A GENERAL COLLECTION OF VOYAGES AND TRAVELS. A TOUR IN SCOTLAND, 1769. BY THOMAS PENNANT, ESQ. DEDICATION, TO SIR ROGER MOSTYN, BART. OF MOSTYN, FLINTSHIRE. Dear Sir, AGENTLEMAN well known to the political world in the beginning of the prefent century made the tour of Europe, and before he reached Abbeville discovered that in order to see a country to beft advantage it was infinitely preferable to travel by day than by night. I cannot help making this applicable to myself, who, after publishing three volumes of the Zoology of Great Britain, found out that to be able to speak with more precifion of the subjects I treated of, it was far more prudent to visit the whole than part of my country: ftruck therefore with the reflection of having never seen Scotland, I inftantly ordered my baggage to be got ready, and in a reasonable time found myself on the banks of the Tweed. As foon as I communicated to you my refolution, with your accustomed friendship you wifhed to hear from me: I could give but a partial performance of my promife, the attention of a traveller being fo much taken up as to leave very little room for epiftolary duties; and I flatter myfelf you will find this tardy execution of my engagement more fatisfactory than the hafty accounts I could, fend you on my road. But this is far from being the fole motive of this addrefs. I have irresistible inducements of public and of a private nature to you I owe a most free enjoyment of the little territories Providence had bestowed on me; for by a liberal and equal ceffion of fields, and meads and woods, you connected all the divided parts, and gave a full fcope to all my improvements. Every view I take from VOL. III. B my my window reminds me of my debt, and forbids my filence, caufing the pleafing glow of gratitude to diffufe itfelf over the whole frame, inftead of forcing up the imbittering figh of O fi angulus ille! Now every fcene I enjoy receives new charms, for I mingle with the vifible beauties, the more pleafing idea of owing them to you, the worthy neighbour and firm friend, who are happy in the calm and domeftic paths of life with abilities fuperior to oftentation, and goodnefs content with its own reward: with a found judg ment and honeft heart you worthily discharge the fenatorial trust repofed in you, whofe unprejudiced vote aids to ftill the madness of the people, or aims to check the prefump-` tion of the minister. My happiness in being from your earliest life your neighbour, makes me confident in my obfervation; your increafing and difcerning band of friends difcovers and confirms the juftice of it may the reafons that attract and bind us to you ever remain, is the moft grateful with that can be thought of, by, Downing, October 20th, 1771. Dear Sir, &c. THOMAS PENNANT. ON N Monday the 26th of June, take my departure from Chester, a city without parallel for the fingular structure of the four principal streets, which are as if excavated out of the earth, and funk many feet beneath the furface; the carriages drive far beneath the level of the kitchens, on a line with ranges of fhops, over which on each fide of the streets paffengers walk from end to end, in galleries open in front, secure from wet or heat. The back courts of all these houses are level with the ground, but to go into any of these four streets it is neceffary to defcend a flight of several steps. The Cathedral is an ancient structure, very ragged on the outfide, from the nature of the red friable stone with which it is built: the tabernacle work in the choir is very neat; but the beauty and elegant fimplicity of a very antique gothic chapter-house, is what merits a vifit from every traveller. The Hypocauft near the Feathers Inn, is one of the remains of the Romanst, it being well known that this place was a principal ftation. Among many antiquities found here, none is more fingular than the rude fculpture of the Dea Armigera Minerva, with her bird and her altar, on the face of a rock in a small field near the Welch end of the bridge. The caftle is a decaying pile. The walls of the city, the only complete fpecimens of ancient fortifications, are kept in excellent order, being the principal walk of the inhabitants: the views from the feveral parts are very fine; the mountains of Flintfhire, the hills of Broxton, and the infulated rock of Beefton, form the ruder part of the scenery; a rich flat forms the fofter view, and the prospect up the river towards Boughton recalls in fome degree the idea of the Thames and Richmond hill. Paffed through Tarvin, a small village; in the church-yard is an epitaph in memory of Mr. John Thomafen, an excellent penman, but particularly famous for his exact and elegant imitation of the Greek character. Delamere, which Leland calls a faire and large foreft, with plenty of redde deere and falow, is now a black and dreary wafte; it feeds a few rabbets, and a few black Ternst skim over the splashes that water fome part of it. • Saxum arenarium friabile rubrum. Da Cofta, Foils. I. 139. This city was the Deva and Devana of Antonine, and the station of the Legio vicefima victrix. Br. Zool. II. No. 256. A few miles from this heath lies Northwich, a fmall town, long famous for its rosk falt, and brine pits. Some years ago I vifited one of the mines; the ftratum of falt lies about forty yards deep; that which I faw was hollowed into the form of a temple. I defcended through a dome, and found the roof fupported by rows of pillars, about two yards thick, and several in height; the whole was illuminated with numbers of candles, and made a most magnificent and glittering appearance. Above the falt is a bed of whitish clay *, used in making the Liverpool earthen-ware; and in the fame place is alfo dug a good deal of the gypfum, or plaifter ftone. The foflil falt is generally yellow, and femi-pellucid, fometimes debased with a dull greenish earth, and is often found, but in fmall quantities, quite clear and colourlefs. The road from this place to Macclesfield is through a flat, rich, but unpleasant country. That town is in a very flourishing state; is possessed of a great manufacture of mohair and twist buttons; has between twenty and thirty filk mills, and a very confiderable copper fmelting houfe, and brafs work. Here lived in great hofpitality, at his manor-houfet, Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, a moft powerful peer, the fad inftrument of the ambition of Richard III. He was at once rewarded by that monarch with a grant of fifty caftles and manors; but struck with remorse at being acceffary to fo many crimes, fell from his allegiance, and by a just retribution, fuffered on a fcaffold by the mere fiat of his unfeeling mafter. In the church is the fepulchral chapel, and the magnificent monuments of the family of the Savages. In this part of the church had been a chauntry of fecular priests, founded about 1508 by Thomas Savage, archbifhop of York ||, who directed that his heart should be depofited here. On a brass plate on the wall is this comfortable advertisement of the price of remiffion of fins in the other life; it was to be wished that the expence of obtaining fo extenfive a charter from his holinefs in this world had likewife been added. These are the words: "The Pdon for faying of 5 Pater noft and 5 aves and a creed is 26 thousand yeres and 26 dayes of pardon." In the chapel belonging to the Leghs of Lime is another fingular infcription and its hiftory: Here lyeth the body of Perkin a Legh Betrayed for righteousness, And the bones of Sir Peers his fonne That with King Henrie the fift did wonne This Perkin ferved king Edward the third and the black Prince his fonne in all their warres in France and was at the battel of Creffie and had Lyme given him for that fervice; and after their deathes ferved king Richard the fecond, and left him not in his troubles, but was taken with him, and beheaded at Chester by king Henrie the fourthe. And the fayd Sir Peers his fonne ferved king Henrie and was flaine at the battel of Agencourt. * Argilla cærula-cinerea. Da Cofta, Foffils. I. 48. + Dugdale's Baronage. I. 163. B 2 + King's Vale Royal 86. Tanner, Notitia Monaft. 1744. 66. ، In In their memorie Sir Peter Legh of Lyme knight defcended from them finding the fayd ould verfes written upon a ftone in this Chappel did reedifie this place An° Dni 16:0.' After leaving this town, the country almost inftantly changes and becomes very mountainous and barren, at least on the furface; but the bowels compenfate for the external sterility, by yielding fufficiently quantity of coal for the use of the neighbour ing parts of Cheshire, and for the burning of lime: vaft quantity is made near Buxton, and being carried to all parts for the purposes of agriculture, is become a confiderable article of commerce. The celebrated warm bath of Buxton* is feated in a bottom, amidst these hills, in a moft cheerless spot, and would be little frequented, did not Hygeia often refide here, and difpenfe to her votaries the chief bleflings of life, eafe, and health. With joy and gratitude I this moment reflect on the efficacious qualities of the waters; I recollect with rapture the return of spirits, the flight of pain, and re-animation of my long, longcrippled rheumatic limbs. But how unfortunate is it, that what Providence designed for the general good, thould be rendered only a partial one, and denied to all, except the opulent; or I may fay to the (comparatively) few that can get admittance into the house where these waters are imprisoned? There are other fprings (Camden says nine) very near that in the Hall, and in all probability of equal virtue. I was informed that the late Duke of Devonshire, not long before his death, had ordered fome of these to be inclofed and formed into baths. It is to be hoped that his fucceffor will not fail adopting fo useful and humane a plan; that he will form it on the most enlarged fyflem, that they may open not folely to thofe whom mifufed wealth hath rendered invalids, but to the poor cripple, whom honeft labour hath made a burthen to himself and his country; and to the foldier and failor, who by hard fervice have loft the ufe of thofe very limbs which once were active in our defence. The honour resulting from fuch a foundation would be as great, as the fatisfaction arifing from a confciousness of fo benevolent a work, would be unspeakable. The charms of diffipation would then lose their force; and every human luxury would appear to him infipid, who had it in his power thus to lay open these fountains of health, and to be able to exult in fuch pathetic and comfortable strains as thefe: "When the ear heard me, then it bleffed me; and when the eye faw me it gave witnefs to me; "Because I had delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him. "The bleffing of him that was ready to perish came upon me, and I caufed the widow's heart to fing for joy. "I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame." After leaving Buxton, paffed through Middleton dale, a deep narrow chafm between two vaft cliffs, which extend on each fide near a mile in length: this road is very fingular, but the rocks are in general too naked to be beautiful. At the end is the fmall village of Stoney Middleton; here the profpect opens, and at Barsley-bridge exhibits a pretty view of a fmall but fertile vale, watered by the Derwent, and terminated by Chatfworth and its plantations. Arrived and lay at Chesterfield, an ugly town. In this place is a great manufacture of worsted stockings, and another of a brown earthen ware, much of which is fent into Holland, the country which, within less than half a century ago, fupplied not only these kingdoms but half of The Romans, who were remarkably fond of warm baths, did not overlook thefe agreeable waters: they had a bath, inclosed with a brick wall, adjacent to the prefent St. Anne's well, which Dr. Short, in his Elay on Mineral Waters, fays was razed in 1709. 8 Europe |