During the nineteenth century an unknown chemist named Reginald Phillips spent many years investigating a phenomenon which became known as

The English Tropic

He meticulously kept his mysterious findings in a number of notebooks until his accidental death in boating accident in 1864

His last words as remembered by his companion Polly Preserve were

Oh the odious Solent

Oh the odious Solent

His notebooks were kept locked in a cupboard by his daughter Polly Preserve in his cottage in Herstmonceux Sussex until the residence took a direct hit from a German bomb in the February of 1943

Oh the odious Germans

Oh the odious Germans

Were Polly’s last recorded words

The dilapidated remains of the cottage remained untouched until the hot summer of 1990 when a much awaited bypass erased all trace of the cottage and its large garden

Today as I drive towards the village of Herstmonceux I am still seeking answers about the mysterious English Tropic but I feel I have driven over any evidence that remains as I can see the village clearly on the horizon

Oh the odious village

Oh the odious village