Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1848-03-10
Eom he Chrislinn Citizen.
London Underground.

That part Of London which lies under
ground may not be so pleasant to the eye
so pleasant as that which sees the sun, and
yet it not to be passed by.
The immense Wine Vaults in the London
Docks are objects of great interest. They
cover an area Of thlriy-three acres, lying un-
der a ihickly settled portion of London.
Then there are the sewers that lie under
every street of this mighty city, carrying off
the water and refuse filth. They are built in
a strong manner, about ten feet high and four
wide, and will very cleverly accommodate a
man. A person, however, could not be SEN
fenced 10 a more frightful place, than these
dark, dismal sewers.
They are infested with a large and vora-
cious race Of rats, whose eyes protrude from
their sockets in the most hideous manner i'm
aginablr. But they are very useful, acting
as public scavengersa and consuming all flesh
y substances that may chance 10 be washed
into their abode. But these rats are not the
only inhabitants of these s~ewers-horrid as il
may seem, there is a class of men who walk
these dark streets the day long, simply to "a
Their the valuable articles that are washed
down by the rain. Each man has his beat,
which consists of a certain number Of streets,
which he searches over and over again. The
only places of entrance are at the Thames
when the tide is out. Then, every thing rea-
dy, their tin lamps in their hands, they enter
and m their search. Sometimes a
man loses his way, and an awful place, sure
ly, it is 10 be lost in. Men who are used to
London sometimes lose their way in the open
streets-how much more difficult must il be
for those men who have buta tlickering lamp
/ FL a Ill tl-.- I.AV h. .
ticcd to this business not only 10 become ac-
qnainted with their particular beats, but with
all the beats, so that if away from their own
walks they will not be lost. If ones goes
down to the river side when they are enter
ing he will be very likely to hear one of them
address a fellow in this way, 1'lIallo neigh
bor-s'pos'en you take my Bill with you I'M
der Cheapside to-day and I'll take your Josh
under the Strand W 1t is in this way thai,
they manage the tu,orship Of the youthful
searchers. But with all their precautions
they quite often get lost. A few years since
one OF their number was missed and they in
stituted a thorough search for hun. His
bones and shoes were found in a back sewer
the rats had taken the rest. Whether he
died from exhaustion, or the rats attacked
and killed him, is Of course only to be con-
iectured.
These men get good pay, on the average,
for their labor. All kinds of coin, from a
penny up to a guinea are found. Many little
articles of muItiiarious kinds are found, all
of which constitute their lawful booty. Dia-
mond rings Of great value have sometimes
been found, and one could not envy them
their occupation if they found diamond ring
every day.
AS to the Wine Vaults-I visited the lar
gest, called the East Vault in the London
Docks. with a friend a few days since. CAS-
these Docks atford a plenty of interesting
matter for one paper | will not notice them
at presently We presented our merchants
order (withogt which we could not have en-
tered) at the Office of the East Vault, a little
dark underground room, on one side of which
hung lnnumerable little tin lamps fastened to
long sticks. When the porter was ready he
gave each of us one of these tin lamps well
lighted and babe us follow him. We passed
through folding doors, descended a tlight of
steps and we were in the Vault. A feeble
set OF CHASTITY lamps were hung about the
snbIerraneous abode, but there were only lust
enough Of them ito make the darkness Yisi-
BILE"
The wine casks were so arranged as 10
form little paths, or a%isles, which were Goa
ted over with a substance like saw-dust, soft
and pleasant for the feet. The vault we were
In comprises eisren acres. We walked on in
silence for awhile until we came under a bu.
sy thoroughtdre and then we stopped TO lis
ten. The noises Of the street sounded here
like the low and distant summer thunder with
a slight addition of hollow unearthliness.-
The wall, which is not very high, is supper
ted by a multitude of stone pillars. Had
they given way we should not have been In
a very pleasant predicament-witl whole
streets, wholesale houses, men, women, and
children, crushing us wish the wine casks I!
Far IN the distance, W. could see a party,
like ourselves, who were listening TO the az
tificiaI thunder.
We walked in one direction, then in ano-
ther-stopped and Observation-Disclosures
zed into the dim, dark distance-brea,hed
the fragrant air-and finally fell to talking
with our guide. In the Vault we were in,
he said, there were 10000 pipes of wine ;
and although he solemnly protested that it
was all the pure juice of the grape, | have
a doubt that some of it never came across The
channel. For several years past more port
wine has been Introduced into England than
is Manufactured in Oporto! And so with
some other wines. However, it does not
matter-perhaps one poison is as good as
another, only it would seem fair that when a
man pledges his wife or sweetheart in a bum.
per he should like to know whether he is do.
ing it with grape Juice or logwood and the
sugar of lead There are in The London
Docks 10 of these Vaults comprising, as !
have said, 80 acres Of area. John Bull con-
sumes more wine than he is aware-or he is
aware that he is a great spendthrift.