The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-10-09
In KING ARTHUR'S LAND.
CORNISH COAST AND FISHER FOLK.
An Entertaining Contribution From Mr..
Wakeman Concerning COrnwall-Some
Ancient History and Very Old
Towns-1Ianners, Etc.

into the furious Atlantlc Is DIT OF rOck-
buttressed land of most singular shape,
which sustains a distinct and interesting
people. It's geographic contour suggests
the curious silhouette of some couchant
gigantic mastiff, or huge wild beast. 1t is
easy to see in its southermost oUtreaching
its two powerful fore feet; in its north
ern coast-line its braced and bristling
back; in its most northern projection an
erect and pugnacious tail in its eastern
Devonshire boundary its massive launches
and hind feet, wedged against the eternal
granite of Devon, and in its farthermOst
sea-split, ocean-battling promOntory, the
open mouth of the leviathan, set savagely
toward the seething Scilly isles, and for
ever lashed with spume and foam of in
terminable and indescribable battles with
the elements.
Standing upon Hensbarrow, one OF its
drear and highest peaks, one can see smil-
ing Devon to the east; almost to Lands
end, its farthest westward wall; to Lizard
Head, its remotest southern headland !;
across its entire reach of hills and moor
lands far out upon st. Georges channel
10 the northwest, and over the white sails
of fisher and coaster to the southeast,
where the savage sea lashes and fumes in
vain about that most furious of all mar
iners' beacons, the wondrous Eddystone
light.
But standing there, with all this males
tic cyclorama before you, desolation is
only apparent to the eve. The moorlands
stretch dolorously as if in boundless lone
illness. The tors or hills are bleak and
bare The whole face of nature seems
torn and SCARED, as by tremendous ele-
mentary struggles. A myriad kissing
fragments of exploded planets hurled in
awful upper rain upon this land could
have left no more unsightly hurts upon it.
Yet all these cavernsa and chasms which dis
figure it were made by the hand of man. Its
granite, shale and slate hide copper, tin
and iron. For more than 5000 years its
surface has been cleft, and its depth gored
and bored, until its face is pitted as il with
extinct volcanoes, whose bases were honey
combed to a miles depth, and, latterly,
so Jar outward beneath the ocean, that its
very shell was cracked and broken, until,
to prevent the sea dropping through, the
bottom was stuffed and plugged and SOL
dered like leaky basin
Almost until to-day, as time is measured,
this land to the rest of England was YER
liable terra incognita. ''West Barbary" it
was called to ftly describe its uncanniness,
its supposed ignorance and It's popularity
accredited semi-barbarism. What weird
and desOlate Connamara in Ireland's wild
west, is and has always been to the green
isle, this SCARED and ragged pen
insula has been TO England. OF
Its 100000 souls, one-eighth, from
youth to death, in darkness pick and
blast in shift and drift beneath It's wind
swept moors. Until century since dis
tinct language was spoken, preached and
taught. To-day in the larger towns 1.-The
purest English spoken" is said to prevail;
but again to-day not league from these
towns among fisher folk, miners and peas
ants, an ordinary Englishman or Ameri-
can can scarcely understand a word
uttered. Yet here are life and scene OF the
greatest fascination both life and scene of
simplicity, beauty and grandeur; while
romance and legend glow wondrously in
every tor, combe and stream; romance and
legend, the oldest and most winsome in
all England. For here lived, or were born
TO deathless legend, Arthur, Launcelot
and Guinevere, and the brave old round
table knights. This wild and sturdy
land is King Arthur's Land. 1t is Corn
wall.
No matter what queer. quaint places I
passed through TO get there, but following
the old canal from Launceston, | began
my journey around the Cornwall coast
from the little seaport bathing-place of
Bude, on Bude bay, not more than two
leagues from the northern boundary of
King Arthur's land. Beyond this for
dreary distance, above YOU stretch tree
less downs. below you are jagged Gifts,
and beyond these, nothing but
myriads OF sea-fowl and the
measureless sea. At High Cliff
L.
where every landward sound is annihi-
lated by the thunder of the sea, but one
of the finest coast-views in all England is
provided. The solemn, silent, ire
mendous ocean wall is in full
sight for twenty-five miles to the north,
and to the southwest it stretches for
nearly that distance past Tintagel head,
and Its countless wraiths of Arthurian ro-
nance TO Trevose head, an ugly speck of
black lifting terrific granite nights above
the waves. But what a nest of a place is
ancient Boscastle, where, in the time of
Henry II, stood the lordly castle of Bot
teraux. A huge assure in the rock opens
TO the blue sea. Behind, deep basin,
marked by vast stone walls, where the fish
ing craft lazily sway and rock, and still
behind this, the village with its pooss-
grown quay, and pretty white-washed
hOuoCo AOOhAlB lOl oil tue WOTlu llk6
white sheep scrambling up and down
the steep, foliage-covered slopes-the
crooked streets resounding this day
with all the high-keyed. hilarious
sounds OF a noisy Cornish fair. Not
four miles further down the coast YOU
come as to Mecca of hallowed romance
10 wild and drear Tintagel. What matter
1t whether romance of fact coined the ster-
ling gold that rings through the legend
old? Call it fact because it was good. and
made stainless king" 90 there before
you on that wave-lashed, almost island
promontory, stands to-day the still easily
traced remains of Tintagel of old. Here
was the very landing-place OF King Uther.
Here Uther Pendragon besieged the duke
OF Cornwall In his twin castles, Tintagel
and Terrabil, slew him, and the same day
married the dead dukes wailing wife.
4grayne, to whom in time boy was born.
The enchanter Merlin reared the child
Arthur under good Sir Ector's care and
restored to him the kingdom of Cornwall
on Pendragon's death. The noble Arthur
Instituted the order OF knights OF the round
table, whose sanity acts, in the service
OF God and man, until they fell
into sin, are the most shining deeds of all
tradition; he loved only and married GUM
evere whom Launcelot, his dearest friend,
betrayed; and at last, receiving his death
wound in the battle with his rebellious
nephew's forces, Just over there at Camel
ford hnf loof,trao