1 8 DOVE DALE REVISITED 



sign'd for a monument and now set up in Elum 

 Church in the County of Stafford." 



There are twenty-six lines in all ; of these the 

 twelve following are the last : 



" Here, Reader, here a Port's sad Reliques lye 

 To teach the careless World Mortality ; 

 Who while he Mortal was unrivall'd stood 

 The Crown, and Glory of his Antient blood : 

 Fit for his Princes, and his Countries trust, 

 Pious to God, and to his Neighbour just. 

 A loyal Husband to his latest end, 

 A gracious Father, and a faithfull Friend. 

 Belov'd he liv'd and dy'd o'recharg'd with Years, 

 Fuller of Honour than of Silver Hairs. 

 And, to sum up his Vertues, this was he 

 Who was what all we should, but cannot be." 



This Robert Port was a former owner of Ham 

 Hall. A descendant of his, the Rev. Robert 

 Port, D.D., is now the much respected vicar of 

 St. Matthew's, Denmark Hill. 



With the Manifold river above Ham I have 

 no personal acquaintance, but " Piscator Major " 

 has drawn my attention to an interesting mono- 

 graph on the Dove and Manifold valleys by 

 Mr. J. P. Sheldon, whose name I have already 

 mentioned. His volume is illustrated by a 

 series of charming drawings by Edward Roper, 

 F.R.G.S. Some of them convey equally accurate 



