Lincoln, Sept. 6Honey dear :-
The folks I've seen in the last 24 hours belong much more to you than to me - Miss Merrill of Wellesley on the city-wall of York, and your classmate Miss Louise Ayer (regards to you) at our boarding place. Miss Merrill is about to have a year off - Cambridge. She sent greetings to her friends at Fac. House. Miss Ayer is abroad indefinitely! Spends October on the Isle of Man - now going to Scotland. Both little chats were friendly and nice.
Monday a.m. we left Durham early and got to Ripon to find a brand new baby in our house! But the woman did not turn us out. We slept and ate in the parlor almost under as well as on the table. However, she made us a grate fire - the second we've seen this chilly summer. And we were shown the baby in the room we might have had - it came somewhat unexpectedly.
We walked immediately to Fountains Abbey, three miles, mostly cross-cuts. Part of the way was through a demolished war camp, a ghastly place. But the rest was through the tiny, picturesque village of Studley, and the grand and gorgeous park of Studley Royal, a fine estate containing the Abbey. We found this quite the grandest estate we've seen, such beautiful avenues of limes and beeches, and single trees in lawns, with a stream trained into waterfalls &c, and statues and temples among the groves! We must have walked a mile and a half through this by the time it took. The abbey has very extensive ruins, far more so than Melrose or Glastonbury, and it is quite as lovely. Much of it was Norman, and I do somehow have a weakness for those round arches.
At Ripon the cathedral is small and not extremely lovely, though it has a most interesting little crypt to which we went backward down a steep stair, lighted by a candle, very interesting and catacomb-like.
Also we seemed to be cordially invited to go into the choir where it said "No Entry" because of the construction of a war memorial reredos. Our man was presently supplanted by an elegant gentleman who spent at least an hour with us, showing us all sorts of interesting things in the old library, and also his family jewelry from his pocket. We took him to be some great person, but he turned out at service as the head verger!
In the evening we pursued the "Wakeman" who blows a horn at nine o'clock at the four corners of the town momument and then before the house of the mayor a half mile up the road. This horn-blower wears a longish coat and a three-cornered hat and I have him in a knocker! He's less common than Lincoln Imps or Durham cows: The town hall has over the windows "Except ye Lord keep ye citie, Ye Wakeman maketh in vain", and the same is on a lamp-post by the mayor's house. We liked Ripon quite well - and departed early Tuesday morning for York.
York is magnificent - We saw a lot of the cathedral! In the forenoon we went to service and did the usual choir rounds. Then we made a date with a man to see the big bell - 10 1/2 tons - struck at noon. This gave us a trip up the two west towers with outside glimpses of the cathedral. We found him open to corruption and at night we went up into the tower again when he chimed the bells and had a good many more looks, including one surreptitious entrance to the triforium. This seemed a great exception, but we neither hurt it nor fell off! York is ccertainly magnificent, and I hope I'll remember those windows better than before.
Today we came on to Lincoln and have had this afternoon mostly in the cathedral. We've done the usual trip, and also found a man who could take us all up through the triforium and clerestory and attic. It's great, this series of views one gets from all angles, and these places were uncommon. We saw so much of the way the thing was made, and the verger was splendid in telling us things we needed to know. And I've bought a grand book on architecture, a new one full of pictures, mailed to the library for me. I think it'll be a great pleasure to have it. Also there was a man with real pictures - we've seen so few this summer - and I have two to keep or give away.
But our nice landlady is waiting to go to bed, so I'll stop. Good night - and I love you. I'll send you word next from Montreal.