was still so steep, and washed so | They have no slope at their other

ends: indeed, they have no back ends, but ran into the main high land. There is also great variety in the width of the valley; great variety in the width of the mea

very deep, by the rains of ages, that I did not attempt to ride down it, and I did not like to lead my horse, the path was so narrow. So, seeing a boy with a drove of pigs, going out to the stubbles, Idows; but the land appears all to beckoned him to come up to me; be of the very best; and it must and he came, and led my horse be so, for the farmers confess it. down for me. But now, before I It seemed to me, that one way, begin to ride down this beautiful and that not, perhaps, the least vale, let me give, as well as my striking, of exposing the folly, the means will enable me, a plan or stupidity, the inanity, the premap of it, which I have made in sumption, the insufferable emptithis way: a friend has lent me a ness and insolence and barbarity, very old map of Wiltshire, de- of those numerous wretches, who scribing the spots where all the have now the audacity to propose churches stand, and also all the to transport the people of Engspots where Manor-houses, or land, upon the principle of the Mansion-houses, stood. I laid a monster MALTHUS, who has furpiece of very thin paper upon the nished the unfeeling oligarchs and map, and thus traced the river their toad-eaters with the preupon my paper, putting figures to represent the spots where churches stand, and putting stars to represent the spots where Manor-houses, or Mansion-houses, formerly stood. Endless is the variety in the shape of the high lands which form this valley. Sometimes the slope is very gentle, and the arable lands go back very far. At others, the downs come out into the valley, almost like piers into the sea, being very steep in their sides, as well as every good that he has had to their ends, towards the valley. bestow upon man.

tence, that man has a natural propensity to breed faster than food can be raised for the increase; it seemed to me, that one way of exposing this mixture of madness and of blasphemy was, to take a look, now that the harvest is in, at the produce, the mouths, the

condition, and the changes that have taken place, in a spot like

this, which God has favoured with

From the top of the hill I was my friend, which lay on my road not a little surprised to see, in down the valley. I have many, every part of the valley that my many times witnessed agreeable eye could reach, a due, a large, surprise; but I do not know, that portion of fields of Swedish Tur-I ever, in the whole course of my nips, all looking extremely well. life, saw people so much surprised I had found the turnips, of both and pleased as this farmer and his sorts, by no means bad, from family were at seeing me. PeoSalt Hill to Newbury; but, from ple often tell you, that they are Newbury through Burghclere, glad to see you; and, in general, Highclere, Uphusband, and Tang- they speak truth. I take pretty ley, I had seen but few. At and good care not to approach any about Ludgarshall and Everley I house, with the smallest appearhad seen hardly any. But, when ance of a design to eat or drink in I came, this morning, to Milton it, unless I be quite sure of a corHill farm, I saw a very large dial reception; but, my friend at field of what appeared to me to FIFIELD (it is in Milton parish) be fine Swedish Turnips. In the and all his family, really seemed valley, however, I found them to be delighted beyond all exmuch finer, and the fields were pression. very beautiful objects, forming, When I set out this morning, I as their colour did, so great a con- intended to go all the way down trast with that of the fallows and to the city of Salisbury (31) tothe stubbles, which latter are, this day; but, I soon found, that, to year, singularly clean and bright. refuse to sleep at FIFIELD Would Having gotten to the bottom of cost me a great deal more trouble the hill, I proceeded on to the than a day was worth. So that I village of MILTON, the church of made my mind up to stay in this which is, in the map, represented farm-house, which has one of the by the figure 3. I left EASTON (2) nicest gardens, and it contains away to my right, and I did not some of the finest flowers, that I go up to WoTTON RIVERS (1), ever saw, and all is disposed with where the river Avon rises, and as much good taste as I have ever which lies just close to the south-witnessed. Here I am, then, just west corner of Marlborough Fo- going to bed, after having spent rest, and at about 5 or 6 miles as pleasant a day as I ever spent from the town of Marlborough. in my life. I have heard to-day, Lower down the river, as I thought, that BIRKBECK lost his life by atthere lived a friend, who was a tempting to cross a river on horsegreat farmer, and whom I intended back; but, if what I have heard to call on. It being my way, besides be true, that life must have however, always to begin making been hardly worth preserving ; inquiries soon enough, I asked for, they say, that he was reduced the pig-driver where this friend to a very deplorable state; and, I lived; and, to my surprise, I found that he lived in the parish of Milton. After riding up to the church, as being the centre of the village, I went on towards the house of

have heard from what I deem unquestionable authority, that his two beautiful and accomplished daughters are married to two common labourers, one a Yankee and

.

make some notes of what I have seen since I left ENFORD....... but, here comes my dinner; and I must put off my notes till I have dined.

the other an Irishman, neither of him. He seemed to me to be bent whom has, probably, a second upon his own destruction. I thought shirt to his back, or a single pair it my duty to warn others of their of shoes to put his feet into! These danger: some took the warning; ́ poor girls owe their ruin and mi-others did not; but he and his sery (if my information be correct), brother adventurer, FLOWER, never and, at any rate, hundreds besides forgave me, and they resorted to BIRKBECK himself, owe their utter all the means in their power to do rain, the most scandalous degradame injury. They did me no intion, together with great bodily jury, no thanks to them; and I suffering, to the vanity, the con- have seen them most severely, ceit, the presumption of BIRK- but, most justly, punished. BECK, who, observe, richly merit- AMESBURY, TUESDAY, 29th ed all that he suffered, not ex- AUGUST.-I set off from FIFIELD cepting his death; for, he sinned this morning, and got here (25 on with his eyes open; he rejected the map) about one o'clock, with all advice; he persevered after my clothes wet. While they are he saw his error; he dragged drying, and while a mutton chop thousands into ruin along with is getting ready, I sit down to him; and he most vilely calumniated the man, who, after having most disinterestedly, but in vain, endeavoured to preserve him from rain, endeavoured to preserve those who were in danger of being SALISBURY, WEDNESDAY, 30th deluded by him. When, in 1817, AUGUST.-My ride yesterday, before he set out for America, I from MILTON to this city of SALISwas, in Catherine Street, Strand, BURY, was, without any exception, London, so earnestly pressing him the most pleasant; it brought before not to go to the back countries, he me the greatest number of, to me, had one of these daughters with interesting objects, and it gave him. After talking to him for some rise to more interesting reflections, time, and describing the risks and than I remember ever to have had disadvantages of the back coun- brought before my eyes, or into tries, I turned towards the daugh- my mind, in any one day of my ter, and, in a sort of joking way, life; and, therefore, this ride was, said: "Miss Birkbeck, take my without any exception, the most advice: don't let any body get pleasant that I ever had in my you more than twenty miles life, as far as my recollection "from Boston, New York, Phila- serves me. I got a little wet in delphia, or Baltimore." Upon the middle of the day; but, I got which he gave me a most dignified dry again, and, I arrived here in look, and, observed: "Miss Birk- very good time, though I went "beck has a father, Sir, whom over the ACCURSED HILL "she knows it to be her duty to (Old Sarum), and went across to obey." This snap was enough LAVERSTOKE, before I came to for me. I saw, that this was a man Salisbury. so full of self-conceit, that it was impossible to do any thing with

66

Let us now, then, look back over this part of Wiltshire, and

see whether the inhabitants ought ley, wool and lambs, and these to be "transported" by order of latter not to be sold to butchers, the "Emigration Committee," of but to be sold, at the great fairs, which we shall see and say more to those who are going to keep by-and-by. I have before described them for some time, whether to this valley generally; let me now breed from, or, finally to fat for speak of it a little more in detail. the butcher. It is the pulse and The farms are all large, and, ge- the oats that appear to have failed nerally speaking, they were always most this year; and, therefore, large, I dare say; because sheep this Valley has not suffered. I Ι is one of the great things here; do not perceive that they have and sheep, in a country like this, many potatoes; but, what they must be kept in flocks, to be of have of this base root seem to any profit. The sheep principally look well enough. It was one of manure the land. This is to be the greatest villains, upon earth done only by folding; and, to fold, you must have a flock. Every farm has its portion of down, arable, and meadow; and, in many places, the latter are watered meadows, which is a great resource where sheep are kept in flocks; because these meadows furnish grass for the suckling ewes, early in the spring; and, indeed, because they have always food in them for sheep and cattle of all sorts. These meadows have had no part of the suffering from the drought, this year. They fed the ewes and lambs in the spring, and they are now yielding a heavy crop of hay; for, I saw men mowing in them, in several places, particularly about NETHERAVON 18 in the map), though it was raining at the time.

(Sir WALTER RALEIGH), who (they say) first brought this root into England. He was hanged at last! What a pity, since he was to be hanged, the hanging did not take place before he became such a mischievous devil as he was in the latter two-thirds of his life!

The stack-yards down this Valley are beautiful to behold. They contain from five to fifteen banging wheat-ricks, besides barleyricks and hay-ricks, and also besides the contents of the barns, many of which exceed a hundred, some two hundred, and I saw one at PEWSEY (4 in map) and another at FITTLETON (16 in map), each. of which exceeded two hundred and fifty feet in length. At a farm, which, in the old maps, is called Chissenbury Priory (14 in map), I think I counted twentyseven ricks of one sort and another,

The turnips look pretty well all the way down the valley; but, I see very few, except Swedish tur-and sixteen or eighteen of them nips. The early common turnips wheat-ricks. I could not convevery nearly all failed, I believe. niently get to the yard, without But, the stubbles are beautifully longer delay than I wished to make; bright; and the rick-yards tell but, I could not be much out in us, that the crops are good, espe- my counting. A very fine sight cially of wheat. This is not a this was, and it could not meet country of pease and beans, nor of the eye without making one look oats, except for home consump-round (and in vain) to see the tion. The crops are, wheat, bar-people who were to eat all this