Early British Trackways. By Alfred Watkins. 4s. 6d. net. London: Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent, and Co., Ltd.
The theory adduced in this well-illustrated book does not lack attraction, and, if Mr. Watkins succeeds in establishing his case, many pre-conceived ideas respecting the formation and route-course of Early British trackways must be considerably modified. Mr. Watkins contends that the majority of British trackways were originally planned on a “ley” or sight-line, the course of which was determined by natural or artificial viewpoints usually consisting of mounds, moats, and, in the case of hills, “notches” made in the summits. In flat districts, boundary stones, which afterwards developed into crosses, were, according to Mr. Watkins, used for defining the course of the “ley,” though the derivation of “layman” and similar words from this source seems somewhat far-fetched. Novel as regards conception and worked out with considerable knowledge and skill, Mr. Watkins’s suggested explanations of the route origin of our pre-historic trackways should be examined with the care and attention they deserve.
Source info: Cuttings agency.