was sacrificed by Mr. Manser, who, on the 30th of August, 1841, conveyed the same to Messrs. Alfred Burton and Stephen Putland in trust for the public. Before taking a final leave of Lavatoria, I may as well say that the north side was erected at a somewhat earlier date than the south; and as I have already stated that of the former the houses were severally erected by Messrs. Towner, Smith and Thorne, the enumeration will be more complete by adding the names of Messrs. Putland, Burgess and Mortimer as the builders and inhabitants of the latter range. It is as well to note that these houses, after a period of fifty years were enlarged and modernised as places of business. Shop-fronts, brought out in a line with Norman Road, were given to them and the locality itself having survived the purpose for which it was designed, Lavatoria is now incorporated with Norman Road, and is, consequently, more technically than authoritively known by its old familiar title. By this incorporation is ratified, so to speak, the arrangement, which in 1841 destroyed the barrier between the "insiders" and "outsides" or, in other words, the people who resided within and without the boundary of Mr. Burton's original purchase.
It was the opinion of most people that to render this union more complete there only wanted the removal of the East Lodge, better known as the Archway. This had long since fulfilled its purpose, and it was thought that, like the Temple Bar, of London, its removal would be a decided improvement. Certainly, when the traffic had increased in proportion to the growth of the town, and the widening of the road at that spot was necessary to lessen the chances of accidents - which had been numerous during the past fifty years - the plea for its retention on the score of preserving the original design was more than met by the argument for its removal on the ground of public convenience. Since then the said Archway has been taken down, and even those who objected to its removal have acknowledged the surprisingly great improvement thereby effected.
The accompanying view shows the roadway as it originally existed: also (westward thereof) 15 to 21 Marina, the latter number being the Harold Hotel, distinguished by its projecting entrance; also (eastward of the archway) Adelaide Place to the Saxon Hotel treated of in another chapter; then Nos. 1 & 2 Cliff Cottages (now 5 & 6 Eversfield Place) between which and the Saxon Hotel was a large vacant space, afterwards occupied by Seymour Place and Warrior Square.
I will now hie me back to the 15th of December, 1830, and resume my story of the first public dinner at the Harold Hotel . The hotel in question was what are now Nos. 21 and 21½ Marina and the dinner which was provided by Mr. Edlin to celebrate its opening was attended, as before stated, by more than one hundred persons. Mr. B. P. Smith, a surgeon residing at 40 Marina, presided, and the feast thus prepared was acknowledged to be of a superb character, whilst of the wines it was said that although served out in a new house in a new town, they were of an old and excellent quality. There is no doubt that Mr. Edlin did his best for his first patrons, and it is possible that he might with fair propriety have expressed his sentiments thus:-
When a new landord takes a brand-new inn,
How should the novice his career begin?
If all the house is propertly prepared,
The larded stocked and beds and bedding aired,
The servants hired - all promising recruits-
Head waiter down to even Tom, the boots,
The host most surely with his smiles should wait
On his first guests assembled round the place;
Present his bill of fare, and hope the'll find
Each little item perfect of its kind
My constant aim shall be to meet your wishes,
I this before you place some tempting dishes;
Old wine made mellow and improved by age,
New fruit just brought me by the London Stage,
My decorations, too, are quite complete,
Best rooms and attics also clean and neat,
In short, your host now humbly recommends
The "Harold" to the notice of his friends
As might be supposed, the venerable founder of St. Leonards was one of the dinner party, and as there were also many Hasting men present, it is not surprising that when Mr. Burton was called on to give a toast, he should compliment the representatives of the older town by proposing "Prosperity to the Town and Corporation of Hastings." Nor is it at all marvellous to those who are acquainted with the amenities of such promiscuous gatherings that an unpleasant fact should be glozed(sic) over or altogether ignored. On this occasion Mr. Burton introduced his toast with the remark that reports had been circulated of a feeling of rivalry existing between St. Leonards and Hastings; yet nothing could be farther from the fact. He was, moreover, convinced that the success of the new town must add to the prosperity of the old town. Now, whilst I endorse Mr. Burton's conviction of the success of one town adding to the prosperity of the other, I must take exception to his denial of the reported rivalry which existed between the two. I will go even farther, and fearlessly asset that it would not be at all out of place to substitute jealousy for rivalry; and at this distance of time it should be regarded as an act of no unfriendly criticism to revert to a condition of things which happily, has now all but passed away. I may premise that when beginning this history I had eleven years experience of that so-called rivalry while living in Hastings, and had completed half a century of such experience by a residence of 39 years in St. Leonards. If, therefore I presume to write with some authority, I do so on the ground of personal knowledge.
As I proceed with this History, I shall have occasion to explain a few of the causes of that rivalry and jealousy, but my readers may rest assured that nothing but a perfectly friendly review of those causes will be recorded by my pen. Now let it be imagined that the successful spread at the "Harold" has been well and duly partaken of, and that the conviviality which extended far into the night has come to the end. There need be no sentimentality in wishing that "the evening's amusement may bear the morning's reflection." It shall only be supposed that the next day has arrived, and that sufficient of the good things of yesterday remains for a cold collation. Mr. Edlin shows himself to be a man of resources, and by previous arrangement with Mr. A. Brook, of Bexhill, for the employment of his hounds, gets up a fox-hunt. In this he is assisted by G. J. C. Durant, Esq., who at the time is residing at 18 Marina, and is consequently Mr. Edlin's near neighbour. Mr. Durant unbags Reynard on the new Race-course at Bopeep - the annual races having been removed from [Bulverhithe(sic) Salts a year or two previously - and a run of forty minutes duration ends in the capture and death of the fox. The pursuers, as "hungry as hunters," hark back to the Harold, and appease their appetites with the cold collation. And now for a brief space I will take my readers back from the Harold Hotel to the St. Leonards Hotel, where, in consequence of refreshments being required for a large number of workmen, and public-houses being as yet but few and far between, it is felt to be a necessity to have a Tap or Tavern in the basement even of the hotel which is already patronised by Earl Mansfield and other important personages, and is destined shortly to be honoured with the visits of royalty. In the year to which I am referring the "St. Leonards Tap" was kept by Mr. Charles Vine, who at a later period was transformed from a publican to a baker, and exchanged the retailing of eau de vie (the "water of life") for bread and rolls (the "staff of life"). At that time was still rife, and even the St. Leonards Tap was not altogether proof against the temptation to admit the proof spirit of contraband into its vaults and vats.
A smuggling feat - The first Annual Races - The first Batchellor's(sic) Ball
This reminds me of a daring act of which in that year was successfully performed in broad daylight and in close proximity to the hotel here alluded to. In the month of October, between 7 and 8 of the morning, a number of men had assembled just above the North Lodge, and in reply to Mr. Robert Deudney, who accosted them, said "You see that boat on the water; that's loaded with tubs, and we mean to have them." Mr. Deudney then went back to his house and called Mr. Beecham, who happened to be staying there, to ac-
