The Street Architecture of London. 181 



We must not neglect Lombard Street, which has been more 

 changed of late by the architect than almost any other street 

 in London. The London and County, Robart's, and Barclay's 

 Banks are all solid and important structures, bub why stone 

 was not employed throughout in the two last we are at a loss 

 to discover, for we feel quite certain that no question of 

 expense interfered. The Royal Insurance at the corner of 

 Nicholas Lane is a desigu that has evidently been carefully 

 studied, and the enrichments are in a great measure Greek in 

 character and feeling. 



In Fenchurch Street, Mincing Lane, Mark Lane, Seething 

 Lane, Billiter Street, Tower Street, many new buildings of 

 importance have been built of late years, and many are still in 

 progress ; in their style it appears to be a race between the 

 mediasvalists and the Italian. The first revelling in colour, 

 red, black, white, and yellow, with a superfluity of carving, in 

 which the London sparrows will build many a comfortable 

 abode; the other, the Italian, also indulging in much orna- 

 mentation, and looking rather to Yenice than to Rome for ex- 

 amples. With the exception of polished granite, the sober 

 colour of Portland stone appears to satisfy the designers. 



We must not quit the City without a glance at the National 

 Provident Office at the corner of Eastcheap, designed by the 

 Professor of Architecture to King's College. It is a very 

 striking building, and courts approval ; the principal entrance 

 is well and ably designed. The monument with its noble 

 pedestal and happy termination excited much more attention 

 from the Paris architect than the column and lionless pedestal 

 in Trafalgar Square. We were glad to take boat after our 

 long pedestrian exercise, and with an approving glance at 

 Fishmonger's Hall. We had an opportunity in our voyage to 

 observe the magnificent span of the centre arch of the South- 

 wark Bridge, and what engineers are attempting to do with 

 the square instead of the arched openings at Allhallows and 

 Blackfriars ; we observed also with much regret how much the 

 Bailway Termini next the banks completely crush and dwarf 

 all the surrounding buildings. The embankment in progress 

 of course was a source of great interest, and we agreed that 

 from what we could judge, the work was poor and tame, and 

 more suited to the banks of the Cam or the Isis than to the 

 shores of old father Thames. The architect of York Gateway 

 and Stairs would have adopted a bolder and more character- 

 istic wall of masonry, and with a nobler parapet than the ill 

 constructed one at Westminster Bridge Stairs. Landing on 

 the Surrey side we had a good opportunity of observing the 

 superb effect arising from the great width of the new bridge 

 at Westminster and although the City Engineer, as a utilita- 



