L. Richmond (see p. 321); boats may be hired here (p. 323). L. Petersham (Dysart Arms), with a red brick church, in a quaint classical style, dating from 1505. Close to the church is Ham House, also of red brick, with its back to the river, the meeting-place of the Cabal during its tenancy by the Duke of Lauderdale.

A little farther from the river stands Sudbrook House, built by the Duke of Argyll (d. 1743), and now a hydropathic establishment. It is immortalised by Scott in the 'Heart of Midlothian', as the scene of the interview between Jeanie Deans and the Duke.

On the opposite bank of the Thames is

R. Twickenham (Railway; King's Head; Albany), with a great number of interesting historical villas and mansions. The name most intimately associated with the place is that of Pope, whose villa, however, has been replaced by another, while his grotto is also altered. Near the site of Pope's villa stands Orleans House, a building of red brick, once the residence of Louis Philippe and other members of the Orleans family, and now used by the Orleans Club (p. 75) as a pleasant country resort for members, their families, and their friends. Farther up the river, about 1/2 M. above Twickenham, is Strawberry Hill, Horace Walpole's famous villa; it was long the residence of the late Countess Waldegrave, who collected here a great many of the objects of art which adorned it in Walpole's time. Among other celebrities connected with Twickenham are Henry Fielding, the novelist, and Kitty Clive, the actress. Eel Pie Island (Inn), opposite Twickenham, is a favourite resort of picnic parties.

R. Teddington (p. 321), with the first lock on the Thames and a new foot-bridge (opened in 1889).

L. Kingston (Griffin; Sun; Railway; rail. stat., p. 336, an old Saxon town, where some of the early kings of England were crowned. In the market-place, surrounded by an ornamental iron railing, is the Stone which is said to have been used as the king's seat during the coronation ceremony. The names of those believed to have been crowned here are carved on the stone. The Town Hall is an imposing edifice, built in 1840. The Church of All Saints is a fine cruciform structure, dating in part from the 14th century. Kingston is united with Hampton Wick on the other bank, by a stone bridge, constructed in 1827. It is surrounded by numerous villas and countryresidences, and is a favourite resort of Londoners in summer.

Rowing and sailing boats may be hired either at Kingston or Hampton Wick. - Pleasant walks to Ham Common, and through Bushy Park to (2 M.) Hampton Court.

Steaming past Surbiton, the southern suburb of Kingston, and Thames Ditton (p. 316), on the left, we now arrive at the bridge crossing the river at

Hampton Court, see p. 316. (The village of Hampton lies on the right, about 1 M. farther up.)

37. Hampstead. Highgate.

The visitor should go to Hampstead by omnibus (p. 31) or train (North London Railway, from Broad Street), and walk thence to Highgate. The two hills of Hampstead and Highgate, lying to the N. of London, are well worth visiting for the extensive views they command of the metropolis and the surrounding country.

The village of Hampstead ('home-stead'), has been long since reached by the ever advancing suburbs of London, from which it can now scarcely be distinguished. It is an ancient place, known as early as the time of the Romans; and various Roman antiquities have been found in the neighbourhood, particularly at the mineral wells. These wells (in Well Walk, to the E. of the High Street) were discovered or re-discovered about 1620, and for a time made Hampstead a fashionable spa; the old well-house is now used as a church. Well Walk also contains the house in which John Keats and his brother lodged in 1817-1818, and at the bottom of John Street, near Hampstead Heath Station, is Lawn Bank (then called Wentworth Place), where Keats lived with his friend Charles Brown in 1818-20. Part of 'Endymion' was written in the first of these, and much of Keats's finest work, including parts of 'Hyperion' and the 'Eve of St. Agnes', was done at Lawn Bank. Leigh Hunt long lived in a cottage in the Vale of Health. The parish church of St. John dates from 1747, and with its square tower forms a conspicuous object in the view from many parts of London. In the churchyard are buried Sir James Mackintosh (d. 1832), Joanna Bailie (d. 1851), her sister Agnes (d. 1861, aged 100 years), and Constable, the painter (d. 1837), who has left many painted memorials of his love for Hampstead (see, e.g., his pictures of Hampstead in the National Gallery, p. 174). The well-known Kit-Cat Club, which numbered Addison, Steele, and Pope among its members, held its first meetings in a tavern at Hampstead.

*Hampstead Heath (430 ft. above the sea-level) is one of the most open and picturesque spots in the immediate neighbourhood of London, and is a favourite and justly valued resort of holiday-makers and all who appreciate pure and invigorating air. The heath is about 240 acres in extent. Its wild and irregular beauty, and picturesque alternations of hill and hollow, make it a refreshing contrast to the trim elegance of the Parks. The heath was once a notorious haunt of highwaymen. Some years ago the lord of the manor began to lay out the heath for building purposes; but fortunately his intention was frustrated, and the heath purchased by the Metropolitan Board of Works for the unrestricted use of the public. Parliament Hill, to the S.E. of the heath proper, has also been acquired for the public. Near the ponds at the S.E. corner of the heath, the Fleet Brook (p. 134) takes its rise. The garden of the Bull and Bush Inn, on the N. margin of the heath, contains a holly planted by Hogarth, the painter; and 'Jack Straw's Castle, on the highest part of the heath, is another interesting old inn. On public holidays Hampstead Heath is generally visited by 25-50,000 Londoners and presents a gay and characteristic scene of popular enjoyment.

The *View is extensive and interesting. On the S. lies London, with the dome of St. Paul's and the towers of Westminster rising conspicuously from the dark masses of houses; while beyond may be discerned the green hills of Surrey and the glittering roof of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham. The varied prospect to the W. includes Harrow-on-the-Hill (p. 332; distinguishable by the lofty spire on an isolated eminence), and, in clear weather, Windsor Castle itself. To the N. lies a fertile and well-peopled tract, studded with numerous villages and houses and extending to Highwood Hill, Totteridge, and Barnet. To the E., in immediate proximity, we see the sister hill of Highgate, and in clear weather we may descry the reach of the Thames at Gravesend.

We leave Hampstead Heath at the N. end, near 'Jack Straw's Castle', and follow the road leading to the N.E. to Highgate. We soon reach, on the left, the 'Spaniards' Inn', the gathering point of the 'No Popery' rioters of 1780, and described by Dickens in 'Barnaby Rudge'. The stretch of road between 'Jack Straw's Castle' and this point is perhaps the most open and elevated near London, affording fine views to the N.W. and S.E. The road then leads between Caen Wood, with its fine old oaks, on the right, and Bishop's Wood on the left. Caen Wood or Ken Wood House, was the seat of the celebrated judge, Lord Mansfield, who died here in 1793. Bishop's Wood once formed part of the park of the Bishops of London. We now pass the grounds of Caen Wood Towers on the right, and reach Highgate.

There is also a pleasant path leading past the Ponds and through the fields from Hampstead to Highgate.

Highgate, which is situated on a hill about 30 ft. lower than Hampstead Heath, is one of the healthiest and most favourite sites for villas in the outskirts of London. The view which it commands is similar in character to that from Hampstead, but not so fine. The new church, built in the Gothic style in 1833, is a handsome edifice, and, from its situation, very conspicuous. The Highgate or North London *Cemetery, lying on the slope of the hill just below the church, is very picturesque and tastefully laid out. The catacombs are in the Egyptian style, with cypresses, and the terraces afford a fine view. Michael Faraday, the great chemist (d. 1867; by the E. wall), Lord Lyndhurst (d. 1863), and George Eliot (d. 1880) are buried here. Samuel Taylor Coleridge (d. 1834) is interred in a vault below the adjacent Grammar School, which, founded in 1565, was lately rebuilt in the French Gothic style. The Whittington Almshouses at the foot of the hill were established by the famous Lord Mayor of that name, and are popularly supposed to occupy the very spot where he heard the bells inviting him to return. Close by is the stone on which he is said to have rested, now forming part of a lamppost; it is needless to say that its identity is more than doubtful. The Highgate Gravel Pit Wood, 70 acres in extent, was opened as a public park in 1886.

Many of the walks around Highgate are picturesque and interesting. Among the houses in the vicinity we may mention Holly Lodge, the residence of Baroness Burdett Coutts; Cromwell House, said to have been built for Cromwell's son-in-law, General Ireton, and now a Convalescent Hospital for Children; Lauderdale House, where Nell Gwynne lived; and the third house to the right in the 'Grove', where Coleridge died. Arundel House, where the great Lord Bacon died, has disappeared.

Highgate used to be notorious for a kind of mock pilgrimage made to it for the purpose of 'swearing on the horns. By the terms of his oath the pilgrim was bound never to kiss the maid when he could kiss the mistress, never to drink small beer when he could get strong, etc., 'unless he liked it best'. Some old rams' heads are still preserved at the inns. Byron alludes to this custom in 'Childe Harold', Canto I.

Highgate station, on the Great Northern Railway, lies to the E. of the town, and is daily passed by numerous trains. Cable Tramway up Highgate Hill, see p. 32. About 2 M. off, on the elevated ground to the E. of Muswell Hill and N. of Hornsey, is the Alexandra Palace, an establishment resembling the Crystal Palace, with a large park, theatre and concert hall, panorama, etc.

38. Epping Forest. Waltham Abbey. Rye House.

Great Eastern Railway to (12 M.) Loughton, in 1 hr. (fares 2s. 1d., 1s. 7d., 18. 1/2d.). From Loughton, which may also be reached from Chalk Farm and other stations of the North London Railway (via Dalston Junction), on foot, through Epping Forest, to (5 M.) Waltham Abbey. From Waltham Abbey to (6 M.) Rye House by railway. From Rye House back to (19 M.) London by railway (fares 3s. 8d., 2s. 10d., 1s. 7d.).

We may start either from Fenchurch Street Station (p. 34) or from Liverpool Street Station (p. 33). The first stations after Liverpool Street are Bishopsgate, Bethnal Green (p. 128), Old Ford, and Stratford, where the train joins the North London line. Then Leyton and Leytonstone. At (8M.) Snaresbrook is an Infant Orphan Asylum, with accommodation for 300 children (to the left of the line). 83/4 M. George Lane; 93/4 M. Woodford, 3 M. from Chingford (see below); 11 M. Buckhurst Hill. Then (12 M.) Loughton (Railway Hotel), within a few hundred paces of the Forest.

Another route to Epping Forest is by the Great Eastern Railway from Liverpool Street, via Walthamstow, to (9 M.) Chingford (fares 1s. 5d., 1s. 1d., 10d.), which may also be reached from the North London Railway via Dalston Junction and Hackney or via Gospel Oak. Chingford (*Royal Forest Hotel, D. 1s. 6d.), which lies 2 M. to the W. of Buckhurst Hill, about 41/2 M. to the S.W. of Waltham Abbey, and 21/2 M. to the S. of High Beach (see below), is perhaps the best starting-point from which to visit the most attractive parts of the Forest. Open conveyances of various kinds run from Chingford station and from the Royal Forest Hotel to High Beach (6d. each), Waltham Abbey, Chigwell, Epping, and other points of interest; the best conveyance is the four-horse coach starting at the hotel. On an eminence to the W. of Chingford is an obelisk, due N.

from Greenwich Observatory, and sometimes used in verifying astronemical calculations.

Epping Forest, along with the adjoining Hainault Forest, at one time extended almost to the gates of London. In 1793 there still remained 12,000 acres unenclosed, but these have been since reduced to about 5500 acres. The whole of the unenclosed part of the Forest was recently purchased by the Corporation of London, and was opened by Queen Victoria in May, 1882, as a free and inalienable public park and place of recreation. One of the finest points in the Forest, if not the very finest, is *High Beach, an elevated tract covered with magnificent beech-trees, about 11/2 M. from Loughton. Tennyson was living here when he wrote 'The Talking Oak' and 'Locksley Hall'. There is an inn here, called the 'King's Oak', which is much resorted to by picnic parties. About 21/2 M. farther, on the northern verge of the Forest, stands Copped Hall, a magnificent mansion in the midst of an extensive park. The town of Epping, with 2300 inhab., lies 2 M. to the E. of this point. Near Buckhurst Hill (p. 329) is the Roebuck Inn, and there is also a small inn (the Robin Hood) at the point where the road from Loughton joins that to High Beach.

On the high-road between Loughton and Epping lies Ambresbury Bank, an old British camp, 12 acres in extent, and nearer Loughton is another similar earthwork. Tradition reports that it was here that Boadicea, Queen of the Iceni, was defeated by Suetonius, on which occasion 80,000 Britons are said to have perished. - A good map of Epping Forest, price 2d., may be obtained of H. Sell, 10 Bolt Court, Fleet Street. Good handbooks to the Forest are those of E. N. Buxton (Stanford; 1s. 6d.) and Percy Lindley (6d.).

Waltham Abbey lies on the river Lea, about 2 M. from the W. margin of the forest, and 6 M. to the W. of Copped Hall. The abbey was founded by the Saxon king Harold, and after his death in 1066 became his burial-place. The nave of the old abbey has been restored, and now serves as the parish-church. The round arches are specimens of very early Norman architecture, and may even have been built before the Conquest. Adjoining the S. aisle is a fine Lady Chapel, in the decorated style. The tower is modern.

The station lies 3/4 M. to the W. of the abbey; and 1/4 M. beyond the station stands Waltham Cross, one of the crosses which Edward I. erected on the different spots where the body of his queen Eleanor rested on its way from Nottinghamshire to London. The cross has been well restored. Another of these monuments, that at Charing Cross, has been already mentioned (see p. 145). At one of the entrances to Theobalds Park, near Waltham Cross, stands the reerected Temple Bar (comp. p. 140).

The railway journey from Waltham Abbey to Rye House occupies 20 minutes. The intermediate stations are Cheshunt and Broxbourne; at the latter is the Crown Inn, with an extensive garden, which, in the rose season, presents a beautiful sight.

The river Lea, near which the line runs, is still, as in the days of its old admirer Isaac Walton, famous for its fishing; and the various