he probability of a forgotten battle having taken place in
the pass between the hills. A religious house dedicated to St. Andrew
is conjectured to have existed at one time in or near the village.
Monkish records relate that a ship hailing from Dunkirk and having on
board a monk named Balger was driven into Seaford by a storm. This
Balger was of an enterprising turn; making his way inland he helped
himself to the relics of St. Lewinna, a British convert, which reposed
in St. Andrew's Monastery. The adventures that overtook the relics and
their illegal guardian during the journey back to Flanders make up a
medieval romance of much interest and throw a curious light on the
mental attitude of the religious, as regards the rights of property,
during the Dark Ages.

[Illustration: FIRLE BEACON.]

A mile farther along the high road is the turning which leads to Glynde
station and village, for which the most pleasant route is over the
hills. The name is possibly a Celtic survival and describes the
situation between opposing heights. "Glyn" is common throughout the
whole of Wales. The church is in a style quite alien to its
surroundings and might well belong to Clapham or Bloomsbury. It is a
Grecian temple built about 1765 by the then Bishop of Durham, Dr.
Trevor, and here the Bishop was buried. There are few more charming
groups of cottages in Sussex than this beautiful village. Glynde Place,
the seat of a former Speaker of the House of Commons, boasts the
largest dairy in Sussex if not in England; between 700 and 800 pounds
of butter are made here daily. John Ellman, the famous breeder of
Southdown sheep lived here for nearly fifty years (1780-1829.)

A short way farther, on the main road, is a turning to West Firle, on
the east of which is the fine Firle Park belonging to the Gage's, a
very ancient local family whose tombs and brasses may be seen in the
church. The pedestrian is advised to press on to Firle Beacon from
which a descent may be made to Alciston (pronounced "Aston") on the
high road. The heap of flints on the summit of the Beacon is 718 feet
above the sea, and therefore the hill is not so high as it looks, nor
is it, as was formerly supposed to be the case, the second highest
summit of the Downs. The view is superb both northwards to the Weald
and southwards over the Channel. Alciston calls for little comment, the
charm of the place consists in its air of remoteness and peace. The
small church is partly Norman