262 Cherhill Gleanings. 
village, called the Bell, is now known as the Bell Farm. This used 
to have a picturesque old swinging sign on the side of the road just 
opposite the front door, of which I was very sorry to see the last. 
The second inn stood under the shadow of the great elm close to 
the village forge, and had been for many years turned into the private 
residence of the blacksmith. At last, one unlucky afternoon in 
1883, a spark from the chimney of the forge alighted on the 
thatched roof and burned the whole place to the ground. How the 
house had stood so long as it did was a marvel, for there was another 
danger to which I had been expecting year by year that it would 
snccamb, and that was the probability of the fall of the great elm 
which grew above it, and which was, and is, the largest tree in the 
parish. One enormous braneh did give way many years ago, but 
curiously enough, although it broke exactly over the house, not 
the least harm resulted. First the end descended gently to 
the ground, and then the stock laid itself quietly down upon 
the roof, with the slope of which it came exactly parallel, not 
even disturbing a straw, or wakening the inhabitants, who, it 
being night, were asleep in their beds. The third of the inns 
is the excellent hostelry whieh still exists under the name of 
the Black Horse. The fourth stood at the top of the hill known as 
Labour-in- Vain, to which it is said to have bequeathed the name of 
its sign. If so, this doubtless represented an European trying to 
wash an Ethiopian white, as in the case of another Labour-in-Vain 
Hill, near Old Fish Street, in London, where was formerly a tavern 
bearing this device. I may, perhaps, add, that there is another 
explanation of the name. It is said by some authorities to refer to 
the labour of the traveller, who, wishing to mount to the top of the 
downs, finds on getting to the top of this hill that he has still two- 
thirds of the distance to make. This explanation seems, however, 
to me to be somewhat inadequate. I do not think that any one of 
us, if he happened to have a bedroom aw seconde, would remark 
when he got to the top of the first of the two flights of stairs, that 
his labour had been in vain, as there remained still another flight to 
be surmounted ! 
One great institution of Cherhill in bygone days which I must 
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