38 LONDON PARKS © GARDENS 
had a right to the use of the water from the springs in 
the Park, and the history of their privilege is recorded 
on a stone which stands above ‘‘the Dell ” on the north¬ 
east of the bridge across the end of the Serpentine. The 
inscription states that a supply of water by a conduit was 
granted to the Abbey of Westminster by Edward the 
Confessor, and the further history of the lands, which 
passed into Henry VIII.’s hands at a time when all church 
property was in peril of seizure, is neatly glossed over as 
the “ manor was resumed by the Crown in 1536.” The 
use of the springs, however, was retained by the Abbey, 
and confirmed to them by a charter of Elizabeth in 1560. 
Later on the privilege was withdrawn, and in 1663 the 
Chelsea Waterworks were granted the use of all the 
streams and springs of Hyde Park. They made in 
1725 a reservoir on the east side of the Park, opposite 
Mount Street. The sunk garden, with the Dolphin 
Fountain, the statue in Carrara marble, and the basin of 
Sicilian marble, by A. Munro, was made in 1861 on the 
site of this reservoir, which was abandoned two years 
earlier. It has been stated that this sunk garden was 
a remnant of the forts of Cromwell’s time, one small 
one having been near here, but the history of the Chelsea 
Waterworks reservoir must have been unknown to those 
who believed the tradition. It contained a million and a 
half gallons of water, and was protected by a wall and 
railings, as suicides were once said to have been frequent. 
When the Serpentine was made by Queen Caroline, con¬ 
siderable compensation had to be paid to the Waterworks 
Company. 
In this age of experiments in plant growing, when 
American writers glow with enthusiasm on the wonders 
of the “ New Earth,” and when science has transformed 
