Part 27 (1/2)

Carnsew, rightly Carndeaw, purporteth in Cornish, a black rock: and such a one the heire owneth which gaue name to his ancient possessed mannour, as the mannour to his ancestours. His house Bokelly may be deriued from Both, in Cornish, a Goate and kelly which is lost: and the Goate he giueth for his Armes. This Gent.

father married the daughter of Fits in Deuon and left behinde him three sonnes, Richard, Mathew and William, with two daughters: those, brought vp in learning and experience abroade: these, in vertue and modesty at home: the fruites whereof, they taste and expresse, in a no lesse praise-worthy, then rare-continuing concord, hauing (not through any constrayning necessitie, or constraintiue vowe) but on a voluntary choyce, made their elder brothers mansion a Colledge of single liuing, & kinde entertaining. Amongst whom, I may not omit the yongest brother, whose well qualified and sweete pleasing sufficiency draweth him out from this cloyster, to conuerse with and a.s.sist his friends, and to whose sounder iudgement, I owe the thankful acknowledgement of [128] many corrected slippings in these my notes. The armes of this family are thus blasoned, S. a Goat pa.s.sant. A. attired and trippled 0.

Roscarrock, in Cornish, meaneth a flower, and a rock, in English.

Roses are his armes, and the North rocky clifs, which bound his demaines, perhaps added the rest. The heire hath issue by the daughter of Treuanion. His father maried the sole Inheritrix to Pentire, whose dwelling, Pentuan, is seated on the South sea, so as he might make vse of either climate for his residence.

The family is populous; but of them two brothers, Hugh, for his ciuill carriage, and kinde hospitality, and Nicholas for his industrious delight in matters of history and antiquity, doe merit a commending remembrance. They beare A. a Cheuron betweene 2. Roses, G. and a sea-tenche nayante proper.

The little parish called Temple, skirteth this hundred, on the waste side thereof: a place, exempted from the Bishops iurisdiction, as once appertayning to the Templers, but not so from disorder: for if common report communicate with truth, many a bad mariage bargaine is there yerely slubbred vp.

Hundred of West.

WIth Trig Hundred on the South side, confineth that of West, but taketh his name from the relation which it beareth to that of East: the circuit thereof is not so large, as fruitfull.

In entring the same, wee will first pitch at the Looes, two seuerall Corporations, distinguished by the addition of East and West, ab.u.t.ting vpon a nauigable creek, and ioyned by a faire bridge of many arches. They tooke that name from a fresh riuer, which there payeth his tribute to the sea: and the riuer (as I coniecture) from his low pa.s.sage, betweene steepe coasting hils: for Loo, and lowe, after the Cornish p.r.o.nunciation, doe little differ.

East-Loo voucheth lesse antiquity, as lately incorporated, but vanteth greater wealth, as more commodiously seated: yet the foundation of their houses is grounded on the sand, supporting (naythelesse) those poore buildings, with a sufficient stablenesse.

Their profit chiefly accrueth from their weekely markets, and industrious fis.h.i.+ng, with boats of a middle size, able to brooke, but not crosse the seas: howbeit, they are not altogether dest.i.tute of bigger s.h.i.+pping: amongst which, one hath successiuely retained the name of the George of Loo, euer since the first so called, did a great while sithence, in a furious fight, take 3. French men of warre.

The towne towards the sea, is fenced with a garretted wall, against any sudden attempt of the enemy.

West-Loo mustereth an endowment with the like meanes, but in a meaner degree, and hath of late yeeres somewhat releeued his former pouerty.

Almost directly ouer against the barred hauen of Loo, extendeth S. Georges Iland, about halfe a mile in compa.s.se, and plentifully stored with Conies. When the season of the yere yeeldeth oportunity, a great abundance of sundry sea-fowle breed upon the strond, where they lay, & hatch their egges, without care of building any nests: at which time, repairing thither, you shall see your head shadowed with a cloud of old ones, through their diuersified cries, witnessing their general dislike of your disturbance, [129] and your feete pestered with a large number of yong ones, some formerly, some newly, and some not yet disclosed; at which time (through the leaue and kindnesse of Master May, the owner) you may make and take your choyce. This Gent. Armes, are G, a Cheuron vary betweene three Crownes.

The middle market towne of this Hundred, is Liskerd. Les, in Cornish, is broad, and ker, is gone. Now, if I should say, that it is so called, because the widenesse of this Hundred, heere contracteth the traffike of the Inhabitants, you might well thinke I iested, neither dare I auow it in earnest. But whencesoever you deriue the name, hard it is, in regard of the antiquity, to deduce the towne and Castle from their first originall; and yet I will not ioyne hands with them who terme it Legio, as founded by the Romanes, vnlesse they can approue the same by a Romane faith.

Of later times, the Castle serued the Earle of Cornwall for one of his houses; but now, that later is worm-eaten out of date and vse.

Coynages, Fayres, and markets, (as vitall spirits in a decayed bodie) keepe the inner partes of the towne aliue, while the ruyned skirtes accuse the iniurie of time, and the neglect of industrie.

S. Cleer parish, coasting Liskerd, brooketh his name by a more percing, then profitable ayre, which in those open wastes, scowreth away thrift, as well as sicknesse. Thither I rode, to take view of an antiquitie, called The other halfe stone; which I found to be thus: There are two moore stones, pitched in the ground, very neere together, the one of a more broade then thicke squarenesse, about 8.

foote in height, resembling the ordinary spill of a Crosse, and somewhat curiously hewed, with diaper worke. The other commeth short of his fellowes length, by the better halfe, but, welneere, doubleth it in breadth, and thickenesse, and is likewise handsomely carued. They both are mortifed in the top, leauing a little edge at the one side, as to accommodate the placing of somewhat else thereupon. In this latter, are graued certaine letters, which I caused to be taken out, and haue here inserted, for abler capacities, then mine own, to interpret.

[image, approx d O n l E R T : R O 3 a U I T p R O a n l m a

where 'a' is a Greek alpha character]

Why this should be termed, The other halfe stone, I cannot resolue with my selfe, and you much lesse. Howbeit, I haltingly ayme, it may proceede from one of these respects; either, because it is the halfe of a monument, whose other part resteth elsewhere: or, for that it meaneth, after the Dutch phrase and their owne measure, a stone and halfe. For, in Dutch, Ander halb, (another halfe) importeth, One and a halfe, as Sesqui alter doth in Latine.

It should seeme to be a bound stone: for some of the neighbours obserued to mee, that the [130] same limiteth iust the halfe way, betweene Excester and the lands ende, and is distant full fiftie myles from either.

Not farre hence, in an open plaine, are to be seene certaine stones, somewhat squared, and fastened about a foote deepe in the ground, of which, some sixe or eight stand vpright in proportionable distance: they are termed, The hurlers. And alike strange obseruation, taketh place here, as at Stonehenge, to wit, that a redoubled numbring, neuer eueneth with the first. But far stranger is the country peoples report, that once they were men, and for their hurling vpon the Sabboth, so metamorphosed. The like whereof, I remember to haue read, touching some in Germany (as I take it) who for a semblable prophanation, with dauncing, through the Priests accursing, continued it on a whole yere together.

Almost adioyning hereunto, is a heap of rocks, which presse one of a lesse size, fas.h.i.+oned like a cheese, and therethrough termed Wringcheese.

I know not well, whether I may referre to the parish of S. Neot in this Hundred, that which Mat. West, reporteth of K. Alfred, namely, how comming into Cornwall on hunting, he turned aside, for doing his deuotion, into a Church, where S. Guerijr and S. Neot made their abode (quaere, whether he meane not their burials) or rather so resolue, because a.s.ser so deliuers it, and there found his orisons seconded with a happy effect.

Next, I will relate you another of the Cornish natural wonders, viz. S. Kaynes well: but lest you make a wonder first at the Saint, before you take notice of the well, you must vnderstand, that this was not Kayne the man-queller, but one of a gentler spirit, and milder s.e.x, to wit, a woman. He who caused the spring to be pictured, added this rime for an exposition:

In name, in shape, in quality, This well is very quaint; The name, to lot of Kayne befell, No ouer-holy Saint.

The shape, 4. trees of diuers kinde, Withy, Oke, Elme and Ash, Make with their roots an arched roofe, Whose floore this spring doth wash.

The quality, that man or wife, Whose chance, or choice attaines, First of this sacred streame to drinke, Thereby the mastry gaines.