It was at Penshurst that Edmund Spenser, Sir Philip’s friend, wrote his first work, the Shepherd’s Calendar, and though Sidney did not actually write his famous poem Arcadia in his beautiful Kentish home, its scenery must have suggested many of the descriptions.  Algernon Sidney, who was illegally put to death through Judge Jeffreys, was the nephew of Sir Philip, and he is supposed to be buried in Penshurst Church, though no monument remains.  The present owner of Penshurst is Lord De Lisle and Dudley (Sir Philip Charles Sidney (died 1851) was given the peerage in 1835), who allows visitors to view the historic mansion on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, from 3 P.M. to 6 P.M. (admission 1s.).  The great feature of the house is the baronial hall, built in 1341, which has a hearth in the centre of the room.  The Queen’s drawing-room, said to have been furnished by Queen Elizabeth, contains some interesting Tudor furniture, and the satin tapestry which adorns the walls is also believed to be the work of the virgin queen and her maidens.  There are many valuable and interesting portraits of the famous members of the Sidney family.  In the beautiful grounds of Penshurst is an oak tree, planted, says tradition, at the time of Sir Philip Sidney’s birth.

[Illustration:  Photochrom Co., Ltd.

PENSHURST PLACE.

Which was built in 1349, was the home of Sir Philip Sidney.]

ST. MICHAEL’S MOUNT AND MARAZION

=How to get there.=—­Train from Paddington.  Great Western Rly. =Nearest Station.=—­Marazion. =Distance from London.=—­324-3/4 miles. =Average Time.=—­Varies between 8-1/2 to 11-1/2 hours.

                     1st 2nd 3rd
=Fares.=—­Single 50s. 2d. 31s. 6d. 25s. 1d. 
          Return 87s. 10d. 55s. 0d. 50s. 2d.

=Accommodation Obtainable.=—­“Godolphin Hotel,” “Marazion Hotel,”
  etc.

Marazion, the nearest town to St. Michael’s Mount, is situated on the eastern side of Mount’s Bay, and was in the Middle Ages a place of some importance, being the headquarters of the pilgrims to St. Michael’s Mount.  Marazion is connected with St. Michael’s Mount by a causeway 120 feet in width, formed of rocks and pebbles, and passable only at low tide for three or four hours.

The mount itself is a remarkable granite rock, about a mile in circumference and 250 feet high.  It was referred to by Ptolemy, and is supposed to have been the island Iclis of the Greeks, noticed by Diodorus Siculus as the place near the promontory of Belerium to which the tin, when refined, was brought by the Britons to be exchanged with the Phoenician merchants.  Its British name was equivalent to “the grey rock in the woods,” a traditional name, apparently confirmed by the discovery of a submarine forest extending for some miles round the base of the mount.  The beauty of the spot caused it to be selected by the