. Vanishing England . these gruesomerelics of barbarous punishments. How were these strong walls ever taken in the daysbefore gunpowder was extensively used or cannon dis-charged their devastating shells ? Imagine you are presentat a siege. You would see the attacking force advancinga huge wooden tower, covered with hides and placed onwheels, towards the walls. Inside this tower were ladders,and when the sow had been pushed towards the wallthe soldiers rushed up these ladders and were able to fighton a level with the garrison. Perhaps they were repulsed,and then a shed-like structure would be
. Vanishing England . these gruesomerelics of barbarous punishments. How were these strong walls ever taken in the daysbefore gunpowder was extensively used or cannon dis-charged their devastating shells ? Imagine you are presentat a siege. You would see the attacking force advancinga huge wooden tower, covered with hides and placed onwheels, towards the walls. Inside this tower were ladders,and when the sow had been pushed towards the wallthe soldiers rushed up these ladders and were able to fighton a level with the garrison. Perhaps they were repulsed,and then a shed-like structure would be advanced towardsthe wall, so as to enable the men to get close enough todig a hole beneath the walls in order to bring them besieged would not be inactive, but would cast heavystones on the roof of the shed. Molten lead and burningflax were favourite means of defence to alarm and frightenaway the enemy, who retaliated by casting heavy stonesby means of a catapult into the town. 1 The Builder, April 16, V^ci Y\ Bootham Bar, York 34 VANISHING ENGLAND Amongst the fragments of walls still standing, those atNewcastle are very massive, sooty, and impressive. South-ampton has some grand walls left and a gateway, whichshow how strongly the town was fortified. The oldCinque Port, Sandwich, formerly a great and importanttown, lately decayed, but somewhat renovated by golf,has two gates left, and Rochester and Canterbury havesome fragments of their walls standing. The repair ofthe walls of towns was sometimes undertaken by benefactors, like Sir Richard Whittington,frequently contributed to the cost, and sometimes a taxcalled murage was levied for the purpose which wascollected by officers named muragers. The city of York has lost many of its treasures, and theCity Fathers seem to find it difficult to keep their handsoff such relics of antiquity as are left to them. There arefew cities in England more deeply marked with the im-press of the storied past than
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