ENGLAND 



Buckingham T^alace^ London 



IT MAY BE that the most interesting, the 

 most vital part of London, " the Heart of the 

 Empire," lies just in the district dominated by 

 the subjects of the Frontispiece (Marlborough 

 House) and the next illustration (Buckingham 

 Palace). Originally a park devoted to pleasure, 

 dating from the time of Henry VIII, who 

 acquired the fields which it now covers in 

 exchange for some lands in Suffolk, St. James's 

 Park was converted by the King from a marsh 

 to a pleasant haunt which, however, was not 

 frequented by the public until the Restoration of 

 Charles II. The designs are attributed to Le 

 Notre. Charles II arranged the ornamental water 

 in one sheet, laid out the walks, and gave the 

 enclosed ground its present name. Here were 

 planted long rows of young elms and lime trees, 



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