"Tis
reverenced
as a Vestige of the Abode
.
.
William Wordsworth
Herbert dates
from the middle of the seventh century. The rector of Clifton,
Westmoreland, Dr. Robinson, writing in 1819, says:
"The remains of his hermitage are still visible, being built of stone
and mortar, and formed into two apartments, one of which, about twenty
feet long and sixteen feet wide, seems to have been his chapel; the
other, of less dimensions, his cell. Near these ruins the late Sir
Wilfred Lawson (to whose representative the island at present belongs)
erected some years ago a small octagonal cottage, which, being built
of unhewn stone, and artificially mossed over, has a venerable
appearance. "
(See _Guide to the Lakes_, by John Robinson, D. D. , 1819). This cottage
has now disappeared. The following version of this "Inscription" occurs
in a letter from Wordsworth to Lady Beaumont, dated 26th November 1811:
This Island, guarded from profane approach
By mountains high and waters widely spread,
Gave to St. Herbert a benign retreat.
Upon a staff supported, and his Brow
White with the peaceful diadem of age.
Hither he came--a self-secluded Man,
. . .
Behold that shapeless Heap of stones and earth!
"Tis reverenced as a Vestige of the Abode
. . .
. . . --And when within his Cell
Alone he knelt before the crucifix,
In a previous letter to Sir George Beaumont, dated 16th November 1811:
By mountains high and waters widely spread,
Is that Seclusion which St. Herbert chose;
. . .
Hither he came in life's austere decline:
And, Stranger! this blank Heap of stones and earth
Is reverenced . . .
Ed.
* * * * *
WRITTEN WITH A PENCIL UPON A STONE IN THE WALL OF THE HOUSE (AN
OUT-HOUSE), ON THE ISLAND AT GRASMERE [A]
Composed 1800.
from the middle of the seventh century. The rector of Clifton,
Westmoreland, Dr. Robinson, writing in 1819, says:
"The remains of his hermitage are still visible, being built of stone
and mortar, and formed into two apartments, one of which, about twenty
feet long and sixteen feet wide, seems to have been his chapel; the
other, of less dimensions, his cell. Near these ruins the late Sir
Wilfred Lawson (to whose representative the island at present belongs)
erected some years ago a small octagonal cottage, which, being built
of unhewn stone, and artificially mossed over, has a venerable
appearance. "
(See _Guide to the Lakes_, by John Robinson, D. D. , 1819). This cottage
has now disappeared. The following version of this "Inscription" occurs
in a letter from Wordsworth to Lady Beaumont, dated 26th November 1811:
This Island, guarded from profane approach
By mountains high and waters widely spread,
Gave to St. Herbert a benign retreat.
Upon a staff supported, and his Brow
White with the peaceful diadem of age.
Hither he came--a self-secluded Man,
. . .
Behold that shapeless Heap of stones and earth!
"Tis reverenced as a Vestige of the Abode
. . .
. . . --And when within his Cell
Alone he knelt before the crucifix,
In a previous letter to Sir George Beaumont, dated 16th November 1811:
By mountains high and waters widely spread,
Is that Seclusion which St. Herbert chose;
. . .
Hither he came in life's austere decline:
And, Stranger! this blank Heap of stones and earth
Is reverenced . . .
Ed.
* * * * *
WRITTEN WITH A PENCIL UPON A STONE IN THE WALL OF THE HOUSE (AN
OUT-HOUSE), ON THE ISLAND AT GRASMERE [A]
Composed 1800.
