About a mile and a half above the village, we came to a modern church,
which had been set down in the bottom of the valley, close to the
river-side. Entering, we found some curious memorials of the operation
of water, in the upbreak of the whole system of flooring and seating,
which now lay in irregular distorted masses, mingled with all kinds of
rubbish. Bibles and prayer-books still lay about among the seats, as
if the people had never so far recovered from the hopeless feeling
originally impressed upon them, as to put out a hand for the
restoration of order. The position of this church and its fate give
occasion for a remark which, if duly remembered and acted upon, may
save many a good building from destruction. It should be known, that
the meadow close beside a river--what is called in Scotland the
_haugh_--is not a suitable place for any building or town, and this
simply because it is, strictly speaking, a part of the river-bed. It
is the winter or flood-channel of the stream, and has indeed been
formed by it during inundations. Unless, therefore, under favour of
strong embankments, no building there can be secure from occasional
inundation. Thus, for example, a large part of Westminster, and nearly
the whole borough of Southwark, are built where no human dwellings
should be. The fair city of Perth is a solecism in point of site, and
many a flooding it gets in consequence.
Pages:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25