Here we within the borders of Bedfordshire. changed coaches, being half way to Northampton. A manufacture of straw hats, with hand-baskets and toys, is the chief employ of the inhabitants. Fashion, that fickle goddess, now favours this species of human ingenuity. It so happened that several women were assembled in the midst of the street near the inn, scolding about some theft which had that morning been committed amongst them by one of their children. One female, pale and trembling with passion, discovered no contemptible powers of oratory! In this town the sentence of divorce was pronounced against Catherine, Queen of Henry the Eighth, by Archbishop (anmer. Many roads leading to London meet here together, which gave rise to the old adage, "As plain as Dunstable road." Mr. Woodward having mentioned that the larks about this place are remarkably large, and esteemed the best in England, humorously adds, "Why the best? is the inquiry of the naturalists are their notes more melodious-their plumage richer-their shape more elegant?-Hold! inquisitive reader! the gentle writer is sorry to inform thee, that they are generally esteemed the best for the spit, and an approved addition to a city entertainment.” Wooburn was the next town at which we arrived, having a large church; but it is an inconsiderable place of no celebrity. One thing, however, created a smile. The few streets, which are indifferently laid out, are at each corner distinguished by 160 DUKE OF BEDFORD. a name, after the manner of our metropolis! It was nearly destroyed by fire in 1724; but was rebuilt, together with the market-place, by the Duke of Bedford. Wooburn Sands are of some extent, and the patience of the traveller is put to the test by wading through them. Near Wooburn stands Wooburn Abbey, the seat of the Duke of Bedford, a venerable mansion, encircled by a park of considerable extent. The annual sheep-shearing feast had just been held, and was attended by crowds of people. Agriculturalists, even from Germany and Ireland, were present on the occasion. Prizes are given away to the meritorious competitors-and hundreds entertained by his Grace, with old English hospitality! From time immemorial, sheep-shearing has been a period of rural festivity. These harmless animals yield their fleecy coverings for our comfort and support, but under the hands of the shearer they must experience uneasy sensations. The dissipation of their fears is thus delineated by our favourite poet, Thomson: Fear not, ye gentle tribes! 'tis not the knife The late amiable Duke turned his attention to the pursuits of agriculture. Hence the origin of this institution. His premature and sudden death was a loss to the country. To use the words of WOOBURN ABBEY. 161 that eloquent statesman, the late Charles Fox, "He was carried off at a period of life when he was young enough to enjoy all its blessings, and vigorous enough to perform all its duties; when he himself looked forward to years of happiness, and when society might have expected to be long benefited by his benevolence, his energy, and his wisdom. Had he been snatched away in early youth, however distressing the event to his relations, the public calamity would not have been so considerable. The fairest promises are often fallacious: the best founded hopes are not always fulfilled. He is as deeply and universally lamented as ever any subject was, and he must long live in the recollection of a grateful posterity." It is but justice to add, that the present Duke of Bedford, and late Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, treads in the footsteps of his illustrious brother, and enters into his patriotic schemes with cordiality. Wooburn Abbey is an extensive and magnificent pile, having the appearance of ducal dignity. Its ground plan forms a square of 200 feet, containing a quadrangular court of no small dimensions. Among the number of paintings, by which the interior is embellished, portraits constitute the chief excellence of the collection. That of Lord William Russel, beheaded in the centre of Lincoln's Inn Fields, July 1683, merely for his attachment to the constitution and liberties of his country, cannot be contemplated by the family without interesting emotions. When, five years afterwards, James the Second, hearing of the land 162 NEWPORT PAGNELL. ing of the Prince of Orange, requested the advice of the Earl of Bedford, Lord Russel's father, the Earl replied in these terms of pointed reproach-"I had a son, Sire, who could have advised your Majesty!" Merciless are the ravages of tyranny. A certain writer speaking of this part of the country, and noticing the quantities of fir and other trees near the adjacent roads, forming antique boughs into impenetrable thickets, observes, "That in the autumnal season at the time of sunset, nothing in nature can be more beautiful than these thickets: for by their broad light and shade, and varied dispositions, they afford a rich treat to the admirers of woodland scenery. As the sun gradually sinks below the horizon, every leaf of the stately oak and towering elm appears studded with gold, which is every where finely contrasted by the deep green of innumerable firs; while the glowing yellow of the departing rays of light reflected from the adjoining sands, adds additional splendour to the landscape." We came to Newport Pagnell, a town with tolerable good inns. Here we dined. The manufacture of lace is carried on in the town and neighbourhood, which is a sort of mart for that article, and flourishes by that means. The paper manufacture is the other branch of their employ ment. Within a few miles of Newport Pagnell, CowPER, the poet, resided; first at Olney, and then at the little village of Weston, where the Task was composed in a style which has rendered it the subject of public admiration. The charms of this part of the country are introduced into his poems; and the elegant work, lately published, entitled, "Cowper Illustrated," with twelve engraved views, proves that the poet had copied nature with fidelity. He died April 25, 1800, having been reduced for some time before his decease to a state of extreme debility. The life of Cowper, by Mr. Hayley, may be termed an elegant and affectionate tribute of respect to his memory. "Nature (says his biographer) was prodigal of her favours to Cowper, in person as well as in mind. He was of a middle stature, rather strong, and delicate in the form of his limbs-his hair was of a light-brown colour, his eyes a bluish-grey, his complexion ruddy, and even when oppressed with age, his features expressed all the powers of his mind and all the sensibility of his heart. By a fervent application to the Bible, and studying the eloquence and energy of the Prophets, he made the best possible preparation for great poetical achievements, and incessantly treasured in his mind. those stores of sublimity, sentiment, and expression, which gradually raised him to the purest heights of poetical renown. He has proved that verse and devotion are natural allies: he has shown that true poetical genius cannot be more delightfully employed, than in diffusing through the heart and mind of man a filial affection for his Maker, with a firm and cheerful trust in his word -and the universal admiration excited by his |