The Express.
London, England, 1863-03-11 00:00:00

THE CITY.

If the number, the maininde' and the costliness
of the illuminations last night, to say nothing of the
interest taken in them by the community at large,
were any test of the general feeling, the joy which
the City felt in the happy nuptials of the Prince
and Princess of Wales must havq,been very great
indeed. There was scarcely a public building, and
scarcely a place of business, which did not display
its device ; and in some cases the expenditure
upon them must have been reckoned in hundreds
of pounds. The charge would appear, however,
to have been most cheerfully and loyally borne
for the marriage of the Sovereign's eldest son has
always been acknowledged by the liege subjects of
these realms, even when they were most stubbornly
resisting oppression, to be a legitimate ground of
taxation ; and this ime, when each man has been
allowed to fix his own contribution, no fault can
be found with the efficiency of the voluntary prin-
ciple. The non-illuminating portion of the oom-
munity,who have had nothing to do but to admire,
have also performed their part with great self-
denial and zeal. For many days past they have
assiduously trod the streets, regardless of rain or
mud, and have laboured like so many comparative
anatomists to construct the perfect design f um the
first rude beginnings of the gasfitter's or the chandler's
handiwork. The result of these preliminary inves-
tigations seems to have been thought satisfactory,
and ere the sun went down last night—or perhaps
one ought to say, ere the gloom which had prevailed
all the day deepened—the whole town began to
pour forth its inhabitants into the chief thorough-
. __

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A recollection of the peril incurred to life and
limb within the City precincts on Saturday, and a
feeling that on this occasion the West would be
able at least to bold its own against all comers,
materially reduced the pressure in the streets around
St. Paul's ; but nevertheless there were places
Where onward still the gathering numbers warn,
And all I. bustle, squeeze, row, jabbering, and jamb—
to an extent that must have satisfied the most
ardent lover of a crowd.

In the gorge at the west end of the Poultry, and
in similar spots, the crush was positively appalling,
the pressure being, moreover, gratuitously increased
by a number of "roughs" who kept charging the
densely compacted mass out of pure gaiety of heart.
For the rest, the conduct of the sight-seers was
admirable, and in the broader streets circulation
on foot was possible without much in-
convenience. On the other hand, the pro-
grem of the numerous vehicles which formed
long unbroken lines along most of the leading
thoroughfares was pitiably slow. The tariff of
prices demanded by the cabmen, it may be remarked,
was in complete accordance with all the traditions
of their sect—unconscionable ; and it was, perhaps,
owing to this circumstance that they were lean fre-
quent than might have been expected. The bulk
of the work was done by lumbering waggons and
vans of every description, some of them being about
the last things in the world one would have expected
to see figuring in the passenger service.
Retracing the line of route pursued by the pro-
cession of Saturday, the first thing that ogled for
notice was, of course, London-bridge. A vast crowd
of persons flocked to the shrines of Saxo-Grammaticus
and the other Danish worthies, before which 100 al-
tars, flaming like so many cremate of antiquity, still
breathed their more or less fragrant perfume.
There was a tolerably smart shower just before
Seven, but the public did not allow io trifling a
circumstance to mar their devotion to the " lamp-
lighter's Promethean art," and they watched the
rekindling of the incense tripods with an un-
quenchable curiosity. The two grand transpa-
rencies on the triumphal arch came out re-
markably well, and were immensely admired ; but
the bridge as a whole did not look quite so
imposing as it does by daylight. The numerous
banners, which are the most striking feature in the
design, require the full blase of the sun to give
them their due effect. Along King William-street the
private illuminations were very numerous.
The Monument was illuminated with au electric
light, the effect of which at a distance resembled
that at St. Paul's, already noticed. The
grandest sight in the City was of course that
produced by the three great buildings which en-
close the noble opening between Cheapside, Corn-
hill, and King William-street, namely. the Mansion-
house, the Bank, and the Royal Exchange. The
two first were illuminated in much the same man-
ner ; that is to say, by numerous naked jets of gas,
disposed along the chief line of the edifice. The
long facade of the Bank, brought out with a single
beam of light, relieved at intervals by large and
handsome stars, put on for the nonce
an air of dignity and repose which it does not pos-
sess in the garish day. The front of the Mansion-
bowie is incapable of this large and simple treat-
ment. The Exchange was probably without
exception the most tasteful and successful effort to
be seen in London. Its pediment was also traced
with a line of light, and its columns were adorned
with illuminated spirals. The bold inscription,
" The Earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof," ,
was on this occasion spelt in literally illuminated '
characters. The means of lighting employed were oil
lamps, and nothing could be more entirely satisfac-
tory than the soft, calm, almost religious effect which
they produced. There is no doubt that while on a
Irbil night naked gas jets are best for small designs,
oil lamps are infinitely superior where the design
is large and simple in plan. Guildhall was orna-
mented with gas jets, disposed on the arcbitec-
tonic principle, but the effect was not particularly
good, perhaps because the building in its present
condition lies somewhere between Mr. Mantilini's
I
two famous categories, the things which have no
outline at all, and the things which have a demd
outline. The Post-office had a design representing
laurels and plumes, and enormous As. The
general effect of King William-street, Cheapside,
Holborn, Ludgate-hill, and the Strand was very
striking, and extorted general admiration. On the
whole, the City illuminations must be pronounced
a great and unprecedented success.
The view of the illuminations from the top of
St. Paul's, or from the lofty tower of St. Bride's,
Fleet-street, was very limited. Instead of the fires
on Hampstead-heath being visible, the eye could
scarcely penetrate beyond Holborn in a northerly
direction. On the south side the view was shut in
by the Surrey bank of the river ; in the east, the
triangle of flame over the Royal Exchange was the
I most remote object seen ; and in the west the