DOVE DALE REVISITED 1$ 



alder trees. ... At this period (circa 1809) 

 fishing in Dove Dale was as free as it had 

 formerly been to our father Walton and his dis- 

 ciples, but the water is now strictly preserved 

 by Jesse Watts Russel, Esq., of Ham Hall." 

 Angler's Manual, 1839. 



Friday, October 3rd, was as usual a very bad 

 day. I did not fish, but took a walk with my 

 landlord to see Ham Hall and the lovely scenery 

 surrounding it. 



The village of Ham is well worth seeing. It 

 is, as Walton says of one of his Lea scenes, 

 " too pretty to look on but only on holidays." 

 We saw it on a damp cloudy day it was not 

 brightened up by a solitary glimpse of sunshine ; 

 but even under such disadvantages it has a most 

 attractive appearance. In the midst of the 

 village stands a very beautiful cross, erected by 

 Jesse Watts Russell, Esq., to the memory of his 

 wife. It is in imitation of the Waltham Cross, 

 elaborately and beautifully carved, and with 

 statues of excellent workmanship in the niches. 

 At the foot of the cross flows a fountain of clear 

 pure water. An inscription in red and black 

 letters tells of her virtues to whom the cross is 

 raised, and, in allusion to the fountain, adds 

 these lines : 



