Yatton

“ What a shout rent the air! Boughs of laurel were waving in all directions, with wreaths and ribbons! Beautiful nosegays were flung in through the carriage windows by men, women, and even children, all dressed in their best and gayest attire! Here was formed an equestrian procession that was to precede them into Yatton, consisting of some hundred stout Yorkshire yeomen, chiefly tenants of Lord Drelincourt and his neighbors. ”

“ On the Great Western Railway, the apparatus arrangement is in operation at Flax Bourton, Nailsea, Yatton, and Hewish, chiefly in connection with the 6.15 a.m. train ex Bristol. It rarely happens that any failures occur at Fishponds or Hewish, but vagaries of the apparatus are more frequent at Yatton. About once a year something or other goes wrong, the pouch usually being dropped and carried along by the train, with mutilation of the mail bags and a general scattering of the letters. ”

“ These are Mr. Richard Blakeborough, the author of T' Hunt o' Yatton Brigg (1896) , and Mr. J. S. Fletcher, who, as recently as 1915, published in the dialect of Osgoldcross his Leet Livvy. These two poems are in general character poles apart: that of Mr. Blakeborough is pure romance, whereas Mr. Fletcher never steps aside from the strait path of realism. T' Hunt o' Yatton Brigg is steeped in all the eerie witch-lore of the Cleveland moors. ”

“ Titmouse. The local superintendence of his interests had been intrusted by Gammon to the Messrs. Bloodsuck; who had found their business, in consequence, so much increasing, as to require the establishment of Mr. Barnabas Bloodsuck at Yatton, while his father remained at Grilston; their partnership, however, continuing. He had, accordingly, run up a thin slip of a place at the end of the village farthest from the park gates, and within a few yards of the house in which old Blind Bess had ended her days. He was the first attorney that had ever lived in Yatton. ”

“ The sound of rushing water adds romance to this sweet village.
YATTON KEYNELL MANOR.
The ancient family of Scrope has been seated here for over five centuries and a half. The "Castle Inn" by the market-cross remains primitive in its arrangements, although the "tripping" season makes great demands upon its supplies. Though ordinarily quiet enough, occasionally there is a swarm, and a sudden demand of a hundred or so "teas" is enough to try the resources of any hostess. ”

“ My glorious Kate, how my heart goes forth towards you!
And thou, her brother, who art of kindred spirit; who art supported by philosophy, and exalted by religion, so that thy constancy cannot be shaken or overthrown by the black and ominous swell of trouble which is increasing and closing around thee, I know that thou wilt outlive the storm—and yet it rocks thee!
A month or two may see thee and thine expelled from Old Yatton, and not merely having lost everything, but with a liability to thy successor which will hang round thy neck like a millstone. What, indeed, is to become of you all? ”

“ At Ewridge, in the parish of Colern, in North Wilts (a stone brash and a free stone) , they also grow indifferently plentifull; and in the parish of Kington St Michael I remember three or four in the stone brash and red earth.
When I learnt my accidents, 1633, at Yatton Keynel, there was a fair and spreading ewe-tree in the churchyard, as was common heretofore. The boyes tooke much delight in its shade, and it furnish't them with their scoopes and nutt-crackers. The clarke lop't it to make money of it to some bowyer or fletcher, and that lopping kill'd it: the dead trunke remaines there still. ”

“ EARLY BRISTOL POST MARKS.
The mail services in the rural districts are not free from danger. The pitcher may have been carried to the fountain year after year without mishap, but it not infrequently becomes broken at last. In like manner the contractor for the Portishead, Clevedon, and Yatton mail cart service, after having driven over this route with immunity from accident for forty years, yet came to grief in the last week of his connection with His Majesty's mails, January, 1902. ”

“ Sadler's, at Longley Burrell. 'Twas of one of these trees, I remember, that the trough of the paper mill at Long-deane, in the parish of Yatton Keynell, anno 1636, was made. In Garsden Parke (now the Lord Ferrars) is perhaps the finest hollow oake in England; it is not high, but very capacious, and well wainscotted; with a little table, which I thinke eight may sitt round. When an oake is felling, before it falles, it gives a kind of shreikes or groanes, that may be heard a mile off, as if it were the genius of the oake lamenting. ”

“ A large collection of ludicrous, as well as of panegyrical and moral, epitaphs, was published in two volumes, by T. Webb, in 1777, to which collection I am indebted for several of the above.
The "Reverence due to Holy Places" gives the following examples. The first, near the west end of Winchester Cathedral; the second, in the graveyard of the fine parish church of Yatton, Somersetshire. It is only by the exposure of such scandals that we may hope to effect their non-appearance in future. ”

“ Yes, sir, that lady is my principal. Her husband don't know or care much about business, I daresay, and so much the better--a good fellow, I daresay; but soft, sir--soft."
"And so Mrs. Frere is your principal, Mr. Thacker," said Yeldham, after a moment's pause, to recover his equanimity, "and was her friend's principal creditor, eh? Well, well, that's strange enough. And you and she don't put your horses together now? What can have made you agree to differ?"
"You've a very insinuating manner, Mr. Yeldham. It's a pity you're not in the courts instead of in chamber practice. ”

“ He thanked me shyly and sped away to the lodge gates. I turned to see the girl approaching, and went to meet her.
"For him, ginger beer," said I; "for us, tea. For them, when they arrive, the wagonette. They will not send the car for your maid. But, never mind, they have a good time coming. Isn't it all beautiful!"
"Of course," said she, "after this I shall go into a convent—that is, after I have served my term of imprisonment. I can never face the world again."
"Why again?" said I. "You see, my dear, we're not facing it now. If we were, it would be different. ”

“ He gave her a glance of careless admiration, but did not annoy her further.
Yates was a remarkable-looking man as he stood there in his rough mountain dress, which was sufficiently picturesque in effect to atone for the coarseness of its materials and make.
He could not have been over thirty-five—very possibly not so much; but a life of reckless dissipation had long ago worn the youth out from his face. He had once been handsome—was so still, in spite of his heavy, undressed beard and the desperate expression of his features. ”

“ Hours had gone over since the glorious light of this new life had dawned--unheeded hours; and now Robert called to Alice, and she came. As he spoke, the old woman looked at him anxiously, but his face reassured her. It was very pale, and he looked old--he had been looking old of late, she had often thought--but peace, serenity, a calm, which she felt without understanding or questioning, were on the features, and a smile--a sweet and serious smile--lighted them. She followed him without a word to the now disused but always orderly, room which had been Mrs. Dutton's in her maiden days. ”

“ He flung down the Railway Guide, took up his hat and departed, whistling as he descended the staircase with an invincible light-heartedness, whereat Charles Yeldham smiled. The smile was not gay, however, and it vanished quickly, and the barrister laid down his pen, leaned his chin upon his folded hands, and gazed out of the window with eyes that saw nothing they looked upon. It was a most unusual thing for Charles Yeldham to indulge in a fit of abstraction, and the indulgence was brief. ”

“ How silly!"
"My dear, I leave everything everywhere"
"I will get it," said I. Yvonne had gone for the car. Besides, I wanted to go.
"Oh, thank you. It's quite a small gold—"
"I know it," said I, smiling.
"Can you find your way?" said Madame. "The house will be almost in darkness."
"Oh, yes, Madame."
A moment later I was in the corridor beyond the iron door. It was quite dark, but twenty paces away a faint suggestion of light showed where the door of the Royal box stood open. When I reached it, I saw that a solitary lamp was burning on the far side of the stalls. ”

“ Blue always became me, and my eyes are bright, and I've got a high colour. How do you do? My hand out at the window, and a very palpable squeeze to the oaf, who is blushing, by Jove, like a great schoolboy,--a very palpable squeeze. Steps down now, and, leaning heavily on his arm, out we jump, and--O yes, dear Lady Mitford! Kiss, kiss--you she-Judas!--and--hallo! rather astonished at seeing Bayard, eh? How do you do, Colonel Alsager? I scarcely thought you would be here. No, of course not; one string too many for her bow. Now for me!--Needn't ask you how you are, Mrs. Hammond ”

“ Yatman would only die.
I sent off the two subordinates to wait, until I wanted them, at the Avenue-Road gate of the Regent's Park. Half an hour afterwards I was following the same direction myself, at the heels of Mr. Jay.
The two confederates were punctual to the appointed time. I blush to record it, but it is, nevertheless, necessary to state, that the third rogue—the nameless desperado of my report, or, if you prefer it, the mysterious "Somebody Else" of the conversation between the two brothers—is——a woman! and, what is worse, a young woman! ”

“ Yatman has been practicing upon the folly and conceit of this young man, and that she has tried to shield herself from discovery by purposely encouraging him to suspect the wrong persons. I tell you that confidently; and I will even go further. I will undertake to give a decided opinion as to why Mrs. Yatman took the money, and what she has done with it, or with a part of it. Nobody can look at that lady, sir, without being struck by the great taste and beauty of her dress—”
As I said those last words, the poor man seemed to find his powers of speech again. ”

“ This friendly hint from the man in the tavern offers a key to the solution of the problem of Yates’ success on the New York press. He could get news when no other man could. Flippant and shallow as he undoubtedly was, he somehow got into the inner confidences of all sorts of men in a way that made them give him an inkling of anything that was going on for the mere love of him; and thus Yates often received valuable assistance from his acquaintances which other reporters could not get for money. ”

“ He was on his favourite topic when Prescott and Pringle arrived.
"Ah, my dear Mrs. Schröder," he was saying, "isn't it sad? The duchess herself sent for me, and said, 'Now, Mr. Sergeant, speak to him yourself. You have experience of life; above all, you have experience of our order. Tell Philip what will be the result of this marriage with Lady Di!' I promised her grace I would; and I did. I spoke not only to Lord Philip, but to Lord Ronald and Lord Alberic, his brothers. But it was no good; the marriage has come off, and now the poor duchess is in despair. Ah! there's Lady Nettleford! ”

“ They said he was away on his holiday."
"They can't have understood what you said."
"I admit my articulation is defective—has been ever since a fellow backed into my car at Brooklands, did it twenty pounds' worth of damage, and then sent in a bill for a new tail-lamp. At the same time—"
Here another station roared by. I was too late to see the name. "I shall swear in a minute," said I. "I can feel it coming. I suppose we do stop somewhere, if only to coal, don't we?"
"Well, we may stop before, but I know we stop at Friars Rory, because that's where I get out." ”

“ The prelate was not the man to exaggerate. Anthony's recovery went on amain. His state of independence had, as we know, been broached by Lady Touchstone: it was becoming that the true extent of his fortune should be disclosed by Monseigneur Forest himself.
The sick man received the news with some emotion.
He felt as though suddenly a wand had been set in his hand—a wand beneath whose careless touch the shifting flux of wishes must set and crystallize. For more than eighteen months he had "thought in pennies." Henceforth it would be unnecessary to think at all. ”

“ Nothing more has been heard of him; and it is conjectured that he has left London with the intention of offering his valuable services to the provincial police.
On the interesting domestic subject of Mr. and Mrs. Yatman still less is known. It has, however, been positively ascertained that the medical attendant of the family was sent for in a great hurry on the day when Mr. Yatman returned from the milliner’s shop. The neighboring chemist received, soon afterward, a prescription of a soothing nature to make up for Mrs. Yatman. ”

“ No, Robert, I would not do that. You're not well, my good fellow; you're not strong; any excitement of this kind might knock you up, and that would never do, you know."
"I know that I shall start by the tidal train to-morrow morning, Charley. Now don't argue with me, for my mind is made up."
But Robert Streightley did not start to Paris by the next morning's tidal train. As he sat that night talking over his intended journey with his friend, Yeldham saw the colour fade out of his face, the light out of his eyes,--finally saw him go off in a dead swoon. ”