1 8 LANDSCAPE IN HISTORY 



possible, and sometimes even swung their roads to 

 right or left to keep clear of these formidable 

 obstacles. For many hundreds of years after the 

 departure of the legions, vast tracts of primeval 

 forest continued to be impassable barriers between 

 different tribes. In these natural fastnesses the wolf, 

 brown bear, and wild boar still found a secure retreat. 

 Even as late as the twelfth century the woods to the 

 north of London swarmed with wild boars and wild 

 oxen. Everywhere, too, the broken men of the 

 community betook themselves to these impenetrable 

 retreats, where they lived by the chase, and whence 

 they issued for plunder and bloodshed. The forests 

 were thus from time immemorial a singularly important 

 element in the topography. They have now almost 

 entirely disappeared, and their former sites have as 

 yet only been partially determined, though much may 

 doubtless still be done in making our knowledge of 

 them more complete. 



In connection with this subject it should be re- 

 membered that, in many instances, the areas of wood 

 and open land have in the course of generations com- 

 pletely changed places. The wide belts of clay-soil 

 that sweep across the island, being specially adapted 

 for the growth of trees, were originally densely 

 timbered. But the process of clearance led to the 

 recognition of the fact that these clay-soils were 

 also eminently fitted for the purposes of agriculture. 

 Hence, by degrees, the sites of the ancient forests 

 were turned into corn-fields and meadows. On the 

 other hand, the open tracts of lighter soil, where 

 the earlier settlers established themselves, were gradu- 



