Wednesday 8 June 2016, - 10.00am

The plan is thus:

Following a 'reccy' by both John Newbold and Laurence Taylor it is suggested we meet up at 10.00 am sharp at Clubman's Down Car park (as advertised in the DNHAS programme) ST 885187, located on the west side of the B 3081 Shaftesbury/Blandford road on the hill above Compton Abbas and just west of Compton Abbas Airfield.

Here, John, will be giving us a reading from Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Ubervilles. Living in Marnhull and seeking employment in Pentridge Tess, he notes, was to walk a considerable length of Dorset's county boundary – see the attached map.

Much look forward to learning more about this unique (albeit very sad) literary reference. Also of potential interest here is the naming of our meeting-up place which recalls those 'clubmen' who played a significant part in the Civil War; Dorset was staunchly Royalist .

Tess's family were quite poor living at Marnhull. She was a good looking and hard working girl who sought to help the family whose surname was Durbyfield by seeking employment. By chance a visiting parson led the family to believe that they had more noble ancestors – the d'Urberville's. Locally they lived at Pentridge and she sought employment there. The d'Urburville son abused his position leading to the inevitable bastard child, who subsequently died before being baptised. For this Tess hated the son and he pursued her although she subsequently had a short unhappy marriage to another man. Circumstances dictated that be found Tess working on a horrible farm and he took her away. She subsequently knifed him and was hung some time later at Winchester.