the road running by the fide of the river, and the dale being in fome parts fo narrow, that there is little more than room for the road between the river on one hand, and the rocks on the other. In fome places it spreads to a greater width; in all, it is a most romantic and beautiful ride. The river is fometimes hid behind trees, fometimes it glides smooth and calm, fometimes a diftant fall is heard; here it tumbles over a ledge of rocks, ftretching quite acrofs, there it rufhes over rude fragments, torn by storms from the impending maffes. Each fide, but particularly the farther one, is bordered by lofty rocks, generally clothed with wood, in the most picturefque manner. In many places where they seem to be quite perpendicular, and without any earth on them, underwood, afh, and other trees fhoot up, growing to the common height. At Matlock are two baths, the old and the new; the new is the firft, is a handfome houfe, and the fituation is much pleasanter than that of the other, but the old is much the largest house, and most frequented. Each of them has a bath. The company dine together in a large room at two, and fup at eight, after which there is mufic for those who choose dancing, or cards for thofe who prefer them. The charge for dinner is one fhilling, and the fame for fupper; every one drinks what he likes. A little way from the old bath, a boatman is ready to ferry over to the other side of the river, where he has made a walk on the bank, through the wood at the foot of the rocks, as far as the mouth of a lead mine, drained by an engine, which is worked by the river. In this walk two little ftreamlets are feen on the oppofite fide, haftening down the bank. One of them falls from a confiderable height, but would have a better effect if the regular steps over which it tumbles, were taken away. Returning towards the landing place is an afcent to the top of the rock by about 220 fteps, befides feveral gradual flopes; this is fo well managed by different turnings, that though the rock is here almost perpendicular, little difficulty is found in gaining the fummit; and the wood grows fo close to the edge of the path, that there is no room for the least apprehenfion of danger. About half way up is a feat overlooking the river and coun try. At the top is a fine pasture ground, floping from the very edge of the rock down to a little valley, where a fmall bend of the river is feen, though from the fituation of the ground, it appears to be a different one from that which you left below. Turning to the right a ruftic bench is found, from whence is a full view of the whole. of that scenery, of which different parts had prefented themselves before. A blind path across the inclofures, leads from hence to the cotton-mill. Between the bath and the village of Matlock, the ride is equally romantic with the entrace of the dale; but in one place the rock, from its fuperior height and boldness, has acquired the name of Matlock great or high Torr. It is faid the perpendicular height is 140 yards. About half way up it is covered with underwood, without any great trees; the upper part is perpendicular, and almost entirely bare, only here and there is a fmall tree hanging out of a crevice. The river runs clofe at the foot, and by the intervention of a ledge of ftone, forms a confiderable cafcade. The ftrata of stone here exactly correfpond with thofe, on the oppofite fide of the vale; a proof that fome violent convulfion has rent them afunder*. A little beyond this is the village; the houses scattered on the fide of the hills and in the bottom, the bridge, the church, ftanding fingle, near the edge of a high rock, yet fheltered by trees, the meadows, the moving machinery of an engine for draining 2 mine here, and the barren hills in the Lointain, form altogether a moft picturefque and delightful view. VOL. II. * Whitehurst, p. 153. About About a mile from Matlock bridge, is a fcene fit for the pencil of a Salvator Rofa. Take the road to Chesterfield, and at the turnpike go off on the right, over a common fcattered with large grey ftones, when a finelting houfe called the Lumbs, is foon feen. It fands on a point, from which the water falls a great height over the rudeft rocks, and has worn a deep hollow, covered with fragments of ftone, fome of them very large, between which the current finds its way. At the bottom is a little mill, turned by a small branch of the ftream, which is conducted by a channel made for that purpofe. A little above this mill is the station for feeing the fall. At this fmelting houfe red lead is made by burning common lead a fufficient time, by which it is reduced in weight as much as 200 or 300 pound in a ton. On the ftones in the common I faw a little of the rock mofs, which is found plentifully at Dolgelly, in Merionethfhire, and carried from thence to Dublin, where it is ufed as a red dye. Near Matlock bridge are two chalybeate fprings, one by the fide of the road to Bakewell, on the right hand rifing the hill; the other, which is stronger, is under a bank in the road to Alfreton, by the fide of the little ftream which comes down from the fmelting mill, mentioned above. In the way to Bonfal fome pieces of water have been lately formed by dams across the little stream, which runs down that bottom, and on one of them a large corn-mill is built. There is a pleafant ride on the road to Nottingham, the river being on the right, and much wood on the fides of the hills. On the top of the hill called Riber, which is above the church, is a stone, said to have been formerly a rocking ftone, called in Cornwall a Logan-stone, but it is not moveable now; it has a round hole in the top, exactly resembling one which Dr. Borlafe, in his antiquities of Cornwall, has given a print of, plate XI. fig. 4. It is not very large, and is placed on two other ftones. At Birchover (pronounced Bircher) are fome very large rocking ftones, called Routar-ftones, in a moft extraordinary fituation, well worth vifiting. The best way is to go through Winter, keeping the church on the left, when a road up the steep fide of a hill on the right leads to Bircher, a small village, at the farther end of which are these ftones in an inclofure*. They are a moft wonderful affemblage of rocks, or rather huge ftones, piled on one another, forming a hill, which runs in length for feventy yards, or more, froin east to west, the north fide and weft end being nearly perpendicular. You go up at the east end by a moderate afcent, when prodigious maffes of stone present themselves, and a paffage about fix feet high appears, which formerly went under part of them, and came out on the north fide, but the middle of it is now fallen in. On the north fide, you find fome immenfe ftones, which form a kind of alcove, feeming as if fcooped out for that purpose. Going up to the higher part are two rocking stones, which can be moved by the hand; one of them, fuppofed to weigh 50 ton, refts on two points of less than a foot diameter each, but there is now earth and grafs collected, which cover the stone on which they reft, yet not so as to prevent its being moveable. On the highest stone of all, a round pillar of three joints, with a weather-cock at the top, has been let into fuch a hole as that which appears in the ftone on Riber, mentioned abovet. On the north fide of one of the upper ftones, towards the weft end of the *These must be what are flightly mentioned by Stukeley, without afcertaining the place; he speaks of two tumuli on the edges of oppofite hills on entering the Peak country, and a hermitage by a great rock, called Ratcliff, on the back of which ftones are fet up two and two, forming a celtic avenue. + Mr. Rooke fays, this is a rock-bason, and that there are others here, Arch. v. vi. p. 111. where are feveral views of these rocks. hill, a chair is cut, with two arms of very rude workmanfhip, and a feat for one perfon on each fide of it. One of the uppermoft ftones measures 37 feet, or more, in length. When feated in this chair, you fee towards the right a fingle ftone on an oppofite hill; called the Eandle, or Anvil-ftone; and to the right of that another, called Thomas's Chair; on this laft there was a few years ago, a ftone cut in fhape of a chair, with a feat on each fide, but it is now thrown down. Looking to the left, on the points of a high crag, are two upright ftones, called Robinhood's Stride; a little to the right of them, at the other end of the range, terminating in a heap of loofe ftones, is Cratcliff Torr; fouth of Robinhood's Stride is Bradley, or Bradwell Torr, where is another fhaking ftone. This laft is probably that which Dr. Borlafe fays he had heard of, as being four yards high, and twelve round. Of the two at Routar, he fays, the largeft is computed to weigh at least twenty ton, and it is on a karn twenty feet high". At the foot of Routar, on the fouth fide, is a house called Routar-hall, once the habitation of a gentleman's family, lately belonging to Mr. Eyre, of Derby, from whom it defcended to the prefent lady Maffareene, his daughter; there is alfo a small chapel. From this house there is a way up to these stones, where part of them is feen in a most extraordinary pofition; the highest heap of them here forms a face to the weft, where they hang over one another almost without fupport, in the manner of that defcribed by Dr. Borlafe in plate XI. fig. 5, but much larger. The guide would make you believe that the facrifices were performed here, and that the marks of fire are still visible on thefe flones. I cannot fay I could fee it. The north fide at this end consists of vast maffes, piled on one another in the fame manner, fmall ftones feeming to have been put in to fupport the large ones. The heap goes further towards the west, but less high, and is terminated by a single square ftone placed on fome others. It seems incredible that these stones fhould have been brought and placed here by any human art, as no engines now known would be equal to the task of bringing and placing them in the position in which they are now seen. Yet when one confiders Stone-henge, which is beyond doubt the work of art; when we hear what maffes of folid ftone were carried to Palmyra, and raised to a great height, one cannot say it is impoffible that this fhould be the work of human hands. Dr. Borlafe obfervest, that the ancients had powers of moving vaft weights, of which we have now no idea; whatever knowledge was poffeffed, was poffeffed by the Druids, and they are fuppofed to have had fo abfolute a command of the peoplet, that nothing would be wanting to effect what they might defign. There are other certain marks of their having been in this neighbourhood. But, after all, may not this heap be the effect of that convulfion which has left fuch aftonishing marks of its violence in this country; and might not the Druids, finding the ftones here remove the furrounding earth, and use them as a place of religious worthip. taking advantage of the uncommon circumftance of fuch large ftones being moveable by fo fmall a force, to make the multitude believe they were invefted with fupernatural powers? Dr. Borlafe describes a Tolmên in Cornwall, and another in Scilly, to consist of a large orbicular stone, supported by two stones, between which there is a paffage, and fays they are both in the decline of hills, beneath a large karn of rocks, ftanding on two natural fupporters: he adds afterwards, " Another thing is worthy of our notice |