March 29th, 1856
"Yes," said Bennoch, "as large as life !"
"As small as life, you mean," said the boy; and, indeed, Mr Martin Farquhar Tupper's size is best expressed so.
I did not know what the Devil to say, unless it were "Oh, wondrous Man of Proverbs!" or "Oh, wiser than Solomon!" and as I was afraid to say either of these, I rather think I held my tongue.
The country is beautiful, swelling in long, high undulations, from the summit of one of which the diameter of the prospect is one hundred miles. There is a legend of saints connected with three of these Surrey hills, but I have forgotten it.
According to local folklore, three sisters were each building a chapel on their respective hills - St. Martha's Hill (near Chilworth), St. Catherine's Hill (south of Guildford) and St. Ann's Hill (near Chertsey). The sisters were giants and had only one hammer between them. To complete their work, they had to toss the hammer back and forth across the miles between the hills whenever one of them needed it to drive a stone into place
On our way we saw here and there a red-coated horseman, hastening to the rendezvous. We heard now and then the sound of a horn and the voice of a huntsman; and by and by appeared the pack, nosing along the ground and scenting into the underbrush of furze to discover if any fox were there. The hunt followed (perhaps a score of huntsmen, some of them in red coats, and two or three ladies amongst them). Before we left the hill-top Tupper showed us some yew-trees of unknown antiquity, Druidical perhaps; their trunks were of immense size, upwards of twenty feet in girth.
On our way home we passed through Albury Park, the seat of Mr. Drummond; within the park, and at no great distance from each other, stood two churches, a new one and an ancient, venerable one.
The interior of the new church, which belongs to the Irvingites, is of Roman Catholic aspect, but very pleasant and soothing, with its stained windows, lamp, and holy symbols.
Belongs to the Irvingites - Henry Drummond was an Irvingite - a follower of the charismatic Scots preacher Edward Irving, whose teaching was based upon the expectation of the second coming of Christ.
The Old Saxon ChurchThe old church, though no longer used, is in excellent repair; and, gray and time-worn though it is, it might have answered its original purpose for centuries longer.
Mr. Drummond's house is a modern structure, but in the Elizabethan style, and looking antique enough to be in keeping with the rest of the scene.
There is a third church in the village (and a fourth, but we'll ignore that). The village of Albury was initially centered on the old Saxon Church - St Peter's and St Paul's -, but around 1780 the owner of the mansion pictured above started harassing the villagers, and they started to leave. Successive owners continued to harass the locals, including Henry Drummond who acquired the house in 1819. By the 1830s most of the villagers had left, or more accurately, moved a mile to the West.
The old church was in a poor state of repair and Drummond wanted to build two new churches, one the Roman Catholic Apostolic Church, and a new Cof E church to replace the old Saxon church.
This is the new CofE church, the design for which was based on a church that Drummond had seen when travelling in Europe. Unfortunately they didn't build it in stone, as Drummond expected, but in brick. Back to the old Saxon Church, because it's the most interesting.
The Tupper burial-place for generations past was here; and the graves of three of his children were covered with a garden blooming with flowers, and evidently constantly and carefully cultivated and weeded. Tupper looked earnestly at it, and was quiet for a moment; and seemed pleased to see the flowers growing so finely, and said, "Ah, we must tell mamma of this."
Then we looked into the church window, and saw the monument of Mr. Drummond's three sons,--all the male posterity the rich man had.
Tupper told us a story on this subject which might easily enough be worked up into a dark, impressive legend. Mr. Drummond had intended to pull down the old church, and level the stones in the graveyard. He was vehemently opposed, especially by Tupper, who said that if he persisted in his purpose of desecration, he might suffer the curse of Joshua on whomsoever should rebuild Jericho,--that his first-born and youngest sons should perish. The man holding to his purpose, all his three sons did die, one after another; and the bells of the old church, which he had transferred to the new steeple, tolled the funeral knell of his last son, who had died just as they were about to celebrate his coming of age. They had all been healthy and strong before. The old church was left untouched, and became the mausoleum of his children. It is queer to think of little Tupper being the prophet of such a doom as this!
The Drummond mortuary chapel in the old church, designed by Pugin
[Later, after a visit to Wotton House] We had a cup of coffee, and then took our leave; Tupper accompanying us part way down the village street, and bidding us an affectionate farewell.
Comments
Post a Comment