Page:Highways and Byways in Lincolnshire.djvu/284

 CHAPTER XXIII

ROADS FROM LOUTH, NORTH AND WEST

The Grimsby Group of Pre-Norman Towers—Waith—Holton-le-Clay—Scartho—Clee—Humberstone—Tetney—Ravendale—Ashby-cum-Fenby—Roads to Lincoln and Horncastle—Hainton—Glentham—West Rasen—The Pack-horse Bridge—Toft-next-Newton and Newton-by-Toft—Gibbet-posts—Middle Rasen—The Labourer—Market Rasen—North Willingham—Tealby and Bayons Manor—Bishop Odo—South Elkington—Road from Horncastle—The South Wolds—Tathwell—Jane Chaplin.

The road from Louth to Grimsby, in its first part, is described elsewhere; but north of Ludborough it passes through a succession of small villages in each of which is a very early church tower. These are all somewhat similar to the two primitive churches in Lincoln and to the famous one at Barton-on-Humber, but they have no "Long-and-Short" work which is distinctive of the Saxon towers, and so the term Romanesque perhaps best describes them. They are certainly pre-Norman. Similar groups have been described near Caistor and Gainsborough in Chaps. XVII. and XX., and others mentioned in Chap. XXII. It was a bright and breezy morning early in June when we set out from Well to visit this remarkable group. The trees were at their best, chestnuts and may trees still in bloom, and in the wayside gardens the laburnum with its "dropping-wells of fire" was a joy to see. As we passed along the wind brought the strong scent of the mustard fields and the delicious perfume of the beans, not badly described by the Barber to his wife as "just like the very most delicious hair-oil, my dear." The pastures were golden with buttercups, but the most wonderful sight of all was the profusion