EXPLANATION OF NAMES. 35 



grove. Steeple Land is a roundish knoll, of 

 some height, from which spot the distant spire 

 of Danbury Church can be occasionally seen. 

 Jlbbofs Bury refers to some dwelling, or spot, 

 connected with an abbot's history; bury mean- 

 ing simply a residence. Lastly, Downshire Bot- 

 tom is a low marshy field, near the brook. The 

 word shire, from the Saxon verb, which means 

 to divide, is seldom used but for the great parti- 

 tions of the kingdom into counties. Sometimes, 

 however, as in the case of the Gable-sides 

 Farm, it has an application, of smaller impor- 

 tance, to the situation of a particular estate. 



