236 MINERAL WATERS AND MEDICINAL SPRINGS OF ESSEX.
it has never been known to fail ; and there is a constant running off of the
surplus. It was once the only water-supply to the few cottages near. The East
London Water Company has now extended its mains to some of the houses.
The well goes by the name of Brick Well, the Bricken Well . . . and the
Wooden Well, according to fancy and local usage. There are other wells near,
notably the one at Paulatim Lodge, in Whalebone Lane."
Mr. Christy has visited the well and corroborates the
accuracy of Mr. Tasker's description. The dome of brickwork
covering the well (fig. 5) looks as though it might have been
built in the Eighteenth Century, but has been repaired quite
FIG. 5.—ST. CHAD'S WELL AT ILFORD
(from a photograph by Miller Christy).
recently. It stands actually in a roadside ditch, but the spring
is said to be some fifty yards distant, in a field, the owner of
which claims the well. The water is perfectly clear and has
neither taste nor smell. The surplus constantly runs off into the
ditch. A man living in the vicinity of the well stated that it was used
formerly for the cure of sore eyes and other ailments, but that it
is used also for domestic purposes by the cottagers living near.