1311] 
to painting sticks. He has often given 
great pleasure here and elsewhere; es- 
pecially in playing the slower Scotch airs, 
He had two extra bells for the oceasional 
gharps or flats, in each octave. 
Traston, " Capen Lorrr, 
June 1, 1811. 
For the Monthly Magazine. 
ARCHWAY through NIGHGATE-HILL, 
.A, Sthis great public work és an object 
of much importance, it is hoped 
that a description of it will not be wholly 
devoid of interest; but it appears neces 
gary to preface it with a brief sketch 
of the present line of road, its inconves 
niences, and danger. 
' Highgate is a populous hamlet, little 
more than 4% miles north of St. Paul’s, on 
a hill upwards of 450 feet above the level 
of the Thames. It stands in three pa- 
rishes, but principally in those of Horn- 
sey and St. Pancras. From the city 
through Islington and Holloway, and 
from the west end of the town through 
Kentish-town, pass two roads, which unite 
on the summit of this hill and form the 
great north road, leading through Barnet, 
&c. to all the northern parts of the king- 
dom. There are other roads over this 
hill, but they are of less importange and 
Jittle frequented. Formerly the only 
roads to Barnet were from Clerkenweil 
and Gray’s Inn Lane, through Maiden- 
Jane and Hornsey-lane ; and, after taking 
this circuit eastward round the hill, ran 
through Hornsey-park to Colney-Hatch, 
_&c. But, as Norden states, *“ this 
road, being very miry and deep in win- 
ter, it was agreed between the bishop of 
London ang the landholders in this part 
of the country, that a new one should be 
made by the former through the park at 
Highgate hill, and that he and his succes- 
‘ gors should be authorised to collect a toll 
from all passengers.” This road passed 
through a high gate, from which this 
place is. supposed to have derived its 
name, and which wag taken down and 
the road widened at this spot, in 1769, 
(many years subsequent to the first form- 
ing this road) at the expence of the 
Aslington and Whetstone Trust, for the 
better accommodation of the public. 
~ From the late surveys, which were made 
with great accuracy, it is proved that a 
carriage, travelling from Holloway over 
this hill, bas to,ascend 240 feet in less 
_than halfa mile, and on the Kentish town 
line, 244 feet, which ascent, for a consi- 
-derable distance, exceeds four inches in 
ee 
*: 
Archway through Highgate. 
533 
every yard. The number of carriages in 
this united road is very considerable, It 
is calculated that there are at Jeast one 
hundred public coaches and twenty wag- 
gons daily, and even these form a very 
small proportion of the aggregate, as the 
garniages of pleasure, of business, and of 
agriculture, are extremely numefous, 
Tt therefore became an object of seriaug 
consideration, as being une of so much 
ublic importance, that some plan should 
be devised, not only to remove the laboe 
rious task to which so great a number of 
valuable horses are daily subjected, but 
also to save the great loss of time, and 
reduce the number of thase serious accie 
dents which but too frequently occur, 
from the sudden rise and declivity of the 
present line of road*. Various plans ag, 
different times have been suggested, but 
the first ever submitted to parliament 
was in 1809. The projector, Mr. Roe 
bert Vazie, engineer, proposed that there 
should be an archway formed, twenty 
four feet wide and eighteen feet high, 
through the hill. The first, or east, 
branch, to commence at the verge of the 
hill on the Holloway road, and from 
thence pass in a northern direction to 
a vale in the centre of the line, where 
there was to have been constructed @ 
large shaft or central opening, the arch- 
way was then to have extended from this 
spot to the Barnet-road, near a brook 
below the fifth mile-stone from London. 
In order that passengers travelling from 
the west end of the town might also be 
accommodated, another branch was to 
have been constructed, from Kentishe 
town to the central opening. Each of 
these archways, from one side of the hill 
to the other, would have been 880 yards, 
or half a mile in lergth. A great oppoe 
sition was maile to this plan by the inhae 
bitants of Highgate, and on the third 
reading of the bill it was lost by a majoe 
rity of forty to thirty-nine. The followe 
ing year (1810) Mr, Vazie submitted-to 
parliament bis second plan, which is now 
executing, and already in a considerable 
state of forwardness. The objections 
which were made to the former being 
now removed, by altering the line of the 
road to ‘he east side of the hill, “which 
Le 
* The writer of this article, during the 
last three years, has had under his care, twe 
persons with compound fractures of the legs, 
who suffered amputation ; two simple frac 
tures; a boy who had lately his skull frace 
tured, and died a few hours after; besides a 
variety of contusions, &c. from the fatling of 
horses and oversetting of carriages. © ~° 
ai reduces 
