Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-12-28
FAMQUSLONDON TREE
The Cause of Several Hard Fought Legal Battles.
|Ks SITE WORTH MILLIONS.
But \the Lawyer, Never Have Been Abls to Break Through the Phalsnx of LessI Ensetmsnts That Preserve the Okd Landmark In Cheapside.

VI %coN' -'eNNHSiNE
 the oNe Landmark In chsap'id''
 There tree in CReapslde, Lon don, that may be describ bed as the most expeAsve Of its kind on earth. If five dollar\soId pieces filled the entire trunk and Ave dollar bills futtered lh place of everS one of the leaves It would not buy the terra firma it occu- pies, for the land on which it stands the northwest corner of Wood street and Cheapside is worth $45O000O an acre The tree has stood on the sp6t for more than POO years, while Its site has augmented in value to almost fab ulous proportions.
 There have been several hard fought lawsuits over this plot Of ground, the fight having been carried even to the house of lords But so far the lawyers never have been able to break through 1 the phalanx of legal enactments which preserve the tree In the first place, there is law in England which pro hibits builders from putting up structure which shall keep out the light from windows which bear the mysterious words ancient lights. This tree in Chespside literally is sur rounded by number of ancient lights" proprietors whose consent neV- CT has been obtained when 1t came to cutting down the tree and putting modern structure on its site. For the same reason the storekeeper who 1 rents the tiny two story structure on ! the corner just in front of the tree never has been able to put his build- ing up beyond it's present height.
 Some years ago one builder, who thought himself more ''cute" than the others, started to take the law into his own hands and put up a building, thinking to arrange" with the owners of the ancient lights" afterward. But he was met with perfect shower of injunctions, proceedings, writs and | indictments. more than would have covered the tree in@fts full spring bloom. and 1t is said he never has been ble to pay the thousands Of dollars or l law costs which his little experiment resulted in.
 A few years ago some gardeners were ordered to lop off certain limbs of the tree which hung over Cheapslde. It was done really to save the life Of the tree and with the consent of the parish clerk and churchwardens of St. Peter's. Cheapside, the ancient little Norman church in Foster lane, near by, who guard this tree from the vandals' clutches. When the men began to work on the tree, however, it created big sensation in Cheapside. "They are chopping down our tree" went up from thousand angry throats in the district Policemen were called, and doubtless there would have been an- other shower of writs, injunctions and proceedings had not the minister of the parish explained the real reason for the looping operations.
 Another almost impossible barrier which protects the tree in its position is the fact that it grows in sacred ground. There is law in London that no building can be erected on sacred ground without special act of parlia- ment. and woe betide the unhappy man who dares to put up even a shan ty within the sacred precincts of a graveyard in England.
 This particular corner of Cheapside to1i hu WnrdG. worth
 At the corner of Wood street when day
 light appears
 There's a thrush that sings aloud; IL has
 sung for three years
 This bird was wont to perch in the now famous tree, and 1t attracted the attention of Wordsworth, who used to breakfast in little shop near by. As far back as the year 1392-just hun dred years before Mir. Columbus dis covered America-another tree stood in this graveyard and is spoken of by Chaucer:
 That whosoever poynes 1t away.
 He shall have Chrystis' curse for aye.
 The tree is therefore a direct de- scendant of perhaps the oldest tree on record Ill England, and it may almost be described as an English institution.
 This particular portion of Cheapside is back of the general postofice and is one of the finest pieces of real es- tate in the world. With the tremen. dous difficulties that stand in the way of its being built oyer-the sanctity of the land itself and the power of the ancient lights" statute-it is prob able that this piece of ground will re- main ''unimproved' for another cen- tury or two. In recent interview tho manager of the real estate agents who control nearly all the land in the dis trict declared that the old tree in Cheapside occupies position which io likely never be built upon" There would be perfect howl of execration from all sides If any one were to at- tempt to put up modern building there. for Wood street itself is so narrow that the people on both sides of the street have right to claim ancient lights" and the builder wbp went i'll for improving this property would have 10 square" so many peo- ple that he would never be able 10 get any profit out of the building.-New York Press.
 The Fraction.
 The average family in America com