GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 



113 



New Inn, an old house for poor pilgrims, built of chestnut-wood. The town 

 carries on a considerable trade in agricultural produce, for it lies in the centre of 

 one of the most productive districts of England. By means of the Berkeley 

 Ship Canal, which enters the estuary of the Severn 16 miles below it at Sharp- 

 ness, vessels of 400 tons burden can reach its docks. The manufacture of 

 agricultural machinery is extensively carried on. Gloucester has a mineral spring 

 in its spa grounds, now converted into a public park, but is completely 



Fig. 63.— The Cloisters, Gloucester Cathedral. 



overshadowed as a watering-place by its more attractive neighbour Cheltenham 

 This favourite place of retreat of Anglo-Indians lies at the foot of the Cotswold 

 Hills, and on the margin of the vale of Gloucester. It is renowned for its mild 

 and salubrious air, its delightful environs, and its chalybeate springs, reputed 

 as an effective remedy in a variety of diseases. Fine promenades, assembly- 

 rooms, and a pump-room add to the amenities of a place which boasts of having 

 a lower death rate than any other town in England. But, besides bemg a 

 fashionable watering-place, Cheltenham has become an educational centre, whose 

 115 



