"I pray you, let us satisfy our eyes with the memorials and the things of fame that do renown this City."-Twelfth Night. FOR OR the exploration of the City proper (for boundaries see plan on pp. 8-9), we can hardly choose a better centre than the triangular spot in the very heart of London commonly spoken of as The Bank (Plan I. D. 12). To this might well be applied the title which the citizens of Boston are credited with a desire to claim for their dwellingplace" the hub of the universe." Both above and below ground it is the busiest spot in restless London. Here converge no less than seven of the most important thoroughfares, each filled from morn till night with an unending stream of cabs, omnibuses, motors, carts, cyclists and pedestrians. Of omnibuses alone, a recent official count gave an average at the Bank of 690 per hour, or nearly a dozen a minute. No wonder that until recently, in spite of all the care and alertness of the police, it required dexterity of no common order to get across the roadway in safety, and even since the construction of the subways accidents are by no means uncommon. Here may be seen better than anywhere else that glorious spectacle of the policeman with uplifted arm which nearly always moves the wonder and admiration of visitors from abroad. No less than 20 per cent. of the City police force are continually engaged in the regulation of traffic. Yet what could more convincingly demonstrate the power of law and order in His Majesty's capital than the simple statement that the average daily effective strength of the force is only 1,000 men? The accompanying plan of the Subway will show the timid pedestrian that, instead of dodging doubtfully under horses' heads, he has now but to descend a few steps and emerge triumphantly and tranquilly in the street he seeks. The usefulness of this construction may be gauged from the fact that over 60,000 persons pass through it daily. In one hour (between 6 and 7 p.m.) over 8,000 have been counted. The Subway also gives access to the Bank Station (terminus) of the Central London Railway and to the Waterloo and City Railway; while the similarly named station of the City and South London Railway is beneath St. Mary Woolnoth's Church, at the junction of King William Street and Lombard Street. It is interesting to know that freehold land in the immediate neighbourhood of the Bank is worth about £3,250,000 per acre, or over 10s. per square inch. The Bank of England (Plan I. D. 12) is a large one-storeyed building, occupying the whole of the four-acre area between Threadneedle Street, Princes Street, Lothbury and Bartholomew Lane. The edifice was mainly the work of Sir John Soane (see p. 225), and has a solidity calculated to inspire confidence in the breast of the most timid investor. It will be observed that, for purposes of security, the exterior is entirely windowless, all the rooms being lighted from interior courts; and to make assurance doubly sure the establishment is guarded at night by a detachment of the Guards. That these precautions are not unnecessary may be inferred from the fact that there are generally at least 20 million pounds in gold and silver in the vaults. During the daytime (9 to 4) persons having business, and even the public generally, are allowed to wander almost at will through the various rooms, but to get "behind the sccnes," and see the intricate processes of printing banknotes and weighing sovereigns and bullion a special permit from the Governor or DeputyGovernor is necessary. The Bank was founded in 1694, and although generally regarded as a national institution, is really a private corporation, doing the ordinary business of a bank as well as exercising its exclusive privileges in the printing, issue and cancellation of banknotes, the registration of stock transfers, payment of dividends, etc. A troy ounce of gold bullion is worth £3 128. 10d. Twenty troy pounds of standard gold will make 934 sovereigns. Notes paid in are at once cancelled, but are not actually destroyed until a period of five years has elapsed. About 50,000 notes are issued daily, ranging in value from £5 to £1,000. Opposite the Bank, in the angle formed by Threadneedle Street and Cornhill, is the Royal Exchange (Plan I. D. 12), the third building of the kind which has occupied the site. The first, founded by Sir Thomas Gresham, and opened by Queen Elizabeth in 1571, fell a victim to the Great Fire of 1666; and a similar fate overtook its successor in 1838. The present building, designed by Tite, with a fine tympanum representing Commerce, by the younger Westmacott, was opened by Queen Victoria in 1844. The portico bears the text: "The earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof." In front stands an equestrian Statue of the Duke of Wellington by Chantrey. The interior is a large quadrangular court, with a tesselated pavement which formed part of Gresham's building. The ambulatory round the hall has in recent years been decorated with a number of spirit-varnish Frescoes by distinguished artists. The visitor is strongly advised not to miss seeing these pictures -any one may go in. The subjects, commencing on the right as one enters from the west end, are as follows :— Opening of the Royal Exchange by Queen Victoria (October 28th, 1844). R. W. Macbeth, A.R.A. Nelson Embarking for the Last Time. (1803) A. C. Gow. Granting a Royal Charter to the Bank of England in 1694. George Harcourt. The Great Fire of 1666. Stanhope A. Forbes, A.R.A. Charles I demanding the Five Members at the Guildhall (1641-2). Solomon J. Solomon, A.R.A. Opening of the First Royal Exchange by Queen Elizabeth (1570-1). Ernest Crofts, R.A. The Crown offered to Richard III at Baynard's Castle in the City (1483) Sigismund Goetze. The Master of the Merchant Taylors' Company presenting a loving cup to the Master of the Skinners' Company. E. A. Abbey, R.A. On the other side: Sir Richard Whittington dispensing his Charities. Henrietta Rae. |