The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1884-11-04 00:00:00

AROUND THE CLIFFS OF PORTLAND.

(VIITB NOT AID IXPILIS11101111.)

To the found who can find iierm lus in donee and
goal in everything, • ramble around the cliffs of Port-
land would be both intereedng and invigorating. Toe
writer has on neveral osioseions gone the round, and
may perchance be pardhmed for giving • few impres-
sion' that f mei their may into ads note books. Start-
lag from Priory, where the dial 000101000% 800 is
struck by the .bonnie of all vegetation, excepting it
be • fe• tuft* M rough gram and tts•
lir hma attached to Una hugs boulders IlmorYwheris to
S4Bll. it appears the stone at this point to
• considerable distances inland le quarried oat. and
the boulders mentioned are merely the refuse from
the,se nu eerie.. The name condition of things cm'
Urine. until Ii ackeor is reached, the road, however,
leading t this point is very rough with deep rut.
causal by the heavily laden etone waggons which pans
this way. Along the route one gets • fine view of the
W...i Boy air I of the almost perpeadioular cliffs, to say
no• Mug ~f toe soinbce sea•washird rocks bil.nr.
I ;nay ale onentl in that at very few places in the
Britioi I-1,11040 the splend or of a glowing sunset he
*palled t•, the ...4211 Wit011888:1 WI a dloor evening
Ir. in the greet , lifts of P..,.!. id. On reaching !Slack-
.r one gets a lore extend., I in •.• ..1 the Island, end
while tho.e are few fi t d hers and tdiare, yet
a • .litt• y tree can nosidiero I toon. Lorlgiir ado.
th • By ,in gets • piunrahnie view of the D inlet
hills, while the cuast•lios line open fir many tulle. ;
in leed the eye my oftsen get a good peep at • port' in
of Devonehire. 0 =log nearer, one c aanot help
being s'ruek with the long ridge of pebbled, known as
Chenil Mach. From this point also when a south-
west gale is bl•iwin!, s m ignificmt view of theses in
• storm is nigained. The white-created eee.horsee
as they oime rolling in and lashing their fury on the
pebbly atrand will not *belly be forgotten, and the
probability is that • much highsr Ito plaid of ideas will
be gained of the goo imps sad the power of Him
who holds the wind aud tbe so in the hollow
of iii. hand. The fame seems an gnat that OMB I.
led I. w•ender that • 'Kirsch hag not I •ng sines been
mole, and Portland in thie way becoming • veritable
island. I am told that in a aeries of atorms this
wonierful ridge of pebblee is fl atonal and greatly
lessened, so that the village of C cull hew pastime.
In an inundated by the rem irseleas sea. There is also
• sad record of shipwreck. during the past 30 years,
for woe b aide the ship that should find herself in a
seuth•west gale in Dead-moo'. Bay. I am also told
that an in din try Web iat cannot be launched from the
beach whoa a storm is raging, so that an nutayal
chip, unie.. she gets within reach of the life-rocket
apparatus, asa only he left to her fate. Deeds of
valour have been performed by willing hearts in the
fishing latent., either before • storm has been at ha
height, or when It has abated. But it ieeems panning
strange that the It pal National Lifeboat
Institution do not condruct a lifeb iat specially
for WI dangerous bit of coast. But to
return to Blackarr Poi•it. I have been struck
on more than 008 nava.' m with the fact that a work
of greet national imp nos, ice c mid be carried out at
this point, viz, the fo miXon • f another breakwater.
The Government have plenty of material " iu the
immediate cliffs" and men at Portland, Clolo2Br-
cially, the advantages of such an undertaking would
be immense, while at the seine time work would be
found for our criminal clawed, in-tead of pi icing
their productions in some way or an ither in c impeti-
lion with the productions of ho eel fres men. I have
beard it stated (for its truth I cann it vouch) that the
Pitons Consort, when laying the f on lation et •ne of
the breakwater on th east of the Island, stated that
the work of the marital should aid interfere with
the staple ladestiy of Portland, Oz., the stone
trade. I have diverged nom ewhat from my
original ioten'ione, and r •fer to this because it
hos been moot.' id late that the steins to be used
ley the c intract ere fir the building of the new
Admiralty •.111 ese will be obtained from the Peralaa.l
Convict Q coffin,. Men of P 'aloud. let m app hal to
pot. Will you continue paisive and lethargic, and
allow this great went ti be lift cited with int raising
• voice for the protection of your ancestral rights! I
trow not. Well, then, now is the time for you to
bestir yr. 'mired, and toy protest, by petition, and by
all and every means within your reach, do all you can
to avert • dire and baneful preosleut.
With your pennimion, Mr. Editor, I hope on
another ososeion ti continue my notes from B'acknor
Peint.—Meanwhile I tm, yours very respectfully,
Fa.isea, P.W.