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hirezFirst, you'll need this. (Which is more fifties than thirties, but there we are. It sets the mood well enough.)
Right then, there now follows a few selections from 'Southern rambles for Londoners' by the renown S.P.B. Mais, published by the estimable Southern Railway Co. Available from all good booksellers for the price of sixpence.
From the foreword (written by Sir Lawrence Chubb):
"Mr. S.P.B. Mais requires no introduction to any real rambler. His delightful guides, descriptive of the scenery, the villages and the historical and literary associations of the Homeland are, or should be, on the book-shelves of every disciple of Richard Jeffries and "Walker Miles" and any fresh work from his pen is assured of a hearty welcome. In the following pages the author has broken fresh ground and shows that, besides being steeped in local traditions and in knowledge of topographical and architectural features of interest, he possesses and intimate personal acquaintance with the by-ways of the countryside and the rare gift of being able to act as a sure guide to those who have hitherto only been familiar with the motor-haunted high roads."
From 'Ramble C - Farnham to Moor Park, Waverley Abbey, Puttenham and Guildford':
"All lovers of literature will at one time or another make the pilgrimage to Farnham, for here it was that William Cobbett was born, that Dorothy Osbourne, the most charming of all English letter-writers, lived so long and so happily with her husband, Sir William Temple; that Jonathan Swift met Stella Johnson and wrote "The tale of a tub" and "The battle of the books"; that Izaak Walton wrote his lives of Hooker and Herbert, and that Toplady, who wrote "Rock of ages" was born. To the bookman it is at least as interesting as Stratford-on-Avon, and therefore it is as well to do as I did, and begin the day's walk there. On leaving the station I turned left-handed and within a couple of minutes found the Jolly Farmer inn, Cobbett's birthplace, on my left, a most picturesque solid yellow house with a steep sandstone bank behind it, and a gabled end on the western side. Inside, I was frankly amazed, for it can have changed scarcely at all in the 170 years since Cobbett was born here. The landlord is a silver-haired, dignified, handsome, slow-moving host of the old school. There were in the low-ceilinged bar two weather-beaten ancient labourers, extraordinary knowledgeable about old churches."
From the 'Help' section toward the rear of the book:
CATTLE are seldom dangerous, but often curious. So are dogs.
CLOTHES. Comfort is the first essential, lightness the second.Women have solved the business of how to dress admirably. Men have not. A cricket shirt open at the neck, loose-fitting shorts, no stockings, but woollen socks and possibly a sweater, make the most satisfactory combination for the summer. In the winter grey flannel trousers should be substituted, for warmth's sake, for shorts.
DOGS are seldom dangerous, but often curious. So are cattle.
DRINK. For the midday halt, half a pint of "old" mingled with a stone ginger beer is the most satisfying drink I know. It is the right length, it quenches the thirst, and it leaves no languorous after-effect. When the walk is over there is nothing comparable with tea to help us to recover from our tiredness. Spirits have nothing like the same recuperative effect.
INNS. Do not abuse the village inn. Use it. Remember what Dr. Johnson said: "There is no private house in which people can enjoy themselves so well as at a capital tavern. No, sir, there is nothing which has yet been contrived by man, by which so much happiness is produced as by a good tavern or inn." Use the public bar. It is at once more friendly, more cheerful and cheaper than the saloon bar.
Right then, there now follows a few selections from 'Southern rambles for Londoners' by the renown S.P.B. Mais, published by the estimable Southern Railway Co. Available from all good booksellers for the price of sixpence.
From the foreword (written by Sir Lawrence Chubb):
"Mr. S.P.B. Mais requires no introduction to any real rambler. His delightful guides, descriptive of the scenery, the villages and the historical and literary associations of the Homeland are, or should be, on the book-shelves of every disciple of Richard Jeffries and "Walker Miles" and any fresh work from his pen is assured of a hearty welcome. In the following pages the author has broken fresh ground and shows that, besides being steeped in local traditions and in knowledge of topographical and architectural features of interest, he possesses and intimate personal acquaintance with the by-ways of the countryside and the rare gift of being able to act as a sure guide to those who have hitherto only been familiar with the motor-haunted high roads."
From 'Ramble C - Farnham to Moor Park, Waverley Abbey, Puttenham and Guildford':
"All lovers of literature will at one time or another make the pilgrimage to Farnham, for here it was that William Cobbett was born, that Dorothy Osbourne, the most charming of all English letter-writers, lived so long and so happily with her husband, Sir William Temple; that Jonathan Swift met Stella Johnson and wrote "The tale of a tub" and "The battle of the books"; that Izaak Walton wrote his lives of Hooker and Herbert, and that Toplady, who wrote "Rock of ages" was born. To the bookman it is at least as interesting as Stratford-on-Avon, and therefore it is as well to do as I did, and begin the day's walk there. On leaving the station I turned left-handed and within a couple of minutes found the Jolly Farmer inn, Cobbett's birthplace, on my left, a most picturesque solid yellow house with a steep sandstone bank behind it, and a gabled end on the western side. Inside, I was frankly amazed, for it can have changed scarcely at all in the 170 years since Cobbett was born here. The landlord is a silver-haired, dignified, handsome, slow-moving host of the old school. There were in the low-ceilinged bar two weather-beaten ancient labourers, extraordinary knowledgeable about old churches."
From the 'Help' section toward the rear of the book:
CATTLE are seldom dangerous, but often curious. So are dogs.
CLOTHES. Comfort is the first essential, lightness the second.Women have solved the business of how to dress admirably. Men have not. A cricket shirt open at the neck, loose-fitting shorts, no stockings, but woollen socks and possibly a sweater, make the most satisfactory combination for the summer. In the winter grey flannel trousers should be substituted, for warmth's sake, for shorts.
DOGS are seldom dangerous, but often curious. So are cattle.
DRINK. For the midday halt, half a pint of "old" mingled with a stone ginger beer is the most satisfying drink I know. It is the right length, it quenches the thirst, and it leaves no languorous after-effect. When the walk is over there is nothing comparable with tea to help us to recover from our tiredness. Spirits have nothing like the same recuperative effect.
INNS. Do not abuse the village inn. Use it. Remember what Dr. Johnson said: "There is no private house in which people can enjoy themselves so well as at a capital tavern. No, sir, there is nothing which has yet been contrived by man, by which so much happiness is produced as by a good tavern or inn." Use the public bar. It is at once more friendly, more cheerful and cheaper than the saloon bar.
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LOL!
Date: 2002-11-26 04:03 am (UTC)THE MUSIC WAS JUST THE RIGHT LEGNTH!
Do not abuse the village inn.
I'll bear it in mind!
:o)