242 THE BRITISH ISLES. 



The best view of the Black Country is from Dudley Castle, which occupies 

 an eminence in its centre. Dudley, however, lies within a detached portion of 

 Worcestershire (see p. 105), and the most important Staffordshire town in the 

 district under notice is Wohrrhampfon, an old town in a commanding position, 

 the centre of the lock trade, and producing also all kinds of hardware, and 

 japanned and papicr-mâché articles. The town is known also in the annals of 

 aeronautics and meteorology, for it was here that Glaisher and Coxwell made their 

 experimental trip into the air, which took them to a height of probably 36,000 

 feet — an altitude never yet exceeded. Walsall is distinguished for its saddlery. 

 West Bromwich, which is nearer to Birmingham, manufactures hardware of every 

 description, besides glass and gas. These are the principal towns of the district. 

 Their satellites eno'ao-e in the same industries, all alike depending upon the coal 

 and iron mines which are being worked in their vicinity. Heathtown, Wednes- 

 iield, Sedgley, and Tipton lie in the west, around Wolverhampton and towards 

 Dudley ; Willenhall, Darlaston, Bihton, and Wedneshury — the latter a place of great 

 antiquity — occupy, with Walsall, the centre of the district ; Bi-ierleij Hill, Roicley 

 Regis, and Quarry Bank are near the Worcestershire border ; whilst Smethicick and 

 Harborne may almost be designated suburbs of Birmingham (see Fig. GO). 



Derbyshire is one of the most beautiful counties of England. Its northern 

 part, culminating in the Peak, is full of moors and mountains, intersected by 

 narrow valleys, and dells bounded by fantastic cliffs. Towards the south the hills 

 decrease in height, until they sink into the wide and fertile vale of the Trent, 

 which crosses the southern portion of the county. The great river of Derbyshire, 

 however, is the Derwent {Der G went, i.e. Beautiful Eiver), which rises in the 

 Peak, and, flowing through the centre of the county, separates the coal and iron 

 district to its east from the more purely agricultural district to its west. In 

 addition to coal and iron, Derbyshire yields lead, and is famous for its spar, and its 

 quarries of marble, gypsum, &c. The manufactures are varied and of considerable 

 importance. 



Derby, the ancient county town, has attained considerable importance as a seat 

 of industry. It was here J. Lombe established the first silk-mill in England, in 

 1717; but if contemporary evidence can be accepted, the Englishman who learnt 

 the secret of the manufacture in Italy died of poison administered by his Italian 

 instructors.* This old factory still exists, and many others have been added since. 

 In addition to hosiery, Derby, and its suburb of Litchurch, engage in the manu- 

 facture of porcelain and of spar ornaments. It is here the Midland Railway Com- 

 pany has established its head-quarters, its workshops occupying a considerable area. 

 A monument has been erected to H. Cavendish, the discoverer of the chemical 

 constituents of air, in the church of All Saints. Flamsteed, the astronomer, was 

 born in the neighbouring village of Denby. 



Ascending the Derwent, we reach Belper, whose inhabitants find emplopnent 

 in cotton and hosiery mills and in nail-making. Still proceeding on our journey 

 up a valley which increases in beauty with every step we take, we reach Matlock 

 * Ch. Dupin, " Force commerciale de la Grande Bretagne." 



