28
DEDICATION OF HAINHAULT FOREST.
Road entrance to the woods, to meet the Earl and Countess
Carrington, Mr. Evan Spicer, J.P., Chairman of the Council,
Mr. Stuart Sankey, Chairman of the Parks and Open Spaces
Committee, and Mr. E. N. Buxton, J.P. The party then went
in carriages and on foot for an inspection of parts of the Forest.
This afforded those present a good opportunity of appreciating
what the restoration will mean to the people who will henceforth
resort to it. Unfortunately the day lacked the sunshine needed
to reveal the full and varied beauties of the landscape. Obscured,
save for a moment, was the view from Cabin Hill, whence,
on a clear day, it is possible to see the dome of St. Paul's. But
the rolling downs, the thickets and the charming glades of
Hainhault were pleasant to look upon even under grey skies,
and it required little imagination to conjure up a vision of this
picturesque tract in the years to come, when the young oaks and
beeches, the hornbeams and other forest trees planted since the
land was secured shall have grown to sturdy "tree-hood." The
watching of this upgrowth and the study of the plant-associations
gradually forming, the incoming and disappearance of various
kinds of plants as the development of the woods proceeds, will
furnish true Nature-students with abundant occupation for
generations yet to come.
On Cabin-Hill a platform had been erected, and here the
ceremony of dedication took place, the waiting company of
several thousand people being entertained with an excellent
musical performance by the Council's Park Band.
Mr. Spicer presided. He read an address to Earl Carrington, in which the
Council expressed their thanks to him, and added an appreciation of the fact
that his lordship, as an owner of large estates, recognised the responsibility of
such a position and assisted in every way in giving facilities for the people to reap
full advantage from the proper use of land. Closely associated with interesting
phases in the history of England, the Forest would, the Council believed,
provide a most acceptable resort to Londoners. The recovered forest contained
801 acres, and it had cost £22,000, but thanks to the patriotic action of Mr.
Edward North Buxton—(loud cheers)—and the hearty co-operation of public
authorities, private donors and societies interested in preserving open spaces, the
amount the London County Council would have to pay was only £10,000
Earl Carrington said it was rather the fashion now to decry the efforts of the
London County Council. They had many critics, but he thought that even the
most hypercritical would not be able to find much fault in the work which had
been accomplished in acquiring this forest for the people. It would make a
magnificent playground for the people of London. The London County Council
had a meritorious record, at any rate, in their efforts to secure open spaces for the