Page:History of Manchester (1771), Volume 1, by John Whitaker.djvu/129

 ioo THE HISTORY Book I. Such was the ftation of Condate. And a road has been dis- covered commencing from it, traverfing a field immediately without, the caftrum, and frequently vifible in a dry fummer for the whole length of the field immediately beyond both. This is ordinarily called the Roman road, and muft certainly from . its dire&ion have 'gone to Mediolanum in Shropfliire. Another muft have courfed by Home-ftreet-Hall to Chefter. And a third muft have extended by Street- Forge and Rcd-ftreet toChefterton • near Newcaftle. This then is Condate, the ftation fo long loft and fb vainly fought. And that it has been loft and fought for long may juftly excite our admiration. The road pointing certainly to- wards Chefter, becaufe to Chefter one Iter of Antonine 'carries it, and pointing as certainly to the fouth or fouth-eaft of Chefter, becaufe another Iter of Antonine carries it into Shropfliire, the co.urfe of k might have been very eafily inveftigated. The fure fignatures pf Stretford Crofs-ftireet Street-head Street Holford- % ftreet and King-ftreet, names all occurring in the line, all pointing out either well-known villages confpicuous eminences . or public roads, and fonxe retained for feveral miles together, trace out the courfe of it in the plaineft colours. And the clear tradition of a Roman. camp and the fimilar appellation of Kin- derton, at the conclusion of the whole, afluredly fhed the fulleft light upon the genuine fite of Condate. The diftance of this ftation from Mancunium is fixed by the fixth Iter of Richard at thirty-fix miles, but in the tenth at twenty-three, and by the fecond and tenth of Antonine at only eighteen* In this diverfity of informations, we are fully at li- berty to chufe fuch of the meafures as beft agree with the real diftance, and to rejeft all of them if none agree. We need not the evidence of the numbers to afcertain the pofition of the caftrum. In the firft meafure of Richard, which reckons thirty-fix miles from Mancunium to Condate, he makes the remarkable infertion of a ftation betwixt the one and the other. This he or his tranfcxiber has ;placed at eighteen miles from both, and at the boundaries