A Visit To The English Lakes.

A VISIT TO THE ENGLISH LAKES .

WE have just taken tickets for one of Cook ' s circular tours in the Lakes , after having spent a few very enjoyable days on the Yorkshire Moors . It is their tour No . 12 , and the route is as follows : —From Leeds to Skipton , thence to Clapham ( for the caves ) , Grange-over-Sands ,. Lake Side , up Windermere Lake to Bowness and Ambleside ; coach via Grasmere , Dunmail Raise to Keswick , rail to Troutbeck , coach to Ullswater ( Patterdale ) , coach via Brother ' s Water and Kirkstone Pass to Amblesidereturning via Windermere

, Lake to Ulverston , Carnfortk , and Leeds , or vice versa . We intend to go to them in the order mentioned ; and ours is the deli ght of those who have never seen the Lakes before . The train starts immediately , and we bid " Good-bye " with merry hearts ready for anything . What a blessed institution Cook ' s tickets are ! A little book , and the whole of your plans are arranged and your troubles , over . We tear joyously away from smoky crowded Leeds . A briht

g , cheery morning it is , too , and seems to augur well for the rest of our journey . We travel along the —— " Aire , whose crystal waves reflect The various colours of the tinctured web , "

when we come across that neat little town , " renowned Saltaire , " with its immense factory , founded by the late lamented Sir Titus Salt . " Secraesteretl in this lovely dale , Here Art and Wealth at length prevail . " On—on we speed , with the moors on both sides of us , and the purple heather looks quite dazzling in the morning sun . Soonhoweverthey assume a

, , more imposing height , and the majestic forms of Pennygant and Ingleborough , with their surrounding fells , come into sight , — " By lofty hills bounded , and furze-covered moors . " It is here , at the foot of Ingleborough , we purpose breaking our journey , to visit the Clapham Caves . The way lies through the pretty and tastefulllaid

y out grounds of Ingleborough Hall , belonging to Mr . Farrar ; they are of parklike extent , with a good-sized lake in the centre . We , at last , find the cave , with its peculiar opening , after wandering about for two hours . It differs from those in Derbyshire in having a flat roof ; and the stalactites and stalagmites are in great abundance , though not very pretty . The cave is divided into two parts , the old and the new , according as they were discovered ; the

stalactites , etc ., in the former are brown , and in the latter white . Through the whole cave runs a small stream , collecting in rather dangerous pools here and there ; it swarms with white rats and fresh-water Crustacea . Our guide names the several parts as we proceed . The "Vestibule" or "Eldon Hall , " " Pillar Hall , " " Abyss , " "Jockey ' s Cap " ( a stalagmite supposed to have taken 265 years to grow ) , ' " Belfry , " " Giant ' s Hall , " and " Church Bells , " a series of

stalactitic formations from which he produces a weird effect by tapping them with a stick : they give out a musical sound not unlike church bells in the distance . Our visit over , we trace our steps back to the village , and get some tea . My companion , in his usual easy-going manner , causes us to miss the last train for Ambleside ; so , with many stoppages , we only get as far as Grange . The journey there is rather novel , travelling with the sea on both sides of us for miles . Grange is picturesquel y situated on a richly-wooded slope of Yewbarrow , and commands an entire view of Morecambe Bay . The houses rise neatly one above another in tiers , framed in the foliage of the trees .