An Autobiography of an Ancient Athlete & Antiquarian

130 AUTOBIOGRAPHY Sutton, next day by the old coast road to Burnham, and so on by Cley, where I saw E. B. Parlour, the well-known Lon– don oarsman (I think for the last time), and so by Wells to Holt "Feathers," and :finished on next day by Kelling and Sheringham and Cromer (I found all the coast line being rapidly spoiled by building), and south by the main road and Aylsham to the Cottage. D.M.R. came for the rest of the week, and we left him at Lowestoft, lunching with him at his favourite boarding-house there (where the incident of the bread and butter pudding greatly offended him). By the 18th the new parson of Lamu1as, the Rev. E. H. Goodwin, bad come into residence, and I put him and his family up at the Rectory Cottage while his Rectory was getting ready. On the 27th I had a good round by Attlebridge and Reepham, Booton, went over the eccentric Church there, and so to Marsh's Cawston, but it came on to rain and I got very wet finishing my 28~ miles. A. L. Rye and his wife came down on 2nd October to Cottage, but I don't think stayed, for on 4th and 5th October I cycled with Hight to Beccles, where in the evening there wa. an amusing row around the ''Shambles." Next day home by Bungay and Ditchingham. About this time I was again doing a lot of work at the Muuiment Room at the Castle. The Rev. W. P. Holms, of St. Peter's, Leicester, was there about Bacton Abbey and came up after– wards to see the Norris MSS. He was to have writteu a history of it. but never seems to have done so. Ou the 27th October I lectured on Thorpe, Pockthorpe, and Mouse– hold Heath, at the St. Matthew's Schoolroom, and on the 31st went to R.J.W.P's. at Foulsham, and went over Skippon's House, Guist, the alleged earthworks and tlle Norman detached pisciua at Bintre, when I saw the Rev. W. Hewetson, afterwards a very consistent bowman, for the first time. On 6th November was the first Drover's Tea at St. Andrew's Hall where others and I covered ourselves with glory and g:::ease as amateur waiters. This went on for a year or so, but the idea of humanizing the cattle drovers by means of the N.S.P.C.A., though a good one, had dropped, as many unauthorised persons found their way in, and the temperance regime was not popular, the rush out at the interval to adjoining public houses being extra– ordinary.