New-York tribune., 1920-07-04
Famous Old London Hotel
To Be an American Club
By red B. Pitney

By Fred B. Pitney
n F AN American who knew his
London were asked to choose the
"a site for an American club in
that city he would be very likely
to settle on one of two locations
Piccadilly, facing Green Park, or
Trafalgar Square
Similarly, if an American who
knew Paris were asked to choose the
site for an American club there his
selection would in all probability fall
on the Place Vendomc or the Avenue
des Champs Elysees. But the men
who made the selections would know
Well that the choice approximated
more nearly to an ideal than a possi-
bllity. Yet, by the use Of an aero
plane, contracts have been signed
within four hours ~ which before
this summer has flown the Hotel du
Rim, on the Place Vend6ma, and
Morley's Hotel, on Trafalgar Square,
will become American clubs.
1t is difficult to realize. Morleys
Hotel, that staid and dignified hos
telry, the epitome Of British con-
servatism and stolid determination
TO resist the changing tides of time,
to become an American club. An
American club in the heart of the
British Empire, for Trafalgar
Square comes very near to being the
center of the pulsebeats of the en-
pire.
Historic Spots
On the north side of the square is
the National Gallery and on the west
is the Royal College of Physicians
and Surgeons, while on the east is
st. Martin Sim the Fields, one of the
famous churches of Sir Christopher
Wren. The Nelson column, with
Landseei's lions, is in the center,
facing down Whitehall. In the south
west angle is the Admiralty Arch,
through which can be seen at the
other end of the Mall the Victoria
Memorial and Buckingham Palace.
The Strand runs into the Square
from the east and within stones
throw is Charing Cross. The site of
the statue of Charles I in front of
the Nelson column is the traditional
spot where the last cross was erected
to mark the resting places of the
body Of Queen Eleanor on the way
from Scotland to Westminster Alb
hey. 1t was from a window on the
left side of Whitehall that Charles
stepped to the scaffold and the
hcadsman's block. Across the way
the plumed Horse Guards in shining
steel sit their black horses. On
either side of the Horse Guards are
the Admiralty and the Foreign
Once, and further along is Downing
Street. The Whitehall vista ends
in Westminster Abbey and the
Houses Of Parliament.
Morleys Hotel is on the east side
Of Trafalgar Square at the Strand
corner and faces both on the Strand
and the Square. Before the Square
was laid out it was rather an un-
savory spot. The Square itself was
the Royal News and on the site Of
Morley's was a row of squalid
houses known as the Bermudas.
The reputation of the district was
much akin to that of San Fran
cisco's Barbary Coast. 1t improved
slightly to small trading center, so
that when a hundred years ago it
was decided to wipe out the pest
spot and the Square was laid out
the Crown in granting new building
leases expressly prohibited tin
smiths, coppersmiths, whitesmiths
tripeboilers and caricature- print
sellers, and these restrictions still
feature the leases.
First Coffee House
18th the coming of the improve
ments came Morley's. At first it
was the Old British Coffee House,
kept by Atkinson Morley in Cock
spur Street, across the Square from
the present location. The name was
'ater changed to the British Hotel,
- d in 1882 there was the first men-
'io': of Sorley's on the site Of the
Id bScTudas. On November 27 in