t into a silver sea, of which Pulborough is the northern shore and
Amberley the southern. The Dutch _polder_ are not flatter or greener
than are these intervening meadows. The village stands high and dry
above the water level, extended in long line quite like a seaside town.
Excursionists come too, as to a watering place, but they bring rods and
creels and return at night with fish for the pan.

Between Pulborough and Petworth lie Stopham and Fittleworth, both on the
Rother, which joins the Arun a little to the west of Pulborough. Stopham
has the most beautiful bridge in Sussex, dating from the fourteenth
century, and a little church filled with memorials of the Bartelott
family. One of Stopham's rectors was Thomas Newcombe, a descendant of
the author of _The Faerie Queene_, the friend of the author of _Night
Thoughts_, and the author himself of a formidable poem in twelve books,
after Milton, called _The Last Judgment_.

Fittleworth has of late become an artists' Mecca, partly because of its
pretty woods and quaint architecture, and partly because of the warm
welcome that is offered by the "Swan," which is probably the most
ingeniously placed inn in the world. Approaching it from the north it
seems to be the end of all things; the miles of road that one has
travelled apparently have been leading nowhere but to the "Swan."
Runaway horses or unsettled chauffeurs must project their passengers
literally into the open door. Coming from the south, one finds that the
road narrows by this inn almost to a lane, and the "Swan's" hospitable
sign, barring the way, exerts such a spell that to enter is a far
simpler matter than to pass.

[Illustration: _At Pulborough._]

[Sidenote: AN IRRESISTIBLE INN]

The "Swan" is a venerable and rambling building, stretching itself
lazily with outspread arms; one of those inns (long may they be
preserved from the rebuilders!) in which one stumbles up or down into
every room, and where eggs and bacon have an appropriateness that make
them a more desirable food than ambrosia. The little parlour is
wainscoted with the votive paintings--a village Diploma Gallery--of
artists who have made the "Swan" their home.

Fittleworth has a dual existence. In the south it is riparian and low,
much given to anglers and visitors. In the north it is high and sandy,
with clumps of firs, living its own life and spreading gorse-covered
commons at the feet of the walker. Between its southern border and
Bignor P