3(>2 LON 
bury, who were the proprietors of this ferry, in lieu of 
the profits arifing therefrom. 
At the Horfe-ferry begins Mill-bank, leading to Chel- 
fea; and here we find the unfinifhed Penitentiary-houfes, 
intended for the reformation of thieves, inltead of trans¬ 
porting them.—The defign of a building of this nature, 
for the punifhment, employment, and reformation, of of¬ 
fenders of Secondary turpitude, ufually punifhed by trans¬ 
portation for a term of years, was conceived after the dis¬ 
putes which terminated in the Separation of the American 
llates. The plan for colonizing New South Wales, led 
to a general Syftem of expatriation to the antipodes; 
which, as applied to definite periods, was cruel and un¬ 
juft, becaufe the wretched objefts were precluded from 
the power of ever returning, however Short might be the 
intended period of their punifhment. A ftrong and affect¬ 
ing memorial of the fheriffs of London, in 1807, led to 
feveral parliamentary notices and remon(trances againft 
this indifcriminate mode of transportation, which was in 
all cafes, in effect, for life ; and, in confequence, this place 
of punifhment and reform has been projected at Mill-bank ; 
and no culprits are, we tTnderftand, in future to be Sent 
to New' South Wales, except thofe irretrievable and enor¬ 
mous cafes that require transportation for life.—The 
plan of this erection is partly that of Mr. Jeremy Ben- 
tham—the culprits are to be confined in circular build¬ 
ings, with windows fo con (trusted that the overfeer from 
a room in the centre may be able to view every one of 
their rooms. The external wall enclofes no lefs than 
eighteen acres of ground; and within that fpace there 
are to be fix of thefe circular buildings, each capable of 
lodging and employing from 150 to 200 prifoners; with 
a chapel, infirmary, and other conveniences.—We heartily 
\vifn fuccefs to the undertaking. After what we have 
read of the reformation-prifons of Philadelphia and Rot¬ 
terdam, may we not hope to fee, what we certainly never 
have feen yet, a man (in England) come out of a prifon 
better than he went in ! 
A little farther on is the intended Vauxhal! Bridge, or 
rather the Regent’s Bridge, for fo the work was named 
when the firft done was laid (by lord Dundas as proxy 
for the regent), which was on the 9th of May, 1811. We 
then underftood that the bridge was to be built of Scotch 
granite, with the ornaments and finifhings of Portland- 
ftone; and to confift of feven arches. The work flood 
ilill for a long time, but now (Aug. 1814.) Seems to be 
again proceeding; and we are told that it is to cor.fift 
of nine arches of equal fpan, in fquares of call-iron, on 
piers of rufticated (lone, formed of fragments united by 
means of Parker’s cement; the total width to be 809 feet, 
the fpan of the arches 78, the height 29, and the clear 
breadth of the road-vtay 36. This bridge is to extend 
from Mill-bank to Smith’s Tea-gardens, which nearly ad¬ 
join Vauxhail-gardens; and is intended to connect the 
roads branching from that Spot to Hyde Park Corner, by 
a ftraignt road and fireet acrofs Tothill-fields to Eaton- 
ftreet, Pimlico, and Grofvenor-place. 
Returning now towards Charing Crofs, we find, ad¬ 
joining to the Horfe-guards, the Tilt-yard, well known as 
the Scene of Henry VIII’s military amufements.— It re¬ 
tained its ufe during the reign of his mafculine daughter 
Elizabeth, who was not lefs fond of witneiling athletic ex¬ 
tremes than her father. Here, on the firft of January, 
1581, was held a mod Sumptuous tournament, in honour 
of the commiflioners fent from France to propofe a mar¬ 
riage between the queen and the duke of Anjou 7 and here 
were the annual exercilts of arms during her reign, by a 
Society of knights confifting of twenty-five of the mod 
diftinguiffted perfonages of the court. But this place was 
not the Scene of chivalrous exploits alone; it was Some¬ 
times devoted to more ignoble purpofes, as may be feen 
in Sydney’s State Papers, vol. i. p. 194. where, in an ac¬ 
count of queen Elizabeth’s amufements in her fixty-feventh 
year, it is faid, “ Her majefly fays die is very well. This 
day the appoints a Frenchman to dee feates tipon a rope 
DON. 
in the Conduit-court. To-morrow the hath commanded 
the bear, the bull, and the ape, to be bayted in the Tilt- 
yard.” The Site of this place is now occupied by a con¬ 
venient guard-room, and other offices for the ute of the 
foot-guards. 
That part of St. James’s Park behind the Horfe-guards 
is called the Parade, from being the place where the re¬ 
liefs for the different guards about the palace are paraded 
and infpected every morning, attended by an excellent 
band of military imific.—Two telegraphs have been erected 
on the heights of the Admiralty ; one towards the road to 
Dover, the other towards Portfmouth and Plymouth ; an 
invention which took its origin, or at leafl was revived and 
greatly improved, at the beginning of the French revo¬ 
lution ; and which we have limplified, and confequentiy 
improved. Thefe machines were of great ufe during the 
war; and we hope that they will long (land at red, iince 
their particular ufefulnefs is only felt in war-time. 
Arrived at Charing Crofs, we falute the ftatue of the 
unfortunate Charles, generally adorned with boughs of 
oak on the anniverfary of the reftoration.—This place was 
fo denominated from having been anciently a village 
named Charing, in which king Edward I. caufed a mag¬ 
nificent crofs to be ereited in commemoration of his be¬ 
loved queen Eleanor, part of which continued till the 
civil wars in the reign of Charles I. when it was entirely 
deftroyed by the populace, as a monument of popifli fu- 
perftition. In the year 1633, an equeftrian ilatue of 
king Charles I. was erected on the fpot where this crofs 
itood, which is Hill called Charing Crofs. It has the ad¬ 
vantage of being well placed at the meeting of three great 
llreets. The pedeftal on which it (lands is finely elevated, 
and the horfe full of fire and fpirit; but the man is not 
thought to be equally well executed, and indeed appears 
too fmall in proportion to the horfe. This ftatue, which 
is of brafs, was call by Le Sueur, who made the 
curious brafs monument of the duke of Buckingham in 
Henry VII’s chapel. After the execution of Charles I. 
the parliament ordered it to be deftroyed ; it was however 
purchafed by a brazier in Holborn, of the name of Re¬ 
vet, who concealed it until the reftoration, when he pre- 
fented it to Charles II. who caufed it to be erefted in its 
prefent fituation. On this fubjefil, M. Grofley, in his Tour 
to London, vol. i. p. 203, fays, “ I lhall fpeak of it only 
to remind the reader that this ftatue, being in the heat of 
the rebellion fold by auction, was knocked down at a low 
price to a cutler, who declared by advertifement, he would 
melt it down, and make handles for knives of it. He,, 
in fafil, caufed knives with bronze handles to be expofedr 
to fale in his (hop, by which he foon made a fortune; the 
fafilion which oppofed the king being all defirous of hav¬ 
ing fome part of his ftatue debafed to a knife-handle.”—* 
We mult take this opportunity for writing down an idle 
ftory reported of the founder of this elegant ftatue, who 
is faid to have hanged himfelf in a fit ot defpair on being 
reminded that he had forgotten to put a girth to the 
horfe. The fadt is, the artill knew very well that nearly 
all ancient equeftrian Itatues, and that of Marcus Aure¬ 
lius in particular, are without this modern appendage to 
the faddle ; and he molt probably omitted it on purpofe. 
—A fimilar ftory was told of the man who call the once- 
admired and nearly-adored ftatue of Henry IV. of France 
placed upon the Pont Neuf, becaufe he had forgotten to 
put the well-known hat and feathers in his hand. We 
have no doubt but fuch anecdotes have been related of 
ftatues and their makers all over the world ; and, although 
we have not lived yet the age of Neftor or Tithon, >ve 
may really and truly aflert, that we have heard, read, or 
feen, hardly any thing truly original: Nil fib foie novum\ 
“ Nothing new under the fun ;” and that, were we ac¬ 
quainted with the molt ancient Chinefe writings or tradi¬ 
tions, we might find in them nearly the whole of what ws 
read in ancient and modern authors. The imagination of 
man is a wheel—after one complete revolution, the fame 
fpoke rnuft meet the eye again,—The Golden Crofs, a 
J very 
