appear in them, although ftone is plentiful on the very ground where they are formed. They refemble, in fome places, the Danish fieldworks, but their great extent, and pofition with refpect to the fea and low country, for they chiefly point to the east and fouth, render it improbable that they are of Danish origin. I was once inclined to think, that they were conftructed to oppofe the progrefs of that people, because confiderable terraces are vifible, on the floping eminences of fome fields, near Bambrough castle, in Northumberland, which, among a great variety of intrench ments, contain fome beautiful femicircular redoubts, with triple ramparts. But, in a fhort ramble to the lakes, in fpring 1791, the view of Orton Scarr, between Kendal and Appleby, and of the neighbouring country, induced me to believe, that if this kind of defence were employed against the Danes, it had been, however, of earlier origin.

"Orton Scarr (or rock), of which I have given a very imperfect sketch from memory, lies on the north-eaft, directly oppofite the lower opening of the pafs of Brederdale, at the extremity of a narrow valley, watered by a fmall river. The front of the precipice is occupied by three rows of terraces, resembling two round baftions, connected by a curtin. On the more level part of the hill, under the beacon, fome lines appear to have been drawn, but I had not leifure to trace them. Near the road, fomewhat in me rear of the terraces, two fmall cairns are vi

The pafs of Brederdale, which the traveller defcends, in going northwards, is a fteep and winding defile, commanded by preipitous hills. Where it begins to

fpread out towards the valley, we meet with a confiderable Roman ftation, occupying nearly the whole breadth of the país, from the steep bank of the rivulet, to the foot of the declivity. It appears to have been fortified with care, for it is furrounded by a lofty double rampart, and two ditches. In the bottom, where the banks of the rivulet are level, appear the traces of Cattle How, which I fufpect to be founded on the fite of a Roman caftellum, defigned to protect the watering parties. It is in full view of the ftation. Thus we are prefented with the appearance of two hoftile garrifons, evidently invading and invaded. At prefent, all is folitarinefs and filence:

Stat circum alta quies, curvoque innixus

aratro

Defertas foffas, et caftra minantia caftris Rufticus invertit, tacita formidine luftrans Horrorémque loci, et funeftos firagibus agros.

Addifon. Pax Gulielm.

On the oppofite bank of the rivulet, lower than caftle How, ap. pears to have been another caftellum. At the entrance of the defile, from the fouth, a few flight traces of terraces are seen, and the remains of a fquare entrenchment, with a fhallow ditch, are difcovered, adjoining, in the flat country. In temporary encampments, the Romans commonly used a ditch, from three to five feet deep. Thefe filent monuments imprefs a connected story on the mind of the obferver, and perhaps afford fome materials for recovering a loft chapter in hiftory. Happily, the antiquarian vifion I am about to recite, obliges us to erase nothing already recorded.

"It feems, from the imperfect account of Tacitus, that Agricola was the first Roman commander H 2 who

who penetrated into that part of the country, in which thefe antiquities are fituated. Cerealis had reduced the Brigantes of Yorkshire, but the inhabitants of Cheshire and Lancafhire were unfubdued, and the people of Westmoreland had probably fecured themselves in their rocks and defiles. The incidents of Agricola's firft campaign are only hinted at by Tacitus, and moft of our antiquarians have contented themselves with fuppofing, that he entered Yorkshire by the way of Ifurium, or Aldborough. But the first operation of that general was to recover the ile of Mona, or Anglefey, immediately before his troops went into winter quarters, and it is probable, from the exprellions of Tacitus, that in the following fpring he proceeded northwards, along the coafts of Cheshire and Lancashire: "loca caftris ipfe capere, æftuaria ac "fylvas ipfe prætentare. -nulla ante "Britannia nova pars illaceffita trans"ierit." The word aftuaria can only refer to the inlets of the weftern coaft: the æftuaries of the Merfey and Ribble, and the bay of Morecamb, the moricambe æftuarium of the Romans. Mr. Whitaker, in his learned history of Manchester, has therefore conjectured, with great probability, that in 79, after overcoming the Cornavii, Agricola invaded Lancashire. The appearances I have defcribed, induce me to add to his conjecture, that the - campaign was probably clofed by an invafion of Weftmoreland and Cumberland, and that in its courfe, Orton Scarr was attacked and taken. The ftrong country, with which the pafs of Brederdale communicates, might have been the refuge of part of the Brigantes, who had efcaped from the attack made by Cerealis on the low country. From the number of British and Roman

remains in this neighbourhood, it plainly appears that the hilly coun try was formerly well peopled, and confidered as an important district. No part of it was neglected. Even the dreary pafs of Borrodale received a Roman garrison. And while the religious horror of the adjoining mountains favoured the myfterious impoftures of the Druids, the beauty and convenience of the vales and lakes must have early attracted numerous inhabitants. The changes in the feat of population, in this ifland, have been fo great, that in judging of the importance or remoteness of any northern part of the country, in former times, we may almost venture to reverse its prefent condition. To this retreat, fome of the Britons might bring an imperfect knowledge of the Roman art of war, and the invention of terraffed ramparts might then be substituted for the walls of loofe ftones, which the first defenders of this country oppofed to the efforts of the legions. Whether Agricola, after fubduing the Siftuntii of Lancathire, failed up the bay of Morecamb, or whether he proceeded along the coaft, fixing a station at Lancaster, I fhall not undertake to enquire. It is certain, that in the route from the bay of Morecamb to Kendal, various traces of ancient entrenchments are visible; but Dr. Stukeley, by a stroke of his lively pen, has turned thofe fcarce difcernible mounds into fplendid cities. Apart from this fancy of multiplying Palmyras in the defart, Dr. Stukeley was a moft acute antiquarian, and an excellent judge of field-works in particular. It is therefore dangerous to question authority on this point.

his

"Suppofing, then, Agricola to have advanced, in his first cam paign, by the pafs of Brederdale,

let

let us try how far the series of field-works defcribed, will affift us in recovering a fragment of his history. The flight terrace-work, at the entrance of the defile from Kendal, fhews that fome attempt was made to refift the invading army there. The Romans had therefore encamped, as the fquare entrenchment indicates, hard by the pafs, till the enemy retreated, or were dislodged. When the invaders reached the bottom of the defile, their camp would probably be ftrongly entrenched, as the poft of Orton Scarr, commanding all the interjacent country, would then appear very formidable. Whether the caftella were then thrown up, to protect the watering and reconnoitering parties, or whether thefe were fubfequent works, for the fecurity of the station, it is impoffible to determine. The former conjecture is not improbable. To pafs the valley, then perhaps marthy, or covered with thickets, under the eye of a vigilant enemy, expecting an attack, was an operation that might require a delay of fome days, and after all, it was impoffible to attack the poft in front. The lines, therefore, muft have been turned, at the acceffible part of the hill, near the fituation of the prefent high road, and perhaps the cairns point out the very place of

the affault.

The fuccefs of this action would open the way to Carlifle, and to the fea. Other terraces appear on a rifing ground near Penrith, facing towards Kefwick, the road from which paffes through them. And on the fide of a hill, fronting the river Eimont, near Brougham caftle, a confiderable terraffed work is very distinguifhable. But no probable conjecture can be formed, refpecting the other incidents of this campaign. Perhaps I have ventured fufficiently far already,

"No remains of parapets are feen on any of thefe works, which have come under my obfervation, although the ramparts feem to retain their original height. If parapets were ever added to them, they would be liable to fudden decay, by the action of winds and rains, in fituations fo greatly expofed. At Orton Scarr, from the breadth of the platform of each rampart, it might be fuppofed that room was given for tents, or huts. But at Humbledon, and in other places, the breadth is only fufficient for a fingle file of foldiers. If this conftruction was an attempt to imitate the Roman method of fortification, the ramparts might, like those of the Romans, have been defended by projecting wooden towers, or paliffades."

lefs than it was in the time of her fucceffor.

"The articles contained in the very curious wardrobe account of Edward the Second, published by the fociety, feem rather to relate to his extraordinary expences and preparations for war in Scotland, than to what we fhould properly call the expences of the houfehold. The amount of the latter is, however, to be collected from the conclufion of the account, which, after stating the whole expences of the articles in that book to be £.53,178 15 adds, Summa tota

lis exituum et expenfarum garderobe per iftum librum de anno 28, una cum expenfis hofpicii regis ejufdem

Dedu&t then the

anni

above fum

and the household expences will be

64,105 05

53,178 15 1

10,926 5 4 "What might be the expence of Richard the Second, I do not know; but, according to Holinshed, it must have been enormous, as he fays there were 300 fervitors in the kitchen, and every other office furnished at the like rate, and that ten thousand perfons had meat and drink allowed them.

"From the pipe rolls it appears, that the greatest expence of Henry VII. was about 15,000l. per ann. but this was afterwards leffened, and towards the end of his reign was reduced to about 13,000l.

"Henry the Eighth, a prince fond of expence, began with about

"In the beginning of queen Elizabeth's reign, the reduced her expence a little below what her father ended with, but, at the conclu. fion of her long reign, it was increafed to 55,000l.

"A little before her death fhe was very uneafy at finding her household expences run fo high, and the following account of a converfation which she had on the fubject with Mr. Brown, one of the officers of her green-cloth, is truly characteristic of her. She died fhortly after, and before any thing had been done to correct the abufes complained of.

"The original of this paper is amongst fome that were collected by fir Julius Cæfar. It is indorfed,

The late Q. Mates fpetches often tymes to R. Bro: 'for household causes.' Richard Brown's s'vice to the late queene, and her 'mts fpeeches and com" at fundrie times to him for 'household causes knowen to fome of the lo: in coun 'cil and white-ftaves. The household charges abridged from 50,000l. to 44,000l. per ann. for in two offices onlie 2,000l. per ann. abated.-Larder -poultrie-her ma ie has notwithftanding told Browne, that in the 'beginning of her raigne leffe than 40,000l. defrayed the charge. • Browne anfwered, that all provic'ons then weare cheaper. The queene faid, that may bee foe, and I fave by the late compoc'on (as I am informed) 10,000l. per ann, and therefore I charge you exa

creafing till in his 30th year the expence was 22,000l.; in the 33d year it got up to 34,000l. and the 37th to 40,000l.

6

in the beginninge of my raigne. with one yeares expences now, and lett me understand ytt.

An examinac'on and confe

rence