Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-06-21
AS Calvin Manning Saw Metropolis
Of the World.
NOTICED. FINE HORSES
Visited tho House OF Commons-says
the House OF Lords IL M Solemn
as the Grave-An Inter.
esting Letter.

siiSPSHuSa uPoH w sly SOmeunlng OF the
FLOODED stock he sees in his travels.
In q recent letter to the Courier he
MAKES mention of the English stock
IN glowing terms and says that he saw
dozens that would be the pride of any
American city. Mr.. Manning also de-
scribes his visit to the House of Com
mons while the sessions were being
held. He says that the House of Lords
is as solemn as the grave and is pre-
sided over by man who looks as if
he would take great pleasure in sign
ing death warrants.
The letter is dated at Paris but
deals mostly with London and the Eng
llsh IN the following entertaining
way:
Paris, June 1900.
I think I promised you in nv last
letter to write OF London and 1t is a
pleasure to me to do so, because I
learned in my short stay in that great
citl to like the people. l saw much
to admire in a history SO great as that
which belongs to the metropolis of
the world. The old saying is that
First impressions are everything" and
NV first impression of London was
this: We arrived at the station and
inquired for the cab We were seated
in coach similar to Parmlee's in Chi
cago and We're driven to Morley's hotel
in Trafalgar Square with our luggage
for six pence each with a small tip in
addition for the attendant If that
kind OF fees don't make an American
feel good don't know what would.
In Chicago it would cost $500, in Lon
den shihings, or so cents. We were
splendidly housed in the center OF the
city. at one of the old English inns,
the same hotel where Dickens in his
P1ckwick Papers starts on his pilgrim
age to the White Horse Inn, thru the
Strand, Charing Cross, Regent street,
and Piccadilly. Morley's is now the
English Manor house and can enumer-
ate on it's register many guests from
the interior of England who make
their home at Morley's during their
annual visit to London when the soci-
ETY. and opera socitey season opens,
or during sessions of parliament.
We find the English to be very con-
siderate and polite people, always
ready to answer civil questions, even
minute in detail and touch of the
hat, shows you that YOU are with a
people commonly called well bred.
I We noticed the buildings We're all
Ibuilt of stone or brick and were dark
and dingy in appearance, but when
examined were OF wonderful architec-
tural beauty. The streets were paved
with Norway pine laid on a solid bed
of gravel and cement and very much
like our old cedar block pavement,
but with the treatment they give the
large pine blocks | was told it made a
very durable street and very pleasant
to use. 1t is as noiseless rs the asphalt
and in many respects better. The
hanson" and the bus are the common
way of getting about the city. The
buses run thru many of the business
streets and they are splendid for the
reason that person may get one
every two or three minutes even for
long distances and at any time for a
| few blocks. The fare is one penny,
two cents; twelve passengers below
and fourteen above. There is no better
way 70 see London than from the top
of buss. On pleasant day it would
! afford great sport to ride on and at
leach station or distance pay the pen
ny. For six pence one can ride say
eight to ten miles, which will satisfy
even the average American. To lover
OF horses, it is a never ending stream
of pleasure to see the splendid horses
| in London. One may stand at Char
| ing Cross cand look only at the buss
horses and would see dozens of pairs
that would be the pride of a town incur
country. 1t is real fun to get on a
buss and get a seat near the driver.
/ Slip penny in his hand and tell him
| You are a stranger in London. Get him
started and he will prove equal to Mr..
| Fosters barber on board the Ship.
| He is the man that knows it all and
| you are willing for him to talk. The
draft, coach, saddle and carriage horses
are the finest | have ever seen; many
OF the bus horses would bring $500
| & pair il in America.
talked with tradesmen and men of
all classes and find they are enyious of
we Americans and think our country
| full of silver and some gold. Common
labor is not on the high grade as in
the United States. The English me-
chanic is professional man in the
sense that he must know his trade
before he holds himself out to the
world as being capable practising his
trade. l mean by this that thru years
of history and education the English
people have learned to do things well.
They build for the future and in many
instances for all time. could not help
but think of my neighbor. Geo. With.
all, and the splendid way he builds,
and find that he is the true type of
first class mechanics. Ofnecessity in a
new country many devices have to be
resorted to, but in time we will see
that the best in the end is the cheap
est. 1t is the historical side of the
picture that makes London great. Lon
don tower filed with treasures of the
past, the Crown Jewels, the dungeons.
the armor Of ancient knights and war
riors; a panorama of the wickedness
and cruelty of q people, yet still won-
derfully interesting. All this has been
preserved for hundreds OF years and is
told to our generation almost as new
story. st. Paul's with its wonderful
dome standing in the middle of the
strand, (the street is all around it) is
a great cathedral, filled with monu-
ments and at any hour of the day one
may worship therein. stopped in and
heard the singing of thousands OF
i . i