The Sun.
London, England, 1827-07-28 00:00:00

ARCHITECTURE OF LONDON.

The great architectural superiority of London,
such as it is, consists in the number, size, and ge-
neral neatness of its principal streets and squares.
No other city can boast so great a number of streets,
equll to those of London in length and breadth,
and so uniformly well built. Petersburgh,
Berlin, Naples, Turin, Genoa, Antwerp, Edin-
burgh, and other places, have, perhaps, finer
streets than any in London, but in respect to
their number there is no comparison. At pre-
sent, also, it - may be affirmed, that since the
completion of,the line of street extending from
Carlton-house to the Regent's-park, it would
not be easy to find, in any other city, even a
single street which greatly exceeds that magnifi-
cent range of buildings.
Remarks of a similar kind may be applied to
the squires. There is none that can be compared
with the great square of St. Petersburgh, the
Place Vendome at Paris, the Place Royale at
Brussels, the Place of St. Marc at Venice, or
even with the principal squares in Edinburgh.
Yet, when we consider their number, their spaci-
ousness, their enclosures, and their general neat-
ness, they form a4ogether such an assemblage as
no other city can
In the capital article of churcheS, London will
probably be admitted, after Rome, to take the
first rank amongst the cities of Europe. Some
few places, as Milan, Strasburgh, York, &c. may
boast a finer Gothic cathedral than Westminster;
and St. Paul's must yield the palm to St. Peter's,
as a Grecian temple ; but no single city can
boast two several specimens which rank soliigh
in their respective departments. In churches of
the secondary order, Ldndon is also richer than
any other city.
. We come next to the article of bridges ; and,
in this particular, it must be admitted that no
city in Europe can pretend to any competition
with London. No other great capital is, indeed,
so favourably situated in this respect, bisected as
it is by a broad and deep river which• bears on its
current a greater commerce than any yet known
in the annals of mankind. The Seine at Paris•is
very complete in its bridges, both as to quality
and number : but the narrowness of the river is
a bar to all magnificence. The bridge over the
Garonne at Bordeaux is, perhaps, of greatef extent,
and that over the Elbe at Dresden is more finely
ornamented, than any in London ; but no single
city can show five such bridges as those of West-
minster, Waterloo, Blackfriars, Southwark, and
London.—Mechanics' Magazine.

In every quarter of the country, and among
ail ranks of society, circumstances are occurring which
evince the popularity of the Prime Minister. Among
these may be mentioned the fact, that the precentor of a
country parish in Annandale, in publicly presenting his
child last week for baptism at the sacred font, bestowed
on him the well known name .of George Cen.aning.—
Scotsman:

Whoever the following story may be fathered
on, Sir John Hamilton was certainly its parent. The
Duke of Rutland, atone of his levees, being at a loss (as
probably most Kings, Princes, and Viceroys occasionally
are) for something to say to every person he was bound in
etiquette to notice, remarked to Sir John Hamilton that
there was " a prospect of an excellent crop : the timely
rain," observed the Duke, " will bring every thing above
ground." " God forbid? your Excellency !" exclaimed
the courtier. his Excellency stared, whilst Sir John con-
tinued,. sighing very heavily' as he spoke :—" yes, God
forbid ! for I have got three wives under it."—Leinster
Journal.