THE YOUNG NATURALIST 



255 



jutting out from the surrounding herbage. 

 We turned our way homewards with regret 

 at having to leave such a charming spot, and 

 after several times losing ourselves in the 

 woods — where we found Parts quadrifolia and 

 the frog orchis {Habenaria viridis) — found our- 

 selves ready for something substantial in the 

 way of dinner-tea-supper. 



Next morning found us en route for Tees- 

 dale — taking train to Etherley, arriving there 

 about 7 a.m., and walking through the 

 villages of Witton Park. Etherley, and Even- 

 wood, and finding our way from the latter to \ 

 Raby Castle, where we arrived about noon. 

 After admiring the beauties of the castle, 

 which boastsof the finest Baron's Hall extant, 

 and w here also, in the octagon drawing room, 

 is the celebrated original of the "Greek 

 slave " by Hiram Power, we wended our wax- 

 to Staindrop — calling in for lunch at one of j 

 the lodges of Raby Castle, attracted by a 

 "notice to travellers" that gingerbeer, was 

 supplied there. After a short stay in Stain- 

 drop we walked on to Winston — finding by 

 the road side some fine specimens of the 

 Musk mallow (Malva mo sc hat a ). From Win- 

 ston Bridge we obtained our first view of the 

 Tees, and in a plantation by the bridge we 

 found the Giant Bell Rower (Campanula 

 latifolia) in abundance and a few plants of 

 the wood vetch (Vicia sylvatica). At the 

 village of Ovington, where we put up for the 

 night, we had to make our meals off un- 

 leavened bread, owing to a great scarcity of 

 yeast in the neighbourhood, but, answering 

 for myself, it did not interfere with a good 

 night'srest. Beforegoing to bed, however, we 

 went down to the Tees, and found a few- 

 specimens of Mimulus lutens (the monkey 

 flower) growing in crevices of its rocky bed. 

 This bed, which is of limestone, is cracked and 

 fissured in curious rhomboidal forms, and in 

 the cracks we picked up a good many rings of 

 Encrinites — a fossil sea-lily which abounds in 

 the limestone. As the centre of each joint is 

 softer than the circumference they soon 

 become perforated, and so used to be worn \ 



as charms under the name of " St. Cuthbert's 



beads." 



After breakfast next morning we took 

 the road to Barnard Castle, in a downpour 

 of rain that continued almost without inter- 

 mission until evening. After passing through 

 the village of Wycliffe, which gave its name 

 to the family of the illustrious reformer, we 

 arrived at Greta Bridge, rendered famous by 

 Dickens's " Dotheboy's Hall," in " Nicholas 

 Xickleby." It is said that, although the 

 illustrious author disguised the name and 

 place of abode of the original " Squeers," a 

 person who kept a school of the description, 

 finding. 1 suppose, that the cap fitted himself, 

 actually brought an action against Mr. 

 Dickens, in which, of course, he came off 

 second-best. At the junction of the pretty 

 river Greta with the Tees we found a bush 

 of the Wild Mountain Currant (Ribes Alpi- 

 num). A short distance above the mouth of 

 the river is the pretty Mortham Bridge, after 

 crossing which we had a fine view of Mortham 

 Tower, in Rokeby Park, in the grounds of 

 which we found the " Mortham tomb, 

 originally brought from Egglestone Abbey, 

 and behind which Scott makes Philip of 

 Mortham to have stood when he frightened 

 the boy Wilfred and Bertrand Rising- 

 ham, when on their way to claim the 

 treasures of Rokeby Hall. (Rokeby, Canto 

 II.) After having a good view of Rokeby 

 Castle, we crossed Egglestone Bridge, where 

 I saw my first specimen of the Brittle Fern 

 (Cystoptcvis fragilis) , After crossing the bridge 

 we had a fine view of Egglestone Abbey, 

 soon after which we entered Barnard Castle, 

 very wet, and very hungry. Our quarters 

 for the night where near the celebrated clock, 

 whose face was g feet in diameter, which 

 belonged to one Master Humphrey, and 

 which, being seen from the "Angel" opposite 

 by Charles Dickens, led to a visit, and the 

 subsequent title of his (then) new novel, 

 •' Master Humphrey's Clock." The clock is 

 now in Philadelphia. 



(To be continued. J 



