AS Mr. Alfred Watkins remarks in “Early British Trackways, Moats, Mounds, Camps, and Sites” (The Watkins Meter Co., Hereford; 4s. 6d. net), the Romans get all the credit for any bit of good straight road. His book, however, the substance of an earlier lecture, goes far to prove, if it does not do so conclusively, that the early Briton deserves the praise, and further the ingenuity by which the districts which provided the few necessities of primitive man were linked together is really wonderful. Now the shortest way is the straight way, and the human way then as now; this is attained by “sighting,” and so all the early trackways which are found are straight. Primary sighting lines, or leys, were from mountain peak to peak, when such existed, and secondary sighting points were made in a straight line with the former. In the earliest times they were made of earth, or stone, or pools of water were used, and from each the last and the next sighting point were both visible, and all of this may be dated back at least to 2000 b.c. In later times, crosses and churches were built on the point where two leys met, while the actual roadway was made to run round them. The Londoner may even judge of this by St. Paul’s, St. Clement’s Dane, and St. Mary-le-Strand. In the country, Mr. Watkins suggests that those who wish to test his discoveries for themselves should get a Government Ordnance map (1m. to the inch) and to work out the sightings. Then, if explorations on the absolute straight lines are made, some trace of the trackways is practically certain to be found. The influence of the leys on the old place-names which linger is very interesting—in fact, the whole of the book, though written in the briefest of styles, atoned for by the excellent illustrations from photographs, “gives to think”—and we shall proceed to lay one corner of Kent under contribution to the ideas it provokes.
Source info: Cuttings agency.
The journal published further comments in the issue of 1 April.