156 THE DOVER ROAD 



up living in hotels and inns, and to have taken to 

 private houses. Also, they drank tea instead of beer ; 

 and so presently we find the inns disappearing that at 

 one time stood next to one another, in a long line on 

 both sides of the High Street, and even in the branch 

 thoroughfares. Here was the " White Hart," large 

 enough in 1815 to have eighteen soldiers quartered in it 

 daily. It is now divided between a Bank and a 

 Brewery. Here, also, was the " Gun," which, aptly 

 enough, had as many vicissitudes as the fortunes of 

 war, for it was turned into the Parish Workhouse, 

 opened again in 1752 as the " Globe," and presently 

 became the workhouse again, with, probably, the 

 landlord as its first inmate ! But it was no greater a 

 success as what our grandfathers with an ironical 

 humour termed a " House of Industry " than as a 

 hostelry, and so it was not long before the paupers 

 were marched out and another phase of its strange 

 eventful history commenced. This time it became a 

 coachmaker's workshop, and there we will leave 

 it. 



Sittingbourne innkeepers had an inordinate fancy 

 for changing their signs, and some of their houses 

 have borne as many aliases as an old and hardened 

 swindler. Thus the " Seven Stars " became in turn 

 the " Cherry Tree," the " Union Flag," and finally 

 the " Volunteers " ; while the present " Plough Inn " 

 (only they may have changed its name again already) 

 in East Street has been successively the " King- 

 Henry the Eighth," and the " Royal Oak." Other 

 houses were the " Bull," the " Adam and Eve," the 

 " Walnut Tree," the " King's Head," " Six Bells," 

 " Black Boy," " Boatswain's Call," " Ship," 

 " Chequer," " Three Post Boys," " Crown," " Bird in 

 Hand," '' Lamb," " Three Kings," " Angel," " Porto- 

 bello," " Bell," " Duke's Head," and " Cross Keys " ; 

 to name but a selection, but age has withered, and 

 want of custom staled, the most of them, and, instead 

 of entertaining travellers, the inhabitants of Sitting- 



