505 
LONDON. 
jniblifhed in 1635, has preferved a very interefting account 
of an event which happened here only ten years before, 
and was therefore frefh in the memory of every one. We 
cannot refill extracting fome particulars from it. It be¬ 
gins as follows: “ The Fatall Vefper, or difmall evenfong, 
happening at the Blackfriers on Sunday in the afternoone, 
it being the 26 day of Oflober, 1623. There were upon 
that day, being dedicated to the fervice of God, aflembled 
together in the Blackfriers, nere the French ambaflador’s 
houfe in ordinary, above three hundred perfons of fun dry 
nations, as Englifh, Scottifh, Welch, and Irifli, to heare 
a fermon, and after that to celebrate evenfong, accord¬ 
ing to the rites and ceremonies of the Romifh church. Hee 
that was to fupply that exercife for the prefent was father 
Drury, a Jefuite by profefTion, and by birth a gentleman, 
being extra&ed out of the houfe of the Norfolcian Druries. 
Hee was by thofe of the Romifli religion reputed to be a 
man of great learning, as having (ludied many years be¬ 
yond the fea with much approbation and allowance of his 
fuperiors; and, although he were oppofite in point of faith 
and beliefe unto the religion now profefled in England, 
yet was he held by the generality of otir nation, both pro¬ 
tedants and papifts, who knew him, to be a man of good 
moral! life, and of a plaufible and laudable converfation. 
So that, in refpeil to thofe endowments, there could no¬ 
thing have been defired more by us, than that hee had not 
beene a papill, but a member of our church, religion, and 
profeflion. The place wherein this congregation was af- 
fembled was a chamber neere unto the gate, three dories 
high, fome threefcore foot long, and twenty foot broad or 
thereabouts ; the wals were of brick and done, which are 
held by all archite&s to bee the drongelt and the fured 
building." It was obferved to the reverend father, that it 
might bedangerousto preach inthat place; blithe “would 
goe forward, with the greated expedition he could, with 
his intended fermon ; for the accomplifhment of which de- 
figne, being clad in thofe robes and ornaments which are 
ufed by thole of his order, being a Jefuit, having a fur- 
plice girt about bis middle with a linnen girdle, a red cap 
with a white one underneath, turned up about the brimmes 
of his cap, and his other accoutrements belonging, which 
the Ignatian orders have impofed upon them ; and, being 
placed in a chaire about the midded of the roome, which 
chaire was railed up fomething higher than the ordinary 
Icveil of the floore ; hee eroding himfelf with the ligne of 
the erode, and having ended fome private prayers, accom¬ 
modated himfelfe to his text, between three and foil re of 
the clocke in the afternoon of the forefaid Sunday.— 
Having proceeded thus farre, (about the middle of his 
difeourfe,) loe what a fudden and unexpedled accident 
fell out.—The fermon inclining towards the midded, and 
the day declining towards an end, it being almod foure 
of the clocke in the afternoone, the multitude and crowde 
of the adembly breaking downe with their overbearing 
iveight the beamesand fide-timbers wherewith this roome 
was fupported, they fell downe into the next chamber, the 
floore whereof being broken alfo with the defeending 
weight of them and the ruines, they fell at lad upon the 
lowed chamber of the edifice, where fome of them perilhed, 
fome were hurted and maymed, other fome were free from 
all hurt and danger, except of that which the prefent 
fright and terror did impofe upon them ; and thole were 
they el’pecially who fell not at all, but remained in one 
angle or Corner of the chamber which was free from fall¬ 
ing."—The hidorian of this fad cataftrophe goes on de- 
feribing with warmth and feeling the confequencee of this 
fall, and fays: “So that, fince the Sicilian Vefpers, there 
was never an evenfong more dolorous unto the French, 
nor more lamentable unto the Scots and Englifh.’* Then 
follows a drong inve&ive againd the manners of the day. 
“ Fornications and adulteries are fo frequent in this 
place,” lays the zealous writer, “ that in vaine may we 
fpeake of the bordellas of Rome or the dewes of Venice, 
finceJhe fuburbs of this linfull city arc as bad as the fu- 
Ijurraes of Rome or Venicc« Moreover our drunkennefle 
Voi. XIII. No. 523. 
is fuch, that, although our eyes look red and our hearts 
are as fat as brawn with drinking of wine, yet we rife 
up early to drinke drong drinke &c. &c.—The lift of 
thofe who died by, or in confequence of, this accident, 
amounts to ninety-four perfons, betides the preacher. 
It is difguding to refleft on the uncharitable bigotry of 
the times. The protedants ccnfidered the accident as a 
judgment on the catholics, for their idolatry : the ca¬ 
tholics attributed it to a plot of the protedants, to bring 
dedrudlion on their diflenting brethren. 
From the fpot where this convent of Dominican friars 
once exilled, we come down, by Sr. Andrew’s Hill, to 
Earl-dreet, a place the river-fide of which is occupied by 
feveral iron and lime wharfs. And now, leaving the city 
for a few hours, we Ih a 11 bedow our attention upon South¬ 
wark, in the county of Suny, which fome very naturally de¬ 
rive from Joulh and rea, or fud and ree, indicating that it is 
fituated on the fud oxfoulh of the river ; but others will have 
it derived from the French fur and rea, “on the river." 
Having eroded the river on the noble bridge of Black- 
friars, we lhall enter the fird opening on our left, after 
having paded Albion Place, which anlwers at the foutli 
fide of the bridge to Chatham Place on the north. It is 
dill in the recollection of feveral of our readers, that on 
this fpot a mill was erefted, which, having excited the 
aniniadverfton of the public, was fuppofed to have been 
fet on fire by the malevolent intention of fome intereded 
parties, and fud'ered to be reduced to aides without any 
exertions to quench the conflagration. Long has the 
fliell remained a lad momento of the tranfaClion ; but, 
the walls having been found dill in a fuflicient date of 
drengtb, feveral elegant houfes are now made out, and 
have been for a few years the refidence of very refpeClable 
families. 
The llreet called Holland-dreet leads fird to the Falcon 
glafs-houfe, fo named from an ancient inn, the remains of 
which were lately vifible on the fide of the river at the 
beginning of Bank-iide, but which have been converted 
to other purpofes. This part of the winding banks of 
the Thames is one of the 1110ft intereding, as from hence 
the adonilhed eye can enjoy the difglay of the greated 
part of the city, and St. Paul’s riling with unparalleled 
grandeur in the centre. 
But, ere we proceed farther along Bank-fide, let us 
turn to the left into John-dreet, a place fo called from 
an ancient public-houfe, under the lign of John the Bap- 
till’s Head, Hill exiding at the ead corner of the northern 
entrance into the dreet, which is draight, regularly though 
modeltly built with houfes of two dories, and an attic 
concealed behind the parapet and its colleague the gutter. 
About fifteen or twenty years ago mod of the lodgings 
of this llreet were confecrated to the Cyprian worfhip^ 
but by dint of perfeverance the church-w'ardens of Chrift- 
church have cleanfed the Augean ftables ; and, except 
perhaps a few doubtful fecond-floors, the place is now 
perfedly clear. 
In the middle of the ead fide of this dreet is an open, 
ing called Cumberland-dreet, which leads to Hopton’s 
Alms-houfes. Their appearance is neat, prefenting to 
the view three parts of a quadrangle. Over the mid¬ 
dle-door, in the centre building, which has a goodly 
appearance, we read, upon a plain done tablet, the fol¬ 
lowing fimple infeription : “Charles Hopton, Sole 
Founder of this Charity, 1752.” The area is well fet 
with nice turf; and a done pavement, running all around 
before the buildings, feems a gentle invitation not to 
tread upon the emerald tendernefs of the green. A fmall 
but well-proportioned obelifk, furmounted by a lamp, rifes 
in the middle, and has a good edefl through the iron 
railing fet upon a dwarf-wall, on the ead fide of Green 
Walk. But what particularly attracted our attention, is 
a pump contrived in the pededal of the obelifk, for the 
common ufe of the alms-people, and occafionally for the 
accommodation of the neighbours : above the handle of 
the pump we read with pleafure this appropriate quo- 
