|
Diana Lachlan Forbes
Title of article |
Date of publication In Newsletter |
| God’s Acre | June 2004 |
| The Little Well | July 2004 |
| The Adder Valley | August 2004 |
| Pugpits Wood | September 2004 |
| Reminiscences of life from 1930 – 1945 | October 2004 |
| Bramley Apples | October 2004 |
| The Village Winterbourne | March 2005 |
| Diana Forbes’ Nature Notes | May 2005 |
| Kents Hill Fields | June 2005 |
| My Pond | July 2005 |
| Some Wartime Memories | August 2005 |
| Patch – My Life’s Story | September 2005 |
| Bridleways and Footpaths to Chicksgrove | October 2005 |
| Churchyard Conservation | November 2005 |
| My Cruise to the Baltic | July 2006 |
| Memories of John Flower | September 2006 |
| My Early Childhood | October 2006 |
| Early Days at Chilmark | November 2006 |
| Chilmark House | December 2006 |
| Snoopy | January 2007 |
| Early Days at Chilmark, continued | February 2007 |
| Titus | April 2007 |
| Frolica | May 2007 |
| Ponies and Horses I Have Known | July 2007 |
| Girl Guides, Brownies and Cub Scouts | October 2007 |
| Girl Guides, Brownies and Cub Scouts, continued | November 2007 |
| Chilmark Riding School | December 2007 |
| Footpath to Chicksgrove | March 2008 |
| Good home wanted | March 2008 |
| Hindon Lane | From Nadderfocus website |
| Prayer said before pony riding | From Service of Thanksgiving: "Programme for Diana", 7th August 2008 |
Addresses by Members of Diana’s Family, given at her Thanksgiving Service at St. Margaret’s Church, Chilmark,
About twelve years ago, a movement was started to conserve wildlife in churchyards. All over the country wild flowers were disappearing because of extensive ploughing-up of grassland and sowing of coarse grasses in leys for perhaps one year only. Very few of the old hay meadows with their variety of wild flowers remained.
It was realised that in churchyards the finer grasses remained even if mown and that if left unmown the wild flowers would appear again. So, many villages started leaving parts of their churchyards unmown until July or August, when the flowers would have gone over and seeded. A competition was held in Wiltshire and other counties for the best-kept churchyard for wildlife. Many villages and towns entered.
Now a certificate is issued each year for churchyards that have continued to preserve wildlife. Our churchyard in Chilmark has received a certificate for ten years’ preservation.
At the moment (12th May), there is a large patch of Meadow Saxifrage among the gravestones to the southwest of the porch, and very pretty it is. They come up every year when our thoughtful mower leaves the patch unmown until they have seeded. Earlier we had Snowdrops and later Primroses. In June we can expect St Margaret’s Daisies (also called Moon or Oxeye daises), White and Yellow Bedstraw and Bugle and other flowers.
It is good to see the pretty flowers people put on their family graves. They are thankful for a new water butt at the top of the new churchyard.
We can all be thankful for the lovely wild flowers – a free gift from our maker.
June 2004
The little well or Eye Well, as it is sometimes called, lies at the bottom of the little hill which runs down from Portash to the stone bridge where our village stream leaves the roadside and flows away across the fields to join the River Nadder.
The well is about two foot square, stone lined and filled from springs in the hill above. It has a small ditch flowing into the main stream.
It is said to be a Roman well and probably sacred, as there is a Roman burial place in the field beyond. Also, Roman soldiers are buried below Portash house. They found nails from their boots, proving they were soldiers, when they were converting two cottages into the house about 1930.
I used to visit Mr Dennis, an old farm worker, with saving stamps. He told me that in the 1920s they watered all the cattle in Chilmark from this well. This was in a drought before the coming of mains water. There were at least three dairy herds in Chilmark then.
The well gets overgrown with nettles, etc but from time to time we open it up again. In the old days, people used to bathe their eyes in it, believing it would heal them.
July 2004
One day at the top of the old churchyard, we were clearing Traveller’s Joy (also called Old Man’s Beard or Clematis) from around some graves. My helper was surprised to find an adder curled up under an old dead stump, a piece of which had broken off. The adder remained quite still while I came across to look at it. It was probably asleep or trusting in its camouflage of a zigzag black stripe down its back. It must have had a shock to find its home broken into.
Adders are now quite rare and are a protected species. They are most dangerous in early spring when they come out of hibernation very sleepy, and warm themselves up in a sunny spot. They may not hear you coming and if you tread on them they will bite. You must go straight to a doctor or hospital. They will give you an antidote. Adders don’t kill, but you will get a nasty swelling. If they hear you coming they will always get out of the way.
We used to take a stick and shake it in front of us in the long grass or bracken to warn them. We used to find them on the Teffont bridle path. They like the dry warm hillside. It is best to wear gumboots if you are going near their habitat. They are less than a metre long. They breed by laying eggs.
The enemy of the adder is the buzzard. They kill them and eat them. Sadly the buzzards that used to soar above my fields seem to have gone ever since one was shot in the field beyond. A roe deer was also found wounded about the same time.
August 2004
Pits Wood, or Pugpits as it used to be called, lies on the north slope of the hill between Chilmark and Tisbury, next to the road. Pug is an old word for fox. It is ancient woodland of oak, ash and thorn. The Romans dug small opencast quarries there to get stone for their buildings. These deep pits are now overgrown.
Before the war, the hazel growing in the wood was coppiced. This let in the light, and primroses, violets and various orchids and other wild flowers grew there. They would no doubt come again if light were let in. There are still patches of Colchicum autumnale (Meadow Saffron) or Autumn Crocus growing there. The slender stalked mauve flowers appear about October and the leaves in the spring.
When we were children, our mother took us to Pugpits to pick primroses for Good Friday. On Easter Saturday we used to decorate the church font. Our fingers sometimes got very cold picking primroses, but they looked lovely on Easter Day.
Mary Harding used to decorate the choir stalls with primroses in small vases tied to the posts along the chancel – these were very pretty. To the south of the wood lies Ladydown which used to be a common where we went for picnics. The rabbits kept down the grass and bushes until Myxamatosis came and wiped them out.
In the war the common was ploughed up to grow more food for the populace. Rare wild flowers such as Bee Orchid and Yellow-wort used to grow there. At the moment this piece of land has been set aside. Some of the wild flowers are appearing again. The beautiful Musk Mallow with large pink flowers has come all along inside the fence by the bridleway. I have found Melilot, Centaury and Restharrow there. Scarlet Pimpernel has been found under the crop of beans in quantity.
The bridleway and footpath runs along the wood down to the old Chilmark Common. This is now fenced in and used for sheep and pheasant breeding.
When I was young, we used to go to Chilmark Common to pick Cowslips in the spring and Blackberries in the autumn. We can still walk or ride around it, as the bridleway is preserved.
At the lower end of the bridleway, before you get to the Common, grows a rare plant. This is a kind of vetch with white flowers called Wild Liquorice. I do not know how the sweets were made from it. Wild Marjoram also grows here – you can use this for flavouring soups and pies. In the wood are a few patches of Wild Garlic – you can use the leaves for flavouring your cooking.
September 2004
My parents bought Chilmark House in 1930 on my father’s retirement from the Royal Navy. As children, my brothers and I found the downlands and woods wild and exciting, after the rich cultivated Blackmore Vale, where we had been living.
Miss Heather and Miss Dorothy Duff lived next door to us in Chilmark Manor. They became great friends, and I was devoted to Miss Dorothy who was kind and gentle, and died young. Her grave is to the West of the Church, and her headstone is of granite from Scotland, where they came from originally. They kept pigeons, which they called “The Nuns” after the Nuns who lived in the Manor, when it was an offshoot of the Wilton Convent. They had a “cricket” in the wall above their fireplace, and we used to hear it singing in the evening when we went to tea with them.
They showed us “Happy Valley”, which is now Warminster Bottom. There we found wild orchids, birds and butterflies and wild flowers of all kinds. We galloped our ponies from the end of the lane right up to the A303 main road; there were no gates or fences.
The rabbit shooting on the Bake, a piece of Downland below the A303, was a great pastime, and during the war we often lived on rabbit pie. The farmers were grateful to my father for shooting so many.
Mr Flower often invited my father to shoot pheasant and partridge and hare. He also fished the Nadder for trout and grayling. I often accompanied my father on these expeditions – the Purple-loosestrife, Hemp-agrimony and other wild flowers were so colourful. We saw many kinds of birds along the river: kingfishers, dippers, herons and redshank were among them.
My brothers and I found many ammonites in the old quarries; we also found small caves and lime kilns, which we cleaned out and made into make-believe homes.
Mr Gething was still working the New Quarry, and the Salisbury Post Office was the last large building to be built from Chilmark Stone. The Royal Air Force took over all the quarries before the war, and we missed our old haunts.
There are funny stories about Chilmark House, which was built by Mr King. He was fond of coursing hares on the downs. He kept two greyhounds in the old granary and rode up the hill on his mare to exercise them. He began to notice that sometimes both mare and hounds seemed very tired when he took them out; he then discovered that his groom also liked coursing and had been taking the animals out on moonlit nights on his own.
Before we came to Chilmark, Mr Lewis and his two sisters lived in Chilmark House. One sister was very fierce and kept the village children out of the garden. Mr Lewis had a personal servant called Lidford who looked after him as well as the garden, and the carriage in which Mr Lewis used to drive to Salisbury to shop. Lidford was a good groom and very fond of horses and all animals. After Mr Lewis’ death Lidford stayed on as our gardener until he retired after the last war. He was very kind to us children and very good at looking after our ponies.
When the war broke out, one of my brothers joined the Navy. My other brother became a geologist and went to Cambridge, but before he completed his studies he joined the Army and was sent to India. My father, who had fought in the First World War, was too old to fight in the second one, and he became an ARP Warden for the village. He used to go into Wilton to be briefed about any bombs that had been dropped in the district.
My mother did fire watching from the roof of Chilmark House several nights a week. She watched incendiary bombs being dropped near Ridge Farm in January when they were lambing; mercifully, no harm came to the livestock, but the display of fire was spectacular. Several bombs were dropped on the woods and downs, making big craters. Two dud bombs were dropped on the railway, and did not explode. A search light battery was stationed at the end of Manor Farm Road, and Americans were stationed in Groveley Wood to guard ammunitions stored there.
Chilmark prepared to take evacuees, but in the end it was decided that the village was too close to the RAF depot for the safety of children to come.
My mother sold saving stamps all over the village and also raised a good deal of money for National Savings by organising fetes, etc. I was away at a teachers training college in the Lake District, and later taught at Reading and Nottingham.
During the war, the Girl Guides, which I had started in the village, collected waste paper; they stored this in our granary. They learnt first aid and prepared to deal with emergencies. They also collected jam jars and were generally very useful. My aunt, who lived in Teffont, took on the Company while I was away teaching, and I helped during the holidays.
I remember great rejoicings on V.E. Day. The village celebrated it with a huge bonfire up on the hill by the Wylye Road after dark. How thankful we all were that there was to be peace at last.
October 2004 (taken from a Commemorative Booklet ‘St Margaret’s Church Chilmark 1280 – 1980).
October 2004
The village winterbourne rises from springs in Kent’s Hill fields that border our lane on the south side. The springs form pools by the hedge when they rise. The water flows through a pipe into the ditch, then goes under the road into the stream. These pools never freeze and are a haven for thrushes, blackbirds, redwings and fieldfares in the winter frost and snow. Also, the ponies love to paddle and drink from them.
Bushes of Snowberry grow along the side of the lane, while beyond the garden on the north side of the lane, Yew, Beech, Horse Chestnut and Sycamore trees grow.
There is a streambed behind the bank on this side of the road that fills with water when the springs are high. No doubt the tall trees soak up much of the water, helping to prevent flooding.
Further up the lane, different bushes grow. Blackthorn has long sharp spikes, making a strong hedge to keep the cattle in. It provides sloes to flavour your gin, or excellent jelly. Sloes are very bitter but when frosted you can eat them raw.
Hazel gives us nuts in autumn and pea sticks if allowed to grow tall. This part of the hedge has been laid. This allows it to grow thick and strong from the base. It need not be laid again for seven years. The sides just need trimming back in the winter.
Hawthorn gives us beautiful white May blossom in the spring and red haws for the birds in autumn. Sycamore provides seeds used as aeroplanes by children. Ash provides strong sticks and good firewood. Spindle has beautiful red berries that split to show bright orange seeds: these are poisonous.
Maple has winged seeds that spin when thrown in the air. Kipling called this the warmest tree in the wood. It has rough brown bark and bright red and orange leaves in autumn. Privet is evergreen with black berries. Elder berries can be used to make wine or to flavour apple jelly. Whistles can be made from its hollow stems.
There are a few Elm suckers that grow into small trees. These soon die when attacked by the elm bark beetle.
March 2005
• 1st May. Showery day with fine intervals. Walking by Pits Wood we found in flower Wood Spurge, Wood Sedge, Wood Anemone, Sweet Woodruff, Ground Ivy, Primroses and a Cowslip. Leaves of Autumn Crocus (Colchicum) were showing. A Thrush was singing. Several Morelles (an edible fungus) had appeared.
• 2nd May. A fine sunny day. A Blackbird was singing in the garden. Bright blue Germander Speedwell flowers came out all over my rock garden. It is a pervasive weed and will have to be weeded out later on. The Dwarf Phlox was flowering.
• 3rd May. Showers fell in the afternoon and evening. Bluebells were out along the Holt Lane. Marsh Marigolds were flowering by the stream along Mooray. Greater Stitchwort appeared among the Bluebells. Cowslips were plentiful in my big field.
• 4th May. Heavy showers. Two hares were chasing each other by Dinton Old Road. Also a Grey Squirrel.
• 5th May. A showery day. Cherry and Apple blossoms were good in my cousin’s Redlynch garden.
• 6th May. Fine and cool. A Blackbird was feeding its young in a quiet Tisbury street.
• 7th May. Dry and sunny. May blossom was flowering along the road to Mere.
• 8th May. Cloudy day. Two orange tip butterflies by Pits Wood.
• 9th May. Dry, some sunshine. Herb Robert, Garlick Mustard Cuckoo flowers along the lanes. Also Lords and Ladies. Red Lilac in my garden and Purple Iris out.
• 10th May. Blossom out in Chilmark. Whitebeam leaves showing their white undersides. A young Blackbird was being fed on my lawn.
• 11th May. Warmer. Sowed my runner beans.
• 12th May. Cloudy, showers pm.
• 13th May. Misty, warm and dry. Blackcap singing in Kingsettle Wood.
• 14th May. Cloudy am, sunny pm.
• 15th May. Meadow Saxifrage flowering in Churchyard. Adder coiled up under old dead stump. Liquorice (Astragalus glycyphyllos) plants showing by Pits Wood bridle path. Also many Colchicum leaves.
• 16th May. Early Purple Orchids out in Fonthill House wild garden.
• 17th May. Warm sunny day. Bush Vetch in Kent’s Lane, Chilmark.
• 18th May. Red Lilac still bright. Pink Magnolia in bud.
• 19th May. Runner bean seedling showing. Rowan in flower.
• 20th May. Shower in evening, cooler. Banked potatoes.
• 22nd May. Bluebells in Underhill Copse and Badger slides on bank (there are badgers down below).
• 23rd May. Sunny day. Cool am and evening.
• 28th May. Showers in evening.
• 30th May. Rainstorm mid-day. Turtle Dove seen Wallmead Farm, Tisbury.
May 2005
When my family moved to Chilmark in 1930, Mr Sam Pain managed Kents Hill Fields. He also ran the village post office and shop. His niece, Freda Strong, helped him and later on took it over. Sam Pain took services in the iron-built chapel that stood opposite where the playing field now is. When he walked past on a Sunday evening we would hear loud men’s voices singing hymns. In later years the chapel was pulled down and a dwelling house built there instead.
Kents Hill Fields originally belonged to Lord Pembroke. Sam Pain bought them in 1936. His relation Sidney Strong kept cattle in them and had pig sties where Hops Close houses are now. The top field was divided into allotments where some villagers grew vegetables. There are wonderful views from this field. You can look over Fovant Down to the SW past the famous quarries where many Chilmark men used to work. To the NE you can look over to Great Ridge and Stockton Woods. To the S you can see Seven Sisters Wood. You can see much of the village in between. Although this field was ploughed up and resown in 1961 with Rye, two wild orchids appeared in the SW corner in 2004. The chalk is very near the surface, which makes it hard work to put fence posts in, but they last for a long time without rotting.
The tree break runs E and W between the top field and the two lower fields. It gives good shelter from N or SW winds. It consists mostly of Horse Chestnut and Sycamore and was evidently used for firewood in the past but the old stumps have grown up again. Children love to come there and gather conkers in the autumn. They are allowed to play there if they do no damage and do not leave litter.
The far, lower field of approximately two and a half acres slopes down to the Hindon Lane. It has a good sheltering hedge of Hazel and Hawthorn to the west and several Ash trees at the bottom of the hill. The big field adjoining the village is about three acres. The hill slopes steeply to the N of both lower fields. Cowslips grow on the slopes in spring. Knapweed, Birdsfoot Trefoil (which is food for the Common Blue Butterfly caterpillars), Scabious and other downland flowers appear in the summer. Violets grow under the hedges.
In the spring , the lower fields are bright gold with Buttercups. The ponies won’t eat them, as they taste acid. However, when dead and made into hay, they are palatable. The fine grasses and herbs make excellent hay, which ponies enjoy, and is good for their health. Occasional Spotted and Sweet Scented Orchids appear.
When the rainfall is good in the winter, springs arise at the foot of the slopes. The ground gets boggy and small pools appear which never freeze and are enjoyed by winter visiting Fieldfares and Redwings as well as our native Blackbirds and Thrushes, especially when there is a hard frost over the land. The ponies enjoy paddling and drinking in them too. The water runs out through a drain and under the road.
In 1944 Sidney Strong inherited these fields from Sam Pain and continued to graze cattle, though in time he gave up keeping pigs. When the original Hops Close houses were built, the District Council bought the part where pigs had been kept, to make septic tanks and drains for the new houses. In 1958 Sidney Strong sold the fields to David Pearce who kept pigs in them. He fastened wire netting under the bottom strand of barbed wire and buried it to keep the pigs in. I bought the fields from Mr Pearce in 1960 with some money given me by my aunt to save death duties later on.
I owned a retired hunter called Battle, because he came from Battle near Hastings originally. He used to graze in our orchard and in the Rectory Paddock next to the Hindon Lane. Sometimes he was tethered in different pieces of grass round the village. We bought hay for him in the winter and stored it in the Old Granary at Chilmark House. He was very pleased to have a free run of Kents Hill fields. To begin with, Mr. Peter Simmonds grazed about ten heifers in the fields with Battle and looked after the fields and hedges.
I then bought a little pony, Surprise, from a family who were leaving the village. He kept Battle company. I started to give riding lessons to children around, when I bought two more ponies (Bluey and Forester) in 1970: Mr. Simmonds took his heifers away.
We then looked after the fields ourselves. Mr. Bill Jeans and Mr. Harry Jay, who were both skilled haymakers and hedgers, were a great help. We took hay off the fields in time each year. Ponies are notoriously bad grazers and laying up a field for 3 or 4 months, and then taking hay off it, kept the grass in good order and fed the ponies in winter.
My pupils and I used to rake the droppings around and cut down docks and nettles, and Harry and Bill used the old Allen scythe to cut the worst patches. In 1978 after my mother died, I moved to Cheriton, Kents Hill and had stables and a hay barn and garage built at the back of the bungalow. A tenant lived in a caravan there, moved away and I had water troughs put in for the ponies. We kept the old trough at the bottom of the hill in the big field as well.
When I bought the fields in 1960, I was able, at the request of Lady Margadale (the Hon Mrs. John Morrison) to sell a part for Barn Hill bungalows to be built for OAPs who retired and did not wish to leave the village. They proved to be very good neighbours.
For a few years, Mr. Stuart Haywood used to cut and bale my hay and store it in my barn, helped by Harry and Bill. Then I had Abbott’s men who were also very good. I used to reward them all with mugs of cider in the traditional way, when all the hot and dusty work was done.
Mr. Jim Thick and Maria used to make hay for the ponies in the Rectory Paddock and Mr. Deacon’s field and bring it on top of my car or in their trailer. Before that, when I was still at Chilmark House, Harry Jay and Bill Jeans used to cut and make hay for me in the churchyard. It was beautiful loose hay. They both loved horses.
When Mr. Michael Abbott sold his small machines and the new ones would not go through my gateways, Sidfords from Wardour, who still had two small machines, took over and made very good hay too, under the direction of Mr. Boughtwood. Two pupils whom I know at Chilmark School helped, Peter Acreman and Arran, which was nice.
Now I have one old pony, Snoopy, left who keeps well and has companions Thomas (an ex race horse) and two little ponies belonging to the Knight family from the Old P.O. who look after them all. Last year, the Knights needed to buy special hay for their horse and ponies, so Mr. Read our Thatcher collected the hay bales from the top field.
June 2005
I moved to Cheriton, Kents Hill in 1978, and decided I wanted a garden pond. So a few years later some friends in Tisbury Natural History Society helped me make one. They dug a hole about 3 ft deep and 4ft wide, which was hard work, as the chalk is fairly near the surface. They lined it with cement, so that the roughness should not tear the liner, leaving two shelves for water plants. I bought the liner at Crockerton General Store near Warminster, and we put it in, leaving an overflow channel to make a marsh for ragged robin etc to grow.
We collected some mud from Fonthill lake, to introduce creatures such as water snails, dragon fly larvae etc. We also put in some frog spawn. Very soon we had tadpoles swimming around. After a while, tiny froglets came out into the garden. We piled up the stones, chalk etc that had been dug up, to make a rock garden beside the pond. The froglets climbed up it and as they grew bigger helped me by eating slugs and snails etc.
We planted yellow flag irises round the edge of the pond, and they have given us a nice display ever since. We also put various water weeds in and they and the snails have kept the pond clear until recently.
Unfortunately now the pond has sprung leaks and never fills right up. It quickly becomes covered with green scum or algae which we have to rake out quite often. However, last year the boys found newts, dragon fly larvae and a grass snake in it. Unfortunately these eat the frogs and tadpoles. This year we only had a small amount of spawn and I have seen no tadpoles or baby frogs.
I am planning to have my pond relined and start again when the yellow flags have gone over. These spread very fast and we have to get a few out every year.
The dragon fly larvae after about 3 years climb up reeds or grass stems. They burst out of their skins, leaving the shell behind. The wings and legs gradually unfold. This may take all day. Then when the sun warms them up they fly away. Once a teacher brought children from the school to watch this happen.
July 2005.
In the summer of 1939 we took some guides to camp at Golden Cap near Lyme Regis, with some Hindon girls under Miss Jane Allen. We had a happy time climbing a ladder down the steep cliff to the beach to go swimming, etc. On a scavenge hunt two of the girls brought back a cart horse and a sheep dog from the neighbouring farm where we got our milk! It was such a lovely place my brothers and I planned to go and camp there in September, but war was declared.
My brother, who was 18, had passed into the Navy and was off to join up. My next brother, rising 17, was to study geology at Cambridge, but meanwhile joined the Home Guard under retired Colonel Marshall Smith. They had rifle practice, and on some nights kept watch above Cleeves Farm where they could see over most of the village.
My father sold our car and my horse, and tried to return to the Navy (he had been wounded in the battle of Jutland in the first war), but they said he was now too old. He became an Air Raid Warden, and kept watch over the blackout in the village, and used to go to Wilton on certain nights with a friend, where they were informed of any bombs being dropped, and made maps.
We used to hear the enemy bombers going over at night on their way to Bristol. Sometimes the anti-aircraft firing would prevent them dropping any bombs. Then they would fly back and get rid of their bombs in fields or woods, so as not to take them back to Germany. If we heard of one being dropped near, we would go on our bikes and find small bits of magnesium in the crater, and bring a bit home and set it alight. It burned with a very bright light.
I thought of joining the ATS as a cook, as I had enjoyed camping with the guides, but they said I was not strong enough to lift the heavy saucepans, so I went to Ambleside Teachers Training College, which I had originally planned. This meant going through London, and crossing from Waterloo to King’s Cross. Sometimes I would stay with my aunt in Putney, who had an Anderson shelter in her garden, but she preferred to sleep downstairs in her house. She used to stand on the wall at the foot of her garden and rake in driftwood out of the Thames. She had a huge pile, and used to have a blazing fire to keep her house warm. She also kept two hens and grew tomatoes.
Once, the house opposite hers was bombed. The blast took beams and debris through the wall above her bed and buried her in dust. When they came to rescue her in the morning she was unhurt but worried about losing her slippers! She stayed through most of the war, but when the doodlebug bombs started, she went to her sister in the country, because you could not tell where they might land.
When I was at college we used to go and help in a babies’ home which had been evacuated to a big house not far away. We also had to do the washing up and some cleaning, as they were short-staffed due to the call-up at college.
My first job was at Reading, and when bombs were dropped on the centre of the town we had to take the children down to the cellar and entertain them there.
After a year I went to Nottingham, and was soon moved out to East Leake, where we had children evacuated to the country; so we had to look after them as well as teach them. It was a good experience.
My mother used to fire-watch on the roof of our house (Chilmark House). One night she saw what looked like a little town lit up with bright lights near Ridge Farm. They were lambing there, and must have had a lantern. Luckily no damage was done by these incendiaries, and only one ewe lost her lamb.
Once, a bomb was dropped on the railway line at Dinton Station. It chipped a bit from the bridge. Luckily it was a dud and did not explode. Indeed an express train went safely over it. They said sometimes the slave workers would make dud bombs on purpose.
When home in the holidays we would join in training for invasion tactics. We learnt to use a stirrup pump to put out incendiaries. We made our cellar into a gas-proof shelter, with sheets made into curtains over the doorways. We learnt to make flower pot stoves, with a candle to boil a kettle to make a hot drink. We also passed our Red Cross and St John’s first aid and nursing exams.
The Chilmark guides collected waste paper to help the war effort and started it in the old Elizabethan granary in our garden. They also acted as patients for first aid practice, and learnt first aid themselves. We had games tracking enemy parachutists.
A searchlight Battery was stationed at the end of the Manor Farm lane. We used to see the lights searching for enemy aircraft. American soldiers, many of them black, were camped in Nissen huts in Grovely Wood. The village ran a canteen for them in the Reading Room. The ox-drove towards Grovely was concreted and made hard, and at the side of it piles of bombs were stored.
The quarry road was closed, as the RAF was storing bombs and ammunition in the caves. Chilmark was not allowed evacuees as we were considered an enemy target. Some Irish Guards were camped in Fonthill Park, and my mother had one of the families living in our house.
At the beginning of the war, we all had to make Blackout curtains, as no light could be allowed to show through our windows. All the signposts were removed from the roads so invaders would not know the way.
On VE Day I was working in the boarding school at East Leake near Nottingham. The children celebrated by having pillow fights in their bedrooms! At Chilmark on VJ Day we had a huge bonfire and feast in the field near the double bend on Cow Drove (the Wylye road).
August 2005
My mother, who belonged to a beagle pack somewhere in Dorset, got lost one day and met my father, a handsome Springer spaniel. In a few weeks my mother had a litter of puppies, the most handsome of which was me. When we were old enough, we all went off to new homes.
I went to a young newly wed couple who treated me well, but after a year they quarrelled and split up, and I was sent to a dogs’ home which was very dull, as I had to stay in a kennel most of the time.
However, one day a kind lady with 2 baby girls adopted me and took me to her home in Chilmark, but she found I was very lively and needed a lot of exercise. Also I sometimes chewed up the children’s toys and even stole food off the table.
She then took me to see an old lady, whose dog had recently died. This lady had me to stay for a week and we got on well together. She took me for one or two good walks every day so she decided to adopt me permanently, which was very happy for both of us.
Sometimes she took me out with her riding school of children on ponies. As some of them took turns riding and walking, there was always someone to lead me.
Once they let me go in a field. I saw a hare and rushed after it as fast as I could go but I didn’t catch it. They called and called, and in the end I came back to them and they put me on the lead.
Sometimes my mistress took me in her car and we went for nice walks through the woods. As I got older I would keep her in sight and follow her. If I went astray I would always come back to her, as I could follow her scent. I never strayed too far.
I used sometimes to wander down past the neighbouring houses. Sometimes people would give me a bone or a biscuit, and tell me to go home, which I usually did. Sometimes they would put out bones or eggs in their bin bags, and this was very tempting for me; I would bite open the bag and scatter the contents and eat up the bits I liked. My mistress would come and find me and smack me, and try and tidy up the mess I had made. I couldn’t resist the bin bags and would do it again. She had to keep me shut in the house on rubbish collection days.
When she went away on holiday she would send me to stay with one of her friends. She had several dogs, and I made great friends with her beagle. However, she got a cat, and I liked chasing cats and used to bark at it; so I couldn’t go there any more.
Another friend had 3 boys who used to play with me, and I settled down very well there, and made friends with their sheepdog.
When I was 13 years old I became blind and deaf, but I kept my sense of smell. I only wanted to go for short walks, and the hard roads hurt my feet.
In the end I hurt myself jumping out of the car, and the next day became paralysed and couldn’t move. They took me to a kind vet, who gave me a little prick and I knew no more.
September 2005
From Chilmark, if you go down the road past the quarries, you will come to a gap in the RAF fencing, leading to the bridleway which goes north-east over the hill to Teffont Evias; or you can take a turn at the top of the hill and go back to Chilmark. A little further on you will find a path on the opposite side marked Footpath. Take the left fork. The other leads through the wood to some fields, and used to go past the guard dog kennels which are no longer there.
Follow the signed path to the top of the hill. Ignore the junction leading back to the quarry road. You will find on your right an ancient pond, which in the present drought has dried up. It used to be very deep and many years ago, returning home after a long ride, I stopped to give my horse a drink. He stepped in and swam to the other side, leaving me holding on to an oak branch which overhung the pond! I rode home with soaking feet and legs. It was, I think, November and cold! Beyond the pond is the remains of an old stone wall, which probably was part of the surround of a yard with buildings – an outlier of a local farm used before the advent of motor vehicles.
The path continues past some hazel bushes and then gets steep and narrow down the other side of the hill. It is very sheltered with high banks on each side. In the spring the first early primroses come out here. You will also find Hart’s-tongue ferns and Broad ferns and perhaps violets. Finally, the path ends when it comes into a steep narrow road running between Teffont and Tisbury. Turn right and you will find yourself in Lower Chicksgrove, where there used to be a school and chapel, now turned into dwelling houses.
A little way along you will come to the Manor. There is a mounting block outside, if you wish to rest your horse and maybe get a drink. A bridleway goes up the hill past the Manor, over a field, through a wood, and across a big field to Lady Down and the Tisbury-Chilmark Road.
If you cross the field to another wood, you will find another track, also a bridleway leading down the hill to Upper Chicksgrove. Cross the Tisbury Road at the bottom and you will find a driveway leading past more homes and a farmyard to the River Nadder. There is a fine stone bridge over the river and a level crossing on the other side. From here you can get onto a bridleway through a wooded hillside to Swallowcliffe. Alternatively, you can take a track back to the Compass Inn.
In the old days Chicksgrove was part of Chilmark. People used to take their corn there to be ground at the mill. There used to be a third pathway leading to Lower Chicksgrove, past Chilmark Old Quarries. This is now closed, probably since the RAF took over the quarries at the beginning of the War. Some of the local inhabitants would like it re-opened. I remember walking down it with my father. Gypsies used to camp along it in the sheltered part, where there were high banks on each side.
October 2005
When clearing the conservation area at the back of the churchyard in October, I was interested to find some nice plants. Growing beneath the nettles and brambles is a big patch of periwinkle. It should be very pretty when the mauve flowers appear in the spring. Seedheads of tall growing yellow toadflax and purple knapweed were also prominent. One teasel I cut down; the birds had probably enjoyed its seeds earlier. Red berries of woody nightshade were pretty, but poisonous, so best left alone. At the north-east corner is a plant of iris follidissima, and when the seed pods burst they will show bright orange seeds, giving autumn and winter colour.
Wild clematis or old man’s beard has to be cut back to reveal the old gravestones with interesting local names such as Mould and Moore, and one of a girl, whose husband was from Christchurch, New Zealand, and who was living at The Old Rectory.
South of the church every year in late May and June we enjoy a great show of meadow saxifrage. Its bulbs always remain below the turf, and our mower kindly leaves the flowers and leaves uncut until they have gone over. Two plants of lady’s mantle are allowed to grow by gravestones near the porch. Snowdrops and daffodils are always a joy in the spring.
In the new churchyard on some of the older graves there are big patches of ox eye or moon daisies. They flower in late summer, and are also called St Margaret’s daisies or marguerites. We are glad to have them, as our church is dedicated to St Margaret.
There is also white and yellow bedstraw knapweed, bird’s foot trefoil, and white and pink clover, which are loved by butterflies. The holly blues like ivy and holly for their caterpillars.
Recently we have seen large privet hawkmoths asleep on the back of tombstones. These make a wonderful camouflage for their grey underwings, folded when they rest in the daytime.
November 2005
For the elderly one of the best ways of seeing the world is to travel on a cruise ship. In the winter I was tempted by Travelscope’s advertisement for a Baltic cruise. We sailed from Hull and returned to Dundee. Coaches were provided to help us join and return from the ship. I travelled by train most of the way. I booked seats and had help at changing stations. British Rail made the journey easy.
We joined the ship at 3 o’clock and sailed that evening. Funchal had six decks – Navigators, Promenade, Azores, Madeira, Algarve and Estoril. I slept on Algarve, and my cousin on Madeira at opposite ends of the ship. We met on Azores in the Restaurant for meals or on the Promenade deck, either in the sunshine outside or in one of the comfortable lounges. We either climbed the stairs between decks or went up in the lifts.
The first day we crossed the North Sea and found ourselves at Copenhagen in the morning. On our coach trip we got off to visit the little mermaid, small and dark green close by the water. We also walked around Palace Square and saw the changing of the guard. We drove past a big park where many people were enjoying the spring sunshine, after their long, cold winter. The university and various museums were pointed out to us. Black backed gulls and a cormorant flew over the harbour. The next day was spent at sea passing various sailing and merchant ships.
May the 5th found us early at Stockholm. This city is built on a number of islands, some of them with houses among the fir trees. We went around by boat. A good English-speaking guide pointed out to us the sites. She told us something of Swedish life. In summer you get around by boat, and in winter by skates or skis, as it is cold and snowy. We were told the society was well organised. There was plenty of leave for both parents when children are born; and you get a good state pension when you retire.
The next day found us in Tallinn in Estonia. We were taken around by coach and got out to walk around the old city. This has strong walls and fortifications. We saw two hooded crows and some old houses built largely of timber. Fir forest covers much of the land. We also saw an unusual species of wagtail, probably Scandinavian.
On Sunday we came to St Petersburg. We sailed up the Dnieper River. There were wonderful palaces and cathedrals on both sides. There were bridges which open at night to let ships through. Again we had a coach tour. We stopped at a large shop with all kinds of trinkets and toys etc. I bought some with English money, including a doll which opens up several times until you get to the baby in the middle. In the evening some of us went by coach to see the ballet Giselle which was really beautiful. On our coach tour we saw statues of Peter the Great on horse-back, also Czar Nicholas in front of St Isaac’s Cathedral.
On Monday the 8th I woke at 6 o’clock with light and a distant view of land through my porthole. We docked in Helsinki at 2 o’clock and went on a coach tour of the city. We stopped at the Orthodox Church and the market place. We bought a few trinkets. One of the stallholders spoke good English. We walked around a park and saw the Sibelius memorial, a giant organ.
The 9th we spent at sea. The meals on the ship were always excellent, with plenty of choice. At dinner in the evening we had the same table and neighbours every time. At breakfast and lunch we could sit where we liked.
This last night the cooks provided a special feast. They paraded around the dining room in their cook’s uniform, with white hats. They carried puddings above their heads, each with a lighted candle. The waiters always took our orders except at breakfast. Then we could help ourselves from a wonderful selection of eggs, bacon, potato cakes, omelette, fruit, cereal, etc. There was plenty of tea, coffee and juices.
We sailed up the Kiel Canal between Denmark and Germany to avoid the rocky Skagerrak coast. I saw on the map that we passed the Jutland peninsula. This interested me because my father fought in the Battle of Jutland in the 1st World War.
We passed many large ships and small sailing boats in the canal. Some were oil tankers. A few houses had been built on the banks. When we came to the end of the canal, before entering the North Sea, people turned out to wave to us from the houses built on the banks.
We arrived at Dundee the next day, after crossing the North Sea. We were transferred onto coaches. Our coach took us to Hexham where my cousin lives. We stopped at a service station for lunch. We travelled down the motorway by Glasgow; so ended our most interesting and enjoyable holiday.
July 2006.
When we first came to Chilmark in 1930 I was 10 years old, and my brothers were 9 and 8. Maurice and Rosalind Flower lived at Cleeves Farm with their 2 boys, who were younger than us. John was 3, and Martin newly born.
Maurice had a fine milking herd of shorthorns, which were brought in twice a day for milking, and the churns collected by lorry.
Carthorses were used for working, and John always remembered hearing them from his bed, coming in for work in the morning from the fields, and galloping back down there after work for the night.
John’s grandparents James and Lucy lived at Ridge Farm and had a famous flock of Hampshire Down sheep. The ram lambs were often exported to different countries, and buyers came to the farm from many places in this country and abroad. I have seen the prize show certificates displayed on the walls of some of the farm buildings.
Maurice had some good hunt horses at the Cleeves and used to ride round the farm and go to the local meets as a gentleman farmer in a black coat, as did John. Both Wilton and South & West Wilts bordered Chilmark, and used to hunt over their land. I remember meets at the Black Dog and Teffont, and of course Fonthill House. John Morrison, later Lord Margadale, was master of the S & W.
As a family we attended the meets and followed on foot. I remember my brothers and I following along Cleeves copses as far as Chicksgrove, and finding ourselves on the edge of Tisbury. We did not know where we were, but walked up the hill out of Tisbury and finally reached home.
We were invited to tea at Cleeves and also at Ridge, and played with the Flower boys. My father was invited to shooting parties at both farms and would bring home partridges or pheasants, and sometimes a hare, which we enjoyed.
In early January the shepherds at the Ridge (I think they were Mr Batchelor and Mr Taylor) would build lambing pens of hurdles thatched with straw, to shelter the ewes and lambs. These were often on Fonthill Hill above Ridge Farm. We used to be invited to see the lambs. The shepherds would sleep up there in a hut at night to look after the lambing ewes.
When the war broke out in 1939 John was still at school. He joined the army in 1944, aged 17, straight from school. He went out to India and Singapore, which he always remembered very vividly, and came back with many photographs, which the family still have. Strangely enough, he met Maurice Jeanes, another Chilmark young man, on a transport flight when out there. Maurice was a bell ringer and had joined the Air Force. Martin was still at school.
One of my brothers, Andrew, joined the Navy, and Colin joined the Home Guard under Colonel Marshall Smith. They sometimes used to stay out on watch all night above Cleeves Farm, where there was a good view all round. He was later called up into the Army and joined the Engineers, and was sent out to India. I went to college at Ambleside to train as a teacher.
After the war, John married Sally, and they lived at Ridge. After James died, Lucy went to live at Manora with her 2 daughters Muriel and Vera. Lucy lived to a great old age – 104. She used to ask my father to play chess with her.
John and Sally had 2 daughters, Stella and Tessa. When Stella was old enough to start lessons, John asked me if I would teach her, as I was home at that time, and also her friend Fiona Morrison and others joined us. I had a little class at Chilmark House. Other younger children wanted to join, and so Mrs Keen had a kindergarten class in one of our upstairs bedrooms. At the end of every term we invited the parents to see the children’s work. We followed the PNEU (Parent National Educational Union) programmes and exams. The children would read aloud and recite poems and pieces of Bible to their parents. Later on, Stella and Tessa went to a larger school in Gillingham.
Sadly, Sally had a weak heart and died while the children were still quite young. Sally’s mother helped to look after the children. Later John married Wendy and they brought up Stella and Tessa and their younger family, Karen, Wayne and Dean at Ridge Farm.
John always regularly attended Chilmark Church, and would bring his children. He read the lessons from time to time. In later years he would help the priest at Holy Communion.
Sadly, a few years ago he developed diabetes and heart failure, and died on 14th June at the age of 79. We all miss him very much. He had a wonderful Funeral, with a church full of relations and friends who were invited afterwards to a service and refreshments at the Ridge.
I remember that John and Wendy once had a big lunch party at the Ridge. We all sat round tables and had a sumptuous hot lunch and a sweet. There were lovely paintings of Stella and Tessa on their ponies on the wall amongst other pictures.
John’s father Maurice had many interesting stories of the old days. Once there was a big party at the Ridge. When it was time to go home, one of the guests asked for his horse to be brought round to the front. They said they were sorry it had disappeared. It was found in the loft above the stable! The children had built a hill of straw bales, and led it up, then taken away the bales. It could not be brought down till the next day so the guest had to stay the night!
When we were young the Flowers had a pony called Jim, for the boys to ride. Sometimes they would lend Jim to my father so he could lead me out. Jim was quite excitable. I remember being kicked off on the down at the end of the Manor Farm Lane. My father had Jim on a long leading rein attached to his head collar. He held on to it, and Jim cantered on downhill towards home, dragging my father face down on the grass. He managed to stop the pony and put me on again.
When I was older, the Flowers lent me their hunters to exercise. They were always well corned up, and I used to get run away with on the downs, but never came to any harm. Vera Flower had a lovely mare ‘Kittiwake’, which she lent me when I was about 14. I rode her up to Lady Down. When on the grass track, Kittiwake set off around the common (as it then was) at a canter. I came off near the road but was helped on again by a passing labourer, and Kittiwake took me safely home.
When John and Sally first came to the Ridge, John had a lovely hunter called Robin to ride around and hunt on. He always kept ponies for the children to ride.
After Sally died he gave up pedigree sheep, but continued with sheep for some years until it became wholly arable. Martin ran Cleeves Farm for some time. He married and they had 2 children, Graham and Stephanie. Sadly they later divorced and the farm was sold. Martin kept in touch with John, and was at his funeral.
When Dean was growing up we had a Boys Club in the village, which he joined. John used to help sometimes in the club with games. In the summer he would sometimes ask the children up to swim in their pool. He had made a swimming pool in their garden at the Ridge.
The Flowers owned a Chicken Farm up the hill above the Black Dog, to the left of the Wylye Road on the bridle path leading across the A303 to Stockton Wood. For many years it was run by Mr and Mrs Spencer. Sadly they lost their son James in the war. His name is on the War Memorial in the churchyard. They had a married daughter. When Mr Spencer died, his widow went to a home in Salisbury. Maurice and John used to visit her.
When the Chicken Farm was let or sold as a private house, John wanted to make a well there, which meant making a very deep bore hole. He asked my brother Colin, a geologist, for advice. Colin said he would have to go as deep down as the Greensand layer below the chalk. This was the same as the Greensand layer by the Ridge Lane. John was grateful, and the well was a success, but it was necessary to drill to 600ft.
In the war, Rose Dennis who had worked at Chilmark House for my mother had to join the Land Army. She then worked at the Flower’s Chicken Farm. Once something startled my horse up there, and I came off, but Rose saw me get safely on again!
In Chilmark Church there is a list on the wall of those who came safely back from the war. On it are John Flower, my two brothers Andrew and Colin Forbes, and Maurice Jeanes. John, Andrew and Maurice have now passed on.
When John and Martin were away at Boarding School, Rosalind and Maurice had another baby, a little girl they called Janet. As she got older she asked to ride her pony all over the farm and sometimes down to Teffont to have him shod by Mr Ball, the old blacksmith. I was told that Maurice kept the bridle path open for that reason. Janet grew up to be a very beautiful woman. She was married at Stone Dial where Maurice moved when Martin married and took over Cleeves. Rosalind had a lovely garden at Stone Dial. Her gardener was Harry Jay, whom she shared with my parents. The Jays lived in Rose Cottage.
John has always been ready to help when I needed help or advice about the land or village. When I left boarding school in Autumn 1937 at age 17, Rosalind was running the WI in the village. They had meetings once a month in the Reading Room. I remember going to Cleeves to practise some songs with the WI members. Rosalind was a very good pianist and had a grand piano in her drawing room.
September 2006.
In 1920 when I was born, my parents were living in a small rented house overlooking Battersea Park. This was one of a row of similar houses with balconies, in which parrots or monkeys were often displayed. My father was working at the Admiralty. When my mother arrived she discovered there were bugs living in the wall. She complained to my grandmother, who replied “don’t let the bugs drive you out. You drive the bugs out”. So she got hold of the pest officer who got rid of them.
When I was born I used to be put out in my pram on the balcony next to the parrots and monkeys and my mother felt proud to have a baby! When my father came home in the evening he used to watch the children playing in the park, and remarked “the dirtier they are the happier they are”.
Later my father was posted up to Scotland, and a year later my brother Andrew was born at Limekilns. He used to be put in his pram by the window with a lot of toys. One by one he would throw them out of the window into the next door garden, remarking “gone”. When my father came home he had to go next door and ask for them back!
The next year, 18 months later, my brother Colin was born at Greenock, near where father was stationed then.
My father was then posted south so my mother had to pack up with the help of a kind Scottish Nanny Campbell, and board a train with 3 small children, pram, etc. Nanny said “I’m no’ a very good traveller”. However, she managed not to be sick on the way. At the London station the Porter sat me on top of all the luggage and wheeled me on!
For a while we lived at Fryern Court Farm near Ringwood, near where my aunt and family lived. My father used to enjoy watching the partridges in the evening in the field behind the farm.
Nanny Campbell whom we were fond of, got homesick and returned to Scotland.
My parents then rented the Old Rectory in Buckhorn Weston, where we lived happily for about 5 years until my father was retired.
Our new nanny was Miss Helen Jane, sister of Jane who wrote ‘Jane’s Fighting Ships’. Her father was Rector of Ottery St Mary in Devon.
She used to take Sunday School once a week in Buckhorn Church. I enjoyed this, as it meant meeting some other children. Nanny had an easel, and hung a large picture of a Bible Story on it and told us the story each Sunday. I still remember being told how King Herod made a rash promise to the daughter of Herodias (when she had danced for them at a feast) that he would give her anything she asked for. Herodias told her to ask for the head of John the Baptist, who was in prison there. Nanny told us never to make rash promises.
My earliest memory is of Nanny Jane. Our old nanny was changing Colin on her knee, and Miss Jane was watching. She said afterwards that the old nanny rolled the little boy about too much!
After Miss Jane had been with us a while she told my mother that she liked the little boys, but would have to leave, because she couldn’t get on with me! I used to argue with her! Mother said, well, if she got someone else, she might not get on with the boys. So Miss Jane stayed and we all became very fond of her.
My mother then got a governess for me and Andrew and some neighbouring children. This governess was unkind to me and my friend Suzette, but spoilt the boys! In the end the new governess took us all for a walk, crossing the railway line, which she had been told not to do, so mother gave her notice.
We next had a governess from the Charlotte Mason College, Ambleside. She had done a course of training as a teacher for 2 years. Miss Christy, or ‘Chris’ as we called her, was an excellent teacher and used the PNEU (Parents National Educational Union) method.
We had interesting and enjoyable books, and had short lessons which we had to ‘tell back’ or write about or draw pictures of. We also had nature walks and learnt about flowers and birds and kept nature note books in which we made brush drawings of wild flowers. These are still interesting, as there were rare birds and flowers around then – orchids etc.
We also did handwork, and I still have some of our raffia mats and a woollen rug which has worn well. We also acted little plays for our parents such as Theseus & Ariadne, and Thor and Laki etc.
When my brother Andrew was about 2 years old he went down with polio and was very ill. He went to the Treloar Hospital at Alton under Dr Trethowan. He was cured of the polio, but was left with a weak leg which had to be massaged every day.
At that time there was no National Health organisation so my mother got together a committee and arranged to employ a district nurse for the village. Everyone paid a subscription according to their means, and were able to have a nurse if they got ill. She used to come to us and massage Andrew’s leg several times a week.
My mother also started Mother’s Union in the village with the help of old Mr Barrett, our parson. He lived in a cottage above our orchard. He was a widower with 2 daughters, Sybil and Maud, who used to stay from time to time and bring us presents at Christmas.
Once, my mother had a party for the children of the Mother’s Union. We enjoyed this very much and enjoyed playing games and showing the children our toys. I had a big doll’s house made by my father, and nanny dressed some little dolls to live in it.
My father also made me a bed, and mother made the bed-clothes, mattress and bolster etc. She was very good at sewing and made doll’s clothes for me as well. Later I passed these on to my nieces.
The church at Buckhorn and the school were opposite our front gate. I used to watch the children playing and shouting in the playground and wish I could join them, but my mother thought it was too rough!
Once a year the village fete was held in our lower field, and we used to enjoy going and getting presents out of the Bran Tub, and watching the Maypole dancing.
My father used to buy 3 heifers in the spring and sell them to the butcher in the autumn. I remember seeing one being dosed from a bottle of what appeared to be linseed oil in the stable, and saw another escape and get caught between the stable and the wall, but they managed to get her out.
The loft above was divided into partitions for storing grain etc. Some of this was left around, and I used to love climbing up there and watching the hordes of mice that used to run around there squeaking and jumping about! I still remember the strong smell!
George Norgate used to tease me and give me a piece of cow cake, telling me it was like our cake. It tasted of sawdust and I spat it out. Once he told me that a tin of soft soap was jam! Nanny really thought I had eaten some and nearly gave me an emetic, but Norgate told her I hadn’t actually eaten it!
I used to enjoy breaking up sticks for our fires. There was no central heating, and it was a big 3 storey house, and we had fires in nearly every room. We also had candles and paraffin lamps. Sometimes the Aladdin lamps used to smoke and spoil their big glass chimneys.
There was a lamp room beyond the kitchen, and mother used to go there every day to clean the lamps and refill them with paraffin. I well remember going upstairs to bed carrying my candle! I liked to go with my mother to clean the lamps and order the meals from our cook.
We had a little Irish girl who worked as our pantry maid. I used to love to go down the stairs at the back and listen to her stories about her family in Ireland, while she was washing up. However, Nanny didn’t like me doing this and I was stopped.
There was an old waste place at the back of the garden behind a wall, where we were allowed to play and dig. We used to dig up lumps of clay and make little pots. The ground was mostly clay soil, very hard to dig, but father dressed it with lime, and we had a very good garden. Sometimes the heifers that lived in the big bottom field used to jump over the fence and eat some cabbages!
George Norgate had been in the Army and served for a while in China. There he had a set of false teeth made, and when he was digging our garden they fell out and got broken. He had a new set made in England, but said they were not nearly as good as the Chinese ones.
Soon after we came to Chilmark dear George Norgate got very ill and my parents took me over to visit him. I was so sad at seeing him lying ill in bed that I wept in our car for a while, until mother said she wished she had not brought me. By that time I had a pony called Jenny, and told George Norgate that I could now canter.
George Norgate had a pony called Jumbo that used to pull a little governess cart to go to market, and once he also took us in the cart to shop in Gillingham. For a while my mother had a bay pony called Brocky and he used to pull a chaise to take her round the village. I remember going with her once but she was not able to keep the pony and chaise for long.
We had a little puppy called Titus. His brother was called Timothy. He was a Welsh Terrier, black and tan, and we used to take him out on walks. Unfortunately, when one of my mother’s hens got out, Titus used to catch it and kill it. Father used then to beat him.
I was very fond of Titus, so if I found he had killed a hen, I would hide the feathers so nobody would know! My mother cured Titus of killing hens by taking him in the hen run on a lead when she fed them. The cockerel would attack Titus and peck him, and after that he stopped killing them.
Norgate used to bring his pony to graze in our orchard, and in return he used to take me for long walks, me riding Jumbo, so I knew all the lanes around Buckhorn very well. There were very few cars then and Jumbo was frightened of them, so Norgate turned him round to face the car and made him ‘sit’ in the hedge when one came. I was scared but he told me his daughter Joyce did not mind at all!
One day Joyce came to join us when we had our 11.00am milk and biscuits in the garden. I was very pleased and wished she could often come, but I don’t remember it happening again.
In the spring I used to spend a lot of time walking round the hedges looking for blackbirds’ and thrushes’ nests. The hedges in the Blackmore Vale were very thick so I didn’t often find one.
When we came to Chilmark the hedges were less thick in the chalk country, and nests were easier to find. I remember my father showing me greenfinch’s nests in the clipped yews in front of the house at Buckhorn, and once we found a chiffchaff’s nest in the St John’s wort patch in the driveway.
October 2006.
When my father retired from the Navy in 1930, my parents decided to buy a house within reach of Brook in the New Forest, where my mother’s relations lived, and Shillingstone in Dorset, where my father’s family lived. They looked at various houses around here and finally decided on Chilmark House.
My father owned a bull-nosed Morris Cowley car and took us over to see the empty house and garden, which was being cared for by Mr Fred Lidford, who lived in Rose Cottage, which was sold with the house. Mr Lidford had been personal servant to Mr Lewis the former owner, who had recently died.
Lidford was a skilled gardener. In the walled kitchen garden he grew many vegetables, including asparagus and sea kale. There was a grape vine in the greenhouse which he pruned and tended, and it produced lovely bunches of black grapes. Lidford loved animals and had looked after the cob, which used to pull the carriage which took them to market and shopping once a week.
While the house was being decorated, carpeted, furnished etc we three children stayed with our granny at Canterton, Brook, in the New Forest, and had a happy time playing in the woods and sailing our boats in the little stream.
My grandfather owned three woods, Greenhill, Blackthorn and Pipers. They were looked after by the woodman, Mr Pitman. There was a sawmill, where oak bark was stripped and sold to a firm in Downton for tanning. Planks, fence posts and logs were sawn up. We loved playing there and climbing on the tree trunks.
I remember picnicking in the drawing room on the bare boards before it was carpeted. We had about one term of lessons with Chris at Chilmark before my brother Andrew was taken off to Prep School, ‘Highfield’ at Liphook, Surrey at the age of 8 years.
Nanny Jane was retired and Chris looked after and taught Colin and myself, and also looked after Titus, our Welsh Terrier. Andrew’s cat Frolica had escaped in Wincanton, on the journey from Buckhorn to Chilmark, and found his way back to the old home at Buckhorn where a neighbour looked after him.
After a year, when we went back to a picnic in the garden (the house was still empty) Frolica was so pleased to see us, that we took him back to Chilmark where Chris settled him in.
The Rector at that time in Chilmark was old Mr Griffith Williams, who lived in the Old Rectory with his wife, daughter Joyce and invalid daughter Hessy, who was wheeled to church every Sunday in her chair.
If anyone in the village was in trouble they would go to the Old Rectory, where Joyce and Mrs Williams would help them. Mr and Mrs Jones’ son Branywyn and adopted daughter Betty lived in the school cottage (now part of the school). Mrs Jones taught the older children up to the age of 14, when they left to go to work. Mrs Simmonds, mother of Peter Simmonds, taught in the small classroom at the back. The toilets and washbasin were outside, and the School Hall was not yet built. There were just the two classrooms. My mother became a School Governor.
At Christmas we all used to go down to the school to watch their plays and hear their singing. Mrs Jones was very musical and played the piano for the children, and Mrs Simmonds was very good at organising little plays for them to act. We enjoyed this very much. We used to hear the school bell ring in the mornings to bring the children to their lessons.
There was no piped water in the village and people had their own wells. I remember little pump houses down the village street. We had an electric pump and a deep well in our scullery, and the water was pumped up every morning to a tank in the roof.
There was no electricity in the village. People managed with lamps and candles. My father had a Petter engine (generator) installed in one of the outside sheds which was switched on every morning to give us light.
We also had a big coke stove in the cellar which gave us hot water and heated radiators round the house. After a few years electricity was brought to the village. Also telephones were installed, and we had our first telephone which we children were frightened of and didn’t like answering.
Mr Gething owned the Chilmark Quarries and he took us down one of the long underground tunnels where they got out the stone. The little railway ran down to join the main line to transport the stone.
Most of the houses, walls and sheds around here were built of Chilmark stone. The last building to be built, I was told, was Salisbury Post Office. Of course, in the 12th Century Salisbury Cathedral was built of it. I believe Christopher Wren used it for St Paul’s after the Great Fire of London (he was brought up in East Knoyle).
Unfortunately in the depression in 1930 there was so little demand for stone that Mr Gething had to sell the Quarries which were bought for storage purposes by the RAF. Mr Gething’s daughter Mary ran the Dinton Guide Company and asked me to take it over when I left school in 1937.
I used to take Chilmark girls over with me and finally moved the Company to Chilmark. Mrs Jones was very kind letting us have meetings in the school. Our doctor was Dr Clay of Fovant, who was very good to us and others in Chilmark and around. Once when I had a bad sore throat he got my brothers to cycle over to Fovant shop to get me ice cream!
When we came here the Chilmark shop was run by Mr Sam Payne, helped by Freda Strong. He and subsequent owners used to deliver stores to us once a week. Sam Payne also took services in the chapel, which is now a private house opposite the playing field.
We often had cold winters and snow at that time, and we and other children in the village would take our sledges and tea trays into the field by Hops Close, which belonged to the Strong family, and slide down the hill. We all had a wonderful time. We also used to toboggan down the hill opposite Turnpike Cottages, where there was a jump which made it more exciting. We also went to a pond below Ridge village, which belonged to the Flowers, and slide and take our skates when it was frozen.
We all had bikes and used to go on long rides together especially to the ‘Fountain’ in Teffont where the stream rose; also to the River Nadder beyond Teffont where we used to find river mussel shells on the little beaches. I suppose they were left by otters.
We used to go often to the old quarries before they were sold to the RAF. We used to cut hazel spears and decorate the bark with pen knives, and have competitions throwing them. We made paths through the long grass and nettles, and made homes in the little caves which had been limekilns or shelters. We lit fires and tried to cook on them. Some of the old tunnels we couldn’t get into. They had been blocked off with wire in case the foxhounds should go in and get lost. One of the small caves we called the bat cave because a short-eared bat used to hang in it from the ceiling in the winter when it was hibernating. We were very sad when the land was sold to the RAF and we couldn’t go there any more.
My mother used to take me into Salisbury once a week with an old lady, Miss Martin. She bought me a piano and I had to practice every day. Unfortunately I never managed more than a few song and hymn tunes, but I enjoyed playing those mostly with one hand!
There was a bus service in Chilmark run by Mr Fred Viney, who had lost his leg in a quarry accident. He had a specially adapted bus and used to drive it into Salisbury nearly every day and back again, picking up passengers on the way. His brother Redge, who had lost his arm, was the conductor and sold the tickets. It was an excellent service and we used it a lot when the war came and my father sold his car.
I remember once, when the Teffont hill was blocked with a snow drift, we all got out and helped to push the bus along! Viney’s bus lasted a long time until Skylark buses took over. Fred sometimes took excursions over the countryside, and his wife Mrs Winnie Viney enjoyed these very much. Her sister Daisy Chasmar was conductress on the buses at one time. They were both daughters of old Mr Fred Lidford, our gardener.
When we first came, the cottages along The Street were all thatched. Swifts used to nest in the thatch and we would hear them screaming. I remember picking up a baby swift that had fallen to the ground and watching it fly away. They spend all their lives in the air and cannot get up off the ground, though they can perch on the edge of houses or cliffs.
We used the old Elizabethan Granary at Chilmark House as a museum. We collected a badger, roe deer skulls and many fossil shells from the old quarries.
In our holidays my father sometimes hired a horse and pony from old Mr Spiller in Teffont. Mr Spiller later moved to Tisbury. My father took me for rides often into Great Ridge Wood where once we got lost in the rhododendrons, and found ourselves riding out to Chicklade instead of Chilmark! We found our way back round the edge of the wood. It was getting dark when we got home, which was exciting for me.
When I reached my teens an uncle gave me a Forest pony called Jerry. My father rode him over by bridle paths from Ringwood.
Jerry taught me to canter by running away up and down ‘Happy Valley’ as we called Warminster bottom! I did have a few riding lessons from Colonel Walsh in Mere, where we had to trot round a small field with lots of small hillocks. I had to keep my heels down and my toes stuck out! I was never taught to jump but did it naturally over ditches and fallen branches. I taught myself more when teaching children in BAOR (British Army of the Rhine) in Germany, when we exercised horses when the Hussars were in camp driving tanks!
My father always enjoyed taking us for picnics. We used to walk up Happy Valley to the picnic oak in the little copse at the end. I believe it is still there. It is a big, low growing tree, with spreading branches we used to climb on. We brought a kettle with us, full of water, with a potato on the spout. We made a fire, boiled the water and then baked the potato. We sometimes made ‘dampers’, a kind of scone on the end of a stick baked above the fire. We took a small bag of flour with us, water in a bottle and the kettle. Mother used to say she liked the smoky taste of the dampers!
At one time my mother decided to teach me the facts of life by getting me a pair of guinea pigs who would have a family. We called them Michael and Angelina. Unfortunately they both turned out to be females. We then called Michael ‘Mère Michelle’. Soon both Mère Michelle and Angelina had families. The babies were very sweet. They were born with all their hair on. We gave them away all round the village when they grew up. We kept quite a few.
In those days there were a good many herds of cows around. I remember my father driving us to Salisbury in the bull-nosed Morris which had a roll-back canvas hood and celluloid windscreens, which could be taken out. We passed a herd of cows and one of them put its horn through one of the windscreens! The cow was unhurt but father had to mend the screen. Being a sailor, he was good at sewing with a big needle and twine.
The Rector had a few cows on the Glebe, which is now the field above the Old Rectory. They were looked after by the Stevens family who lived in the Rectory cottage. One of the daughters used to bring us milk every day in a can. We had two cans which held about a quart each. They had to be scalded out every day after use. Later on I used them at our Guide camps.
November 2006.
Chilmark House was built in 1814 by Mr King, an ancestor of the Flower family. It was built on to the wall of the previous house which you can still see at the back, with its small mullion windows and old stonework.
It was built in the Regency style, with large square windows and a pillared front door with a balcony above. They made a lantern in the roof to let light into the hall. There is a walkway round the lantern where you can get a good view round the village.
There are pretty mouldings round the ceilings of the big dining room and drawing room. The dining room moulding depicts a pattern of poppies and sheaves of corn. The drawing room one depicts various flowers. The moulding in the hall is coloured and has been described in a popular magazine some years back.
Mr King kept greyhounds in the old Elizabethan Granary, and loved to ride his horse up to the downs and course hares with his greyhounds.
The story goes that one day he noticed that his mare and his greyhounds seemed very tired. He then discovered that his groom would go out coursing hares by moonlight! We do not know what happened to the groom!
The old Elizabethan Granary is built of ancient bricks smaller than those used today. It stands on staddle stones shaped like mushrooms. This is to prevent the rats getting in and eating the corn. It is very dry inside, and I used to store hay in it for my pony.
Our family moved into Chilmark House in 1930 when my father retired from the Navy.
My brothers and I used the Old Granary as a museum for fossils from the old quarries, and animal skulls – roe-deer, rabbit and badger – that we found in the woods. The Old Granary is a listed building of interest to archaeologists and others.
Old Mrs Lucy Flower who died aged 103, lived in Chilmark House as a child with her grandparents. I was told by Minnie Stevens (an old inhabitant of Chilmark) that when Lucy was married, a red carpet was laid from the front door across the lawn to the village door. This was for her to walk on, and I suppose a horse drawn carriage waited to take her up to the church.
My mother died in June 1977 and we then sold the house by auction, dividing the profits between my two brothers and myself. I was allowed to stay there until the following spring, and showed many interested buyers around the house, but it was finally bought by Robert Chalk who lived there for some years with his wife and two children who used to ride my ponies when I moved up to Cheriton on the hill above.
Subsequently it has been sold twice, and various alterations and improvements have been made, but basically it remains the same.
December 2006.
Snoopy first came to Cheriton in 1983. He was a strongly built New Forest bay pony of 14 hands, probably crossed with a thoroughbred. He had been bought for about £120 by a mother for her daughter aged 12, who had learnt the basics of riding, grooming etc in my riding school.
Although my pupil could ride him quite well once she was helped to mount him, her mother wanted to sell him. Unfortunately he must have been badly handled and possibly teased by children before he came to us and was in somewhat poor condition when he came here. He would not let any child near him, unless there was a responsible adult with the child, and would bite or kick them if they tried to groom him.
I said I would like to keep him for a year until he was in good condition, and then sell him, so I bought him from her.
Soon after he came, during a visit from the blacksmith he suddenly had a bad nose bleed. We sent for the vet who had only come across this condition before in race horses!
His treatment was to stay in the stable for two weeks, being fed only on dry food. Twice a day he had to have medicine puffed up his nose morning and evening. After this treatment, which he hated, he was alright and did not get ill again. It took two of us to give him this treatment, as of course he struggled against us.
After this, some of the older girls found they could manage him and became very fond of him. Diane, one of the girls, then bought a half share in him from me on the understanding that I wanted to buy him back when she no longer wanted to ride him.
Later in 1983 Diane took him on one of our sponsored rides in aid of charity to Baverstock and back by bridleways. He did another long sponsored ride in 1984.
We also used to go once a year on a long picnic ride, visiting churches on the way; getting sponsor money in aid of Chilmark Church and the Wiltshire Historic Churches Fund. We used to go by the Holt bridle path to Teffont Evias, back to Teffont Magna, on to Dinton by the old road and across the park and sometimes across fields to Baverstock. Of course we visited Chilmark when we started out, so that was 5 churches altogether. At each church we signed our names and were usually given a little refreshment while our ponies grazed or had a tit bit.
One year the girls Louise and Diane took Ashley, our beautiful strawberry roan 14.2 hand pony, and Snoopy on a sponsored ride at Stourhead, with jumps on the way. Louise’s uncle gave them lifts with his horse trailer to get there and back.
We taught Snoopy to jump and he became quite good, competing in our gymkhanas with Ashley and Puffin (a little Welsh pony). They all won our home made rosettes in various classes and races. Other children from round about brought their ponies and joined in. Once we had an assault course with jumps all around my fields.
Most Saturdays the older children and usually myself went for long rides on the local bridleways, the riders sometimes changing with the walkers half way.
Each year we laid up one field for hay to feed them in the winter. For a while we had a Welsh Cob, Gambler, but he was not easy to manage, and I sold him to Wilton Riding School. He stayed there until he died of old age.
When I became too old to run the riding school I kept Snoopy to ride myself. He became friends with other horses, whose owners rented the grazing.
Although Snoopy was wary of people, he liked other ponies and horses. When he came, he made friends straight away with Ashley, almost as if they might have known each other previously, and after that they were always together.
At that time we had Charcoal, a Highland pony, who was big and strong and carried me well when leading the ride. We also had two Welsh ponies, Puffin and Chalky, and later on Merlin (15 h) and Donna (14.2) came to us when my brother left Shillingstone. They all got on well together, though Ashley was always the boss. Gradually we lost all our ponies Except Snoopy (mostly through old age).
Then various horses came whose owners rented the grazing. An ex race horse, Thomas came for a while, and Snoopy liked to go out with him, and we showed his owner the local bridleways. Finally when Snoopy reached the age of 27 he began to get thin and poor in the winter months (in spite of being well-fed) so we had him put down so that he should not suffer.
Once he was ridden over to Charlton. He was put up for the night and entered a gymkhana the next day.
Another time he stayed for a while with a friend in Tisbury who also borrowed my saddle. This was fortunate, as my other pony saddles were stolen. A village friend gave us one of her saddles and I was able to get second hand ones from a saddlery on the hill above Semley (now no longer there).
Once we were invited over to Fovant for a ride over the downs and along the old road above Alvediston. Our ponies were invited to stay the night in a field in Fovant. It was a big field, and when I went over the next day to collect Snoopy there was another pony in the middle of the field looking exactly like him. Snoopy was nowhere to be seen. I caught this pony and rode him home, thinking it was him. When the owner of this pony came the next day she went to catch Snoopy, thinking he was hers. Unfortunately he ran at her and bit her, but she still did not realise her mistake. When one of my girls came, thinking to ride Snoopy, she came to me and said it was not Snoopy. I said “how do you know?” She said Snoopy had one white foot behind. So we then realised our mistake and she took this pony back to Fovant and brought Snoopy home.
When Snoopy got old he became much more friendly and one day a small girl was seen standing on the gate at the bottom of the hill and stroking him on his nose. He liked to be caught and came into the yard to have a small feed and be groomed, and have his eyes bathed.
January 2007.
When we came to Chilmark in 1930 we lived in Chilmark House, and the Hardings lived in the Forge (the cottage opposite). They kept chickens at the back, and used the old workshop for carpentry work.
Sometimes my mother, whose bedroom looked out over the road to the Forge would hear “Tap, Tap, Tap” through the night from the Harding’s workshop. She would then know that someone in the village had died, and the coffin was being made ready for the funeral and burial in the churchyard. There was a special high trolley for wheeling the coffin up the hill to the churchyard, where the coffin would rest under the Lych gate.
The Lych gate was given to the church in memory of Miss Lindsell who was killed when her pony trap overturned in Fonthill Park. You can see the place, as there is a memorial stone by the road in the park. Francis Harding had 3 sons and 2 daughters. The sons were Peter the builder, Ted who became a blacksmith and married and moved to Somerset, but came back to Chilmark in his old age, and John who was a carpenter and organist in the church. The daughters were Muriel, an excellent cook, now aged 103, and her younger sister Tibby, a widow, whose daughter works in Salisbury District Hospital. They both live in different residential homes in Amesbury.
In those days there was a men’s choir, including Peter Harding, Mr Cull, Mr Morgan and Mr Jeanes. Maurice Jeanes joined but left to join the Air Force when the war came. They also rang the bells to call people to the services.
When Francis Harding retired, his son Peter who had married and lived in Sixpenny Handley, came to Chilmark, and took over as sexton, undertaker and verger from his father. His wife, May and daughter Mary came too.
Mary had trained in Salisbury as a dressmaker and was in great demand for making bridesmaid’s dresses for village weddings. In the war, John worked as a carpenter with the RAF at the old Quarries. The RAF employed many Chilmark inhabitants during the war. They were good to the village.
We had a district nurse, who looked after the sick in Chilmark, Fonthill and Hindon. My mother became secretary to the Nursing Association and would attend meetings at Fonthill House, where Lady Margaret Morrison was President. Once, at one of the meetings, the cat proceeded to have kittens in their sitting room. Lady Margaret rang for a maid, who took the family away.
Once a week the district nurse would come to our house to report to my mother on the cases she had attended. This would take a long time, and often our lunch would be delayed until they had finished, which used to annoy us!
The Mothers Union would meet regularly at the Rectory. When old Mr Williams and his family retired to ‘Parson’s Paddock’ (the bungalow on the main road), Major Deedes, who had run the Manor Farm during the war, gave the land for a new Rectory to be built on the main road opposite Manora, where old Mrs Flower lived with her two daughters. The first Rector to inhabit the new Rectory was Mr Perry, with his wife, daughter and 2 sons and their helper Lois Bearder. The Perry children were teenagers, and we often used to visit them. Lois used to help in the Sunday School, as did Mary Harding (Peter’s daughter), Miss Palmer the infant school teacher, and myself when at home.
Of course the church bells could not be rung in the war, and great was our joy when peace came and we heard them again.
Mrs Bertha Yeates used to clean the church with the help of her daughter Brenda. At Harvest Festival, sheaves of corn would be given for decoration, and Mrs Yeates was always glad to take them home for her chickens.
The Sunday School used to be invited to a tea party on the lawn of the new Rectory once a year in the summer.
When my mother inherited some money from her sister, who died young, she bought part of Fairmead above our orchard, and had a tennis court made for us children and our friends. When the war came and we all left home, my mother allowed the village to form a club and play on the court, which they enjoyed. They could play anytime except Sunday mornings when the church service was on. When the court was being made, some Elizabethan coins were dug up. They used to have a horse fair in Fairmead in the old days.
The Hardings allowed Dr Illingworth, the Hindon doctor, who served Chilmark, to hold his surgery in their cottage once a week. The patients would wait in the sitting room with Mrs Harding and Mary and go one by one to the doctor in the room opposite. The Hardings always had nice fires burning in both rooms. Mary kept a selection of toys for the children to play with. She was very fond of children. The adults enjoyed talking and gossiping together, as we mostly knew each other. Dr Clay also served Chilmark, and some of us attended his surgery in Fovant or he would visit us.
The Church Fête has always been held in the garden of the old Rectory, as successive owners have allowed it to happen. This is always well attended and much enjoyed. The stall holders and providers of teas work hard to make it a success and raise money for the church. The school children dance round the May pole and often enjoy pony rides and competitions as well as ice cream.
The Flower Show (Chilmark Horticultural Society Show) has always been held once a year. It used to be in Fairmead but now is usually on the playing field. There has always been a good show of vegetables and flowers, and strong competition for the various cups which have been given to encourage the show. In the old days the vegetable cup was usually won by Mr Yeates, Mr Carpenter or Mr Trigwell, and great was the rivalry.
The women of the village always entered a good display of cakes, jams, tarts etc, and flower arrangements, and also won cups.
As children we used to enjoy making miniature gardens on soup plates to put in the show and carry them up to the field. The children drew pictures, made models and examples of their best writing, and one would be the winner of the cup.
After the show a raffle is held and many of the goods are sold in aid of the show. The hire of the marquee is a big item.
Good judges are invited for the competition and are usually rewarded with lunch after the judging. The public is kept out of the tent after10.00am until the afternoon, so the judging can take place.
In the old days Girl Guides, Cub-Scouts and later on Youth Clubs would meet in the Reading Room as well as the WI and present various slide shows in aid of good causes.
Once when repairs were being done in the church, the church service was held in the Reading Room.
At one time, the Salvation Army would hold a service at the Cross. Chairs were brought out from the Reading Room and we would all enjoy singing hymns accompanied by the Salvation Army trumpets etc.
In Mr Trotman’s time the church bells were brought down from the belfry and taken away to be retuned. It was very interesting to see the enormous heavy bells standing in the church.
At one time Mr Peter Harding used to ring tunes on the bells of various hymns on Sunday evenings for the benefit of his invalid mother. A villager has started to do this again from time to time and long may she continue.
In the autumn a big sale is held in the Reading Room to raise funds for its upkeep. A great raffle is held, and cakes, Christmas presents, books etc are sold. The room is usually choc-a-bloc with buyers.
Recently small sales of vegetables, cakes, books etc have been held once a fortnight in the summer on Saturdays to help keep the Reading Room going. Visitors can buy coffee, tea and biscuits and sit at the small table. We enjoy meeting and chatting to our neighbours.
The church now has a good mixed choir run by Mrs Pattenden. We share with Hindon and Fonthill. We no longer have a Rector living in Chilmark but are well looked after by the Tisbury Team.
February 2007.
Wiltshire is one of the best counties for finding relics of ancient times and civilisations. Avebury and Stonehenge are good examples. Above Chilmark on Stockton Down is an ancient hill fort. You can see the deep ridges and deep ditches the ancient Britons made for shelter and fortification. They liked to live on top of the downs. Below was thick forest inhabited by wolves and bears dangerous to man.
Other hill forts can be seen in Little Ridge Wood above Ridge village, and in the woods between Teffont and Dinton, and also Castle Ditches near Tisbury.
When we were children we liked to picnic on Stockton Down, which was unfenced open country then. We found pieces of broken pottery, some of it Samian ware imported from France. This had a glaze on it. Later on this site was excavated, and the pieces of pottery collected up and taken away.
Walking in the fields we were always on the look out for flint arrow heads and scrapers used by the ancient Britons. You can see these in Salisbury Museum. Once before we came to Chilmark a boy was breaking flints to scare away crows from picking up the sown seed. A big flint split open and a number of gold coins fell out. The ancient people used hollow flints to store their treasure, plugging the hole with clay.
Roman remains are all around. When Portash House was built (two cottages were made into one), a Roman soldier was found buried under the fireplace. They knew he was a soldier, as they found the nails from his boots. The little Roman well can be seen by the road at the foot of the little hill below Portash. It is built of large stones and never goes dry.
In the old days before water was piped into the water troughs in the fields these were filled from water carts, drawn by horses. In the 1920’s, there was a bad drought one year. The water carts were filled from the little well. This never went dry, so all the five dairy herds of cattle as well as pigs and sheep were kept going. An old farm labourer, a friend of mine, remembered this and told me about it. A pond has now been dug in the field below the little well, and a ditch from the well keeps it full.
After the Romans came the Danes and later on the Saxons. The Romans and Saxons introduced Christianity to England. Some Saxon remains still exist. We think that before Chilmark church was built there may have been a stone cross where the village cross now is (in The Street). Perhaps Christianity was first preached here. In the churchyard there are remains of an old stone cross.
Once I was in the churchyard at the east end when a man came along with a dowsing stick. These are normally used to locate underground water for people to dig a well. However they can also locate underground passages. This man said he had found an underground passage outside the church. We wonder whether at one time this led to the Old Rectory. The priest may have used it to get to the church in the time of troubles between Catholics and Protestants, perhaps in the reign of Queen Mary.
March 2007
When we were children, we had a small Welsh terrier called Titus. His brother was called Timothy. We used to take him for walks with our nanny every day. My mother kept hens in a run made of wire netting. Sometimes, one got out. Unfortunately, Titus would kill it and father would beat him. I did not like this so would hide any feathers I found. Mother took him in the hen run when she fed them and the cock attacked him. After that he killed no more hens.
Titus would attack other male dogs, however big. We were by the sea side, when Titus saw a large Alsatian. He attacked it, they had a fight. Father thought Titus was going to be killed, and he tried to separate them. Titus bit his thumb and would not let go. When he bit my father’s thumb, he thought he was biting the other dog. The owner came and got the Alsatian away. Father’s thumb bled badly but he recovered.
When Titus was about two we got a kitten we called Frolica. Titus chased cats but he never chased Frolica. One day we went for a walk and Frolica followed and Titus chased him. He suddenly realised who it was and came back to us with his tail between his legs, to say he was sorry. When we moved to Chilmark we took Titus with us, and Frolica stayed behind.
When Titus got old, one day he saw a dog in the road below our garden. He jumped over to attack it, but unfortunately a big lorry came and hit him, and he was killed outright. We were very sad to lose him. Titus was always affectionate and faithful. He was my first friend when I was a little girl.
Diana Forbes, April 2007
When my brother Andrew was three years old, recovering from polio, all he wanted was a white kitten. We were then living at Buckhorn Weston Old Rectory. Opposite us was a big dairy farm owned by the Honeyfields, who made big round cheeses. There were many cats there. We went over to choose a kitten. Andrew chose a ginger kitten with a white front, and we went to see this kitten every day.
 |
 |
Each day his mother hid him in a different place. One day she hid him in an empty milk churn. We got him out. When he was old enough, we took him home. Chris gave him a bed, earth box and fed him. She tied a cotton reel on a piece of string to a pipe for him to play with. We often heard him rattling it about when we were doing our lessons. When he was old enough we let him out in the garden. I liked to carry him about and got covered in scratches.
Our terrier Titus used to chase cats, but he got to know Frolica and never chased him. Frolica’s other names were Nelson and Napoleon, whom we had been learning about in history, but he was always known as Frol. When he became older he became a great mouser and ratter. Once my father saw him jump over the next door garden wall with a stoat in his mouth.
My father thought he was very strong and clever. When we moved to Chilmark we took Titus with us. My father tried to take Frolica, but when he stopped in Wincanton, he did not see Frol jump out of the car, so he lost him.
However, four weeks later the little cat turned up in the garden of our old home. We arranged for a neighbour to feed him. The house was still empty. A year later we went for a picnic in our old garden. Frolica was very pleased to see us so we took him home with us in the car to Chilmark.
Chris made a home for him in an outhouse. She buttered his paws and shut him in for three days and fed him well. When she let him out he settled down in his new home. There was a Magnolia bush climbing up the wall of our house. Frolica used to climb up it, and we would let him in at the nursery window. He grew into a big handsome tom cat.
In those days cats were not neutered and he must have fathered many kittens. We used to hear him yowling in the garden, and would go out to see three or four cats sitting, yowling at each other until, one by one, they ran off. We called it ‘Frolica’s cat parties’ and had fun watching them.
When we went away to Australia to visit the cousins we let the house to another family. They loved Frolica and looked after him well. They took a photo of him lying on his back on the sofa. Frolica lived to a good old age.
Diana Forbes, May 2007.
Ponies and Horses I have known
When we were living in Scotland at Limekilns, where my brother Andrew was born, I was given a ride in a basket on the back of a Shetland pony. I must have been 2 or 3 years old and unfortunately I can’t remember it.
The next pony I knew was Jackie, a white New Forest pony, who pulled my Grandmother’s lawn mower, wearing little leather boots. We used to be led out on him around the village of Brook, and I always wanted to trot, which was hard work for the groom and my father leading me. When he got to a wide grassy verge he wanted to canter, he jumped about and I came off, but my father put me back on again! My older cousins used to ride him too and probably enjoyed a canter.
My next pony friend was Jumbo. He belonged to our gardener George Norgate, and used to pull his Governess cart into market once a week. He once gave us a ride in it. Jumbo used to graze in our orchard and field, and Norgate used to lead me out on him round all the lanes at Buckhorn Weston.
There were very few cars in those days and Jumbo was frightened of them. Norgate used to turn him around and make him sit in the hedge as he said, and I was scared. He said his daughter Joyce was brave and didn’t mind.
Once we were waiting in our yard to go for a ride when someone dropped a dish with a loud clatter! This scared Jumbo and he trotted off with me on his back out of the gate and down the hill through the village till he came to a grassy verge, where he started to graze. I slipped off and waited for Norgate to come and collect us.
Maurice Flower who then lived at Cleeves Farm, sometimes lent us the pony Jim, which he kept for John and Martin, his boys. Once my father led me and Jim past the Manor Farm, and onto the down beyond, which was then unfenced. Jim decided he wanted to go home. He pulled my father over and dragged him down the slope on his stomach. Father held on to the halter and luckily he stopped. Father got up and all was well; I stayed on!
Later on, my uncle in Ringwood gave us a Forest pony called Jerry. Father rode him over to Chilmark by bridalways. Jerry taught me to canter by running away with me up the Happy Valley. I found I could stay on! I rode him everywhere around Chilmark, sometimes along the Ox Drove to Groveley Wood. I used to stretch up and pick hazel nuts off the bushes in the autumn.
Father sometimes used to hire a horse and ride out with me. We explored Great Ridge Wood. Once we got lost and found ourselves going down to Chicklade rather than Chilmark. We went around the outside of the wood and found our way home; by then it was getting dark!
Jerry had been a racing pony at Ringwood and always wanted to be in front when he was with other ponies and horses. If he had to stay behind he would go at a jog and trot all the way, which was very tiring.
However, on his own he was a lovely pony to ride, and like all forest ponies was very sure-footed and rarely tripped or stumbled.
I was very sad when I came home from boarding school for the holidays and found he had been put down, because he was too old to be ridden anymore.
Just before the Second World War, my father bought a mare called March Brown, and I rode her around quite a lot and so did he. However, when war was declared, father sold the car and sold March Brown and tried to join up in the Navy. However, they said he was too old, so he became an Air Raid Warden instead.
March Brown had not been well trained and was scared of going through gates – she used to rush through and tended to bump one’s knees on the gatepost if you were not very careful, so perhaps it was just as well she was sold.
She was not as sure-footed as Jerry, and once fell over with me when trying to gallop home from Happy Valley down a steep, little slope. However, neither of us was badly hurt. Father was pleased with me because she had mud on her brow band, proving she had fallen over!
After the war we all went out to Australia, to stay with my uncle, who ran a sheep station out there, near Bombala. There were about 10 horses on the station. Each stationer had his own horse and would walk out to get it. Every morning they came clattering down the hill from the field, walking over the little bridge over the river, and each went to his own stable, where he found his feed waiting for him. He was then groomed and got ready for work.
I was lent a lovely mare called Shirley. She was very well trained, and I used to ride out with the men, and help round up the sheep and cattle, or whatever was necessary. When we came, there was an unusual heavy fall of snow and we had to feed hay to them all. After that we had to round up all the sheep, and bring them into the yard to be dipped. Shirley had been trained to stay where she was left, if the reins were dropped over her head, and not walk more than a few paces. Once I rode her to the dressmaker and left her outside while I tried on my dress.
Later on I took a job teaching a family on an isolated station near Young, a town in the far west of New South Wales. They had several horses and ponies, and I used to enjoy riding out to collect the bread and the mail, which was left by a gate about 9 miles away.
On Sundays I used to ride to the chapel for a service. They had C of E, RC and chapel services in the little chapel on alternate Sundays.
I also used to enjoy milking one of the cows by hand. They had a big pack of dogs, and the men used to go out every day to hunt and kill rabbits, which were a plague just then.
Later on we went to stay with cousins up in New England near Armidale. Sometimes they took the young bulls to shows. They had to learn to be led on a halter. I was lent a lovely mare called Renandie. I used to ride out with my cousins to help round up the cattle. There were lots of fallen trees and branches, and Renandie was very sure-footed and would jump over them. She also knew how to separate one cow from the herd, and was very clever when this had to be done.
When I went out to Australia again in 1988, the men were using little motor bikes instead of horses, to round up the cattle. This was not nearly as much fun. They still had a few horses.
In 1951 I went out to Germany, to Fallingbostel, near Hanover on the Lűneburger Heide. I was with the Seventh Hussars, who had been a mounted regiment, but now drove tanks. They still had horses, and when they were out on exercise in their tanks, the wives and I would exercise the horses.
I was teaching a class of children, and Jane, one of my pupils, had a pony. So I used to ride out with her over the countryside. There were wide, grassy tracks leading to little isolated farmsteads, ideal for riding. I also taught myself to jump over small fences, as I had never been taught and only did it over fallen branches. One horse I was fond of, and used to ride around on, used to buck me off sometimes, but I managed to keep hold of him.
When I came home from Germany I lived at home for a while with my mother, who was getting old. I bought myself an ex-hunter called Battle, because he came from Battle in Sussex, where the Battle of Hastings was fought. He lived in our orchard and on the grass patch round the tennis court at Chilmark House, as I had no fields then. He used to be tethered out on grass patches around the village. He also grazed in the new Rectory paddock by Hindon Lane. This new Rectory was sadly burnt down after being lived in by about five different families. We used sometimes to make hay there.
My friend Jane, who was secretary to Mr Beresford at Manor Farm, kept a forest pony, and we used to ride out together. We explored most of the paths in Great Ridge Woods and made a map of them. I used to take Battle out on hikes and picnics with the cub scouts and girl guides, and they would enjoy having rides on him.
There was a family living at Stone Dial (now called The Dial House), with two boys, who had an Exmoor pony called Surprise, who lived in their little paddock at the back. I used to take them out on Surprise. I rode Battle. When they went away they wanted to sell Surprise, so I bought her as a companion for Battle. By then I had been given the money to buy Kents Hill Fields, so they lived there with nine heifers belonging to Peter Simmonds, who also looked after the fields and hedges, and made hay there.
I started giving riding lessons to some of my pupils, as I had a small class of children who came daily for school. My mother became ill and I gave up the school, but continued to give riding lessons to children in the village.
I then started to buy more ponies for them. Mrs Martin Flower sold me Bluey, as she was too much for her little boy, who had been coming to my school. Bluey was a little Welsh pony. With regular exercise she became better behaved, but still loved to overtake me on Battle. She needed a very strong rider.
Soon after this I bought a New Forest pony. I rode him myself to teach him manners. I then had some good riders among the local children, so they came with me to see a 9 year old hunting pony, 14 hands, called Ashley. The children rode him and jumped him. They loved him, so I bought him.
I then acquired Snoopy, a dark bay forest pony. He and Ashley became great friends.
For a little while I owned Gambler, a Welsh cob. Although he was a lovely ride, he used to buck me off. I decided he was a bit too strong for me, so I sold him to Wilton Riding School.
Then we bought Puffin, another Welsh pony from a family in the village. She was a very good jumper. In the summer we would go to gymkhanas at Steeple Langford and Codford. I had several gymkhanas here at Chilmark. However, all good things come to an end. The ponies got old, and had to be put down, except Snoopy, who I kept on to ride myself for a few years until we both got too old.
I still hear from some of the children I used to teach. Several of them still ride, and we all look back on happy times together with the ponies.
July 2007.
When I was growing up, I was very keen on becoming a Girl Guide. There was no company in our village. Mother did not want me to join Tisbury Guides, so my friend and I became Loan Guides. We received a monthly letter giving us things to learn and do. We enjoyed this, but unfortunately our captain became ill and had to give up.
At boarding school I joined a company and gained my second class badge, and astronomer’s badge. My father taught us to recognise some stars and constellations, such as the Great Bear and Orion. In the Navy they had to know certain stars, to guide them on their way at night.
We used to go up on to our roof at night, where we had a wonderful view of the heavens. Once, during the war, there was a wonderful view of the Northern Lights – Aurora Borealis. I made a painting of it in my nature note book.
One hot day in summer at my boarding school, St Margaret’s, Bushey, we carried our mattresses and bedding out onto the playing field and slept outside. Of course we had a wonderful view of the sky, and some of us got our astronomer’s badges.
As I got older I dreamed of starting a guide company in Chilmark, and camping in the old quarry. My brothers and I used to play and light fires for cooking, and make homes in the caves.
When I left my boarding school at the age of 17 I came to live at home for 2 years before I could go to the Charlotte Mason’s Training College. The quarries were then sold to the RAF. The Gething family who owned them, moved away to Donhead.
Mary Gething used to run the Dinton Girl Guides. She asked me to take over. Of course, I was much too young and inexperienced, but she had trained some very good leaders among the girls. They ran the weekly meetings for me.
I learnt to drive the car and used to take some Chilmark girls to the meeting. Then I found two friends to take over the Dinton company, and started our own company. Mrs Jones, head of Chilmark School, was most encouraging and let us meet in the school. The children then stayed at Chilmark School till they were 14 and went to work.
Miss Jane Allen then ran a guide company at Hindon. She invited us to join the camp at Golden Cap, near Lyme Regis. We had a wonderful time there. Several girls from Dinton came with me. Chilmark girls were very shy.
When I went to college, my aunt, Mrs Forbes from Codford, took over the Chilmark company, helped sometimes by her daughter Joan, who was training to be a nurse at Great Ormond Street. I carried on in the holidays when I was home.
I went to a guider’s training camp run by Irene Usher, the Wiltshire Camp Advisor. I very much enjoyed it, especially crawling through the woods on a stalking game, coming out smelling of garlic, of which the wood was full! I have liked the smell ever since. My father took me over and pitched my tent, a small triangular one they took on fishing holidays in Ireland. When he had gone I was made to take it down and pitch it myself in a different place. Here I learnt to cook potatoes and cut up a cabbage.
War then broke out. My brother Andrew joined the Navy. Colin was still at Radley College, but when home kept watch at night with the Home Guard under Col. Marshall Smith. Our Chilmark guides acted as patients for the Red Cross training under Dr Clay, and collected waste paper and stored it in our granary.
In term time I was at college in the Lake District. We had games, pretending to stalk parachutists.
In the summer holiday I ran a camp for local guides in Fonthill Abbey Woods. My cousin Joan was very popular with the girls and led wonderful campfire sing songs. Our Chilmark carrier Mr Ted Street took me and our bell tents and cooking things in his lorry.
At that time the girls has palliasses to sleep on, which the girls filled with straw which we bought in bales. Mr Street’s daughter Pam, about 9 years old, came for the ride. Of course, when he came to take me and the equipment home, the straw was all loose, and poor Mr Street did not want to load it on his lorry. However, I persuaded him, as we had to leave everything tidy, and he relented.
Miss Usher came down to inspect our camp, as I hoped to pass my camper’s licence, but unfortunately my college friend who was quartermaster, had left a joint of meat outside the store tent. Of course, Miss Usher noticed this and said a dog might have made off with it. Also we had not made a proper bed rack and camp furniture from sticks, as we should have done, so I failed, but all the same it was a very happy camp and we all enjoyed it.
Some of us went to early communion at Fonthill Gifford Church. We hadn’t noticed the change of time – Double Summer time had arrived an hour early. We also went to an 11 o’clock service, and enjoyed sitting in the cool church, as the weather was very hot that day. Mr Sutcliffe took the service.
October 2007.
In time Miss Palmer, who was the infant school teacher at Chilmark School, became our lieutenant, and much enjoyed being quartermaster at our guide camps. She trained under Lady Betty, who was a great guider Miss Palmer started the Chilmark Brownies, who were very popular for a number of years. We then held meetings in the Reading Room.
After the war Dr Clay asked me to start a Wolf cub pack in Fovant, where they already had a boy Scout troop. Brenda of the Cross Keys Inn was to help and we started a very happy group of boys meeting in the field above the inn, or in St George’s Hall in the winter. After a while Chilmark boys joined and the pack moved to Chilmark. There was a pack in Hindon, and in time we all joined up in Chilmark. The Hindon pack was run by Mrs Baker.
We used to go for hikes, and cook sausages etc on our camp fire. We often took my horse called Battle, and the boys loved to have rides on him. The guides enjoyed him too on their hikes. Every summer we had a guide camp. The first was a great success. Heather Chasmar and Carol Scott were very keen camp helpers, and Miss Palmer was quartermaster. Her first camp was in Dinton Park. I then passed my camper’s licence.
Cubs at Fovant
In subsequent camps we camped at Redlynch, Brook, in the New Forest and at a farm between Corfe and Swanwich, near Weymouth, and finally a Wiltshire camp in Fonthill Park, where we visited the stables and the lovely garden by the big house. Miss Vera Flower used to help with games with the cubs. She was a great personality and leader in Chilmark, and the boys were very fond of her. She was an aunt of John Flower. Many villagers will remember her. Miss Jane Barrington Ward (Mrs Hammond as she is now known) helped at home and took a meeting at Fovant when I was away. When I became ill in 1972, ending in an ileostomy operation, the guide company came to an end, though the Brownies under Miss Palmer carried on for a few years. The Cubs also came to an end, though Mrs Hayward carried on for a while. When I was home again, I started my riding school, which was very popular for some years.
November 2007.
In 1953 I came home from Germany, after teaching a class of children, whose fathers served in the army, keeping order in Germany after the war. I then worked on my friend’s dairy farm in East Knoyle, milking Guernsey cows. I enjoyed getting them in from the field in the early morning, and helping to get them milked in time for the lorry which came early between 8am and 9am.
I had learnt to hand milk with Joy Williams on Charlie Wilkins’ farm, in the war. After the war, my friend Jane Barrington Ward had been secretary on the Manor Farm, and she also helped to milk their herd of Guernsey cows. She taught me to machine milk there on Sunday afternoons. In the week I was teaching a class of local children in our home at Chilmark House.
At this time I owned an ex hunter, 10 years old, called Battle. He had been born at Battle in Sussex, where the Battle of Hastings was fought.
Cub hike with Battle and Judy
A family lived at Dial House. There were two boys who owned a pony called Surprise, who lived in the little field at the back of the house. I used to take them in turns on Surprise with me when I rode Battle.
When they left Chilmark, they wanted to sell Surprise, so I bought her as a companion for Battle, who lived with some heifers in my field. The heifers belonged to Peter Simmonds.
I then started to give riding lessons first to Stella and Tessa Flower and Malcolm Sutton who came to my little school. Surprise was rather cross and used to bite and kick people she didn’t like. Malcolm used to hold her and tell her stories to keep her quiet while the others groomed her. The children rode in our old tennis court and also in the little enclosure round it, where they learned to canter.
After practising in the field, we went for a walk and trot round the village. Then we’d unsaddle and put Surprise back in the field with Battle. In the winter we’d give them their hay.
Gay Trotman, the Rector’s daughter, used to come with me and we’d go for quite a long ride on Saturday mornings. After a while more children wanted to learn to ride, so I bought Bluey, a little Welsh pony from Mrs Martin Fowler. She was too lively for her son, Graham.
Cub pack, with Miss Vera Flower, in the garden of Chilmark House,
looking onto The Street (Spring 1967).
looking onto The Street (Spring 1967).
When still more children came I got a New Forest pony, who was also too much for the boy who owned him. I rode him myself and taught him to jump. He became very popular among the older children. I gave up my little school when my mother became quite old. The riders were easier to put off if she was unwell. However, she kept well and was looked after by Muriel Harding and Mrs Eva Trigwell, who were very good to her. So the riding lessons went ahead. The children enjoyed learning to catch, groom and saddle the ponies and do their feet. After my mother died I moved to Cheriton.
Once we appeared on television in a documentary about the Nadder Valley. The children were thrilled.
As the years went by, we had gymkhanas, inviting children around with ponies to take part. We raised some money for charities. We also had pet shows, when children brought rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and even insects. Once we had a dog show, which was great fun. My dog Patch won the jumping. I used to spend the summer making rosettes out of ribbon for the prize winners. The children were quite happy with these.
December 2007
My family moved to Chilmark House in 1930, when my father retired from the Navy. During the war he was on the Parish Council. He was in charge of footpaths and bridleways. Once every year he would walk along all the footpaths in the Parish to make sure they were still open.
Before the RAF took over the old quarries there was a footpath above the old quarries to the south of the road. It continued west from the present footpath across the big field to Lady Down. My father used to walk along it to visit a friend in Chicksgrove. It came out by the telephone box and old school in Chicksgrove and turn off to the (Poplar) Inn.
Some of us in Chilmark and Chicksgrove would like to see it reopened. It would be a matter of putting stiles to cross the fields, and opening up the old RAF barriers round their land. I hope maybe this may be achieved, probably through the parish council.
March 2008
WANTED – good home wanted for 5 year old Labrador – German Shepherd cross. Friendly and obedient, loves walks and running in fields. I hope to be here until the autumn.
Apply Miss Forbes, Cheriton, Barn Hill, Chilmark SP3 5BQ. Tel: 01722 716223
March 2008
If you can tell the age of a lane or road by the number of different kinds of bushes and trees that grow in the hedges, Hindon Lane must be at least 1000 years old. Originally, it would have been a track way leading up past Manor Farm and crossing the ancient Ox drove and going up Warminster Bottom, crossing the A303 and going through Great Ridge Wood where the old track way still leads down to Codford with branches off to Stockton and Wylye and westward to Heytesbury and Warminster. There used to be an old signpost in Sutton Veney pointing up a track to Chilmark.
We can imagine wagonloads of grain being pulled by strong carthorses with bells hung above them on their way to different markets. Some of these bells used to be hung by the entrance of Manor House when I was a child.
The village winterbourne rises from springs in Kent’s Hill fields that border our lane on the south side. The springs form pools by the hedge when they rise. The water flows through a pipe into the ditch then goes under the road into the stream. These pools never freeze and are a haven for thrushes, blackbirds, redwings and fieldfares in the winter frost and snow. Also, the ponies love to paddle and drink from them.
Bushes of Snowberry grow along the side of the lane while beyond the garden on the north side of the lane, Yew, Beech, Horse chestnut and Sycamore trees grow.
There is a streambed behind the bank on this side of the road that fills with water when the springs are high. No doubt the tall trees soak up much of the water helping to prevent flooding.
Further up the lane, different bushes grow. Blackthorn has long sharp spikes making a strong hedge to keep the cattle in. It provides sloes to flavour your gin, or excellent jelly. Sloes are very bitter but when frosted you can eat them raw. Hazel gives us nuts in autumn and pea sticks if allowed to grow tall. This part of the hedge has been laid. This allows it to grow thick and strong from the base. It need not be laid again for seven years. The sides just need trimming back in the winter.
Hawthorn gives us beautiful white May blossom in the spring and red haws for the birds in autumn. Sycamore provides seeds used as aeroplanes by children. Ash provides strong sticks and good firewood. Spindle has beautiful red berries that split to show bright orange seeds; these are poison.
Maple has winged seeds that spin when thrown in the air. Kipling called this the warmest tree in the wood. It has rough brown bark and bright red and orange leaves in autumn. Privet is evergreen with black berries. Elder berries can be used to make wine or to flavour apple jelly. Whistles can be made from its hollow stems. There are a few Elm suckers that grow into small trees. These soon die when attacked by the elm bark beetle
From Nadderfocus website
Prayer said before pony riding
Oh God our Father
You are so great and wonderful
You have made the mighty mountains
And the rivers and the seas.
We know you love even the smallest creature
You have made.
We will praise you every day.
Amen.
Prayer said before pony riding
Oh God our Father
You are so great and wonderful
You have made the mighty mountains
And the rivers and the seas.
We know you love even the smallest creature
You have made.
We will praise you every day.
Amen.
(From Service of Thanksgiving programme for Diana, 7th August 2008)
Addresses by Members of Diana’s Family, given at her Thanksgiving Service at St Margaret’s Church, Chilmark, on Thursday August 7th, 2008.
My Aunt Diana
Diana was my aunt. She’s in my very earliest memories, when we visited my grandparents in Chilmark. Diana was born in London. The family moved around in her early years – her father, like mine, was in the navy.
At a time when women mostly waited for chance to determine their lives, Diana was a professional. She studied as a teacher in the Charlotte Mason College in Ambleside. The special teaching philosophy followed there was the foundation of the PNEU movement. The college motto was “I am, I can, I ought, I will” – and Diana certainly put this into practice, as all who knew her would agree.
During WWII she worked on a farm, assisting with dairying, and after the war she lived in Germany for a while, teaching forces’ children.
Back in Chilmark, Diana lived with my grandparents in Chilmark House (where I was born). She loved to travel, and spent extended periods in Australia, which she loved. Only recently she went on a Baltic cruise.
Watercolour of Chilmark House, by Neil Pattenden
Three strong strands ran through Diana’s life – children, animals and the natural world.
She loved children. Her teaching qualification enabled her to set up and run a little school in Chilmark in earlier days. Many a parent here has cause to be grateful to her for the Cub, Guide and Brownie packs she set up and ran.
I must mention Diana’s animals. I remember her delightful cats – Tom Kitten and his colleagues. There was a succession of dogs from Judy through Patch and the enthusiastic Bobby, who now has a new home to the great relief of the local cats. She’d want us to mention her ponies – Battle, Puffin, Forrester, Ashldy, Bluey, our own dear Donna, and Snoopy.
Nature and wildlife were another important theme in Diana’s life. She taught us children the names of the birds and the wildflowers (and thank you so much for the wonderful flowers in the church – many of them wildflower arrangements. I could name them if I concentrated for a few moments, I’m sure).
These interests came together in Diana’s riding school. She loved having her stable and fields so close to her house.
As many of you will know, she has given her lower field to the village, specifically so that local children can continue to play in it. She has left specific information in her letter to you – cowslips grow on the slopes, and the water in the lower part is enjoyed by the birds in spring.
In the last few weeks Diana lived in Albany House in Tisbury. I must pay tribute to the staff there – in particular Helen, and Dr Mahendran – they couldn’t have been more kind and caring.
How do I think of Diana? Cheerful, positive, independent, and pragmatic. Many people say - gentle and kind. Her nieces, nephews, and other family will agree she was very generous. She gave to many, many charities, assisting people and wildlife causes all over the world. She gave a lot of happiness to many people.
It’s sad Diana has left us so suddenly, just as she was making a new life in Albany House, making yet more friends, as she always did. But this is how she’d have wished it to be. For us, though, I feel we can ill afford to lose someone who, above all, was a good person.
Dr Suzanne Keene (niece)
Diana, my Great Aunt
I am Madeleine, and Diana was my great aunt.
For two summers when I was about ten years old, I went to stay with Aunt Diana during the school holidays along with my best friend, Geraldine. For a few days we could leave dreary suburban life behind and imagine that we were enjoying the kind of blissful countryside childhood that until then existed only in our well-thumbed pony books.
I expect that for many elderly ladies, the prospect of having two over-excited schoolgirls to look after might have seemed quite daunting. But Aunt Diana seemed utterly unfazed by our visits and, in turn, we quickly fell into her routine. Well used to handling ponies and dogs, she applied the same instinctive patience, kindness and ability to be unshakeably firm when it mattered to us - and it worked.
Geraldine and I were allowed to do pretty much as we pleased - to walk the dogs, explore the countryside and, best of all, care for the ponies. In the evenings we would cook supper together, and quite often this would be followed by an adventure of some kind. I remember us piling into the back of the car, dogs and all, to go badger watching late one night, or driving up a dubious unpaved track in the pitch dark to reach a wood that Aunt Diana knew had a nightingale living in it. Whether or not we ever actually saw any of these mysterious creatures is another story... but I will never forget the excitement of rattling around the narrow country lanes in the middle of the night, with this wonderful spontaneous grown-up who was as excited as we were about the owls and rabbits and bats glimpsed in the wobbly headlights.
As a child, staying at Aunt Diana's was like a trip to a foreign country, where none of the usual rules applied. We learned how to cook simple meals with vegetables from the garden, to mix the various animals' food, the intricacies of the recycling policy and the importance of watching Neighbours every day - to the horror of my parents when I returned home. Aunt Diana liked to eat muesli with yoghurt on it in the morning, a concept which seemed utterly exotic and incomprehensible at the time. Now, as with so many things, I can see that she was on to a good thing all along - it just took me a little while to catch up.
I will miss Aunt Diana for many reasons, and as I grew older my relationship with her changed too. But I know I will always remember the excitement of those summer holiday adventures and the generosity of Diana, always happy to listen to my stories and show me new things. She taught me how to pick out a horse's hoof; that the secret of a good macaroni cheese is a little bit of Colman's mustard in the sauce; and above all, that it is not material things which bring us happiness but kindness, patience and faith, along with a sense of wonder and appreciation for the world around us that Diana somehow managed never to lose.
Miss Madeleine Forbes (great niece)
Remembering Diana – Ruan and Matthew and Fran
Ruan is the youngest of Diana’s relations – just 10 months old. He is her great great nephew, and as you can see, is very happy to be here talking to everybody here today. Glah GLah Gla Glah Glah Ogala Ogala Glaah Glaa!
Ruan got on very well with Diana and she cherished him. He was surprisingly calm in her arms and not at all nervous of her although he’s often shy of being held by people he doesn’t see every day.
To celebrate his arrival Diana knitted him one of her special holy blankets – warm soft wool in a psychedelic pattern - Ruan loves it.
She shared his first Christmas with all the family and he visited her twice here at Chilmark – nature walks featured on all occasions!
The last time we visited, we went for a walk with Diana and she showed us around her garden, swinging her legs one at a time high over the barbed wire fence at the back into the field beyond, showing Ruan and I the rabbits and the route through the woods. She was astonishingly nimble for an 88 year old!
Diana with baby Ruan, (3 weeks old) 13th October 2007
Ruan seems to have Diana’s love of nature and laughed at her dog as he greets all animals he meets – he’d have loved to have ridden horses with her like his mum Fran did for all those years. Fran learned so much about nature and animals from Diana. She remembers Diana first showing her the Leonids storm of shooting stars on hot summer nights and camping in the Girl Guide tents on the lawn. Of course Diana’s own nature books and studies are legendary.
A guardian of children and curiosity as much as of nature, Diana’s thoughtfulness and interest in our interests was constant. No birthday went unmarked and her gifts always combined one of her special messages with something she knew we liked – sometimes with delightful randomness. Diana was all about care and love, and her natural gentleness softened her sometimes total singlemindedness! I loved our conversations, especially when they took unexpected turns because of a mishearing. I think we will always remember her leaning forward keenly, with a bright smile and magnified eyes, willing herself to hear even when she could not, and always taking the time and trouble to make sure she had grasped the important thing you were saying – even Ruan’s glah-glah-glah’s!
As a family we feel blessed to have been able to draw on Diana’s extraordinary rootedness and her absolute certainty. We know of no-one who was quite so much part of a place as Diana was of this village. To visit her, to be with her, was always somehow restorative; she connected us with our family history, and with the smallest details of the world she saw in her garden and in the village. We will miss her so much, but her character endures and we feel she will in some way always be with us.
Fran will show Ruan the shooting stars as Diana showed her, and will teach him to ride a horse as Diana taught her. So Diana will be present even in his childhood and you can be sure we will remind him of her, and tell him of how, in all these ways, she helped make some parts of him. Thank you Diana.
Matthew and Ruan Thomson xxx
Tributes from Diana’s Friends
The Dog and Pony Show
I have a wonderful and vivid memory of Diana – we hadn’t been in Chilmark that long, so we had not experienced one of Diana’s ‘events’. The day dawned, very wet, and we all trooped up the hill to Cheriton, bearing, in our case, a chicken (Henrietta) in a basket, and two dogs. The chickens were displayed in the garage, together with other assorted poultry; the dogs were to do their bit later on.
The ponies were trailing around in the mud, some making the small jumps, egged on by keen Mums and Dads, while their offspring tried manfully to keep astride the reluctant beasts. Other gymkhana-like games followed. Everyone won a rosette, hand-crafted by Diana, and prizes galore.
The fun didn’t end on the field. Inside Diana’s fairly small bungalow tea was served. The spare bedroom was the showcase for stick insects and cage birds. It was just such an amazing afternoon – no end to Diana’s enthusiasm and energy.
Outside the rain bucketed down. But now it was the dogs’ turn, over the jumps (or under, in the case of Bertie, our stroppy Jack Russell). The secret of success in this class was for the handler to be young and nimble. As I wasn’t either, we didn’t stand a chance!
But what a memorable day – very English, and very typical of a splendid and loveable lady.
Jane Middleton
Memories of Miss Diana Forbes
Diana has known my family since she came with her family to live in Chilmark in 1930. As a teenager I was in the Kingfisher Group of the Girl Guides, of which Diana was the leader. She would often take us on a ramble, with one of her horses, Battle. We would take it in turns to ride Battle.
In 1983, my husband Brian started building a bungalow next door to Cheriton, where Diana lived, and she would often come in to see how it was growing. In 1997, Brian, myself and our dogs moved into the bungalow called Brioli, where we still live.
On Sunday afternoons I go to the church and chime a few hymns on the church bells. Diana would sit outside in her garden and listen. When I returned home she would talk about the hymns I had chimed, and tell me how much she had enjoyed singing along, and how nice it was to hear the old tradition of hymns being played on the bells.
Throughout the last 11 years Diana was a lovely neighbour – the best neighbour we ever had. She never complained about anything, and she would contact us if she had a problem that we could deal with, but she was a very independent person.
We miss Diana living next door and we are hoping that the next neighbours are going to be as nice as Diana.
Olive Thick
A 1st Chilmark Girl Guide’s Tribute to Miss Forbes
Let me take you back to the year 1963, which was when I first met Miss Forbes, my Guide Captain.
I was duly enrolled into the 1st Chilmark Girl Guide Company on May 17th 1963, on the start of an adventure into a love of Guiding until this day. Miss Forbes was Guide Captain and Miss J Palmer was Lieutenant. Meetings were held either at Chilmark House or Chilmark Reading Room in winter, and the Old School room next to the Church in summer.
1st Chilmark Girl Guides and Brownies after Church Parade at St George’s
Church, Fovant,1964. Miss Forbes, Guide Captain is 1st right on 3rd row back:
Miss Palmer, Guide Lieutenant and Brown Owl is 1st left on 2nd row back
Church, Fovant,1964. Miss Forbes, Guide Captain is 1st right on 3rd row back:
Miss Palmer, Guide Lieutenant and Brown Owl is 1st left on 2nd row back
Captain took us on pony hikes during the summer, on Battle and Surprise. I happened to be on Battle on one very memorable occasion, with Miss Forbes by my side. We were going through a field of cows, when I spotted a bull! I started to blurt out “Captain, there is a bull over there”, when she hastily said “Ssh, I know, but don’t tell the others!” Benjy (dog) came too. All was well as said bull didn’t take any notice of us. At least I might have made my escape on Battle (horse)!
Captain loved nature and wildlife and many’s the time she would point out a bird or animal. This was not very advisable when she was driving us along Chilmark Lane, e.g. Captain:-Oh look, there is a rabbit over there!” whereupon the car mounted the bank, as Captain was also looking at the rabbit!
At the end of meetings, Winter and Summer, there were new camp fire songs to learn, and old favourites sung with gusto. Then there was camping every year at various locations, including Swanage, Tavistock in Devon, The New Forest and Roche Court at Winterslow.
We slept in Bell tents, and in the middle of a fine, dry night, captain got us up to make us storm pitch our tents, as there was a storm forecast. We duly did as we were told, but it turned out to be a false alarm!
Bell tents at Swanage Campsite, 1963
Captain loved wild flowers, and her favourite was the dandelion.The patrols of Chilmark Guides entered a County Challenge, in which different tasks had to be successfully completed. I was then the Patrol Leader of the Blue Tits. One of the tasks was to cook a foreign dish of our choice, one of the ingredients being aubergines. Miss Forbes sampled it, along with the Tester, and afterwards said that she would feed it to her chickens! They did survive!
Uniforms had to be smart, and were worn with pride, as every week there was inspection. The tie had to be three fingers above the Guide Belt, the Trefoil enrolment badge cleaned back as well as front, the Beret on properly, and the two pockets on the Guide Blouse had to contain a pencil, paper, string, large clean white handkerchief, safety pins and 4d (4 old pennies) for a phone call. Our subscription (Subs) was 2d weekly.
Miss Forbes was patient, calm, musical, sometimes absent-minded, kind, honest and fair. She taught me so much that has prepared me for life, and I kept in touch with her over the years, until her death. Eventually I was an assistant Guider, helped with Brownies at Wilton, and am now in Sarum Trefoil Guild, which I joined when I completed Guider’s duties.
I so wanted to take a bunch of dandelions to her funeral, being her favourite flower, but didn’t. So if you see some dandelions on her grave, you will know who and why.
Be Prepared is the Guide Motto, and Miss Diana L Forbes certainly instilled that within me. God bless you Miss Forbes, my Captain and guide.
P.S. I still have my Guide Uniform, complete with pocket contents, badges, promise badge, belt, lanyard, tie and 1st Chilmark name tape sewn on the shoulder. Also a log book of my time as a 1st Chilmark Girl Guide.
Mrs Shirley Clift (nee Cole).
Miss Forbes, what a lovely lady
Miss Forbes, what a lovely lady. I first met Miss Forbes about 30 years ago as a young girl from the village, eager to learn how to ride a pony. Little did I know how much I would learn and experience.
Miss Forbes was a great lady, kind, compassionate and very knowledgeable. When I look back to my childhood, I have so many happy memories, many of them thanks to her.
We (numerous children of Chilmark and the surrounding villages) were so lucky to have the ‘Miss Forbes experience’, to be taught not only how to ride, look after and care for a pony, but so much more. I fondly remember standing in the stable yard before our rides, each of us saying a few words in prayer. In the early days of riding, I absconded from Brownie Camp, desperate not to miss my lesson! Had Miss Forbes realised my actions I think I would have been marched back to camp!
The highlight of the year (maybe every other) was the gymkhana. At the time I did not appreciate how hard Miss Forbes worked to organise such events for our enjoyment, and I treasure the rosettes I won, all carefully crafted by Miss Forbes.
Another favourite was our ‘picnic rides’. A group of us, some riding, cycling or walking, would head off with our picnic into the countryside. Pony rides at the village fete were a regular and popular attraction, and great fun to be involved with.
Sadly, my children will probably never meet anyone quite like Miss Forbes. I can only hope that maybe I can pass on some of her wisdom. Thank you Miss Forbes.
Clare Johnson (nee Dommett)
