316 A BOOK OF ENGLISH GARDENS 



from that time the Westons ceased to play any 

 part in the history of England. Sir Henry did 

 not even fight for the Queen in 1584, though his 

 name is mentioned as a captain, and it is stated 

 that " Sir Henry Weston having great occasion 

 to be in the north this summer desires to be dis- 

 charged as captain." It is almost certain from 

 this and other facts that Sir Henry was a secret 

 supporter of the old faith. In 1591 a search was 

 made at Sutton Place for one Morgan, a priest ; 

 and Sir Henry was ever a friend of that dangerous 

 rebel and traitor, Sir Thomas Copley. 



The next Weston of any interest is Sir Henry's 

 grandson, the third Sir Richard ; he was a clever, 

 capable man, who passed a great deal of his life 

 abroad, living much in Flanders. While on the 

 Continent he took note of many things which he 

 rightly considered would be of great advantage to 

 his countrymen in England. Thus he introduced 

 the system of locks in canals, determining to 

 put the invention into practice on his own estate, 

 making the river navigable from Guildford to 

 Weybridge. Aubrey says of him : " That worthy 

 knight Sir Richard Weston conveyed the water 

 from Stoke river to his manor of Sutton, whereby 

 he floated 6 score acres of land, which before was 

 most of it dry." This same Sir Richard was a 

 great agriculturist, and introduced " clover and 

 sainfoin from Brabant and Flanders," as well as 



