Of the mountain Skidaw we are told, that it is about eleven hundred yards perpendicular from the Broadwater. It rifes with two heads, like unto Parnaffus; and, with a kind of emulation, beholds Scruffel hill before it in Annandale in Scotland. -That is, Skidaw and Scruffel were running a race, while our hiftorians were writing; the latter got the start of the former, as far as Annandale; and Skidaw, with a kind of emulation, beheld Scruffel before it in Annandale in Scotland.'-A word more of these two mountains.

By these two mountains, according as the mifty clouds rife or fall, the people dwelling thereabouts make their prognoftication of the change of the weather, and have a common expreffion;

If Skidaw hath a cap,

Scruffel wots full well of that.

Like as there goes also another faying concerning the height of this hill with two others in the kingdom,

Skidaw, Lanvellin, and Cafticand,

Are the highest hills in all England.'

This laft extract we have given, not on account of the poetry, but of the profe. Like as there goes few paffages to compare to it, except in this hiftory.

One word more of Skidaw

Upon the top of this mountain there is a blue flate ftone, about a man's height, which they call Skidaw man. And a little further fouth, upon the faid mountain top, was erected in the year 1689 an houfe five yards fquare, and four yards high, by Mr. John Adams the geographer, for placing his telescopes and optic glaffes, having from thence a full profpect and view of thefe two counties, whereby he was enabled to give the better defcription thereof by dimenfions. But he being arrested, firft by his engraver for debt, and not long after by death, his project proved abortive.'

We cannot think that the last sentence of this paragraph corresponds either with the gravity or the fenfibility of an hiftorian, Hiftory would drop a tear upon the fate of fuch a man, and not endeavour to fqueeze a paltry pun out of it. Who would not fooner have died of a broken heart, with Adams; than have lived to make a joke of fuch a death!

An epitaph in Ifel church, on fir Wilfrid Lawfon, knight, who died in April 1632, at the age of eighty-feven, will bear tranfcribing

‹ Even

Even fuch is Time which takes in truft
Our youth, and joys, and all we have,
And pays us but with age and dust,
Within the dark and filent grave:
When we have wandred all our ways,
Shuts up the story of our days:

And from which earth, and grave, and dust,
The Lord will raife me up, I truft.'

On Richard Senhouse, bishop of Carlisle, in 1644, we have the following note

Of this Richard there is an anecdote in Mr. Sandford's manufcript account of Cumberland (of which, by the way, we do - not vouch the authenticity :) he fays, he was of a younger branch of fquire Sen houfe of Netherhall. And many good jefts paffed upon him. They were a conftant family of gamelters. And the country people were wont to fay, the Senhouse's learn to play at cards in their mother's belly. And this doctor and another perfon, who was a ftranger to him, being engaged one day at tables, the doctor tripped the die fo pat, that the other exclaims, furely (quoth he) it is either the Devil or Dick Senhoufe. [It is certain, the common people have a faying to this day (from whencefoever it might arife) in cafe of any extraordinary difficulty, "I will do it in fpite of the Devil and Dick Senhoufe."] When he was a scholar at Cambridge, coming into the country to fee his friends, his horfe happened to caft a fhoe, and having no money to pay the fmith withal, Well, well, fays the fmith, go your ways, when you are bishop of Carlisle you will pay me. Which he did in abundance of gratuity; and was a religious and honeft paftor.'

In Bromfield church there is a moft bold and courageous epitaph

Here lies intombed, I dare undertake,

The noble warrior Adam of Crookdake,'

The following is a curious anecdote relating to the church of Holm Cultram

In 1581, on the refignation of Chriftopher Symfon, the fame bishop collates fir Edward Mandevil, clerk. In whose time there is the following entry in the parish regifter: memorandum; the feeple of the church, being of the height of nineteen fathoms, fuddenly fell down to the ground, upon the first day of January in the year 1600, about three o'clock in the afternoon, and by the fall thereof brought down a great part of the chancel, both timber, lead, and walls; and after the faid fall, the fame continued in a very ruinous condition for the fpace of two years; during which time, there was much lead, wood, and stone carried away. There was prefent at the fall Robert Chamber and myself (Edward Mandevile, then vicar

there)

there) both of us being within the church at the very time of the fall, and yet by the good pleasure of God we escaped all perils.-In 1602, by means of the bishop of Carlisle a commiffion was granted by the chancellor, mafters, and fcholars of the univerfity of Oxford under their common feal, to George Curven gentleman, and me Edward Mandevile, for re-edifying a comely and fufficient chancel, taking and having towards the work the old materials of the chancel which was fallen and fhrunk, with the price of the lead fo fallen to rebuild a new one; which commiffion was executed by me Edward Mandevile accordingly in 1602 and 1603. This work came to 180l. and odds.-This work being finifhed, it fo happened, that upon Wednesday the 18th of April 1604, one Chriftopher Hardon, carrying a live coal and a candle into the roof of the church, to fearch for an iron chifel which his brother had left there, and the wind being exceeding ftrong and boisterous, it chanced that the coal blew out of his hand into a daw's neft which was within the roof of the church, and forthwith kindled the fame, which fet the roof on fire, and within less than three hours it, confumed and burned both the body of the chancel, and the whole church, except the fouth fide of the low church, which was faved by means of a ftone vault. Upon which great mishap, Thomas Chamber and William Chamber did moft untruly and maliciously put a bill into the exchequer, therein alledging that the faid Hardon did burn the church wilfully, by the procurement of Thomas Hardon, coufin of the faid Chriftopher Har don, and me Edward Mandevile, to whom the faid Christopher. was fervant. This falle accufation they went about to prove by divers witneffes, but they failed in the proof; and fo the matter, when it came before the court, was difmiffed.-In the fame year 1604, I the faid Edward Mandevile did re-edify the chancel of the faid church of my own voluntary will, which coft me 881. and fome odd money. And in the year 16c6, the parishioners were commanded by the bishop to repair the body of the church, who were taxed fo to do by the churchwardens and the fixteen men, who were appointed for that purpose.'

When mention is made of John Beft, bishop of Carlisle, we find a fingular letter which he wrote to archbishop Parker in 1567-but curiofity is not gratified by any information relative to its fuccefs

"I have a commendam of a parish called Rumald Church. It will expire within a year or lefs. The advowfon of the fame is offered to be fold to gentlemen of this country at unreafonable fums of money. So that it is apparent the revenues thereof are like to come into temporal men's hands, and the cure into fome unlearned afs's, as many others are like to do in thefe parts, unless your grace be a good stay therein. For this caufe, and for that my charge here in the queen's fer. vice doth daily increase, and also that in time of wars I have

no

no refuge left to fly unto but only this, I am compelled to be a fuitor to your grace, for the renewing of my commendam for the time of my life. In doing whereof, your grace fhall · both stay the covetous gripe that hath the advow fon from his prey, the unlearned afs from the cure, where I have now a learned preacher, and bind me as I am otherwise most bound to ferve and pray for your grace's long continuance in honour and godliness; your grace's poor brother to command, Joannes Carliólenfis."

We must stop a moment, in turning over this volume, to obferve what our writers fay of Charles Lyttelton, bishop of Carlifle, who died in 1768. He was a friend to all mankind,' we are told, and never had an enemy,' The latter affertion is rather rash, and, if it could be true, conveys no defirable praife; fince it has already been contradicted by the former part of the fentence-for it was not fo late as 1768 that virtue had no enemies.-Moreover, a general panegyric is no panegyric; the portrait which looks at every one, ftrikes no one as looking particularly at him.

Many a country fquire has been killed by a fall from a live horfe; we cannot fufficiently admire the ingenuity of a George, lord Dacre, who, in the eleventh of Elizabeth, contrived to be killed, we are told, by the fall of a wooden horfe, whereon he practifed to leap.'-Our hiftorians might have had their joke here with more propriety than on the death of poor Adams.

The fubfequent letter from Francis lord Dacres to queen Elizabeth, in the forty-fecond year of her reign, will be matter of curiofity to our readers. He was attainted of high treafon in the 12th of Elizabeth for being concerned in the affairs of Mary queen of Scots, whofe execution caft such a ftain the upon of Elizabeth. If Francis were not inmemory nocent, he writes at least with the spirit of an innocent and injured man.—His uncle Leonard was certainly guilty.

• Moft dread fovereign,

The cause of this my prefumptuous boldnefs in writing to your majefty is, my fudden, unwilling, and forced departure from your majefty and realm, for the which I most humbly crave pardon, being the first thing that ever was committed by me, wherein I might hazard your highness's difpleasure, and yet betwixt God and my confcience am free from all difloyalty or evil practices in thought, word, and deed against your majesty and realm, whatfoever hath been or may be informed to the contrary by my unfriends, whereof I have gained many by my lord and father's poffeffions, especially fuch as have been brought up by him from mean eftate to be gentlemen, and now live in all wealth and pleasure upon the lands that were my ancestors, who

have laboured to incenfe your majefty and council many untruths against me, which often hath taken effect with the lords of your council, whereby I have endured many and great diftreffes, but never with your majefty before this time; upon whom, as upon a fure pillar, next under God, I have always trufted, hoping ftill for happy performance of your majefty's moft gracious promifes: in regard whereof, with the great and dutiful love and obedience that I have always borne to your majefty, hath caused me not only to many hard fhifts for maintenance, after all that I had was spent, with the benevolence of all my friends, but alfo to fuffer fo many and open injuries at my adversaries hands, as the world may wonder that flesh and blood was able to fuffer the fame. It were too long to trouble your majefty with the recital thereof, but leave them untouched and proceed in my purpose, to fignify to your majefty the true caufe that hath driven me to take this courfe. Now continuing fill in this good hope, I have made my last and most hard fhift for providing a little money in felling my house, wherein I have received great lofs, to bring me up to attend your majesty's good pleasure, ftill expecting an happy end; but in the mean-time, being within a week of taking my journey, your majefty's commiffioners in the furvey of the faid lands have not only difpoffeffed me, by virtue of a letter from my lord treasurer and written by your majefty's command, of all thofe tenements which were returned to me both of the Graystocks lands, and also of the Dacres which were purchased and out of the concealment, but also have called me and very earnestly demanded the rents again at my hands that I have received thereof, (under favour be it fpoken) a hard cafe, that my lord of Arundel's attainder fhould forfeit my lawful poffeffion, I being a true fubject. All these things confidered, with the want of friends to further your majefty's good meaning towards me, the many and mighty adverfarięs that I have fo near about you, which I fear me hath withdrawn your gracious favour from me, the many delays for answer of my laft petition put unto your majesty at Eafter laft, wherein I made it known to your highness that I was not able to endure any longer without fome speedy relief, whereof I never had anfwer; the rents of the Dacres lands, which was the most part of my maintenance, being received to the ufe of your highness, without any confideration of my poor eftate; and now my lawful poffeffion of all the reit taken from me by another man's fault. The favour and commodity of the Lowthers and Carletons, which never deferved well at your majefty's hands, is like to receive and be preferred unto before me, of thofe lands which were my anctors, and gone from me not by any offence committed by me or my means, and by my only life and my fon's your majesty doth keep them. Under correction be it fpoken, my heart cannot endure that fuch evil men as they be, being, the only maintainers of theft, befides their other bad beha viours, which is well known to all men that have had dealings VOL. XLVI. July, 1773.

C

with