Of Dartmoor and its Borderland. 51 From the under comer of one arm a small piece has been broken off, but otherwise the cross is in a fine state of preserva- tion, in proportion to its height, the arms are rather short, projecting but seven inches on each side of the shaft, while the head rises fourteen inches above them. It leans a little towards the east, and stands on a small patch of greensward on the right of the road in descending the hill; two lofty trees, an oak and an ash, spread their foliage above it. An upland road here branches off to Sheepstor^ which is about two miles distant. There is a tradition that this cross marks the grave of a suicide ; but while it is possible that a burial may have taken place near it, it is yet probable that its primary purpose was to point out to those journeying over the road by which we have reached it, the ford over the river below. There is also evidence which seems to show that it marked a boundary. It was set up with one or both of these objects; but the pious bands which erected it had another — that of bringing forcibly before the minds of those who passed this way, the religion of which it was emblematical. Indeed tradition now relates that the wayfarer used, before setting out over the waste, to kneel before this cross and pray for protection on his journey. A charming bit of scenery is presented from Marchants Cross. We have lost sight of the more extensive prospect observable from the top of Lynch Hill, but we have gained a near view of a beautifully wooded little valley. Yennadon forms a barrier to the north, with a fine plantation of firs stretching part way up its slope.* To the north-east the thick foliage of Burrator Wood clothes the side of the valley, and trees also cover the bottom, hiding the stream which courses along it, while towards the east are pasture fields adjoining the common, which stretches around to the point where we stand, and rises high behind us. The granite peak of Leather Tor is seen peeping over the trees at the head of the valley, forming a striking contrast to the softer features in the foreground.
- This comiuon is generally known as Yennadon (or Yannadon) Down,
but the addition of the latter word is, without doubt, a duplication. The moormen when speaking of the tors and other objects on the moor, often say Hentor Tor (Hen Tor), Ingator Tor (Inga Tor), Lakehead Head (Lake Head), Hameldon Down (Hameldon), and so on.
