246 The Fifth General Meeting. 



Brougliton Gifford, Great Clialfield, South Wraxhall, and Monkton 

 Farley. 



At Great Clialfield, the history of the Manor House was detailed 

 by Mr. J. Parker; and by the courtesy of Mrs. Spackman, the 

 occupier, the company were accommodated with a field for pitching 

 a tent, and taking their picnic dinner. 



Before leaving Chalfield, an amusing letter in verse was read, 

 supposed to have been written by an agriculturist, who was more 

 in love with the domestic arrangements of his grandfather, than 

 with those of modern times. It lamented the loss of the spa- 

 cious log chimney corner, the settle, the stone floor, which did 

 not demand that sedulous cleansing of feet which Brussel carpets 

 exact. It expressed great antipathy to silk chair and sofa furni- 

 ture, which requires to be further encased in covers, and sighed 

 for the lost liberty of smoking being tolerated where the large 

 chimney shaft readily carried ofi" the vapour. This letter caused 

 great merriment, and the reading was encored. The element in 

 the humour of it was a plentiful introduction of Wilts dialect, 

 which the reader selected for the purpose did full justice to. 



At Monkton Farley they were most kindly and hospitably en- 

 tertained by Mrs. "Wade Browne with tea and coffee, fruit, ices, 

 and various other refreshment : and the history of the place and 

 priory by the Rev. Canon Jack;son was read, in that gentleman's 

 absence, by the Rev. W. C. Lukis. Various architectural fragments 

 discovered, from time to time, on the site of the Priory Church, 

 &c., were exhibited at the Conversazione at the Town-Hall at 8 

 p.m. Papers were read by Mr. Cunnington, on " The Bradford 

 Clay of Wiltshire, and its Fossil Contents"; and by the Rev. G. 

 T. Marsh of Sutton Beuger, on "Natural History"; after which a 

 topographical account of the next day's excursion was given by 

 Mr. W. Gee. 



THIRD DAY— THURSDAY, August 13th. 



The Excursion arranged to take place to-day, under the guidance 

 of Dr. Ilighmore, included several places of much interest, but the 

 company was not so large as on the preceding day. 



