39 
CHAPTER VI. 
So far I have spoken chiefly of the coast of Devon, 
whereas my title gives a claim to my readers to 
hear something about the Combes. 
In Somersetshire and Devon “combe” signifies 
a hollow. What in other countries would be called 
dell or glen, vale or dale, are here all called 
“ Combes,” whether large or small; each with its 
rivulet hasting to the sea. 
The Combes of North Devon, with one or two 
exceptions, are rarely above two or three miles 
long; and if we could take a bird’s-eye view of 
the country, we should see that the land within 
three or four miles of the sea is irregularly scored 
with these glens, the sides of which, when culti¬ 
vated, prove rich and fertile; but for the most part 
they are poorly farmed, or still covered with a tan¬ 
gled mass of briar, ferns, and golden gorse. Now 
and then you find woods, but not of any very great 
extent. 
