Nor must the
village church be forgotten, with its square, battlemented tower, dating
back to the epoch of the Normans. We called at a house where one of Mrs.
------'s pupils was residing with her aunt,--a thatched house of two
stories high, built in what was originally a sand-pit, but which, in the
course of a good many years, has been transformed into the most
delightful and homelike little nook almost that can be found in England.
A thatched cottage suggests a very rude dwelling indeed; but this had a
pleasant parlor and drawing-room, and chambers with lattice-windows,
opening close beneath the thatched roof; and the thatch itself gives an
air to the place as if it were a bird's nest, or some such simple and
natural habitation. The occupants are an elderly clergyman, retired from
professional duty, and his sister; and having nothing else to do, and
sufficient means, they employ themselves in beautifying this sweet little
retreat,-- planting new shrubbery, laying out new walks around it, and
helping Nature to add continually another charm; and Nature is certainly
a more genial playfellow in England than in my own country. She is
always ready to lend her aid to any beautifying purpose.
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