The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1906-11-06
A PREHISTORIC ROAD
THE OLDEST MEMORIAL OF HUMAN
ACTION M ENGLAND.

Older by Far InAn tHS AsSA=-- -
the Ancient wInehester-cHnteFbuEy
HiRhvVay, which Counts Its Age BY
ThOasands of Years.
There runs from Winchester to Can
terbury prehistoric track which il
probably the. Oldest memorial OF mems
action in England. 1t is certainly old
Ar than the Romans-that is, it is GER
taInly 1000 years old. and how much
older. IT may be than that we have no
way of telling, but we do know that
| Winchester and Canterbury must have
been the two great centers OF the ma
EonaI life in the old barbarian times
before the Romans came, and We may
therefore suppose without too much
| temerfty that this road Is almost CO.
| eyaL with the existence Of organized
| human life in Great Britain.
Two years ago 1 exploited this road
| thoroughly. The whole distance IS
about 12o miles. and of that one may
say that antiquar!ans had discovered,
before my friends and understood its
thorough exploration, about three-qIlar-
tiers. or the remaining quarter some
part was doubtful and the rest I'M
known, but this unknown part did not
make one continuous stretch. 1t was
pleced in, as it were. along the length
Of the way. a bit here and Il bit there.
Thus one would have ten or fifteen
miles along which the old British road
corresponded with the modern high
wav: then would come perhaps two
miles of doubtful lane. the history or
which had to be read and the direction
noted before one could be certain that
1t was really part Of the old road; then
after that would come, say. half mile
OF pure waste heath or marsh or for
EST. in which nothing but most care
full examination. the records OF OLD
mans, the evidence OF place names, ana
so forth, helped one to identity the
track of the British way; then the
highway would appear again, coincid-
ing with the old trail. and so forth
long known or obvious bits coming IN
between short doubtful or unknown
bits, until after Infinite pains we built
up tho whole OF the original track with
the doubtful exception OF a few hun
dred yards.
1t may interest my readers to know
what causes chiefly preserved this
road and what have tended to Its oolit-
GRAFTON.
The causes which preserved 1t were
three. In tile first place. it-ran for the
main part along the chalk hills which
are known as the North downs. Just
above the level of cultivation, and
chalk Is an excellent preServative foS
a road of this kind. 1t takes the Inn
preston of passing traffic, the weight
Of which makes sort OF PLATFORM
along the hillside. 1t Is not easy TO
cultivate, and people do not build upon
It's heights. Moreover. chalk does not
wash away, 81 that such road, once
formed. would remain for centuries
The second cause which preserved
the road was the system of turnpike
which WAS introduced, think. about
roo years ago and lusted until our own
time Men naturally tried to avoid the
turnpike II they were on horseback OF
II they We're droverS. and they woulo
turn on the good turnpike roads OF the
valley. where they had to pay at every
gate and go along the old Tree roao
above tile hills.
And. thirdly, the pilgrimage to the
tomb of st. Thomas at Canterbury,
which spranE up about 700 years ago,
powerfully helped the SURVIVAL OF the
road. winchester was beginning to
fall into decay when this pilgrimage
lrose, ana Canterbury was no longer
4 very important town, but when thou-
sands of men had occasion TO 80 from
lie west of England to Canterbury on
4 pilgrimage Winchester became the
natural meeting place, and the road
from winchester to Canterbury once
again grew in Importance. Churches
and villages sprnng mp along 1t, trndl-
lions and legends began to cling to IT.
and one way and another the memory
81 1t was saved for history and for
ourselves.
have said that there were many
places where the road was almost or
entirely lost The main cause or this
was cultivation. s. the population
grew denser it became necessary to
DIow up the poorer land high up Oh
the hillside, aud as these old roads
we're not metaled In any way the
moment their surface was plowed up
no trace OF the road could possibly re-
main. Another cause was the forma-
Hon Of the great parks which rich men
began to inclosc and to wall around
about $50 years ago and later. II a
-ich man took fancy to q bit OF
ground which used to be common ana
! through which the old road went ne
would put n wall round 1t and turn y
4 into d park and divert the right oL
4 way by special 1ct Of parllamel4
round his new property. There axe
80 t1,,i1 u q this all along the old Rcd