Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1902-09-11


DURING A FIRST DAY WALK IN THE
cITY-RusKIN's CRITICISM OF ITS ARCH
ITEcruRE JUSTIFIED.
The prospect Of a Sunday in London,
and the desire to see something of the city
before we began our northward journey,
led us to change our plans and brave the
crowds. In this determination we were
encouraged by the reports that disappointed
visitors were hastily leaving the city. 1t
was Friday afternoon that we rode from
Canterbury to London along road gay
with the English colors. They seemed
now so very out of place, for no one knew
but the King might even then be dying. 1t
was time of great anxiety, and people
were eagerly asking for the lates news
Many, however, were making the best Of
holiday The Strand was almost impossible
crowds of sight-seeres blocking the side
walks in spite of the signs. "Keep TO the
right while the omnibuses and hansoms
| formed slowly moving lines with many a
halt in the procession. Looking down
upon the crowds, as we did from the hotel
windows, we saw one seething mass of hui
manity. The uproar was frightful, and we
| longed for the quiet of the country. On
Saturday there was an appreciable differ
ence and traffic was much less congested
On our arrival we found that the work
of removing the decorations and stands
was already well under way. 1t must
have been an anxious time for the fire de-
partment for every available space was
filled with stands, and these were covered
with infammabe stuffs. At one place the
piers of the front wall had been removed,
temporary girders supporting the brick
work above, in order to give room for seats
The churches st. Mary-le-Strand and ST.
| Clement Danes were well nigh hidden by
the great stands erected around them. So
it was at Westminster its external beauty
being marred by the stands. | will not
attempt to describe the decorations, as |
suppose graphic accounts have appeared
| long before this in the papers. The most
admired decoration was the Canada arch.
Our first walk in London was on the af-
ternOon Of our arrival, when leaving Trafal
gar Square we walked along Pail Mall and
st. James street to st. James Palace, pass
ing a number of the famous club houses.
The palace is as devoid of architectural
interest as it is rich in historic memories.
| Here lived Henry VIII, Edward VI, and
Elizabeth, and many another of royal birth.
Here Charles l. babe farewell to his chill
dren, and from here James II. went forth,
never to return. Ten years ago a portion
of the old palace was fitted up as the town
house of the Duke of York.
Not far away is Buckingham Palace, at
that moment the centre of interest for the
whole civilized world In front of the
palace gates passed long lines of carriages
and pedestrians, representatives of all sorts
and conditions of men, of many national
tiles. As left London a few days later l
stood in the crowded corridor with an old
man from some out-of-the-way hamlet. 81
was near him last night, he said, and man
ner and tone left no doubt as to the inn
portance of chin" and the proximity. l
think he may be taken as the spokesman Of
chose others Of all estates,
As we returned, strolling along Bird
cage Walk, we were shown one of the
wonders of the world, the highest building
on the planet. 1t seemed too cruel an act
to humble the pride of our informant, and
we looked in silence upon building which
years ago would have received notice in our
great cities.
1t was more instinct than generalization
which led us to walk from Buckingham
Palace to Westminster Abbey Here it re-
quired the magic power of imagination in
order to obtain any enjoyment of the noble
pile which rose above its homogeneous sur
roundings, and one of the great sources of
regret will be the abnormal conditions
under which we beheld England's most
cherished sanctuary Fortunately there
were no stands around the chapel of Henry
VII. and there we could have a satisfactory
view.
1t was nearly time for the service in st.
Margaret's, the parish church of West
minister, so we waited for it, glad for the
peace and quiet of the holy place. At the
end of the north aisle printers have placed
window in commemoration of Caxton.
Below it to the left in very dark corner is
the modest monument of Sir Walter Raj
eigh. In the same aisle is a tablet in
appreciation of the work of Dean Farar
while canon of Westminster, and near this
is beautiful window in memory of that
man of God, the late Bishop Phillips
Brooks, so greatly beloved by the English
people. This is what one sees at a glance
in one corner of the church.
After the service we walked along White
hall, past the different government build
ings, including the Horse Guards, to
Trafalgar Square. Here is the famous
Nelson monument, lofty Corinthian col
umn surmounted by statue of Nelson.
The remarkable feature of the monument
is the four colossal bronze lions at the base,
the work of Landseer To the east is
statue of Sir Henry Havelock, and to the
west is one to Sir Charles Napier In the
centre of the square is that of Charles
George Gordon, the martyr of Khartoum.
On either side of this monument is a large
20, koa, %l. 81
| w., completing the decoration of one of
the finest spaces in London. 1t will be
greatly improved when the trees on the
north side are grown large enough to hide
the ugly facade of the National Gallery,
which is just beyond.
Next to the noise of London, that which
strikes one is the dirt and CRIME. The
buildings are blackened with the smoke,
and all but the newest look forlorn. AS |
went around the city l became more and
more conscious of the unjust opinion | had
formed of Ruskin. l had set down his
severe criticisms of London architecture as
made in state of irritability, due to some
unknown cause. Now ] do not wonder at
his structures. Taking it all in all it is the
ugliest city | have seen. That does not
mean that there are no beautiful parts or
4 WHICH dlC dDONe Dub
that the general effect on ones mind, the
composite photograph, so to speak, is I'M
pleasant. | want to select certain build
ings and so fix them in my mind that when
| think Of London the recollection will be
a pleasure.
One that / want to forget is the National
Gallery, of which / have spoken, and |
think the best way to do that will be to
remember the beautiful creations which it
contains. Once more we renewed the
| friendships of Italy as we had done in
Paris, Fra Fillipparo Lippi, Botticelli
Andrea del sarto, Fra Angelica and others
being we'll represented. l found great
pleasure in Raphoel's "Vision of a.
Knight, - one of his earlier works, and the
patient spirit of the ideal Christian he has
pictured in a wonderful way in his st
Catherine of Alexandria. Then there is
the "Ansidei Madonna for which England
paid fe70, 900. Near enough for comparison
hangs another of Raphae's Madonnas,
painted in 1905 for the Convent of St
Antony of Padua at Perugia, now owned by
Mr.. Morgan. The attitude of the Madonna
in both pictures is almost identical In
the latter composition the child Jesus is
blessing His cousin John. To the right of
the Virgin is st. Catherine with the wheel,
while st. Peter stands more to the front
On the other side are st. Paul and a saint
whose personality have failed to note. Of
these attendant figures that Of st. Peter is
most masterfully treated | do not know
how tho orifioc asfitnafa tha ttgo 1oiofr1rac