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grove, with dry meadows, houfes, mines, &c. and above thefe is a rugged, ftony afcent, on the top of which proud Maffon raifes his lofty head, about one hundred fathoms above the fummit of Matlock High Torr. On the weft fide of the bath is another steep and almoft inacceffible afcent of crags and rocks, above which are fome houfes and inclofures, and at the top of them a plain, commanding a very large profpect, except on the north fide, where it is bounded by Maffon". From this plain are feen fome parts of Staffordshire and Chefhire, with feveral towns, villages, &c.

All the warm waters fpring up from between 15 and 30 yards above the level of the river; higher or lower the fprings are cold, and only common water. There are feveral warm springs, befides a current of warm water from a mine called Balls-eye, which was a natural grotto formerly filled with ore, and produced very great quantities of lead.

All along this courfe of warm waters, from their firft eruption down to the river, are valt heaps of petrifactionst, which are foft before they are exposed to the air, and very light, but afterwards turn to a fmoaky blue colour, become very hard, and are ufed in building. Any ftrong acid dropt on them, raised a great fermentation, and turns them to jellyt. Whilst the waters retain their warmth and motion, few or no petrifactions are found, but when they begin to lose their warmth and motion, the petrifactions are found.

All the warm waters dropping from the roofs of fmall grottoes hereabouts, form little pillars or prifms of various fhapes, fuch as bones of all forts, hartfhorns, corals, and faint reprefentations of fome parts of animals§; but thofe above ground form another fort of petrifactions, by incrustation at first, but it afterwards destroys the body on which it is gathered, retaining the perfect shape of it, as moffes, grafs, leaves, sticks, &c. There is a notion that the petrifying quality is not fo ftrong now as it used to be. The Bath water, and all these tepid fprings, are very clear, and have no fteam except in a cold morning, or in winter; nor do they throw up great bubbles of air like the Buxton waters, which contain more fulphur and mineral spirit¶.

These waters are lighter than Bristol water by near a grain in a pint, and are good in hective fevers, want of appetite, and many other cafes**:

Two miles fouth-weft, is Middleton Bath, which rifes clofe by the fouth fide of Bonfal brook, at the foot of a very high, fteep mountain, one mile from Middleton, two from Wirksworth; it is 16 yards long, feven broad, and two deep. It is continually bubbling up with great force, and immediately empties itself into the brook. It is chiefly used to cure mangey horfes and dogs, but is fit to be employed to much greater purpofestt.

The entrance of Matlock Dale from Cromford, is by a paffage cut through the rock, which makes a very striking appearance. From hence it is about a mile to the bath,

Short, p. 71, 72.

Ibid 81. p.

+ Ibid. p. 74.
Ibid. 88.
p.

Ibid. P 86.
** Ibid. p. 91.
Dr. Percival has given the following comparative view of the different
Briflol, and Matlock waters, measured by Fanheit's thermometer.

Bath-King's bath pump 112°

Hot-bath pump
Cross-bath pump

Bristol Hot-well pump

Buxton Bath

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110°

76°

82°

St. Ann's well

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Matlock Baths

Spring

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See his experiments on the waters of Buxton and Matlock.

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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 ro mantic and beautiful ride. The river is fometimes hid behind trees, fometimes it glides fmooth and calm, fometimes a diftant fall is heard; here it tumbles over a ledge of rocks, ftretching quite acrofs, there it rushes 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 picturesque manner. In many places where they feem 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 first, is a handsome houfe, and the fituation is much pleafanter 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 music for those who choose dancing, or cards for those 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 fide 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, hastening 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 almoft perpendicular, little difficulty is found in gaining the fummit; and the wood grows fo clofe 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 fame violent convulfion has rent them afunder*.

A little beyond this is the village; the houses fcattered 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 a mine here, and the barren hills in the Lointain, form altogether a most picturesque and delightful view.

VOL. II,

* Whitehurst, p. 153

3 C

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About a mile from Matlock bridge, is a fcene fit for the pencil of a Salvator Rofa. Take the road to Chelterfield, and at the turnpike go off on the right, over a common fcattered with large grey ftones, when a fmelting houfe called the Lumbs, is foon feen.

It ftands on a point, from which the water falls a great height over the rudest 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 ftation for feeing the fall.

At this fielting 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 used 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 stream 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 pleasant 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, faid to have been formerly a rocking ftone, called in Cornwall a Logan-ftone, 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 stones, 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 fmall village, at the farther end of which are these ftones in an inclofure*. They are a moft wonderful affemblage of rocks, or rather huge stones, piled on one another, forming a hill, which runs in length for seventy yards, or more, from 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 prefent 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 fo 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

Thefe muit be what are flightly mentioned by Stukeley, without afcertaining the place; he fpeaks 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 stones 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 Leveral views of these rocks.

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