From Oxford To London By Water*

Trent in every corner of the globe Avhere Englishmen are found ; Smining , with its church embowered in trees , ancl pleasant in garden beloAV the bridge—these are some of the scenes that will remain in our minds as we eat our well-earned supper in the comfortable Eerry Inn at Wargrave , or the more ambitious Eed Lion at Henley . From Henley onwards Ave seem to have reached more frequented waters . Steam launches—so handy for ladies , loungers , or picnickers , so execrated by oarsmen , anglers ,

and riparian proprietors , whose banks are damaged by their Avash—come puffing along as though the river belonged to them alone ; ancl pleasure parties of all sorts ancl sizes are more numerous . All this portion of the river , in fact , is becoming thoroughly familiar to hundreds of Londoners in " Saturday to Monday " outings . As we paddle doAA'n the Henley racecourse from the bridge to Eegatta Island , visions rise before us of many a gallant struggle for the " Grand Challenge " or the " Ladies' Plate , " at that

pleasantest of summer gatherings , Avhose fame has caused the quiet toAvn of Henley to become the metropolis , as it were , of amateur roAA'ing , no less than Putney itself . Further down , on a green laAvn backed by fine trees , stand the remains of Medmenhani Abbey , once famous ( or infamous ) as the chosen resort of a band of bebauchees , a disgrace to their position as English gentlemen . As Ave approach Marlow the scenery becomes more and more quietly beautiful , past Henley Lock and Bisham Woods ancl Abbey , until at last we halt at the Angler ' s Inn , among the trim villas of the

pleasant , cheery-lookmg little toAvn . Having duly refreshed and rested ourselves , ancl duly admired the huge stuffed perch and pike and trout AA'hich adorn the coffee-room , we start for our afternoon ' s pull , happy if only Ave are favoured Avith fine weather for the most beautiful part of our journey ; past Cookham , nestling among its trees on the river ' s edge ; ancl onwai'ds where the river glides beneath the lofty-wooded bank on Avhich . Heclsor and Cliveden and TaploAv Court form a line of " stately homes " of unsurpassed beauty . NoAvhere in EnglandnoAvhere perhaps in Europeis there a " vdla

, , residence " ( to adopt the auctioneers' phrase ) so strikingly placed as Cliveden ; the vieAv from whose terrace , embracing the line of wooded bank toAvards TaploAv Court , with the broad reach of Avater gleaming below , and the distant country beyond , is one of the most beautiful that can be found . So lordly a place is fitly OAvned by a peer in Avhom the ancient lineage and vast AA'ealth of the house of Grosvenor are adorned by the truer nobibty of high courtesy , of generous sympathiesancl of unsullied name . TaploAv

, Court , Avhose young owner , Mr . Grenfell , was one of this year ' s victorious Oxford crew , is Avell situated at the end of the ridge above Maidenhead , but does not command anything like so fine a view as Cliveden . The A'iew up-stream from the railway bridge , with Maidenhead bridge in the foreground , and the woods and tower of Cliveden beyond , is extremely picturesque , ancl has caught the momentary attention of many a railway traA'eller .

Windsor may Avell be reached on the evening of this , our third clay ' s row ; but of Windsor , ancl the scenery around ancl beyond it , there is little need to speak . We shall look admiringly on the truly Eoyal home of our English Edngs , set on its sovereign hill , Avith massive towers that seem to symbolise the strength ancl solidity of England , ancl are rich with the history of centuries ; and beneath it —•

The distant spires , tlie antique towers That erown the Avatery glade , " Avhere by "the study of godliness and good learning , " and also b y "The sports Avliioli lbi-eed Valiant lads for England ' s need , " the floAver of English youth are being trained to bear their part in life in the

classrooms ancl on the playing-fields of Eton . Lower down , beneath the eminence of Cooper ' s Hill , lies historic Eimnymeade , the birthplace of English liberties ; ancl so the " silver Thames" flows broadening on by Staines ancl Chertsey , Hampton Court , TAvickenliam , Teddington , ancl Eichmond , past many a spot endeared to anglers and pleasure-seekers , or classic from its connection with famous men , till at last Ave reach