River Severn

“ But the Severn, unlike its famous twin the Thames, remains for all that a lonely river. At certain spots of course, such as Bewdley, Holt, Fleet, and Worcester, Midland holiday-makers paddle about within limits, but, fine boating river in a practical sense though it must everywhere be, in its long solitary journey from point to point the pleasure-boat is conspicuously absent. ”

“ For the Severn valley is so intercepted with small hills, so richly wooded, so ornate in places with the park lands and foliage of country seats, so sprinkled with pleasant villages, one is apt to forget that the little streams hurrying down to the river from the north come from a really wild Wales beyond, while lying back to the south the regions of Kerry and Clun speak in their very names to the initiated of the spirit of solitude. ”

“ It is a formidable thing for any one on tolerably intimate terms not merely with their banks but with their traditions and literature, to be confronted by the Tynes and but a few pages at disposal. It is the Severn and the Wye over again—the Border atmosphere surcharged with memories and traditions and many things beguiling to a discursiveness that must be at all costs resisted.
But here we have all the physical sternness of the north, above all of the north-east. The bed of a salmon river or a rocky trout stream whether in Breconshire or Northumberland differs nowise. ”

“ As at Worcester, the Severn here is a quiet, slow-flowing river. From Gloucester to Bewdley the old gravelly fords and sandy shallows have disappeared, and the “gentle art” has had to adapt itself to these changes; fish once familiar to anglers are now strangers, rarely, if ever seen on this side Gloucester; but the regulations enforced by the Severn Fisheries Commission, and the vigilance of local associations, will, it is hoped, soon be the means of repeopling the Severn with those members of the finny tribe once common to its waters. ”

“ Leaving Worcester for its twenty-mile run to Tewkesbury, the Severn almost immediately receives the Teme, that famous trout and grayling{30} river which from here to its source in the Radnor moors has scarcely a dull mile. Whether brawling in the woody limestone gorges of Downton, gliding under the storied walls of Ludlow, slipping from pool to rapid through the pleasant meads of Herefordshire, or running its Worcestershire course through the deep romantic vale between Tenbury and Powick, the Teme is always beautiful. ”

“ This is a very welcome addition to our county faunistic handbooks. "The whole area of Shropshire is only about 1340 square miles, yet within this compass we have plateaus and plains, hills and vales, boggy flats and heathery moors, cornlands and pastures, wooded slopes and barren crags, meres and ponds, streams big and little, and—most important of all—the river Severn." Sea- and shore-birds are attracted by the meres, and the still reaches of the Severn, which river again is followed in its course by many birds—as Sandpipers—and fishes. ”

“ The Severn glides on beneath the wide arch of an iron railway bridge and across the parting of Shropshire and Worcestershire to Bewdley, pleasantly situated on a slope by the river-bank, and well worthy of its name, Beau lieu. In olden times it had an extensive trade by means of the river, when it was a place of import and export, especially for the Principality. All the country round is pretty, notwithstanding occasional symptoms of factories. The lanes are sometimes cut deep in the red sandstone, and here and there the rock is hollowed out into dwellings after a primæval fashion. ”

“ Anon the Severn, changing its character, plunges along in eddying rapids beneath the limestone escarpments of Benthall and Wenlock Edge; then, taking a southerly trend, it skirts the groves and terraces of Apley Park, washes the walls of picturesque old Bridgnorth, and finally the big river takes leave of our county amidst the rough holts and heaths of that ancient woodland which goes by the name of Wyre Forest.
Owing to the lie of the land, the more important streams of [Pg 3] Southern Shropshire flow, not into the Severn itself, but into its tributary the Teme. ”

“ By this means a lake has been formed, four miles in length, which hides beneath its waters—800 feet above sea-level—a little village and its church. A curious mound rises near the junction of the two rivers, designed, as some think, to guard the passage; and then the Severn, turning again to the east, passes on towards Shrewsbury. Its valley now has become more open: parks and country houses here and there dapple the gentler slopes within no great distance of the river, and the views of the hills are always beautiful. ”

“ Admiral Drake sat amidst his roses, watching the tide as it raced up the river. Every day he sat thus, unless some pressing duty forbade, for the sea held first place in his heart. When the tide was out, the river was dull and dreary enough to the heart of the bold sailor. To gaze on a stretch of a mile or more of sand and mud, with a shallow, yellow stream dividing it into two unequal portions, is not exhilarating; but when the sea makes its wild rush up the estuary, quickly filling the wide river-bed from bank to bank, then the Severn is noble enough, and one looks upon it with pride. ”

“ The situation of the place is extremely beautiful, the river Severn flowing along its western margin, and forming a barrier against what were once the hostile districts of West Britain. For many centuries the dead city had slept under the irregular mounds of earth which covered it, like those of Mossul and Nineveh. Farmers raised heavy crops of turnips and grain from the surface and they scarcely ever ploughed or harrowed the ground without turning up Roman coins or pieces of pottery. ”

“ These show how recently the sea must have retired from a surface so covered with its remains; whilst their position low down in the valley, and but a little way above the present bed of the Severn, proves how much more recently the arm of the sea, known as the Severn Sraits, must have been succeeded by the river. The best places for collecting these remains along the railway will be found to be in embankments and cuttings near Buildwas and Coalbrookdale, the latter having yielded as many as twenty-two distinct species. ”

“ But the loveliness of the weather did not fail, and the whole day was set in Severn landscapes. They first saw the great river like a sea with the Welsh mountains hanging in the sky behind as they came over the Mendip crest above Shipham. ”

“ For some fourteen miles below Worcester the Severn flows through its wide and pleasant valley without passing near any place of special interest, unless it be Kemsey, with its fine church standing within the enclosure of a Roman camp, or Upton, which makes much vinegar and enjoys, besides, considerable traffic up and down the river; for its bridge, in place of a central arch, has a platform which can be raised to let vessels pass. ”

“ Cressage station is the nearest and most convenient on the Severn Valley line from which to reach the Wrekin. The distance is three miles. The road crosses the river by an ancient wooden bridge, and at Eaton Constantine passes the house in which Richard Baxter lived when a boy; and which the great Puritan divine describes as “a mile from the Wrekin Hill.” The visitor, in his ascent of the hill, passes a conical knoll of deep red syenite, clothed with verdure, and known as Primrose Hill. ”

“ SHREWSBURY.
The Severn Valley Railway affords a very interesting approach to the old Salopian capital, by bringing before the traveller its striking features, its singular situation, and its most pleasing aspect. On one side are groups of villa-looking residences, the little church of St. Giles, the column raised to Lord Hill, and the Abbey Church and buildings. On the other is the town, with its spires and towers and red-stone castle rising from an eminence above the river. ”

“ Telford spanned the Severn with an arch of stone 150 feet in diameter, and below Gloucester the railway runs on a viaduct across the meadows, Alney Island, and the river. The valley now is becoming very wide, and seems to hint that before long the Severn will broaden into an estuary. The river begins to swing in huge curves through the level meadows. The tidal wave, called “the bore,” sometimes [Pg 123] attains a considerable height, and is one of its “wonders.” The Malvern Hills have receded into the background, and their place is taken by May Hill, famous among geologists ”

“ The cutting near Coalbrookdale has yielded a rich harvest of these marine remains, sufficient satisfactorily to indicate the true position of the beds, and to associate them with others of great interest elsewhere. Along one of the ancient estuaries of this recent sea, now the Vale of Shrewsbury, the Severn winds in curious curves, and almost meets in circles, imparting a pleasing aspect to the valley. On leaving Buildwas, Buildwas Park is passed on the left, and Leighton Hall and church are seen on the opposite side of the river ”

“ This river from the confluence of its mountain streams after heavy rains, is subject to sudden inundations, which though in many respects injurious to the farmer, greatly fertilize the meadows in its vicinity, and especially those near Monmouth, by the valuable matter it deposits. The tide of the Severn, from the peculiar projection of the rocks at the mouth of the Wye, flows up the latter river with great rapidity, to the height of more than forty feet. ”

“ Not remarkable in the scenic way, for a more nearly level stretch of very often flooded meadow lands you will not see for miles. The site of Tewkesbury is close upon, but not actually on, the confluence of England’s greatest river, the broad and turbid and rather grim Severn, with the Avon. All around, but in grey and blue distances, are hills: the Cotswolds, the Bredon Hills, the greater Malverns, and the yet greater, but more distant Welsh mountains; but the Severn and the Avon flow through levels that extend considerable distances. ”

“ I have heard Tasmanians observing that there is no place in the world like the Derwent River; but I have never yet heard an American say a great deal about the Severn River. And yet I cannot imagine anything more lovely than this wide stream which winds its stately way through the low lying hills of Maryland.
The few houses that appear amidst the foliage help to add beauty to the whole effect, and when the stream reaches the grounds of the academy, with first the hospital buildings, then the pretty wee cemetery, and finally the main group of buildings, the effect is [Pg 158] just wonderful. ”

“ The banks become yet farther apart, the water is salt, the tide ebbs and flows, as in the sea. The estuary, indeed, continues for many a mile, still retaining the form of a river-valley. Very probably there was a time when a Severn flowed along a broad valley, where now the Bristol Channel parts England from South Wales, to join another stream which had descended over land, now sunk beneath the Irish Sea, and the two rivers discharged their united waters into a more distant Atlantic Ocean ”

“ The river itself is available for the greater part of the distance on this route in one case, after traversing 26 miles of canal on the Birmingham, Stourbridge, and Staffordshire and Worcestershire systems. The average depths of the locks on the Severn over the 44 miles that it has to be navigated by this route is about 6 feet, while they are 99 feet long and 20 feet wide. These dimensions would allow of the passage of really good-sized boats, but as it is, with the broken gauge of the other [91] canals, no boat can pass through to the Severn loaded beyond 33 tons. ”

“ When united with other streams near its mouth, it is called the Humber, which discharges itself into the German ocean.
The Severn rises from North Wales, and, running for the most part south, falls into the Irish sea. On this river stand the two cities of Worcester and Gloucester. ”

“ Winterdyne is one of these; from dark rocks above the Severn it overlooks the valley, and is surrounded by walks and grounds commanding magnificent prospects, the one from p. 14the Fort being perhaps the most romantic. Lovers of quiet rambles, anglers, or botanists, would do well to take up their quarters at Bewdley, as a centre from which to explore the neighbourhood. There are few more charming spots than Ribbesford, a mile lower down the river ”

“ Much pleasant exercise and amusement is afforded on the Severn during the summer months. Several parties possess boats, and an emulation of skill is frequently excited among the more experienced rowers.
An annual gala is generally given by the young gentlemen of Shrewsbury School in the month of June.
Boats may be hired for the day at a moderate charge, and pic-nic parties take an excursion up the river to the picturesque and woody banks at Shelton, the shady groves near Berwick and the Isle, or downwards to the rural villages of Uffington, Atcham, &c. ”

“ For rivers are things of life and personality, of soul and character.... Some of our river gods are men and some are women.... Father Thames has proclaimed his sex for all time; but the Severn has been a lady since literature began.” (Chapter 1) The author shows his readers not only the scenic but also the historic Severn and conducts him from its cradle in Plinlimmon to Gloucester with sixteen color plates to mark the way. There is no index.
“The author tells the story in ample detail and with full knowledge.”
+ Outlook 126:202 S 29 ’20 60w “In brief, this is a most entertaining volume. ”