The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1845-07-24
Editorial correspondence of the N. Y. Evening Post

LONDON, June "a, lS45
Nothing can be more striking to one who is ac-
customed to the little enclosures called public parks
in our American cities, than the spacious, open
grounds of London doubt, in fact whether any
person fully comprehends their extent, from any of
the ordinary descriptions Of them, until he has seen
them, tried to walk over them. You begin at the
east end, at ST James's Park, and proceed along its
walks and its coonnades of old trees its thickets of
ornamental shrubs carefully enclosed its grass plots
maintained in perpetual freshness and verdure by
the moist climate and the ever-dropping Skies its
tfcal sheets of water covered with aquatic birds Of
the most beautiful species, until you begin almost to
wonder whether the park has western extremity.
You reach il at last, and proceed between the green
fields Of Constitution Hill when you find yourself
at the corner of Hyde Park, a much more spacious
pleasure-ground. You proceed westward in Hyde
Park until you are weary, when you find yourself
on the verge of Remington Gardens--a vast extent
of ancient woods and intervening lawns, to which
the eve sees no limit and in whose walks it seems
us if the whole population Of London might lose it.
self. North of Hyde Park, after passing few
sire ets you reach the great square of Regents Park,
where, as you stand at one boundary, the other is
almost undistinguishable in the duh London atmo-
sphere. North Of this park rises Primrose Hill a
bare, grassy eminence which, hear, has been pur-
chased for public ground, and will be planted with
trees. All around these immense enclosures presses
the densest population Of the civilized world. With
sphere and the odors Of plants and flowers, and the
twittering Of innumerable birds more musical than
those Of our own woods, which build and rear their
young here and the hum Of insects in the sunshine.
Without, are close and crowded streets, swarming
with foot passengers, and choked with drays and
carriages
These parks have been called the lungs Of Lon
don; and important they regarded to the pub
lie health and the happiness of the people, that be-
lieve proposal to dispense with some part OF their
extent, and cover 1t with streets and houses would
be regarded in much the same manner as proposal
to hang every tenth man in London. They will
probably remain public grounds as long as London
has an existence.
The population Of your city, increasing with such
prodIgious rapidity; your sultry summers, and the
corrupt atmosphere generated in hot and crowded
streets, make 1t cause of regret that IN laying out
New York, no preparation was made, while il was
yet practicable, for range of parks and public gar
dens along the central part of the island, or else
where, TO remain perpetually for the refreshment
and recreation of the citizens during the torrd heats
Of the warm season. There are yet unoccuped
lands on the island, which might, suppose, be pro-
cured for the purpose and which, account Of their
rocky and uneven surface, might be laid out into
surprisingly beautiful pleasure grounds; but while
we are discussing the subject the advancing popua-
ton of the city is sweeping over them, and covering
them from our reach.
IL we go out Of the parks into the Streets we find
the causes of a corrupt atmosphere much more
carefully removed than with The streets Of Lon
don are always clean. Every day, early in the
morning, they are swept; and some Of them, be-
lieve, at other hours also, by machine drawn by
one OF the powerful dray-horses OF this country.