from this, past the Bank, to Cheapside, and turning to the right up King Street, the tourist will reach

THE GUILDHALL,

an old building, with a new and rather peculiar Gothic front. The principal hall, 153 feet by 48, and nearly 60 feet high, contains two colossal figures of the mythic personages Gog and Magog, and some fine statues of the Duke of Wellington, Lord Nelson, the Earl of Chatham, William Pitt the younger, Lord Mayor Beckford, and George III., together with two paintings depicting the "Siege of Gibraltar" and "Wat Tyler slain by Lord Mayor Walworth." Notice also the stained-glass windows, and the armorial bearings of the twelve City companies. The Library and Museum deserve a visit.

Before going westward from Cheapside the tourist should visit Bow Church, built by Sir Christopher Wren after the great fire. The steeple is one of Wren's happiest efforts, and though often imitated has never been equalled. Beneath is a clock projecting over the pathway of the street; and the tower contains a peal of bells, which dub as "Cockney" all who are born within the sound of their chimes.

Proceeding to the west end of Cheapside, and turning to the right up St. Martin's-le-Grand, the tourist will behold

THE GENERAL POST OFFICE,

a spacious structure in the Ionic style. The main entrance is under a lofty portico, which gives ingress to the various departments. The postal service gives employment to upwards of 20,000 clerks and letter-carriers, but to this number must be added the staff of the telegraph service, which is now under the management of the Post Office officials. Statistics show that the average annual number of letters passing through the Post Office is 600,000,000; to this add 80,000,000 newspapers and 12,000,000, book-parcels, giving a total of 692,000,000 parcels, and an adequate idea may be formed of the peculiar efficiency of this department of the public service. On the opposite side of the road are the new buildings, now in course of construction, for the extension of the business of the Post Office.

Retracing our steps from St. Martin's-le-Grand, we reach

ST. PAUL'S CHURCH-YARD and ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL.

Four churches successively occupied this site before the erection of the present noble edifice. The first was a Christian church, during the early Roman period. This being destroyed later on, when Christianity was no longer tolerated, a second church was built in the time of Constantine, the first Christian Emperor. The pagan Saxons demolished this after the departure of the Romans, but it was rebuilt about four centuries before

the Norman Conquest, and, with occasional renovations and additions, survived until the Great Fire of London in 1666. The present structure was designed by Sir Christopher Wren, and was finished within thirty-five years after the foundationstone was laid. It is of the usual cruciform plan, with the principal façade looking westward to Ludgate Hill, and is the only cathedral in the United Kingdom that is not of the Gothic order of architecture. The portico consists of twelve Corinthian pillars, supporting a second order, surmounted by the pediment; and conspicuous over all towers the dome, with a lofty belfry tower on either side. There are also entrances at the south and north sides, the latter being the one commonly used.

Entering through this, the tourist will be much more struck by the interior of the building than he was by its external aspect. Having passed the portal, the real vastness and magnificence of the dome begin to grow on one, and its full dimen sions can be appreciated. The exact height is 350 feet above the marble pavement on which the visitor stands, and 370 feet from the level of the church-yard. There are a great many statues, monuments, some good carving, and a few paintings; but the ornaments of this nature are decidedly insufficient for so stupendous a construction, and much remains to be done. The paintings have reference to the life of the patron saint, and the chief statues and monuments are those of Sir Joshua Reynolds, Sir John Moore, Nelson, Abercrombie, Howe, Rodney, Cornwallis, Bishop Heber, Picton, and Ponsonby. In the crypt are the tombs of Wren-"the architect," says the Latin inscription, "of this church and city, who lived for more than ninety years, not for himself alone, but for the public. Reader, do you seek his monument? Look around!"-Wellington, Nelson, Picton, Reynolds, Lawrence, Fuseli, Turner, Rennie, and others. The body of the building is open to the public, but charges varying from 6d. to 1s. 6d. are made for viewing the whispering and outside galleries, the great ball crowning the dome, the clock and crypt, and for admission to the library, great bell, geometrical staircase (which seems to hang without any support), and the model-room (containing the architect's original model, and a model of St. Peter's at Rome). For full particulars, however, see our shilling Guide to London.

The thoroughfare round the cathedral is known as St. Paul's Church-yard, and contains St. Paul's School and some fine silkmercers' establishments. From the church-yard the tourist will pass down Ludgate Hill into Fleet Street, beneath the viaduct of the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway. Looking to the right, up Farringdon Street, the Holborn Viaduct may be seen in the distance; close by are the Ludgate Hill Terminus, the Waithman Monument, the Wilkes Obelisk, and to the left new Blackfriars Bridge.

We now enter Fleet Street, the literary and historical associations of which would fill a large volume, and passing under

Temple Bar, at the western end, leave the City, and reach the Strand. Before doing so the tourist should turn to the left through the Temple gateway, and visit the headquarters of the legal and literary fraternity. Most of the buildings have interesting associations, but we can here only call attention to the fact, and mention that the Temple Church, the beautiful Elizabethan Middle Temple Hall, the Libraries, and the Temple Gardens are all admirable of their kind.

The Strand was the grassy bank of the river down to the reign of Henry VIII., and even at a later date was nothing more than a country roadway leading from London to Westminster, between which and the river the noblemen began to erect their mansions, which now give names to the various streets leading from the Strand to the river-side. All these streets are famed for private hotels and lodging-houses, where visitors, studying economy combined with a central position, resort. The only buildings in the Strand of architectural note are Somerset House and Charing Cross Station and Hotel. On the righthand side, before reaching the former, is a large open space, upon which the new Law Courts are to be erected. We now pass the Churches of St. Clement Danes and St. Mary-leStrand (the latter on the spot where stood the famous May-pole), and arrive at

SOMERSET HOUSE,

on our left-hand side. The eastern quadrangle is set apart for the use of the King's College; but this portion is not remarkable for any architectural beauty. Next comes Wellington Street, at the extremity of which may be seen Waterloo Bridge, and, with Exeter Hall on the right, and the Chapel of St. Mary-leSavoy towards the river on the left, we arrive at Adam Street, turning down which the tourist can visit the Society of Arts. The meeting-room contains some tolerable pictures. Returning to the Strand, we proceed to the Charing Cross Station Hotel, in front of which is a reproduction of Queen Eleanor's Cross, from which the locality takes its name of Charing Cross.

We are now confronted by Nelson's Monument, with the fountains and statues occupying Trafalgar Square. On the south is Northumberland House, the ancestral town residence of the Percys, on the east the Church of St. Martin's-in-theFields, and on the north

THE NATIONAL GALLERY.

The Gallery was, from its opening in 1838 until 1869, jointly occupied by the Royal Academy pictures and the nucleus of the national collection; but the Academy has lately removed to Burlington House, Piccadilly. The external appearance of the building is certainly not what might be expected; but the collection adorning the walls of the interior, though begun late,