310 DE TRACY'S TOMB. 



church, which is said to have heen founded hy him ; 

 and on his tomb the curious stranger still beholds his 

 effigy clothed in priestly vestments, and reads in old 

 Norman characters, — 



" SYRE WILLIAME DE TRACE. 

 DIEU DE SA ALME EYT MERCY." 



Here terminated my day's excursion, or at least the 

 exploring part of it ; for a return through torrents of 

 rain yet remained. Before I set out homeward, how- 

 ever, I could not but admire the awful grandeur at- 

 tendant upon the approach of a heavy thunder-storm, 

 as I witnessed it from the gate in front of the little 

 village inn. From this spot the eye ranges over a 

 coast-line of nearly thirty miles. Hartland Point ex- 

 tends, like a long wall, upon the horizon, over which 

 the storm is darkly brooding. The wind is driving it 

 rapidly along towards me ; the wall-like promontory 

 is soon shrouded beneath the lowering cloud. Now 

 it comes pouring over Baggy Point in perpendicular, 

 black, misty lines. Woollacombe Sands, a beach of 

 three miles in length, are below ; the tide is far out, 

 and the surf is breaking upon the sands in a long 

 curving band of white foam ; while the expanse of sea 

 outside is as black as ink, beneath the rain-cloud. 

 During the whole approach of the storm I was amused 

 by observing two red- backed hawks, hovering over the 

 edge of the cliff almost close to me ; they continued 

 to occupy the same spot in the air, without sliifting 

 in the least, for many seconds; now and then the 

 wings were flapped vigorously, but stil] without any 

 change of position. By their colour, I had no doubt 



