back to Roman times and may very likely have been used in still earlier days. The boundary then turns along the Blackwater, and though it does not always follow the present course of the stream, it keeps near to it for some eight miles, until we reach the Blackwater Bridge on the London and Southampton Road. This is another ancient crossing-place, and here the counties of Berkshire, Hampshire, and Surrey meet. The Berkshire and Surrey boundary now runs in a north-easterly direction, through the grounds of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, up a small stream to a place named Wishmoor Cross, possibly the site of a cross in former days, and evidently a well-known place, for five parishes meet there. From this point the boundary crosses the forest district of Bagshot Heath, celebrated in connection with highwaymen, and eventually reaches the Thames near Old Windsor. In old maps it will be noticed that there are detached portions of Berkshire surrounded by Oxfordshire, and also detached portions of Wiltshire partially or wholly surrounded by Berkshire, but in modern times the county boundaries have been much modified for purposes of convenience. Thus an Act of Parliament was passed in 1844 to annex detached parts of counties to the counties in which they are situated. This Act transferred from Wiltshire to Berkshire parts of the parishes of Shinfield, Swallowfield, and Wokingham. Shilton and Little Faringdon were transferred from Berkshire to Oxfordshire, and part of Inglesham was given to Wiltshire. The boundaries of counties were still further simplified by an Act of Parliament of 1887, one of the objects of which was to arrange that no Union, Borough, Sanitary District, or Parish should be in more than one county. 4. SURFACE AND GENERAL FEATURES. We have already mentioned that Berkshire may be divided into three natural divisions. The northern or Vale of White Horse district is for the most part rather low-lying ground, but there is a small range of hills along the course of the Thames or Isis from Faringdon towards Oxford. Badbury Hill, 530 feet above the sea, and Faringdon Clump, 445 feet, are quite prominent from a distance, and some of the other hills from Buckland to Wytham look imposing when seen from the river. Much of this district was to a large extent swampy and boggy ground in old days, and a part of it is still spoken of as "the moors" by the country people. Some of the village names end in "ey," suggesting that they were islands in the marsh district. Goosey and Charney are examples. A good deal of the district is stiff clay, and there is difficulty in getting a supply of good water, hence we find a number of towns and villages, like Wantage for instance, close to the chalk downs, where there are many springs.