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THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[Junk, 



soniible prospect to rival Italy, and foil every nation in Europe beside. 

 But in the midst of these sangidne expectations, the fatal civil war 

 coinnienced, and all the arts and sciences were immediately laid aside, 

 as no way concerned in the quarrel. What followed was all darkness 

 and obscurity, and it is even a wonder they left us a monument of the 

 beauty it was so agreeable to their natures to destroy. 



Wren was the next genius that arose to awake the spirit of science, 

 and kindle in his country a love for that science which had been so 

 long neglecte<l ; during his time a most melancholy opportunity of- 

 fered for art to exert itself in the most extraordinary manner: l)ut the 

 calamities of the present circumstance were so great and numerous, - 

 that the pleas of elegancy and beauty could not be heard, and neces- 

 sity and convenicncy took place of harmony and magnificence. 



What I mean is this: tlie fire of London" furnished the most perfect 

 occasion that can ever happen in any city, to rebuild it with pomp 

 and reguhirity ; this Wren foresaw, and, as we are told, offered a 

 scheme for that purpose which would have made it the wonder of the 

 world. He proposed to have laid out one large street from Aldgate 

 to Temple-bar, in the middle of which was to have been a large 

 square, capable of containing the new church of St. Paul's, with" a 

 proper distance for the view all round it ; whereby that huge building 

 would not have been cooped up, as it is at present, in such a manner 

 as nowhere to be seen to advantage at all, but would have had a long 

 and ample vista at each end, to have reconciled it to a (iroper point 

 of view, and give it one great benefit which, in all probability, it must 

 now want for ever. He farther proposed to rebuild all the parish- 

 clun-ches in such a manner as to be seen at the end of every vista of 

 houses, and dispersed in such distances from each other, as to appear 

 neither too thick nor thin in prospect, but give a proper heightening 

 to the whole bulk of the city as it filled the landscape. Lastly, he 

 proposed to build all the houses uniform, and supported on a piazza, 

 like that of Covent Garden ; and, by the water-side, from the Bridge 

 to Ihe Temple, he had planned a long and broad wharf, or key, where 

 he designed to liave ranged all the halls that belong to the several 

 companies of the city, with proper warehouses for merchants between, 

 to vary the edifices, and make it at once one of the most beautiful and 

 most useful ranges of structure in the world. But, as I said before, 

 the hurry of rebuilding, and the disputes about property, prevented 

 this glorious scheme from taking place. 



1b our own times an opportunity oflered to adorn the city, in some 

 degree; and though the scarcity of ground in Loudon will not allow- 

 as much beauty ot situation as one would desire, yet if the buildings 

 were suited to their place, tliey would make a better figure than they 

 do at present. I ha\e now the late new churches in my eye; amongst 

 all which, there are not five placed to advantage, and scarce so many 

 which are built in taste, or deserve half tlie money which they have 

 cost; a cirounstance which must reflect on tiie judgments of those 

 who chose the jdans, as well as the genius of the architects themselves. 



No nation can reproadi us for want of expence in our public build- 

 ings, but all nations may for our want of elegance and discernment in 

 the execution. In the first ])lace, there are very few of our fine pieces 

 of architecture in sight ; they arc generally hid in holes and corners, 

 as if they had been built by stealtli, or the artists were ashamed of 

 their works; or else they are but essays, or trials of skill, and remain 

 unfinished, till Time himself lays them in ruin. After this, it is unne- 

 cessary to menlion that our structures are generally heavy, dispro- 

 portioned, and rather incumbered than adorned ; beauty does not con- 

 sist in oxpi'nce or decoration ; it is i)ossible for a slight building to be 

 very ]icrlect, and a costly one to be very deformed : I could easily 

 name instances of both kinds; but, as I propose to ]ioint out to my 

 readers most of the edifices al)0\it town that arc worth consideration 

 on either side, 1 will not antici|iatc my design, but exemplify my 

 meaning, as I proceed, and leave the public to make use of it as they 

 please. 



To begin with the remotest extremity of tlie town ; as there were 

 no attempts, till lately, ever made there, to erect any building vvhicli 

 might adorn it at all, there was the more necessity to be more par- 

 ticularly careful that tlie first design of this nature should not miscarry ; 

 and yet the four following churches which have been built at Lime- 

 house, Ratclifi', Horslcy-down, and Spittal-fields, though they have all 

 the advantage (jf ground which can be desired, are not to be looked at 

 without displeasure. Thoy arc mere Gothic heaps of stone, without 

 form or order, and meet with contempt from the best and worst tastes 

 alike. The last, csjiecially, deserves the severest condemnation, in 

 that it is built at a monstruous expence, and yet is, beyond question, 

 one of the most absurd jiiles in Europe. 



As a fabric of antiquity, it is impossible to pass by the Tower with- 

 out taking some notice of it, particularly, as it is visited so much by 

 the good people of England, as a place made venerable by the frequent 

 mention which lias been inude of it in history, und famous for liaving 



been the scene of many tragical adventures; but 1 must caution those 

 of my readers whoiire unskilled in architecture, not to believe it eitlier 

 a place of strength, beauty, or magnificence ; it is large and old indeed, 

 and has a ibrmiilable row of cannons before it, to fire on rejoicing days. 



The front of the cliurcli lately rebuilt in Bishopsgate Street is, I 

 tliink, more in taste tlian most about town; the parts it is composed 

 of are sinqile, beautiful, and harmonious, and the whole deserves to 

 be admired, for jileasing so much, at so little expence. 



From hence we may pass on to the South Sea House, and there we 

 shall have some reason to wonder that, when the taste of building is 

 so much improved among us, we see so little sign of it here; at the 

 same expence they might have raised an edifice which would have 

 charmed the most profound judges ; beauty is as cheap as deformily 

 with respect to the pocket, but it is easier to find money than genius, 

 and that is the re;ison so many build and so few succeed. 



The tower of St. Michael's, Cornhill, though in the Gothic style of 

 architecture, is undoubtedly a very magnificent pile of building, and 

 deserves very justly to be esteemed the finest thing of that sort in 

 London. 



The iMouument is undoubtedly the noblest modern column in the 

 world: iiav, in some respects it may justly vie with those celebrated 

 ones of antiquity, which are consecrated to the names of Trajan and 

 Antonine. Nothing can be more bold and surprising, nothing more 

 beautiful and harmonious; the has relief at the base, allowing for 

 some few defects, is finely imagined and executed as well, and nothing 

 material can be cavilled with but the inscriptions round about it. 

 Nothing, indeed, can be more ridiculous than its situation, unless the 

 reason which is assigned for so doing. I am of opinicni if it had been 

 raised where Cheapside Conduit stood, it would have been as effectual 

 a remonstrance of the misfortune it is designed to record, and would 

 at once have added an inexpressible beauty to the vista, and received 

 as much as it gave. 



The church in Walbrook, so little known among us, is famous all 

 over Europe, and is justly reputed the master-piece of the celebrated 

 Sir Christopher Wren. Perhaps Italy itself can produce no modern 

 building that can vie with this in taste or proportion; tliere is not a 

 beauty which the plan would admit of, that is not to be found here in 

 its greatest perfection, and foreigners very justly call our judgment in 

 question for understanding its graces no better, and allowing it no 

 higher a degree of fame. 



The steeple of Bow church is another master-piece in a peculiar 

 kind of building, which has no fixed rules to direct it, nor is it to be 

 reduced to any settled laws of beauty ; without doubt, if we consider 

 it only as a part of some other building, it can be esteemed no other 

 than a delightful absurdily : hut if either considered in itself, or as a 

 decoration of a whole city in prospect, not only to Ije justified but ad- 

 mired. That which we have now mentioned is beyond question as 

 perfect as human imagination can contrive or execute, and till wo see 

 it outdone, we shall hardly think it to be equalled. 



I thuik it proper to recommend the steeple of Foster Lane to the 

 attention of the jiassenger ; it is not a glaring pile that strikes the eye 

 at the first view with an idea of grandeur and magnilicence : but then 

 the beautiful pyramid it forms, and the just and well-proportioned 

 simplicity of all its parts, satisfy the mind so elfectually, that nothing 

 seems to be wanting, and nothing can be spared. 



The new church in Old-street is so slight and trifling a building that 

 it is not worth the trouble of a visit ; for which reason we shall choose 

 rather to cross over to Smithfield, neglecting the Chartrciix (Charter- 

 house), at the same time, because the building is so entirely rude and 

 irregular, that it admits of nothing like criticism : its situation indeed 

 in the midst of a garden is fine, and the square in the front of it is at 

 least kept in better order than most in town. 



In Smithfield we shall see a vast area, that is capable of great beauty, 

 but is at ])resent destitute of all; a scene of filth and nastiness, one of 

 the most nauseous places in the whole town; it is true, the use which 

 is made of it as a market is something of an excuse for it, and in some 

 degree atones for the want of that decency which would iini)rove it 

 so much: yet still it is my opinion that ways and means might be 

 found to make it tolerable at least, and an obelisk, pyianiid, or statue, 

 in the centre, defended with handsome and substantial rails, would go 

 a great way in so desirable a project. 



On one side of this irregular ])lacc is the enlrancc, not the front, of 

 a magnificent hosipital ; in a taste not altogether amiss, Ijut so erro- 

 neous in point of proportion, that it rather offends than entertains ; 

 but what is still more provoking, the building itself is entirely de- 

 tached from the entrance, and though so near a large and noble o]ieu- 

 ing, is in a manner stiflinl with the circumjacent houses : it is indeed 

 a building in a box or case ; and though beautiful in itself and erected 

 at ju'odigious expence, is so far from giving pleasvu'c to a judge, that 

 he would rather regret its being built at all. It is certain that where 



