Duke of Buckingham died, are two of the oldest buildings of any size that now remain.  An inn, a little lower down the street has a picturesque porch supported by carved posts, bearing the name “William Wood,” and the date 1632.  Kirby Moorside has preserved, in common with two or three other villages in the neighbourhood, its Christmastide mummers and waits.  The mummers, who go their rounds in daytime, are men dressed as women.  They carry a small doll in a box ornamented with pieces of evergreen and chant doggerel rhymes.

The beautiful scenery of Farndale and Kirkdale comes as a surprise to those who visit Kirby Moorside for the first time, for the approach by road in all directions, except from the north, does not lead one to suspect the presence of such impressive landscapes, and from some points Farndale has quite a mountainous aspect.  The moors no longer reach the confines of Kirby Moorside, as its name would suggest, for cultivation has pushed back the waste lands for two or three miles to the north; but from that point northwards all the way to Guisborough the wild brown moorland is broken only in a few places by the fitful cultivation of the dales.  The church of Kirkdale, and what quarrying has left of the famous cave, stand just at the point where the Hodge Beck leaves its confined course and flows out into the flat levels of the Vale of Pickering.  It is only, however, after very heavy rains that the stony course of the stream at this point shows any sign of water, for in ordinary weather the stream finds its way through underground fissures in the limestone and does not appear above the ground for a considerable distance.  The little church of Kirkdale, remarkable for its Saxon sun-dial and other pre-Norman remains, is surrounded by masses of foliage, and the walk up the dale from this point to the romantically situated Cauldron Mill is one of remarkable beauty.  As one follows the course of the beck higher and higher towards it source north of Bransdale, the densely wooded sides become bare, and wide expanses and the invigorating moorland air are exchanged for the rich land scents and the limited views.

[Illustration:  The “Black Hole” of Thornton-le-Dale.  An underground cell beneath some cottages which was formerly the village prison.]

The village of Lastingham is surrounded by beautiful hills and is almost touched by the moors that lie immediately to the north.  The Church has already been described, and we have heard something of the strange story of the ingenious methods for increasing his income of a former curate-in-charge.  Cropton occupies a position somewhat similar to that of Newton, being on high ground with commanding views in all directions.  The little church is modern, but it has the stump of an ancient cross in the graveyard, and commands a magnificent view towards the west and north.  It is in connection with this cross that a curious old rhyme is mentioned in an old guide.