I consider it one of the greatest advantages
that I have derived from my literary career, that it has elevated me
into genial communion with such a spirit; and as a tribute of gratitude
for his friendship, and veneration for his memory, I cast this humble
stone upon his cairn, which will soon, I trust, be piled aloft with the
contributions of abler hands.
NEWSTEAD ABBEY
HISTORICAL NOTICE.
Being about to give a few sketches taken during a three weeks' sojourn
in the ancestral mansion of the late Lord Byron, I think it proper to
premise some brief particulars concerning its history.
Newstead Abbey is one of the finest specimens in existence of those
quaint and romantic piles, half castle, half convent, which remain as
monuments of the olden times of England. It stands, too, in the midst
of a legendary neighborhood; being in the heart of Sherwood Forest, and
surrounded by the haunts of Robin Hood and his band of outlaws, so
famous in ancient ballad and nursery tale. It is true, the forest
scarcely exists but in name, and the tract of country over which it
once extended its broad solitudes and shades, is now an open and
smiling region, cultivated with parks and farms, and enlivened with
villages.
Pages:
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101