THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB. 211
of Thorndon Hall, is a copse, and in this direction the common is covered with a
dense scrub of a oak and hornbeam. In more open parts bracken and ling prevail.
The woods are damp, and covered in parts with an undergrowth of fern, occasion-
ally swampy with elders and grey-sallows on their borders. A ravine separates the
upper part of the common from a grass-plot sloping to the south. It receives the
drainage of the swampy woods on the western border, and its sides are clothed
with briars, brambles, sallows, furze, and thorn."
The party then proceeded by way of Brook Street to Weald Park, and, although
even the paths in the fields, as well as the roads, were dusty, and more than three
parts of the way was up hill, the pleasant fresh aspect of the country in its early
summer dress was very charming and prevented any weariness by the way. At
the Langton Gate entrance to the park, the members were met by the owner, Mr.
C. J. H. Tower, J.P., D.L., and Mrs. Tower, who cordially welcomed the party to
their lovely park, esteemed to be one of the finest in the county. It abounds with
grand oaks, hornbeams, hawthorns, and other trees, and its undulating surface,
clothed in places with a rich expanse of fern, and clusters of wild hyacinths under the
shades of the woodlands, presented a most pleasing series of natural pictures as the
party traversed the glades under the kindly guidance of their host. Mr. Tower
pointed out the herd of fallow-deer, of very ancient date ; the herd of red-deer
introduced by himself from the well-known parks of the late Sir Watkin Wynn
and Lord Petre. The park also contains a few specimens of Japanese deer and
zebus, or Indian cattle; and a pair of Cashmere goats graciously sent by Her
Majesty to Mr. Tower, whose grandfather originally imported the stock in 1823,
and presented some to King George IV. in 1828, from whence those in the park
are descended.
Mr. Tower pointed out the site of the Encampment in the park, about which
very little is known. It is referred to in Morant's "History of Essex" in the
following terms : "By the south-west side of Weald Hall Park is a camp, enclos-
ing about seven acres. It is circular, and single-ditched, and is thought to have
been a Roman Summer Camp, or Castra Exploratum." Morant's position
appears to be an error, unless there were formerly two camps, and the size given
by him is too great. Mr. Miller Christy, who visited the camp in 1884, wrote
then in a letter to the editor :—
" Yesterday (February 3rd, 1884) Mr. H. Corder and myself noticed a camp
close to the S.E. corner of Weald Hall Park, about 3 acres or more in area, of
which less than one third is in the park, the rest lying in fields outside. A road
runs through it about 200 yards from the corner. It occupies high ground, falling
away more or less on all sides. The portion in the park is the head of a valley,
the side of which has been dug away, leaving a steep slope of some 15 feet, but no
wall or ditch. About one-third of the wall outside the park lies in a ploughed
field, and is not easily traced except by a slight hollow, and by the ground being
more stony ; the rest of the vallum now forms the bank of the field, but there is
little sign of a ditch."
The members could do little more than verify the general accuracy of Mr.
Christy's description. It was remarked that a road, as is So often the case, ran
through the camp, in a N. and S. direction. Mr. Tower said that so far as he
knew, nothing of antiquarian interest had ever been found in the camp;
they once dug out a litter of fox cubs, a task which occupied the men four days,
and they were presented to Mr. Arkwright for the Essex hunt ! Mr. Chancellor,
the Mayor of Chelmsford, pointed out the commanding position of the camp,
which he thought might have been a temporary earthwork thrown up to defend