The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-06-06
NH STRAND, LONDON.
oas Of the GREAT Thcroughfarss Of the
world.

Ea - HEl
oae Of the Grsas Thcroughfarss ef the
World.
Who has not heard Of the Strand. the
great main ~thcrouaAfars OF London3
From early morning I'LL past midnight y
il mo . fsequsnisd than any other street 70
She great metropolis.
3You would almoat imagine Tho London
strand 10 ps the main artery Of the world.
II ID doubtful II there Ii another thorough
fare on the facs Of The earth where. the
stream Of human life Rms with . tids %
ovsrwhslmtnR.
able to catch the eye OF the pAsssr-by. In
the Strand NO man see another except % .
solid body, whose contact 10 TO be avoided.
You arc safe nowhere ON the pavement
without all the vigilance OF your senses.
Omnibusss and cabs. drsys, sarriaas:'
Newspaper hawksrs. pickpockets. shop
boys, coalheavers and a pe'petual and SELF
ish crowd dispute the sidewalk,
II you venture to look at anything IN =
shop window you arrest the tid o! psdes-
TRANS. who Immediately walk over you;
and II you stop TO speak to . friend. who by
chance has run his nose against yours rather
than another mans you impede the way
and ale made to nderatand II by the force
OF jostliuR.
Looking a II In the early morning. when
there Is no great traffic, even now the great
street is far from anpicsureaqns. Its
% n"a.s.i h sas't and there rso VIE bow ~. .vind SeSa.
sometimes with : little sculpture, present .
very broken outline TO Tho ekr, and At the
end In tho blue haze. which u 40 beautiful
on a 6ns day il London. rises the Flemish.
looking stsepls Of -. Mary 10 Grand. with
the light streaming through ~ oren pillars.
In tho Strand ID Exeter hall, The hsad-
quarters OF the Young Mems Christian 81
ISOLATION. Near il 10 Counts' bank. whore
the royal family have banked since the
reign OF Queen Anne.
Further along 10 Somerset house, built In
l776. In which are the audit ofioe. register
land revenue office and wills and probates.
The courtyard has . we'll proportional and
stately Qloominess. In The center 10 the
great allsQorical figure Of the Thames by
John Bacon.
Tains says: "If you would see some
thing quite dreadful go 70 the enormous
palace in the Strand called Somerset hou:s.
Massive. heavy architecture. Of which the
recesses seemed dipped In ink. the porticos
smeared with SCOT. There 10 q ghost of Q
waterlsss fountain in = hole in tho midst OF
an empty quadrangle. pools Of water on the
flags, long tiers Of CLOSED windows. What
can men do in such q ~cAtaeomb?"
Next to Somerset house are b Kings
college and schools founded in 1928. Near
here stood the Turks Head coffee house,
frequsnted BY DR.. johnson. The church
Of ST. Mary 10 Grand ID opposite the en-
trance TO Kings college. and further on IL
the church Of 1T. Clement Danes with its
famous chimes.
Among the places Of amusement n the
Strand are Terry's theatsr. Lycsum, Gaisty
Vaudeville, the Adelphi. the Strand, the
Savoy and the Opera Comique.
The aspect of East Strand has been on
tirely changed in recent years BY the erec.
tion Of the royal courts Of justice, a noble
pile of buildings. opened by Queen Vioto-
ria in 1882. Including stnircases, corridors,
halls and rooms, there are 800 apartments
in the main sdifce and 800 in the eastern
building. The contract price for erecting
them was e7oo. 600. and the land on which
they are built cost 81, 453, 900. The site
was formerly occupied BY n of the most
wretched tenements In London,
Among The more important newspaper
offices In the strand are the Graphic and
illustrated London News The efice Of
the Morning Chronicle used to be there
also.
Northumberland house. one of ths mo-
blsst Jacobean houses in England and one
of the most picturesque features In Lon
don, was demolished In 1876. and 4 mag
niicent hotel and other stately business
buildings now occupy its site.
Temple Bar snds at the Strand and
marks the division between the city of
London and the liberty of Westminster.