Remonstrances must look ahead, and can
only now be of avail in recognition of future further danger. We
are called upon to plead the cause for the whole of the
beauty-loving England, and of all river-loving people in
particular."
Gallantly does the great painter express the views of artists, and
such vandalism is as obnoxious to antiquaries as it is to artists and
lovers of the picturesque. Many of these old bridges date from
medieval times, and are relics of antiquity that can ill be spared.
Brick is a material as nearly imperishable as any that man can build
with. There is hardly any limit to the life of a brick or stone
bridge, whereas an iron or steel bridge requires constant supervision.
The oldest iron bridge in this country--at Coalbrookdale, in
Shropshire--has failed after 123 years of life. It was worn out by old
age, whereas the Roman bridge at Rimini, and the medieval ones at St.
Ives, Bradford-on-Avon, and countless other places in this country and
abroad, are in daily use and are likely to remain serviceable for many
years to come, unless these ponderous trains break them down.
The interesting bridge which crosses the River Conway at Llanrwst was
built in 1636 by Sir Richard Wynn, then the owner of Gwydir Castle,
from the designs of Inigo Jones.
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