IN A GREEN COUNTRY 157 



covering consciousness, found himself surrounded by 

 a number of persons who had come to his assistance. 

 Picking himself up and pointing to the tile at his feet 

 which had knocked him down, he solemnly remarked, 

 " It comes from above." At which the crowd laughed, 

 for they were a frivolous people in that town, and 

 they asked him where else it could come from ? 



That little town of ancient memories and a cloud- 

 burst, with the villages round it, is a good place to be 

 in, but it could not keep me since I could not find there 

 what I had gone out to seek ; so very soon I turned 

 eastward again, going by way of Poole, which I had 

 not seen for some years. There I met with a surprising 

 experience. There is a fine public park at Poole, with 

 extensive green spaces and a lake for boating — the 

 largest lake in any public park in England. At six 

 o'clock in the evening it was thronged with the towns- 

 people who had gathered at that place to recreate 

 themselves after their day's work, and never have I 

 seen a people enjoy themselves more heartily, or one 

 that seemed more like a naturally joyous people. The 

 greatest crowd was round the bandstand, where 

 hundreds of people were resting on chairs or sitting 

 and lying on the grass, whilst others danced on the 

 green or on the large open-air dancing floors made for 

 the purpose. Further away youths and boys were 

 running races and playing ball on the lawns, whilst 

 numbers of prettily-dressed girls flitted up and down 

 the paths on bicycles. So much liberty in a public 

 park was very unusual. Now just when I came on the 



