But see, -where erst by Piety uprear'd,
A cross,* now prostrate, shows the fatal spot
Where fell the luckless hunter. Crag and cliff,
And faithless bog, and swollen impetuous flood,
To him were things familiar; and he dared,
With eagle-eye and lion-heart, the chase
Far o'er the echoing forest. When the morn
Broke o'er the brow of Mistor, loudly peal'd
His merry horn; and, as the red-deer sought
The mazes of the shadowy vale, or swept
Swift o'er the mountain's side, the manly voice
Of the old English yeoman made the air
Ring with exulting accents. Him the fox
Sagacious shunn'd, and on the wolf, the bear,
He pour'd his gallant pack; till foe on foe
Strew'd the victorious moorland. Yet he fell
Where he had triumph'd.-On the gloomy heath
The snow-storm raged terrific. Long he press'd
His noble steed; and well o'er hill and dale,
By treacherous morass, through flashing stream,
And path but dim-descried, that faithful steed
His much loved master bore. But every track
Quick disappear'd ; and now the northern gale
More fiercely blew-chilling his heart-blood, till
Benumb'd, bewilder'd, hopeless, and alone,
The mournful eve closed o'er him, and he slept
His last;-the hunter slept!

NOTE 24.
The luckless hunter.

From time immemorial a tradition has existed in the Moor, and is noticed by several authors, that John Childe, of Plymstock, a gentleman of large possessions, and a great hunter, whilst enjoying that amusement daring an inclement season, was benighted, lost his way, and perished through cold, near Fox tor in the south quarter of the forest; after taking the precaution to kill his horse, and, for the sake of warmth, to creep into its bowels, leaving a paper denoting that whoever should bury his body should have his lands at Plymstock.

" The fyrste that fyndes and brings me to my grave,
The lands of Plymstoke they shal have."

Childe having no issue had previously declared his intention to bestow his lands on the church wherein he might be buried, which coming to the knowledge of the monks of Tavistock, they eagerly seized the body and were conveying it to that place; but, learning, on the way, that some people of Plymstock were waiting at a ford to intercept the prey, they cunningly ordered a bridge to be built out of the usual track, thence pertinently called Guile Bridge, and succeeding in their object, became possessed of and enjoyed the lands until the dissolution, when the Russell family received a grant of them and still retains it.

In memory of Childe a tomb was erected to him in a plain a little below Fox tor, which was standing about 15 years since, when Mr. Windeat, having received a new take or allotment, in which the tomb was included, nearly destroyed it, by appro- priating some of the stones for building and door steps. Its form at that time is correctly preserved in the annexed vignette. It was composed of hewn granite, the under basement comprising four stones, 6 feet long by 12 inches square, and 8 stones more, growing shorter as the pile ascended, with an octagonal base-ment, above 3 feet high, and a cross fixed in it. The whole when perfect, wore an antique and impressive appearance. A socket and groove for the cross and the cross itself, with its shaft broken, are the only remains of the tomb, on which Risdon says there was an inscription, but no one recollects any traces of it.

* The Author found the remains of this cross last summer.

[Text may be taken from a different source or edition than that listed as the source by Somers Cocks.]