Page:Over fen and wold; (IA overfenwold00hissiala).pdf/370

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perfect condition, save for the inevitable weathering of centuries—a sight to delight the heart of an antiquary. A beautifully designed cross it is, in the Perpendicular style, most gracefully proportioned, consisting of a tall octagonal shaft tapering upwards from its base. On the top of the shaft, under an angular canopy, is the figure of the Virgin Mary crowned on one side and a representation of the crucifixion on the other. This cross is, I believe, unique in England, inasmuch as it was neither destroyed by the Puritans nor has it been restored. It only shows that then, as now, Somersby must have been remote and out of the world, or how otherwise can we account for this "superstitious thing" escaping their eagle eyes, even so its escape is a marvel considering that Lincolnshire was one of the strongholds of Puritanism. The peculiar preservation of this one cross in all England, under the circumstances, would almost suggest some unrecorded cause, it is a minor historical mystery! The tomb of Dr. Tennyson is in the churchyard here. "Our father's dust is left alone," pathetically exclaims the poet as he bade a reluctant farewell to the home and scenes of his childhood to wander

    In lands where not a memory strays,
    Nor landmark breathes of other days,
But all is new unhallow'd ground.

We now turned to inspect the ancient and erst moated grange that stands just beyond the rectory, the gardens of the two houses indeed adjoin. This charming and quaint old home was naturally well known to Tennyson, and within its time-honoured