WOOD HALL,-CUMBERLAND.

This mansion, delightfully situated on the banks of the river Derwent, in the parish of Bridekirke, overlooks the fine venerable ruins of Cockermouth Castle; and commands the most picturesque views, comprising magnificent scenery in mountains, rivers, and woodlands.

Wood Hall, together with the manor of Bridekirke, was at an early period vested in the Priory of Guisborough; but when, at the dissolution of religious houses, this, with other monastic estates, was seized upon by the crown, Henry VIII. granted them to Henry Tolson, Esq., and to his heirs for ever, to be held in capite, by the twentieth part of a knight's fee, on yielding to his majesty's successors the annual rent of twenty-six shillings. A descendant from this proprietor, leased or sold the estate of Wood Hall to Mr. Grisdale, the ancestor of the present possessor, I. S. Fisher, Esq., who resides at the mansion. Major Richard Henry Tolson, F.S. A. is the existing representative of the ancient family, named above.

The present structure is a modern erection; but the original edifice occupied part of a Roman station. It subsequently became the retreat of Henricus, a Saxon; one of those who excelled in olden magnificence, by having a dais in the hall for the reception and entertainment of his guests, and, at the lower end, a bower, or recess, where he retired to rest. In a stream of water which ran through the premises into the river Derwent, he is also said to have baptized his children. Near the windows of the hall, the vallum and walls were sufficiently thick to form a vestibule, in which conversation might be held, yet not be heard in the room.

The building, exhibited in the engraving, is a truly enviable retreat; seated on a considerable elevation, in the midst of a picturesque amphitheatre, it commands the most delightful prospects, bounded by wood-covered eminences, or terminating with the distant mountains. The tortuous windings of the Derwent enrich the landscape, and confer upon it an air of surpassing loveliness. The river itself is not monotonous in its beauty: the glassy surface that, with the fidelity of a mirror, reflects the objects extending along its banks, is occasionally broken and relieved by the trout-leap foaming over its stony bed.

To those, if any there be, who have no relish for the charms of nature, as developed in the scene before us, the poet addresses a powerful remonstrance :

"Oh, how canst thou renounce the boundless store

Of charms, which nature to her votaries yields!
The warbling woodland, the resounding shore,
The pomp of groves, and garniture of fields,
All that the genial ray of morning gilds,
And all that echoes to the song of even."

CRUMMOCK WATER,-CUMBERLAND.

This Lake, situated between the lofty mountains of Grasmoor and Melbreak, is distant two miles east from Lowes Water, and extends within about three quarters of a mile of Buttermere. On its surface are three small islands, one a naked rock, and the other two covered with wood: owing to their contiguity to the shore, they contribute but little to the beauty of the lake. The head of Crummock Water is exceedingly fine; the middle part is remarkable for bold and naked grandeur; and at the foot is spread a rich profusion of wood. Like Buttermere, and many of the other lakes, it is well stocked with trout, &c. &c. This romantic solitude is invested with a sublimity attributed by fable to the regions that "mortal foot hath ne'er profaned;" and were it not for the shepherds and their faithful assistants, gathering their scattered charge, and the diminutive sails visible on the deep-shadowed wave, we might justly deem it the peculiar abode of silence, and

"The broad blue lake, extending far and wide,

Its waters dark beneath the light of noon,"

would picture to the imagination the classic Lethe.

If to "look through nature up to nature's God" is the legitimate object of refined and sensitive minds, in their contemplations of material beauty, scenes similar to that which we have described, cannot fail to excite emotions of reverence, and give enlarged conceptions of Deity. To recognize a supreme Power in the dark cloud and in the stirring wind, is not the mere simplicity of an untutored mind. Standing in those cloud-roofed temples "that human hands have never helped to pile," the philosopher and the peasant are alike compelled to acknowledge the presence of the "God of the mountains,'

"at whose will the clouds

Cluster around the heights, who sendeth them
To shed their fertilizing showers, and raise
The drooping herb, and o'er the thirsty vale

Spread their green freshness; at whose voice the hills
Grow black with storms."

The illustrative Engraving exhibits the central portion of Crummock Water, and is taken from a point between Scale Hill and Scale Force. The vast mountain of Grasmoor, its barren sides streaked with beds of shale, is seen robed with the thunder-cloud; and immediately in front, is the comparatively low but abrupt hill, called Randon Knot, extending a bold promontory into the lake. In the centre of the Engraving appear the rugged heights of Honister Crag; and the acclivity, in the foreground, on the right hand, is part of the Red Pike mountain. The foot of this hill, and the road along it, are merely sheep tracts, and form by no means a convenient route for the pedestrian tourist. He, however, who travels " in search of the picturesque," will not regard obstacles of this nature; a good staff, strong shoes, and a little patience, will enable him to make his way,

EPISCOPAL PALACE AT BISHOP-AUCKLAND, DURHAM.

This is the usual residence of the Bishop of Durham; the Castle, at the latter place, being only occasionally occupied by the right reverend prelate during his visits to the seat of his diocese. The present edifice, like that at Durham, is known indifferently by the name of the Castle, or the Palace. The original building is said formerly to have been a manor-house belonging to the see; afterwards castellated by Bishop Bek, who also built a large hall, and adorned it with pillars. During the commonwealth, this structure was placed in the hands of a violent partizan, Sir Arthur Hazelrigg; who, after demolishing nearly all the buildings, produced a magnificent mansion out of the ruins. At the Restoration, Bishop Cosins, who had been ejected from his palace by the puritans, was restored to his diocese; and by him the lordly erection of the before-named fanatic was levelled with the ground. The materials were then once more applied to their ancient uses, and great part of the now existing palace produced.

The building is somewhat irregular in its character, owing to the different periods in which the several parts were completed; and, having lost its castellated form, it now bears strong resemblance to some of the magnificent foreign Abbeys. The approach to the edifice is by an elegant gothic gateway, and skreen, erected by Bishop Trevor, after a design by James Wyatt, Esq. The principal apartments in the Palace are, a spacious old hall, and a magnificent dining-room, ornamented with excellent paintings of Jacob and the Twelve Patriarchs. The wainscoting, in one of the lower rooms, is decorated with the armorial distinctions of many potentates, contemporaries of Queen Elizabeth, together with those of sixteen peers attached to her court; and over all are emblazoned the heraldic bearings of every bishopric in England.

The approach to the Park, in which the Palace is situated, is particularly beautiful; the scene being varied by verdant slopes, rising grounds, woods, and deep precipices impending over the Wear, and enriched with landscapes composed of wild and irregular woodlands, bold cliffs, and eminences, mingled in the most picturesque manner.It has been remarked, that "language is too weak, and but few pencils are sufficiently powerful to delineate the rich scenery of Auckland Park." From a descriptive poem, by one of Bishop Trevor's domestics, the following lines, happily illustrative of the subject, are extracted :

"When Spring, advancing, clothes the laughing grove

In robes of green, embossed with blossoms pale;
When Autumn tinctures every fading leaf
With vivid dyes, from the refulgent gold
To the full-bodied tint of russet brown;
Say, can the pencil's warmest touch convey
The varied richness of the glowing scene?"

P