The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1883-07-17 00:00:00

A MIDNIGHT TRIP TO WEYMOUTH.

(From Ile Mai Mo- &lea)

•
The feet that two of our railway companies chose
Lb. s one day for a trip t Weymouth, speaks s'cisussi
for the not orprin of t nee who inter ior the traveling
putaie. Just fancy for one moment our grandiethen"
rising from their graves and radio( the sumeroue
handbills of the trips to ilea-side plans, each railway
company eedeavouring to eon tbe other from the
snorkel in the meet *meat meaner possible" sad
offering such Wombwell' to annum and other" that
many thousands in the mem cannot resist impend*
Owls 5", sad tektite ti. Mines widths youseaters"
for • breath of Irene air. Massy a thee have r beard
the szprossioa from maitafastaren, Ike., "Where ow
earth do they get lies mossy from to go them tripe r
It le • sign, my dear*, that our artin neighbours
are thrifty, and know when they get a good bargain.
But let se spook of the Witymoutb trip, Liverpool,
ithyl, Usedudito, and the other of the aorth 001=
places 100 miles from the Midlands, ban been
by everybody, aad arectal., ind the 'obi% elemour
for something new. Who knows but that "a trip to
the moon" will not be advertise:l yet for the cusieenal
sa. We have had bag dawns trigs Wore—Soar
borough, 170 miles, Ilfraionsbe, ko. Some few years
ago the railway °nannies eadeovoored to
upon up mama exonreines to Brighton, but
they were not a great hit. The dines°, was
thought to be too great to be done oomfortably In the
24 boon. Then s happy thought struck the gentle-
man who has charge of the o:aurae% arrosgemente of
the Greet Waiters spine at Birmingham to veatare
on a day trip to Portsmouth and the Idle of Wight,
wed, the moose" being really wonderful, the G. W. R.
put on a Saturday eight to Sunday night train to the
SS4O4 Thee" trips rapidly nisd • bold on
the public, and the splendid fast rondos of the tense.
coupled with °anion In t arsUlng In their newly-
apholitereci favourite "third.," at once stamped the
Greet Weetega ea peones of excursion reform.
Sunday night last, then, found me wendiag my way
towards Snow-hill Station, and exactly at the hour
wine "chorehyardie yawn and the graves give up their
dead 'I took my mat in a csoasfortable compartment
In a third-class carriage, and the signal bang gins by
the °porticos statioomaster (a most Noble mot worthy
suommwor to the at. Mr. Oros.), we "teamed out el the
nation and through the teasel at exactly 12.5 am.
My campsite:no in the compartment goon began to
convene, and we speedily become good travelling
friends, and did our best to make the time pale
• aeantly. A stop at Pordaeley, and another at
Warwick, Leaudegton, and Oxford mad* to a full
train, this, &agog don on 400 passenger" in the 12
oneness —a decided gnome for a trial trip. We ran
splendidly; In fan, all the servants meased to work
as though the whole responsibility of getting the
train in and out of the stations to time depended upon
his individual self. We in the oompartment talked of
this and talked of that; got out when the train
stops„.to have • Donal refresher, and se soon as the
day to dawn, which it did Jost after two o'clock,
we b quite as mach as we could do to look ant out
of one window. nod then out of another, in admix-
atlas of the glorious panorama which the dawn
unfolded. We were a nissrz party; the whole train
was filled with happy, leg panenters, who, at
the nation' we had a few notes stoppage at, chaffed
each other unmercifully, sang songs, and played the
thoomod and one trick' which poepLe can do who
are out for the day, and bent on enjoying themselves.
Well, the invert ride must come to an end, and just
turned six o'clock, we pulled op at our destination and
speedily invaded the sassy refreshment homes close
to the nation to have • wash and • cop of tea. We
then made for the B oy, the Naplesof Zeeland, and
alter admiring the noble esplanade fully two miles in
length, we engaged a bathing reachlea and 170 mike
from home, were enjoying all the adeaatages &dead
from a bathe In the sea jest seven hours after leads(
"Stookey old Boom." We had wronged a programme
for the day, so that we should lose so time in making
op our minds whore to go after we had isiatil
Following out this programme taw um finish our hest
and bask to the station to meet • friend who had
oome by mother lime, sad who etartsd the same time
as we did. We enjoyed a hearty laugh over hie
chagrin at being so late, and loans his babe, but •
pool breakfast pat him on the best of terms with him-
self. We took train at eight o'clock for Dorchester,
and at once mule for the cemetery, our pilot being Mr.
IPeo, the G.W. Statioammter, who volunteered in •
most kind manner to show us the Pave of the late
Mr. Oro's, and the marble memorial nose "noted to his
memory by over MO Birmingham friends, and al&
pleased were we that we made this via% who had
known him so well in life. Mr. Teo lett us after
pointing out the object" of interest in the neighbour-
hood, the avenues of trees, the barracks, the
concoment to We Hardy, and • "even thousand
eon field belonging to KEIJI. the Prince of Wale'.
We went roan Dorobeeter,_and then back to Wey-
mouth by half-past tea. We spent an hour now
In walking up and down the principal street", and at
half -pen 11 took heat for Portland. After landing
we began the motet towards the fort, "ad, failing in
with a boy soldier, were taken by him through the
fortifications. A mon interesting visit than this we
never before made, and we were quite repaid for the
toll in getting up to this moron= height. By the time
we had finlsbsd looking over the fortification' the
convicts had returned from dinner, and were now
log at their daily labour. Aad what a number.
Sixteen hundred markt" dotted here and there work.
log in the quarries, snowing grass, palatine the
barracks, and many other different compatione all
=kw the watchful ryes of monies and the convict
curd. We paged quite noes to than, and their
hideous olothee and shaven hem aid heads gave them
a most repulsive 'Noumea Ose of our party
slosoßldeed a convict en a man whom he had ono" known
lea good position In a large tone not many miles from
Bingo/ham, and who was mateseed to seven
for embedinceot. The novelties was mutual, and
tears ran down the inevin'a cheek, but the stern
warder was by, and with • peremptory, but civil, "You
moot walk on, plasm," parted the two Meads now to
differently eituatel. Convicts are everywhere, ne
metier where the eye rests there is the horrid dims,
and there, too, the attendant with loaded and
bayooettsd musket. Bat time prams", and we walk
beak through the town and toks boat again
for Weymouth. We bad spent about fin
home on the Mind, and eould have *Post
about five more had time allowed us. We now
partook of a good tea to fortify the inner man against
this lour journey before us, *led after • stroll nate
the beech, and a last look at "King George on Hover
b oh," cut in the chalky side of • hill, sad visible for
miles. we made our way to the statics. At tan
minutes to seven we &gala set out for home, and
without any hitch pulled up at Birmingham • few
minutes past one, after having had Doe of the mom
enjoyable holidays in oar experience, and Waging
back a considerable deal of change out of • sovereign.
• w ird of praise Is due to all Lb. ofilcia'n connected
with the trip, especially the driver, whom I heard
calls i by the guard "Alf," the firearm pilot, and
the guard, whom I heard called by the ,"
G."
They were doubt's"' need to each other, and we, the
passengers, rasped the benefit of this mu nal under-
standing. —J.B.S.