North Court, Esle of Wight; THE SEAT OF MRS. BENNET. NORTH COURT is situated in the parish of Shorwell, Isle of Wight, about five miles and a half from the town of Newport, and nearly the same distance from Carisbrook Castle. The House, the ancient seat of the family of Leigh, was begun in the reign of King James the First, by Sir John Leigh, Knt., and completed by his son, Barnaby Leigh, Esq. From the Leigh family it was purchased by the late Richard Bull, Esq., from whom it descended to his eldest daughter, (the youngest dying during his lifetime,) and was by her bequeathed to her half-brother, Richard Henry Alexander Bennet, Esq., of Beckenham, in Kent, and came into possession of his widow on the death of his only son, the late Captain R. H. A. Bennet, Royal Navy, some time Member of Parliament for Launceston. Mrs. Bennet, the present amiable and worthy possessor of North Court, is the sister of the late Duchess of Northumberland, Lady Beverley, the Dowager Marchioness of Exeter, and the late Lord Gwydir. The House is a large and nearly regular building, of very good stone, and well finished. It stands in a narrow valley, on the southern side of the great chalk range, scarcely out of the village of Shorwell; but a grove of noble elms, which surrounds it to the north and east, and most flourishing plantations made by its late possessor, completely exclude all that would be disagreeable in that vicinity. At the foot of a terrace, just below the Mansion, rises the beautiful Spring, which gives name to the Village, and which is immediately equal to the turning a large mill. The Gardens are disposed in terraces up the side of the hill, on whose slope the House stands; they have, with much good taste, been ornamented without destroying their regularity, which suits the ancient character of the Mansion. The Front of the House is adorned with a handsome central Porch. On either hand is a large window, and beyond them, semi-octagon bows, two stories high, terminated by a battlement and pinnacles. Beyond these, to the right, the front terminates with a projecting building, which is wanting to the left. All these parts severally finish in gables, ornamented with slender pinnacles, rising from projecting corbels. The House within is fitted up in an elegant style. The cheerfulness of modern life illumes the ancient rooms, without destroying their character. Many excellent and curious Portraits, and a profusion of admirable Prints, decorate the walls, and every refinement of attentive hospitality is accumulated in the rooms destined by the owner to the reception of her guests. In describing this interesting place, it is impossible to omit mentioning a most tender memorial of affection to the memory of the late Miss Catherine Bull. It was designed by, and erected under the immediate inspection of, her sister, and is placed in a woody hollow, formerly a chalkpit, overhung by a very large and most picturesque ash-tree. It is a low building, of rough stone, like the ruin of a small Gothic chapel, thatched. The windows are of painted glass, which give a dim and solemn tint to a very beautiful sarcophagus of white marble, on whose front are carved in bas-relief, a male and female figure reclining over an urn. On a tablet beneath are the following affecting lines from the classical pen of Mr. Bull : "Oft, in this once beloved retreat, A father and a sister meet; She was their comfort, joy, and pride With her their every pleasure died! Ah, shade revered! look down and see At sorrow's asking, drop it here:" On a tablet, detached from the monument, are the following lines: "Sweet Peace, that loves in placid scenes to dwell, Extend thy blessings to this quiet dell; Bring Resignation to the wounded breast, And Contemplation, Reason's favourite guest; Correct those thoughts, desponding Grief conceives : So shall these shades a brighter aspect wear, So shall content from tranquil pleasure flow, Our Drawing of North Court is made, by permission, from a beautifully finished Drawing, by Lady Gordon. The Description is chiefly extracted from Sir Henry Englefield's splendid and valuable work on the Isle of Wight. THE SEAT OF SIR JOHN GEERS COTTERELL, BART., M.P. THE modern part of Garnons consists of a fine embattled Mansion, situate about eight miles from Hereford, and twelve from the Hay, in a southern aspect on the side of Bishopstone Hill. The surrounding plantations formed by the present proprietor and his father, add greatly to the beauty of the spot. The views from the House are various and extensive, displaying many meanderings of the river Wye; the banks of which are remarkable for the variety of the Seats of the nobility and gentry situated thereon. Garnons, though a modern structure, having been built by the present proprietor under the superintendance of Mr. Atkinson, yet bears a perfect resemblance to the old baronial Mansions of the thirteenth century, and of which Sizergh Hall, in Westmoreland, is a good specimen. The annexed Plate exhibits a view of the carriage front of this noble Edifice, the principal feature of which is the large square embattled Tower rising from the centre. It stands on two raised Terraces, under the upper one of which the entrance is formed through a handsome Tudor arch. The walks and drives are of a very considerable extent; as also the gardens and shrubberies, which are laid out with much taste. In the house is a very good Museum, possessing scarce and valuable articles; and a Library containing many choice books. Amongst the curiosities is a large Glass in a superb frame carved by Gibbons, and a singularly rare carved oak Bedstead, on which tradition tells us the unfortunate Charles slept after the battle of Worcester, and which was removed to Garnons, from Hatfield, another seat belonging to this family, situated on the borders of the county. Sir John Geers Cotterell was for many years Colonel of the Herefordshire Militia, which was the first regiment that volunteered for service abroad, and in the year 1798, Sir John took his regiment to Ireland, to aid in suppressing the rebellion. He had been long known to the country in a civil as well as military capacity, when in 1802 he came forward at the general election, and was by the freeholders returned as Knight of the Shire, since which time he has continued as its Representative. At a period of public difficulty Sir John raised two battalions of volunteers, consisting of two thousand men, and this force being afterwards transferred into two battalions of local militia, he was appointed their Colonel. On the 5th of October, 1805, Sir John received a patent of Baronetage, as Sir John Geers Cotterell of Garnons, in the county of Hereford. Sir John is Lord of the Manors of Mansel, Gamage, Shutton, Brobery, Kilkington, Bridge, Sollers, and Hatfield, in the County of Hereford. The worthy Baronet married in January, 1791, Frances Isabella, only daughter and heiress of Henry Michael Evans, of Cowley Grove, Esq., and has issue eight children. Lady Cotterell died in July, 1813. The family is descended from Edward Cotterell of Saintbury, in the county of Gloucester, Esq., whose only daughter, Anne, married John Brookes of Broadway, in the county of Worcester, Esq., whose son John Brookes, Esq., assumed the name and arms of Cotterell (pursuant to the will of his uncle, Thomas Cotterell, of Saintbury, Esq.), and married Mary, daughter of Thomas Jackson, Esq., of Welsbourn, in the County of Warwick, by whom he had issue Sir Brookes Cotterell, Knight, who by Anne, only daughter and heiress of John Geers, of Garnons, Esq., had issue the present Baronet. Arms:-Quarterly or, and argent, a Cross engrailed, per pale, sable and gules, between three escallops, two in the sinister chief, and one in the dexter base quarter, of the second, over all a bend, also of the second. Crest:-An Arm in armour supporting a Shield, argent, charged with a Talbot's head, sable. Garnstone House, Herefordshire ; THE SEAT OF SAMUEL PEPLOE, ESQ. GARNSTONE HOUSE is a modern erection, built by the present proprietor, from designs furnished by Mr. Nash. The style of architecture is the Gothic, and the whole building presents a fine castellated appearance. The annexed View shews the principal front, with its mullioned windows and handsome lancet-formed doorway, flanked on either side by an octagon Turret. Over the door is a neat oriel window. The interior decorations exhibit a corresponding degree of taste and elegance. The picturesque scenery also by which the Mansion is surrounded, contributes to render Garnstone one of the prettiest seats in this part of the country. The House and Grounds of Garnstone are situate about a mile south of Weobly, in the vicinity of the Foxley-hills. This part of Herefordshire is singularly picturesque, and abounds in remains of antiquity. The whole is a fine wooded country, extending southwards to the river Wye, whose banks have furnished Gilpin, and other admirers of landscape scenery, with so many subjects for the pencil and pen. Lady-lift, appropriately called the Queen of Hills, is one of the many beauties with which Garnstone is surrounded; and from the summit of this hill, the view opens in an extensive manner, including within its range Credenhill Camp, which encloses a space of nearly thirty acres. Whether this is the site of a British or Roman camp, is still a subject of dispute with antiquaries. Under the Plantagenet kings, the Town of Weobly appears to have been a place of considerable imDortance. According to Leland, there was in the feudal ages a Castle here, which was the chief Lordship of the Devereux family; who likewise became possessed of the Castle of Leonshall or Lenshall, about two miles from Weobly, the ancient demesne of the Marburges by an heiress of that noble house. Garnstone formerly belonged to a family named Birch, and descended from them to the father of the present possessor who took the name of Birch. Colonel Birch, so repeatedly mentioned by Clarendon and other writers upon the great Rebellion, belonged to this family, and was possessed of this Estate. Samuel Peploe, Esq., the present proprietor of the Garnstone Estate, married a daughter of Sir |