66 Wild Life in a Southern County. 
the streams upon this side of the downs enter the 
meadows, and immediately run over a mud bottom. 
With care, a few young fish were maintained in the 
upper waters, but it was only as an experiment; left 
to themselves they would speedily disappear, and of 
course no angling could be thought of. 
On the opposite side of the range of hills, where 
they decline in height somewhat, but still roll on for 
a great distance, the contrary is the case. The springs 
that run in that direction pass over a soil that gives a 
good clear bottom, and gradually assume the cha- 
racter of rivers; narrow, indeed, and shallow, but 
clear, sweet, and beautiful. There, as you wander 
over the down, and push your way through one of 
those extensive nutwoods which grow on the hills, 
acres and acres of hazel bushes, suddenly you come 
to the edge of a steep cliff, falling all but perpendicu- 
larly, and lo! at the foot is a winding river, bordered 
by broad green meads dotted with roan-and-white 
cattle. 
Here in the season the angler may be seen skil- 
fully tempting the speckled trout. Across the meads 
a grove of elm and oak, and the dull red of old houses 
dimly seen between, and the low dark crenellated 
tower of a village church. Behind the downs rise 
again, their slopes in spring a mass of colour—green 
corn, squares of bright yellow mustard, bright crimson 
trifolium, and brown fallows. 
