PLUMPTON AND ITS COUNTRY 67 



on the shooting's interfering with the assumed 

 rights the public had to the downs. 



As I said, the idea that these belonged to 

 individuals, were theirs to give or sell or take 

 away by enclosing, or make impracticable for 

 pleasure purposes by converting pasture into 

 arable, would have been scouted as quite absurd ; 

 though occasionally one did hear of the Marquis 

 of Bristol or the Marquis of Abergavenny or 

 Lord Chichester at Stanmer, Admiral Shiffner of 

 Offham, Lord Gage at Firle, the Gorings of 

 Wiston, the Campions of Danny, the Beards of 

 Rottingdean, Lord Leconfield and the Duke of 

 Richmond out in West Sussex, and the like. 

 The farthest one got then was to conclude that 

 '* perhaps they had something to do with it," in a 

 vague sort of way — maybe as Lords of the Manor, 

 or possibly as trustees for us who played about 

 on them a-foot or a-horse. 



I cannot bear to picture to myself what the 

 hills might be like between Brighton and, say, 

 Plumpton, if they were all brought into use as is 

 the land in the farmer's near neighbourhood. As 

 it is, after all the cutting and carving about of 

 the fine old pastures, there are about a dozen 

 nice long or short driving and walking or hackino- 

 ways of getting across from one to another if you 

 count in lifts by the railway which are available. 

 The wedge of land which lies between the 

 Brighton and Lewes roads never was particularly 

 interesting quite near Brighton — at least, not as 

 down land. For instance, it was not until one 

 got along on the Ditchling road to a square copse 

 where the track from Withdean came in, that one 

 seemed to get fairly into the open. Civilisation, 

 as represented by walls and houses, even if the 



