September 18. - Exeter; Viewing the cathedral and other objects in the town. September 19. and 20. - Bicton; Lady Rolle. This is an extensive place, celebrated for its improvements, for the collection of rare plants of every kind, for its arboretum on a large scale recently planted, and for its very high keeping. Too much can hardly be said in honour of the late Lord Rolle, through whose munificence the improvements were made, or of the present Lady Rolle, by whose taste and energetic mind His Lordship was stimulated to do so much; and by whom, since His Lordship's death, the improvements have been continued, and the place kept up with a degree of care very rarely to be met with in similar cases. The surface of the grounds at Bicton would be described as greatly varied in any other English county than Devonshire, but even in that picturesque county they contain many striking beauties. The park is situated within 2.5 miles of the sea, of which from various points it affords fine views; and in the interior the landscape is bounded by ranges of hills, some of which are covered with wood, others with cultivated fields, and some are in a wild state. The soil is chiefly sand and sandy loam. The house, which is well placed on a knoll, is extensive and commodious, containing a suite of magnificent apartments on the principal floor, and very extensive offices, but without any pretensions to architecture. The grounds have been judiciously laid out by Mr. Gilpin, and a piece of water formed by Mr. Glendinning under his direction has an excellent effect. There are two approaches, the one from Exeter, and the other from Sidmouth; the latter passes through an avenue of araucarias, planted in 1842. There are an outer and inner park, and also outer and inner lodges, but none of these lodges has much merit.
