from the times when the Jews
and Arabs almost alone cultivated literature as well as commerce, was sown in
England, the last of European kingdoms to become distinguished in letters.
Stamford was the refuge of Oxford students on the occasion of disturbances in
1333. It was taken by the Lancastrian army of the North under Queen Margaret
in 1461, and given up to plunder; and, in 1462, when thirty thousand
Lincolnshire men marched, under the command of Sir Robert Wells, against
Edward IV., under the walls of Stamford they were defeated, and, flying, left
their coats behind. But the latest battles of Stamford have been between
Whig and Tory, and even these have ceased.

The houses and public buildings are all built of a rich cream-coloured stone,
which gives an air of cleanliness and even distinction, which is an immense
advantage. There are two fine hotels. The borough returns two members, both
nominated by the Marquis of Exeter, who owns a large proportion of the vote-
giving houses. The bull-running has been abolished here, as also at Tutbury,
in Staffordshire; but those who are curious to see the ceremony may have
occasional opportunities in the neighbourhood of Smithfield market, where it
is performed under the especial patronage of the aldermen of the city of
London.

WEEDON.

The next station after Blisworth is Weedon, properly, Weedon Bec, so called
because formerly there was established here a religious house, or cell, to
the Abbey of Bec in Normandy. The Church, a very ancient building, contains
portions of Norman, and various styles of English, architecture.

[BRIDGE IN THE BLISWORTH EMBANKMENT: ill9.jpg]

The importance of Weedon rests in its being the site of a strongly fortified
central depot for artillery, small arms, and ammunition, with extensive
barracks, well worth seeing, but not to be seen without an order from the
Board of Ordnance. In passing, a few mild soldiers may be seen fishing for
roach in the canal, and a few active ones playing cricket in summer. The
Weedon system of fortification eschews lofty towers and threatening
battlemented walls, and all that constitutes the picturesque; so that Weedon
Barracks look scarcely more warlike than a royal rope manufactory.

After Weedon we pass through Kilsby Tunnel, 2,423 yards long, which was once
one of the wonders of the world; but has been, by the progress of railway
works, reduced to the level of any other long dark hole.

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