Page:A tour through the northern counties of England, and the borders of Scotland - Volume I.djvu/152

 the bottom of this descent lies Crumford, a village containing about one hundred and fifty houses; full of natural beauty, and enlivened by the busy hum of human labour, carried on in mills, smelting-houses, cotton-manufactories, &c. Here the late Sir Richard Arkwright first established those wonderful machines which manufacture the cotton, from the raw state in which it is imported, to the finest thread; and not only produce an article far superior to that made by the former process, but perform all their operations with a tenth part of the hands which were before employed for the same purpose. This very animated and interesting picture continued to the narrow pass into the vale of Matlock, hewn by Sir Richard Arkwright through the mountain that forms the western barrier of this enchanting spot.

Here a scene burst upon us at once, impossible to be described—too extensive to be called picturesque, too diversified to be sublime, and too stupendous to be beautiful; but at the same time blending together all the constituent principles of these different qualities. Through the middle of this valley flowed the Derwent, partially discovered amid the trees which adorn its banks; before us, on the eastern side of the river, stood the elegant stone mansion of Sir Richard Arkwright, backed