PARKS 241 



Close to the South-East Lodge are three old Elms * of the 

 English variety, and growing alongside are younger representa- 

 tives of the more upright-growing form that is known as 

 the Cornish Elm. The trunk of one of the old Elms was 

 seared from top to bottom by lightning (circ. 1903) ; pieces of 

 the bark were blown 50 yds. away by the force of the 

 explosion, and persons near by suffered severely from shock. 

 From the lodge, westwards, there runs the Lime avenue, 

 consisting for the most part of ordinary Lime-trees, circ. 3 ft., 

 but the sixth tree in the row, counting from the lower end, 

 is a Silver Lime, Tilia argentea, 4 ft. 9 in., a native of 

 S.E. Europe. On the left-hand side, and just within the 



* I am indebted to Dr. Dixey of Wadham for the following story about 

 these Elms : 



The old Elms near the Lodge at the end of the South Parks Road were 

 once more numerous than they are now. The furthermost tree in the row 

 was the subject of a story about Ben Symons, Warden of Wadham [1831-71], 

 who, being upon one occasion the only Curator of the Parks in residence 

 in the Vacation, had it cut down, sold the timber, and (as was Hbellously 

 asserted) pocketed the proceeds. 



When his colleagues who had reassembled for term, discovered what had 

 been done, and had nursed their righteous indignation up to the point 

 of bearding the Warden himself, they wrote, asking for an interview. On 

 entering his presence, they were received with a short but forcible 

 address to the effect that while they had been enjoying their holiday, 

 gallivanting about the country, he, the Warden, had been assiduously 

 minding the duties of their Curatorship in Oxford. When the first spokes- 

 man had opened at length upon the enormity which had been perpetrated 

 (to which the Warden only replied, "Yeth, yeth, yeth "), No. 2 spoke, 

 requesting an explanation of what he meant by it, only to receive the 

 same answer, " Yeth, yeth, yeth. Has any other gentleman anything 

 elth to thay ? " whereupon, No. 3, and then, after the same answer from 

 the Warden, the others poured forth their grievance. 



Then, when no further response come to his "Yeth, yeth, yeth. Has 

 any other gentleman anything elth to thay?" the only answer he gave 

 was, "Well, gentlemen, you may talk, and you may talk, and you may 

 talk, but you cannot put back that tree ! " and he bowed them out of the 

 room. 



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