INSCRIBED STONES AND ANCIENT CROSSES OF DEVON. 155 
MORETONHAMPSTEAD CROSS. 
Just outside the churchyard gate at Moretonhanipstead stands a 
short cross, which is probably only the head of an original taller 
one. It stands on an octagonal base built of small stones. Behind 
it, growing out of the same basement, is a lime tree that has not 
improbably sprung from a self-sown seed. The tree has the foliage 
thickly grown, from frequent trimming, and is formed hollow like 
a wine-glass. It was in this hollow, in the "nierrie days of 
England," when may-pole festivals were common, that the fiddler 
sat while he scraped his instrument to the joy of those who danced 
beneath — a custom that was retained until of late years, when 
people became more circumspect, but whether happier or better is 
a matter] of doubt. 
