LON 
that a church dedicated to the fame patron was fituated 
near this fpot, but on the oppofite fide of the ftream, prior 
to the year 1135, when it was given to the monaftery of 
St. John in Colchefter, by Eudo, fewer to Henry I. How 
long the patronage was poflefl'ed by this fraternity, or for 
what conlideration they parted with it, does not appear; 
but in 1428 it belonged to John duke of Bedford ; in 
which year, Robert Chichely, mayor, gave a plot of ground 
on the eaft fide of the water-courfe, two hundred and 
eight feet and a half in length, and fixty-fix in breadth, 
to the pari fit of St. Stephen, to build a new church thereon, 
and for a church-yard; and in the following year he laid 
the firft (tone of the building, for liimfelf, and the fecond 
for William Stondon, a former mayor, deceafed, who left 
money for the purchafe of the ground, and towards the 
charge of the building; the remainder being fupplied by 
Chichely. Robert Whittington, draper, afterwards made 
a knight of the bath, purchafed the advowfon of this rec¬ 
tory from the duke of Bedford in 1432. From him it 
paffed into the family of Lee, two of whom of the name 
of Richard, fuppofed to be father and fon, the former be¬ 
ing a knight and the latter an elquire, ferved the office of 
mayor in 1460 and 1469. The la ft of thefe prefented to 
it in 1474 ; after which he gave it to the Grocers’ Com¬ 
pany, in whom it ftill remains. 
The old church being deftroyed by the fire of London, 
the prefent edifice was erected in its Head, by fir Chrifto- 
pher Wren; and is confidered by many to be the mafter- 
piece of that great architect: it is even aflerted that Italy 
cannot produce any modern ftrufture equal to this in tafte, 
proportion, elegance, and beauty. It is a noble building 
of ftone; but its external beauties are hid from the fight 
by the adjacent buildings, except the fteeple, which is 
fquare to a confiderable height, and is then furrounded 
with a balultrade, within which rifes a very light and ele¬ 
gant tower in two ftages; the firft adorned with Corinthian, 
and the lecond with Compofite, columns; and covered 
with a dome, from which rifes a vane. The principal 
beauties of this church are, however, within; where the 
dome, which is fpacious and noble, is finely proportioned 
, to the church, and divided into fmall compartments ele¬ 
gantly decorated, and crowned with a lantern ; the roof, 
which is alfo divided into compartments, is fupported by 
very noble Corinthian columns, raifed on their pedeftals. 
It has three aides, and a crofs-aifie; is feventy-five feet 
long, thirty-fix feet broad, thirty-four feet high to the 
roof, and fifty-eight feet to the lantern. On the fides un¬ 
der the lower roof are circular windows, but thole which 
enlighten the upper roof are fmall arched ones. The al¬ 
tar-piece is the work of the belt hiltorical painter that 
England can boalt of, (though the artift was born in 
America;) and has long received the deferved tribute of 
admiration from all who have feen it. The fubjeCt is the 
taking up of the body of St. Stephen after he had been 
ftoned to death. (See Acts viii. 2.) The body of the young 
deacon is beautifully drawn and coloured ; and the groups 
which furround it are compofed, placed, and executed, in 
a mafterly ltyle. This is one of the firft paintings which, 
iince the iconoclaftic fury that raged at feveral periods of 
times after the reformation, have found their way to the 
altars of our churches. At p. 407, 8, we have related the 
eircumltance which occafioned this church to be deco¬ 
rated with an altar-piece. When the fubjeCt was agreed 
upon, Dr. Wilfon alked Mr. Weft how much fuch a per¬ 
formance would colt; and molt readily engaged to pay 
700I. in part of which he immediately gave a draft for 
-S50I. Dr. Wilfon died foon after; and, no order having 
been found among his papers to pay the remaining fum, 
Mr. Weft, as we underftand, never received any thing 
more for this excellent painting. 
After the fire of London, the new.church of St. Stephen 
was made the parochial church of this parifh and that of 
•St. Bennet Sherehog, in Cheap ward, the church of which 
was not rebuilt. 
Adjoining to the church-yard of St. Stephen, is Wall- 
D O N. .427 
brook-houfe, the old tnanfion of the family of Pollexfen; 
which, lharing the common fate of the general conflagra¬ 
tion in 1666, was rebuilt in the following year by fir Henry 
Pollexfen, chief juftice of the Court of Common Pleas in 
the reign of Charles II. It is built on lofty brick arches, 
of exquifite workmanlhip and great antiquity; and may 
be reafonably fuppofed to Hand on the fire of fome reli¬ 
gious houfe formerly dedicated to St. Stephen. It is an 
elegant brick buildingy of the Corinthian order, with dou¬ 
ble windows. Nothing of the ancient grandeur of the 
houfe remains in theinfide but the niouldmgs and a beau¬ 
tiful carved ftair-cafe. 
Although we are near the Manfion-houfe, we (hall leave 
the defeription of it for another part of our perambula¬ 
tions, and follow again the ftraight line to the eaft, by en¬ 
tering Cannon-ftreet. To give an idea of the bufy look 
of the greateft part of this ftreet would be nearly imoof- 
fible—for it is a moll frequented thoroughfare from * the 
warehoufes in Thames-ftreet, and a fort of by-way to avoid 
the greater buftle of it. 
The firlt objeft which attracts the fight is St. Swithin’s 
church, at the corner of the lane to which it gives its deno¬ 
mination. By ancient records it appears that there was a 
church on that fpot in the year 1331 ; and it feems that, 
even long before this time, St. Swithin, bilhop of Win- 
chefter, and chancellor to king Egbert, who died in the 
9th century, had a church there dedicated to his name. 
The old ItruCture was deftroyed by the fire of London, 
and the prefent edifice ereCted in its ftead.—The old 
church, which had been rebuilt in 1420, contained feveral 
curious epitaphs, among which we remark that of fir John 
Hart, fome time lord-mayor of London, and a benefactor 
to the church ; and that of Bartholomew Barnes, citi¬ 
zen-mercer, placed on a pillar in the middle aille.—They 
are both in Latin, and of a ftyle well known at the be¬ 
ginning of the feventeenth century. 
Again ft the prefent fabric, in the centre of the fouth 
wall, is placed the famous and really-myfterious London 
Stone, which refilled, though not without being fomewhat 
impaired, the great conflagration, and was carefully dug 
out of the rubbilh. We have examined it very clofely; 
and find it to be of the nature of granite, or original 
quartz: it yields fire when fmartly Itruck with the fteel, 
and is of a dole and compaft internal contexture. This 
ltone, which has been carefully preferved for many ages, 
is of great antiquity, as appears from its being mentioned 
by the fame name fo early as in the time of Ethelftan king 
of the Weft Saxons. It formerly ftood nearer the chan¬ 
nel oppofite the fame place ; and, being fixed upright in 
the ground, was fo well faliened with bars of iron, that 
it was perfectly fecure from receiving any damage by 
carriages. Its age cannot be traced ; but, from the molt 
reafonable conjecture, it is fuppofed to be of Roman ori¬ 
gin ; for, as the ancient Roman colony extended from the 
river Thames no higher than Cheaplide, and Watling- 
ftreet was the principal ftreet, or Praetorian way; it has 
been fuppofed, with great probability, that this ftone was 
the centre from whence they meafured the diltances to 
their feveral ftations throughout England, more efpecially 
as thefe diltances coincide very exaClly. Some of our 
forefathers were of opinion, that it was let up in fignifi- 
cation of the city’s devotion towards Chrilt, and ut his 
care and protection of the city, under the type of a ftone, 
on which it was founded, and, by his favour, fo long pre¬ 
ferved. _ i his is the idea which prevail^ in theft lines of 
Fabian, in praife of London : 
It is fo lure a ftone that that is upon fette. 
For, though fome have it thrette 
With manafe&grym and grette. 
Yet hurte had it none: 
Chrylte is the very ftone 
That the citie is fet uppon, 
Which from al hys foone 
Hath ever preferved yt. 
Another conjecture is, that, as this ftreet was anciently 
the 
