Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1908-09-11

from man voice as ne read the
scripture. There were few people in
the edifice, so we walked toward the
sound, not seeing the speaker. One
hundred, two hundred. three hundred
feet were traversed before we espied
him in a high receptacle. but his voice
was no louder or more sonorous than
when we appeared at the entrance.
How the architects ever located the
scores of sounding boards to such
perfection is marvellous in this age.
Dark and dingy one would call these
places of worship, and the myriads of
lights largely of candles) make the
place weird and awe-inspiring. Such are
the cathedrals through ''the Cathedral
towns" of Europe, and pen nor picture
can portray in the faintest realism their
massive proportions and the myriads of
wonderful interior and exterior designs.
The visitor is first struck with an an
canny feeling as he walks over floors of
slabs under which have been resting
for centuries the bones Of the departed,
while the thick walls on all sides are
also made TO serve as mausoleums of
the great. Everywhere. except in the
inaccessible roofs, on all sides, to right
and left, before and behind and under
foot, are inscriptions hiding the bodies
of the long dead.
Just across from and on the same
eminence. is the castle OF the Prince
Bishop. The Bishop of Durham. with
his prelates, occupies for short season
each year this castle. About four
times year the two judges Of su-
preme court also take up apartments
here. The oldest part of the castle
dates back to the eighth century. In
the reigning house we believe, a
younger son had to become prelate, a
bishop, and he was known as the
Prince Bishop. He presided over Il 2
religious affairs of the kingdom, and
while not permitted to bear arms him
self he generally had several thousand
soldiers in his castle who must 20 to
war at the Kings call. The King was
usually the father or older brother of
the Prince Bishop, and history records
instances of where the Prince Bishop
was ''the" power even in state affairs.
More than one Prince Bishop has de-
posed father or brother and taken over
the reins of government.
At first we began to observe closely
and scrutinize castles, cathedrals, their
surroundings and contents. but it be-
comes, IL not monotonous, such a con-
glomerate mass in ones brain as to
prevent discrimination. Armor and
relics dating from the time of Christ
adorn these places, and it was some re-
lief later on to get into national mu-
seums and galleries to see the accoutre-
ments of nations that flourished and
died before man ever braved the En-
glish Channel to live with the birds
and beast of this now queen Of isles.
Time robs the memory of its historical
stores, and only now and then could we
recall snatches Of what we had learned
in boyhood days. Yet much of the
travel here refreshes historical memo
ry, and TO US the interest cannot be
measured. But reap the full fruits of
an education, and what boon it would be
to our boys and girls to put in time here
just after finishing SCHOOL,
We are now whirling through what
is known as the Cathedral towns" of
England, on the road from Edinburg,
Scotland, to London, some four hun
dred miles. On all sides the checked
farms, with stone fences of centuries. |
TEEN with grain. grass, cattle and
sheep. No corn Qndian maize) is seen
That grain seems peculiar |
TO America. Fine Purcheron orClydes-
dale horses, drawing enormous loads |
over roads that seem of marble, are on |
all sides-no small horses, cows or sheep
at all. Docile and industrious appear
beasts and men, and all. well kept and
groomed. Their farming is like our gar
dening-in small plats-and cultivated
to perfection. Only occasionally did we
see reapers or mowers, nearly every
thing being by hand and smaller ma
chinery. The growth exceeds even our
western plains, but undoubtedly sys-
tematic fertilizing is carried on.
Our tickets permit us to lay-off
wherever and whenever we want, so
the next day we stop at York. York
shire Is the proudest of the English
principalities. 1t was from here that
the flower Of English chivalry emigrat-
ed to Virginia. The heir to the throne
has for centuries been known as the
Duke of York" The title belongs to
the royal family. On both banks Of a
beautiful but small stream we here find
castle and cathedral A previous des-
cription Of such structures must, to an
extent, suffice forall. Most celebrated
however, is this town Of three or four
hundred thousand inhabitants for its
walls, built first by the Romans and
enlarged by the Normans. Crumbling
turret and temple of the early Caesars
give idea of how the masters of the
world had for three centuries to for
tify and fight constantly to maintain
their foot hold against the Britons. A
mile of wall is still in good preserva-
ton, some twenty feet high. over
capped with sentinel towers, and every
where pierced with Sits through
which to shoot the arrow, this wall was
: n n n 4