Times change

In the 1850s when a kindly benefactor installed this pump and brought the water from a distance for the supply and comfort of the cottagers at Downside Common, it was a quiet village off the beaten track. No water, no mains drainage, no electricity. Today as I took my blip there was nobody about. However, overpowering everything was the noise of the traffic thundering by on the M25, spoiling the peaceful countryside. But I wonder, as I regret the loss of our rural quiet, would I really want to go back to those hard times?