WALK IN RURAL ENGLAND. 5 



Hither came shepherds and labourers, farmers 

 and carters, woodmen and horsemen, to jubilate 

 over England's greatness beyond the seas. 

 But to-day, though it would not be difficult 

 to find on the acres and acres given over to 

 sport rubbish enough to burn, one would be 

 hard put to it to get the men from the hill- 

 side and valley to build the beacon. With 

 its proximity to Portsmouth this highland 

 countryside has, in days gone by, sent many a 

 raw farmer's lad to the defence of old England 

 by sea or land. To-day, though nearly every 

 humble cottage has its cheap oleograph of a 

 battle scene hung upon its walls, a khaki-clad 

 lad is rarely seen stepping with pride the 

 village street. 



From this height the eye can traverse 

 several counties — Wiltshire, Hampshire, Berk- 

 shire — and grimly envisage the one prevail- 

 ing note : the absence of human life. Sheep 

 bells, the gentle music of lonely places, tinkle 

 in the distance, and as we descend the hill, 

 passing at once into Hampshire, we meet 

 a man in velveteens with a gun over his 

 shoulder. He is the typical rustic here, 

 and in his work lies no hope for the 

 future. Whilst he remains in possession 



