THE PROVINCIAL HISTORY OF ENGLAND. XXIL—SUSSEX AND SOUTH SURREY.—GEOGRAPHY. THE
PROVINCIAL HISTORY OF ENGLAND. XXIL—SUSSEX AND SOUTH SURREY.—GEOGRAPHY.
WE include under this Province the district to the south of that remarkable elevated range called the North Downs, which extends from Farnham, near the frontier of Hampshire, in an easterly direction, across Surrey into Kent. Its eastern frontier, commencing from near Westerham, in Kent, runs in a direct line southwards, to a point half-way between East Grinstead and Cowden, and in the latitude of the latter place. From this point Kent becomes instead of its eastern its north-eastern neighbour, till a little to the north of the Guildford Level, to the east of Rye, when the frontier is again a line from north to south to the Eng- lish Channel, in the longitude of the Kentish Ditch, which separates the Province from the Walling Level, in Kent. Its southern frontier from this east point is the coast facing the English Channel as far as the entrance of Chichester harbour. Its western boundary is the county demarkation line between Hampshire and Sussex and Surrey.
The natural divisions of the district thus defined are unusually dis- tinct. "The greater part of East Sussex is covered with a wide range of the Hastings sand, rising at the centre to a considerable elevation, known as the 'Forest Ridge.' The scenery of all this"—the Forest district —"is very picturesque, and quite different from that offered by the other natural divisions of the county." This district stretches with certain intervals in a north-westerly direction along the borders of Surrey. Its surface "is broken into hill and vale, and for the most part covered with birch, hazel, or beech under- wood. The soil in many of the more elevated portions is sterile in the extreme." The principal heights are Wych Cross, Brighting Down, Dane's Hill, Fairlight Down, and Crowborough Beacon, the highest and most central eminence, 804 feet above the sea. To the south-west of this district lies what is called the Weald of Sussex, the woodland district "stretching in along line from Pevensey Bay to the hills beyond Petworth." Again, to the south-west of this district lie the South Downs, chalk elevations 53 miles in length. Rising from Pevensey Marshes into Beachy Head, they first trend westward as far as Brighton, where they leave by degrees the coast, and enter Hampshire between West Harting and Stanstead. Their greatest breadth is 7 miles and mean breadth 4i miles, and their average height about 500 feet. Their surface is "generally undu- lated, sometimes, however, rapidly descending by combes into the intersecting valleys, and at others rising to the considerable elevations of Chanctonbury Ring, the Devil's Dyke, Dytchling Borstal, Mount Harry, and Fine Beacon. The northern escarp- ment is for the most part precipitous, the southern gently declin- ing, and west of Brighton gradually blending with the low line of the coast." The soil varies with the surface, on the higher elevations being very shallow indeed, and becoming deeper as we descend the hills, and at the bottom "the loam being excellent, nine or tea inches in depth, the chalk hardish and broken, and mixed with loani in the interstices to the depth of some feet." The soil of the Down district is deepest between Arundel and Hampshire, poorest between Eastbourne and Shoreham. Between the South Downs and the sea is what is called the Maritinze district, which extends 36 miles, from Brighton to Emsworth. Its soil, which is among the best in England, is a rich loam, upon either a reddish brick or gravel, the upper soil varying from ten to sixteen inches. Between Brighton and Shoreham it is less than a mile in breadth, between the rivers Adur and Arun three miles, and from the Arun to the borders of Hampshire from three to seven miles. "Between this rich level and the Downs is a slip of land stretching from Stanstead to Shoreham," which abounds in flints, but is excellent land for turnips. The remaining portion of Sussex to the south-east is. marsh land bordering the sea. Passing the frontier of Sussex into Surrey, we come upon the most extensive tract of uni- form soil to be found in the latter county, called the Weald of Surrey, about thirty miles in length and from three to. five in breadth. Its soil is a retentive clay, it is a woody dis- trict, and its vale is said to be lower in level than any other in. England. For agricultural purposes it is a very difficult soil. From this we pass into a district of sandy loam, stretching across the whole county, "but in the east side seldom exceeding half a. mile in breadth, till at Albury and Shalford it expands as far as. Hascombe and Hambledon, on the south. The richest part of this tract lies round Godahning ; the soil is everywhere of great depth,. and rests on a base of sandstone veined with iron ore."- This dis- trict is exchanged for that of the North Downs, the neighbourhood of which contains the most beautiful scenery of Surrey, the com- bination of wild heath, stately trees in their park enclosures, rich plantations, high, breezy hills, and picturesquely broken. country, being unrivalled by any part of England. Perhaps the natural boundary of the Province on the west is the line of hills which joins the North and South Downs of Hampshire, but we have adopted the more modern and conventional demar- kation.
"The coast at the extreme east of Sussex is formed of the low marsh land which is the continuation of the low land of Romney Marsh," in Kent. "At Pelt the Forest Ridge breaks im for five miles, including Fairlight, Hastings, and Bexhill. The low marsh land of Pevensey forming Pevensey Bay extends from Bexhill to the Downs, a short distance to the east of Beachy Head." From this point, as we have seen, the high chalk cliffs of the Downs form the coast line as far as Brighton, from which point, again, we have the low ground to the Hampshire frontier. Thetwo remarkable headlands, Beachy Head and Sehey Bill, to. which the coast line dips in a southerly direction, the latter directly to the south of Chichester, and the former dividing the coast line to the eastward, each form sweeping bays, Pevensey Bay to the east and Seaford Bay to the west of Beachy Head,. and the Park to the east and Brackle,sham Bay to the west of Selsey Bill. Of these the two former bays are good roadsteads. for vessels, Seaford Bay being much frequented by vessels for water.
The coast line is pierced by eight rivers, the Ouse, the Bother, the Adur, the Arun, the Cuckmere, the Lavant, and two smaller streams. The Ouse passes through the Lewes Level, by that town,, and through an opening in the South Downs into the English Channel at Newhaven, to the east of Brighton, of which that place it has now become the Continental port. The Bother rises in the parish of Rotherfield, close under the Forest Ridge, and runs to the border of Kent, of which it for some time forms the boundary, receiving many accessions from the streams in the Weald of Kent ; it than turns southward, across the most easterly part of Sussex, and sending out the branch called the Kentish Ditch, which falls into the sea a mile and a half eastwards of Rye harbour, flows itself to the south-east part of the town of Rye, below which it reeeives the waters of the Brede, and expanding into an estuary, forms the harbour of Rye, and empties itself into the sea "at the bight of the bay formed by Fairlight Head on the west and Dungeness as
the east." It is navigable up to where it first touches the border route at that time is open to much doubt. But the position of a of Kent. The three sources of the Adur unite near Ashurst, from district bordering the sea for so great a distance, fronting the which it flows in a southward direction to Shoreham harbour and Continent of Europe, and intervening between the two favourite the sea. This river, which is navigable for some distance for small points of foreign access to England, the coast of Kent and the Isle of craft, is celebrated for its mullet, pike, and eels. The Arun rises Wight, was too important to be neglected, and accordingly a road in St. Leonard's Forest and flows southwards, receiving the waters soon skirted its southern declivity, connecting it with the Kentish of the western Bother; it then takes a circuitous course, becoming coast line, and so with the east and north of the island. The celebrated for its trout, and passes through the marshes of the Vale months of its rivers were occupied as garrisons against foreign inva- of Arundel, through the town, and into the sea at Littlehampton, sion, as well as outlets and inlets for home and foreign commerce ; the latter part of the river being famous for mullet. Large vessels parts of the forest were gradually cleared, the demands for fuel of the remain near Littlehampton harbour, but the river is navigable for iron foundries, for which this Province became ere long famous, six miles, up to Arundel bridge, for vessels drawing 13 feet. One greatly promoting the work of clearance ; and at last the Forest of canal connects it with the Wey river, and another with Chichester Anderid no longer remained as a barrier to social intercourse. harbour. The Cucknaere rises in the Forest Ridge, near Hart- Still, the memories and impressions Of the past must have long field Park, and empties itself into the sea at an opening in the lingered, and exerted a more than transient influence on the cha- South Downs, to the westward of Beachy Head, and two miles meter and bent of the inhabitants, and shaped them more or less south-east from Seaford. The channel is very narrow and crooked, according to the fashion of the solemn, stately forest glades, and but navigable for a short distance at high water. The Levant lonely downs, and of the buoyant sea—all alike suggestive of the rises in Charlton Forest, and running through the Lavants and cir- idea of permanence, but in the one case a permanence connected cling the town of Chichester on all sides except the north, falls with strong but passive endurance, in the other with wild emo- into Chichester harbour, and enters the sea at the extreme south- tions mastered and blended into a great monotony of habitual west corner of Sussex. The Mole river rises in the north of action.
Sussex, and flows northwards into Surrey by Dorking and Leather- head, falling into the Thames opposite to Hampton Court. It is AMERICAN HUMOUR. nowhere navigable. The climate of the southern part of Sussex is mild, the mean [FROM OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.]
temperature of the year being 51.10° Fahrenheit, more than 1° New York, February 1, 1867. above the mean temperature of London ; and the mean tempera- THAT there is a distinct " American " type of humour, or of wit, ture of the three winter months at Hastings being 43°, more than 20 most British writers seem to have decided. I remember an essay in above that of the adjoining southern counties. The temperature a leading London periodical which, denying us all other peculiar of the more northern parts of the county, particularly the Forest merit, admitted that, although we have no humour, for which (ac- Ridge, is much lower. The Weald is cold and damp. Nor does cording to the essayist) we lack geniality and breadth, we have a Sussex fail to deserve its old reputation for mud. The most dry kind of wit, based chiefly upon exaggeration. The starting- southern part of Surrey somewhat resembles in climate the point of this essay was a question said to have been asked by Mr. Weald of Sussex, but it gradually becomes drier and more Carlyle of Mr. Emerson—what purely American result had been bracing as it approaches the chalk range. On the whole, how- the outcome of the new institutions of the New World?—to which ever, the district lying in Surrey must be called a cold portion of Mr. Emerson replied for some time not at all, and at last very
the Province. lamely. I think that Mr. Emerson might have answered promptly, The general aspect of the Province, then, is that of a wall of and with truth, that our institutions were not established for the chalk running parallel to the sea, and enclosing a space which purpose of producing any purely American result, and that therefore is divided again into compartments by two natural fences, the they could not, in any sense, be justly regarded as having failed Forest Ridge and the South Downs, running diagonally across the because they had not attained what they were not contrived to southern part from north-west to south-east. We know that reach ; and, moreover, that race, and not political institutions, in British and Roman times the whole of the district to the north produced such outcomes as Mr. Carlyle seemed to be inquiring of the South Downs of Sussex, as far probably as the outskirts of for, political institutions themselves being one of the fruits of the North Downs of Surrey, with the Weald of Kent and the national character, or rather one of its forms of growth, and east-central part of Hampshire, were covered with one great neither its root nor its nourishment ; and yet, again, that two forest, to which was given the name of ANDERID. We also know generations, the limit of our political independence of the mother that the sea has receded at each extremity and at several points of country when Mr. Carlyle interpellated his visitor, were hardly the Sussex coast, leaving marshes and lowlands which it once enough to produce any remarkable peculiarity in the intellectual covered, and stranding some once important seaport towns, while or moral traits of a people, particularly in these days of free inter- elsewhere, as at Brighton, it has encroached on the land. We course and exchange of thought, when the tendency of all peoples, may therefore look upon the Province as originally one.vast forest of the same race at least, is rather toward assimilation than district, extending between two great walls of chalk, and with only a divergence. A somewhat thorough examination and comparison narrow strip of land as a pathway between its southern parapet and of the writings of the humouriste of the Old England and the the sea. On this strip of land, in the combes of the southern plat- New has led me to the conclusion that there is no notable differ- form, now renowned for its sheep walks along the rivers, and in the ence between them, and none at all which is not the result of recesses of the great forest, the inhabitants of this Province in slight differences in dialect—for instance, the rustic Yankee and the days of Keltic ascendancy must have led a very primitive life. the Cockney, the Negro and the Irish—and in the circumstances Hunters, shepherds, and fishermen they probably were, but of of the writers. The difference is not in spirit, but in mere form agriculture there can have been little. The great primeval woods, and subject-matter. The discovery of a peculiarly American wit whose aspect they exchanged only for that of the bare wild hills or humour I cannot but regard as attributable to that rather and the wide open sea, must have impreissed, insensibly, a certain fidgety craving, on both sides of the water, for that wonderful distinctive character on the population of this singular district. A new "American" coming man or thing, of which vain longing feeling they must also have had of almost entire isolation, forbetween Mr. Carlyle's question and Mr. Emerson's silence are almost them and the people of East Kent and North Surrey and Central equal manifestations. I have seen, and have marvelled as I have and Western Hampshire lay the "pathless woods," while the seen, Mr. Longfellow's Hiawatha hailed in Europe as "at last a access to Southern Hampshire was confined to a narrow doorway really American poem." But what are American Indians to us or at the south-western extremity of the Province, where the chalk we to American Indians? No more, not so much, as the Celts Downs receding, left one small space of level ground unencumbered whom our common forefathers supplanted in England are to you by timber and fit for agriculture. Here would be the inlet for civil- and to us. Not so much, because the blood of the Indians does zation, and the sole link of communication with the outer world, not mingle with ours ; they vanish before us, and leave no trace Here accordingly the most advanced part of the population would behind. When an " American " trait of humour mast needs be congregate, and here we find, naturally enough, that the first found in the use of the numeral 4 instead of the preposition for, "capital" of the Province was situated. It was long before because such disrespectful treatment of an august numeral is a the great Forest was sufficiently pierced to allow of direct commu- manifestation of the " Americhn " lack of reverence (which criti- nication between London and this primitive district. Even the en- cism I have seen in one of the London articles upon Artemus terprise of the Romans seems to have (for some time, if not always) Ward), I am confirmed in my opinion that the " Americanism " quailed before this task. The principal road from the capital of the of our humour is found only because it is sought with such Province made a circuit round the western and northern skirts of sensitive expectation. For the truth is that this use of 4 is the Anderil Wood, and the existence of a second and more direct merely the result of an attempt to make fun by painfully
Previous page
