Deep country begins south of the Bourne, with the first Surrey bridge
over the Wey, or rather one of the two Weys that are to join at Tilford.
Untouched as yet by any town, the little river runs here over gravel and
sand, clear and weedy. Trout lie under the bridge below Pierrepont
House, in George III's day a seat of Evelyn Duke of Kingston, who named
it after his family. He was the Duke who married the beautiful Countess
of Bristol when her lawful husband was still alive: perhaps she used to
stare into the Wey at Pierrepont and wonder whether it was worth doing.
[Illustration: _Beside Frensham Pond._]
Frensham stands a little distant from the river, just a cottage or two
and a church. But the church holds a famous relic--an enormous caldron
of beaten copper. Nobody knows its age; everybody has a story about it.
It was brought by the fairies, is one tradition; it was nothing of the
kind, is another. Mother Ludlam, the witch of Moor Park, four miles
away, used it for boilings and philtremakings, according to one story;
yet another connects it with a great stone which used to lie in the
neighbourhood. John Aubrey, the antiquary, who "perambulated" Surrey in
1673 and 1674, gives the legend in full:--
"In the vestry of the church, on the north side of the chancel, is
an extraordinary great kettle or caldron, which the inhabitants say,
by tradition, was brought hither by the fairies, time out of mind,
from Borough hill, about a mile from hence. To this place, if any
one went to borrow a yoke of oxen, money, etc., he might have it for
a year or longer so he kept his word to return it. There is a cave
where some have fancied to hear music. On this Borough hill (in the
Tithing of Cherte, in the parish of Frensham) is a great stone lying
along, of the length of about six feet: they went to this Stone, and
knocked at it, and declared that they would borrow, and when they
would repay, and a Voice would answer when they should come, and
that they should find what they desired to borrow at that Stone.
This caldron, with the trivet, was borrowed here after the manner
aforesaid, but not returned according to promise; and though the
caldron was afterwards carried to the stone, it could not be
received, and ever since that time no borrowing there....
"The people saw a great fire one night (not long since), the next
day they went to see if any heath was burnt there, but found
nothing."
[Illustration: _Frensham Pond Hotel._]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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