New-York tribune., 1908-08-22
THE SOUTH DOWNS
Holiday Ram,bles 4moHg SUSSEX
Cliffs and Villages.

men Il
.mnthiII In phrasing equally elastic Gilbert
xx-,,,,e of selbourne described the South Downs
as "a majestic chain Of mountains: yet there
q sernblance of justification for hyperboIe.
To this day those shapey chalk hills look twice
=. high as they really are. For over fifty miles
s,aponally across Sussex they form fairly
continuous wall. with breaks where the drib-
hing rivers pierce tt From the high table
land of the Weald there is a steep escarpment
sha-ply cut as with Titan's knife One down
,,,ns into another. and the crests are rounded
o,,t into graceful contour; and while there are
M trees except in the lower combes, there are
-,,h-oken sweeps OF verdure aecked with graz
, eteen The highest beacons barely exceed
eight hundred feet. and the average altitude
of the SUBMITS is about six hundred feet The
saavsrd margin Of lowland gradually narTows
,,rijl the downs end in the splendid headland
behind Fastbourne. and from Beachy Head a.
,,ae+her beaten line of white-faced cliffs is
cent hack as far ss Seaford These chalk downs,
NTH their sprlngy turf and wide-reaching pros
meets OF sea and weald, are natures richest gift
10 a varied and beautiful shire.
Fastbourne, the newest and perhaps the most
charming Of Sussex seaside resorts. has these
lovely downs clustered around 1t. The curving
rarsde with terraces three levels and with
hedges sweeps of lawn and gay parterres of
lands. and what hracins walk or canter 1t is
to Beachy Head AS one halts on the flank OF
the down. the beautiful town. with its broad
avenues lined with trees. its gray stone houses
and red roofs and fringes of woodland verdure,
&c erlov with bright color against the blu3 sea
everything is modern except the old quarter, a
mile inland around the ancient parish church
Streets have been laid out and built up on the
Cavendish estates by architects in touch with
landscape art, and the waterfront has been
protected against shops and garish nuisances.
II is a luxurious residential centre rather than
g refuge for conyalescents, like st. Leonards or
Bexhiu or holiday resort for trippers, like
ancient Hastings Every one finds his pleasure
in the uplands behind 1t. where he may raInbie
or ride for hours without sense OF fatigue; and
when the showers come suddenly and there Is
no shelter under the open sky. wetting is as
lnvigorating plunge in the sea
Beachy Head whether approached by sweeps
Of short grass or sharp aScents Of cliff path. or
the artificial zigzags of the Dukes Drive. Is a
strongly buttressed chalk headland over five
hundred feet above sea level. The South Downs
do not shrink timorously from battle with
superior element They mass their forces after
a continuous march across Sussex for an OBJ
stinate defiant 1andward defence against the
sea Their final outwork is level terrace with
10 the flying buttresses. which slope Outward
and downward with ma jestic The Ia
cades are glistening white, except in wide fs-
sures where lichen and moss are growing IN
shadowy seams and dark recesses- There is no
lighthouse on this natural beacon. but there is
one five hundred feet below, shelf Of rock.
with deep water around il. and there is another
one 2 mile westward on the crest of Belle Tout
This draws the rambler onward over a cliff
18th 77o.1I<x on
the south coast outside Of Cornwall The first
break in the cliffs is at Birling Gap but beyond
= thev rise and fall in long surges and svells of
grass high above the sea- until Cuckmere Haven
is reached
These coast downs. with their deep dips and
sheer ascents, leave the stoutest and best
luneed walker breathless until he has clam
bered down the last precipitous face and is
1,lunginz heavily through the gravel beds which
have choked the mouth of the Cuckmere- There
IS P bridge few miles up the river, which can
be -eso he'd by a long detour over swamp and
gravel but If he is a resouts walker he keeps
On across the sandbars, fords the sluggish
stream where It is not his hips and scram-
HES m the opposite cliff. AS he looks back over
the downs whence he has come from Beachy
Head with its light close to the face or the
waters he sees the Seven Sisters, and is not
shasbed nv his recent wadng. for these are not
pr11rient DANES with green goggles or snapshot
cameras They are the seven seaward crescents
Of the downs themselves, from BiTing Gap TO
Cuckrnere Haven. They are elusive maids, tan
and short. one hiding behind another, and all re-
luctant to confess I'VE seveni and one
must look hack many times and wait for the
right poirt of view before he can count them
with l,recision Their faces chalky white.
without a flush Of color to indicate that their
sense Of propriety has been violated by the wan
ton r,assage of the river under their eyes There
have been no other witnesses for CuckTnere
Haven with it's wall of shingle and sandbar, is
without q house, except the coast guard station,
and Seaford is still far afield over another range
of coast downs
This is the coast walk from Eastbourne. with
glorious prospects Of the every mile Of the
way II the main line Of the South Downs be
followed one must leave the modern paradf g
hind him pass through the centre of the ola
town and strike boldly up the steep escarprnent
tho hill. When he reaches the crest ne VIII
soc lexington. with an ancient church hidden
awav in a deep pocket of the downs; and when
he has tried to convince himself that the tower
IS either Norman OF Saxon after revolutionary
processes Of restoration he viii press on to VII
nington. where the fifteen century gateway or
= priory has been built into the framework or
. farmhouse Pausing on the rim Of chalk
nit he will catch glimpse Of the Cuckmere,
miles above. where he struck across 1t In the
presence Of the paIe-faced Sisters, and II he is
tempted 10 repeat his bath there is comic hs-
on the downs above him to encourage ms IN
discretion This is the Long Man of Whining
ton. an outlined figure I'm chalk. with a walking
stick in each hand-a silhouette 80 feet long
high on the face of the downs The ridge this
time is close at hand. and not far away is
1Fld f7IIa q