CHARLES II. IK DORSET. 25 



tradition Mr. Hughes very justly appears to regard as apocryphal, 

 and that it was more likely such fabrications were constructed 

 during the King's popularity for obvious reasons. 



When I saw the old house a week or two ago it presented much 

 the same appearance as it might have done in 1830, and is now, 

 and has long been, the residence of the Nonconformist minister at 

 Charmouth, and adjoins the chapel. It is now divided into two 

 dwellings, in the lower one of which is the chimney in question, 

 though not now an open one in its entirety. On entering it 

 through a cupboard door at the side one could move freely about 

 in it. The occupant of the cottage told me that her husband's 

 grandfather remembered when they used to roast an ox there ; 

 and well they might, for it is certainly " immensely wide." There 

 is an old stone doorway, with remains of large iron staples and 

 hinges, and holes where apparently bars had once been fixed. My 

 informant confided to me that Charles hid himself in the chimney 

 for eight hours, and that the bars were used to prevent the door 

 being forced whilst the King was there. With regard to this I 

 am of Mr. Hughes' opinion. From the garden at the back the 

 huge stone chimney-stack stands out conspicuous, and is the most 

 antique feature in the whole building. The only interesting 

 feature in the higher dwelling, wherein lives the Nonconformist 

 minister, is the ceiling of one of the ground floor rooms, which is 

 divided into squares by massive beams of oak, with some good 

 carving upon them, intersecting it. These I was given to under- 

 stand had, until recently, been plastered up, and were only 

 discovered whilst some repairs to the ceiling were being done. It 

 struck me at the time that if the plaster were removed from the 

 passage ceiling it would very likely be found that the beams were 

 carried over it also in the same way. 



Mr. Hughes says nothing of the old " George Inn" at Bridport. 

 The premises of Messrs. Beach and Co., chemists, situated almost 

 at the junction of East and West streets, now occupy the site of 

 the old " George," and the shop, over which run several old oak 

 beams supporting the low ceiling, no doubt formed part of the old 



