II. THE village of Teddington, Tide-end-Town, marks the spot to which the tide is felt, nineteen miles above London Bridge. Onward still flows the river, towards great London town; past Brentford, where the Brent joins it, and where the old palace of Sion House stands on its northern bank; round Chelsea, really a part of London; under Hammersmith Suspension Bridge, the first of the twelve great passenger bridges which cross the Thames within London. This of Hammersmith, and the granite bridges of London and Waterloo, are among the finest anywhere. Five railway bridges also cross the Thames in London. Perhaps the finest view of London is to be had from Westminster Bridge. There is the hoary Abbey close by; beyond it, we get glimpses of green parks and stately palaces; the magnificent Parliament Houses, and, on the Surrey side, St. Thomas's great hospital. Towards the east is the round dome of St. Paul's in the distance; while beyond, and about, and stretching out of sight everywhere, are the endless buildings of London, a sea of human habitations. A forest of masts, belonging to vessels trading to every part of the world, throngs the river itself. Large vessels come up to London Bridge, sixty-four miles from the sea, where the river is about twelve feet deep at low water; it gradually increases in depth as it nears the sea, and vessels of the largest size get as far as Deptford. "There is no other example in the world, with, perhaps, the exception of the Amazon, of a river being navigable for large sea-going vessels through so great THE NORTH BANK OF THE THAMES, ETC. 203 a part of its course; its depth of water, the far advance of the tide, and no mud-bar at its mouth," are among the causes why the Thames, but a small river after all, is renowned as one "Whose ample breast displays unfurl'd The ensigns of the assembled world." East of the City, in the Tower Hamlets in Middlesex, and along the Essex and Kent banks, most of the people are engaged in sea-faring business. The land lies low and is very flat, and the water is kept out by walls and banks. The river-side houses in the Tower Hamlets and.in Lambeth are, however, frequently flooded during high tides. Not far from Purfleet in Essex, is Tilbury Fort, a place of brave memories; for it was here the men of England gathered to meet the great Spanish armada, should it ever get nigh English ground, which it did not; the Queen's "sea dogs" and the storms of heaven prevented that. "It was a pleasant sight," says an old writer, "to behold the soldiers as they marched towards Tilbury, their cheerful countenances, courageous words and gestures, dancing and leaping wheresoever they came; when rumours of their foes' approach and of coming battles reached them, they were joyful at such news, as if lusty giants were to run a race." Then down came Queen Elizabeth and spoke to them the words of a brave queen to her brave people :-"I know I have the bodie of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king-and of a king of England too! and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm, . . . . not doubting, but by your obedience to my general, your concord in the camp, and your valour in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over those enemies of my God, of my kingdom, and my people." And this, after she had declared she had come down "resolved, in the midst of heat and battaille, to live or die amongst you all.” "In the early times of our history, the natural aspect of the Thames below London, and for some distance above it, was widely different from what it is at present. Where smooth pastures now form the banks, with grazing cattle, busy towns, and villages enlivening the landscape, the stream once spread without restraint, covering the surface with shallow and stagnant waters. Under the early Plantagenet kings, embankments were made at the cost of the citizens, to keep in the vagrant flood, extending to the distance of nearly forty miles." The Victoria Thames embankment of our own day has rescued a broad and beautiful river-side walk for the citizens from the oozy margin of the river. We have no room to speak of all the ships which come to do their business upon the Thames from every part of the world; nor of the endless river-craft, the steamers and barges; nor of the 3000 vessels which are employed in carrying coal from the northern coal-field for the use of the monster city: these things alone would fill a book. ( 205 ) MORE ABOUT OXFORDSHIRE. OXFORDSHIRE is a farming county, with broad meadows and pasture-fields in the river valleys. It has hill ranges in the north-west, and also in the south-east; those of the north-west are the Edge Hills of Warwick, and at the foot of this range there are wide heaths. Copredy is in this part of the county; the town is interesting because, during the Civil War, a fight took place upon Copredy Bridge in which the king's side was victorious. Banbury, too, is near here, a fact which you know when you steam into the station, for "Banbury cakes! Banbury cakes!" are brought to the carriage windows for sale. It has some quaint old inns, and is a town with a history, having stood two long sieges for the king during the Civil War. In the old town of Woodstock there was, until quite lately, a royal palace, where many of our kings dwelt. Henry II. had a bower made in a maze near the palace, to be the secret abode of the Fair Rosamond. Here the Black Prince was born; and in a house close by the park gate it is thought that Chaucer, the first of our great English poets, was born, and "Dwelt for many a cheerful day." Near Woodstock is the splendid palace and park of Blenheim, a present from the nation to the Duke of Marlborough, in memory of the famous victory he gained over the French near the village of Blenheim |