This immense gorge2 of the Avon was created, according to tradition, A.D. 33, on the day of the Crucifixion, in the course of a world-wide earthquake accompanying that event. Then, according 7to that strictly3 unreliable story, the hills were rent asunder4, and the ancient British camps at St. Vincent’s and at Borough5 Walls and Stoke Leigh had the newly formed river Avon set between them. Geologists6 know better than this, but in the early years of the nineteenth century, when Miss Ann Powell sat upon the heights of Clifton and, contemplating7 the scene, was filled with great thoughts, which she eventually poured forth8 in the shape of something then thought to be poetry, the tradition was not considered to be so absurd as it now is. In her “Clifton, a Poem,” published in 1821, we learn some things new to history, especially as to the year A.D. 33. Then, according to Miss Ann Powell, the Romans were encamped here, in victorious9 arrogance10, and the very day of the Crucifixion chanced to be that which the Roman general had fixed11 for a reception of conquered British chiefs:
This day appointed as a day of state.
Unfortunately for the poem, the Romans were not in Britain at the time. They had not been here for eighty-seven years, since the last departure of Julius Caesar, in B.C. 54, and were not to land on these shores again until ten years more had passed: in A.D. 43. As a description of an earthquake which did not happen, and an account of disasters which did not befall people who were not here, the poem is a somewhat remarkable13 production. The authoress herself is so overwrought 8that she mixes past and present tenses. Let us see how Romans and Britons behaved under the appalling14 circumstances:
Now darkness fast the distant hills surround;
Beneath their feet, slow trembling, mov’d the ground;
High tempests rose that shook the stately roof,
Nor was the conqu’ror’s heart to this quite proof.
“Sure nature is dissolv’d!” the Roman cry’d.
“Sure nature is dissolv’d!” the guests reply’d.
And vivid lightnings separate the ground;
The crash tremendous fill’d each heart with fear;
Ah! now destruction’s hurl’d thro’ earth and sky;
Men seeking safety know not where to fly;
They through the ramparts run to make their way;
The Britons mount their horses—fly in haste:
No time in idle compliments they waste.
How delicious that last line! “No time in idle compliments they waste.” It flings us down from the heights of a world in pieces to the inanities18 of the “How d’ye do’s” of afternoon teas.
Clifton Suspension Bridge, opened in 1864, is a bridge with a romantic history. From the early years of the eighteenth century it had been proposed to bridge the Avon at or near this point, by some means, and thus save the descent from Clifton to Rownham Ferry, with the uncomfortable and sometimes perilous19 crossing of the Avon and the climb up to Abbot’s Leigh.
9The ferry at Rownham had been the property of the abbots of the Augustinian monastery20 of Bristol, from 1148, and was of necessity frequently crossed by those dignified21 churchmen, who in course of time, as the size and trade of Bristol increased, derived22 a considerable revenue from their rights here, which, at the Reformation, passed to their successors, the Dean and Chapter of Bristol, who in their turn were succeeded by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners23.
At this point was also a ford24, practicable at low water for horsemen, but, as the tide here rises swiftly and to a height of forty-five feet, it was generally of a hazardous25 character, as seems to be sufficiently26 shown by the fact that in 1610 one Richard George was drowned in thus crossing, while on December 27th of the same year the eldest27 son of one Baron28 Snigge, Recorder of Bristol, met a like fate. On the Bristol side stands, among other houses on the quay29, the Rownham Tavern30, and on the Somerset shore stood a somewhat imposing31 hostelry called the “New Inn.” The building of the last-named house of entertainment and refreshment32 remains33 to this day, but it is now a species of tea-garden and picnic place, with arbours in which on summer days parties may make modestly merry and listen to the murmur34 of Bristol’s traffic borne, like a subdued35 roar, across the river. In the rear of the old house, the single-track Bristol and Portishead branch of the Great Western Railway runs at the foot of the cliffs and 10presently tunnels under them, below the Suspension Bridge.
The first person ever to put into shape the old aspirations36 of Bristol for a bridge across the gorge of the Avon at this point was Alderman Vick, of Bristol. He died in 1753, leaving by his will a sum of ￡1,000, to be invested until the capital sum reached a total of ￡10,000, a sum he imagined would be sufficient to build a stone bridge here. For seventy-seven years this generous bequest37 accumulated as he had willed, and by 1830 had reached ￡8,000. It was then felt, as engineering had already made great strides, and as the suspension principle had been tried in various places, successfully and economically, that the bridging of this gulf38 should no longer be delayed. It had long been evident that ￡10,000 would not nearly suffice to build a bridge of any kind here, but it was thought that, if an Act of Parliament were obtained for the undertaking39 of the work and a company formed, the necessary funds could be found to begin the construction forthwith; the company to be recouped by charging tolls40. The Parliamentary powers were therefore obtained, the company formed, capital subscribed42, and Telford, the foremost engineer of the day, invited to prepare plans and estimates. Telford’s plan provided for a suspension bridge with two iron towers, and he estimated the cost at ￡52,000. Telford was an engineer first, a practical, matter-of-fact Scotsman, and not by way of being an artist. 11His fine, but not sufficiently grandiose43, scheme was, therefore, rejected, and that of Brunel, who was next invited to prepare plans, accepted, although his estimate was ￡5,000 higher. Brunel’s success was undoubtedly44 due to the picturesque45 design he made, and the stress he laid upon the fact that the romantic scenery of this spot might easily be ruined by a mere46 utilitarian47 structure. The bridge as we see it completed to-day is in essentials his design, but the two great towers from which the roadway is suspended are plain to severity, instead of being, as he had contemplated48, richly sculptured. The towers, he explained to the committee of selection, were on the model of the gateways49 to the ruins of Tentyra, in Egypt, and would harmonise well with the rugged50 cliffs and hanging woods of Clifton and Abbot’s Leigh.
In 1831 the foundations of Brunel’s bridge were laid, amid great local rejoicings. Felicitations on the occasion were exchanged. Sir Eardley Wilmot, first imagining an Elizabethan Bristolian returned to earth, and, coming to Rownham Ferry, finding the place just the same as he had left it three hundred years earlier, then congratulated all and sundry51 on this reproach being about to vanish, in the proximate completion of the works, and all was joy and satisfaction.
But money grew scarce; the works were more costly52 than had been anticipated, and the furious riots of 1831 in Bristol rendered capital shy and fresh funds difficult to obtain. In 1833 12Brunel was desired to reduce the estimates, and did reduce them by ￡4,000, at the cost of sacrificing much of the ornamental53 work. In 1836 another foundation-stone was laid, and a communication opened in mid-air across the river, by means of an iron bar stretched across. Along this the workmen travelled daily, suspended in a wicker basket; a sight that every day drew fascinated crowds. A demand to cross in this manner at once sprang up among people who wanted a new sensation, and the bridge company earned an appreciable54 sum by charging for these aerial trips. While the novelty was very new, the fare across was five shillings; it then sank by degrees to half a crown, two shillings, and one shilling. The total sum thus netted was ￡125.
Delays occurred in 1836 owing to the contractors55 going bankrupt, but the company itself then assumed the work. In 1840 the great towers were finished, but by 1843 the bridge was still but half finished, although ￡45,000 had been expended56. Money was again very scarce and work was at last stopped, and in 1853 the half of the ironwork and the flooring that had been delivered were sold to satisfy creditors57.
Work was again resumed in 1860, an opportunity shortly afterwards arising to cheaply purchase the ironwork of Hungerford Suspension Bridge, which, built by Brunel in 1845 across the Thames, from Hungerford Market, at the foot of Villiers Street, Strand58, to the Lambeth shore, at 13a cost of ￡100,000, was about to be removed to make way for the iron lattice-girder bridge of the South-Eastern Railway, still a feature of that spot.
Meanwhile, the original Act of Parliament for the building of Clifton Bridge had expired, and it was necessary to obtain new powers, to form a new company, and to raise more funds. All these things were accomplished59, not without considerable difficulty. The ironwork of Hungerford Bridge was purchased for ￡5,000, and the new Act was obtained in 1861. This, however, laid an obligation upon the new company to compensate60 the owners of Rownham Ferry for any loss. It declared that “persons having a right of ferry across the river Avon called Rownham Ferry may, in some respect, be injured by the building and using of the Bridge; and it is fit, in case such Ferry should be injured or deteriorated61 thereby62, that a fair compensation should be made.” It is understood that this compensation to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, on behalf of the Dean and Chapter of Bristol, the old owners of the ferry, was estimated at ￡200 per annum.
At length, in spite of a shortness of funds that always accompanied the progress of the enterprise, the bridge was opened in September 1864, and has, in all the time since then, proved to be a great convenience for traffic making for Clevedon and adjacent parts of the coast. It has also been a favourite resort for persons of suicidal tendencies, 14who have, indeed, often come from great distances for the purpose of putting an end to themselves; being unable to screw up a sufficiency of desperate courage elsewhere. Indeed, instances have been known of apparently63 sane64 and contented65 people, finding themselves on this height, suspended in mid-air, being unable to resist a sudden impulse to fling themselves off, and many others there are who, afraid of losing command over themselves, have never yet dared face the crossing.
Mere figures do not suffice to give an idea of the majesty66 and sense of vastness conjured67 up by Clifton Suspension Bridge, viewed either from below, or along its lengthy68 roadway; the picturesqueness69 of the situation has also to be taken into account. But they must needs be given. The suspended roadway between the two great towers is 703 feet in length and some 34 feet wide, and hangs 245 feet above the river Avon. The towers themselves are 80 feet in height. The entire weight of the bridge is 1,500 tons. The toll41 payable70 by foot-passengers is the modest one of one penny each. Motor-cars pay sixpence for a single journey, or ninepence returning the same day. A curious privilege was secured by Sir John Greville Smyth, Bart., of Ashton Court, who very appreciably71 helped on the construction by taking ￡2,500 shares in the company, and by a gift of a further ￡2,500. In consideration of his generosity72, no tolls were payable by him personally, or any of his horses, carriages, or servants, or by the owner for the time being of 15Ashton Court, for a period of thirty years from the opening of the bridge.
Engineers and men of science tell us that suspension bridges and the like structures are safest when they swing most. There can, therefore, at any rate, be no doubt of the entire safety of Clifton Suspension Bridge, which vibrates sensibly to a vigorous stamp of the foot; alarmingly to those who have not thoroughly73 assimilated that engineering rough formula of stability. That there can be too much sway or vibration74 is evident by the traffic across being strictly limited in speed; while the theory of a sudden application of heavy weights being likely to snap the chains and rods that hold up the roadway is endorsed75 by companies of soldiers marching this way being always bidden to change step. It should, however, be said that not all engineers support this theory.
The great tower rising massively above the Somerset bank of the Avon bears an inscription76 carved prominently upon its stonework: a Latin inscription, a belated example of the priggish classicism, beloved by pedants77 in the eighteenth century, which set up, all over the country, statements wholly unintelligible78 to ninety-nine out of every hundred wayfarers79. “Suspensa vix via fit,” says this monumental line—that is to say, rendered into English, “With difficulty can a roadway be suspended.” The thing is self-evident anywhere, and much more so here, when you gaze from this suspended roadway down upon the gulf, and on to the tall masts of some sailingvessel 16arriving at, or leaving, the port of Bristol. The various attempts made by passers-by at an understanding of the Latin sentence are amusing, but the toll-taker appears to have arrived at the sense of it, by favour, no doubt, of some one learned in the dead languages; for he was observed by the present writer to answer the inquiries80 of two ladies in this wise: “Well, you see, it’s a bit above me; but I’ve always been given to understand it to mean that this yer bridge was made with great difficulty.”
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1
discreet
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| adj.(言行)谨慎的；慎重的；有判断力的 | |
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2
gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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4
asunder
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| adj.分离的，化为碎片 | |
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5
borough
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| n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇 | |
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6
geologists
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| 地质学家，地质学者( geologist的名词复数 ) | |
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contemplating
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| 深思，细想，仔细考虑( contemplate的现在分词 )； 注视，凝视； 考虑接受（发生某事的可能性）； 深思熟虑，沉思，苦思冥想 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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victorious
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| adj.胜利的，得胜的 | |
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arrogance
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| n.傲慢，自大 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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humbled
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| adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低 | |
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13
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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14
appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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majestic
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| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
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16
gushing
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| adj.迸出的；涌出的；喷出的；过分热情的v.喷，涌( gush的现在分词 )；滔滔不绝地说话 | |
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17
prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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inanities
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| n.空洞( inanity的名词复数 )；浅薄；愚蠢；空洞的言行 | |
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19
perilous
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| adj.危险的，冒险的 | |
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monastery
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| n.修道院，僧院，寺院 | |
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21
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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derived
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| vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取 | |
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23
commissioners
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| n.专员( commissioner的名词复数 )；长官；委员；政府部门的长官 | |
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Ford
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| n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过 | |
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25
hazardous
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| adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的 | |
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26
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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eldest
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| adj.最年长的，最年老的 | |
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baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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quay
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| n.码头，靠岸处 | |
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tavern
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| n.小旅馆，客栈；小酒店 | |
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imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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refreshment
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| n.恢复，精神爽快，提神之事物；（复数）refreshments:点心，茶点 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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aspirations
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| 强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音 | |
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bequest
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| n.遗赠；遗产，遗物 | |
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gulf
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| n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂 | |
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undertaking
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| n.保证，许诺，事业 | |
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40
tolls
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| （缓慢而有规律的）钟声( toll的名词复数 )； 通行费； 损耗； （战争、灾难等造成的）毁坏 | |
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41
toll
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| n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟) | |
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42
subscribed
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| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
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43
grandiose
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| adj.宏伟的，宏大的，堂皇的，铺张的 | |
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44
undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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45
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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46
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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utilitarian
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| adj.实用的，功利的 | |
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48
contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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49
gateways
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| n.网关( gateway的名词复数 )；门径；方法；大门口 | |
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50
rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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51
sundry
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| adj.各式各样的，种种的 | |
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52
costly
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| adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的 | |
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53
ornamental
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| adj.装饰的；作装饰用的；n.装饰品；观赏植物 | |
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54
appreciable
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| adj.明显的，可见的，可估量的，可觉察的 | |
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55
contractors
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| n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 ) | |
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56
expended
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| v.花费( expend的过去式和过去分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽 | |
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creditors
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| n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 ) | |
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strand
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| vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地） | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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60
compensate
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| vt.补偿，赔偿；酬报 vi.弥补；补偿；抵消 | |
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61
deteriorated
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| 恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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62
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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63
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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sane
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| adj.心智健全的，神志清醒的，明智的，稳健的 | |
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contented
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| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
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majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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conjured
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| 用魔术变出( conjure的过去式和过去分词 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现 | |
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68
lengthy
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| adj.漫长的，冗长的 | |
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picturesqueness
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70
payable
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| adj.可付的，应付的，有利益的 | |
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71
appreciably
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| adv.相当大地 | |
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72
generosity
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| n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为 | |
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73
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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74
vibration
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| n.颤动，振动；摆动 | |
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75
endorsed
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| vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品 | |
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inscription
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| n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文 | |
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pedants
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| n.卖弄学问的人，学究，书呆子( pedant的名词复数 ) | |
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78
unintelligible
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| adj.无法了解的，难解的，莫明其妙的 | |
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wayfarers
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| n.旅人，（尤指）徒步旅行者( wayfarer的名词复数 ) | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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