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Page 180:-
But mark! she well the bargain knew;
A bun then from her pocket drew,
And shewed it first to little Cue,
Then over threw it;
Now flew the bun, now ran the dog,
For eager was the mangy rogue,
Nor stood to view it.
'Now, crafty sir, the bargain was,
That you should have what first did pass
Across the Bridge - so now alas!
The dog's your right;'
The cheater cheated, struck with shame,
Squinted and grinned, then in a flame
He vanished quite.
There is no doubt, however, that the Bridge was built previous to
the time of Edward I.; as it appears that in the third year of
that reign, there was a grant of pontage for its repair. It is
built of freestone, and has three ribbed arches, the two larger
of the span of 55 feet each, and the smallest of 28 feet. The
roadway is 180 feet in length, but so narrow that 'two
wheelbarrows tremble when they meet.' In heavy floods, the river
rises a height of 15 feet or more. In ordinary seasons the
battlements are about 52 feet above the level of the water. The
views of the river from the centre are singularly beautiful; it
here flows through a rocky channel, narrow, but of a profound
depth; and the banks on either side are adorned with fine trees.
In the spring of 1841, a drover committed suicide by
precipitating himself over the parapet on the north side into the
water.
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