THE president's ADDRESS. 123 



Except in that brief span of ground, situate in our most 

 northern parish and not far from its wild coast, — "a fearful 

 vicinity for the mariner," as Wallis has called it, — either the 

 billows buffet our rockj'- boundaries or the rippling stream laves 

 our border-land. 



This narrow terrene connection however is greatly surpassed 

 in utility by another, still narrower, in the south, — an artificial 

 isthmus which shoots through the air at Saltash,— the Eailway 

 Bridge, both ends of which (strange to say) rest on what is, or 

 was, Cornish ground. We will refer presently more particularly, 

 if time and space permit, to the advantages which reach us 

 thence. 



Bidding farewell, then, to those who lie entombed in the 

 Wooley Barrows and on Sharston Moor, Cornwall's threshold, 

 who died gloriously in the battle, we may suppose, when helping 

 to defend the gate of this our western land from the eastern 

 invader, we must proceed to other scenes. Those Celts served 

 their generation, and their brave spirits have passed from the 

 region where (to quote Hawker, the poet of their romantic 



coast) : — 



" Above ! — The ocean Tbreezes sweep. 

 Around ! — The mountains guard the deep. 

 Beneath ! — The wide, wide, sea ! " 



Chieftains and Kings, of old, doubtless held dominion in this 

 territory. The sheer precipices and overhanging walls around 

 King Arthur's mysterious birth-place, at grim Dundagell, strike 

 us with awe. Here and there too within our ancient precincts 

 are other rugged monuments telling us of a by-gone race. In 

 certain instances names appear which, however celebrated in 

 their day, awaken no responsive echoes now. Of them I can 

 only say : — 



" On long-stones, set erect, brief words are traced, 



Names of the mighty and their noble sires ! 

 The memory of their deeds by time effaced. 



In dark oblivion their renown expires ! " 



To form a record of all such stones as remain, bearing inscriptions, 

 has long been an object which I have had in view. I know not 

 whether it will ever be accomplished, but during more than 30 

 years I have been collecting materials for the task. 



Whilst some of our heroes of olden time are of forgotten 



