In this neighbourhood are several other objects highly interesting to the antiquary. The Hurlers, when perfect, consisted of three circles of upright stones from three to five feet high, but several of them have been removed. According to historians, these monuments of antiquity are said to have been of Druidical origin; but the name of hurlers is most probably derived from an opinion among the common people, that the stones were once men, who were transformed for Hurling (a favorite game among the antient Cornish people) on the sabbath day.
The Cheese-Wring is a natural pile of rocks 32 feet high, of eight stones, or layers, apparently placed one above another, the largest at the top: considering its perilous form and exposed situation, how this pile has withstood the rage of storms for so many ages, is a matter of just astonishment.
The Cromlech, or Trewethy Stone, as it is generally called, standing on an eminence some distance from the Cheese-Wring, may be ranked as one of the greatest antiquities in the county. It consists of six upright stones, and one large slab, covering them in an inclined position. This impext measures 16 feet in length, and 10 broad, and is, at a medium, about 14 inches thick. It rests on five of the uprights only, and at its upper end it is perforated by a small circular hole. No tradition exists as to the time of its erection; but, its name at once designates its being a work of the Britons, and sepulchral.[[41]]
The village of St. Neot’s, four miles from Liskeard, has long been celebrated for possessing a church, embellished with some of the finest painted glass windows in the kingdom. They amount to 17, and display various subjects connected with the legend of St. Neot, Portraits of Saints, the History of the Creation, &c., but some of them have unfortunately been defaced by ignorant or malicious depredators.
The Church is a handsome fabric, built of granite, and from the style of architecture is supposed not to be older than the reign of Henry VI. It stands on a rising ground at the head of the village, and has a dignified appearance, especially when contrasted with the humble dwellings near it.
A correspondent has favoured us with the following additional particulars relative to St. Neot’s:—
This village is about four miles west of Liskeard. Until the close of the ninth century, it was called Ham-stoke; from that period till the Conquest, or later, it had the name of Neot-stoke; it received its present name soon after. About the middle of the ninth century, St. Neot (a pious hermit, who had been Sacristan at Glastonbury Abbey) retired here. His pool is still shown; respecting which there are some curious traditions.[[42]] The Saint erected a College of Priests, and a church here, (on the site of the more antient Chapel of St. Guerir,) in which he was buried in 877: the edifice was rebuilt in 884. The present Church was erected in 1480.[[43]] It is an elegant building, consisting of a nave and two side aisles. Its greatest ornament is its beautifully stained glass; of which a considerable portion remains in a mutilated state. Many of the legends of these richly “storied windows,” have perished: Mr. Gorham[[44]] has preserved 85: in 1786, Mr. Forster published a coarse outlined engraving of the windows, containing the legends of St. Neot, and of St. George.
On the north side of the Chancel (where was doubtless the Saxon Chapel) is a small recess, from which projected one end of a stone casket, 18 inches by 14. Here were preserved some remains of Neot; the founders of St. Neot’s Priory in Huntingdonshire, having left “one arm”[[45]] of the Saint for the Cornish Church, when they stole the greater part of the treasure about 974! In October, 1795, this little cemetery was broken open by some intoxicated workmen, whose curiosity had been excited by a visit of Mr. Whitaker. The casket above-mentioned, was found to be a shallow cenotaph: behind it was a stone, closing the mouth of an aperture rudely formed in the solid wall; in this inner recess was discovered “about a quart of mould-earth, very fine in itself, yet adhering in clots, and dark in colour.”[[46]] By the side of this cavity is a wooden tablet; on which are inscribed some quaint and puerile verses, supposed to have been written just before the Reformation: the narrative which they detail, is extremely inaccurate.
Returning from St. Neots to the high road, within four miles of Bodmin is Glynn House, the residence of E. J. Glynn, Esq., which has lately been rebuilt on the site of an elegant mansion, unfortunately destroyed by fire, about three years ago. This misfortune not only was a great loss to its worthy owner, but the literary world has suffered an irreparable one; for it contained one of the finest libraries in the county. The family also narrowly escaped, being all in their beds at the time, but were luckily apprized of their dangerous situation by a female domestic.—The present mansion is built at the bottom of a gentle declivity, in a very pleasing valley, and is therefore sheltered from the violence of the north-east winds. It is certainly a low structure, but contains a number of commodious apartments. The grounds round the house have been greatly improved, and now have a very pleasing aspect from the road.
After crossing an antient bridge over one part of the river Fowey, at Resprin, the antient mansion of Lanhydrock, situated at the head of a noble avenue of trees, nearly a mile in length, has a very striking effect. It is an embattled structure of granite, occupying three sides of a quadrangle, and the windows are divided by stone mullions. On the north side is a gallery 116 feet long, covered with a profusion of uncouth and ill-executed plastered figures. There are, however, a few family portraits, but none remarkable. In front of the house, is a large irregular building, with a fine circular arch, once a porter’s lodge; but as the owner of it, the Hon. Mr. Bagnal Agar, has not resided here for some years, the whole building is getting much out of repair, though as interesting a spot, perhaps, as any in the county.