120 
Janded on St, Herbert’s Ifland ; it is a de- 
lightful little fequeftered fpot, almoft en- 
tirely covered with firs. A fmall ruin is 
ftill to be traced, which is faid to be the 
remains of the abede of the faint to whom 
it is dedicated. No found is heard but 
the rippling of the waters, and the fizp- 
ping wing of the returning bird, whohas 
chofen this for her foli:ary refidence.— 
Here I could almoft have wifhed to have 
been left, ‘ The world forgetting, by the 
world forgot.” But the curtain of twi- 
light had veiled the horizon, and it was 
neceflary to be gone. Some of the emo- 
tions this fcene infpired involuntarily af- 
fumed the following form: 
Thou dear retreat from life’s tumultuous care, 
Secluded, folitary, lone abode, 
Perchance arefuge from the fiend Defpair, 
Where wearied Virtue commun’d with its 
Goi: 
Thy moffy paths, -at twilight’s fombre hour, 
With fond enthufiattic ftep I tread ; 
Paufe o’er the ruin thy old pines embower, 
And feem to mingle with the facred dead. 
When fied affociated Error’s frown, 
Say, injured Spirit! did’ft thou tafte repofe? 
Did Truth’s pure light thy pray’rs, thy muf- 
ings, crown, 
And Peace thy defolate laft moment clofe? 
O then, lone Ifle ! thy refident I'll be : 
Where Truth and Peace are, there is Heaven 
to me. 
The next morn our fellow travellers 
had agreed to afcend Skiddow, to iee the 
fun rife. Mrs, H. and myfelf were tco 
much fatigued the preceding day to un- 
dertake this pilgrimage before breakfat, 
and did not fet out till nearly the time we 
expected their return. The guide we had 
employed the day before was gone with the 
reft of the party, and it would be as well 
to thiok of crofling Arabian deferts alone, 
-as to afcend Skiddow without a conduc- 
tor: we therefore took a little lad, who 
had been twice at the top, and fet out on 
this laborious expedition. The immente 
mountain lay betore us, unornamented by 
a fingle bufh, and unrivalled by furround- 
ing hills. We dared f{carcely flatter our- 
felves with the hope of being able to. reach 
the fupendous fumimit, while our attend - 
ant ajured us he had attempted it .with 
many who, when they had reached the firft 
ftation, were content with being able to 
fay they had been on Skiddow, and gladly 
returned. We foon perceived, at a great 
diftance, two diminutive figures moving 
along, who we hoped might prove part of 
our party ; thefe we lenged to meet, in 
. 
Fournal written during a Ramble to the Lakes. 
(Sept. 1, 
order to hear tidings of the difficulties, 
aud the recompence, but they were foon 
loft to us by intervening irregularities. — 
A group of figures, of no very gentle de- 
meancur, with enormous fticks in their 
hands, foon {trode above our heads, hal- 
looing moft vociferoufly. Thefe were 
workmen from Kefwick, ‘* Shouting their 
boifterous joys,” as they went to make he- 
Iiday on the mountain ; and as if the un- 
bounded range before them had given 
freedom to their faculties, they feemed to 
*¢ {wallow the ground with eagernefs, and 
to mock at fear.”” Though the benevo- 
lent heart gladly participates in the gaiety 
of ruttic mirth, this was rather too riotous 
for our more temperate emotions, and we 
were glad to fee them march betore us — 
The tormer figures now re-ippeared, and 
we were pleafed to recognize our old com- 
panions on their defcent. We were foon 
feated on the grafs, and began to inquire 
the wonders of the place, and the dangers 
of the way ; we found the latter infoffi- 
ent todeter us, and, after refrefhing our- 
felves with a draught from a mountain- 
ftream, we fet forward with new alacr ty. 
On turning to take a retrofpeé&t of the 
{cene we had left, villages, lakes, and 
mountains, lay {cattered as on a map at our 
feet, and the view we already had lent new 
vigour to our efforts to fee more. A gen- 
tleman had taken his tand a little below 
us, and was heightening his enjoyment by 
means of a-glais: he foon overtook our 
fecbler footfteps, and offered to enlargethe 
{phere of obfervation. Acce{s was not dif- 
ficult, for amid fuch fcenes he who feels 
averfe from participation and fympathy das 
few-of the better feelings of humanity about 
him. We proceeded on our march toge- 
ther, and from this ftranger we learned 
the names of the obje&ts that moft forcibly 
arrefted our attention.. The afcent was 
long, and would have appeared tedious 
had it nor been beguiled by interefting 
converfation. The world and the lakes, 
men and books, made us forget the time 
we had been in reaching the fummit, for 
the fummit of Skiddow we did reach ! 
But no pen, no pencil, could give any ade- 
quate idea of the {cene we commanded. 
Mountains eighty miles diftant were per- 
ceptible to the naked eye; an innume- 
rable multitude of lefler ones lay beneath 
our feet. The beautiful Derwent-water 
fpread its whole length before us, and the 
tremendous Lodoar was jult pe:ceptible, 
—a narrow fiream. The jaws of Borrow- 
dale expanding to receive the cams 
ayy 
