STUDIES IN NATURE 



such names as Norton, Eaton, Sutton, Weston, 

 Milton, which mean the North ton (little town or 

 settlement), the South ton, the East ton, the 

 West ton, the Middle ton or sometimes the Mill 

 ton. We can find out where an old street or 

 Roman ' via strata ' (paved way) crossed 

 the country, and where the Roman camps or 

 settlements called ' castra ' were placed. There 

 are several places called Stratford, which shew 

 where one of these streets crossed a river ; there 

 is Stratford-upon-Avon, there is Stratford just 

 east of London, Fenny Stratford and Stony 

 Stratford in Buckinghamshire. As for the 

 ' castra/ or chesters, as we more frequently call 

 them now, we can think of Manchester, Chiches- 

 ter, Lancaster, Leicester, Colchester, Castor, 

 Caister, Chesterfield, Exeter (Exechester), and 

 many others ; they are to be found in every part 

 of England. Following the Roman ' castra ' 

 we get the castles of the feudal time of English 

 history ; there are several Newcastles, there are 

 also Oldcastle, Bewcastle, Castle Acre, Castle 

 Howard, Castle Cary. Some names are quite 

 easy to understand. We shall have no difficulty 

 at all about Whitehaven, Coldstream, Redditch, 

 Seven Oaks, and Blackwater. Nearly all our 

 rivers give names to places on their banks or at 

 their mouths. We find Alnwick and Alnmouth, 

 Exeter and Exmouth, Tweedmouth, Yarmouth, 

 Weymouth, Falmouth. Sometimes the church, 

 often called in the north of England, kirk, and 



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