The daily gazette., 1877-11-08
HNGiLANDS +' CITIES.
STAFFORD oN-AvoN.

N Fl anIlftl .Y 80. +N.f
sTRATFoRD -oN-AvoN,
The birth place of Shakespeare, a quiet
and pleasant old English town that year
Y attracts literary pilgrims from every
The house in which the great English
genius % was born is now the propertyi Of
the British nation, and is cared for with
scrupulous zeal. 1t is ancient in appear
ance.. The apartment on the ground
noor Is rather dreary in aspect. A wind
| ing wooden staircase leads to a little room
| above where Shakespeare's eyes first
saw the light of the world. 1t is little
changed since his time. The ceiling is
low, and the walls, rough and bare, are
covered with a million penciled auto
graphs. Persons Of all countries and all
ranks have here inscribed their names,
and these signatures are o striking in
stance Of the spontaneous and universal
homage the poet has commanded
Among other names scratched upon the
glass Of the window may be seen that of
Sir Walter Scott. The tourist will he
able to find in the Visitors Book" and
| on various parts of the walls where they
are hot Yet obliterated by more obscure
names the signatures of many of the most
iilustrious men and women of the
| age.
THE GRAVE OF SHAKESPEARE
Is in an ancient church plcturesquely sit
uated on the banks of the Avon. The
| approach to 1t Is through stately ave-
nue. Of lime trees. The edifice consists of
| nave, aisles, transepts and chancel, q
| square tower, adorned with battlements
and pinnacles, and surmounted by a
graceful splre rising from the intersec-
| ton to height OF 163jfeet. The interior
is worthy of The impressive exterior. The
chaucel, the most perfect and beautiful
part of the fabric, was erected before the
discovery OF America. Shakespeare
place Of long repose is covered with q
plain hagstOne, bearing the oft quoted
INSCRIPTION;
Good friend. for Jesus sake forbeare
To digge the dust enclosed heare;
Bleste be ye man vt spares thes stones
And curst be he VI moves my bones.
Underneath an arch, between two Corin-
THAN columns of black marble is the mon
umental bust of the poet. 1t IS formed
out of block of soft stone, life size and
Ia painted In imitation of dature. The
hand and faoe are Of fiesh color, the eyes
OF light hazel, and hair and beard au
burn. Beneath kitt is AN incription. Or
one side of Shakespeare is buried his
wife Annie Hathaway, and on the Other
side his favorite daughter Susanna Hall
Others of his family are also entombe0
near Dy. Arter all
THE GREAT MECCA Is LONDON.
Ito the literary l adventure it possesses
charms not rivaled by those OF any otheI
city in Christendom. 1t was there that
all the powerful writer's whom we have
worshiped from childhood commenced
and terminated their arduous struggle
for fame and fortune. 1t was there that
hatterton flung away his life, too proud
and impatient to become a booksellers
drudge, when he knew he possessed ge'
MUS king might envy. 1t was there
that Chaucer and Spenser first struck the
Tyre, since swept by Milton, Byron anC
Shakespeare. 1t was there that j ohnson
Gay, Prior, Addison and Goldsmith firsl
put forth efforts for the applause of the
universe. 1t was there that those intel
lectual Titans struggled inch by incl
for their coveted laurels. 1t was there
that they endured The SCOTS of vulgar av
arice, the bitter pains of poverty, the
keen shame of obscurity, and even the
pangs of hunger. But dauntlessly they
persevered, slowly assembled the barreI
steep of renown, grasped the empty re
wards of their toll, and then-died. Ant
what multitudes of men, endowed will
he brightest gifts of brain and heart
have been swept under by the cruel hu
man food that rolled around them, un
| able to stem the reSistless current, ant
have been lost to rs forever. Aided b,
wealth and commanding position, Byron
burst upon the world like luminary
\ hat would have been his fate had b.
been compelled TO touch bis harp witt
one hand and clutch for bread with tn
other? We might never have heard o
him. What bauble is fame that a maj
should make himself seriously uucom
Portable to gain it. Far better win th
recompense of present pleasures thai
, ,tarve for posthumous celebrity.
, LONDON BY GAsLiGHr
1 Is a great study for the humanitarian
The streets swarm with people. TIVE
millions of human beings Gro wd the side
walks, for half the city is out. "Vic
stalks forth with its unoftened terrors,
and boldly stares respecIahlity out o
counteDance. Beggers and vendors pas
| ou in countless numbers. Police men ar
| everywhere and life is perfectly safe
Strangers are not knocked on the hea,
At every corner, as under republican
forms of government. Rogues are helt
| In clone Suhjcction. a auder down Edge
: ware road. or Oxford street, or Regen
: circus, and see all the world. STAN
: where the glare of the shop windows snt
: dues the light of the street lamps, and i
4 ten minutes you will see every phase c
. human life. The gay, the reckless, th
+ rich, the penniless, the RI 'tous, the dt
= ljrcted, the proud, the desperate-all pas
/ tOT0 yOu III Aoo 0iC III vi
; midst of q great hive. Music il on ever
/. breath of air. A thousand cries confus
: and mingle. The roar of the cats an
: vehicles is like kesuppressed thunder. h
streets will never be empty Jill norm nj
Think of Thebes. or Ninev-h. or tn
cities of the plain. They were not create
, than mammoth London, nor more inlqui
! Gus.
wEsTMIEIsTEk ABBEY
| Has been SO often describes that an at
| tempted exordium on its architecture
>plendors would be presumptuous. N
writer, student or scholar, however, eve
, neglects to visit 1t. 1t is the shrine O
English greatness, aud the nun ber of il
memorials to poets, kings, queens, states
m-R and warriors is simly bewildering
shakespeare, Chaucer, Spenser, Dray
ton, Jonson, ilton, Dryden, Addison
! Gampbell, Goldsmith, etc, have all bee
honored with monuments there, an
many of them are there buried. Th
: splendid tombs of royal personages ar
evidences of exquisite art Pope refused +
be buried at Westminster, and the buria
. of Byron there was denied. Pope's tom
is in a church at Twickenham, an
. Thompson, the poet of the Seasons,
. buried in another village of the suburbs
l rh.. hsof al ,af nraatuapa fh