2i2 LONDON PARKS Of GARDENS 
The charms of the top of the hill are all the more 
delightful, as they come as a surprise. There are fine 
old trees, and a wealth of fern, thorns, and bramble, 
and the short grass is exchanged for springy turf the 
moment the crest of the steep hill is reached. But by 
far the greatest surprise is the glorious view. Away 
and away over soft, hazy, blue country the eye can 
reach. It may or may not be true that Woolwich, 
Windsor, and Stanmore can be seen : nobody will care 
who gazes over that wide stretch of country bathed in 
a mysterious light, perhaps with the rays of the sun, 
like golden pathways from heaven, carrying the thoughts 
far from the prosaic villas or harrowing slums con¬ 
cealed at one’s feet. Only the wide expanse and the 
waving bracken and tangled brushwood fill the picture 
—while one rejoices that such a beautiful scene should 
be within the reach of so many of London’s toilers. 
Wandsworth is among the least beautiful and the 
most cut-up of the commons. Large and straggling 
in extent, it has been so much encroached upon that 
roads, and houses, and railways cross it. It is narrowed 
to a strip in places, and all the wildness and all the 
old trees have gone. Some young avenues by the main 
road have been planted, and no more curtailments can 
be perpetrated, as it was acquired for the use of the 
public in 1871. For many years the encroachments 
had roused the inhabitants, and about 1760 a species 
of club was formed to protect the rights of the com¬ 
moners. When enclosures took place, the members all 
subscribed and went to law, and often won their cases. 
The head was called the “ Mayor of Garratt,” from 
Garratt Lane, near the Common, where a “ ridiculous 
mock election ” was held. A mob collected, and en- 
