The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1881-05-10 00:00:00

SW AN LON.
A RlslNil SEASIDE RESORT."

From an article on Swausge, as • rising seaside resort
in . 1, •iotuu mere tottle contemp•irary we sake the 101 l • w-
ing :—With the spring comes round the season when
peopiii who can aff• rd it b gin to puzzle themeelves *tiers,
to speed ib••.r Aueu.t boll lay. and of late years it has
even become quire . relit MI SO leave town at Easter
it
Whitmintiile. and ant-off in search of lodgings for the
anuomer. Su it cane.% be in ipp attune in the month ot
May to offer • lee remarks upon a charming, teough little
heard of, spot on then uthern Wein, weddi we ourselves
have lately • sit d. W • refrr to Swenaee.
' Toe interestmg district, of etiich Swan ago oeculoiee. on,
extreint,e and Lulwo tin and its unique e ive the oth- r,
• is . rugged promotive,. known as t• e " Ids" of Pu- beck,
bet 1.-se iii an bland, in point of fact. than Portland
Is. It owes its designation probably to the hiah
down. forcoto. its backb su peering Irons the sea to he
detached irom the mainland altogether, though in
reality only the smooth expanae of Pieile Barbour divide,
it iron Bournemouth and the liainpabire coast, and
nettling bus • small o ream cure it off from the rest of
Dorsetehire to the Weiimarit S ...nag* is "ally reacn.d
by raking .the South Weetern line t Wareham, eta Alt
four hours from L diden, where an omnibus meets the
trades, and thin- omen • delightful ten mile drive, tbrough
the hicoricet town of C •rfe. and under the ruined walls
of i s eneient caetr—perhape the grandest in England—
where Elfrida stabbni King Eivrerd toe Martyr. The
castle is also (*moire fir its ilmecce by Lady Bailee in
t.O St. during the great Civil War. In the summer
another pleasant way of getting to Swansge is to take the
steamer from Beurnetnonto or Poole. But both ttime
miens of access ere short yto be eupersedad in all pro-
behillty by the constructt in of a branch railway from
Wareham, which will t•ring Swange much nearer to
Landon. sa well se the West of Elgland. The NU is now
in Parliament, and has missed its second recline
That improved railway communicetion will rive • great
impetue to thin beaut tot neighbourhood cane it be doubted
by anyone who visite It timid now, the triple harrier of
water, aide he db.. and a chin of splen lid dowue, has
eff.m..eally is ileted the fertile central vale of Purbeck
from the outdde world. The wonder e, that it is so
much fra q•leote las it ii. But the cl,uo ate, the scenery,
arch:eulogy, bomny, and geology of the district tieve so
many ettractions for diderent minds that thoss who once
find their way into this secluded corner seldom fail to
come there rain.
Years ago, Swansea was thus deeeribed by Kingsley :
" At the east end of t. e Isle of Purbeck tea little semi:
c•emlar bay, its western horn formed by high cliffs of
elite chalk, ending in white, isomted %tacks and peak.,
round whose fort t• e blue sea ripples for ever. In the
centre of the by, the 'Drifter ' ealien hods' have been
worn away, formieg an amphitheatre of low send and
clay cliffs. The southern in on is formed by the dark
limestone beds of the Purbeck [risible. A quaint, old-
world el-loge slopes down to the water, over green downs.
quarried, like some gigantic rabbi -burrow with the
etone workings of seven huudred year.. Li andl eked
frmu every breve hues elm. finuriato on the dry wise
headi, and tae gayeat awl tenderest garden flowers bask
nn ler the hit stone walls. A pleasanter spot for summer
se ehathing is not to he f •und eastward of he Div to
coset ton Swanste, and all t at is wanted to make it
famous is housas into which 'idiom con put their heads
for the night. As was io he expected. from • variety of
soils and tie shelti net sinia,nn, I found the ne ghbour-
hood rich in rare planta and in brca, the see-be seh strewn
with se eweeds • but the ize it e'er icti in of Swarm:cm to
those who dantile to science, is the extraordin ore number
and value of its fossil remeine."
. . _

The t iwn was then nothing but a stracrling village of
small and tattier meat-looking stone tending., few of
which could claim to be anythin.: more than c ettmee ; but
since then the ent.rprise of a few of the principal land-
owners has e ffectedi a remsr;abl- met im The °id
streets are stilt there, it is true; but a terge suburb by the
yes has been laid out with wit, roads, testefully planted,
and • number of excellent lodzing houses and gentlemen's
villas have been erected. Gas ant water have been laid on,
and for some years p.e a cap t 1 seriyee of steamers boa
re eulsrly plied to ant from Poole, Diurnetututh, and
Weymouth in the suave r.
The stone trade et 1 streives; and most of the new
. . . . .

_ --- --
houses are substantially built of the local limestone;
Purb.ck marble hi as, • celebrated product of the adjacent
quarries. Cheapness of building material had, of course,
favoured the erection of new houses to mond the want
mentioned by Kingsley, • want sure to be accentuated by
the comitur rat. way, net place being already as fill of
visitors in Ainumu a. it can well be. HOUSed are there-
fore springing op spec; and a local land company bee
been doing vary well.
In fact, we cannot help thinking that the claims of
Swamies to • Mee , among the roast 'soloing resorts on the
south coast wit coon he ream awl. From the hill, whine
the new suburbia placed, the view of the bay is one wh ch,
once se-n, will not soon be forgotten. In the vicinity iif
the town are several interesting objects worth a visit,
such as the cave quarry of Tilly Whim, the new light-
house, Parson's Barn, • remarkable cavern in the chat
cid, and nornerous querries of PM beck stone. Theo, at
• dirt ince. Dancing Ledge, the ancient church of Worth,
partly of SsX.3ll partly of early Norman arch actor°,
Studland, Sr. Alban's Head, the chapel on its top, and
come maxoificontrDat saner); Carle Castle, to which we
' have made alludon before, and numerous intereatina
specimen. of Medieval and Jacobean domestic archltectur•
in the farmhouee about. Still further adeld sve
Worbarrow Bay, Flowers Barrow, • Luse ancient Briti.h
earthwork, toe cove and castle of imlworth, and Bindon
Bathing and yeeilialag Are to be enjoyed at Swansea in
great perfootloa, and add, of course, materially to the
summer pleasantness of the place. But it is an sit the
year round residence for a c rt inn Z.llllll of invalido bao,sug
pulmonary complaints' that Sw may achieve an
ultimate reputation. In many respects tb iiimate Is a
remarkable one, owing to thit situation and configuration
of the neighbourhood. The fact tbs,.. Swarms° is so nsarly
surrounded by the sea [nigh', he exp.cted to mitigate the
rigours of extreme tram, and that this is the ease is
slownlby large myrtles and Woollies, whi h mow in the
open air. And that the east wind is ternpme I in its
severity by passing over the s a is indicated by the great
re of the tree., remarkei by Kingsley as gro sing close
to the water's edge. Daring the heat of the summer it
would naturally be supp iced that the sea br tem would
greatly cool the air ; and in fact it does so t 3 such an
event that B rurnernouth residents make frequent tripe to
Bwanaire for the asks of the bracing breeze, Another
valuable piculiarity of the Swansea dimwit is Its excep-
tional drenesr. Meteorological ohservat one have only
re.)notly been /two& bal. the result of those carried on
during the sever° January. February. and March of the
present year is to show, as ooluttereff with readings at
other places on the south °oast renowned as health rework
not only a much treater dryness of the air, but • less reeve
and much higher minimum of temperature, Should more
extended observations lead to the same results, it is
certain that the medical profession may be congratulated
on the discovrry of • much needed new loasity whither
to send patients suffering Irmo pulmonary complanta, and
one conveniently near town. The east wind in spring
must, however, be reckoned with ; and it must be h0r..4
in mind that there are considerable differences, tIW
climate of different puts of Sesame.
To sum up, we can confidently risece,end the plies as
a charming spot in which to spend are automer bonder',
and we also think it afford • promising field either tor
investment or speculation in house and land proving,
particularly if the Proposed railway is completed mithie a
year or two. The *Bar who goes there upon our recom-
mendation must not expect too much fro u the toms, or.
he will be disappointed; but the surrounding county is
very remarkably attra,tive. Wie may add for the Maloof
of the casual tourist, that the' Royal Victoria" Hotel is
an excellent one, while he wilt be made cantata*
enough in the wore hotuely. "Ship " and others.