THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 RIVERSIDE 
 
 Ex Libris 
 C. K. OGDEN 1
 
 Plate I. 
 
 Frontispiece. 
 
 Fig. 1. 
 
 THE AUTHOR.
 
 E 
 
 jjoiinir 
 
 fttriitovtro 
 
 OF THE 
 
 1845 to 1901. 
 
 AND SOME OTHER THINGS OF INTEREST, 
 DIVERS AND SUNDRY. 
 
 TREASURED UP BY 
 
 George f. Chambers, 4f,.& 
 
 /i * 
 
 OF THE INNER TEMPLE, BABRISTKB-AT-LAW ; 
 
 J.P. FOR THE BOKOUGH ; 
 I.ATE CAPTAIN, 1ST. SUSSEX ENGINEER VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 "Oft a retrospect delights the mind." ( DANTE.) 
 'Let Diaries therefore be brought in use." (LoBD BACON.) 
 
 EAST-BOURNE: 
 
 PRINTED AND SOLD BY V. T. SUMFIELD. 
 
 STATION STREET. 
 
 1910. 
 
 Price 12s. 6d. nett.
 
 TO 
 
 THE LADY EDWARD CAVENDISH; 
 
 A NAME FOEMING A LINK IN MY MEMORY 
 BETWEEN THE OLD AND THE NEW 
 
 AT 
 
 EAST-BOUENE. 
 
 1864, June 5: 1910, February 3. 
 
 A2
 
 V 
 
 " Say not always what you know ; but always know what you say. ". ( CLAUDIUS.) 
 
 preface. 
 
 I have often been urged to write a book such as the 
 present, but it was the following editorial paragraph 
 in the East-Bourne Chronicle of December 4, 1909, 
 which "fixed up" the idea: 
 
 " As it never rains but it pours, the further letters of local Reininicsences 
 published to-day, come almost as a matter of course. And a contribution in 
 this connection from Mr. Chambers posseses naturally a special interest, for 
 probably nobody has a greater fund of material to draw upon than that 
 gentleman, who for a lengthy period has been closely identified with the public 
 and social life of East -Bourne. We hope Mr. Chambers may find time to 
 " materialise " the hint included in his letter, and record his recollections in a 
 manner and on a scale to cover practically his life-long acquaintance with the 
 town. Such a recital, produced from Mr. Chambers' inexhaustible resources and 
 rendered in the readable style of which he is peculiarly capable, would be of 
 more than passing interest, and be welcomed by a great many of the 
 inhabitants. " 
 
 I have nothing to say in self-defence if I should be 
 accused of presumption or vanity, and I will content 
 myself by stating that I have endeavoured to avoid as 
 far as possible mentioning anything which has already 
 been treated of either in my well-known Hand- Book for 
 East- Bourne, or in Mr. R. J. Graham's East- Bourne 
 Recollections, published in 1888, or in Mr. J. C. 
 "Wright's By-gone East-Bourne, published in 1902.
 
 vi Preface. 
 
 Here the insertion of some words written by Lady St. 
 Helier will be most appropriate : 
 
 " When I remember all the kind friends and interesting people I knew, and 
 realise the great gaps that remain, and the large number of those I shall never 
 ee again, a great cloud of sadness darkens the recollection. " ( Memories of 
 fifty Tears, p. 186. ) 
 
 As regards tbe details given, and the way in which 
 they are presented, I have taken Lady St. Helier's 
 book as a model. 
 
 It would be well-nigh impossible to name all the 
 kind people who have helped me by offering hints and 
 suggestions, and the loan of books, and documents. But 
 I am under special obligations to the Rev. R. D. 
 Pierpoint, a friend of 60 years standing, for reading the 
 proof sheets, and to him, and to other friends, for 
 assistance in verifying dates and facts as to which I 
 thought that my memory was at fault. Even now, with 
 all the help that I have received, it is extremely possible 
 that some of my details may need revision, not that I 
 have any intention of putting forth a, 2nd edition for the 
 purpose. With respect to the illustrations, I am under 
 special obligations to Mr. Alderman Howe ( of the Firm 
 of G. & R. Lavis) for much co-operation and assistance; 
 especially in supplying copyright originals by purchase. 
 But I must not forget some other kind friends. Lady 
 Lindsay- Hogg has placed at my disposal a portfolio of 
 water-colour paintings done by her mother Mrs. Cowley 
 about 1 860 ; and Mr. E H. T. Streatf eild several sketch- 
 books of the late Mrs. Ogle's ; and pictures, of still earlier 
 date. Mr. C. D. Gilbert, Major Molineux, Mr. U. R. 
 Burke, Dr. Jeffery, Dr. Colgate, and Mr. E. H. Emary 
 have also assisted me with the loan of various pictures. 
 It has been difficult to make a selection from the number
 
 Preface. vii 
 
 of pictures placed at my disposal. My list might easily 
 have been doubled. 
 
 The Book has grown very far indeed beyond the limits 
 originally contemplated for it. I sat down to write, as I 
 thought, enough MS. as would suffice to make, at the 
 outside, perhaps half a dozen Articles, of 2 or 3 columns 
 each, in the East-Bourne Chronicle; and the reader 
 now sees the growth of the MS. owing to the mass of 
 material stored up, almost unknown to myself. I had 
 no idea that I had done so much ; or given so much time 
 to public w r ork in East- Bourne until the record of it 
 came to be digested for the purposes of this book ; or 
 that I had made in the town such an undue number of 
 speeches, on such a variety of subjects. It would have 
 been better for myself materially in every respect, if I 
 had done much less ; and had appeared much less in 
 public, both as a speaker and a controversial 
 
 <. Jf .. 
 
 Lethen Grange, 
 
 Sydenham. 
 
 October, 1910.
 
 Contents. 
 
 What are the Contents ? ( Loce'i Labour Lost.) 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 The Author's origin and antiquity. How to spell East-Bourne the wrong 
 way. William the Conqueror cited. Ancestors. The South Gloucester 
 Militia in 1806. i 4 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 A TOPOGRAPHICAL TOUR ROUND THE TOWN, WITH ANECDOTES 
 OLD EAST-BOURNE AND MEADS. 
 
 Willingdon. A tragic Picnic. Rattan. Entertainments there. Mr. W. 
 B. Thomas. The Thomas Family. Great Snow-storm. A prehistoric Battle. 
 
 Skeletons. The Cemetery. The Gore. Motcombe Pond. Old Postal 
 arrangements. The old and the new Vicarages. Compton Place Road. The 
 Gilbert Family. Major Willard. Compton Place. Lady Fanny Howard. Mr. 
 R. B. Stone. Meads. Mr. Caldecott. Holywell. Two Picnics there. The 
 Countess De Noailles. Lady Howard De Walden. Tragedies at Beachy Head. 
 
 The Lamb Inn. East-Bourne Fair. Water Lane. 5 26 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 A TOPOGRAPHICAL TOUR ROUND THE TOWN, WITH ANECDOTES. 
 
 CENTRAL EAST-BOURNE. 
 
 Grove Road. Bourne Stream. Sir J. Leach. Lord Thurlow. Stocks 
 Bank. Town Hall. The Squirrel. Rose Cottage. Elm Cottage. Major 
 Wilford. Wesleyan Chapel. Literary Institution. New Inn. South Street. 
 Performing Fleas. The Brother Blacksmiths. A Dilapidated House. 
 Larkfield House. Mr. Rawdon. The Terrace. Old Residents. Old Footpaths. 
 
 Prentice Street. East-Bourne College. The Wish. Devonshire Park. 
 Cliff Cottage. Proposed town of " Burlington. " The first Earl of Burlington. 
 The Susans Farm. The Graham Family. Terminus Road. Thomas Morris, 
 cricketer. Oak Cottage and Charles II. Terminus Road once a cornfield. 
 Coming of age of the 8th Duke of Devonshire. Historic houses in Hartington 
 Place. 27 41
 
 x Cot) tents. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 A TOPOGEAPHICAL TOUE BOUND THE TOWN, WITH ANECDOTES. 
 
 THE SEA HOUSES. 
 
 Marine Parade. Round House. Field House. Houses built during the 
 Crimean War. Gowland's Library. Its antiquity and early tenants. Captain 
 L. K. Willard. The Albion Hotel before it became an hotel. The Earl of 
 Ashbumham. Anecdotes of. Sea Beach House. The Yacht Cygnet. Abolished 
 Coastguard Station. War Department property. The two Miss Gordons. The 
 Great Redoubt. Royal Parade Sea Wall. Grievances of the Fishermen. 
 Proposed Harbour. Martello Towers. Collier Ships. 42 5 1 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 ROYAL AND DISTINGUISHED VISITORS. 
 
 Children of George III. Foreign Princes and Princesses. Visits by the 
 Duke of Cambridge. Grand Duke and Duchess of Hesse. Grand Duke and 
 Duchess of Baden. Princess Christian and the " Alice Hospital". Opening of 
 the Hospital by the Prince and Princess of Wales. Street Decorations. 
 Tea Party at Compton Place. Satirical publications respecting the visit. Visit 
 of the Marchioness of Lome. Suppressed anecdote. Visit of the Duchess of 
 Albany. Visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales. Distinguished Russian, 
 Chinese, and French Visitors, and others. Astronomical, Political, and 
 Ecclesiastical Visitors, with notes and anecdotes as to some of them. 52 68 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 MILITARY AND NAVAL EPISODES. 
 
 The Author's interest in military matters. Anecdote of the first Duke of 
 Cambridge. Troops quartered at East-Bourne during the Crimean War. 
 Sussex Artillery Militia. Norfolk Artillery Militia. The De La Warr Family. 
 The Volunteer Movement. The East-Bourne Rifles. The Sussex Artillery 
 Volunteers. The Sussex Engineer Volunteers. Visits of the second Duke of 
 Cambridge for Artillery Experiments. Anthony's Hill. Lord Wolseley. 
 "Old Boney." Shipwreck in 1849. Loss of the Dalhousie in 1853. Wreck 
 of the Gannet in 1882. Naval Reviews at Portsmouth. 69. ..85 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 COMPANIES, SOCIETIES, INSTITUTIONS. 
 
 Literary Institution. Coal and Clothing Society. Blanket Loan Society. 
 Coal Company. Church Institute. Mutual Improvement Society. A 
 celebrated Shakespeare Reading. Charity Organisation Society. East-Bourne 
 Choral Society. Purcell Glee Society. Devonshire Club. "House of Commons." 
 Its Sessional Dinners. Reflections on its usefulness. Regrets at its 
 discontinuance. 86 97 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 CANDLES, GAS, AND WATER. 
 
 Old-fashioned lighting arrangements. Rushlights. Tallow Candles. Wax 
 Candles. Various Oils. Candlesticks and Snuffers. Formation of the Gas 
 Company. Its first Officials. Its remarkable prosperity. Street Lighting. 
 Meter Lamps. Local Acts of Parliament. The Water Supply. 98 i o i
 
 Contents. xi 
 
 CHAPTEE IX. 
 LAW, POLICE, MEDICAL. 
 
 Police arrangements in 1851. Names of the Magistrates. Major N. 
 Willard. Mr. E. J. Graham. Magistrates' Clerks. Where Sittings were 
 held. The status of a Mayor. The first Borough Bench. Anecdote of a Golf 
 Player. High Constables and Parish Constables. Modern Police. Local Law 
 suits. Celebrated Crimes. Crime rare in East-Bourne. Local Medical Men- 
 Formerly few in number, with little to do. Now numerous, but still with no 
 much to do. Dr. D. J. Hall. Mr. E. Colgate. Dr. G. A. Jeffery. 102110 
 
 CHAPTEE X. 
 
 LITEEATUEE, SCIENCE, AND AET. 
 
 Local Newspapers. Old East-Bourne Guides. Local Authors. E M. 
 Caldecott. W. Brodie. Lady Catherine Long. Distinguished Visitors. 
 Astronomical Observatories. Natural History Society. Prominent members 
 of the Society. Loan Exhibitions. Old Maps of the Parish. Professor 
 Huxley. The Herschel Family. J. H. Mortimer. Arts and Industries 
 Society. Shakespearian and other Eeadings. m 121 
 
 CHAPTEE XI. 
 EAILWAYS AND TEAVELLING. 
 
 Travelling to East-Bourne in the "Forties." The last Coach. Opening 
 of the Railway to Lewes. To Hastings. To East-Bourne and Hailsham. 
 Eailway Stations. The Market. Proposed Eailway from Battle. Proposed 
 Eailways from London by Lewes and Brighton and their effect on East-Bourne. 
 New lines in the year 1864. The " Ouse Valley" Line. The "Surrey and 
 Sussex" Line. The " Tunbridge Wells and East- Bourne Line". Obstruc- 
 tive policy of the Brighton Company. Mr. J. P. Knight. The Willingdon 
 Spur Line. Mr. G. A. Wallis as a Eailway Promoter. Proposed Line to 
 Birling Gap and Seaford. Eailway Accidents. In Clayton Tunnel, 1861. 
 At Mayfield, 1897. Through Trains from the North of England. Bournemouth 
 and Through Trains. History of their introduction into East-Bourne. The 
 proposed Tramway to Pevensey. A Sensational Train. 122 143 
 
 CHAPTEE XII. 
 GAMES AND SPOETS. 
 
 Early Cricket at East-Bourne. Cricket at Brighton. Cricket at East-Bourne 
 in the " Sixties ". Cricket at Compton Place. Curious coincidences on a P. 
 and O. Steamer. Origin of the Devonshire Park. Stool- Ball. Point-to- Point 
 Eaces. Eaces at Beachy Head. Fox Hounds. Harriers. First Eegatta. 
 Pedestrian Feat. Golf. "Spelling-Bees." "Living Chess." "Book-Teas." 
 
 '44155 
 
 CHAPTEE XIII. 
 ECCLESIASTICAL. 
 
 General. Church Bates. Sunday Bands. Visits of the Diocesan Con- 
 ference. The Parish Church. Its Eestoration. Distinguished Preachers. 
 Anecdotes of and by the Eev. T. Pitman. Tithe Commutation. Dr. Brodie. 
 Clerical Vestments in the "Fifties." The Pitman Institute. St. Michael's
 
 xii Contents. 
 
 Church. The Rev. H. B. Ottley's Vicariat. Proposals for a new Parish 
 Church. Trinity Church. Its enlargements. Bishop S. Wilberforce's visit. 
 Christ Church. Services there for the Military. Military Funeral. St. 
 Saviour's Church. Circumstances which led to its erection. Controversy 
 afterwards. Warning aga.nst Organists. St. John's Church. Remarkable 
 growth of Meads. St. Gregory's Chapel. St. Anne's Church. All Saints' 
 Church. Intended to replace an Iron Church. Heart-burnings and litigation. 
 All Souls' Church. Lady Victoria Wellesley's munificence. Difficulties 
 owing to the soil. Patronage. Experiences of a Patron. St. Peter's 
 Church. Replaced a temporary Church. 156 188 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 EDUCATIONAL. 
 
 Private Schools in 1851 and earlier. Smock Frocks. Mr. J. A. Bown. 
 Commissariat arrangements. Private Schools in the new town. 
 Elementary Schools. Great efforts made by the Church of England. Very 
 little done by Dissenters. Unsuccessful attempts to force on a School Board. 
 Great Fancy Fair in 1895. County and Borough Councils as Education 
 Authorities. 1 89 1 96 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 ELECTIONS, PAROCHIAL AND MUNICIPAL. 
 
 Sketch of the Local Government arrangements up till 1859. The first 
 Local Board. The great epidemic of 1863. First system of main drainage 
 Incorporation of the town in 1883. Wanted a Town Hall. Bickerings over 
 a site. Author a member of Local Board. Steps taken to bring about 
 Incorporation. Proposed inclusion of Willingdon. Guardians of the Poor. 
 Lady Guardians. County Council Elections. The danger of splitting votes. 
 Political Dissenters. End of the Author's Career. 197 205 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 EAST-BOURNE BILLS IN PARLIAMENT. 
 
 The Caldecott Museum causes a Bill to be passed. Encroachments of 
 the Sea cause a Bill to be passed. Mr. G. A. Wallis as Mayor. His desire 
 for more powers causes a Bill to be brought in and passed. The ups 
 and downs of the said Bill. The Salvation Army very unpopular. 
 Parliamentary controversy respecting its misconduct. Proposed purchase of 
 Water Works Municipal Trading. To what extent desirable. 206 211 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 SEA WALLS : TOWN HALLS : PUBLIC PARKS. 
 
 Encroachments of the Sea on the Sussex Coast. The Sea-front before 
 any wall was built. The western extension of the wall. Mr. James Berry. 
 Mr. M. Vidler. High Tides in 187:; and 1877. The Improvement Bill of 
 1879. Opposition thereto by the "Do-nothing Party." Roads sometimes 
 flooded. History of the Town Hall. Difficulties in finding a Site. The 
 various Sites discussed. Stocks' Bank finally selected. Continued opposition 
 on the part of the " Do-nothings. " Plans selected and rejected. The 
 controversy as to these Plans. Open Spaces. The controversy as to the 
 South Fields. Negociations with Mr. Gilbert. Liberal offer on behalf of
 
 Contents. xiii 
 
 the Duke of Devonshire. Strong public opinion in favour of a Park in the 
 Town. Final settlement of negociations prolonged through many years. 
 Hampden Park, good in itself, but far away. Hospitals. 212 224 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 ELECTIONS, PARLIAMENTARY. 
 
 Effect of the growth of population on the increase of the number of 
 Voters. East Sussex Polls from 1832 till 1880. East- Bourne Division Polls 
 from 1885 to 1910. Notes on most of the Candidates during that period. 
 Election meetings in former days. 225 235 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 MISCELLANEOUS. 
 
 Population statistics. Guy Fawkes Day. A Snow hut. East-Bourne Postal 
 arrangements in 1874. Season Extension Movement. The Guardian 
 Newspaper and Mr. Disraeli. A Sermon on Sheep-stealing. Convicted of 
 manslaughter for stealing a pair of breeches. Russian prisoners at Lewes. 
 Unreformed Corporations .Bradford or Bedford Well. Ladies at Public 
 Dinners. An Old Style dinner. A Drive in Derbyshire. A visit to Holker 
 Hall. East-Bourne Printers. Fire Engines. Lord R. Churchill. The Lanyon 
 Family. Bread the "Staff of Life," (sometimes.) Weddings, 1846-1902. 
 Syllabub Parties. A Garden Party at Compton Place. How Fiction may become 
 "History". Pigs as Engineers. Banks at East-Bourne. Sussex Coaches in 
 1804. Sea-Bathing. East-Bourne in 1809. East-Bourne in 1812. East- 
 Bourne Bathing in 1819. A Fancy Dress Ball. A China (not Chinese 
 Story) 'The Story of a Clock. Links with the Past. Sunday League 
 Excursions to East-Bourne. A Ladies' Committee. A "Liberal" Dinner at 
 East-Bourne. The Wreck of the Nympha Americana. Extracts from old 
 letters of Dr. Brodie. The penalties attached to Authorship. 236 271 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 " PADDING " AND " SCISSORS AND PASTE. " 
 
 Personal. The Times Newspaper. Changes in English manners and 
 customs. The "Hunt Sermon." Mr. Gladstone and newspapers. Deeds and 
 legal documents. A dog and cat story. A Sabbath-breaking dog. Debating 
 Societies. Practical v. unpractical Temperance Reform. English and 
 Welsh. The Economy of Time. Tick, Tick, Tick. A Waterloo Myth. 
 A Waterloo Fact. Visits to the Battle-field of Waterloo. Unfamiliar 
 Women's Christian Names. Novel experiences, exciting or otherwise. 
 Mid- Victorian Meal-times. Visits to the Galleries of the Two Houses of 
 Parliament. A Gladstone Anecdote. Coins as Measures. The Duty and 
 Advantages of showing Civility to strangers. Clerical Surnames. An 
 Offer of Marriage: 1802 Style. 272 295 
 
 INDEX ... 296
 
 XIV 
 
 " Let us satisfy our eyes with the Memorials, and tilings of Fame, that do renown this city. 
 
 ( Twelfth Night. ) 
 
 Hist of illustrations. 
 
 Fig. 
 
 
 Page 
 
 i 
 
 The Author 
 
 Plate i Frontispiece 
 
 2 
 
 Silhouette of the Author, 1846 
 
 Plate ii faces xvi 
 
 1 
 
 The Author, 1851; 
 
 ,, xvi 
 
 4 
 
 Tea-house at Old Ratton 
 
 Plate in faces 5 
 
 5 
 
 The Gore, East-Bourne 
 
 !) )) 5 
 
 6 
 
 Rev. Alexander Brodie, D.D 
 
 .. Plate iv faces 8 
 
 7 
 
 Mrs. Brodie 
 
 8 
 
 8 
 
 The old Mills in the Mill-field, 1855 
 
 Plate v faces 9 
 
 9 
 
 Motcombe Pond 
 
 ,, ,, 9 
 
 10 
 
 Old Barns near the old Parsonage 
 
 ,, ,, 9 
 
 ii 
 
 The Lamb Corner before being widened 
 
 Plate vi faces 12 
 
 12 
 
 The Old Vicarage and Worge's House 
 
 12 
 
 J 
 
 C. D. Gilbert, Esq., J.P 
 
 Plate vii faces 16 
 
 14 
 
 The Manor House 
 
 ,, ,, 16 
 
 15 
 
 The yth Duke of Devonshire 
 
 Plate vni faces 18 
 
 16 
 
 Compton Place 
 
 18 
 
 '7 
 
 The "King's" Bedroom at Compton Place ... 
 
 Plate ix follows vni 
 
 is 
 
 Mr. F. J. and Lady Fanny Howard, and Family 
 
 Plate x faces 20 
 
 *9 
 
 The Site of St. Peter's Church 
 
 20 
 
 20 
 
 The Hobby Bank, Meads, and St. John's Church 
 
 Plate xi faces 22 
 
 21 
 
 Meads as it was, from the Downs 
 
 Plate xii faces 24 
 
 22 
 
 Oxen ploughing 
 
 Plate xni faces 25 
 
 23 
 
 The Cottage and Gap at Holywell 
 
 ,, >, 25 
 
 24 
 
 Holywell, from the Gap 
 
 25 
 
 25 
 
 The "Charles" at Beachy Head, 1851 
 
 Plate xiv faces 27 
 
 26 
 
 Beachy Head showing base of the " Charles" 
 
 27 
 
 27 
 
 The Squirrel Inn 
 
 Plate xv faces 29 
 
 28 
 
 Back buildings of the Squirrel 
 
 ,, ,, 29 
 
 29 
 
 Wall of Rose Cottage 
 
 Plate xvi before XVH 
 
 30 
 
 "Sheep- wash Pond" and Parish Pound 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 The old Vestry Room 
 
 ,, 
 
 32 
 
 The Grove 
 
 Plate xvii faces 31 
 
 33 
 
 Stocks Bank 
 
 3i 
 
 34 
 
 Dilapidated house in South Street 
 
 Plate xvin faces 33 
 
 35 
 
 Coach Office 
 
 33 
 
 36 
 
 Trinity Church, 185; 
 
 Plate xix faces 36 
 
 37 
 
 Sea-front from the Wish Tower, 1855 
 
 >, ,, 36 
 
 38 
 
 The Wish Tower, 1840 
 
 Plate xx faces 38 
 
 39 
 
 Heatherly's Library, 1819 
 
 3 
 
 40 
 
 A High Tide at Splash Point 
 
 Plate xxi faces 43 
 
 4 
 
 A High Tide opposite the Albion 
 
 43 
 
 42 
 
 The Field House and the Marine Parade 
 
 Plate xxn faces 45 
 
 43 
 
 The old Fishing Station and Groynes 
 
 ,, ,. ,, 45 
 
 44 
 
 Garden Party at Compton Place 
 
 Plate xxin faces 56 
 
 45 
 
 Firemens' Arch, 188} 
 
 Plate xxiv faces 57 
 
 46 
 
 Boatmens' Arch, 1883 
 
 > >i 57
 
 List of Illustrations. xv 
 
 "What have you there? A picture, Sir!" (Timon qf Atkeiu.) 
 
 47 Tower No. 71 Plate xxv faces 69 
 
 48 Officers of the 2nd. Sussex Artillery Volunteers 69 
 
 49 Interior of Great Redoubt with Troops encamped 69 
 
 50 Officers of ist. Suss. Eng. Vols. at Sheffield Park Plate xxvi faces 76 
 
 51 Wreck of the Nympha Americana, 1 747 Plate xxvn faces 84 
 
 52 Wreck of the 2Viarn.es at East-Bourne, 1822 ... 84 
 
 53 East-Bourne House of Commons ; the Cabinet, 1885 Plate xxvm faces 93 
 
 54 Mr. E. J. Graham, J.P Plate xxix faces 98 
 
 55 Mr. F. W .H. Cavendish, J-.P 98 
 
 56 Dr. G. A. Jeffery, J.P 98 
 
 57 Mr. E. Colgate 98 
 
 58 A Drawing-room Screen Plate xxx faces in 
 
 i9 The Observatory at Northfield Grange 121 
 
 60 Opening of the Eail way at East-Bourne, 1849 Plate xxxi faces 124 
 
 6 1 A typical train of old style Engine and "Coaches" ... 124 
 
 62 Miss Bracebridge fishing off Langney Point, 1824 Plate xxxii faces 152 
 
 63 St. Mary's Church, before external alterations, 1868 164 
 
 64 St. Mary's Church, Interior, circa 1840 Plate XXXHI faces 166 
 
 65 The old Parsonage next the Parish Church 173 
 
 66 Eev. H. E. Whelpton Plate xxxiv faces 176 
 
 67 Eev. T. Pitman 176 
 
 68 Eev. E. W. Pierpoint 176 
 
 69 Foundation-Stone laying, All Saints' Church Plate xxxv faces 1 83 
 
 70 Foundation-Stone laving, All Souls' Church, Plate xxxvi faces 186 
 
 71 Schools Bazaar, June 1895: Opening Day ... Plate xxxvn faces 193 
 
 72 Schools Bazaar, June 1895: Third Day Plate xxxnn faces 194 
 
 73 Opening of the Main Drain, 1866 Plate xxxix faces 197 
 
 74 Members of the last Local Board (27 Portraits) Plate XL faces 198 
 
 75 Members of the First Town Council (35 Portraits) Plate XLI follows 200 
 
 76 Foundation-Stone laying, Town Hall Plate XLII follows XLI 
 
 77 Presentation of Mace Plate XLIII faces 203 
 
 78 Nomination Paper of T. B. Eowe as Councillor Plate XLIV faces 204 
 
 79 Langney Fort wrecked by the Sea Plate XLV faces 206 
 
 80 Oafc Cottage, Terminus Eoad 206 
 
 8 1 The Coast-line of East-Bourne at various dates 214 
 
 82 Declaration of the Poll, December 6, 1885 Plate XLVI faces 225 
 
 83 Admiral Field, M.P 225 
 
 84 Holker Hall, Lancashire Plate XL viz faces 240 
 
 85 View at Meads, 1860 240 
 
 86 Louise, Duchess of Devonshire Plate XLVIII faces 256 
 
 87 Schools Bazaar, June 1895: Balloon Ascent ... Plate XLIX faces 260 
 
 88 The Author's Study at Northfield Orange ... 260 
 
 89 The 4 " Charleses " at Beachy Head, circa 1825 Plate L faces 269 
 
 90 Colliers unloading at East-Bourne, 1845 2 ^9 
 
 91 Beachy Head (Old Engraving dated 1787) ... Plate LI 273 
 
 92 The Yacht Cygnet afloat Plate LII faces 376 
 
 93 The first Lugger built at East-Bourne, 1844 ... 276 
 
 94 The Mill-field, looking S., circa 1860 Plate LIII faces 285 
 
 95 The Site of the Eoyal Parade, circa 1833 ... 285 
 
 96 Extremes in Social Scale (East-Bourne), Biigh Life Plate Lrv faces 286 
 
 97 Extremes in Social Scale (East-Bourne), Low Life 286 
 
 98 A Life-Boat of the Eoyal National Life-Boat Institution 288
 
 tt Corrigenda. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 34. A somewhat full account of Mr. Eawdon and his house will be found in 
 E. D. MEBBITT'S History of East-Bourne College, 1897. 
 
 46. line 22. Dele all the allusions to Salamanca, 
 ft,;, line 15, et seq. For " Sovereign " read " Half-a-Crown." 
 74. line 34. For " Volunteer Corps " &c. read " Cinque Ports' Rifles." 
 ' 83. line 17. For "Mayflower" read " Seaflower."
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 " gt lifaljr jrrrluirf, fashioning flgt 
 
 " $n fofcirfr Iris baict s|0ultr foanbrr." (KEATS.) 
 
 TAe Awtfcor's origin and antiquity. How to spell East-Bourne the 
 wrong way. William the Conqueror cited. Ancestors. The South 
 Gloucester Militia in 1806. 
 
 BOOKS of the nature of this one often begin with a 
 statement of when and where the author was 
 born, but it can be a matter of very little interest 
 to the readers of this book to know that I was born on 
 October 18, 1841, at Upton-on-Severn, Worcestershire, 
 my father being at the time a young M.D. in attendance 
 on the 8th Earl of Coventry who consented to become 
 one of my godfathers. After his death in 1843 my 
 parents went to Colchester for several years, and finally 
 settled in London in 1848, whence I took innumerable 
 journeys to East-Bourne at short intervals for health 
 reasons, because London air, and water full of living 
 creatures, did not agree with me. 
 
 I have often been invited, and not unfrequently 
 
 urged, to commit to paper some of my Recollections and 
 
 Reminiscences of East-Bourne both in respect of people 
 
 and things. Such notes as I may be able to put down 
 
 B
 
 2 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. I. 
 
 may possibly have some interest for certain people, but 
 it would be affectation on my part to hold out any idea 
 that they could be of any public importance. Indeed my 
 sole justification for going into print on such a theme 
 is that I lived in East-Bourne for 29 years straight off 
 (1873-1902), and spent there a large portion of the 
 previous 22 years. Say for the present purpose that 22 
 added to 29 make 60. 
 
 I began keeping a diary on January 1, 1854, and 
 have continued to do so with hardly the break of a day 
 ever since. I shall therefore not draw wholly on my 
 imagination for my facts ; and during the whole period, 
 I have stored up newspaper cuttings and printed papers 
 of every sort relating to East-Bourne. 
 
 Before I make a start I will answer in print a 
 question which has been put to me scores of times by 
 word of mouth, "Why do you spell East-Bourne in two 
 words and with a big B ? " Answer : Because William 
 the Conqueror's tax collectors did so when they made 
 the Domesday Book. They called the place " Borne." 
 Another answer might be, because the two chief owners 
 of the soil, the heads of the families of Cavendish and 
 Gilbert have always done so and still do so ; whilst a 
 third reason which ought to carry weight in these s. d. 
 days is that, without any question, the one-word spelling 
 by putting into prominence the syllable "East" has done 
 much to prejudice English people living outside Sussex 
 against our town as being "evidently from its name" 
 an east-wind sort of place. I have heard this urged 
 many times by people at a distance as a reason why 
 East-Bourne could not possibly be a desirable place of 
 residence. Moreover the one-word spelling is apt to 
 engender the pronunciation of Easbun which is hideous. 
 As a last shot I will remark that in my younger days the 
 common name of the place amongst all ranks was, in 
 conversation, very generally "Bourne," descending, with 
 the cottagers, to "JBoorne." 
 
 I propose in these notes to adhere as far as seems 
 convenient to the chronological order of the matters dealt 
 with, but as I go along it will certainly be found desirable
 
 'CHAP. I.] Introductory. 3 
 
 to depart very often from this principle, so perhaps it 
 will be safer to confess at the outset that these notes are 
 altogether destitute of principle. 
 
 Whilst I have a tolerably connected recollection of 
 most things that have happened since 1848, I can very 
 well remember several incidents which date back to 
 1845 and 1846, but as most of these were events of a 
 family nature the reader will not be troubled with many 
 of them. 
 
 Though my main object is to deal only with matters 
 of history which came directly under my own observation, 
 it will be worth while occasionally to mention a few 
 things which were told to me at various uncertain dates 
 by people who before my time were themselves contem- 
 porary with the people and events which they themselves 
 talked to me about, late in their own lives. Perhaps I 
 ought to explain in limine, that my grandfather, the 
 Rev. Alexander Brodie, D.D., was Vicar of East-Bourne 
 from 1810 till 1828, when he was killed, leaving a widow 
 who survived till 1864 and eleven children one of whom 
 survived till 1908. The family house was The Gore, 
 where my grandmother Mrs. Brodie lived till the end of 
 her life, as did her three unmarried daughters, Maria, 
 Lydia, and Julia, till the end of their lives, the last of 
 them dying in 1892. 
 
 Thus I had in my earlier years, from 1845 onwards, 
 many opportunities of hearing of events which occurred 
 in the early part of the first half of the 19th Century, 
 and of witnessing many of the later events. But as it 
 happens, the oldest reference in this volume in point of 
 date came to me through another and quite different 
 family association. 
 
 In many guide books relating to East -Bourne a 
 quotation appears to the effect that in 1804, when 
 Napoleon's invasion of England was supposed to be 
 threatening, the South Gloucester Militia was one of the 
 militia regiments which was quartered in the camp near 
 East-Bourne, assembled to resist the invader who not 
 only never came, but in my humble opinion never 
 seriously intended to come, whatever his wishes might
 
 4 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. I. 
 
 have been. The militia regiment in question was com- 
 manded by George 4th Lord Dynevor who had with 
 him his wife and family ; the latter included six 
 daughters, all of whom lived to a great age, and lived 
 together as old maids at the family seat in Gloucestershire. 
 From the eldest of these ladies, when staying with her, 
 accompanied by my wife, her cousin, about the year 
 1870, 1 received a very interesting account of East-Bourne 
 as it was in 1804, and I regret not having taken down at 
 the time notes of what she told me. However, I may 
 summarise the situation by saying that the links between 
 my life and the town of East-Bourne are both numerous 
 and varied, as will be readily discovered by the readers 
 of these pages if there are any persons who have patience 
 to wade through them. 
 
 " Hafce matt limit tljou sboforst ; 
 
 It&s i|ra tfyov. krurfoesi.'' (King Lear.)
 
 Plate III. 
 
 To face p. 5. 
 
 Figs. 4-5. 
 
 G. & R. Lavis, East- Bourne. 
 
 TEA-HOUSE AT OLD RATTON. 
 
 THE GORE."
 
 [5] 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 A TOPOGRAPHICAL TOUR ROUND THE TOWN, 
 WITH ANECDOTES. 
 
 OLD EAST-BOUBNE AND MEADS. 
 
 " Wi&lk Mt mt about i\t Skfon." (Comedy of Errors.) 
 
 Willingdon. A Tragic Picnic. Ration. Entertainments there. 
 Mr. W. B. Thomas. The Thomas Family. Great Snow Storm. .A Pre- 
 historic Battle. Skeletons. The Cemetery. The Gore. Motcombe Pond. 
 Old Postal Arrangements. The Old and the New Vicarages. Compton 
 Place Road. The Gilbert Family. Major Willard. Compton Place. 
 Lady Fanny Howard. Mr. R. B. Stone. Meads. Mr. Caldecott. Holy- 
 *well. Tivo Picnics there. The Countess De Noailles. Lady Howard De 
 Walden. Tragedies at Beachy Head. The Lamb Inn. East-Bourne Fair. 
 Water Lane. 
 
 I HAVE found some difficulty in deciding how best 
 to put together in a readable shape the materials 
 
 which make up this and the 2 following chapters. 
 After due consideration I have thought it would be best 
 to suppose that I was taking my readers for a walk all 
 round East-Bourne, stopping here and there wherever I 
 remembered a place or an incident worth mentioning. 
 
 I will begin with Willingdon because the road 
 thither was my favourite walk in my younger days, and 
 I often passed along it on foot or driving. The Vicar of 
 Willingdon in 1850 was the Rev. H. James who lost his 
 life at Beachy Head under peculiar circumstances which 
 were never quite cleared up. He and his wife and two 
 children were members of a picnic party which assembled 
 at the Head, and in the course of the day he and a friend 
 started, proposing to descend to the shore. After a while 
 the friend returned alone to the picnic party wondering 
 what had become of Mr. James, who insisted on making 
 the attempt to descend in spite of remonstrances as to 
 the danger involved. In the end he lost his footing, fell 
 to the beach, and was killed on the spot. Mrs. James
 
 6 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IL 
 
 and her two children went to live at Brighton and 
 entertained me, who was at school there, on some of my 
 Saturday half-holidays. The boy's name was Renouard, 
 a name I have never heard since. He died as recently 
 as 1909, as Major-General, R.E. The girl's name was 
 Arabella. I do not know what became of her. 
 
 Ration comes back to me as the'locale of my first 
 Sussex children's party in January 1851. That also 
 was associated with a tragedy. Amongst the guests- 
 staying in the house was a Mr. Streatfeild of The Rocks, 
 Uckfield, and his two little daughters, one of whom 
 Marion by name was one of my partners in the dance. 
 A few days afterwards Mr. Streatfeild was out shooting,, 
 and carrying his gun carelessly it went off and wounded 
 him in the heel. Lock-jaw ensued and he died. Besides 
 the dancing, one item in the entertainment was a giant 
 conjuror, or something of that sort. The part was taken 
 by Mr. William Brodrick Thomas, a brother of the then 
 Squire of Ration. An amusing thing once happened to 
 Mr. Thomas. He became famous as a landscape gardener,. 
 
 and the Duchess of , wishing to consult him,. 
 
 invited him to lunch. He arrived in due course, and 
 asking for the Duchess was told by the butler that at 
 the moment she was engaged. The butler, when he 
 learnt that the visitor had come as the consulting 
 gardener, thought he would do him a kindness, and 
 invited him to have a bit of dinner in the servants' halL 
 Mr. Thomas, who liked a joke, accepted the invitation, 
 though the grandson of a peer. The repast being over,, 
 he asked the butler whether there was any chance of his 
 seeing the Duchess, and getting an affirmative reply was 
 led upstairs to the drawing-room. Judge of the butler's 
 horror when, on taking the "gardener" into the drawing- 
 room, he was thus accosted by the Duchess : " Oh ! 
 Mr. Thomas, I am so glad to see you. I have been 
 expecting you to lunch and have been waiting for you;" 
 shaking hands effusively with the newly-arrived stranger. 
 The butler, covered with confusion, tendered to Mr. 
 Thomas the most abject apologies when he left the house 
 in the afternoon.
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 1 
 
 Counting the present young heir to the property, I 
 have known five generations of Thomases at Ration, 
 reckoning from July, 1848, when I was taken there for a 
 drive by Dr. Hall, who was paying a professional visit. 
 That was in the time of Mr. Inigo Thomas who died not 
 very long afterwards, and was succeeded by his eldest 
 son, Freeman, who, dying in 1859, was succeeded by his 
 second son, Frederick Freeman. This Squire died at 
 San Remo in 1868, and was the father of the present 
 Squire. Mr. Arthur Goring Thomas, the musical com- 
 poser, was a brother of Mr. F. F. Thomas, and the present 
 Sir C. I. Thomas, late of the Admiralty, is another brother. 
 The present house at Ration was built in 1895, on the 
 site of an older and very ugly house burnt down in 
 December, 1891. The original mansion house was lower 
 down the hill, nearer Willingdon, and some portion of it 
 still remains, fitted up as a lounge for tea parties. There 
 is a tale told to the effect that the property changed 
 hands through the running of a greyhound in the reign 
 of George I., the winner of the race and assignee of the 
 property being a draper at Lewes named Durrant. I 
 .have not the least idea whether this story is authentic, 
 but Burke's General Armoury gives a greyhound's head 
 as the crest of a family named Durrant, and the grey- 
 hound portrayed in a painted window in Willingdon 
 Church has been said to represent the aforesaid animal. 
 After Mr. F. F. Thomas's death in 1868, Ration was let 
 for a short time to Colonel White, afterwards Lord 
 Annaly. Then it was let to Sir J. W. H. Anson, killed 
 in a railway accident at Wigan in August, 1873. Next 
 came an American family named Heinemann who 
 remained there for seven years, from 1874 till 1881, and 
 wished to buy the property but it was not for sale. I 
 dare not print any anecdotes of that period of the world's 
 history, though I am sorely tempted to give one in 
 particular. 
 
 On January 19, 1881, the day after a tremendous 
 snowstorm, I walked over to Ration to lunch. That 
 snowstorm can never be forgotten by those who saw it. 
 The cutting on the Willingdon Road adjacent to the
 
 8 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IL 
 
 chalk pit a was filled with drifted snow up to, and 
 above the level of the footpath. The depth in places 
 was not less than 10 or 12 feet. There was a complete 
 block on the railway, and for 30 hours, January 18-19, 
 no trains passed into or out of East-Bourne from London. 
 This stonii had something of a counterpart on March 9, 
 1891 ; so much snow fell on the previous night that for 
 some hours on the morning of the 9th no trains could get 
 through to Lewes from East-Bourne. 
 
 The brow of the hill nearer East-Bourne seems to 
 have been once the site of a battle in prehistoric times. 
 
 In January 1876, I had working in my garden a 
 labouring man who had lived at the Old Town for 
 upwards of half-a-century. This fact, when I became 
 acquainted with it,' induced me to enter into conversation 
 with him, and quoting as near as possible his own words, 
 what he told me was that, " in 1822 he was one of a gang 
 of about 10 men employed on the Willingdon Road in 
 cutting away the crown of the hill between Baker's Mill 
 and the Cemetery, for the purpose of improving the road. 
 In executing this work they found, a few feet below the 
 surface of the ground, a very large number of skeletons 
 lying closely packed. The largest number got out in one 
 day was 14 ; they frequently got half-a-dozen a day. 
 This went on for several weeks, and he had no doubt 
 that upwards of 100 skeletons were found. The ground 
 all round was, he strongly believed, full of bones, but of 
 course they only excavated just so far as was necessary 
 for the width of the road. The bones were all carefully 
 collected and buried in a pit in the Churchyard, under 
 the superintendence of the then Vicar (Dr. Brodie). 
 Nothing was found with the bones except a large number 
 of iron carving knives (sic), from which the handles had 
 disappeared. There was nobody to take any interest in 
 the matter, and no further search was made. One gentle- 
 man did, however, tell him that the Romans once had a 
 great big town at Bourne which was called Anderida." b 
 
 (a) Behind this chalk pit, to the N., there is a narrow sylvan footpath which used 
 always to be called "Jack o" Dandy's Lane." 
 
 (b) Of course this identification of East-Bourne with Anderida must be considered 
 as baseless. Pevensey is too surely recognised as the site of Anderida.
 
 Q CO 
 O 00 
 
 cc - 1
 
 Plate V. 
 
 To face p. 9. 
 
 Figs. 8-10. 
 
 Mills in the 
 " Mill-field,' 
 sketched 
 by G. F. 
 Chambers. 
 June 25, 
 1855. 
 
 Old Barns 
 
 near the 
 
 "Old Parsonage." 
 
 G. &* R. I. avis, East-Bourne, 
 
 OLD VIEWS AT THE OLD TOWN, 
 EAST-BOURNE. 
 
 Copyright.
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 9 
 
 My informant fixed the date by the circumstance that 
 it was during the progress of the excavations that the 
 Thames Indiaman was wrecked at the Seaside, and this, 
 as it is well known, happened in 1822. He was called 
 away from his road work to assist at the wreck, which 
 had drifted from the Wish to near the Great Redoubt, 
 and was eventually made fast by a cable attached to tower 
 No. 73, which tower has long since ceased to exist. 
 
 The only Archaeological fact which I can connect 
 with Roman traces at Ocklynge is the discovery, some 
 time during the "Sixties," of a small brass Roman coin of 
 Antoninus Pius, which is now in my possession. The 
 incident just related of the finding of skeletons has since 
 been abundantly confirmed from other sources. 
 
 The ridge on which we may be supposed to be still 
 standing was in my younger days always called "Ockland" 
 (generally pronounced "Auckland"). This has been 
 considered a modern version of "Oakland," not that I 
 ever saw or heard of any oaks growing there ; and the 
 soil is, like all the soil of East-Bourne, unfavourable to 
 oaks. One thing I think is certain, that "Ocklynge" is 
 a modern invention, but whence emanating I know not. 
 
 When the necessity for providing a cemetery arose, 
 which was when the Churchyard of the Parish Church 
 was closed by an Order in Council, there was great diffi- 
 culty in settling the site of the proposed cemetery. The 
 parish authorities wished to place it somewhere on the 
 slope of the hill to the N. of Mill Gap as a site fairly 
 central and sufficiently out of the way. The Gilbert 
 Trustees objected to give up the land in question, alleging 
 that it was not sufficiently out of the way, having regard 
 to future building probabilities ; and events showed that 
 their arguments were sound. The N. portion of the 
 actual site was purchased as the result of a Vestry vote 
 on November 9, 1855. It was regarded as too far out of 
 the way, but since that day, as is now clearly seen, 
 building operations have spread not only up to but 
 beyond the Cemetery in the direction of Willingdon. 
 Another objection, and a reasonable one, was that the 
 
 (c) Suss. Arch. Coll., vol. xli., p. 4, 1898 ; vol. Hi., p. 189, 1909.
 
 10 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. II. 
 
 site, facing as it did the W. with not a tree on it was too 
 exposed ; and that trees would never grow there. This 
 prophecy was, in a measure, well-founded, and it has 
 taken the best part of half-a-century to obtain such 
 shelter as there is. When in 1874 it was proposed to 
 add to the original cemetery of four acres several 
 additional acres on the S. side, the Misses Brodie, as 
 the owners of The Gore, a large house half way down 
 the hill, claimed their Statutory rights to prevent land 
 being used for burials within 200 yards of their house. 
 Hence the semi-circular line which bounds the portion 
 used 011 the southern limits of the Cemetery property. 
 The point was that the Burial Board could under the Act 
 of Parliament buy any land they could get, but could 
 not use it within the above-mentioned limits. At the 
 last minute a nice little point of law arose as to the 
 terminus a quo from which the 200 yards was to be 
 measured whether from the walls of the house proper 
 or from the wall of the back yard treated as " cartilage." 
 The latter was accepted as the proper starting point. 
 
 After the death of the last of Mrs. Brodie's daughters 
 who owned the house, The Gore and its seven acres was 
 sold to an enterprising local financier who made a heap 
 of money out of his speculation by pulling down the 
 house and cutting up the site and gardens for building. 
 Hence the names of Gore Park Avenue and Gore Park 
 Road. The house had no architectural features. It had 
 been originally a farm-house and had been largely added 
 to by my grandfather. When it was pulled down it was 
 found that much of the masonry consisted of blocks of 
 hard chalk. In the construction of the laundry and 
 wash-house, some old ship timbers had been used. 
 Nothing of the original structure now remains except 
 the billiard room, which was partly re-constructed in the 
 " Fifties " to accommodate a billiard table presented to 
 Mrs. Brodie by Mr. Freeman Thomas then the new 
 squire of Ratton, who did not wish his- sons to grow up 
 billiard players. Apparently he thought that it was of 
 no moment that Mrs. Brodie's sons and grandsons 
 should be similarly, demoralised.
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 11 
 
 Motcombe Lane used to lead to Motcombe Farm r 
 but nothing agricultural remains except the farm-house. 
 On the barn door it was customary to nail up the skins 
 of all the stoats and weasels caught, pour encourager les 
 autres. Opposite the front door there was, in my early 
 days, a very large farm pond with fish in it, fed by a 
 spring in the chalk, and used by the farm cattle. At a 
 later period (about 1858) it was discontinued for farm 
 purposes, reduced in size, and fitted up as a reservoir to 
 supply the New Town with water, a line of iron pipes 
 being laid down for the purpose. This scheme soon 
 broke down as a water supply, but the subject belongs 
 to another chapter. (See chapter XIII. , post). 
 
 Near the lowest point in the Ocklynge Road there 
 used to be 2 cottages on the W. side, one of which was- 
 the head post-office down to about 1857, when a new 
 post-office was established in the Terminus Road. The 
 postmaster up to that date had been a very antediluvian 
 person, and the interior economy of the office, which was 
 about 8ft. square, was of similar character. I well 
 remember the institution of the second or mid-day post 
 in from London in 1851. This innovation, though liked 
 by the better class of residents, was not, I think, very 
 acceptable to Mr. T. Cook, the postmaster, or his two 
 letter carriers who served the whole town. At Cook's 
 death his daughter, Miss Mary Cook, who had done most 
 of the work for several years previously, was appointed 
 official postmistress and remained such for several years 
 after the office had been moved to the Terminus Road. 
 The old town cottage was. kept up for a long time as a 
 sub-office in the hands of a fly-driver named Payne, his 
 wife doing the work. The great advantage of the 
 second post was that it gave us the London newspapers 
 of the same day. Not that these were very numerous or 
 'very varied. They did not comprise much beyond the 
 Times (Liberal), the Morning Herald (Tory) and the 
 Morning Post and Morning Chronicle of uncertain 
 politics. The Herald and Chronicle both perished about 
 the same time, say about 1860 for the latter and 18G3- 
 for the former.
 
 I 2 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. II. 
 
 For some years during the early part of the 19th 
 Century, say from about 1820 onwards, a merchant of 
 London, named James Peppercorne, who lived at Stepney, 
 then a pleasant suburban neighbourhood, was in the 
 habit of taking his wife and family to East-Bourne as 
 summer visitors. Those visits led to their making the 
 acquaintance of the various residents, including especially 
 the Willards and the Brodies. This was the commence- 
 ment of an intimacy which lasted till the end of the lives 
 of all concerned, and of those then associated, 1910 sees 
 but one survivor. A certain Miss Willard once lived in 
 a house^ in the Ocklynge Road, the second to the N. of 
 the Lamb, on the right hand side, and opposite to The 
 Lawn. This lady was a sister of the brothers Willard 
 mentioned elsewhere, tall and prim in person, a typical 
 old maid of her generation. In the course of time Miss 
 Willard went to stay with the Peppercorne family in 
 Stepney, and following the usual custom, invited two of 
 the young ladies of the house at which she was staying 
 to pay her a return visit at East-Bourne. Father and 
 mother consented, and the two girls, one about 17 and 
 the other two or three years younger, were started off 
 from London by the coach, and safely arrived at East- 
 Bourne one day about the year 1831. They were soon 
 waited upon by the gallant Major " Nick " Willard, who 
 as Churchwarden, offered them seats in his pew on the 
 following Sunday, and said he would fetch them and 
 escort them to church. When they were ushered in to 
 the pew, it was quite evident that they were neither 
 expected nor wanted by the female members of the 
 Willard family already in the pew, and their demeanour 
 Tery much disconcerted the two young visitors whose 
 shyness was aggravated by reason of the fact that the 
 Churchwarden had walked away, no doubt to perform 
 his official duties and seat himself somewhere else. The 
 two visitors wore hats of some special form or trimming, 
 which though perhaps of the newest London fashion did 
 
 (d) This House, known as Franklin House, at the end of its career, was pulled down 
 in 1909. After the death of Miss Willard it was occupied by an old Clergyman, the 
 Rev. W. B. Robinson, Vicar of Litlington, and passed to his son-in-law, Mr. Franklin 
 Travers.
 
 Plate VI. 
 
 To face p. 12. 
 
 Figs. 11-12. 
 
 G. &> R. Lai'is, East-Bourne. Copyright. 
 
 THE "LAMB INN" AND THE '-CORNER SHOP," 
 
 before the Widening of the two Corners. 
 
 G. &* K. Laz'fs, East-Bo 
 
 Copyright. 
 
 THE OLD VICARAGE; AND WORGES HOUSE, 
 Church Street, East-Bourne.
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 13 
 
 not commend themselves to the East-Bourne residents 
 who laughed at them. The result was a coolness on 
 both sides, which however was made up to the young 
 visitors by the hearty and abiding kindness of the old 
 maid who had invited them to East-Bourne. The end of 
 it all was that many years afterwards the younger of 
 the two sisters married a gentleman who subsequently 
 settled at East-Bourne, and died there as did his wife 
 some years later, namely in 1905, at the age of 88. This 
 and some other things mentioned elsewhere in this 
 volume I heard at Croydon from the lips of the surviving 
 sister then in her 95th year, on April 1, 1910. 
 
 The original Vicarage was nearly opposite the 
 Chancel of the Church and is shown in Plate VI., Fig. 12. 
 It was a small and gloomy building, and Mr. Pitman,, 
 the Vicar, found himself much pinched for room when 
 his children grew up, as he had two sisters-in-law, his 
 deceased wife's sisters, living with him. My grandfather 
 bought The Gore as his private house, and treated that 
 as the de facto Vicarage. Mr. Pitman coveted the piece 
 of land in the Compton Place Road at the corner of 
 Love Lane (now Vicarage Road) on which I afterwards 
 built my house Northfield Grange, but the former 
 owner, Mr. J. D. Gilbert, would not let him have it, so 
 he was compelled to accept an offer made to him by the 
 Earl of Burlington at the other end of Love Lane 
 on which the present Vicarage stands. Many years 
 afterwards, when Lord Burlington had become 7th Duke 
 of Devonshire, he very liberally presented four acres to 
 the Vicarage on the S. side in order to preserve for the 
 occupants a fairly open view of the Downs in the event, 
 which has come to pass, of houses being built towards 
 the Links, or Westwards. 
 
 The road now called Compton Place Road was 
 originally and for a long number of years called the 
 "New Road." It was made sometime in the early part of 
 the 19th Century, in substitution for a public footpath 
 or bridleway, by the two Landowners jointly, Lord 
 George Cavendish and Mr. Gilbert, the grandfather of 
 the present Lord of the Manor. Mr. Gilbert was in his
 
 14 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. II. 
 
 day an important public personage, having been M.P. 
 for Helston and afterwards (1806) for Bodmin, and 
 President of the Royal Society. His wife was a woman 
 of mind and character. Amongst her public good works 
 was that of dedicating a number of acres on the estate 
 to allotment gardens. I have heard funny stories of her, 
 though I do not remember her personally as I was only 
 three or four years old when she died. My grandmother 
 called to see her on a certain occasion and was told by 
 the servant that his mistress was busy in the kitchen. 
 Thither my grandmother went and was much surprised 
 at finding Mrs. Gilbert only partly visible, the principal 
 part of her body being up the chimney where she was 
 oiling, or otherwise renovating, the smoke-jack which 
 would not work. Once, on the occasion of a large 
 dinner party, they had no dish of sufficient size to 
 accommodate an unusually large turbot so Mrs. Gilbert 
 removed the oval lid of a wine hamper and covering it 
 with a table cloth had the fish brought to table on this 
 extemporised dish. Being proud of her cleverness she 
 partially uncovered the hamper lid to show her friends 
 the situation of affairs. The Manor House though 
 called so of recent years was not the original Manor 
 House of the estate which was a flint-built house in the 
 High Street, now turned into cottages. The present 
 Manor House was built by Dr. Lushington, Vicar 
 17341779, the father of the well-known Sir S. 
 Lushington, Judge of the Admiralty Court who retired 
 in 1867. 
 
 On the death of Mr. J. D. Gilbert in April 1854, his 
 widow (a daughter of Lord Carew) and infant son 
 continued to reside for many years at the family seat in 
 Cornwall Trelissick, near Truro, where I paid them a 
 visit on March 8, 1884. The situation of the house is 
 very striking, overlooking the beautiful bay of Falmouth 
 with its singularly interesting coast line. The East- 
 Bourne house was occupied during many years by 
 Mrs. Sancroft Holmes, Mr. J. D. Gilbert's widowed sister, 
 and her son and four daughters. During that occupation 
 I was a frequent visitor there and made the acquaintance
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 15 
 
 of two ladies the widows of two men who had at the 
 middle of the 19th Century occupied very prominent 
 positions in the public eye, Sir James Kay-Shuttleworth 
 and Sir John Franklin. The former had been Secretary 
 to the Committee of the Privy Council on Education, and 
 the latter was the celebrated Arctic voyager. Lady 
 Franklin's brave and untiring efforts to ascertain the fate 
 of her husband are recorded in Sir Leopold McClintock's 
 Voyage of the Fox and, with further details, in the more 
 recently published Life of McClintock. Sir J. Kay- 
 Shuttleworth's youthful son Ughtred (the present Lord 
 Shuttleworth) was there occasionally, and I first made 
 Ms acquaintance when he crawled out from under the 
 dining-room table on a day that I happened to be there. 
 By the way, is not "Ughtred" a most extraordinary 
 Christian name ? I have never known anybody else who 
 bore it. Mrs. Holmes afterwards went to live in Norfolk, 
 and died there in 1885. Her son, Mr. J. S. Holmes, is a 
 landed proprietor in Norfolk, living at Gawdy Hall, near 
 Harleston. 
 
 The Gilberts of the present line were not originally 
 a Sussex family, but came into the county from Cornwall 
 by the marriage of a Mr. Davies Giddy with Mary Ann 
 Gilbert, an heiress descended from certain Gildredges 
 and Eversfields. Mr. Giddy took his wife's name in 1817 
 and so founded or re-founded the Sussex family of Gilbert. 
 
 The large house nearly opposite the Manor House 
 pulled down in 1910, was long known as The Grays, 
 and was the family house of the Willards, an old Sussex 
 family. It passed out of the possession of the present 
 head of that family, Mr. A. R. Hood, in 1909 under 
 circumstances which I prefer not to explain in print. 
 In my younger days its owner was Major Nicholas 
 Willard who was, in a certain sense, the Parish of 
 East-Bourne, for he was the chief Resident Magistrate, 
 Parish Churchwarden, and Surveyor of Highways, As 
 Magistrate he was an autocrat of the first water. At his 
 death in 1852 he left a widow and two daughters. At 
 his own request he was buried at 4.0 a.m. in the morning, 
 a fine summer's morning. His daughters were Harriet
 
 16 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [QHAP. II. 
 
 who was Mrs. W. C. Hood, and Charlotte who afterwards 
 married a Frenchman named Bataillard. I saw this 
 gentleman on one occasion taking leave of The Grays 
 footman on the railway platform by giving him a warm 
 shake of the hand which I suppose was a French fashion, 
 but certainly is not an English one. Mrs. Hood 
 afterwards married Mr. C. Manby, a Civil Engineer, and 
 resided at The Grays till her death. The Architecture 
 and internal geography of the house was very complex, 
 the street front having been burnt down in 1853 and 
 re-built. 
 
 I now come to Compton Place. Its history and 
 how it became a Cavendish centre is sufficiently well- 
 known, so I make no attempt to repeat it. When I first 
 knew it, it was only occasionally occupied by the 2nd 
 Earl of Burlington after the death of his Countess 
 in 1840, so that his mother, Mrs. Cavendish, must be 
 regarded as the tenant during my early years. She 
 lived there with her bachelor son, Mr. (afterwards Lord) 
 Richard Cavendish. I was walking with him one day 
 along the drive at The Gore, where he had been calling, 
 and he said casually "It is one of the advantages of 
 being a younger brother of a Duke, that I can wear a 
 straw hat." After his mother's removal in 1861 to 
 Chislehurst (where she died in 1862, Lord Richard 
 Cavendish dying in London in 1873) the Duke of 
 Devonshire lent the house to his sister, Lady Fanny 
 Howard, who lived there for about 22 years with her 
 husband and children. During the greater part of that 
 period, when the young Howards were boys, I played 
 cricket there a good deal during many successive 
 summers. In the later years of her life my visits there 
 were for intellectual purposes, so to speak. I remember 
 a delightful Shakesperian reading there on March 6, 1879, 
 organised by my wife at Lady Fanny's request. After 
 her death in 1885 Mr. Howard remained on at Compton 
 Place till 1890, when he went to Angus House, Granville 
 Road, where he died in 1897. All his sons and two of 
 his three daughters survived him. A family group is 
 represented in one of the plates. The gentleman in fur
 
 Plate VII. 
 
 To face page 16. 
 
 Figs. 33-34. 
 
 . G1LBERT , Esq ., J P. 
 
 Copyrif-ht. 
 
 Copyright. 
 
 MANOR HOUSE."
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 17 
 
 is Mr. Cecil Foljambe, M.P., who married Miss Louisa 
 Howard. It is she who is holding the little boy. 
 Mr. Foljambe afterwards became by creation Earl 
 of Liverpool and (strange to say) took office under 
 Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman as Lord Steward. The 
 little boy is now the 2nd Earl of Liverpool, Comptroller 
 of the Household, 1910. When Mr. Howard moved to 
 Angus House, he found that his butler had made away 
 with 900 bottles of wine. 
 
 Mr. Howard had been once M.P. for Youghal in 
 Ireland, sitting as a Whig, but it was rather Lady Fanny 
 who upheld the traditional politics of the house. She 
 was a keen Whig, and with her I had many friendly 
 discussions. During one, shortly before the Gladstone 
 Home Rule split, she said in reply to my regrets at 
 the way in which the old Whigs were drifting into 
 Radicalism, " But you must admit, Mr. Chambers, that 
 Hartington is a safe man." To which I replied " Yes, 
 no doubt in himself, but one must judge of a man, 
 including a peer's son and politician, by the company he 
 keeps." I do not think that either she or I realised 
 how soon Lord Hartington's political status would be 
 submitted to a crucial test which, as we all know, he 
 safely stood, and saved the integrity of the Empire. 
 Like many members of the old Whig party in those 
 days, Lady Fanny had not much liking for Mr. Gladstone 
 in any of his public capacities though they were obliged 
 to put up with him. 
 
 Owing to the unchecked growth of the trees, 
 Compton Place had become rather a damp house ; that 
 is why Mrs. Cavendish left it in 1861. Sir Joseph 
 Paxton of Chatsworth fame had been brought down to 
 advise about it, and it was under his advice that the 
 wide gap in the plantation on the W. side was made 
 with the idea of letting in air from the Links. 
 
 Compton Place was partly re-furnished and re- 
 decorated and used occasionally in the " Nineties " by 
 the 8th Duke, and during this occupation, King Edward 
 VII. as Prince of Wales was an occasional visitor. The 
 Duke was Mayor of East-Bourne in 1897-98. A Mayoral 
 c
 
 18 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. II. 
 
 Ball on January 26, 1898, was the great social event of 
 the winter of 1897-98, and on July 23, 1898, the 
 Duchess gave a delightful garden party. Another of Her 
 Grace's garden parties on July 28, 1900, was stigmatised 
 by some democrats as an election trick. This evoked 
 some newspaper correspondence as to which something 
 will be found in Chapter XIX. (post.) 
 
 The house at the corner of Compton Place Road, 
 known as Grey stone House, was at an earlier period than 
 I have just been speaking of occupied by a Mr. R. B. 
 Stone, who was a grocer and kept a shop hard by. 
 Giving evidence before a Parliamentary Committee 
 on a Railway Bill, he spoke of Lord Burlington as a 
 neighbour and friend of his, by way of impressing the 
 Committee with a due comprehension of his local 
 standing and importance. Thereupon the Counsel on 
 the other side said " I think, Mr. Stone, you sell groceries 
 to his Lordship, don't you ? " A question which Mr. Stone 
 would rather had not been put. 
 
 Meads in 1910 is a totally different place from the 
 Meads of half-a-century previously. In the " Fifties " 
 and " Sixties " it was an agricultural hamlet, with a few 
 fishermen thrown in, and with no more than 5 or 6 
 houses above the status of labourers' cottages, and of those 
 houses two were farm-houses and a third a house used 
 as a sort of anchorite's cell. Of course there were two 
 " pubs," the Ship and the Pilot. The farm-houses were 
 Sprays Farm in the occupation of Mr. Joseph Gorringe, 
 and the Place Farm (now Meads Place) which had been 
 bought and annexed to the Cavendish property no further 
 back than the early part of the 19th Century. That 
 farm changed its tenants several times in my early 
 recollection, and I cannot remember either the dates on 
 the exact succession, but two of the tenants were named 
 Rason and Filder, and the latter was there in 1858. It 
 was not till after that time that the Duke of Devonshire 
 decided on laying out the whole of that part of the 
 Parish of East-Bourne for the building of large private 
 residences, and the land for such purposes was taken 
 up very slowly. Plate XI. represents the territory
 
 Plate VIM. 
 
 To face p. 18. 
 
 Figs. 15-16. 
 
 I.avis, East-Bourne. Copyigkl. 
 
 THE 7th DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE. 
 
 COMPTON PLACE."
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 19 
 
 surrounding St. John's Church when that Church was 
 built in 1869. 
 
 The third house which I have mentioned above at 
 Meads was occupied by a very quaint person, Mr. R. M. 
 Caldecott, who was a vegetarian and fresh-air enthusiast ; 
 also a geologist and an author. Meads not being 
 a sufficiently airy place for him, he bought several acres 
 of land near Beachy Head whereon he built walls and 
 had seats. His custom was to go up there and sit for 
 hours and inhale the air of the Downs and sea. He was 
 a very regular Churchgoer and rarely missed two 
 attendances at the Parish Church every Sunday. His 
 literary powers were concentrated in the Life of Baber, 
 Emperor of Hindostan. I had a copy once. It was a 
 singularly dull book and as I did not take the least 
 interest in the great Baber I alienated the book for a 
 few coppers, a step which I have regretted, now that I 
 have become more conservative as to old documents. 
 Mr. Caldecott left his geological specimens to the town 
 and they were afterwards formed into what is called the 
 " Caldecott Museum." He once gave a dinner party to 
 two aunts of mine who came away more disappointed 
 than surprised at the bill of fare. I think it was leg of 
 mutton, currant buns and raw apples, their host limiting 
 himself to the buns and apples. 
 
 The house known as The Links was occupied in 
 1873 by a distinguished Indian General, Sir A. T. 
 Wilde, K.C.B. He left East-Bourne in 1876 to become 
 a Member of the Indian Council on the nomination of 
 Lord Salisbury, then Secretary of State for India. His 
 widow remains to this day one of our nearest neighbours 
 and best friends at Norwood. The General's memory is 
 perpetuated by the 57th Punjaub Infantry being known 
 as " Wilde's Rifles." 
 
 That portion of Meads which bears the name of 
 Holywell deserves a few words. A spring there on the 
 side of the cliff long bore in local Guide-books the 
 designation of " a chalybeate spring," but this was a 
 myth. Nevertheless Augustus Hare enshrined it in 
 Ms book on Sussex published not very long ago.
 
 20 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. II. 
 
 Mr. Pitman once told me that he had had the water 
 analysed, and that it was nothing but pure spring water, 
 a fact which led many years afterwards to the East- 
 Bourne Water Company utilising it for the supply of the 
 town, though it is' not now habitually drawn upon. 
 
 The sea-shore, formerly very accessible (but not so- 
 now) through the gap in the cliff past a picturesque 
 cottage, used to be a favourite site for picnics before the 
 Water Company blocked it. I remember two picnics 
 there. On August 28, 1862, I was present at one at 
 which a very nerve-shaking incident occurred. My 
 grandmother's carriage with its pair of horses had been 
 driven down the fairly tolerable road to the sea-shore 
 laden with some of the good things of this life. The 
 horses had been taken out and tethered. Whilst we 
 were enjoying our luncheon it was discovered that the 
 two horses were quietly trotting up a coastguard path 
 in the face of the cliff, thereabouts, I suppose, 200 ft. 
 high ; and a false step would have brought one or both 
 of them over and down to the beach where they 
 must inevitably have been killed. The coachman, 
 William Winter by name, frightened out of his wits, 
 started to run after them, but it was quickly evident 
 that even had he overtaken them he could have done 
 nothing useful, so he wisely halted until the horses had 
 reached the level grass at the top of the cliff where they 
 began to browse, and where they were secured and 
 brought back by an inland road none the worse for their 
 gnasi-alpine experiences. The path is marked on Plate 
 XIII., Fig. 24, with a cross. 
 
 The other picnic I referred to was fixed to take the 
 shape of a moonlight supper on the beach on August 3, 
 1887. The supper was duly served and the party, number- 
 ing about 30, were seated or were squatting around eager 
 to be fed. It was suddenly suggested that the moon was 
 not giving an adequate supply of light for the supper to 
 be enjoyed in comfort ; and it was then ascertained by 
 one of the party that an eclipse of the moon was in 
 progress. Before long the moon went nearly out and 
 the supper had to be finished by such light as was
 
 Plate X. 
 
 To face p. 20. 
 
 Figs. 18-19. 
 
 G. &* K. Lavis, East- Bourne. Copyright. 
 
 Mr. AND LADY FANNY HOWARD AND FAMILY. 
 
 G. &> K. l.avis, East-Bourne. Copyright. 
 
 THE SITE OF ST. PETER'S CHURCH.
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 21 
 
 afforded by the lamps of the carriages and flys which 
 were in attendance. In spite of this mischance 
 
 41 ftfytu feas a scimir of refcelrg Irg iriflfrt ; 
 
 " Qrib all tout nurrg as a marriage tall." (BYRON). 
 
 I always had a great fancy for moonlight parties. 
 We had one at North field Grange on July 9, 1897, at 
 which we mustered 115 people ; and another on July 21, 
 1899, with 64 guests, supper being served at several 
 tables on the lawn or in the woods but this is a 
 digression. 
 
 There was one other private house at Meads, built 
 at a later date, noteworthy in respect of the strange lady 
 who occupied it for many years and who died only a 
 year or two ago the Comtesse De Noailles, the widow of 
 a French Count, but herself of English birth. She also, 
 like Mr. Caldecott, was somewhat of a "crank," especially 
 in her dress. She used to go about in flowing garments 
 like a Bedouin Arab and with only sandals on her feet, 
 but she was kind to the poor, and liberal in the 
 distribution of her money, though it was distributed on 
 somewhat fanciful lines. For instance she gave 1000 
 to the Anti-Vaccinationists ; and promised 1000 for the 
 erection of a clock on St. John's Church, but some 
 unreasonable condition was attached to the gift (I forget 
 what it was) and her offer fell through. 
 
 The Countess died in December 1908, and left her 
 Meads estate and two-thirds of her residuary estate to 
 found on the estate an orphanage for daughters of clergy 
 of the Church of England, to be called " St. Mary's 
 Orphanage." The chief aim is to provide helpers or 
 sisters to aid in the promotion of good works, and the 
 first object must be to give " abundance of health." 
 The religious instruction is always to be in accordance with 
 the principles of the Church of England. The testatrix 
 left many directions as to the education of the children, 
 among them that " no child under ten years of age shall 
 be taught arithmetic except the multiplication tables (vide 
 Herbert Spencer)." No girl defective in mind or body 
 is to be admitted, and every candidate is to be examined 
 by two fully-qualified phrenologists separately and
 
 22 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IL 
 
 independently, and no girl ' is to be admitted who is 
 deficient in conscientiousness and firmness ; and upon 
 this point the reports of the phrenologists are to be 
 conclusive evidence. 
 
 My wife and I once dined with this remarkable 
 woman at her invitation, though we were but slightly 
 acquainted with her. She afterwards went to live in 
 Surrey, near Leith Hill. 
 
 As regards De Walden House (or rather, now,, 
 houses) a story may be told. It was built by the 
 Lady Howard De Walden whose gigantic fortune was 
 the talk of London in the " Eighties." The East-Bourne 
 Water Company charged her with a Water-rent of 30 
 a year which she deemed excessive. Failing to get 
 redress on appeal she decided to sink a well for herself 
 and did so, saving the 30 a year charged by the 
 Company ; but as the well cost 1000, to say nothing, 
 of the annual cost of her pumping, it is a little difficult 
 to see how Her Ladyship saved money by the enterprise 
 she had shown ! However, she professed herself highly 
 satisfied, on an occasion when I had tea with her, 
 March 15, 1898, just after the new works had been 
 finished. 
 
 I shall have something more to say about Meads 
 when I come to deal with St. John's Church in my 
 Chapter on Ecclesiastical affairs (Chapter XIII., post.) 
 
 As to Beachy Head I may say that there has been a 
 tremendous falling off in the numbers and, I believe, in 
 the variety of the birds frequenting it compared with 
 the state of things which prevailed, say, in 1850. 
 
 One day during the severe winter of 1855 two 
 young men named respectively Bethel and Cobb went 
 out to shoot wild duck on the Cuckmere near Exceat. 
 They thought to return to East-Bourne along the beach 
 and under Beachy Head, but were overtaken by the tide 
 and tried to escape by climbing the cliff. Bethel was 
 frozen to death ; Cobb was rescued, but not till the next 
 morning when he was found by a dog belonging to a 
 coastguard. I knew J. W. Cobb ; he afterwards took 
 Orders and became Vicar of Kidmore End, Oxfordshir e
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 23 
 
 He had a married sister living on the Grand Parade at 
 the time this tragic affair took place. 
 
 Many years after the event, I heard that in 1868 or 
 1869 Lord Hobhouse and Mr. W. E. Forster, M.P., 
 independently of one another, successfully climbed 
 Beachy Head ; and since that date there have been 
 many attempts, the majority I think unsuccessful, and 
 not a few attended by fatal results. 
 
 Beachy Head has always been famed for the 
 existence of certain chalk pillars sticking out in front 
 of it and known as " The Charleses." Tradition, I 
 believe, says that the number was originally 7, but I 
 have never met with the slightest proof of the accuracy 
 of this statement. A newspaper cutting given me by a 
 friend many years ago which bears date of December 
 1810, written on it in pen and ink, runs as follows : 
 "The pinnacle at Beachy Head, called the Charles or 
 Churles, which has been for years the terror and the 
 wonder of the numerous visitors at East-Bourne, has 
 fallen ; but as the fall fortunately took place in the night, 
 no damage was done. Its ancient inhabitants (the foxes) 
 being on their prowl, suffered no other injury than the 
 loss of their habitations. The chalk that fell is computed 
 at more than a million of waggon loads." 
 
 I have in my possession a letter, undated, but 
 written at a much later date, from the Rev. G. Stokes 
 who was Curate at the Parish Church in 1853. He 
 writes that on March 12 he walked to Beachy Head with 
 Mr. E. Robinson " to see the great fall at the Cliff, and 
 was told that the Charles Rock fell at 6.30 this morning." 
 He adds " a noble pinnacle some 600 ft. high and the 
 loss of which is greatly deplored. It was indeed a great 
 loss to all lovers of coast scenery." The figure of 600 ft. 
 is a most undoubted exaggeration. The portion of the 
 pillar standing out as a pillar clear of the main cliff 
 could not possibly have been anything approaching 
 600 ft. in height. I should think that even 200 ft. would 
 be beyond the mark, judging by a collection of the 
 various pictures which I have seen, taken at different 
 times and by various people. The most authentic
 
 24 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. II. 
 
 drawing in existence (if any copies of it are in existence 
 now) of Beachy Head as a whole is a lithograph published 
 at East-Bourne about 1852, and drawn by S. R. Smith, a 
 Master at the Gables School. I remember it well, but 
 now possess no copy of it. A pen-and-ink sketch of the 
 last surviving Charles (the one alluded to by Mr. Stokes) 
 taken (I know not by whom) in 1851, forms one of my 
 Plates, and I should say that it was very true to nature. 
 
 I must now go back to the Old Town and make a 
 fresh start along another route into the New Town 
 starting from the Lamb Inn. This is known to be one 
 of the oldest places of entertainment in the county and 
 at the beginning of the 19th Century, when East-Bourne 
 and the neighbourhood was alive with soldiers, it was at 
 the Lamb Inn that the fashionable balls took place which 
 have been often written about. In my early days the 
 landlord was a man named George Picknell, a brother of 
 the distinguished Sussex cricketer, Thomas Picknell. 
 The large room, such as it was, and is, which had been 
 used for festive purposes was also until long after the 
 middle of the century the only room for public meetings 
 in the Parish. In May 1852, a certain Dr. Darling came 
 there to give a lecture on such occult subjects as spirit- 
 rapping, table-turning and mesmerism. During the 
 proceedings a tremendous thunderstorm occurred of such 
 violence as to frighten the audience and many others 
 who were not in the audience. The common people 
 looked upon Dr. Darling as an emissary of the Devil, 
 the science (save the mark !) upheld by him as Satanic, 
 and the storm as a Divine manifestation to the same 
 effect. 
 
 It was in the roadway opposite the Lamb that the 
 non-agricultural portion of the East-Bourne Fair was 
 always held anmially on October 11, old Michaelmas 
 Day. In 1849 I remember that the stalls and booths 
 extended a long way up Church Street, adjacent to the 
 Churchyard wall, past the Church Tower as far as Bay 
 Pond ; but the last time I visited the Fair in a recent 
 year the stalls had dwindled to two, and now they have 
 disappeared altogether. The agricultural part of the
 
 Plate XIII. 
 
 To f:ice p. 25. 
 
 Figs 2224. 
 
 G. <5r> A', /.avis, Enst-Bonrnf. 
 
 A TEAM OF OXEN PLOUGHING. 
 
 THE COTTAGE AND GAP AT HOLYWELL. 
 
 HOLYWELL FROM THE GAP.
 
 CHAP. II.] A Tour round Old East-Bourne. 25 
 
 day's work was transacted at Upwick, and in the early 
 part of the 19th Century as many as 10,000 sheep were 
 folded there for sale in some years, but the highest 
 number I remember seeing, or knowing of, was 3000, 
 and that number has now I believe dwindled to hundreds. 
 There was formerly held at Southbourne a Toy and 
 Pleasure Fair on March 12, but as far back as 1819 that 
 was described as " now of little note," and I cannot 
 recall it at all. 
 
 Proceeding towards the Railway Station the houses 
 on the left, which are now numbered as in " The Goffs," 
 are built on what used to be called the Moat Croft" Fields 
 through which the Bourne, which often used to be called 
 tautologically the " Bourne Stream," ran, until it reached 
 a large pond behind the Artillery Drill Hall where it was 
 impounded in order to provide water for driving a water 
 mill close by. The mill as a mill has long ceased to 
 exist, but some part of the house, after having been 
 converted into a cottage, called the Watermill Cottage, 
 has now been built into a modern house known as 
 Bourne Side. The mill-pond as I first knew it was a 
 very large one, covering I should think at least a 
 quarter-of-an-acre, but it was curtailed on all sides to 
 afford dry land for the gardens of the houses on the 
 S. side of Upperton Road, and more recently has been 
 drained dry and made into a kitchen garden. Overlooking 
 it and erected on the N. side was a leaden statue of 
 Neptune. The water is now conveyed underground 
 through a storm-water sewer built to receive it and 
 storm-water generally, and so reaches the sea. The name 
 " Goffs " originally belonged to a small group of cottages 
 built on the site of the dairy at the turning into 
 Upperton Road ; and the large chestnut tree which now 
 occupies the salient angle opposite, was in the timber 
 yard of a wheelwright, which timber yard was not 
 swept away until the house now known as No. 1 The 
 Goffs, was built, somewhere about 1880. This tree has 
 always been a feature. With the exception of the 
 cottages just mentioned, and a large barn on the site of 
 the Drill Hall, and Upperton Farm-House, there were no
 
 26 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IL 
 
 buildings on either side of the old road to the station 
 (which bore the name of " Water Lane," after having at 
 one time been " Watery Lane ") between Gildredge 
 Farm-House and the Railway Station. It was widened 
 in 1806 by subscription from about 8 ft. or 9 ft. to its 
 present width, and the stream which ran down it was 
 diverted to the W. side. All the land N.E. of the road 
 was agricultural and belonged to the Upperton Farm. 
 From the mill-pond northwards there was a large field 
 called the "Mill Field," and not a house anywhere 
 nearer, to the N., than Rodmill Farm and in an N.E. 
 direction than the outskirts of Westham and Pevensey. 
 The barn just mentioned was the last place at which I 
 ever saw corn beaten out with the old English flail. 
 
 " $ raimxri but ummbtx sittb, tying* totu ; 
 
 totn mast $ntiom ia mt." '(Macbeth}.
 
 X 
 

 
 [27] 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 A TOPOGRAPHICAL TOUR ROUND THE TOWN, 
 WITH ANECDOTES. 
 
 CENTRAL EAST-BOURNE. 
 
 tyt timt snfc fttb gjjur 
 of tlgt jofott." (Twelfth Night}. 
 
 Grove Road. Bourne Stream. Sir ]. Leach. Lord Thurlow. Stocks 
 Bank. Town Hall. The Squirrel. Rose Cottage. Elm Cottage. Major 
 Wilford. Wesleyan Chapel. Literary Institution. New Inn. South 
 Street. Performing Fleas. The Brother Blacksmiths. A Dilapidated 
 House, Lark field House. Mr. Rawdon, The Terrace. Old Residents. 
 Old Footpaths. Prentice Street. East-Bourne College. The Wish. 
 Devonshire Park. Cliff Cottage. Proposed town of " Burlington." The 
 1st Earl of Burlington. The Susans Farm. The Graham Family. 
 Terminus Road. Thomas Morris, cricketer. Oak Cottage and Charles II. 
 
 Terminus Road once a cornfield. Coming of age of 8th Duke of Devonshire. 
 
 Historic houses in Hartington Place. 
 
 I AM going to start now at the Station end of 
 Upperton Road, and proceed down Grove Road, 
 though at the epoch which this volume is supposed 
 specially to represent (1851) it bore simply the vague 
 name of " Southbourne," but a previous generation had 
 regarded it as a continuation of Water Lane and so- 
 called it. The first thing on the right to attract notice 
 was the Parish Pound. Next to that was the " Sheep- 
 Wash Pond " fed by the " Bourne stream," its overflow 
 constituting the lower part of the Bourne stream which, 
 traversing something like the line of the Terminus Road 
 and Langney Road, found its way into the sea somewhere 
 near Leaf Hall. The flow of water still continues but 
 goes through a modern sewer. Next to the pond came 
 the Vestry Room and Police premises, both of which 
 are alluded to elsewhere. The Fire-Engine Station 
 occupies nearly the sites just mentioned. Then lying 
 back from the road was a tall gaunt house known as 
 The Grove. It was built in the early part of the 19th
 
 28 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. III. 
 
 Century by J. Royer, one John Leach being the 
 architect, and a very indifferent one if The Grove was 
 a fair specimen of his skill. He came under the notice 
 of Sir Arthur Piggott, M.P., Attorney-General in 1807, 
 who advised him to become a Barrister^ The advice 
 was taken, and eventually he reached in 1818 the high 
 position of Vice-Chancellor of England ; was made 
 Deputy-Speaker of the House of Lords in 1827 and died 
 in 1834. Before Leach reached the Bench this is what 
 is said to have happened : 
 
 " Mr Leach 
 
 Made a speech, 
 Angry, neat, but wrong ; 
 
 Mr Hart 
 
 On the other part, 
 Was heavy, dull, and long ; 
 
 Mr. Parker 
 
 Made that darker, 
 Which was dark enough before; 
 
 Mr. Cooke 
 
 Quoted a Book, 
 And the Chancellor said, 'I doubt.' "(*) 
 
 These lines are said to have been composed by Sir 
 George Rose, a well-known politician in the reigns of 
 George III. and George IV. The Grove in my early 
 days was let as a lodging-house, and afterwards became 
 a preparatory school for boys, conducted by two Misses 
 Shoosmith. 
 
 Lad} 7 Piggott when she became a widow moved to 
 Willingdon, and died there in the " Forties," many years 
 after her husband. 
 
 Two or three small houses finished the frontage of 
 Grove Road on the right-hand side ; one of them, which I 
 remember as Thurlow House, is said to have received 
 its name because Lord Thurlow, the great Judge, once 
 lodged in it. The last house on this side (but it was not 
 really on this side, because it was round the corner) was 
 a house which I remember as a grocer's shop, kept by a 
 man named Turner. It was afterwards converted into a 
 
 (a) Sir Arthur wandered about a good deal in a Parliamentary sense. He was 
 first elected for Steyning at a By-election in 1806. At the General Elections of 1806 and 
 1807 he was elected for Arundel: at the General Election of 1812 he obtained a seat at 
 Horsham ; at that of 1818 he went back to Arundel and died Member for Arundel in 
 1819. He was evidently a " Carpet-bagger " in modern electioneering parlance. 
 
 (b) The Chancellor was the Earl of Eldon, and his favourite phrase was "1 doubt.' 
 There is more than one version of the above poem [!] in circulation ; I quote that which 
 is given in Campbell's Lives of the Chancellors.
 
 Plate XV. 
 
 To face p. 29. 
 
 Figs. 27-28. 
 
 G. &* K. La-vis, East-Bourne. Copyright. 
 
 THE "SQUIRREL INN, GROVE ROAD. 
 
 G. fy K. f.aris, 
 
 Copyrifhi. 
 
 BACK OF THE "SQUIRREL INN. 
 (Site of Gildredge Road).
 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 29 1 
 
 private house, and Mr. J. F. Gottwaltz, an officer of the 
 disbanded Rifles, lived in it. Then the Local Board 
 acquired it for their Surveyor's office and residence. 
 Finally it was pulled down and the site and garden taken 
 as the site for the new Town Hall. 
 
 I now go back to the Station to say something 
 about the houses on the left side of Grove Road. The 
 first was the Squirrel, afterwards called the Gilbert 
 Arms, an old fashioned small inn mentioned again in 
 Chapter XV. (post) and pulled down in 1873. Then came 
 a stile and a farm road, the stile giving access to a 
 footpath through the fields to the Sea-Side. Adjacent to 
 this was a small private residence, called Rose Cottage, 
 once Sir Arthur Piggott's, but occupied in 1851 by a 
 Mrs. Johnson, the widow of a naval officer ; Mr. John 
 Graham being the owner. This house had a good deal 
 of history attached to it, some of it of a weird character, 
 but this was before my time. It is said to have been 
 haunted, and therefore once to have been sold cheap, the 
 purchase money being only 30. This seems incredible. 
 It was pulled down in 1882 and shops built on the site. 
 Further on were some cottages used simply as such when 
 I knew them, but which had at an earlier epoch belonged 
 to the Parish and been used for Poor Law purposes. 
 Amongst the documents preserved in the Parish strong 
 room at the Technical Institute is the Order of the 
 Vestry, dated 1825, for the sale of the " Workhouse in 
 Watery Lane," as it seems to have been then called. 
 The Poor Law purposes included at one time the 
 spinning and weaving of materials for garments for the 
 paupers. The master weaver was one Henry Pratt, who 
 afterwards kept a grocer's shop, which is now 36 
 Ocklynge Road. 
 
 Next to the workhouse came Elm Cottage, at one 
 time the residence of Dr. D. J. Hall, and afterwards 
 of Mr. R. J. Graham. 
 
 Two small houses, named respectively Bourne 
 Cottage and Lime Cottage (almost what one might call 
 pill boxes), stood next beyond Elm Cottage. At some 
 time or other the two had been thrown into one under
 
 30 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. in. 
 
 the name of Bourne Cottage. Here there lived a lady 
 by name West, who afterwards married a Major 
 Wilford, R.A. Miss West was a very hospitable woman 
 and used to give what in those days were regarded as 
 great parties at Christmas in spite of the smallness of 
 her house. I remember going to one of them on 
 January 20, 1859, but this was after her marriage. Her 
 personal appearance was peculiar, her mouth being 
 rather at the side of her face than in front, and twisted 
 up in the corner. Major Wilford spent the whole of his 
 time in walking. No matter the hour of the day or 
 night, or the weather, or summer or winter, you would 
 be certain to meet him somewhere in the place walking 
 at the rate of about five miles an hour. He had one 
 favourite way of stigmatising a man who if he had any 
 religious tendencies, was objectionable to the Major. 
 Such an one was " only a psalm-singing yea-nay fellow." 
 Next beyond these houses we came to a sawyer's yard 
 and a Wesleyan Chapel bearing the date of 1810. This 
 was sold to the Baptists sometime in the " Sixties " and 
 was converted into an ironmonger's warehouse about 
 1880, or earlier. Subsequently it was wholly trans- 
 formed. Its history supplies a characteristic illustration 
 of the way in which Dissenting places of worship 
 become secularised, the congregations migrating. The 
 last house on this side of the road was once the 
 "Mechanics' Institution," alias the "Literary Institution." 
 Immediately opposite Grove Road, in the prolongation 
 which now constitutes Grange Road, there was a field 
 used from time to time for circuses and shows of various 
 kinds as also was a field behind the Squirrel. I 
 remember one such show which included in its attractions 
 some performing fleas which drew miniature carriages 
 made, I rather think, of very fine brass wire. 
 
 The licensed house at the corner of South Street, 
 now called the New Hotel, used to be called the 
 New Inn, and was the arrival place and starting place 
 of the London coach in coaching days. Hard by there 
 used to be a brewery which, when I knew it, bore on its 
 front gate the highly respectable inscription " Established
 
 Plate XVII. 
 
 To face p. 31. 
 
 Figs. 32-33. 
 
 THE GROVE.' 
 
 C,>f.yr, k lit. 
 
 HOUSE AT STOCKS BANK.
 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 31 
 
 1749." About 1870, however, the then owner, Mr. Robert 
 Cooper, seeking to combine business in this world with 
 business in the next, lost the former, and I should 
 suppose found ere long that a trade with spirits was far 
 less remunerative than a trade in spirits. 
 
 South Street as it now exists has been so completely 
 transformed by re-building that there remain now no 
 more than the three adjacent houses, numbered 10, 12, 
 and 14, which were in existence in 1851. At that 
 time a blacksmith's forge occupied the site of the 
 new Independent Chapel. The blacksmiths were two 
 brothers, Thomas and George Keeping, and their father 
 had been a blacksmith before them. Thomas was Clerk 
 at Trinity Church and never looked much like a 
 blacksmith, but George was a typical iron-worker, and 
 Longfellow's well-known lines describe him. 
 
 Nearly opposite to the blacksmith's forge was a large 
 wooden structure built in the early part of the 19th 
 Century as a theatre and used as such. But in my 
 days dramatic performances had long ceased and I only 
 knew the place as a builder's workshop and then as a 
 furniture warehouse ; and after it had been such for some 
 years it was pulled down. Alderman Rowe possesses a 
 play-bill of performances there in February, 1813. The 
 Local Board owned it for some time, but sold it in 1883. 
 
 The house next to Keeping's was occupied by 
 William Morris, a burly old-fashioned tradesman, who 
 l)esides being a watchmaker was a silversmith, an 
 auctioneer, and all sorts of things. A little further 
 along was a substantial private house of some size, with 
 a good garden attached, which was owned first by a 
 Mr. Lanyon and then by Mr. F. H. Gell, the Lewes 
 Solicitor. Nearly opposite to this was another comfort- 
 able old-fashioned house which before my time had 
 been occupied by Dr. Ranking. I do not remember who 
 had it after him, but it eventually became the property 
 of a London solicitor named Truman, and was derelict 
 for many years, windows broken, roof in holes and 
 tumbling down. This was the result of a craze on the 
 part of the owner because he thought (and in a sense
 
 32 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IIL 
 
 correctly) that in after years the land on which the- 
 house stood would become worth thousands where in 
 the " Sixties " he could only obtain for it hundreds. 
 All the same, however, he must have lost several 
 thousand pounds by the property remaining empty for, 
 I suppose, at least 20 years ; whilst it was a hideous 
 eye-sore and the resort of that class of the community 
 who in modern language enjoy the delightful designation 
 of " undesirables." Truman would neither repair it, 
 nor pull it down, nor re-build it, nor allow anybody else 
 to do either one of these three things. The road which 
 runs parallel to South Street and now called Furness 
 Road was a lane originally, and some shabby cottages 
 still standing give a clue to its past history. 
 
 Proceeding along South Street the last house on the 
 right side, now occupied by Elliott's Stores, was the 
 residence of an old seafaring man known as Capt. Hewitt. 
 It was he who bought the furniture out of the Round 
 House, Seaside, when that was pulled down. Standing 
 on his doorstep and looking E. and S.E. in 1851 nothing 
 would catch the eye except Larkfield House, The Wish 
 Tower, two cottages on the cliff, a few houses in 
 Cornfield Terrace, Trinity Church and Trinity Parsonage ; 
 the last named would probably conceal three houses, 
 two of which are now enrolled as part of Trinity Place, 
 The whole of the intervening acres were grass land and 
 cornfields reaching up to the garden wall of The Elms 
 and coastwise to " Splash Point." Emerging from 
 South Street and going towards the site of St. Saviour's 
 Church the pedestrian, after passing one private house 
 and three or four cottages, would reach " The Terrace," 
 sometimes spoken of, by way of explanation, as " South 
 Terrace." There were altogether 8 houses, built in twos, 
 forming what would now be called semi-detached villas. 
 The picture (on Plate XX.) is from a water-colour, by a 
 painter named North, made in 1840, which came to me 
 as a legacy from a member of the family of Sir Arthur 
 Piggott mentioned a few pages back. All these houses 
 were occupied by private residents in my early days, 
 except No. 7, where lived Mr. A. Whiteman, the only
 
 Plate XVIII. 
 
 To face p. 33. 
 
 Figs. 3335. 
 
 G. $* R. I.avis, East-Bonnie. 
 
 DILAPIDATED HOUSE IN SOUTH STREET. 
 
 G. & K. L,i-<,s, Katt-Koiiriir. Co/>yri' K ht. 
 
 OFFICE FOR SALE OF TICKETS FOR THE COACHES.
 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 33 
 
 local solicitor. Amongst other residents whose names I 
 remember were Dr. Jeffery, the Rev. G. Stokes, Mr. Drury, 
 Miss Mortimer and, at a much later date, Lady V. 
 Wellesley, Mr. J. H. C. Coles, Mr. Pitman, and Mr. Crake, 
 now Vicar of Jevington. 
 
 I do not know that it is worth while to say much 
 about footpaths and narrow occupation roads now either 
 discarded or swallowed up in modern roads, but from a 
 point just opposite No. 8 The Terrace, the roadway, now 
 a mere back road for the convenience of the houses at 
 the back of Cornfield Terrace, once marked the line of 
 the " Shomer Dyke," a drain draining the South Street 
 houses and having its outlet near the Wish. Eventually 
 the dyke (ditch) was filled in and the narrow road 
 formed which still exists robbed of its Mid -Victorian 
 name of " Shomerdyke Road." Previously to this The 
 Wish was reached by a narrow road starting from South 
 Street and following nearly or quite the line of what is 
 now College Road. Here a branch to the E. led to the 
 sea-shore near the Wish Tower, and a branch to the W. 
 past some farm buildings known as " Hollands Barn " to 
 " Prentice Street " and up to Meads. Prentice Street 
 was a small group of houses, the central figure of which 
 may be said to be Miss Little's house, St. Winifred's, 
 but that house and grounds passed through several 
 stages of developement before it blossomed into St. 
 Winifred's. In 1837 it was Southfield Lodge, the 
 freehold property of Mr. Samuel Dobree, a London 
 lawyer, great in making fireworks. Dr. Hall and Mr. F. 
 Brodie were alumni of his in that art. From him it 
 passed by purchase to Sir W. Domville, Bt., who lived 
 there and died there about 1858. His son Sir J. G. 
 Domville sold it to the Duke of Devonshire who let it to 
 Mr. John Swift as tenant. Mr. Swift simplified the 
 name to one word Southfields, lived there and died there 
 in 1888. The property was then devastated : the long 
 avenue drive from the Meads main road was cut through 
 by the formation of Fairfield Road and the " Upper " 
 Meads Road, and the house materially altered and 
 enlarged to adopt it for scholastic purposes. Traces of 
 D
 
 34 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. III. 
 
 the avenue by reason of many of the trees remaining 
 may still be detected. But this is a long digression 
 from South Street. 
 
 Larkfield House now forms part of East-Bourne 
 College, but when I first remember it it was occupied by 
 Mr. C. W. Rawdon, a retired naval officer, who I believe 
 built the house. It had one notable feature in a round 
 tower somewhat in the style of the Irish round towers, 
 and used as a lounge, and especially for the purpose of 
 obtaining a wide sea-view. I perfectly well remember 
 his taking me up the Tower when I was a very small 
 boy, and he termed it the " Monkey Tower," but I 
 suspect that that was a designation invented for the 
 occasion either to amuse or frighten me. Rawdon was 
 regarded as a pleasant and agreeable gentleman : he was 
 given to that occupation which a century ago was 
 considered especially the mark of a " gentleman," namely 
 a willingness to drink too many bottles of wine in a 
 week. Mrs. Rawdon was a sister of the Miss West 
 already mentioned under Grove Road. I always thought 
 it a great pity that when the East-Bourne College 
 authorities purchased Larkfield House they should have 
 pulled down this Tower. Granted that it would have 
 been of no particular use to them, yet it served to 
 distinguish the house as being something out of the 
 common, so that when the Tower disappeared the house 
 presented a very commonplace aspect to passers-by. 
 Modern enlargements however have done a good deal to 
 remove this defect. East-Bourne College was opened in 
 1867, the first Head-master being the Rev. J. R. Wood. 
 He was a man of dignified presence and high personal 
 character, but unfortunately (for him) was a Conservative 
 in politics ; and this made his position very uncom- 
 fortable, having regard to the then contrary trend of 
 local politics. Eventually he left and set up a school for 
 himself on the Grand Parade, which after some years he 
 handed over to the Rev. R. V. F. Davies, going himself 
 into Suffolk to become the Head-master of the Woodbridge 
 Grammar School. The College Chapel was consecrated 
 by the Bishop of Chichester on June 20, 1874.
 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 35 
 
 At the supposed epoch of these early notes, namely 
 1851, Lark field House stood out in the open, surrounded 
 by fields. The nearest inhabited house was a small one 
 occupied by a baker named Dumbrill, and known as The 
 Wish, which, added to and modernised, is now the 
 property of Mr. W. L. Wallis. There has been a long, 
 and I might almost call it an acrimonious controversy 
 over the meaning of the word " Wish," and I have 
 nothing of my own knowledge to contribute towards the 
 solution of the problem. The suggestion that in 
 mediaeval times there was a landing place of importance 
 here seems inadequately supported by proof, which no 
 doubt is available, that there once did exist a row of 
 piles to the E. of the Wish Tower which might have 
 carried planks to constitute a landing place. That 
 " Wish " is a corruption of " Wash " seems much more 
 plausible, especially if we may assume, as we are asked 
 to do, that Wash means " a wet place." It is quite 
 within my memory that the site of the Devonshire Baths 
 was such a wet place, a sort of morass in fact, and it was 
 also a matter of notoriety 40 years ago, that the reason 
 the land now forming the Devonshire Park was made a 
 park and was not built upon, was that it was so low as to 
 be unfit for houses of the character as regards drainage 
 facilities, which the Duke of Devonshire wished all the 
 modern houses on his estate to possess. 
 
 In 1852, I went to a picnic on the beach under the 
 Wish Tower. The site was selected as not involving a 
 long journey, but at the same time, as being quite out of 
 the way of curious eyes, and of people likely to " lift " 
 silver spoons and forks lying about ! 
 
 Proceeding Eastwards from the Wish, there was 
 nothing to interrupt the pedestrian save two houses, one 
 called Cliff Cottage and the other Mount Pleasant, close 
 by ; after which, if he did not walk warily, he would 
 have fallen into an open stone quarry close to where the 
 Cavendish Hotel now stands. It was a quarry of green 
 sand-stone, such as that of which the Parish Charch is 
 built. It was almost, but certainly not quite, exhausted 
 by its stone being excavated about 1849 for building so
 
 36 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. 1IL 
 
 much of the Grand Parade sea wall as extends from 
 about the Queens Hotel to the Sussex Club. And I 
 believe that some stone from it was used in the building 
 of St. John's Church. 
 
 In 1873, the War Office decided to disestablish and 
 disendow the Wish Tower, discharging its caretaker and 
 removing its gun ; but the Local Board stepped in, in 
 1874, and eventually acquired the Tower from the 
 Government, after taking a lease from the Duke of 
 Devonshire of such of the adjacent land as was not War 
 Department property. As the result of subsequent 
 negociations, the whole is now town property. The last 
 caretaker was an old artilleryman, who after returning 
 from the Crimea belonged to the " Coast Brigade." His 
 name was Smith, and a son, G. W. Smith, born in the 
 Tower, is now a tradesman in East-Bourne. 
 
 The building all along the sea front from the Grand 
 Parade Westwards, which only began about 1860, or 
 later, might have been started many years previously if 
 the 1st Earl of Burlington had been favourable. I 
 remember being shown once at Compton Place, when 
 j\Ir. F. J. Howard was residing there, a complete and 
 very comprehensive plan for a new town to be called 
 " Burlington," prepared in 1833 by a London architect 
 of some repute, Decimus Burton. But Lord Burlington 
 would have none of it : no bricks and mortar for him to 
 disturb his privacy : so Burton went to Hastings and 
 exploited the new town of " St. Leonards-on-Sea." The 
 Earl even went so far as to pull down a windmill which 
 stood on the Downs behind Paradise for no other reason 
 I suppose than that it was an eye-sore to him and that he 
 did not care to be overlooked in Compton Place by a 
 miller and his men at a distance of more than ^ a mile 
 in a straight line ! It was close to this mill that I first 
 made the acquaintance of a very useful and distinguished 
 public man, the late Sir Howard Vincent, M.P. He was 
 there on horseback as a Brigadier at an Easter Monday 
 review, I being on duty as Lieutenant of the 1st Sussex 
 Engineers. 
 
 Going back now to the Seaside Road, there were no
 
 Plate XIX 
 
 To face p. 36, 
 
 Figs. 36-37. 
 
 HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, EAST-BOURNE. 
 
 THE GRAND PARADE AND VICTORIA PLACE, EAST-BOURNE. 
 (May, 1855).

 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 37 
 
 buildings between The Terrace and Cornfield Terrace at 
 one end, and a farm, house called The Susans (immediately 
 opposite Susans Road). That house bore a carved 
 inscription, stating that it had been built in 1714. It 
 was rather a striking house externally, built of flint and 
 ;stone, and was very comfortable inside, and was occupied, 
 after 3 generations of Filders had had it, for many years, 
 by Mrs. T. E. J. Boileau, the widow of an Indian Judge, 
 and mother of Mrs. R. J. Graham. Nos. 15-17 Elms 
 Buildings about occupy the site. Immediately next to 
 this house, but lying back from the road, was a 
 comparatively modern house, built by a man named 
 Royer, and sold by him to Mr. John Graham, J.P. The 
 first private theatricals I ever witnessed took place in 
 this house in 1851. The play was Box and Cox. 
 
 The Grahams were a Cumberland family, but the 
 head of the East-Bourne branch, Mr. John Graham 
 came here about 1830, purchasing Rose Cottage in what 
 is now Grove Road. This house is mentioned elsewhere. 
 He married a daughter of Mr. E. J. Curteis, M.P., of 
 Windmill Hill, and afterwards bought the house which 
 at the time was called The New Susans. He enlarged it 
 considerably and re-named it The Elms, and lived there 
 till his death in 1879. When he bought Rose Cottage, 
 or soon after, he also bought some cottages near by 
 which had been the Parish Workhouse, and some other 
 tenements, and built Elm Cottage, and a house at the 
 corner of South Street, which became known as " The 
 Literary Institution." All these properties passed to his 
 eldest son Reginald, and then to his grandson, T. H. B. 
 Graham, who has sold nearly all. Mr. John Graham 
 left 4 sons, Reginald just mentioned, Henry, Charles a 
 solicitor in London, a partner in the former firm of 
 Domville, Lawrence and Graham, and Edward who died 
 Vicar of Warding ; also a daughter Caroline who became 
 the wife of the Lieut. Jonathan Darby mentioned 
 elsewhere as in 1855 an officer of the Sussex Artillery 
 Militia. On the death of Mr. R. J. Graham his son sold 
 The Elms and other family property. The Elms having 
 been pulled down, on its site a row of shops has been
 
 38 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. IIL 
 
 built on one side and " Elms Avenue " on the other. 
 His mother resides at Edmond Castle near Carlisle, of 
 which T. H. B. Graham is also now the owner, having 
 succeeded to it through his father who was the nephew 
 of Mr. T. H. Graham. The family may therefore be said 
 almost to have severed their connection with Sussex in 
 order to resume a closer connection with Cumberland, 
 their ancestral County, but a married daughter still 
 resides in East-Bourne. 
 
 The house at the E. corner of Susans Road occupies 
 the site of a building which I remember bore the inscrip- 
 tion in stone, " East-Bourne Waterworks, 1844." This 
 really was the property of the first Joint-Stock Company 
 ever established in East-Bourne. Some of my people 
 were Shareholders, but I possess no records of it and 
 doubt if any exist, unless the existing Water Company 
 possess any. The modern company took over by 
 purchase the rights of the old company in 1859. 
 
 Terminus Road was laid out, I think, about 1849 r 
 when the Railway was opened, and the parish books 
 show that it was dedicated as a highway in 1850, but it 
 was a long time before the houses became contiguous 
 for there were many gaps. The corner house on the W. 
 side abutting on the Seaside Road was for many years a 
 Confectioner's shop, the first in East-Bourne to supply 
 dessert ices. The proprietor was Thomas Morris, who 
 gave more attention to cricket than to confectionery, but 
 his wife was a very capable representative of the firm. 
 A journeyman baker once called there to see if he could 
 get a job. He was hailed by Mrs. Morris, to whom he- 
 said : "I want to see the master." Mrs. Morris replied 
 in tones of stentorian indignation " I'm master here." 
 The house at the opposite corner, now divided, once 
 changed hands for GOO, but the next time, some 30' 
 years later, it fetched 3600. 
 
 The whole of the land Eastwards of the Seaside Road 
 and The Terrace was up to 1849 an unbroken stretch of 
 agricultural land (chiefly grass). There were only 2 old 
 houses, The Grotto, now the site of Barclay's Bank, and 
 Oak Cottage, standing about where No. 53 Terminus
 
 Plate XX. 
 
 To face p. 38. 
 
 Figs. 38-39. 
 
 THE WISH TOWER, 1840 
 
 North, phixt. 
 
 [Original Lithograph, circa. 1819.]
 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 39 
 
 Road (The Capital and Counties Bank), stands. Oak 
 Cottage received its name because it was occupied, and I 
 think owned, by a man named Pendrell, and afterwards 
 by a Miss Pendrell, descendants of the famous Boscobel 
 Farmer who sheltered Charles II. after the battle of 
 Worcester. The Pendrells shared in the State pension 
 given to the Boscobel man and his heirs, during the 
 years I knew them. At Miss Pendrell's death, in 1877, 
 her share passed I know not whither. I remember 
 seeing corn grow on the site of the Gildredge Hotel the 
 year that the Railway was opened (1849). Probably that 
 was almost or quite the last crop, because the Terminus 
 Road was laid out not long afterwards. Hyde Gardens 
 under a different spelling perpetuates the fact that a 
 large field on which the Hyde Gardens houses are now 
 built was known up till the time they were built as the 
 " Half Hide," a name of Saxon origin and probably 
 uninterruptedly in use since Saxon times. 
 
 In Junction Road at the back of The Grotto the first 
 Roman Catholic Chapel in East-Bourne was erected ; 
 Barclay's Bank covers the site. The Priest in charge 
 was the Rev. C. P. King, a very quiet inoffensive old 
 gentleman with whom I was on friendly terms, and who 
 had none of the aggressiveness of the modern Roman 
 Catholic Priests, such as the present East-Bourne 
 representative of that Faith " Father " Lynch, whom 
 also I reckon a friend when we meet, but an enemy when 
 we face one another in the columns of a newspaper. 
 
 At a Vestry held on June 23, 1854, it was resolved 
 that the proposed new road be called Cornfield Road 
 would be " of public utility." 
 
 Capt. M. E. Archdall, M.P. for Fermanagh 1835-1874, 
 resided for many years at Odessa Lodge in Cornfield 
 Road, but nobody knew much about him, and he took 
 no part whatever in East-Bourne local affairs. 
 
 This chapter shall be brought to an end with one or 
 two disjointed paragraphs. At the mouth, so to speak, of 
 Cornfield Terrace there was erected on July 24, 1854, 
 a triumphal Arch in connection with the festivities to 
 commemorate the coming of age on July 23 (which
 
 40 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. III. 
 
 was a Sunday) of Lord Burlington's eldest son, Lord 
 Cavendish, better known in later years as the Marquis 
 of Hartington, and who finally became 8th Duke of 
 Devonshire. I helped to honour the event by hoisting 
 a Union Jack on the roof of The Gore. The flag actually 
 used, bought for the Duke of Wellington's funeral two 
 years previously, is still in nay possession and usable. 
 
 Three houses in Hartington Place have a little 
 history attached to them. Fern Bank was built by Mr. 
 Andrew Cuthell, a member of the great London Building 
 Firm of Cubitt, a fact which explains why Lord 
 Ashcombe came down many years afterwards to the 
 funeral of Mrs. Cuthell, who died at Fern Bank. 
 
 The next house nearer the Sea (to which flats have 
 now been joined) had as its first owner, Mr. John 
 Carrington Palmer, a cousin of the 1st Earl of Selborne, 
 the Lord Chancellor. The house was named Mixbury 
 House from the name of the parish in Oxfordshire of 
 which the Chancellor's father had been Rector. Mr. 
 Palmer died on May 27, 1874. 
 
 Opposite Mixbury House is a house now occupied by 
 the Young Women's Christian Association. Though now 
 called Westdown, under its original name of Brunswick 
 House it was occupied by an Admiral Morier. His 
 funeral, on August 4, 1864, was the last occasion on 
 which I remember seeing the funeral procession headed 
 by a man carrying on his shoulders a large black board 
 with black plumes fastened in an upright position on it. 
 The Admiral's widow was a sister of the Mrs. Mortimer 
 who was the Authoress of those children's books of 
 world-wide renown The Peep of Day, Line upon Line, 
 Lnics left out, and others, all which I am glad to say 
 are still on sale by the Religious Tract Society in their 
 original form ; but corrupted versions of pome of them 
 have been issued by a " High Church " publisher since 
 the expiration of the Copyrights. I suppose that no 
 " Pi " Books (to use school-boy language) have ever had 
 such an enormous sale. 
 
 This is a convenient place to mention that the 
 Seaside Road from near Hartington Place to about
 
 CHAP. III.] A Tour through Central East-Bourne. 41 
 
 Cavendish. Place was raised many years ago by from 
 2 ft. to 3 ft. in order to improve the gradients of the old 
 road as it used to be. 
 
 " g'll nott gOH in mg feo0R 0f numurrg." (Henry VI., pt. i.)
 
 [42] 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 A TOPOGRAPHICAL TOUR ROUND THE TOWN, 
 WITH ANECDOTES. 
 
 THE SEA HOUSES. 
 
 Marine Parade. Round House. Field House. Houses built during the 
 Crimean War. Gowland's Library. Its antiquity and early tenants. 
 Captain L. K. Willard. The Albion Hotel before it became an hotel. The 
 Earl of Ashburnham. Anecdotes of. Sea Beach House. The Yacht "Cygnet." 
 Abolished Coastguard Station. War Department Property. The Two 
 Miss Gordons. The Great Redoubt. Royal Parade Sea Wall. Grievances 
 of the Fishermen. Proposed Harbour. Martello Towers. Collier Ships. 
 
 Losings, standing bLeaK upon tyt gtz-zfyon." (Pericles). 
 11 $rarst fyt sea, but \tt$ on laub." (G. HERBERT.) 
 
 THE part of the Parish which I have now to deal with 
 was the original Watering-Place of East-Bourne 
 and bore the collective name of " Sea-Houses," 
 but the sub-name of Marine Parade came later to be 
 applied to more than half its houses. At what I call the 
 epoch of this Book (1851), the inhabited houses of the 
 district comprised only the Field House, which was 
 really No. 1 Marine Parade though not so numbered, the 
 24 houses of Marine Parade, a few villas in the Seaside 
 Koad close to where Cavendish Place now opens on to it, 
 some shops at the bend in the road opposite the Anchor 
 Hotel, the Anchor, the Albion, the Ball-room House, Sea 
 Beach House, and a sprinkling of small shops and cottages 
 in the direction of what is now Leaf Hall. Beyond Leaf 
 Hall there was the Ordnance Yard, the Government 
 House, the King's Arms Public-House, with a few 
 cottages dotted about the " Drove" and elsewhere. Close 
 to the Drove was the stream which came from the Old 
 Town, and has already been mentioned. The King's 
 Arms was practically the last house in East-Bourne in
 
 Plate XXI. 
 
 To face p. 43. 
 
 
 G. &> R. /.avis, East-Bourne, 
 
 A HIGH TIDE AT " SPLASH POINT. 
 
 Copyright. 
 
 G. & K. La-'is, East-liwtrnt-. Copyright. 
 
 A HIGH TIDE OPPOSITE "THE ALBION.
 
 CHAP. IV.] A Tour round the Sea Houses. 43 
 
 the direction of Pevensey, except a house frequented by 
 tramps nearly opposite Anthony's Hill. But this was 
 locally in the Parish of Willingdon. 
 
 Some of the above houses may now be mentioned in 
 detail. But first I will speak of a house which I never 
 saw and which ceased to exist in 1841 the Round House.. 
 It was demolished in that year because it had been 
 undermined by the sea. It was at that time used as a 
 private residence, but at some time in the 18th Century 
 had been built and used as a flour mill. In 1780, Prince 
 Edward, afterwards Duke of Kent, stayed in it. His 
 brother, Prince Octavius, and two sisters, the Princesses 
 Elizabeth and Sophia stayed in a house on the Marine 
 Parade, which was pulled down and the Albion built on 
 its site. All this is hearsay evidence of course so far as 
 I am concerned, but it seemed necessary to mention it in 
 order to round off, so to speak, my account of the Sea- 
 Houses as I knew them. The Annual Register for 1780 
 (p. 227) under the date of September 17, gives an 
 account of a terrific thunderstorm which killed 2 servants 
 in the Field House, which when I first knew it belonged 
 to a family named Drury. The last time I was ever 
 in it was on April 20, 1865, on the occasion of the 
 Wedding of a Mr. James B. Baker to Miss Sophia C. 
 Drury. The oldest villa in Seaside Road was one built 
 in the fashion of a Swiss cottage and occupied by a 
 Major Stannus, When the modern houses began to 
 spring up the dates of some of the blocks were in effect 
 indicated by some of the names ; e.g., Alma Place and 
 Inkerman Place, referring to the Battles in the Crimea. 
 These houses with fronts brought out over their former 
 forecourts are those now numbered 35 to 41, as nearly 
 as I can identify them. The subsidiary names were 
 abolished when the great increase in the number of the 
 houses made it necessary to re-number the whole road. 
 Of the shops standing in 1851 I fancy that the only one 
 which remains is No. 51, and that not in its former con- 
 dition. No. 51 was then as now a Baker's Shop, kept by 
 a man named Bridger, afterwards Gilbert ; whilst the- 
 next house was that of a Draper and Grocer named
 
 44 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAp. IV. 
 
 Row, afterwards Gosling. No. 51 exhibits inside the 
 announcement " Established in 1795 " which is very 
 likely true. Proceeding now out on to the Sea-front, 
 we find that the Queen s Hotel has taken the place of the 
 Field House ; that the houses next are new, but that 
 from No. 6 as far as the road by Gowland's Library the 
 houses are nearly as they were. A house which used to 
 be No. 15 was pulled down to open up the roadway into 
 Queen's Gardens. One of the old houses numbered 9 
 used to be called The Wedge, from its ground plan. It 
 was actually such, having only a front door and front 
 windows. It was used by the Grahams as a sort of 
 Tea-house, and has since been annexed to No. 8. The 
 houses numbered 6 to 14 have their original fronts. 
 
 " Splash Point " alias " Junction Parade," as it was 
 called, underneath the Field House, was the scene of an 
 alarming incident on September 7, 1866. A high tide 
 was expected, and I went to see it with a party of cousins 
 then staying in the town, and a clerical friend. We 
 watched the waves for a while, standing on the Grand 
 Parade, but wanting to get round to the Marine Parade, 
 we waited for a good opportunity for doing so. Think- 
 ing that a favourable moment had come we made a rush, 
 Mrs. L. K., her little boy, Mrs. F. C., the Rev. P. S., and 
 myself, but we were too soon (or too late) to dodge a big 
 wave which came, and not only threw down the whole 
 party except myself, but washed Mrs. L. K. and her boy 
 to the edge of the wall. Providentially a man saw their 
 danger at the same moment as I did, he ran, and I ran, 
 and between us we seized my cousin and the child and 
 secured them. It was a very narrow squeak, because 
 had they gone over nothing could have saved them ; 
 rescue by a boat would have been impossible with the 
 waves so high, besides which probably no boats were 
 Avithin reach. The whole thing was over in a few seconds 
 and we got round on to the terra firma of the Marine 
 Parade. I suppose it must be confessed that the attempt 
 was a foolhardy one from the first. The railings shown 
 in the picture were not then in existence but were added 
 because the corner was felt to be always a dangerous one.
 
 Plate XXII. 
 
 To face p. 45. 
 
 Figs. 4243. 
 
 G. & K . Lavis, East-Bourne. Copyright. 
 
 THE "FIELD HOUSE" AND MARINE PARADE. 
 
 G. &> R. /.avis, East-Hourni. Copyright. 
 
 THE OLD FISHING STATION AND GROYNES. 
 (Now the Royal Parade).
 
 CHAP. IV.] A Tour round the Sea Houses. 45- 
 
 Gowland's Library may confidently be spoken of as 
 one of the oldest shops in the place, carried on through 
 its whole existence for the purposes of the same trade, 
 books and the things which usually go with books. The 
 business was apparently not in existence in 1787, but it 
 is described in a token issued in 1796 as "Fisher's 
 Library," and a Guide-book dated 1819 speaks of it as 
 "a good library kept by Heatherly with an excellent 
 lodging-house over it having the accommodation of the 
 daily papers and periodical publications. The Library 
 itself is a very spacious apartment, and for a small sum 
 the subscriber has the benefit and amusement of reading 
 as well as the room to lounge in if thought proper. This 
 is a great accommodation to those who prefer lodging at 
 a distance from the sea, yet wish occasionally to con- 
 template the grandeur of that element. In the adjoining 
 room is an excellent billiard table kept quite select for 
 the use of gentlemen only." The billiard table has long 
 been discontinued, and the space thrown into the shop. 
 John Heatherly died at a date which I cannot specify. 
 Mr. R. J. Graham says that he wore a black suit, with 
 knee breeches, silk stockings, powder in his hair, and a 
 pig-tail. A house in Church Street, Old Town, bearing 
 in recent years the name of Kolassy House, had once 
 been carried on as a branch shop a of the sea side one 
 but used chiefly for the delivery of library books and the 
 sale of fancy articles. 1 often used to pass it and peep 
 into the window with envious eyes. Up to nearly the 
 middle of the 19th Century the Marine Parade library 
 was carried on by 3 Miss Lays, nieces of either Mr. or Mrs. 
 Heatherly, whom they succeeded. They had a brother, 
 a retired hatter, who came to live with them at about the 
 time that they gave up the business of shop-keeping. I 
 remember him only too well by the annoyance he caused 
 me whenever I attended service at the Parish Church 
 and he was there. He sat in the pew immediately behind 
 that allotted to my family, and he always persisted in 
 repeating out loud the " Dearly Beloved " Exhortation 
 
 (a) This is my interpretation of history, but Mr. J. C. Wright's puts it the other 
 way about.
 
 46 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IV. 
 
 as it it were a part of the " General Confession " which 
 it is the duty of the congregation to repeat after the 
 Clergyman. The Miss Lays were succeeded by 3 Miss 
 Hopkinses ; then came a cousin of theirs, Mr. Hopkins, 
 in 1857, and finally Mr. T. S. Gowland in 1862. 
 
 To go back to the Marine Parade next to the library 
 were the Baths known as " Mrs. Webb's Baths," but in 
 my time I think Mrs. Webb must have disappeared from 
 the scene, only her name perhaps remaining as a "trade- 
 mark," because I only remember a certain Mrs. Ingledew 
 and her daughter there. 
 
 Starting again to go along the Marine Parade, the 
 house on the wall of which the word " Library " appears 
 in large characters was No. 22, then came 23 and 24. 
 These were twin houses, 23 being in the occupation of 
 Captain L. K. Willard, whilst 24 was owned but only at 
 a later date inhabited by Dr. D. J. Hall. As they 
 were held on a 60 years lease, and the lease expired 
 in the year 1863, it may be presumed that they were built 
 about 1803. Captain Willard went about on crutches 
 and had lost an arm at the Battle of Laswaree in India 
 in 1803 (or at Salamanca in 1812 ; I cannot remember 
 which). He drove about in an open carriage drawn by 
 a pair of mules. These 3 houses were pulled down not 
 long ago and rebuilt to make an addition to the Albion 
 Hotel, having previously been used as annexes to that 
 hotel after the expiration of the 60 years lease just 
 mentioned. The Albion Hotel had a very chequered 
 history for many of its earlier years. It was built as a 
 Boarding-House and failed as such. Then it was empty 
 for a long time, and about 1852 was bought by the Earl 
 of Ashburnham as a seaside residence for his children. 
 I well remember and used to play on the beach with 2 
 of them, Lord St. Asaph (the present Earl) and his sister 
 Lady Katherine Ashburnham. Lord St. Asaph after- 
 wards became a Roman Catholic. The Ashburnham 
 ownership did not last long. The old Earl used to 
 complain that people passing by looked in at the 
 windows, but I never heard that they did anything more 
 than what the traditional cat did to the King. Mr.
 
 CHAP. IV.] A Tour round the Sea Houses. 47 
 
 R. J. Graham relates the following story which I quote 
 because though I cannot authenticate it, it fits in with 
 my recollection of the noble owner. " The inscription 
 * Albion Hotel ' on its front was only partially obscured 
 by a coat of whitewash. One day a traveller drove up 
 to the door and entering the lobby called out ' Waiter.' 
 Meeting with no response he walked up and down the 
 passage repeating his cry. Presently the Earl in much 
 indignation issued from one of the apartments and 
 inquired what this noise was about. ' Bring me a glass 
 of sherry ' was the reply. The Earl took the intrusion 
 in bad part, quite unmindful of the inscription that 
 remained legible on his front wall, and he soon after- 
 wards gave up the house." Many years after this the 
 house became the property of an Hotel Company, and 
 under the management of Mr. James Rudd, an Alderman 
 of the Town Council, soon acquired a high reputation. 
 Of course it was a rival to the old established Anchor 
 next door, but that old house of entertainment had 
 a good character and connection of its own. Lord 
 Ashburnham possessed at Ashburnham Park an ex- 
 ceedingly valuable collection of books, the sale of 
 which caused a great sensation in library circles a 
 few years ago. There were also many curios which I 
 made a vain attempt to see in connection with the 
 writing of my book on Sussex mentioned elsewhere 
 when speaking of Parham. Afterwards I heard that 
 some old friends of ours who were staying at East- 
 Bourne, and who were also friends of the Ashburnham 
 family, were going to stay at Ashburnham, and I sought 
 and obtained their kind intervention for the privilege of 
 a brief visit for the sake of my book, but it was all in 
 vain. The old Earl was inexorable and I did not enjoy 
 the chance of a visit until an Archaeological Meeting 
 there on August 11, 1881, to which I travelled by 
 road, driving from Ration with Mrs. Heinemann, and 
 so seeing an out-of-the-way part of Sussex which I had 
 never seen before nor since. Lord Ashburnham was 
 walking with his Clergyman once, and they met a 
 labourer, and the Earl asked the parson whether men
 
 48 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IV. 
 
 of the labouring class were likely to be admitted into 
 heaven ! 
 
 Sea Beach House is still standing near the W. end 
 of the Royal Parade but behind it. When I first knew 
 it, it was occupied by Mrs. Ogle, the widow of a 
 Commander Ogle, R.N. On a grass plat between the 
 house and the beach there stood the hull of a small 
 cutter yacht, the Cygnet. I do not know the history of 
 this craft, but I have heard it said that it was built 
 for smuggling and was captured by the Revenue 
 Authorities. Mr. Ogle had the misfortune to lose a 
 leg at East-Bourne whilst out shooting, and during his 
 enforced repose he received much kindness from a lady 
 staying in the house, and it ended in his marrying her. 
 Her Mother, Mrs. Bracebridge (nee Streatfeild,), was a 
 member of the Kent family of that name, and when I 
 took up my permanent residence at East-Bourne in 1874 
 the property had passed to Mr. J Streatfeild, whose son 
 Mr. F. H. V. Streatfeild now holds it. The Cygnet had 
 become so dilapidated that it had to be cleared away, 
 and the face of the land all round was completely 
 transformed by the building of the Sea-wall, under the 
 powers of a Local Act, passed in 1879, of which further 
 mention will be made in a later chapter. 
 
 Hard by was the Coastguard Station with a house 
 for the District Officer in charge ; one that I remember 
 was Lieut. Kitching. The men were chiefly provided 
 for in a comparatively modern row of Coastguard 
 Cottages (so named) on the opposite side of the main 
 Seaside Road, somewhere about where now stand the 
 houses numbered 150-160 Seaside. Lieut. Kitching's 
 house was wrecked by a high tide in 1857, and was 
 never inhabited afterwards. 
 
 In the main road nearly opposite the Anchor was 
 the chief fishmonger's shop of the place, kept by a man 
 named Heathfield. No. 6 Seaside, occupies the site. 
 Then came the Anchor (now the Burlington) stables, and 
 beyond that, Eastwards, was the Ball-room House. That 
 was its actual name in 1851, when it was owned by a 
 Mr. Edward Boys. I have an idea that it had been built
 
 CHAP. IV.] A Tour round the Sea Houses. 49 
 
 early in the 19th Century for the specific purpose which 
 its name suggests, and that it is the building which is 
 sometimes mentioned in old books under the name of 
 the " Assembly Rooms," but of this I am not at all certain. 
 This house, now called Livingstone House and numbered 
 as ' 14 Seaside,' still remains, externally unaltered. 
 
 The Government property at the Seaside comprised 
 the Government House or Officers' Quarters, a brick-built 
 office near it, and a smaller house inside what was known 
 as the " Ordnance Yard." During, or perhaps after, the 
 Crimean War, a Military Hospital was built in the yard 
 away from the high road. Then, immediately to the E. 
 of this, there was a large open space used as a drill 
 ground and for gun drill. Though there were no 
 buildings between this ground and the seashore, and 
 therefore there might have been gun practice from the 
 guns in the ground at a floating target. I cannot remember 
 whether there ever was any such gun practice with shot. 
 There was with blank charges, because being down there 
 one day in 1855, I was allowed by the Militia officer in 
 command, to pull the lanyard for firing a charge. 
 
 The Officers' Quarters were once occupied, long 
 before my time however, by a Colonel Gordon and his 
 family, all of whom were known to my people. Two of 
 the daughters were twins, and not only when they were 
 born, but until they became grown-up girls, it was 
 necessary that one should have a red and the other a 
 blue ribbon round her arm, because they were so exactly 
 alike as only to be distinguishable by their ribbons. I 
 am sorry not to possess what I once remember seeing, a 
 privately-printed account of this remarkable family. 
 The two daughters grew up and one of them, married, 
 came to East-Bourne in 1867, on a visit, when I made 
 her acquaintance. 
 
 The King's Arms Inn (and the block of houses of 
 which it formed one) has disappeared, and the substituted 
 block of houses bears the absurd name of " Jubilee 
 Terrace." 
 
 The Great Redoubt was one of the fortifications put 
 up by Pitt in 1806, in anticipation of a French Invasion. 
 
 E
 
 50 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IV. 
 
 It was, I believe, wholly disused, and only occupied by a 
 few superannuated artillerymen as caretakers until 1853. 
 In the years immediately following 1853, a considerable 
 force of artillery was lodged there. Some details as to 
 this I give in another chapter. (See Chapter VI., post). 
 An immense amount of money has from first to last been 
 spent in protecting the sea-front of the Redoubt from 
 the destructive incursions of the sea. I have no doubt 
 that onwards from 1853, up to and including the time 
 when the Corporation acquired the right to continue 
 their Sea-wall to the E. end of the glacis, many thousands 
 of pounds were spent in stone, concrete and cement 
 for repairs. 
 
 When the Royal Parade Sea-wall was built in 1880, 
 the fishermen and their boats had to be moved from 
 their old position near the discarded Coastguard Station 
 to the open shore, where once had stood the Martello 
 Tower No. 72, which had been washed away before 
 my time. This compulsory removal of the fishing boats 
 after the construction of the Sea-wall was naturally much 
 resented by the fishermen, but it was unavoidable. At 
 a later date, that is to say in 1892, there was some talk 
 of the desirability of constructing a commercial harbour 
 somewhere between the Redoubt and Langney Fort. A 
 Committee of the Town Council, of which I was 
 Chairman, was appointed to consider the question. The 
 project was warmly supported by Mr. Hammond, the 
 Manager of the Gasworks, who gave valuable evidence 
 as to the reduction in the cost of all the coal brought 
 into East-Bourne if it could be landed from ships instead 
 of coming by rail. Mr. G. A. Wallis supported the idea 
 conditionally on its being limited to a harbour for yachts, 
 believing that it would add much to the popularity of 
 East-Bourne, if it were to be developed as a yachting 
 centre. Mr. Whitley, the Agent of the Gilbert Estate 
 was also favourable. I must confess that I was very 
 favourable, both to the large and to the limited schemes, 
 but I resigned my seat on the Corporation at the end of 
 my current term of office in November 1893, and 
 nobody else took the matter up.
 
 CHAP. IV.] A Tour round the Sea Houses. 51 
 
 The mention of coals reminds me that I have for- 
 gotten one of excitements of East-Bourne life prior to, 
 and for some years after the opening of the Railway the 
 arrival of a sailing collier. Such ships used to come at 
 intervals and be beached at high water near the Coast- 
 guard Station : then when the tide receded, dozens of 
 carts would be taken down to the shore and come away 
 laden with coal landed from the ship. It was often 
 impossible to empty a ship during one low-water 
 interval, in which case the work had to be finished the next 
 day, which increased the risk to the ship. I do not exactly 
 remember when such vessels ceased to come, but the 
 improved Railway communication with the North of 
 England killed the trade. 
 
 The Martello Towers which stretch all along the 
 coast from East-Bourne to Kent (including one at 
 Seaford), take their name from a tower of the sort at 
 Martella Bay in Corsica, which offered an obstinate 
 resistance on February 8, 1794, to a British force which 
 attacked it. The details of the engagement will be 
 found in James's Naval History. 
 
 44 3fyt long trag's task is obtt, airtr foe must zlttg." 
 
 (Antony and Cleopatra}.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 ROYAL AND DISTINGUISHED VISITORS. 
 
 Children of George III. Foreign Princes and Princesses. Visits by 
 the Duke of Cambridge. Grand Duke and Duchess of Hesse. Grand Duke 
 and Duchess of Baden. Princess Christian and the "Alice Hospital" 
 Opening of the Hospital by the Prince and Princess of Wales. Street 
 Decorations Tea Party at Compton Place. Satirical publications respect- 
 ing the visit. Visit of the Marchioness of Lome. Suppressed anecdote. 
 Visit of the Duchess of Albany. Visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales. 
 Distinguished Russian. Chinese, ond French Visitors, and others. 
 Astronomical, Political, and Ecclesiastical Visitors, with notes and anecdotes, 
 respecting some of them. 
 
 all ; trust a fefo ; fca forrmg to mm*." (All's Well that end* Well}. 
 
 THAT certain members of the family of George III. 
 came to East-Bourne as visitors in 1780 is well- 
 known, and their visit may be said to mark the 
 starting of the town as a bathing and pleasure centre, 
 but that incident is not properly within the scope of this 
 volume. The Royal personages in question were the 
 Princes Edward (afterwards Duke of Kent) and Octavius, 
 and the Princesses Elizabeth and Sophia. 
 
 The following is an unpublished extract from the 
 diary of a lady who was at East-Bourne in 1780 as a 
 member of the Royal suite. It was communicated to me 
 in 1878 when in the possession of one of her descendants, 
 then living at Oxford : 
 
 " SEA-HOUSES, EASTBOURNE, SUSSEX, 
 
 " 7th July, 1780. 
 
 " Our day is generally spent as follows : Rise early,; 
 I sleep in the room with the Princess Elizabeth. After 
 her R.H. and Princess Sophia and Prince Alfred [? Adol- 
 phus] have bathed, which depends on the tides, we walk 
 on the sands for an hour. Then breakfast. At 9 the 
 coach is at the door. We go to Lady Charlotte Finch's 
 house, who goes with us to Eastbourne Place, belonging
 
 CHAP. V.] Royal Visitors. 53 
 
 to Lady Betty Compton. . . . We stay an hour at East- 
 bourne Place, and Lady C. F. accompanies ps. Elizabeth 
 to the Sea House, who then reads the Psalms and chap- 
 ters of the day, and attends to various lessons from Lady 
 O. and myself in ye absence of her teachers. At 1 o'clock 
 Ly. Charlotte leaves us ; returns at 3, when Prince 
 Edward, his governor, Mr. Buggmers [Bruyeres], and 
 sub-governors, Mr. Farhill and the Rev. Mr. Fisher, come 
 to dinner. His R.H. and the gentlemen go away at 5." 
 
 Note that the dinner hour was 3.0. I may add that 
 that hour and 4.0 were ordinary hours for dinner in the 
 early part of the 19th century ! 
 
 Judging by old Guide-books of which I possess 
 copies, this Royal Visit did something to advertise the 
 town, and a few years after the Royal Visit of 1780, 
 another of the children of George III., the Princess 
 Amelia, was taken to East-Bourne. Some very brief 
 particulars are to be found in Mrs. Papendiek's Court 
 and Private Life in the time of Queen Charlotte (London, 
 1887). No dates are given, but there seem to have been 
 two visits two years running, possibly in 1789 and 1790. 
 A rowing match presumably took place during the latter 
 visit, for under the date of January 1, 1791, Mrs. 
 Papendiek records an extemporised picture of such a 
 match being placed on the table at a Royal juvenile 
 party given at Windsor by the Lady Charlotte Finch. 
 
 My first date for Royal Visitors must be 1852 when 
 the Prince and Princess of Capua stayed at the seaside. 
 He was a son of Ferdinand II., King of Naples, otherwise 
 known as " Bomba." I remember sitting near them at a 
 travelling circus set up close to South Street, not far 
 from the New Inn. 
 
 About this time, or earlier, Lucien Bonaparte, 
 Prince of Canino, visited East-Bourne. His visit was 
 really rather to Sussex, because, as is well known, he 
 was an eminent philologist and he spent a good deal of 
 time and labour in studying dialects and languages, and 
 amongst others the dialects of England, including that 
 of Sussex. The results of his labours were subsequently 
 published.
 
 54 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V. 
 
 In 1860, and again in 1874, East-Bourne was visited 
 by the Duke of Cambridge in order to witness certain 
 gunnery experiments, but these are matters which belong 
 to Chapter VI. (post). 
 
 On March 25, 1875, H.R.H. the Princess Louise and 
 the Marquis of Lome came to East-Bourne for a week 
 and attended service at Trinity Church on the interven- 
 ing Sunday. I think this was the first visit of any of 
 Queen Victoria's children. 
 
 In the early part of the summer of 1878 East-Bourne 
 was visited by some of the children of the Emperor 
 Frederick of Germany, the sisters and brothers of the 
 present Emperor. I sent for their use a copy of my 
 Guide-book, and their Governess, Mdlle. De Perpigna, 
 came and had tea with us on June 29, and proved to be 
 a very interesting person who told us many things. 
 
 In the autumn of 1878 the Grand Duke and Duchess 
 of Hesse with their children made a long stay at a house 
 on the Grand Parade. The Grand Duchess, it will be 
 remembered, was our Princess Alice. They went about 
 freely in the town and attended various festivities. On 
 August 21 Her Royal Highness went to the Devonshire 
 Park for the opening of a Bazaar for the Building Fund 
 of All Saints' Church. My wife and I were introduced 
 to her by Lady Fanny Howard. The thing which 
 specially struck me in conversation with her was how 
 completely she had lost her English pronunciation of 
 English. This visit was a great "lift" for the Bazaar, 
 which yielded 720. She also gave away the prizes at 
 the College, and inspected the Christ Church Schools. 
 
 Their sojourn in East-Bourne was productive of such 
 good results from a health point of view that in the fol- 
 lowing year (1879) the children came again for several 
 weeks. The Grand Duke and Duchess of Baden also 
 came with their children. The Grand Duchess was the 
 daughter of the Emperor "William I. of Germany. We 
 also made their acquaintance, at a Bazaar held at the 
 Devonshire Park on August 20 for the Christ Church 
 Building Fund, when my wife and I and three of our 
 children were introduced to them. They stayed several
 
 CHAP. V.] Royal Visitors. 55 
 
 weeks at the Cavendish Hotel. The Grand Duchess 
 asked us to go to the Hotel the day before they left 
 East-Bourne and take leave of her. When we were 
 ushered into the Drawing-room we found her on her knees 
 packing into a box her various East-Bourne purchases, 
 and, by way of explanation of her employment, she told 
 us that the Emperor, her father, had brought up all his 
 children, including herself, to know as much as possible 
 about everything, and to be able to do as many things as 
 possible for themselves without always invoking the help 
 of equerries, ladies-in-waiting and servants. This explan- 
 ation of the educational principles in vogue half a century 
 ago in the Hohenzollern family throws some light on the 
 personal actions of the old Emperor's grandson, William 
 II. Our visit terminated with the expression of a hope 
 on Her Royal Highness's part that if ever we found our- 
 selves anywhere near Baden we should not fail to go and 
 see her. The Grand Duchess may be described as an 
 exceedingly pleasant and unsophisticated person. 
 
 The next Royal Visitor was H.R.H. the Princess 
 Christian, who came down on July 5, 1882, to lay the 
 foundation stone of the Hospital, which was named after 
 her sister the Princess Alice, Grand Duchess of Hesse, 
 who had died not long before, under circumstances 
 which many will remember, of diptheria caught whilst 
 nursing a sick child. Her Royal Highness was enter- 
 tained at Compton Place by Mr. and Lady Fanny Howard 
 for the occasion. A gentleman then living at East-Bourne, 
 Mr. F. W. Bourdillon, had been tutor to the Princess's 
 Children and she called at his house, No. 7 South Cliff, 
 and planted a commemorative tree which, sad to say, 
 lived but a short time owing to the exposed situation and 
 the lack of adequate protection. This was the first 
 Royal visit which was made the subject of a town 
 demonstration and street decorations. Various public 
 bodies were concerned in the matter, such as Yeomanry, 
 Coastguards, Volunteers and such like. The expenses of 
 the display amounted to 167, raised by subscriptions 
 
 (a) The Illustrated London News of July 15, contained a set of miserable sketches 
 of the day's proceedings, too bad to be reproduced here.
 
 56 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V. 
 
 A three-days Bazaar at the Devonshire Park followed 
 the stone-laying on July 26, 27, and 28, at which most 
 of nay family assisted. 
 
 When the hospital was finished and its opening on 
 June 30, 1883, had to be considered, it was decided 
 that a very much more ambitious programme should be 
 carried out. For this purpose 4 distinct bodies were 
 called upon to co-operate. There was the Local Board 
 as the Public Authority, the Hospital Committee, a 
 Committee of Townspeople, and the East-Bourne Water 
 Company. The Water Company were concerned because 
 the inauguration of 2 large new pumping engines at the 
 Bedford Well Works was to be one of the items in the 
 day's proceedings. 
 
 The official programme was a very complicated one 
 and the settlement of the time-table was somewhat a 
 speculative business, including as it did, besides the 
 matters already mentioned, a visit to the All Saints' 
 Hospital at Meads, and a tea-party at Compton Place. 
 However, the programme having been carefully thought 
 out by the Reception Committee of which I was 
 Chairman, it was found possible to carry it through 
 without any material difficulty. The principal spectacle 
 from the sight-seeing point of view was the procession 
 of 26 carriages round the town, escorted by a detachment 
 of Mounted Police, and the 4th Dragoon Guards brought 
 over from Brighton for the purpose. The public 
 luncheon to celebrate the occasion took place at the 
 Devonshire Park at 2.30 p.m. It must have been a very 
 fatiguing day for the Royal Visitors, and their only 
 respite was during the hour dedicated to afternoon, tea 
 at Compton Place. Only a few invitations were issued 
 for that. To these was prefixed the customary formula 
 " To meet their Royal Highnesses the Prince and 
 Princess of Wales." The party assembled for tea were 
 photographed, and in the photograph (Plate XXIII.), I 
 recognise the following faces : The Prince and Princess 
 of Wales, Princess Ella of Hesse in the centre, Lady 
 Fanny Howard in a bath-chair, and then, reckoning from 
 left to right, Mrs. F. W. H. Cavendish, Mr. F. W. H.
 
 Plate XXIV. 
 
 To face p. 57. 
 
 Figs. 45-46. 
 
 G. & R. Lavis, East-Konnie. Copyright. 
 
 VISIT OF THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS OF WALES, 1883. 
 
 1. Arch erected by Firemen. 
 
 2. Arch erected by Fishermen.
 
 CHAP. V.] Royal Visitors. 57 
 
 Cavendish, Mr. R. Cavendish, Mrs. Cavendish, Mrs. G. F. 
 Chambers, Dr. Greame, Lady Gooch, Miss Brodie, Rev. 
 H. R. Whelpton, Miss Pitman, Miss Emily Pitman, Lady 
 Louisa Egerton and 2 ladies whom I cannot identify or 
 remember. There were some half-a-dozen others present 
 who are not included in the photograph, amongst them 
 Lord Hartington and myself. I was engaged in talking 
 over with him a difficulty which it was not easy to deal 
 with, owing to shortness of the time available. The 
 Prince and Princess were to be driven back to the 
 station to catch the 5.30 train by the shortest route, 
 which would have been by Grove Road, but this would 
 have deprived the Old Town people of a sight of our 
 future King and Queen, and would have wasted the 
 triumphal arch erected in High Street. The matter was 
 settled by the tea part of the business being curtailed 
 by 10 minutes. It was supposed at the time that the 
 gentleman who was looking forward to become the first 
 Maypr of East-Bourne desired to utilise this first Royal 
 Visit for election purposes, and a local satirist published 
 a rather amusing pictorial skit entitled " What will they 
 do with him ? " and the sequel was published under the 
 title of " What they did with him." The former is too 
 long to quote here, and without the pictures, the points 
 of it would be lost. The latter document was not 
 illustrated. I never heard who wrote these squibs, but 
 I believe the authorship was ascribed to a certain 
 Solicitor's Clerk. 
 
 On July 19, 1889, the Duchess of Albany came to 
 East-Bourne to lay the foundation stone of the All Saints' 
 Children's Hospital at Meads. It was (locally) a 
 children's affair, the presentations being of flowers cast 
 at her feet, and not the customary purses. 
 
 On Saturday, June 20, 1891, the Prince and Princess 
 of Wales and 2 daughters came to open the Children's 
 Hospital just mentioned. They stayed at Compton Place 
 till the following Monday. The visit was more or less a 
 private one, and had no public features except the 
 presentation at the Railway Station of an address from 
 the Town Council. The Princesses attended service on
 
 58 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V, 
 
 the Sunday morning at the Parish Church, and great 
 preparations were made by the Vicar to receive them 
 preparations which many people thought unduly com- 
 plete ; e.g., ropes to mark off a passage to the Compton 
 Place pews : extra police : post cards confidentially (!) 
 warning the seat-holders to arrive early and so " avoid a 
 crowd " as " distinguished personages " were expected ! 
 
 In the early part of the summer of 1892, H.R.H. 
 Princess Louisa (then Marchioness of Lome) came to 
 East-Bourne in the strictest incognita, and stayed in 
 lodgings on the sea-front accompanied by her Lady-in- 
 Waiting, Lady Susan Leslie-Melville. I could relate a 
 " tall " story of an incident which preceded this visit, 
 but it would hardly do to let it appear in print, though I 
 have several times reeled it off to friends. 
 
 Since the last named date, our late King, both 
 before and after he became King, paid several visits 
 to East-Bourne staying always at Compton Place; and 
 there have been other Royal Visitors, English and 
 foreign, but where their visits were private and informal 
 they call for no notice here. I will complete this chapter 
 by a brief mention of some foreign visitors of high but 
 not Royal rank, who proved very interesting, and of 
 some other visitors, various. 
 
 In June 1893, Prince Jules Ouroussoff, " Maitre des 
 Ceremonies " (whatever that might be) to the Emperor 
 of Russia, spent some weeks at East-Bourne accompanied 
 by a very attractive daughter. We made their acquain- 
 tance first at the house of Sir E. Ashmead Bartlett, M.P. 
 They came on several occasions to our house for tea and 
 lawn tennis, and seemed to enjoy themselves very much. 
 Both father and daughter spoke perfect English (as so 
 many Russians do) and the Prince proved himself to be 
 a very accomplished tennis player. 
 
 Even more interesting and amusing were the 
 Chinese Ambassador, the Ambassadress, and their 3 
 children who also honoured us with their company, and 
 seemed much to enjoy themselves, the parents engaging 
 in general conversation, and the children in riding my 
 children's donkey. The Ambassador it will be remembered
 
 CHAP. V.] Foreign Visitors. 59 
 
 was known as the Marquis Tseng ; his wife posed as the 
 "Marchioness Tseng," and on her visiting cards there 
 appeared the names of the daughters as "Lady Fore- 
 seawoods Tseng " and " Lady Blossom Tseng " using 
 for the Chinese young ladies the courtesy title borne in 
 England by the daughters of a Marquis. I forget the 
 name of the son, a boy of about 12, but the donkey 
 riding was a great attraction, and they came several times 
 on account of Neddy, quite as much as for the tea and 
 bread and butter, etc. All this happened in the summer 
 of 1885. On their final visit, I asked the Marquis to 
 write his name in my autograph book, and he produced 
 a common steel pen for the purpose, whereupon I said 
 " Oh, please ; not an English pen ; I should like your 
 signature in Chinese character." He readily complied 
 with my request. He spoke excellent English, but the 
 Marchioness spoke with difficulty. The children were 
 better able to express themselves. 
 
 Of one of our sleeping visitors a quaint tale may be 
 told. She was one of 6 sisters, the daughter of a Peer. 
 She had been, in days before I knew her, a very 
 attractive and pretty girl and no doubt for that reason 
 had had several offers of marriage, but she was only the 
 4th in age of the 6 sisters, and her father would not 
 consent to her marrying till her elder sisters had married ! 
 They never did go off, so the whole 6 lived and died 
 as spinsters, and were laid side by side in a Gloucester- 
 shire churchyard. Their ages at their deaths were 88, 
 86, 80, 73, 80 and 89. I knew them all, and a more 
 -charming group of old ladies I never did know. 
 
 During the summer of 1885, we saw a good deal of 
 a very typical representative of the French Noblesse, the 
 Marquis De Lasteyrie and his wife. They came to take 
 leave of us on Saturday, August 1, saying they were 
 going to cross to France on the following Monday. I told 
 him it was a bank holiday and after explaining to him 
 what that was, and what travelling on that day meant, 
 he said he should take my advice and postpone his 
 departure so as to avoid in some degree the holiday 
 crowds.
 
 60 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. V. 
 
 We had at one time or another some other foreign 
 visitors, including a German cavalry officer, Major Von 
 Heller and his wife, some other Germans, a Polish lady, 
 Countess Posadowsky, and a Danish lady, all of whom 
 added to our stock of knowledge in various degrees. 
 
 One does not seem often to meet Dutch people in 
 England, but in the summer of 1901, the Baroness De 
 Zuylen der Nyevelt, one of the Ladies-in- Waiting of the 
 Queen of Holland, had a house for some months in 
 Granville Road. Her visits to our house, bringing a 
 delightful little daughter, opened up new topics of 
 conversation for myself and my family. The little girl 
 much amused us by her account of the carriage she had 
 at home in Holland, drawn by 4 goats. 
 
 On many occasions during my residence at East- 
 Bourne, we were called upon to receive at our house, 
 visitors interesting for reasons astronomical, political or 
 ecclesiastical. The most distinguished astronomical 
 visitor certainly was Professor J. C. Adams of Cambridge, 
 the discoverer of the planet Neptune. It was also astro- 
 nomy which obtained for us, at the request of Sir Norman 
 Lockyer, F.R.S., the pleasure of the acquaintance of 
 Lord and Lady Edward Spencer Churchill, an acquain- 
 tance which I am glad to say abides. Astronomy like 
 poverty may be said to make strange bedfellows. On 
 one very busy afternoon when our house was turned 
 topsy-turvy to prepare for a large Shakespeare Reading, 
 there came a ring at the front-door followed by a 
 message brought to me by the parlourmaid " Please sir, 
 a gentleman wishes to see you." I said, " Who is he ? 
 and what does he want?" My servant said "He wont give 
 his name or say why he wants to see you." I replied 
 " Tell him, therefore, I wont see him." He went away in 
 a dudgeon. The next morning brought me a most 
 abusive letter to the effect that the writer was a Fellow 
 of the Royal Astronomical Society, knew me and my 
 books, was anxious to make my acquaintance and see 
 my observatory, and was surprised at my rudeness in 
 refusing to let him in. I replied, " Why did you not tell 
 my parlourmaid all this and you would have been
 
 CHAP. V.] Political Visitors. 61 
 
 admitted, in spite of the inconvenience of my being in the- 
 middle of great preparations for an entertainment which, 
 preparations were abundantly visible from the front- 
 door." I then invited him to call upon me and see what 
 he wished to see, and he proved by no means a 
 disagreeable visitor. 
 
 Oar political visitors for the day or the night, as the 
 case might be, included amongst others Mr. J. G. Talbot,. 
 M.P., Mr. T. Salt, M.P., Sir J. T. Hibbert, M.P., and 
 Lady Hibbert, the Earl and Countess of Meath, Lord 
 and Lady Colchester, Lord and Lady Stalbridge, Sir 
 Algernon and Lady Borthwick (afterwards Lord and Lady 
 Glenesk), Alderman Sir R. W. Garden, Mary, Dowager 
 Lady Lilford, and Mr. G. Drage, M.P., and his wife. 
 
 Mr. Talbot was interesting to me for the reason that 
 the first vote I ever recorded at a Parliamentary election 
 was for him and his colleague, Sir C. Mills (afterwards 
 Lord Hillingdon), at the West Kent election in 1868, 
 when both were returned. Mr. Talbot's after career as- 
 a Churchman is too well known to need any remark 
 here. Mr. Salt was M.P. for Stafford and Parliamentary 
 Secretary of the Local Government Board under Lord 
 Beaconsfield ; Sir J. Hibbert had previously occupied the 
 same position in the first Gladstone Government (1868 
 1874). He was afterwards Parliamentary Secretary of the 
 Treasury in the second Gladstone Government. When 
 Mr. Gladstone took office for the third time in 1886, 
 Hibbert hoped to have had his third official chance, but 
 the Prime Minister said that his faithful follower must 
 be content with a K.C.B., instead of 1500 a year. 
 Lord Meath has rendered, and still is rendering, valuable 
 service to the country as a social reformer, treading in 
 the steps of the great Lord Shaftesbury. Lady Meath 
 stayed twice with us, coming to speak at drawing-room 
 meetings on behalf of the Ministering Children's League, 
 founded by her. It was from her earlier name, when 
 Lady Brabazon, that that valuable scheme of " Brabazon 
 Working-parties " in workhouses received its name. On 
 several occasions the annual treats with which the 
 Brabazon Working-parties are wound up were held in
 
 62 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V. 
 
 our garden. July 14, 1898, July 19, 1899, and July 4, 
 1900, were three such, occasions. It was most interesting, 
 .and in some cases amusing, to see how the old people 
 enjoyed their outings. Some, however, preferred not to 
 have their earnings spent in the ordinary way of eating 
 and drinking. They found their greatest happiness in 
 fly drives round the town ! 
 
 Lord Colchester, as is mentioned elsewhere, was 
 many years ago a Conservative Candidate for East 
 Sussex, but it was to speak at a Primrose League Fete 
 that he stayed with us in 1887. This Fete, a great 
 success, was carried out partly on our lawn and partly 
 on the Manor House lawn. The tea-tables were erected 
 on our side of the road, whilst the speech-making and 
 the dancing took place on the other side under the kind 
 supervision of Mr. and Mrs. Davies Gilbert. 
 
 Lord Stalbridge's antecedents and present high 
 position need no amplification, but I am tempted to record 
 one thing he said to me on April 17, 1886, when he 
 and Lady Stalbridge were having tea at our house. As 
 Lord Richard Grosvenor, he had been one of Mr. 
 Gladstone's " whips " in the House of Commons, and 
 received a Peerage by way of reward. He said that one 
 of his reasons for accepting it was that he was glad to 
 be put out of touch with so many old associates in the 
 House of Commons with whom he had acted for so 
 many years, but with whom he could act no longer in 
 consequence of their having gone wrong on the subject 
 of Home Rule. 
 
 Lord Glenesk was the great journalist who had 
 bought and regenerated the Morning Post. I believe 
 that he had also had a hand in the departed Owl. 
 Probably most people who ever knew it have forgotten 
 the Owl, and the present generation never knew it. It 
 was a satirical sheet of 4 pages, published weekly at the 
 price of sixpence, which revealed many Cabinet and 
 Parliamentary secrets to the great alarm of old-fashioned 
 and proper people. Everybody wondered whence it 
 obtained its political and society gossip. I took it in 
 for a long time from its commencement in 1864, and
 
 CHAP. V.] Political Visitors. 63 
 
 have never ceased to regret that I did not preserve the 
 numbers on which I expended so many sixpences. In 
 addition to their intrinsic interest I expect they would 
 now have commanded a fancy price, but my set was not 
 quite complete, and that was the reason I did not 
 preserve it 
 
 Sir R. W. Garden was a Sheriff of London in 1850 ; 
 Lord Mayor in 1857 ; and M.P., first for Gloucester, and 
 afterwards for Barnstaple. During his mayoralty I was 
 often at the Mansion House, and so was able to realise 
 easily the abject slavery in which Lord Mayors of London 
 live during their year of office. The wife of the first 
 Incumbent of St. John's Church, Meads, was a daughter 
 of Sir R. W. Carden, and that was how he came into 
 touch with East-Bourne life during the " Seventies " and 
 " Eighties." He was afterwards one of the Jubilee 
 Baronets of 1887. 
 
 Lady Lilford was a frequent visitor to East-Bourne 
 during the later years of her life, and we saw a great 
 deal of her and of her children and grandchildren ; 
 she lent us her carriage on very many occasions when 
 we wanted to drive to distant places in or round East- 
 Bourne. When I mention the fact that she was the 
 daughter of the famous Lord Holland of Holland House, 
 not to forget the equally famous Lady Holland, it need 
 not be added that her conversations were always of the 
 deepest interest to my wife and myself, especially as my 
 wife's father was a first cousin of the 4th Earl of Ilchester, 
 whose descendant is the present owner of Holland House. 
 
 Colonel and Mrs. Arthur Wellesley (now Duke and 
 Duchess of Wellington) may be included amongst the 
 pleasant people whom we knew at East-Bourne ; and 
 Mrs. Leopold Scarlett, who lost a son in the Victoria and 
 whose eldest son is now Lord Abinger. 
 
 Another Political visitor to East-Bourne, whose 
 public career has been very interesting, is the present 
 Duke of Rutland, who as Marquis of Granby stayed at 
 the Albion in May 1889. He had originally been better 
 known as Mr. Henry Manners ("Lord Salisbury's 
 Manners ") and private secretary to Lord Salisbury. As
 
 64 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V. 
 
 such he presided over a great Conservative Meeting at 
 Leicester on June 3, 1885, which resulted in my being 
 invited to stand as M.P. for Leicester, but I eventually 
 declined to do so. On that occasion I made the longest 
 speech I ever did make, and one of which I shall cherish 
 the memory. A verbatim report of it, taken from the 
 Leicester Advertiser, was re-published in the Eastbourne 
 Review. 
 
 The only Musician of eminence I ever knew at 
 East-Bourne was the Rev. Sir F. A. Gore Ouseley, to 
 whom I was introduced at a St. Saviour's Choir School 
 Luncheon on January 30, 1883. Some 6 years later I 
 came upon him in his own home, St. Michael's College, 
 Tenbury, Worcestershire. Staying in the neighbourhood 
 on one of my Boundary Commission journeys I called 
 upon him, and by way of a treat (to myself) I asked him 
 to play me something on his organ, which he did, to my 
 infinite satisfaction, for a whole hour. When it was 
 over I asked him how many stops the organ had and he 
 said : " Sixty-one ; there is room for one more, and 
 that one I hope to put in some day." I confess that 
 I thought 61 was a sufficient number. He was an 
 enthusiast, and also a most genial and delightful man 
 This combination is not always met with. 
 
 Our Ecclesiastical visitors were not very numerous. 
 Bishop Durnford of Chichester, Bishop Mackarness of 
 Oxford, Mr. Beresford Hope, M.P., Earl Nelson, the Rev. 
 S. J. Stone and Canon Newbolt, were the chief, and 2 
 American bishops (over in 1897 for the Lambeth Con- 
 ference), the Bishops of New Hampshire and Colorado. 
 Bishop Durnford was a delightful person to have in one's 
 house ; so cheery and versatile in his tastes and con- 
 versation, but he never converted me to his doctrines as 
 to the merits of toadstools or other strange fungi as 
 articles of food. Earl Nelson's status as a famous 
 Churchman is well known. He came to us in November 
 1894, to speak at a great Town Hall meeting on behalf 
 of Church Elementary Schools. His anecdotes captivated 
 our children. Here are two. In a certain year (I think 
 1844) Lord Nelson went into the country to stay with a
 
 CHAP. V.] Ecclesiastical Visitors. 65 
 
 friend, who accosted him somewhat thus : " There will 
 be in church to-morrow [speaking on a Saturday] an old 
 lady who is very anxious to make your acquaintance. I 
 told her that I would introduce you to her ; and what do 
 you think she said ? ' Oh ! you need not do that ; I 
 shall be able to recognise his lordship easily ; I 
 remember that he has only one arm.' ' To think that 
 anybody could get so mixed in their ideas as to confuse 
 the personality of a man who died in 1805 with a man 
 living in 1844! By the way, it was 'about 1844 that 
 Lord Nelson became one of the Conservative " whips " in 
 the House of Lords. 
 
 The other story is also amusing in its way. On a 
 certain occasion Lord Nelson found himself the possessor 
 of a spurious sovereign. He put it, as he thought, into an 
 out-of-the-way corner of his waistcoat pocket, where it 
 would not get mixed up with other coins. He afterwards 
 hired a cab, and when the trip was over put his hand into 
 his pocket for the fare, one shilling. Forgetting all 
 about the bad sovereign, he pulled that out of his pocket, 
 and feeling the coin without looking at it, gave it to the 
 cabman as a shilling. Cabby drove off quite satisfied. 
 He had only got a little way when Lord Nelson discovered 
 that he had given the man the bad sovereign, so he 
 shouted after him to stop. Cabby heard the shout, 
 turned round and derisively nourished the coin in the 
 air. History has not recorded the cabman's feelings at 
 a later time in the day. 
 
 Mr. Beresford Hope came to stay with us for the 
 Diocesan Conference in 1881. It was soon after the 
 death of his wife, Lady Mildred Hope, Lord Salisbury's 
 sister, and he declined to enter into any of the social 
 gatherings in connection with the Conference, or do 
 aught else than attend the meetings and make the speech 
 which he had been invited to make. He brought with 
 him such a smart valet that I mistook the man at my 
 first interview with him for some distinguished member 
 of the Conference who was not personally known to me. 
 
 Another guest who stayed with us on that occasion 
 was the Hon. and Rev. G. W. Bourke, brother of Lord 
 F
 
 66 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V. 
 
 Mayo, the Governor-General of India who was assas- 
 sinated. Mr. Bourke, a man large in mind as well 
 as in body, proved a very pleasant visitor, and our 
 acquaintance with him and his wife (a daughter of 
 Archbishop Longley), was kept up till his death. An 
 amusing story attaches to a visit which my wife and I 
 paid some years later to their Rectory at Pul borough. 
 In order to make it understood I must submit a little 
 preface. In 1877, I was commissioned by Stanford the 
 Publisher to write a Guide-book for Sussex. For the 
 purpose of doing so, it was necessary for me to have 
 another opportunity of seeing Lord Zouche's house at 
 Parham, which I had not visited for some years and 
 which was let to an Australian wool dealer named 
 Newton. Accordingly I wrote to Mr. Newton to ask him 
 kindly to name a day when I might pay his house (not 
 him) a visit. I received in reply a curt and rude 
 refusal. As the opportunity of inspecting Parham was 
 important for the purposes of my book, I renewed my 
 request in obsequious language only to receive in reply 
 a still more offensive refusal. Nothing daunted, I went 
 to the owner Lord Zouche in London to seek his friendly 
 intervention which was promptly and willingly given, 
 but all in vain. Wool would have nothing to do with 
 literature. Now comes in the Bourke part of the tale. 
 Lunching at Pulborough Rectory on October 6, 1883, 
 Mr. Bourke said, " Would you like a drive anywhere ? " 
 My reply was prompt and decisive, " Let us go and see 
 Parham." I told him of my previous failures to get 
 inside there and he said " All right, we will go. They 
 are always very coming to any visitors we take over.'* 
 I may sum up the result in Caesar's words " Veni, Vidi, 
 Vici ! " We were received with the utmost effusiveness, 
 and my wife and I were sent all over the house under 
 the escort of Miss Wool, after which we had tea with 
 Mrs. Wool. Just as we were preparing to depart, Mr. 
 Wool arrived from London. I only hope that he 
 remembered my name and his churlish letters of 1877. 
 
 Mr. Bourke gave me an interesting reminiscence of 
 the Empress Frederick. He was staying at Homburg,
 
 CHAP. V.] Ecclesiastical Visitors. 67 
 
 .and the Empress sent for him on September 1, 1894, and 
 in course of conversation quoted the following lines : 
 
 " Let us speak of a man as we find him 
 " And censure alone what we see ; 
 
 " Should anyone blaine, lets remind him 
 " That from faults we are none of us free." 
 
 Her Majesty afterwards sent Mr. Bourke a transcript of 
 the lines in her own handwriting, and he gave me a copy 
 of them. 
 
 The Rev. S. J. Stone was the author of the well- 
 known hymn " The Church's one Foundation." His 
 father was at one time Vicar of Alfriston. I paid him a 
 return visit at his Vicarage at Haggerston on April 19, 
 1887, spending the night there to give his parishioners 
 a lecture on Church History. It was my first introduction 
 to an East London audience, and a queer audience it was, 
 but they listened to me. 
 
 The 2 American Bishops added largely to our 
 knowledge of Church affairs on the other side of the 
 Atlantic, and by a singular coincidence it turned out 
 that the Bishop of Colorado's Chief Accountant for 
 Church Finance was a nephew of my wife's who had 
 emigrated to the States some years previously. 
 
 I must find a place for a very 'interesting French 
 lady who I knew very well and who lived many years at 
 East-Bourne, Mdlle. Angeline Maugery. I do not know 
 who brought her to East-Bourne, or why she came to 
 this town rather than to any other town, but, born a 
 Roman Catholic, she became for conscience sake a 
 Protestant, and was so persecuted by her family that she 
 resolved to quit France and come to live in England. 
 This was in about the year 1849. My aunts took her up, 
 helped her to find pupils, and when she became too old 
 to teach raised a fund for her support. She died in the 
 "Eighties." I was one of her pupils in 1851, and I well 
 remember the interest she evoked in my mind by her 
 patient coaching of me in that thrilling work Racine's 
 Athalie. The house where this happened was No. 14 
 High Street now occupied by Mr. S. Hart, and enlarged.
 
 68 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. V. 
 
 A visitor to East-Bourne in 1897, and indeed in 
 other years, was a lady who, I suppose, was the only one 
 of her rank who ever won, with her husband, the 
 celebrated Dunmow Flitch. It was only after the death 
 of her husband who was a Peer, that we made her 
 acquaintance, but their success, I imagine, stands 
 without precedent in the annals of Dunmow. Some 
 time previously to 1897 I had stayed with her at her 
 own home in Worcestershire where she perpetuates to 
 visitors the recollection of her triumph by an imitation 
 Flitch of Bacon in waxwork, protected by a glass case. 
 I may as well add that this house, because it contains 
 art treasures of immense value, has a night watchman 
 who goes round outside and calls out the hours and the 
 weather. I remember when I was there on January 21 r 
 1895, I heard the 2 following calls : " Past 12 o'clock 
 Starlight Night," and then "Past one o'clock Snowy 
 Night." They were strange weird sounds in the tones 
 
 in vogue. 
 
 vi musng xrmpmffiiss 
 
 tarcblj fttl xlcmt."Sir W. Scott.
 
 Plate XXV. 
 
 To face p. 69. 
 
 Figs. 47-49. 
 
 TOWER No. 71, 
 
 Battered by Armstrong Guns, 
 
 August, 1860. 
 
 G. 4" A*. Lavis, Kast-Boitnte. Copyright. 
 
 OFFICERS OF 2nd SUSSEX ARTILLERY VOLUNTEERS. 
 INTERIOR OF GREAT REDOUBT
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 MILITARY AND NAVAL EPISODES. 
 
 " |jt fast tiring faitom ^fnmjtt anir (Snglaair is 
 i|re &%." (DOUGLAS JEKEOLD). 
 
 The Author's interest in military matters. Volunteers in 1804. 
 Anecdote of the first Duke of Cambridge. Troops quartered at East- Bourne 
 during the Crimean War. Sussex Artillery Militia. Norfolk Artillery 
 Militia. The De La Warr Family. The Modern Volunteer Movement. 
 The East-Bourne Rifles. The Sussex Artillery Volunteers. The Sussex 
 Engineer Volunteers. Camps at Sheffield Park and elsewhere. The Earl of 
 Sheffield. Anecdote of the Duke of Norfolk. Easter Monday Reviews. 
 Detachments of Engineers sent to South Africa. Visits of the second Duke 
 of Cambridge for Artillery Experiments Anthony's Hill. Lord Wolseley.< 
 The Earl of Dundonald. " Old Boney." Jubilee of George III. Wreck of 
 the Mayflower, in 1849. Loss af the Dalhousie. Wreck of the Gannet in 
 1882. Boulder-boats Naval Reviews at Portsmouth. 
 
 ONE thing distinguished my boyhood from that of 
 many other boys I had no near relations in the 
 Army, the nearest being a cousin, Sir E. Walter, 
 who was a Captain in the 8th Hussars, and who after- 
 wards founded that very useful body the Corps of 
 Commissionaires. Like most boys, I suppose, soldiers 
 and soldiering had a great attraction for me, both in the 
 matter of military spectacles and books, the events in the 
 lives of Napoleon and Wellington especially having been 
 my constant study down to the present time. 
 
 As I have never seen in print the following 
 information I think I am justified in giving it here, 
 premising that I owe the materials for doing so to Mr. 
 Morris of Seaside Road. 
 
 In the year 1804 there existed near East-Bourne two 
 companies of infantry, respectively called the " Hailsham 
 and Hellingly " Company and the " South Pevensey " 
 Company. The former, under Captain W. Long, com- 
 prised 5 sergeants, 6 corporals, 1 drummer, and 52 
 privates, and there is still in existence a certificate
 
 70 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 signed by the inspecting field-officer, Lt.-Col. Booth, 
 that he had inspected them on April 3, 1804. The 
 rates of pay were : sergeants, Is. 6d. ; corporals, Is. 2d. ; 
 drummers and privates, Is. per day. The South 
 Pevensey Company appears to have been under the same 
 Captain Long. The parade state on Inspection Day, 
 Feb. 23, 1804, was 1 captain, 2 lieutenants, 1 ensign 
 (sick), 5 sergeants, 6 corporals, 1 drummer and 55 
 privates. The Lieutenants were Henry Freeman and 
 William Lambert, and the ensign Edward Long. The 
 statement of the arms and ammunition in store mentions 
 80 muskets and 437 " flints." 
 
 About 3 years later, there is a return relating to an 
 East-Bourne Company, commanded by Captain Edward 
 Auger. This return, dated May 31, 1807, deals not 
 with men but with stores. The stores enumerated are 
 as follows : muskets, bayonets, ramrods, pikes, side-arm 
 belts, musket slings, pouches, pouch-belts, scabbards 
 (sic), arm-chest, drums, drum-caves, drum-sticks, drum- 
 carriages, drummers' swords. The mention above of 
 " pikes " and " flints " is interesting in the light of the 
 year 1910. The Captain Auger named was either the 
 owner or the son of the owner of The Gore, which was 
 sold soon afterwards to Dr. Brodie. 
 
 The first military show which I remember was 
 Queen Victoria's birthday parade at the Horse Guards 
 in 1 850. It was specially fixed in iny memory by reason 
 of the fact that as I was only 9 years old, I was therefore 
 not able to see over the crowd, despite the best efforts of 
 my father to give me a chance. We happened to find 
 ourselves close alongside the carriage of the first Duke 
 of Cambridge, son of George III. and father of the Duke 
 well-known to the present generation as the Commander- 
 in-Chief. Noticing the fact that I could see little or 
 nothing, the kind old man beckoned to my father to lift 
 me into the royal carriage where, of course, I saw 
 everything, and studied most admiringly H.R.H.'s 
 gorgeous uniform. 
 
 Passing over the large and important camps which 
 were established at and around East-Bourne during the
 
 CHAP. VI.] Military Episodes. 71 
 
 great Napoleonic wars, as beyond the scope of my 
 personal knowledge, the modern military history of the 
 place begins for me with 1853, and the only thing 
 antecedent to that which I will refer to is the following 
 matter : Between 1815 and 1855, though of course I 
 can only speak personally of the latest years of that 
 period, there was maintained at East-Bourne a slight 
 make-believe of military show by the occupation of the 
 house now known as " Government House " (between 
 157 and 159 Seaside) as the residence of some elderly 
 officer representing the War Office, and the occupation 
 of the Great Redoubt and some of the other towers and 
 Langney Fort by a handful of decrepit artillerymen. 
 These men were long under the command of a certain 
 Sergeant Glass, who, when he became too old for the 
 service of his country in a military capacity, was thought 
 to be good enough to perform the duty of Inspector of 
 Nuisances under the Local Board. 
 
 In 1853, when the first ominous signs of the coming 
 Crimean War were showing themselves, 2 "Companies" 
 (as they were then called) of Foot Artillery, consisting of 
 4 Officers and about 140 men each, were sent to 
 East-Bourne and quartered in the Great Redoubt and 
 elsewhere. One of the Officers was a Mr. Phelips, a 
 member of the Phelips Family who are still the owners 
 of the celebrated and beautiful Jacobean Mansion of 
 Montacute in Somersetshire, which I had an opportunity 
 of seeing in 1870, when staying with friends in the 
 neighbourhood. From the time that the troops came to 
 East-Bourne and onwards till about 1858 there were 
 always a certain number of Royal Artillery a quartered at 
 East-Bourne, and as they were changed at not very long 
 intervals a considerable number of men, in all, must have 
 passed through the town. On Christmas Days my grand- 
 mother always asked the young bachelor Officers to dinner. 
 During the stress of the Crimean War the regular forces 
 were strengthened, or replaced, by the Sussex Artillery 
 
 (a) Of the Officers whose names I remember Major Clifford, Capt. Boothby and 
 Lieuts. Tatton Brown, Phelips and Wortham went out to the Crimea. Amongst the 
 other Officers were Capts. Leslie and O'Connell, Lieuts. Bolton, Peirce and Young. 
 O'Connell was a nephew of the great Irish " Liberator."
 
 72 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 Militia and the Norfolk Artillery Militia. Passing over 
 the former, who were commanded by Colonel Penrice, it 
 may be interesting to recall the names of the Officers 
 belonging to the latter ; and an examination of the 
 places with which they were connected will make it 
 clear that the spirit of Mr. Haldane's Territorial System 
 is in certain respects neither new nor unprecedented. 
 
 Lieut.-Col. Commandant, G. Carr-Lloyd (Lancing) ; 
 Major, C. M. Chester ; Captains, R. Wetherall, F. Moor, 
 Sir J. Si D. Scott, Hon. W. E. Sackville-West (Withyham), 
 W. A. St. Glair (East Grinstead) ; Lieuts., W. W. M. 
 Walker, H. D. C. Cole (East-Bourne), F. Barcharcl (Horsted), 
 H. Molineux (Lewes), J. H. Sadler ; Second Lieuts., 
 H. L. Nicholson (Lewes), M. M. Turner, G. E. Clarke 
 (East Grinstead), F. W. Jones, J. Darby (Markly) ; 
 Adjutant, Capt. H. T. Settle ; Surgeons, T. Newham, 
 H. (jr. Philpott. More than those indicated above were 
 connected with the Coiinty of Sussex but I am unable to 
 assign localities to them. 
 
 Concerning these officers it may be remarked that 
 Colonel Carr-Lloyd had served in the Rifle Brigade, 
 and was connected with the Brighton banking firm of 
 Hall, Lloyd, Bevan and West, since merged in Barclay & 
 Co. Capt. St. Clair was not very much seen at 
 East-Bourne, because during most of the time under 
 consideration his company was quartered at Little- 
 hamptoii. Some years later he became Lieut.-Col. 
 Commandant of the regiment. Captain Sackville-West 
 was the youngest son of the 5th Earl De La Warr and, 
 therefore, brother of the 6th Earl and father of the 
 present Lord Sackville. He died as recently as 1908, 
 before his brother, and therefore never succeeded to the 
 peerage. Major Hayes-Sadler left the Militia and 
 entered the Consular Service and died as recently as 
 1909, after having been made a K.C.M.G. Sir Sibbald 
 Scott of Dunninald was the 3rd baronet and father of 
 the present baronet of that creation. He had a large 
 family of children who contributed to enliven the East- 
 Bourne society of the period. One daughter was known 
 among her associates as " Budge."
 
 CHAP. VI.] Crimean Days. 73 
 
 Whilst their son was at East-Bourne, the Earl and 
 Countess De La Warr stayed for some time in the town. 
 Her ladyship's walking-out costume rendered her 
 somewhat remarkable to look at. The De La Warr 
 family have often attracted notice for unconventional 
 conduct. In 1853, the first-born of the family of that 
 generation, Viscount Cantelupe, was dead, and the next 
 heir was the second son, who bore the title of Lord West. 
 He served in the Crimea and commanded the 21st Foot. 
 I remember him giving evidence before a Parliamentary 
 Committee in favour of the Three Bridges and East 
 Grinstead Railway. The next brother and heir to the 
 peerage, Reginald W r . Sackville-West, was a Sussex 
 clergyman of very extreme High Church views and 
 costumed accordingly. Eventually he succeeded to the 
 Earldom and gave up his clerical costume, becoming a 
 country squire much given to hospitality of very select 
 sort at Buckhurst Park. Kings and Princes were his 
 most appreciated guests there, though he kindly invited 
 my wife and me to go over there one afternoon from 
 East Grinstead which we did on August 7, 1883. A visit 
 of the King of Wurtemburg in 1853, is commemorated 
 in Withyham Church by a painted window. By the 
 way, there is in that same Church another painted 
 window of great interest to people of an heraldic turn 
 of mind, commemorating as it does, 28 Sackville 
 marriages since the Conquest, with the armorial bearings 
 of the parties. The more modern history of the family 
 and their curious internecine peerage fights would be 
 outside the purview of these pages. 
 
 Concerning the other officers there is nothing much 
 to remark. One of the surgeons, Mr. Newham, rendered 
 great service by his kindness during the dangerous 
 illness of a member of my own family. It may be added, 
 though it goes without saying, that the Regimental Band 
 was very popular with the town-people. The officers 
 gave a Ball on Wednesday, July 18, 1855, which was 
 attended by the rank and fashion of the town and 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 The military history of East-Bourne subsequently
 
 74 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 to the Crimean War presents a few (but not many) points 
 of interest. A rifle range was established on the 
 " Crumbles " to the E. of the town, and parties of 
 Guards and Infantry of the Line came down every 
 summer for many years for rifle practice, changing 
 every few weeks. 
 
 The Volunteer Movement of 1859 was taken up in 
 due course at East-Bourne and a rifle company, which 
 became the 19th Sussex, was formed, and reached a 
 strength of about 70 officers and men. With much 
 ceremonial a silver bugle was presented to the Corps on 
 August 15, 1861, but the Corps did not have either a 
 long or prosperous career. The Commanding Officer was 
 Captain Frederick Freeman Thomas, the Squire of 
 Ration, who had been in the Rifle Brigade. Owing to 
 his ill-health he was never able to give as much personal 
 attention to the Corps as was desirable, and the effective 
 command fell into the hands of 2 junior officers, neither 
 of whom was sufficiently gifted for his work, and 
 eventually the Corps was disbanded for insubordination. 
 The insubordination was of a somewhat venial character 
 from a civilian's point of view, but, of course, discipline 
 had to be upheld. Attempts were made to start a new 
 Corps, using up the best of the old members, but the 
 effort was not carried through although the War Office 
 gave some encouragement to it. Eventually a few of 
 the best men were permitted to join the 3rd Sussex 
 Artillery Volunteers about to be mentioned, and whose 
 Head-Quarters were at Hailsham. The bugle above 
 alluded to is still in East-Bourne, In the possession of 
 Mr. T. Bennett. When the Corps was disbanded it had 
 a balance to its credit of 40, which, after many years'" 
 delay and a tremendous expenditure of red-tape, reached 1 
 the coffers of the Volunteer Corps now to be dealt with. 
 
 It was very soon after the Volunteer Movement 
 began that Mr. G. Darby, the ex-M.P. and of many other 
 useful vocations, conceived the idea that as Sussex wa& 
 a seaboard county it needed an Artillery Volunteer force 
 quite as much as Rifles. He thought too that they should 
 be Field Artillery. His personal influence soon enabled
 
 CHAP. VI.] The Volunteer Movement. 75- 
 
 him to succeed in forming the 3rd Sussex Artillery- 
 Volunteers with their Head-Quarters at Hailsham ; and 
 he was also able, owing to his influence with the farmers 
 of the neighbourhood, to obtain the promise of assistance 
 in the way of horses for horsing the guns of his Corps. 
 This last-named matter was an entirely new departure 
 in the Volunteer Movement, and the experiment was 
 viewed with considerable interest by the War Office. 
 At a later date an Artillery Battery was formed at 
 East-Bourne in connection with Captain Darby's Corps, 
 and at his death in 1877 the Head-Quarters were moved 
 from Hailsham to East-Bourne and became the 2nd 
 Sussex Artillery under Colonel Cardwell, a nephew of 
 the former head of the War Office who made the well- 
 known great changes in the British military system. 
 
 Just as Mr. Darby thought that the seaboard of 
 Sussex needed an Artillery Volunteer Force, so I, for the 
 same reason, thought it needed an Engineer Force ; and 
 I convened, in 1888, some meetings for the purpose of 
 forming one. The artizans of East-Bourne responded 
 promptly and nobly, and as the result of a lecture I gave 
 at St. Mary's Hall, Old Town, on April 17, 1889, I soon 
 collected 160 candidates to fill up the first company of 
 100 men in the 1st Sussex Engineers. However, the 
 movement hung fire for many months owing to the 
 difficulty of getting Officers. The War Office very 
 strongly pressed me to accept the command, but I 
 thought that owing to my age (47) and for other reasons, 
 I was not good enough for the post. Yet, had I foreseen 
 certain subsequent events and difficulties, 1 should 
 certainly have consented to serve as Captain Com- 
 mandant. At last a very capable 1st lieutenant offered 
 his services in the person of Mr. A. A. Oakden, now 
 Lieut.-Colonel commanding the Sussex Engineers under 
 Mr. Haldane's scheme, and right well has he stuck to his 
 work during the 20 and more years that have elapsed. 
 The regiment grew from 1 company to 2 ; from 2 
 companies to 4 ; and then from 4 companies to 12, and 
 during the South African War mustered over 1100 
 members on an establishment of about 30 officers and
 
 76 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 1200 men. On the inspection day, August 25, 1900, no 
 fewer than 876 officers and men were in camp. Of 
 course these were not all East-Bourne men, the towns 
 of Brighton, NeAvhaven, Seaford, Bexhill, and Hastings 
 having joined in the movement. The War Office lent us 
 the Great Redoubt at East-Bourne as our first Head- 
 Quarters, and we took it over on April 21, 1890. I look 
 back on our various camps at Sheffield Park, Rye, 
 Shorncliffe and Arundel with the greatest possible 
 pleasure ; on Sheffield Park especially, because the late 
 Lord Sheffield, who was our Honorary Colonel, took 
 much pains during many years to make things pleasant 
 for us. I could write what, I think, would be a very 
 interesting account of our camps at Sheffield Park, one 
 of which, that of 1900, extended over 4 weeks ; but it 
 would occupy too much space in this volume which 
 has already grown far beyond its intended original 
 dimensions. 
 
 I cannot, however, forbear from giving 2 anecdotes. 
 To understand the point of the first it must be mentioned 
 that the late Lord Sheffield was a very shy, retiring man, 
 whom it was very difficult to draw out into public gaze. 
 One day when we were in camp (I forget the year) he 
 sent for me to inquire whether we could throw a 
 military bridge over his lake. I replied that so far as 
 construction was concerned there would be no difficulty, 
 Tnit that the economical War Office only supplied us 
 with bridging materials sufficient for the length of 50 ft., 
 whilst the breadth of the lake must be nearly 200 ft. He 
 thereupon said, " If I find the materials will your fellows 
 build the bridge ? " To this I replied in the affirmative. 
 His Lordship instructed his Agent to scour the country 
 and collect as many oil casks and planks as possible. This 
 was successfully done and the bridge was built, 180 ft. 
 long. Lord Sheffield was so delighted that he allowed 
 himself to be photographed standing alone on the bridge 
 as if " monarch of all he surveyed." His Agent, Mr. 
 Colgate, afterwards told me that it was a great proof of his 
 Lordship's satisfaction that he had allowed himself to be 
 photographed, for, he added, " I have never known him
 
 CHAP. VI.] The Volunteer Movement. 77 
 
 give his consent under any circumstances to be photo- 
 graphed." 
 
 My other anecdote concerns His Grace of Norfolk,, 
 one of the most thorough soldiers and most genial of 
 men I have ever known. It was customary for Officers 
 in camp at Sheffield Park to hire wooden floor-boards as- 
 floors for their tents. As Quartermaster it was my duty 
 to see that the Officers of the 1st Sussex Engineers were 
 so provided by hiring wooden floors from the Army and 
 Navy Stores. At the opening of a certain camp our 
 floor-boards had not arrived, so I went after the A. & N. 
 foreman to complain. He offered the usual apologies, 
 said, of course, that it was the Railway Company that 
 was to blame, but added " There is a set of boards tying 
 against a tree in the 2nd Sussex Lines opposite the Duke 
 of Norfolk's tent. If he does not want them you can 
 have them." Forthwith I sought out and found the 
 Duke, and asked very humbly if I might annex the 
 floor-boards alluded to. He replied in a very friendly, 
 insulting, military, sybarite, and emphatic tone, " No sir, 
 I am not going to use them. You want them? You 
 ought to be ashamed of such effeminacy. Look at my 
 tent floor : grass, sir ! grass ! quite good enough for me : 
 quite good enough for you ! " Nothing daunted by this 
 patriotic explosion, and with no scruples of conscience, I 
 directed my men to march off with the floor-boards in 
 triumph, and they were safely laid down in my tent. 
 The whole consignment of floor-boards arrived from. 
 London a few hours later. 
 
 Before quitting the subject of Sheffield Park I must 
 not omit a passing mention of Lord Sheffield's special 
 military gatherings there. On several occasions he 
 invited all the Volunteers of Sussex to assemble there 
 for Reviews, paying all their travelling and other 
 expenses, feeding them when there, the Officers having 
 champagne luncheons and the men humbler fare. Such 
 gatherings took place on July 21, 1894, July 27, 1895, 
 May 11, 1896. On the last-named occasion the late King, 
 then Prince of Wales, was present. Another such fete 
 took place on July 6, with fireworks in the evening.
 
 78 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 Easter Monday Volunteer Reviews of the original 
 sort are now a thing of the past ; they began at Brighton 
 and in early days took a very picnic shape. The first 
 Easter Monday Review held at East-Bourne was on 
 April 11, 1887. There was another review on April 2, 
 1888 ; then not another till 1890. In 1891, there was 
 one on a limited scale, the troops assembled comprising 
 only a Surrey Regiment and the Sussex Engineers. In 
 
 1893, however, there was a large gathering, and the 
 operations covered a considerable extent of ground. In 
 
 1894, there was again only a limited force for the day's 
 work operations by the Engineers on the Downs 
 through East Dean and as far as Birling Gap. I reckoned 
 that I walked on that day 14 miles, though at no time 
 was I more than about 3 miles away from home. The 
 proceedings ended in an unusual scene. We had provided 
 food for a much larger number of men than actually 
 appeared on parade ; this was because of the known 
 impossibility of making good any shortage, if there had 
 been one, in a village which had practically no shops. 
 At the end of the day, therefore, when, as Quartermaster, 
 I found myself in the possession of a large surplus of 
 eatables, I sold it off to the villagers, who proved eager 
 to buy such dainties as Melton Mowbray pork pies, etc., 
 at so much a dozen. In 1897 we Engineers only, took 
 train to Polegate and marched to Alfriston. My own 
 last Easter Monday military duties were performed in 
 1902, on the Downs immediately contiguous to Jevington. 
 The autumn of that year saw me gazetted out of the 
 Volunteer Force as too old and decrepit. This rebuff was 
 the outcome of red-tape at the War Office without even 
 the knowledge or consent of my Commanding Officer. 
 Subsequently, in consequence of his remonstrances, the 
 Gazette notice was cancelled, and another one substituted, 
 in language which at least was respectful, and which 
 at the same time conferred on me a step in rank. 
 
 The South African War gave rise to certain 
 incidents connected with the 1st Sussex Engineers which 
 are of sufficient interest to deserve record in these pages, 
 the more so as I suppose that nobody but myself
 
 HAP. VI.] The South African War. 79 
 
 possesses the requisite materials for framing the record. 
 When our difficulties in Africa became acute, Volunteers 
 to make up a section of one Officer and 25 men were 
 called for, and were quickly forthcoming, the number of 
 applicants, namely 70, being far in excess of the 
 number required. Lieut. Heley was accepted for the 
 command, and a picked body of men was easily made 
 up, comprising one Sergeant, three Corporals and 21 
 .Sappers. East-Bourne supplied 17, Newhaven 5, and 
 Seaford 4, each man representative of some particular 
 trade. In addition to the stores and equipment 
 provided by the Government, the ladies of East-Bourne 
 contributed large quantities of creature comforts of 
 every kind. When these were sorted out, it was found 
 that there was a deficiency of shirts, woollen helmets, 
 portable foods and stationery. These deficiencies were, 
 however, afterwards made good. On January 26, a 
 dinner in honour of the Volunteers was given at the Queen's 
 Hotel at which 170 sat down, the Mayor (Mr. H. W. Keay) 
 in the chair. On Sunday February 4, 1900, the men 
 .assembled at St. Saviour's Church for a farewell service, 
 but they did not actually quit East-Bourne until 
 Saturday, February 17. They went in the first instance 
 to Chatham for some final technical training, and 
 embarked at Southampton in the Tintagel Castle on 
 March 10. Of course I went to see them off and 
 inspected their quarters on board ship. They were very 
 pinched in their sleeping accommodation, as was to be 
 expected. The Duke of Norfolk went out in the 
 :same ship in command of a detachment of his own 
 Corps, the 2nd Sussex Rifles. This Engineer section 
 returned in May 1901, arriving at East-Bourne on 
 May 16, and on May 19, assembled again at St. 
 Saviour's Church for a Thanksgiving Service to cele- 
 brate their return. 
 
 On March 30, 1901, a second detachment left East- 
 Bourne for South Africa under the command of Lieut. 
 F. R. Paramor. The numbers and the details of the 
 arrangements were very much the same as in the former 
 case and need not be repeated.
 
 80 Old Memories of Eastbourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 The surviving members of both detachments were 
 brought to the Devonshire Park on November 23, 1901, 
 to receive their South African medals, which were 
 distributed by the late Duke of Devonshire. 
 
 I have left to the last some account of 2 Royal visits 
 with military objects in view which must receive a brief 
 notice. In August 1860, a trial was made of some of 
 the then newly-invented Armstrong guns by testing their 
 powers against one of the Martello Towers (No. 71) 
 which had become untenantable owing to the encroach- 
 ment of the sea. The guns were mounted on the slope 
 of Anthony's Hill, now, by building operations, quite a 
 near suburb of East-Bourne. The guns were 3 in 
 number : a 100-pounder, an 80-pounder, and a 40- 
 pounder. The range was 1000 yards. The visitors 
 who came to witness the experiments included the Duke 
 of Cambridge, Field-Marshal Sir John Burgoyne, and 
 the inventor of the guns, Sir William (afterwards Lord) 
 Armstrong. The experiments were so far successful 
 that by repeated shots the tower was seriously injured, 
 but not beyond repair, and I fancy it was a surprise to 
 the Officers present that the masonry proved so well able 
 to withstand the shots which struck it. It spoke much 
 for the quality of the work put into the towers 56 years 
 previously, and showed that against the smaller and 
 smooth-bore guns of the time the towers would have 
 been of undoubted value to bar the approach of the 
 French. 
 
 On August 31, 1874, the Duke of Cambridge again 
 came to East-Bourne for some other Artillery experiments 
 at Anthony's Hill, and I was called upon to comply with 
 his request to be allowed to follow some of the shots 
 through a 4-inch astronomical telescope which I had 
 conveyed to the scene of the operations. 
 
 There were also Artillery experiments in 1876, at 
 Langney on October 23, and at the Great Redoubt on 
 November 3. I regret not to have preserved any notes 
 or newspaper cuttings on these later events, and my 
 Diary contains nothing more than a mention of the bare 
 facts just stated.
 
 CHAP. VI.] Military Episodes. 81 
 
 Writing to me under date of December 9, 1873, 
 Mr. F. W. H. Cavendish remarked, " A very old man, 
 who recollects the Martello Tower being built, tells me 
 that where Anthony's Tower stands was always known 
 as the * Hill Field,' and was much the same as it is now. 
 The old man's name is Morris." This allusion to 
 Anthony's Hill had reference to a question which had 
 been raised as to whether that hill was a natural or an 
 artificial mound. 
 
 The only famous military commander I ever knew 
 at East-Bourne was Lord Napier of Magdala. He with 
 his wife and children had a house in College Road for 
 some months in 1883. He was a singularly quiet and 
 unassuming man to talk to. I well remember an 
 interview with him on February 3 of that year. 
 
 Not at East-Bourne, but at Groombridge Place, near 
 Tunbridge Wells, I once met Lord Wolseley. He was 
 calling there, I think by appointment, to see that 
 interesting old Jacobean House ; I dropped in by chance 
 to get some tea. His conversation turned on various 
 non-military topics, including the merits of port wine as 
 a drink. I never met him during his sojourn at Glynde 
 some years later, though I had on one occasion to 
 propose a vote of thanks to his daughter for giving away 
 the prizes at the Lewes School of Art. 
 
 The last time I visited the battle-field of Waterloo, 
 which was in 1897, I brought away from Hougomont, a 
 pocketfull of horse chestnuts. These were planted in 
 my garden at East-Bourne, and several developed into 
 healthy trees ; one of these, transplanted to Sydenham, is 
 now (1910) 12ft. high. 
 
 A Cavalry Officer who, as Earl of Dundonald, 
 acquired great fame in the South African War came to 
 East-Bourne on April 6, 1882, only as Lord Cochrane, 
 and Chairman of a public Company. The Company was 
 that formed to work a certain patent called Shone's 
 Ejector for lifting sewage from a low to a higher level. 
 The system was adopted by the East-Bourne Local Board 
 and it was as a member of that body I suppose that the 
 Company invited me to their luncheon at the Queen's 
 Hotel, on the date above-named. 
 G
 
 82 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. VI. 
 
 Probably East-Bourne numbered amongst its inhabit- 
 ants 50 years ago survivors, naval or military, of the Great 
 War, though I do not recollect them. I do, however, 
 remember often having heard from the lips of an old 
 family servant, who died at The Gore in 1856, at the age 
 of 86, many tales of the alarm inspired amongst the 
 previous generation by the Emperor Napoleon I., whose 
 colloquial name was always, she said, " Old Boney," 
 which name was used in terrorem over naughty children ; 
 never, of course, over me, because I was what was called 
 " a good boy." 
 
 One old veteran of the Napoleonic Wars who lived 
 at East-Bourne was Benjamin Elliott, who died at Seaside 
 on February 4, 1876. His tombstone at the Cemetery 
 bears the following inscription : 
 
 " In affectionate remembrance of Benjamin Elliott, former- 
 ly 95th Regiment (The Rifles). Died February 4, 1876, aged 91. 
 He was present at the following battles Roleia (1808), Vimiera, 
 Corunna, Almeida, Busaco, Fuentes de Honor, Badajoz, 
 Albuera, Barrosa, Pyrenees, Pampaluna, St. Sebastian, Nivelle, 
 Orthez, Toulouse, Quatre Bras, Waterloo. 
 
 ' I have fought the good fight, 
 
 ' I have finished my course. 
 
 1 1 have kept the faith, " 
 
 The spelling of some of these names is not correct. 
 
 I may here add that in August 1863, I met on 
 Ryde Pier an old Trafalgar sailor with whom I had 
 many talks, both nautical and religious ; for somebody 
 had got hold of him shortly before, and he professed to 
 be a Roman Catholic. 
 
 Just before my grandfather's appointment to the 
 living of East-Bourne, or to be quite precise, in the month 
 of October 1809, the Jubilee of George III. was 
 celebrated. East-Bourne contributed according to its 
 means to this interesting national event, and some years 
 ago I came upon the following account of what was done 
 here : 
 
 "The visitors and inhabitants of this fashionable watering-place anxious to show 
 their loyalty and attachment to our most gracious and beloved Sovereign, celebrated his 
 accession to the throne in a most distinguished and spirited manner. The Royal 
 Artillery and Royal Surrey and Shropshire regiments mustered at one o'clock in a field 
 near the Sea Houses and fired a feu-de-joie which was answered by the Martello Towers 
 along the coast, beginning at Beachy Head and ending at Hastings. Two hundred and 
 seventy woTnen and children belonging to the Shropshire were feasted in the barrack 
 square with roast beef and plum pudding, the band of the Shropshire playing ' God 
 Save the King.' The Lodge of Druids assembled together to dine at the King's Arms 
 and in the evening the Shropshire and Surrey officers and a numerous party dined and 
 concluded the day with a ball."
 
 CHAP. VI.] Naval Episodes. 83 
 
 The remaining years of the great European War, 
 which terminated in 1815 with the crowning victory of 
 Waterloo, do not appear to have left any particular 
 impress upon the history of our parish. I may, however, 
 mention the fact that the Allied Sovereigns, the Emperor 
 of Russia and the King of Prussia, on the occasion of 
 their visit to England as the guests of the Prince 
 Regent, passed very near East-Bourne in travelling from. 
 Portsmouth to Dover, for they halted in the middle of 
 the day near Hailsham and lunched at the Amberstone 
 Farm. a 
 
 Though the heading of this chapter includes Naval 
 episodes, there is not very much for me to say of things 
 naval directly connected with East-Bourne. I remember 
 one day in the summer of 1849 (I think that was the 
 year), going down to the sea-front and seeing a ship 
 named the Mayflower with her sails set and apparently 
 pursuing a voyage. As a matter of fact, she had sprung 
 a, leak, and after getting only a little way Westwards to 
 nearly opposite to where the Pier was afterwards erected, 
 she sank in shallow water. Her cargo being blocks of 
 granite, rendered salvage virtually impossible, and she 
 became a total wreck. The hull remained visible for a 
 long time ; in fact, the lowermost part of it could be seen 
 at very low water for a great many years, and traces of 
 it may be seen now, covered with seaweed and marine 
 incrustation. 
 
 On October 19, 1853, a very disastrous wreck 
 occurred off Beachy Head. In a very severe gale, a 
 large ship the Dalhousie of 800 tons was overwhelmed 
 by being thrown on her beam-ends and sank almost 
 immediately. Of the passengers and crew, which num- 
 bered about 60, one seaman only was saved, who was 
 picked up after many hours exposure. Ship and cargo 
 were estimated to be worth 100,000. A picture of her 
 
 (a) A good deal of uncertainty exists as to the origin of this word "Amberstone"; 
 what the word means, or what the said stone was. I remember many years ago a 
 former inhabitant of Hailsham having told me of someone, known I think to him, having 
 made a diligent, but unsuccessful, search for this " amber stone," reputed to have been 
 a Druidical relic which had been buried or had sunk into the stream, which runs 
 through the parish of Hellingly.
 
 84 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VI. 
 
 appears in the Illustrated London News of October 29, 
 1853, of which I have preserved a copy. 
 
 There have of course been many other wrecks along 
 the coast during my time, but the only one calling for 
 any notice was that of the steamer Gannet, which went 
 ashore at Seaford in April 1882, and broke up. It was 
 a very queer comical sight, for we were able to walk up 
 to the ship lying almost upright upon the beach with an 
 enormous rent in her side ; and merchandise, boxes, and 
 bales of goods of every description floating about in the 
 water, or high and dry on the beach. 
 
 I may here mention 2 wrecks which though of 
 somewhat ancient date are still kept alive amongst the 
 traditions of East-Bourne by engravings which now and 
 again come under the notice of the public at auction 
 sales. 
 
 The first of these wrecks was that of a Spanish 
 Han-of-War, the Nympha Americana of 60 guns, and 
 carrying a valuable cargo, which was captured near 
 Cadiz in 1747 by the English, and was being brought 
 as a prize to London but went ashore at Beachy Head. 
 Some extracts from the notes attached to the picture 
 will be given in Chapter XIX. (post.) 
 
 The second of the two wrecks to which I have 
 alluded was that of the Thames, which went ashore near 
 Langney Point in 1822. From a memorandum which I 
 suppose was supplied at the time to purchasers of the 
 picture, I borrow the following details, copying the 
 memorandum verbatim : 
 
 " A view of the Thames, East Indiaman, William Haviside, Esq., Commander. 
 Burthen, 1350 tons. This fine ship was out-ward bound from London for China, and 
 was driven on shore by a heavy gale, near Eastbourne, Sussex, on Sunday morning,, 
 the 3d of February, 1822 ; her extensive Cargo was taken out without loss (excepting 
 damage by water) under the direction and management of Mr. J. B. Stone, of New-haven, 
 Agent to Lloyds. She lay in this situation from the 3d of February to the 22d, when 
 she was got off, to the great gratification of many thousands of Spectators ; she was then 
 conducted away for Deptford, by two steam vessels, which were in attendance for that 
 purpose. She arrived safe at Deptford, on the 24th of February, with a prospect of 
 being speedily repaired to proceed on her original destination." 
 
 I think the "thousands of Spectators" must be a 
 figure of speech, for there were no excursion trains in 
 those days ! 
 
 In the days before what is ridiculously known as- 
 " Free Trade " one often saw at East-Bourne small
 
 Plate XXVII. 
 
 To face p. 84. 
 
 Figs. 51-52. 
 
 
 or TTTF. xvMPTn A S?V.VLSIT ri 
 
 ~--k- -^o? & c, - *: * 
 6pf: -^ i .S^^>lli^c > 
 
 WRECK OF THE "NYMPHA AMERICANA," AT BEACHY HEAD, 1747. 
 (From an old Print). 
 
 
 WRECK OF THE "THAMES," AT EAST-BOURNE, 1822. 
 (From an old Print).
 
 CHAP. VI.] Naval Episodes. 85 
 
 coasting vessels called " Boulder-boats." These went 
 backwards and forwards to Newhaven carrying thither 
 boulders collected on the seashore of Sussex. These 
 stones were transhipped at Newhaven, and conveyed to 
 France for use in the manufacture of glass. When this 
 traffic had gone on for a long time the French Government 
 put on an Import Duty and destroyed the trade ; and, 
 thanks to Free Trade [!] we could do nothing to retaliate. 
 I was told in 1906 by an old seafaring man at Newhaven 
 that the action of the French Government had deprived 
 Newhaven of 15,000 a year. 
 
 I remember Captain Harvey, R.N., the inventor of 
 the Harvey torpedo, staying for some time at East-Bourne 
 in 1879, and I made his acquaintance. His invention, 
 ingenious as it was, has failed to hold its own against the 
 well-known Whitehead torpedo. 
 
 The most disastrous boating accident in my time 
 happened on Sunday, June 11, 1876. An unlicensed 
 boatman took out 12 men and boys for a sail ; a gust of 
 wind blew the boat over ; she sank in a few minutes and 
 only one man of the 13 was saved, and that by a 
 coastguard boat which put off directly the accident was 
 noticed from the shore. 
 
 Having always been fond of ships and shipping, I 
 have taken every opportunity available to me of seeing 
 the great shows of ships at Portsmouth, beginning with 
 the visit of the French Fleet in September, 1865, and I 
 have seen nearly every great show of the kind and Naval 
 Review down to the Review of August 1909, in honour 
 of the Emperor and Empress of Russia. The illumina- 
 tion of the ships on that occasion surpassed any previous 
 thing of the sort I had ever seen. Formerly the ships 
 were lighted up in skeleton outline, but in 1909, the 
 whole surface of the hulls seemed to blaze with light. 
 
 " Hour s|jigs are not fofll-msnntb'." (Antony and Cleopatra}. 
 [To Mr. McKenna, M.P., IQIO.]
 
 [86] 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 COMPANIES, SOCIETIES, INSTITUTIONS. 
 
 Literary Institution. Coal and Clothing Society. Blanket Loan 
 Society. Coal Company. Church Institute. Mutual Improvement Society. 
 
 A celebrated Shakespeare Reading. Charity Organisation Society. 
 East-Bourne Choral Society. Purcell Glee Society. Devonshire Chib. 
 " House of Commons." Its Sessional Dinners. Reflections on its usefulness. 
 
 Regrets at its discontinuance. Young Men's Christian Association. 
 
 41 Cmwis is suw gains, anir Iwrries bark for mar*," (J. MONTGOMERY). 
 
 sxrals bg msiinri to m& ofytt turn ; 
 
 alliance, anir in frirn&s|n|r burn." (ADDISON). 
 
 EAST-BOURNE, like most other towns which have 
 had a rapid rise, has had its full share of new 
 schemes, most of which died a natural death after a 
 precarious existence. I cannot pretend to enumerate all 
 that I remember, to say nothing of those I do not 
 remember, nor can I touch upon those started parochially 
 in connection with particular Churches. Nor shall I 
 mention here some which find a more fitting place 
 elsewhere, such as the Gas Company, the Electric Light 
 Company, the Conservative Association, the Cricket 
 Club, the Natural History Society, and others. 
 
 The earliest instance of the existence of a body of 
 persons organised at East-Bourne for a defined purpose 
 is, I think, to be found in the " Society for Prosecuting 
 Thieves, Felons, and Receivers of Stolen Goods," set on 
 foot " at a meeting held at the New Inn, East-Bourne, 
 Sussex, on Tuesday, the Sixteenth day of December, 
 1800." I am indebted to Mr. Emary of Barclay's Bank, 
 for calling my attention to this body, and showing me a 
 copy of the Society's " Articles," printed by " Hewlett, 
 Printer, Hailsham." But I have not come upon any 
 allusions to the Society's labours, or indeed to any 
 mention of it anywhere.
 
 CHAP. VII.] Societies. 87 
 
 I suppose that almost or quite the earliest organised 
 Society in East-Bourne for intellectual purposes was the 
 " Mechanics " or " Literary Institution," dating, I 
 think, from 1844. Such Institutions were established 
 in many parts of England by Lord Brougham and 
 people associated with him, but they were not generally 
 successful or long-lived, and the East-Bourne Institution 
 was no exception. The house at the corner of South 
 Street facing the Town Hall was its Head-quarters 
 for many years. Its Library was stored there and 
 lectures were given there. The only lectures I 
 remember were 2 in 1851 : one by Dr. Hall on 
 Electricity and one by Mr. W. Brodie on Life in 
 the Colonies. The Library was afterwards moved to 
 No. 14 Seaside, now the Office of the Water Company, 
 and after a precarious existence was dispersed by sale, 
 and so the whole affair came to an end. 
 
 Next in point in time, I think, was the "East-Bourne 
 Coal and Clothing Society," but I possess no materials 
 for describing its work, though it had a prolonged and 
 useful existence under the very capable management of 
 the Vicar, Mr. Pitman. In order to occupy ground not 
 occupied by this Society in 1849, a Committee of ladies 
 founded the " East-Bourne Blanket Loan Society." I 
 have a copy of the original Prospectus, and a nearly 
 complete file of its Annual Reports. The names of 
 the first Office-bearers are given thus : Committee : 
 Mrs. Pierpoint, Mrs. Graham, Mrs. Hall, Mrs. Gibson, 
 Miss L. Brodie, Miss Washington. Treasurer : Miss 
 G ilbert. Secretary : Miss J. Brodie. A capital sum 
 was subscribed to purchase at the outset 132 blankets, 
 and the subscribers had the privilege of nominating 
 borrowers, who had nothing to pay except 6d. for the 
 expense of cleaning the blanket on its return at the end 
 of the Winter. The blankets were given out in November 
 and had to be returned in June. I was appointed Editor 
 of the Annual Report (only 4 pages long) in 1854, at the 
 age of 13, and continued to assist in the work until the 
 dissolution of the Society in 1892 on the death of two 
 aunts into whose hands the management had drifted.
 
 88 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VII. 
 
 Its operations had lasted 44 years, and I consider, from, 
 personal knowledge, that it conferred many benefits on 
 the deserving poor in all parts of the town. At the end 
 I had risen to the responsible position of Treasurer, and 
 so well had the ladies carried on their work that I had 
 about 140 in hand. This I distributed, acting on what 
 the lawyers called the doctrine of cy-pres, amongst the 
 Clergy of the 3 poor Parishes, St. Mary's, Christ Church 
 and All Souls', to be employed for Blanket purposes at 
 their discretion. 
 
 The " East-Bourne Coal Company " was founded in 
 1874, as a Limited (and, as it proved, very limited) 
 Company. Its intended capital was 3000, but I do 
 not think that much of it was raised, and the Company's 
 trading operations did not last long. This was sur- 
 prising, because at the time, the coals obtainable in 
 East-Bourne were high in price and bad in quality, to 
 say nothing of their being often sent out short in weight, 
 and amongst the 6 Directors, there was certainly one of 
 great experience and business capacity, whose presence 
 should have insured success, namely Mr. W. Routledge. 
 The Secretary was a Solicitor, Mr. W. G. Wheatcroft, 
 who showed his foresight by only describing himself as 
 " Secretary pro tern." 
 
 In 1878, a meeting of Churchmen was held to 
 found a " Church Institute," under the " Limited 
 Liability Acts." Though Mr. F. J. Howard consented 
 to be Chairman, and upwards of 100 names were given 
 in as Members, the scheme did not prosper, Churchmen 
 in those days, as in these, being apathetic as to the 
 necessity of organising for the dissemination of their 
 principles. The scheme had included a Reading Room, 
 Library, Lectures, and some of the more obvious 
 attributes of a Club. 
 
 There was in existence at that time a Society called 
 the " Mutual Improvement Society." Though not 
 avowedly a Dissenting Organisation, it was almost 
 exclusively managed by Dissenters, and during its 
 existence, no doubt did some good amongst the young 
 men and young women in the town.
 
 CHAP. VII.] Societies. 89 
 
 We had been having in 1881, at our house, several 
 Shakesperian readings for charity purposes, in particular 
 for the Princess Alice Hospital, and I was waited upon 
 one day by the principal man of the Mutual Improvement 
 Society, to ask if I thought that the ladies and gentlemen 
 "who had assembled at our house for our private readings, 
 would consent to appear on a public platform to read 
 before the members of his Society as spectators, as they 
 had read at our house, with all the same details of 
 music, evening dress, etc., which we had had. I said 
 in reply that I would consult my lady friends. I did so, 
 and there was at first some little reluctance manifested 
 at the idea of appearing in public before a middle-class 
 audience in their best frocks and jewels ; but they 
 eventually consented, without, I think, any exception, and 
 the reading came off at the New Hall on February 13, 
 1882. The play was Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, and 
 the following was the cast : 
 
 ORSINO, Duke of Illyria Rev. H. R. Whelpton 
 
 SEBASTIAN, brother of Viola Mr. J. Devonshire 
 
 ANTONIO, Sea Captain, brother of Viola Mr. G. F. Chambers 
 
 SEA CAPTAIN, friend of Viola Rev.J.H. Usill 
 
 VALENTINE, gentleman attending the Duke... Rev. W. A. Bathurst 
 
 CURIO, gentleman attending the Duke Mr. J. G. Morison 
 
 SIR TOBY BELCH, Uncle of Olivia Rev. R.Allen 
 
 SIR ANDREW AGUECHEEK Rev. J. Fletcher 
 
 MALVOLIO, Steward to Olivia Rev. F. W. Haines 
 
 FABIAN, Servant to Olivia Mr. J. H. C. Coles 
 
 CLOWN Mr. W. Morrison 
 
 PRIEST (Act V., Scene i.) Rev. W. A. Bathurst 
 
 OLIVIA, a rich Countess Miss A. Withers 
 
 VIOLA, in love with the Duke Mrs. G. F. Chambers 
 
 MARIA, Olivia's Maid Miss Vulliamy 
 
 SERVANT (Act III., Scene iv.) Mr. G. F. Chambers 
 
 1ST OFFICER (Act III., Scene iv.) Dr. Hayman 
 
 2ND OFFICER (Act III., Scene iv.) Mr. G. H. Lawrence 
 
 The Vocalists were the Rev. W. Smith-Dorrien, 
 Miss H. Lowe, Mrs. G. F. Chambers, and Madame Talon. 
 The Trios and Quartets were sung by Mrs. Wheatcroft, 
 Miss Vulliamy, Miss Devonshire, Mrs. and Miss Coles, 
 Miss Boileau, Miss Withers, the Revs. V. J. A. Browne, 
 J.B.Fletcher and H.R. Whelpton, and Mr. J. H. C. Coles. 
 The accompanist was Mr. G. Legge. The Hall was 
 crowded to its utmost capacity, and a substantial sum 
 realised for the funds of the Society. I heard afterwards
 
 90 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. VII.. 
 
 that many of the audience appreciated very rrmch the 
 opportunity of seeing how ladies and gentlemen in the 
 upper circles of society dress and demean themselves. 
 It seems a funny reason for wishing to patronise such a 
 show. 
 
 On November 29, 1882, we had a Meeting at our 
 house convened to consider the possibility of establishing 
 for East-Bourne a branch of the Charity Organisation 
 Society. We were fortunate in getting the help, as 
 imported speakers, of two M.P.'s so experienced in 
 Social Work as Mr. T. Salt, an Ex-Parliamentary 
 Secretary of the Local Government Board and Mr. J. G. 
 Talbot, an Ex-Secretary of the Board of Trade; and a 
 most capable man offered his services as Local Secretary, 
 Col. G. W. Macauley, R.E. In spite of an enthusiastic 
 Meeting and much promise of support in the town later 
 on, the scheme could not be carried through because of 
 the opposition of the " Do-Nothings " on the Magisterial 
 Bench. Everybody who knows anything of the work of 
 a well-organised Charity Organisation Society knows its 
 value in checking crime and vagrancy. 
 
 As this volume is not intended to be a detailed 
 chronicle of East-Bourne events, I only deal with those 
 with -which I had some personal connection. I shall 
 therefore finish this Chapter by mentioning only two 
 or three more movements with which I had something 
 to do. 
 
 An " East-Bourne Choral Society " under the able 
 management of Mr. H. W. Hardy, the organist of the 
 Parish Church, lasted many years, but it was more or 
 less open to the public, and its concerts held in public 
 rooms. The idea came into my head in 1887, to see 
 whether it would be possible to form amongst the private 
 residents a Glee Society, based on the principle of having 
 all the concerts on a comparatively small scale, and only 
 in private drawing-rooms. Various ladies of our 
 acquaintance were consulted and the following agreed to 
 take part in the movement, so far as to lend their 
 drawing-rooms, turn and turn about, for rehearsals and 
 concerts in succession: Hon. C. Ellis, Mrs. Baddeley,Mrs..
 
 CHAP. VII.] Societies. 91 
 
 Barton, Mrs. Chambers, Mrs. Devonshire, Mrs. Lawrence, 
 Mrs. Macauley, Mrs. B. Roberts, and Mrs. Whelpton. It 
 was agreed to limit the houses frequented to 10, and the 
 number of members singing and non-singing to 50. On 
 these lines, the " Purcell Glee Society" was started, and 
 flourished during 2 winters, yielding many very pleasant 
 evenings. We had an excellent conductor in Mr. Henry 
 Baillie, then and still the organist of All Souls' Church. 
 He took great pains with the singers, but unfortunately 
 some of the young lady singers had got it into their heads 
 that they did not need any teaching or advice. More- 
 over, the low subscription was based on the idea that 
 only singers were to be supplied with music gratis, but 
 non-singers claimed also to have music, and this could 
 not be supplied from an annual subscription of only 5s. 
 I am sorry to say that the Society perished before it had 
 accomplished its 3rd year. The rules and arrangements 
 set out for its government always seemed to me 
 reasonable and judicious, and I, for one, regretted the 
 loss of the pleasant evening entertainments, of which the 
 best, were perhaps, those arranged at Lady Howard De 
 Walden's house by her daughter, Miss Charlotte Ellis 
 (" Pussy Ellis "). 
 
 In the " Seventies," as private residents began to 
 increase in numbers, the want of a gentleman's Club 
 came to be felt and the result was the foundation in 
 1872, of the Devonshire Club. The . initial steps were 
 taken at a meeting held at Mr. F. W. H. Cavendish's 
 house, on September 9, 1872. The following were 
 appointed a provisional Committee : Mr. Cavendish, 
 Dr. Hayman, Mr. F. J. Howard, Mr. R, Insoll, Dr. 
 Lavies, Mr. W. Leaf, Mr. R. Pidcock, Dr. Bransby 
 Roberts, Mr. F. C. S. Roper, Mr. C. Stiff, the Rev. H. R. 
 Whelpton and myself ; with power to add to their 
 number. Under this regulation Dr. W. Bell, Mr. T. H. 
 Devonshire, Mr. J. G. Morison, the Rev. R. W. Pierpoint 
 and Mr. W. G. Wheatcroft were added. But throughout 
 the whole of the proceedings, Mr. Devonshire was the 
 moving spirit, and if it had not been for his tact, 
 discretion, experience, and zeal, I doubt whether the
 
 92 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VII. 
 
 movement would ever have prospered as it did during 
 its early stages/ /) The necessary capital was put at 
 5000 in shares of 10 each, and the greater part of it 
 was raised promptly and without any difficulty. The 
 Club-house on the Grand Parade was opened on August 
 :2, 1873, and the only disturbing element was an 
 unsuccessful effort made in 1874, to open it on Sundays. 
 A further effort in the following year for the same 
 purpose was successful, whereupon several members 
 resigned their membership and sold their shares. I was 
 one of the dissentients, and on the ground that at that 
 time, at any rate in the history of East-Bourne, a Club- 
 house open on Sundays was not needed. The members 
 were practically all residents, and the Club had no 
 kitchen arrangements for feeding its members, if there 
 were any such who were without sufficient provision for 
 being comfortably fed under the roof where they slept. 
 What has been the position of the Club as regards its 
 members and finances since 1875, I do not know. 
 
 In the year 1882, on November 9, there was held in 
 East-Bourne the first meeting of an Institution which was 
 calculated to do, and I think did do, a great amount of 
 good ; which at any rate afforded profitable amusement to 
 a large number of people for several years, and occupied 
 a considerable amount of space in the local Newspapers. 
 It was called The " East-Bourne House of Commons." 
 It was at the outset in some sense an offshoot of the 
 Mutual Improvement Society, but soon acquired a position 
 which enabled it to stand altogether on its own legs. So 
 far as I remember, the credit of first broaching the idea 
 was due to Mr. Nevill Strange, a local draper, and 
 afterwards an Alderman of the Town Council. Strange 
 was a Radical Dissenter of the deepest dye, the nearest 
 approach to a 17th century Puritan that I ever knew. 
 He was, however, at heart a good man, always anxious 
 to do what he could to promote the religious and moral 
 welfare of the young people whom he could influence, 
 
 (a) At one of the Committee Meetings, Dr. Bell, who was sitting next to me, 
 whispered "Is Mr. Devonshire any relation of the Duke of Devonshire? " The identity 
 of the names seems to have led the dear Doctor astray. He once told me that roller- 
 skating had brought him a good accession of patients injured by accidents.
 
 CHAP. VII.] " House of Commons:' 93- 
 
 whether they were connected with his shop or with the 
 Mutual Improvement Society. The idea with which he- 
 and those who were associated with him started, was to' 
 found an ordinary Debating Society to discuss the current 
 topics of the day. But at the first Meeting called to- 
 consider the question, the dominant idea was to make the 
 new Society a reflex of the House of Commons, and in 
 this way its title, as given above, was arrived at. The 
 title settled, everything else followed as a matter of 
 course. The administrative business was confided to a 
 Committee of 20, consisting of 10 Conservatives and 10' 
 Liberals, presided over by a Chairman of their own, but 
 at the full meetings of the Members, the Chairman was 
 called the " Speaker." The Members were divided into 
 two Parties, seated to the Right and Left of the Speaker, 
 a selection of those on the Right being called " The 
 Government," each Member of which had an official title 
 corresponding to the titles borne by Members of the 
 Imperial Legislature at Westminster, whilst opposite to 
 them were ranged the " Opposition." I was elected the 
 first Speaker, and presided over the deliberations for 2 
 or 3 years. 
 
 The first Meeting was a trial of strength between the 
 2 Parties which took the form of a Motion made by a local 
 Liberal that the Gladstone Government then in Office at 
 Westminster was worthy of the confidence of the country. 
 At the end of the debate, I put the question from the 
 Chair, appointed Tellers, the Members filed out into their 
 respective " Aye " and " No " Lobbies, and when the 
 Tellers handed in the numbers, I had to make the 
 following announcement : 
 
 For the Motion ... 61 
 
 Against ... ... 52 
 
 Majority 9 
 
 The newspaper report ends as follows: " The Speaker's- 
 announcement that the Liberal Party were required to 
 take Office was greeted with loud and continued 
 cheering." 
 
 The Session lasted from October till the following
 
 94 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VII. 
 
 Easter, after which the Members had a Dinner on May 9, 
 1883, at the Queen's Hotel to wind up the Session. 
 
 The Session had proved a very stormy one. It coin- 
 cided with the prolonged debates in the House of 
 Commons concerning the Bradlaugh controversy. This 
 was taken up in the East-Bourne House of Commons 
 where Motions were made condemnatory of Bradlaugh's 
 conduct and of the conduct of the Gladstone Government. 
 The most important evening (April 5, 1883) was one of 
 great excitement, and the division resulted as follows : 
 
 For the Bradlaugh BiU ... 102 
 Against 103 
 
 Majority 1 
 
 and the " Government " went out, and the Conservatives 
 came in, led by Lieut. Pownall. 
 
 The next year's Sessional Dinner was held at the 
 " New Hall " on April 30, 1884. 
 
 The next Session, that of the Winter of 1884-85, saw 
 the end of the East-Bourne House of Commons for a 
 time. Public attention was absorbed by the election of 
 the first Mayor and Town Council, and, a little later still, 
 more absorbed by a great controversy over an Improve- 
 ment Bill which the new Corporation was endeavouring 
 to carry through Parliament. But these events were 
 only incidental to the career of the local House of 
 Commons. The determining cause of its break-up was a 
 violent and abusive attack by a vulgar Socialist Radical 
 named Bancroft on the Conservative Leader, a certain 
 Lieut. Pownall. The Leaders of the Liberal Party even 
 could not curb this ruffian ; and the Conservatives 
 considered that it was their duty to abandon their work. 
 I confess that, admitting the provocation to be very 
 great, I doubted the wisdom of the course pursued by 
 the Conservatives, though, as Speaker, and, therefore, 
 pro hac vice not a Party man, I had no right and not 
 much power to interfere. The House of Commons 
 undoubtedly left a mark in many quarters in East-Bourne, 
 and it was generally felt that it had performed useful 
 .service in creating a taste for the study of English
 
 CHAP. VII.] " House of Commons" 95 
 
 History and the details of English Parliamentary Jife. 
 Hence it came about that its discontinuance was regretted 
 by many, and ere long its revival was not only suggested 
 but carried out. This took place in 1895, the first meeting 
 being on October 17. The state of parties was as 
 follows : Liberals 67 ; Conservatives 60 ; Independents 
 42 ; so the Liberals took office. During the winter of 
 1895-6 there were 23 weekly sittings, at which debates 
 on the former lines were carried out very successfully. 
 On January 21 a very well-sustained debate on Church 
 Disestablishment was brought to a close. The Session 
 ended, as usual, with a sessional dinner held at the 
 Queen's Hotel on April 22, 1896. This was a noteworthy 
 gathering, because it was attended by persons of eminent 
 station whose presence helped to support the idea that 
 such institutions as Local Parliaments had passed beyond 
 the stage of being treated with ridicule and contempt. 
 Admiral Field, the M.P. for the Division, Sir William 
 and Lady Charley, the Mayor (Alderman Skinner), Mr. 
 Mayhewe, the Chairman of the Bench of Magistrates, and 
 other local people of influence and position were present. 
 Not the least useful item in the evening's proceedings 
 was a letter from Lord Cranborne (now Marquis of 
 Salisbury), expressing the opinion that " such Societies 
 are a testimony to the regard with which Parliamentary 
 institutions are still held by our countrymen." Lord and 
 Lady Cranborne had been staying at East-Bourne, and 
 that was why they had been asked to the dinner ; but 
 they had been obliged to leave the town owing to the 
 Easter Parliamentary recess having come to an end. 
 The resuscitation of the House of Commons had been 
 mainly brought about by the efforts of Mr. E. Elliott, 
 whose services were recognised on the occasion by the 
 presentation to him of a silver celery bowl. I had again 
 performed during the Session the duties of Speaker, and 
 not the least important reason for the success of the 
 Session was the fact that the meetings were held in the 
 Town Hall. The Ladies' Gallery there was nearly always 
 full, and frequently very crowded, and the sixpences 
 received from those visitors formed an important
 
 96 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VII. 
 
 contribution to the funds of the House. The number 
 of members this Session amounted to more than 500. The 
 Liberals took Office at the commencement of the Session, 
 being then in a majority, but they were afterwards turned 
 out by their Opponents. The critical division of the 
 Session was on the question of the Disestablishment of 
 the Church of England, as to which the numbers were : 
 
 For Disestablishment ... 116 
 Against 145 
 
 Majority against ... 29 
 
 This involved the resignation of the Liberal Cabinet. 
 
 The " House of Commons " resumed its debates on 
 October 13, 1896, and continued them weekly through 
 the winter. The annual dinner for some reason, which 
 I do not now remember, was held as early as February 
 26, 1897, and was attended by Sir W. and Lady Charley, 
 Sir Ellis and Lady Ashmead Bartlett, and Capt. the Hon. 
 T. S. Brand amongst others. The Liberal party had 
 recovered their position and were again in office, led by 
 Alderman Strange as Prime Minister. I being still 
 Speaker, had to make the principal speech of the 
 evening. 
 
 Personal circumstances compelled me at a subsequent 
 period to resign the speakership. Unfortunately my 
 successor had not the experience and tact required to 
 keep order, and control the business. The members got 
 out of hand, and, I am sorry to say, that the 4 ' East-Bourne 
 House of Commons " came to an end, as it was found 
 impossible to get the members together again, notwith- 
 standing that a new Speaker was forthcoming, a Barrister 
 friend of mine, then living at East-Bourne, who, I think, 
 would have been quite competent to pick up the threads 
 of the work which I had been obliged to drop. 
 
 On January 29, 1883, we carried out at North field 
 Grange, an experiment which, though we never repeated 
 it, was a success, and might be repeated with good 
 results by anybody having a house with sufficient 
 reception rooms and there are many such now in 
 East-Bourne. We asked all the members of the Young
 
 CHAP. VII.] A " Christian " Reception. 97 
 
 Men's Christian Association to an evening reception, with. 
 leave to each to bring a " young lady." The attendance 
 was 105 all told. They walked about ; and talked to one 
 another ; then I talked to them, telling them something 
 about the County of Sussex (I think that was my 
 subject) ; then there was music of sorts, and the 
 evening ended with light refreshments. We had then in 
 our service a very experienced old housekeeper, Esther 
 Hammond by name(J, and she provided, as we all 
 supposed a large surplus of food and drinks, but Arabian 
 locusts could not have cleared the tables with more 
 rapidity. Between 20 and 30 dishes of cakes, bread 
 and butter, and biscuits, and 6 gallons of tea disappeared 
 like lightning, but everybody seemed very happy, and 
 that was the chief thing. 
 
 not mur^ tht to 
 slsnir pn." (S. MERRIMAN). 
 
 (a) This woman was a " treasure" of the old school; over and above her ordinary 
 duties as nurse and lady's maid in succession, she was always looking after the interest 
 of her employers, and therefore quite unlike modern servants. She was in my service 
 for 20 years before she died in 1887, having previously lived for 34 years in my wife's 
 family, so that her service may be put at 54 years in one family without a break. 
 
 H
 
 [98] 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 CANDLES, GAS, AND WATER. 
 
 Old-fashioned lighting arrangements. Rushlights. Tallow Candles. 
 Wax Candles. Various Oils. Candlesticks and Snuffers. Formation of 
 'the Gas Company. Its first Officials. Its remarkable prosperity. Street 
 Lighting. Meter Lamps. Local Acts of Parliament. The Water Supply. 
 
 "8#rir CanirLes nu all 0nt." (Macbeth'). 
 
 MANY a long year elapsed after the introduction of 
 coal-gas for illuminating purposes before East- 
 Bourne obtained the advantages of a gas supply. 
 E-ushlights, tallow candles, wax candles, sperm oil, colza 
 oil, and rock oil came on to the stage, and, more or less, 
 passed off it in the succession in which I have just named 
 them. Rushlights had almost disappeared before my 
 time, but tallow candles and wax candles, not self- 
 snuffing, were in use long past the middle of the 19th 
 Century. Candles of this sort required mechanical 
 snuffers, to be operated by hand, and these were either 
 all steel, or steel mounted with silver handles. They 
 resembled a large pair of scissors with a sort of box on 
 one blade which was the receptacle for the burnt portion 
 of wick cut off. These snuffers were either stowed away 
 through the stem of the candlestick, or, in the case of 
 silver candlesticks, kept on a flat tray about 9 inches 
 long. I possess 2 very well-made Sheffield plated 
 bedroom candlesticks which probably came into East- 
 Bourne about 1810, but unfortunately the snuffers 
 belonging to them never reached me in the distribution 
 of the family plate. I have heard that it was a practical 
 joke of olden times for the boys of a family surreptitiously 
 to put a pinch of gunpowder into the box of the snuffers 
 and watch the effect when somebody proceeded to snuff 
 the candle. I never tried the experiment nor saw it done.
 
 Plate XXIX. 
 
 To face p. 98. 
 
 Figs. 54-57. 
 
 G. 4- A'. Lavis, Easl-Rflunie. and o:lios. 
 
 FOUR EAST BOURNE PUBLIC MEN 
 Mr. R. J. Graham. J.P. Mr. F. W. H. Cavendish. J.P. 
 
 Mr. R Colgate. 
 
 Dr G A. Jeffery. J.P.
 
 CHAP. VIIL] Gas at East-Bourne. 99 
 
 The East-Bourne Gas Company was hatched in 1851, 
 and I have a copy of its first prospectus, and of each of 
 its annual reports during the first years of its existence. 
 I was in fact an original shareholder, holding 2 10 
 shares which number I afterwards increased to 10 shares. 
 With sad lack of financial foresight I sold them all in 
 1867 when I married. The formation of the Company 
 was the outcome of a meeting held at the Literary 
 Institution, South Street, on February 27, 1851. The 
 provisional Committee were Messrs. J. A. Bown, 
 R. Colgate, R. Cooper, J. Dexter, J. Gosden, A. Hurst, 
 G. A. Jeffery, and G. Thatcher ; The Trustees were 
 Dr. D. J. Hall and Mr. R. B. Stone ; The Bankers, 
 Molineux & Co. ; The Solicitor, Mr. A. Whiteman. The 
 capital was 3000 in 10 shares. The first year's 
 profitswere 175 ; the second, 275 ; and so they increased 
 year by year till the date of the last balance sheet in my 
 possession, 1868, when the profits had grown to 966 ; 
 and the capital had been raised from 3000 to 7000. 
 What the present profits are, are known with cheerfulness 
 to the numerous shareholders. The starting price of the 
 gas was 7 shillings per 1000 cubic feet. It is now less 
 by nearly two-thirds. 
 
 When I became a member of the Local Board in 
 1874, there were great complaints as to the inefficiency 
 of the street lamps, which were paid for at so much per 
 lamp, on the supposition that so many cubic feet of gas 
 were consumed by each lamp each night. This was 
 supposition and nothing else, as the Local Board soon 
 discovered when they decided to measure, by means 
 of a meter, the gas supplied : one meter to every group 
 of lamps. This proposal was stoutly resisted by a gas 
 director on the Local Board, Mr. Charles Simmons, a 
 butcher, who although he had no power to vote, because 
 he was an interested party, had great powers of tongue, 
 but as " the proof of a pudding is in the eating," so the 
 advocates of the meter policy were amply supported by 
 the figures yielded by the meters ; and now all the street 
 lamps are meter lamps. The present powers of the Gas 
 Company are derived from the following Acts of
 
 100 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. VIII. 
 
 Parliament : 1868, 31 and 32 Viet., Chapter cxxvi. ; 
 1880, 43 and 44 Viet., Chapter xlvi. ; 1907, 7 Edward 
 VIL, Chapter 5 ; 1909, 9 Edward VII, Chapter xxvii. 
 
 The first-named Act incorporated the Company with 
 powers to supply East-Bourne and Willingdon. The 
 Act of 1880, of which I was the draftsman, enlarged the 
 Company's Area to include Westham and Pevensey, 
 whilst the Act of 1909 empowered the Company to take 
 over the powers of the Hailsham Gas Company and to 
 supply Polegate and Hailsham. 
 
 The question of the Water Supply has also a history. 
 I had always been in favour of towns controlling their 
 water. This policy had been brought home to me by 
 observation of things in other parts of England and by 
 what I had seen when at the Local Government Board, 
 so on December 7, 1874, at my instance, the Local Board 
 passed a resolution that the time had come for the town 
 to undertake its own water supply, and a Committee, of 
 which I became Chairman, was appointed to collect 
 information on the subject. We communicated through 
 the Clerk with other towns circumstanced, more or less, 
 as East-Bourne was, and the information we collected 
 justified us, I thought, in recommending that steps should 
 be taken by the Local Board to purchase the East-Bourne 
 Waterworks. But when it came to the critical point, 
 the Board shrank from the responsibility. The members 
 of the Board who represented the Duke of Devonshire 
 and the Water Company were hostile, or indifferent and 
 unwilling to encourage the idea, and so the whole 
 question disappeared for many years from the range of 
 practical politics. It became a burning question however 
 in 1895, when the water supply at Bedford Well became 
 contaminated, and the whole town was for a time without 
 water fit to drink. I am bound to say that the Water 
 Company made prompt and great efforts to meet the 
 difficulty, regardless of the cost. However the break- 
 down gave a stimulus to the revival of the demand that 
 the town should take the water supply into its own 
 hands. Accordingly the Corporation went to Parliament 
 in the Session of 1897, for a Bill for the purpose, but
 
 CHAP. VIII.] Water Supply. 101 
 
 failed to obtain it. This result is perhaps not to be 
 wondered at on several grounds, however much it may 
 be regretted. The situation in 1897 was vastly different 
 from that in 1874. The capital of the Company had 
 perforce been enormously increased in the interval, and 
 I believe, now amounts to more than -i- a million ; and 
 with the great increase of capital expenditure which had 
 come about in the interval for necessary (or unnecessary) 
 public works and " improvements," it was an arguable 
 question whether the town could have conveniently borne 
 the burden of taking upon its shoulders the water 
 supply. 
 
 The opening of the Company's new works at 
 Friston, took the shape of ceremonial turning on of the 
 water into the Warren Hill reservoir by the Duke of 
 Devonshire on August 6, 1897, and was celebrated by a 
 luncheon given by the Mayor at the Queen's Hotel, at 
 which I was present. 
 
 The following statement of the Water Company's 
 Acts of Parliament now in force may be useful for 
 reference : 1859, Chapter xcix. ; 1875, Chapter xxx. ; 
 1881, Chapter 1. ; 1889, Chapter Ixxvii. ; 1896, Chapter 
 clxxxvii. ; 1897, Chapter cxxiv. Hailsham had a Water 
 Act of its own : 1885, Chapter xcvii. 
 
 " uot far out repulse, f0reg0 le purpose 
 gou res-olfaea t0 effect." (King John}.
 
 [102] 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 LAW, POLICE, MEDICAL. 
 
 Police arrangements in 1851. Names of the Magistrates. Major 
 N. Willard. Mr. R. J. Graham. Magistrates' Clerks. Where Sittings 
 were held. The status of a Mayor. The first Borough Bench. Anecdote 
 of a Golf Player. High Constables and Parish Constables. Modern Police. 
 Local Law Suits. Celebrated Crimes. Crime rare in East-Bourne. 
 Local Medical Men. Formerly few in number. Dr. D. J. Hall. Mr. 
 R. Colgate. Dr. G. A. Jeffery. 
 
 44 Wit Jgzbt strict statutes, anfrntosi Biting lafos." '-(Measure for Measure}. 
 
 41 Wilgo to Irintsflf is gafo nxr gafo ran m& ; 
 ffenos no gafo, anir is a $ing inoteir." (G. CHAPMAN, 1557 1634). 
 
 's lot is not a &agg on* ; 
 
 THE circumstances covered by such a composite 
 title as this will vary much, comparing one epoch 
 with another, so I must try and fix my facts as 
 nearly as may be to a definite date which shall be more 
 exactly than usual, my general date of 1851. There was 
 then not much Law in East-Bourne ; no Police, and I 
 think only 3 doctors. 
 
 Law was administered by some County Magistrates 
 whose formal sittings were held at Hailsham. The 
 Magistrates residing in East-Bourne were Major Nicholas 
 Willard, his brother Captain L. K. Willard, Sir W. 
 Domville, Bart., Mr. J. D. Gilbert, Mr. (afterwards Lord) 
 R. Cavendish, and Mr. John Graham. Sir W. Domville's 
 son, Mr. James Graham Domville, was also at some or 
 other time appointed a Magistrate, and as was also Mr. 
 Graham's eldest son, Mr. Reginald J. Graham. Until his 
 death in 1852 Major Willard was in modern vulgar 
 language " the Boss of the Show," ruling the parish with 
 a rod of iron, except so far as he was controlled by the 
 Chairman of the Petty Sessional Division, Mr. G. Darby, 
 who presided at Hailsham. The death of " Major 
 Nick " left the field open to younger men. For a long
 
 CHAP. IX.] Magistrates. 103 
 
 number of years the burden of magisterial work fell to 
 Mr. R. J. Graham. It gradually became a grievous 
 burden because owing to Mr. F. H. Gell, the Clerk of the 
 Magistrates, residing at Lewes (as did his son, Inigo 
 Gell, after him) Graham had to be, to a large extent, 
 J.P. and Clerk in one. I often think that if Radical 
 orators who scowl at the " great unpaid " had known as 
 much as I did of the home magisterial life of my friend 
 Graham they would (if honest men) abate some of their 
 gibes. 
 
 Captain L. K. Willard would have been a useful 
 man in these days of motor drivers who rush recklessly 
 through the streets. He laid down the following axiom 
 for the guidance of Mr. R. J. Graham as a Magistrate : 
 " You have now become one of our Body. Always bear 
 in mind that we belong to a Penal Bench ours is a 
 Penal Bench. It is my plan always to give the whole 
 dose. I'll be bound to say they won't forget it in a 
 hurry. Whenever anyone is brought before you, always 
 give him the full dose, and nothing but the dose." 
 
 It was not till after 1851 that there were any formal 
 meetings of Magistrates in an open Court at East-Bourne. 
 Every case which could not be dealt with by Magistrates 
 sitting at home singly in their armchairs, or by 2 of them 
 together at the Workhouse [!] or at the private house in 
 South Street of their Clerk (Mr. Gell) when in residence, 
 had to be sent to Hailsham where there was, as there 
 still is, a fortnightly Sitting on Wednesdays. This 
 necessity was eventually found intolerable, and when the 
 Vestry Room in Grove Road was built at a cost of 270, 
 Sittings there on Mondays were instituted, preparatory, 
 it might be, to remand to Hailsham. It was not until as 
 late as 1875 that East-Bourne had a resident Magistrates' 
 Clerk in the person of Mr. J. G. Langham. Up to then 
 the system of a Clerk at Lewes had continued, except 
 that some short time before 1875 a deputy of the Lewes 
 Chief had been sent to reside at East-Bourne, but this 
 worked badly. From 1875 East-Bourne cases were all 
 taken at the East-Bourne Bench ; and Hailsham Sittings 
 for East-Bourne cases virtually ceased.
 
 104 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IX. 
 
 When the town received its Charter of Incorporation 
 in 1883 the question came up for discussion whether it 
 should ask for a separate Bench of Magistrates and its 
 concomitant a separate Police Force. For the moment 
 the matter was resolved in the negative, and the town 
 left for magisterial and Police purposes under the 
 jurisdiction of the County. This continued for several 
 years. Meanwhile the town continued to grow, and some 
 people gifted with powers of research came to the 
 conclusion that justice would be more conveniently 
 administered and the cost of the Police, as charged by 
 the County, would be lessened if the Borough were 
 emancipated from the County in respect of these matters. 
 
 Thus it came about that a Borough Bench was set 
 up and a Borough Police Force likewise. The following 
 were the names given in the first Commission issued by 
 the Crown : 
 
 A. Mayhewe E. L. Beckwith 
 
 Major H. P. Molineux G. A. Wallis 
 
 Sir A. Dent G. Boulton 
 
 H. W. Keay Col. C. J. 0. FitzGerald 
 
 J. C. Foran R. C. Lambert 
 
 G. F. Chambers E. K. Rodwell, Q.C. 
 
 W. L. Wallis Col. E. W. Shaw 
 
 H. D. Farnell N. Strange 
 
 I should like to say in regard to myself that my name 
 was included without my knowledge, and without my 
 consent being asked. Least of all did I take any steps 
 to bring about the honour. 
 
 Several years elapsed before I qualified by taking 
 the Oath, and as later additions made the Bench not only 
 a numerous but also a strong one, I have never taken a 
 very prominent part in the work, rather reserving myself 
 for seasons of the year and days of the week when a 
 scarcity of Justices might be expected. This does some- 
 times happen. I remember once hearing of a certain 
 Thursday when the Police had an important case to 
 submit to the Bench, one which under a certain Statute 
 required 2 Magistrates, whilst one only was in attendance.
 
 CHAP. IX.] East-Bourne Police. 105 
 
 The one suggested to the Superintendent of Police that 
 
 he should go and fetch Mr. , who lived only about 
 
 200 yards off, whereupon the said Superintendent spoke 
 thus : " No, sir ; I think I must not do that. Thursday 
 
 is Mr. 's golf day, and he told me I was never to 
 
 disturb him with any Police business on that day." 
 
 When the Corporatioo came into existence a question 
 arose as to the status and powers of the Mayor in 
 connection with magisterial work. " The Municipal 
 Corporations Act, 1882 " describes the status of Mayors 
 in terms somewhat obscure, and seems to imply that the 
 Mayor should preside at all Sittings of Magistrates in 
 his Borough, even though they were County Magistrates 
 and there was no Borough Bench. Mr. G. A. Wallis, 
 the first Mayor, claimed, more suo, the right to magnify 
 his office by presiding over the County Magistrates 
 sitting at East-Bourne. The claim was resisted, but in 
 very benign terms, by Mr. R. J. Graham (the County 
 Chairman) and, after an appeal to the Home Secretary 
 who himself took the opinion of the Law Officers of the 
 Crown, Mr. Wallis abandoned his assumption of office 
 and sat during his year of office as simply a Magistrate 
 amongst other Magistrates. When the Borough Bench 
 was established the County Magistrates, resident in the 
 town, became automatically members of it, and the two 
 sets of men have worked together in perfect harmony 
 ever since, though two or three of the older County 
 Magistrates withdrew from participation in what they 
 regarded as an infra dig alliance. 
 
 Now a word as to the Police. In my early days 
 East-Bourne had no Police. The nearest Policeman was 
 stationed at Pevensey. East-Bourne was guarded by 
 a High Constable and a Parish Constable. I cannot 
 remember anything ever done by the High Constable, 
 except a notice painted up warning everybody not to do 
 something though I forget what that something was. I 
 remember, however, that the notice was signed " Edgar 
 Baker, High Constable." Mr. Baker carried on the 
 trade represented by his name. My first remembrance 
 of him was seeing him conveyed home in a van of his
 
 106 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IX. 
 
 own with a broken leg which my father was invited to 
 assist in mending. His business passed to his son, and 
 now flourishes in the hands of his grandson. I went to 
 the shop as recently as January 1910 to purchase one of 
 the " cheap Liberal loaves " which the Liberal Party 
 said were on sale, but for some reason, which the 
 shopman could not explain, the purchase-money was \d. 
 more than had been charged to me elsewhere by a Tory 
 baker 2 years previously. 
 
 The Parish Constable of 1851 was one Joe Carter 
 who, under his official name, was dressed as a Beadle 
 with cocked hat and cloak, but eventually he was 
 advanced to the ordinary costume of the Policeman of 
 the period, starting with a chimney-pot hat at his top 
 and so downwards to his boots. Carter was kept on in 
 office, I think, during the term of his natural life, 
 but it soon became necessary, as the town grew, for 
 representatives of the Chief Constable of the County at 
 Lewes to enter into possession. For their use residential 
 quarters, and a couple of cells, were built in Grove Road 
 adjacent to the Vestry Room which was used as a Police 
 Court up till the opening of the Town Hall. The 
 following figures regarding the present (1910) Police 
 Force may be presented as a contrast to the times of 
 Joe Carter and the one County Constable at Pevensey : 
 
 1 Chief Constable, 10 Sergeants, 
 
 5 Inspectors, 60 Constables, 
 
 making a total of 77 men. 
 
 During the Fenian scare of 1867 Special Constables 
 were sworn in at East-Bourne in consequence of a Notice 
 from the Home Office that a Fenian landing at East- 
 Bourne had been heard of as in contemplation but 
 nothing happened. I served as a " Special " on that 
 occasion at Bromley in Kent for 3 months. 
 
 Law and Police from the standpoint of the newspaper 
 reporter have through the years which I can remember 
 always made a very poor show so far as incidents 
 connected with East-Bourne are concerned. The most 
 important local law-suit was one between the Gilbert
 
 CHAP. IX.] Legal Proceedings. 107 
 
 Trustees and the Duke of Devonshire as to the ownership 
 of a strip of land by the side of the road from East-Bourne 
 to Pevensey, as to whether it was, or was not, part of the 
 waste lands of the Manor of East-Bourne. This was 
 tried at the Summer Assizes at Lewes on July 22, 1864. 
 The result was a compromise, each party agreeing to 
 convey to the other, strips of land for the mutual 
 advantage of each other. 
 
 It was a long time after the place began to grow 
 that we obtained County Court facilities but as the 
 result of an agitation, in which I took an active part,, 
 the first visit of a County Court Judge took place on 
 April 4, 1878 ; but the Sittings were treated as off-shoots 
 of the Lewes Sittings, and Mr. J. H. C. Coles, appointed 
 Registrar, was treated as a Deputy of the Lewes Registrar 
 rather than as an independent official. 
 
 Nor has East-Bourne ever occupied any prominent 
 position in the annals of crime. There was an important 
 burglary at The Gore in July 1845, which was never 
 brought home to the thieves by legal proof owing, I used 
 to hear, to the crass stupidity of the Police who were 
 brought into the case, and this, though traces were 
 obtained through anonymous letters which led to the 
 intervention of Sir J. Graham, the Home Secretary, and. 
 also of the Postmaster-General, being sought and 
 obtained. Two of the certain culprits as accessories 
 
 were a footman named J D and a coachman 
 
 named B , both in the employ of my grandmother- 
 Mrs. Brodie, and no greater punishment of them was 
 
 possible than simple dismissal. D set up as a 
 
 lodging-house keeper in London and B became a 
 
 railway porter at Hastings. The plunder took the shape 
 of an extensive raid of silver spoons and forks. These 
 were replaced by new ones, and some of the new ones- 
 and of those not stolen are now in my possession. There 
 is little to distinguish the one from the other except 
 the hall-mark which is the letter ;$t, indicating the date 
 of 1847, the larger part of the Brodie plate being marked 
 G which means 1802, the year of my East-Bourne- 
 grandfather's marriage.
 
 108 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IX. 
 
 In 1860 there occurred a remarkable crime which 
 caused a great sensation in the South of England. On 
 the Grand Parade there lived a schoolmaster named 
 
 H . He was a clever, interesting, scientific man. 
 
 His pupils were not numerous ; only I think about 6 in 
 number, but select. He was a great disciplinarian, his 
 principles of discipline being not of the ordinary sort. 
 Though a man of, I suppose, 50 years of age then, he 
 had a young wife to whom he extended his principles of 
 discipline which in these days would have secured for 
 her judicial separations many times over. One of his 
 boys was named Reginald Canceller, the son of an 
 Official of the Court of Chancery. Administering 
 corporal punishment to this boy he (to cut a long story 
 
 short) beat him to death. H laid out the poor 
 
 boy's body himself on his bed, concealing the effects of 
 the castigation by putting kid gloves on the boy's hands. 
 An inquest was held and the Jury displayed the usual 
 limited amount of insight common to Coroner's Juries, 
 and recorded a verdict of " Death from natural causes." 
 This sham finished, the body was removed to London by 
 the family for burial. Owing to the gossip of two 
 maidservants, further inquiries were made, and ultimately 
 at the Sussex Assizes held on July 23, 1863, before Sir 
 
 A. J. Cockburn, C.J., II received a sentence of 4 
 
 years' penal servitude for manslaughter. Ere he came 
 out of prison, his wife was sent away from Sussex to 
 commence housekeeping under an assumed name ; and 
 various East-Bourne people subscribed to help her. 
 
 H himself, nothing abashed at the fact that he had 
 
 been boarded and lodged for 4 years at the expense of 
 Her Majesty, came back and settled in Sussex in a 
 perfectly genial frame of mind. I sat through the whole 
 of the trial, and I need hardly add that several other 
 spectators took tickets from East- Bourne with the same 
 object in view. 
 
 It was a brother of Mrs. H , who was nearly 
 
 frozen to death under Beachy Head as related in another 
 chapter. 
 
 Before my time I do not think that the parish of
 
 CHAP. IX.] Medical Practitioners. 109 
 
 East-Bourne often appeared in Courts of Law on its own, 
 account. Nevertheless, in 1803 its inhabitants were 
 cited into the Court of King's Bench, and thereupon it 
 was determined that a foreigner might under old law 
 gain a settlement in England by occupying a 15L 
 tenement for 40 days. Lord Ellenborough (one of whose 
 sons, by the way, the Hon. H. S. Law, was a visitor to- 
 our house in 1879), in his judgment laid down the 
 following proposition : " The law of humanity, which 
 is anterior to all positive laws, obliges us to afford them 
 [foreigners] relief to save them from starving." This 
 case of Rex v. East-Bourne, which is reported in 4 East, 
 103, settled therefore a point of law of which East- 
 Bourners maybe proud from a philanthropic point of view. 
 
 East-Bourne has always been notoriously such a 
 healthy place, that excepting during the one year of 1863 
 when the town was devastated by scarlet fever, it has 
 not been a very happy hunting-ground for doctors. In 
 1851 I think there were only three. Nor do I remember 
 any great doctors except one as visitors to East-Bourne. 
 The one was Sir James Ranald Martin, of Indian fame, 
 who with his wife and family were often here in the 
 " Fifties." Sir William Broadbent had a patient here at 
 a very much later period, and I was much amused one 
 day when standing on the East-Bourne platform. A 
 lady came up to me and in the most effusive dulcet tones 
 said " Sir William Broadbent, I think." I was obliged, 
 of course, to decline with regret the honour. When 
 Sir William's Life was published with his portrait in it, 
 I tried to trace some resemblance between his face and 
 mine, but utterly failed. So I cannot explain the lady's 
 error of judgment. 
 
 Dr. Hall had been a surgeon in the Royal Navy, and 
 one of the ships in which he had served had been 
 commanded by the 19th Earl of Shrewsbury, who was 
 described as one of the greatest tyrants that ever trod 
 the quarter-deck. I only knew him by sight as a 
 member of my London club. 
 
 In 1833, there was a great battle between the 
 Coastguard (often called in those days Blockade men or
 
 110 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. IX. 
 
 Preventive men) and smugglers, in which, there was loss 
 of life. The facts of the case were, I believe, somewhat 
 as follows : The smugglers, having killed the chief 
 boatman of the Blockade Service, formed two lines on 
 each side till their cargo was " run." They then left, 
 not, however, without several of their party receiving 
 wounds. All escaped capture. 
 
 Dr. Hall was at East-Bourne at that time, and was 
 called upon to attend the wounded. He gave me on one 
 occasion, sitting over the fire many years afterwards, a 
 graphic account of the battle, though I am not quite 
 sure at this distance of time that he was actually present 
 when the fight was going on. He left the Royal Navy 
 shortly after this event and practised at East-Bourne 
 until 1857, when he retired into private life, or to be 
 more exact, resumed public life by becoming surgeon of 
 the Sussex Artillery Militia. 
 
 Before his time the medical profession was repre- 
 sented in East-Bourne by Dr. Ranking, who lived in a 
 picturesque house in South Street ; and by 2 or 3 other 
 men whose names have not come down to me. 
 
 The first in point of date, of what I may call the 
 modern doctors was Mr. R. Colgate, who began work in 
 1847. He was followed in 1849 by Dr. G. A. Jeffery, 
 and both continued in practice for a long number of 
 years. Dr. Jeffery, I am glad to say, is still alive. Mr. 
 Colgate's practice passed to his well-known son, Dr. H. 
 Colgate. Apart from his medical duties, Dr. Jeffery has 
 performed a large amount of public work as Chairman 
 of the Gas Company ; as Chairman of the Local 
 Board from 1878 up nearly to the replacement of the 
 Board by the Town Council in 1883 : and as a Guardian, 
 and J.P., and County Councillor. Dr. Bransby Roberts 
 came to East-Bourne in 1857, but has retired from prac- 
 tice, Bransby Cooper, the surgeon, was his godfather, and 
 another famous surgeon, Sir Astley Cooper was godfather 
 to another brother. 
 
 mtbitint lift raajr bt giolongtb, pi toai|r foill st'm fyt 0ri0r 100." 
 
 (Cymleline). 
 t heat ^gsirians ar.e gr. gict, gr. <$uiei, a0 gr. Ujfrrrgrosn." 
 
 (ANON.).
 
 Plate XXX. 
 
 To face p. in. 
 
 Fig. 58. 
 
 SCREEN PLANNED AND EXECUTED BY G F. CHAMBERS
 
 [Ill] 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 LITERATURE, SCIENCE AND ART. 
 
 Local Newspapers. Old East-Bourne Guides. Local Authors. R. M. 
 Caldecott. W. Brodie. Lady Catherine Long. Other Local Authors. 
 Distinguished Visitors. Astronomical Observatories. Natural History 
 Society. Prominent Members of the Society. Loan Exhibitions. Old 
 Maps of the Parish. Professor Huxley. The Herschel Family. /. H. 
 Mortimer, Shakespearian and other Readings. Arts and Industries 
 Society. 
 
 is a farg fair Minify, but a btt% Qoolr foalMujj stick." 
 
 (C. LAMB.) 
 truje ajcmux Mtjjumt f^Rgiim.'' (C. KTNGSLEY.) 
 
 IT seems to be necessary to draw somewhat on one's 
 imagination for one's facts to eke out a Chapter 
 
 under the above title, the words of which flow with 
 delightful grace and euphony. However, I will do my 
 best to supply a few facts. 
 
 Literature centres round newspapers, actual (which 
 .are few in number) and defunct (which have been 
 numerous). The oldest Sussex newspaper is the Sussex 
 Advertiser, which dates from 1745. Its Whig politics 
 prompted in 1833, the starting of the Sussex Agricultural 
 Express in the interests of the Tory party. The oldest 
 East-Bourne paper is the Chronicle (1856), the Gazette 
 coming next (1859). Other papers have been born and 
 have died in East-Bourne. I remember the following 
 titles : Eastbourne Express (1863) ; Eastbourne Standard 
 (1868) ; Sussex Times (1874) ; Eastbourne Courier (1877) ; 
 Eastbourne Observer (?date) ; Eastbourne Review (1885?); 
 Eastbourne Standard (2nd creation, ? date) ; Eastbourne 
 Times (? date) ; Scorpion. The last-named was a 
 satirical sheet edited (I believe) by the author of What 
 will they do with him, mentioned in a previous Chapter.
 
 112 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. X. 
 
 The earliest book due to an East-Bourne Author is, 
 I suppose, the Guide, East-Bourne and its Environs, of 
 which the first edition is dated 1787, several later editions 
 being known. The author was one J. Royer. 
 
 Theodore Hook was a visitor to East-Bourne about 
 1830, and his Jack Brag includes divers references to 
 the place. I possess an interesting (and useful) reminis- 
 cence of him in the shape of his editorial writing desk 
 table, used when Editor of the scurrilous John Bull ; 
 and 3 nests of drawers, which, in his time, stood for the 
 modern Editor's " Pigeon-holes." 
 
 The earliest book of any size or general importance, 
 written in East-Bourne, would be Mr. R. M. Caldecott's 
 Life of Baber, mentioned in Chapter III. (ante.) 
 
 In 1845, my uncle, Mr. Walter Brodie, published a 
 book on The State of New Zealand, followed in 1851 by 
 Pitcairn's Island and the Islanders. 
 
 In 1851, an authoress of some repute, Lady 
 Catherine Long, resided at The Grove, with her husband 
 Mr. Henry Lawes Long, a son, and several daughters. 
 The son was a chum of mine, and we practised chemical 
 experiments together. Lady Catherine's books included 
 novels and others more serious. Amongst the former 
 were Sir Roland Ashton and The First Lieutenant's 
 Story ; and amongst the latter, Heavenly Thoughts for 
 Morning Hours. The preface to the last-named is dated 
 from " East-Bourne, December 31, 1850." 
 
 The following are the names of some books of later 
 date which may be credited to East-Bourne : East- 
 bourne as a Resort for Invalids, by Drs. Abbotts Smith 
 and Hayman (1861) ; Flora of Eastbourne, by F. C. S. 
 Roper, F.L.S. (1875) ; Eastbourne as a Residence for 
 Invalids and Winter Resort, by G.- Moseley, F.R.C.S. 
 (1882) ; Eastbourne as a Winter Resort, by H. D. Ellis, 
 M.D. (1882). 
 
 I have written several books, of which my Handbook 
 for East-Bourne, Handbook of Astronomy, and several 
 small books on Astronomy, and Digest of the Law 
 relating to Public Health, are, I suppose, the best known. 
 The first-named passed through 25 editions and brought
 
 CHAP. X.] Local Literature. 113 
 
 me upwards of 500 in clear profits, before I sold it to 
 Farncornbe & Co. Of my various astronomical books, 
 upwards of 90,000 copies have been sold. My various 
 Law Books make up a total of about 10,000 copies 
 between them. 
 
 The lady who wrote under the name of " Edna 
 Lyall," must be regarded as the most brilliantly success- 
 ful writer connected with East-Bourne, where she lived 
 for many years. 
 
 No other books prior to 1901 are known to me 
 which can be said to owe their origin to East-Bourne. 
 
 The 2 houses which formerly existed on the cliff, to 
 the E. of the Wish Tower, seem to have been places of 
 great attraction to literary people. Mount Pleasant which 
 stood near the site of the Cavendish Hotel, had Tennyson 
 for a lodger in 1845. I knew his brother Frederick 
 Tennyson, who stayed at East-Bourne much later ; he 
 had been a Somersetshire acquaintance of my wife's. 
 Cliff Cottage had a succession of occupants with names 
 which have had a hold over English thought, including 
 Macready, Jenny Lind, and J. H. Bailey. Bailey was 
 often known as " Butterfly Bailey " from being the 
 author of "I'd be a butterfly," a song which had a 
 great rage half-a- century ago. Mr. Graham added to 
 this list " Mr. Edge worth, the brother of the Authoress," 
 but I cannot help feeling that he confused the name of 
 " Edgeworth with " Edgell." I distinctly remember a 
 Mr. and Mrs. Wyatt Edgell there about 1851. 
 
 I may fairly include under the head of " Literature," 
 a very pleasant semi-public luncheon at which I was 
 present and made a speech, on June 17, 1899. The 
 assembly was convened to celebrate the opening of the 
 new buildings in South Street, erected by Farncombe & 
 Co. for their newspaper the East-Bourne Chronicle, 
 which, to compare small (= local) things with great 
 (= Metropolitan) things, is the " oldest newspaper in the 
 world " and has the " largest circulation in the world." 
 I can speak from personal knowledge as to the former 
 being a figurative fact ; and I can guess the latter. 
 
 It cannot be said that either Science or Art ever
 
 114 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. X. 
 
 derived much, benefit from any work done in East-Bourne. 
 My uncle Mr. F. Brodie, had an observatory at The Gore, 
 with a good telescope in it, a 6-inch refractor, from 
 1854 to 1858, but he did not make much use of it. He 
 used colza oil for the lamps of the observatory, and 
 constantly found the top of the small oil can he used for 
 filling his lamps lying loose by the side of the can. His 
 theory was, that the mice pushed the top off, and 
 lowered their tails into the oil and sucked the oil from 
 their tails ! 
 
 I had an observatory in the tower of my house from 
 1876 to 1907, and a 6-inch achromatic refractor in it 
 with which I did a certain amount of work, and to see 
 and benefit by which, I am glad to say, visitors often came. 
 
 In connection, in a certain sense, with my astro- 
 nomical work at East-Bourne, I may here introduce a 
 strange instance of mental imbecility, as I regarded it at 
 the time. On September 18, 1879, I was one of a party 
 of 60 who agreed to join in a picnic tea at Wannock. 
 Most of the company, including myself, went by train 
 to Polegate and walked thence. On emerging from the 
 
 station, a very old friend Mrs. said to me, " My 
 
 friend Mr. is anxious to make your acquaintance," 
 
 I said " All right ; introduce him to me " which was 
 done. We walked to Wannock together and talked 
 about various things, and then he mingled with the 60 
 and I never spoke to him again. Some weeks later Mrs. 
 said to me, " My friend Mr. was very dis- 
 appointed with you : you talked with him for ^ an hour 
 and never once mentioned the subject of Astronomy, 
 which was the one subject on which he wished to hear 
 you speak." I said " What a fool the man was : why 
 did he not say he wished to talk Astronomy?" I hold 
 that a person who has a hobby has no right to thrust his 
 hobby into conversation with strangers, unless specifically 
 asked to do so. 
 
 The East-Bourne Natural History Society has 
 always been the chief scientific centre in the town, and 
 a vast amount of valuable information has been gathered 
 by its members, especially in its earlier days. Founded
 
 CHAP. X.] Natural History Society. 115 
 
 in 1867, its publications contain many interesting papers 
 on Botany, Geology, and sea creatures, due to the zeal 
 and energy of members taking up diverse fields of 
 research. Amongst the most industrious of its earlier 
 members may be named the Rev. A. K. Cherrill, M.A., 
 Miss W. L. Hall, Miss Hood, Mr. C. J. Midler, 
 Mr. F. C. S. Roper, F.L.S., and Miss A. Woodhouse as 
 representing Botany, the Rev. E. S. Dewick, Dr. 0. 
 Ward, as representing Zoology, whilst General Physical 
 Science found exponents in Mr. T. Ryle, F.R.A.S., the 
 Rev. H. E. Maddock, and, at a later epoch, myself. My 
 first appearance on the stage was on December 18, 1874, 
 when I gave an address entitled " Astronomical Topics." 
 I was elected President for the year 1876-77, and took 
 advantage of my official position to invite all the 
 members to a Conversazione and Loan Exhibition at my 
 house, January 24, 25, and 26, 1877, which proved a very 
 successful show. I had no idea that so many houses in 
 East-Bourne contained so many objects of scientific, 
 artistic, and literary interest. I invited the members to 
 repeat the experiment, which they did on January 8 and 
 9, 1879, with even more successful results. I remember 
 in particular the large number of exhibits obtained from 
 the loot of the Summer Palace at Pekin in 1860. 
 
 Amongst the local objects of interest gathered 
 together at one of the above-named Loan Exhibitions, 
 were 2 old maps of East-Bourne exhibited on behalf of 
 the Duke of Devonshire which had a curious history. 
 
 They had been amongst the household effects which 
 came into the possession of the executors of my grand- 
 mother, Mrs. Brodie, after her death in 1864, and had 
 been stowed away at The Gore, her house in the Old 
 Town, for many years, probably 50 at the least. From 
 my recollection of them, I have no doubt that they were 
 Parish property, and in the absence of any local museum 
 or other fit place of deposit, I urged that they should be 
 sent to the Sussex Archaeological Society. The executors 
 however thought that the Duke of Devonshire had the 
 first claim to them (though he made no claim), and 
 accordingly they were sent to him.
 
 116 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. X. 
 
 When my Loan Exhibition was being got ready, I 
 applied to the Duke's then local agent, the late Mr. R. 
 Insoll, for the loan of the maps for exhibition. He sent 
 them and in due course they were returned to him, but 
 since that time, now more than 30 years ago, I have lost 
 all trace of them, notwithstanding that search was made 
 for them some years ago by the late Duke's agent, Mr. 
 J. P. Cockerell, both at Compton Place and at the Estate 
 Office in London. 
 
 My reason for having moved in the matter, and for 
 being desirous still of having the maps found, is the 
 intrinsic interest of both of them as illustrating the 
 changes which have taken place during the last 3J- 
 centuries, and one century respectively. My recollection 
 of the older map, which was on vellum or parchment, is 
 that it bore some such date as 1530, and showed the 
 parish as divided into houses and lands and farms at the 
 time. Though kept rolled up, it was in a very good 
 state of preservation, and would readily have lent itself 
 to reproduction by photo-lithography. 
 
 The more modern map bore the date of 1816 and 
 the name of " William Figg, Lewes," as Surveyor. I 
 imagine that it had been made for Tithe purposes from 
 the nature of the details presented by it. What, to the 
 best of my belief, is a copy of it, but not the original, 
 now hangs in the Hall of the Vicarage, but Canon 
 Goodwyn is unable to throw any light upon its history. 
 My recollection of the original map is, that it was 
 coloured with great artistic care, and that the map in 
 Canon Goodwyn's possession is a less artistically 
 finished copy of it. 
 
 As a matter of Natural History, the record of which, 
 should not, I think, be lost, I may mention as con- 
 veniently here as anywhere else, that the greater part of 
 the Sussex Birds now at the Public Library and Museum 
 were collected more than half-a-century ago, by one 
 Vidler, son of a past Surveyor of the Pevensey Levels. 
 Vidler sold many of them to a chemist in the town 
 named Dutton. Dr. Jeffery purchased some from Dutton 
 and some from Vidler ; and when he left the town to
 
 CHAP. X.] Scientific Reminiscences. 117 
 
 live at Hailsham, they were most of them sold by 
 auction, and bought for the Museum, Dr. Jeffery 
 retaining only a few which he still has at his house, 
 Carter s Corner. Amongst them are 2 of importance ; 
 a golden eagle (Aquila Ohrysaetos), and a white-tailed 
 or sea eagle (Halietus Albicilla), both shot near Beachy 
 Head. 
 
 A chapter on Science at East-Bourne would not be 
 complete without mention of the fact that in the 
 " Nineties," Professor T. H. Huxley resided at Meads for 
 some years. His principles were so distasteful to me 
 that I never sought his acquaintance, and had no nearer 
 personal knowledge of him than that derived from 
 sitting opposite to him or near him in a railway carriage, 
 and from having heard him lecture at the Royal Institution. 
 
 In 1877, when preparing for press a new edition of 
 my Handbook of Astronomy, I found it necessary to 
 unearth something connected with the late Sir John 
 Herschel, so I wrote to his widow, Lady Herschel, to ask 
 what I wanted to know. Instead of answering my 
 question, she very kindly said " Come and see for your- 
 self," so on January 25, 1877, 1 found myself dining and 
 sleeping at Gollingwood, near Hawkhurst, just over the 
 Sussex border in Kent. It was a peculiarly interesting 
 visit, not only from the kind and friendly reception 
 which I met with from Lady Herschel and her daughters, 
 and from the fact that I was able to do the work and 
 find the references which I wanted, but from what I saw. 
 Sir John's study, a spacious airy room with a large 
 library table in the centre, had been left untouched as he 
 himself had used it, and left it ; so that, in other words, 
 the whole contents of the room were arranged in a state 
 of order and classification which greatly facilitated the 
 work of a stranger in hunting up any particular branch 
 of Astronomy. One of the 2 daughters I then met was 
 Lady Gordon, now the widow of General the Hon. 
 Sir A. Hamilton-Gordon, and her experiences as the 
 wife of a distinguished soldier who had served in 
 foreign parts, was itself something to listen to. 
 
 After Lady Herschel's death, Collingwood was sold,
 
 118 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. X. 
 
 and Sir John's family joined in buying back the house at 
 Slough, where their grandfather Sir William Herschel, 
 had made many of his celebrated observations. That 
 house and its varied contents I had also the pleasure of 
 visiting on December 4, 1891, being taken there by Lord 
 Edward Churchill, when staying with him at Windsor. 
 By the way, that Windsor visit obtained for my wife and 
 myself access to another " sight " not open to the public, 
 Queen Victoria's collection of miniatures, then in the 
 custody of Mr. (afterwards Sir Richard) Holmes. These 
 were very numerous and many of them historic as 
 well as beautiful. 
 
 An episode of a somewhat romantic character con- 
 nected with my pursuit of Astronomy at East-Bourne, 
 may be here mentioned. In 1 899, 1 undertook 011 behalf 
 of the British Astronomical Association to assist in 
 organising an expedition to Spain and Portugal to 
 observe the total eclipse of the Sun of May 28, 1900 ; 
 and part of my work was to collect information likely to 
 "be useful to members travelling to those countries. My 
 name in this connection seems to have got into the 
 newspapers, for in September 1899, I received a letter 
 signed " E. Main," giving me some useful information, 
 and a copy of a book entitled The Cities and Sights of 
 Spain, with the endorsement " With the Author's 
 Compliments." As the letter was dated from Brighton, I 
 thought I could not do better than enter into communi- 
 cation with the writer. The author of the book turned 
 out to be an authoress ; and she kindly invited me to 
 call upon her at the house of her mother, Lady Hawkins- 
 Whitshed. This I did, and it was the first of a long 
 series of delightful visits to Somerby House, Brighton. 
 In due course, I learnt that Lady Hawkins-Whitened had 
 a Barrister husband named Hughes, always in London 
 on the mid-week days on which my visits to Brighton 
 always took place. I generally found in the house a 
 gentleman named Burnaby. In process of time, Mrs. 
 Main, who when I first knew her was a widow, informed 
 me that she had married again, and had become Mrs. 
 Aubrey Le Blond. This was the extent of my knowledge
 
 CHAP. X.] A Romantic Incident. 119 
 
 until the month of March 1910, when I was told by one 
 of my daughters that they had brought home from the 
 circulating library a book which they thought I might 
 like to look at, the Life of Colonel Burnaby of Khiva 
 fame. Of course, I jumped at the idea of reading a 
 book about a man who was so well-known to me by 
 name as alike a great political and a great military hero. 
 Judge of my amazement, when I discovered half-way 
 through the book, that my friend, " E. Main," later Mrs. 
 Le Blond, was no other than the widow of the great 
 Colonel Fred Burnaby ; that the Brighton Mr. Burnaby 
 was the Colonel's son ; and that the London Barrister 
 " named Hughes," who I had known for 2 or 3 years as 
 the able chief agent of the Conservative party in London 
 had been Col. Burnaby's private secretary, and was the 
 husband of my kind hostess Lady Hawkins-Whitshed, 
 now, alas gone from this world. A more remarkable 
 string of romantic facts I have seldom been mixed up 
 with. 
 
 Art at East-Bourne has never been represented 
 except by John Hamilton Mortimer, an 18th century 
 painter, some of whose works appear at South 
 Kensington. I knew however, several members of his 
 family bearing the same surname, some of whom had 
 property in the town till quite recently, though I fancy 
 nearly all of it has now passed into other hands. The last 
 permanent resident was an old Miss Mortimer, who lived 
 and died in a house known as No. 3 The Terrace. The 
 names of Mortimer and Lanyon will be found on mural 
 tablets in the S.W. aisle of the Parish Church. Both 
 families were friends of my family, and the latest and 
 best known members were Sir Charles Lanyon, M.P. for 
 Belfast (1866-68), and his son Sir Owen Lanyon, K.C.M.G., 
 an African Governor a few years ago. 
 
 This chapter may be regarded as a suitable resting 
 place for the record of some social occupations of an 
 intellectual character which during many years onwards 
 from 1878, took the fancy of a considerable number of 
 our friends. I am alluding to Readings of Shakespearian 
 and French and German Plays. 1 think that the first
 
 120 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. X. 
 
 in point of date was a Shakespearian Reading at St. 
 Saviour's Vicarage, on April 29, 1878, and this was 
 followed in various years up to 1902 by other Readings of 
 the like sort. Besides a dozen or more which we 
 ourselves had at Northfield Grange, I find in my diaries 
 mention of quite another dozen at the houses of friends. 
 
 The French Readings, conducted on similar lines, 
 included the chief of Moliere's plays, and some isolated 
 ones by Delavigne, Labiche and Meilhac, together with 
 a French version of the Merchant of Venice. The 
 German plays were 2 of Lessing's, and one of Schiller's. 
 
 Besides the foregoing, our list included Sheridan's 
 Rivals and Scott's Lay of the Last Minstrel and Marmlon. 
 A tragic incident attaches in a way to the Scotch Readings. 
 Our warmest supporters of them were a Scotch family 
 of the name of Morison. Mrs. Morison died at East- 
 Bourne in 1906 as the result of an accident caused 
 by some selfish and thoughtless smoker who had thrown 
 clown on the Grand Parade an unextinguished lucifer 
 match. This set fire to her clothes : she discovered the 
 fact too late, and died of the injuries and shock. 
 
 Another Scotch helper who assisted us was the Earl 
 of Mar, the subject of the long and famous Scotch 
 peerage controversy. He and Lady Mar were much at 
 East-Bourne during 1881. Lady Mar was deeply 
 interested in her husband's wrongs, and spent much 
 time in teaching me to understand the matter, which 
 eventually I think I did. 
 
 Several of the above-named Readings at our house 
 were for charity purposes, including the Princess Alice 
 Hospital and the Poor of Christ Church. From first to 
 last the total of our takings at Northfield Grange for 
 charity purposes amounted to nearly or quite 100. 
 
 My connection with that very useful undertaking, 
 the " Arts and Industries Society " has been so slight, 
 that I am hardly justified in dwelling upon it. I did 
 however in one year (1901, March 20) " open " it, and 
 make the customary oration ; whilst in another year I 
 exhibited 2 folding screens made, or at least covered, by 
 myself. I calculated that I pasted on to the 12 sides of
 
 CHAP. X.] 
 
 A Picturesque Screen. 
 
 121 
 
 the folding leaves, no fewer than 3000 scraps, pictures, 
 photographs, labels, cards, stamps, monograms, &c., &c. 
 The task occupied me for many wet and other days 
 during 1891-2. I only mention it to show how easy it 
 is to obtain useful and picturesque articles of furniture 
 for draughty rooms at a very trifling expense in money. 
 My reason for giving the silhouette of myself 
 (Plate II.) is not vanity, but to place on record a lost 
 art, as I suppose it must now be called. I do not 
 remember for certain where the original was done, but I 
 rather think it may have been at the Pantheon Bazaar in 
 Oxford Street (now Gilbey's wine shop). It is long 
 since I met with an " Artist " who cut such figures. 
 The last I remember was on the old Chain Pier at 
 Brighton, washed away in a storm on December 5, 1896. 
 
 mabts but 
 an from paint t0 pint." (TENNYSON). 
 
 arks 0f J^rt ; 
 
 mnster-stwfcjc is ^aluw's part." (R. W. EMERSON). 
 Fig. 59. 
 
 THE OBSERVATORY AT NORTHFIELD GRANGE.
 
 [122] 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 RAILWAYS AND TRAVELLING. 
 
 Travelling to East-Bourne in the "Forties." The last Coach Opening 
 of the Railway to Lewes. To Hastings. To East- Bourne and Hailsham 
 Raihuay Stations. The Market. Proposed Railway from Battle. Proposed 
 Railways from London by Lewes and Brighton and their effect on East- 
 Bourne. New lines in the year 1864. The " Ouse Valley " Line. The 
 " Surrey and Sussex " Line. The " Tunbridge Wells and East-Bourne " 
 Line. Obstructive policy of the Brighton Company. Mr. ]. P. Knight. 
 The Willingdon Spur Line. Mr. G. A. Wallis as a Railway Promoter. 
 Proposed Line to Birling Gap and Seaford. Railway Accidents. In 
 Clayton Tunnel, 1861. At May field, 1897. Through Trains from the 
 North of England. Bournemouth and Through Trains. History of their 
 introduction into East-Bourne. The proposed Tramway to Pevensey. A 
 Sensational Train. 
 
 " Coarlr after (Slaadr." (Two Gentlemen of Verona.} 
 " Wfya |rat|r brought i|ris fatal n0uu in? " (Titu* Andronicus.) 
 not until i|r signal." (Juliu* Ccesar.} 
 
 MY first visit to East-Bourne as a tourist was when 
 I was 6 months old, but ray personal remem- 
 brance of things naturally begins at a somewhat 
 later date, namely at a time when the railway being 
 opened only from London as far as Lewes, the remainder 
 of the journey had to be performed by Coach. The last 
 driver of the London and East-Bourne Coach was a man 
 named Samuel Rason( a -) 
 
 The journey of the through coach before any 
 railways, began at the Golden Cross, Charing Cross, at 
 8.30 a.m., and ended at the New Inn, South Street, at 
 6.0 p.m. The fares were outside 16s., inside 21s. Up 
 journeys on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays ; Down 
 journeys on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Halt 
 at Godstone for dinner. 
 
 (a) Mr. Graham says that he was only the last driver but one, and that there was 
 one after him. I cannot be sure on the point.
 
 CHAP. XI.] The Opening of the Railway. 123- 
 
 As the railway from Lewes through Polegate to 
 Hastings was opened in 1847, the coach drive which I 
 remember (from East-Bourne to Lewes), was probably a 
 year earlier, because I think it was in the spring of 1846 
 that my grandmother was in London for the Season, and 
 took me with her down to East-Bourne in her own 
 carriage. She had bought in that year an additional 
 half acre of land to enlarge The Gore lawn, and had had 
 constructed in it an ornamental fish pond. At a later 
 date, I developed piscatorial tastes, and acquiring rod 
 and line considered that catching gold and silver fish 
 would be great fun ; but that particular developement of 
 my ambition was disapproved of by the Authorities, and 
 I was subjected to a severe reprimand, ending probably 
 in being sent to bed. 
 
 Railways of course have revolutionised the horse 
 and carriage traffic of the country. Up to the middle of 
 the 19th Century, most people of all ranks knew some- 
 thing about horses, and distances in miles were not 
 thought much of. For instance on the wedding day of 
 my parents in 1840, something was wanted from Lewes- 
 in the morning, and I do not suppose that anything was 
 thought of sending a horse and cart of some sort from 
 East-Bourne to Lewes to fetch it. Amongst the vehicles 
 whose names are probably little known to the present 
 generation, and their shapes still less, are a chariot, 
 clarence, barouche, britzska, gig, stanhope, tilbury and 
 others. Chariot was pronounced by old-fashioned people 
 as Charrot (the late Mr. F. J. Howard always so pro- 
 nounced it). It was a sort of glorified Sedan chair with 
 seats for only 2 persons inside, hung on C springs and 
 drawn by 2 horses driven by a postillion. The seat in 
 front, usually known as the box-seat, was originally 
 literally only a box containing the wearing apparel of 
 the travellers inside. It was fashioned as a seat for a 
 driver when the horses were not driven by a postillion. 
 Sometimes a chariot contained a third seat for a child, 
 shaped something like a milking stool. I remember 
 once being driven thus seated in a carriage belonging to 
 an old Aunt who was taking a drive from Worthing to
 
 124 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XI. 
 
 Bramber Castle. This was about 1846. Outside the 
 chariot at the back, there was usually an open seat, 
 called a " dickey " or " rumble," for a man-servant or 
 maid-servant, or both, with space underneath for a 
 detachable luggage box. The last inhabitant of East- 
 Bourne to own and use a chariot was Mrs. John Willard 
 of The Lawn, who died November 29, 1865. Yellow was 
 rather a fashionable colour for chariots. There used to 
 l>e a yellow chariot of ancient date at the Manor House, 
 .and perhaps Mr. C. D. Gilbert still preserves it as a relic 
 of olden times. 
 
 The above-named Mrs. Willard, when going to dine 
 with her brother-in-law Major Willard, whose house The 
 Grays was no more than 200 yards away, would often 
 travel thither in a Sedan chair, with her gardener John 
 Rollison, and her butler John Thomas as bearers. I had 
 this quite recently from Thomas's son. Rollison's eldest 
 son Thomas became a gardener in Yorkshire, and his 
 second son William, a National Schoolmaster at Uckfield. 
 
 Going back to Railway matters the Branch 
 Railways from Polegate to East-Bourne and Hailsham 
 were not opened until May 14, 1849, and between 1846 
 and the opening of the branches, an Omnibus of sorts 
 belonging to D. Burford, landlord of the Anchor, plied 
 between Polegate and the Sea Houses at East-Bourne. 
 The starting point for the London Coach had been the 
 yard of the New Inn, South Street, which yard some 
 years ago was built over when the New Inn was re-built 
 and enlarged and re-named the New Hotel a much less 
 interesting designation. The tree which obstructed the 
 foothpath till quite recent years was itself a remanet of 
 coaching days. The office for coach tickets was further 
 down South Street. It may here be noted that the last 
 Turnpike Trust in the neighbourhood, the Lewes and 
 Polegate one, came to an end on November 1, 1878, more 
 to the satisfaction of the driving public than of the 
 ratepaying public. 
 
 I was present at the opening of the Railway, and, of 
 course, witnessed with intense interest the ceremonies 
 which had been arranged for the occasion. The
 
 Plate XXXI. 
 
 To face p. 124. 
 
 Figs. 6061. 
 
 OPENING OF THE EAST-BOURNE BRANCH RAILWAY, 
 May 14, 1849. 
 
 I-avis, East- Hour ne. Copyright. 
 
 AN EAST-BOURNE BRANCH TRAIN OF EARLY DATE. 
 
 "A Royal train, believe me." (King Henry VI] I.)
 
 CHAP. XI.] The Opening of the Railway 125 
 
 preparations were of a very complete character, and 
 the programme lasted for fully 15 hours or more, almost 
 from daylight till midnight. Of course, the excitement 
 amongst the natives was very great for many of them 
 had never travelled by train, or even seen a locomotive 
 engine. The actual opening may be said to have taken 
 place at about mid-day, or soon after, when a special 
 train from Brighton brought in a number of officials of 
 the Railway Company, and a brass band to enliven the 
 proceedings. A luncheon took place in a large booth 
 erected in the grounds of the Orchard Farm, the 
 residence of Mr. Smith, Lord Burlington's steward, on 
 or near the site of what is now Orchard Road. My 
 father came down from London to sit at the festive 
 table, and he wished me to accompany him, but my 
 mother's remonstrances against my introduction into 
 public life at the age of 7 prevailed. When the 
 luncheon was over there were, of course, toasts and 
 speeches ; the principal speaker being Mr. Leo Schuster, 
 the then Deputy Chairman of the Railway Company and 
 afterwards Chairman, who proposed the health of the 
 Chairman of the luncheon party (Mr. Freeman Thomas, 
 of Ratton, the grandfather of the present Lord Willing- 
 don). The items in the programme which attracted 
 my special attention and approval were the efforts made 
 by certain amateur acrobats to climb a greasy pole for 
 the sake of the leg of mutton at the top ; and the 
 fireworks in the evening. The successful acrobat was 
 the late Mr. William Newman who afterwards became 
 one of the principal builders ; and whose sons carry on 
 his business still. Amongst Newman's claims to our 
 grateful remembrance is the fact that he undertook the 
 duties of Schoolmaster at the first evening school ever 
 carried on in the parish, supported by my aunt Miss 
 Julia Brodie. The fireworks were of amateur-make, 
 having been prepared for the occasion by two uncles of 
 mine, Mr. F. Brodie and Dr. D. J. Hall. Those two 
 gentlemen in their day often contributed pyrotechnic 
 displays to enliven the public, having received their 
 training from another amateur, Mr. Dobree, who lived
 
 126 
 
 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XI. 
 
 at Southfield Lodge, a house which I have mentioned 
 elsewhere. 
 
 So far as the Railway part of the day's ceremonial 
 was concerned that concluded with a trip of the directors 
 and officials to Hailsham in the afternoon. A very good 
 account (of which I have a copy) of the whole day's 
 proceedings appeared in the Brighton Gazette, of 
 May 17, 1849. 
 
 The railway being open from London to East-Bourne, 
 it may be a matter of interest to inquire what the train 
 service was like. In the early " Fifties," the official 
 time-tables of the Brighton Company appeared in the 
 form of a small pamphlet of the size which printers call 
 " 16mo," cased in a bright yellow cover. Subsequently 
 the size of the page was slightly altered and the yellow 
 wrapper discontinued. I saved up some of these books for 
 many years, but unfortunately in a house move, they 
 were made away with, and the oldest record of Sussex 
 trains I possess is, Bradshaw's Monthly Descriptive 
 Railway Guide for June 1857, which in train tables does 
 not mention East-Bourne ; only Brighton, Lewes, New- 
 haven, St. Leonards and Hastings, as the important 
 coast stations. The oldest complete time-table I possess 
 is dated March 1866. 
 
 The trains then running were as follows : 
 
 DOWN 
 
 London Bridge... 
 Victoria 
 East-Bourne 
 
 UP 
 
 East-Bourne ... 
 Victoria 
 London Bridge . 
 
 The developement in the 44 years to 1910, cannot be 
 described as very remarkable as regards the daylight 
 trains, and comparing the above figures with the 
 Bradshaw of 9 years previously, there was only an 
 increase of one train each way to and from Hastings, 
 and the trains were very closely identical in both years. 
 
 .. 6.40 
 
 8.0 
 
 10.0 
 
 12.10 
 
 2.10 
 
 4.5 
 
 6.40 
 
 .. 6.35 
 
 7.55 
 
 9.55 
 
 12.5 
 
 2.5 
 
 4.0 
 
 6.35 
 
 .. 9.15 
 
 10.40 
 
 12.7 
 
 2.47 
 
 4.30 
 
 6.5 
 
 9.17 
 
 6.30 
 
 9.15 
 
 10.30 
 
 12.7 
 
 2.15 
 
 4.40 
 
 7.15 
 
 9.20 
 
 11.15 
 
 1.22 
 
 2.45 
 
 4.35 
 
 7.30 
 
 9.50 
 
 9.17 
 
 11.10 
 
 1.15 
 
 2.37 
 
 4.25 
 
 7.25 
 
 9.45
 
 CHAP. XI.] Railway Carriages. 127 
 
 The Sunday trains were in each case only* two each way. 
 Would that that modest provision had been maintained ! 
 
 A few words about Railway carriages. The 
 Brighton Company's carriages were always much below 
 par compared with the carriages (in Railway parlance 
 "" Coaches ") of the great northern Companies, and they 
 continued to be so until pretty well the commencement 
 of the 20th Century. Down to about 1865, there were 
 four classes, the 4th Class having open sides, though 
 roofed, but at an earlier period the cheap carriages had 
 not even roofs. The last Railway carriages without 
 roofs which I remember were used on the Woodford 
 Branch of the Great Eastern Railway. 
 
 I can well recollect the excitement caused on the 
 Brighton Line by the 2nd Class carriages having their 
 seats covered with leather and being provided with 
 a narrow leather cushion for one's back. These were 
 regarded as a delightful innovation, and a proof that the 
 Brighton Company were going ahead in the way of 
 propitiating the public. 
 
 When the East-Bourne branch was opened, one 
 engine did the whole of the work on the East-Bourne 
 and Hailsham branches, running in turn, first to one 
 place and then to the other. It will therefore readily 
 be inferred that neither were the trains numerous nor 
 the traffic heavy. A reserve engine was stabled at 
 East-Bourne. The driver's name was Jackson, the guard's 
 Foster, and the station-master's Dickinson. This modest 
 state of things lasted without material change for several 
 years. The station buildings and platform were to the 
 W. of the present station, and were pulled down at a 
 later date in order that the Upperton Road should pass 
 over their site. The date of the new station on the new 
 site was about 1866, with a new station-master named 
 Bond. There had been built about 1857, adjacent to the 
 old station, two long sheds facing one another with a 
 paved open space between them, the whole being 
 dignified by the name of the " East-Bourne Market." 
 As a market it did not last long, but the buildings were 
 used on August 26, 1858 (and I rather think on a
 
 128 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XI. 
 
 previous occasion also), for a Fancy Bazaar got up for a 
 Church Building Fund, and they served that purpose 
 very well. 
 
 A third station was built in 1872 ; this was partly 
 pulled down and transformed and the present station 
 erected in 1886. The roof on the arrival side is still 
 more modern. 
 
 I will continue my Railway history of the town and 
 neighbourhood, for it presents a succession of matters of 
 interest, including many disappointments and blighted 
 hopes and expectations. 
 
 One day in the spring of 1864 Dr. Hall showed me 
 a letter which had been addressed to him as an 
 influential local resident and at one time Chairman of 
 the Local Board. It came from a London firm of 
 solicitors named Currey and Holland who were the London 
 advisers of the Duke of Devonshire. It disclosed the 
 fact that the South Eastern Railway Company were 
 desirous of poaching on the Brighton Company's 
 preserves, and getting a share of the London and 
 East-Bourne traffic by constructing a branch line to 
 East-Bourne from their Hastings main line at Battle. 
 The writers of the letter wished for Dr. Hall's opinion 
 as to the desirability of the proposal, and whether the 
 East-Bourne people would support it. Even as early as 
 that time there was a strong feeling in the Town that 
 the interests of East-Bourne from a Railway point of 
 view were kept in the background and sacrificed to the 
 interests of Brighton. Dr. Hall asked me to go in his 
 name to Westminster to Currey and Holland, and discuss 
 the subject. This I did and, after seeing Mr. Holland, 
 I was put into communication with Mr. H. Toogood, 
 the Parliamentary Agent, and Mr. F. Brady, the 
 Engineer of the S.E.R., and eventually we had a 
 conference at the Burlington Hotel, East-Bourne, to 
 consider the subject, Mr. Ellman, a Battle solicitor, 
 being present to represent Battle. At a later stage the 
 Brighton Company " squared " their rivals and the 
 project was withdrawn. From a copy of the deposited 
 plans which I possess it appears that the line would
 
 CHAP. XI.] East Sussex Railway projects. 129 
 
 have been 13^ miles long, and with East-Bourne Station 
 at the back of the Terminus Road somewhere near what 
 is now Tideswell Road. 
 
 The Battle scheme was in a sense the outcome of a 
 great Parliamentary fight in 1863 when the London, 
 Chatham, and Dover Company inspired a direct 
 aggression on the Brighton Company by a proposed 
 line called " The Beckenham, Lewes, and Brighton Rail- 
 way," of which Mr. C. L. Peel, of Cuckfield (afterwards 
 Sir C. L. Peel, Clerk of the Privy Council) was Secretary. 
 The scheme was fiercely contested by the Brighton 
 Company and was rejected. It was revived in 1864 
 with the addition of branches to Westerham and 
 East-Bourne. Its route was through West Wickham, 
 Tatsfield, Oxted, East Grinstead, Newick, Lewes, and 
 Rottingdean. It was, of course, again contested and 
 was again thrown out, but these struggles had the effect 
 of stirring up the Brighton Company to realise that if 
 they did not do something very comprehensive to 
 improve the railway accommodation of East Sussex they 
 would have to face a further invasion of the County by 
 their late rivals or by others. Accordingly in 1864 the 
 Brighton Company obtained Bills for a net-work of lines 
 covering nearly the whole of East Sussex with the 
 ostensible object of benefiting East-Bourne and Hastings 
 but with the real object of keeping out intruders. There 
 was to have been a line from Balcombe through Uckfield 
 (the " Ouse Valley " line) and Hailsham to Hastings 
 (the " St. Leonards " line), and a line from Groombridge 
 through Heathfield to Hailsham (the " Tunbridge Wells 
 and East-Bourne " line) which might become a main line 
 from Croydon to East-Bourne if Parliament sanctioned 
 a line called " The Surrey and Sussex Railway " projected 
 in the interests of the Brighton Company by independent 
 promoters, from Croydon through Edenbridge to 
 Groombridge and Tunbridge Wells. 
 
 The Bills for the two of these lines received the 
 
 sanction of Parliament in 1864, but owing to the 
 
 opposition of Mr. Curteis, of Windmill Hill, the 
 
 St. Leonards section was not passed at the same time 
 
 K
 
 130 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XI. 
 
 as the others, but in a deviated form in the following 
 session ; and the Surrey and Sussex line was also 
 sanctioned about the same time and was taken over by 
 the Brighton Company. The proposed Battle branch 
 of the S.E.R., which I mentioned first of all in dealing 
 with this group of Railways, was withdrawn in con- 
 sequence of the Brighton Company conceding to the 
 S.E.R. the right of running a service of trains from 
 Charing Cross to East-Bourne via Tunbridge Wells, 
 Groombridge, and Hailsham. Such a service in the 
 form of 2 trains each week-day in each direction was 
 at a much later period instituted, and was much 
 appreciated by some of the East-Bourne people. 
 
 A start was soon made with the Ouse Valley and 
 Surrey and Sussex lines, and as much as -| a million of 
 money had been spent on them when owing to the great 
 Financial Crash of 1866 not only were the works stopped 
 but later on the sanction of Parliament was given to 
 their total abandonment. This was about 1871. I 
 think nothing had been done between Groombridge and 
 Hailsham because of a disinclination to start sooner 
 than could be helped the construction of a tunnel more 
 than a mile long under Heathfield Park. Just before 
 the great Financial Crash of 1866 the Brighton Company 
 had to face another Beckenham aggression in the shape 
 of a new line to Brighton through Keston, Limpsfield, 
 East Grinstead, Lewes, and Ovingdean to Kemp Town, 
 with a branch to Westerham but without the projected 
 branch to East-Bourne of the scheme of 1864. Once 
 more were the invaders defeated. 
 
 Some years later under new Parliamentary powers 
 and in a modified form some of the Brighton Company's 
 East Sussex lines mentioned above, with the exception 
 of the Ouse Valley one and the line from Uckfield to 
 Hailsham, were revived and made. The Ouse Valley 
 and Uckfield Hailsham sections were, however, never 
 revived, and various unfinished embankments and works 
 disfigure the country between Balcombe and Uckfield to 
 this day. The Surrey and Sussex line was revived 
 and sanctioned, I think, in 1882. Then in 1883 its
 
 CHAP. XL] East Sussex Railway projects. 131 
 
 independent promoters tried for a Bill to extend it 
 northwards through Croydon, Thornton Heath and under 
 Beulah Hill and Norwood, to join the Chatham and 
 Dover line at Dulwich. This would have given the 
 Ohatham and Dover Company independent access to 
 Tunbridge Wells in competition with the Brighton and 
 .South-Eastern Companies. The Parliamentary Committee 
 threw out the Croydon and Dulwich section and so left 
 the revived Surrey and Sussex line (then known as the 
 Oxted and Groombridge line) hung up without an inlet 
 -or an outlet of its own. This put the line at the mercy 
 of the Brighton Company who took it over and absorbed 
 it in their own system on their own terms, except that 
 they had to grant to the S.E.R. running powers from 
 near Croydon as far south as Oxted the S.E.R. joining 
 with a contribution towards the cost. It is a matter ever 
 to be regretted on public grounds that the original 
 Groombridge and Hailsham line with its long tunnel 
 under Heathfield was not made, because it would have 
 provided a first-class express running line available, 
 when suitably linked up, for fast trains from London to 
 East-Bourne which the existing Groombridge and 
 Hailsham line never can be. This last line has a history 
 of its own which is not devoid of interest. The 
 abandonment of the Brighton Company's Tunbridge 
 Wells and East-Bourne line of 1864 left all that part of 
 Sussex totally unprovided with railway accommodation, 
 so in 1873 local promoters were got together and obtained 
 a Bill for a cheap cross-country line from Tunbridge 
 Wells to Hailsham, of a gauge of 3ft. with bad gradients 
 and dangerous curves. Having got their Act these 
 promoters found themselves with a white elephant, 
 having neither money nor wits to make and work their 
 line, so they offered to transfer it to the Brighton 
 Company who in the first instance refused the offer. The 
 promoters thereupon threatened to sell their Act to the 
 S.E.R. This frightened the Brighton Company who 
 eventually took over the line and made it, after their 
 Engineer Mr. Banister had, to some extent, altered and 
 -eased the curves and gradients. It was opened in
 
 132 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XI. 
 
 sections the first, from Hailsham to Heathfield, in 1880. 
 After the line as a whole was opened it was a long time 
 before the earthwork settled down into a safe condition, 
 owing, especially, to constant slips on a high embankment 
 near Mayfield. Indeed during one winter the line was 
 closed against all traffic for a whole month, and even 
 now speed limitations are insisted on by the Board 
 of Trade. 
 
 The foregoing paragraphs by no means exhaust the 
 railway history of the last 40 years in its bearings on 
 East Sussex and East-Bourne, and some mention, how- 
 ever concise, must be made of some other projects, 
 hardly any of which were ever carried out. 
 
 By very far the most important of these abortive 
 projects was the scheme launched in 1868, for a general 
 amalgamation of the Brighton, South Eastern, and 
 Chatham Companies into one united concern to be called 
 the " Great Southern Railway." The Companies having* 
 been cutting one anothers' throats for many years,, 
 suddenly became a " happy family." Their joint Bill 
 passed the Commons, and would have became law had 
 not Lord Redesdale in the Lords, insisted that the South 
 Eastern scale of fares, which was very high, should not 
 rule the fares of the Amalgamated Company, but that 
 the fares should be on the lower or Brighton scale. 
 This the Companies would not agree to, and they 
 abandoned their Bill which was never afterwards revived. 
 How much Sussex owes to Lord Redesdale as to this- 
 has never, I think, been realised. For instance, the 
 rejected South Eastern scale was for 1st Class four pence 
 per mile. I forget the other figures. I have paid 
 myself 4d. a mile on the South Eastern Railway. 
 
 It was felt that this Bill would be so prejudicial to- 
 the interests of East-Bourne, that the Vicar and Mr. J. 
 Sheridan were appointed at a Vestry Meeting to act with 
 Brighton, Hastings and other towns in opposing the Bill. 
 
 I have already stated that the settled policy of the 
 Brighton Company was to blockade all the approaches 
 to Brighton. What this policy meant, was very frankly 
 confessed by Mr. Laing, the Chairman of the Brighton
 
 CHAP. XI.] Brighton to be defended. 133 
 
 Company at a meeting called in 1877 (?), to sanction the 
 construction of a railway from Lewes to East Grinstead. 
 He said that " their main object had been to make such 
 arrangements as would ward off any danger," i.e. danger 
 from interlopers ! I well remember Mr. J. P. Knight, the 
 then General Manager, illustrating this point one day 
 when I was in his office at Brighton. Producing a map 
 .of Sussex, he drew a pencil over the various lines, 
 opened or sanctioned, converging on Brighton Worthing 
 and Brighton, Horsham and Brighton, London and 
 Brighton, East Grinstead and Brighton, Tuiibridge 
 Wells and Brighton, etc., etc., and said with a chuckle, 
 " Look at this ; isn't this defensive strategy worthy of 
 the Duke of Wellington " or words to that effect. He 
 had something to boast of, seeing that since his com- 
 pany's victory in 1863, in the case of the London, 
 Lewes and Brighton Line, they had defeated several 
 subsequent schemes for rival main lines from London to 
 Brighton promoted in Sessions subsequent to 1863, by 
 the South Eastern and Chatham Companies in alliance 
 and later still, in 1876, an anonymous scheme for getting 
 into Brighton via Reigate and Shoreham, which was 
 supposed (rightly or wrongly I do not know), to have 
 been inspired by the Midland Company. At any rate, 
 this I do know, that the Brighton officials were in a 
 great " funk " about it for one of them told me so. 
 
 There is yet another line to be mentioned, support 
 to which was given by the Brighton Company and 
 justified by Mr. Laing in his speech just alluded to. 
 That was the Lewes and East Grinstead line passed in 
 1877, and extended eventually northwards through 
 Lingfield to join the Surrey and Sussex line at Oxted. 
 Lord Sheffield was a great promoter of this, contributing 
 a large sum (200,000 I believe) to the cost. Mr. Laing's 
 explanation to his shareholders was that by taking the 
 line into their own hands, they would accomplish a final 
 stroke to protect Brighton against all intrusive rivals, 
 and so it has turned out. 
 
 My Railway history of East Sussex is not yet 
 complete. Taking the subjects as nearly as may be in
 
 134: Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XL 
 
 point of date in 1873 the Brighton Company con- 
 structed the Willingdon and Pevensey spur line to 
 facilitate communication between East-Bourne and 
 Hastings. This was celebrated by a luncheon at the 
 Cavendish Hotel, given by the Directors to certain 
 East-Bourne and other people on August 1, 1873. 
 
 In 1877, a proposal was put forward by Mr. G. A, 
 Wallis, nominally at the instigation of the Duke of 
 Devonshire, for a line to be made by the South Eastern 
 Company from Ticehurst Road station into East-Bourne. 
 The avowed idea was to bring the City of London and 
 East-Bourne into closer contact, and so to encourage City 
 men of business to take up their residences at East- 
 Bourne. Nothing came of this scheme which never even 
 took a definite shape before the public. One serious- 
 objection to it was that from London to East-Bourne via 
 Ticehurst was too roundabout a route to mean any 
 substantial saving either in time or distance for London 
 to East-Bourne passengers. 
 
 Mr. Wallis's ambition to pose as a Railway Promoter 
 and Engineer having been foiled in 1877, underwent a 
 large developement in the course of the next few years, 
 and the Session of 1883 witnessed what may be considered 
 the last extensive and serious aggression on the Brighton 
 Company. Just about that period Mr. Wallis was very 
 much en evidence, becoming first Mayor of the new 
 Municipal Borough of East-Bourne, and eager to become 
 its first M.P., to celebrate which event (though it never 
 came off) a magnificent champagne supper was organised 
 but could not be eaten. 
 
 But to return to Railways. Mr. Wallis fathered a 
 scheme for a line to run as nearly straight as possible from 
 Beckenham into East-Bourne, 48^ miles long, over which 
 access into London was to be obtained by means of the 
 lines of the Chatham and Dover Company between 
 Beckenham and Victoria and Beckenham and Ludgate 
 Hill. It was to pass through Tatsfield, Edenbridge r 
 Uckfield, and Chiddingly, cross the Brighton line to the 
 W. of Polegate, and so into East-Bourne. The distance 
 from Ludgate Hill to East-Bourne would have been
 
 CHAP. XI.] Proposed Railways to East-Bourne. 135 
 
 exactly 58 miles. I was present most of the 11 days 
 during which the hearing lasted ; indeed I was called as 
 a witness on behalf of the Brighton Company. Whilst 
 it is probable that the line would have done good to 
 East-Bourne merely from the standpoint of the traveller 
 it is absolutely certain that having regard to the lack of 
 population along its whole length there was not the 
 remotest possibility that, if made, it could become a 
 paying concern. It evoked, however, a large amount of 
 verbal support from the inhabitants of East-Bourne, but 
 little or no financial support other than that which was, 
 or might have been, given by the Duke of Devonshire. 
 The tunnels constituted one objection to the Bill. There 
 would have been 10, of an aggregate length of 11,697 
 yards nearly 7 miles. One of them nearly 2 miles 
 long, and two others each about one mile. 
 
 The next Railway move was in the autumn of 1885 
 when a meeting was held at East-Bourne on October 28, 
 in support of a scheme for a coast-line from East-Bourne 
 to Seaford. This also was from a local point of view a 
 popular proposal. The circular convening the meeting 
 suggested among other advantages that the line would 
 " greatly benefit the Town by lessening the cost of coals, 
 building materials, and other goods coming from 
 Newhaven. It also suggested that the landowners along 
 the line were favourable to the scheme. This was true, 
 Lord Chichester having sent his steward to attend the 
 meeting whilst another important landowner, Mr. Davies 
 Gilbert, was specially keen on the subject. I was invited 
 to address the meeting and did so in a speech which, I 
 am afraid, was of undue length. Mr. Gilbert's motives 
 were avowed to be that he looked forward to developing 
 Birliug Gap as a residential marine suburb of East- 
 Bourne. I confess that I liked the idea, and quite think 
 that some day it may be realised. The proposal took 
 the shape of a Bill in the next session of Parliament 
 which soon became an Act, and it was generally hoped 
 and expected that the line would soon be made the 
 promoters having come to terms with the Brighton 
 Company as to working it. Starting from off the
 
 136 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XL 
 
 East-Bourne Branch., a little N. of the Bedford Well 
 waterworks, it was to have passed to the W. of Rodmill 
 Farm and so across to the Downs, penetrating the hill by 
 a long tunnel, the W. mouth of which would have been 
 near East Dean. Thence after a shorter tunnel the line 
 would have been in the open along the valley in which 
 the village of West Dean lies, and so crossing the 
 Cuckmere near Exceat and passing by Chington Farm, 
 S. of Sutton, it would have joined the existing Seaford 
 Branch a little to the W. of the Seaford Station. 
 Unfortunately for East-Bourne and Mr. Gilbert a change 
 took place in the General Manager's Department of the 
 Brighton Railway, and the new Manager Mr. (afterwards 
 Sir Allen) Sarle, who had no large ideas on any subject, 
 was hostile to the scheme, and persuaded his directors 
 to withdraw from their obligations with respect to it ; 
 and so it came about that the Act was repealed. 
 
 In 1899 a proposal was brought forward for a light 
 Railway from Robertsbridge to Pevensey, and I was 
 asked to give evidence in support of it which I 
 promised to do, at the Inquiry before the Commissioners 
 held at Pevensey on July 13, 1899. The project, 
 however, fell through, but I do not remember exactly 
 why it failed. At any rate it was a pity, because such 
 a line would have opened up a large tract of rich 
 agricultural land, and have given the farmers an outlet 
 for their produce, and so have improved the prospects 
 of agriculture in that part of Sussex. 
 
 Imitating, as one might say, the policy of the Duke 
 of Devonshire in East-Bourne, Earl De La Warr, who 
 has done a great deal for the developement of Bexhill, 
 thought in 1899 that the time had come to provide 
 Bexhill with better accommodation than it had from the 
 Brighton Company by reason of the fact that the route 
 from London to Bexhill via Lewes was a great way 
 round. Accordingly he inspired a proposal for a line 
 from Rotherfield to Bexhill direct, with connections 
 at the N. end with the Brighton Company's lines at 
 Groombridge and with the South Eastern Company's 
 lines at or near Frant. It is evident that such a scheme
 
 CHAP. XL] Railway Accidents. 137 
 
 whilst it would have been highly beneficial to Bexhill would 
 have altogether undermined the Brighton Company's 
 London and Bexhill traffic, but no Parliamentary fight 
 took place because the promoters could not raise enough 
 money even to get the scheme into Parliament. 
 
 Railway accidents in the East-Bourne district have 
 been, happily, very few. The most important Avas the 
 derailment of a train at Mayfield on September 1, 1897, 
 when the train fell over, and went down an embankment. 
 But one of the greatest railway accidents that ever 
 happened in England occurred on the Brighton main 
 line in Clayton tunnel on Sunday, August 25, 1861. No 
 fewer than 23 people were killed in a collision between 2 
 trains on the same line of rails, though a third train in 
 front of the 2 trains was the indirect cause of the 
 accident. Altogether there were about 100 casualties. 
 It put a stopper on Sabbath-breaking excursioiiing for a 
 long time : would that it had done so permanently ! Of 
 course in those days the signalling arrangements were 
 very different from, and inferior to, those now in vogue. 
 On the Brighton line, up till about 1870, the system was 
 this : the line was considered to be always clear : when 
 a train passed a signal box a stop signal was exhibited 
 for 5 minutes during 3 of which it was horizontal, or 
 full " on " : then for 2 minutes at an angle of 45 or 
 half-cock : indicating that the line ahead less than 5 
 minutes previously had been occupied by a preceding 
 train. When 5 minutes had elapsed the signal was 
 lowered so as not to show at all. It was in those days 
 supposed that intervals of time sufficed to protect a train 
 from being run into. Now-a-days a guaranteed interval 
 of space, rather than time, is preferred. This is the 
 " Block system." 
 
 An accident, not at first sight very important in 
 itself, but fatal in its consequences, happened at East- 
 Bourne Station on August 22, 1873, whereby a man was 
 killed. Though I held a Brief at the Inquest, I forget 
 the details. A passenger named Bere recovered from 
 the Railway Company 1700 for personal injuries 
 sustained by him ; at the trial they had paid a 1000
 
 138 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XL 
 
 into Court, and the jury added 700. Another fatal 
 accident at the same station happened in December 1899, 
 when a most capable and obliging man, appreciated by 
 everybody, Inspector Tucker, was killed, but through his- 
 own lack of caution. These exceptions (and of course 
 some others) do not invalidate my general statement that 
 the Brighton is a very safe line for travellers. 
 
 An important matter in regard to the prosperity of 
 East-Bourne, as influenced by Railways, is that of inter- 
 communication with distant parts of England, and on 
 this I have something to say. In the spring of 1892, I 
 spent some days at Bournemouth, and whilst there was- 
 very much struck with the number of railway carriages- 
 coming into the Bournemouth station from distant parts 
 of England, served by the London and North Western, 
 Midland, and Great Western Railways, labelled 
 ;< Through carriage to Bournemouth." 
 
 When I got home to East-Bourne, I wrote letters to- 
 the General Managers of the London and North Western 
 and Brighton Companies on the basis of the information 
 which I had picked up at Bournemouth, and suggested 
 the desirability of a similar service between the North 
 and Brighton and East-Bourne via Addison Road 
 Kensington, and Clapham Junction. The answers were 
 very significant and characteristic of the two Companies. 
 Sir G. Findlay on behalf of the L.N.W.R. said he 
 warmly approved of the idea, and would be glad to- 
 co-operate with the Brighton Company in carrying it 
 out. Mr. Sarle, on behalf of the Brighton Company, 
 said that my suggestion was impossible quite out of the 
 question, because, amongst other reasons, of the "habitual 
 uupunctuality " of the L.N.W.R. trains ! ! ! And this 
 was said at a time when the unpunctuality of the 
 Brighton Company's trains had become a public 
 scandal. I also wrote a letter on the subject to the East- 
 bourne Chronicle under date of August 18, 1894. In 
 189G, the Mayor of East-Bourne (Mr. J. A. Skinner) 
 visited Bournemouth and came back with some pro- 
 gressive ideas in his head. This induced me in 
 September 1890 to resume my efforts and to publish a
 
 CHAP. XL] London & North Western Connections. 139 1 
 
 letter on the through train question in the Eastbourne 
 Standard. I kept on hammering at the subject during 
 subsequent years by letters to the newspapers, and 
 otherwise, down to 1903, by which time the matter had 
 taken such root in the public mind that a through 
 service from Manchester to East-Bourne via Brighton 
 was inaugurated on July 23, 1904, by a Mayoral banquet 
 at the Grand Hotel, East-Bourne, to which representatives- 
 of the 2 Railway Companies and others were invited. I 
 claim a little credit for having correctly judged of the 
 possibilities of the movement because, started with the 
 reluctant consent of the Brighton Company as an 
 experiment for the 3 summer months of July, August and 
 September, it was extended, first for another month, and 
 then for 2 more months till the 31st of December, and is 
 now permanent throughout the year. It has brought a. 
 large number of desirable people from the North into 
 East-Bourne, and has enabled the inhabitants of Sussex 
 to increase their knowledge of the geography of the 
 Midlands and North of England. 
 
 The Town having secured permanent connection 
 with the L.N.W.R. Company I thought in February 1905 
 I would have a try at the Great Western, especially because 
 they were already running through trains from Oxford 
 and Birkenhead to Dover via Reading and Redhill, and it 
 would be easy for one or two through-carriages to be 
 sent to Brighton and East-Bourne off the trains running 
 through Redhill. I received a sympathetic reply from 
 Mr. Inglis, the General Manager of the G.W.R., to the 
 effect that his Company had tried to move in the matter 
 but that " the suggestion has not met with much favour." 
 He added, however, that the whole matter was engaging 
 the best attention of his Board, and that conferences- 
 with the Brighton Company were taking place. This, 
 it will be observed, was 5 years ago. Let me express- 
 the hope that the conferences are still taking place, and 
 that within the next 5 years the Brighton Company will 
 abandon their popish principles of non possumus. 
 
 Tramways must occupy a niche in this chapter. I 
 have always advocated the introduction of Tramways-
 
 140 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XI. 
 
 into East-Bourne, and have been warmly blessed and 
 cursed, alternately, for doing so. As a mere matter of 
 history I may note that in 1899 a proposal was made 
 Toy some London speculators for the formation of an 
 "" East-Bourne and Pevensey Omnibus and Tramway 
 Company," but nothing came of it except a good deal 
 of printing. A map of the scheme, now before me, shows 
 that the line was to start from the Terminus Road end 
 of Langney Road arid run along the Pevensey Road to 
 Langney Bridge whence a loop was to be made to 
 Pevensey Station and through Westham to Pevensey 
 Village and back by Wallsend to Langney Bridge again. 
 No invasion of the fashionable residential parts of the 
 Town was included in the scheme. The opponents of 
 Tramways in East-Bourne may depend upon it that they 
 will come sooner or later ; the hideous, noisy, and 
 stinking motor omnibuses are no sufficient or satisfactory 
 substitutes. I arn no new convert to the Tramway. I 
 welcomed G. F. Train's American Tramway down the 
 Bayswater Road in 1862, and made my first speech in 
 favour of tramways in London as far back as April 
 13, 1861, at a College Debating Society. 
 
 Under the date of July 25, 1857 I find in my diary 
 an entry that I went to Polegate to meet a cousin 
 returning from Croydou, and that " she came down in a 
 long train : 3 engines and 50 carriages." The figures 
 .seem incredible, but the writing is quite distinct. 
 
 This chapter will be brought to an end with a few 
 anecdotes of Railway-travelling experiences " Published 
 by Request," as sermons are sometimes said to be. It 
 so happens that in the performance of duties connected 
 with my work as a Local Government Board Inspector, 
 .a Boundary Commissioner, and a Political Speaker on 
 platforms, including professional journeys as a Barrister, 
 I have had a great deal of railway-travelling in England 
 between Penzance and Dover on the S. and Manchester 
 .and York on the N., with a good deal in Wales and some 
 in Scotland and Ireland. Within the first-named English, 
 area I have traversed almost every mile of railway open 
 up to 1901. The present incidents will be limited to 
 the L.B. & S.C.R.
 
 CHAP. XI.] Railway Travelling Anecdotes. 141 
 
 Travelling one day to London, when the train pulled 
 up at Lewes and I was engaged in reading a newspaper, 
 a paper boy came up and offered me, say, The Thames? 
 Magazine and The Daily Moonshine. As I was sufficiently 
 and visibly supplied with literature I took no notice of 
 him. At length, after repeated vain efforts to move me, 
 he said in despair " H'aint ye got a tongue ? " 
 
 One day between Polegate and Lewes I occupied 
 myself in turning over a number of proof sheets of my 
 Handbook of Astronomy, laying them on an adjacent 
 unoccupied seat. A lady and gentleman were in the 
 carriage. After the lady had watched me for a 
 considerable time she said " Do you ever give lectures 
 on Astronomy ? " I replied " Yes, sometimes." She 
 then asked me whether I would pay her a visit and give 
 a lecture on Astronomy at a forthcoming annual meeting 
 of her Primrose League. To this startling suggestion 
 I said that the idea seemed to me altogether out of the 
 question ; how in the world could Astronomy be deemed 
 in the least degree appropriate to the work of the 
 Primrose League ? She replied " Never you mind ; will 
 you come ? if you will, I will guarantee you an 
 appreciative and numerous audience ; I will pay you a 
 suitable fee, and take all the blame off your shoulders of 
 a failure." With such an offer and such a disclaimer I 
 saw no sufficient reason for continuing the contest. The 
 gentleman produced his card, confirmed his wife's 
 arguments, and I handed over my card, and it was 
 settled that about 6 weeks later I should go to 
 Southampton on my way to stay with my new friends 
 whose names I had never heard of, nor they of my 
 name. Arriving in due course at the Southampton 
 West Station I found a smart carriage and pair of horses 
 waiting to drive me to a large country house, about 
 
 4 miles out, where lived Mr. and Mrs. S M . 
 
 The Primrose Entertainment came off in the evening ; 
 the audience seemed quite to appreciate my lecture, 
 especially my comparison of Mr. Gladstone to a comet 
 the path and character of which were unknown and 
 uncertain. All the arrangements had been well
 
 142 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XL 
 
 organised, and I suppose I may say that the lecture 
 was a success, as rny hostess prophesied it would be. 
 
 The tale is not quite finished because it had a comic 
 -ending. When I came down to breakfast the next 
 
 morning Mrs. S M said, " Knowing that you 
 
 were a literary man, I did my best to provide your 
 bed-room with a suitable supply of stationery." This 
 was indeed true, for a large writing table had evidently 
 been imported for the occasion, which was furnished 
 with an extraordinary variety of writing materials : 
 letter paper, foolscap paper, envelopes of various sizes, 
 red tape, sealing wax, pencil, india-rubber, pens, and 
 finally a handsome inkstand. My hostess was entitled 
 to be pleased with the provision she had made, and said, 
 "" I hope you found all you wanted." I replied " Yes, 
 indeed I did, with one exception : there was not a drop 
 of ink in the ink-bottle ! ' I need not complete the 
 
 conversation ! I will only add that Mrs. S M 
 
 explained how it was they happened to be travelling 
 from Hastings, saying that they were visiting a sick 
 relative there every week, and it was a disgrace to the 
 Railway Companies concerned that every journey 
 occupied from 6 to 7 hours in travelling the 90 miles 
 between the two towns. 
 
 One day at Victoria, I got into a 1st Class carriage 
 .and found an elderly lady already in it. She promptly 
 moved to the door, and beckoned to the Ticket Collector 
 to let her out. He demurred, and a conversation took 
 place of which I overheard the following sentence, 
 " He's all safe ma'am : he's one of our regular Ticket- 
 holders." This seemed to satisfy the nervous lady. 
 After all it's something for a man going through the world 
 to have a character. The lack of this character at 
 Paddington, where I am not known, once involved me in 
 .a situation which I am bound to say did not make me in 
 the least uncomfortable. I was starting on a long 
 journey to the West of England, and had got early into 
 the train to secure a corner seat and had unpacked on to 
 the adjacent seat various travelling etceteras likely to 
 IOQ wanted during the next 4 or 5 hours. Presently a
 
 OHAP. XI.] Railway Travelling Anecdotes. 143 
 
 lady came up, looked at me : evidently did not like my 
 looks ; went away and brought up the guard. Guard 
 loquitur : " Viscountess N - wishes to travel in this 
 carriage." I answered " I have not the least objection." 
 He then proceeded to request me to leave which I firmly 
 but placidly declined to do. Finding it was no good, 
 .and that he was therefore likely to lose his half-a-crown 
 " tip " he went away, and the lady with him. 
 
 Viscountess N is now Countess of B and I 
 
 Tiope more reasonable in her requirements when 
 travelling by rail. 
 
 Travelling one day to Victoria, equipped for a long 
 journey, I opened my hand-bag in the carriage in order 
 to have the use of some books and papers. Doing this 
 I exposed to view sundry accessories in the form of hair 
 brush, comb, slippers and things of that sort. An 
 elderly lady got in at Haywards Heath and watched me 
 with much interest between there and Croydon. At 
 Croydon I proceeded to pack up. This drew from the 
 old lady some remarks which amused me as much as my 
 property seemed during the previous -|- hour to have 
 .amused her, for, after having bottled up her thoughts for 
 some time, she finally exclaimed, " Dear me ! you seem to 
 have quite a little portable dressing-room there." I 
 discovered that the lady was the Dowager Marchioness 
 of D . 
 
 " 8%eg s^all a0.e rag Jwrs.es, but Q'll make tlitra gag." 
 
 (Merry Wives of Windsor.) 
 "(5tt g0u \tntt in ytuct." (Love's Labour Lo*t.) 
 
 " $&m 0mj|ri 10 rnneraber i|mr frkuira fo^o aw absent." 
 
 (DIOGENES LAEBTIUS.)
 
 [ 144 ] 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 GAMES AND SPORTS. 
 
 Early Cricket at East-Bourne. Cricket at Brighton. Cricket at East- 
 Bourne in the " Sixties." Cricket at Compton Place. Curious Coincidences 
 on a P. and 0. Steamer. Origin of the Devonshire Park. Stool-Ball. 
 Point-to- Point Races. Races at Beachy Head. Fox Hounds. Harriers. 
 First Regatta. Pedestrian Feat. Golf. " Spelling -Bees." " Living 
 Chess." " Book-Teas." 
 
 rlmt fyt faify fytg air m tennis." (King Henry VIII.} 
 sttk fur arausjtmntt, but 1st alfoajjs rrabjr txr Ire amusfb," (RUSKIN.) 
 
 i|r0u fcunt ? 
 
 |r0un0s toill make t^ fotlKiu aitsforr tytm, 
 littr^ shrill jero.es from tyt Jrxrllafo jeart|r." 
 
 (Taming the Shrew.) 
 
 THE earliest East-Bourne Cricket Club that I ever 
 heard of was founded, I believe, in 1837. 
 Whether that club was in existence in 1849 I do 
 not know, but that was the year of the first cricket match 
 which I remember. The play took place in the large field 
 now belonging to Temple Grove School at the Old Town, 
 There was nothing in the shape of a pavilion or shed 
 there, and the beer barrels, ideemed indispensable in 
 those days, stood in the open, and were so drawn from. 
 
 As quite a small boy I never took to cricket, and it 
 was with the young Thomases at Ration on July 19, 
 1854, that my cricket life really began. Football was 
 little heard of ; I only find one mention of it in my 
 diaries 1854 1856. Hockey was our winter game. My 
 interest in cricket was chiefly the result of being at 
 school at Brighton for the three years just mentioned, 
 where I had great opportunities not only of playing the 
 game, but of seeing it played. My Headmaster, the Rev. 
 J. W. Gary, was an Oxford D.D., and had been Head- 
 master of the Lewes Grammar School, and it was through
 
 CHAP. XIL] Cricket. 145 
 
 the introduction of the Earl of Chichester that I was sent 
 to the "Chichester House School" at Brighton. Dr. Gary 
 was not only an active player, considering his age (which 
 was much over 50), when I came under his scholastic 
 control, but he was keen at watching the game when 
 great matches were in progress. He himself always 
 played in a " chimney-pot " hat, which was the full-dress 
 headgear in those days, though it was permissible for 
 boys to wear flannel skull caps with peaks. Once or 
 twice we were taken for special "treats " over to Lewes 
 to meet a Lewes team at the " Dripping Pan." On one 
 such occasion, I remember Major H. P. Molineux (not 
 then a major) or perhaps it was a brother, who was one of 
 the spectators. Another brother (G. F. M.) was in our 
 Brighton team. Date August 29, 1854. 
 
 The Brunswick Ground at Hove was the great 
 Sussex County centre for cricket in the " Fifties," and 
 between 1853 and 1856 I must have seen many of the 
 most celebrated players in England. I remember in 
 particular the names of the following who played at 
 Brighton : For Sussex : Box, Dean, J. Lilly white, Mr. 
 H. L. Nicholson, Wells, and Wisden; whilst the Kent 
 men I remember were : Mr. A. Mynn, Pilch and Willsher. 
 
 On August 21, 1855, I was at the Brunswick Ground 
 on the third day of a well-contested match between 
 Kent and Sussex, in which Kent scored 278 and Sussex 
 216. The first day had been so wet and stormy that play 
 was suspended, and the great Sussex bowler, Wisden, 
 went for a walk, thinking there would be no more play, 
 but there was ; and two Kent batsmen (Mr. A. Mynn and 
 Adams) took advantage of Wisden's temporary absence, 
 and ran up unexpected scores. 
 
 Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Nottinghamshire, and York- 
 shire were the only cricket counties in the first rank in 
 my younger days. Hampshire and Middlesex might be 
 allowed a second class place, but all the other counties 
 were nowhere. The names of two Clubs were well 
 known, but only those two, namely : "I Zingari " and 
 " Marylebone." Slow "underhand" bowling was just 
 being replaced by fast " roundhand " bowling. The
 
 140 
 
 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XII. 
 
 great apostle of the new style was, I think, Jackson, a 
 Nottinghamshire man, and his bowling was looked upon 
 with much disfavour as being throwing rather than 
 bowling, as the latter word was understood. It was 
 certainly very fast, as I can testify from having acted as 
 long stop for him on one occasion of practice at the 
 Brunswick Ground. 
 
 It was at Brighton, too, that I acquired my taste for 
 horse-racing and the Turf. The second master of the 
 " Chichester House School " took all the boys to the 
 Brighton Races in August 1853 ; when he got home there 
 were " Wigs on the Green," as Dr. Gary did not approve 
 of races. I shall have something else to say about races 
 further on. 
 
 To return to cricket. From 1857 onwards till 1866, 
 especially, I had a good deal of cricket at East-Bourne. 
 In the first-named year, in conjunction with my old 
 friend R. D. Pierpoint, I got up several matches, 
 " Visitors v. Mr. Bown's School." I have preserved some 
 of the scores, which were published in the Eastbourne 
 Gazette and in the Lewes Times and Eastbourne 
 Chronicle. 
 
 Here is one of them, quoted from the Gazette of 
 September 5, 1859 :- 
 
 " CRICKET. The Visitors v. Mr. Bown's School. This Return Match was 
 played on Saturday, August 27, on the cricket ground in front of Cornfield 
 Terrace. 
 
 The above match terminating early, the remainder of the afternoon was spent 
 in playing the following between two sides, chosen on the ground. Mr. Chambers 
 showed some excellent play in the field." 
 
 MR. CHAMBERS' SIDE 
 J. Girdlestone, 1 b w ... 
 Earl Aboyne, c Holland 
 G. Chambers, c Smith 
 Pascoe, b Thompson 
 Roberts, b Thompson 
 M. Jeyes, b Thompson 
 Viscount Newry (absent) 
 D. Pierpoint, c Holland 
 
 2 
 
 
 3 
 3 
 7 
 o 
 
 2 
 I 
 2 
 
 
 Byes, &c 13 
 
 Carcassy, b Martin 
 Martin, st Thompson 
 J. Duke, not out 
 
 MR. SALMON'S SIDE. 
 F. Salmon, c Chambers 
 S. Smyth, b Chambers 
 Thompson, b Chambers 
 W. Belts, c Duke 
 Rawes, b Chambers ... 
 Martin, b Chambers ... 
 C. Holland, tchd. ball 
 C. Smith, c Chambers 
 Lintott, not out 
 H. Smith, b Chambers 
 W. Webbe, c Chambers 
 
 Byes, &c 3 
 
 Total 
 
 33 
 
 Total 
 
 68 
 
 The Earl of Aboyne in the above eleven is the 
 present Marquis of Huntley. The present Earl of
 
 CHAP. XII.] Cricket. 147 
 
 Kilmorey (then Viscount Newry and Morne) was a frequent 
 contributor to the scores of the " Visitors." His mother 
 (Viscountess Newry) was tenant for some months of what 
 is now called Rosemount, but in those days was known 
 as Frohsdorf. From its then owner it passed by 
 purchase to Mr. Robert Hanbury, M.P. for Middlesex. 
 At his death Mr. G. Matthey bought it, and changed the 
 name to that of another house near by, which he also 
 bought and pulled down, throwing the garden of the two 
 houses into one. Mr. Arthur Mills, M.P. for Taunton, 
 was a constant member of our informal cricket club. 
 Play usually took place at a spot which now forms the 
 roadway of Devonshire Place, about opposite to No. 9, 
 but one or two games were played in a field at the back 
 of South Street, about where now is Gildredge Road. 
 Another frequent player at about the same time was 
 Samuel Moles worth, who died in 1908 as 8th Viscount 
 Moles worth. He lived in East-Bourne with an old aunt, 
 Miss Tompkins. 
 
 Later on, I had a great deal of cricket at Comptou 
 Place. After the removal of Mrs. Cavendish, the mother 
 of the 7th Duke of Devonshire, to Chislehurst about 
 1860, her daughter (Lady Fanny Howard) with her 
 husband (Mr. F. J. Howard) and family came to reside 
 there, and with the young Howards, supplemented by 
 accessions from outside, I had many pleasant cricket 
 afternoons, between 1862 and 1867. This last-named 
 year was the last of my organised cricket seasons at 
 East-Bourne, because it was the year of my marriage, 
 and except for short but very frequent visits I was 
 not regularly at East-Bourne again till 1873, when 
 I became a permanent resident "paying scot and 
 bearing lot " to use an ancient phrase. 
 
 One of the cricketers whom I have designated by the 
 term " accessory," was a certain Delmar Cavendish, a 
 cousin of the reigning family, who I never saw again till 
 1905, when I renewed my acquaintance with him under 
 curious circumstances. I was a passenger in the P. & 0. 
 steamer Arcadia from Tilbury to Marseilles, I going out 
 to see the Eclipse of the Sun of August 30, 1905.
 
 148 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XII. 
 
 Seeing the name Delmar Cavendish attached as Purser 
 to certain notices posted up in the ship, I hunted him 
 out and found he was the cricketing friend of my youth. 
 I discovered 3 other people with East-Bourne associations, 
 who by a singular coincidence, were on board that ship. 
 One of the officers said to me, " what is the best place 
 from which to get a good view of the eclipse." I 
 replied, mockingly, "The masthead." Shortly afterwards- 
 I saw my young friend being hauled up to the masthead 
 in a large basket where he did observe the eclipse. 
 After he descended he came to me and said "I know you : 
 I have been to your house at East-Bourne : my name is 
 Bacon : you know my father and mother." All of which 
 was true, for I found he was the son of a Captain Bacon 
 who used to live at 7 Burlington Place. The third 
 East-Bourne link was made by the wife of a County 
 Court Judge on board, who had a married sister living 
 
 in Granville Road. The 4th link was a Miss , who 
 
 came to me one evening in the saloon and said, " May I 
 venture to introduce myself, though you will not know 
 my name, but I am a cousin of the Whelptons of East- 
 Bourne and I was once at Northfield Grange for one of 
 your Shakespeare Readings." 
 
 Up to the time when the Devonshire Park was 
 formed and the land walled in, the ground had been used 
 for a Cricket Club. As compensation for the loss of that 
 ground, the Duke of Devonshire provided a new site 
 (now covered by Ashford and Tideswell Roads), but the 
 townspeople resented very much the action of the Duke's 
 Agent, and it was a long time ere the Devonshire Park 
 gained the sympathetic support of the townspeople 
 generally, if it has ever done so. The conversion of the 
 Saffrons Field into a cricket ground was carried out at a 
 very much more recent date. 
 
 About the middle of the 19th Century, and later, 
 there was in Sussex, as in many parts of England, much 
 archery. The " South Saxon Archers " was a very well- 
 known and important Club, which held its meetings at 
 different centres. In July 1878, I was staying with my 
 family at Horsham, and under the date of July 22, I find
 
 CHAP. XIL] Archery and Stool-ball. 149 
 
 in my diary the entry "To an archery party at St. 
 Leonard's Lodge (Col. Aldridge's). About 200 there." 
 I do not however, remember if that was a " South 
 Saxon " meeting, nor do I recollect that the Club ever 
 came to East-Bourne, but there were a few who took up 
 archery in the place. When Lawn Tennis became the 
 rage, I have an idea that the South Saxon Club was 
 formally converted into a Lawn Tennis Club, but I know 
 nothing further about it. 
 
 Croquet was much played in East-Bourne 30 years 
 ago, but when the disease called Lawn Tennis broke out 
 and raged as an epidemic, Croquet went under for many 
 years, but Sussex has a game of its own, Stool-ball, 
 which as it is scarcely known now even by name, may be 
 enlarged upon here. 
 
 I am under the impression that stool-ball is or 
 originally was, purely a Sussex game, although the 
 following entry respecting it appears in the Imperial 
 Dictionary : " A play at ball, formerly in vogue 
 especially among young women." " Chapman " and 
 " Prior " are cited as authorities. However, be this as 
 it may, I may say that it was very much played in and 
 around East-Bourne between 20 and 30 years ago, and 
 I have received from a lady friend some information 
 respecting it which I will proceed to sum up after I 
 have quoted her statement that " many delightful 
 picnics had stool-ball as a sort of basis and raison d' etre. 
 
 Speaking generally, the game may be regarded as a 
 sort of ladies' cricket, and depends for its general 
 principles and rules on ordinary cricket, but with 
 important modifications of detail as regards the 
 apparatus employed. Instead of wickets there is 
 provided a post, about 5ft. 6in. high, close to the top 
 of which, so as to have its centre about 5ft. from the 
 ground, there is attached a board, about 16 inches square, 
 with its corners rounded off. The batsman (batswomari) 
 stands in front of this post, and the target, as we may 
 call it, should have its upper edge about level with the 
 average height above the ground of the shoulders of the 
 players. This in effect means that it is best that the
 
 150 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XII. 
 
 target should be constructed so as to be capable of some 
 sliding adjustment iip and down. The " bat " should 
 be something like a tennis racquet but with a shorter 
 handle. In point of fact if specially-constructed bats 
 are not available 2 or 3 disused tennis racquets may be 
 employed the handles of which have been shortened by 
 3 or 4 inches. The ball is an ordinary india-rubber ball, 
 not too small in size. The bowler bowls, of course, 
 aiming to strike the target, which the batsman seeks to 
 prevent being done. The batsman striking the ball to 
 a sufficient distance, runs, or does not run, to the opposite 
 wicket and back again, and may be bowled out, or 
 caught out, or may score a run or runs in the usual way 
 of cricket. 
 
 Besides Point-to-Point Races (good for killing 
 people) got up in connection with local Hunts, as to 
 which I have nothing to say because I know nothing, 
 there used to be an annual Race Meeting at Bullock 
 Down, near Beachy Head. Even at the remote date 
 when these meetings took place and when, I mean, 
 East-Bourne was still a smafl place not much known to 
 the racing fraternity of cardsharpers, thimble-riggers, 
 Aunt Sally-men ct hoc genus omnc, there were not lacking 
 proofs that " sport " of the sort was a great nuisance and 
 evil, so on Nay 10, 1875 I took upon myself the functions 
 of " Our own Reporter " and went to the Beachy Head 
 Races. I wrote a description of the festive scene 
 which the editor of the Sussex Times honoured me by 
 publishing. I sent a copy of my journalistic effort to 
 the Duke of Devonshire and never more were there any 
 Races on Bullock Down. Such is the power of the 
 Press ! 
 
 "The scenes that were to be witnessed at Beachy Head on the day in question, 
 were infinitely worse than anything we could have imagined, rivalling for black- 
 guardism the worst features of the Kingsbury, Croydon and other suburban meetings,, 
 which have been the constant theme of writers in the London papers during the last 
 year or two, on the score of the injury they inflict on the morals and peace of the 
 neighbourhood. We are glad to be able to feel that neither East-Bourne, nor 
 probably even Sussex, contributed many to the contingent of fast " ladies " and 
 " gentlemen " who disfigured our Downs by their company on the JOth of May- 
 There was a great absence, we are happy to say, of local faces, and the few that 
 were there belonged to owners of whom probably the majority would have been 
 ashamed to have had their names chronicled by the reporters as visitors to the 
 race-course. At any rate the " grand stand " (save the mark) and the ring were 
 exclusively given over to foreigners, London and other blacklegs, who plyed their
 
 CHAP. XII.] Hunting and Boating. 151 
 
 gambling tricks with a hardiness which betokened life-long experience of the betting 
 trade. One man, smarter than his rivals, by way of showing that he was well 
 up in the news of the day, stated that he had been sent down by Messrs. Moody and 
 Sankey to distribute half-sovereigns for the benefit for the poor, in exchange in each 
 case for 5s. worth of silver a clear gain of 5s. to every applicant. The crowd of 
 blockheads around him was so thick that we were unable to get near enough to 
 make it worth while to add one to it. Passing over things not fit to be mentioned 
 to ears polite (of which there was a plenty), we would conclude by remarking that 
 so far from being an attraction to East-Bourne, these races, if they continue and 
 grow, will become a real curse to the town; whilst looked at from the "horsey" 
 point of view, the gathering was a miserable sham. For instance, the cup, in respect 
 of which the Duke of Devonshire is annually fleeced to the extent of 25, was run 
 for by three miserable brutes, one of which was blown before his rider had galloped 
 him half-a-mile, whilst of the other two it might be supposed that the question was, 
 which could get last to the post. As sport, the whole entertainment was an utter 
 failure, and as a public benefit for the good of trade, the profits were reaped only 
 by the police, the beer retailers, and the fly-drivers, all of whom had plenty to do." 
 
 The hunting of foxes and hares has long prevailed 
 in and around East-Bourne, and in my younger days the 
 South DOWD foxhounds kennelled at Ration, with Mr. 
 Thomas as Master, and the Brookside Harriers kennelled 
 near Lewes were names to conjure with. In a sense the 
 packs now carried on in this part of Sussex have inherited 
 some of the traditions of 1850-60, but I am not competent 
 to go into any details. At a much later date I unearthed 
 ^a litter of foxes in a secluded part of my gardens at 
 Northficld Grange, and on more than one occasion (once 
 when there was snow on the ground) a wily fox 
 assisted in reducing my stock of ducks and chickens. 
 The familiar notice-board ' Trespassers will be prosecuted ' 
 seems to have no effect on. these people. One year I lost 
 a tame gull. 
 
 One of the occupations of my younger days on which 
 I look back with much pleasure was boating. During 
 several successive summers in the " Sixties " I joined in 
 many boating trips either for the simple pleasure of a 
 sail, or to end on shore somewhere for an evening picnic, 
 or for sea-fishing off Langney Point. The following 
 extracts from diaries may suffice as specimens of the 
 programmes : 1807, August 13. " Out in sailing boat 
 at 7.30 for 2 hours with a party of 12." 1867, August 
 14. " Frightfully hot day. Rowed to Beachy Head in 
 evening : party in 3 boats." 
 
 The 26th day of August 1859 saw the first Regatta 
 at East-Bourne. The sea-front from opposite 24 Grand 
 Parade to the Wish was all cliff no houses except 2 old 
 cottages ; and the swarms of people who lined the cliff
 
 152 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XII. 
 
 created quite a sensation. Such a crowd had never been 
 seen before because in 1806 there were no excursion 
 trains to bring Hodge into the town to see reviews of the 
 troops quartered here. 
 
 I suppose the following may be deemed appropriate 
 to a Chapter on Sport. On January 30, 1854, Mr. 
 E. C. Graham, brother of the R. J. Graham frequently 
 quoted in this book, walked 80 miles in 23 hours and 25 
 minutes for a wager to do it in 24 hours. The course 
 was a measured half-mile in front of Compton Place. 
 The incident caused great local excitement and much 
 annoyance to Graham's parents. He afterwards took 
 Holy Orders and died Vicar of Wartling. 
 
 Golf is a game originally limited to Scotland and in 
 the "Fifties" had, I believe, no hold in England 
 otherwise than in the form of a Club established at 
 Blackheath, of which an East-Bourne uncle of mine had 
 been a member. His superannuated " tool " was long 
 under my eyes at The Gore and regarded by the few 
 people who knew what it was as a relic brought from 
 a foreign clime. I wonder how many golf tools now 
 exist in East-Bourne were a census taken. I suppose 
 thousands. It is a game which never took my fancy for 
 I prefer to satisfy its supposed advantages of affording 
 pedestrianism and fresh air by an honest walk over the 
 Downs. I did, however, once have a day's play when 
 staying with a cousin in Aberdeen shire. 
 
 I do not know whether a " Spelling Bee " belongs 
 to " Games and Sports " or is " Educational." Perhaps 
 it is a little of each. I will place it with the former for 
 my present purpose. I was present at one held at 
 Diplock's Assembly Rooms on February 4, 1876, and 
 must confess that I thought it provided a very good 
 combination of amusement with profitable instruction. 
 The movement suddenly became very popular in different 
 parts of England about the year in question, and as 
 suddenly died out. As I dare say many of my readers 
 have either forgotten all about it, or have never heard 
 of it, I will dedicate a few lines to it. The performers, 
 as I suppose they must be called, assembled on a platform
 
 CHAP. XII.] Spelling Bees. 153 
 
 under the presidency of a chairman, with a secretary at 
 Ms side who possessed (or ought to have been chosen 
 because he possessed) a clear good voice. It was his 
 duty to call out certain words, the more puzzling the 
 better, which the performers were required to spell letter 
 by letter in turn. The performer who made the fewest 
 mistakes in the hour during which the trial of their 
 brains took place, was adjudged to be the prize-winner, 
 or prize-winners in the order of success. How many 
 prizes were awarded, and what they were to be, 
 depended on the financial position of the promoters as 
 made possible by the number and amount of the entrance 
 fees, etc. I must say that I should like to see " Spelling 
 Bees " revived, for they constitute a much more healthy 
 competition than most of those flaunted in the cheap 
 newspapers of the present day. 
 
 The following account of a " Bee " held on January 
 27, 1876 is abridged from the Eastbourne Chronicle : 
 
 "The 'Spelling Bee 'of the Mutual Improvement Society, held on Thursday 
 Jan. 27, at the Assembly-room, brought one of the most densely- packed rooms 
 which have ever been seen in East-Bourne so great was the press, in fact, that 
 scores had to be turned away, and to meet the disappointment thus felt it was at 
 once decided to ' hive another swarm ' on an early occasion. The candidates 
 numbered 60, and included a good proportion of ladies, though the fair sex had all 
 been weeded out before the competitors were reduced to the five who won the prizes. 
 Mr. F. W. H. Cavendish occupied the chair. The candidates were taken in three 
 rounds of twenty, so that the audience might have a better opportunity of identifying 
 the ' spellers.' The Rev. H. R. Whelpton acted as interrogator, assisted by Mr. 
 J. Easter ; and Mr. E. Crake and Mr. W. Esam officiated as referees the new edition 
 of Webster's Dictionary doing duty as the standard of correctness. Eight words 
 proved sufficient to dress the first score of competitors down to five, 'yield' and 
 'hypochondriac* doing sweeping execution. Of the second twenty, one stumbled 
 at the first word ' wain,' and the remainder were ruled out by the interrogator for 
 spelling by-law with an ' e,' when Webster gave it without. The referees were 
 appealed to, and in consequence of the word being so frequently spelt ' bye-law,' 
 they decided to allow it as correct. The Chairman observed that with all due 
 deference to Mr. Webster he thought he was wrong (laughter). Thres fell at the 
 word ' amanuensis. ' ' Eligibility ' displaced one lady, while ' feoffee ' eliminated from 
 the list no fewer than five competitors, all ladies. Befoie the words ' apophthegm,' 
 'privilege,' 'systematically,' and 'adventitious,' the competitors *got small by 
 degrees and beautifully less,' till they were reduced to the number of five. The 
 third twenty next made their appearance, and were first tried with ' lettuce,' which, 
 as might have been expected, proved quite harmless. A chemist's son, above all 
 others, fell a victim to ' laudanum,' while three competitors stumbled at ' apocrypha,' 
 and three ladies and two gentlemen at ' oecumenical.' ' Subpcena ' summoned one 
 lady to the ranks of those who had failed, and ' Deuteronomy ' settled the fate of 
 three other candidates. When five only remained, these were joined by the other 
 ten successful competitors, and then commenced the deciding contest. Three or 
 four hard words were correctly spelled, after which five competitors were ruled put 
 for omitting the ' p ' in 'comptroller,' but these were re-instated on an appeal being 
 made to referees, the word being spelled both ways in the dictionary. ' Periwinkle ' 
 proved fatal to two, and 'synecdoche' swept away no less than six, including the 
 last two ladies left. Ultimately the number was reduced to five, and the contest for 
 'places' thereupon ensued. 'Orrery' left three in the vanguard and these 
 were successively assaulted by the words ' unparalleled,' ' oolite,' ' menagerie,'
 
 154 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XII. 
 
 'chrysanthemum,' 'epaulette,' 'phonetic,' 'phlegmatic,' 'gurgoyles,' 'apocope,' 
 ' gazetteer,' ' promissory,' ' vicissitude,' ' phthisis,' but all without effect. ' Millen- 
 nium,' however, sent one gentleman to the rear rank, and in the next word, 
 ' lachrymose,' one gentleman spelled it also ' lacrimose,' and as the dictionary did 
 not support the latter way he was ruled out. The result was that Mr. Podmore, 
 a university gentleman, won the first prize, 2; Mr. Thomas, the second, i ; and 
 Mr. Welch the third, 155. The other two prizes lay between Mr. Campbell and 
 Mr. O. Mitchell. The word ' satellite ' sufficed to decide their relative places. Mr. 
 Campbell becoming entitled to the fourth prize, IDs., and Mr. Mitchell to the fifth, 
 5s. Instead of taking the money, both handed it over to the funds of the society, 
 amid loud plaudits from the audience. The Chairman announced that in con- 
 sequence of many people being unable to gain admittance it had been decided to 
 hold another ' Bee.' " 
 
 It was not elicited till nearly the close of the contest 
 that competitors were at liberty to spell a word in two 
 ways when the word admitted of such a variation in 
 spelling. 
 
 On February 10 a " Bee " was held in St. Saviour's 
 School 011 behalf of the new class-room about to be added 
 to the building. As might be expected, there was a 
 large and fashionable attendance, and the entertainment 
 afforded a great deal of fun. 
 
 " The interrogator was the Rev. J. H. Palmer, who was assisted by Mr. Easter, 
 and the referees were the Rev. S. T. Wood and Dr. H. Colgate. The competitors 
 numbered about 40, the sexes being pretty well balanced. Mr. F. W. H. Cavenish, 
 J.P., presided, and expressed the hope that the ladies would beat the gentlemen. 
 As a matter of fact this result was realised, the first and second prizes being carried 
 off by ladies, and the third by a gentleman, thus giving a very exciting finish to the 
 competition. The candidates were taken in two ' batches,' and the first word given 
 was 'donkeys,' but this, though presumably selected with a malin intention, failed 
 to serve as the pans asinorum for any of the competitors to pass. ' Oscillate ' 
 destroyed the hopes of one young gentleman, and 'trousseaux ' overcame a lady ; 
 another competitor came to grief at 'corduroy,' and 'euphemism ' sent a pair away. 
 ' Philippic ' did dreadful havoc, clearing off no less than six, while ' reminiscence ' 
 eliminated from the ranks two more, and 'purlieu' one, leaving six out of the 
 twenty to compete in the final heat. The next ' score ' then came forward, but were 
 not able to stand fire long. The second word, ' separate,' sent a lady to the rear, 
 and at the fifth word, ' scroyle,' all succumbed but one. It was decided to give them 
 another chance, and they were re-instated, the successful candidate, however, not 
 being called upon to compete again. ' Gondolier ' and ' Giraffe ' were correctly 
 spelled. ' Massacre ' proved fatal to one lady, 'etiquette' to one gentleman, and 
 four competitors came to grief at 'seneschal.' The next word, 'finial,' was a 
 finisher, clearing off all the remainder, and leaving only the candidate above 
 mentioned to join the six others in the concluding contest. This created a good 
 deal of excitement, as it was really a struggle between ladies and gentlemen. 
 ' Inconceivable,' ' harangue,' and ' phlegmatic ' proved harmless, but at the 
 following word 'sibylline' one lady beat a retreat. 'Reconnoitre' and 'cereal' 
 were easily mastered, but ' kaleidoscope ' did sad havoc, sending away a trio of 
 competitors to the ranks of those who had failed. This left two ladies and one 
 gentleman, and then took place the contest for ' places.' This was not long left in 
 doubt; 'parachute' took off the gentleman, and of the two ladies who were thus 
 mistresses of the situation, one stumbled at the word 'chrysalis,' and the issue was 
 as follows : Miss Colgate, 1st ; Miss Livingstone, 2nd ; Mr. Pidcock, 3rd. The 
 prizes consisted of books, the first being Tennyson's poems. Everything went off 
 very satisfactorily, if we exclude the mishap of one competitor, who had the 
 misfortune, in stepping off the platform, to set his hair alight with the gas." 
 
 Iii my diary, under date of February 21, 1900, I 
 find an entry of having gone to a " Book Tea " at Mr. 
 F. W. Wright's. This is a guasi-intellectual amusement
 
 CHAP. XII.] Book Teas. 155- 
 
 which has something to recommend it. The players 
 assemble at the house to which they are invited, and 
 come provided with cards to pin on to themselves, so that 
 when seated round a room in something like a circle all 
 the cards shall be sufficiently conspicuous and legible. 
 Each person has already chosen for his or her card some 
 well-known book, the name of which is indicated by 
 what in old-fashioned language used to be called a 
 Rebus. Perhaps in order to make the matter quite clear, 
 I had better quote the Imperial Dictionary definition of 
 a Rebus : " Words or phrases written by figures or 
 pictures of objects whose names resemble in sound those 
 words, or the syllables of which they are composed ; an 
 enigmatical representation of words by using figures or 
 pictures instead of words ; thus ' I can see you ' might 
 be expressed by figures or pictures of an eye, a can, the 
 sea, and a ewe." 
 
 Applied as a game bringing in books, the titles of 
 the books have to be indicated by pictures or sketches, 
 often, it must be confessed, rather far-fetched in 
 character. For instance, the well-known novel Red 
 Pottage, might be indicated by a little pot painted red 
 with a picture by its side of an old woman. Again, 
 They that walk in Darkness might be indicated by a 
 picture of a black beetle, and so on. 
 
 " f>g sports Hint i|r.ese arc all ijjtir raws beguileo." (GOLDSMITH.) 
 
 " $ am a great fricub to public amusements, for tbcjr kttg $to$h 
 from but." (L)R. JOHNSON.)
 
 [156] 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 ECCLESIASTICAL. 
 
 General Church Rates Sunday Bands Visits of the Diocesan Con- 
 ference. The Parish Church. Its Restoration. Distinguished Preachers. 
 Anecdotes of and by the Rev. T. Pitman. Tithe Commutation. Dr. Brodie. 
 
 Clerical Vestments in the " Fifties." The Pitman Institute. St. MichaeVs 
 Church. The Rev. H. B. Ottley's Vicariat. Proposals for a new Parish 
 Church. Trinity Church. Its enlargements. Bishop S. Wilberforce's visit. 
 
 Christ Church. Services there for the Military. Military Funeral. St. 
 Saviour's Church. Circumstances which led to its erection. Controversy 
 afterwards. Warning against Organists. St. John's Church. Remarkable 
 groivth of Meads. St. Gregory's Chapel. St. Anne's Church. All Saints' 
 Church. Intended to replace an Iron Church. Heart-burnings and litigation. 
 
 All Souls' Church. Lady Victoria Wellesley's munificence. Difficulties 
 owing to the soil. Patronage. Experiences of a Patron. St. Peter's 
 Church. Replaced a temporary Church. 
 
 4( $n Iroumtring (Sotr, ano iioiug |ns foork gut f0ri|r all ig strrngtfr,."- 
 
 (ANON.) 
 
 " Honest plain foorfrs tr<j best gitrct t|re ear." (Love's Labour Lost.} 
 " clcrr0s foii|rmit tfr0ur)|rt<s nefoer tcr Drafo.cn 00." (Hamlet.} 
 
 GENERAL. 
 
 I BEGIN with the only matter within my direct 
 cognizance which had any application to the Parish 
 of East-Bourne, ecclesiastically, as a whole. But I 
 must go back and make a start before my time. In the 
 Sussex Express in 1837, there appeared in a letter signed 
 by " An Inhabitant " the following paragraph : " The 
 "very gratifying alacrity evinced by the Dissenters of this 
 widely extended Parish in coming forward to sign the 
 petition addressed to the 2 Houses of Parliament against 
 the abolition of Church Rates deserves to be inserted iu 
 the columns of your paper. The unsolicited readiness 
 that has been manifested by the leading Wesleyans and 
 Sectarians of this place to support our Established 
 Church cannot be too highly valued, as such patriotic
 
 CHAP. XIII.] Church Rates. 157 
 
 and constitutional examples are worthy of imitation of 
 all genuine Christian Protestants enjoying religious 
 toleration in this land of liberty." This does not 
 represent the whole facts of the case, for in another 
 issue of the paper, " A Wesley an" wrote that as the first 
 petition had not included Wesleyan signatures, they were 
 getting up another petition to be signed by Wesleyans 
 only. The letter was couched in the strongest terms to 
 the effect that the Wesleyans desired to dissociate 
 themselves from all attacks on the Established Church, 
 Would that this spirit had lasted unimpaired till 1910. 
 
 This friendly attitude, at least as regards Dissenter s 
 who were not Wesleyans, had to a large extent, passed 
 away in East-Bourne by 1857, for then, for the first time 
 in the history of the Parish, the Church Rate was 
 opposed, and disallowed on a poll by a small majority. 
 The fact was, Churchmen had gone to sleep, and were 
 taken unawares by the opposition. In the following 
 year 1858, on July 26, they mustered their forces and 
 carried the Rate by 163 votes to 128 votes. Mr. J, 
 Gosden, the Parish Churchwarden, who of all people, 
 having regard to his office, ought to have supported the 
 Rate was hostile, and so it was felt that the proper thing 
 to do was for the Church party to turn him out. The 
 effort was made at the Easter Vestry of 1859, but he 
 retained his position by a large majority, polling 171 
 votes against the 61 recorded for his opponent, Mr. R. J. 
 Graham. Things went on tolerably quietly till November 
 1862, when the Rate was carried by 154 to 145 votes. 
 Then in 1864 on July 18, with a new Parish Church- 
 warden, Mr. W. Brodie, elected at the Easter Vestry by 
 an overwhelming majority, the Rate was again carried, 
 and for the last time, because Parliament stepped in in 
 1868 and abolished compulsory Church Rates. The 
 votes in 1864 were 306 for, and 293 against ; majority 
 for, 13. The Dissenters demanded a scrutiny with the 
 result that the majority was increased to 33. 
 
 The difficulties of the situation were much enhanced 
 by a legal Opinion obtained by the Vicar from Mr. 
 Lush, Q.C., that Trinity Church had no claim to share
 
 158 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 in the proceeds of a Rate raised over the parish at large ; 
 .and that the Rate raised by the Mother parish must be 
 for itself only. A letter to me, written by Mr. Pierpoint, 
 the Incumbent of Trinity Church, and dated December 
 19, 1865, which is now before me, summarises things 
 only too accurately : " My own view is that the Vicar 
 has dealt a death-blow to the Church Rate in this parish, 
 .and many who are still in favour of a Rate would in a 
 contest be sure to follow him as a leader. The whole 
 mischief is, however, chargeable not upon this person or 
 that but upon the inextricable confusion of the ' Church 
 Building Acts,' and the refusal of the Legislature to 
 meddle with the question." 
 
 Here may be mentioned the Sunday Band in 1855 
 on the green in front of the Burlington Hotel, which was 
 ignominiously extinguished by public opinion after 2 
 performances. It has been called Sir William Domville's 
 Band and the credit (or rather discredit) of it given to 
 him ; but my impression is that it was Lady Domville 
 ;and her son William Henry Domville who were the prime 
 movers in it, and that Sir William had not much to do 
 with it except, perhaps, to pay for it, because he was 
 then in his 80th year and, if I recollect aright, quite in 
 his dotage. He died in 1860. Mr. W. H. Domville was 
 very conservative in regard to one matter his annual 
 holiday, professionally known as the " Long Vacation." 
 It always commenced with him on the 1st day of July, 
 were the weather wet or fine, were there much business or 
 little business awaiting disposal in his office. With his 
 wife and daughter he started every year on the day 
 named in his own close carriage, driving 20 miles a day 
 with his own horses wherever he went, east, west, north, 
 south. The luggage of the family was concentrated in 
 one large trunk strapped outside the carriage. If the 
 weather was fine Mr. Domville would, perhaps, take a 
 seat on the box, but ordinarily he would not quit the 
 inside of his carriage. 
 
 The introduction of Sunday bands into East- 
 Bourne has several times been fought, but I am 
 sorry to say in the end unsuccessfully. And the bands
 
 CHAP. X1IL] Sunday Bands. 159 
 
 on the Pier and at the Devonshire Park have done 
 much to cause scandal and mischief to Religion. The 
 band on the Pier was started in 1885 by a snap vote of 
 the Directors in the month of February, they hoping to 
 forestall their shareholders who were believed to be 
 hostile. This fact sufficiently explains the obvious folly 
 of an open-air band in the month of February, for I think 
 there was no covered-in apartment on the Pier at that 
 early period. An opposition was organised amongst the 
 shareholders and there was found an enormous majority 
 against the band but by an extraordinary blunder Mr. 
 Bathurst, the Vicar of Holy Trinity and Chairman of the 
 Sunday Defence Committee, was 24 hours too late in 
 depositing the proxies at the Company's office, and so 
 the Directors were able to defy public opinion. The 
 Duke of Devonshire was the largest shareholder and he 
 sent in his proxy against the band. Nothing daunted, 
 the Sabbath-keeping shareholders again organised their 
 forces, again secured proxies sufficient to condemn, by a 
 large majority, the Sunday band ; again intrusted the 
 proxies to Mr. Bathurst and again Mr. Bathurst was 24 
 hours too late, and so Sunday desecration by means of the 
 Pier Company's band became a permanent evil. Many 
 years ago G. A. Sala wrote a flaming article in the Daily 
 Telegraph, headed " East-Bourne the Quiet." It did the 
 town good as an advertisement, and especially as Sunday 
 was then a day of rest for visitors and residents alike. 
 Indeed it was publicly announced in the spring of 1875 
 that the Brighton Railway Company had decided to grant 
 no more Sunday excursion special trains to the " National 
 Sunday League." Every well-wisher to our town will 
 regret that this policy has since been abandoned by dollar- 
 loving General Managers and Directors, and the South- 
 Coast watering places thrown open to London rag a muffins. 
 Under the head of " general " Church matters at 
 East-Bourne, I must not omit the visits of the Chichester 
 Diocesan Conference. These took place in 1881, 1890, 
 1897, and 1910. I shall not go into details, but the first 
 Conference, that of 1881, deserves a few words. The 
 motives and working of Diocesan Conferences were
 
 160 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XIII. 
 
 quite unknown in those days, except to the select few, 
 and difficulties arose in organising hospitality for 
 strangers coming to the Conference. I was one of the 
 Honorary Secretaries, and took a leading part in the 
 arrangements. We sent out a circular to the principal 
 householders, asking them to place at the disposal of the 
 Reception Committee, offers of beds and " free meals " 
 for the visitors. Great indignation was expressed by 
 many of the recipients of these circulars. I, or my 
 clerical Co-Secretary, the Rev. A. N. Obbard, were 
 written to, or accosted in the streets, with remarks such as 
 these : " You surely do not expect me to invite a total 
 stranger to my house and give him a bed and feed him 
 for 2 or 3 days a man I never heard of. It is very 
 unreasonable : I really cannot. If any of those who are 
 coming are men I know or of whom I know some- 
 thing, perhaps I will comply with your request." 
 
 We had accordingly not a little difficulty in 
 providing for the strangers who came, and there were 
 not a few of them, for the total attendance, including the 
 local members of the Conference, totted up to 241, to 
 say nothing of some wives and daughters who also came. 
 After it was all over, this remark was not unfrequently 
 made : " So glad you sent us the Rev. Mr. - - and his 
 wife ; we found them such very nice people ; and were 
 very glad to make their acquaintance." Varied by 
 " We were very sorry we did not do what you asked us 
 to do take in somebody for the Conference : our friends 
 the - - took in two parsons who proved most agreeable 
 guests." One widow lady, noted for her hospitality, 
 took in two bachelor " Priests " with such satisfactory 
 results, that shortly afterwards she took in one of them 
 again by marrying him ! 
 
 This system of billeting strangers on strangers for 
 Congresses and Conferences has now become so universal 
 that nobody thinks anything about the theory of the 
 matter. Since 1881 the Chichester Conference has been, 
 as already stated, 3 times to East-Bourne, and to other con- 
 siderable towns in the Diocese more than once in most 
 cases, namely: Chichester (8 times); Worthing (once) \
 
 CHAP. X1IL] Church Gatherings, various. 161 
 
 Hove (twice) ; Brighton (4 times) ; Lewes (4 times) ; 
 St. Leonards (twice) ; Hastings (twice) ; Horsham (once) ; 
 Tunbridge Wells (once) ; Rye (once). The lack of a 
 sufficiently large room has prevented the Conference ever 
 being held at East Grinstead, or a second time at Horsham. 
 
 Another local ecclesiastical affair on which I look 
 back with much interest, was my work as one of the 
 Honorary Secretaries of the Brighton Church Congress 
 in 1901. This brought me face to face with some quaint 
 aspects of human nature, all England in variety, and not 
 simply Sussex local. My duties included the editing of 
 the Official Guide of the Congress which I endeavoured 
 to make, not only more readable than such things usually 
 are, but more useful. I laid great stress on the impor- 
 tance of good maps and ample explicit railway and 
 travelling information for strangers a matter which has 
 been ignored in many Official Guides, especially of later 
 date since Jewish trade influences have been allowed to 
 nobble the Congress far too much. If the Congress 
 should be held at East-Bourne in 1911, I hope this 
 mistake will be guarded against, and the Official Guide 
 made something more than a trumpery pamphlet of 
 speakers' names, and hymns to be sung. 
 
 Prompted by the feeling that the number of people 
 coming to reside at East-Bourne, but making their money 
 in London, gave the East End of London some claim on 
 East-Bourne, on June 30, 1884, we got up a garden 
 meeting at Northfield Grange on behalf of what was 
 known as the " Bishop of Bedford's Fund." The Fund 
 was represented by its Secretary, Mr. Beebe, as a speaker ; 
 and during subsequent years, the matter was taken up 
 with great zeal in the town by others, I afterwards 
 withdrew from the movement myself when I found that 
 under a different Secretary and Managers no small 
 portion of the money raised reached Clergy who defied 
 the law respecting Ritual, and taught doctrines and 
 practised ceremonies at variance with the Prayer Book 
 and their Ordination Vows. a 
 
 (a) For an outrageous proof of this, see the Church Gazette, published by the 
 National Church League, vol. xi. p. Ill, May 1910. 
 
 M
 
 162 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 East-Bourne is now honeycombed with a multitude 
 of religious societies, nearly every church and congre- 
 gation having its own favourites, but in my early days I 
 think there were only three societies represented. At 
 the beginning of the 19th Century the S.P.C.K. had 
 a Sussex auxiliary under the title of " The District 
 Committee for the Deanery and Rape of Pevensey." I 
 have a copy of the Report for the year 1828 on which is 
 written the name of " Lady C. Fitzroy," and which Mr. 
 F. J. Howard gave me at Compton Place many years 
 ago. The President of the Committee was the Earl of 
 Abergavenny. The East-Bourne Secretary was the Rev. 
 A. Brodie, D.D. and the Hailsham Secretary the Rev. 
 T. R. Welch. There were two other local secretaries 
 farther away. The Report is couched in somewhat 
 glowing terms, and it would seem that the Committee 
 possessed considerable vitality, for during the year 1827 
 they raised 256, and remitted 244 to the parent 
 society, and circulated during the year 5411 publications. 
 The East-Bourne subscribers numbered 27, but there 
 may have been more, as the addresses are not in all cases 
 given. I do not know when this Local Committee 
 died out, nor do I even remember its existence ; the 
 present East-Bourne organisation of the S.P.C.K. is 
 modern dating only from the " Seventies." As regards 
 societies my earliest remembrance is only of the Church 
 Missionary Society, the British and Foreign Bible Society, 
 and the Church Pastoral Aid Society. I took a collecting 
 book for the Bible Society in 1853 and enrolled many 
 subscribers in East-Bourne. The annual meetings and 
 sermons for the C.M.S. were always held during the first 
 week in September because the East-Bourne season was 
 over, and the few residents who went away in the 
 summer had settled themselves home again for the winter. 
 This condition of things is now entirely upset ; and it 
 was because of this upset that September was abandoned 
 as the C.M.S. anniversary month. About 1863 I was 
 asked by Mr. Simpson, the Rector of Bexhill, to assist in 
 starting a Branch of the Additional Curates Society, but 
 I declined on the ground of a principle which I have
 
 CHAP. XIII.] Church Gatherings, various. 163 
 
 upheld ever since ; that there are too many societies 
 doing the same work, and that rival societies to whom 
 such a remark applies should not be encouraged, especially 
 in the same town. Moreover the C.P. A.S. is older in point 
 of date than the A.C.S. by 4 years, the latter having been 
 started to be more " churchy," and to compete with the 
 former. The ostensible ground for the foundation of 
 the second society deserves note in the light of present- 
 day methods. The C.P.A.S. from the very first recognised 
 the necessity of employing lay-workers as well as clerical. 
 This idea was so distasteful to some of the most influential 
 supporters of the C.P.A.S., including the Bishops of 
 London (Blomfield) and Exeter (Philpotts), and Mr. 
 Gladstone, that they determined to secede and split the 
 interests of the Church in Home Missions Work by 
 starting another organisation to do the same work. 
 
 I recall several instances of special open-air services 
 in East-Bourne. Of these the most important was that 
 held on Sunday, July 17, 1899 for the men assembled in 
 charge of the animals and property connected with the 
 Agricultural Show then going on, which had been opened 
 the day before by the late King, then Prince of Wales. 
 
 During the summer of 1897, a Clergyman named 
 Sortwell was in charge of the Parish Church in the 
 absence of the Vicar. He was a man of great preaching 
 powers and got the ear of the working classes. Special 
 services for men only were carried on in the Church on 
 Sunday afternoons, and as the weather became very hot 
 in July he asked for the use of private gardens wherein 
 to hold open-air services. Mr. Gilbert offered the Manor 
 House lawn, and I offered the Northfield Grange garden 
 which included a secluded sheltered area well suited, and 
 indeed often used, for open-air meetings. Mr. Sortwell 
 brought his flock to us on July 11, 18, and 25. The 
 attendance which began at 200, reached on the 3rd week 
 600. Then on the next Sunday the service was held at 
 the Manor House with an attendance quite as large. The 
 next following Sundays, August 8 and 15, were wet, and 
 so the scheme came to an end. But it was a decided 
 success. No damage was done. Music was supplied by
 
 164 
 
 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIIL 
 
 a harmonium and voluntary choir led by a cornet-player,. 
 Mr. R. D. Sanders. 
 
 I will now mention a few things in the history of 
 each of the ecclesiastical divisions of the mother parish 
 of East-Bourne which came under my notice prior to the 
 year 1902. 
 
 THE PARISH CHURCH OF ST. MARY. 
 
 " Wttibc foas |>is |)arislr ( ;mir Irausjes fer asottbtr." (CHAUCER.) 
 
 When I first knew this Church it had the usual high 
 pews of the period, and its interior arrangements will be 
 almost, but not quite, understood by an examination of 
 the picture, the original of which was taken in pencil 
 
 Fig. 63. 
 
 MARY'S CHURCH. 
 
 from near the E. end by Miss Emma Brodie sometime 
 about 1840. It is necessary to add that in the N. and S. 
 aisles there were galleries, on one of which was the 
 legend " Open and unappropriated seats erected by the 
 Vicar, Anno 1818." There was then no Vestry, properly
 
 CHAP. XIIL] St. Mary's Church. 165 
 
 so-called, but the apartment of unknown origin and 
 intention built against the E. window was used as a 
 Vestry, access to it being had from inside the Church by 
 passing through the Communion rails and past the S. 
 end of the Communion table. The use as a Vestry of 
 the enclosed space in what is sometimes called the 
 :< Wilson " or " Cavendish " Chancel was of much later 
 date ; whilst the user of the " Gilbert " Chancel as a 
 Choir Vestry was much later still. 
 
 The Church was repewed and considerably repaired 
 in 1851 under the supervision of the well-known church 
 architect, Carpenter. A wooden pulpit was replaced by 
 the present stone one, but the old one was not very old. I 
 possess a leaden tablet found in it which is thus inscribed : 
 *' THIS PULPIT WAS MADE BY MOSES VINE, 1816, AGED 18 
 YEARS." In 1851, the pulpit was placed in the nave in 
 a position near the Chancel arch. There was much 
 controversy over pews. One difficulty which frequently 
 crops up in such cases, namely, the existence of " Faculty 
 Pews " was got over by Mr. J. D. Gilbert surrendering 
 his two pews. Of course the new pews were viewed 
 with disfavour by some of the old inhabitants. For 
 instance my grandmother never entered the Church 
 again, going ever afterwards to Trinity Church, but the 
 culminating point of controversy was as to whether the 
 new pews should have doors ! And there arose a pro- 
 door and anti-door party ! The matter was finally left 
 to the arbitration of Lord Burlington who decided in 
 favour of doors. Whenever he was at Compton Place he 
 was a regular attendant with his 3 sons, afterwards Lord 
 Hartington and Lords Frederick and Edward Cavendish, 
 and his one daughter Lady Louisa Cavendish, afterwards 
 the wife of Admiral Egerton, M.P. The old-fashioned 
 reading desk was replaced in 1851 by one of open iron- 
 work painted blue with the desk arranged for the reader 
 to face W. This was replaced in 1873 by a carved oak 
 desk, given by Mrs. Cuthell as a memorial of her husband. 
 Further changes in the seating of the Chancel were 
 carried out in 1892 when Mr. Ottley became Vicar. The 
 first Parish Clerk and Sexton who I remember was
 
 166 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 named Hart, and he was succeeded by his son ; then came 
 his grandson, whilst his great grandson now performs 
 the kindred duties of Verger, there being no longer a 
 Parish Clerk or a Sexton. 
 
 I took a good deal of interest in the work of 
 restoration in ]851, and being of an antiquarian turn 
 of mind, carried home with me one day in great triumph, 
 a substantial piece of wood with velvet and brass nails 
 attached to it, which had formed part of a coffin dis- 
 placed during the repairs, but the home authorities 
 thought it was not a fitting object to be added to my 
 embryo museum. Many years previously to this, an 
 uncle of mine, Walter Brodie, in his thirst for knowledge, 
 inspected a vault inside the Church which had been 
 opened for a burial, and he fell in and could not get out, 
 so was obliged to remain there till the arrival of the 
 funeral party, when his shouts disclosed the fact that he 
 did not wish to undergo premature burial. 
 
 The Parish Church underwent further repairs in 
 1869, 1871 and 1872 at an aggregate cost of 3473, 
 besides which at various times between 1853 and I860, 
 224 had been spent in the warming apparatus and 
 gas fittings. Numerous painted windows had been 
 put in at the expense of private individuals, and Lord 
 R. Cavendish had defrayed the cost of reseating the 
 chancel. The organ underwent many transformations. 
 I think I may say, that counting the present one, I have 
 known 4 organs : A small one in a W. gallery ; a larger 
 one erected in 1854 on the floor of the tower ; that 
 organ removed and reconstructed in the K. chancel ; 
 and the existing very fine instrument put up in 1908, 
 but artistically much disfigured by its row of plain 
 gilded pipes : looking for all the world like dummies. 
 
 The Parish Church has been so exhaustively 
 described and discussed in Guide-Books and other books, 
 that there is little that I need say on the subject here. 
 
 I find from my Diaries that in the course of }^ears, I 
 have heard in the pulpit, sermons by the following 
 Clergy, who either when I heard them or later in their 
 careers, had acquired some celebrity, but the number, it
 
 CHAP. XIII.] St. Mary's Church. 167 
 
 will be seen, is limited : it is the Churches in the new 
 parts of the town which secure the " select preachers " 
 who visit East-Bourne : Bishop Vidal (Sierra Leone) ; 
 Bishop Welldon (Calcutta) ; Bishop Crowther (African 
 Negro) ; Bishop Billing (Bedford) ; Bishop Ingham 
 (Sierra Leone) ; Archbishop Trench (Dublin) ; Bishop 
 Ridley (Caledonia) ; Bishop G. F. Browne (Stepney, 
 now Bristol) ; Bishop Spalding (Colerado) ; Bishop E. R. 
 Wilberforce (Chichester) ; Dean Champreys (Lichfield) ; 
 Rev. B. W. Bucke (Lee) ; Rev. H. V. Elliott (Brighton) ; 
 Rev. P. B. Power (Worthing). 
 
 I have but very few anecdotes to relate. Here is 
 one told me by the old Vicar, Mr. Pitman. On a certain 
 Palm Sunday, a Clergyman who was assisting him, gave 
 out the following notice : " Next Friday being Easter 
 Sunday no ; I have told you wrong : next Sunday 
 being Good Friday, there will be the special service 
 appointed for that day." 
 
 I have already made mention of Mr. Pitman from 
 the civilian side of his career, but a few more words in 
 connection with the Parish Church may come in here. 
 In the reading desk and pulpit he was a power. His 
 reading of the Lessons was something quite out of the 
 common, even at a time when there were far more good 
 readers amongst the Clergy than there are nowadays. 
 When he was on chapters like some of those in the Books 
 of the Kings, you almost felt you were in the presence of 
 the Kings and the Prophets themselves. His sermons, 
 without being remarkable, were plain and straight- 
 forward, and you could not doubt that he believed and 
 meant what he said. Their length was adjusted to a 
 marvellously exact standard of 30 minutes. It would be 
 exceedingly rare that he was half a minute more or half 
 a minute less than the standard length. I cannot 
 remember that I ever saw him, even near the end of his 
 life, wear a pair of spectacles, and he lived to the age of 
 85, after having been Vicar of East-Bourne for 62 years. 
 His temperament being always autocratic, his relations 
 with the family of his predecessor were often rather 
 strained. Not long after he came to East-Bourne in
 
 168 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 1810, my grandfather started a great innovation a 
 Sunday Evening Service. This was such a success that 
 the church was not large enough for the congregation, 
 and so he put up at his own expense the galleries in the 
 N. and S. aisles already mentioned. These were much 
 appreciated by the poorer parishioners, who always 
 occupied them, especially after the restoration of 1851 
 had concentrated all the free seats in the far-off S.W. 
 corner of the S. aisle. These galleries were removed by 
 Mr. Pitman, mero motu, without, I believe, any Faculty, 
 that is, legal authority to do so. This was about 1868. 
 The effect on the poor was that, having nowhere to go, 
 many of them ceased to attend the church, which more 
 than ever has now become a rich man's church, rather 
 than a poor man's church. The entrance to the N. 
 gallery was up what had been the staircase to the 
 rood-loft in olden times. The S. gallery was reached by 
 a staircase from the aisle direct. 
 
 My grandfather died in June, 1828, as the result of 
 being thrown out of his carriage^ coming down the 
 hill which is now a part of Ocklynge Road. He had 
 been offered some time previously, but had refused, the 
 Bishopric of Chichester an offer presumably made 
 partly because he was one of the King's Chaplains. 
 
 Mr. Pitman took up his residence at East-Bourne in 
 the winter of 1828, and signalised his arrival by 
 discontinuing the evening service and dismantling the 
 lamps. These he packed up and sent back to my 
 grandmother, announcing that they would never be 
 wanted again a prediction which proved painfully 
 true, and by the effective operation of which the 
 Wesleyan Chapel profited. Later in his life Mr. Pitman 
 took a different view of the advantages or disadvantages 
 of evening services, for in 1860 he invited my assistance 
 in printing circulars and canvassing for subscriptions for 
 fitting up the church with gas for a regular evening 
 service every Sunday, assistance which my " progressive " 
 ideas led me to give gladly. The service was inaugurated 
 on Sunday, January 13, 1861. The entry in my diary 
 
 (b) The Gentleman's Magazine records it as "gig."
 
 CHAP. XIII.] Rev. T. Pitman. 169 
 
 is : " Effect of lighting up the church excellent." The 
 cost of the fittings was 128. 
 
 Mr. Pitman really was a notable personality, who 
 deserves more space than I can give him. He was 
 essentially a " strong " man, and if he had not been a 
 parson, he had some qualifications for being a Judge of 
 the High Court. He was the only man whom Major 
 JSL Willard could not manage. I will mention 2 stories 
 which he told me. Up to the passing of the "Tithe 
 Commutation Act " in 1835, tithes had for centuries been 
 paid in kind, the Tithe-owner's collector going round the 
 farms selecting at his choice whichever one of the 10 
 sheaves put together for the purpose, or the 10th pig, or 
 the 10th whatever it was. There were obvious incon- 
 veniences attaching to this system from the stand-point 
 both of Tithe-owner and Tithe-payer, and in many 
 places these 2 parties had entered into a voluntary 
 .arrangement for the payment in cash of agreed sums. 
 My grandfather had done this, and that arrangement 
 was still subsisting in 1828, when Mr. Pitman became 
 Vicar. I think the agreed sum for the East-Bourne 
 tithes was some such sum as 600 a year. One of the 
 farmers went to the new Vicar and said, " I wish to put 
 an end to the arrangement which I had with Dr. Brodie 
 and to let you have your tithe in the usual way in kind." 
 The new Vicar said "All right, so let it be." A little 
 time afterwards the farmer went to the Vicar and said, 
 "" I think Mr. Vicar it is a pity to disturb the arrangement 
 which Dr. Brodie set up and we farmers have agreed to 
 .go on paying you in cash." The explanation of this 
 volte-face was that the farmers had discovered on looking 
 into the matter that the value in kind of their payments 
 in respect of tithe would be not 600 a year but nearer 
 1000 a year ; the difference between the 2 sums being 
 the amount which my grandfather had annually sacrificed 
 to save trouble to himself, and to promote peace and 
 goodwill in the Parish. 
 
 The peace which began with Waterloo had, as is 
 well-known, a most serious effect upon the trade and 
 commerce of England. A rapid fall ensued in the value
 
 170 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 of money, and great commercial distress overspread the 
 country. Mr. Pitman often told me that a stated weekly 
 allowance from the overseers out of the Poor Rate, of 
 money and loaves of bread, came gradually to be regarded 
 as the regular and proper supplement to the ordinary 
 weekly wages of every farm-labourer. This state of 
 things lasted up to and beyond the passing of the " Poor 
 Law Amendment Act, 1834," which revolutionised the 
 Poor Law system of the Country, amongst other things 
 by grouping parishes into " Unions," and establishing 
 Boards of Guardians, instead of every parish doing its 
 own Poor Law work in its own way. 
 
 Mr. Pitman once related me the following significant 
 incident. He was waited upon by a coastguard who 
 asked him to take care of the large sum of 100 until 
 such times as he was due to go back to Ireland to his 
 home. Mr. Pitman asked the man, who was a Roman 
 Catholic, why he came to a Protestant clergyman to take 
 care of his money instead of putting it into the hands of 
 the Romish priest of his parish in Ireland. The man's 
 reply was " Plaize, your Riverence, I think the money 
 will be safer in your hands than in the hands of my 
 priest. He would find some excuse for diminishing the 
 amount before it reached myself or my wife." 
 
 Mr. Pitman was very conservative in the matter of 
 vestments, so naturally he would not patronise any of the 
 illegal Romish vestments which many of the Clergy 
 wear in these days ; not even the " moderate " but 
 nevertheless illegal black stole. He stuck to the tippet 
 or scarf. Of course he wore the bands which one now 
 sees only round the necks of barristers, and also of 
 course the surplice in the reading-desk and the black 
 gown in the pulpit. Bands went out, more or less, about 
 1870, the all-round clerical collars being a sort of 
 subterfuge substitute for them. The black gown was so 
 universally recognised in the " Fifties " and " Sixties " as 
 the vestment de rigueur that a new gown was an ordinary 
 and frequent presentation to a clergyman whom his- 
 cougregation wished to honour. I remember that Mr. 
 Pierpoint, whilst Incumbent of Trinity Church, was so
 
 CHAP. XIIIJ The Parish Clerk. 171 
 
 testimonialised. Black gloves were frequently seen 
 during service on clerical hands, and not unfrequently 
 were worn by barristers in Court. I remember that 
 Serjeant Mereweather, Q.C., a Counsel much employed in 
 Railway Bills, wore them. 
 
 The Clerk was a very important personage in most 
 churches. He, too, in town churches, wore a black gown, 
 and it was his duty everywhere, in town and country 
 alike, to lead the Responses and to give out the Hymns 
 when any were sung. Up till about 1850 Tate and 
 Brady Psalms were in general use, with perhaps a small 
 local collection of Hymns. There was only one Hymnal 
 at all common in the Church of England then. It was 
 generally known as the " Mitre Hymn-Book, " from the 
 fact of a mitre being stamped on the cover, but " Mitre " 
 was no part of the title, which was : " Psalms and Hymns 
 adapted to the Services of the Church of England." The 
 editor was the Rev. W. J. Hall, a well-known London 
 Clergyman, one of Her Majesty's Chaplains, and from 
 its being dedicated to the Bishop of London (Blomfield) 
 it was largely used. It was used for many years in 
 East-Bourne Parish Church. Clerks and Clergy when 
 they gave out a hymn always did so in these words : 
 " Let us sing to the Praise and Glory of God Hymn ." 
 
 Previously to the introduction of the " Mitre " book 
 into East-Bourne there was in circulation a smaller 
 collection of only a few dozen hymns, compiled by my 
 grandfather, and bearing 011 the title-page words to the 
 effect that it was for use in " East Bourn " (sic) Church. 
 
 There was once a curate at the old Church, whose 
 name was Blank. Mr. and Mrs. Blank were much liked 
 by the parishioners, and often came back to stay in 
 East-Bourne after taking up their residence in Suffolk. 
 Sometime after their departure many years ago Mrs. 
 Blank and one of her daughters came to East-Bourne 
 and this is what happened. They drove in a cab from 
 the Shoreditch station of the G.E.R. to London Bridge ; 
 and inquiring of cabby the fare, he said it was Is. Qd, 
 (N.B. Distance 1^ miles). When she arrived at 
 East-Bourne Mrs. Blank said to her hostess, " Our cabby
 
 172 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XIII. 
 
 was such a nice man ; so civil and pleasant ; he has 
 promised to look out for us on our return journey and 
 he will convey us back to Shoreditch for the same charge 
 of 7s. Qd. I am to wave a pocket handkerchief out of the 
 window when I arrive at London Bridge Station ! ! " I 
 need not quote to a 20th Century reader the London cab 
 fare for " under 2 miles " plus a few pence for luggage 
 and pourboire. 
 
 Mr. Pitman was very particular that his school staff 
 should be good disciplinarians, and should stick to their 
 work. Accordingly, he would never allow his Head 
 Teacher, Mr. Joseph Welch, to become a member of the 
 Town Council ; and it was not until a new Vicar came 
 on the scene that the said Teacher obtained municipal 
 honours, and eventually acquired an Alderman's gown 
 and great fame as an orator. 
 
 During many years, one of the " events " of the 
 summer was the Annual School Feast on the Links for 
 all the children of the National Schools. Mr. Pitman 
 and his family managed them, and right well he did it. 
 I find that my earliest attendance was in 1852, and that 
 between then and 1888, I was present at 15 of such 
 treats. They were held in the last week in July or the 
 first fortnight in August. They were discontinued soon 
 after the last named date as the numbers of children 
 had grown so great as to render one general Treat for all 
 the schools of the town too big an undertaking. The 
 finale was always a scramble for Dutch cheeses down the 
 steep part of the Links. 
 
 Mr. Pitman died in 1890. His long Vicariate of 
 nearly 62 years is commemorated by the " Pitman 
 Institute " in Church Street, erected at a cost of 1347. 
 Extras and furnishing brought up the total cost to about 
 1600. It was opened on October 21, 1892. 
 
 The idea has been mooted that the Old Parsonage 
 House 011 the N. side of the Churchyard should be 
 acquired and fitted up for such Church purposes and 
 parochial business as cannot conveniently be dealt with 
 at the Pitman Institute. I hope some clay to see this 
 excellent idea carried out.
 
 CHAP. XIII.] St. Michael's Church. 
 
 173 
 
 The wonderful developement of building operations 
 in the district attached to the Parish Church long ago 
 rendered necessary the building of a new Church, and 
 that now known as St. Michael's is such, taking the 
 place of a temporary Church which occupied an adjacent 
 site. The building of St. Michael's, the first portion of 
 which dates from 1900, might have been anticipated by 
 some 30 years if Mr. Pitman had thought fit to approve 
 of the acceptance of the sum of 2000 offered in 1874 
 for the purpose of starting a new Church. The offer 
 was made on behalf of a clergyman named Pierce who 
 had been assisting Mr. Pitman for a considerable length 
 of time and who was proposed as the first Incumbent. 
 
 Fig. 65. 
 
 THE OLD PARSONAGE, 
 Near St. Mary's Church. 
 
 If only as a matter of history I must not pass over 
 two very visionary schemes put forth by a man of 
 excellent enterprise and visions who succeeded Mr. 
 Pitman as " Vicar of East-Bourne," in 1890, the Rev. 
 H. B. Ottley. I here only refer to Church-building 
 visions, but there were others which must remain in my 
 possession either in memory or manuscript. Mr. Ottley 
 proposed to supply the wants of Ocklynge by a magnificent 
 Church in Mill Road at the corner of Carew Road. He
 
 174 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 exhibited to the public plans prepared by Sir A. Blomfield 
 to the tune of 12,000. The structure was intended to 
 be of a very ambitious character, but for that reason it 
 did not "take," and the scheme soon fell into oblivion. 
 Mr. Ottley's other scheme was even more ambitious. 
 It was to build on to the Parish Church a new nave of 
 such dimensions that the old nave should become 
 architecturally an aisle ! It is not necessary for me to 
 occupy space in recording the fate of this scheme. 
 
 TRINITY CHURCH. 
 
 " foasi imjjmsi0us iriir |ris js.era.cms vankt, 
 
 lie alfoags kt$t Iris Hock afoake." (Peter Pindar.} 
 
 The history of Trinity Church has already been 
 hinted at in another Chapter. As originally built it was 
 called by the modest name of " Trinity Chapel," and 
 when I first knew it was simply a rectangular building 
 with a small recess no more than about 20ft. wide and 
 15ft. deep, from back to front, which served as a chancel, 
 the total accommodation being about 450 seats. The 
 original legal status of the building was that of a 
 " Chapel-of-Ease " to the Parish Church. It was served 
 .as such by a Curate of the mother Church until 1847, 
 when it was elevated into an independent district of the 
 kind then legally known as a Perpetual Curacy ; a 
 Curate of the mother Church, the Rev. R. W. Pierpoint 
 (appointed Curate in 1846), was the first Incumbent. The 
 Parsonage House was built in 1849, and I assisted, as a 
 humble and not very industrious small boy, my uncle, 
 F. Brodie, who superintended the laying out of the 
 garden. 
 
 The Church, with its " three-decker " pulpit, etc., 
 long remained unaltered, but when the growth of 
 East-Bourne, as a watering-place coming into note, made 
 the necessity of further church accommodation a matter 
 of urgency, aisles were thrown out on both sides. 
 
 Fig. 63, on Plate XIX, is taken from an engraving of 
 the Church, dated May, 1855, with the aisles added, and 
 shewing the Church and the Parsonage standing on a
 
 CHAP. XIII.] Trinity Church. 175 
 
 vast open space of grass land, with only one house in the 
 far distance which is intended either for Oak Cottage or 
 The Grotto, one of 2 small houses then standing in 
 solitary loneliness on what is now Sussex Gardens and 
 Terminus Road. This engraving shews the corner of 
 the W. wall of the garden of Rosemount, Trinity Place, 
 which as a roadway did not then exist, the grass land 
 spoken of above running up to Rosemount and nearly up 
 to the adjacent house, known as Norfolk Lodge, which 
 belonged to Lieut. Baugh, R.N. The house adjoining, 
 now called Pine Grange, bore in those days a different 
 name. It was Trinity Lodge, and belonged to a Captain 
 Washington, whose daughters sold it to Dr. G. A. Jeffery. 
 The Washingtons claimed relationship to the great 
 American statesman. The Rosemount of 1855, which 
 had belonged to a London solicitor named Jones, has 
 ceased to exist, having been pulled down and the name 
 and garden transferred to what once was Frohsdorf 
 House, Victoria Place. Over the entrance to this house 
 the first owner had inscribed the words : " Every house is 
 builded by some man, but he that built all things is God." 
 
 The pressure on the existing church accommodation 
 in the new part of the town was first of all met by 
 Mr. Pierpoint instituting special Sunday services in Trinity 
 School, episcopally licensed for the purpose ; by the 
 building of Christ Church as regards its nave in 1859 ; 
 and by the erection of the three amorphous W. ends of 
 Trinity Church. It was to raise money for this, I think, 
 that a bazaar at which I assisted was held at Trinity 
 Schools, August 15 17, 1861, and which resulted in 
 takings amounting to 225. This was nearly all net 
 profit, because bazaar managers did not in those days 
 waste the money they do now in " expenses." There 
 was another bazaar for the same purpose at the same 
 place on September 2 3, 1862, but finding it very dull, 
 I went off each afternoon to cricket at Compton Place. 
 
 Mr. Pierpoint, the first Incumbent, remained such 
 until his resignation in May 1878. During an inter- 
 regnum before the appointment of the Rev. W. A. 
 Bathurst in 1878 the Parish was in charge of a man
 
 176 Old Memories of East-Bourne, [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 who even then had made his mark in the Church, the 
 Rev. C. H. Banning, at that time Vicar of Strood in 
 Kent, a powerful Evangelical preacher. Efforts were 
 made to secure him as Mr. Pierpoint's successor but 
 for reasons which I suppose he thought to be good 
 Mr. Pitman (patron as Vicar of the Parish Church) did 
 not comply with the representations made to him.. 
 Mr. Pierpoint resigned after an incumbency of 30 years 
 deservedly respected, and his successor held the living 
 for nearly the same length of time. During his incum- 
 bency the large Vestry on the S. side was added in 1884.. 
 
 The wonderfully successful architectural changes- 
 which have been accomplished in Trinity Church by the 
 present Incumbent, Mr. Kerry, is modern history which 
 is not within the scope of this book. The pulling down 
 of the tower reminds me, however, of a piece of ancient 
 history. On an occasion in the " Fifties " one of the 
 pinnacles of the tower was struck by lightning and 
 destroyed, and the rain-water pipe shattered. The 
 Churchwardens of the period proposed to replace it by 
 a pinnacle to match the untouched three but of wood. 
 Mr. Pitman, however, vetoed the proposal, as contrary 
 to Ecclesiastical Law, and he was right. 
 
 Bishop Samuel Wilberforce of Oxford visited East- 
 Bourne in the " Fifties," occupying, at any rate on one 
 of his visits, 24 Marine Parade. He preached more than 
 once for Mr. Pierpoint though the "views" of the 2 
 clerics were by no means identical. The versatile 
 talents of the Right Reverend Prelate did not always 
 secure his being appreciated. 
 
 One of the longest sermons I ever heard in my life 
 was preached in Trinity Church on October 26, 1873. 
 It lasted 49 minutes. The preacher was the Rev. 
 F. Bourdillon, the well-known writer of " Pi " books. 
 It was sure to have been a good sermon, but certainly 
 was a trifle too long. 
 
 CHRIST CHURCH. 
 
 Christchurch was consecrated on July 29, 1859, and 
 I suppose that there are not many persons remaining
 
 ^ > 
 - Ul
 
 CHAP. X1IL] Christ Church. 177 
 
 who, like myself, were present at the ceremony, which 
 was performed by the Bishop of Chichester (Gilbert). 
 The building at the first was even less like a church 
 than Trinity had been ; for it was a simple rectangle 
 contained in 4 bare walls without chancel or porch. Just 
 as Trinity had at the first been a Chapel-of-Ease to 
 St. Mary's, served by the curate of the Mother Church 
 so Christchurch stood until 1864 to Trinity. On 
 February 3 of that year a district carved out of Trinity 
 Parish was assigned to it and the Rev. W. H. Lloyd, 
 who had been curate-in-charge, was appointed the first 
 Incumbent. He was a popular and, on the whole, a 
 successful little man. He subsequently left to become 
 a British Chaplain in South America and was replaced 
 by an Irishman named Irwin whose only success was to 
 empty the Church which Mr. Lloyd had filled. 
 
 As the military establishments in East-Bourne stand 
 within the limits of Christchurch Parish that Church 
 has always been used as the Garrison Church, though 
 before it was built the soldiers were marched to a special 
 afternoon service at Trinity Church. I may mention 
 in this connection that I once attended the military 
 funeral of a gunner in the Royal Artillery who was 
 buried in the churchyard of the old Church. The finale 
 of the ceremony, the firing of a volley of blank cartridge, 
 adds greatly to the solemnity of such scenes. 
 
 ST. SAVIOUR'S CHURCH. 
 
 " U* fcra tarui to sgtxk ghin anir to fyt gmcgost." 
 
 (Much Ado about Nothing.) 
 
 The necessity of another new Church in East-Bourne 
 had in the year 1865 become very manifest a small Iron 
 Church then standing where Hard wick Road now enters 
 South Street being wholly insufficient. The Town had 
 grown, and the number of visitors had largely increased 
 as the result, paradoxical as it may sound, of the scarlet 
 fever epidemic of 1863. The effect of the scare was on 
 this wise. It kept away, in the summer of 1864, many 
 N
 
 178 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XIII. 
 
 of the habitual visitors of previous years. The lodging- 
 house keepers in despair lowered their rents materially, 
 and a new class of visitor, despising fever risks (which 
 were really very small then), flocked, to the Town and 
 helped to fill the Churches to overflowing. About the 
 same time Sir Charles Locock, the well-known London 
 Doctor, whose eldest son had married Mr. Pitman's 2nd 
 daughter 5 years previously, offered to start a Building 
 Fund for a new Church with a donation of 1 000 if a 
 younger son of his were appointed the first Incumbent. 
 Nothing came of this offer, and the field was open for 
 new proposals. One soon came in the form of an offer 
 from Mr. George Whelpton, a London business man, to 
 build a complete new Church and Parsonage-house if a 
 suitable site could be obtained on the Duke of Devon- 
 shire's land. This offer, in spite of its completeness and 
 munificence, was not acceptable to Mr. Pitman because the 
 first Incumbent of the proposed Church was to be the 
 founder's son, the Rev. H. R. Whelpton, then a beneficed 
 Clergyman in the diocese of Salisbury. It was ascertained 
 that Mr. Whelpton was " High Church," and that was 
 sufficient to make Mr. Pitman decline the proposal, and 
 Mr. G. Whelpton made at first no further attempt to go 
 on with the matter. The facts just stated happened to 
 be made known to me, and I took the liberty of entering 
 into a correspondence on my own account with the 
 Rev. H. R. Whelpton, to whom I was then personally 
 unknown. The anti-High Church reasons which swayed 
 the Vicar, though in my opinion good reasons up to a 
 certain point, did not justify the Town of East-Bourne 
 being deprived of a completely-equipped new Church 
 with its accompanying parochial organisations, at a 
 moment when there was a grievous deficiency of Church 
 accommodation a deficiency which was daily increasing 
 and which nobody was in sight to supply if the refusal 
 of Mr. G. Whelpton's handsome offer was persisted in. 
 I am glad to say that my intervention had the effect 
 which I desired it should have ; the offer was revived ; 
 Mr. Pitman was persuaded to see the matter in a new 
 light, and the Church was built and consecrated on
 
 CHAP. XIII.] St. Saviour's Church. 179 
 
 January 30, 1867. I was sorry under the peculiar 
 circumstances not to be present, though invited, but I 
 was unavoidably detained in London. 
 
 The new Incumbent's troubles did not end with the 
 consecration of the Church. The building plans had of 
 course to receive the approval of Mr. Pitman, and when 
 he found that the Reading-desk was to be in the chancel 
 in juxtaposition to the choir stalls, he did not approve. 
 He insisted on a Reading-desk out in the nave, and the 
 plans were altered accordingly, and a Reading-desk was 
 duly erected in the desired place. It was one thing to 
 secure the construction of the Reading-desk by a 
 carpenter and another thing to secure that the minister 
 should use it. As a matter of fact, the minister did not 
 see fit to use it, and after a time, as it occupied a space 
 on the floor which it was thought would be more 
 profitably employed if given up to the congregation, the 
 Reading-desk was removed, and the empty space filled 
 up by additional ordinary seats. The later history of 
 St. Saviour's Church does not involve any matters with 
 which I was brought into contact, and the only moral 
 lesson which I suggest should be drawn from that later 
 history, is that Clergy and Congregations should beware 
 of engaging the services of great " swells " as Organists. 
 Some years after the Church was opened, they took on 
 the services of a " Mus. Doc.," for whom a 600 organ 
 was not good enough. He decoyed the authorities into a 
 2400 organ and the results were 
 
 St. Saviour's Church was on Trinity Sunday, May 
 27, 1877, the locale of the only Ordination ever held in 
 East-Bourne. On that day the Bishop of Chichester 
 (Durnford) ordained 8 Deacons and 6 " Priests," none of 
 them however connected with East-Bourne. 
 
 ST. JOHN'S CHURCH. 
 
 If St. Saviour's Church was in a certain sense built 
 too late, that is to say, after a congregation had arrived 
 to fill it, the picture of Meads in 1870 would suggest that 
 St. John's Church was built too soon, but there were 
 reasons for this. The hamlet of Meads had never had a
 
 180 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XIII. 
 
 church when St. John's was consecrated on September 
 23, 1869, and there was no other provision for Divine 
 Worship up there but Sunday services of sorts in a small 
 and inconvenient schoolroom. Dr. Gilbert, Bishop of 
 Chichester, was the consecrating Bishop ; and it was, I 
 think, his last appearance in East-Bourne, for he died 
 some months later. At any rate, it was the last occasion 
 on which I saw him in East-Bourne. The Church when 
 built occupied an open waste, and seemed nowhere. 
 Strangers viewing it from afar might have been pardoned 
 for criticising an expenditure of money of which the- 
 least that could be said was that it seemed premature. 
 But how things have altered since ! Now it is the very 
 centre of an immense expanse closely packed with large 
 residential houses, and though twice enlarged is evidently 
 not large enough for the demands put upon it. 
 
 Until the School-room Service was instituted, the 
 inhabitants who wished for Church privileges, had either 
 to tramp across the Links to the Old Town, or along the 
 cliff to Trinity Church. If the Church of England did 
 little for them in those days, Dissent did nothing at all. 
 
 The modern history of Meads may be said 
 to commence with the opening of the All Saints* 
 Convalescent Hospital in 1869, the same year that the 
 Church was consecrated. Up till that time, Meads was- 
 a perfectly out-of-the-world sort of place, scarcely known 
 except to passers-by such as tourists going to or from 
 Beachy Head. Its few inhabitants were farm-labourers, 
 lime-burners, fishermen, or Coastguards, or, probably (a 
 generation earlier) smugglers. The fact that the great 
 Convalescent Hospital had been put there, perhaps 
 suggested to some people that Meads had a future, whilst 
 others believed that the site of the Hospital was chosen 
 because the locality was so entirely out of the way, that 
 it never would have a future so far as the growth of 
 East-Bourne as a fashionable watering-place was 
 concerned. However, be that as it may, my aunt, Mrs. 
 Grace (mentioned elsewhere under the name of Miss 
 Emma Brodie), undertook the arduous task of collecting 
 the money required for building a complete Church with
 
 CHAP. XIII.] St. John's Church. 181 
 
 Parsonage-house attached. She met with success to the 
 extent of 6997. Since her time, a very large additional 
 amount has been spent in re-casting the whole plan of 
 the Church. The Duke of Devonshire gave the site and 
 1000. The patronage is vested in 5 Trustees who are 
 expected to belong to the Evangelical school. 
 
 There is an ecclesiastical mystery attaching to Meads 
 which nobody has ever solved, and my endeavours to 
 elucidate it have been wholly unsuccessful. In the old 
 Guide-book, published in 1787, which I have already 
 quoted, there occurs the following passage : " Near the 
 road leading down to the chalk cliffs [Holywell] are the 
 remains of a building called St. Gregory's Chapel (so 
 named in Letters Patent establishing the Corporation of 
 Pevensey), and the fields and hill are now distinguished 
 by that name. The bells belonging to it are said to have 
 been carried to France, and now actually used at Rouen 
 or Dieppe in Normandy." 
 
 I remember having had a conversation with Mr. 
 Caldecott on the subject in 1868, and he told me that he 
 had heard this Chapel spoken of by old inhabitants who 
 had known a remnant of the ruins, with brambles 
 growing around it, and that one piece of ornamental 
 stone which had come from the Chapel was then in his 
 museum. This implies that the foundations had 
 remained till the beginning of the 19th Century. It is 
 not permissible to imagine that this is fiction, because a 
 tract of land over which, or about over which, the 
 highways called St. John's Road, Bolsover Road, and 
 Buxton Road now run, was certainly called for parochial 
 purposes within my recollection " Hobby Bank " and 
 " Chapel Piece," or " Chapel Bank," but the situation 
 thus defined hardly tallies with the quotation from the 
 Giiide-Book that the Chapel was " near the road leading 
 down to the chalk cliffs," unless another road than the 
 Waterworks road is meant. It is to be regretted, under 
 the circumstances, that St. John's Church was not called 
 " St. Gregory's Church," for I think that old names and 
 associations should be perpetuated and kept alive as 
 often as possible.
 
 182 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 ST. ANNE'S CHURCH. 
 
 Hitherto my mention of building operations has 
 chiefly had reference to the Duke of Devonshire's land 
 and other lands more or less near the sea, but Mr. 
 C. D. Gilbert's estate and the large amount of modern 
 building on it must not be forgotten or ignored. Speaking 
 quite generally, his estate lies in and around, especially 
 to the N. and the E. of, the Old Town, and includes 
 an indefinite area which goes by the vague name of 
 Upperton. Building hereoii began somewhat later than 
 it did on the Duke of Devonshire's estate but when once 
 it made a start it proceeded apace. 
 
 As it has happened that by far the larger proportion 
 of the modern houses built on Mr. Gilbert's estate have 
 been either large private residences or villas of 
 various sizes, it has not been found necessary to- 
 provide elementary schools, and a complete new Church 
 with a parish room for meetings has thus far been all 
 that has been wanted. St. Anne's Church consecrated 
 on November 26, 1882, is the Church of the Gilbert Estate. 
 I was present on the occasion. Like other churches in 
 East-Bourne, and elsewhere, at the first it was only a 
 Nave and a little more, but subsequent additions have 
 transformed it into what may be called a Church 
 complete in all its parts. Mr. Gilbert's contributions 
 towards it and the steady support of well-to-do congre- 
 gations have rendered unnecessary any frequent or 
 impassioned appeals to the charity of Church-folk at 
 large. The position of the Church in the middle of 
 Upperton Gardens and surrounded by roads on all 4 
 sides is an ideal situation for a Church. 
 
 ALL SAINTS' CHURCH. 
 " fjrflsjrmtg tnalucs frmtbs: airfrersiijj irirs ilmn." (PUBLICS SYRUS.) 
 
 With this Church is unfortunately associated a 
 great many heart-burnings and a law-suit. To under- 
 stand the history, it is necessary to mention that in 
 1873, a temporaiy Iron Church was erected in Burlington 
 Place as an overflow place of worship to Trinity Church.
 
 CHAP. XIII.] All Saints' Church. 183 
 
 After it had been successfully used for some years, there 
 arrived on the scene a clergyman from Cambridgeshire, 
 the Rev. J. H. Qsill, who after ministering for some time 
 at the Iron Church (called St. Paul's), was encouraged 
 and allowed to take upon himself the responsibility of 
 getting up a new Church to be the Church of a new 
 district carved out of the old districts attached to Trinity 
 and St. Saviour's Churches, and to be placed in 
 Wilmington Square. The site was shifted to Carlisle 
 Road on a suggestion (carefully kept secret) that a 
 Church in Wilmington Square would be close enough to 
 hinder the Devonshire Park being used at some future 
 time for Sunday amusements. The Church was built 
 and consecrated under the name of All Saints' Church, 
 but the Iron Church was not closed, and that was the 
 origin of the heart-burnings. I use that word as the 
 mildest applicable, because having been closely associated 
 with Mr. Usill all through the work up to and after the 
 consecration of the Church, I have a perfectly clear and 
 distinct recollection of what Mr. Usill's opinions were. 
 The litigation alluded to had not directly to do with the 
 Iron Church, but was a matter affecting the boundaries 
 of the new district 011 the St. Saviour's side. I was not 
 mixed up with that, and therefore do no more than name 
 the matter as having gone into Court before Vice- 
 Chancellor Malins on January 13, 1881. 
 
 Mr. Usill was an admirable church financier, and 
 his Building Committee occupied back seats all through 
 the business. At the completion of the church as a 
 whole there was not enough money left to build the 
 tower, but instead of leaving the site of the tower in the 
 condition of a level piece of land, or rather, pathway, as 
 it would have been, Mr. Usill decided to start the tower, 
 carry it up a few feet, and leave it, palpably unfinished 
 and untidy. This had the desired effect. A charitable 
 passer-by might not have thought that a tower was 
 intended or wanted, but the fragment of a tower started 
 was highly suggestive, and it suggested to a benevolent 
 lady to give 3000 to finish it. It Avas at one time 
 contemplated to raise the foundations of the church so
 
 184 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 that the floor should be level with the roadway, but this 
 was abandoned when it was found that the cost would be 
 500 extra. Nevertheless, the economy is to be regretted 
 on architectural grounds. The original cost of the 
 church up to the time it was opened was 10,788. The 
 foundation stone was laid on November 1, 1877, and 
 the Consecration took place on June 11, 1879, by the 
 Bishop of Chichester (Durnford). 
 
 After the Consecration Mr. Usill invited a large 
 number of friends to luncheon at one of the hotels. The 
 only speakers, besides the host, were the Duke of 
 Devonshire, the Bishop of Chichester, Mr. Howard, 
 Mr. Pitman, and Mr. Streatfeild. The Duke said that 
 the oocasion reminded him of a similar luncheon given 
 at Mr. Gilbert's house 42 years previously to celebrate 
 the erection of Trinity Church, which, when built in 
 1837, was, he said, regarded by everybody concerned as 
 the first and last additional Church ever likely to be 
 required at East-Bourne ! 
 
 ALL SOULS' CHURCH. 
 
 " ^ofax antr mcdutjcss Totcomt a C&urr^maw fatter t|ait ambition." 
 
 (King Henry VIII.} 
 
 The history of this Church both as regards its origin 
 and also as regards its construction from a builder's and 
 architect's point of view, presents some interesting 
 features. In order to explain matters, I must make a 
 little prefatory statement. For many years there hovered 
 over East-Bourne (no other word would as well describe 
 it) a kind and good lady of noble birth, Lady Victoria 
 Long Wellesley, sister of the 4th and last Earl of 
 Mornington. I knew her for many years, the first 
 mention of her name in my diary being under the date 
 of December 28, 1859. The difficulty I always had was 
 to know T where to write to her, because I knew her at 
 Bolney, near Cuckfield ; at The Terrace, East-Bourne ; 
 at Brunswick House, East-Bourne ; at West Stoke, near 
 Chichester ; at Portland Place ; and finally at Bourne- 
 mouth. At a date which I am unable to specify more
 
 CHAP. XIIL] All Souls Church. 185 
 
 nearly than " about 1875," she notified to Mr. Pierpoint, 
 as the Incumbent of Trinity Church, her desire to build 
 a Church as a memorial to two old aunts, the Misses 
 Tilney-Long. Unfortunately or fortunately (I suppose it 
 may be looked at either way) these ladies were not dead, 
 and as it turned out they lived an inconveniently long 
 time, I mean " inconvenient " from an East-Bourne point 
 of view. Meanwhile East-Bourne was growing rapidly ; 
 more Church accommodation was an increasingly-urgent 
 want, and Mr. Pierpoint felt the necessity of other Church- 
 building operations being put in hand. Eventually, 
 however, Lady Victoria's wishes could be fulfilled, and 
 the foundation-stone of the Church now known as 
 " All Souls' Church " was laid on June 14, 1881. Lady 
 Victoria Wellesley invited a party to luncheon on the 
 occasion, and one of the guests to whom she introduced 
 me was a man who has since come to the front rank of 
 statesmen her cousin, Mr. Walter Long, M.P. 
 
 It is the foundations that I alluded to when I said 
 there was a feature in the history of this Church of 
 special interest to architects and builders. The actual 
 site of the Church, and all the land around it, had been 
 quite within memory a mere marsh which had been 
 drained no more than I suppose a century previously, 
 and then by no means very effectually. In other words 
 the enormous weight of masonry of a complete Church, 
 with a high tower, was going to be placed on a morass. 
 The foundations therefore had to be of an unusually 
 elaborate and expensive character. I possess no figures 
 to support this statement, but Plate XXXVI. is evidence 
 of it. I was present at the laying of the foundation-stone, 
 and the official party assembled for the purpose had to 
 take their stations on a wooden staging from which they 
 could see the footings down below at a depth of, I should 
 say, nearly 20ft. However, the work, including the whole 
 Church, was executed regardless of expense, and I have 
 never heard of any suspicion of settlement. The cost 
 of the whole undertaking, including the Vicarage, the 
 Schools, and the Parish Room, was never made public, 
 but I believe it did not fall much short of 40,000. The
 
 186 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII.. 
 
 Church was consecrated on July 6, 1882, "by the Bishop 
 of Chi chester (Durnford). 
 
 Not only has the Church as a building a history, but 
 the patronage has likewise a history. Bishop Durnford 
 tried very hard to persuade Lady Victoria to hand over 
 the patronage to him as Bishop of the Diocese, but she 
 would not hear of it. She told me, and I think most 
 probably she told him, that she had no confidence in 
 episcopal patrons. This will be better understood when 
 I say that she subscribed in her life-time 1000 to the 
 National Church League under its original name of the 
 National Protestant Church Union ; and left it a legacy 
 of the same amount. She was indeed a loyal and 
 attached member of the Church of England, satisfied 
 with the Prayer-Book and the XXXIX. Articles, and with 
 a deep aversion to Romanising Ritualism. Accordingly 
 she decided to keep the patronage in her own hands, at 
 any rate for a time. 
 
 After her death, in March 1897, I found to my 
 extreme surprise that she had bequeathed the advowson 
 to me, forgetting apparently that she had in her life-time 
 invited me to become one of 5 trustees of the Church, 
 and to suggest to her 4 other friends or acquaintances 
 of mine, who could be relied upon to carry out her 
 wishes and principles. This design was successfully 
 accomplished, though I failed to find a second 
 East-Bourne resident to be, with myself, a local trustee. 
 That point has, however, automatically been met by one 
 of the original trustees having been Canon Goodwyu, 
 who has since become resident in East-Bourne, by reason 
 of his having become Vicar. The original trustees were 
 the Hon. and Rev. W. T. Rice, Mr. Penruddocke, Canon 
 Goodwyn, the Rev. H. P. Stokes, and myself, and there 
 has been no change since. 
 
 Only once has there been a vacancy for us to fill up,, 
 and that vacancy (caused by the resignation of the Rev. 
 J. B. Fletcher) gave me my first insight, and a very 
 illuminating one, into the customs and ideas of 
 clergy desiring preferment. As senior trustee, the 
 applications came in the first instance to me. They
 
 CHAP. XIII.] All Souls' Church. 187 
 
 were 54 in number, and represented every conceivable 
 shade of Church " Views," beginning with Membership' 
 of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament (one 
 candidate), and Membership of the English Church 
 Union (7 candidates). I need hardly say that these were 
 not reserved for further consideration. Eventually we 
 reduced the 54 to 4, and then to 2, and then to 1. It 
 was a tedious, laborious, and anxious business, but I am 
 thankful to say that I believe that under the Providence 
 of God we obtained the right man in the Rev. E. F. 
 Eliot and his too-hardworking wife, Lady Kathleen 
 Eliot, whose father was one of the greatest, perhaps the 
 greatest, Lord Chancellor who ever presided over Law in 
 England and kept the Sovereign's conscience. 
 
 ST. PETER'S CHURCH. 
 
 The overcrowding, which had become chronic, of 
 St. Saviour's Church rendered it necessary that steps 
 should be taken to obtain some relief, and accordingly 
 there was erected in 1878, at a cost of about 1400, a 
 temporary building in a field behind the Town Hall 
 which was designated " St. Peter's Church." It was 
 opened on June 7, 1878, and owed its origin chiefly to 
 the exertions of the Rev. J. Howard Palmer, of Ashamp- 
 stead School. This building was used for about 17 
 years when it was closed and bought by the Corporation/ 01 /'' 
 the congregation transferring themselves to the new and 
 permanent St. Peter's Church erected at the Granville- 
 Road corner of Meads Road. During its earlier ^years' 
 the temporary Church was chiefly served by the Rev. 
 A. N. Obbard, whose quaint and unconventional sermons 
 secured for him a large amount of appreciation. When 
 he left in 1883 after preaching his Farewell Sermon, 
 on February 11, he was followed by the Rev. H. R. Alder 
 who had returned from South Africa where he had been 
 Dean of Cape Town. I have said that this temporary 
 Church had been erected in a field. This is a literal 
 truth. Access to it was had by a public footpath which 
 
 (a) And re-named " Grove Hall." First of all, it was used as a Secondary School for 
 Girls, and now is let for meetings or any purpose.
 
 188 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIII. 
 
 went forwards through 3 very large fields to the Old 
 Town, and there were no buildings whatever anywhere 
 near the Clmrch. The shops on the W. side of Grove 
 Road had not been built, and The Grove, the Old Vestry- 
 room, and the Police Buildings (all mentioned elsewhere) 
 liad not yet been pulled down. It had been hoped by 
 many that the 3 fields in question might have been 
 .secured as a public park. (See Chapter XVII. post.} 
 
 The permanent St. Peter's Church was the outcome 
 of a gift by the Duke of Devonshire of the site and 
 5000, and his Architect (Mr. Henry Currey) supplied 
 the designs. Mr. Currey had not been previously known 
 .as a Church Architect, and the windows externally of 
 the Church are not universally admired. I say no more 
 on the subject as I was not connected with the building 
 of the Church in any way. 
 
 " *t tigt matter lot gonir, anb % maiuu* trfit it." (C. H. SPURGEON.) 
 
 44 gcttrr a little torll-tagt t^au a 0000 faal forgotten." (Bisnop LATIMER.) 
 
 " ^ brrse mag fiut> Ijim Jfolmi a smmm flirs." (G. HERBERT.)
 
 [189] 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 EDUCATIONAL. 
 
 Private Schools in 1851 and earlier. Smock Frocks. Mr. J. A. Bown.- 
 
 Commissariat arrangements. Private Schools in the New Town. 
 Elementary Schools. Great efforts made by the Church of England. Very 
 little done by Dissenters. Unsuccessful attempts to force on a School Board. 
 
 Great Fancy Fair in 1895. County and Borough Councils as Education 
 Authorities. 
 
 " <|t is roranton far ibt goungtr sxrrt to hck oisrwtion." (Hamlet.} 
 " QJli/t mow fat sluog fyt more fat bisrobtr our ignoranas." (ANON.) 
 
 ' |pB0 jroixr stuoies ; mintr jrour frusiiuss ; anfr bx a 0,000 CJmstiau." 
 
 (DR. JOHNSON.) 
 
 " 3/frt forming j?.c|r00I-&ojr, foii|r Iris satdErrl autr seining morimto, fa, 
 lifef a snail unfoillinxjlg to sr|ool." (As you like it.} 
 
 DURING the first half of the 19th Century, there 
 was a school at East-Bourne which had a certain 
 amount of repute outside the parish. From first 
 to last, as far as I can make out, it must have been 
 carried on under successive proprietors for fully 70 years. 
 The locus in quo is now prosaically known as 43a Church 
 Street. It bore in its latest years the name of The 
 Gables, but in my time and earlier, it had no name at 
 all. The first proprietor was a clergyman named Coutts. 
 He was followed by another clergyman named Broome. 
 At Mr. Broome 's death, his widow carried it on for a 
 time, and then it passed into the hands of a Mr. J. A. 
 Bown, who had been Mrs. Broome's chief usher, and 
 who was my master when I attended the school. Then 
 came Mr. D. Stroud, and next to him the end. I was a 
 pupil there for a short time in 1849, for some months in 
 1851, and for nearly the whole of 1852. In those days 
 it was what might be called a " mixed " school, using 
 the word however not in the sense in which it is officially 
 employed by the Board of Education. My particular
 
 190 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIV. 
 
 friend was R. Pinnock, a son of the Vicar of East Dean. 
 Another friend was E. Boys, the youngest son of the 
 farmer who was the tenant of the Gildredge Farm. 
 Boys's elder brother was in the Navy and occasionally 
 visited us in his smart uniform. The younger brother 
 always came to school in a white smock frock. Smock 
 frocks were common in those days ; it was exceptional 
 to see farm-labourers wearing any other garment. Old 
 Mr. Hurst of the Star Brewery was amongst those who 
 in. the higher ranks sported smock frocks. Two other 
 boys at the school were John and George Gosden, sons 
 of the Rodmill farmer, who built Cornfield Terrace and 
 did other things. 
 
 To go back to my school Mr. Bown was great at 
 the three R's. He insisted on boys writing a good hand ; 
 .and the progress made by them in writing and at the 
 same time in arithmetic, was put to the test at stated 
 intervals by their being required to write out in what 
 were called " cyphering books," long sums, using fine 
 steel pens and forming the figures with the utmost care. 
 My writing during those years was very bad, and 
 remained at a very low standard till I went to school at 
 Brighton some years later. At Mr. Bown's Academy (to 
 use the title then in vogue), there was much Latin and 
 Greek (which I declined to patronise more than I could 
 help) ; very little history, geography or French. My 
 ideas of education in those days were of the "Modernist" 
 type, and I concentrated my attention on French and 
 dancing. The French master was a Swiss. I took a 
 fancy to him, and he took a fancy to me, and between us 
 there arose a great proficiency in French on my part 
 which I have never regretted. I was only a day-boarder, 
 which was in a sense satisfactory as minimising the evils 
 of the commissariat system in vogue. I only dined 
 there. Dinner consisted of two courses, pudding first 
 and meat afterwards. I commend this system to all 
 School-masters' wives Avho wish to do things on the 
 cheap. The composition of most of the puddings 
 consisted, with much regularity, of flour, suet and water, 
 with a fourth ingredient which might be currants or jam
 
 HAP. XIV.] Old Private Schools. 191 
 
 or treacle. When it was a case of currants, the resulting 
 pudding bore the local name of " putty-and-flies," 
 elsewhere sometimes called " spotted dog." Mr. Bown 
 was twice married, and a sister of his first wife is still 
 .alive in East-Bourne. Before my time I fancy that the 
 social status of the pupils was higher than it was in my 
 day. At any rate, when my old friend Sir John Lennard 
 of Wickham Court, Kent, came to see us one day some 
 years ago, he told me he had been at the school, and wished 
 me to take him round to see the buildings as they then 
 were, which of course I did. 
 
 The other private schools in East-Bourne between 
 1850 and 1860 were kept by the Misses Shoosmith, The 
 >Grove (small boys) ; Mr. Hopley, Grand Parade (big 
 boys) ; the Misses James, Grand Parade (girls) ; and the 
 Misses Martin, The Susans (girls of commercial rank). A 
 brother of the Misses Martin (Spencer Martin) kept a 
 grocer's shop at the Old Town, exactly opposite the Lamb ; 
 it was pulled down not long ago to cut off the corner. 
 
 The contrast between then and now in the number 
 of schools in East-Bourne is marvellous. I know not the 
 present number, but as far back as 1894 they had grown 
 to more than 200, a fact which I found out when acting 
 .as Secretary of the Elementary Schools Extension 
 Committee. 
 
 I have nothing to say about the Oxford and 
 Cambridge Local Examinations except to commend 
 them. The late Sir William Harcourt came down to give 
 .away the prizes on June 19, 1875, and made a speech 
 a yard and a half long. I remember almost colliding 
 with him and his eldest son, a boy of 12, at the stile near 
 the Manor House. The said boy is now the Rt. Hon. 
 L. Harcourt, M.P., one of the best administrators in the 
 Asquith Cabinet. 
 
 Thus far I have been considering what in the 
 educational parlance of the day is called " Secondary 
 Education," but something must be said on " Primary 
 Education." The record of the town as regards this is 
 one of which the town may well be proud. Beginning 
 with the year 1814, when my grandfather, with the
 
 192 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIV. 
 
 assistance of the National Society, raised money to build 
 the St. Mary's Schools at the Old Town, supplemented in 
 
 1851 by the Trinity Schools, practically the whole work 
 of elementary education has been done by the Church 
 of England, with, for a limited time, and to a 
 limited extent, some help from the Wesleyans and 
 Roman Catholics. As regards the Wesleyans, something- 
 more presently. East-Bourne is one of the very few 
 considerable towns in England which never had tc* 
 bear the burden, or realise the mischiefs, of a School 
 Board. Besides the St. Mary's and Trinity Parochial 
 Schools just mentioned, 4 ladies in East-Bourne 
 contributed materially to keep educational burdens off 
 the ratepayers by founding and supporting what may be 
 described as private-public Infant Schools. The first in 
 point of time was what is known as " Lady Burlington's 
 School," founded and erected by Blanche, Countess of 
 Burlington in the year 1836, in Meads Road. Then in 
 
 1852 Miss L. Brodie started an Infant School in a cottage- 
 in the Old Town, which later on was replaced by a 
 permanent building in Church Street, erected on land 
 given by Lord Burlington. Then Miss Julia Brodie 
 built and endowed an Infant School at the Seaside, close 
 to Christ Church ; and finally Miss Maria Brodie, 
 without building or endowing, carried on at Meads for 
 many years an Infant School at her own expense. All 
 these efforts, with new buildings in Christ Church, and 
 enlargements from time to time, kept the School 
 accommodation of the town abreast of the demands up 
 to 1872, when the Education Department summoned the 
 Town to provide additional accommodation. At a 
 Vestry Meeting called to consider the matter on 
 December 16, 1872, it was resolved to avoid a School 
 Board, and to make an effort by voluntary means. The 
 result was that the demand of the Government was met 
 by the provision of 656 additional places, including 232 
 in a Wesleyan School ; the cost incurred having been 
 met by a general subscription of 1335, supplemented 
 by private benefactions in several of the Ecclesiastical 
 Districts.
 
 i
 
 CHAP. XIV.] School Deficiencies. 193 
 
 St. Saviour's parish took its share in meeting the 
 demand for more school places. By means of a bazaar 
 about 450 was raised. As I was not directly engaged 
 in that I have no right to deal with it here, but one of 
 the " side-shows " at the bazaar deserves record. There 
 was what was called a "Museum and Fine Art Exhibition," 
 the admission fee to which was sixpence. This display, 
 having regard to the ecclesiastical odour about the whole 
 concern, must be characterised as a " pious fraud." For 
 instance an " Illustrated edition of the Spectator " turned 
 out to be a spotted potato ; "A working model," a toy 
 windmill pulled with a string ; "A coat of mail," a man's 
 ordinary coat ; " An instrument of torture of the nine- 
 teenth century," a pair of stays. " A stirring subject " 
 was not a picture, but a spoon ; in the same way, " All 
 alone " was a brad-awl ; " Done brown," a piece of toast ; 
 " The light of other days," a flint and steel ; " The Lynx 
 at rest," a pair of sleeve links ; " Portrait of a perfect 
 beauty," a mirror, wherein the spectator beheld himself ; 
 "View of the Black Sea," the letter C written in black 
 ink ; " Departed spirits," an empty gin bottle ; "A 
 home circle," a wedding ring, and so on. 
 
 This special effort met the necessities of the case 
 for several years, but in 1893 the growth of the town 
 had brought about another great deficiency of accom- 
 modation which required a very special effort to meet it. 
 Determined to keep out a School Board, Churchmen put 
 their shoulders to the wheel and raised the large sum of 
 11,000, and so did keep out a School Board. The spirit 
 which actuated the Dissenters at this time is sufficiently 
 shown by their having put great pressure on the 
 Education Department to decree the formation of a 
 School Board, and by their having in a very spiteful 
 spirit brought about the closing of the Wesleyan School 
 in order to create a new deficiency which they hoped 
 and expected Churchmen would be unable to face, but in 
 this our Dissenting brethren were " sold." 
 
 The financial part of the movement was brought to 
 an end by a fancy bazaar on a colossal scale held at the 
 Devonshire Park in the month of June 1895. The
 
 194 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIV. 
 
 preparations were entrusted to a Committee of 24 ladies 
 elected by ballot, and the stalls, 19 in number, with 
 several " side-shows," were served by a large number of 
 ladies living in or connected with East-Bourne. The 
 total receipts were 1815 and the total expenditure 
 570 and the profits therefore were 1245, a good and 
 satisfactory result for a town with a population which 
 then only amounted to somewhere about 30,000. 
 
 Since that time, and more especially since the 
 passing of the " Education Act, 1902," the whole 
 situation of elementary education has been changed, and 
 the County Councils and Borough Councils entrusted 
 with the work. This was one of the greatest mistakes, 
 next after free education, ever made by a Conservative 
 Government. They placed the control of elementary 
 education in the hands of men, for the most part knowing 
 nothing of the subject, and up to 1902, elected only for 
 their supposed capacity to manage highways, sewers, 
 and drains, and secular finance. The result in most 
 parts of England has been to infuse into County and 
 Borough Council Elections, political and sectarian 
 animosities in which, owing to the apathy of Churchmen, 
 the interests of Church of England children have fared 
 more or less badly. 
 
 Technical Education must receive a brief notice in 
 this chapter. It is a subject which has always been a 
 hobby of mine, and though perhaps more especially a 
 North of England matter, yet recent experience has 
 shown that the South of England can be advantageously 
 moved to take it up. It first came home to ine about the 
 year 1873, when I had in my employ as house-boy, for 
 many months, a lad from one of the training ships on the 
 Thames, but I forget which. He had been so well 
 trained to use his brains and his hands, that we found 
 him most useful about the house for purposes far 
 removed from his normal duties of cleaning knives and 
 boots. He was a carpenter, a locksmith, a gardener 
 almost anything in fact, in posse. The recollection of 
 this boy, and of course other things, led me to seek a 
 seat on the Technical Instruction Committee of the East
 
 lac 
 u.
 
 CHAP. XIV.] Technical Education. 195 
 
 .Sussex County Council, almost as soon as I was elected 
 in 1889. I afterwards became, and was for 5 years 
 (1898-1903) Chairman of that Committee imtil it was 
 disestablished by the " Education Act, 1902." In 
 applying the " Technical Instruction Act, 1889," to the 
 circumstances of Sussex, we had to consider many 
 subjects beyond what, say, a Lancashire Committee 
 would have been called upon to handle. Our curriculum 
 therefore embraced such very diverse subjects (some for 
 male and some for female students), as brass-work, 
 wood-carving, horse-shoeing, bee-keeping, fruit-growing, 
 butter-making, cooking, house-cleaning, dress-cutting 
 and so on, to say nothing of nursing and ambulance work. 
 
 We established at Lewes a training school for girls, 
 .and both there and at various centres in the County, we 
 gave instruction by qualified travelling teachers in the 
 above and other subjects. In the case of the Boroughs, 
 including of course East-Bourne, we did not give the 
 instruction by our own staff sent out from Lewes our 
 head-quarters, but made grants of money to the Boroughs 
 who appointed their own local Technical Instruction 
 Committees which made their own arrangements for 
 teachers and teaching. I was also Chairman of the 
 Technical Instruction Committee of the East-Bourne 
 Town Council during the last year or two before I 
 relinquished my seat on the Council in 1893. 
 
 In my capacity of Chairman of the two bodies in 
 turn, it fell to my lot to visit different centres in the 
 County, give away prizes, and, of course, make speeches 
 in so doing. These speeches not unfrequently involved 
 me in correspondence, of which the following is a 
 sample, not textual, but in effect : " DEAR SIR, I was 
 very much interested in reading in our local paper your 
 speech on the successful working of the Lewes Training 
 School for young servants. Will you kindly procure for 
 me the name and address of one of the young cooks you 
 have trained there, as I should like to engage a servant 
 from your school. With manv apologies, Yours truly, 
 Mary Blank." 
 
 This was an addition to my duties of Chairman for
 
 196 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIV. 
 
 which I did not bargain. In reality the girls who came 
 out of the Lewes School were so promptly snapped up 
 that even I, as Chairman, was only once able to secure 
 one of them for my own household, and a capital servant 
 she proved to be. 
 
 There can be no doubt whatever that the work done 
 at Lewes, and indeed elsewhere in the County, was of 
 the highest practical value, but it was not easy to bring 
 this fact home to the parents of the young people whom 
 we were desirous of assisting. I hope, however, that the 
 indifference as to this on the part of parents will 
 gradually disappear. The management of the Lewes 
 house was vested in a joint Committee of a small number 
 of gentlemen members of the County Council, and a 
 larger number of co-opted ladies. To preside over these 
 latter, and to keep them in debate to the point directly 
 before us was one of the most difficult matters in all my 
 experience of public meetings. 
 
 As regards the general work of the Committee in 
 the County at large, I cannot but single out three ladies 
 in particular to whom the County owed in my time a 
 great debt of gratitude for their painstaking labours, 
 namely : the Hon. Mrs. Thomas, the Hon. Mrs. Egerton, 
 and Mrs. Locker-Lampson. 
 
 " $ am thankful for it." (Love's Labour Lost.) 
 
 " Swcr bushwss ifyat tot Icfrc foe risr bttirac, au& flu to foitft tuelir^t " 
 
 (ANTONT AND CLKOPATEA.)
 
 [197] 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 ELECTIONS, PAROCHIAL AND MUNICIPAL. 
 
 Sketch of the Local Government arrangements up till 1859. The first 
 Local Board. The great Epidemic of 1863. First system of main drainage. 
 Incorporation of the town in 1883. Wanted a Town Hall. Bickerings 
 over a site. Author a member of the Local Board. Steps taken to bring 
 about Incorporation. Proposed inclusion of Willingdon. Guardians of the 
 Poor. Lad y Guardians. County Council Elections. The danger of splitting 
 votes. Political Dissenters. End of the Author's Career. 
 
 4t ttoare of Couunls ia^tn too full : number makes long irisgutes." 
 
 (SiR J. DENHAM, 1615-1668.) 
 
 " Councils fca not lessen drils, but rather iumase tfrrm." 
 
 (Quoted by LORD BACON.) 
 
 " W&t |jabt bmt fricnbs ia%ti\ti ; $n sunshine anir ht s^aire," 
 
 (HoN. MRS. NORTON.) 
 
 IN my early days, neither Sussex generally nor 
 East-Bourne in particular were very advanced in 
 what we now understand as Municipal Local 
 Government. Rye, Hastings and Chichester had Mayors 
 -and Corporations, but even Brighton had nothing better 
 than a Board of Improvement Commissioners, whilst 
 East-Bourne had practically no local government at all. 
 There was a Board of Guardians to deal with the Poor 
 Law matters only, whilst the municipal side of civil 
 .government rose no higher than the 5 Lighting Inspectors 
 appointed in 1852, under the " Lighting and Watching 
 Act, 1833," plus the Common Law Parish Vestry which 
 had not yet been clothed with any sanitary powers. The 
 " Watching " section of the Act just named had been 
 adopted as far back as December 4, 1837, but the vote 
 was rescinded a fortnight later ! There were also of 
 -course " Surveyors of Highways " who looked after the 
 highways in a certain fashion, with powers derived from 
 the " Highway Act, 1835."
 
 198 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XV. 
 
 It was not until 1859 that there was set up in 
 East-Bourne any representative Municipal Authority at 
 all comparable with the Local Authorities with which we 
 are now familiar. This was the outcome of the passing 
 of the " Local Government Act, 1858," one of the many 
 beneficent social reforms carried out by the Conservative 
 Party in the person, in that particular case, of Mr. C. B. 
 Adderley, afterwards Lord Norton. The Aiithorities set 
 up under that Act were called Local Boards, and the 
 first East-Bourne Local Board was elected on January 
 14, 1859. There were 51 candidates for 24 seats, and 
 the first Board was very fairly representative of all 
 classes. The members included the Vicar, 2 Magistrates,, 
 1 Barrister, 3 Doctors, 1 Builder, 1 Butcher, 1 Watch- 
 maker, 1 Upholsterer, 3 Brewers, 1 Innkeeper, 1 Miller, 
 6 Farmers and 2 private residents, one of whom was a 
 gentleman and the other who was not. The first 
 Chairman was Mr. R. J. Graham, J.P., who was re-elected 
 Chainnan most years up till 1877 inclusive, sharing the 
 honour for brief intervals with Mr. J. Dexter (a Chemist), 
 Dr. D. J. Hall and the Vicar, the Rev. T. Pitman. Mr, 
 Graham was succeeded by Dr. G. A. Jeffery, who was 
 re-elected annually almost until the Local Board was 
 superseded by the Corporation in 1883 with its Mayor,. 
 Aldermen, and Town Councillors. 
 
 Considering the general lack of enterprise as to- 
 Local Government matters which prevailed in the South 
 of England, as distinguished from the North, it may 
 fairly be said that the East-Bourne Local Board did a 
 good deal of useful public work, but this fact was in no 
 small degree due to the impulse in favour of good local 
 management given to the Town by the 7th Duke of 
 Devonshire and his professional advisers, Mr. Henry 
 Currey, the Architect, and Mr. F. C. Stileman, the Civil 
 Engineer. The town was visited in 1863 by a severe 
 outbreak of scarlet fever, resulting in many deaths 
 amongst all classes of the inhabitants. The cause was 
 obvious, without much research a water supply defective 
 in quantity, and of very doubtful quality, coupled with 
 an entire absence of arterial drainage.
 
 Plate XL. 
 
 To face p. 
 
 Fig. 74 
 
 THE LAST EAST-BOURNE LOCAL BOARD. 
 1883
 
 CHAP. XV.] Early Main Drainage. 199 
 
 This outbreak led to a panic amongst the visitors ; 
 so much so that in their hurry to get away many 
 consented to travel in railway trucks, railway carriage 
 accommodation having failed. The special pressure was 
 on the Monday after a sermon at Trinity Church on the 
 Sunday, in which the preacher dwelt on the magnitude 
 of the epidemic, and on the lessons to be drawn from it. 
 A local doctor, by way of mending matters, wrote to the 
 Times to say that residents were not suffering much 
 only visitors (!). Mr. R. Hanbury, M.P. for Middlesex, 
 then occupying Frohsdorf House, lost several children. 
 Naturally, few people cared to come near the place in 
 1864. Rents of furnished lodgings fell enormously, and 
 a new and much lower stratum of society came into the 
 place, and was never shaken off. 
 
 As regards the drainage, this matter was taken in 
 hand by the Local Board in 1864, who decided in the 
 first instance to spend 6000 in a Main Drain to carry 
 the sewage of the town out to sea in the direction of 
 Langney Point. The Duke of Devonshire offered in the 
 first instance a contribution of 1000, to which the 
 Gilbert Trustees added 500, but it was soon found that 
 the sum proposed to be spent was wholly insufficient for 
 the purpose, owing to the expensive and troublesome 
 work of carrying the Main Sewer across the Crumbles. 
 When it became evident that the burden of the cost 
 would be far beyond what the town with its then 
 population and rateable value could bear, the Duke of 
 Devonshire very handsomely came forward and undertook 
 to complete the scheme whatever it might cost beyond the 
 10,000 set apart for sewerage purposes by the Local 
 Board, but the Gilbert Trustees did not join in this 
 supplementary gift. The Duke's offer proved a 
 tremendous burden to him, and I believe that the cost 
 of the first Main Sewer, which was inaugurated in 1866, 
 did not fall far short of 60,000. Its completion gave 
 scope for great demonstrations of joy on the part of the 
 inhabitants, but I was unfortunately unable to be present, 
 being detained in London. In the Plate recording the 
 opening ceremony the shape of the high hats in fashion 
 then should be noted. (Plate XXXIX.)
 
 200 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XV. 
 
 The Local Board lasted until November 1883, when 
 it was superseded by a Mayor and Corporation, in other 
 words, by a Town Council under the " Municipal 
 Corporations Act, 1882." There were only two other 
 matters besides the Drainage Question which excited any 
 great amount of local feeling during the whole of the 22 
 years that the Local Board lasted, and they were the 
 questions of a Town Hall and Public Offices, and a Sea 
 Wall ; but these must be the subject of a chapter" to 
 themselves. Let me add that I was elected a Member of 
 the Local Board in 1874, re-elected in 1877, turned out 
 in 1880, re-elected in 1882 ; the ups and downs, or 
 rather, the ' down ' in the case being due to the active 
 support which I had rendered to the " Go-ahead " party. 
 
 I now come to deal with the Incorporation of the 
 town in 1883. This was really the outcome of the steady 
 growth of a public opinion that the town ought to go 
 ahead, and that a new Governing Body of go-ahead men 
 was needed. The " Do-nothings " viewed the scheme of 
 a Charter with great disfavour, but they were powerless 
 to stem the flowing tide. Accordingly, a Petition was 
 presented to the Queen in Council, asking for the grant 
 of a Royal Charter for Incorporation. The usual practice 
 was followed, and before the Charter was granted a local 
 Inquiry was held before a Commissioner appointed by 
 the Privy Council, who in this case was Mr. R. C. Bunbury, 
 a barrister. I acted as Counsel for the Petitioners, and 
 framed the application, which was in the ordinary form, 
 and had only one special feature, namely : that it included 
 the Parish of Willingdon in the proposed Borough of 
 East-Bourne. This suggestion of mine was accepted by 
 the East-Bourne Promoters without any sort of demur. 
 The inspiring motive was that looking forwards a 
 few years, and taking note of the evident certainty, even 
 in 1883, that East-Bourne would become a greajt place, 
 and that Willingdon would become a residential suburb 
 of East-Bourne, both as regards a villa population and a 
 working-class population, it was undesirable to have a 
 large number of houses built just over the East- Bourne 
 border, free of the Sanitary control of an Urban Authority 
 acting on modern Urban lines.
 
 Plate XLI. 
 
 To follow p. 200. 
 
 Fig. 75. 
 
 THE FIRST MEMBERS OF THE EAST-BOURNE CORPORATION. 
 
 1883.
 
 CHAP. XV.] Incorporation. 201 
 
 The proposal met with a certain amount of opposition 
 from Willingdon ratepayers, but not of a very pronounced 
 kind except in the case of a farmer, Mr. John Filder, 
 whose range of vision on all public questions was very 
 limited. The question finally turned on the attitude of 
 the 1st Viscount Hampden, better known as Sir Henry 
 Brand, the ex-Speaker of the House of Commons. Lord 
 Hampden, I think was personally in favour of the 
 inclusion of Willingdon, and on the grounds that it 
 would undoubtedly raise in the long run, the value of the 
 Katton property, but he seems to have felt that as his 
 grandson, the present Lord Willingdon (who was the 
 largest owner of property in Willingdon), was a minor, 
 the question should be left open until such times as his 
 grandson was of age, and in a position to take a 
 line for himself. The Parish of Willingdon was there- 
 fore struck out of the Draft Charter, notwithstanding 
 that East-Bourne offered to submit to a differential 
 rating for a certain number of years so as to ease the 
 pressure on the Willingdon rates. 
 
 The Charter met with no further opposition and 
 came into operation in due course, and the first Council 
 was elected on November 1, 1883, and the first meeting 
 was held in the following week on the statutory day the 
 9th. The first Mayor was Mr. G. A. Wallis, who had 
 previously been the last Chairman of the defunct Local 
 Board. I was elected a member of the Council for St. 
 Mary's Ward and sat for 5 years when I was turned out 
 as the result of a conspiracy engineered by Alderman 
 W. E. Morrison. 
 
 No provision having been made by law to authorise 
 the purchase of a chain for the Mayor, or for a mace, the 
 Duke of Devonshire kindly presented the Corporation 
 with a chain, and Mr. C. D. Gilbert a mace. The 
 ceremonial presentation was made on April 21, 1884. 
 
 The first provisional Burgess Roll exhibited the 
 following numbers : 
 
 East Ward 980 
 
 Central Ward 1133 
 
 St. Mary's Ward 590 
 
 WestWard 196 2899
 
 202 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XV. 
 
 The present total number of Burgesses is 7569. 
 The growth of the wards cannot be separately exhibited 
 because a redistribution has taken place since 1883. 
 
 This is a long digression, and I must get back to the 
 proper subject of this chapter, which is Elections. In 
 1882 I was elected a Guardian, and by the time I had 
 got quite settled into my work a new Election came 
 round. In those days the Elections were annual, and 
 everybody went out of office every year. The idea of 
 having ladies as Guardians was just beginning to come 
 to the front, and as I heartily approved of the idea, I 
 consented to nominate a lady for one of the 6 vacant 
 seats. The result, good for the town, was disastrous for 
 me ; she was elected and I was turned out, being first on 
 the list of unsuccessful candidates. The success of the 
 idea of lady Guardians was soon recognised, and the 
 desire being expressed that there should be 2 such 
 Guardians, I gladly consented to nominate in the 
 following year (1884) a second in the person of Miss 
 Elisabeth Vulliamy, I also being again a candidate. 
 Again were the results disastrous to myself ; she was 
 elected, and in the scramble for seats I again found 
 myself amongst the unsuccessful candidates. My 
 adhesion to the principle of Lady Guardians to share 
 with men the management of pauper women and 
 children is therefore disinterested and has never faltered, 
 and they are now numbered by hundreds all over England. 
 
 The " Local Government Act, 1894 " altered entirely 
 the then existing arrangements at East-Bourne for the 
 Election of Guardians, making them elective not for the 
 whole parish en bloc, but by wards, the wards being so 
 arranged that every Guardian sits for 3 years ; and 
 though there is an Election every year the Elections take 
 place in different wards, each year turn and turn about. 
 
 County Council Elections must receive a brief 
 notice. Having acted as an Assistant Boundary 
 Commissioner for England and Wales in 1887 and part 
 of 1888, in assisting to provide the Government with in- 
 formation on which to frame the Bill for the Constitution 
 of the County Councils, I naturally was inspired with
 
 CHAP. XV.] Election Incidents. 203' 
 
 the desire to become a member of the Council of my 
 own County and stood in November 1888 for St. Mary's 
 Ward, East-Bourne, being the ward of my place of 
 residence. Though I had pitted against me a strong 
 candidate, Alderman G. Boulton, on the strength of 
 my canvass I may confidently say that I should have 
 beaten him. But a curious complication upset all the 
 arrangements and calculations. It was found at a late 
 stage, that provision had not been made of separate 
 voting-lists for the St. Mary's and West Wards, and the 
 Local Government Board decided that for the first 
 elections the 2 Wards should be treated as one, and this 
 fusion of the Wards carried with it a fusion of the 
 voting-lists and of the candidates. This brought into 
 the field against me a strong and ambitious Meads 
 candidate, Alderman W. E. Morrison, who coalesced with 
 Alderman Boulton and therefore I had to fight 2 strong 
 candidates single-handed. Against such a combination, 
 my success was evidently imperilled as the poll in the 
 result showed : 
 
 Morrison . . . . . . . . 593 
 
 Boulton 516 
 
 Chambers .. .. .. ..471 
 
 Majority Morrison over Chambers 112 
 Boulton over Chambers 45 
 
 Now notice the following analysis of persons voting,, 
 945 in all : 
 
 For Chambers 471 
 
 Against . . . . . . . . . . 474 
 
 Majority against Chambers . . 3 
 
 These figures show the advantage under ordinary 
 circumstances of candidates of a party being as 
 numerous as there are seats to be filled, even supposing 
 that the other candidates of either party are not such 
 strong candidates as the principal candidate of the party. 
 This axiom applies to Parliamentary, and indeed, to all 
 elections of whatever sort. I acted upon it at a by- 
 election a few weeks later to fill the two vacancies caused 
 by Boulton and Morrison, who were Aldermen of the
 
 204 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XV. 
 
 Town Council being also made Aldermen of the County 
 Council. I stood again at the urgent solicitation of my 
 supporters, but only on the condition that a second 
 candidate was forthcoming. As it happened, a very 
 suitable one was at hand in the person of the late 
 Mr. G. H. Lawrence, a member of the distinguished 
 Indian family of that name ; and the figures at the poll 
 showed the wisdom of my electioneering tactics. I won 
 the seat for myself, and carried in my friend though only 
 by a majority of 3. That majority of three had an 
 interesting history. I was driving up to the poll, not 
 many minutes before it closed, and overtook 3 lady 
 voters, sisters. One of them shouted out, " we are all 
 three going to plump for you," I replied " Please do not 
 plump : split your votes between me and Mr. Lawrence." 
 They acted on iny suggestion and so we carried the 
 second seat. 
 
 The declaration of the poll showed : 
 
 Chambers, G. F 441 
 
 Lawrence, G. H 361 
 
 Young, T. 358 
 
 Skinner, J. A 337 
 
 I retained my seat on the County Council 
 unchallenged for 15 years, during which time I went 
 through four triennial Elections. My first two contested 
 Elections cost me altogether 30, because I went in 
 heavily for printing and meetings, but at the subsequent 
 uncoiitested Elections my expenses on one occasion 
 amounted to no more than 4d., and the next time only to 
 2d., being the cost of certain unavoidable postage stamps. 
 
 I lost my seat in 1904 in consequence of a furious 
 opposition engineered by political Dissenters, who made 
 great and successful efforts all over Sussex, indeed all 
 over England, to obtain a dominant position to control 
 the Education policy of the Councils in the interests of 
 Dissent, and to the detriment of the Church. They put 
 up against me a political Dissenter, lately come to reside 
 in the town, knowing nothing of its wants and caring 
 nothing for its interests, except as viewed through 
 sectarian spectacles. He was, however, a strong 
 Candidate from the standpoint of blankets, etc., etc.
 
 Plate XLIV. 
 
 To face p. 204. 
 
 Fig. 78. 
 
 NOMINATION PAPER. 
 
 Bopougl? of Eastbourne. 
 ELECTION OF > COUNCILLORS 
 
 for No. 3 or West \Vanl in the said Horough, to be held 
 
 on tin- Second ,i:iy of November 1903 . 
 
 JSIf, the undersigned, liviiig res|>cctively JUir^essos, hereby nominate the 
 following Person as a Candidate ut the slid Klection. 
 
 ROWE THOMAS 7i-. Terminus 
 
 BRADRIDCE Koad PHOTOGRAPHER . 
 Eastbourne . 
 
 A 
 
 ililr, tin 1 undersigned, bein^ mpcctively Jlurgcsses, hereby assent to I In 
 iioiiiiiiation of llit! above-mimed I'erson us a Candidate at tlie said Election. 
 
 Dated this Sixteenth day of October i oos. 
 
 ^ ...0 ./& .JC-^I 
 
 # I Y 
 
 2 2 Z 
 
 NOMINATION PAPER OF T. B ROWE AS TOWN COUNCILLOR.
 
 CHAP. XV.] The Authors Career ended. 205 
 
 Though defeated, I was offered by my late colleagues on 
 the County Council a seat on the Education Committee 
 as a co-opted Member under the " Education Act, 1902," 
 but I declined the honour, feeling that as my late 
 constituents had withdrawn their confidence, or to speak 
 more truly, had withdrawn their votes, after my 30 years' 
 services to the town, I did not care to accept a 
 compliment, even though it came from the County of 
 Sussex at large. And this Election ended my public 
 career in East-Bourne. I found, however, a solatium in 
 the course of a very few weeks by being elected a 
 Member of the Council of the Metropolitan Borough of 
 Lewisham after a smart contest, although almost a 
 stranger to my new constituency ; but I understood they 
 took me on the strength of my many years' public 
 experience in Sussex. 
 
 &II's todl Ifcst *nbs MI." (ALL'S WELL.)
 
 [206] 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 EAST-BOURNE BILLS IN PARLIAMENT. 
 
 The Caldecott Museum causes a Bill to be passed. Encroachments of 
 the Sea causes a Bill to be passed Air. G. A. Wallis as Mayor. His desire 
 for more powers causes a Bill to be brought in and passed. The ups 
 and downs of the said Bill. The Salvation Army very unpopular. 
 Parliamentary controversy respecting its misconduct Proposed purchase of 
 Water Works. Municipal Trading. To what extent desirable. 
 
 " |]fot|rmg txttmntt : war $tt irofo aurj|ri m malia." ( Othello.} 
 
 LAW is often supposed to be a dry subject, but it is 
 not so in reality, as witness how the reports in the 
 daily papers, especially those of a particular 
 Court are devoured by lay readers. The present chapter 
 will deal, in a very condensed form, with some of the 
 applications made to Parliament for special purposes, 
 concluding with a bare list of the special Acts of 
 Parliament in force in the town down to 1901. For this 
 list I claim what is called " copyright " because it has 
 never been published by anybody else. Literary sharks, 
 which abound everywhere, may however copy it as 
 they like. 
 
 Passing over for the moment the special legislation 
 required as time went on for Gas and Water purposes, 
 the first time that the public needs of East-Bourne were 
 brought under the notice of Parliament was in 1871, and 
 it came about in a curious way. After the death of Mr. 
 Caldecott, at Meads, and the transfer of his geological 
 museum to trustees on behalf of the Town, it became a 
 question how and where they should house it and obtain 
 funds for its maintenance. The suggestion was an 
 obvious one. Let the Town put in force the existing 
 Statute Law under which certain Urban Local Authorities 
 could institute and carry on Public Libraries and
 
 Plate XLV. 
 
 face p. 206. 
 
 Figs. 79-80. 
 
 L.wis, Kast-RourM. Copyright. 
 
 LANGNEY FORT, WRECKED BY THE SEA. 
 
 Cofyrghi 
 
 OAK COTTAGE, TERMINUS ROAD. 
 Suggested site for the Town Hall.
 
 CHAP. XVI.] Public libraries. 207 
 
 Museums. On the matter being looked into however, it 
 was found that a Local Board under the " Local Govern- 
 ment Act, 1858," was not an Urban Authority entitled to 
 work the " Public Libraries Acts." This was a casus 
 omissus, which I was asked by the Caldecott Trustees to 
 take steps to get rectified. I accordingly drafted a short 
 Bill for the purpose which was introduced into the 
 House of Commons by my friend Mr. J. G. Talbot, M.P., 
 and rapidly passed through all its stages and became 
 law, under the " short " title of " The Public Libraries 
 Act, 1855, Amendment Act, 1871." (34 and 35 Viet. c. 71.) 
 On November 24, 1871, a meeting was called to adopt 
 the Act, but a motion to that effect was rejected chiefly 
 owing to the senseless opposition of certain booksellers 
 who thought it would check the sale of books, whereas 
 it is notorious that Public Libraries stimulate the demand 
 for books. The Caldecott Trustees therefore had to take 
 other steps. What they were is a matter that does not 
 belong to this chapter. 
 
 I may however here add that at a much later date 
 and with the inhabitants in a more enlightened frame of 
 mind, the "Public Libraries Acts " were adopted, and the 
 old Vestry Room fitted up as a temporary library. It 
 was opened as such on July 7, 1896. The formal 
 ceremonial took place at the Town Hall, and Mr. Hall 
 Caine was the officiating minister. It fell to myself to 
 make a speech, and I never did so in East-Bourne with 
 greater pleasure. 
 
 In consequence of the ravages of the sea, the 
 Local Board sought Parliamentary powers in 1879 to 
 deal with that and other matters, and the Act (42 & 43 
 Viet., c. xcvii.) gave them the powers required, but the 
 'Circumstances which led to the passing of that are 
 discussed at length in the Chapter on Sea Walls. 
 (Chapter XVHL, post.) 
 
 In connection with the Incorporation of the town, 
 the first Mayor, Mr. G. A. Wallis, formed the opinion 
 that the Local Government powers conferred by the 
 general law did not afford sufficient scope for the 
 management of town affairs on the newest modern lines,
 
 208 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVL 
 
 and that it would be well that East-Bourne should do 
 what nearly all other towns had done, go to Parliament, 
 and ask for extensive additional powers. Mr. Wallis 
 invoked my co-operation which I gladly gave, because I 
 was at one with him both as regards the principle that 
 more powers were required by us, and also as to the 
 general details of those powers as suggested by Mr. 
 Wallis. Everything went smoothly at first in the 
 Committee work connected with the preparation of the 
 Bill, and generally, but when the details became known 
 to the public, some of them met with strong opposition. 
 Mr. Wallis was between 2 fires. He wanted the Bill, 
 and he wanted to get into Parliament, and he found that 
 his continued support of the main features of the Bill 
 would lessen the chances of his winning the parlia- 
 mentary seat. So in a very shabby and unhandsome 
 manner he made a scapegoat of me, got the matter taken 
 out of my hands, and the draft Bill transferred to a new 
 Committee presided over by Alderman Boulton who 
 pulled it considerably to pieces, but eventually secured 
 for it the sanction of Parliament in a very mutilated and 
 disjointed form. It now stands on the Statute Book as 
 the 48 & 49 Viet., c. clxv. 
 
 Personally, I did not regret for some reasons Mr. 
 Wallis's change of front, for it took a great burden off 
 my shoulders, because I was acting at the same time as 
 Counsel for the Corporation of Hastings, who had gone 
 to Parliament for an Improvement Bill which they 
 employed me to draft. I followed the lines of my 
 original draft for the East-Bourne Bill, and gave effect 
 to my own ideas as to the most convenient and orderly 
 sequence of the subjects. The Hastings people gave me 
 their entire confidence. The Bill was approved with 
 practical unanimity both by the Hastings Town Council 
 and afterwards by the townspeople in public meeting 
 assembled, under the " Borough Funds Act, 1872.'* 
 The Bill passed through all its stages in the Commons 
 and in the Lords, satisfying the well-known critical eye 
 of Lord Redesdale, then nearly at the end of his 
 important public career.
 
 CHAP. XVI.] Tlie Salvation Army. 209 
 
 A long time elapsed before the Corporation of 
 East-Bourne was again seen at Westminster, and the 
 circumstances were in the highest degree discreditable 
 to those who dragged the Corporation there. One of the 
 provisions of the " East-Bourne Improvement Act, 
 1885," dealt with a great and serious local annoyance. 
 For some years previously to 1885 various towns in 
 England, including amongst others Brighton, Worthing, 
 East-Bourne, and Hastings, had been very much 
 disturbed by the " Salvation Army," by Sunday 
 Processions through the streets, preceded by noisy 
 brass bands. At a Conference representing the Local 
 Authorities of several South Coast watering-places, held 
 at Brighton on November 17, 1884, it was agreed 
 unanimously that these Salvation Army bands in the 
 streets, both on account of their noise and of the crowds 
 which they engendered, were a nuisance to the 
 inhabitants, as well as a fertile cause of Sunday 
 desecration, and ought to be prohibited by Act of 
 Parliament. Accordingly, as the Corporations of 
 Hastings and East-Bourne were applying to Parliament 
 for additional powers, they were urged to deal with this 
 matter in their Bills then in course of preparation. And 
 they did so, by borrowing first of all from a London Act 
 a clause as to the playing music in the streets, 
 supplemented by a clause taken from a New York State 
 Enactment, controlling the playing of music in the 
 streets on Sundays. 
 
 The clauses were not opposed in either House, and 
 Parliament sanctioned them in both Bills in nearly 
 identical terms. Subsequently when the East-Bourne 
 Corporation proceeded to put the enactment in force, 
 there were riotous scenes in the streets, brought about 
 by the wicked misconduct of the Booth faction in 
 defiance of the law and of the wishes of the inhabitants 
 at large. A climax was reached in the Session of 1892, 
 when Sir H. H. Fowler, M.P., a Dissenter, now Viscount 
 Wolverhampton, brought in a Public Bill specially to 
 repeal the East-Bourne clause. The Bill was carried on 
 a division in the House of Commons by 269 votes to 122 
 p
 
 210 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVI. 
 
 votes, notwithstanding a most striking speech, against it 
 by Admiral Field, M.P. for the East-Bourne Division. 
 It was well understood at the time that the votes of the 
 M.P.'s concerned would have been different, perhaps 
 widely different, if a General Election had not been 
 coining off in a few weeks, and many members were 
 frightened by the threats of the Salvationists. The 
 feelings of the inhabitants of East-Bourne were 
 manifested in a remarkable manner by the votes on the 
 question whether Sir Henry Fowler's Bill should be 
 opposed by the Corporation at the expense of the 
 Ratepayers. The votes were as follows : 
 
 Persons 
 
 Votes. Voting. 
 
 For opposing the Bill 5331 .. 3257 
 Against .. ..738 .. 470 
 
 Majority for . . 4593 . . 2787 
 
 The vote was taken by Plural Voting under the 
 " Borough Funds Acts, 1872." 
 
 These figures show the majority to have been as 
 follows : of persons voting 6*9 to 1 : in actual votes 
 7*2 to 1. Lest it should be said that these votes came 
 from the big people, and that the democracy supported 
 the Salvation Army, I will add that the democracy voted 
 2371 for opposition and 347 against, showing a prepon- 
 derance of 6 '8 to 1, practically the same as the ratio 
 arrived at on two other different bases of calculation. 
 This vote was a great consolation to me who with 
 Alderman Morrison had borne the brunt of the burden 
 of supporting the clause/ /' I will not pass away from 
 this subject without stating my deliberate conviction 
 that the desecration of Sunday which has now (1910) 
 reached such alarming proportions in the shape of 
 Sunday concerts, Sunday travelling, Sunday trading, 
 Sunday newspapers, &c., lies in no insignificant degree 
 at the door of " General " Booth with his Sunday bands, 
 Sunday journeyings and Sunday hawking of newspapers. 
 
 The next time the Corporation of East-Bourne went 
 to Parliament, was in the Session of 1897, when they 
 
 (a) 1 had even to submit to the assaults of Miss Eva Booth's tongue delivered in 
 my own house.
 
 CHAP. XVI.] Municipal Trading. 211 
 
 promoted a Bill for the purchase of the East-Bourne 
 Waterworks. I had no share in the preparation of the 
 Bill, but I had made 2 or 3 speeches in public in favour 
 of the purchase. 
 
 On the general question of what in more recent 
 times has come to be termed " Municipal Trading," my 
 opinions have never changed. I am against all trading 
 by Local Authorities in competition with the ordinary 
 shop-keeper, with 4 exceptions, namely : gas, water, 
 electricity, and tramways, but ordinary shop-keepers do 
 not sell these things, and therefore I am not running 
 counter to my own principles. 
 
 The reason why I name these 4 matters as exceptions 
 to a general rule is simply this : to carry on the supply 
 of gas, water, and electricity, and to work a tramway 
 means constant interference with the roads, and therefore 
 to obviate the inconvenience and risks of divided 
 responsibility, I think that these 4 undertakings should 
 be controlled by the Public Body which controls the 
 roads and foot-paths. I wish it were possible, but of 
 course it is not, to bring the telephone and telegraph 
 services under the same control, for the same reason. 
 
 Ht g0u lifa, m tijt tmfy." (Henry IV., pt. 1.)
 
 [212] 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 SEA WALLS : TOWN HALLS : PUBLIC PARKS. 
 
 Encroachments of the Sea on the Sussex Coast. The Sea-front before 
 any wall was built. The western extension of the wall. Mr. James Berry. 
 Mr. M. Vidler.High Tides in 1875 and 1877. The Improvement Bill 
 of 1879. Opposition thereto by the "Do-nothing" Party. Roads sometimes 
 flooded. History of the Town Hall. Difficulties in finding a Site. The 
 various Sites discussed. Stocks' Bank finally selected. Continued opposition 
 on the part of the " Do-nothings." Plans selected and rejected. The 
 controversy as to these Plans. Open Spaces. The controversey as to the 
 South Fields. Negotiations with Mr. Gilbert. Liberal offer on behalf of 
 the Duke of Devonshire. Strong public opinion in favour of a Park in the 
 Town. Final settlement of negotiations prolonged through many years. 
 Hampden Park, good in itself, but far away. Hospitals. 
 
 " jrermcns in slants, anir puoir in jt&jcr^t^ing." (-4s you like it.} 
 
 THE history of these things in East-Bourne is a very 
 tangled and controversial one. I begin with 
 the Sea Walls. 
 
 The fact that at different parts of the Sussex coast, 
 in or near East-Bourne, the sea has been changing the 
 coast line, either by accretion or denudation (I think 
 these are the correct geological terms, but I am no 
 geologist), is notorious, and is sufficiently shown by the 
 simple facts that Pevensey Castle, once washed by the 
 sea, is now a mile from the sea, whilst at East-Bourne 
 houses which used to exist near the seashore have been 
 washed away altogether. The erection of sea defences 
 of some sort has therefore at various times been found 
 indispensable. The oldest of these were groynes rows 
 of big timber stakes driven into the foreshore more or 
 less at right angles to the general line of the coast, and 
 braced together either by planks or faggots. The 
 construction of groynes appears to have begun some time 
 in the early part of the 19th Century. My earliest
 
 CHAP. XVII.] Sea Walls. 213 
 
 recollection of the Marine Parade goes back to the time 
 when nothing but groynes were there by way of defences, 
 and boats were drawn up almost or quite on to the actual 
 roadway in front of the houses numbered from 1 to 24 ; just 
 as to a much later period they could be drawn up, if 
 necessary, actually to touch the old houses behind the 
 Royal Parade, I do not distinctly remember the actual 
 construction of the Marine Parade wall, but I think it 
 must have been about 1847 or 1848, that is to say, I 
 remember the time when there was no wall there, and 
 afterwards the time when there was a wall. I think that 
 the wall in front of what is now the old part of the 
 Grand Parade was constructed about 1849 or 1850, but 
 perhaps it was a little later. The designs for these walls 
 were in both cases provided by a Mr. James Berry, who 
 was something between an engineer and an architect and 
 an ordinary land surveyor. The Marine Parade wall was 
 a wall properly so-called, almost upright, but it was an 
 idea of Berry's, that a wall of blocks of stone in stages, 
 each course set back behind the previous course, would 
 present to the impact of rough seas a more certain 
 protection to land behind the wall than would a perpen- 
 dicular wall. This theoretical idea would seem to be 
 supported by facts. However, further Westwards of 
 No. 23 Grand Parade, when the wall and promenade 
 were extended, the face of the wall was made almost 
 perpendicular, I suppose because the sea never approached 
 very near the wall. 
 
 The question of groynes versus walls gave rise to 
 much controversy. Major Vidler (he was not a "Major" 
 that was his Christian name), who was the Surveyor 
 in charge of the Pevensey Levels, removed the planking 
 from the groynes and the effect was what he wished it 
 to be to strip the sea front of East-Bourne of as much 
 beach as possible in order to heap up as much as possible 
 in the direction of Langney Point, for the protection of 
 the vast expanse of marsh land running back from there 
 in the direction of Polegate and Pevensey. It was this 
 action of Vidler's which inspired the erection of the sea 
 wall as a substitute for the groynes tampered with by him.
 
 214 
 
 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVII. 
 
 The matter went to sleep for some years, but it 
 woke up again very much in 1875. On November 14 in 
 
 that year, a considerable length of railway at Bulverhythe, 
 between Bexhill and Hastings, was completely washed
 
 CHAP. XVIL] High Tides. 215 
 
 away during a storm and high tide, and all traffic 
 suspended for many hours. Seaford too suffered severely, 
 but that storm did not affect East-Bourne to the same 
 serious extent as some other storms which I can 
 remember. 
 
 Previously to the passing of the Act of 1879 
 (presently to be mentioned), every expected unusual high 
 tide was a source of great anxiety to the occupiers of 
 houses facing the sea front or lying behind in Seaside 
 from the Anchor Eastwards. They often had to board 
 up the lower portions of their front doors and " pug " 
 the boards with clay to keep out the water. These 
 defensive efforts frequently failed and the water getting 
 in converted the ground floor or basement rooms into 
 swimming baths. When the water once got over the 
 Marine Parade on to the roadway, it iised to rush down 
 the incline by Gowland's Library and so on, in extreme 
 cases, flood the roadway as far East as Leaf Hall and 
 beyond. I have seen the whole of the road between the 
 corner at the back of the Albion and the Hall, a foot 
 deep for the whole width of the road. Such was the 
 case during the high tide and storm of March 12, 1876. 
 
 The most destructive storm on record was that of 
 January 1, 1877, which washed away part of the Pier, 
 flooded many houses at the Seaside, and caused a great 
 devastation of property. The extent of the mischief 
 was so great, that at length it became realised by nearly 
 (but not quite) everybody that the sea wall then carried 
 to a point only so far E. as just beyond the Anchor Hotel, 
 ought to be extended further Eastwards, at least to the 
 Redoubt. Such a proposal, involving as it necessarily 
 did, great interference with property and a very large 
 outlay, could only be carried out by an Act of Parliament. 
 The Local Board after full deliberation, decided to apply 
 for one, which was the signal for all the Do-nothings and 
 Obstructives to marshal their forces to hinder the 
 necessary Public Improvements, which included besides 
 the sea wall, the widening of South Street and taking 
 over the powers of the Commissioners of the Pevensey 
 Levels. Mrs. Partington came very much to the fore,
 
 216 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVII. 
 
 but with only partial success. The Bill was in 
 Committee in the House of Commons for 4 days, 
 March 25-28, and in the Lords for 2 days, June 17-18, 
 and soon became law. The wall was built and some 
 important additional powers were obtained. The 
 key-stone was laid on January 4, 1884, after many 
 difficulties owing to a part of the finished work being 
 washed away in the autumn of 1881, and to the failure 
 of the Contractor, and the intervention of a law-suit. 
 The erection of the wall was followed by a law-suit 
 between Mr. Gilbert and the Local Board in the summer 
 of 1880, as to the compensation to be paid for the land 
 of the former taken by the Board. The matter was 
 settled by arbitration, Mr. Glutton being the Arbitrator. 
 
 A very interesting and exhaustive paper on the 
 changes in the coast line at East-Bourne, and to the E. 
 and W. of the town, was read before the Natural History 
 Society on February 19, 1875, by the late Rev. H. E. 
 Maddock and was printed in the Society's Annual 
 Volume of Proceedings. 
 
 The controversy before the Bill of 1879 became law, 
 turned upon the respective merits of Avail v. groynes. 
 One set of thinkers, who wished to do things on the 
 cheap, went in for more groynes, whilst another section 
 advocated a sea wall as more certain, more permanent, 
 and more artistic, albeit more expensive. There can 
 now be no doubt that the wall was the proper remedy for 
 the disease which had to be faced, a few groynes being 
 useful perhaps as a supplementary defence. 
 
 I may here insert the date of December 5, 189G, as 
 that on which the Brighton Chain Pier was washed 
 away. Beyond the words " a raging gale," I have no 
 note of anything serious having happened at East-Bourne, 
 but that is not surprising, for Beachy Head and the 
 Downs protect East-Bourne in a marked degree from 
 gales from the W. and S.W. 
 
 The Town Hall has a history which, if it were 
 worth while to tell it in full, would result in a singular 
 narrative of controversy and mishaps ; bickerings and 
 recriminations ; nearly all centred around an obstinate
 
 CHAP. XVII.] Public Offices. 217 
 
 refusal on the part of a few men of influence to realise 
 that East-Bourne in the " Seventies " was a growing 
 place which could not afford to stand still. 
 
 During the first few years of its existence, the 
 Local Board office work was carried on at the private 
 office of the Board's Clerk, Mr. J. H. C. Coles, in 
 Seaside Road, a house on the site of the present Town 
 Hall being occupied by the Town Surveyor, and the 
 meetings of the Board being held in the Old Vestry 
 Room, of which mention has already been made. The 
 growth of the town after 1870, rendered this diversity of 
 centres for public business exceedingly inconvenient, to 
 say nothing of the fact that the actual accommodation 
 provided at the 3 places rapidly became totally insufficient. 
 
 An agitation was set on foot in 1874 for the provision 
 of something in the nature of a Town Hall and Public 
 Offices under the same roof. Respecting this matter a 
 furious controversy took place, which eventually ended 
 in 2 parties springing up in the town which can best be 
 described as the " Do-nothings " and the " Go-aheads." 
 The question of site was long and anxiously debated. 
 When the " Do-nothings " found that they were bound 
 to be defeated sooner or later on the main question, they 
 set themselves the task of opposing each suggested site 
 as it was put forward. The sites which were specially in 
 competition first of all were in Sussex Gardens, in South 
 Street, and in that part of Grove Road known as the 
 Stocks Bank/ a J whereon the present Town Hall was 
 eventually built. The site which I favoured was the 
 South Street one (now occupied by Elliott's Stores), on the 
 ground that it was an open position, central for all 
 purposes, with a public road on 3 sides, and peculiarly 
 suitable for a public building which, with St. Saviour's 
 Church close by, and a large open space all round 
 obtainable (for the houses in College and Spencer Roads 
 were not then built), would have enabled the town to 
 possess a handsome public building worthy of the town's 
 future. However, it was not so to be. The sum of 
 
 (a) The name is suggestive, but the Parish Stocks once erected there had disappeared 
 before my time. "Pillory Place," in the Old Town, may also perhaps indicate history
 
 218 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XV1L 
 
 3250 was asked for the site, and the Local Board thought 
 they could not afford such a sum, though they afterwards 
 paid 3000 for the site which was taken. 
 
 The Sussex Gardens site, off the Terminus Road, 
 was finally fixed upon at first, and respecting that site 
 the first great battle of the contending parties was 
 fought. The casus belli was an application by the Local 
 Board to borrow 12,000 for the purchase of the site and 
 for the proposed buildings thereon. The leader of the 
 " Do-nothing " party was then, as ever since, the 
 Champion Obstructive, Mr. Reuben Climpson, who was 
 well backed up by some of the Magistrates, of whom 
 better things might have been expected. In the end 
 (1878) the proposal failed, because the Local Government 
 Board Inspector pointed out that a Provisional Order 
 for the purchase of the site compulsorily could not be 
 got through during the current Session, and he advised 
 the Local Board to take advantage of the delay to look 
 about for another site. For the moment the ' ' Do-nothing 
 party triumphed, and saved the town 12,000, and the 
 adoption of a very central, though perhaps not good site. 
 To cut a long story short, the saving of 12,000 cost the 
 town 40,000 in the present Town Hall on a site better 
 on the whole than the site rejected, but those who 
 complained of the ultimate cost had no right to do so. 
 As an instance of injudicious local finance, engineered by 
 cheese-paring leaders, the incident finds many counter- 
 parts in various places in England. 
 
 The foregoing is but a skeleton outline of what 
 happened and a few more details may well be given. 
 
 At the Lady-Day Vestry on March 25, 1874, a 
 scheme for enlarging the Vestry Hall by erecting a 
 retiring room on land adjoining was negatived, and an 
 amendment carried that the time had arrived when the 
 town required more public office accommodation, and 
 that steps should be taken for the erection of a sufficient 
 Town Hall and Public Offices under one roof. 
 
 In consequence of this vote of the Vestry, I brought 
 forward at the Local Board 011 April C, 1874, the 
 following resolution : " That a Committee of 9 members
 
 CHAP. XVII.] Proposed Town Hall. 219> 
 
 be appointed to enquire into the question of finding a 
 suitable site for a Town Hall and Public Offices : and to 
 report to the Board (1) the cost of obtaining the same ; 
 (2) the amount of accommodation which it is desirable 
 should be provided ; and (3) what financial obligations 
 it is fitting that the Board be prepared to undertake in 
 connection with the matter." The Chairman, Mr. R. J. 
 Graham, made a mild protest that " he was not strongly 
 convinced of the absolute necessity of such a building, 
 except so far as public office accommodation went. He 
 certainly did not hold the views that it was the province 
 of the parish to build a place for concerts and balls. ' r 
 On this Mr. Insoll very properly remarked : " That is 
 not Mr. Chambers's proposal." At the end of the debate, 
 the resolution was carried unanimously, the Chairman 
 comforting himself by saying " The resolution does not 
 pledge the Board to anything." Of course, I scouted 
 Mr. J. Sheridans's suggestion that I should withdraw the 
 motion. 
 
 In due course the Committee met and I had the- 
 honour of being appointed its Chairman, and remained 
 such till October 1879, when I resigned for private 
 reasons. The Committee presented their Report on 
 June 1, 1874, and after discussing various alternative 
 sites, recommended the purchase for 3250 of Nos. 1 
 and 2 South Street as a site ; and asked for authority to 
 advertise for plans and offer a premium of 150 for the 
 best design. When the Report was discussed, there was 
 a long discussion ending in an amendment being 
 carried, moved by a jelly-fish member that the Report 
 be withdrawn which the Eastbourne Chronicle report 
 said was agreed to with '' laughter" !! From the next 
 paragraph, it will be seen that our subsequent 
 proceedings, though earnest so far as the Committee and 
 myself were concerned, were not open to the charge of 
 hasty and precipitate action ! 
 
 After 1874, there followed the controversy as to site 
 already mentioned, and so it came about that four years 
 later, at a Vestry Meeting held on November 7, 1878,. 
 the question of the necessity for a better room for the
 
 220 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVII. 
 
 transaction of public business had again to be discussed, 
 by way of stimulating the Local Board. At a further 
 meeting on March 28, 1879, the matter was again 
 considered, and the discussion adjourned for 3 months 
 because the Local Board was including the purchase of 
 a site for a Town Hall in its Bill for building a sea wall. 
 The Board obtained its Bill and therewith powers to 
 borrow money for buying a site and building a Hall. 
 A new element of discord soon arose as to who should 
 be the Architect, and what sort of a building was it that 
 he was to design ? 
 
 On July 7, 1879, the Local Board resolved to borrow 
 5000 on account of the proposed Town Hall. Then on 
 November 3 it was decided to accept the Duke of 
 Devonshire's offer to sell the Stocks Bank site for 3000, 
 .and the general plan suggested was approved, though 
 final protests were made that the site was out of the way 
 and too far to the W. On April 5, 1880, after 23 designs 
 had been submitted in competition, a premium of 75 
 was awarded to Mr. W. T. Foulkes, of Birmingham, and 
 of 50 to Messrs. Barry, of Liverpool. These decisions 
 were not, however, signs of progress, but quite the 
 reverse. Opposition was offered to the adoption of any 
 designs so costly, and the Board's Surveyor (Mr. E. W. 
 O. F. Schmidt) was instructed to prepare a "cheap" plan. 
 This he did. His plan was supposed to work out to 
 13,305, a figure which reconciled the " Do-nothing " 
 party to doing something at last, and the Local 
 Government Board authorised the borrowing of the 
 necessary money, making up the total for Town Hall 
 purposes to about 16,000. But this was not the end. 
 Mr. Schmidt's plans were very generally condemned. I 
 having lost my seat at the election of 1880, the 
 Committee was re-constituted under a new Chairman. 
 
 On March 5, 1883, the following significant Minute 
 appears in the Local Board Minute Book : u Resolved : 
 that with a view to allaying the uneasiness which 
 prevails, all plans for a Town Hall be referred to a 
 London architect of eminence." 
 
 Mr. Henry Currey was selected as the expert adviser,
 
 CHAP. XVII.] A Town Hall at last ! 221 
 
 and his report was altogether adverse to Mr. Schmidt's 
 plans, whilst he expressed approval of Mr. Foulkes's 
 plans. It fell to my lot, having been re-elected to the 
 Board in 1882, to move on May 7, 1883 : " That steps be 
 taken to carry out Mr. Foulkes's plans at once, with some 
 modifications suggested by Mr. Currey." And so after 
 more than 10 years of agitation and unusually violent 
 controversy all round we got our Town Hall. The final 
 struggle by the " Do-nothing " obstructives took place on 
 November 11, 1881, at the Local Government Inquiry as 
 to the borrowing of the requisite money, capped by an 
 Indignation Meeting on November 17 to vilify the Local 
 Board. 
 
 The foundation stone was laid on October 9, 1884 r 
 by Lord Edward Cavendish, then M.P. for North 
 Derbyshire, with the ceremonial usual on such occasions, 
 followed of course by a mayoral feed and speech-making, 
 in which I had to take a part as Chairman of the 
 Committee which superintended the building of the 
 Hall. The last part of the day's proceedings was carried 
 out at the Devonshire Park Pavilion. 
 
 The Town Hall was opened on October 20, 1886. 
 The opening ceremonial Avas of the ordinary type ; 
 various bowings and scrapings between different officials ; 
 Prayers by the Vicar of East-Bourne, the Rev. T. Pitman, 
 and music in the shape of Handel's " Hallelujah Chorus," 
 Haydn s " The Heavens are telling," and of course the 
 National Anthem. All this was followed hy a luncheon 
 at 2.0 p.m., presided over by the Mayor, Alderman 
 Boulton. A more extensive inaugural celebration was 
 held 2 days later in the form of an evening reception by 
 the Mayor and Mayoress attended by, to quote the 
 language of ancient Greece, Oi TroAAoi. 
 
 The history of open spaces in Eastbourne (or the 
 lack of them) presents some points of interest. The 
 circumstances under which Devonshire Park became 
 a closed space is related in Chapter III. (ante). Its 
 closure inspired me with a desire to take some definite 
 steps to secure at least one open space somewhere in the 
 centre of the town, which sooner or later might be
 
 222 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVII. 
 
 transformed from a mere space into a properly finished 
 and equipped public Park. The fields then collectively 
 known as the " South Fields " comprised a very large 
 field of 28 acres, belonging to Mr. C. D. Gilbert, and 2 
 smaller fields, collectively making 14 acres, belonging to 
 the Duke of Devonshire. I first broached the matter at 
 a Meeting of the Local Board as far back as 1875. 
 The Board responded to the suggestion, and negociations 
 -were entered into with Mr. Gilbert's agent, Mr. Nicholas 
 Whitley. Mr. Whitley professed himself friendly to the 
 idea, if terms could be arranged. His original proposal 
 was that the town should take a long lease of Mr. 
 Gilbert's field, on a sliding scale of rent, which was to 
 start at 20 a year, increasing thenceforward until some 
 defined maximum was reached. What Mr. Whitley's 
 idea of a maximum was, did not leak out until some time 
 afterwards. Whilst the matter was in this nebulous 
 condition, I went to see Mr. Henry Currey, the Duke of 
 Devonshire's agent, to ascertain his views. He was most 
 prompt in stating them, and frank at the same time. 
 He said (I am giving his exact words) : " If you [i.e., the 
 Local Board] can come to terms with Mr. Gilbert, I will 
 .advise the Duke of Devonshire to give you his 14 acres, 
 .and throwing all the fields into one, so make a complete 
 .and central Public Park." Alas ! that this could not be 
 carried out. Mr. Whitley's sliding scale as finally 
 presented to the Board was a Rent growing from 20 a 
 year in 1875 to 1000 a year in 1899. These last figures 
 deterred the Local Board from any further attempts to 
 .acquire the South Fields for public purposes, not- 
 withstanding that much public anxiety was shown to 
 bring about a settlement. I find in my Diaries notes of 
 meetings to agitate the subject held at Mr. Howard 
 Palmer's house on July 12, 1880 ; at the Lamb Inn on 
 October 20, 1884 ; and at the Devonshire Park on 
 November 7, 1884, besides which a very influential 
 memorial from tenants on the Gilbert Estate to the same 
 effect was got up by Mr. J. G. Langham in October 
 1884. It was signed by 51 tenants, owning 350,000 
 of property on the estate.
 
 CHAP. XVII.] Wanted : a Public Park. 223 
 
 The most serious discussion on the subject at the 
 Local Board had taken place 011 November 6, 1882, when 
 a memorial was presented to the Board to which 1100 
 signatures were attached, iirging the Board to make a 
 further attempt to obtain Mr. Gilbert's Field (which 
 came to be known as " Elphick's Field ") as a Public 
 Park and Recreation Ground. Fortified by this strong 
 expression from outside, I moved and carried the 
 following resolution : " That a special Committee be 
 appointed to ascertain what steps can best be taken to 
 secure Elphick's Field." It will be observed that the 
 language of this was very general, not to say vague, but 
 I was content that it should be so in view of the feeling 
 which existed in the minds of some of the members, 
 that if my pet scheme of a 42-acre Park broke down (as 
 it did eventually) from financial considerations, there 
 might yet be a chance of securing a portion of Elphick's 
 Field, and 11 acres was the area talked about at the 
 meeting in question as the minimum worth trying for. 
 This in point of fact has been (but in two stages), 
 .something like the settlement of the question which is 
 now (1910) in force. It will be observed however, that 
 Mr. (Surrey's handsome offer of 1880 on the part of the 
 Duke of Devonshire necessarily lapsed in view of the 
 arrangement ultimately made with Mr. Gilbert. 
 
 The foregoing is a very birds-eye view of the 
 discussions which took place. Though the Committee 
 appointed in November 1882, reported in favour of the 
 acquisition of Elphick's Field, or of some part of it, it was 
 virtually decided to let the matter go to sleep till the 
 Incorporation of the town, then imminent, had taken 
 place, when a new body, the Town Council, might be 
 more inclined and more able to push the matter through. 
 We tried and we failed again to bring about a satisfactory 
 result, as will be readily understood when I mention that 
 the sliding scale-rent demanded was 1000 a year from 
 1894 to 1913 ; then 1500 a year till 1943 ; ending with 
 2000 a year in perpetuity. The final result was that 
 the Town Council obviously could not accept such terms, 
 and in June 1887, Mr. Gilbert agreed to let the
 
 224 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVII. 
 
 Corporation have an interior area of 8-J- acres on lease 
 for 50 years at the nominal rent of 1 a year, this said 
 area to be called " Gildredge Park." This settlement 
 of the question has since been revised and extended, 
 but that is a matter beyond the range of this volume. 
 
 Foiled in their endeavours to obtain a Public Park 
 of adequate size and in a desirable situation, the Town 
 Council long after my time purchased the " Willingdon 
 Decoy " of Mr. Freeman-Thomas, and converted it into 
 a public Open Space under the name of " Hampden 
 Park." It has been laid out and improved with excellent 
 taste, and nothing is wanted except a tramway to take 
 you there. 
 
 The situation may be summed up as follows : that, 
 thanks to Lord Willingdon, East-Bourne now possesses 
 a " lung " which may be said to match in some 
 slight degree " Preston Park," Brighton ; the " East and 
 West Hills " of Hastings; and " The Public Gardens " of 
 Bournemouth, but far inferior in area and accessibility to 
 all these 3. 
 
 I forbear to prolong this chapter by any further 
 allusion to controversial matters, but a big fight, in 
 which I took some part, raged in the " Seventies " and 
 " Eighties," from 1876 onwards, as to whether the Local 
 Board or the Guardians should build a Hospital for 
 Infectious Diseases. In the end there were 2 hospitals 
 built to do the work (at that time) of one, and the 
 Guardians, by prolonged " cussedness," saddled the 
 ratepayers with an enormous building for non-infectious 
 patients, which cost, I believe, 7000, and ought never 
 to have been built. The Guardians also decided to build 
 a new Workhouse at Polegate. That was a much more 
 rational project, and though a quarter of a century has 
 elapsed it still remains a projet de loi, as a Frenchman 
 would call it. 
 
 " Hfyt onljr jfojtg out 0f jrjerjjlmlg is irmsi0." (E. S. HAKDT.)
 
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 [225] 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 ELECTIONS, PARLIAMENTARY. 
 
 Effect of the growth of population on the increase of the number of 
 Voters. East Sussex Polls from 1832 till 1880. East-Bourne Division Polls 
 from 1885 to 1910. Notes on most of the Candidates during that period. 
 Election meetings in former days. 
 
 " ujglaiiir, i\t $$xri|)tr 0f ^arliamntts."( fl ) (JOHN BRIGHT.) 
 
 ONE thing stands out very prominently in the 
 history of East-Bourne from the standpoint of 
 Elections. The extraordinary increase in the 
 population 1851-1911 has led to an extraordinary 
 developement in the statistics relating to voting for all 
 public purposes. 
 
 To make my story more interesting, because more 
 complete, I will begin 25 years before my own personal 
 knowledge begins. I will start with the year 1832, the 
 date of the passing of the Reform Bill. 
 
 1832, DECEMBEE. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Cavendish, Hon. C. C. (Whig) .. 2388 
 Curteis, H. B. (Whig) .. .. 1931 
 Darby, G. (Tory) 668 
 
 The above figures showed the Tories to be so 
 completely outnumbered for the time that the General 
 Election of 1835 passed off without a contest, the old 
 Members being returned again. 
 
 1835, JANUARY. GENBBAL ELECTION. 
 Cavendish, Hon. C. C. (Whig). 
 Curteis, H. B. (Whig). 
 
 When 1837 arrived the reaction against the Whigs, 
 which had taken place all over England, was found) to 
 
 (a) But now with its House of Commons suffering from " Senile Decay," to quote a 
 
 medical term. 
 
 Q
 
 226 
 
 have spread to East Sussex, as the following figures will 
 show : 
 
 1837, AUGUST. GENERAL ELECTION. 
 
 Darby, G. (Tory) 2256 
 
 Cavendish Hon. C. C. (Whig) .. 1793 
 
 Fuller, A. E. (Tory) 1749 
 
 Cuneis, H. B .(Whig) .. .. 1619 
 
 I have before me a copy of the Poll Book of the 
 1837 Election. There were only 8 polling places in East 
 Sussex, and 4821 electors less for the whole county 
 division than the number now registered for the single 
 parish of East-Bourne. 
 
 The 8 polling places were : Lewes, Brighton, 
 Cuckfield, East Grinstead, Mayfield, Battle, Hastings, and 
 Rye. East-Bourne voters had to vote at Lewes, conveyed 
 there at the expense of the Candidates, as was usual 
 under the old system of Parliamentary Elections. 
 
 The number of East-Bourne voters was 81, of whom 
 no fewer than 65 voted, as was natural, for Cavendish, 38 
 for Curteis, 16 for Darby, and 2 for Fuller. With the 
 exception of the 2 split votes, which Mr. Fuller shared 
 with Mr. Darby, it is evident that the few Conservative 
 voters all deemed it politic to give their second votes to 
 the Cavendish candidate. The two uncompromising 
 Tories were John Row, who I remember as living in the 
 house opposite the Anchor Hotel, in recent years occupied 
 by a grocer named Gosling ; and Col. J. H. Willard, 
 Colonel of the Sussex Militia, then the owner of The 
 Lawn, Old Town, long the residence of the late Mr. J. 
 Ellis. The East-Bourne register of 1837 contains a 
 number of names which still survive in the persons of 
 sons and grandsons, or other near relatives. Amongst 
 these may be mentioned the names of Baker, Brodie, 
 Cavendish, Dumbrell, Ford, Gilbert, Graham, Gorringe, 
 Hoad, Head, Hart, Hurst, Luck, Maynard, Morris, 
 Newman, Prodger, Reed, Stretton, Towner, Vine and 
 Waymark. 
 
 The General Election of 1841 was in many respects 
 a prototype of that of 1910. Just as Mr. Asquith had 
 muddled away his majority and broken up his party, 
 and shown an utter incapacity to govern, so did
 
 -CHAP. XVIII.] Parliamentary Elections, 1841-1857. 227 
 
 Lord Melbourne accompli sh the same results in the 4 
 years which ended with July 1841. He dissolved, after 
 being beaten by a majority of 1 on a " No Confidence " 
 motion, and the country responded by confirming this 
 vote by a majority of 91. 
 
 1841, JULY. GENEBAL ELECTION. 
 Darby, G. (Conservative) . . . . 2398 
 Fuller, A. E. (Conservative) . . 2367 
 
 Shelley, J. V. (Liberal) . . . . 995 
 
 1846, JANUABY. Mr. Darby appointed Inclosure Commissioner. 
 Frewen, C. H. 
 
 Mr. Darby resigned his seat for the reason above 
 stated, but Mr. Fuller, his colleague of 1841, retained his 
 seat for 16 years. 
 
 1847, AUGUST. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Fuller, A. E. (Conservative). 
 Frewen, C. H. (Conservative). 
 
 1852, JULY. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Fuller, A. E. (Conservative) .. 2155 
 
 Frewen, C. H. (Conservative) .. 1974 
 Dodson, J. G. (Liberal) .. .. 1637 
 
 Mr. Dodson was then quite a young man, and 
 unknown except as the son of Sir John Dodson, Dean of 
 the Arches Court of Canterbury, but the figures above 
 quoted show conclusively that the principles which he 
 represented liad a considerable hold in the constituency, 
 and that his success might reasonably be looked for at a 
 later period, and this, indeed, eventually came to pass. 
 Things remained quiet in the division until January 
 1857, when the County was startled one morning by an 
 announcement that Mr. Frewen had resigned a fairly safe 
 seat in order to go and fight a very ridiculous contest 
 with a brother Conservative Lord J. J. R. Manners 
 (Duke of Rutland) in Leicestershire. The Candidate who 
 came out to succeed Mr. Frewen on the Conservative side 
 was Viscount Pevensey, afterwards Earl of Sheffield, the 
 great friend and patron of cricketers and Volunteers. At 
 the poll in March, 1857, the numbers were : 
 
 Pevensey, Viscount (Conservative) . . 2302 
 Dodson, J. G. (Liberal) .. .. 2234 
 
 This election was virtually thrown away, because 
 everything had to be done over again in less than 4
 
 228 
 
 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XVIIL 
 
 weeks, Parliament having been dissolved after the vote 
 of censure on Lord Palmerston, anent the China question. 
 
 1857, April 7. GENERAL ELECTION. 
 Dodson, J. G. (Liberal) . . . . 2524 
 Fevensey, Viscount (Conservative) 2447 
 Cavendish, Col. W. H. F. (Liberal) 2286 
 Fuller, A. E. (Conservative) .. 2216 
 
 It may be interesting to exhibit the results of the 
 voting in the various Polling Districts : 
 
 GENERAL ELECTION, 1857. 
 Dodson. Cavendish. Pevensey. 
 
 Brighton . 
 Lewes 
 Hastings . 
 Cuckfield 
 East Grinstead 
 Mayfield . 
 Battle 
 Rye 
 
 1070 
 429 
 198 
 159 
 151 
 210 
 189 
 127 
 
 2524 
 
 990 
 382 
 182 
 119 
 130 
 191 
 173 
 119 
 
 2286 
 
 433 
 565 
 193 
 213 
 200 
 445 
 249 
 149 
 
 2447 
 
 Fuller. 
 354 
 514 
 164 
 196 
 183 
 418 
 252 
 135 
 
 2216 
 
 Brighton was a stronghold of Radicalism half a 
 century ago, and that gave a colouring to the vote of the 
 Brighton non-resident freeholders, thus completely 
 swamping the political opinions of the country districts. 
 
 Parties being so evenly divided, and, moreover,, 
 financially exhausted (for each had spent more than 
 15,000 in 1857), it was agreed in 1859 to call a truce 
 and leave the representation divided, so Lord Pevensey 
 and Mr. Dodson had a " walk over " at the General 
 Election in April 1859. In those days elections were 
 very different from what they are now. Each party had 
 one meeting in each considerable town or village, and 
 that was about all ; the smaller villages were not taken 
 much into account. 
 
 In 1865 there was another very severe contest. 
 
 1865, JULY. GENEBAL ELECTION. 
 Dodson, J. G. (Liberal) .. .. 2821 
 Cavendish, Lord E. (Liberal) . . 2647 
 Burrell, W. W. (Conservative) . . 2463 
 Abbott, Hon. R. C. E. (Conservative) 2316 
 
 Mr. Burrell afterwards became known as Sir Walter 
 Burrell, being the second son of Sir Charles M. Burrell, 
 who died in 1862, after having sat for Shoreham since 
 1806 a period of 56 years. Just conceive the tons of 
 Blue Books which that good old man must have amassed
 
 CHAP. XVIIL] Parliamentary Elections, 1S65-1868. 229 
 
 during the long period of 56 years. I remember hearing 
 him make a speech in the House of Commons only a few 
 months before his death, at the age of 88. The crushing 
 character of this defeat served the good purpose of 
 bringing it home to the Conservatives that their only 
 chance of regaining any position in East Sussex was by 
 resorting to organisation of the most thorough character, 
 and accordingly, in July 1865, after the election was 
 over, a meeting of Conservatives was, by way of a 
 beginning, held at East-Bourne, which resulted in the 
 formation of the first East-Bourne Conservative 
 Association. I had the honour of being elected the 
 organising secretary of the new departure, and occupied 
 that honourable but honorary position for 15 years, when 
 the great growth of the work, the result of the growth of 
 the town of East-Bourne, compelled me to retire and give 
 place to a paid agent. Our meetings were at first held 
 at the offices of a solicitor in the Terminus Road, but 
 afterwards and for the bulk of the time we enjoyed the 
 hospitality of Mr. C. Diplock, holding our meetings in 
 his drawing-room, over the shop at the Pevensey Road 
 corner of the Terminus Road (now Young and Rawley's). 
 In the work of these 15 years I received very 
 material assistance from several gentlemen in the town, 
 notably the late Mr. J. B. Morris. The task of purifying 
 and expanding the Register, perseveringly carried on, 
 reached its climax in November 1868, in conjunction, of 
 course, with other organised efforts in other parts of the 
 Division. When the Poll at the General Election of that 
 year was officially declared the numbers were found to 
 be as follows : 
 
 1868, DECEMBEE. GENERAL ELECTION. 
 Dodson, J. G. (Liberal) .. .. 3611 
 Gregory, G. B. (Conservative) .. 3581 
 Scott, M. D. (Conservative) . . . . 3560 
 Cavendish, Lord E. (Liberal) . . 3470 
 
 Our recovery of 1 seat was very largely due to the 
 unceasing efforts of the late Rev. J. Goring, of Wiston, 
 and Mr. G. Darby (the former M.P.), stumping the county 
 to unfold the serious points involved in the Irish Church. 
 Controversy.
 
 230 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVIIL 
 
 This success stimulated the Conservative Party all 
 over the county to renewed efforts to organise the 
 out-voters, with the result that at the General Election 
 of 1874 Mr. Gregory retained his seat and Mr. Scott 
 captured Mr. Dodson's seat without a poll. The strength 
 of the Conservatives up to this time had been in the 
 country districts, the Mayfield polling district being a 
 specially Tory stronghold, and Brighton and East-Bourne 
 Radical strongholds. In 1868 there was in East-Bourne 
 a Radical preponderance of 5 to 1, which we estimated 
 in 1874 had been reduced to 2% to 1 (375 Radicals to 166 
 Tories), or perhaps even lower, whilst more recent 
 elections have been thought to have yielded an actual 
 Conservative preponderance as regards the Parish of 
 East-Bourne. This, however, is no more than the result 
 disclosed in all England. In other words, the Radical 
 strength no longer lies in the towns, where education and 
 intellectual progress prevails more than it did 50 years 
 ago, but in the rural districts, where education is less 
 advanced, and books and newspapers are less circulated. 
 
 The soundness of this reasoning will be understood 
 by comparing the voting by polling districts in 1868 with 
 the figures for 1857, given on a previous page. The 
 Radical preponderance of Brighton fell in those 11 years 
 from 2-| to 1 to If to 1, having been at the intermediate 
 figure of 2 to 1 at the intermediate election of 1865. 
 
 GENERAL ELECTION, 1868. 
 
 Dodson. Cavendish. Gregory, Scott. 
 
 Brighton.. 1066 1035 609 647 
 
 Lewes 
 
 Hastings.. 
 
 Cuckfield 
 
 East Grin stead 
 
 Mayfield . . 
 
 TJckfield .. 
 
 Hailsham 
 
 Battle 
 
 Rye 
 
 358 328 487 476 
 
 361 346 269 265 
 
 255 231 366 360 
 
 284 279 264 262 
 
 243 238 602 599 
 
 161 150 225 217 
 
 526 535 279 281 
 
 243 220 276 252 
 
 114 108 204 201 
 
 3611 3470 3581 3560 
 
 When the next General Election occurred, which 
 was in 1880, the Liberals made a desperate attack on the 
 2 Conservative East Sussex seats, but failed utterly, and 
 this was the more remarkable, seeing that the Election
 
 CHAP. XVIII.] Parliamentary Election, 1S80. 231 
 
 in question resulted in England generally in the 
 overthrow of the Beaconsfield Government, but perhaps 
 something must be set down to the fact that Mr. Donovan 
 was only celebrated as a M.F.H., and Mr. Pearson was 
 only a " Carpet-Bagger," to use a familiar American 
 expression. 
 
 The figures of the Poll were as follows : 
 
 1880, APEIL. GENERAL ELECTION. 
 Gregory, G. B. (Conservative) .. 4526 
 Scott, M. D. (Conservative) . . 4396 
 
 Donovan, A. (Liberal) .. .. 2982 
 
 Pearson, J., Q. C. (Liberal) .. .. 2863 
 
 Before proceeding farther, it may be worth while to 
 give in a few words some clue to the personality of the 
 Candidates on both sides between 1832 and 1880. The 
 Hon. C. C. Cavendish was a member of the ducal House 
 of Devonshire, being the 4th son of Lord George 
 Cavendish, who in 1831 was created Earl of Burlington. 
 Mr. Cavendish was himself made a Peer in 1858, under 
 the title of Baron Chesham. Mr. H. B. Curteis, defeated 
 in the County in 1837, was elected Member for Rye in 
 1841, and sat for that constituency until his death in 
 1847. The present owner of Windmill Hill is his 
 grandson. The Mr. J. V. Shelley of 1841 afterwards 
 succeeded to a baronetcy, and sat for Westminster from 
 1852 till 1865. Mr. J. G. Dodson, after withdrawing 
 from East Sussex in 1874, and allowing Mr. Scott to walk 
 over, became Member for Chester at the then General 
 Election, and was raised to the Peerage as Baron Monk- 
 Bretton in 1884. Viscount Pevensey afterwards succeeded 
 his father as Earl of Sheffield, and was the well-known 
 patron of cricket and Volunteers, who died in 1909. 
 The Earldom died with him, but his Irish Barony of 
 Sheffield passed to his cousin, the 4th Lord Stanley of 
 Alderley. 
 
 Colonel W. H. F. Cavendish was colonel of the 
 Derbyshire Militia, and a son of General the Hon. H. E. 
 Cavendish, a son of the 1st Earl of Burlington, and 
 therefore uncle of the 7th Duke of Devonshire. Colonel 
 Cavendish's younger brother, Mr. F. W. H. Cavendish,
 
 232 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVIII. 
 
 resided many years in East-Bourne until his death. He 
 was a J.P., and took an active part in local affairs. An elder 
 sister, who died in 1881, was Countess of Cawdor, and a 
 younger sister, Caroline, was the well-known Maid of 
 Honour to Queen Victoria. She died in 1910. Lord E. 
 Cavendish was the youngest son of the 7th Duke of 
 Devonshire, and father of the present Duke. 
 
 Mr. W. W. Burrell afterwards succeeded to a 
 baronetcy on the death of his brother, Sir Percy Burrell, 
 their father, Sir C. Burrell, having as already stated, sat 
 for Shoreham for 56 years. This made him at the time 
 the " Father of the House." The Hon. R. C. E. Abbott 
 is the present Lord Colchester. 
 
 Mr. G. B. Gregory was a well-known London 
 solicitor, and head of the firm of Gregory, Rowcliffe & 
 Co. Travelling with Sir H. H. Fowler, M.P. (now 
 Viscount Wolverhampton), on October 15, 1884, he 
 said to me : " You may be interested to know that your 
 Member, Gregory, is the one Member on your side of the 
 House to whom Gladstone always listens, and whose 
 suggestions he always desires to act upon, if possible." 
 
 To make the Political History of East-Bourne 
 complete, I append without much note or comment a 
 statement of the Elections which have taken place since 
 1880 down to 1910, merely remarking that under the 
 Redistribution Act of 1885, Sussex as a whole was cut up 
 into 6 County Divisions, each with one Member only, 
 East-Bourne becoming the centre of the " East-Bourne 
 or Southern Division of Sussex." 
 
 As the result of the Redistribution Act, Mr. Gregory 
 selected the East Grinstead Division as his constituency, 
 and Mr. Scott retired altogether from Parliament, so 
 East-Bourne had to find a new Conservative Candidate. 
 Several Candidates were talked about ; amongst them 
 Sir Henry Fletcher, who was invited, but declined 
 (preferring to stand for the Lewes Division, which elected 
 him soon afterwards) ; Mr. W. L. Christie, the Member 
 for the Borough of Lewes, disfranchised by the 
 Redistribution Act in 1885 ; and Captain Edward Field, 
 who, accepted as the Conservative Candidate for
 
 CHAP. XVIIL] Parliamentary Elections, 1885-1910. 233 
 
 Brighton, was shunted thence under an Award by Lord 
 Salisbury to permit Mr. Marriott, Q.C., who had "ratted" 
 from the Liberal Party, being taken over as a Conserva- 
 tive Candidate. Hence it was that East-Bourne came to 
 get Captain (afterwards Admiral) Field, who proved to 
 be a very efficient and popular Member. * 
 
 1885, DKCEMBEE 5. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Field, Captain E. (Conservative) .. 3561 
 Wallis, G. A. (Liberal) . . . . 3497 
 
 1886, JULY 9. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Field, Admiral E. (Conservative) .. 3760 
 Brown, Col. J. C. (Liberal) .. .. 2501 
 
 1892, JULY 12. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Field, Admiral E. (Conservative) . . 4037 
 Brand, Captain Eon. T. S. (Liberal) 3674 
 
 1895, JULY 22. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Field, Admiral E. (Conservative) .. 4139 
 Brand, Captain Hon. T. S. (Liberal) 4079 
 
 1900, October 15. GENEBAL ELECTION. 
 Hogg, L. (Conservative) . . . . 4948 
 Brand, Admiral Hon. T. S. (Liberal) 4245 
 
 1906, JANUARY 17. GENEEAL ELECTION. 
 Beaumont, Hon. H. G. (Radical) . . 5933 
 Hogg, Sir Z., Bt., (Conservative) . . 5303 
 
 1910, JANUARY 21. GENEBAL ELECTION. 
 Gwynne, R. S. (Conservative) . . 7553 
 Morrison, H. (Radical) . . . . 5249 
 
 With the General Election of 1880 I ceased to have 
 any special responsibility for the management of the 
 affairs of the Conservative Party in the town or district. 
 Five years later various changes in everything became 
 indispensable, owing to the Redistribution Act and the 
 break-up of the Gladstoiiian Party. The latter event 
 involving the alliance of the Liberal Unionists with the 
 Conservative Party was a matter of great moment in 
 East-Bourne politics, owing to the altered political 
 positions of Lord Hartington (as he then was) and other 
 members of the Ducal House of Devonshire. 
 
 A Primrose League Habitation (No. 286) was 
 started in East-Bourne very soon after the League 
 was founded, and splendid work was done by it in 1885 
 
 * Another possible Candidate would probably have been chosen before all those 
 just named, had he got home from India in time Sir James Fergusson.
 
 234 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XVIIL 
 
 and 1886, but the new Conservative Association of 1885 
 did not appreciate at their proper value the services 
 rendered by the ladies of East-Bourne and a feud, started 
 by a very self-seeking politician, and endiDg in the 
 break-up of the Habitation, was the first result, the 
 ultimate result being that Admiral Field's majority of 
 1259 in 1886 fell to 363 in 1892. That this was simple 
 cause and effect admits of not the least doubt. 
 
 Much more recently, another Habitation was formed 
 (No. 2216), and it has done, and is still doing, splendid 
 work under my old friend Sir. C. 0. Fitzgerald, K.C.B., 
 and a very efficient staff of lady workers. 
 
 The East-Bourne voting strength of the 2 political 
 parties made little or no progress between 1837 and 
 1857, when, if my memory serves me, the Conservatives 
 polled no more than about a dozen votes, and the 
 Liberals no more than about 4 dozen. I have no record 
 by parishes of the 1865 Election, but in 1868 East-Bourne 
 sent to the poll 75 Conservatives as against 333 Liberals, 
 one man recording a split vote, and so abstaining. The 
 split vote was that of a butcher who no doubt had an eye 
 to trade, as he was able to tell customers on both sides- 
 that he had voted for their side. 
 
 In 1857, though the Vestry Room in Grove Road() 
 was a fair-sized room, I do not remember that it was 
 used for Parliamentary election purposes. At any rate, 
 it was in a large room (built for the Foresters) at the 
 Squirrel Inn, alias the Gilbert Arms, at the corner of 
 Grove Roadw that Lord Pevensey came to speak on 
 February 19, 1857. Mr. Dodson's followers assembled 
 3 days previously at the Anchor Hotel. Colonel 
 Cavendish did not appear till March 21. I attended all 
 3 meetings. Lord Pevensey met with a good deal of 
 interruption, his being an evening meeting Radical 
 hecklers had their chance. 
 
 In the "Sixties" and "Seventies" most election and 
 other public meetings were held at a place known as 
 " Diplock's Assembly Room," a room forming part of 
 
 (a) On the site of the present Fire Station. 
 
 (b) On the site of the houses numbered 134, Terminus Road and 2 12, Grove Road.
 
 CHAP. XVIII.] Political Meetings. 235- 
 
 " Diplock's Hotel," in the Terminus Road. When the 
 Devonshire Park Pavilion was built, that was resorted to 
 for all important meetings, but the Town Hall, so soon as 
 it was available, took its place for most public, including 
 election, assemblages on a large scale, and has been 
 generally used ever since. 
 
 Here mention rnay be made of two political meetings, 
 .which may be remarked as two of the most important of 
 the many I have attended in East-Bourne. The first was 
 on June 24, 1892, and was held at the Devonshire Park 
 as a great Unionist demonstration in support of Admiral 
 Field's candidature. The Duke of Devonshire was the 
 principal speaker, but by way (I suppose) of giving a 
 Liberal Unionist colour to the business, he stipulated 
 that the late Lord Monk-Bretton should be Chairman. 
 
 The second great meeting which I have in my mind 
 took place at the Devonshire Park Theatre on March 22, 
 1893, and was especially an anti-Home Rule demonstration, 
 It was preceded by a pleasant dinner at Mr. G. A. Wallis's,, 
 at which the guests were, besides Admiral Field, Mr. 
 Victor Cavendish (now 9th Duke of Devonshire), Sir E. 
 Carson, Q.C., M.P., and myself. The meeting, as a 
 meeting, was an unparalleled success, to which I tried to 
 contribute by a short speech. 
 
 East-Bourne political meetings have never been 
 much favoured by the presence of prominent politicians- 
 on either side. I can recall within my time limits for 
 this book only Mr. Austen Chamberlain, M.P., and Mr. 
 Cochrane Patrick, M.P., besides those already named. 
 
 Mr. Asquith came down professionally to defend the 
 Salvation Army street rioters in 1891. 
 
 " Counrillors of jiate sit plotting anir plying trir Jnglr rlrcss game, 
 foljmof t|rc nafons aw nun." (CARLYLE.) 
 
 frlic semi of jcloqut net is ircrg sintjjh : Knofolcoge ano miwstness."- 
 
 (BisHOP THOROLD.) 
 
 'gin 6nglis|ittr3tt is rontnit to sag nothing fo|mt \t Ijas nothing to sag." 
 
 (DR. JOHNSON.)- 
 
 But with some people it is 
 
 " SStoros, Horos, matin" (Samlet.) 
 " gin (Sxrlrrqufr of SStorbs." ( Tico Gentlemen of J'erona.)
 
 [236] 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS. 
 
 Population Statistics. Guy Fawkes Day. A snow hut. East-Bourne 
 Postal arrangements in 1874. Season Extension Movement. The 
 " Guardian " Newspaper and Mr. Disraeli. A Sermon on Sheep-stealing. 
 Convicted of manslaughter for stealing a pair of Breeches. Russian prisoners 
 .at Lewes. Unreformed Corporations. "Bradford" or "Bedford" Well. 
 Ladies at Public Dinners. East- Bourne Printers. An Old Style Dinner. 
 A Drive in Derbyshire. A visit to Holker Hall. Fire Engines. Lord 
 Randolph Churchill. The Lanyon Family. Bread the " Staff of Life " 
 (sometimes). Weddings, 1846-1902. Syllabub Parties. A Garden Party 
 .at Compton Place. Hoiv Fiction may become " History." Pigs as 
 Engineers. Banks at East-Bourne. Sussex Coaches in 1804. East-Bourne 
 in 1809. East-Bourne in 1812.- East-Bourne Bathing in 1819. Sea- 
 Bathing. A Fancy Dress Ball. A China (not Chinese) Story. The Story 
 of a Clock. Links ivith the Past. Sunday League Excursions to East- 
 Bourne. A Ladies' Committee. A "Liberal" Dinner at East-Bourne. 
 The Wreck of the "Nympha Americana" Extracts from Old Letters of 
 Dr. Brodie. Penalties attaching to Authorship. 
 
 " Sfre ghMb gpswllang." (TENNYSON.) 
 make gour jcftoitt." (Merchant of Venice.) 
 
 " $ totll belief 
 
 foilt not utter fofcai tftou Jrost not lutofo : 
 so far foill 3 trust tfrw." (Henry IV., pt. 1.) 
 
 WHEN the reader has completed his perusal of this 
 chapter I am sure he will say that it more 
 fully justifies its title than any other in the 
 book, for it will be found to contain a variety of items 
 concerning, or in some way connected with, East-Bourne, 
 put together in most disjointed sequence, but which I 
 did not seem able to classify under any previous head. 
 
 POPULATION STATISTICS. 
 
 Perhaps nothing will illustrate more vividly the 
 changes which East-Bourne has undergone during my
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Population of East-Bourne. 237 
 
 time than a statement of Census results. The population 
 at the undermentioned epochs was as follows : 
 
 Year. Population. Year. Population. 
 
 1801 1668 1861 5778 
 
 1811 
 1821 
 1831 
 1841 
 1851 
 
 2623 1871 
 
 2607 1881 
 
 2726 1891 
 
 3015 1901 
 3433 
 
 10,342 
 21,510 
 34,244 
 43,344 
 
 From the above figures it will be seen that the- 
 population of the Parish of East -Bourne, almost 
 stationaiy during the 40 years 1811 51, actually 
 decreased between 1811 and 1821 ; and that it was not 
 until 1871 that notable signs of progress became manifest, 
 
 GUY FAWKES DAY. 
 
 Sussex has always been famous for its 5th of 
 November celebrations, and Lewes has long been at the 
 top of the tree in the matter. East-Bourne, however, has 
 seldom failed to make a good show. Those whose 
 memories take them back to the years 1850 and 1851 
 will remember that what was called the " Papal 
 Aggression " of the former year gave a great impetus 
 to the Guy Fawkes celebrations, and that the Pope 
 especially came in for a large measure of patronage at 
 the hands of the " Bonfire Boys." I must confess that 
 the 5th of November festival always obtained my hearty 
 support, and that there was nothing which I subscribed 
 to more regularly or willingly. 
 
 The year 1857 provided a new candidate for Guy 
 Fawkes honours, in the person of the notorious Indian 
 murderer, Nana Sahib. East-Bourne itself in 1860 
 provided another candidate, in the person of the 
 schoolmaster mentioned elsewhere. 
 
 The Incorporation of the town in 1883 had the 
 somewhat inconvenient effect of giving us two Oth's of 
 November ; one on the 5th and the other on the 9th. I 
 think it would be correct to say that the Bonfire Societies 
 transferred their attentions from the 5th to the 9th, 
 leaving the former to the little boys. At any rate, I
 
 238 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XIX. 
 
 know that in 1883, and for a number of years afterwards, 
 every Mayoral Dinner was interrupted at about 10 p.m. 
 by a procession through the Banqueting Chamber of 
 some 2 dozen "Bonfire Boys," dressed in alarming 
 costumes, and making hideous noises, ending in a speech 
 by their leader to the new Mayor, congratulating him, to 
 which he had to make a suitable reply. One Winchester 
 was great at this business. The interruption had, 
 however, this one advantage, that it enabled guests who, 
 like myself, had delivered our speeches and loathed 
 
 tobacco, or who, like my friend Major , were glad of 
 
 .any excuse to get away early from the festive board, to 
 do so, and escape observation to a great extent. This 
 interruption ceased some years ago, but I am unable to 
 assign a date, or to know to whom to give the credit, and 
 now the 5th has, I believe, recovered its individuality, 
 not having any competitor. 
 
 A SNOW HUT. 
 
 The winter of 1849 50 was noteworthy for a severe 
 and unusually prolonged frost, which lasted exactly 5 
 weeks from December 20 till January 25. As this 
 followed a heavy fall, of snow, snow remained unmelted 
 for a period much longer than usual in the S. of England. 
 At East-Bourne, with my valuable assistance, 2 uncles of 
 mine built a snow hut, somewhat in the Esquimaux 
 style, and it has occurred to me that my younger readers 
 might like to have some information for their guidance 
 as to how it was done. I will frame the information 
 somewhat in the form of a cookery book paragraph. 
 
 Select a fairly level site, preferably on grass, and 
 clear a circular space 7, 8 or 9 ft. in diameter. Build 
 up the snow removed from this space on its outer edge 
 to make the beginning of a wall, leaving a gap in the 
 wall about 3 feet wide for an entrance. Then, working 
 outside and inside the dwarf wall simultaneously, collect 
 snow from outside so as to make a circular ring fully 
 3 ft. in thickness, and carried up to a height of about 
 7 ft., ramming and beating with the back of spades to
 
 OHAP. XIX.] A Snow Rut. 239 
 
 consolidate the mass as much, as possible. Make the top 
 -of the 7-ft. wall as nearly level as possible, and lay 
 across it some straight wooden poles say a dozen in 
 number, parallel to one another [we used Surveyors' 
 poles]. On the top of these lay clean straw to a thickness 
 of 3 or 4 inches. Then on the top of the straw place 
 snow to the thickness of about 2 ft., and ram it well by 
 .a person of light weight treading on it. If the work has 
 been well and carefully done, the wooden rods may be 
 pulled out, and such of the straw as seems inclined to 
 drop may be allowed to drop and be carried away, and 
 the hut will be complete when the holes in the wall, 
 caused by the removal of the rods, have been filled up. 
 A hut thus constructed at The Gore in December 1849, 
 remained habitable, so to speak, for 3 weeks, and tea was 
 served in it. Of course, if there is any doubt as to the 
 snow holding together and the roof remaining sound, the 
 wooden rods had better not be pulled out, but the tout 
 ensemble of the structure is greatly improved by the roof 
 showing nothing but snow with a little straw sticking 
 to it. 
 
 Snow lay on the ground again at East-Bourne for a 
 prolonged period in January and February 1855. This 
 was the celebrated " Crimean Winter." At Brighton, 
 where I was at school, I remember seeing the water 
 frozen on the seashore. 
 
 EAST-BOURNE POSTAL ARRANGEMENTS IN 1874. 
 
 The year 1874 saw the 26th anniversary of the 
 running of trains from London to East-Bourne, but will 
 it be believed that, notwithstanding this railway 
 communication, the ordinary Night Mails to East-Bourne 
 reached East-Bourne by train from London via Staple- 
 hurst, in Kent, and were thence conveyed 40 miles across 
 country by a horse and cart ; and vice versa ! As the 
 conveyance was accomplished by night, the inhabitants 
 generally knew nothing much about the matter, though 
 visitors were a little surprised that, notwithstanding the 
 iact that East-Bourne was only 60 miles from London,
 
 240 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 they were obliged to put their evening letters into the 
 post at the early hour of 7 p.m. It so happened, however,, 
 that in the month of December 1874 there was much 
 frost and snow, and during the week before Christmas 
 the morning delivery of letters, instead of taking place 
 at 8 a.m., was for several days running delayed till 12.0 
 or 1.0 in the day, and on December 17 did not take place 
 till 6.0 in the afternoon, which was after the Night Mail 
 had been closed, because, if the letters were to catch the 
 up train at Staplehurst, an extra couple of hours had to- 
 be placed at the disposal of the poor horse who drew 
 them. It may naturally be supposed that great 
 indignation prevailed in the town on the subject. As 
 Lewes and Hastings were in the same boat with 
 East-Bourne, arrangements were made for a deputation 
 to the Postmaster-General on January 13, 1875, to- 
 remonstrate. I and somebody else went to speak on 
 behalf of East-Bourne, and Lewes and Hastings each sent 
 2 or 3 representatives. I remember that, when we 
 assembled in the ante-room of the Postmaster-General 
 (Lord J. Manners), our County Member, Mr. G. B. Gregory, 
 who introduced us, expressed great disgust at the small 
 number of Sussex men who had arrived to put pressure 
 on the Post Office. Mr. Gregory's actual words were : " If 
 places in Lancashire had been treated by the Post Office 
 in the way in which you gentlemen and your neighbours 
 have been treated, this large room would not have held 
 the grumblers who would have travelled 200 miles to 
 grumble." However, if our bodily presence was 
 contemptible, our cause was too strong to be ignored by 
 the authorities, and in a very short time (July 1, 1875) 
 East Sussex had the pleasure of finding that their letters 
 arrived by rail at midnight for delivery the next morning ; 
 and could be posted at East-Bourne as late as 9 p.m. 
 Perhaps the obvious reform was hastened on by the 
 following announcement in a Hastings newspaper, in one 
 of its issues of May 1875 : " The delivery of the letters 
 on Tuesday morning was 2 hours late. Near Sedlescombe 
 the horse bringing the Mail cart to Hastings died on 
 the road"
 
 Plate XLVII. 
 
 To face p. 240. 
 
 Figs. 84-85. 
 
 HOLKER HALL, LANCASHIRE. 
 
 Julia Cowling, 
 
 VIEW OF MEADS. 1860.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Postal Arrangements. 241 
 
 It remains to be added that from that day to this 
 St. Martin's-le-Grand has often failed to provide adequate 
 accommodation at East-Bourne for the business there, at 
 the Head Office wherever it was. 
 
 SEASON EXTENSION MOVEMENT. 
 
 On February 2, 1882, a meeting was held at the 
 Gildredge Hotel, to consider whether any organised 
 effort could be made to bring about a lengthening of the 
 East-Bourne Summer Season. This meeting was very 
 numerously attended by persons belonging to all classes : 
 many suggestions were offered, owners and tenants, 
 professional men and tradesmen, taking part in the 
 discussion and finally a very strong and representative 
 Committee, which eventually numbered 60 members, 
 was appointed to consider the whole subject. The 
 matter was further discussed at another meeting and a 
 Sub-Committee of 16 members was chosen by ballot to 
 put the whole subject into shape and to submit it to a 
 public meeting of townspeople. I was chosen one of the 
 16, and Mr. G. A. Wallis was appointed Chairman. A 
 very elaborate scheme of advertising by posters hand- 
 books and newspaper advertisements was planned 
 and carried out, and I have no doubt whatever that 
 great good was done by the publicity which was obtained, 
 for it brought the claims of the town before people at a 
 distance who were in search of localities to reside in or 
 to visit. It was estimated that to do the work properly, 
 2000 a year was required for 3 years, but no such sum 
 as this was raised ; I think no more than about 600. 
 The one item in the scheme which for somewhat obvious 
 reasons excited most distrust, and in point of fact was 
 never carried out, was thus specified in the circular 
 issued by the Commitee, " That subsidies should be 
 granted to various local places of amusement and resort 
 to encourage them to keep going high class entertain- 
 ments from Easter to Christmas." I think that some of 
 the townspeople sniffed * Devonshire Park ' in these 
 words and therefore looked askance at them.
 
 242 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 A revival of this movement took place in 1906 
 by the formation of the " East-Bourne Advertising 
 Association," but a statement respecting its operations 
 would be beyond the prescribed limits of time of this 
 book. 
 
 THE " GUARDIAN " NEWSPAPER AND MR. DISRAELI. 
 
 I was dining on November 5, 1880, at a dinner party 
 in Grange Gardens, and during dinner was much struck 
 with the violent language of one of the guests in 
 denouncing the late Prime Minister, Lord Beaconsfield. 
 After the ladies had left the room, this unknown 
 gentleman continued his vituperation. I pass over my 
 feelings of indignation, but I sought an opportunity 
 afterwards to ascertain the name of the great man's 
 
 traducer, and it turned out that it was , the Editor 
 
 of the Guardian. This discovery explained everything 
 as to why such venomous language had so frequently 
 appeared in the columns of the Guardian, combined 
 with such extensive laudation of his rival, Mr. Gladstone. 
 I know not whether the Editor ever had any qualms of 
 conscience in respect of this matter ; but this I do know, 
 that many years afterwards, talking over Gladstone's 
 political decadence as manifested by his Home Rule 
 schemes, John Walter of The Times, told me that he, 
 at any rate, had repented of the prolonged and somewhat 
 unqualified support which he in former years had 
 given to Gladstone through the columns of The Times, 
 whereby he had acquired and used such powers of 
 mischief. 
 
 A SERMON ON SHEEP-STEALING. 
 
 Amongst a volume of Sermons in manuscript 
 preached by my grandfather in East-Bourne Church I 
 find one, dated July 4, 1819, on the text Psalm xix, 13, 
 from which I make the following extract : 
 
 " What think you of that poor man in a neighbouring Parish who was 
 lately convicted for sheep-stealing ? Did not his conduct lead to disgrace and 
 will not his end be punishment ? This man . . . unfortunately took a 
 turn from the Church ; and being easily persuaded that there was no harm to 
 rob the King he took a turn to smuggling. Finding there was no harm to 
 rob the King, he also thought that there could be no harm to rob his neighbour
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Sheep Stealing. 243 
 
 and therefore took to sheep-stealing. Probably before he arrived to this pitch 
 of wickedness he took a turn for barley-stealing, grit-stealing, or, in the 
 language of St. Paul, ' to purloining his Master's goods.' What turn think 
 you will this frail brother take next ? If all be true, a turn upon the gallows." 
 
 It will be remembered that the penalty of death, for 
 felony was not abolished until 1821 and later years, 
 depending on what the felony was. 
 
 CONVICTED OF MANSLAUGHTER FOR STEALING A PAIR 
 OF BREECHES. 
 
 From East-Bourne and its Environs, the first local 
 guide-book published in 1787, I copy the following : 
 
 " At a Quarter Sessions [at Pevensey] somo years back, a man was brought 
 to the bar, charged with stealing a pair of buck-skin breeches, which charge 
 being fully proved, he was found guilty by the jury ; but when the Court werb 
 informed that the offence was a capital one and that they must proceed to pass 
 sentence, they were so much alarmed that they wished to reverse the verdict 
 and give a fresh one, in such words as to make the consequence less than 
 death ; they therefore adjourned the Court, and dispatched a messenger to 
 Thomas Willard, Esq., of East-Bourne, the then town clerk (whose deputy 
 was on that day attending), to beg his opinion whether it was possible to 
 reverse the present verdict, and receive a fresh one. together with his 
 instructions how to proceed. It happened that Lord Wilmington, to whom, 
 this place at that time belonged, with the then Chief Baron of the Exchequer, 
 were at dinner with Mr. Willard when this curious application arrived, to 
 whom Mr. W. having reported the contents, the Chief Baron jocosely said, 
 Instruct them to reverse the present verdict, and bring it in ' manslaughter," 
 to which Lord Wilmington consenting, Mr. W. advised accordingly, and a new 
 verdict to that effect was absolutely the consequence." (/>. 59. ) 
 
 RUSSIAN PRISONERS AT LEWES. 
 
 During the Crimean War a large number of Russian 
 prisoners were incarcerated in the Naval Prison at 
 Lewes. I visited the place on April 5, 1855. They 
 were a quiet, well-behaved set of men, who gave little or 
 no trouble. They earned a little money for themselves 
 by wood-carving, making small articles of various kinds. 
 I bought a puzzle which, after I had preserved it for 
 many years as an interesting relic, disappeared as such 
 things do, without leaving any message behind them as 
 to where they have gone. 
 
 UNREFORMED CORPORATIONS. 
 
 Some of my readers may know, and some may not 
 know, that under an Act of Parliament passed in 1835
 
 241 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XIX. 
 
 all the more important Municipal Corporations in 
 England were what is euphemistically called " reformed," 
 though the word in question has too often been equivalent 
 to " plundered " when a " Liberal " Government had any 
 part in the " reform." But a considerable number of 
 the smaller Corporations in England were not included 
 in the operations of the Act of 1835. These remained 
 undisturbed till 1883, when by the Act 46 and 47 Vict. r 
 c. 18, they also were upset and plundered. Pevensey and 
 Seaford were 2 towns so treated. Their historical 
 antecedents and status are recorded in a Blue-book, 
 published in 1880 by a Royal Commission/^ The 
 details as regards Pevensey are particularly curious and 
 interesting. Pevensey was governed by a High Bailiff, 
 assisted by certain persons called Jurats. The Bailiff's 
 annual salary w^as 2 ; that of the Jurats 6s. Sd. The 
 Town Clerk's salary was 6 5s. 7d. The Bailiff and 
 Jurats exercised magisterial functions as regards the 
 trial of prisoners and the licensing of public houses. 
 Courts of Quarter Sessions were held quarterly for the 
 purpose of making Rates, but not for the trial of 
 prisoners. These were only tried at the Monthly Petty 
 Sessions. On conviction, a prisoner would be sent to- 
 Lewes Gaol. An installation dinner, paid for out of the 
 Corporate Funds, was held every year. The annual 
 income for 1875 was 113, and the expenditure 169, 
 but that was an exceptional year. The Corporation 
 possessed funded and other property which at the 
 break-up was distributed in divers and sundry directions. 
 The Mace is now on show in Pevensey Church. 
 
 " BRADFORD " OR " BEDFORD " WELL. 
 
 The well at the Waterworks, seen on entering 
 East-Bourne by railway, is now-a-days generally called 
 Bedford Well, but it was not so called in my early days. 
 I never knew it by any other name than " Bradford's 
 Well " or " The Bradford Well," and I have heard that 
 it received its designation from a man named Bradford 
 
 (a) C. 2490, Sess. 1880. Price is. iod.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] ." Bedford" WeB^ 215 
 
 having fallen into the well, and being drowned there. 
 The story runs "that he was a sheep-stealer, and was on a 
 nocturnal raid when the accident happened. 
 
 LADIES AT PUBLIC DINNERS. 
 
 Mr. G. A. Wallis, at his first Mayoral Banquet on 
 December 20, 1883, set an example which I am sorry 
 none of his successors ever followed. He invited the 
 gentlemen to bring their wives or a daughter. I insisted 
 on the same thing at the 2 " House of Commons " 
 Dinners over which I presided. I think a Dinner of men 
 only is a dull function. It is more than that, for it is 
 made an excuse for pipes and " baccy," which I loathe. 
 
 EAST-BOURNE PRINTERS. 
 
 East-Bourne had no resident printer until about 
 1850, when a man named William Mott set up in a little 
 shop at the entrance to School- Yard from Church Street, 
 now occupied by a cobbler. Mott remained in business 
 for I think 5 years. I knew him and frequently amused 
 myself by watching him at work, but more than that, he 
 printed my first publication a 4-page commentary on the 
 Lord's Prayer ! Up till the time of Mott's arrival, all the 
 East-Bourne printing had been done at Hailsham, first 
 by George Breads, followed by his son Stephen Breads 
 and his grandsons Alfred and Morgan Breads. Alfred 
 died and Morgan took to the turf with the usual results 
 of doing so. The Hailsham business is still in the 
 hands of the Breads' family under another name. The 
 foundation of the business goes back to the beginning 
 of the 19th Century. 
 
 After Mott, the next East-Bourne printer was Cyrus 
 Clark, who, in July 1859, added the printing of a 
 newspaper, the East-Bourne Gazette, to his ordinary 
 business. He was followed by a very cantankerous man 
 \V. S. Doeg, who, judging by his character quite as much 
 as by his name, must have been a relation of Doeg the 
 Edomite, of whom we read in Scripture. Doeg sold 
 his business and paper to one, Samuel Hayward, who
 
 246 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 carried on the paper on Conservative lines for a year or 
 two, and then sold it to his political opponents. Mr. T. S. 
 Gowland did not take to printing until some years after 
 he took over the Library. 
 
 AN OLD-STYLE DINNER, 1827. 
 
 In Lord Broughton's Recollection s( a \ under the date 
 of July 7, 1827, there occurs the following entry : 
 
 "Dined at Devonshire House; 38 at table, and a scene of magnificence 
 which I have never before seen. More than 20 servants, of whom about 12 
 in full dress with ruffles, white gloves and swords so that the guests looked 
 very shabby in comparison with the attendants. The Duke of Sussex was 
 there ... In the evening we had no amusement except from a talking 
 bird just arrived from Malabar." 
 
 It was the 6th Duke of Devonshire who gave this dinner. 
 I never before met with a notice of swords being worn 
 in the full dress of livery servants. This Duke kept up 
 the old style, I fancy, to the end of his life. At any 
 rate, I remember seeing him drive into Buxton from 
 Chatsworth one day, in the autumn of ] 856, in a carriage 
 and 4 with postillions although Chatsworth is only a few 
 miles from Buxton. 
 
 A DRIVE IN DERBYSHIRE. 
 
 The following incident must have occurred in the 
 year 1829 : 
 
 " Some 40 years ago an old lady and a young nephew arrived at an Inn in 
 Derbyshire one evening in the course of a tour through the picturesque 
 county. Anxious to make an early start the next morning, they endeavoured 
 to bespeak the only pair of post horses possessed by the Innkeeper ; but their 
 efforts were in vain. The said horses had already been ordered for Lord 
 
 C and his bride, making their wedding trip and sleeping in the house 
 
 that very night. Said the fussy old lady or the young nephew, ' Let us have 
 them first ; we will start early : we have not far to go : the horses will be 
 back in plenty of time for Lord C. who is sure to be down late for breakfast/ 
 The Innkeeper was, however, inexorable : ' he dared not play his Lordship 
 a trick.' But the old lady's prophecy was correct. Lord C. was very late for 
 breakfast : and she might well have had the first turn with the horses, and his- 
 Lordship would still have had his horses ready when he himself was ready. 
 
 Lord C. is now Duke of D , but his bride's kindness and goodwill to 
 
 all who came in contact with her are things which remain engraven on the 
 memories of only a few. Whether his Grace is still late for breakfast we know 
 not.' Sussex Tim*-*, September 1, 1879. 
 
 (a) Recollections of a Long Lift', vol. iii, p. 207.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Holker Hall. 247 
 
 A VISIT TO HOLKER HALL. 
 
 On September 27, 1888, my wife and I were taking 
 a trip on Lake Windermere in company with Mr. J. T. 
 Hibbert, M.P., and amongst our fellow passengers was 
 Lady Edward Cavendish with some relatives. She 
 asked us whether we were staying in the neighbourhood, 
 and if so whether we could go over and lunch at Holker 
 Hall and see her father, who would be glad to hear 
 tidings of things and people at East-Bourne. We 
 accepted the invitation, and the next day found ourselves 
 at the Hall, driving thither across country from 
 Hampsfield and Cartwell. Arrived there we were 
 ushered into a drawing room which at the moment was 
 empty, and so we amused ourselves by examining the 
 pictures. After a short time a cleric, evidently a Bishop, 
 came into the room, stared at us, walked to the far end 
 of the room, and resumed his writing. We resumed our 
 examination of the pictures. Suddenly we came to one 
 to which my wife called my attention saying " Look here, 
 this is a picture of Tresco Abbey in the Scilly Islands."( a ) 
 No sooner had she uttered the words, than a hard voice 
 from the far corner of the room shouted out, " No it 
 t'aynt." The speaker was the Bishop of London 
 (Temple). Soon after, Lady Louisa Egerton and her 
 husband, Admiral Egerton, M.P., her sister-in-law, Lady 
 Edward Cavendish with Mr. Victor Cavendish (the 
 present Duke) entered the room and we were formally 
 introduced to the famous Bishop, and made an 
 acquaintance with him which he revived on his coming 
 to Lambeth. The peculiar timbre of his voice remained 
 till the end, and I was fortunate enough to hear him 
 make his famous last speech in the House of Lords on 
 December 4, 1902, on the Education Bill of that year. 
 But this is a long digression from Holker Hall. I need 
 hardly say that the old Duke's conversation included a 
 good deal of historic matter connected with East-Bourne, 
 a remark which also applies to the conversation of the 
 2 ladies, but the details of which I do not give. 
 
 (a) The property of Mr. Smith-Dorrien, a cousin of my wife's.
 
 248 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 The Dukes of Devonshire had a statutory right, I 
 believe to compel the stoppage of any train at the Cork 
 and Cart well station which is on their property, so on. 
 the afternoon of the day we were at Holker, a train 
 which was not timed to stop was ordered to stop to pick 
 us up, the Duke sending us there in one of his carriages. 
 I suppose this right attaches to the new owner of Holker, 
 Lord R. Cavendish, M.P. 
 
 FIRE ENGINES. 
 
 In 1846 when a new pond was constructed at 
 The Gore and it was desired to fill it, it was settled that 
 the necessary water should, in the first instance, be 
 obtained from the Motcombe Pond, and that the Parish 
 Fire-engine with its hose should be borrowed for the 
 purpose. I need hardly say that in this business I took 
 the keenest interest, for I suppose there is nothing that 
 small boys enter into with greater zest than playing 
 with water and getting wet and dirty. I have a vivid 
 recollection of this old Parish engine of ancient date, and 
 an engine still alive at Rye is very like the old East- 
 Bourne engine which is recorded in the Parish books as 
 bought at the comparatively modern date of 1824. This, 
 I suppose, is the engine as to which, an entry appears in 
 the Vestry Minute Book under date of November 15, 
 1838, to the effect that Mrs. Gilbert offered to take it off 
 the Parish and keep it in repair ready for use. I do not 
 know what became of it but think that it was probably 
 made away with in 1853. Why I suggest 1853 will 
 appear directly. I believe that in the " Fifties " this old 
 engine and a more modern one kept at Compton Place 
 constituted the sole protection against fire which existed 
 in the Parish. In January 1853 Major Willard's old 
 house The Grays, in which he had died only a few 
 months before, was almost entirely burnt to the ground, 
 and this event suggested that the time had come for the 
 Parish to be provided with a good modern fire-engine. 
 I had been much interested in the fire-engines exhibited 
 in the Great Exhibition of 1851 and I forthwith wrote
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Fire Engines. 249 
 
 from London to somebody in East-Bourne (I forget now 
 who) to suggest that the Parish should buy an engine of 
 the type of those exhibited by the old-established London 
 firm of " Shand & Mason, late Tilley." Soon after this, 
 such an engine was bought but I do not remember what 
 London firm provided it. Mr. Tilley had retired from 
 business, and many years afterwards when I was living 
 for a short time at Sydenham I made his acquaintance. 
 He was a most agreeable old gentleman. I need not go 
 farther into the modern history of fire-engines in East- 
 Bourne except to say that in that matter, as in most 
 others, the Town has kept pace with the times, and 
 about 1880 acquired 2 steam fire-engines, placed under 
 the control of the Local Board. The engines had painted 
 on them by way of dedication the names " Morrison " and 
 " Sutton " a piece of toadyism quite unprecedented, I 
 think, in the history of fire-engines. East-Bourne has 
 had a happy immunity from fires. The most serious 
 during my time was that at Peerless's timberyard on 
 November 17, 1876, when property of the estimated 
 value of 4000 or more was destroyed, and much injury 
 done to the backs of some of the houses in Terminus 
 Road and to Diplock's Brewery. The London and 
 Provincial Bank was at one time so much in danger 
 that it was deemed desirable to remove all the bullion 
 and books to a place of safety. 
 
 LORD RANDOLPH CHURCHILL. 
 
 So far as I know, " Randy " (to use the coloquial 
 name employed to designate him in the " Eighties ") 
 never came to East-Bourne ; at any rate, for any public 
 purpose, but it was not for want of asking. After the 
 lamentable results of the General Election of 1880, when 
 one of the greatest of English statesmen - - Lord 
 Beaconsfield was replaced by a man who left no mark 
 for good on the Statute Book of his country Mr. 
 Gladstone the fortunes of the Conservative Party sank 
 to a very low ebb, painfully accentuated by the death of 
 Lord Beaconsfield in 1881. To the regeneration of the
 
 250 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 Party no single man contributed in the way that Lord 
 Randolph Churchill did, and his decadence and extinction 
 was a national loss. His son, Mr. Winston Churchill, 
 seems in a certain degree to be treading in his father's 
 footsteps, and bids fair to reach, at no distant date, a 
 similar position of decadence and extinction. Those 
 who remember 1880 and the years which immediately 
 followed, will not have forgotten the fact that both in the 
 House of Commons, and in the country at large, Lord 
 Randolph by his speeches helped most materially to 
 revive and regenerate his Party. As a platform speaker, 
 his success was immense, and he was everywhere in 
 demand. Up to the time in question, no "Front Bench" 
 speaker on either side of Politics had ever appeared on 
 an East-Bourne platform, and I was deputed by the 
 Conservative Association or by the Primrose League (I 
 forget which) to obtain an interview with Lord Randolph, 
 and try and get him to promise a speech at East-Bourne. 
 Accordingly, I laid wait for him one day in the Members* 
 Lobby in the House of Commons (from which, owing to 
 the spread of " Liberal " principles, strangers are now 
 excluded), and Sir E. Ashmead Bartlett introduced me to 
 him. I need not say that the conversation was a highly 
 interesting one, but so far as my mission was concerned, 
 it was unfortunately a failure. He could hold out no 
 hopes of coming to East-Bourne in the near future, 
 because, he said, he was overwhelmed with invitations, 
 and felt it his duty to reserve his time and strength for 
 the large towns which comprised considerable working 
 class populations. This view was obviously not 
 unreasonable, and I could not press the claims of 
 East-Bourne as responding to the conditions laid down 
 by the noble Lord for his own guidance. My failure was 
 doubly disappointing, because the future of politics in 
 East Sussex was not veiy well assured from the 
 Conservative standpoint, and we stood at that time in 
 need of such a fillip as a visit from Lord Randolph would 
 have given us.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Miscellaneous. 251 
 
 THE LANYON FAMILY. 
 
 East-Bourne cannot claim to have been the birth- 
 place of any men distinguished in the front rank of 
 English history. It is therefore necessary to make the 
 most of any of its children who have done anything. 
 I have already mentioned J. H. Mortimer, the painter, 
 and, connected with him at a later date, the name of 
 Lanyon, will be found in the Parish and other books, 
 and onwards from the middle of the 18th Century. 
 John J. Lanyon who in 1869 lived at 22 Sea-houses 
 (afterwards the Marine Parade), and subsequently at 3' 
 The Terrace, and died in 1835, had sons one of them,. 
 Charles, left East-Bourne to make his way in the world, 
 and was taken on as a pupil in the office of an Architect 
 and Engineer at Belfast. Being a young man clever 
 and enterprising, he soon got on, and marrying his 
 employer's daughter, acquired a high business standing 
 at Belfast. Eventually he became M.P. for the town in 
 1866, taking the place of Sir Hugh Cairns, then made a 
 Lord Justice, and who afterwards became Earl Cairns and 
 Lord Chancellor of England. Lanyon lost his seat in 
 1868 and did not seek to re-enter Parliament. I knew 
 him very well, and to the end of his life he kept up his 
 acquaintance with my family. The last time I saw him 
 at East-Bourne, was on an occasion when be brought to 
 The Gore his son, Colonel Sir William Owen Lanyon, 
 K.C.M.G., who made a name for himself some 30 years 
 ago in South Africa. Sir Charles Lanyon's greatest work 
 as an Architect was, I suppose, Queen's College, Belfast. 
 The houses now numbered 23, 25, 27 and 29 in Ocklynge 
 Road, were built from his designs for the coachmen and 
 gardeners employed at The Gore. Sir Charles's business 
 passed at his death to his son John, whom I visited at 
 Belfast in September 1893, when staying with Mr. and 
 Mrs. Alfred Jaffe, late of East-Bourne, who then lived 
 near Belfast. 
 
 "BREAD THE STAFF OF LIFE" (SOMETIMES). 
 Very little of the bread supplied to us now-a-days 
 deserves this title, but the bread now to be mentioned
 
 252 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 certainly did so. In the summer of 187 a cousin of 
 mine came to East-Bourne, and was anxious to see an 
 old friend of his from an inland county, who had settled 
 down in a house a few miles from East-Bourne, so I 
 drove him over. My cousin's friend was a bachelor, and 
 had as his housekeeper an old aunt, a lady of the old 
 school. When we sat down to luncheon, this lady 
 apologised for the bread being a little stale, and said 
 that they only baked once a week, and that " to-morrow " 
 was baking day. If she had not invited my attention to 
 the fact that the bread was 6 days old, I should never 
 have found it out, so fresh and sweet and nourishing it 
 .seemed to be. What was the secret of this ? It was, 
 that the bread was made of " Seconds " flour with 
 brewer's yeast and was baked in a brick oven. I have 
 no doubt that there were two other contributory factors : 
 that the flour was fresh English and not stale American ; 
 .and had been ground between mill stones and not 
 between metal rollers. It was once confessed to me by 
 an experienced miller in a large way of business, that 
 metal rollers squeeze most of the goodness out of the 
 corn. Whenever I have the chance, I always buy a loaf 
 made with stone-ground flour. There is a particular shop 
 at Oxford where splendid bread of the sort is sold. 
 
 WEDDINGS, 18461902. 
 
 Few social functions have undergone more change 
 in their attributes and surroundings during the time 
 embraced in this volume than weddings. Formerly, as 
 the Law required the ceremony to be completed by noon, 
 it was inevitable that the company should not be sent 
 away without a substantial and generally very sumptuous 
 and ornate luncheon, officially designated a " Breakfast." 
 Presents were only expected from the relations or very 
 .special friends of the happy (or unhappy) pair, and the 
 guests only were people coming within the category just 
 mentioned. There was none of the " playing to the 
 gallery," advertising, newspaper puffing, and political 
 electioneering which is now so common in connection
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Weddings, 18461902. 253> 
 
 with weddings. The first wedding which I remember 
 and I well remember it was that of my aunt, Miss 
 Emma Brodie, who on July 14, 1846, was married at St. 
 Mary's, Bryanston Square, to Mr. James Grace, a brother 
 of the Rev. H. Grace, then Vicar of Jevington. The first 
 East-Bourne wedding I attended was that of Miss Mary 
 Boileau, sister of Mrs. R. G. Graham, to Captain G. E. 
 Clarke, of the Sussex Artillery Militia, on July 17, 1856. 
 Next to that came the wedding of Fanny, second daughter 
 of the Rev. T. Pitman, to Mr. C. B. Locock, eldest son of 
 Sir Charles Locock, the celebrated London doctor, OIL 
 December 27, 1859. The wedding of a cousin on June 
 10, 1869, and that of Miss Somerset on April 17, 1879, 
 both celebrated at East-Bourne, were, I think, the two 
 last in East-Bourne at which I was ever asked to sit down 
 to the formal " Breakfast " described above. The guests- 
 numbered 50 in the former case. The law was altered 
 by an Act of Parliament passed in 1886, and it soon 
 became generally utilised, especially by economical 
 parents of brides, who made it the excuse for a more or 
 less cheap afternoon show of " light refreshments." 
 Why I think Miss Somerset's wedding repast must have- 
 been a sit-down one is because we lent them some 4 or 5 
 dozen plates and dishes, as the hired house in the 
 Upperton Road in which they were staying was deficient 
 in such things. The bride's father was General Somerset, 
 C.B., a Crimean officer. We kept up our acquaintance 
 with them for many years, and the last time I saw Miss 
 Somerset was when she, a widow, was living at Troy 
 House, Monmouth, which its owner, the Duke of Beaufort, 
 has since sold. I was shown there on October 2, 1891, 
 the cradle in which Henry V. (Henry of Monmouth) is 
 reputed to have been an inmate ; but I believe that this 
 honour is claimed for several antique cradles. Whilst on 
 the subject of weddings, I should like to make a practical 
 suggestion. Wedding programmes for use in Church 
 ought to be printed in black ink, not silver ink. The 
 last-named is often quite illegible if the Church is dark, 
 as too many Churches are now-a-days, owing to lack of 
 suitable windows, with suitable glass.
 
 254 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 SYLLABUB PARTIES. 
 
 My diaries during many years down to 1873, contain 
 records of summer outdoor gatherings of our friends at 
 " Syllabub Parties." I mention the matter because I 
 have never been asked to such a party elsewhere than to 
 my grandmother's house, The Gore : nor have I ever 
 heard the word used out of East-Bourne. I suppose it is 
 used, however, and the concoction itself is made by 
 somebody sometimes because the redoubtable " Mrs. 
 Beeton " gives a recipe for it. The word itself is given 
 in the Imperial Dictionary as " Old and Provincial 
 English and Scotch " and is denned there as " A dish 
 made by mixing wine and cider with cream or milk, and 
 thus forming a soft curd." Mrs. Beeton gives the 
 ingredients thus : 1 pint of sherry or white wine, of 
 a grated nutmeg, sugar to taste, 1-J pint of milk ; and if 
 cider is used, some brandy must always be added. I am 
 unable to say from memory how far this recipe accords 
 with that used at The Gore in the years that are past, 
 but Mrs. B. leaves out the climax of the business as I 
 always saw it practised. When the company were 
 assembled on the lawn, the tables being set out with 
 glasses and cakes, such as are now seen at garden 
 parties, and the mixture was ready all but the finishing 
 touch ; the finishing touch was given by a live cow being 
 driven on to the lawn and milked into the china bowl 
 which contained the preliminary mixture of ingredients. 
 I am quite certain that my grandmother would not have 
 tolerated the idea of a Syllabub party without a cow 
 being invited as one of the guests. The stuff, which 
 was quite good to drink, was served in large wine-glasses 
 or small tumblers, filled by means of a punch ladle, 
 which in the particular instance in question, had at its 
 bottom a 2-guinea piece of temp. George II. 
 
 A GARDEN PARTY AT COMPTON PLACE. 
 
 On July 28, 1900, the Duchess of Devonshire gave 
 a garden party at Compton Place. A very ill-mannered 
 attack was made on Her Grace in a local paper by a
 
 CHAP. XIX.] A " Compton Place " Garden Party. 255 
 
 certain Socialist-Radical which called forth the following 
 anonymous letter of comment, published in the East- 
 bourne Chronicle : 
 
 "Your correspondent, Mr. E. H. R. Brown, should be a very amusing man 
 quite a Japanese,in fact. By the way, who is he that he should be "receiving 1 
 letters by almost every post, especially from the rural districts " ? He seems 
 to insinuate that there is great danger that Her Grace of Devonshire will 
 captivate shaky Radicals. Seeing how captivating she is, would there be auy 
 wonder if shaky Radicals should fall under her spell ? Perhaps I can tell Mr. 
 Brown some news. Yet he is apparently so well posted up in most political 
 matters that nothing should be news to him. However, be that as it may, a 
 considerable number of his clients (as I suppose I ought to call them) asked to 
 be asked to the Compton Place party ! This, of course, is strictly in accordance 
 with precedent. There is no more thorough-going toady than your advanced 
 Democrat. Directly a live lord appears on the horizon the politician who 
 swears that " all men nre equal " makes for him in order to " kow-tow " to him, 
 and a live " dook " is an absolutely irresistible " draw." 
 
 Mr. Brown seems to have been much perturbed by this garden party, and 
 his inferences are not altogether consistent ; indeed, it is not easy to see why 
 he troubled himself about the matter. Perhaps he will be glad to have 
 explanations on some points. Though I went to the party I had no invitation. 
 There came to my house a card announcing that on July 28 the Duchess of 
 Devonshire would be " At Home." It sounded like a bald suggestion of an 
 intended fact, and it was this that induced me to go, having pleasant remem- 
 brances of a previous " At Home " to which I went, though the ex-Mayoress 
 did not ask me. There was nothing on the card in the least degree suggesting 
 that the gathering had any political complexion, and I went on that account, 
 having ceased to be a politician, if I ever was one. Even the not unfamiliar 
 letters, ll.S.V.P. ("Refuwz s'il vous plait "Say 'No' if you like") were not 
 there, and their omission coupled with the fact, that there were words inviting 
 an answer to the Compton Place Estate Office entirely divested the gathering 
 of all political oharncter and brought it rather within the nature of an 
 advertisement of a proposed Bale of land or growing crops or shorthorns 
 certainly not a political entertainment. 
 
 Perhaps, as Mr. Brown has directly raised some political points, I may be 
 allowed to mention what seem to me some really important issues awaiting 
 solution at this moment. I was told that a certain Mr. Lindsay Hogg was 
 present at the party, accompanied by a charming lady who looked an ideal 
 M.P. 's wife, but nobody offered to introduce me to them. Surely this would 
 have been done if they had been there for any political purpose. As regards 
 this Mr. Hogg, if he were there and is a candidate for Parliamentary honours 
 (save the mark!), it remains to be seen whether his principles are sound. I 
 myself belong to the Party of Progress (Mr. Brown's party, if I mistake not), 
 and I will not vote for any man who will not give plenty of pledges and 
 promises to support at least three-fourths of my favourite hobbies. 
 
 First and foremost I will not vote for anybody who will not reduce the 
 price of coals to 15s. a ton. Why should I ? Coal is the question of the hour 
 at this moment with the thermometer at 90 degrees in the shade. Hardly less 
 important than this I put the absurd Customs Duty now enforced by a wicked 
 Tory Government on foreign Eau de Cologne. This is really an outrageous 
 impost. I shall require my M.P. to promise a grant from the Treasury for an 
 electric tramway to Beachy Head. He must be willing to abolish vaccination 
 (including, of course, such incidentals as small-pox and typhoid). He must 
 promise to plunder the Church and share its revenues between the Dissenters 
 and the Home for Lost and Starving Cats. To this I attach great importance, 
 as the only remedy for countless evils now afflicting the English body politic. 
 The relief of destitute starving cats by the Poor Law Guardians is one of my 
 particular hobbies, far more important than the relief of bipeds men and 
 women. Another very important pledge which I shall require from my
 
 256 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX, 
 
 candidate is that he will bring in a Bill to enact that no trains on the Brighton. 
 Railway shall arrive more than a quarter-of-an-hour late, except on days of 
 thunderstorms. A certificate by a Government Inspector of Thunderstorm* 
 will be a defence against proceedings under the Act. 
 
 Your readers will see, and I hope Mr. Brown will see, that though I went 
 to the Compton Place Garden Party I am not going to be caught by "any 
 thinly-disguised bait," and that if he has ready to hand a suitable C. B. 
 puppet of the right sort (that is, of my sort), I will vote for him and will have 
 nothing to do with Mr. Lindsay Hogg or any other so-called Imperialist 
 patriots whose sole idea seems to be to magnify Queen Victoria, Lord 
 Salisbury (a most incapable Foreign Minister) and gloat over the Battles of 
 Waterloo and Trafalgar (two most regretable incidents in English history). 
 Far better sell Gibraltar and make Mr. Labouchere Foreign Secretary and Dr. 
 Clark, M.P., Colonial Secretary and Gustos Rotulorum. I hope Mr. Brown 
 will agree with me on these points, and not think that though I went to the- 
 Compton Place party I have swallowed auy "thinly-disguised bait." I 
 enclose my name, but please, Mr. Editor, not for publication, as I desire to- 
 remain anonymous, not being up in the art of " writing to the papers." " 
 
 Yours ever, 
 
 G. F. C. 
 
 P.S. I am not sure that this is the proper ending. If wrong, pardon 
 my inexperience. 
 
 Beachy Head (in a sea fog), July 30, 1900. 
 
 How FICTION MAY BECOME "HISTORY." 
 
 Some 30 years ago there appeared in a local paper 
 a statement to the effect that the Rev. G. M. Cooper, 
 Vicar of Wilmington, had been Tutor to the 7th Duke 
 of Devonshire, and that the Duke, then Mr. Cavendish, 
 had once met with a serious accident out hunting near 
 Beachy Head. Anxious to ascertain the facts I applied 
 to his sister for information and obtained the following 
 answer : 
 
 " My Brother most certainly never had any accident at Birling Gap. He 
 never wan with Mr. Cooper, but my cousin Col. Frederick Cavendish was hi 
 pupil not at Wilmington but here at The Grove about 50 years ago. I never 
 heard of his or Lord Chichester having any accident. I have heard Lord 
 Chichester say that, when he was a young man, he was at East-Bourne with 
 a tutor (not Mr. Cooper), Yours very sincerely, FANNY HOWABD." 
 
 It is the 3rd Earl of Chichester who is alluded to 
 above. After him came the 4th and 5th Earls both of 
 whom I knew from working with them one on the 
 County Council and the other on the Diocesan Confer- 
 ence Committee. 
 
 PIGS AS ENGINEERS. 
 
 Looking over the MS. journals of my uncle, Mr. 
 Walter Brodie, some time ago I came upon the following 
 " traveller's tale " :
 
 Plate XLVIII. 
 
 To face p. 256. 
 
 Fig. 86. 
 
 * y /<' 
 
 LOUISE, DUCHESS OF DEVONSHIRE.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Pigs as Engineers. 257 
 
 " 1843, March 8. On our way we saw a very extraordinary sight, pigs 
 manoeuvring how to get their young ones over the river. This was done hy the 
 older ones making a line, or bridge, by holding on to each other by their tails, 
 thus making a bridge for the little ones to cross on their backs." 
 
 The journals in question are full of extraordinary 
 adventures, all over the world, between 1827 and 1851. 
 Perhaps I shall edit them for publication one of these 
 days. 
 
 BANKS AT EAST-BOURNE. 
 
 In my earliest days, with the population of 
 East-Bourne so small as it was, there was naturally no 
 such thing as a Bank, and the first Bank was started in 
 this way. The Lewes firm of Molineux, Whitfeld & Co. 
 made an arrangement with a local tradesman (Mr. R. B. 
 Stone) to act as their agent. After a time this was found 
 to give insufficient facilities, and they empowered a Mr. 
 William Rason to open a miniature Bank as a Branch of 
 their Lewes establishment by attending 2 days a week 
 for the limited time of 3 hours a day, at No. 1, Cornfield 
 Terrace. The convenience of this soon became apparent 
 and appreciated, so it was only natural that in process of 
 time the 2 days should become 5, and the 5 become 6, 
 with the daily hours much extended. As the town grew 
 and the business grew, so the one room at Cornfield 
 Terrace became insufficient, and a whole house was taken 
 in the Terminus Road. Still developements went on ; 
 changes of house took place, and eventually in 1896 the 
 present palatial building, which bears the name of 
 Barclay & Co., was erected. I for one was sorry to see 
 disappear the names of Molineux and Whitfeld, which 
 had been associated with banking business in Sussex in 
 connection with the name " Lewes Old Bank " more or 
 less since 1789. The first rival Bank was the " English 
 Joint Stock Bank," of London, which opened a branch 
 and vanished. One day in April, 1872, when seated in 
 my chambers at the Temple, my clerk announced that a 
 solicitor, Mr. C. E. Lewis, wished to see me. Knowing 
 Mr. Lewis, and he knowing me, of course my mind 
 quickly scented a brief. When Mr. Lewis was ushered 
 s
 
 258 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 in, it, was true that he wanted my opinion, but he had 
 not come to pay for it, and it was not on a point of law. 
 He wanted to know whether I thought there was an 
 opening for another Bank in East-Bourne. This was 
 rather a difficult question to answer, and I felt the 
 responsibility of answering it. All that I did, therefore, 
 was to give Mr. Lewis some information as to the 
 population of the place, and general probabilities. I 
 suppose he relied upon my statements, for after no long 
 interval I heard that the London and Provincial Bank, of 
 which Mr. Lewis was a Director, had taken a house in 
 the Terminus Road, and had opened it as a Branch of 
 their London Bank. That is about all I know regarding 
 Banks and Banking at East-Bourne, except that 
 somewhere about the same time a man named Flint 
 started a Banking business of sorts in the Terminus 
 Road, and called himself " The East- Bourne Bank." 
 But I need not specify further the place to which Mr. 
 Flint and his Bank soon went. 
 
 SUSSEX COACHES IN 1804. 
 
 The following advertisement appeared in The Times 
 of November 29, 1804 :- 
 
 Hastings, Rye, and Tunbridge expeditious elegant new Coach, every 
 morning at half-past five. 
 
 Lewes, Uckfield, Maresfield, and East Grinstead Coaches, every morning 
 at 7. 
 
 Bognor, and the Rocks, a Bathing Place on the Sussex Coast, much 
 admired for its fine Sand, a new Coach, every morning at half-past 6. 
 
 Chichester, Midhurst, and Haslemere new Telegraph Coaches, every 
 morning at half-past 6. 
 
 Brighton new Coaches of all descriptions, every morning at 7, 8, and 9, 
 and every night at 10. The Public are particularly requested to notice that 
 the above Coaches are quite new, and travel very fast, going by all the 
 different routes to Brighton. 
 
 Worthing, a Bathing Place on the coast of Sussex, much admired, and the 
 late residence of part of the Itoyal Family, new and elegant Coaches, every 
 morning at 7. 
 
 Eastbourn, light elegant Summer Coach, every morning at 6. 
 
 All the coaches from London to all England seem to 
 have started from the Golden Cross, Charing Cross, if 
 one interprets literally the long advertisement from 
 which the above entries are extracted.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Early in the 19th Century. 259 
 
 EAST-BOURNE IN 1809. 
 
 " Eastbourne, September 7th [1809]. 
 
 "This little bathing-place is thronged with families of the first 
 distinction ; not a house, or even a lodging, can be obtained on any terms. 
 
 " The theatre is well attended ; the performance on Saturday was patronized 
 by Lord Bradford and the officers of his regiment (the Shropshire Militia) and 
 produced a bumper. 
 
 "The ball at the Lamb Inn on Monday boasted an overflow of fashionable 
 company. The parade is delightfully situated close to the sea; and all the 
 officers of the 2nd Surrey and Shropshire Regiments, with that politeness 
 which distinguishes these gentlemen, send their bands every evening for the 
 amusement of the company. 
 
 "Since the "Iris" frigate has been on this station the French privateers 
 have not dared to renew their visits to this part of the coast." (Globe, 
 September 9, 1809.) 
 
 The Iris was an ex-French corvette of 24 guns, 
 captured off the Texel on January 2, 1809, by H.M.S. 
 Aimable, so her captors dfd not lose much time in 
 utilising her. No doubt the Aimable had also been 
 originally French. (See James, Naval History, vol. v., 
 p. 147.) I have been unable to recover any account of 
 ^the visits of French privateers to the Sussex coast. 
 
 EAST-BOURNE IN 1812. 
 
 A certain Mr. Mayow Adams, who then resided at 
 iSydenham, told Sir G. Grove in 1890 that 
 
 " In 1812 or 1813 he was at East-Bourne and, being out with his nurse, 
 was terribly frightened by a loud explosion ; it was the guns in the fort 
 firing at a French ship which had come too close to the shore. He remembers 
 the balls ricochetting along the top of the waves ; also his fear for 2 men who 
 were sitting down under the fort." (Grove's Life of Sir G. Grove, p. 360.) 
 
 EAST-BOURNE BATHING IN 1819. 
 
 The following extract from the 1819 edition of 
 'East-Bourne and its Environs contains a fair mixture of 
 fact and romance, and indicates that Daily Mail methods 
 were not altogether novel even a century ago : 
 
 '' East-bourne has one great advantage over other watering-places on this 
 coast, in the circumstance of all the fleets navigating the Channel, usually 
 coming close in shore, though when opposite to Brighton they are obliged to 
 keep a very great offing, and are seldom perceptible. The bathing here may be 
 equalled, but cannot be surpassed for the purity and cleanliness of the water, 
 as there is not a drain of any description falls into it, for many miles on either 
 side (a great contrast to many fashionable watering-places on this coast), and 
 it seldom happens that any person is deprived of one day's bathing in the 
 season. The machines are very excellent, and the guides unremitting in their 
 attentions. Here also are very commodious warm baths, lately built at a 
 considerable expense by Mrs. Webb, wherein every accommodation has been 
 strictly studied. The sands here are very fine and dry, and they form a
 
 260 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 pleasant promenade both for the pedestrian and equestrian ; and here is an 
 abundance of sociable*, and pony and donkey chaises for the accommodation 
 of invalids. Parties enjoying aquatic excursions may be much gratified with 
 good boats, conveniently fitted up, and conducted by men who have a thorough 
 knowledge of the tides, and are well versed in nautical skill ; they are likewise 
 much respected for their civility." (p. 14.) 
 
 SEA-BATHING. 
 
 Sea-bathing at East-Bourne is supposed to date from 
 about the year 1802 or 1803. The story goes that there 
 lived at the Old Town a doctor named Gibbs of high 
 reputation in those days, and with a large practice, the 
 latter statement depending on the fact that there was no 
 other medical practitioner nearer than Lewes or Hastings. 
 He quitted his house at the Old Town for one which he 
 built in South Street ; after that, building others at the 
 seaside on the Marine Parade. He is said to have been 
 the first to appreciate the value of sea-bathing, and to 
 have designed the first bathing-machine, for the use of 
 his son. When this was wheeled down from the Old 
 Town, it and he were followed by a crowd of people, who 
 said that the doctor had built a box in which to drown 
 his son. Sure and certain it is, that having regard to 
 the inartistic architecture of the existing bathing- 
 machines, one can well believe that the original design 
 was more than 100 years old ; indeed, that the original 
 design was borrowed from Noah's Ark. As a boy, I did 
 not like sea-bathing, and it was not until I was 16 that I 
 ever took to it. But since 1857, I think, I have never 
 missed a single year at East-Bourne, always trying to 
 keep up an average of 1 bathe a week as far as possible. 
 Of course, sea-bathing does not agree with everybody, 
 but it always suited me ; and at the end of seasons in 
 which I have been able to obtain as many as 20 bathes, 
 I have always felt freshened up in a remarkable degree. 
 Strips of carpet used to be provided in the East-Bourne 
 machines for bathers to stand upon, but they have long 
 since disappeared. 
 
 A FANCY-DRESS BALL. 
 
 The only one I remember in East-Bourne, or at any 
 rate ever went to, was given by Mrs. J. H. C. Coles, the
 
 Plate XLIX. 
 
 To face p. 260. 
 
 Figs. 8788. 
 
 Lavis, Kast-Bourne. Copyright. 
 
 BALLOON ASCENT AT THE SCHOOLS BAZAAR, 
 
 June, 1895. 
 
 THE AUTHOR'S STUDY AT "NORTHFIELD GRANGE,' 1903.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] A Fancy Dress Ball 261 
 
 wife of the Town Clerk, on January 31, 1883, at the 
 Queen s Hotel. It was certainly a success from a 
 picturesque point of view. I went simply as a barrister 
 in wig and gown. At the request of our hostess the 
 guests were afterwards photographed by Lavis in their 
 several costumes ; and the collection, no doubt, made up 
 a very interesting album, but I never saw it, so only 
 jump at the conclusion. 
 
 A CHINA (NOT CHINESE) STORY. 
 
 In 1878 there sojourned in East-Bourne in a house 
 of their own a certain Major and Mrs. > with a 
 
 dear little daughter named Hazel. They all lunched 
 with us on October 26. This fixes a date antecedent to 
 my story, the exact date of which I am unable to furnish 
 nearer than " the summer of 1879." The major belonged 
 to the Rifle Brigade and, in process of time, was ordered 
 to India and went, leaving behind him a furnished house 
 in Wilmington Square which his agent had instructions 
 to let. It was visited by a Jewish person who was a 
 china fancier ; he noticed in the drawing-room a pair of 
 vases which he saw to be valuable, and he went to the 
 house agent and offered to purchase for 3000 the whole 
 house and its contents as it stood, alleging that his 
 invalid wife wanted to go into a house all ready for her 
 without the trouble of furnishing one. The agent stated 
 that he had no authority to sell, only to let. The Jew 
 asked whether he could not obtain authority. The 
 owner's brother living in England, being consulted, 
 recommended a telegram being sent to the owner in 
 India stating the offer. The telegram was sent, and the 
 answer came back with inconsiderate haste authorising 
 the acceptance of the offer. The Jewish person on his 
 part lost no time in completing his bargain, and, having 
 thus got possession of the vases, quietly packed them off 
 to London and sold them for 10,000 ! It may well be 
 supposed that the Major afterwards regretted his prompt 
 acceptance. The substance of the story I can vouch for 
 because after I had written a paragraph on the subject in
 
 262 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 a local paper, the purchaser's solicitor called on me and 
 tried to explain but did not deny the main facts. I 
 rather think that he threatened me with an action for 
 libel, but it never came off. 
 
 THE STORY OF A CLOCK. 
 
 The following incident was related to me some 
 years ago by an old lady in Somersetshire who was some 
 relation of the gentleman concerned. I believe that at 
 the period in question, landings on the coast of Sussex 
 by Royalists escaping from France were not uncommon,, 
 and that fact justifies me in including the narrative in 
 this volume. 
 
 One stormy night in or about the year 1794, an old 
 clergyman living in his parsonage house on the coast of 
 Dorsetshire, was roused by a knock at his front door, and 
 found outside in great distress a French lady, who, to- 
 save her life, had come across to England in a fishing 
 boat. She asked for hospitality, and obtained it at once. 
 Host and hostess on the one hand, and stranger on the 
 other were so mutually pleased with one another, that 
 the stranger's sojourn was extended to 6 months. At 
 the end of that time she ascertained that it was safe for 
 her to return to France and did so, profoundly thanking 
 the old parson and his wife for their kindness, and 
 expressing deep regret that she was destitute of money 
 to repay them. Some years later, the clergyman received 
 notice from the Custom House at Dover, that a box had 
 arrived at the Custom House which would be sent 
 on to him on his remitting the sum of 6. He refused 
 to do this, saying that he expected nothing from France, 
 and least of all was inclined to speculate to the amount 
 of 6. After another interval of several years, the old 
 clergyman died, and the Dover correspondence came 
 into the hands of his son, who, unlike his father, was of 
 a speculative turn of rnind. So he put himself in 
 communication with Dover, heard that the box was still 
 there, paid the 6, and received the box. On opening 
 it he found inside a beautiful " Louis Quatorze " clock
 
 CHAP. XIX.] The Story of a Clock. 263 
 
 of great value. That clock may now be seen at Castle 
 Gary in Somersetshire, and may be considered as worth 
 100 at the least. I mention that sum because I have 
 seen the clock, and been able to compare it with a clock 
 presented a great many years ago to a local doctor by 
 the old Duke of Devonshire and his brothers and sister for 
 special services rendered to their mother. This last clock 
 was in my keeping for some years at Northfield Grange, 
 and when it was noticed on an occasion by a local 
 jeweller, he offered me 100 for it. Of course, I could 
 not sell it because it did not belong to me, but the price 
 put upon it was an index to the value of the clock at 
 Castle Gary, whose romantic history I have detailed. 
 
 Perhaps I may here mention a relic of the French 
 Revolution which has been in my possession for 60 years 
 and more. An old nurse who ended her days in 1856 
 in the Brodie family at The Gore, was in her early years 
 a servant in the employ of a French General Trapaud, 
 an emigre of the Terror period. Amongst his property 
 brought from France was an oak box. That box, which 
 cannot now be less than 116 years old, I have fitted up 
 as a muniment chest, and it is now doing useful service ; 
 and it promises to be as sound and seaworthy a century 
 hence as it was a century ago. The name ' Trapaud,* 
 written in ink, is still decipherable on the outside. 
 
 LINKS WITH THE PAST. 
 
 The following letter, dated from Normanhurst, 
 Compton Street, East-Bourne, appeared in The Times of 
 July 15, 1910 : 
 
 " Sir, A year or two ago there was some correspondence in your journal 
 on the subject of "Links with the Past." You may possibly think it worth 
 while to insert my case. My father was born in 1750, and I was born in 1819 
 (when he was 69). I attained my 9lst birthday on the 3rd of last month 
 (June). That is to say, our joint lives have extended 160 years. My relations 
 think this is unique, and I have been persuaded to let you know, as I am told 
 that it, at any rate, is a record which heats anything that has yet been made 
 public. I am, yours faithfully, LETITIA JANE FORDE." 
 
 This letter evoked others in competition, but none 
 came near it. Some of them might be paraphrased thus : 
 " My grandfather's great aunt's grandmother was a
 
 264 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 Lady-in- Waiting in her younger days to Edward the 
 Third's wife, Queen Philippa." 
 
 SUNDAY LEAGUE EXCURSIONS TO EASTBOURNE. 
 
 The following newspaper cutting has lost none of 
 its applicability by the efflux of time. At a much later 
 date I saw a notice by the Chief Constable of Salisbury, 
 warning householders to watch their doors and property 
 on a certain Sunday, because the National Sunday League 
 intended to patronise the city. 
 
 " Judging by the Police Reports, we trust that a long time will elapse 
 ere the town of East-Bourne is flooded again by excursionists, assembled by 
 the National Sunday League, as on September 9. Whenever that mischievous 
 Society pours its hundreds into a town, noise, drunkenness, and dissipation is 
 the inevitable legacy which the natives have to endure. To everybody except 
 to the beershop- keepers these Sunday Leaguers are an intolerable nuisance 
 This will be found the testimony of the respectable inhabitants alike of 
 Hastings, Seaford, Littlehampton, Dorking, and Portsmouth. These Leaguers 
 did not come to East-Bourne on September 9 without leaving 2 of their 
 number to be locked up and fined 7*. 6rf. with costs, for being drunk and 
 disorderly on the Parade. We venture to tender an earnest remonstrance to 
 the Railway Company never again to bring any more " National Sunday 
 League" excursionists to East-Bourne. (Sussex Times, November 1, 1883). 
 
 A LADIES' COMMITTEE. 
 
 During my membership of the East Sussex County 
 Council, it fell to my lot on many occasions to preside 
 over a Committee of Ladies concerned in the manage- 
 ment of the Technical School for Girls at Lewes. I 
 shall not disclose or comment on my experiences there 
 beyond remarking that I always found it very difficult 
 to keep the ladies to the point immediately under 
 discussion ; with one noble exception every lady nearly 
 always wished to speak on two totally different subjects 
 at the same time, the second subject being generally the 
 one which had already been settled some minutes 
 previously ! 
 
 The difficulty of keeping lady speakers to a denned 
 line was amusingly shown some years ago at East-Bourne. 
 There existed then (and perhaps still) a Committee of 
 Ladies formed for the definite purpose of looking after 
 friendless girls and raising money for the purpose. At 
 one of their meetings they passed a resolution to grant
 
 CHAP. XIX.] A Ladies' Committee. 265 
 
 10 for a friendless boy ! The fact that this was a 
 flagrant breach of Trust Funds escaped notice at the 
 time, but at the next meeting a lady, connected with an 
 eminent London firm of solicitors, saw through the great 
 irregularity, and very properly proposed and carried a 
 resolution that the grant should be cancelled. 
 
 A " LIBERAL " DINNER AT EAST-BOURNE. 
 
 A "Liberal" Dinner held on February 4, 1881, 
 seems to have been a remarkable success, unless the 
 East-Bourne Gazette is to be deemed a biassed authority. 
 The following laudatory notice in a Gazette leader : 
 
 "Some gentlemen, for instance, could get nothing to eat, although there 
 was an abundance of good things provided by the caterers ; many were obliged 
 to remain satisfied with the homely fare of cheese and celery ; others had to 
 rest supremely contented with a few tarts, and the majority had to do with a 
 little soup, a iimited supply of the rotis, and 'just a taste' of plum pudding." 
 
 A correspondent of the same paper evidently a 
 wag in his way says : 
 
 " Some complained of the waiting. I consider the waiting was perfection. 
 I had 3 servings, and waited half-an-hour between each. I could not have 
 waited much longer ; so I think there is not much to complain of there." 
 
 I take it that " Liberal " Dinners in these days in 
 East-Bourne are better done, but I cannot speak from 
 experience as I seldom attend " Liberal " Dinners. 
 
 THE WRECK OF THE "NYMPHA AMERICANA." 
 
 It will be seen by an inspection of the engraving of 
 this event which appears in Plate XXVII. , that a large 
 amount of explanatory matter is attached. No very 
 good purpose would be served by quoting the details. 
 The reader will form his own judgement as to how far 
 the artist, by name Barrodell Lambert, is to be relied 
 upon. I merely refer to the matter again in this place 
 in order to note that Major Molineux informs me that 2 
 engravings of this shipwreck were published, a large 
 and a small one, but I only remember to have seen the 
 small one. The reproduction given in this volume is 
 from a copy kindly lent me for the purpose by Mr. F. H. 
 Emary.
 
 266 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX, 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS OF DR. BRODIE. 
 
 I have been favoured by the loan of a number of old 
 letters written by Dr. Brodie, 1803-1828, to his only 
 sister Mrs. O'Connor. These letters are now in the 
 possession of Mrs. O'Connor's grandson (and therefore 
 my cousin), Mr. J. Sweetman, of Dublin. From these 
 letters, I have made some extracts bearing on East-Bourne 
 history. 
 
 Sir Arthur Piggott, M.P. is thus alluded to by Dr. 
 Brodie in a letter dated February 6, 1816. It should be 
 explained that he had been employed to draw a Bill in 
 Chancery in connection with some Brodie property : 
 
 " Sr. A. Piggott would settle the Bill since which I have not heard a word 
 of the proceedings. Sr. Arthur was idle at Eastbourn flirting wh Miss Nap 
 instead of looking over papers (who by the by has since lost her father and 
 that within a few days after he left Eastbourn) Sr. Arthur tells his friends 
 in London that Eastbourn is retired and therefore a proper place for to look 
 over papers At Eastbourn he tells us that he comes here for his health, to- 
 retreat from business ; not to prose over papers." 
 
 The Gilbert family are frequently mentioned in Dr. 
 Brodie's letters. Thus under date of February 6, 1816, 
 I find : 
 
 " There is a sad to-do in the Church here, raising the dead that have been 
 buried for two hundred years past. Gilbert's death, which took place on the 
 1st inst. here, has occasioned an uproar among his ancestors' bones, for the 
 purpose of building him a vault to deposit his remains. At present, it is 
 unknown what disposition of property he has made, as he desired that his will 
 may not be opened till he was buried. Giddy is here, and appears in good 
 spirits. It is the general opinion that he has locked up all his property to the 
 children of Mrs. Giddy, with a handsome provision to Mrs. Gilbert for her life. 
 However, a few days will put us in possession of the secret." 
 
 In a subsequent letter, dated March 17, 1816, I 
 find: 
 
 " The death of Gilbert gave Mrs. Gilbert the use of her brother's property 
 for her life, then to Mrs. Giddy Mr. Giddy, and afterwards to his children 
 in fail of issue to the Haverfield family ; in fail of issue then, to the then Lord 
 Northampton in tail. Mrs. Gilbert has, I am sorry to say, paid the like debt 
 of her brother, she died on Saturday evening at 7 o'clock wh the disorder 
 which is very prevalent here, the influenza. Mrs. Giddy is now in possession 
 and, I am confident, will keep it. She has began her reign by a frugal act of 
 burying her aunt without a leaden coffin. The aunt gave lead to her brother 
 the niece thinks it superflous. Man wants but little h*re below, and thai 
 little not long. I presume Mrs. Giddy reads the woril ' below,' to mean the 
 grave, and therefore the less encumbrance the better, as time will be com- 
 paratively short when slie will assume another substance. This lady was sent 
 for, express to London, as her aunt was dying; but as frugality is always 
 commendable she left London in her own carriage which brought her half way, 
 while in the meantime she wrote to her dying aunt to send her carriage to
 
 CHAP. XIXJ Dr. Brodie s Letters. 26T 
 
 meet her. What was the consequence ? She wrote to her aunt at the moment 
 she left London, of course the letter could not arrive before the morrow, and 
 then too late for the carriage to set off in time to meet her ; but as expedition 
 was not so much the object as the expense of porting the boy arrived in good time 
 although after he had got to Maresfield he was obliged to wait four hours to 
 rest his horses so after thirty-six hours spent frugally on the road she arrived 
 express from London just in time to see her aunt before she died. Elwes, 
 thou art a prince in comparison to this hopeful set ! " 
 
 Under date of August 31, 1824, Dr. Brodie writes to 
 his sister as follows : 
 
 " East-Bourne is as full as it can well hold, and very respectable ; we had 
 more gentlemen's carriages at Church last Sunday than I have s^en for many 
 years, and the Church so crowded that many were obliged to leave for want of 
 seats. Mrs. Gilbert is disposed neither to let for a short time, or a long time, 
 TTpperton. She has had many applications for it, and that being the case, she 
 does not know what to ask for the letting, nor to whom to let it. In short, she- 
 is as contrai y as she can be." 
 
 Under date of February 25, 1824, Dr. Brodie 
 writing to his sister, makes two allusions which have 
 some modern interest. First of all he mentions the 
 departure from East-Bourne of a certain Mrs. Cazalet, 
 who had been the occupier of what is generally known 
 as the Upperton Farm House. A daughter of this Mrs. 
 Cazalet afterwards became the wife of the Rev. W. 
 Upton Richards, well-known many years later as the 
 first Incumbent of All Saints' Church, Margaret Street, 
 London. The second allusion is to a recommendation 
 made of a certain Captain Ranking for employment under 
 Captain Franklin. The first named Captain was, I 
 believe, a son of the principal East-Bourne doctor of the 
 period, whilst Captain Franklin was the distinguished 
 Arctic Navigator, who was then preparing for his 
 celebrated expedition in search of the North Pole. I 
 take it for granted that this chain of incidents connecting 
 East-Bourne with the North Pole was due to the fact 
 that Mr. Davies Gilbert was President of the Royal 
 Society, and therefore in touch with all kinds of scientific 
 efforts. 
 
 The wreck of the Thames is thus alluded to by Dr, 
 Brodie in a letter to his sister, dated February 5, 1822 : 
 
 " This place since Sunday morning early has been in a state of great 
 confusion and bustle occasioned by the wreck of an Eastindiaman of 1500 tons 
 burden, near the Eleven-gun Battery. The report is that seven lives are lost. 
 The vessel is stranded, but not destroyed. She may get off again, and be of 
 further service."
 
 268 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 PENALTIES ATTACHING TO AUTHORSHIP. 
 
 " H&tn aw Letters far gou." (Henry IF., pt. i.) 
 
 One of the consequences of being an author is, as I 
 know to my cost, that people, often strangers, write to 
 you sending addenda and corrigenda, interlarded some- 
 times with abuse. It has been my fate to receive many 
 such letters. Not unfrequently however they furnish 
 useful material for subsequent editions. From some of 
 the letters which I have received during the last 30 or 
 40 years, I now give a few extracts which may be deemed 
 of permanent value so far as East-Bourne histoiy is 
 concerned. 
 
 At a meeting of the East-Bourne Natural History 
 Society on May 23, 1873, some discussion took place 
 respecting certain excavations then recently made for 
 the Devonshire Park Baths. I asked whether any 
 confirmation had been obtained of the supposition that 
 in Roman times, or later, there was a dock on the E. side 
 of the Wish promontory. The Rev. E. S. Dewick replied 
 that he doubted whether there ever had been such a 
 thing as a dock there. This discussion drew forth from 
 Mr. F. W. H. Cavendish a letter, dated May 28, 1873, 
 from which the following extracts are taken : 
 
 " With reference to that which you are reported to have said about the 
 wooden piles of the old Harbour and to Mr. Bewick's reply, I have always 
 understood, and in fact know from my long acquaintance with East-Bourne, 
 that the Sea has very much encroached at the Wish ; and I believe the old 
 Harbour story is quite true, for old piles are to be seen down on sands west of 
 the gentlemen's bathing places ; at least, they were there not many years ago. 
 I perfectly recollect them and make no doubt they are still visible at certain 
 times, according as to whether there is much or little sand. I have known the 
 Wish since 1827, and saw frequently the cottage on the Cliff about, where now 
 are the gentlemen's machines, and have heard the story of the Harbour from 
 my father, who was 83$ when he died on the 5th of last April, and who spent 
 much of his early youth in Compton Place, as did my grandmother, Lady 
 George Cavendish, after she inherited the property, October 18, 1763, when 
 bhe was 3 years old, and who died there on April 7, 183o." 
 
 From the Rev. H. GRIFFITH, who was at that time a 
 curate at St. Saviour's, under date of July 25, 1884 : 
 
 " I see from your Handbook for East-Bourne that this place was known by 
 the name of East-Bourne as early as the 16th century, if not before. You do 
 not say anything as to the origin or derivation of the prefix, Eaxt. But Mr. 
 Isaac Taylor, in his book, Words and Places, asserts that East- Bourne is a 
 
 (a) Lady George Cavendish was Countess of Burlington when she died.
 
 Plate L. 
 
 To face p. 269. 
 
 Figs. 89 9O. 
 
 _iTk 
 
 - - , ' ~~-JK 
 
 ^f****~-^**tt ~ 
 
 Harriet Ogle, del. 
 
 BEACHY HEAD, SHOWING 4 "CHARLESES," 
 circa. 1825. 
 
 Harriet Ole, del. 
 
 COLLIERS UNLOADING AT EAST-BOURNE. 
 Sept. 25, 1845. 

 
 CHAP. XIX.] Various Extracts from Letters. 269 
 
 corruption of Ease- Bourne (i.e. , water-brook) a name which a village near 
 Midhurst has retained to this day (cf. South-ease). There is much to be said 
 in favour of this derivation. It is not easy, on the other hand, to find a 
 satisfactory reason for the place being called *<-Bourne ; and modern 
 nomenclators, by giving the name of &>M<A-Bourne to a district S. E. of the 
 original town, have virtually made the Old Town /Fes^-Bourne, and so to be 
 logical, the parishes of All Souls and Christ Church should alone be called 
 East-Bourne. You mention in your Handbook that in the reign of Charles I. 
 there were 3 landowners in the Hundred of East-Bourne of the name of 
 Crunden. You may be interested to know that there are 2 families of that 
 name now (1884) living in Sir. Graham's Cottaaes in Grove Road." 
 
 [These have since been pulled down.] Though I 
 am not prepared to adopt the above ideas, yet Mr. Taylor 
 was so high an authority in his own department that I 
 do not like wholly to ignore any suggestions emanating 
 from him. 
 
 From Mr. H. M. WHITLEY, under date of August 31, 
 1886 : 
 
 " It would be worth your while (if you have not yet done so) to look at the 
 cellar under the house next the new Manor Offices, in which Mr. Welch lived 
 for many years. W It is the highest of the old houses that straggle up the 
 Borough from the Church. These, in my opinion, are the houses that 
 belonged to the ' Guild of Jesus,' or ' fraternitee of East-born,' in which lived 
 the six members, ' houselying people,' returned at the time of the suppression. 
 
 " This guild had lands in East Dean as well as East-Bourne, and its 
 existence will account for some of the curious vaults at the Old Town." 
 
 From Mr. JOHN MILLS, under date of May 25, 1899 : 
 
 " I have been reading with much interest your Handbook for Eatt- 
 Bourne and, as perhaps one of the earliest visitors still living, I thought it 
 might interest you if I put down a few of my recollections of the place in 1826 
 as far as the memory of a child of 6 years old may be trusted. In that year 
 my father, one of the masters of Harrow School, brought his family to spend 
 the summer holidays there. We lodged in one of a row of 6 or 7 houses 
 known as ' The Sea-Houses ' . Close by was the Anchor Lin. On 
 
 the beach nearly in front of ' Sea-houses ' were the houses of the preventive 
 officer (as he was then called) and the coastguard men. Behind ' Sea-houses ' 
 was a small hamlet with about 300 inhabitants chiefly fishermen and 
 smugglers, and my impression is that a small stream ran into the sea close 
 by ... We used to go to the old Parish Church. Holywell was then a 
 beautiful clear spring coming out a little way up the cliff, in the course of 
 which we found a layer of jet black flint, and I well remember having a 
 picnic close by, and the failure of our tea-making through the extreme 
 hardness of the water. You mention a plot of ground near Meads bearing the 
 name of * France ' or ' Frenchland,' and say ' These designations await 
 explanation.' I wonder whether I can help you to one. In 1826 there was a 
 spot half-way down the cliff below the Coastguard Station on Beachy Head, 
 called ' Little France ' so called from the bodies of one or more Frenchmen 
 from a ship that had been wrecked near by, having been buried there. In 
 1866, being on Beachy Head, I asked one of the coastguard men if he had ever 
 heard of ' Little France,' and he thought he had heard it mentioned, but knew 
 nothing of its history. In 1826 the traps cut in the turf for the wheatear 
 were very common on the Downs, and visitors used to take out the dead birds 
 
 (b) This house was the first inhabited by Dr. D. J. Hall after his marriage in 1834.
 
 270 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XIX. 
 
 and put a penny in the trap, and many a nice dish of wheatears we collected. 
 I well remember Parson Darby's Cave, and I think that a stream of clear fresh 
 water ran across the beach into the sea, very near the cave. To return to my 
 starting point * Sea-houses," on the beach there were some rudimentary 
 groynes, and poles set up by the fishermen for drying and mending their nets. 
 From one of these men I learnt the stitch that they use for netting without a 
 needle. There were also various old boats, and in a half-bout set on end an 
 old cobbler had his stall. Such are a few reminiscences of East- Bourne 73 
 yenrs ago, and I trust you will not think a perfect stranger to be intruding by 
 offering them to you." 
 
 From the Rev. T. PITMAN, under date of June 20, 
 ][year not stated] : 
 
 " I send you the other parchment I spoke of, but it does not contain 
 anything material, only that I think in 1635 Worge's old house, and to which 
 he has never professed to have any title, belonged to the Vicarage. I think 
 the worthy Simon Manningham sold it. Simon Manningham was Vicar of 
 East-Bourne, and went to the then better living of Jevington. I think you 
 will show yourself worthy of " the Woolsack " if you could restore this stolen 
 property, or find out that our school has an inalienable title to the payments of 
 the tithes of the Compton Place and Wilmington Estates." 
 
 The house alluded to above was a 16th century one, 
 immediately adjacent to the gardens of the old Vicarage 
 and almost opposite the S. door of the Church, and 
 standing at right angles to the road, with its N. wall 
 quite out to the footpath [Plate VI., Fig. 12]. It was 
 pulled down some years ago, and shops put in its place. 
 One is reminded of the Worge family by a mural tablet 
 to a Major-General Worge, M.P. for Stockbridge (1768- 
 1772), still in the Church, and dated 1774.(<0 There 
 used to be a representative of the family on the 
 Parliamentary Register of voters, Julian Arthur Worge, 
 who was living at Ore, near Hastings, in 1872, and his 
 qualification was described as " Freehold Cottages and 
 Land, Old Town Deadman, Head, Manby and others, 
 tenants." I remember once having corresponded with 
 him somewhere about 1868, when I was Secretary of the 
 Conservative Association, but I know nothing further 
 about him, or what has been the descent of his property. 
 His name disappeared from the Register of Voters after 
 the year 1876. The question of the payment to the St. 
 Mary's School of 20 by the Lessees of the Great Tithes 
 is further alluded to in another of Mr. Pitman's letters. 
 
 The Rev. T. PITMAN, under date of May 24, 187 , 
 
 (c) Life of Major-General Worge, Colonel of the 86th Regiment. By G. Duke. 
 London, 1844.
 
 CHAP. XIX.] Old Charities. 271 
 
 invited my co-operation for the purpose stated in the 
 following letter : 
 
 " During my temporary absence from home I am engaged in drawing up 
 an account of our Parochial Charities. The only ones, I find, that can be 
 relied upon are Caley's, Fennell'a, Yielding's and Emly's. Do you know of 
 any others? Payne's that is spoken of in Horsfield's History of Sussex, is no 
 charity at all. I am inclined to think that Lord Wilmington left something to 
 the Schools, but I cannot get at it. Do you know the date of his will P I 
 was also once told by the late Mr. D. Gilbert that the 20 paid to our Schools 
 was not a voluntary annual gift by the Lessees, but arranged by them and 
 established by a rider to some Act while Mr. G. was in Parliament ; could we 
 
 fet at this in any way ? Mr. G. went out at the passing of the ' Reform Bill ' 
 L832]. I tMnk he said the payment was to be in the place of the breakfast to 
 the labourers. I never get any time when I am at home for such things as 
 these." 
 
 I gave what help I could, but was unable to throw 
 any light on the question about the Act of Parliament. 
 That still remains for further investigation, and it is 
 obvious that under the circumstances the matter deserves 
 to be looked into. 
 
 " &ns is all as true as it is strange ; 
 
 it is ten times true ; for rut|r is &rut." 
 
 ( Measure for Measure. ) 
 41 gJI % fmrrltr's a stage; 
 all t|c mtvt anir faamm ramlg jjlairm ; 
 fta&e t^eir exits anir t|reir entraiuces, 
 ant man iw |ris time plags maug parts." 
 
 (As you like it.}
 
 [272] 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 "PADDING" AND "SCISSORS AND PASTE." 
 
 Personal. The " Times" Newspaper. Changes in English manners and 
 customs. The "Hunt Sermon." Mr. Gladstone and newspapers. Deeds 
 and legal documents. A dog and cat story. A Sabbath-breaking dog. 
 Debating Societies. Practical v. unpractical Temperance Reform. English 
 and Welsh. The Economy of Time. Tick, Tick, Tick. A Waterloo Myth. 
 A Waterloo Fact. Visits to the Battle-field of Waterloo. Unfamiliar 
 Women's Christian Names. Novel experiences, exciting or otherwise. 
 Mid-Victorian Meal-times. Visits to the Galleries of the Two Houses of 
 Parliament. A Gladstone Anecdote. Coins as Measures. The Duty and 
 Advantages of showing Civility to Strangers. Clerical Surnames. An 
 Offer of Marriage : 1802 style. 
 
 " |]kfo customs. tlj0nr)lj t^cjr fo viebtr so ribintlcrns, najr Itt 
 
 tytm bt unmanlg, get are foltofojelr." (King Henry nil) 
 
 I CLOSE this volume with some material which, in 
 the language of the literary man, is known as 
 "Padding" and " Scissors-and-Paste." "Padding" 
 is material put in to thicken a book and make the reader 
 think he is getting good value for his money, at ]east in 
 quantity if not in quality, whilst " Scissors-and-Paste " 
 tells its own tale. In the domain of the shipping world, 
 none of it would be rated as Al. 
 
 PERSONAL. 
 
 My East-Bourne grandmother, Mrs. Brodie, was a 
 daughter of the first John Walter of The Times, who 
 founded that paper, and as, at his death in 1812, it was. 
 not a very prosperous concern, he left his daughters and 
 his butler, inter alia, shares in it. My grandmother's 
 share was rVths. This at her death was sub-divided, 
 and one of the sub-divisions eventually came to me, so I 
 was the holder of I of T 2 6ths a very uncomfortable way 
 of cataloguing one's invested property. But there were 
 smaller sub-divisions than this. Several of my cousins
 
 CHAP. XX.] " The Times " Newspaper. 273 
 
 held T*tli of 4rds of ith of T<rths. Details of this kind need 
 a competent knowledge of Colenso's Arithmetic. For 
 the reasons just given, I have known a great deal about 
 the inner history of The Times throughout my life, but 
 this is not the time nor the place to say all that I could 
 say. Much of the earlier history of the paper has 
 already been made public in various ways and at various 
 times, and some of its later history has become public 
 through Mr. Dasent's Life of J. T. Delane, its famous 
 Editor, and in other ways. Its history in recent years 
 has mainly centred round John Walter, the 3rd of that 
 name, successively M.P. for Nottingham and Berkshire, 
 who succeeded his father as Manager in 1847 and died 
 in 1894. He and his son and successor Arthur 
 were often designated as "Chief" proprietors of The 
 Times. This is an entire mistake. They were both of 
 them minority share-holders ; indeed very minority 
 share-holders, for their holdings were no more than 
 about ith, leaving Iths held by other people, brothers 
 and cousins and others. The prominent position occupied 
 by the late John Walter in the public eye was due to the 
 fact that he was Printer and Sole Manager, free of any 
 direct control on the part of his fellow proprietors. 
 This was for them the unfortunate result of the autocratic 
 terms by which the founder of the paper provided, or tried 
 to provide, for its management in perpetuity in the hands 
 of one member of one branch of the families which now 
 are his descendants. If the proprietors other than those 
 of the John Walter chain, had had some co-ordinate 
 authority to control the concern, it would not have been 
 involved in the losses, pecuniaiy and moral, resulting 
 from the ill-judged Parnell escapade. This was a praise- 
 worthy and patriotic move in its conception, but as the 
 event proved, it lacked an adequate basis for success. 
 The one man personally responsible for it Avas Mr. John 
 Cameron Macdonald, the manager of the mechanical 
 department at Printing-house Square, who had rendered 
 good service to the paper during the stirring events of 
 the Crimean War, when The Times with the further 
 assistance of Mr. W. H. RusseU, did a very great deal to 
 
 T
 
 274 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 save our Army from starvation and annihilation. After 
 all said and done, the idea was generally believed that 
 the first of the Parnell letters (fac similes of all of which 
 are before me as I write) was genuine, and that the work 
 of Piggott was to forge the subsequent letters when he 
 found what a good thing he had made out of the first. 
 The mistakes made by John Walter over this business 
 were 2 in number. Before embarking on litigation 
 which cost 180,000, of which quite a small proportion 
 fell on himself personally, he was under a moral obligation 
 to have consulted his co-proprietors. His second mistake 
 was that he ought not to have refused the offer of the 
 Government of the day to provide out of the public 
 funds the official expenses of the Parnell Commission, 
 as distinguished from the personal expenses of The 
 Times. This would have eased the main burden on the 
 Proprietors very materially. The non-acceptance of the 
 offer was the more blame-worthy because others and not 
 himself were to be the chief sufferers. Lady St. Helier's 
 account of John Walter as she knew him is life-like. 
 It will be found in her Memories of Fifty Years, p. 213. 
 There is no doubt that the partial failure of The 
 Times to make out its case against Parnell, shook the 
 credit of the paper and precipitated the gradual decay 
 of its influence and circulation for a time, which 
 culminated (in 1908) under the incompetent management 
 of his son, in the necessity of reconstructing the whole 
 concern, and of turning it into a limited company with 
 the Walter control reduced almost to zero. In the hands 
 of the new Management under a Board of Directors of 
 up-to-date journalistic experience, with Mr. Moberley 
 Bell as the dominant influence, I still think the paper 
 has a great future before it, and I have shown my 
 confidence by retaining a considerable share in it, though 
 my income from it will never be even one-tenth of what 
 it once was. Whether it will ever regain its old financial 
 position is another matter. For many years between 
 1868 and 1885, the annual dividends paid to the 
 proprietors exceeded 80,000, and in 1876 amounted to 
 93,000. Great wars always had the effect of lowering
 
 CHAP. XX.] " The Times " Newspaper. 275 
 
 the profits. The Franco-German War caused a drop of 
 nearly 5000 in the next year's dividends. The 
 Russo-Turkish War of 1877 was still more disastrous : 
 the drop was 18,000, but the next following years in 
 each case showed a full recovery. The actual causa 
 causans of these great fluctuations was the determination 
 of the Management to get the best obtainable news with 
 the greatest possible promptitude regardless of cost. A 
 trifling French War in Madagascar some years ago cost 
 the paper 1000. 
 
 In the light of the information just given, it will be 
 easy for anyone to see that the well-known account of 
 The Times proprietary given by Kinglake in his Invasion 
 cf the Crimea, is absolute romance, couched albeit in 
 lovely English, worthy of the style of Eothen : 
 
 " There were living in some of the English Counties, certain widows and 
 gentlemen who were the depositories of a power destined, to exercise a great 
 sway over the conduct of the War. Their ways were peaceful, and they were 
 not perhaps more turned towards politics than other widows and country 
 gentlemen ; hy force of deeds and testaments, by force of births, deaths, and 
 marriages, they had become the members of an ancient firm or Company which 
 made it its business to collect and disseminate news. They had so much good 
 sense of the worldly sort, that instead of struggling with one another for the 
 control of their powerful engine, they remained quietly at their homes and 
 engaged some active and gifted man to manage the concern for them in 
 London." (Invasion of the Crimea, vol. ii., p. 80.) 
 
 And so on for 5 octavo pages of print. 
 
 My visits to John Walter's houses often gave me 
 opportunities for seeing interesting people and hearing 
 interesting things. Amongst people not interesting but 
 extraordinary, I may mention Mr. and Mrs. Robert Lowe, 
 he an M.P., a Cabinet Minister, and finally Viscount 
 Sherbrooke. He was an albino, which made him 
 sufficiently remarkable. His wife was also a person to 
 be looked at. He it was who rained himself and the 
 Gladstone Cabinet of the clay, by proposing a tax on 
 lucifer matches. When asked if he would support 
 Church Disestablishment he said, " Certainly not : we 
 should have to double the Police Rate " a tribute from an 
 unexpected quarter to the wholesome influence exercised 
 by the Clergy of the Church of England. 
 
 Whilst at Bearwood in October 1889, John Walter
 
 276 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CiiAP. XX, 
 
 narrated to me the following incident which I took down 
 in writing at the time : 
 
 " He was at Paris not long after the end of the war in 1871, and dining 
 with Blowitz, the well-known Times Correspondent, he met there Jules Simon 
 and some other leading Frenchmen. He asked Simon, whether in order to 
 put an end to the tension subsisting between France and Germany, the 
 French would be likely to be willing to compromise the Alsace -Lorraine 
 question thus : France to receive back Lorraine and Metz, leaving Alsace and 
 Strassburg with Germany, the Vosges to be the boundary, suitable guarantees 
 being given by Neutral Powers that a specified time should be allowed for the 
 erection of fortifications necessary for protecting permanently the new frontier. 
 The answer of Jules Simon was : the French would gladly accept the above 
 compromise. This conversation was communicated by Walter to Lord 
 Salisbury and was by him communicated to the German Ambassador in 
 London, Count Hatzfeldt. The Count, in answer, gave an assurance to Lord 
 Salisbury that the Emperor William, the Crown Prince and Prince Bismarck 
 would concur in carrying out such a compromise, but that the military party, 
 headed by the now reigning Emperor William II., would interfere to prevent 
 any such settlement being adopted." 
 
 CHANGES IN ENGLISH MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 Looking back 60 years, or even over a lesser interval, 
 it is impossible not to be struck with the great changes 
 that have taken place in the social life of England and 
 in the manners and customs of its inhabitants. A list of 
 the customs and things which have disappeared and of 
 those on the other hand which have appeared, might 
 easily be expanded to reach a great length. I can only 
 attempt to mention a very few. When I was very small, 
 I lived for some time at Colchester in Essex. There 
 were many Quakers there in those days, recognisable by 
 their dress, the men wearing drab cut-away coats with 
 high collars and broad-brimmed hats, the women gowns 
 of more or less similar colour with little or no trimming 
 and coal-scuttle bonnets projecting well over the 
 forehead and covered with drab silk or satin drawn tight 
 over the frame-work of the bonnet. Country gentlemen 
 had almost or quite given up knee-breeches and what are 
 called knickerbockers had not come in. Trousers were 
 the substitute for the original knee-breeches. Blue coats 
 with brass buttons had almost disappeared. The last 
 Member of Parliament who I remember in a coat of that 
 sort was the first and last Lord Fitzwalter, better known 
 as Sir Brook Bridges, who was made a Peer in 1868, 
 after a career of some years as Member for West Kent.
 
 Plate Lll. 
 
 To face p 276 
 
 Figs. 9293 
 
 THE YACHT "CYGNET" AFLOAT. 
 
 THE FIRST LUGGER BUILT AT EAST-BOURNE. 
 (By P. & J. Simpson, 1844.)
 
 CHAP. XX.] Various Topics. 277 
 
 THE "HUNT SERMON." 
 
 Most of my readers know what a " Hunt Ball " is : 
 The name and the thing are quite acclimatised amongst 
 us. But have they ever heard of the " Hunt Sermon " 
 as an established institution ? It was such in Essex 
 three-quarters of a century ago. It was delivered on the 
 last Sunday of the Hunting Season. The father of a 
 lady who used to live in East-Bourne, Mrs. - , was in 
 the ' Thirties " a beneficed Clergyman in Essex a 
 "hunting parson" of the old sort. He once preached 
 the customary sermon in the Parish Church of Brentwood, 
 and took as his text Psalm cxxxii., 6 : " Lo, we heard of 
 the same at Ephrata : and found it in the wood." The 
 sermon, I was told, gave great satisfaction to the 
 congregation. It was de rigueur for all the members of 
 the Hunt to appear in pink at these Annual Festivals. 
 Not, I may add, " Festivals of the Church " as the 
 phrase now familiar to us runs. (Ex relatione Miss 
 
 ) 
 
 MR. GLADSTONE AND NEWSPAPERS. 
 
 It was a matter of common conversation during 
 Mr. Gladstone's later years in office that he knew nothing 
 of the criticisms directed against his policy, because he 
 was never allowed to read newspapers. Staying in 
 February 1886, at Moyles Court, Ringwood, with the 
 late Mr. Frederick Fane, he told me that a recent very 
 favourable opportunity had been within his reach for 
 ascertaining the truth of this statement. He had been 
 one of a shooting party at Somerley Park, the residence 
 of his neighbour, the Earl of Normanton. One of the 
 
 guns was Mr. , one of Gladstone's private 
 
 secretaries, so he said to him in a seemingly casual 
 manner, " I suppose your chief is glad to get a holiday 
 
 from Parliament and newspapers," to which Mr. 
 
 replied " Yes, but he is never bothered with newspapers." 
 Mr. Fane then said, " What ! a Prime Minister who does 
 not read newspapers!" "No, no," quoth Mr. - 
 " What happens is this. My colleague and I go early to 
 Downing Street ; glance at the morning papers, cut out
 
 278 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 and paste on loose sheets everything that it is necessary 
 for the Prime Minister to know, and so when he arrives 
 at a later hour he can see the news, and be saved the 
 trouble of wading through a lot of newspapers." This 
 answer was in effect a complete confirmation of the 
 rumour that all hostile criticism made in public either 
 by men or newspapers was concealed from him. 
 Singularly enough, Lady St. Helier in her Memories- 
 published in 1909, confirms this story in the following 
 words : 
 
 " Mr. Gladstone had very little knowledge of public feeling, because in 
 order to save him as much as possible from any extra fatigue or strain, such, 
 news and opinions as the papers contained were communicated to him in an. 
 epitomized form by his Secretaries, much that was likely to irritate or annoy 
 the Premier being either softened or omitted." (p. 262.) 
 
 DEEDS AND LEGAL DOCUMENTS. 
 
 " If there is one thing people ought to insist on more than another, it i* 
 that all Deeds and papers referring to their property should be in their own 
 possession, instead of leaving them with their lawyers. (Life of W. H. Smith, 
 M.P., vol. ii., p. 91.) 
 
 A DOG AND CAT STORY. 
 
 A dog and a cat were always fed at the same time in 
 the same room, but the cat was allowed to have its 
 portion whilst seated on the table, whilst the dog of 
 course was made to eat his on the floor. In preparing 
 the food, it sometimes happened that bones were left on 
 one or other of the 2 plates. When the cat found a 
 bone on its plate it looked over the edge of the table to 
 see if the dog had any bones. If not, the cat would 
 draw its bones to the edge of the table and push them 
 over to the dog. (Ex relatione oculati testis, 1909.) 
 
 A SABBATH-BREAKING DOG. 
 
 A lady possessed a dog which she took out for a 
 walk every week-day, but never on Sundays. She had a 
 visitor staying with her who was not of the same mind 
 and was willing to go out walking with a dog on Sundays. 
 The dog got to observe the difference in the conduct of
 
 CHAP. XX.] A Sabbath-Breaking Dog. 279 
 
 the 2 ladies and waited every morning for the visitor on 
 Sundays and asked to be taken out by her. She always 
 complied with the dog's request. Eventually the dog 
 got into the habit of paying no attention whatever to 
 the Sunday movements of its mistress. (Ex relatione 
 oculati testis, 1909.) 
 
 DEBATING SOCIETIES. 
 
 My appreciation of Institutions like the " East- 
 Bourne House of Commons " is due to my recollections 
 of two Debating Societies to which I once belonged in 
 London. The first of these was a Society whicli existed 
 during my early days at King's College, where we had 
 set debates, chiefly on political subjects, every week. 
 Two of those who were associated with me in those days 
 ultimately reached very high positions in the great 
 Council of the Nation, namely Sir E. Clarke, K.C., and 
 Baron De Worms afterwards Lord Pirbright. Clarke 
 was, as he still is, a tower of strength to the Conservative 
 Party, but Baron De Worms was in College days the 
 leader of the Liberal Party in the King's College Society. 
 In the later years of his life however, he saw the error 
 of his ways, and finally took office under Lord Salisbury 
 after becoming M.P. for the East Toxteth Division of 
 Liverpool, and before he was created a Peer. I lost 
 sight of him and never saw him for 22 years, but one 
 day whilst reading a newspaper at the Carlton Club, I 
 heard a voice behind me which I recognised at once as 
 the Baron's voice, but I could not recognise the man. I 
 stared at him in vain. I went on listening but not in 
 vain. At last when he had finished his conversation 
 with his friend, I went boldly up to him and said, " You 
 must be my old friend Baron De Worms, if only because 
 of your voice." From that day I kept up my 
 acquaintance with him till his death. He entered public 
 life as M.P. for Greenwich at the General Election of 
 1880, replacing Mr. Gladstone who dared not stand again 
 because of his unpopularity in connection with the 
 discharges of workmen at Woolwich. The Baron who
 
 280 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 was a naturalised Englishman of Austrian birth was a 
 great linguist and caused much sensation by being able 
 to address in 7 languages foreign sailors in a hospital at 
 Greenwich. Lady Pirbright was the sister of a lady 
 married into the family of a Barrister, one of my very 
 oldest friends, A. G. Henriques, who lived many years at 
 Brighton. Henriques came out as a Radical Candidate 
 for Walworth in 1885. He paid me a visit at East- 
 Bourne in order to be coached up in some of the ways 
 of electioneering. He proved his inexperience by the 
 following incident. When he became a candidate he 
 was asked by the Dissenters to subscribe to the 
 " Liberation Society" for disestablishing the Church, and 
 he gave them a guinea. After he had done that, he read 
 some of their prospectuses and circulars, and in 3 weeks 
 he retired from the Society, because, as he told me 
 himself, their scheme was simply one for robbing the 
 Church of property consecrated to religious uses, and 
 this, though himself a Jew. If he had consulted me a 
 little earlier, I could have told him the same thing, and 
 he would have saved his guinea. 
 
 I once talked over the subject of Parliamentary 
 Debating Societies with H. C. Raikes, M.P., then 
 Postmaster-General. He was an old friend, and I knew 
 he had studied the subject of organisation for political 
 purposes. This was what he said : " I always advocate 
 amateur Parliaments being taken up by our party ; I 
 look upon them as very valuable weapons of Conservative 
 warfare ; indeed, whichever party works them well will 
 profit by doing so." Raikes used to come to East-Bourne 
 as a visitor, and he was very indignant on one occasion 
 at being charged, at the Burlington Hotel, Is. Qd. for the 
 cooking of 2 pheasants which a friend had sent him. 
 
 The second London Society of the sort of which I 
 was a member for several years was the " Kensington 
 Parliament," several members of which on both sides of 
 politics have made names for themselves since ; and I 
 have no doubt whatever that personally, I owe much of 
 my facility for speaking, whatever it may be, to the 
 practice which I had in my early days.
 
 CHAP. XX.] Various Topics. 281 
 
 PRACTICAL v. UNPRACTICAL TEMPERANCE REFORM. 
 
 In the session of 1863 Mr. Joseph Somes, M.P. for 
 Hull, introduced a Bill into the House of Commons for 
 the total closing of public-houses on Sundays. One day 
 in the summer of that year I was walking down the 
 Bayswater Road in company with him, and I said to 
 him, " If you would propose to reduce the Sunday 
 opening hours from, say, 8 to 4, and proceed by steps, I 
 think you will reach total Sunday closing much sooner 
 than by trying to accomplish so extensive a change all at 
 once." Mr. Somes's reply was: "I am very much 
 inclined to agree with you, but I have promised the 
 Total Sunday Closing Party to take up their Bill as it 
 stands, and it is too late for me to make any change in 
 my position." Since that conversation 47 years have 
 elapsed, and the total Sunday closing of public-houses 
 seems almost as far off as ever. The trend of public 
 opinion is to a slight extent favourable, but very little 
 legislative progress has been made, because too violent 
 a change has been proposed all at one jump. 
 
 ENGLISH AND WELSH. 
 
 It fell to my lot in 1888 to travel over many of the 
 West Midland parts of England and Wales as an 
 Assistant Boundary Commissioner under the " Local 
 Government Boundaries Act, 1887," to take evidence 
 preparatory to a proposed re-adjustment of the boundaries 
 of some of the West Midland Counties. One day I was 
 lunching with the clergyman of Chirbury, Shropshire, 
 and he gave me the following example of ^the intense 
 jealousy which prevailed between the English and the 
 Welsh, even as late as the 19th Century. He told me he 
 had met a boy in the street crying bitterly, and on his 
 asking the cause, the boy said : " Please sir, I called 
 John Jones [or some such name] a Welshman, and he 
 said he was not a Welshman, and he hit me on the head 
 because I called him so." The allegation was, m fact, 
 an insult, and regarded as such. This, no doubt, was an
 
 282 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 extreme instance, but in a more measured and Court-of- 
 Justice tone I found the greatest hostility to prevail on 
 the part of English parishes in Shropshire and 
 Herefordshire, against being transferred to Montgomery- 
 shire or Radnorshire, or vice versa, to facilitate their 
 grouping for Local Government and County Council 
 purposes. 
 
 THE ECONOMY OF TIME. 
 
 In 1886 I was staying at W Vicarage, 
 
 Devonshire, and on the morning after my arrival, whilst 
 in the Breakfast Room waiting for breakfast, my hostess, 
 the daughter-in-law of a very distinguished Cabinet 
 Minister belonging to that part of the world, having 
 made the tea, produced an enormous unfinished woollen 
 quilt, some 3 yards long, and proceeded with her knitting 
 instead of giving me my breakfast. I suppose that 
 disappointment and dismay may have been pictured on 
 my face, because she said : " I am only going to spend 
 5 minutes over this ; and what you see is the result of 
 so many periods of 5 minutes each spread over 3 months." 
 I think that was the time mentioned, or something like it. 
 But no matter. The principle remains. What a deal of 
 time is wasted by all of us for lack of thought, or it may 
 be forethought ! I made a calculation once whilst locked 
 in for an unreasonable time at Sydenham Station, because 
 the Station was under-staffed, that the aggregate time 
 wasted by the passengers detained there against their 
 wills amounted to between 2 and 3 hours daylight 
 working hours. 
 
 "TICK, TICK, TICK." 
 
 An English Bishop visiting a certain parish was 
 invited by the vicar to test the reading powers of the 
 children in the National School, so a boy was called up, 
 let us say, to read some verses from the Parable of the 
 Sower. This is the style in which he had been taught to 
 read St. Mark, iv., 8 : 
 
 " And other fell on good ground (tick) and did yield 
 fruit that sprang up and increased (tick, tick) and
 
 CHAP. XX.] " Tick, Tick, Tick." 283- 
 
 brought forth (tick) some thirty (tick) and some sixty 
 (tick) and some an hundred (tick, tick, tick)." 
 
 This was too much for the Bishop, so he called a 
 halt, and asked what it all meant. The explanation was 
 simple and soon given. " Ticks " indicated stops ; 1 
 tick a comma ; 2 ticks a colon or semi-colon ; 3 ticks a 
 full stop ! The time required for pronouncing the magic 
 words was the assumed proper length of pause 
 corresponding to the stops in question. 
 
 A WATERLOO MYTH. 
 
 The mention in Chapter III. of Sir W. Domville,. 
 suggests that I should enlarge the reference to him and 
 bring in something else. Sir William's father was made 
 a Baronet on the occasion of the visit to London of the 
 Allied Sovereigns in 1814. That was an ordinary 
 transaction, but I have something not unworthy of 
 record to add to it. In the year 1895 I Avas staying with 
 friends at Newent in Gloucestershire, and was told that 
 there was then living no more than 5 miles away a lady 
 who had been present at the Duchess of Richmond's 
 celebrated Ball at Brussels the night before the battle of 
 Waterloo. This was enough to set me agog, for I 
 venerate Waterloo and everything connected with it. I 
 asked to be taken to see this lady, and my Newent 
 hostess at once agreed. We went. The reputed Brussels 
 danseuse was not well enough to see us. I was leaving 
 the neighbourhood in a day or two and my chance of a 
 personal interview vanished. But I got my hostess to- 
 promise to take the first available opportunity of seeing 
 the old lady, and obtaining for me some reminiscences 
 of the famous Brussels Ball. She paid another visit, 
 and what was the result ? The old lady had never been 
 near Brussels in 1815, but had been in 1814 to a 
 Portsmouth Ball given for the Allied Sovereigns ! The 
 Brussels tradition was wide-spread, and if it had not 
 been for my determined perseverance in getting the 
 
 rumour traced Mrs. - would have died (as she soon 
 
 did) and the truth would have perished with her. This 
 is how " history " is sometimes concocted.
 
 284 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 A WATERLOO FACT. 
 
 In the autumn of 1885, I met a lady who told me 
 :she knew Lady De Ros, who being a daughter of the 4th 
 Duke of Richmond, had really been present at the 
 famous Brussels Ball the night before the Battle of 
 Waterloo. As there had been a great dispute as to 
 where the Duchess of Richmond's Ball had been given, 
 I asked my friend to apply to Lady De Ros for the 
 fullest information she could give, because, although 
 Lady De Ros was in 1885, 90 years of age, it was 
 understood that she was quite able to give a good account 
 of things. Here is an extract from the letter written by 
 Lady De Ros to my friend under date of October 29, 
 1885 : 
 
 " I am very triad to be able to comply with your request, and enclose the 
 answer to Mr. Chambers's question. In many accounts of that time it has 
 been stated that the Ball of the loth took place in the Hotel de Ville, but it 
 certainly did not. There was a magnificent Fete given there to the Duke 
 [Wellington], but I cannot recollect its date, but I think it was in May or 
 early in June 1815. The house in which the [Richmond] Ball was given, 
 June 15. 1815, was in the Rue De La Blanchisserie, in the lower part of the 
 town. It had belonged to a Coachmaker ; a large coach-house was converted 
 into a long room in which the Ball took place. In 1868 I could not find any 
 trace of the house, and Rue De La Blanchisserie no longer existed under that 
 name, but I thought I made out the wall of the garden, and some of the trees." 
 
 It will be remembered that a long controversy 
 respecting the site of this ball-room was carried on in 
 The Times by Sir W. Frazer and others some years ago. 
 
 VISITS TO THE BATTLE-FIELD OF WATERLOO. 
 
 I have paid 3 such visits ; in 1874, 1885, and 1897. 
 It does not belong to this volume to describe these visits, 
 but I may be permitted to place on record some notes of 
 .a general character which I took back with me to 
 East-Bourne in 1874. 
 
 The tourists who visit Waterloo are chiefly English, 
 but Germans and Belgians frequent the locality in 
 tolerable numbers. Of French visitors there never have 
 been but few, and those few have become fewer since the 
 Franco-German War of 1870. That war had re-kindled 
 .all the old animosities of the Great French War. It had 
 jevived with the Germans the bitter memories of the
 
 CHAP. XX.] 
 
 Walterloo Anecdotes. 
 
 285 
 
 French excesses after Jena in 1806, and with the French 
 the memories of the humiliation inflicted on them by the 
 united forces of indignant Europe in 1815. 
 
 Not a bad illustration of these facts is furnished by 
 the following incident which was described to us by a 
 niece of Sergeant-Major Cotton, then residing at the 
 famous Museum. One day in July 1870 (singularly 
 enough not many hours before the declaration of war by 
 France against Germany), a Frenchman made the 
 following insulting entry in the Visitors' Book at the 
 " Mound of the Lion," near Waterloo : 
 
 Ta gueule mena9ante O Lion nous defie, 
 
 Tu vas nous regarder de ton oail plein d'envie, 
 
 Pour la deniere fois. 
 
 Car bientot tombera ton prestige de gloire 
 Sur toi, 1'aigle Frangais en s'ecriant Victoire, 
 
 T'abrattra dans un mow. 
 
 17 Juillet, 1870. 
 
 UN FRANC Aia. 
 
 The day after, a Prussian came to the place, and 
 seeing what the Frenchman had written, he replied as 
 follows : 
 
 Avant trois mois on vous donnera une lecjon, 
 Comme celle que vous avez re^u en 1815. 
 
 18 Juillet, 1870. 
 
 UN PKUSSIEN. 
 
 Doubtless the Frenchman believed what he was 
 predicting, but evidently the Prussian gauged more 
 accurately the probabilities of the contest then looming 
 in the near distance. 
 
 UNFAMILIAR FEMALE CHRISTIAN NAMES. 
 
 During the years that I have kept account, I have 
 known ladies with the undermentioned unfamiliar 
 Christian Names. I suppress the surnames : 
 
 Alexandrina H. 
 Alin D. 
 Alvina 
 Amabel P. 
 Amelia T. 
 Arabella P.-D. 
 Bertha A. H. 
 Bienda T. 
 Brigida S. 
 Cassandra R. 
 Cecil M. R. 
 
 Clotilde J. W. 
 Deborah S. 
 Ella M. B. 
 Em61ie C. W. 
 Enid W. 
 Essex R. 
 Eudoxia L. 
 Eugenie M. 
 Eva M. M. 
 Flora W. 
 Georgiua C. 
 
 Gwendoline C. 
 
 Lois 
 
 Helena A. 
 
 Maggie C. 
 
 Hildegarde L. 
 Ivy, B. 
 
 Maraquita M. 
 Marcella B. 
 
 Isabelle P. 
 
 Marian P. 
 
 Janet M. B. 
 
 Marion H. W. 
 
 Jessie W. 
 
 Melanie S. 
 
 Kate K. 
 
 Menella N. 
 
 Kathleen W. 
 
 Merelina O. 
 
 Leonora D. 
 
 Oriana F. 8. 
 
 Lilian M. 
 
 Olive C.
 
 :286 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 Olivia S. S. 
 Orpah, G. 
 Paulina M. 
 Persia B. 
 Priscilla G. 
 
 Rachel K. H. 
 Rebecca W. 
 Rita H. H. 
 Rosetta F. 
 Rowena L. C. 
 
 Sybil T. C. 
 Teresa M. 
 Theophila B. 
 Tristram M. 
 Tryphena 
 
 Tryphosa 
 Verena C. 
 Winnifred A. 
 Wivellyne D. M. 
 ZoeT. 
 
 Most of the above have breathed East-Bourne air at 
 :some time or other. 
 
 NOVEL EXPERIENCES, EXCITING OR OTHERWISE. 
 
 This section deals with a few matters which are a 
 little out of the common run of incidents, but illustrate 
 an habitual thirst for knowledge on my part. 
 
 Chloroform as an anaesthetic was, I believe, intro- 
 duced into the medical profession by Sir J. Simpson 
 in 1847. The first dentist to use it in London was 
 Mr. James Robinson of Gower Street. This gentleman 
 was a friend of my father's, and as at a certain moment 
 in either 1849 or 1850, it was deemed desirable that I 
 ; should be relieved of 4 teeth all at once, I was taken to 
 Gower Street to be experimented upon. The result was 
 quite successful. I sat on my father's knee, inhaled the 
 vile stuff from a silk handkerchief, and the next thing I 
 -was conscious of was 4 teeth in a row on the table, the 
 Dentist proud of his achievement, my father content 
 with it. Though I am not conscious of anything wrong 
 with my heart yet, I do not think I shall ever try at my 
 age another dose of chloroform as an anaesthetic. 
 
 Up to some period, which I am unable to specify, 
 the civic festivities connected with the public life of the 
 Lord Mayors of London, included water processions on the 
 Thames ; two in particular : one on Michaelmas Day, 
 .and the other on the 9th of November. On Michaelmas 
 Day the Sheriffs were conveyed from Blackfriars Bridge 
 to Westminster Hall to be presented to the Barons of 
 the Exchequer. In 1849 a cousin of mine, then Mr. R. 
 W. Garden, was appointed one of the Sheriffs of London, 
 and on the Michaelmas Day of that year, whilst the City 
 Big-wigs were lunching at the Cutler's Hall, my mother 
 and I were on board the Sheriffs' Barge, where light 
 refreshments were served. I need hardly say that I 
 enjoyed that day's trip, including the refreshments, as 
 most boys of my age would no doubt have done.
 
 Plate LIV. 
 
 To face p. 286. 
 
 Figs. 96 97 
 
 H.I.M. THE EMPRESS OF RUSSIA. 
 (PRINCESS ALICE OF HESSE.) 
 
 is,- ^ * 
 
 Lavis, East-Bourne, 
 
 MRS. PHILADELPHIA HOLLEBONE. 
 
 EXTREMES IN THE SOCIAL SCALE AT EAST-BOURNE IN 1878.
 
 OHAP. XX.] Novel Experiences of the Author. 287 
 
 In the summer of 1851, I had another experience of 
 boating on the Thames in a visit to the Chinese Junk 
 Keying, which was anchored opposite Essex Street, 
 .Strand, and which was on show to the public. The 
 inside of the Junk presented a curious appearance, and 
 it was a wonder that such a craft could have been safely 
 navigated from China to England. I am not perfectly sure 
 whether my visit was to the Junk when it was anchored 
 as above, or when it was in the docks at Blackwall ; 
 I am rather inclined to think I saw it at Blackwall. 
 
 During the 3 years, 1857 to 1860, when I was an 
 Engineering Student at King's College, I saw a good 
 many interesting things ; in particular the manufacture 
 of the Atlantic Telegraph Cable, the Great Eastern 
 Steamship when nearly ready for sea ; and divers 
 factories, works and mills, including the Great Eastern 
 Railway Works at Stratford from which, in company 
 with a fellow Student, I returned to London on the 
 foot-plate of a locomotive engine. At the invitation 
 of another fellow Student and at a little later date, I 
 went down one of the shafts in the Penge Tunnel of the 
 Ixmdon, Chatham and Dover Railway. 
 
 In the autumn of 1883, whilst staying near 
 Chichester, I had an invitation to take a cruise in the 
 West Wittering Life-boat. Though the boat only went 
 out for practice and the sea was not particularly 
 rough, still the trip gave me an insight into the 
 handling of a Life-boat, and the difficulties and dangers 
 which Life-boat crews have to face. 
 
 At East-Bourne in 1895, one of the side shows of the 
 ^Schools' Fancy Bazaar mentioned in another Chapter 
 was a captive Balloon. This I thought too good an 
 opportunity of acquiring knowledge to be lost, so up ] 
 went ; and the experience was intensely interesting and 
 delightful. I was able to realise to the full the great 
 value of balloons for military purposes in enabling a 
 General to learn and study the disposition of hostile 
 forces. From the Bazaar standpoint, the balloon was a 
 financial failure, for the number of passengers who would 
 venture in it, proved to be very limited.
 
 288 
 
 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 Being at Durham on September 15, 1893, I paid a 
 visit to Canon H. B. Tristram, the well-known Palestine 
 traveller. He showed 
 me a collection of 
 800 stuffed birds and 
 of 18,000 mistuffed 
 birds, collected by 
 himself a marvel- 
 lous sight. 
 
 Of the many 
 beautiful sights of 
 Nature which I have 
 ever gazed upon I 
 think few have come 
 up to the Stonehenge 
 in 12 inches of snow 
 on March 17, 1887. 
 To see those mag- 
 nificent monoliths in 
 a setting of the purest 
 white was a sight at 
 once startling and 
 picturesque to put 
 it very mildly and 
 briefly. 
 
 On September 6, 
 1888, an influential 
 War Office Official 
 took my wife and 
 some of my children 
 and myself over the 
 Tower of London. 
 We saw not only 
 what everybody is 
 permitted to see, but 
 a good many things 
 not shown to the 
 public ; in particular the dungeons where State prisoners 
 used to be confined. The thoughts which these awful 
 places and their instruments of torture brought to our
 
 CHAP. XX.] Novel Experiences of the Author. 289 
 
 minds are not easily described. Harrison Ainsworth's 
 Tower of London gives some idea of the places and 
 things. 
 
 MID- VICTORIAN MEAL-HOURS. 
 
 The hours for meals have altered much in the last 
 60 years. At The Gore, in 1851, they were as follows :- 
 
 Breakfast 
 
 ( Servants 
 ( House 
 
 
 . 7.30 a.i 
 . 8.10 , 
 
 After Prayers at 
 
 
 . 8.0 , 
 
 Luncheon 
 
 . . . . 
 
 
 . 1.0 p. 
 
 Dinner 
 
 , , 
 
 
 , 6.0 
 
 Tea . 
 
 8.30 , 
 
 Prayers 
 
 10.0 , 
 
 On Sundays, dinner was at 5.0 p.m. The dinner 
 hour had been steadily altering all through the early 
 Victorian years. It was only old-fashioned people who 
 still dined at 4.0 p.m. That was the hour I remember 
 adopted by the old Vicar of Litlington (the Rev. W. B. 
 Robinson), who lived in the Old Town, Eastbourne ; and 
 mention of that hour is not unfrequently made in 
 Memoirs and Journals published in, or relating to, the 
 epoch 1800 1840. A modification of the above hours 
 1 remember in a large country house in Oxfordshire in 
 1856, namely : breakfast, 9.0 a.m. ; dinner, 2.0 p.m. ; 
 supper, 7.0 p.m. Nothing else to eat ! I was very 
 hungry in that house. It was no question of economy or 
 poverty, for the hostess's income was 3000 a year. 
 
 VISITS TO THE GALLERIES OF THE TWO HOUSES 
 OF PARLIAMENT. 
 
 Year by year for many years past .. have been a 
 visitor to the Galleries of the 2 Houses of Parliament, my 
 first visit having been on June 26, 1857. I have 
 listened to many important debates, and have known by 
 sight all the great politicians of the period, but many 
 
 C? ^j X^ ('11 J 
 
 reminiscences as to this would take me too far aneld, a: 
 would be foreign to a book on East-Bourne. I must 
 therefore content myself with a very few. My first topic 
 shall be the mention of an extraordinary M.P., whose 
 movements were as wonderful as his personality was 
 v
 
 290 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 remarkable. He was born without legs or arms, and 
 used to ride, and drive, and write, and make speeches, 
 and, I believe, shave himself. I can testify to some of 
 these things, because I used often to see him both at the 
 House of Commons and at the Carlton Club. His name 
 was Kavanagh, and he sat for the County of Carlow for 
 12 years (1868 1880), losing his seat in the latter year. 
 He first entered Parliament in 1866 as Member for the 
 County of Wexford. Amongst other things he was fond 
 of yachting, and the story is told of his having once 
 fallen overboard, and owing his life to his want of legs. 
 Sharks made for him, and sharks, as is well known, 
 always go for the legs of their victims. Finding this 
 victim had no legs, they went away, either frightened or 
 disgusted, and Mr. Kavanagh swam to a place of safety. 
 How he did it I know not, as I was not there. 
 
 I pick out the following as great or interesting 
 debates during the years embraced in this book down to 
 1902 amongst the many to which I have listened : 
 
 (1) 1860, May 21, 'Repeal of the Paper Duty (Lords). 
 
 (2) 1861, June 19, Church Rates Abolition (H.C.) 
 
 (3) 1869, June 17, Irish Church Robbery (Lords). 
 
 (4) 1884, May 13, 2nd Egyptian Vote of Censure (H.C.) 
 
 (5) 1885, Feb. 27, 4th Egyptian Vote of Censure (H.C.) 
 
 (6) 1888, June 26, Vote of Censure (H.C.) 
 
 (7) 1889, May 9, Deceased Wife's Sister Bill (Lords). 
 
 (8) 1890, June 5, The Channel Tunnel (H.C.) 
 
 (9) 1892, Mar. 10, Salvation Army, East-Bourne (H.C.) 
 (10) 1901, August 1, King's Declaration (Lords). 
 
 No. 1 caused great excitement at the time. The 
 Lords threw out Mr. Gladstone's Bill to repeal the Paper 
 Duty, and the Radicals fumed and frothed at the alleged 
 invasion by the Lords of the supposed exclusive privilege 
 of the Commons. The Commons passed a solemn 
 Resolution of protest, but they could not successfully 
 challenge the right of the Lords to throw out a Money 
 Bill. In the following year, 1861, they tacked on to the 
 Bill some other provisions of public importance and 
 thought they could ensure the repeal of the Paper Duty 
 because the Lords would not dare to refuse sanction to
 
 CHAP. XX.] Debates in Parliament. 291 
 
 the " tacked " clauses ; nor did they. The controversies 
 of 1860 and 1861 were much recalled in 1909 and 1910 
 when the Lords rejected the " People's Budget " which 
 the "people" did not seem much to want. The speech 
 of the evening was considered to be Lord Lyndhurst's, 
 but I did not hear it as I was unable to get a seat in the 
 gallery till 9.0 o'clock, and he had spoken earlier in the 
 evening. It was his last speech. He died in 1863, 
 aged 91. Whenever he spoke in the later years of his 
 life a special hand-rail was provided for him to lean on, 
 I saw it on the above-mentioned night after he had used 
 it. The numbers on the Division were 90 for the Bill 
 and 164 against of peers present ; which with proxies, 
 14 on one side and 32 on the other, brought up the 
 numbers to 104 and 193, or 89 majority against the Bill. 
 
 There was also great excitement in connection with 
 No. 2, as it was quite uncertain up to the end what the 
 result would be. As it happened there were 274 for the 
 Bill and 274 against, and the Speaker gave his casting 
 vote against the Bill. 
 
 No. 3. This was the 4th night of the debate, and 
 as long as I live, I shall never forget the impression 
 made on the House or on myself, by the solemn and 
 striking words of the 14th Earl of Derby, the " Rupert 
 of Debate " as Bulwer Lytton had called him. 
 
 " I say, for my part, even if it should be that for the last time I now have 
 the honour of addressing you, that it will lie to my dying day a satisfaction to 
 me that I have been enabled to lifi up my voice against the adoption of a 
 measure of which I believe the political folly is only equalled by its moral 
 injustice." (Hansard, vol. cxcvii., col. 40.) 
 
 And it was his last speech in the House of Lords, 
 for he died on October 23, in the same year 
 
 The speech of the Bishop of Peterborough (Magee) 
 on the same subject 2 nights previously (June 15), is 
 always considered to have been the finest speech ever 
 delivered in the English Parliament ; but I am sorry to 
 say I did not hear it. 
 
 (a) The Irish Church was the subject of the very first public speech I ever made on 
 an East-Bourne platform (April 20, 1868), and my share in that controversy I 
 more than in any other public work I ever undertook. Who was the true prophet, 
 Bright who said : " I see this measure giving tranquillity to our PWple, gre 
 strength to the Realm, and new dignity added to the Crown, or tl 
 Derby ?
 
 292 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 Nos. 4 and 5 may be taken together, including with, 
 them the 2 debates at which I was not present. A 
 special sensation was caused by the speeches of Mr. W. E. 
 Forster, the Member for Bradford, who had been Chief 
 Secretary for Ireland under Mr. Gladstone, from whose 
 policy in Egypt he had felt himself obliged to dissent. 
 The speeches marked 3 stages in the speaker's mind : 
 (i.) A reluctant vote in support of Mr. Gladstone ; 
 (ii.) abstention from voting ; (iii.) a vote against Mr. 
 Gladstone, wrung by force of conscience from one of the 
 most honest statesmen who ever held a seat on the 
 Liberal side of politics in the House of Commons. 
 
 On the 2nd Vote, on May 12, 1884, Mr. Forster said : 
 
 " He (Mr. Gladstone) can persuade most people of most things, and, above 
 all, he can persuade himself of almost anything. ... It is hecause I cannot 
 but feel that they are engaged at this moment in a vain, a useless, though also 
 a dangerous, and what may turn out to be a costly attempt to shift off 
 responsibility, that I find myself utterly unable to support the Government on 
 this occasion." (Hansard, vol. cclxxxviii., col. 220). 
 
 The voting took place on May 13. The votes were, 
 for the Vote of Censure 278, against, 302, majority 
 against, only 28. 
 
 The 4th Vote of Censure came on at the beginning 
 of the next Session, on February 27, 1885. Mr. Forster 
 said : 
 
 " I fear that this policy of doubt and vaccillation will continue . . . and 
 therefore I cannot record my vote in their favour." (Hansard, vol. ccxciv., 
 col. 1699). 
 
 The votes were, for the Vote of Censure 288, 
 against, 302, majority 14. It was well understood at the 
 time that Mr. Forster's speeches, especially his gradual 
 change of opinion and vote, did much to destroy the 
 credit of the Gladstone Government. The House sat late 
 in those days. I did not get home (Kensington) till 
 about 4.0 o'clock in the morning after each of the above 
 occasions on which I was present at the debates. 
 
 Two speeches by the 8th Duke of Devonshire, the 
 Statesman par excellence, deserve record. One I heard at 
 the Devonshire Park on June 24, 1892, in support of the 
 candidature of Admiral Field : the other was in the 
 House of Lords in 1904, in which the Duke sought, but 
 with no great success, to exculpate himself from quitting 
 the Conservative Cabinet in 1903.
 
 CHAP. XX.] Parliamentary Items. 293 
 
 It was the general habit of the Duke to speak 
 without notes or even stray bits of paper. All the more 
 significant was it, that on the last-named occasion he 
 read almost the whole of his speech, for I saw him 
 -do it. He was evidently ill at ease, and felt the 
 aspersions cast on his conduct. 
 
 A GLADSTONE ANECDOTE. 
 
 On a certain occasion a lady staying with the 
 Gladstones at Hawarden determined after breakfast to 
 go for a walk. She came back just before luncheon 
 time wet through, having been caught in a -heavy shower 
 of rain. Asked by Mr. Gladstone at luncheon whether 
 she had enjoyed her walk, she replied " Not at all, 
 because I got so wet owing to the rain." Mr. Gladstone 
 then said " You must have made a mistake : there has 
 been no rain this morning." The lady assured her host 
 that it had rained, though possibly Mr. Gladstone had 
 not seen it. The contradictions were getting rather 
 warm, and at a critical moment, a piece of paper was 
 furtively passed round from Mrs. Gladstone to her 
 visitor, on which the following remarkable words were 
 written : " We never contradict Mr. Gladstone." (Ex 
 Relatione of Mrs. ). 
 
 COINS AS MEASURES. 
 
 Probably not many of my readers know that the 
 diameter of a half-penny is exactly one inch when the 
 coin is a new, or a fairly new one. Moreover, when such 
 a coin is laid on a 1-inch ordnance map it covers just 
 .about 500 acres. A sixpence equals three-quarters of an 
 inch ; and 5 pennies touching one another in row equal 
 6 inches almost exactly. 
 
 THE DUTY AND ADVANTAGES OF SHEWING CIVILITY 
 TO STRANGERS. 
 
 Some years ago at a dinner-party in a house m 
 Gloucestershire, I was told the following anecdote, 
 elderly gentleman, somewhat of a cripple, seeking 
 alight from a railway carriage, found himself unable
 
 294 Old Memories of East-Bourne. [CHAP. XX. 
 
 open the carriage door, and when that had been done 
 had some further difficulty in descending to the platform 
 level. Both difficulties were removed or eased for him 
 by the intervention of a school-boy (I rather think an 
 Eton boy), who saw from the first the old gentleman's- 
 dilemma. When the old gentleman died, it was found 
 that he had left the school-boy 1000 a year, coupled 
 with an explanation that it was given him in recognition 
 of his services to the old gentleman on the particular 
 occasion mentioned, and on the general ground that such 
 a boy had a mind of the right sort. East-Bourne 
 supplied some 15 years ago another illustration of the 
 words prefixed to this section, an invalid Peer making a 
 long stay in the town for his health, being the Deus ex 
 Machind. 
 
 CLERICAL SURNAMES. 
 
 " A very amusing publication is the Clergy List, revised and classified (A. 
 Palmer, Stratford-on-Avon). The ingenious author has classified all the 
 names in the Clergy List under a great variety of substantives, being names of 
 animals, trades, things, and the tout ensemble is very curious. For instance, 
 under the head of ' Fireworks ' we find 1 Rocket, 3 Sparks, and 2 Squibs. 
 Under the head of 'Menagerie,' 7 Lyons, 3 Wolves, 30 Foxes, 18 Bulls, & 
 Kids, &c. Sixpence will be very profitably spent in the purchase of this- 
 pamphlet." (Sussex Times, April 1, 1881.) 
 
 A HINT TO RAILWAY EXCURSIONISTS. 
 " A Dodger " wrote to the Sussex Times in 1874 : 
 
 " I see that some correspondence has been going on in the newspapers 
 respecting the practice which prevails on the South- Eastern Railway of 
 allowing 1st class carriages to be invaded on excursion days by 2nd and 3rd 
 class passengers. Let me suggest a simple expedient which I have often put 
 in practice with unfailing success. Always carry a railway carriage key. 
 When you are approaching a station where an influx of undesirable companions 
 is to be feared, lock yourself in, and in 9 cases out of 10 you will escape the 
 infliction, for by the time an official arrives with a key the surging mob will 
 have found seats elsewhere, or the train will have started again. I have never 
 found this ' dodge ' fail." 
 
 AN OFFER OF MARRIAGE : 1802 STYLE. 
 
 35 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, 
 
 February 3, 1802. 
 
 Miss 
 
 MADAM, 
 
 I hope, from the sincerity with which these lines are dictated, and the 
 affection by which they are offered that no apology will be thought requisite 
 for intruding them on your consideration. Could I be warranted in encouraging-
 
 CHAP. XX.] The End. 295 
 
 the least hope of their perusal, and much more of their acceptance I should 
 deem it the greatest felicity that has happened during my existence, and 
 console myself with the pleasing view of completing my future happiness 
 under the auspice of so much beauty and good sense, as I have long and 
 
 unchangeably found in you. Believe me, , from a heart breaking, a it 
 
 were, from the pressure of the most unsullied affection and disinterested 
 attachment, to avow myself the solicitor of your hand and the advocate of 
 that more exalted privilege, your affections. Unchanged by time, and unvaried 
 by the vicissitudes of fortune and circumstances, I still and ever shall remain 
 
 the devout admirer of the that adds lustre to her virtues, and that 
 
 person that combines dignity with her accomplishments. It has been observed 
 that time and absence are the most effectual dissolvents of the affections ; But 
 from this general observation I must beg leave to deviate, by asserting that 
 time has contributed more to corroborate than to loosen the ties of my 
 affection, and that absence, however distant, has conduced more to raise the 
 glowing ashes of Love into a flame than to reduce that flame into ashes. 
 Believe me it was not the start of the moment, that gave rise to so grateful 
 a passion, or the more powerful charms of your beauty felt at the moment of 
 introduction only ; but the steady, the decided and unalterable decision of a 
 heart pleased in its captivity, and grateful for its chains. If affection ever 
 glowed without abatement, and love's progressive growth increased without a 
 respite ; If the mind was ever enchanted without a rival, or the passions ever 
 determined without hesitation, the heart that now petitions your hand and the 
 soul that eagerly craves your warmest affections, glow with the unabated 
 fervency of unfeigned love. Suffer therefore the captive of your charms, the 
 slave to your beauty, and the approver of your virtues to encourage the idea of 
 being the favoured choice of your affections, or if any other word can be more 
 expressive, your Lover. Give your consent, and let me live ; live to share 
 the affections of your soul ; live to be the recipient of your best wishes which 
 can alone afford ease to a heart fluttering between hope and dispair. Permit 
 me to ask your condescending to acknowledge this epistle, and grant that in 
 the acknowledgment I may have hope sufficient to enable me to congratulate 
 myself in being admitted to your friendship and especially to the more pleasing 
 prospect our reciprocal attachment. In the meantime, believe me to be 
 
 Madam, 
 Your sincere and affectionate lover, 
 
 o&. iMmour Hot ^ing." (1 Pet. ii., 17). 
 
 is no yotott but of 600. &b.e fofom that be art 
 of 600." (Romans xiii., 1). 
 
 " $i0,b>0siuss jalfci&. a nation, but sin is a rtproar^ to 
 awg gtoglt."(Prov. xiv., 34).
 
 rbrr &0olv roniatning surfr bile mattrr 20 
 fltirlg fcouufr?" (Rom.eo and Juliet.}
 
 [297] 
 
 ** This Index does not include the names of the Parliamentary Members and 
 
 Candidates mentioned in Chapter XVIII. Entries in small capitals 
 
 indicate Titles of Chapters. 
 
 Accidents on Railways, 137 
 Adams, Professor J. C., 60 
 Additional Curates' Society, 162 
 Albany, Duchess of, 57 
 Albion Hotel, 42, 46 
 Alder, Rev. H. R., 187 
 Aldermen: G. Boulton, 104, 203, 221 ; 
 H. W. Keay, 79, 104; W. E. 
 Morrison, 201, 210 ; J. A. Skinner, 
 95, 204 ; N. Strange, 96 
 All Saints' Church, 182 
 All Saints' Convalescent Hospital, 180 
 Allied Sovereigns, Visit of , in 1814, 83 
 Amalgamation of Southern Railways, 
 
 132 
 
 " Amberstone," near Hailsham, 83 
 Anchor Hotel, 42 
 Anderida, 9 
 
 Anecdotesof Railway Travelling, 140 
 Anecdotes, Various, 6, 12, 14, 15, 16, 
 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 24, 28, 30, 34, 
 38, 44, 45, 47, 54, 58, 59, 60, 64, 
 65, 67, 68, 73, 76, 77, 103, 109, 
 114, 117, 118, 141, 150, 167. 169, 
 171, 176, 179, 183, 195, 246, 247, 
 252 
 
 Annaly, Lord, 7 
 Anson, Sir J. W. H., Bt., 7 
 Anthony's Hill, 81 
 Artillery, Coast Brigade, 36 
 Artillery Militia, Sussex, 72, 110 
 Artillery Volunteers, Sussex, 74 
 Archdall, Capt. M. E., M.P., 39 
 Archery, 148 
 
 Armstrong, Sir W. G., 80 
 Armstrong Guns, Trial of, 80 
 Arts and Industries' Society, 120 
 Ashburnham, 4th Earl of, 46 
 Asquith, Mr. H. H., M.P., 226, 235 
 Astronomical Matters, 113, 114 
 Astronomical Visitors, 60 
 Authors connected with East- Bourne, 
 
 112 
 Authorship, Penalties attached to, 268 
 
 Bacon, Capt., 148 
 
 Baden, Grand Duke and Duchess of, 
 
 54 
 
 Bailey, Mr. J. H., 113 
 Baillie, Mr. H., 91 
 Baker. E., 105 
 Ball, Fancy Dress, 260 
 Ball-room House, 42, 48 
 Banister, Mr. F. J., 131 
 Banks at East- Bourne, 249 
 Banning, Rev. C. H., 176 
 Bartlett, Sir E. A., M.P., 96, 250 
 Bataillard, Maditme, 16 
 Bathing at East- bourne, 659 
 Bathing, 260 
 Baths, Mrs. Webb's, 46 
 Bathurst, Rev. W. A., 159, 175 
 Battle, Proposed Rail way from, 128 
 Baugh, Lieut.. R.N., 175 
 Bazaars, Charilable, 54, 56, 175, 193, 
 
 194 
 
 Beachy Head. 23; Accidents at, 5, 22 
 Beaconsfield, Earl of, 249 
 Beckenham, Lewes and Brighton 
 
 Railway, 139 
 Beckwith, Mr. E. L., 104 
 Bedford Well, 244 
 Bell, Dr. W., 92 
 Bennett, Mr. T., 74 
 Berry, Mr. J., 213 
 Birds of Sussex, Collection of, 116 
 Bishops at the Parish Church. 167 
 Bishop of Colorado, 64.67, 167 
 Bishop of Chichester (Durnford), 64, 
 
 184, 186 
 
 Bishop of New Hampuhire, 64 
 Bishop of London (Temple), 247 
 Bishop of Oxford (Mackarness), 64 
 Bishop of Oxford (Wilberforce), 176 
 Blanket Loan Society, 87 
 Blomfield, Sir A., 174 
 Boating, 151 
 
 Bonaparte, Prince Lucien, 53 
 Booth, "General," 210
 
 298 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Booth, Miss Eva, 210 
 
 Borthwick, Sir A. and Lady, 61 
 
 Boulder Boats, 84 
 
 Boulton, Alderman G., 104, 203, 221 
 
 Bourne Cottage, 29 
 
 Bourne Stream, 25, 27 
 
 Bourdillon, Rev. F., 176 
 
 Bourdillon, Mr. F. W., 55 
 
 Bourke, Hon. and Rev. G. W., 65 
 
 Bown, Mr. J. A., 99, 189 
 
 Boys, E., 190 
 
 Brady, Mr. F., 128 
 
 Brand, Capt. the Hon. T. S., 96 
 
 Bread, The Staff of Life, 251 
 
 Brighton Chain Pier, 216 
 
 British and Foreign Bible Society, 162 
 
 Broad Dent, Sir W. H., Bt., 109 
 
 Brodie, Rev. A., D.D., 3, 8, 162, 168; 
 
 extracts from letters of, 266 
 Brodie, Mrs., 10, 115 
 Brodie, Mr. Frederick, 33, 125 
 Brodie, Mr. Walter, 112, 166, 256 
 Brodie, Mr. William, 87, 157 
 Brodie, Miss Emma, 164, 253 
 Brodie, Miss Julia, 3, 87, 125, 192 
 Brodie, Miss Lydia, 3, 87, 192 
 Brodie, Miss Maria, 3, 57, 192 
 Broome, Mr., his School, 189 
 Burford, Mr. D., 124 
 Burlington, 2nd Earl of, 13, 16, 125, 
 
 165 
 Burlington, Blanche, Countess of, 16; 
 
 her School, 192 
 Burnaby, Col. F., 118 
 Burton, Decimus (Architect); 36 
 
 Cairns, 1st Earl, 251 
 
 Caldecott, Mr. R.M., 19, 112, 181, 206 
 
 Caldecott Museum, 19, 206 
 
 Cambridge, 1st Duke of, 70 
 
 Cambridge, 2nd Duke of. 54, 80 
 
 Campbell's Lives of the Chancellors, 28 
 
 Cancellor, Mr. R., 108 
 
 CANDLES, GAS AND WATKB, 98 
 
 Candlesticks, 98 
 
 Cane, Mr. H., 207 
 
 Canino, Prince of, 53 
 
 Capua, Prince and Princess of, 53 
 
 Caiden, Alderman Sir K. W., M.P., 
 
 61, 63 
 
 Cardwell, Col., 75 
 Carson, Sir E., Q.C., M.P., 235 
 Carter, J., 106 
 
 Cary, Rev. J. W., D.D., 144 
 Cavendish, Lord, 40 
 Cavendish, Lord Edwaid, 165, 221 
 Cavendish, Lady Edward, 247 
 Cavendish, Ijord Frederick, 165 
 
 Cavendish, Lord George, 14 
 Cavendish, Lord Richard (Senr.), 16, 
 
 102 
 
 Cavendish, Lord Richard (Junr.), 248 
 Cavendish, Lady Louisa, 165 
 Cavendish, Mrs., 16, 17 
 Cavendish, Mr. F. W. H., 56, 81, 91, 
 
 153, 154, 231 
 
 Cavendish, Gen. the Hon. H. F., 231 
 Cavendish, Mrs. F. W. H., 56 
 Cavendish, Mr. and Mrs. Reginald, 57 
 Cavendish, Mr. Delmar, 147 
 Cavendish, Mr Victor, 235, 247 
 Cavendish, Col., H. H. F., 256 
 Cemetery, 91 
 
 Chamberlain, Mr. Austen, M.P., 235 
 Chambers, G. F., 104 
 Chambers, Mrs. G. F., 57 
 Charity Organisation Society, 90 
 Chariot, 123 
 Charley, Sir W., 95, 96 
 Cherrill, Rev. A. K., 115 
 Chichester, Bishop of (Durnford), 
 
 64, 184 
 Chichester, Bishop of (Wilberforce), 
 
 186 
 
 Chichester, 3rd Earl of, 135, 256 
 China, Old, A Story of, 261 
 Chinese Ambassador and Family, 58 
 Choral Society, 90 
 Christian Names, Unfamiliar Women's, 
 
 285 
 Churches: St. Mary's, 164; Holy 
 
 Trinity, 32, 174, 184; Christ Church, 
 
 176; St. Saviour's, 177; St. John's, 
 
 21, 36, 179; All Saints', 182; All 
 
 Souls', 184; St. Anne's, 182; St. 
 
 Peter's, 187; St. Michael's, 173 
 Church Congress at Brighton, 161 
 Church Disestablishment, 96 
 Church Institute, Proposed, 88 
 Church Missionary Society, 162 
 Church Pastoral Aid Society, 162 
 Church Patronage, 186 
 Church Rates, 156 
 
 Churchill, Lord and Lady E. S., 60, 118 
 Churchill, Lord Randolph, 249 
 Churchill, Mr. Winston, 250 
 Civility to Strangers, 293 
 Clarke, Capt, G. E., 253 
 Clerical Costumes, 170 ; Surnames, 294 
 Clock, Old, A Story of, 262 
 Climpson, Mr. Reuben, 218 
 Coaches to East-Bourne, 122 ; to and 
 
 from Sussex, 258 
 Coal and Clothing Society, 87 
 Coal Company, Limited, 88 
 Coals, Sea-borne, 51 
 Coast Guard Station, 45 
 Cochrane, Lord, 81 
 Cochrane- Patrick, Mr., M.P., 235
 
 INDEX. 
 
 299' 
 
 Cockburn, Sir A. J. E., 108 
 
 Cockerell, Mr. J. P., 116 
 
 Coins as Measures, 293 
 
 Colchester, Lord and Lady, 61, 62 
 
 Coles, Mr. J. H. C., 33, 107, 217 
 
 Colgate, Mr. R., 99, 110 
 
 Colgate, Dr. H., 110, 154 
 
 Colgate, Miss, 154 
 
 College, East-Bourne, 34 
 
 Committees of Ladies, 264 
 
 COMPANIES, SOCIETIES, INSTITUTIONS, 86 
 
 Compton Place, 14. 16, 36, 56, 57, 162, 
 248 ; Garden Party at, 254 
 
 Constables, Parish, 105; High, 105 
 Police, 106 ; Special, 106 
 
 Conversazione of the Natural History 
 Society, 115 
 
 Cook, Mr. T. , 1 1 
 
 Cook, Miss Mary, 11 
 
 Cooper, Mr. B./31, 99 
 
 Cornfield Road, 39 
 
 Cornfield Terrace, 49 
 
 Coutts, Mr., 189 
 
 County Council Elections, 202 
 
 County Councils and Education, 194 
 
 County Court, 107 
 
 Coventry, 8th Earl of, 1 
 
 Crake, Eev. E. E., 33, 153 
 
 Cricket at East-Bourne, 144,146, 148; 
 
 Old Club, 144; at Brighton, 145 
 Crimean War, 43, 49, 71, 243 
 Croquet, 149 
 
 Currey, Mr. H., 188, 220, 222 
 Currey and Holland, 128 
 Curteis, Mr. H. M., 129 
 Cuthell, Mr. A., 40 
 Cuthell, Mrs., 165 
 Cygnet Yacht, 48 
 
 D 
 
 Daily Telegraph on East- Bourne, 159 
 
 Darby, Mr. George, M.P., 74, 102 
 
 Darby, Lieut. Jonathan, 37 
 
 Darling, Dr.. 24 
 
 Davies, Rev. R. V. F., 34 
 
 De Lasteyrie, Marquis, 59 
 
 De Noailles, Countess, 21 
 
 De Zuylen de Nyevelt, Baroness, 60 
 
 De La Warr Family, 73 
 
 De La Warr, 5th Earl of, 136 
 
 De Walden House, 22 
 
 Debating Societies, 279 
 
 Deeds and Legal Documents, 278 
 
 Dent, Sir A., 104 
 
 Devonshire, 6th Duke of, 246 
 
 Devonshire, 7th Duke of, 13, 134, 147, 
 
 181, 184, 201, 246, 247 
 Devonshire, 8th Duke of, 17, 40, 80, 
 
 188, 235 
 
 Devonshire, 9th Duke of, 235, 247 
 
 Devonshire, Mr. T. H., 91 
 
 Devonshire Club, 91 
 
 Devonshire Park, 148, 221 
 
 Dewick, Rev. E. S., 115 
 
 Dexter, Mr. J., 99 
 
 Dinners, Public, Ladies at, 245 
 
 Dinner in old style, 246; of the 
 "House of Commons," 93, 95, 96, 
 245 ; of the Liberal Party, 265 
 
 Diplock, Mr. C., 229 
 
 Dissent at East- Bourne, 180, 204 
 
 Dissenters and Church Rates, 156, 157 
 Education, 193 
 
 Dissenting Places of Worship, 30, 31 
 
 Dobree, Mr. S., 33, 125 
 
 Dogs and Cats. 278 
 
 Domesday Book, 2 
 
 Domville, Sir William, Bt., 33, 102, 158 
 
 Domville, Sir J. G., Bt., 33, 102 
 
 Drage, Mr. and Mrs. G., 61 
 
 Drury Family, 33. 43 
 
 Dundonald. l"2th Earl of, 81 
 
 Dunmow Flitch, 68 
 
 Dynevor, 4th Lord, 4 
 
 E 
 
 East-Bourne, spelling of, 2 
 EAST-BOUENK BILLS IN PARLIAMENT, 
 
 206 
 
 East-Bourne Chronicle, 113, 138 
 East-Bourne Gas Company, 99 ; Its 
 
 Acts of Parliament, 100 
 East- Bourne Gazette, 245 
 " East-Bourne Improvement Act, 
 
 1879," 215; Ditto, 1885, 209 
 East-Bourne Water Company, 100 ; 
 
 Its Acts of Parliament, 101 
 Easter, Mr. J., 153 
 Easter Monday Reviews, 36, 78 
 East London Church Fund, 161 
 ECCLESIASTICAL, 156 
 Edgell, Mr. Wyatt, 113 
 " Edna Ly all," 113 
 EDUCATIONAL, 189 
 Education. Technical, 194 
 Egerton, Admiral, M.P., 165, 247 
 Egerton, Hon. Mrs., 196 
 Egerton, Lady Louisa, 57, 247 
 Eldon, 1st Earl of, 28 
 ELECTIONS, PABLIAMENTABY, 225 
 ELECTIONS, PAROCHIAL AND MUNICIPAL,. 
 
 197 
 
 Eliot, Rev. E F., 187 
 Eliot, Lady K., 187 
 Elliott, Benjamin, 82 
 Elliott, Mr. E., 95 
 Ellis. Hon. Charlotte, 90, 91 
 Ellis, Dr. H. D., 112
 
 300 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Ellis, Mr. J., 226 
 Ellman, Mr. W., 128 
 Ellenborough, Lord, 109 
 Elm Cottage, 29 
 Elms, The, 37 
 Elphick's Field, 222, 223 
 Emary, Mr. F. H., 86 
 Emperor Napoleon, I., 82 
 Empress Frederick of Germany, 66 
 Encroachments of the Sea, 212 
 Esam, Mr. W., 153 
 
 Fairs at East-Bourne, 24, 25 
 Farnell, Dr. H. D., 104 
 Fiction and Fact, 256, 275, 283 
 Field, Admiral, M.P., 95, 210 
 Field House, 42 
 Filder, Mr. J., 201 
 Findlay, Sir G., 138 
 Fire Engines, 27, 248 
 Firework Displays, 125 
 FitzGerald, Sir G. J. O., 104, 234 
 Fletcher, Rev. J. B., 186 
 Foljambe, Mr. C. G., 17 
 Football, 144 
 Foran, Mr. J. C., 104 
 Fowler, Sir H. H., M.P., 209 
 Foxhounds, 151 
 Franklin, Sir John, 267 
 Franklin, Lady, 15 
 Free Trade Results, 84 
 French Readings, 199 
 Frohsdorf House, 147, 175 
 Funeral, Military, 177 
 
 G 
 
 Galleries of The Houses of Parliament, 
 
 Visits to, 289 
 GAMES AND SPOETS, 1 44 
 Oas Company, Establishment of, 99 
 Gell, Mr. F. H., 31, 103 
 Oell, Mr. Inigo, 103 
 George III., Children of, 52 ; Jubilee 
 
 of, 82 
 
 German Emperor, William I., 54 
 German Plays, Readings of, 120 
 German Visitors, 60 
 Gilbert Family, Pedigree of, 16 
 Gilbert, Mr. Davies, 14 
 Gilbert, Mrs., 14, 248 
 Gilbert, Mr. J. D., 13, 14, 102, 165 
 Gilbert, Hon. Mrs., 15 
 Gilbert, Mr. C. D., 62. 124, 135, 163, 
 
 182, 201, 216, 222, 223 
 Gildredge Park, 224 
 Gladstone, Mr., 249 
 Glenesk, Lord and Lady, 61, 62 
 
 Goffs, The, 25 
 
 Golf, 152; A Magistrate's View of, 105 
 
 Gooch, Lady, 57 
 
 Goodwyn, Rev Canon, 186 
 
 Gordon, Colonel, 49 
 
 Gore, The, 10, 107, 239, 248 
 
 Goring, Rev. J., 229 
 
 Gorringe, Mr. Joseph, 18 
 
 Gosdcn Bros., 190 
 
 Gosden, Mr. J., 99, 157 
 
 Gottwaltz, Mr. J. F., 29 
 
 Gowland's Library, 45 
 
 Graham Family, 37, 44 
 
 Graham, Sir J. R. G., Bt., 107 
 
 Graham, Mr. J., 29, 37, 102 
 
 Graham, Mr. R. J., 29, 37, 102, 105, 
 
 113, 152, 157, 219 
 Graham, Rev. E. C., 152 
 Graham, Mr. T. H. B., 37 
 Grace, Mr. J., 253 
 Grace, Mrs., 180 
 Grace, Rev. H., 253 
 Granby, Marquis of, 63 
 Grand Parade, 36 
 Grays, The, 15, 249 
 Greame, Dr., 57 
 Gregory, Mr. G. B., M.P., 240 
 Grotto, The, 38, 175 
 Grove, The, 27 
 Groynes, The, 212 
 Guardian Newspaper, 242 
 Guardians of the Poor, 197, 202 
 Guardians, Lady, 202 
 Guy Fawkes Day, 237 
 
 H 
 
 Hall, Dr. D. J., 29, 33, 46, 87, 99, 109, 
 
 110, 125 
 
 Hall, Miss W. L., 115 
 Hamilton- Gordon, Lady, 117 
 Hampden, 1st Viscount, 201 
 Hanbury, Mr. R., M.P., 147 
 Harbour, Suggested, 50 
 Harcourt, Sir W., M.P., 191 
 Harcourt, Mr. L., 191 
 Hardy, Mr. H. W., 90 
 Harriers, 151 
 Hart Family, 166 
 Hart, Mr. S., 67 
 
 Hartington, Marquis of, 17, 57, 165 
 Hawkins- Whitshed, Lady, 118 
 Hayman, Dr. C. C., 112 
 Hayman, Dr. C. N. Plate XLI. 
 Heatherly, J., 45 
 Heinemann Family, 7 
 Heley, Lieut., 79 
 Herschel, Lady, 117 
 Hewitt, Capt,, 32 
 Hibbert, Sir J. T. and Lady, 61, 247
 
 INDEX. 
 
 301 
 
 Hobby Bank. Plate XI". 
 
 Hockey, 144 
 
 Holker Hall, 247 
 
 Holland, Lord, 63 
 
 Holmes Family, 1 5 
 
 Holmes, Sir R., 118 
 
 Holy well, 181 
 
 Hood, Mr. A. R., 16 
 
 Hood, Mrs. W. C., 16 
 
 Hood, Miss, 1 15 
 
 Hook, Theodore, 112 
 
 Hope, Mr. Beresford, M.P., 64, 65 
 
 Hospital, All Saints' Convalescent, 56 ; 
 
 All Saints' Children's, 57 ; Princess 
 
 Alice Memorial, 55, 56, 89 ; Military, 
 
 49 
 " House of Commons," East-Bourne, 
 
 92 
 Howard, Mr. F. J., 88, 123, 147, 162, 
 
 184 
 Howard, Lady Fanny, 16, 17, 55, 147, 
 
 256 
 
 Howard De "Walden, Lady, 22, 91 
 Hughes, Mr. Percival, 118 
 Huntly, llth Marquis of, 146 
 " Hunt Sermons," 277 
 Hurst, Mr. A., 99 
 Hurst, Mr. (Brewer), 190 
 Huxley, Prof. T. H., 117 
 Hyde Gardens, 59 
 Hymn-book of Parish Church, 171 
 
 Illustrated London News, 55, 84 
 
 Incorporation of the Town, 200, 238 
 
 Inglis, Mr. J. C., 139 
 
 Insoll, Mr. R., 116, 219 
 
 INTRODUCTORY, 1 
 
 Iron Churches, 177, 182 
 
 James, Rev. H., 5 
 
 Jeffery, Dr. G. A., 33, 99, 110, 116, 175 
 
 Jenny Lind, 113 
 
 Johnson, Mrs., 29 
 
 K 
 
 Keay, Alderman H. W., 79, 104 
 Keeping Family, 31 
 Kerry, Rev. W. B., 176 
 Kilmorey, 3rd Earl of, 147 
 King George III., Children of, 52 
 King Edward VII., Visits of, to East- 
 Bourne, 17, 38, 163 
 King's Arms Inn, 42 
 
 Kitching, Lieut. R.N., 48 
 Knight, Mr. J. P., 133 
 
 Ladies at Public Dinners, 245 
 Lady Guardians, 202 
 Lain?, Mr. 8., 132 
 Lamb Inn, 24 
 
 Lanyon Family, 31, 119, 251 
 Lanyon, Sir C., 119, 251 
 Lanyon, Sir 0.. 119, 251 
 Lambert, Mr. R. C., 104 
 Lansham, Mr. J. G., 103, 322 
 Larkjleld House, 32, 34 
 Lasteyrie, Marquis De, 69 
 LAW, POLICE, MEDICAL, 102 
 Law, Hon. H. S., 109 
 Lawrence, Mr. G. H., 204 
 Law-suite. Local, 106 
 Lawn Tennis, 149 
 Lay Family, 45 
 Le Blond, Mrs. Aubrey, 118 
 Leach, Sir John, V.C., 28 
 Lennard, Sir J. F., Bt . 191 
 Leslie-Melville, Lady Susan, 58 
 Lilford, Dowagrer Lady, 61, 62 
 Lime Cottage, 29 
 Links with the Past, 263 
 
 LlTEBATUBE, SCIENCE, AND ABT, 1 1 1 
 
 Literary Institution, 30, 87 
 
 Literary Visitors to East- Bourne, 113 
 
 Liverpool, 1st Earl of. 17 
 
 Livingstone, Miss, 154 
 
 Livingstone House, 49 
 
 Lloyd, Rev. W. H., 177 
 
 Local Board, 198, 200 
 
 Local Government in Sussex, 197 
 
 Locker- Lampson, Mrs., 196 
 
 Locock, Sir C., Bt., 178, 253 
 
 London, Chatham and Dover Railway, 
 
 129, 131, 134 
 
 Long, Lady Catherine, 1 1 2 
 Long, Mr. W. H., M.P., 185 
 Lome, Marquis of, 54 
 Lome, Marchioness of, 58 
 Lush, Mr., Q.C., 157 
 Lushington, Rev. Dr., 14 
 
 M 
 
 Macauley, Col. G. W., 90 
 
 Maddock, Rev. H. E., 115, 216 
 
 Manby, Mr. C., 16 
 
 Manners, Lord J. J. R. ("th Duke of 
 Rutland), 240 
 
 Manners, Mr. H. (8th Duke of Rut- 
 land), 63 
 
 Manners and Customs, Changes in, '276 
 
 Manor House, 14, 62, 163
 
 .302 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Manslaughter, Case of, 108 
 Manslaughter, Punishment awarded 
 
 for stealing, 243 
 
 Maps, Old of East-Bourne, lost, 115 
 Mar, Earl of, 120 
 Marriage, Letter of offer of, 295 
 Martello Towers, 51 
 Martin, Sir J. R., 109 
 Matthey, Mr. G., 147 
 Maugery, Mdlle., 67 
 Mayhewe, Mr. A., 95, 104 
 Mayo, 6th Earl of, 66 
 Mayors, Status of, 105 
 McCHntock, Sir L., 15 
 Meads, 18, 179 
 
 Meath, Earl and Countess of, 61 
 Mereweather, Serjeant, Q.C., 171 
 Mid- Victorian Meal times, 289 
 
 MlLITAEY AND NAVAL EPISODES, 69 
 
 Militia, Norfolk Artillery, 72 
 
 Militia, South Gloucester, 3 
 
 Militia, Sussex Artillery, 71, 110 
 
 Mill -field, 26 
 
 Mills at East-Bourne, 25 
 
 Mills, Mr. A., M.P.. 147 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS, 236 
 
 Mitchfll, Mr. O., 154 
 
 Molineux & Co., 99 
 
 Molineux, Major H. P., 104, 145 
 
 Molesworth, 8th Viscount, 147 
 
 Monk Bretton, 1st Lord, 235 
 
 Moonlight Festivities, 20, 21 
 
 Morier, Admiral, 40 
 
 Morison Family, 120 
 
 Morrison, Alderman W. E., 201, 210 
 
 Morris, Mr. J. B., 229 
 
 Morris, Mr. W., 31 
 
 Morris, Mr. H., 69 
 
 M ortimer Family, 119 
 
 Mortimer, J. H. (Artist), 119 
 
 Mortimer,Mrs. (Authoress), 40 
 
 Mortimer, Miss, 33, 119 
 
 Moseley, Dr. G., 112 
 
 Motcombe Lane, 11 
 
 Muller, Mr. C. J., 115 
 
 Municipal Trading, 211 
 
 Mutual Improvement Society, 88, 92 
 
 N 
 
 Napier of Magdala, 1st Lord, 81 
 
 Napoleon I. , 3 
 
 Natural History Society, 114, 216 
 
 Nelson, 3rd Earl, 64 
 
 Neu> Inn, 30 
 
 New Churches, Frequently wanted, 173 
 
 Newbolt, Canon, 64 
 
 Newman, Mr. William, 125 
 
 Newspapers, Local, 12, 111 
 
 Newspapers, London, 12 
 
 Novel Experiences, 286 
 
 Oak Cottage, 38, 175 
 
 Oakden, Lieut.-Col. A. A., 75 
 
 Obbard, Kev. A. N., 160, 187 
 
 Ocklynge, 9 
 
 Officers stationed at East-Bourne, 71, 
 
 72 
 
 Ogle, Commander, R.N., 48 
 Open Spaces, 221 
 Ordination at East-Bourne, 179 
 Organists, Caution as to, 179 
 Ottley, Rev. Canon H. B., 165, 175 
 Ouroussoff, Prince J., 58 
 Ouse Valley Railway, 129 
 Ouseley, Rev. Sir F. A. G., 64 
 
 "PADDING" AND " SCISSORS AND 
 
 PASTE," 272 
 Palmer, Mr. J. C., 40 
 Palmer, Rev. J. H., 154, 187, 222 
 Papendiek, Mrs., 53 
 Paramor, Lieut. F. R., 79 
 Paxton, Sir J., 17 
 Pedestrianistn, 152 
 Peel, Sir C. L., 129 
 Peerless, Mr. J., 249 
 Pendrell Family, 39 
 Penruddocke, Mr., 186 
 Peppercorne Family, 12 
 Pevensev Corporation, 244 
 Picnics, "20, 35, 114 
 Picknell Family, 24 
 Pidcock, Mr., 164 
 
 Pierpoint, Rev. R. W., 138, 174, 185 
 Pierpoint, Rev. R. D , 116 
 Piggott, Sir A., 28, 29, 32 
 Piggott, Lady, 28 
 Pigs as Engineers, 256 
 Pinnock, R., 190 
 Pitman, Rev. T., 13, 33, 87, 167, 158, 
 
 167, 176, 178, 184, 221 
 Pitman, Miss, 57 
 Pitman, Miss E., 57 
 Pitman Institute, 172 
 Podmore, Mr., 154 
 Police Force, Statistics of, 106 
 Polling Places in Sussex, 226, 228, 230 
 Population Statistics, 236 
 Posadowsky, Countess, 60 
 Postal Arrangements in 1874, 239 
 Prentice Street, 33 
 Preachers at the Parish Church, 167 
 Primrose League, 233, 234 
 Princess Alice, Grand Duchess of 
 
 Hesse, 54, 65 
 Princess Christian, 55 
 Princess Louisa, Marchioness of 
 
 Lome, 54, 58
 
 INDEX. 
 
 303 
 
 Printers at East-Bourne, 245 
 Privateer8,French,offEast-Bourne,259 
 " Public Libraries Acts," 207 
 Purcell Glee Society, 91 
 
 Q 
 
 'Quarry of Green Sandstone, 35 
 
 R 
 
 Races, 150 
 
 RAILWAYS AND TBAVBLLING, 122 
 
 Kailway to East-Bourne, Opening of, 
 123, 124; Accidents, 137 ; Carriages. 
 127 
 
 Ranking, Dr., 31, 110 
 
 Ration, 6 
 
 Rawdon, Mr. C. W., 32, 34 
 
 Redoubt, The Great, 49 
 
 Hegatta, First at East- Bourne, 151 
 
 Reviews, Easter Monday, 78 ; Various 
 Naval, 85 
 
 Rice, Hon. and Rev. W. T., 186 
 
 Roberts, Dr. Bransby, 110 
 Hobinson, Rev. W. B., 12, 289 
 
 Robinson, Mr. E., 23 
 
 Rodwell, Mr. E. K., Q.C., 104 
 
 Rollison, John, 124 
 
 Roper, Mr. F. C. S., 212, 115 
 
 Rose Cottage, 29 
 
 Jtotemount, 147, 175 
 
 Routledge, Mr. W., 88 
 
 Round House, The, 43 
 
 ROYAL AND DISTINGUISHED VISITOKS, 52 
 
 Royal Parade, 50 
 
 Royer, J., 28, 112 
 
 Russian Prisoners at Lewes, 243 
 
 Rutland, 7th Duke of, 240 
 
 Rutland, 8th Duke of, 63 
 
 -Ryle, T., 115 
 
 Sala, G. A., 159 
 Salisbury, Marquis of, 95 
 Salt, Mr. T., M.P., 61, 90 
 Salvation Army, 209 
 Sanders, Mr. R. D., 164 
 Sarle, Sir A., 136, 138 
 Scarlett, Mrs. Leopold, 63 
 Schools, Elementary, 185, 191 
 Schools, Private, 191 
 School Board,NoneatEast-Bourne,192 
 School Feasts, 172 
 Schuster, Mr. L., 125 
 Screen, Folding, 120 
 Sea-Beach House, 42, 48 
 Seaford, 84 ; proposed Railway to, 135 
 Season Extension Movement, 241 
 SEA WALLS : TOWN HALLS : PUBLIC 
 PAEKS, 212 
 
 Sea Wall, 50, 212 
 Shakespeare Readings, 60, 89, 119 
 Shaw, Col. E. W., 104 
 Sheep-stealing, Sermon on, 242 
 Sheffield, 3rd Earl of, 76, 133 
 Sheffield Park, Camps at, 76 
 Sheridan, Mr. J., 219 
 Shomerdyke Road, 33 
 Shrewsbury, 19th Earl of, 109 
 Shuttleworth, Lord, 15 
 Shuttleworth, Sir J. Kay-, 15 
 Silhouette Pictures, 121 
 Simmons, Mr. C., 99 
 Skeletons, Discovery of, 8 
 Skinner, Alderman J. A., 138, 204 
 Smith-Dorrien-Smith, Mr. A., 247 
 Smith-Dorrien, Rev. W., 247 
 Snow Hut, 238 
 Snowstorms, 7 
 Society for Promoting Christian 
 
 Knowledge, 162 
 Somerset, Gen. E. A., 253 
 Sortwell, Rev. T., 163 
 
 South African War, 78, 81 
 
 South Street, 31 
 Southfield Lodge, 33 
 
 " Speaker of the House of Commons," 
 9o 
 
 Spelling Bee, 152 
 
 Spelling: "f " East-Bourne," 2 
 
 Splash Point, 82, 44 : Accident at, 44 
 
 Squirrel Inn, 234 
 
 St. Gregory's Chapel, 181 
 
 Stalbridge, Lord and Lady, 61, 62 
 
 Stations, Railway, at Eastbourne, 127 
 
 Stokes, Rev. G., 23, 33 
 
 Stokes, Rev. H. P., 186 
 
 Stone, Mr. R. B., 18, 99 
 
 Stone, Rev. S. J., 64, 67 
 
 Stool-Ball, 149 
 
 Strange, Alderman N., 92, 104 
 
 Streatfeild Family, 48 
 
 Streatfeild, Mr. J., 48 
 
 Streatfeild, Mr. F. H. T., 48 
 
 Streatfeild, Mr. R. J., 6 
 
 Stroud, Mr. D., 189 
 
 Sunday Bands, 158, 159, 183 ; Trains, 
 Excursions, 264 
 
 Sunday League, National, 159 
 
 Surrey and Sussex Railway, 129 
 Susan*, The, 37 
 Swift, Mr. J., 33 
 Syllabub Parties, 254 
 
 Talbot, Mr. J. G., M.P., 61, 90, 207 
 Technical Education, 1 95 
 Temperance Reform, 281 
 Tennyson, Lord, 113 
 Tennyson, Sir. Frederick, 113
 
 304 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Terminus Road, Laying-out of, 38 
 
 Terrace, The, 32 
 
 Thatcher, Mr. G., 99 
 
 Theatre, Old, in South Street, 31 
 
 Thomas, Mr. Inigo, 7 
 
 Thomas, Mr. Freeman, 11, 125, 151 
 
 Thomas, Mr. Freeman (Lord Willing- 
 don), 224 
 
 Thomas, Mr. W. B., 6 
 
 Thomas, Mr. F. F., 7, 74 
 
 Thomas, Mr. A. G., 7 
 
 Thomas, Hon. Mrs., 196 
 
 Thomus, John, J24 
 
 Thurlow House, 28 
 
 Thurlow, Lord, 28 
 
 Ticehurst, Proposed Railway from, 134 
 
 Tick, Tick, Tick, 282 
 
 Tides, High, Ravages of, 48 
 
 Time, Economy of, 282 
 
 Times Newspaper, 272 
 
 Toogood, Mr. H., 128 
 
 TOPOGBAPHICAL ToUE ROUND THE 
 TOWN, 5, 27, 42 
 
 Torpedoes, 84 
 
 Town Hall, Proposed Sites, 217; 
 Plans, Controversy as to, 220 
 
 Trafalgar, Battle of, 82 
 
 Train Service to East-Bourne, 126 
 
 Trains through from the Midlands, 138 
 
 Tramways, 139 
 
 Trinity Parsonage, 32 
 
 Truman, Mr., 31 
 
 Tseng, Marquis, 59 
 
 Tucker, Railway Inspector, 138 
 
 Tunbridge Wells, Hallways to and 
 from, 129, 130, 131 
 
 Turnpike Trust, Abolition of, 124 
 
 u 
 
 Upperton, 182 
 
 Unreformed Corporations, 243 
 
 Usill, Bev. J. H., 183 
 
 Vestments, 170 
 
 Vicarage, Old, 13; Existing, 13 
 
 Vidler, Mr. M., 213 
 
 Vincent, Sir Howard, M.P., 36 
 
 Volunteers; East-Bourne Rifles, 70, 74 ; 
 
 Artillery, 74 ; Engineers, 75, 78 ; 
 
 During the French War, 69 
 
 W 
 
 Wales, Prince and Princess of, 56, 57 
 
 77 
 Wallis, Mr. G. A., 50, 104, 105, 134, 
 
 201, 207, 208, 235, 241, 245 
 
 Wallis, Mr. W. L., 35, 104 
 
 Walter, Sir E., 69 
 
 Walter, Mr. J., M.P.. 242 
 
 Ward, Dr. O., 115 
 
 Water Company, East-Bourne, 100 
 
 Water Works Buildings, 38 
 
 Water Lane, 26 
 
 Waterloo, Battle of, 81, 169 
 
 Weddings at East-Bourne, 252 
 
 Welch, Rev. T. R., 162 
 
 Welch, Alderman J., 154, 172 
 
 Wellesley, Lady V. L., 33, 184 
 
 Wellesley, Col. A., 63 
 
 Wellington, Duke and Duchess of, 65 
 
 Welsh and English, 281 
 
 West, Miss, 30, 34 
 
 Whentcroft, Mr. W. G., 88 
 
 Whelpton, Rev. H. R., 57, 153, 178 
 
 Whelpton, Mr. G., 178 
 
 Whiteman, Mr. A., 32, 99 
 
 Whitley, Mr. N., 222 
 
 Whitley, Mr. H. M., 50 
 
 Wilberforce, Bishop S., 176 
 
 Wilde, Gen. Sir A. T., 19 
 
 Wilford, Major and Mrs., 30 
 
 Willard, Family, 15 
 
 Willard, Col. John H.. 226 
 
 Willard, Major N., 12, 1 6, 102,124,169. 
 284 
 
 Willard, Capt. L. R., 46, 102 
 
 Willard, Mrs. John, 124 
 
 Willard, Miss, 12 
 
 Willingdon, 5 ; Union of with East- 
 Bourne, 200 
 
 Willingdon, Lord, 224 
 
 Windsor Castle, Visit to, 118 
 
 Wish, The, 35 
 
 Wish Tower, 35 
 
 Wolseley, Lord, 81 
 
 Wolverhampton, Viscount, 209 
 
 Wood. Rev. J. R., 34 
 
 Wood, Rev. S. T., 154 
 
 Woodhouse, Miss A., 115 
 
 Workhouse, 224 
 
 Wrecks, 9 ; Dalhousie, 83 ; Gannet, 84 ; 
 Nympha Americana, 84, 265 ; Sea- 
 flower, 83 ; Thames, 84 
 
 Wright, Rev. F. W., 164 
 
 Young, Mr. T., 204 
 
 Young Men's Christian Association, 95 
 
 Zouche, Lord, 66
 
 THE DRAWING-ROOM AND SCHOOL-ROOM SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 Cfce 
 
 jtterrfjant of Venter. 
 
 IN 
 
 LARGE TYPE 
 
 SLIGHTLY ABRIDGED FOE BEADING ALOUD 
 
 ARRANGED BT COTSFORD DICK. 
 
 EDITED 
 
 BY 
 
 GEOEGE F. CHAMBEES, F.E.A.S. 
 
 OF THB INSBB TBMPLB, BABBISTBB-AT-LAW. 
 
 Author if "A Handbook of Agronomy," "A Conation! 
 English-French-Oerman Dictionary;" "The 
 Pocket-Book;" and other Work*. 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 HUGH EEES, LIMITED. 
 
 ,19 PALL MALL, S.W. 
 
 1908. 
 
 Price ONE SHILLING Soar,l>.
 
 Jlerr!)ant of 
 
 EXTRACTS FROM PREFACE. 
 
 THE Title-page of* this book states nearly all that it is necessary to say by 
 way of Preface. 
 
 Shakespeare's Plays are much more read ami studied than they used to be ; 
 and Shakespearian Readings in private houses are much more common than 
 formerly. It has fallen to my lot to organise many such Readings : either in 
 my own or in other people's houses, and the labour involved has been greatly 
 increased by reason of the fact that there does not exist a single edition of these 
 famous Plays which can be put into the hands of a Lady Reader to be read 
 textually from end to end. An attempt has been made in this direction by 
 Bowdler, but he did not go nearly far enough ; and did nothing to abridge the 
 Plays to bring them within a convenient compass of length for the use of private 
 parties of Readers sitting round a winter's fire. I have attempted to meet this 
 difficulty by a judicious abridgement, which whilst in no case interfering serious- 
 ly with the sense of the dialogue will yet enable the Play to be gone through by 
 a body of average Readers within the space of about two hours. 
 
 It is a great help to a pleasant evening if at the breaks provided by the l\,,-t 
 some instrumental or vocal music is introduced. Accordingly, provision h; : 
 made for this. Every Shakespearian Reading of a social character, where more 
 than, say, a dozen persons are concerned, should begin with an Overture of some 
 sort. This serves as a warning, alike to readers and audience, that the proceed- 
 ings are about to commence, and gives an opportunity to everbody to settle intc 
 their places before the actual commencement of the Dialogue. Many of Shake- 
 speare's Plays contain songs interspersed in the text. Though these are not, a.* 
 a rule, of much literary merit, yet there they are, and many of them have been 
 set to music by various composers at various times. It seems appropriate to 
 make use of some of these compositions where facilities exist for doing so. 
 
 As regards the incidental allusions to musical instruments which occur in 
 so many places, though the phraseology of them varies in different Plays it is 
 believed that the Appendix will meet all the necessities of the case. 
 
 I am much indebted to my Musical Colleague Mr. Cotsford Dick, for the 
 judgement and skill which he has shown in executing the. task which I imposed 
 on him, of providing the novel Miisical Appendix. 
 
 Another feature of this edition is the large type employed. Readings of 
 Shakespeare nearly always take place in the evening, and where 2 <>r /, dozen 
 Readers are concerned it does not always happen ( I speak from experience ) 
 that all are provided with good and sufficient light. To have at command abool 
 printed in large type is under such circumstances an obvious desideratum for 
 every class of Reader. 
 
 In accordance with the precedents set by previous Editors occasionally an 
 objectionable word is replaced by a pleasanter equivalent. In this case the 
 substituted word is enclosed in single inverted commas.
 
 [ SPECIMEN PAGE. ] 
 
 Cljr JHe rdjant of Vtnitt. 
 
 ACT I. 
 SCENE I. Venice. A Street. 
 
 Enter ANTONIO, SALARINO, and SOLANIO. 
 
 In sooth, I know not why I am so sad : 
 It wearies me; you say it wearies you 
 But how I caught it, found it, or came by it, 
 What stuff 'tis made of, whereof it is born, 
 I am to learn; 
 
 And such a want- wit sadness makes of me, 
 That I have much ado to know myself. 
 
 Saldr. Your mind is tossing on the ocean; 
 There where your argosies with portly sail, 
 Like signiors and rich burghers on the flood, 
 Or, as it Avere the pageants of the sea, 
 Do overpeer the petty traffickers, 
 That curt'sy to them, do them reverence, 
 As they fly by them with their woven wings. 
 
 Solan. Believe me, sir, had I such venture forth, 
 The better part of my affections would 
 Be with my hopes abroad. I should be still 
 Plucking the grass, to know where sits the wind; 
 Peering in maps for ports, and piers, and roads;
 
 O)e (Enfflfc!;, Jfrenrf), anto German 
 Conbersattonal Mcttonarp. 
 
 BY GEORGE F. CHAMBERS. F.R.A.S. 
 
 REVIEWS AND NOTICES. 
 
 " The design of the work is a thoroughly practical one, and, so far as 
 we have consulted the Dictionary it appears to have been executed, within 
 the limits imposed, with great care and precision. " Times. 
 
 " A complete Vocabulary, the object being to assist conversation 
 rather than the literary studies of the would-be linguist. An exceptionally 
 excellent plan is the distinction of masculine, feminine, and neuter 
 substantives ; the first being given in small capitals, the second in italics, 
 and the third in large capitals. By these means thework gives in the cant 
 term of the racing world " Form at a glance.' " Morning Pout. 
 
 "A handy book for travellers containing in a portable form a good 
 Vocabulary of everyday words and expressions. It should certainly be 
 added to that Library without which the ordinary British Tourist would 
 not think of venturing abroad." Vanity Fair. 
 
 " A book that will prove highly valuable to Tourists. The book is a 
 great improvement on previous attempts, and deserves high praise." 
 
 Athencfiiiii. 
 
 " The si/.e of the book is most suitable for the pocket, and we should 
 say that no Tourist should travel abroad without this very excellent 
 Hand-book." Whitehall Review. 
 
 'A valuable book for travellers. Simple in construction and compre- 
 hensive in character it deserves the highest praise." Scotsman. 
 
 "The traveller has at his command the German and French of more 
 than 40,000 English words : two considerable Dictionaries in one little 
 book." Publishers' Circular. 
 
 "Many a traveller has often felt the need of a 'Conversational 
 Dictionary ' giving much-used words and phrases in a form very easy of 
 reference. This want has been met by Mr. Chambers. In the matters of 
 type, paper, size, and binding, convenience aud portability have been 
 carefully considered." Literary World. 
 
 " A book which every traveller should possess." Educational Newt. 
 
 " A mixture of Dictionary and Phrase-Book combining, as appears to 
 us, the advantages of both, and should find its place among the impedimenta 
 of every Tourist however limited his baggage may be.' John Hull. 
 
 " The arrangement in parallel vertical columns of equivalent words 
 and phrases in English, French, and German is novel and convenient. The 
 work is well printed in a handy and portable shape. " Buildtr. 
 
 " Mr. Chambers gives the traveller exactly what he wants in a neat, 
 compact, and extremely portable little volume which could not by any 
 stretch of language be called an encumbrance. The mass of information is 
 something amazing. We have examined many of the entries and found 
 them invariably accurate and satisfactory in the highest degree. As many 
 of our readers spend 2 or 3 weeks on the Continent about this time of year 
 we feel that we shall be doing them good service by recommending them to 
 put a copy of this admirable little volume in their pocket before starting." 
 Schoolmaster. 
 
 LONDON: HUGH REES, LIMITED, 119 PALL MALL. 
 Price a.6rf. Net/.
 
 wine. ju Wiry. 
 
 S 
 
 Wine, Dry. 
 
 VIN sec. 
 
 SECTWEIN. 
 
 P 
 
 "3 
 
 , Light. 
 
 Petit VIN. 
 
 Leichter WEIH. 
 
 
 
 , Sparkling. 
 
 VIN mousseux. 
 
 bCHAUMWKIN. 
 
 
 , Strong. 
 
 VIN fort. 
 
 Starker AV'EIN. 
 
 
 , Sweet. 
 
 VIN sucre 1 . 
 
 SOsser WEIN. 
 
 ^ 
 
 Wine, A glass of. 
 
 Un VERRE de VIN. 
 
 Kin GLAS Wi. 
 
 S 
 
 Wine and water. 
 
 au rougie. 
 
 WEIN und WASSER. 
 
 d 
 
 
 
 bin. 
 
 PORTE-BO UTEILLES. 
 
 FLASCIIENBEHALTER. 
 
 
 
 bottle. 
 
 BouteilleiL VIN. 
 
 Weinflusche. 
 
 
 cellar. 
 
 Cave. 
 
 WEI.NKKU,R. 
 
 t> 
 
 glass (large). 
 
 VERRE a Bordeaux. 
 
 ROTIHVEIXGLA8. 
 
 s 
 
 Klass (medium). 
 
 VERRE a MadCre. 
 
 MADERAGLAS. 
 
 
 glass (very 
 
 VERRE a liqueur. 
 
 LIQUEURGLAS. 
 
 
 small). 
 
 
 
 >% 
 
 grower. 
 
 VITICULTKUR. 
 
 WEINBAUE*. 
 
 JO 
 
 growing. 
 
 Ii'industrie vinicole. 
 
 WEINBAC. 
 
 
 growing 
 
 PAYS de VIGNOBLES. 
 
 REBLAKD. 
 
 
 country. 
 
 
 
 
 growing dis- 
 
 PAYS vignoble. 
 
 H'eingegend. 
 
 +J 
 
 trict. 
 
 
 
 JJ5 
 
 merchant. 
 
 XKGOCIANT en VINS. 
 
 \V K 1 MI AMI I.K R-l. 
 
 g 
 
 
 
 Trotte. 
 
 
 press. 
 
 ^, it. 
 
 
 <2 
 
 shop (low). 
 
 sauce au VIN . 
 CABARET. 
 
 Schenke. 
 
 N 
 
 -strainer. 
 
 PASSE-VIN. 
 
 Weinteihe 
 
 2 
 
 Wing. 
 
 Aile. 
 
 FLGEL. 
 
 <? 
 
 Wing, On the. 
 
 AU VOL. 
 
 1m FI.UGB. 
 
 g 
 
 Wing, To take. 
 
 S'envoler. 
 
 *\Veglliegen. 
 
 ta 
 
 Winped, adj. 
 
 Aile-e. 
 
 Geflugelt. 
 
 
 (game). 
 
 A plumet. 
 
 Geflugelt. 
 
 
 Wink. 
 
 SIGNE de I'IF.II.. 
 
 WINK. 
 
 ^4 
 
 Wink, c.n. 
 
 Cligner del'tEiL. 
 Faire SIGNE de I'CEII. 
 
 Winken. 
 Winkeu [dt.]. 
 
 a 
 
 
 a. 
 
 
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 at (= connive). 
 
 Fermer les TEtn BUT. 
 
 Bin AUGE zu- 
 
 
 
 
 drufken bei fdat.]. 
 
 
 Winking. 
 
 CLIGNEMENT d'aiL. 
 
 BLIXZELN. 
 
 o 
 
 Winner. 
 
 GAGNANT. 
 
 GEWINNER. 
 
 4* 
 
 Winning, adj. 
 
 Gaguant-?. 
 
 Gewinnend. 
 
 
 
 (= attractive). 
 
 Attrayant-. 
 
 Einnehmend. 
 
 
 
 Winnings (plvr.i. 
 
 GAIN (mng.). 
 
 GEWINNST. 
 
 r- 
 
 Winnow, c.a. 
 
 Vanner. 
 
 Schwingen. 
 
 tc 
 
 Winnowing. 
 
 VANNAGE. 
 
 U-ANNEN. 
 
 
 Winnowing-machine 
 
 Batteute. 
 
 Dretchmaiirhine. 
 
 
 (modern large;. 
 
 
 
 i4 
 
 (old fashioned 
 
 TAJLAHJE. 
 
 Putzmatchine. 
 
 c 
 
 small). 
 
 
 
 
 Winsey. 
 
 Tartanelle. 
 
 Grobes TCCH. 
 
 
 Winter. 
 
 HlVKR. 
 
 WINTER. 
 
 
 Winter. Wintry, adj. 
 
 D'HIVER. 
 
 Winterlich. 
 
 o 
 
 Winter [at], c.. 
 
 Jliverner [a]. 
 
 Cberwintern [in, u]. 
 
 
 Wipe (lit.). 
 
 COUP de TORCHON. 
 
 WISCUEN. 
 
 ^* 
 
 (flg. = jeer). 
 
 COUP de patte. 
 
 VERWEIS. 
 
 J 
 
 Wipe, v.a. 
 
 Kssuyer. 
 
 \Vischen. 
 
 g 
 
 ~-^ out. 
 up. 
 
 K tracer. 
 Nettoyer. 
 
 *Abwischen. 
 
 
 
 Wire. 
 
 FIL nit' tallique. 
 
 DKART. 
 
 J-. 
 
 Wire, adj. 
 
 En Fii.de PER; en rn. 
 
 Draht-. 
 
 
 
 
 d'ARCHAL [if very 
 
 
 
 
 
 fine]. 
 
 
 ^5 
 
 Wires, To poll the 
 
 Tenir les CORDONS. 
 
 Die ZL'GEL h alien. 
 
 ^ 
 
 (fig.). 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 Wire blind. 
 
 STORE mltaUique. 
 
 Draft Igatterblende. 
 
 
 gauze. 
 netting. 
 
 Tissu metallique. 
 GRILLAGE. 
 
 DKAimiKWKBK. 
 DKAHTOEFLECHT. 
 
 1 
 
 rope. 
 
 Corde de FILB mOtal- 
 
 1> UAH I'M. II.. 
 
 
 
 liques. 
 
 
 4 
 
 -work. 
 
 GRI LLAGE m<! tallique. 
 
 DRAIH'GITTER. 
 
 *J 
 
 worm. 
 
 VER blanc. 
 
 SAATSl-RI.NOKArlCm, 
 
 
 Wiry (person), adj. 
 
 SMUNMMfc 
 
 Kraftig. 
 
 1 
 
 Zng-lisli-French-Oerman Dictionary for Tourists. 2 6 /
 
 7 tb Edition. In Fop. 8ro., Price l.6d. 
 BfO TOURIST SHOULD LEAVE ENGLAND WITHOUT 
 
 The TOURISTS POCKET-BOOK. 
 
 BY GEORGE F. CHAMBERS., F.R.A.S. 
 
 THIS work contains Useful Words and Phrases in English, 
 French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, 
 Danish, Swedish, Greek, Hindustani, Arabic, Turkish, 
 Russian, Latin, and Hungarian : Lists of Books in those 
 languages useful to Tourists : General Travelling Hints : 
 Medical and Surgical Hints ; Useful Prescriptions : Tables of 
 Requisites, Moneys, Weights, and Measures : an easy Code 
 {Cypher) for Telegrams and Post Cards : and a great 
 variety of miscellaneous Information. 
 
 REVIEWS AND NOTICES. 
 
 " The book appears to us to be all that it professes to be, and is likely 
 to proye of real utility to those who are not perfectly familiar with the 
 languages and customs of the Continent." Times. 
 
 " Should be welcome to the Tourist who has not prepared himself for 
 Continental travel by the study of at least one or two of the principal 
 European languages. The writer has succeeded in compiling a very useful 
 "Vocabulary." Morning Pott. 
 
 " Few persons care to describe themselves as Tourists. Secretly 
 therefore and blushfully will intending voyagers equip themselves with the 
 T.P.B." Daily News. 
 
 "An extremely neat and useful little volume which should prove 
 
 most valuable to Travellers and Tourists, all over the world." Enylitk 
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 ofi're au touristes une infinite de documents... Avec depareils elements on 
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 We are not surprised to see it has reached a seventh edition ; a sufficient 
 testimony to its practical value. It is a perfect tourist's companion, full of 
 the information most needed in a foreign country It will be found in- 
 valuable for the traveller's comfort. Everything seems included An 
 
 exceptionally interesting Guide." Newt. 
 
 " For handiness and brief compass we do not know a better traveller's 
 Vocabulary book than this. It is express and to the point. It has besides 
 a number of useful hints of the most motherly, almost grandmotherly, 
 kind." Bookseller. 
 
 " A variety of matter of real use to travellers in all parts of the world 
 in a very handy form. We cannot too highly commend the practical hints 
 to Tourists. The little volume should certainly find a place in every 
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 <ver saw." Circulating Library. 
 
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 Gazette. 
 
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 *7th Edition in fcp. Svo. Price' l*.6rf. nett 
 
 THE TOURIST'S POCKET BOOK. 
 
 This Work contains Useful Words and Phrases in English, French,. 
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 Hindustani, Arabic, Turkish, Russian, Latin, and Hungarian- Lists of 
 Books m those languages useful to Tourists: General Travelling Hints : 
 
 MAfIl/tA.1 smrl Siirrri^ol Uii.tc 'Pt*aonm-^ n . mvi / T> * _ _ ^-.__ 
 
 BT G. F. CHAMBERS, F.R.A.S., Barrister-at-Law. 
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