Review of EBT

Early British Trackways, by Alfred Watkins (The Watkins Meter Co., Hereford, 4s. 6d. net). This book is really a printed form of a lecture delivered last autumn to the Woolhope Naturalists’ Field Club at Hereford by Mr. Alfred Watkins; but it must be pointed out that it contains much added matter regarding early British trackways, moats, mounds, camps, and sites, as well as numerous illustrations by the author, who is a Fellow, and Progress Medallist (1910), of the Royal Photographic Society. To the antiquary it is sure t oappeal, and a study of its pages may certainly well instil a greater interest in their country excursions among those whose research has been of the slightest but who nevertheless possess some antiquarian tastes. In the days when we ourselves had to master “Infantry Training” we learned that before a squad is put into action the “recruit will be taught to take a point straight to his front, by fixing his eyes upon some distant object and then observing some nearer point in the same straight line, such as a stone, tuft of grass, or other object.” This was to ensure that he would march i nan absolutely direct line. Mr. Watkins points out in the Introduction that he does not desire to explain the Roman roads, which many people have a vague and incorrect idea were the first highways in the land. But he justly states that a primitive people, living amid few or no enclosures, would want such things as salt, flint flakes, and later on metals, which were only to be had from a distance. “The shortest way to such a distant point was a straight line, the human way of attaining a straight line is by sighting, and accordingly all early trackways were straight, and laid out in much the same way that a marksman gets the back and fore sights of his rifle in line with the target.” Thus it may be assumed that the primitive people proceeded to the distant point by a straight line, and the sighting line was called the ley or lay. Is it not, indeed, still a common phrase to go out to see “the lay (or lie) of the land.” The author says that previous writers, treating of Roman or mediæval roads, not knowing of the existence of the ley, believed they were speaking of original primary structures, when actually they were only describing a route evolved from a number of leys, retaining the sighted structure in the case of Roman roads, but losing most of it by the middle ages. Meanwhile “ley hunting” may easily prove particularly attractive, especially when carried out on the lines suggested in this little volume. Of course, it is not a “sport” or a recreation that will be widely popular, but, as has been said, to those with any historic and antiquarian bent, it may be very fascinating. In addition to the excellent illustrations already mentioned, attention must be directed to the frequent and interesting notes upon place names. Mr. Watkins’ methods, properly applied, we feel, might well supply the key to many of the problems connected with our land in pre-historic and later eras.