The Bay State Monthly — Volume 1, No. 5, May, 1884Various
History
The Bay State Monthly — Volume 1, No. 5, May, 1884
Various
Massachusetts -- Periodicals; New England -- Periodicals
Boar's Head is a promontory; its level summit of about a dozen acres,
sixty feet above the highest tide, clothed in the greenest verdure. It
is in the form of a triangle, the cliffs on two sides of which are
lashed by the waves of the restless ocean; while toward the main, the
land falls away gently to the level of the marshes. The hotel is situate
on the crest of this incline. From the veranda, which commands the
landward view, the prospect is wide and pleasing. To the north trends
Hampton Beach in a long sweep to Little Boar's Head and the shores of
Rye and Newcastle; inland are broad stretches of salt marsh, its surface
interwoven with the silver ribbon of the creek and stream; beyond are
glimpses of restful rustic scenes, improved by near approach; spires
pointing heavenward from all the peaceful villages, and, further away,
Agamenticus and the granite hills of New England; to the south, the
beach runs on toward Salisbury and Newburyport. But the great view from
Boar's Head is from the ocean apex of the promontory. Here, beneath the
grateful shade of an awning, with the waves breaking rythmically at the
foot of the cliff far beneath, one can sit and ponder on the immensity
of the ocean and dream of the lands beyond the horizon. From here the
whole seaboard, from Thatcher's Island to York and Wells, is in view;
the Isles of Shoals loom up on the horizon, while the offing is dotted
with coasters and yachts of every rig and construction. Calm, indeed,
must it be when no wind is felt on Boar's Head; and during those
exceptional days of the summer, when the land-breeze prevails, the broad
verandas around three sides of the hotel afford the most grateful shade.
The broad acres between the house and the bluff is a lawn for the use of
the guests, where croquet and tennis may be highly enjoyed in the
invigorating ocean air.
During the evening, when the atmosphere is clear, there are visible from
the Head thirteen lighthouses. When the shades of night and the dew have
driven the guests to seek shelter within doors, the great parlor affords
to the young people ample room for the cotillion or German, while the
reception-room, office, and reading-room lure the seniors to whist or
magazines. Of a Sunday, the dining-room answers for a chapel; and in
years past, the voice of many an eloquent preacher has echoed through
the room, and reached, through the open windows, hardy but devout
fishermen on the outside.
These same fishermen bring great codfish from the outlying shoals,
delicious clams from the flats, canvas-back duck, and teal, and
yellow-leg plovers from the marshes, to tempt the delicate appetite of
the valetudinarian.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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