ULVERSTON.

[Inns:-Sun; Braddyll's Arms.]

BEFORE describing the first town in our list, it may be as well to mention the routes by which it may be approached from the south. Within the last four or five years an expeditious way has been opened out from Preston, on the Great North Road, viz., the railway to FLEETWOOD, and the steam-boat thence to Bardsea, three miles from Ulverston. The distance between Preston and Fleetwood is accomplished in an hour, and another hour and a half serves to land the traveller on the opposite coast. There is a large hotel at Fleetwood, and there are conveyances in attendance to convey the steam-boat passengers, on their landing, to Ulverston, so that every facility is afforded to travellers by this route.

Lancaster, however, with its church and castle, may have attractions for the Tourist, and in that case he will have the choice of two routes, after leaving the county town, for reaching Ulverston. First, by way of Milnthorpe and Levens Bridge, where the Kendal road is left, and the road strikes westward. The distance between the two towns by this route, which is by far the longest, is about thirty-five miles. Second, by a route, twenty-two miles in length, conducting across the sands of Morecambe Bay. By the ebbing of the tide, these sandy tracts, usually called LANCASTER SANDS, are twice a-day, to the extent of several miles, left perfectly dry, except in the channels of the rivers Kent and Leven, and they may then be crossed by vehicles of every description. Guides, who are remunerated by Government, are stationed at the places where the rivers flow, to conduct travellers across in safety. From Hest Bank, the point of entry upon the sands on the eastern shore, to Kent's Bank, is a distance of eleven miles. Three miles of terra firma are then crossed, and three miles of sand follow, lying between

the shores of the Leven estuary. Midway between these shores, and on the south of the usual track, there is a small island, upon which may still be descried traces of a chapel or oratory, built by the monks of Furness, where service was performed for the safety of travellers crossing the sands. If the proper time be chosen (and the proper time can be easily ascertained by inquiry at Lancaster or Ulverston), there is no danger in crossing the sandy plains; and yet, few years pass in which lives are not lost. Besides the novelty of a road over a sandy level, stretching far and wide, the whole of which is covered by the sea, a few hours after the traller has traversed it, he will be pleased with the appearance of the distant mountains, and the crags and scaurs raising themselves from the edge of the plain. "I must not omit to tell you," says Mrs. Hemans, in one of her letters, "that Mr. Wordsworth not only admired our exploit in crossing the Ulverston Sands as a deed of derring-do,' but as a decided proof of taste; the lake scenery, he says, is never seen to such advantage as after the passage of what he calls its majestic barrier."

6

ULVERSTON, a market town and port, containing about 5000 inhabitants, situate in that division of Lancashire termed "North of the Sands," is supposed to derive its name from Ulph, a Saxon Lord. It is about a mile from the estuary of the Leven, with which it is connected by a canal, constructed in 1795, and capable of floating vessels of 200 tons. This canal has been of signal advantage to the town, as large quantities of slate and iron ore, with which the neighbourhood abounds, are thereby exported. The appearance of the town is neat, the greater part of the houses being of modern erection. The principal streets are four in number. The parish church, dedicated to St. Mary, received considerable additions in 1804; but a tower and Norman doorway of the old structure still remain. It contains an altar-piece after Sir Joshua Reynolds,

and a window of stained glass, representing compositions after Rubens, both of which were given by T. R. G. Braddyll, Esq., the Lay Rector. From the sloping ground behind the old church, a delightful view of the bay and neighbouring country may be obtained. A new and elegant church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was erected at the upper end of the town in 1832, by public subscription, aided by a grant from the Parliamentary Commissioners. Amongst other buildings of recent erection, The Savings' Bank may be noticed. The town contains a Theatre, Assembly Room, and Subscription Library. Ship-building is carried on to some extent; and the manufactures of check, canvas, and hats, are considerable branches of trade.

The Duke of Buccleuch is Lord of the Liberty of Furness, of which the Manor of Ulverston forms part. The tract of land, which from time immemorial has borne the name of Furness, is that portion of the county of Lancaster which lies between the river Duddon on the west, and Windermere, with the river issuing from its foot, on the east. The name is found, for the first time, in the foundation-charter of Furness Abbey, bearing date 1126, where it is Latinized into "Fudernesia," which word points out the derivation of the present designation, as the further ness, or promontory. This district was, like every other corner of our island, overrun by the Romans, many traces of whose dominion have been, and will continue to be, from time to time, discovered. By the grant of Earl Stephen, the Liberty of Furness passed to Furness Abbey. Having lapsed to the Crown at the dissolution, it was given by Charles II. to Monk, Duke of Albemarle, as a reward for that nobleman's services at the Restoration, from whom it has descended to its present possessor. One of the privileges his Grace Buccleuch enjoys with this possession is, the exclusive right of executing all writs, processes, and precepts of her Majesty within its limits. At one period, the Fells of Furness formed the boundary between England and Scotland; and, in 1138, a fearful

descent from the latter country made a desert of the whole peninsula.

WALKS AND EXCURSIONS FROM ULVERSTON.

At SWART-MOOR, one mile to the south-west of Ulverston, the Friends or Quakers have a meetinghouse, built under the direction of the venerable George Fox. It was the first place of religious worship erected for the use of that community. Over the door are the

initials of the founders, "Ex dono G. F. 1688." Swartmoor Hall, once the residence of Judge Fell, whose wife, and many of the family, in the year 1652, adopted the principles of the Quakers, is now a farm-house, and in a dilapidated condition. In 1669, eleven years after the death of the judge, his widow married George Fox, whom she survived about eleven years. The protoquaker's bed-room and study are still shown to the inquisitive traveller. The Hall stands on the borders of Swart or Swarth Moor (now enclosed), on which "the German Baron, bold Martin Swart,"* mustered the forces of Lambert Simnel in 1486. This general seems to have had great celebrity at one time, as we may infer from the numerous ballads that sang of "Martin Swart and all his merry men," some scraps of which have come down to us.

CONISHEAD PRIORY, the seat of T. R. G. Braddyll, Esq., has been termed, from its beautiful situation, "the Paradise of Furness." It is situated two miles south of Ulverston, near the sea-shore, in an extensive and well-wooded park, which is intersected, like most old parks, with public roads, forming, in this case, a favourite promenade for the inhabitants of the town. The mansion, which has lately been rebuilt in a style of magnificence, of which there are few examples in the north of England, occupies the site of the ancient Priory, founded by William de Lancaster, the fourth in

*Ford's "Perkin Warbeck." 1634.

descent from Ivo de Taillebois, first Baron of Kendal, in the reign of Henry II. Upon the dissolution of the religious houses, it fell into the hands of Henry the VIII., whose cupidity was excited by the great extent of its landed possessions. The family of Braddyll is of great antiquity and respectability. In a note to the "Bridal of Triermain," Sir Walter Scott informs us that the ancient families of Vaux of Triermain, Caterlen and Torcrossock, and their collateral alliances, the ancient and noble families of Delamore and Leybourne, are now represented by the Braddylls. The style of architecture is Gothic; the principal entrance is on the north. The hall, sixty feet high, is lighted by windows of richly stained glass. The cloisters and arched passages, 177 feet long, contain some interesting specimens of old armour, and other curiosities; amongst which are two beautifully carved chairs, formerly in the Borghese Palace at Rome. Two similar chairs, brought from the same place, are at Abbotsford. The pictures are so numerous and excellent, comprising works of Titian, Guido, Spagnoletto, Holbein, Vandyke, Lely, and others, that the visitor who has a taste for works of art, will require sometime for their inspection. There is an

Interior and Figures by Mieris, a perfect gem; Heads of our Saviour and the Virgin, by Guido, very fine; a curious full-length of a lady, by Zucchero; the best Vandyke is a portrait of the Earl of Carnarvon. Strangers are permitted to see the interior of the mansion on Wednesdays and Fridays, and they will find “A Sketch of Conishead Priory, by Charles M. Jopling," a little pamphlet, to be bought for a trifling sum, at Ulverston, a useful companion.

HOLKER HALL, a seat of the Earl of Burlington, is placed in a noble park on the opposite shore of the Leven, about three and a half miles east of Ulverston. Extensive improvements have been lately making on both the mansion and grounds, and the gardens are now amongst the finest in the north. The noble owner has a fine collection of pictures, comprising works from the