A TRIP ABROAD.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 76, 26 March 1912, Page 3

A TRIP ABROAD.

(By A Traveller.) Warwick was reached via those great industrial centres Stoke, Wolverhampton, Birmingham, and Coventry. The former is another old world town notable for its famous castle of which Sir Walter Scott remarks, “the finest monument of ancient and chivalrous splendour which yet remains uninjured by time.” The castle is entered by an embattled gateway at the porter’s lodge. The grounds are beautifully laid out and in the interior are many rare articles and curiosities, as auctioneers say, “too numerous to mention.” There are beautiful pictures, suits of armour, weapons, relics of Guy Earl of Warwick, a suit of horse trappings said to have boon used by Queen Elizabeth on her journey from Warwick to Kenilworth, cabinets of tortoiseshell and ivory, ancient bronzes, etc. In the State bedroom is the bed and furniture of red crimson velvet which belonged to Queen Anne, and fine old tapestries 300 years old. The collection of ancient armour is considered to be the finest in the Kingdom. On an old oak chest there is inscribed, “Isaac Walton and Rachel Flood joined together in ye holie bonds of wedlock on ye 27 daie of December, 1626.

Wo once were two. Two made one. Wo no more two. Through life l)co one.” In tlie Green House is the famous antique vase standing among a choice collection of plants and shrubs, Tt is of white marble, circular, and will hold 136 gallons, and is enriched with sculptured grapes, vine leaves, etc. This relic of a bygone age is far older than the castle and was found at the bottom of a lake at Hadrian’s villa near Tivoli by Sir W. Hamilton, then Ambassador at the Court of Naples, who presented it to the then' Earl of Warwick. The private apartments are not open to the public, which goes without saying. From the bridge over the Avon in the town there is a very fine view of the castle that is much sketched and photographed by artists. St. Mary’s Church, with its fine old tower 171 feet high, is very ancient and contains many interesting memorials, etc. The most notable is the Beauchamp Chap el, founded by Richard. Beauchamp in 14.7 o, whose altar-tombc is of Pnrbeck marble beautifully finished, with a recumbent effigy of the great Earl There arc other monuments' in this jchapel. That of the Earl of Leyccster and his Countess and their infant,son the “Noble Impe.” The carvings, .etc.', in this chapel are/ of ’great ’beautj and the East window' is very rich in' colour and design. At the w r ost oneoff the church is a .bust of Walter Savage Lander, the author of “Imaginary Conversations,” who was born in 1775 in a house near the east gate, thqt is now occupied as a girls’ big: sbhool. In the crypt of the church i: a very rapc “lepers’ peep.” These afflicted people were not allowed te mix with the- congregation and were pulp into".a room in the , wall of wind, was a hole or aperture so that they could peep-.through' and sec the altar in the. chapel during celebration of mass. It is said that the terrible disease was introduced from the East during the Crusades. In the crypt also is a great curiosity in the shape of an ancient j ducking stooi for -scolds, a description of Which: might not be out of place here. It is like a large go-carl of childhood days a generation ago The three block'wheels are about It inches in diameter. In the ccntn is an upright piece of timber throng! which, near the top, passes a lorniron holt crosswmys. ‘Then there won two long boards (this portion is - noi in the crypt) six by one, and perhap: twenty feet long; through the centr; of these the iron holt passed boldine them flat against the wooden upright At the one-wheel end, which we wil’ call the bows, the ends were fastened together, the other ends at the stem were left open and assume! the appearance of • -the gun wales of a boat or that of a gigantic pair of tweezers wdiicl grasped the chair which was firm]; fixed between them aft. It will bf seen that the iron bolt became a sorl of fulcrum and that anyone- “occupy ing the chair” coidd bo lifted up am down soe-saw fashion. When DamNagger, had to be punished for ill timed loquasity, the vehicle was back ed in to the pool and she was,, ducked in the water as above described,’ mud to the amusement and satisfaction, n< doubt, of those who “laid the information.” And right here lot the readei reserve her or his indignation till they read on: Tt was not always “hubby” who “took proceedings,” but ii many cases was those of his wifeb own sex! So I was informed. Tbii relic of a dark age is 500 years old am was last iised in 1794. There is another at Leominster' which was last used in 1810. The Earl of Leycester’s Hospital b a most interesting old place near tin West Gate. A good specimen of the half-timbered house, it was first occupied by the United Guilds in the time of Richard 11., and after the dissolution was granted to the Ear 1 of Lcycester, Robert Dudley. In the great hall are very ancient carvings and armourial hearings, and many interesting articles, among them a piece of embroidery worked by Amy Robsart, and the chair in which King James I. sat at a banquet given in his honour. There is a very line chapel connected with the hospital which latter is the residence of a master and twelve brethren. Not far from the East Gate and on the road to Leamington is a fine old Elizabethan Mansion called St. John’s. It was built on the site of an hospital of St. John the Baptist. , Guy’s ClifFc, the seat of Lord Al--1 gcrnoix Percy, a little over a mile

from Warwick, on the road to Coventry, is a romantic old mansion o; the Avon: It was here that the famous Guy- Earl of Warwick is said to have lived in a cave as a hermit i; his latter days. In the little chape; there is a statue of him, now much tie faced. Down a lane to the right it the notable old Saxon Mill, on tin walls of which are several Hood marks, the highest of 1735 being 3ft. 9in. from the ground. Many name; have been cut upon the wall, one being that of D. Cox, a notable artist. The view from there looking toward: the mansion is very picturesque. Clos, by the mill is a cottage which the guide pointed out as being from where Mrs Siddons, the famous actress, clop ed to marry Mr Siddons. Personally I was much interested in seeing this. Strange to say although her father, Roger Kemble, was an actor, he doc;, not seem to have looked favourabh on his daughter’s attachment to Mi Siddons, who was one of his,company She' wap companion to Lady .Mary Greatheaj at Guy’s Clifl[o i a,t the time she eloped from this cottage with ho;. . fiance, and went to Coventry where they were manned in 1773. It’s the old story. Her great character was “Lady Macbeth/’ and she owed much of her success to her personal beauty and dignity. Perhaps it will interest some of your readers to know that she reqejy.efl 1000 guineas for a ton night’s |.engagement at Edinburgh, • a large sum, jn those days. : • She Also' received .many valuable presents. He: portrait as the “Tragic Muse/’ painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds, is wellknown, and ho was so proud of it that he traced his name on the hem of the muse’s garment. Her portrait in, propria persona was painted by Gainsborough and is in the National Gallery, London. It is a very fine picture, and is ranch copied by artists. As any description of dainty frocks, etc., especially those worn by celehrites, are always of interest to the women folk I have asked the companion of my gravels to describe that depicted in the portrait alluded to above. Black Gainsborough hat, how, and ostrich plumes—those weapons of feminine defence and offence, hat pins, were not invented then; hair powdered (the fashion at the time); white tucker (so called in those days) ; dress, silk or satin, narrow white and bine bars, trimmed with blue; scarf amber, trimmed with sable, sable muff and lace ruffles at wrists. The background is of dark crimson drapery. The famous Queen of Tragedy died in London in 1831. The guide showed us a large yew tree in the grounds which was planted by Henry VJiII. He (the guide) was a very genial man and, in addition to the übiquitous post cards, was selling leaflets of verses of his own composition. On being, asked about the course of the Avon he quoted one of them:— THE RIVER’S JOURNEY. Down the peaceful Avon The rippling waters flow By the house, to meet her sister Loam, i Then hand in hand they go, ■ Calling at Warwick Castle (And Stratford, on the way, Then Tewksbury on the Severn, In their journey to the sea. A little further along the road and on the left hand is a wooded eminence called Elocklow Hill, on which, some distance from the road, is a stone cross -marking the spot wlmrc Piers Glovestou, Earl of Cornwall, the favourite of Edward 11., was beheaded in 1312. Continuing along this beautiful i*oad four miles from Warwick is the town of Kenilworth, and a mile to the loft lies , the famous castle’s stately ruins. It was found ed iii 1124, was for many years a Royal residence, when Queen Elizabeth granted it to Robert Dudley, Earl of Loycoster, in 1503. He leaving no legitimate heir it reverted to the Crown, and in the days of the Civil War was dismantled and fell into ruin. It is now the property of the Earl of Clarendon. Queen Elizabeth visited it several times and in 1575 her reception was on a most sumptions scale, and with great pageantry. This .(magnificent castle was onco surrounded by a mote and a groat lake, neither of which now exist. The gate house, a fine building erected in 1570 and which was the chief

entrance to the castle, is in occupation, judging from the smoke that was issuing from the chimneys. Sir Walter Scott in his novel represents Amy Ilobsart as being present at the castle in 1575, but local historians say that is fiction, because she died (being found lying at the foot of the stairs of her residence with her neck broken) 15 years before. Leamington, a very line town in a beautiful country is reached by a good tram service from Warwick. This town is a great health resort and is noted for its spa. The Pump Room at the old well was built a hundred years ago. The gardens, Linden Avenue, Holly Walk, etc., are beautifully laid out and well kept. Whilst in this district a word on canals might be of interest because in the Dominion we have nothing of the sort yet at any rate. There is one close to Warwick, and on inquiry I found that in the United Kingdom there are 3800 miles of these used and disused waterways,! and an enormous amount of freight is carried in the boats that ply along them. It is very interesting to watch the horse on the tow path towing one of these barges, the steersman keeping her bows clear of the bank as she glides along. Stratford-on-Avon is another “Mekka,” and a very large one. It will be easily imagined what a great number of people visit this famous town every season. Shakespeare’s birthplace in Henley Street is a well-pre-served timber and plaster house. There is a noticeable declivity in the centre of the floor, which the guide explained as being where the chopping block stood, as the place was used for some time as a butcher’s shop. In the large room on the upper floor the poet was born, and here he spent his childhood. The house that adjoins this and communicates with it was used by Shakespeares’ father as a storeroom. It is now a museum and library and contains relics, manuscripts, etc., connected with the life and times of the famous poet and dramatist. At the rear of the birthplace house is a very nice garden containing the trees, plants, ■ and flowers mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays and poems. New Place, where the poet lived in his latter years and died, stood at the corner of Chapel Street and Chapel Lane and has been pulled down. Excavations have been made and the foundations of New Place discovered and are now exhibited to visitors. The Church of the Holy Trinity stands on the banks of the Avon in a beautiful locality. In the sanctuary lies Shakespeare, his,wife, jvild other memberfi 1 of his family. In the west end near the porch is the poet’s font and the register containing entries of his baptism and burial: On the wall above his grave in the sanctuary is his monument, ■ a bust representing him with pen and scroll as in the act of composing. The church contains some beautifully stained windows. On returning from the church we were shown a quaint and picturesque old house over the residence of Dr John Hall, who married, Shakespeare’s .eldest daughter, Sttsanha. f: There ard’irfariy potable places. The Memorial Theatre is *a fine imposing ;biiilding. Harvard Blouse, formerly the . propertytuof .an ancestor of John Harvard who founded the college of that name in America lias been purchased by the famous novelist, Miss who presented it to the Harvard University with the proviso that it is not to be' removed from its present position. A pleasant drive of a mile from the .birthplace brings us to Ann Hathaway’s cottage in the village of Shottory, a fine specimen of the old fashioned thatched farm house, containing quaint old furniture in keeping with it. Perhaps the most interesting of which is the old settle when William and Ann used to see the golden visions of “Love’s young dream.”