at the salient angles, are four small apartments, designed for as many captains of the garrison. The lines are at some distance 153below the fort, nearly two miles in extent, and flanked by several strong batteries. Below them are the remains of an antient fort, that seems to have had a circular keep, like the castles of Trematon, Launceston, and Restormel. Nearer the water’s edge, on the western side of the peninsula, is the Heugh Town, which skirts the border of a sandy bay, with a good anchorage, and sufficiently spacious to contain 100 sail of shipping. The houses are chiefly low buildings, but were much improved under the late Earl of Godolphin, at whose expense the pier was erected about the year 1750. The other towns, which are called Old Town and Church Town, consist only of a few houses, and present little to excite curiosity.”^[53]

At Porthelic Cove, on this island, the body of Sir Cloudesly Shovel was washed on shore, and not being recognized, was buried in the sands, but afterwards removed to Westminster Abbey, where there is a handsome monument to his memory. It is to be regretted, that although it was executed many years ago, when the art of sculpture had not arrived at much perfection, it has been so much defaced by idle and mischievous persons. When the fatal accident occurred, Sir Cloudesly was returning with his squadron from Toulon; and in a thick fog on the night of the 22nd October, 1707, his ship (the Association) struck on the Gilstone Rock, and sunk instantly, when every soul on board perished: the Eagle, Captain Hancock, experienced a similar fate, and the Romney and Fire-Brand were also lost, but their captains and 25 men were fortunately rescued from a watery grave.

154The civil government of the Scilly Islands is chiefly managed by 12 of the most respectable inhabitants, who hold their meetings every month at Heugh Town, where they mostly settle differences or disputes by compromise: all criminal causes are referred to the military power.

St. Agnes contains upwards of 300 inhabitants, and is situated about a mile to the south-west of St. Mary’s. It is extremely pleasant, fertile, and well cultivated, but is chiefly remarkable for its beautiful light-house. This highly useful structure was completed about the year 1680, under the superintendance of Mr. Adam Walker, the celebrated lecturer on natural and experimental philosophy; it is upwards of 60 feet high, and is built on a very elevated spot. The light is produced by several parabolic reflectors of copper, plated with silver, and each having an Argand’s lamp in its focus, supplied with oil from behind. The frame in which the reflectors are disposed, stands perpendicularly to the horizon, on a shaft united to a machine below, that turns the whole round every two minutes; by this motion the light progressively sweeps the whole horizon, and by its gradual intermission and increase, is readily distinguished from any other; its brilliancy is also extraordinary; and by these combined effects, its benefits are greatly increased, as the seaman is at once rendered completely sensible of his situation.^[54] The charges attending the erection of this light-house, were defrayed by the Trinity House; but all vessels passing it pay the same rates as those received by the one on the Long Ships at the Land’s End, except coasting vessels, 155which pay only a shilling each. There is a small church on this island, the service of which is performed by a minister, appointed and paid by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

St. Martin’s, which is situated about three miles eastward of St. Mary’s, appears from the remains of the numerous enclosures which intersect it in various places, to have been formerly well cultivated, and it would in all probability have been entirely deserted, had not Mr. Thomas Ekines, a respectable merchant of these islands, encouraged some people to settle here about a century ago. This gentleman likewise caused a tower and spire to be erected on it, as a land mark to seamen passing this part of the channel. The inhabitants chiefly consist of between 30 and 40 families, who are mostly related to each other, and much attached to the place. They have also a church, the service of which is performed by the minister appointed by the same Society, who also officiates at Trescow and Bryher. Borlase has noticed a druidical circle on this island; and from the several barrows which are also to be seen, concludes that not only this, but most of the other islands were in former ages very populous, and the lands much cultivated. “The barrows,”says that learned writer, “were all constructed in one manner; the outer ring is composed of large stones pitched on end, and the heap within consists of smaller stones, clay, and earth, mixed together: they have generally a cavity of stone work in the middle, covered with flat stones; but the barrows are of various dimensions; and the cavities, which, being low, and covered with rubble, are scarcely apparent in some, 156consist of such large materials in others, that they make the principal figure in the whole monument.” Although he had several of them opened, nothing of any consequence was discovered.

Trescow, which is situated two miles south-west of St. Mary’s, is only about half the size of that island; although Leland describes it as the largest of the whole cluster. It is, however, chiefly remarkable for having once possessed a monastery, some small remains of which are to be seen in a very beautiful situation, near the borders of a lake, separated from the sea by an ever-green bank. There are also the ruins of several other buildings; but those belonging to the Old Castle, which are situated on an eminence overlooking the harbour are most extensive. “Some other fortifications are called Oliver’s Castle, Battery, &c., in honor of Cromwell; though that called Oliver’s Castle seems to have been originally fortified many years prior to the civil wars; about the conclusion of which, these islands were seized for the king, by Sir John Grenville, who afterwards capitulated to Blake and Sir George Ascough.

This event was chiefly effected through the judicious disposition of the Parliament’s forces on this island, and on Bryher; which prevented supplies being carried to St. Mary’s, where the King’s forces were concentrated.”^[55]

The number of inhabitants at Dolphin Town amounts to about fifty families, who live in about twenty small houses. Here is also a Church and some Tin Mines; the latter, although of little value, are said to be the only mines now to be seen on any of the islands. This circumstance is the more singular, as the Scilly Islands 157have long been noted for their numerous mines, and extensive trade with the Phenecians, &c. Much has been said by Borlase and other celebrated writers respecting the great change which the islands have undergone; not only in regard to antiquities, trade, extensive population, &c.; but that it must be evident to those who are acquainted with the situation, all the changes have arisen from the continual encroachments made by the sea, and violent tempests. The many shipwrecks which have also occurred, have in a great measure prevented many persons from entering into trade with them. It is the opinion also of a very eminent writer; that the islands are undoubtedly undergoing a gradual diminution; and that at no great distance of time, St. Mary’s will probably be divided by the sea, and a channel formed through the low land, between the new town and the south-east side of the garrison.

Bryher or Brehar, so called from its extreme mountainous position, is situated to the west of Trescow, and contains little to interest the tourist, except several barrows; the largest of which, situated on high ground, is 77 feet in diameter. Borlase says, “within this barrow are many kistvaens, as the Britons call stone cells; and many of the flat stones which covered them, lie here and there; some keeping their first station, and some being removed to make stands for shooting rabbits, with which this part of the hill abounds.” The number of families now resident in Brehar, do not exceed 20. At low water, the Sands between this island and that of Trescow, may be crossed by foot passengers.

Sampson Island is chiefly composed of two circular hills, connected by a low rocky precipice. The inhabitants 158are but trifling compared to the other islands, but it is noted by Borlase for containing several stone barrows, some rock basins, a kistraen, &c.

After the conquest of the Scilly Islands by King Athelstan, they were bestowed on several monks, and continued in their possession till the reign of Henry I., who granted “to Osbert, one of the Abbots of Tavistock,” all the churches of Scilly, with their appurtenances, and the land, as the monks or hermits held it in the time of Edward the Confessor, and Burgald, Bishop of Cornwall. “Prior to the reign of Edward I., they appear to have reverted to the crown, being then held by Ranulph de Blackminster, who paid annually, at Michaelmas, a rental of 300 puffins, or six shillings and eight pence.” In the reign of James I., they were leased to Sir Francis Godolphin, and are now held by the Duke of Leeds, on a lease for 31 years, granted in the year 1800, at an annual rent of £40, with the option of a renewal on paying a fine of £4000.

The climate of the Scilly Islands is reputed to be both milder, and more equable than that of Cornwall; but the storms which occur, are more sudden and violent. The natives are remarked for being a robust and hardy race of people; but as a late celebrated writer ^[56] observes, “were it not for the facility with which they obtain spirituous liquors, they would live to an advanced age.”

They are mostly employed in maritime pursuits, and in making kelp from the Algæ, which is disposed of to the Bristol merchants for the use of the glass manufactories. The same writer also justly observes; “from a 159combination, however, of unfortunate circumstances, in addition to the fatal blow given to the smuggling trade by the activity of the preventitive service, the inhabitants were reduced to such extreme distress, that it became necessary in the year 1819, to appeal to the generosity of the public in their behalf; and notwithstanding the great difficulties of the times, the sum of £9000 was collected for their relief: in this great work of charity it is but an act of justice to state, that the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, by their purse, as well as by their writings, performed a very essential service. The funds thus obtained, were in part appropriated to the relief of the immediate and pressing distress under which they laboured, while the remainder was very judiciously applied towards the promotion of such permanent advantages as might prevent the chance of its recurrence. A fish cellar was accordingly provided in the island of Trescow, for the purpose of storing and curing fish; boats adapted for the mackerel and pilchard fisheries were purchased, and others were repaired; nets and various kinds of tackling were also at the same time liberally supplied. By such means have the inhabitants of these cheerless rocks been enabled to avail themselves of some of the resources which Providence has placed within their reach, and their families have been thus enabled to exist without the dread of absolute starvation.”

Notwithstanding this relief, the fisheries of the Scilly Isles are capable of much extension, and although the expense incident to the necessary outfit would be considerable, yet the advantages to the inhabitants would be incalculable. The importance of this subject has 160been very ably brought to notice by the Rev. George Woodley, Missionary from the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, and Minister of St. Agnes and St. Martin’s, in his work on the State of the Scilly Islands, which was published in the year 1822.

Various species of fish are to be caught by the hook and line at these islands during the season, and which are salted by the inhabitants for winter consumption.

A very curious fact is also noticed respecting the arrival of the woodcock, in Scilly, that they are generally to be had there before any other place in England. Owing to the great distance they are supposed to have travelled, great numbers have been taken by the natives, from their becoming exhausted; instances have also occurred of their falling dead by striking against the light-house, the splendour of the lanthern no doubt having attracted them!

To the geologist, the Scilly Islands present but little to interest; at St. Mary’s are several beds of porphyry and clorite containing pyrites; the former are deserving of attention on account of their distinct appearance of stratification. The granite of the Lizard Point at the Island of Trescow, the felspar of which is of a pure white, might be advantageously employed in the China manufactories.

The interior of the church of St. Anthony, which is situated on the coast south of Falmouth, is highly deserving of notice from its style of architecture, the arch separating the nave being a fine specimen of Anglo-Norman workmanship.

In the parish of Luxilian is an immense pile of rocks, totally different from the Roach Rocks, yet extremely well worth seeing; they are seated on a considerable eminence, and many of the ponderous fragments have rolled into the valley beneath, presenting altogether a very singular appearance. In some places the stones very much resemble antient cromlechs.

Four-Hole Cross is situated about six miles on the right of the road leading from Bodmin to Lanson, and is considered one of the most interesting relics of antiquity in Cornwall; but the upper part, either from age or other causes, is not perfect.

LIST OF THE PRESENT REPRESENTATIVES IN PARLIAMENT, FOR THE SEVERAL BOROUGHS OF THE COUNTY OF CORNWALL, WITH THEIR RESPECTIVE RESIDENCES.

Bodmin D. Gilbert, Esq., F.R. & L.S., Eastbourne. J. W. Croker, Esq., L.L.D., F.R., and L.S., Secretary to the Admiralty, &c.

Bossiney Sir C. Domville, Bart., Santry House, Dublin. John Stuart Wortley, Esq., Wortley Hall, Yorkshire.

162Callington Matthias Attwood, Esq., Banker. William Thompson, Esq., an Alderman of London.

Camelford Mark Milbank, Esq., Thorpe Hall, Yorkshire. Sheldon Cradock, Esq., Hartforth, York.

Cornwall Sir William Lemon, Bart., D.C.L., Carclew, near Truro. John Hearle Tremayne, Esq., Heligan, Cornwall.

Fowey Viscount Valetort, John Street, Berkeley Square. George Lucy, Esq., Pall Mall.

Helston Lord J. N. B. B. Townsend. Harrington Hudson, Esq., Bessenby, near Bridlington, Yorkshire.

Launceston James Brogden, Esq., Clapham, Surrey. Hon. Pownall Bastard Pellew, R.N.

East Looe Thomas Potter Macqueen, Esq., Ridgmont House, Bucks. George Watson Taylor, Esq., D.C.L., Earlstoke Park, Wilts.

West Looe Sir C. Hulse, Bart., Breamere, Hants. Right Hon. Henry Goulburn, 17, Upper Grosvenor Street.

Lostwithiel Sir Robert Wigram, Knt. F.R.S., Belmont Lodge, Worcestershire. Alexander C. Grant, Esq.

St. Germain’s Hon. Seymour Thomas Bathurst. Right Hon. Charles Arbuthnot, K.C.

St. Ives Lyndon Evelyn, Esq. Sir Christopher Hawkins, Bart., Trewithan, near Truro.

St. Michell Sir George Staunton, Bart., L.L.D. and F.R.S., Leigh Park, Hants. William Taylor Money, Esq., Streatham Park, Surrey.

Penryn Pascoe Grenfell, Esq., Taplow House, Bucks. R. Stanton, Esq., Colebook House.

The following Letter to the Editor of the Annals of Philosophy is taken from that work for May, 1824.

Your geological readers will hear with infinite regret, that the celebrated Logan Stone in Cornwall, which has for so long a period been regarded as an object of great national interest and curiosity, and which has been visited by persons from the remotest extremity of Europe, has within the last few days been overturned by one of the Lieutenants of his Majesty’s navy, now commanding a revenue cutter, stationed between the Lizard and Land’s End, assisted by a party of his men. The barbarous and wanton folly which could induce an officer bearing his Majesty’s commission to commit so unwarrantable an act, as to remove a great national curiosity from a position in which it had stood for ages, defying the hand of time, and affording to the enlightened traveller an object of such singular interest, will, it is hoped, be visited with the severest displeasure of the Admiralty. In a tour through Cornwall in the summer of 1821, I was informed by a cottager who lived near the spot, that an attempt was made by a party of seamen some years before, to remove it, but without success. Cornwall by this wanton outrage, has lost one of its most interesting monuments.

N. B. For a description of the Logan Stone, and an interesting view, vide p. 61.

1. If some of our most eminent Historical Painters were also employed to paint Altar Pieces, for the several new churches now erecting in London; it would be more beneficial to the Public, than the expenditure of so many thousands upon useless and meretricious ornaments: indeed some of the new buildings only tend to lessen the fame of the architects employed to erect them!

2. A Poem, descriptive of the beauty of the scenery on the banks of this river, has recently been written by Mr. T. N. Carrington, and published at Plymouth.

3. Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall.

4. Worgan’s Agricultural Survey.

5. “The glorie of Fowey,” says Leland, “rose by the warres in King Edwarde the Firste and Thirde, and Harrey the 5 day, partely by the feates of warre, partly by pyracie, and so waxing rich fell all to Merchandize; so that the Towne was haunted with shippes of divers Nations, and their shippes went to all Nations, it also appears by the roll of the huge fleet of Edward the Thirde before Calice, inserted in Hakaby’s Voyages that Fowey contributed 47 ships and 770 mariners, being a greater number than came from any other port in England, except Yarmouth.”—Carew in his time, speaking of the prosperous state of Fowey, says, “I may not pass in silence the commendable deserts of Master Rashleigh the elder, descended from a younger brother of an ancient house in Devon, for his industrious judgment and adventuring the Trade of Marchandize first opened a light and way to the townsmen now thriving, and left his sonne large Wealth and possessions, who together with daily bettering his estate, converteth the same to hospitality and other actions befitting a Gentleman well affected to his God, Prince and Country.”

6. Among the most remarkable specimens in this collection, are green carbonate of lead with quartz, blende in twenty sided crystals and green fleur in crystals; crystalized antimony, with red blende on quartz, yellow copper ore with opal, and arseniate of copper, in cubes of a bright green colour.—A very valuable work was published a few years ago, entitled, “Specimens of British Minerals,” from this collection, embellished with a number of fine plates, from drawings by Underwood and Bone.

7. Leland describes Restormel Castle as “sore defaced” in his time, “the fair large dungeon” says he, “yet stondith, a chapel cast out of it, a newer work than it, and now unrofid.”—Carew says “certes it may move compassion, that a palace so healthful for aire, so delightful for prospect, so necessary for commodities, so fayre for building, and so strong for defence, should in time of secure peace, and under the protection of his natural princes, be wronged with those spoylings, then which it could endure no greater at the hands of any forayne and deadly enemy, &c.”—Norden also says, “The whole Castle beginneth to mourne, and to wringe out hard stones for teares; that she that was imbraced, visited, and delighted with great princes, is now desolate, forsaken, and forlorne: the Cannon needs not batter, nor the pioneer to undermine, nor powder to blow up this so famous a pyle; for time and tirrannie hath wrought her desolation, her water pipes of lead gone, the planching rotten, the walls fallen downe, the fayre and large chimnye pieces, and all that would yield monie or serve for use, are converted to Men’s private purposes, and there remayneth a false show of honor, not contentinge anie compassionate eye to behold her lingrynge decayes. Men greyve to see the dying delayes of anie brute creature, so may we mourne to see so stately a pyle so long a fallinge, if it be of no use, the carcase would make some profit, therefore if it deserve, let her fall be no longer delayde, else will it drop peece meele downe, and her now profitable reliques will then serve to little or no use.”

8. The celebrated Tin Mine, called Polgooth, about two miles south-west of this town, has ceased working for many years, owing to some disputes among its proprietors. The profits arising from this mine is said by Borlase to have been £20,000, for many years.

9. The inhabitants boast of the Tower as the handsomest in the county; but an impartial observer will not surely prefer it to that of Probus, though some parts of the sculptural ornaments of the former, surpass considerably the latter.

10. Lyson’s Mag. Brit. Page 75.

11. In consequence of certain corrupt practices, a Bill has recently passed Parliament, disfranchising this borough, and allowing two additional members to be returned for the County of York.

12. Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall, page 249.

13. Truro being one of the privileged coinage towns, more tin is exported here than at any other port in the county: great quantities of copper are also exported from hence to Swansea and Neath in Wales. The blocks of tin lie in heaps about the streets, and are left entirely unguarded, as their great weight renders the difficulty to remove them so great, that it is never attempted.

14. Vide Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall.

15. Lysons’s Mag. Brit. page 121.

16. A very correct plan of this harbour is inserted in Gilbert’s History of Cornwall.

17. “Heylstoun, alias Hellas” says Leland, “standeth on a hill, a good Market towne, having a Mayor and privileges, wythin the which there is a Court for the Coinage of Tynne, kept twys in the Year. Yn the towne is both a Chapel and a paroch (Church) and vestegia castelli, and a ryver runnyng under the same vestegia of the Castel issueth towards The South Sea, stopped them yn the west part, with S. E. wyndes, casting up sandes maketh a poole, called Loo, of an arrow shot in breadth, and two myles yn compus yn the Somer. In the wynter, by reason of fluddes, men be constrayned to cut the sandy banke, between the Mouth of the Poole and the Sea, by the which gut the Sea floweth and ebbeth ynto the Poole.—Loo Poole is two mile in length, and betwixt it and the mayne Sea is but a barre of sand, and once in three or four year what by the wait of the fresh watier and rage of the Sea, it bubleth out, and then the fresh and Salt Water meeting maketh a Wonderful Noise. If this barre be always kept open it would be a good haven up to Hailston.”

19. Its matrix is an hard turpentine rock, in which it lies imbedded in veins or lobes, almost ductile when first dug out, but gradually indurating when exposed to the air, though always retaining its unctious feel. A considerable quantity has been used in the manufacture of china, but not for some time past.

20. In Lyson’s Mag. Brit. is a beautiful etching of Kynan’s Cove, by Miss Letitia Byrne.

21. The winters of 1809 and 1817, were particularly fatal to our shipping; and among others, the Anson Frigate was lost near Portleaven, when most of her brave crew were swallowed up by the ocean.—The Primrose Sloop of War, was lost near Gunwalloc Cove, and all on board perished, except a poor Irish boy.—On the same night, was lost off the Cove of Loverith, a transport, when only eight men escaped a watery grave!

22. One of which, an equestrian portrait of Charles I. on horseback, was presented to the family by Charles II., in consideration of the great attachment, sufferings, and heavy losses sustained in his support.

23. Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall.

24. .sp 1

Majestic Michael rises, he whose brow
Is crown’d with Castles, and whose rocky sides
Are clad with dusky ivy; he whose base,
Bent by the storms of ages, stands unmov’d
Amidst the wreck of things—the change of time.
That base, encircl’d by the azure waves,
Was once with verdure clad; the towering oaks
Here waved their branches green; the sacred oaks,
Whose awful shades among the Druids stray’d,
To cut the hallow’d Mistletoe, and hold
High converse with their Gods.

26. Carew states, that “during the Cornish Commotions, divers Gentlemen with their Wives and Families fled to the protection of this place, where the Rebels besieged them, fyrst wynning the playne at the hill’s foote by assault, when the water was out, and then the even ground on the top, by carrying up great trusses of Hay before them to blench the defender’s sight, and dead their shot, after which they could make but slender resistance, for no sooner should any one within peep his head over those unflanked walls, but he became an open mark to an whole shower of arrows. This disadvantage together with Woman’s dismay, and decrease of Victuals forced a Surrender to these Rakehells mercey, who nothing guilty of that effeminate Vertue, spoyl’d their goods, imprison’d their bodies, and were rather by God’s gracious providence, than any want of will, purpose or attempt, restained from murdering the principal persons.”—Lady Catherine Gordon, wife of the noted Perkin Warbeck, the impostor and pretender to the crown, was taken prisoner at St. Michael’s Mount, and when it surrendered in 1646, to the Parliamentary Forces under Colonel Hammond, after great resistance, a considerable quantity of ammunition and stores were taken.

27. Penzance is thus noticed by Leland.—“Penzantes about a mile from Mousehold, standing fast in the shore of Mount Bay, is the Westest Market Town of all Cornwall, Socur for botes or Shypes, but a forced pere or Key—Theyr is but a Chapel yn the sayd towne, as ys in Newlyn, For theyr paroche Chyrches be more than a mile off.”—Penzance is noticed in history as having been destroyed by fire in the year 1595, by a party of Spaniards, who landed at Mousehole, but were soon prevented from effecting further mischief, by the bravery of the Cornishmen.

28. Crosses are very prevalent in Cornwall. Almost every village contains one or more. They consist in general, of a shaft of granite, and a torved head, with the figure of a cross in relief. The most remarkable ones, are the cross in Mawgan church-yard, Lanhivitt, and Frier Hole Cross, on the side of the road leading from Bodmin to Launceston.

29. William Borlase, a learned English antiquary, was born at Pendeen, in the parish of St. Just, Cornwall, February 2, 1695–6. The family of that name, from which he was descended, had been settled at that place from whence they derived it (Borlase,) from the time of King William Rufus. Our author was the second son of John Borlase, Esq. of Pendeen, in the parish before mentioned, by Lydea, the youngest daughter of Christopher Harris, Esq. of Hayne, in the county of Devon, and was early put to school at Penzance, from which he was removed in 1709, to that of the Rev. Mr. Bedford, then a learned schoolmaster at Plymouth. Having completed his grammatical education, he was entered of Exeter College, Oxford, in March, 1712–3, where, on the first of June, 1719, he took the degree of Master of Arts. In the same year, Mr. Borlase was admitted to deacons’ orders, and ordained priest in 1720. On the 22nd of April, 1722, he was instituted by Dr. Watson, Bishop of Exeter, to the rectory of Ludgvan, in Cornwall, to which he had been presented by Charles, Duke of Bolton. On the 28th of July, 1724, he was married in the church of Illugan, by his elder brother, Dr. Borlase of Castlehorneck, to Anne, eldest surviving daughter and coheir of William Smith, M. A. rector of the parishes of Camborn and Illugan. In 1732, the Lord Chancellor King, by the recommendation of Sir William Morrice, Bart. presented Mr. Borlase to the vicarage of St. Just, his native parish, and where his father had a considerable property. This vicarage and the rectory of Ludgvan were the only preferments he ever received.

When Mr. Borlase was fixed at Ludgvan, which was a retired, but a delightful situation, he soon recommended himself as a pastor, a gentleman, and a man of learning. The duties of his profession he discharged with the most rigid punctuality and exemplary dignity. He was esteemed and respected by the principal gentry of Cornwall, and lived on the most friendly and social terms with those of his neighbourhood. In the pursuit of general knowledge he was active and vigorous: and his mind being of an inquisitive turn, he could not survey with inattention or indifference the peculiar objects which his situation pointed to his view. There were in the parish of Ludgvan rich copper works, belonging to the late Earl of Godolphin. These abounded with mineral and metallic fossils, which Mr. Borlase collected from time to time; and his collection increasing by degrees, he was encouraged to study at large the natural history of his native county. While he was engaged in this design, he could not avoid being struck with the numerous monuments of remote antiquity, that are to be met with in several parts of Cornwall, and which had hitherto been passed over with far less examination than they deserved. Enlarging, therefore, his plan, he determined to gain as accurate an acquaintance as possible with the Druid learning, and with the religion and customs of the ancient Britons, before their conversion to Christianity. To this undertaking he was encouraged by several gentlemen of his neighbourhood, who were men of literature and lovers of British antiquities; and particularly by Sir John St. Aubyn, ancestor of the present baronet of that family, and the late Rev. Edward Collins, vicar of St. Earth. In the year 1748, Mr. Borlase, happening to attend the ordination of his eldest son at Exeter, commenced an acquaintance with the Rev. Dr. Charles Lyttleton, late Bishop of Carlisle, then come to be installed into the deanery, and the Rev. Dr. Milles, the late dean, two eminent antiquaries in London. Our author’s correspondence with these gentlemen was a great encouragement to the prosecution of his studies; and he has acknowledged his obligations to them, in several parts of his works. In 1750, being at London, he was admitted a fellow of the Royal Society, into which he had been chosen the year before, after having communicated an ingenious “Essay on the Cornish Crystals.” Mr. Borlase, having completed in 1753 his manuscript of the Antiquities of Cornwall, carried it to Oxford, where he finished the whole impression, in folio, in the February following. A second edition of it, in the same form, was published at London, in 1769. Our author’s next publication was, “Observations on the ancient and present state of the Islands of Scilly, and their importance to the trade of Great Britain, in a letter to the Rev. Charles Lyttleton, L. L. D. Dean of Exeter, and F.R.S.” This work, which was printed likewise at Oxford, and appeared in 1756, in quarto, was an extension of a paper that had been read before the Royal Society, on the 8th of February, 1753, entitled “An Account of the great Alterations, which the Islands of Scilly have undergone since the time of the ancients, who mention them, as to their number, extent, and position.” It was at the request of Dr. Lyttleton, that this account was enlarged into a distinct treatise. In 1757, Mr. Borlase again employed the Oxford Press, in printing his “Natural History of Cornwall,” for which he had been many years making collections, and which was published in April, 1758. After this, he sent a variety of fossils, and remains of antiquity, which he had described in his works in the Ashmolean Museum; and to the same repository he continued to send every thing curious which fell into his hands. For these benefactions he received the thanks of the University, in a letter from the Vice-chancellor, dated Nov. 18, 1758; and in March, 1766, that learned body conferred on him the degree of doctor of laws, by diploma, the highest academical order.

Though Dr. Borlase, when he had completed his three principal works, was become more than sixty years of age, he continued to exert his usual diligence and vigour in quiet attention to his pastoral duty, and the study of the scriptures. In the course of this study he drew up paraphrases on the books of Job, and the books of Solomon, and wrote some other pieces of a religious kind, rather, however, for his private improvement, than with a view to publication. His amusements abroad were to superintend the care of his Parish, and particularly the forming and reforming of its roads, which were more numerous than in any parish of Cornwall. His amusements at home were the belles lettres, and especially painting; and the correction and enlargement of his “Antiquities of Cornwall,” for a second edition, engaged some part of his time; and when this business was completed, he applied his attention to a minute revision of his “Natural History.” After this, he prepared for the press a treatise he had composed some years before, concerning the creation and deluge. But a violent illness, in January, 1771, and the apprehension of entangling himself in so long and close an attention as the correcting the sheets, solely, and at such a distance from London, would require, induced him to drop his design, and to recall the manuscript from his bookseller, when only a few pages of it had been printed. From the time of his illness, he began sensibly to decline; the infirmities of old age came fast upon him; and it was visible to all his friends that his dissolution was approaching. This expected event happened on the 31st of August, 1772, in the 77th year of his age, when he was lamented as a kind father, an affectionate brother, a sincere friend, an instructive pastor, and a man of erudition. He was buried within the communion rails in Ludgvan Church, by the side of Mrs. Borlase, who had been dead above three years.

The Doctor had by his lady six sons, two of whom alone survived him, the Rev. Mr. John Borlase, and the Rev. Mr. George Borlase, who was Casuistical Professor and Registrar of the University of Cambridge, and died in 1809. Besides Dr. Borlase’s literary connections with Dr. Lyttleton and Dr. Milles, before-mentioned, he corresponded with most of the literary men of his time. He had a particular intercourse of this kind with Mr. Pope; and there is still existing a large collection of letters, written by that celebrated poet to our author. He furnished Mr. Pope with the greatest part of the materials for forming his grotto at Twickenham, consisting of such curious fossils as the county of Cornwall abounds with; and there might have been seen, before the destruction of that curiosity, Dr. Borlase’s name in capitals, composed of crystals, in the grotto. On this occasion a very handsome letter was written to the Doctor by Mr. Pope, in which he says, “I am much obliged to you for your valuable collection of Cornish diamonds. I have placed them where they may best represent yourself, in a shade, but shining,” alluding to the obscurity of Dr. Borlase’s situation, and the brilliancy of his talents.—The papers which he communicated at different times to the Royal Society are numerous and curious.

30. Dr. Borlase’s MSS. quoted in Lysons’ Cornwall, p. 149.

31. Lyson’s Mag. Brit. p. 150.

32. Lyson’s Mag. Brit. 245.

33. Lyson’s Mag. Brit. p. 306.

34. Warner’s Tour.

35. Lyson’s Mag. Brit. for Cornwall, p. 296.

36. A very fine portrait of Sir B. Grenville, is to be found in Gilbert’s Cornwall.

37. Sir Richard Grenville, a celebrated military and naval commander in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He first distinguished himself in the wars under the Emperor Maximilian against the Turks, for which his name is recorded by several foreign writers. In the year 1591, being then Vice-Admiral of England, he was sent in the Revenge, with a squadron of seven ships, to intercept the Spanish galleons; when falling in with the enemy’s fleet, consisting of 52 sail, near the Tercera islands, be repulsed them 15 times in a continued fight, till his powder was all spent: his ship, which sunk before it could arrive in port, was reduced to a hulk, and himself covered with wounds, of which he died two days afterwards, on board the vessel of the Spanish commander.

38. A collection of verses, by the University of Oxford, on the death of Sir Beville Grenville, was printed in 1643, and reprinted in 1684. To these are annexed King Charles’s Letters to Sir Beville Grenville, and to the county of Cornwall; and a patent of Charles I. which grants to the county of Cornwall a trade to Denmark, to the great Duke of Muscovy, and to the Levant. Martin Llewellyn was a poet and physician, and was sometime principal of St. Mary Hall, in Oxford: in the latter part of his life he resided at High Wycomb; died there in 1682, and lies buried in the north aisle of the chancel.

39. Newport, which was antiently under the jurisdiction of the town of Launceston, is one of the notorious Boroughs of Cornwall, having returned members to Parliament since the reign of Edward VI. The number of voters, does not, in general, exceed 30 persons.

40. In the course of the proceedings on the election case in 1803, when the rights of the Corporation were confirmed, it appeared from records, that there was a Mayor in the reign of Richard II.

41. Beauties of Cornwall.

42. See Gorham’s History of St. Neot’s, pp. 29–37. London, 1820.

43. So determined in Gorham’s History of St. Neot’s, p. 231. Mr. Whitaker (Life of Neot, pp. 191–203) thinks the date is intended for 1530; and that the body of the Church was built in 1199,—a wild conjecture, in defiance of architectural evidence!

44. See Gorham’s History of St. Neot’s, pp. 233–245.

45. Archives of Linc. Cath., in a vol. entitled, “Memoranda Oliveri Sutton,” ff. 122 b., 123, a curious testimonial by Anselm, Abbot of Bec., of his examination of the relics of St. Neot, in 1078.

46. Whitaker’s Life of Neot, pp. 203–211.

47. Bodmin has been described by many writers, as a very unhealthy place; the contrary, however, is the fact: for during the last ten years, the number of funerals have only been 409, and baptisms 854.—The town suffered much in the years 1576 and 1581, from a pestilence. It is now remarkable for the health and longevity of the inhabitants.

48. Owing unfortunately to the bursting of the boilers of some of the engines at this mine, very lately, two men lost their lives; but most fortunately many others had previously quitted their work, or otherwise they would have experienced the same melancholy fate.

49. One of the vague terms sometimes given to the crust or coating of the ore, sometimes to an argillaceous substance, and sometimes to a quartz ore one. The miners have pretty generally determined, however, that caple must be black; and at Polgooth they mean a heavy kind of quartz, which is perfectly opake, and contains a large portion of argill.

50. Vide Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall, page 438.

51. The author of the Guide to Mount’s Bay, recently published.

52. “As some men were lately sinking an air hole to the bottom level of the Consolidated Mines, when at the depth of 160 fathoms from the surface, they struck into a cavern; the rush of foul air from which, compelled them to call out to their companion stationed above, to raise them by the tackle kept in readiness for that purpose. This vast subterranean vault is situated in one of the principal lodes of the mine; it is about nine feet high, and six feet wide; the western end from the place of entry, has been explored, and is found to be about 40 fathoms in length; the foul air in the eastern end, has hitherto prevented the miners from fully exploring it; the appearance of the sides and roof is very craggy, and shews that the cavity has been occasioned by a convulsion of nature.”

53. Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall, page 485.

54. Beauties of England and Wales for Cornwall, p. 487.

55. Vide Beauties for Cornwall, page 488.

56. The author of the Guide to Mounts Bay, &c. recently published.

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The Project Gutenberg eBook of Excursions in the County of Cornwall

EXCURSIONS

IN

CORNWALL.

INTRODUCTION.

EXCURSIONS THROUGH CORNWALL.

EXCURSION I.

EXCURSION II.

EXCURSION III.

DESCRIPTION

OF

THE MINES, &c.

EXCURSION TO THE SCILLY ISLANDS.

Appendix.

THE LOGAN STONE OVERTURNED.

Footnootes

Index.

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE