LONDON 



tral authority to advise or guide them or hold them 

 accountable for a proper performance of their impor- 

 tant duties. The boundaries between these political 

 an -us are irregular and confusing. One side of a street 

 may !< in one county and the other side in another. 



It is obvious that an account of the methods used 

 in cleaning the streets of all the different administra- 

 tive sections into which London is divided would be a 

 formidable undertaking. Some of these methods are 

 very crude. Among the best and most representative 

 arc those followed in the City of London and the City 

 of Westminster. 



That part of the Metropolis which is properly called 

 the "City of London" differs from most other cities in 

 many important particulars. It is, however, to all 

 appearances, a part of the greater city and seems to be 

 identical with it except in government and certain 

 physical peculiarities. It is the commercial heart of 

 the Metropolis. The area covered is one square 

 mile. 



The very center of London may be considered to be 

 the Bank of England. The district immediately around 

 the bank is given up to warehouses and offices, while 

 around this center are factories and warehouses. Ac- 

 cording to the census of 1901 the night population is 

 26,923, and the day population, based on the number 

 of persons who enter the city regularly through the 

 week to work, is 427,000. There has been a decrease 

 in the last ten years of over 28 per cent in the night 

 population, the ground becoming so valuable for com- 

 mercial purposes as to prevent its use for dwellings. 

 At the present time there are 13,000 buildings in the 

 city and of these over 5000 are left vacant every night. 



63 



