Friday, April 30, 1920

This morning we were off on an early train for Windermere, with box lunch enroute. Fine scenery. Left Windermere by charabance for a ride of 24 miles through the mountains. We stopped at a little country church and visited the grave of Wordsworth. Ambleside was a quaint little village. Lake Windermere was of especial interest to us - Remembered some of our early sketches. Keswick was a mecca and the grounds were a dream. The entire lake region of Northern England was especially interesting and bits of verse and sketches of song, were continually coming to mind to remind us of Wordsworth, Southey, Shelley, Ruskin, Hemans George Eliot, Dr. Thos. Arnold , Harriet Martineau and others who made the lake region famous.

A monument stands in Keswick to the memory of Southey who lived here in early married life. We did want to see with our own eyes “How does the water come down from Lodore?” when we found we were within 3 miles of the spot. But that childhood poem is still a memory, for time was too short to wander further.

What a group went out from this section to bless the world with higher thoughts and beautiful word-paintings!

The hotel at Keswick is the finest equipped on we have found so far in our travels. We long for more time to examine the rare paintings and statuary in the drawing room and the display of old china and pewter ware. Two large peacocks were mounted and a 10 1/2 lb. trout in frames. - One room full of mounted posters from Germany - a wonderful conservatory and the grounds - I cannot describe them ! terraced gardens, hedges, miniature lakes and blooming flowers and fountains and graveled walks and shady nooks. We took a long stroll through them by moonlight and were sorry that we must leave it all and seek rest in preparation for another hard day’s travel, for the next day we go into Scotland.

Our driver during the day, in tall hat, told us he had been a soldier and received six-pence only when he entered the war. One of the horses had been a war horse. We wish we had days in this section for study.