The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1945-01-18

afternoon daily and in an hour and
foTty-fve minutes you pass through
Picadilly Circus, Leicester Square,
over London bridge, back across
Tower bridge to the famous Tower.
Next we spend about Is minutes at
st. Paul's cathedral, then through
Whitehall Street, just few steps
from No. 10 Downing Street where
Winny resides.
Then we travel down Fleet Street,
the home of London's numerous pub
fishing houses, and across to West
minister Abbey, the national shrine
and burial place for the Kingdom
and Empires great.
! 1t is late afternoon as we enter
the Abbey. Long shadows fall
across the statuary lining the west
wall of the edifice. The inscriptions
on the memorials are barely visible.
A small group of worshipers are
gathered at the main altar far down
| the center aisle.
AS we hurry through the Abbey
we get the impression of stately
dignity, enhanced by the magnifi-
cent architecture and the inspiring
memorials to the Empires past lead
ers in religion, government, litera-
ture, science, war. ust as we leave
we notice the stone of Neville Cham
berlain, prime minister during the
days of appeasement.
It's three minutes TIL five as we
leave the Abbey. Parliament build
ing is just a few PAGES across the
way so we stand by and wait to hear
the peal of Big Ben as it strikes the
hour.
/! The clock tower, with the Thames
in the background, makes a lasting
impression. We leave the Parlia-
ment building and head for Bucking-
ham palace.
We pass through Trafalgar Square
on the way. A large marble column
topped by the solemn statue of Lord
Nelson, naval hero, easily catches
the eyes for some distance.
From here there is broad es.
planade, the Mall, leading to the
Palace. The left side is borderec
with spacious lawns and forma
flower gardens.
On the right side it is fanked BY
the ambassadorial and diplomat,
headquarters and residences of tn,
worlds leading powers. The tri
color of France can be seen flowing
atop one of the larger buildings.
Our last call is at Buckingham
Palace, home of his majesty, tn,
King. Tommies guard the entranc,
and smartly walk their post in tn
chill winter evening. The Palace i
large three storied rectangula
, structure of plain design and il
good taste.
HOTELS AND EATING PLACES
London has many excellent hotel
and eating places. Present menu
are naturally restricted in variet
! and quality. Vegetable dishes seer
to play prominent role whereve
you go.
The English do have an almost in
ternational reputation for odd dishe
and uninspired cooking. A true goul
met has little opportunity to ply hi
I pleasurable hobby here. Due to
shortage of sugar, pastries are III
adorned and without the appeal {
q good old U. S. A. cooking.
q After leaving the theatre from a
= evenings fare of light English m,
; sical comedy we note that the tin
for our trains departure is fast al
9 preaching.
i With the others we stayed in til
theatre during an alert feeling ths
> the chances of VI finding this rel;
lively small target, in the vast e.
panse of London, is remote.
Our last impression of London
. sober and pathetic one. After de
/, cending to the underground static
by escalator, deep under the hear
= of the city, we see children and olde
: people recently bombed out of the
J homes, standing by the subway raj
with few earthly possessions wal
ing until traffic subsidies so that the
can bed down for the night alon
the rumbling tracks, and for tt
moment safe from the enemy's ev
devices. This is a stern reminder {
!, the courage and suffering of thes
!. indomitable people for the past fou
years.
Once more we find ourselves 6
the Waterloo station and after
brief wait we board the train an
head back for the west countr.
Twenty-four hours in the larges
city in the world has done much I
boost our tagging morale.
T. Nh