There was the very sharp winter of 1861 when fourteen weeks of severe frost was endured. Many barges were frozen in the canal at Great Linford, for this long spell, and their owners and horses were unable to leave the district. A number of horses were stabled at the " Black Horse," Inn of which my Uncle Warren was the landlord. The enforced idleness created great distress amongst the bargees many of whom were compelled to mortgage their boats to obtain food for themselves and their horses. The great snowstorm of January 18, 1881, was the worst in living memory. The following day we had to deliver bread in Little Linford and Haversham and the conditions were terrible. We started off with two horses harnessed to the cart, but discovered it was impossible to get up Linford Lane which was covered with deep snow drifts. We delivered to " The Walnuts " (then in the occupation of Uncle Litchfield) and then had to drive across the fields to the bridges at the lower end of the lane, where by digging the snow from the gates we eventually reached Little Linford and then made our way to Haversham. We got as far as Hill Farm and then found the road impassible, so we stabled the horses at Mr. Scott's and carried the bread through his fields to the village.

On another occasion, in 1869, we were returning home via Haversham Mill and had to go through a very deep flood. Our horse being used to the road, carried us through safely, but a few minutes later a man named Walker attempted the same thing but, as was afterwards surmised, his horse left the track and both man and animal were drowned. We had a further adventure in Linford Lane when we saw a horse and its rider in a ditch with the man pinned underneath the animal. With some difficulty we managed to extricate them and discovered that the rider was Police Constable Pitson. It is certain that if we had not appeared on the scene when we did the unfortunate fellow would have been crushed to death. As it was he lived to attain the rank of Deputy Chief Constable for Buckinghamshire.

I remember many of the prominent people in the villages in the district. There was the Rev. Arthur Bruce Frazer who was rector of Haversham. He kept up a good establishment even stocking with deer a small park adjoining his house. He died in 1889. Then, too, there was Mr. Matthew Knapp and his brother who resided at Little Linford Hall. The vicarage was built through their generosity, the first resident minister being the Rev. Moses Magoliouth who was inducted in 1877. He was a very learned man and a great Hebrew scholar. When he died in 1881 he was buried near the Chancel.