366 Mr. Houfeman’s Tour of England.—Naottinghamphire. [ May, 
fmall, adds to the beauty of a delightful 
va.e. 
That truly elegant ftruéture, Wooller- 
ten-hall, the feat of Lord Middleton, 
rivets the atiention of every firanger, ap- 
proaching within three miles of Notting- 
ham. ‘The houle, which 1s exceedingly 
magnificent, is ereéted on the north fide 
of the road, ona rifing ground, in the 
midft of an extenfive park, weil ftocked 
with deer, hares, and domeftic animals, 
{pacious fheets of water at a due diftance 
from the houfe, containing fifh of various 
forts, fupport a number of {wans, and 
other acquatic fowls, foreign and Englith ; 
trees, chiefly oak and elm, are plentifully 
feattered in the park, and fometimes col- 
leéted in clumps. An avenue, about 
half a mile in length, opens from the 
Nettingham road, and goes in a direct 
Jine to the houfe ; arow of trees on each 
fide mix their branches at the top, and 
form a regular continued canopy.—A 
new canal crofles the road about one mile 
and a half from Nottingham, which, 
however, is not yet finifhed. 
The town of Nottingham ftands rather 
in a vale, being fkirted on three fides with 
rifing grounds, upon which fourteen or 
fifteen wind-mills are ereéied. It ‘is 
built with brick, and covered with flat 
tiles; the market-place is a remarkably 
extenfive fquare, furrounded with good 
buildings, and well furnithed thops; I, 
however, obferved a number of very 
narrow dirty ftreets at fome ends of the 
town; vet, on the whole, Nottingham 
may be faid to contain many opulent and 
fpirited inhabitants s—here is a large in- 
firmary, conduéted on a liberal plan, and 
erected in a fine fituation. 
A fplendid chateau, the property of the 
Duke of _Newcaftle, ftands on a promi- 
ne i rock on the fouth fide of the town, 
which it overfooks, commanding alfo an 
extenfive view over the adjacent country, 
and particularly the beautiful vale through 
which theT rent paffes, at no confiderable 
diftance. Cn this palace, or caftle, as it is 
called, is placed an equeftrian ftatue of 
one of the dukes of Neweafile. The 
building contains a numberof elegant 
apartments, which are now occupied by 
an old maiden lady. Neither trees nor 
pleafure-ground are nearit; a terrace, 
however, goes round the houfe. The 
fite of this edifice is weil calculated for 
nature has peculiarly adapted it, being 
farrounced on three fides by a rocky 
precipice, of great height; the affaults 
_ much in grafs. 
a place of defence, to which purpofe ~ 
of an enemy might be eafily repelled on 
that fide, while a ftreng wall and gate, 
the remains of the old original caftle, 
have been ereéted on the other. 
Some of the lower parts of the town 
are fubjcét to the inundations of the 
Trent, which fometimes enters the cel- 
Jars and ground floors, and occafions great 
damage. A very foft whitith freeftone 
rock extends under the whole town; 
and, on its fouth-fide, is vifible above the 
furface, forming, for a copfiderable 
Jength, a range of precipices/which are 
afcended and defcended by fairs cut out 
of the fame. This part of the town has 
a grote{que appearance from the fouth ; 
houfes raifed on the fummit of the rock 
feem to ftand almoft on the chimneys of 
others built about the middle thereof, 
while they again appear to trample on 
the buildings, feen at the bottom; this 
rock is fo eafily excavated, that a great 
number of dwelling houfes, cellars, &c. 
are hewn therein ; thefe fubterraneous 
apartments are, however, for the moft 
part, liable to dampnefs. J alfo obferved 
a row of cottages cut out of the rock by 
the fide of a hollow road, a little way 
out of the town on the other fide; a 
{mall garden*is feen before each door, 
poled in, and neatly cultivated; the roofs 
of thefe cottages are pretty level, covered 
with herbage, and cattle appear feeding 
on them. A circumftance which, by the 
bye, reminded one of the old fairy tales. 
NortinGHAM FOREST, once a very 
extenfive diftriét, at prefent reaches very 
near the town on the north fide: it is 
now, however, almoft wholly cultivated. 
In this foreft, the celebrated archer, Ro- 
BIN Hoop, 1s reported, from tradition, 
to have performed his achievements: a 
{pring in it, called Robin Hood’s well, 
1s now fhown to travellers, as a curio- 
fity, although nothing remarkablé is to 
be feen about it. Nottingham is com- 
puted tocontain 20,000 Inhabitants. The 
principal manufacture is weaving filk- 
ftockings; there are alfo three filk, and 
feveral cotton mills, for {pinning, &ec. 
thefe articles. 
May 23, I left NorrincHam, and 
went fo HOVERINGHAM-FERRY, in. 
Nottinghamfhire, 12 miles: a bye-road 
down the fide of the Trent. Soil gene- 
rally a ftrong clay, extremely fertile, and 
Near the river, on each 
fide, the land is perfeétly level; the 
fields are genera}ly large, fquare, and 
‘divided by beautiful thorn hedges; on 
the left, it afterwards rifes in different 
degrees 
~ 
