deepest marks of the chissel are lost. In some parts, the badges, arches, quatrefoils, and other ornaments of the outside, are quite perfect."

Respecting the foundation of this chapel our author brings forth a variety of curious and interesting original documents. From a very rich book, now in the British Museum, are inserted the services which Henry the Seventh commanded to be used for the repose of his soul after death, with other particulars, which serve to depict the manners, customs, and superstitions of the times.

"The first article binds every monk in the monastery to assist at high mass at the high altar, to pray for the king's prosperity and welfare during his life. Then follows the service, to be pronounced while the world shall last, at high mass, at the high altar, after the king's decease.

"These priests, after the king's decease, addressed the congregation thus: Sirs, I exhorte and moeve you specially and devoutly of your charitie to praye for the soule of the most christen Prince, Kyng Henry the 7th, late Kyng of Englonde, founder of thre daily masses, perpetually to be sayed at this altier, whosys body restesth here buried.' At a quarter of an hour before each mass, the great bell of the Abbey was tolled forty strokes. As this altar was intended only for a temporary purpose, it was removed on certain days of ceremony to the south aisle, facing the chapel of St. Benedict.

"On the 12th of February, annually, the hearse for the king and his altar were adorned with 100 tapers, each weighing twelve pounds, and nine feet in length; twentyfour almsmen were arranged round it with torches, twenty-four pounds in weight. After those were prepared, the bells began to toll, as for the anniversary of Richard the Second.

"A procession then commenced through the choir to the high altar, formed by the monks, prior, and abbot; the lord chancellor, lord treasurer, chief justice, master of the rolls, chief baron of the exchequer, and five other justices, together with the lord mayor, recorder, and sheriffs of London. The abbot then proceeded to the high altar, and began the mass of requiem, while the monks kneel before it. The officers of state kneeling before the hearse said the psalm De profundis, with the prayers belonging to the

office.

"The hearse had four tapers, eleven feet in length, placed on the middle of each side (to burn perpetually), and thirty to be lighted only during the obit, mass, and even song; The sockets were set in crests of roses and

porteullises; and the tapers never consumed lower than four feet, when they were replaced.

"We have little reason to wonder at his thus besieging heaven, after perusing the prelude to his will, which he made March 31st, 1509 We save at this tyme, as sithence the first yeres of discresonne we have been accustomid, theis wordes, Dne Ihu Xe, qui me ex nihilo creasti, fecisti, redemisti, et predestinasti ad hoc quod sum, tu scis quid de me facere vis; fac de me sdm voluntatem tuam cum misericordia. Therefore doe of inee thy will; with grace pitie and mercy, most humbly and entirelie I beseeche thee. And thus unto the I bequeth, and into thy most mercifull handes my soule I committe. And howbeite I am a sinful creature, in sinne conceyved, in synne have lyved, knowing perfectlie that of my merites I cannot attaine to the lyfe everlastinge, but onlie by the merits of thy blessed passion, and of thy infinite mercy and grace; nathlesse, my moste mercyful Redeemer, Maker, and Saviour, I trust that, by the speciall grace and mercy of thy moste blessed mother, ever virgin, our ladie St. Mary, in whom, after thee, in this mortall lyfe hathe ever byne my moste singuler truste and con fidence: to whom in all my necessities I have made my continuall refuge, and by whome I have hitherto in all my adversities ever hadd my speciall comforte and reliefe; will now in my most extreame neede, of her infinite pitie, take my soule into her handes, and it presente unto her most dere sonne; whereof sweetest ladie of mercie, verie mother and virgin, wel of pitie, and surest refuge of all needfull, most humble, moste entirelie, and most hartile, I beseech the; and for my comforte in this behalfe, I trust also to the singuler meditacon and praiers of all the holie company of Heaven: that is to saye, angeles, archangeles, patriarks, profits, apostles, evangelistes, masters, confessours, and virgines; and especiallie to mine accus tomed avours I calle and crie, St. Michael, St. John Baptist, St. John Evangelist, St. George, St. Anthony, St. Edwarde, St. Vincent, St. Anne, St. Mary Magdalen, and St. Barbara; humblie beseechinge not onlie at the hower of death soe to aide, socore, and defend me, that the aunciente and gostlic ennemye, nor non other evell or dampnable sperete, have no power to envade me, nor wth his terribleness to anoy me,' &c."

In giving his executors directions for his funeral, which follow this supplicatory exordium, he particularly charged them to avoid " dampnable pompe, and outrageous superfluities;" a piece of advice little consistent with other parts of his will, which indicate the excessive grandeur of his establishment, and from which we further learn, that the high altar, dedicated to our lady, was to be adorned with the large image of her in his possession; a cross plated, with gold

and silver gilt candlesticks; the vestments for the priests officiating were to be of gold tissue; and on solemn feasts was placed a fragment of the real cross, set in gold, and resplendent in jewels, with golden and silver chalices, cruets, candlesticks, embroidered altar cloths, vestments, &c.

"Lest his soul might not rest in peace, although every precaution certainly was taken by him that poor sinner could take, he requested 10,000 masses should be said in the monastery, London, for its repose; 1500 in honour of the Trinity; 2500 in honour of the five wounds of the Lord Jesus Christ; 2500 to the five joys of our Lady; 450 to the 9 orders of angels; 150 to the honour of the patriarchs; 600 to the 12 apostles; and 2300 to the honour of all saints; and all those to be sung in a little month after his decease.

He directed that a statue of himself kneeling, three feet in height from the knees, should be carved in wood, representing him in armour, with a sword and spurs, and holding the crown of Richard III. won by him at Bosworth Field."

This figure was to be plated with fine gold, and enamelled with his arms, to be placed on a table of silver gilt, on the shrine of Edward the Confessor, and dedicated to God and the Virgin.

With the ceremony of this monarch's "BURIAL" we shall take leave of the Abbey:

On the 9th of May 1509, his body was placed in a chariot, covered with black cloth of gold, which was drawn by five spirited horses, whose trappings were of black velvet, adorned with quishions of gold. The effigies of his majesty lay upon the corps, dressed in his regal habilliments. The carriage had, suspended on it, banners of arms, titles, and pedigrees. A number of prelates preceded the body, who were followed by the deceased king's servants; after it were nine mourners; 600 men bearing torches surrounded the chariot.

The procession was met in St. George's Fields by all the priests and clergy of London and its neighhourhood, and at London Bridge by the lord mayor, aldermen, and common-council, in black. To render this awful scene sublimely grand, the way was lined with children, who held burning tapers; those, with the flashes of great torches, whose red rays darting in every direction upon the glittering objects, and embroidered copes, shewing the solemn pace, uplifted eyes, and mournful countenances, must have formed a noble picture. The slow monotonous notes of the chant, mixed with the sonorous tones of the great bells, were not less grateful to the ear. When the body had

arrived at St. Paul's, which was superbly illuminated, it was taken from the chariot, and carried to the choir, where it was placed beneath a hearse, arrayed with all the accomdirge were then sung, and a sermon preached paniments of death. A solemn mass and by the Bishop of Rochester. It rested all night in the church. On the following day the procession recommenced in the same manner, except that Sir Edward Howard rode before on a fine charger, clothed with drapery, on which was the king's arms.

We will now suppose him removed by six lords from his chariot to the hearse prepared for him, formed by nine pillars set full of burning tapers, inclosed by a double railing; view him placed under it, and his effigies on a rich pall of gold close to him; the nine mourners, near them knights bearing banners of saints, and surrounded by officers of arins. The prelates, abbot, prior, and convent, and priests, in measured paces silently taking their places; when, breaking through the awful pause, Garter, king at arms, cried with an audible voice, "For the soul of the noble Prince King Henry the Seventh, late King of this realm." A deep peal from the organ and choir answers in a chant of placebo and the dirge; the sounds die away, and with them the whole assembly retires."

The next objects described are the church and priory of St. Bartholomew the Great, in West Smithfield.

Mr. M. details at length a legend relating to the foundation of the above. It has all the characteristic improbabi lity of similar stories, and is only interesting from its age and connection with the subject. Our author, however, endeavours to prove from it, that Rayhere, the founder, was not Henry the First's jester, as is commonly said, but merely a promoter and lover of the buffoonery which prevailed at that dissolute prince's court.

The Latin lists of possessions of this and other places, Mr. M. should have translated either in notes, or in an appendix. They occupy a considerable space at present, and are useless to many readers.

The ancient and curious church of St. Bartholomew is, perhaps, the most perfect specimen of the Saxon style of architecture now remaining in London, and we have no reason to complain of its being superficially described, Mr. M. takes considerable pains to trace the priory ruins among " stables, carpenters, and farriers' shops;" but want of room prevents our following him: to the anti

us.

quary, however, we recommend the result of his researches as pregnant with useful and interesting information. Bartholomew the Lesser, and the hospital adjoining, have nothing to detain St. Benedict, Gracechurch Street, has some curious particulars in its churchwardens' accounts, but nothing that we can form an extract from to gratify the reader; St. Leonard, Eastcheap, we believe, was an incorporated parish with the latter. St. Botolph, Bishopsgate, contains scarce any thing of his tory anterior to the reformation, and what relates to it after that time is chiefly lists of benefactions. We cannot see why the volunteers are "called over" here, unless the same plan had been adopted in other parishes, which, as well as this, were mostly provided with corps. Some accounts of the antiquities which have been here discovered at different times, we think would have been more appropriate. The Quakers' meeting and Bethlem Hospital we pass by: as likewise St. Bride's, or Bridget's. A particular history of the Chartreuse, since called the Charter House, finishes the volume. The first was founded by Sir Walter de Manny in 1372, and continued a Carthusian monastery till the dissolution. This event, and its effects on the society, are particularly described by Mr. Malcolm.

There are very few remains of the original building, and those are so altered that their destination can scarcely be now conjectured. The admirable foundation of Mr. Sutton has more usefully supplied their place, and excites no regret that the gloomy recesses of superstition have become the hospitable mansions of benevolence and philanthropy.

The prodigious sums left by this great and good man for the establishment and support of his excellent charity are really astonishing. Independently of the annual revenue from his numerous estates, and the purchase and fitting up of the building, it appears from the will that his executors received, from the day of his death to 1620, 45,1637. 9s. 9d.

The regulations by which this society is governed, the exalted characters of those who preside, and the accommodations which it affords, are excellent: yet our author observes,

"It is a melancholy reflection, that of eighty persons, which is the number of pen

sioners, not one is generally found alive at the close of the tenth year; in short, the inhabitants undergo a total change in that period. Whence doth this arise? Surely not from their mode of living! Plenty, the best such a supposition. It is a grand and affectof plain provisions, and cleanliness, forbid ing sight to see the majestic hall, decorated even for royalty, with tables arranged with shining metal, supported by a large loaf to each plate, and covered by dishes smoking. with excellent viands, excellently cooked, and eighty ancient, respectable, venerable men, seated, partaking of the bounties of the immortal Sutton, a bounty of nearly 200 their apartments, we find them furnished years standing. If we follow these men to with every necessary to make them comfortable. Their age is such as to preclude a wish for excesses; nor are such permitted. Their minds are kept as quiet as possible, by every discouragement of dissension; and they are led to prayer twice in each day. and life, even to patriarchal years. Surely all this should tend to preserve health

"This is a proof of the miserable state of man, who is obliged to owe his existence to many causes which are not to be controuled. Here we find him solitary in the midst of numbers. The pensioner must be old, unmarried, and desolate, before he can be adnitted. He retires to his bed, and rises in with. He has had relations, but they are the morning, without a friend to converse

not with him; his affections wander towards them; regret, amidst plenty, invades his thoughts; his spirits sink, and his body wastes, till death relieves him. Such is man without the society of his relatives. Yet think not, reader, I condemn those regulations expelling friends; the weary pensioner, deprived of them by calamity, is here shelfate, had he not such an asylum ?" tered and protected. What would be his

We have thus followed Mr. M. through the various subjects of his volume, and shall conclude with a few observations.

Feeling the same partiality with our author for any information, however minute, which tends to enlarge the boundaries of knowledge respecting the metropo lis; we perused his work with more than usual gratification. After making this acknowledgment, as a just and deserved tribute to its general merit, we hope it will not be thought invidious if we freely point out what we think its defects. In so doing we have no intention to depreciate the work, but to suggest some hints which may tend to its future improvement. The objections that we shall make, do not only apply to the deficiencies observable in many places, and

the frequent admission of uninteresting articles, but the striking irregularity of the plan and arrangement.

With respect to its deficiencies it is obvious, that, as far as this volume extends, it is rather a history of particular parishes than of London: few things are described not immediately connected with the inside of the parish charch, though there are many miscellaneous objects of curiosity and interest in almost every parish gone through, besides those mentioned. The omission of inscriptions and particulars of monuments prior to 1700, though in general most remarkable on account of their antiquity, we cannot see the propriety of; their having been before given, we do not conceive a sufficient reason for withholding a great deal of essential information; unless, indeed, this publication is intended as a mere supplement to preceding authorities in which case one-half of its present contents are superfluous, for at least that portion has been anticipated. But we do not imagine this is Mr. M.'s intention, because he elsewhere assigns as "his reason for omitting, as much as possible, epitaphs previous to the year 1700," that he would not swell his work beyond tolerance." If the author had, in pursuance of this reason, which is undoubtedly a very potent one, left out great part of the tedious and uninteresting registers of births, marriages, christenings, and burials, except where really turious, we must have allowed the argu

ment its full weight. The old plan of dividing the city into wards, though here rejected for the sake of greater novelty, is decidedly the most eligible; as the arranging of parishes alphabetically, notwithstanding its seeming advantages, is highly inconvenient, the reader being obliged to jump from one end of the town to the other, instead of tracing the objects according to their relative situations, and thereby immediately recognizing them from their vicinity to each other. Besides this, the advantages of alphabetical arrangement may be completely gained by an index: admitting, however, its propriety, Mr. M. has not adhered to it himself; for under the letters A and B, not above two-thirds of the parishes beginning with those letters are described. It is true, we are told, " that circumstances have prevented his arranging his subjects into strict alphabetical order." But to what confusion must this lead? It destroys all system and regularity.

We mention these defects because we hope in future to see them remedied; in which case the deficiencies of the present volume may be partly corrected by additions at the end of the work. It is certainly a valuable one, and no means should be neglected to make it still more so.

This volume is illustrated with ten

prints of antiquities, mostly drawn and engraved by the author.

AS this pocket vade mecum certainly contains much useful and curious information concerning the principal objects of amusement and exhibition in London, it must be an acquisition to foreigners and strangers, who visit this great emporium of arts, manufactures, and commerce. We readily agree with the publisher, in its obvious and indispensable utility," and are much surprised that no work upon a similar plan had hitherto made its appearance.

"Every city and considerable town in

Great-Britain has for many years been provided with its pocket guide, and yet London, a place which contains such an infinite the present work, unprovided with a modern description, sufficiently practical and cir

number of matchless curiosities, was, tilk

cumstantial to relieve the cinbarrassments, answer the enquiries, and direct the pursuits of strangers and foreigners."

This is a singular fact, and it is equally singular that nine-tenths of the inhabitants of London are as much in want of a description as foreigners are. It is often remarked by country people

after visiting the metropolis, that they know more of its curiosities than the inhabitants who have resided in it all their lives. This is not peculiar to Londoners, for it seems almost an universal principle with mankind, to travel in search of curiosities, beauties, and rarities, and overlook, or totally neglect those that are in the immediate vicinity of their abodes. Though we admit the general utility of the work before us, yet there are some passages against which we must enter our protest: and that we shall do the more decidedly on account of its extensive circulation, and the consequent degree of injury that may be produced by false statements, and sophisticated

sentiments.

"Of the "origin of London, and ety, mology of its name," one of the writers states, that it "appears to have been founded, in times prior to the invasion of Cæsar, by inhabitants of Britain, the descendants of Goths, who emigrated from Scandinavia. In the ancient language of the Goths, lun signified a grove and den, a town; and at this day there are in the modern Scandinavia, towns or villages which retain the name of Lunden. The first rude towns of the Goths, were places of strength in woods: the northern Gauls, who were Goths from Scandinavia, traded with Britain; and it is probable that the southern parts of the island with which they carried on the traffic, had been seized and colonized by that bold and adventurous race." As the whole of this hypothesis, which the writer seems positive in, is merely an echo to the assertion of Mr. Pinkerton, we can neither acquiesce in it, nor suffer it to pass without a few animadversions. Those that believe London to have been first peopled by the Celts, who spoke a language nearly similar to the ancient British, or Welsh, have recourse to that language for information, where they find several words sounding like that of London; but which is the most suitable and descriptive involves some degree of doubt. Without noticing the whole, let us see what it is called by the modern Welsh, who are likely to preserve the same appellation by which it was for merly known. They call it Caer Lundain; which name strictly applies to the situation of the town. Caer means a

rampart, a fortress or city, and Lundain as a compound of Lun and tain, (becom ing dain in composition). Lun implies an expanse of water, and Tain is the British name for Thames. This river formerly spread its waters over a considerable tract of land from Battersea to Erith; and from Kentish town over most of the intermediate space to St. George's Fields, &c. Caer Lundain, therefore, means literally the town on the broad water of the Tain or Thames. The Britons would not have used Caer with Lundain if the last syllable had been din, a town, as it would be a palpable pleonasm; neither would the Saxons have called it Lunden-ceaster, Lundenburg, and Lundenwic, if the same termination had been identified with den, ton, or toun, for the same reason.

But to return from this digression to the work before us.

Those who are acquainted with Mercier's Tableau de Paris may, per haps, from the similarity of title, expect a resemblance between that rambling, desultory but entertaining publication, and the "Picture of London;" this, however, is by no means the case. The former paints the gay fantastic and everchanging scenes of the French metropolis, having principally in view the amusement of the reader; while the chief object of the latter, is to perform the office of an active and intelligent ciceronis and founds its claim to public esteem upon the accuracy and utility of the information which it communicates. We are, indeed, in the course of the volume, presented with "a sketch of the state of society and manners in London ;" but this, in our opinion, constitutes by no means the most valuable or interesting part. It is drawn up in a stiff inflated style, and abounds with invectives that will, by most, be ascribed to mortified vanity, rather than philosophic dis crimination. The hacknied complaints of the neglect of genius and literary talents are truly absurd. In the commercial part of the town, wealth will necessarily obtain the highest conside ration; in the courtly circles, rank and influence must be the chief centres of attraction; nor is it to be supposed that genius, destitute of common sense, should be respected by the one, or be a favourite