A Child's History of England

A Child's History of England

CHAPTER I

part of these Islands. Ireland is the next in size. The little neighbouring islands, which are so small upon the
Map as to be mere dots, are chiefly little bits of Scotland, - broken off, I dare say, in the course of a great
length of time, by the power of the restless water.
In the old days, a long, long while ago, before Our Saviour was born on earth and lay asleep in a manger,
these Islands were in the same place, and the stormy sea roared round them, just as it roars now. But the sea
was not alive, then, with great ships and brave sailors, sailing to and from all parts of the world. It was very
lonely. The Islands lay solitary, in the great expanse of water. The foaming waves dashed against their cliffs,
and the bleak winds blew over their forests; but the winds and waves brought no adventurers to land upon the
Islands, and the savage Islanders knew nothing of the rest of the world, and the rest of the world knew nothing
of them.
It is supposed that the Phoenicians, who were an ancient people, famous for carrying on trade, came in ships
to these Islands, and found that they produced tin and lead; both very useful things, as you know, and both
produced to this very hour upon the sea-coast. The most celebrated tin mines in Cornwall are, still, close to the
sea. One of them, which I have seen, is so close to it that it is hollowed out underneath the ocean; and the
miners say, that in stormy weather, when they are at work down in that deep place, they can hear the noise of
the waves thundering above their heads. So, the Phoenicians, coasting about the Islands, would come, without
much difficulty, to where the tin and lead were.
The Phoenicians traded with the Islanders for these metals, and gave the Islanders some other useful things in
exchange. The Islanders were, at first, poor savages, going almost naked, or only dressed in the rough skins of
beasts, and staining their bodies, as other savages do, with coloured earths and the juices of plants. But the
Phoenicians, sailing over to the opposite coasts of France and Belgium, and saying to the people there, 'We
have been to those white cliffs across the water, which you can see in fine weather, and from that country,
which is called BRITAIN, we bring this tin and lead,' tempted some of the French and Belgians to come over
also. These people settled themselves on the south coast of England, which is now called Kent; and, although
they were a rough people too, they taught the savage Britons some useful arts, and improved that part of the
Islands. It is probable that other people came over from Spain to Ireland, and settled there.
Thus, by little and little, strangers became mixed with the Islanders, and the savage Britons grew into a wild,
bold people; almost savage, still, especially in the interior of the country away from the sea where the foreign
settlers seldom went; but hardy, brave, and strong.
The whole country was covered with forests, and swamps. The greater part of it was very misty and cold.
There were no roads, no bridges, no streets, no houses that you would think deserving of the name. A town
was nothing but a collection of straw-covered huts, hidden in a thick wood, with a ditch all round, and a low
wall, made of mud, or the trunks of trees placed one upon another. The people planted little or no corn, but
lived upon the flesh of their flocks and cattle. They made no coins, but used metal rings for money. They were
clever in basket-work, as savage people often are; and they could make a coarse kind of cloth, and some very
bad earthenware. But in building fortresses they were much more clever.
They made boats of basket-work, covered with the skins of animals, but seldom, if ever, ventured far from the
shore. They made swords, of copper mixed with tin; but, these swords were of an awkward shape, and so soft
that a heavy blow would bend one. They made light shields, short pointed daggers, and spears - which they
jerked back after they had thrown them at an enemy, by a long strip of leather fastened to the stem. The
butt-end was a rattle, to frighten an enemy's horse. The ancient Britons, being divided into as many as thirty or
forty tribes, each commanded by its own little king, were constantly fighting with one another, as savage
people usually do; and they always fought with these weapons.

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