The complete works of John LMotley .. . tsroaming over the plain commemorated by Mr. Selkirk, Their tameness is shocking to me. The crowning glory of the place, however, is Foun-tains Abbey. I do not know whether you ever heardof it, and I doubt whether it is as famous as Melroseor Tintern; but I suspect that it is the first ecclesias-tical ruin in the world. It stands in the most beautiful part of Lord deGreys park, and is very extensive. The tall tower,looking at a little distance as if belonging to a cathe-dral, is still in good preservation, but as you comenearer you find that all the rest
The complete works of John LMotley .. . tsroaming over the plain commemorated by Mr. Selkirk, Their tameness is shocking to me. The crowning glory of the place, however, is Foun-tains Abbey. I do not know whether you ever heardof it, and I doubt whether it is as famous as Melroseor Tintern; but I suspect that it is the first ecclesias-tical ruin in the world. It stands in the most beautiful part of Lord deGreys park, and is very extensive. The tall tower,looking at a little distance as if belonging to a cathe-dral, is still in good preservation, but as you comenearer you find that all the rest of the spacious churchis a mass of most picturesque ruin, with large treesgrowing in the nave, and ivy and wild flowers festoon-ing the old Norman pillars and the beautiful lancet-shaped windows. The cloisters are very extensive, andstill preserve their roofs, so that you walk throughtheir whole range and look out through the windowsat a beautiful stream which murmurs along among theruins, and at twilight or moonlight it would not re-. THOMAS HUGHES. 1860] STUDLEY ROYAL-FOUNTAINS ABBEY 101 quire a violent imagination to picture the forms ofhooded monks stalking through the cloisters, or to heara midnight mass pealing from the ruined choir of thebeautiful chapel. Descriptions of buildings and scen-ery are a bore, so I shall say nothing further of thisexquisite ruin, save to repeat that it is far the mostimpressive one that I have ever seen, and much morebeautiful than Melrose Abbey. We have a small butpleasant party here. The father and mother of Ladyde Grey, Mr. and Lady Mary Vyner, Mr. Sidney Her-bert (the Minister of War) and his very pretty wife,Mrs. Hughes, wife of Tom Hughes, author of TomBrowns School-days, and a most excellent fellow,who, I am sorry to say, is only coming when we aregoing, and one or two others. Mr. Herbert is one ofthe most distinguished persons in London, being veryhandsome, with considerable talents, of famous lineage,as he is a descendant of the fam
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