580 Garden Calls : — Blackdoijon House, 



mere, this place is approached through three or four miles of lane, such as 

 ■we tlo not recollect to have seen in any part of England south of York; it 

 is, for the greater part, a deep narrow gutter passing over a very hilly surface, 

 and the soil being composed of sand and stones unequally mixed, the 

 rains have washed out the bottom of the road into irregular hollows, and 

 strewed the whole over with stones of different sizes, so that many parts 

 have more the appearance of the dried up bed of a mountain torrent than 

 of a road. There is no better approach to this house in any other direction ; 

 but nothing could be easier than to make one, the soil being easily worked, 

 and stones every where abundant. Bad as this approach from Haslemere 

 is, however, we felt ourselves repaid on arriving at the romantic scenery in 

 which is situated Blackdown House. This house has been upwards of five 

 centuries in possession of the same family, and was at one time occupied as 

 a place of concealment by Cromwell, whose room and various articles of 

 furniture are still shown. The surprise and delight which we experienced 

 on arriving at this place through wild heaths and woods, arose from coming 

 suddenly and unexpectedly to a comfortable and commodious house in a 

 secluded, hilly, umbrageous situation, surrounded by gardens, terraces, 

 covered seats, waters in the French style, and furnished within with all 

 the luxuries of the modern drawing-room ; a harp, an upright piano by 

 Stoddard, books from Colburn's library, the Library of Useful Knowledge, 

 and the JLihrary of Entertaining Knowledge, and a young lady who had just 

 returned from finishing her education in the Rue St. Honore, Paris. In front 

 of the house is an avenue of very old silver firs, some of which have taken 

 curious irregular forms, and one is 1 5 ft. in circumference at the surface of the 

 ground, which leads up a steep hill formed into terraced slopes to a prospect 

 house. In the kitchen-garden there is a standard white fig-tree, and another 

 of a brown fig, both of which are very old trees, covered with moss, which 

 make little wood, but what they do make is well ripened, and they in con- 

 sequence bear abundantly, and the situation on the southern declivity of 

 Blackdown Hill being very warm, the fruit ripens early. Figs had been 

 gathered from these trees this year in the last week of July. There is an 

 arbutus between 18 and 20 ft. high, two large myrtle bushes, which only 

 get a little protection during very severe east winds, large hydrangeas 

 splendidly covered with flowers,and i^umaria lutea beautifully sprinkled over 

 the old walls and buildings. Mrs. Yaldwin, the mother of the present pro- 

 prietor, has for a number of years, since the death of her husband, farmed 

 very extensively, and in the best style of this part of the country, which 

 however, compared with Northumbrian practice, cannot be called good. 

 Mrs. Yaldwin grows turnips extensively in the broad-cast manner, and uses 

 oxen as well as horses in her teams. For a lady farmer she is a pattern of 

 intelligence, activity, and orderly management. In the kitchen-garden she 

 has a plantation of Cobbeti's corn, which, being already in the ear, is as likely 

 to ripen as any we have seen. The grounds near the house and along the 

 side of the hill afford remarkable facilities for elegant landscape, water, 

 woods, variation of surface, distant prospect, and a hill-side walk ; the 

 latter in our opinion the finest description of walks which Nature affords 

 or art can create. But the house, which is concealed in a bottom, would 

 require to be removed, and the whole of the present garden scenery and 

 offices rearranged. There are some remarkably fine situations for cottages or 

 small villas in different parts of this estate. A gamekeeper's lodge, situated 

 on one of these knolls, taken on lease by a Mr. Fitzherbert, has been very 

 much improved ; and the same gentleman built a prospect house on the brow 

 of the hill, and formed several public walks in the neighbourhood. The 

 prospect house was furnished with a table and benches for the use of parties 

 of pleasure from Haslemere and elsewhere ; but we regret to state that they 

 have lately, since the death of Mr. Fitzherbert, been stolen or broken to 

 pieces. This, however, ought not to deter from similar acts of public spirit. 



