CO ATE FARM. 7 



It is a country of downs. Two of them, 

 within sight of the farmhouse, are covered 

 with the grassy mounds and trenches of 

 ancient forts or " castles." There are planta- 

 tions here and there, and coppices, but the 

 general aspect of the country is treeless ; it is 

 also a dry country. In winter there are water- 

 courses which in summer are dry ; yet it is 

 not without brooks. Jefferies shows (" Wild 

 Life in a Southern County," p. 29) that in 

 ancient and prehistoric time the whole country 

 must have been covered with forests, of which 

 the most important survival is what is now 

 called Ashbourne Chase. For one who loved 

 solitude and wanderings among the hills, there 

 could be hardly any part of England more 

 delightful. Within a reasonable walk from 

 Coate are Barbury Hill, Liddington Hill, and 

 Ashbourne Chase ; there are downs extending 

 as far as Marlborough, over which a man may 

 walk all day long and meet no one. It is a 

 country, moreover, full of ancient monuments; 

 besides the strongholds of Liddington and 

 Barbury, there are everywhere tumuli, 

 barrows, cromlechs, and stone circles. Way- 



