CHRISTY : THE MID-ESSEX WIND-RUSH AND WHIRL-WIND. I39 
pounds. The tiled roof was almost uncovered, gables were 
blown in, and window-frames were removed. The Vicarage, 
immediately adjoining, was little injured, probably through 
being sheltered by the Rectory, a larger house ; but, in the 
garden, trees were blown down (including two very old horn¬ 
beams, probably the finest in the county), and a portion of the 
garden wall was overthrown. 
The injury to houses became greater as the storm approached 
the Cross Roads near the east end of the Village Green—one 
•of the most picturesque in England. Here Ropers Hall (Miss 
Mabel Usborne), the Leete (Mr. J. E. Hales), Writtle House (the 
late Mr. Thomas Usborne, M.P.), the Cock and Bell Inn, several 
houses in Roman’s Place (including that of Mr. Thomas 
Williams, Head-Master of the Schools), and others, were badly 
damaged, especially in regard to their roofs, chimney-stacks, and 
window-frames ; while many fine ornamental trees in their 
gardens were uprooted or much smashed. 
One feature which I noticed at this point only was the manner 
in which quite low garden walls had been overturned. I saw 
several which had been laid over so neatly and gently that not 
a brick had been displaced, though each one had been- detached 
from its neighbours. The result was that, instead of a brick 
wall, cne had an excellent brick pavement, on which one could 
walk comfortably, the bricks being all laid in perfect order, each 
with its narrow edge uppermost. Another curious point I 
noticed was that these walls had been thrown over in all direc¬ 
tions—a result, no doubt, of the rotary motion of the whirl-wind. 
A striking instance of this was to be seen in Mr. Williams’ small 
and very-sheltered back garden in Roman’s Place ; his eastern 
wall being laid over neatly to the east and his western to the 
west. A small pear tree growing in his garden seemed not to 
have lost a twig, while an apple tree growing fifteen feet away 
in the next garden was uprooted and smashed. Another instance 
of the partiality already mentioned was to be seen in the garden 
of Writtle House, where there is a path, about 75 feet long, 
running north and south, over which rose-trees are trained on 
four arches of wire trellis-work, each arch being about 19 feet 
from the next and say ten feet high. The effect of the storm on 
these arches was very striking, though they were all well pro¬ 
tected from the south-west by a stout brick wall, scarcely ten 
