Wootton Rivers, par. and vil., Wilts—par., 1179
ac., pop. 389; vil., on Kennet and Avon Canal, 3 miles
NE. of Pewsey; P.O. ; has ironfounding and agricul-
tural implement making.

Wootton St Lawrence, par. and vil., Hants—par.,
4406 ac., pop. 996 ; vil., 3 m. W. of Basingstoke ; P.O.

Wootton Underwood. See Wotton Underwood.

Wootton-Wawen, par. and vil., Warwickshire—par.
(containing Henley in Arden and Ullenhall), 8700 ac.,
pop. 2312; vil., If mile S. of Henley in Arden and 7
miles NW. of Stratford on Avon; P.O. Tanning is
carried on. The church is ancient; there are several
schools. Wootton House, seat, is in vicinity.

Wootton under Edge. See Wotton under Edge.

Worbarrow Ray, rocky hollow, on coast of Dorset,
6 miles SW. of Corfe Castle.

Worcester, parl. and mun. bor., city, county town of
Worcestershire, and county of itself, 22 miles SW. of
Birmingham and 114 miles NW. of London by rail—
parl. bor., 3266 ac., pop. 40,354; mun. bor., 1263 ac.,
pop. 33,956; 4 Banks, 6 newspapers. Market-days,
Wednesday and Saturday. Worcester is finely situated
in a beautiful vale on the left bank of the Severn, over
which is an elegant stone bridge of 5 arches. Succes-
sively a British fort, a Roman camp, and a Saxon
stronghold, it is one of the most ancient cities in Eng-
land. The cathedral, a fine specimen of Gothic archi-
tecture, in the form of a double cross, was built in
680, and rebuilt in the beginning of the 13th century.
Besides the cathedral there are numerous churches,
some of them very old. The museum of natural his-
tory is said to be one of the finest out of London.
There are porcelain works, British wine and vinegar
works, chemical and manure works, railway signal
works, and iron foundries ; but the leading industry is
the mfr. of leather gloves, of which AVorcester is the
chief seat in England. The hop market is one of the
largest in the kingdom. The trade by the river is very
considerable. The most remarkable event in the history
of the place is the decisive victory which Cromwell gained
here over the Royalist forces in 1651. Worcester was
chartered by Richard I. It returns 1 member to Parlia-
ment ; it returned 2 members from Edward I. until 1885.

Worcestershire, west-midland co. of England,
bounded N. by Shropshire and Staffordshire, E. by
AVarwickshire, S. by Gloucestershire, and AV. by Here-
fordshire ; greatest length (not including the detached
parts), NW. and SE., 36 miles ; greatest breadth, NE.
and SW., 45 miles; area, 472,453 ac., pop. 380,283.
Worcestershire lies almost entirely in the basin of the
Severn, which receives the Stour, Teme, and Avon.
The surface is a broad undulating plain, broken in the
NE. by hills of moderate height, and in the SW. by the
Malvern Hills, which reach an altitude of 1395 ft. The
soil, chiefly clay and loam, is very fertile. Wheat is
extensively grown, and there are numerous hop-gardens
and orchards. Large quantities of cider and perry are
made. There are several extensive and beautiful
valleys (notably that of the Severn), with rich pastures,
and great numbers of cattle and sheep are fattened.
(For agricultural statistics, see Appendix.) The strata
consist for the most part of new red sandstone, lias,
and oolite ; other formations are visible in the Malvern
Hills and some other districts. Coal and iron are found
in the Dudley district, and the mfr. of iron and steel
and of hardware is extensive. Carpets and rugs are
made at Kidderminster, glass at Dudley and Stour-
bridge, gloves and porcelain at Worcester, and needles
and fish-hooks at Redditch and Feckenham. Immense
quantities of salt are obtained from the brine springs at
Droitwich. The Birmingham and AVorcester and other
canals connect the Severn basin with those of the Trent
and Mersey. The county contains 5 hundreds, 243
pars., the parliamentary and municipal boroughs of
Kidderminster (1 member) and A\^rorcester (1 mem-
ber), part of the parl. and mun. bor. of Dudley (1 mem-
ber), and the mun. bors. of Bewdley, Droitwich, and
Evesham. It is almost entirely in the diocese of AVor-
cester. For parliamentary purposes it is divided into
5 divisions—viz., Western or Bewdley, Southern or
Evesham, Mid or Droitwich, Northern, and Eastern, 1
member for each division ; the parliamentary represen-
tation was increased from 4 to 5 members in 1885.