Rollo in London

by Jacob Abbott

  CHAPTER XV.

  THE EMIGRANTS.

  While this conversation was going on Mr. George and Rollo had beensauntering slowly along the walk, with warehouses on one side of them,and a roadway for carts and drays on the other, between the walk and thedock; and now all at once Rollo's attention was attracted by thespectacle of a large ship, on the decks of which there appeared a greatnumber of people--men, women, and children.

  "What is that?" asked Rollo, suddenly. "What do you suppose all thosepeople are doing on board that ship?"

  "That must be an emigrant ship," said Mr. George. "Those are emigrants,I have no doubt, going to America. Let us go on board."

  "Will they allow us to go?" asked Rollo, doubtfully.

  "O, yes," said Mr. George; "they will not know but that we are emigrantsourselves, or the friends of some of the emigrants. In fact, we _are_the friends of some of the emigrants. We are the friends of _all_ ofthem."

  So saying, Mr. George led the way, and Rollo followed up the plankwaywhich led to the deck of the ship. Here a very singular spectaclepresented itself to view. The decks were covered with groups of people,all dressed in the most quaint and singular costume, and wearing a veryforeign air. They were, in general, natives of the interior provinces ofFrance and Germany, and they were dressed in accordance with thefashions which prevailed in the places from which they severally came.

  The men were generally standing or walking about. Some were talkingtogether, others were smoking pipes, and others still were busy withtheir chests and bundles, rearranging their effects apparently, so as tohave easy and convenient access to such as they should require for thevoyage. Then there were a great many groups of women and girls seatedtogether on benches, trunks, or camp stools, with little childrenplaying about near them on the deck.

  "I am very glad to see this," said Mr. George. "I have very oftenwitnessed the landing of the emigrants in New York at the end of theirvoyage; and here I have the opportunity of seeing them as they go onboard the ship, at the beginning of it."

  "I am glad, too," said Rollo. "But look at that old woman!"

  Rollo pointed as he said this to an aged woman, whose face, which was ofthe color of mahogany, was wrinkled in a most extraordinary manner, andwho wore a cap of very remarkable shape and dimensions. She had anantique-looking book in her hands, the contents of which she seemed tobe conning over with great attention. Mr. George and Rollo looked downupon the pages of the book as they passed, and saw that it was printedin what might be called an ancient black-letter type.

  "It is a German book," said Rollo, in a whisper.

  "Yes," said Mr. George. "I suppose it is her Bible, or perhaps herPrayer Book."

  Near the old woman was a child playing upon the deck. Perhaps it was hergrandchild. The child had a small wagon, which she was drawing about thedeck. The wagon looked very much worn and soiled by long usage, but inother respects it resembled very much the little wagons that are drawnabout by children in America.

  "It is just like one of our little wagons," said Rollo.

  "Yes," replied Mr. George, "of course it is; for almost all the littlewagons, as well as the other toys, that children get in America, comefrom Germany."

  "Ah!" said Rollo; "I did not think of that."

  "Would you ask her to let me see her wagon?" continued Rollo.

  "Yes," said Mr. George; "that is, if you can ask her in German."

  "Don't you suppose she knows English?" asked Rollo.

  "No," said Mr. George, "I presume not."

  "I mean to try her," said Rollo.

  So he extended his hand towards the child; and then, smiling upon her todenote that he was her friend, and also to make what he said appear likean invitation, and not like a command, he pronounced very distinctly thewords, "Come here."

  The child immediately came towards him with the little wagon.

  "There!" said Rollo; "I was pretty sure that she could understandEnglish."

  The child did not understand English, however, after all. And yet sheunderstood what Rollo said; for it so happens, by a remarkablecoincidence, that the German words for "come here," though spelleddifferently, sound almost precisely like the English words. Besides, thechild knew from Rollo's gesture that he wished her to come to him.

  Rollo attempted to talk with the child, but he could make no progress.The child could not understand any thing that he said. Presently a verypleasant-looking woman who was sitting on a trunk near by, and whoproved to be the child's mother, shook her head smilingly at Rollo, andsaid, with a very foreign accent, pointing at the same time to thechild, "Not understands English."

  Mr. George then held a little conversation with this woman in German.She told him that she was the mother of the child, and that the oldwoman who was reading near was its grandmother. She had a husband, shesaid, and two other children. Her husband was on the shore. He had goneinto the city to make some purchases for the voyage, and her two otherchildren had gone with him to see what was to be seen.

  Mr. George and Rollo, after this, walked about the deck of the ship forsome time, looking at the various family groups that were scattered hereand there, and holding conversations with many of the people. Thepersons whom they talked with all looked up with an expression of greatanimation and pleasure in their countenances when they learned thattheir visitors were Americans, and seemed much gratified to see them. Isuppose they considered them very favorable specimens of the people ofthe country which they were going to make their future home.

  I am sure that they needed all the kind words and encouraging looks thatMr. George and Rollo bestowed upon them; for it is a very serious andsolemn business for a family to bid a final farewell to their nativeland, and in many instances to the whole circle of their acquaintancesand friends, in order to cross the stormy ocean and seek a home in whatis to them an entirely new world.

  PLEASANT WEATHER.]

  Even the voyage itself is greatly to be dreaded by them, on account ofthe inevitable discomforts and dangers of it. While the ship is lying inthe docks, waiting for the appointed day of sailing to arrive, they canpass their time very pleasantly, sitting upon the decks, reading,writing, or sewing; but as soon as the voyage has fairly commenced, allthese enjoyments are at once at an end; for even if the wind is fair,and the water is tolerably smooth, they are at first nearly all sick,and are confined to their berths below; so that, even when there arehundreds of people on board, the deck of the ship looks very solitary.

  The situation of the poor passengers, too, in their berths below, isvery uncomfortable. They are crowded very closely together; the air isconfined and unwholesome; and their food is of the coarsest and plainestdescription. Then, besides, in every such a company there will always besome that are rude and noisy, or otherwise disagreeable in their habitsor demeanor; and those who are of a timid and gentle disposition oftensuffer very severely from the unjust and overbearing treatment whichthey receive from tyrants whom they can neither resist nor escape from.

  Then, sometimes, when the ship is in mid ocean, there comes on a storm.A storm at sea, attacking an emigrant ship full of passengers, producessometimes a frightful amount of misery. Many of the company aredreadfully alarmed, and feel sure that they will all certainly go to thebottom. Their terror is increased by the tremendous roar of the winds,and by the thundering thumps and concussions which the ship encountersfrom the waves.

  THE STORM.]

  The consternation is increased when the gale comes on suddenly in asquall, so that there is not time to take the sails in in season. Insuch a case the sails are often blown away or torn into pieces--theremnants of them, and the ends of the rigging, flapping in the wind witha sound louder than thunder.

  Of course, during the continuance of such a storm, the passengers areall confined closely below; for the seas and the spray sweep over thedecks at such times with so much violence that even the sailors canscarcely remain there. Then it is almost entirely dark where thepassengers have to stay; for in such a storm the deadl
ights must all beput in, and the hatches shut down and covered, to keep out the sea.Notwithstanding all the precautions, however, that can possibly betaken, the seas will find their way in, and the decks, and the berths,and the beds become dripping wet and very uncomfortable.

  Then, again, the violent motion of a ship in a storm makes almost everybody sick; and this is another trouble. It is very difficult, too, atsuch times, for so large a company to get their food. They cannot go toget it; for they cannot walk, or even stand, on account of the pitchingand tossing of the ship; and it is equally difficult to bring it tothem. The poor children are always greatly neglected; and the mournfuland wearisome sound of their incessant fretting and crying adds verymuch to the general discomfort and misery.

  It often happens, moreover, that dreadful diseases of an infectious andmalignant character break out on board these crowded ships, andmultitudes sicken and die. Of course, under such circumstances, the sickcan receive very few of the attentions that sick persons require,especially when the weather is stormy, and their friends andfellow-passengers, who would have been glad to have assisted them, aredisabled themselves. Then, in their dejection and misery, their thoughtsrevert to the homes they have left. They forget all the sorrows andtrials which they endured there, and by the pressure of which they weredriven to the determination to leave their native land; and now theymourn bitterly that they were induced to take a step which is to end sodisastrously. They think that they would give all that they possess tobe once more restored to their former homes.

  Thus, during the prevalence of a storm, the emigrant ship is filledsometimes with every species of suffering. There is, however,comparatively very little actual danger, for the ships are very strong,being built expressly for the purpose of resisting the severestbuffetings of the waves; and generally, if there is sea room enough,they ride out these gales in safety. Then, after repairing the damageswhich their spars and rigging may have sustained, they resume theirvoyage. If, however, there is not sea room enough for the ship when sheis thus caught,--that is, if the storm comes on when she is in such aposition that the wind drives her towards rocks, or shoals, or to aline of coast,--her situation becomes one of great peril. In such casesit is almost impossible to save her from being driven upon the rocks orsands, and there being broken up and beaten to pieces by the waves.

  THE WRECK.]

  When driven thus upon a shore, the ship usually strikes at such adistance from it as to make it impossible for the passengers to reachthe land. Nor can they long continue to live on board the ship; for, asshe strikes the sand or rocks upon the bottom, the waves, which continueto roll in in tremendous surges from the offing, knock her over upon herside, break in upon her decks, and drench her completely in every part,above and below. Those of the passengers who attempt to remain below, orwho from any cause cannot get up the stairways, are speedily drowned;while those who reach the deck are almost all soon washed off into thesea. Some lash themselves to the bulwarks or to the masts, and someclimb into the rigging to get out of the way of the seas, if, indeed,any of the rigging remains standing; and then, at length, when the seasubsides a little, people put off in surf boats from the shore, torescue them. In this way, usually, a considerable number are saved.

  These and other dreadful dangers attend the companies of emigrants intheir attempts to cross the wide and stormy Atlantic. Still the prospectfor themselves and their children of living in peace and plenty in thenew world prompts them to come every year in immense numbers. Abouteight hundred such shiploads as that which Rollo and Mr. George saw inthe London Docks arrive in New York alone every year. This makes, on anaverage, about fifteen ships to arrive there every week. It is only avery small proportion indeed of the number that sail that are wrecked onthe passage.

  * * * * *

  But to return to Mr. George and Rollo.

  After remaining on board the emigrant ship until their curiosity wassatisfied, our travellers went down the plank again to the quay, andcontinued their walk. The next thing that attracted Rollo's attentionwas a great crane, which stood on the quay, near a ship, a shortdistance before them.

  "Ah!" said Rollo; "here is a great crane. Let us go and see what theyare hoisting."

  So Rollo hastened forward, Mr. George following him, until they came tothe crane. Four workmen were employed at it, in turning the wheels bymeans of two great iron cranks. They were hoisting a very heavy block ofwhite marble out of the vessel.

  While Mr. George and Rollo were looking at the crane, a bell began toring in a little steeple near by; and all the men in every part of thequay and in all the sheds and warehouses immediately stopped working,put on their jackets, and began walking away in throngs towards thegates.

  "Ah!" said Mr. George, in a tone of disappointment, "we have got here attwelve o'clock. That was just what I wished to avoid."

  "Yes," said Rollo; "they are all going home to dinner."

  Rollo, however, soon found that all the men were not going home todinner, for great numbers of them began to make preparations for diningin the yard. They began to establish themselves in little groups, threeor four together, in nooks and corners, under the sheds, wherever theycould find the most convenient arrangement of boxes and bales to servefor chairs and tables. When established in these places, they proceededto open the stores which they had provided for their dinners, the saidstores being contained in sundry baskets, pails, and cans, which hadbeen concealed all the morning in various hiding-places among the pilesof merchandise, and were now brought forth to furnish the owners withtheir midday meal.

  One of these parties, Rollo found, had a very convenient way of gettingale to drink with their dinner. There was a row of barrels lying on thequay near where they had established themselves to dine; and two of theparty went to one of these barrels, and, starting out the bung, theyhelped themselves to as much ale as they required. They got the ale outof the barrel by means of a long and narrow glass, with a string aroundthe neck of it, and a very thick and heavy bottom. This glass they letdown through the bunghole into the barrel, and then drew up the ale withit as you would draw up water with a bucket from a well.

  Rollo amused himself as he walked along observing these various dinnerparties, wondering, too, all the time, at the throngs of men that werepouring along through all the spaces and passage ways that led towardsthe gate.[G]

  [G] It was while these workmen were going out in this way from the yardthat the incident of the little girl falling into the dock occurred, ashas been already related.

  "I did not know that there were so many men at work here," said he.

  "Yes," said Mr. George. "When business is brisk, there are about threethousand at work here."

  "How did you know?" asked Rollo.

  "I read it in the guide book," said Mr. George.

  Here Mr. George took his guide book out of his pocket, and began to readfrom it, as he walked along, the following description:--

  "'As you enter the dock, the sight of the forest of masts in thedistance, and the tall chimneys vomiting clouds of black smoke, and themany-colored flags flying in the air, has a most peculiar effect; whilethe sheds, with the monster wheels arching through the roofs, look likethe paddle boxes of huge steamers.'"

  "Yes," said Rollo; "that is exactly the way it looks."

  "'Along the quay,'" continued Mr. George, still reading, "'you see, nowmen with their faces blue with indigo; and now gaugers, with their long,brass-tipped rules dripping with spirit from the cask they have beenprobing; then will come a group of flaxen-haired sailors, chatteringGerman; and next a black sailor, with a cotton handkerchief twistedturban-like around his head; presently a blue-smocked butcher, withfresh meat and a bunch of cabbages in a tray on his shoulder; andshortly afterwards a mate, with green paroquets in a wooden cage. Hereyou will see, sitting on a bench, a sorrowful-looking woman, with new,bright cooking tins at her feet, telling you she is an emigrantpreparing for her voyage. As you pass along the quay the air is pungentwith t
obacco, or it overpowers you with the fumes of rum; then you arenearly sickened with the smell arising from heaps of hides and huge binsof horns; and shortly afterwards the atmosphere is fragrant with coffeeand spice. Nearly every where you meet stacks of cork, or yellow bins ofsulphur, or lead-colored copper ore.'"

  "It is an excellent description," said Rollo, when Mr. George paused.

  Mr. George resumed his reading as follows:--

  "'As you enter this warehouse the flooring is sticky, as if it had beennewly tarred, with the sugar that has leaked through the casks----'"

  "We won't go there," said Rollo, interrupting.

  "'And as you descend into these dark vaults,'" continued Mr. George,"'you see long lines of lights hanging from the black arches, and lampsflitting about midway.'"

  "I should like to go there," said Rollo.

  "'Here you sniff the fumes of the wine,'" continued Mr. George, "'andthere the peculiar fungous smell of dry rot. Then the jumble of sounds,as you pass along the dock, blends in any thing but sweet concord. Thesailors are singing boisterous Ethiopian songs from the Yankee shipjust entering; the cooper is hammering at the casks on the quay; thechains of the cranes, loosed of their weight, rattle as they fly upagain; the ropes splash in the water; some captain shouts his ordersthrough his hands; a goat bleats from some ship in the basin; and emptycasks roll along the stones with a hollow, drum-like sound. Here theheavy-laden ships are down far below the quay, and you descend to themby ladders; whilst in another basin they are high up out of the water,so that their green copper sheathing is almost level with the eye of thepassenger; while above his head a long line of bow-sprits stretch farover the quay, and from them hang spars and planks as a gangway to eachship. This immense establishment is worked by from one to three thousandhands, according as the business is either brisk or slack.'"

  Here Mr. George shut the book and put it in his pocket.

  "It is a very excellent account of it altogether," said Rollo.

  "I think so too," said Mr. George.

  * * * * *

  As our travellers walked slowly along after this, their attention wascontinually attracted to one object of interest after another, each ofwhich, after leading to a brief conversation between them, gave way tothe next. The talk was accordingly somewhat on this wise:--

  "O uncle George!" said Rollo; "look at that monstrous pile of buckhorns!"

  "Yes," said Mr. George; "it is a monstrous pile indeed. They must be forknife handles."

  "What a quantity of them!" said Rollo. "I should think that there wouldbe knife handles enough in the pile for all creation. Where can they getso many horns?"

  "I am sure I don't know," said Mr. George.

  So they walked on.

  Presently they came to an immense heap of bags of coffee. They knew thatthe bags contained coffee by the kernels that were spread about them allover the ground. Then they passed by long rows of barrels, which seemedto be filled with sugar. Mr. George walked by the side of the barrels,but Rollo jumped up and ran along on the top of them. Then came casks oftobacco, and next bars of iron and steel, and then some monstrous squarelogs of mahogany.

  Mr. George and Rollo walked on in this manner for a quarter of a mile,and at length they came to one of the drawbridges. This drawbridge ledover a passage way which formed a communication from one basin of thedock to another. It was a very long and slender bridge of iron, made toturn on a pivot at one end. There was some machinery connected with itto work it.

  "I wish they would come and turn this drawbridge away," said Rollo. "Iwant to see how it works."

  "Perhaps they will after dinner," said Mr. George.

  "Let us sit down, then, here somewhere," said Rollo, "and wait."

  So Mr. George and Rollo, after crossing the drawbridge, sat down uponsome of the fixtures connected with the machinery of the bridge.

  From the place where they sat they had a good view of the whole interiorof the dock. They could see the shipping, the warehouses, the forests ofmasts, the piles of merchandise, and the innumerable flags and signalswhich were flying at the mast heads of the vessels.

  "It is a wonderful place," said Rollo; "but I don't understand how theydo the business here. Whom do all these goods belong to? and how do theysell them? We have not seen any body here that looks as if he was buyingany thing."

  "No," said Mr. George. "The merchants don't come here to buy the goods.They buy them by samples in the city. I will explain to you how theymanage the business. The merchants who own ships send them to variousparts of the world to buy what grows in the different countries andbring it here. We will take a particular case. Suppose it is coffee, forinstance. The merchant never sees the coffee himself, perhaps. Thecaptain or the supercargo reports to him how much there is, and heorders it to be stored in the warehouses here. Then he puts it into thehands of an agent to sell. His agent is called a broker. There areinspectors in the docks, whose business it is to examine the coffee andsend specimens of it to the broker's office in the city. It is the samewith all the other shiploads that come in. They are examined byinspectors, specimens are taken out and sent to the city, and the goodsthemselves are stored in the warehouses.

  "Now, we will suppose a person wishes to buy some of these goods to makeup a cargo. Perhaps it is a man who is going to send a ship to Africaafter elephants' tusks, and he wants a great variety of goods to sendthere to pay the natives for them. He wants them in large quantities,too, enough to make a cargo. So he makes out a list of the articles thathe wishes to send, and marks the quantities of each that he willrequire, and gives the list to the agent. This agent is a man who iswell acquainted with the docks and the brokers, and knows where theykeep the specimens. He buys the articles and sends them all on board theship that is going to Africa, which is perhaps all this time lying closeat hand in the docks, ready to receive them. As fast as the goods aredelivered on board the African ship, the captain of it gives the agent areceipt for them, and the latter, when he has got all the receipts,sends them to the merchant; and so the merchant knows that the goods areall on board, without ever having seen any of them."

  "And then he pays the agent, I suppose, for his trouble," said Rollo.

  "Of course," said Mr. George; "but this is better than for him toattempt to do the business himself; for the agent is so familiar withthe docks, and with every thing pertaining to them, that he can do it agreat deal better than the merchant could, in half the time."

  "Yes," said Rollo, "I should think he could."

  "Then it makes the business very easy and pleasant for the merchant, Isuppose," said Mr. George. "All that he requires is a small office and afew clerks. He sits down at his desk and considers where he will sendhis ship, when he has one ready for sea, and what cargo he will send inher; and then there is nothing for him to do about it but to make out aninventory of the articles and send it to the agent at the docks, and thebusiness is all done very regularly for him.

  "Only," continued Mr. George, "it is very necessary that he should knowhow to plan his voyages so as to make them come out well, with a goodprofit at the end, otherwise he will soon go to ruin."

  Mr. George and Rollo sat near the drawbridge talking in this manner forabout half an hour. Then the men began to return from their dinner; andvery soon afterwards the quays, and slips, and warehouses were all aliveagain with business and bustle. They then rose and began rambling abouthere and there, to watch the various operations that were going on. Theysaw during this ramble a great many curious and wonderful things, toonumerous to be specified here. They remained in the docks for more thantwo hours, and then went home by one of the little steamers on theriver.

  CHAPTER XVI.

  THE TOWER AND THE TUNNEL.

  The famous Tunnel under the Thames, and the still more famous Tower ofLondon, are very near together, and strangers usually visit both on oneand the same excursion.

  The Tower, as has already been explained, was originally a sort offortress, or castle, b
uilt on the bank of the river, below the city, todefend it from any enemy that might attempt to come up to it by shipsfrom the sea. The space enclosed by the walls was very large; and as inmodern times many new buildings and ranges of buildings have beenerected within, with streets and courts between them, the place has nowthe appearance of being a little town enclosed by walls, and surroundedby a ditch with bridges, and standing in the midst of a _large_ town.

  Rollo and Mr. George passed over the ditch that surrounded the Tower bymeans of a drawbridge. Before they entered the gateway, however, theywere conducted to a small building which stood near it, where theyobtained a ticket to view the Tower, and where, also, they were requiredto leave their umbrella. This room was a sort of refreshment room; andas they were told that they must wait here a few minutes till a partywas formed, they occupied the time by taking a luncheon. Their luncheonconsisted of a ham and veal pie, and a good drink for each of gingerbeer.

  At length, several other people having come in, a portly-looking man,dressed in a very gay uniform, and wearing on his head a black velvethat adorned with a sort of wreath made of blue and white ribbons, tookthem in charge to lead them about the Tower.

  This man belonged to a body that is called the Yeomen of the Guard. Thedress which he wore was their uniform. He wore various badges anddecorations besides his uniform. One of them was a medal that was givento him in honor of his having been a soldier at the battle of Waterloo.

  Under the charge of this guide, the party, which consisted now of eightor ten persons, began to make the tour. They passed through variouslittle courts and streets, which were sometimes bordered by ranges ofbuildings, and sometimes by castellated walls, with sentinels on duty,marching slowly back and forth along the parapet.

  At length their gay-looking guide led the party through a door whichopened into a very long and narrow hall, on one side of which there wasarranged a row of effigies of horses, splendidly caparisoned, andmounted with the figures of the kings of England upon them in polishedarmor of steel. The gay trappings of the horses, and the glitteringsplendor of the breast-plates, and greaves, and helmets, and swords ofthe men, gave to the whole spectacle a very splendid effect. The guidewalked along slowly in front of this row of effigies, informing theparty as he went along of the names of the various monarchs who wererepresented, and describing the kind of armor which they severally wore.

  The armor, of course, varied very much in its character and fashion,according to the age in which the monarch who wore it lived; and it wasvery interesting, in walking down the hall, to see how military fashionshad changed from century to century, as shown by the successive changesin the accoutrements which were observed in passing along the line ofkings.

  There were many suits of armor that were quite small, having been madefor the English princes when they were boys. Rollo amused himself byimagining how he should look in one of these suits of armor, and hewished very much that he could have an opportunity of trying them on. Inone place there was a battery of nine beautiful little cannons made ofbrass, each about two feet long, and just about large enough in caliberfor a boy to fire. These cannons, which were all beautifully ornamentedwith bas reliefs on the outside, and were mounted on splendid littlecarriages, were presented to Charles II. when he was a boy; and Isuppose that he and his playmates often fired them. There were a greatmany other strange and curious implements of war that have now gonewholly out of fashion. There were all kinds of matchlocks, and guns, andpistols, of the most uncouth and curious shapes; and shot of everykind--chain shot, and grape shot, and saw shot; and there were bows andarrows, and swords and halberds, and spears and cutlasses, and everyother kind of weapon. These arms were arranged on the walls inmagnificent great stars, or were stacked up in various ornamental formsabout pillars or under arches; and they were so numerous that Rollocould not stop to look at half of them.

  After this the yeoman of the guard led his party to a great many othercurious places. He showed them the room where the crowns and sceptres ofthe English kings and queens, and all the great diamonds and jewels ofstate, were kept. These treasures were placed on a stand in an immenseiron cage, so that people assembled in the room around the cage couldlook in and see the things, but they could not reach them to touch them.

  They were also taken to see various prison rooms and dungeons wherestate prisoners were kept; and also blocks and axes, the implements bywhich several great prisoners celebrated in history had been beheaded.They saw in particular the block and the axe which were used at theexecution of Anne Boleyn and of Lady Jane Grey; and all the party lookedvery earnestly at the marks which the edge of the axe had made in thewood when the blows were given.

  The party walked about in the various buildings, and courts, and streetsof the Tower for nearly two hours; and then, bidding the yeoman good by,they all went away.

  "Now," said Rollo, as soon as they had got out of the gate, "which isthe way to the Tunnel?"

  The Tunnel is a subterranean passage under the Thames, made at a placewhere it was impossible to have a bridge, on account of the shipping.They expected, when they made the Tunnel, that it would be used a greatdeal by persons wishing to cross the river. But it is found, on trial,that almost every body who wishes to go across the river at that placeprefers to go in a boat rather than go down into the Tunnel. The reasonis, that the Tunnel is so far below the bed of the river that you haveto go down a long series of flights of stairs before you get to theentrance to it; and then, after going across, you have to come up justas many stairs before you get into the street again. This is found to beso troublesome and fatiguing that almost every one who has occasion togo across the river prefers to cross it by a ferry boat on the surfaceof the water; and scarcely any one goes into the Tunnel except those whowish to visit it out of curiosity.

  The stairs that lead down to the passage under the river wind around thesides of an immense well, or shaft, made at the entrance of it. When Mr.George and Rollo reached the bottom of these stairs they heard loudsounds of music, and saw a brilliant light at the entrance to theTunnel. On going in, they saw that the Tunnel itself was double, as itconsisted of two vaulted passage ways, with a row of piers and archesbetween them. One of these passage ways was closed up; the other wasopen, and was lighted brilliantly with gas all the way through. But whatmost attracted Rollo's attention was, that the spaces between the piersall along the Tunnel were occupied with little shops, each one having aman, a woman, or a child to attend it. As Mr. George and Rollo walkedalong, those people all asked them to stop and buy something at theirshops. There were pictures of all kinds, and little boxes, and views ofthe Tunnel, with magnifying glasses to make them look real, and needlecases, and work boxes, and knickknacks of all kinds for people to buyand carry home as souvenirs, or to show to their friends and say thatthey bought them in the Tunnel.

  SHOPPING IN THE TUNNEL.]

  Besides these things that were for sale, there were various objects ofinterest and curiosity, such as electric machines where people mighttake shocks, and scales where they might be weighed, and refreshmentrooms that were formed in the passage way that was not used for travel;and in one place there was a little ball room arranged there, where aparty might, if they chose, stop and have a dance.

  Rollo and Mr. George walked through the Tunnel, and then came backagain. As they came back, Rollo stopped at one of the shops and bought apretty little round box, which he said would do for a wafer box, andwould also serve as a souvenir of his visit to the place.

  Mr. George and Rollo concluded, after ascending again to the light ofday, that they would go home by water; so they went out to the end of along floating pier, which was built, as it happened, exactly oppositethe entrance to the Tunnel. They sat down on a bench by a little tollhouse there, to wait for a steamer going up the river.

  "It must have been just about under here," said Rollo, "that I bought mylittle wafer box in the Tunnel."

  "Yes," said Mr. George; "just about."

  In a few minutes a steamer
came along and took them in. She immediatelyset off again; and, after passing under all the London bridges andstopping on the way at various landings, she set them down at Hungerfordstairs, and they went to their lodgings.

  * * * * *

  Mr. George and Rollo had various other adventures in London which thereis not space to describe in this volume. Rollo did not, however, havetime to visit all the places that he wished to see; for, before he hadexecuted half the plans which he and his uncle George had projected, hereceived a sudden summons to set out, with his father, and mother, andJennie, for Edinburgh.