SUSSEX SKETCH OF THE COUNTY. 5 



sionally undulating, district, overgrown with brush- 

 wood and masses of trees, among which the oak 

 predominates in a remarkable degree, varied with 

 patches of cultivated land, which, during the 

 course of years, have been reclaimed from the sur- 

 rounding forest. 



To the south of this tract the country rises 

 into considerable eminences, of great picturesque 

 beauty, and even romantic character, where their 

 northern escarpment, which is abrupt, sudden, 

 and densely wooded, dips into the valley of the 

 weald. 



Still further to the south, a wide belt of sand 

 intervenes between this and the Downs, and, like 

 all the geological formations contained within the 

 county, appears to cross it diagonally from north- 

 west to south-east. Indeed, the great variety in 

 the character and scenery of these districts is very 

 remarkable, and cannot fail, especially in the 

 western division, to have struck the most unob- 

 servant traveller from the metropolis to the coast, 

 by way of Petworth, Midhurst, or Arundel. 



As he journeys southward from the Surrey hills, 

 he sees stretched beneath him the wide and 

 densely-wooded valley of the weald, a region of 

 stiff clay and forests of oak, extending through 

 the entire county. After traversing this district, 



B3 



