1793 VISITS BENTLEY CHUECH 263 



no bushes, and of course no young oaks : some Hollies, and 

 here and there a few aged yews : no oaks of any great 

 size. The soil wet and boggy." 



"Mar. 15. On Friday last my brother and I walked 

 up to Bentley Church, which is more than a mile from his 

 house and on a considerable elevation of ground. From 

 thence the prospect is good, and you see at a distance 

 Cruxbury hill, Guild down, part of Lethe hill. Hind-head, 

 and beyond it the top of one of the Sussex downs. There 

 is an avenue of aged yew-trees up to the church : and 

 the yard, which is large, abounds with brick-tombs covered 

 with slabs of stone : of these there are ten in a row, 

 belonging to the family of the Lutmans. The church 

 consists of three ailes, and has a squat tower containing 

 six bells. From the inscriptions it appears that the in- 

 habitants live to considerable ages. 



"There are hop-grounds along on the north side of the 

 turnpike road, but none on the south towards the stream. 

 The whole district abounds with springs. 



"The largest spring on my brother's farm issues out of 

 the bank in the meadow, just below the terrace. Somebody 

 formerly was pleased with this fountain, and has, at no 

 small expence bestowed a facing of Portland stone with 

 an arch, and a pipe, thro' which the water falls into a 

 stone bason, in a perennial stream. By means of a wooden 

 trough this spring waters some part of the circumjacent 

 slopes. It is not so copious as Well-head." 



The next day the visitors returned to Selborne. 



To Benjamin White. Selburne, Mar. 21st, 1793. 



Dear Brother, — It begins to be full time for us to return 

 our best thanks to you, and Mrs. White, for the kind 

 reception which we experienced at Mareland. The day 

 on which we left you proved so wet a one, that the country 



