,,london ,,as ,,seen ,,by ,,charles ,,dana ,,gibson ,,new ,,york ,,charles ,,scribner',s ,,sons ,,mdcccxcvii ,copyright1 #ahig1 by ,charles ,scribner's ,sons ,thanks are due to ,life and the ,london ,graphic for their kind permission to reproduce some of the drawings in this book4 ,,trow ,,directory ,,printing ,,and ,,bookbinding ,,company ,,new ,,york ,,london ,,streets ,illustration3 ,the ,rat ,man ,,after a short journey through country divided by hedges into a green and gold checker-board2 thatched roofs disappear1 and chimney-pots take their place and flourish until you come to the ,thames1 where black barges in mid-stream wait for the muddy tide to turn1 between banks of masts and smokestacks2 then the ,gothic buildings of ,parliament1 and 8,big ,ben10 and ,charing ,cross ,station2 and in another moment you are in ,london1 riding through the never-ending restlessness of its streets in a cab that you can afford1 with your hat-box safe by your side and your trunk up by the driver1 and ,london with its history on all sides of you1 its wooden streets and polished side-walks and bright shop windows1 and at every corner small sweeps and big policemen1 providing clean and safe crossing1 while push-carts dodge in and out between steaming bus-horses and hansom cabs4 ,this is always my first impression of ,london4 ,illustration3 ,outside ,morley's ,as all ,americans arrive in ,london with sea-legs after a week of ship's cooking1 it is doubly necessary to have been there before in order to know where to go at once for an on-shore dinner and good rooms4 ,but before you arrive at either of these you once more become a part of the city and again feel perfectly at home1 as you look from your cab window at theatrical lithographs to find out what is going on for that night2 and no transformation scene on the stage is more complete than your own1 from standing in the companion-way waiting for the ship's run to be posted1 to a few hours later sitting in a ,london theatre watching the stage rock from side to side4 ,i believe an ,american enjoys ,london more during his second visit4 ,he is sure to be older for one thing1 and with very little left of the prejudice he once had4 ,he is not so apt to wear a sensitive patriotic chip on his shoulder1 and for this reason he will give ,london a better opportunity to know him4 ,if it is your second visit you have the pleasure of recognizing familiar types and places4 ,your hotel porter may remember you1 and there may be one or two of the old waiters still left in the dining-room4 ,nelson's ,column and the ,national ,gallery are former friends2 also the recruiting sergeants1 among them ,sergeant ,charley1 the best known of all4 ,he has stood at the corner of the ,national ,gallery for many years1 and has probably talked more country boys into ,her ,majesty's service1 consoled more weeping mothers1 and cheered more disappointed maidens than any other man in the ,british army4 ,there is no better place in which ,sergeant ,charley can operate than ,trafalgar ,square--or from which the stranger can begin ,london4 ,illustration3 ,between ,times1 ,leicester ,square ,illustration3 ,on ,bond ,street ,the bewildering scene always reminds me of the art student ,i once saw painting it from the steps of the gallery2 and ,i thought then that if the actors on the great stage in front of her could have seen the hopeless condition of her canvas and her pale1 worried face they might have stood still for awhile4 ,but the panorama has never stopped1 and the only quiet figures in ,trafalgar ,square are its bronze statues4 ,there you will see country boys looking1 with admiring envy1 at the smart uniforms of the soldiers1 and with terror at the dingy army of sandwich-men shuffling through the gutter carrying advertisements of hot and cold luncheons1 ,turkish baths1 manicure parlors1 and places of amusement1 serving1 at the same time1 as awful examples of what will happen to all those who do not take the sergeant's advice and become soldiers4 ,even some of the street beggars are familiar4 8,the old rat-man0 and his pets find ,brighton too dull in the winter1 and come up to ,london for the season1 to mix once more in its streets1 where all kinds of horses are driven by as great a variety of men1 from the pedler to the powdered-wigged coachman4 ,cable-cars and trolleys would be sadly out of place in ,london1 and horseless carriages would be a calamity4 ,there should be no need to go faster than a horse can trot1 and the best way of all is to walk4 ,illustration3 ,sergeant ,charley ,you can stand on a bridge while scows drift slowly under you1 and ,st4 ,paul's sinks into the smoke and darkness1 like the dissolving views at a lecture on travel4 ,it is quite proper that the underground railway should be used mostly for advertising purposes2 but the most gaudy posters fail to brighten up those dingy tunnels1 and no amount of speed can compensate for the time you are away from the world over your head4 ,london is not a place to go under4 ,there is no reason to be lonely4 ,no one ever knows ,london1 and before you have been there long you are showing ,londoners about their own city with the pride of a part owner in its history2 for1 to an ,american1 the old part of the city is his--as much so as the portraits of his ancestors4 ,the pictures may not be on his walls1 but he stands as good a chance of being like their originals as the man who owns the house in which they hang4 ,illustration3 ,hyde ,park ,corner ,,london ,,audiences ,,nowhere is caste more noticeable than in a ,london audience4 ,a little board fence divides the ground-floor of a theatre into orchestra stalls and a pit4 ,it would cost you ten shillings less and your social position to sit on the wrong side of this fence4 ,it does not follow that sitting on the right side of it assures your position4 ,but it does give you an uninterrupted view of the stage4 ,no hats are worn1 and that alone makes it worth extra charge4 ,there is1 in most of the theatres1 room for your knees1 and in some1 additional room for the man who goes out between the acts1 and people who arrive after the curtain is up4 ,a ,london audience is brilliant4 ,everyone is in evening dress1 and the audience is often more entertaining than the play4 ,this is especially true on a first night4 ,at such times the pit is watched most anxiously by the management1 as the success of the piece generally depends on their verdict4 ,it has often occurred to me1 when ,i have seen them on a stormy night forming a line on the pavement outside the pit entrance1 taking it all seriously enough to stand there for hours before the doors were opened1 that by letting them inside the management might improve their spirits1 and they in their turn might be more gentle4 ,illustration3 ,outside the ,pit ,entrance ,and it has also occurred to me that the management might further improve the spirits of their audience by doing away with women ushers1 and by selling the programme at the same time they sell the seat2 for it is hardly fair to the first act of a play to make it overcome the fretfulness caused by annoying attendants before it can hope to amuse4 ,but the second act is sure to have a fair start1 and if the play is good from there on1 it will have no reason to complain of the audience4 ,an ,englishman's memory begins with a pantomime4 ,a ,drury ,lane audience easily explains this1 as a large portion of it is composed of children4 ,this is just as it should be4 ,the only mistake is that each year the clown and pantaloon have less to do4 ,last winter they only appeared in front of the drop curtain1 and had difficulty in entertaining the audience until the next scene had been set4 ,it is strange that this should happen among people who are naturally so true to old friends4 ,in the place of harlequin's tricks they have the arial ballets and electrical effects1 and altogether a performance that can be done just as well at the ,empire or the ,alhambra4 ,this is dangerous1 for it might in time change the character of a pantomime audience4 ,illustration3 ,a ,first ,night ,illustration3 ,small ,wigs and ,big ,fees ,illustration3 ,in the ,lord ,chief ,justice's ,court ,a fancy dress-ball in ,london is slow4 ,the general orders are1 8keep moving along40 ,the man who manages the search-light1 from one of the top boxes1 probably enjoys the ball the most4 ,he certainly does more to help it4 ,the centre of interest is wherever he will have it4 ,he can make a dull costume bright1 and a supper-party in one of the boxes proud2 and he can almost remove the gloom caused by the officials in black4 ,the greatest variety of expressions are to be seen in the audiences that come together at the law courts4 ,there is the never-changing face of the judge1 and the ever-changing face of the witness rocking from side to side in his box1 and there are the black-robed barristers with small wigs and big fees1 and pale law students crowding in at the doors and filling the passage-ways2 and in front of the long table that is covered with papers and high hats sit those most interested in what is going on--care-worn parents and women thickly veiled4 ,illustration3 ,in the 8,whispering ,gallery0--,a ,small ,loan ,the most interesting place of amusement for men is the ,national ,sporting ,club4 ,every ,monday night during the winter the sports of ,london meet there in the same building that ,colonel ,newcome and his son once left because they objected to ,captain ,costigan's song4 ,the ,colonel would be more amused there now1 well-trained and scientific boxers from all the world meet in a roped-in square1 surrounded by an orderly crowd of stock-brokers1 bankers1 and miscellaneous sporting characters1 who wait for the best man to win4 ,then they adjourn to a front room1 and around the bar and little tables they talk about by-gone fights and the men and horses whose pictures cover the wall4 ,some find their way to the ,strand1 where1 in a supper-room called ,marble ,halls1 every variety of sport in all stages of luck1 and actors from the neighboring theatres1 discuss the fight of the evening round by round4 ,illustration3 ,at the ,national ,sporting ,club ,a ,music ,hall audience is the most demonstrative and amusing4 ,it will applaud the longest1 hiss the loudest1 and sometimes join in the chorus4 ,from the moment the numbers are posted announcing the next turn1 it is easy to tell what the performer's reception will be4 ,on both sides of the orchestra are bars1 and when a ,london barmaid stops work to listen and laugh you may be sure that the turn is a good one4 ,last winter they paid ,dan ,leno this compliment4 ,the air is filled with tobacco-smoke1 and the calcium-light1 on its way from the gallery to the stage1 looks like a sunbeam in a dusty hayloft4 ,illustration3 ,at the ,pavilion ,,london ,,parks ,illustration3 ,a ,sidewalk ,artist ,,the first and most natural question asked of any city is 8,show us your people40 ,in answer to this1 ,london may safely begin by pointing to its parks1 and especially so on any ,sunday during the season1 for on that day you can best see how caste has assorted and parcelled the city off into so many exhibits1 as carefully arranged as the specimens in the ,british ,museum4 ,the walks in ,hyde ,park have their special social value1 as much so as the walks in life2 and in the park or in life1 whichever path an ,englishman uses1 it is safe to suppose that his ancestors walked there before him4 ,the parks of ,london are handy4 ,from a ,piccadilly club window can be seen sheep enough to fill a barn-yard1 and a stone's throw from the ,horse ,guards is ,st4 ,james's ,park with its duck island1 where all kinds of rare birds flock together2 and their relatives in far-away countries are no better fed than these happy exiles in the heart of the great city1 and the peacocks that ornament the banks of the ,serpentine are as happy as the boys who sail the toy-boats on that toy river4 ,illustration3 ,sunday ,morning near ,stanhope ,gate ,sunday is ,hyde ,park's day 8,at ,home10 and in the shape of a blue sky she sends her invitation to all ,london1 and her popularity is easily shown by the number and variety of her friends4 ,by long odds the best-looking exhibit is to be seen during church-parade4 ,it extends from ,hyde ,park ,corner to ,stanhope ,gate1 and consists of the well-to-do1 most of whom probably first came to the park with their nurses and a little later with their tutors1 and they now come grown up and with white hair to pay their respects to the good doctor of their childhood4 ,they form what is distinctly a ,sunday gathering1 and one as serious as a wedding4 ,seldom a loud voice is heard4 ,there is a feeling of rest throughout the whole scene1 and it is impossible to be there without entering into the spirit of it4 ,in the solemn throng that pass and repass ,i have seen a noisy steamer acquaintance thoroughly subdued and looking like an undertaker in a long coat and high hat4 ,everyone else seemed to have been there from childhood4 ,the old gentleman in the ,row undoubtedly first appeared there on ,shetland ponies under the watchful eye of the groom4 ,it is not a thing to tire of1 and ,sunday after ,sunday these well-dressed people attend church-parade as seriously as they attend church4 ,a little farther into the park are the shopkeepers and domestics listening to the band4 ,here you are likely to meet the real estate agent and tailor with whom you have already had dealings4 ,they are a distinct class1 and very different from the first exhibit4 ,they keep their frock-coats carefully buttoned1 and are apparently not so much at their ease4 ,illustration3 ,,hamlet ,illustration3 ,a ,constitutional in the ,park ,illustration3 ,in the ,row ,illustration3 ,a ,park ,orator ,separated from these people by another social gulf1 and toward ,marble ,arch1 are the unemployed listening to the park actors and park orators4 ,if you are tall enough to look over the heads of an ,english crowd you will see in some of these groups strolling players at work4 ,in the centre of one group a short1 red-faced park orator declares that a ,prime ,minister has robbed him4 ,the farther away from these shady paths the sadder ,london is4 ,among them foreigners feel at home4 ,little home-sick law students from ,india may mope in ,piccadilly1 but in ,hyde ,park they look happy4 ,once there the ,british soldier is no longer war-like2 he becomes helpless and happy1 surrounded by nature and under the influence of some pink-cheeked domestic4 ,in the early part of the day the parks are occupied by very young people2 the visitors become older with the day4 ,the nurses and their charges leave1 and evening finds an old lady leaning on her husband's arm1 walking slowly along their favorite path1 while their carriage follows at a little distance4 ,and as night comes on they roll back into the great city among the never-ceasing tread of feet1 past the side-walk artist sitting by his pictures on the pavement1 looking anxiously at the passers-by--and the park's day is done--a curtain of darkness falls on the great stage2 the peacocks go to roost in its trees2 the ducks are undisturbed by wet dogs1 and the ,serpentine's small fish are no longer in danger of bent pins2 and the park1 ,london's kind friend and good physician1 is resting4 ,illustration3 ,church ,parade ,illustration3 ,after ,hours ,a ,,drawing-,,room ,,on ,march #aa1 #ahif1 the first ,drawing-room of that year was held at ,buckingham ,palace4 ,through the courtesy of the ,lord ,chamberlain ,i was given the entree to the palace on that day4 ,as a ,drawing-room is strictly a feminine affair1 it matters very little what a man may think about it1 for the line points of social advantages and the costly costumes he seldom understands4 ,apart from the foreign ambassadors1 members of the ,cabinet and attendants1 men are not wanted and are seldom seen4 ,women go in hundreds1 and sit for hours in carriages1 extending in long rows down the ,mall1 while a crowd of curious idlers stare in at the carriage windows1 making audible personal remarks4 ,at two o'clock the palace gates are open1 and the waiting continues in the different rooms above stairs4 ,illustration3 ,waiting ,illustration3 ,a ,barrier ,illustration3 ,after ,presentation ,these rooms are divided by barriers1 guarded by gentlemen of the household1 which prevents over-crowding4 ,it is an extraordinary sight to see room after room filled with nervous young girls and their more composed mothers sitting in the unbecoming light of an afternoon sun1 with white plumes in their hair and the family jewels on their necks4 ,with the exception of a now and then whispered conversation1 everything is quiet until the barriers leading into the next room are opened2 then a rush follows and small pieces of lace1 spangles1 flowers1 and ostrich feathers are left on the floor4 ,mothers and daughters are separated4 ,after the confusion of finding each other1 all is quiet for another thirty minutes1 when a rush for a better place in the next room begins4 ,a retired ,colonel1 the guardian of a barrier1 noticing my interest and my evening dress1 asked me if ,i did not think it looked like an ostrich farm4 ,he pointed out his wife to me1 and said a ,french hairdresser had been at his house all that morning4 ,the ,colonel's pretty wife looked it4 ,from there ,i crossed the ambassadors' room and the picture-gallery1 where the people who have the entree wait1 and entered the throne-room4 ,at that time there were three men in it2 two of them1 gentlemen of the household1 were standing on either side of the door4 ,one of them told me that the young officer with a bearskin hat on his arm1 standing by a long window overlooking the central court1 was there to signal to the band outside when the royal family entered1 in order that they might know when to play 8,god ,save the ,queen40 ,he also motioned with his head toward a small door in one corner of the big red room1 and said through it the royal party would enter4 ,i asked the same gentleman why ,drawing-rooms were not held in the evening4 ,he said he did not know4 ,at this time the ,prime-,minister1 in a dark uniform with a blue ribbon across his breast1 entered the room1 followed by ,court dignitaries1 gentlemen ushers1 and the ,lord ,chamberlain with his staff of office4 ,then the little door opened1 and while the band played 8,god ,save the ,queen10 the ,princess of ,wales and the royal party filed in4 ,then there was a low bow on both sides2 the ,lord ,chamberlain took his position by the ,princess of ,wales1 and read from the cards handed him by the ushers the names of those who were being presented4 ,illustration ,after the ambassadors and their wives came those having the entree2 after them those without4 ,the white procession had started1 and the ,drawing-room that had been rehearsed and looked forward to for years1 as far as each individual's part in it was concerned1 was soon over4 ,at the end of two hours there was another low bow1 and the royal family filed back through the little door4 ,the bustle and waiting was transferred to the grand hall below1 where little olive-skinned ,indian ladies of high birth1 and famous ,english beauties whose photographs could be bought on ,piccadilly1 stood side by side until their carriages stopped the way4 ,mothers and daughters passed between rows of ,yeomen of the ,guard to the door1 daylight1 and the photographers2 finally home1 where tea is arranged1 and friends are gathered to hear about it4 ,i had a second opportunity to see a ,drawing-room1 and ,i am of the impression that they must be very much alike4 ,illustration3 ,a ,gentleman at ,arms ,illustration3 ,a ,drawing-room ,tea ,,london ,,salons ,illustration3 ,an ,early ,departure ,,the 8season0 begins about the time ,parliament opens1 and ,parliament's opening and closing depends more or less on fox-hunting and grouse-shooting4 ,as the 8season0 approaches1 town-houses are opened and 8green0 servants are broken in2 secretaries busy themselves with lists and stationery1 and the winter campaign begins immediately upon the family's return to town4 ,as a ,london house is seldom needed for more than the formal entertainments of a season1 it is in most cases hired2 consequently1 it is seldom attractive4 ,acquaintances are entertained in the city1 and friends are taken into the country to spend the week's end on the family estate1 surrounded by the household gods and the most attractive side of all ,england4 ,there the future members of the ,house of ,lords1 and the belles of some future ,drawing-room1 ride donkeys1 and the older people ride wheels and sit under ,english oaks and make little water-color sketches1 and it is easily seen why only social duties take them to ,london4 ,illustration3 ,distinguished ,guests ,by eight o'clock in the evening almost every other house that you see will have a little red carpet stretching from its door to the curb1 and in some cases a temporary awning over it4 ,the streets seem to be given over entirely to carriages and hansoms carrying people to dinner4 ,when the last guest has arrived the carpet is taken in until later on1 when it again rolls back down the steps and across the pavement1 between two lines of footmen1 while the butler whistles for hansoms1 and half of fashionable ,london goes to its own house1 its club1 or its lodgings4 ,a ,member of ,parliament1 during a short recess1 will leave the ,house and drive miles to a dinner4 ,he may arrive thirty minutes late1 or leave before the dinner is half over4 ,a ,quartermaster-,general will leave the ,war ,office an hour earlier1 because he has promised to go bicycling with some young people1 and an ,editor will leave his paper and accompany his wife to a tea4 ,illustration3 ,after ,dinner ,illustration ,illustration3 ,at ,dinner ,this interest in all things gives ,english people time for everything4 ,a ,london reception is bright and amusing4 ,in the early part of the evening statesmen1 diplomats1 and older people are in the majority2 at eleven o'clock those who have been to the play arrive1 and a little later the actors themselves4 ,from the staircase people can best be seen4 ,it is always crowded by those who are on their way to pay respects to the hostess in the hall above1 and by those who have already done so and are on their way down to the supper-room4 ,above and below a dense crowd elbow and talk around and through you4 ,you are slowly twisted past your hostess and through the parlors1 and then finally back to the staircase1 down which you can go as slowly as you please4 ,no one is in a hurry--so out into the early morning1 between rows of uniformed coachmen standing like sentries sleeping on their post4 ,illustration3 ,your ,hostess ,,london ,,people ,,once upon a time1 judging by ,john ,leech's pictures of ,english women 7who could do almost everything in those days but manage their hoop-skirts71 they were all short and became instantly stout when they arrived at forty4 ,if ,leech was right1 ,english women must have changed very much since then4 ,it may be that they grew tall to more closely resemble ,du ,maurier's goddesses4 ,in many cases they have succeeded1 as may be seen at ,lord's or at any fashionable race-course4 ,there may not be a variety of good looks1 but one type is very beautiful4 ,so strong is the family likeness1 they might all be handsome sisters4 ,there was something very sweet and lovable about that plump little woman of ,mr4 ,leech's4 ,i only met her in reality after she had grown into a sweet old lady1 and ,i should have regretted not having seen her before had ,i not seen her tall granddaughters4 ,illustration3 ,patiently ,listening ,the fact that ,phil ,may is a prophet in his own country should alone clear ,englishmen of the suspicion that they are slow to see fun4 ,on an ,englishman's love of fair play and good sport no suspicion has ever rested4 ,it is the most attractive thing about him1 and it is only natural that the greatest assortment of good-natured people are to be found at the ,derby4 ,i had already met them in ,may's drawings1 and ,i was prepared to find the good-nature contagious4 ,last year a party on a coach opposite the ,royal box and a policeman1 who looked after that particular part of the course1 drank champagne out of the same bottle4 ,when the ,prince of ,wales came down to lead ,persimmon off the track1 short men stood on boxes and balanced themselves by holding on to whoever stood next to them4 ,gypsy fortune-tellers and painted-faced minstrels climbed on the backs of coaches4 ,everyone shouted together and probably wished that the ,prince had been a little taller1 so that they might all have seen him4 ,illustration3 ,at the ,savoy ,illustration3 ,phil ,may ,illustration3 ,george du ,maurier ,english-speaking people have been introduced to each other by a long line of clever draughtsmen4 ,they have laughed together about the same people in the truest and sweetest-natured way in all the world4 ,above all others1 one hand awakened the interest resulting in people knowing themselves and others better4 ,the beautiful was safe in that gentle hand4 ,although the heart that guided it no longer beats1 the human interest and kindly feeling that it awakened will live forever1 and all the world has placed among the foremost men of his day the affectionately remembered name of ,george ,du ,maurier4 ,these drawings were made among the most hospitable people ,i ever met4 ,when ,i have failed1 it has not been owing to a lack of interest1 but more likely on account of a consciousness that my results would fall short of my desires4 ,the disappointments following the completion of a drawing made from a beautiful woman are many4 ,in these portraits ,i have the most to regret4 ,illustration3 ,the ,queen ,illustration