THE ESSEX NATURALIST. 
IO4 
“ It is probable that near Hale End was the house occupied by George 
Gascoigne, soldier and poet. His poems were written between 1575 and 
1589, and are now little read. Several of his dedicatory epistles to his 
noble patrons are dated ‘ from my pore house at Walkamstowe.' . 
“ William Morris was born at Elm House in Clay Street in 1834 and 
here he spent the first six years of his life. His parents then removed to 
Woodford Hall, where they resided until 1848, in which year Morris was 
sent to Marlborough College. The famity returned to Walthamstow to 
ajhouse, also in Clay Street, then known as Water House, but now as the 
Winns, a yellow-brick Georgian building, with a fine entrance hall and 
staircase and some panelled rooms ; it had spacious pleasure grounds and 
a moat. Elm House has been demolished, but the Winns still exists and 
is now the property of the District Council. William Morris left Marl¬ 
borough in 1851, and before entering Exeter College, Oxford, became a 
private pupil of the Rev. F. B. Guy, then an assistant-master at Forest 
School, and residing in one of the large houses in Hoe Street. In 1856 the 
Morris family left Walthamstow and William Morris’s connection with the 
parish ceases. 
“ Sir William Batten, Commissioner to the Navy, lived at Rectory 
Manor, a house demolished not very long since, its last occupant being 
Mr. David Howard, a name well known to members of the Essex Field 
Club. At Rectory Manor Batten was frequently visited by Samuel Pepys, 
the diarist. Pepys records that on 29th May, 1661, he was present at 
the christening of Sir William’s grandson, at Walthamstow, but not being 
called upon to name the child he retained half-a-dozen silver spoons and 
a silver porringer, which he had brought with him to present. While the 
plague raged in London Sir William and Lady Batten took refuge at their 
Walthamstow house and in the following year he regaled his London friends 
with ‘ wine grown at Walthamstow, than which the whole company said 
they never drank better foreign wine in their lives.’ " 
Proceeding next to the Parish Church, a slight delay, consequent upon 
a wedding then being solemnized, enabled the visitors (now reinforced to 
over 50 in number) first to inspect the Monoux School, facing the church¬ 
yard, which is now used as a chapel by a troop of Boy Scouts. 
The party was then welcomed to the church by the Vicar, the Rev. 
H. D. Lampen, M.A., Rural Dean, and his churchwardens, and here Mr. 
Barns gave a very complete and interesting account of the edifice and 
its numerous monuments to departed worthies. A tour of the church 
was then made under Mr. Barns’ guidance, and the church plate was 
exhibited to the party ; a pilgrimage was also made by some of the botani¬ 
cal visitors to the tomb of the Forsters in the churchyard. 
From the church the party proceeded to Walthamstow House, in 
the occupation of the Sisters of Mercy as a Convent School ; by kind per¬ 
mission of the Rev. Mother Superior detailed inspection of the building 
and grounds, including the dormitories and “ sick ward ” and the beauti¬ 
ful chapel,was granted to the visitors, a kindness which was greatly appreci¬ 
ated by all. Here Mr. Barns once again expounded the earlier history 
of the house, which was built early in the 19th century, by Sir Robert 
Wigram, Bart., a wealthy tea-shipper. The house was afterwards used 
as a school, and here Sir Morell Mackenzie, the famous throat-specialist, 
