NEW ERA IN THE CITY OF LONDON.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 198, 15 May 1908, Page 8

NEW ERA IN THE CITY OF LONDON.

114 DIMINUTIVE PARISHES MADE INTO ONE. -• RICHEST, SQUARE MILE 'IN. THE ■ " ' WORLD, . On April 1 came into operation the Act which makes the City of' London for rating and other public purposes one' parish', s Hitherto; within the' square mile which js ruled. by the Lord Mayor and Corporation, there have been as: many as 114' parishes. Each had a staff of'its own for rate collection and so- forth. Altogether the .officials occupied in such matters 'within tho square mile numbered 250. -Under'the new arrangement thero Will- bo 21; ' and - the work, being ccntralised; is eipcctcd to,-, be' bettor- donel' . Oiio of tho. parishes—All-Hallows, Bread Street—has- a' population 'of . only ; .15, and the population, of a large proportion: of the 114 is be10w.50./--Manyvof the parishes bear quaint. names', such, as:—/• St.. Alnhage.: ■: . St. Katharine Crce.- ,:'- St, 'Andrew .Hub- St. Margaret' Moses, >. bard. • ■ St, Margaret Pattens. St. Andrew ' Under- St. Martin Outwich. shaft. St. Martin Orgar. . St. Andrew by the St. Martin Pomeroy., Wardrobe.. l • . St.-Martih. Vintrj'.; St. Benet Sherohog. .St., Mary ,'Bothaw. St. ; Christopher-ie- St. Michael: Ic-Quernc. Stacks. . St. Nicholas Aeons. . > St. Dionis •• Back- St; Nicholas Cole Abchurcli. ■ -bejV •. . St. Edmund the King St. ; , - and-Ma/rtry.". .St.,-Thomas, Apostle; ' PLETHORA' OF: CHURCHES.', ....v v the . extent of many of I 'the parishes is 1 ,;, naturally;" exceedingly, small, .the clerical '- incomes in;; many ' cases-'are' large. St': ■ .Helen,.:. Bisliopsgato, • ,with.\ St. : Martin Outwich, :.comprises i. only, 'one.', boundaries, but the gross -income ' of tho, church is £1145,:/.Other,, tiny, parishes,.- witli their 'cliu'reh; incomes, "arc• V-/ - - ' /■Patish.: . Acres. • Income. - , St.-; Anno -find. .St. , Agnes .. ." \ with- St.- John Za'chary. 3 - 'X5lO (net).' St.'Edniund tho ;Kihgwith- ■ • , ,St,-NicKolas/Acphs I ;.;,: 3J ;...' j81350 (gross).', St. Ifary.. Woolnqth 1 -with " St.' 1 Mary. ':Woblch'urch: S', : ..'.- ' J3IIQO .(gross).: St.'-Mildred,- Bread Street' ,'2 '.£278 ''(net).■ - St. ■ Pete.r-'on-Cqrnhill • * 2J.'X-SOO-.(gross). ■; How there' came to -be so, large a number of parishbs: in so,-small,an area no one quito knows., Probably , the : only, place where there are so.' many churches'. to the square mile .'is Norwich.; At present not-nearly; all of tho old churches exist. A' good many w;ore not: rebuilt after the Great,; Fire: Some have been demolished/within-., bur own. tinie.Biit' the ' system.'; of;; rating _ which j grew"' out of . the ' .ecclesiastical' division-.-.- arrangement remained inforce,./until April I,' .irhes ,it finally .disappeared!" '"// """ "/ '/ -■ . The;City,-is always averse from- changes, and' it. is .das/ t6;understand : why; /No. other.' square., njilq: of - • land jin .'the-whole world has' 1 ha]d ,-a, groator./infliience; .upon ( history; .not: ovenc "the: ■ 6bven •-' hills' • r upon -~ which.,; Eoinp; stands;' The Raman' Empire 'conld- have been put. inside th'e'.BritishiEmpifo"arid .one: would have', hid •to for. it,v.;Even; the power/of ;.the/'greatest:_ of. the, '.Papacy was ,;not • much.. ; 'suppiJior,'tp' that" of/the haght'.o'f London's'', power.'

. . '.HISTORY ix NAiiES.

Bviory. historical; memory.; Hound's'dit-eti: was -tho trtoat •. outsidothe" City. .wall., into. wliiclv rubbish could be tlirown'. Liidga'te and Aldeate' and'all the other,. 1 ' gates,"-'remind .us. wnero ihei;~ii'air had ; openings. '-;J3lackfriars' and Gfroy Friars arc- called after tW Dominican and Franciscan fathers;: whd' once. had. jiowFriars -was/thei' home: of 'ecclesiastical body. : from the; i' Wmhard''" monojyenHerso''wfro ' ;setitled there after the - 'exnulsiori ■of the Jewa ill 1291,- ' r : •As one' walks through the- City',now teeing ing' with- top-hatted: men . of ; business, "'oho can imagine it/first-in the timo of the Ro-. man occupation)' the.. Britons "creeping along' to_ayoid tho overbearing legionaries in' their' plumed - helmets and' shining; breast-plates. Next;..it-: t becomes.,the bone of ' contention between' Saxons siid Danes. It is, a metropolis' even then,-and"" an emporium,, of many' people's who- cbmo ,to' it "by; sea .and .land.'/ (the' Venerable . Bede). -Finally, Alfred .the Groat,, drives the Danes off .and rebuilds .London's walls.. ... y •

Ever,' since, the : time of William tile Con-, queror it]his. been' the' capital' of'.England.' The Normans 'it'. was! ivho really made' it, ;or rather .gave .it an'opportunity which it : was quick : to make use' of: VEorf -nearly - nine centuries London has been a great • city-77 one,, of. the' greatest; cities 'of tho' earth, arid for 600 years'; of. .that .time, wheti' men' spoke of London, they-meant what we. call th«j City, the snuaro mile, of land ..which, is-; the richest and .perhaps -still ■ the most powerful in'the. world. . . RESORT OF FASHION: / ,: It -was only; after, the, Restoration, that rthe Oity, began, to be giveri over to trade, commerce, and financb. Up .to that time.most of : tho great families; had had- their hoijsijs there: ''But when they'■ returned' % froin ' exile with' the King they did-not carb to go.back. They set; un, instead, .in the- West End. ' .. Now ; the resident; population is very'small indeed.Aftfer nightfall it is like''a' city of . the • cMad;'-; Footsteps' ring- hollow' ii) the'; def sorted .streets. . All .-tho'. : .offices that -are. so busy; in, tlio- day ; iime' aro^shjittered. and still.'.. , lt:is' ; merely;iv; place In.t,which business, is done." ■ r , . , •■And. what. .a'irvoliimo 'of 'business, it is! Heje-"-the!-:wb?ld?s.' finance is';- 'regulated . and the world's^.supplies'; controlled;. . ;. ..The',. income ofr'Hhe" City ..'Companies - lias been' calculated, at'; £<550,000.. a' ; year. ; The Corporation, is .'rich; enough .to; givo its, chief - magistrate ,>a ■; sala,ry;, of . : £iO,C.OO. .;, For., past interest van'd, present;-"wealth,'the,-, City,;'of-Londpn'-has nopcer.; ,-tv