6 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



ractcr. These new districts include Pimlico, the several branches of 

 Chelsea, the whole space from Kentish and Camden Towns through 

 the Regcnt's-park to Bayswater, great part of Clerkenwell and Isling- 

 ton, another section at "Hackney and Kingsland, on the east, besides 

 the suburban accessions, the greater portion of the docks, and on the 

 south large tracts from Greenwich to Wandsworth. The whole of 

 this district has been supplied with light and water by new means, 

 and increased facilities of communication by canal and railway afforded 

 ■with the whole of England. It forms, indeed, a mass extending at 

 least twelve miles in length and eight in breadth, with two millions of 

 inhabitants. 



The new lines of street whic'i have been erected are not of less im- 

 portance. On the south a grand entrance from the continental road 

 leads over London-bridge, through King William and Moorgate- 

 streels to the New-road. Anolher crosses Blackfriars into Farring- 

 don-strect, and a third over Waterloo-bridge into Wellington-street. 

 On the north are the Edgeware-road and Regent-street, while Pall- 

 mall and the Strand have been re-cnnstrucled, and two magnificent 

 lines of road brancli oif through Poplar and Mile-end to the eastern 

 counties. Over the river new bridges have been thrown of various 

 onnstructions, and include New London Bridge, Southwark, Waterloo, 

 all by Rennie ; Vauxhall, by Walker ; and Hammersmith, by Tierney 

 Clarke. Our squares and public places, which are justly the admira- 

 tion of Europe, have bsen equally increased, and include Trafalgar- 

 square, the place before the Mansion-house, Eaton-square, Belgrave- 

 sqnare, Park-square, Euston-square, and above twenty others. 



Nor have the isolated buildings been less numerous : in every de- 

 partment works of importance have been executed. Buckingham- 

 palace, by Nash ; the Council Office, State Paper Office, Bank of 

 England, Law courts, by Sir John Soane ; the Post-office and Judges' 

 Chambers by Sir Robert Smirke ; the National Gallery and Uni- 

 versity College, by Wilkins ; the British Museum and King's 

 College, by Smirke; there are also the Colleges of Surgeons and 

 Physicians, City School, Blind School, &c. The charitable institu- 

 tions are extensive, Bethlehem Hospital, Christ's, St. George's, 

 Westminster, and others. The municipal buildings have attained 

 great splendour, and include Fishmongers and Goldsmiths Halls. 

 The churches are too numerous to admit of any lengthened enumera- 

 tion ; among uhera — are Marylebone, by Hardwick; St. Pancras, by 

 Inwood; St. Luke's, Chelsea, by Savage; and St. Dunstan's, by 

 Shaw. The theatres include Covent-garden and Drury-lane, by 

 Wyatt ; the Haymarket, by Nash ; the English Opera and St. 

 James's, by Beazley; and the Colosseum, by Burton. Commercial 

 buildings and clubs have also increased to an extent unprecedented, 

 and greatly contribute to the ornament of the eitj'. 



Public monuments and statues have been erected to the Duke of 

 York, to George the Third, Pitt, Fox, Duke of Bedford, and Can- 

 ning, while those which are in progress assure the splendour of this 

 branch of decoration. 



All the Parks have been improved, and an addition made to them 

 in the Regent's-park, which presents a unique feature in this world of 

 novelty. The Regent's-park and Surrey Zoological Gardens have 

 been formed, and Botanic Gardens are in progress, while the number 

 of Cemeteries must greatly contribute to the health of the inhabitants. 

 Former edifices have been improved, or placed in better points of 

 view, and made to promote more powerfully the adornment of the 

 metropolis : among these have been St. Martin's, St. Bride's, St. 

 Saviour's, ar.d the Monument. 



All these improvements necessarily call for a history in themselves, 

 and to the volumes of Pugin and Britton the profession are greatly 

 indebted for the information conveyed. The rapid growth of the 

 metropolis, however, and tlie increase of novelties, had long since 

 called for an addition to tliiswork, but until the present period without 

 success. The public spirited publiEher now having the property of 

 this work, has, however, supplied this want, and we are happy to 

 Eay in a manner worthy of himself, and of the object concerned. The 

 editor, too, in taking upon himself the task of producing this work, 

 found that his efi'orts must not be confined merely to chronicling what 

 is new, but that it might be beneficially exerted in remedying some 

 defects which existed in the labours of his predecessors. He found 

 that in many cases extraneous matter might be removed, which, how- 

 ever interesting to the general reader, was by no means useful to the 

 professional student, and in doing this he availed himself of the oppor- 

 tunity of introducing the new matter without increasing the expense 

 and consequently the bulk of the volume. At the same time he has 

 amended ihe old subjects, by introducing some further professional 

 information, and rectifying some of the errors which are inseparable 

 from a work of such discursive churacier. 



The subjoined extract relates to St. Pancras Church, and while it 

 cannot fail to prove interesting to the reader, will afford him a fair 



proof of the manner in which Mr. Leeds has acquitted himselt of the 

 task which has devolved upon him : — 



Whatever may be alleged against some of the combinations it presents, 

 this church stands unrivalled as a correct example of the riclicst and most 

 graceful variety of the Hellenic Ionic style ; we say shjle, in preference to 

 order, because it embraces so many distant modes, some of which have little 

 else in common than their family characteristic, the voluted capital, and even 

 that marked by striking diifercnces, both in its mass and details. I'leviously 

 to the erection of this building we had, with the exception of that at the India 

 House, hardly a single Ionic portico of any note in the whole metropolis — cer- 

 tainly no instance of one applied to a church — since for such purpose preceding 

 architects seem invariably to have had recourse to the Doric or Corinthian, in 

 which, perhaps, they showed their judgment i for the Ionic known to us before 

 that from Greece was introduced here, was the most insipid and inelegant of 

 the orders, although complimented with the epithet due only to that from 

 which it proved its descent, by its egregious falling off from it. But were it on 

 no other account., this church would stand pre eminent among its picdecessors 

 and contemporaries for the classical air of its portico, in wliich no quotidian 

 features are allowed to obtrude themselves ; while the tljree doors are of such 

 exquisite design and admirable execution, that they serve as a climax to the 

 beauty of the whole fa(,-ade. They are, in fact, specimens of the most relined 

 taste in detail and embellishment. Would that a tiihe of the praise could be 

 extended to the side elevations, where, had there been no more than the upper 

 range of windows, that might have been tolerated ; but the smaU oblong ones 

 beneath them are decidedly injurious to the design, marring its Grecian phy. 

 siognomy. The east end presents both a pleasing and appropriate deviation 

 from the ancient temple plan, and the roof of the projecting hemicycle combines 

 agreeably with the pediment ; still the effect would have been all the belter 

 had there been only the three centre windows. The low square wings, at- 

 tached at the angles, give play and variety both to the plan and elevation ; at 

 the same time, they do not interfere with the outline of the prnciple mass. In 

 themselves, these features are exceedingly beautiful, and a very commendable 

 adaptation of one of the choicest architectural relics of classical antiquity. 

 The chif f thing to be objected against them is, that the architect has not con- 

 nected them with the body of the cdilice, by carrying on the mouldings of 

 their antie as a sort of string-course along the side elevations, and resting the 

 windows upon it, which would have required these latter to be raised but a 

 very little higher than what they now are. 



The article of theatres has been retrenched in what related to 

 matter of purely general tendency, and its place has been supplied 

 with some judicious comments on the plan and construction of these 

 edifices, which we know cannot fail to be gratifying to whoever has 

 considered the subject. It also contains a well-digested table, exhibit- 

 ing the relative dimensions of various great theatres. 



It must be confessed that our theatres are susceptible of much improvement, 

 being so planned at present that many of the audience can neither hear nor see 

 properly. This has been erroneously attributed to the large size of some of 

 our houses, for in the very largest of them, all might both see and hear dis- 

 tinctly, were it not that accommodation in the way of mere sitting is made for 

 a far greater number than can possibly be accommodated in regard to the pur- 

 pose for which, it is to be presumed, they come thither — namely, to enjoy the 

 performance. iVIany are placed, not at too great a distance, but much too near 

 — thrust quite close upon the proscenium and up to the actors themselves ; some 

 directly on one side, so that they can see the stage only obliquely; while others 

 are elevated so much above it, both in front and on the sides, as to look quite 

 down upon it, and obtain almost a bird's-eye view of it. These inconveniences 

 are increased, when, as is the case at Covent- Garden and in many foreign 

 theatres, the house expands from, or ia other words, contracts towards, tho 

 stage, so that those in the side boxes cannot obtain even a side view without 

 turning very considerably to the right or left. Besides which, every variety 

 of such form, the oval, or elliptic, is architecturally disagreeable in itself, 

 being attended with a degree of irregularity ofl'ensively perceptible to the eye. 



The semicircle is unquestionably the best figure, because it brings all the 

 spectators, even those placed at the extremities of its chord, facing towards, 

 though not exactly in front of, the stage ; for it in fact cuts off what can 

 properly be termed side boxes, or such as are at right angles, to the diameter 

 or chord. Yet a simple semicircle would be objectionable on more than one 

 account, because the stage would then be placed on the lomjer side of the 

 area of the spectatory; consequently, as the diameter would give the width 

 of the proscenium (which would be double the depth of the house, measured 

 from the orchestra to the front of the centre box), either the latter must be 

 very great in regard to breadth, or the house itself of small dimensions, or 

 even if not small in itself, yet confined and contracted in comparison with the 

 proscenium and opening of the stage ; which inconveniences would bring 

 others along with them, since, were the height of the house to be proportioned 

 to the width of the proscenium, it would become excessive, in comparison with 

 the dimensions in the other direction, and cause the spectatory to appear still 

 more contracted and squeezed up. On the contrary, were it to he regulated 

 by the depth of the house, or semi-diameter, the proscenium would be ren- 

 dered much too low. This will be apparent to any one, if he turns to any of 

 the plans of theatres here given ; by applying his compasses— to that of Covent. 

 Garden, for instance, and taking the line separating the orchestra from the 

 pit, for a diameter— he will perceive it would be reduced to half its present 

 depth, whereby, as he would see on consulting the section also, the height 

 would become preposterous in comparison with such a contracted area. 



