This old house is now dismantled,
but contains many interesting features. A shuffle-board, or extremely
long table, with drawers and cupboards underneath, of which there now
exist scarcely any specimens, a cradle of great antiquity, and the fine
old wooden chimney-pieces in the front parlour, still remain.
A few places in Knutsford claim association with _Cranford_. One house
is pointed out as being Miss Matty's tea-shop. The Knutsford ladies
still gossip over toasted cheese and bezique. Mrs. Gaskell spent her
married life in Manchester, where most of her books were written, but
she used often to return and stay with her cousins, from whom she learnt
many of the quaint stories still told in Knutsford.
[Illustration: _F. Frith & Co._
KNUTSFORD.
The village described by Mrs. Gaskell in _Cranford_.]
TORR STEPS ON THE BARLE, SOMERSET
=How to get there.=--Train from Paddington Station. Great Western
Railway.
=Nearest Station.=--Dulverton.
=Distance from London.=--180 miles to Dulverton.
=Average Time.=--To Dulverton varies between 5 and 6-1/2 hours.
1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=--Single 30s. 9d. 19s. 3d. 15s. 4-1/2d.
Return 53s. 10d. 33s. 9d. 30s. 9d.
=Accommodation Obtainable.=--Dulverton--"Carnarvon Arms,"
"Lamb," etc.
One of the very earliest forms of bridge in England is to be seen on the
beautiful river Barle, about 7 miles above Dulverton. Torr Steps (the
name is locally pronounced Tarr) are a distinct advance upon
stepping-stones, for although the entire bridge is submerged in
flood-time, there are, in ordinary conditions, seventeen spans raised
clear above the level of the water.
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