At Stowe, in the parish of Kilkhampton, adjoining Morwenstow, lived Sir Bevil Grenville, the Bayard of old Cornwall, “sans peur et sans reproche,” who fought and conquered at Stratton, and fell at Lansdown. Sir Bevil nearly ruined himself for the cause of his king, Charles I. One of Mr. Hawker’s most spirited ballads is— THE GATE SONG OF STOWE. Arise! and away! for the king and the law; Farewell to the couch and the pillow: With spear in the rest, and with rein in the hand, Let us rush on the foe like a billow. Call the hind from the plough, and the herd from the fold; Bid the wassailer cease from his revel; And ride for old Stowe when the banner’s unfurled For the cause of King Charles and Sir Bevil. Trevanion is up, and Godolphin is nigh, And Harris of Hayne’s o’er the river; From Lundy to Looe, “One and all!” is the cry, And “the king and Sir Bevil for ever!” Ay! by Tre, Pol and Pen, ye may know Cornishmen ‘Mid the names and the nobles of Devon; But if truth to the king be a signal, why, then, Ye can find out the Grenville in heaven. Ride! ride with red spear! there is death in delay: ’Tis a race for dear life with the devil! If dark Cromwell prevail, and the king must give way, This earth is no place for Sir Bevil. So at Stamford he fought, and at Lansdown he fell: But vain were the visions he cherished; For the great Cornish heart that the king loved so well, In the grave of the Grenville it perished. One day, if indeed we may trust the story, Mrs. Hawker, the first wife of the vicar of Morwenstow, when lunching at Stowe in the farmhouse, noticed that a letter in old handwriting was wrapped round the mutton-bone that was brought on the table. Moved by curiosity, she took the paper off, and showed it to Mr. Hawker. On examination it was found that the letter bore the signature of Sir Bevil Grenville. Mr. Hawker at once instituted inquiries, and found a large chest full of letters of different members of the Grenville family in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. He at once communicated with Lord Carteret, owner of Stowe, and the papers were removed; but by some unfortunate accident they were lost. The only ones saved were a packet extracted from the chest by Mr. Davies, rector of Kilkhampton, previous to their being sent away from Stowe. These were copied by Miss Manning of Eastaway, in Morwenstow; and her transcript, together with some of her originals—I fear not all—is now in the possession of Ezekiel Rous, Esq., of Bideford.[6]