The Holbrook news., 1911-12-22


 the time when King Edward lay
 in state in Westminster hall, that
 thousands of Londoners made
 their first acquaintance with the riverside district which lies between Vauxhan and Lambeth bridges. No one who witnessed the wonderful spec tacle presented by the vast crowds that thronged Grosvenor road, Mill bank street and Abingdon street in their patient pilgrimage can ever for get it. Joining the multitude at or even beyond Vauxhan bridge, those who walked, step by step, felt that when at last they reached Lambeth bridge the goal was almost in sight, for just beyond the great Victoria tower was the royal death chamber. Few paused to notice the rather squaI- i'd appearance of the approach by MIL bank street to the houses of parIia- ment and old palace yard as compared with the splendor of the opposite ap- proach along the spacious ways of Whitehall and the embankment, and few knew much of the proposed scheme destined to transform this part of London and make 1t worthy of the imperial center of the metrop- olis.
 In the old days the river banks here on both sides were lonely marshland; where Lambeth bridge now spans the stream there was an ancient horse ferry. (Horseferry road preserves it's name), the revenues of which be- Ionged to the archbishops of Canter- bury, whose palace of Lambeth lies opposite, on the Surrey side. Just out side the southern wall of the abbey precincts there arose in later times little suburb much favored by the gen. try of the days of Anne and the Georges. College street, Cowley street and Barton street still show the quaint. dignified facades of these charming specimens of eighteenth cen tury domestic architecture Here in 1716, in Smith square. was built the singular church of St. John, with its four beIfry towers, which was ad- mired and abused more. perhaps, than any church in London; some Iikened 1t to "a parlor-table upset with its legs in the air, a chef d'oeuvre of the ab- surdity of its architect, Thomas Arch err; others spoke of it as an orna- ment to the city of Westminster, and regretted that vista had not been. opened up from old palace yard to show it's beauty. Nowadays, perhaps, we are better able to appreciate its merits, the originality of its design and its massive construction. St. Johns church is the central feature If ATf11ho,,lr now being carried out at immense cost by the London county council
 This great scheme, known as the Thames Embankment Extension and Westminster Improvements at Mill- bank" was proposed thirteen years ago in a resolution of the council that a plan should be prepared for the em- bankment of the Thames from the Vic tOria tower garden to Lambeth bridge. including the widening of Millbank street In 1901 provision was made for the scheme by a capital vote of $7,575,000, of which the sum of S5,- 915,00O was the estimated cost of ac- quiring the properties east and west of Millbank street and for widening the west side of the street itself; while S25O,0OO was reserved for the rehousing of the Iaboring classes dis lodged by so extensive a sweeping away of the unsightly dwellings oc- cupying the site
 The most important part of the | scheme Is the construction of the new gardens between the existing Victoria | tower gardens and Lambeth bridge, the extension of the embankment be- tween the houses of parliament and the bridge, and the widening of Mill 1 bank street, which will thus form a broad and spacious approach from the south. The new gardens and embank- ment will take the place of old rows of wharves and breweries. Few, how ever will regret that stataIinAss and |