212 PRE-SAXON CIVILIZATION IN DORSET. 



FORDS. 



The Roman roads crossed rivers by a Trajectus in the form 

 of a paved ford, the road being thus carried under, not over, 

 the stream ; and beside this construction there often was a 

 Pons for foot passengers. With the return of lawlessness, 

 however, these Pontes went to ruin, and were sometimes 

 replaced by rafts for foot passengers which retained the 

 earlier name in a modified form " punts." 



The paved ford remained and was called a Brig (Celtic 

 Briga), but was essentially an under -water structure, so that 

 Filey Brig, near Scarborough, a ridge of rocks dipping 

 gradually under the sea, fairly represents the early idea of 

 what a bridge should be. 



A typical example of a paved ford with the foot-bridge 

 beside it is seen at Mappowder Water, the paving of which 

 has been renewed as the stones have worn away. 



A few Dorset fords retain their Celtic names. Fiddleford 

 recalls the time when the land was a forest (Gaelic fid, a forest). 

 Hanford was the old ford (British Henfordd). Redford 

 was a ford, pure and simple (B. Khyd.) Winford, the white 

 ford (Welsh Gwen, white) while Blandford stood in front 

 of the. ford (B. Blaen y fordd). 



BOUNDARIES AND MINOR ROADS. 



The ancient Britons had two kinds of roads or trackways. 

 The first, a roadway for wheeled vehicles, was formed by 

 throwing up a wide bank or causeway with a ditch of 

 considerable depth on either side. The minor roads were 

 much narrower, being used only for horse and foot traffic ; 

 and the term hollow or covered way has been given to them 

 because the high banks gave shelter and concealment to the 

 wayfarer. These were formed by digging a moderately 

 broad and deep ditch and throwing up the soil into a bank 

 on one or both sides of the trackway. 



