Direct east stands exalted in noble majesty the isolated WREKIN, the _natural Heart of Shropshire_, in front of which appears the exuberant foliage surrounding Longner Hall. Directing the eye southwards, is Charlton Hill, bounded by the towering summit of the Brown Clee (1820 feet in height), and the Lawley, Acton Burnell Park, Frodesley, and other Shropshire hills, among which is the lofty Caerdoc, otherwise Caer Caradoc, where Caractacus (the last of the original British princes) is said to have displayed his patriotism and daring spirit against the united efforts of the Roman forces. Onward in the horizon, beyond a remote cultivated country, is the Longmynd with its straight outline, and the Stiperstones, topped by rocks, similar to the august relics of castellated grandeur; these are connected by the Bromlow and Long Mountain; and the panorama terminates with the lofty mountains of Breidden, Cefn y Cayster, and Moelygolfa, which, with more distant eminences, form a fine back-ground to a portion of the town, while the middle distance all around is unequalled for richness and fertility. Nor, whilst extolling the environs and distant scenes around, let us forget the immediate vicinity of the Column: its verdant pastures, sequestered lanes, stately trees, and rural scenery, are surpassed by none so near a populous county town. THE TOWN AND COUNTY GAOL Is situated on a dry, beautiful, and salubrious eminence, a short distance from the Castle. The front of the prison displays rather a bold appearance, having two rusticated stone lodges and a gateway in the centre; over the latter is a bust of the philanthropic HOWARD, by Bacon. The interior possesses every necessary convenience appropriate to its purpose that sagacity and humanity can devise. It is spacious, airy, and well supplied with water, by means of a pump worked by the prisoners. The governor’s house faces the gateway, and forms the southern front of the building. The chapel stands in the centre of the whole, and is lighted by a lantern surmounted by a gilt cross. It is octagonal, and contrived that while all the prisoners may see the clergyman, every class is so separated as to be hid from each other. The prison is further divided into eight principal courts, besides other smaller ones; these are surrounded by cloisters with groined arches; above these are the sleeping cells, the communication to which is by railed galleries. A due regard to the gradations of vice is strictly observed in the classification of the prisoners, most of whom are occupied during the day in some little manufactory or useful employment, by which habits of industry are acquired that may protect them from temptations to plunder or misconduct when released from confinement. Executions take place on the roof of the porter’s lodge.