STUDIES IN NATURE 



of this sort is called a church-way. In old 

 times there were special roads along which 

 people might ride when they were going pil- 

 grimages to the shrines of saints and other holy 

 men. Such a one existed between Winchester 

 and Canterbury. These have fallen into disuse 

 now, and can hardly be traced. There were 

 also pack-ways and bridle-paths for horsemen. 

 In the days when a considerable part of the 

 uplands of England was given up to the pas- 

 turing of sheep, and the export of wool to 

 Holland and the Low Countries was our most 

 important trade, these pack-ways, where they 

 existed, and the high roads connecting these 

 districts with certain seaports, were crowded 

 with traffic. The villages and the village inns 

 made considerable profits out of the wayfarers, 

 and did all in their power to bring some portion 

 of the wool-carrying trade through their neigh- 

 bourhood. We come across memories of this 

 once great industry in various parts of England 

 when we see old inn and public-house signs, 

 such as the Woolpack Inn, the Fleece Inn, the 

 Staple Inn, and several other names which refer 

 to the wool trade. 



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