Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-12-06
London.

The continuous growth Of London and its
absorption year by year of surrounding rural
districts, must be reckoned among the most
remarkable phenomena of the present age.
Nothing appears to check it. If a period of
depression affects the general trade or agri-
culture OF the country, its only effect SO far as
London is concerned, is to attract more people
to it from the distressed districts II a revival
OF trade takes place, London shares in and in
creases with the general prosperity. Already
London, in the wider sense Of the term. has q
population little short Of 5000, 900, and if the
increase In the future is at the same
rate as in the past, there are those
living who may see the fulillment Of old
Mother SYMPTOMS prophecy, that the day will
come when Highgate Hill will be it's center. For
the purpose of comparing the rate of increase of
the population OF London, the report Of the
census OF 1881 divides it into three zones the CEN
trail one consisting Of the ten most densely pop
ulated parishes, the inner ring including all that
Is popularity considered as London and which
comedies nearly with the jurisdiction of the
metropolitan board. and the outer ring contain
ing all those populous suburbs. such as Ham,
mersmith, Putney, Sydenham West Ham, and
others, which are now as much part of Lon
don; connected with it by continuous streets,
as were Hampstead, Kensington, and Green
witch but few years ago This outer ring
corresponds nearlyswith the Metropolitan no.
lice district, and it is to this that the aggregate
term OF London is now properly due. The
central area contains population Of S77 800
ana SHOWS reduction during the last 30 years
OF no less than 133, OGO. owing to the gradual
dispersion of the population over the wider dis
trlct. and the substitution of warehouses, rail-
way stations, public offices, and streets for
the densely populated alleys of former times.
Inc inner ring, exclusive OF the central area
contains population of 2 ,936. 600, an increase
OF ,l43OOO during the last 20 years, or 63 per
cent; and the outer ring has population of
$4,000. an increase of 531 900, or 1875 per cent
in the last two decades. Taking the whole of
the areas, the increase has been from 3. 222. 600
in 1851 to the great total of f. 764 600 in 1881. or
a per cent while the rate of increase during
the same period for the rest of England and
Wales has been only % per cent. London.
therefore, mas been increasing at rate nearly
double that of the rest of England and Wales it
contains million more inhabitants than the
whole of Scotland, and about 400 900 only less
than the whole of Ireland, while it exceeds in
population such countries as Sweden Holland
and Portugal. When we consider that London is
not great manufacturing district that it has
no great staple trade such as Lancashire, York
| shire, and the Tyne district this great and
rapid increase is the more remarkable It ap-
pears to be due mainly to the concentration
within It's districts of vast numbers of people
who live upon incomes derived from invest
ments in other parts of the country and abroad.
and to the populations which minister to the
wants OF these people; to the fact, also. that
London being the commercial center of the
world, capital Is here attracted in enormous
masses, and that capitalists have discovered
that London, with all its defects, presents to
them the most convenient, healthy and COM
Portable place of residence in the habitable
world. In some OF it's many aspects London
, is one of the most beautiful and interesting
cities in Europe. There are, indeed, vast dis
tricts in 1t of unredeemed ugness, lowness and
poverty, where there is no single feature
of beauty or grandeur, where the population
passes through its daily toll, from the begin
ming to the end of lfe unillumiDated by a raw
OF interest from surrounding influences. and
where society seems intent on reducing life to
the most monotOnous and dreary existence that
could be devised. Nor are drriluess and mo-
nOtony confined to the districts inhabited by the
laboring people only; the more fashionable
quarters which have grown up during the last
two centuries in the west of London have been
constructed on a system and under a tenure
which was best calculated to prevent any indi-
vidualism from manfestng itself; and con-
tractors. bent only on making the utmost profit
out OF hundreds Of houses built for the sake of
cheapness on the same model have impressed
| and stereOtyped whole districts with the most
uniform, dreary and commonplace domestic
| architecture:-1 Hon. G.. s. Lefep,e, in the
NiaeteeuM Ceatur.u