NATURE IN ENGLAND 15 



the French side, there is more sand, but it is of the 

 hue of mud and not pleasing to look upon. 



Of other walks I had in England, I recall with 

 pleasure a Sunday up the Thames toward Windsor: 

 the day perfect, the river alive with row-boats, the 

 shore swarming with pedestrians and picnickers; 

 young athletic London, male and female, rushing 

 forth as hungry for the open air and the water as 

 young mountain herds for salt. I never saw or 

 imagined anything like it. One shore of the 

 Thames, sometimes the right, sometimes the left, 

 it seems, belongs to the public. No private grounds, 

 however lordly, are allowed to monopolize both 

 sides. 



Another walk was about Winchester and Salis- 

 bury, with more cathedral-viewing. One of the 

 most human things to be seen in the great cathe- 

 drals is the carven image of some old knight or 

 warrior prince resting above his tomb, with his feet 

 upon his faithful dog. I was touched by this 

 remembrance of the dog. In all cases he looked 

 alert and watchful, as if guarding his master while 

 he slept. I noticed that Cromwell's soldiers were 

 less apt to batter off the nose and ears of the dog 

 than they were those of the knight. 



At Stratford I did more walking. After a row 

 on the river, we strolled through the low, grassy 

 field in front of the church, redolent of cattle and 

 clover, and sat for an hour on the margin of the 

 stream and enjoyed the pastoral beauty and the 

 sunshine. In the afternoon (it was Sunday) I 



