PROCEEDINGS OF THE COTTESWOLD CLUB 231 



brought forward in Revelations, where a red dragon is 

 ready to devour a child,* and persecutes women ; f there 

 is the tale of Perseus and Andromeda ; and many other 

 stories might be cited. 



Natural history will furnish the readiest interpretation 

 of this wide-spread legend — an origin in the devouring 

 propensities of beasts of prey generally — the characters of 

 dragons being furnished by a bringing together in the 

 form of one animal of all the special attributes of death- 

 dealing animals, not omitting the wings of birds. To 

 these are further added such man-slaying elements as fire 

 and iron, to make a more terrible picture of the monster. 



Knutsford is also famous for the meres in its vicinity — 

 Rostherne Mere, Tatton Mere, Mere Mere. With the 

 name reduplication in the latter case, our Cotteswold 

 " Snowshill Hill " may be compared. 



I visited Rostherne Mere. It is a grand sheet of deep- 

 blue water, in a large basin-like depression, said, of course, 

 to be unfathomable. It has a legend, which was told me 

 as follows : — " That when the men were hanging the 

 bells in the parish church, which stands on the edge of a 

 bank sloping towards the mere, the biggest bell fell down 

 and rolled almost to the edge of the mere. The men 

 tried to haul it back, but it was so heavy that three times 

 it broke away from them. Then one of the men swore 

 — some wish that Old Nick had the bell at the bottom of 

 the mere. Then the bell broke away, crushed the man 

 who had sworn, rolled to the bottom of the mere, where 

 it now lies. And at certain times, especially on the 

 approach of rain, the mournful sounds of the bell may 

 still be heard coming from the depths of the mere." 



I suppose that under certain conditions the surface of 

 the water reflects sounds from a distance. 



* Cli. xii., V. 4. t Ch. xii., v , 3. 



F 2 



