Part 2

The house was formerly lighted up with coals, which was not only an uncertain light, but also a fixed one and was frequently mistaken; it was therefore thought necessary to have it upon a principle differing from any other upon this part of the coast to prevent such mistakes, the consequences of which might prove so very fatal. The lamps all the year are lighted up at sun-set and extinguished at sun-rise; during the longest nights in winter, the consumption of the best oil each night is three gallons.

It is kept by two young women who receive from the Trinity-house an annual salary of fifty-pounds, besides perquisites, and who constantly reside on the spot, which for perfect neatness may vie with any place. From the lantern a door opens to a light iron gallery which surrounds it, and commands a sea view of many leagues.

Extending the walk a little further you get a pleasing view of the village of Overstrand. Shipping, also, is seen to much greater advantage above than below the cliffs; and those who are fond of looking down precipices may find amusement, their situation being between three and four hundred feet perpendicular above the level of the sea.

Cromer Hall, the residence of George Wyndham, Esq. is a respectable old house; there is nothing in the inside to repay curiosity, but the sequestered walks in the wood near the house are very delightful.

These plantations make a very pleasing appearance from many places; taken in front they are too formal and circumscribed, notwithstanding which they prove the greatest possible ornament to the town of Cromer, and in autumn are extremely beautiful.

_Section the Second_.

GOING down cliff at low-water the beach to the north of the jetty presents a very pleasant walk of a mile and a half to the village of Upper Runton, where ascending by a path cut through cliffs of a very romantic form, on the edge of which stand some fishermens' cottages, you return to Cromer by a foot path close to the sea side; the country on the right is cultivated and interspersed with hills covered with furze.

Approaching within half a mile, the town with the light-house, and hills as a background, Mr. G. Wyndham's woods and the mill make a pretty appearance.

A little further on is the Battery, which as it belongs to Cromer should have been mentioned in the foregoing section. It occupies a very fine eminence commanding more than a semicircle and mounts four eighteen pounders, which are exercised by the Cromer Loyal Volunteer Artillery; being also well supplied with stores it affords excellent protection to the shipping upon this part of the coast which bring up under it in cases of danger. It is but justice to add, also, in many instances the corps have proved themselves extremely active in giving every assistance in their power; and by the liberal allowance of powder and ball, provided by Government, solely for practice, they are become very expert gunners.

I cannot here omit to mention the almost miraculous escape of Mr. Richard Cook, a corporal, belonging to the corps, who was blown from the cannon's mouth while a salute was firing on the 4th of June, 1799, in honour of his Majesty's birth-day. The gun at which he was stationed having been badly spunged, the succeeding cartridge took fire and carried him over the platform to the very edge of the cliff. This unfortunate accident happened as he was in the act of withdrawing the rammer, from the head of which (it being driven into numerous splinters) he received at least fifty wounds, most of them were very severe; notwithstanding which I am happy to say, that by the blessing of a fine constitution, he is at this time perfectly recovered without suffering even the loss of a finger or being scarcely blemished.

_Section the Third_.

LEAVING Cromer take the Aylmerton or as it called the upper road to Holt, which is preferable to the lower road running through Runton, Beeston, and Sherringham, both because it is in itself better, and because the views of the sea and country are more amusing.

The distance by either is ten miles. Concluding therefore that the Aylmerton road is taken, at the distance of about a mile and half from Cromer are the plantations of the Rt. Hon. Wm. Wyndham, of Felbrigg, which accompany the traveller on his left for more than half a mile, during which space the views of the sea on the right are very pleasing.

The fore-ground being high, the eye is carried down a pretty steep descent towards the shore, and being also a very unequal surface, a constant variety is produced, the inequalities forming themselves into vallies, through which is frequently seen, a church, a cottage or a village to great advantage.

This is a very common species of landscape. The towns and villages with their churches situated on the verge of the coast, must consequently often assume this appearance when seen from situations more inland, but more particularly, when, as is here the case, the surface of the country is uneven and sometimes woody.

It is a very happy circumstance in views of this kind when a woody knoll presents itself as a fore-ground, this with a church or village in the second distance, having the whole backed by the sea, is a composition that can scarcely fail to please.

A little beyond the plantations before mentioned, which form a part of the belt round Felbrigg Park, the sea is lost for about a mile, but ample compensation is made by the country on the left which is very rich and fertile. The Felbrigg woods with the village of Aylmerton and its church form a noble fore-ground, beyond which the view extends upwards of twenty miles over a highly cultivated country; amongst the numerous churches, the cathedral at Norwich is very conspicuous.

I entirely agree with Mr. Gilpin that a country retiring into a remote distance is amongst the most pleasing circumstances in landscape, but when it happens, as it does here, to be supported by objects near at hand it is enchanting. It is not unfrequent that a dreary heath is terminated by a very pleasing distance, and it is certainly a very happy circumstance for the traveller who views a country with a picturesque eye when it is so, but it loses much for want of a fore-ground to support it; sometimes here and there how an accidental group of cattle form a pleasing substitute.

The most beautiful effect given to a distance I ever saw was one evening, in my return from Holt, in the month of April. The forepart of the day had been cold and gloomy with frequent squalls, but towards the evening the sun broke out at intervals with the utmost brilliancy, lighting up in succession different parts of the landscape; the fore-ground was principally in shadow, as was the second distance, but the remote distance partook of the colour of the horizon which was a bright yellow, but kept down by the mistiness of the atmosphere;--the utmost keeping was preserved, producing at once the most sober and yet the most brilliant picture that can possibly be conceived. The clouds, except those in the western hemisphere, floated in large dark masses, intermixed with smaller light ones of the tenderest blue.

The view towards the sea, though, but faintly illuminated, was no less pleasing, so that three or four pictures, all completely differing in circumstance and detail, might have been painted from a scene with little to recommend it, except where the sea formed a part of the view.

Upon the disposition of the air depends the colouring of the landscape, of which no part of it partakes so much as the remote distance, and to this it is that we owe that exquisite obscurity and tenderness which stamp such value upon a distant prospect.

The study of nature by the rules of painting is capable of bestowing other benefits besides what acrue to the arts; it leads us to inspect every object with the minutest care, and by so doing learn to appreciate its value. The stump of a decayed old tree, the formation of a tussuck of grass, or in short, innumerable things which pass unnoticed by the casual observer, afford to the lover of nature a most delicious repast. But, perhaps, there is nothing that tends more to harmonise the foul and render it susceptible of the finer feelings, than a distant view melting into the horizon, tinged with gold and diffusing its serenity over the face of nature.

The pleasure of such moments, when the heart is filled with every sentiment of benevolence, is frequently felt but can never be described: the imagination following, the eye is naturally carried to that part of the horizon which invelopes the habitation of those we admire and esteem; it takes its seat by the social fire-side or its place in the friendly evening's ramble, it recalls past scenes of happiness, the amusements and the friendships of our youth and paints them with a force inimitable: in short such an unbounded scope is there allowed for the illusions of fancy, that I am not altogether certain but that such ideal enjoyments are more than equal to the majority of real ones which are anticipated with so much ardour. However if they do not exceed or equal, they must at least be allowed to approach very near them; and I am inclined to think that the number of those is not small who will concur with me in this opinion.

Proceeding forward the sea again makes its appearance upon the right, and continues a most delightful companion till you come within three miles of Holt; the remaining part of the way is over a heath rather dreary and uncomfortable.

Holt is a neat little town, with a market on Saturdays; there is an excellent free grammar school, founded by Sir John Gresham, with a salary paid to the master by the Fishmonger's Company.

The return from Holt may be agreeably varied by taking the lower road, and by which a very romantic view is obtained at Sherringham Hill. About two miles from hence are the ruins of Beeston Priory, the property of Cremer Woodrow, Esq. which will afford pleasure both to the antiquarian and the draftsman. A small tower and the whole of the west gable wall of the church are standing, and having its other parts well broken, of which a great deal remains, form a very antique and handsome ruin. It also affords ample materials for an admirable sketch from the west gable, through which the tower and the internal parts of the church are seen in excellent perspective. Its aspect too gives it every advantage it can possibly receive from the vivid illumination of an evening sun.

This gable, one of the finest and most picturesque parts of the ruin, a few years since was ornamented with a profusion of the finest ivy, (probably the growth of a century) till unfortunately a thoughtless wight, employed on the spot, laid his sacrilegious axe to the root of this venerable appendage, to the great regret of the proprietor and of every admirer of the reliques of antiquity.

The house to which it belongs, with the barn, stables and farm yard, have been injudiciously placed close under the walls of the Priory, in fact some small part of the ruins are converted into outhouses. Had they been suffered to stand by themselves the effect would have been much better--a ruin can scarcely be too much sequestered or too distant from the haunts of men. {33}

Beeston Priory was founded by the Lady Isabel de Cressy, in the reign of King John, for Canons of the Order of Saint Austin and dedicated to Saint Mary.

Not far from the Priory, on the right hand, is a house belonging to Cremer Cremer, Esq. where instead of keeping the direct road to Cromer, take in at the white gate leading past the house. The road winds in a very romantic manner between the hills unto Felbrigg Heath, upon which are the remains of a beacon;--the view from this spot is not altogether so extensive as from the beacon at Trimmingham, but it is more diversified.

The foreground is rough and well broken and the dreariness of the heath removed by the little patches of forest wood with which the vallies are adorned. Cromer with its light-house and lofty tower, Runton, Beeston Priory and Sherringham, and as far as Blackney Harbour, the whole being backed by the sea, form as fine a coast view as can well be imagined.

The same tract which led to the beacon, about half a mile further on, opens into the Cromer road, under the plantations which were passed in going to Holt and from which the whole retrospect is very pleasing.

_Section the Fourth_.

FELBRIGG, the seat of the Right Honourable William Windham, makes a very pleasant morning's excursion; it is three short miles from Cromer, delightfully situated in the bosom of extensive and venerable woods. The oak, the beech and the spanish chesnut, seem congenial to the soil; and the form of the ground, which consists of gently rising hills and vales, is admirably constituted to shew to the greatest advantage the masses of light and shade produced by such a combination.

Some of the trees, particularly the oak, bear the marks of great antiquity, and the venerable state of decay into which they are fallen, make them truly interesting objects and the ornament of the scene to which they belong.

The oak stands, indisputably, the unrivalled king of the vegetable tribe--strength joined to the most perfect beauty are its distinguishing characteristics; {36} it fills every situation with dignity and equally adorns the castle or the cottage; but it is when time has placed its honours on its head, when its

"boughs are mossed with age, And high top bald with dry antiquity,"

and it is approaching by slow but sure gradation to the period of a glorious existence, that it becomes an object of the greatest beauty, presenting to the lover of nature an ample scope of amusement.

The house has of late undergone considerable alteration, and when finished will be both elegant and convenient. It contains some good pictures by Rembrandt, Bergham, Vanderveldt, &c.

The dining-room is decorated with good portraits of the Windham family.

In the drawing-room are several pictures; a Usurer by Rembrandt, and the portrait of an Old Woman by the same master, supposed to be his Mother, deserve particular attention; the latter is placed over the door by which you enter the room but hangs too high. There are, also, some good representations of Sea-Fights; one in particular a pretty large picture, by Vanderveldt, Jun. is a very spirited performance; the effect of the smoke, from the vessels in the foreground, which is made to receive the light, is very masterly; the subject is the Engagement between the English and Van Tromp, in which Sir Edward Spragge was killed. Its companion by the elder Vanderveldt, is, also, a Sea-Fight, but a confused and wholly uninteresting performance. Over each of these pieces, is a Storm, by Vanderveldt, Jun. in his usual stile of excellence.

At the other end of the room are two very fine Views of the River Thames, one at Billinsgate Market, the other before the alteration at London Bridge;--over one of these pictures is a Landscape by Bergham, and over the other a small but highly coloured picture, the Finding of Achilles at the Court of Lycomedes, said to be by Reubens.

From the drawing-room you proceed to the cabinet. The small pictures are by much the best; two or three Storms, by Vanderveldt, jun. in his best manner; Cows Stalled, by Sagtleven, Scheveling Market, and a small Landscape, by Paul Brill, are excellent; the trees of the latter are very finely touched.

Some of the larger pictures are very good, particularly two Views, by G. B. H. Busuri,--one of which is the Cascade of Terni.

The rest of the collection in this room is chiefly composed of Italian Landscapes, and small Views of Italian Ruins in opaque colours.

One of the best pictures in the house is at present set aside; it is an Italian Sea-Port in a Hazy Morning, every part of which is delicately expressed.

The pictures above stairs are of little worth, neither is there much else to attract the attention, except the library, which is fitted up with much gothic elegance and admirably corresponding with the old stile of building of the south front. The gloom thrown into the room by the stained-glass windows and the sombre hue of the wainscot, which is of its natural colour, make it a very proper retirement for study.

Two miles from Felbrigg stand the ruins of Beckham Old Church, which for its size is one of the most elegant things which fancy can imagine. The walls of the middle aisle and the chancel are standing, and, also, the south porch. Beautiful fragments of the old gothic windows, in different states of decay, are seen peeping through the ivy, which mantles in the most luxuriant manner over almost the whole of its mouldering walls.

It is rendered still more delicious by the sequestered spot in which it stands; there is but one house near it and that at such a distance as not to interfere with the loneliness of its situation; and though it must have been long, very long since its choir has rung responsive to the notes of the parish clerk, joined by the simple rustic swains, raised to the praise of their Creator, its little cemetery covered with turf remains the sacred repository of the dead, many of whose peaceful ashes lie shaded by the long arms of several venerable oaks. Here

"The mopeing owl does to the moon complain."

Change the elms of Mr. Gray to oaks and his elegant poem exactly applies to Beckham Church Yard. {41}

"Beneath these rugged elms, that yew-tree's shade, Where heaves the turf in many a mould'ring heap, Each in his narrow cell for ever laid, The rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep."

To a mind fond of retirement, the lonely ruin covered with ivy, the cottage or the grove have infinite charms; they seem to be a refuge from the storms of life and to have the power of soothing the mind, disordered by discordant passions, to serenity and peace.

The imagination at liberty to enjoy its own reflections, revolves its misfortunes, draws conclusions and compares the present with the past, and is inspired by the situation with that kind of pleasing awe that bids him look forward to brighter prospects.

_Section the Fifth_.

THE Ruins of the parochial Church at Thorp-Market having been lately taken down and rebuilt in a peculiar stile, by the Right Honourable Lord Suffield, the impropriator, attracts many spectators from its novelty.

The present structure, which was designed by Mr. Wood, is simple and elegant; the materials are flint and free-stone, at each of the four corners is a turret, and the points of the gables are terminated by a stone cross after the monkish fashion.

The inside, consisting of only a single aisle, is finished with extreme neatness and in parts with a considerable degree of taste.

The chancel is divided from the body of the church by a light gothic wainscot screen, and an equal portion of the west end by a similar one. The upper parts of each are decorated with modern glass paintings; the subject of those at the chancel end are, in the center, the Dove sent forth from the Ark, and on each side Moses and Aaron. In the center of the corresponding screen are the King's Arms, well painted upon copper, and on each side those of his Lordship's family in painted glass.

The pulpit is placed against the north wall and is entered from a staircase in the vestry, on each side is a door, over which are painted, in imitation of bass relief, the symbolical figures of the Saints Mark and Luke.

The greatest defect in the building is in the disposition of the stained-glass in the windows, which instead of being concentrated in such a manner as to throw that devotional gloom into the church which produces such an evident effect upon the mind, and which appears to me to have been the original intention of stained or painted glass, is scattered over the whole window in small pieces, greens, purples, reds and yellows, regularly intermixed with white, giving to the whole an appearance of too much gaiety, independent of the unpleasant manner in which, in a day when the sun is bright, the different colours of the glass are reflected over the church and upon the persons of the congregation. {45}

There are three family monuments taken from the walls of the old church. Another small but very elegant one has been added, in memory of Robert and William Morden, second and fourth sons of the late Sir William Morden Harbord, Baronet, and brothers to the present Lord Suffield.

This monument was executed by C. Rynart.

As in all human efforts there will be some defects, so it happens that Thorp Church is not entirely free; but what few there are, are so well counterbalanced by its beauties, which are numerous, that it cannot fail to be in a high degree worthy the attention of the curious.

This church, with Gunton Hall, the seat of his Lordship, may be conveniently inspected in a ride from Cromer to North-Walsham.

The house is by no means equal to the ideas we may be led to form of it from the plantations which surround it. It is, however, pleasantly situated upon an eminence which overlooks an extensive sweep of the park towards the south.

The description of the house, offices, and Gunton Church, which stand but a small distance from each other, I shall quote from the History of Norfolk, having myself never seen more than the outside, it not being, I believe, publicly shown.

"Gunton Hall, the seat of Sir Harbord Harbord, is at present a small house but is going to be enlarged and has lately been ornamented with new offices, under the direction of Mr. Wyatt. They are by far the most complete buildings for the purpose of any thing in this kingdom; the new stile of architecture is by its lightness and extreme elegance well adapted to offices, and these are particularly worthy the attention of strangers, from the studied contrivance for conveniency in the apartments, as, also, for the slate covering, which consists of small square pieces of slate, each fastened by wood skrews."

"Not far from the house is the parish church which by the late Sir William Harbord was taken down and rebuilt, with a magnificent portico of the Doric order; this receives an additional degree of sanctity from two venerable druidical oaks which grace the front of it."

North-Walsham is situated about three miles from Gunton, it is a dull, unpleasant town with a market on Thursdays, a turnpike road has lately been established from this town to Norwich, from which it is distant fourteen miles.

Two miles from Gunton is Hanworth, the seat of Robert Lee Doughty, Esq. an excellent modern house, situated in a small but very pleasant park, well wooded and laid out with taste; a farm house and the parish church which stands on an eminence, both in the park, are very pretty objects as seen from the road.

_Section the Sixth_.

THE ride from Cromer to Mundesley will present the traveller with some pleasing scenes; the road runs almost entirely along the coast, taking in its course the villages of Overstrand, Syderstrand and Trimmingham. On a hill, about a mile through the latter village, stand the ruins of an old beacon, which commands a noble prospect both of the sea and land; in very clear weather Yarmouth is discoverable, and the cathedral spire at Norwich very plainly to be seen. Few, who pay a visit to Cromer, omit seeing this view, which is, perhaps, the most extensive in the county of Norfolk.

About two miles further on is Mundesley, a straggling village, little worthy of notice. There is one bathing machine, and some few, though the number is very small, frequent Mundesley in the bathing season. The accommodations are very confined, four or five houses at the utmost appear at all calculated for the purposes of lodgings, and those are situated close to the side of a dusty road.