THE CONTRIBUTOR.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1746, 23 August 1905, Page 29

THE CONTRIBUTOR.

ON THE TRAMP IN LONDON

(By STANLEY BOWMAE.) (Specially •written, for the “N.Z. - Mail:”) As I sit down to write these random notes, I can hardly realise that I have been seven weeks in this great city. n an average X have “put in'* far than the regulation eight-hour day sigi seeing. But it would take the most energetic a year to acquire anything nne a fair knowledge of the city and its surroundings; even then ones knowledge would be superficial. To secure a grip” of London life would require a lifetime of thought and study. The magnitude of the place cannot he realised at once; it dawns on one gradually: The first day or two one strolls between the Bank and Trafalgar square, with an odd excursion, perhaps, along Holborn. He does not realise that all round him few* miles there is a labyrinth of streets, the monotony of which is broken her© and there by a square or of the first things that strikes the colonial visitor here, is the number of parks and open spaces can boast. If it is a city of slums, it is also a city of parks. From whatever point you start, there is generally a Bquare or a park within reasonable distance, and at this season of the year the trees and .shrubs are at their very best. What could be more beautiful than Hampton Court, or Kew Gardens; or nearer to the centre of the city, Hyde park, where, as you sit feasting your eyes on the light green foliage of the elms, you' hear the constant hum of street traffic? The entire life of the metropolis is interesting, but to me no part of it inore so than the life of the East End, the centre of the poor class. It is infinitely interesting to stroll through the streets, where the vehicular traffic is not heavy between six and nine in the evening, watching the d’rty, • 6tunted children playing in the streets. Round the street musician with his fiddle or screeching barrel-organ you will often see a ring of children dancing—quite happy, for the moment, at any rate. To many of these children the street musician is the one supreme source of amusement.

Some of the Eiast Londoners appear to take a lively interest in politics. Several meetings I attended were crowded. It was at Stepney that I heard Mr Sydney Buxton, M.P., the distinguished writer on political questions, speak. He is one of Mr Chamberlain’s strongest and it was clear that his audience was with him to a man. The Chairman of this meeting stated that the dock labourers, even if they found fairly steady employment, earned on an average less than 12s a week, and out of this they had to provide for their wives and families. To get anything like an adequate idea of the life of the inhabitants of this part of London it is quite useless to drive down the principal streets on the top of a ’bus or car. as most visitors do. The majority of Londoners seem to think that it is quite dangerous for a stranger to frequent these parts, unless accompanied by several members' of the Scotland Yard force. Personally I was never interfered with, nor did any one seem to pay any special attention to my presence, with the exception of one old lady, to whom I happened to remark that her dog, a small mongrel tied in the yard, waj apparently a good guardian. ‘Yes,” she replied, with threatening gesticulation, “I can assure you he is a good watch dog.” From her manner, I took it that she thought it quite necessary to impress the fact upon' me.

When visiting these parts it is not necessary to go arrayed in a dress suit, top hat, and gloves. "Togged up” in a soft shirt and a coat tliat has not recovered from the dust of the last Wellington nor’-wester, no one notices you. If-'you see a couple ahead of you “enjoying” a little physical drill of a rather boisterous description—well, dodge round the nearest corner. Distance lends enchantment, even to a fight. From the slum districts, with their pathos and humour, it is a far cry to the artificiality of “Club hand” and to the promenades of fashion, such as Regent and Bond streets; it is from the Unconventional to the height of convention. Still, all these and many other fashionable and historical spots are well worth a visit. And above everything the Art Galleries should not be missed, especially Tait’s and the Wallace Collection. To do anything like justice to any one of these galleries would occupy a volume. Visit® to such places as the Tower, Windsor Palace, the Houses of Parliament, and Hampton Court do much to revive one’s rusty history. The one valid objection to a visit to Covent Garden Market is that it entails,. if-one is to see it at its best, turning .out at 4 in the morning. After 7 o’clock the greater part of the produce has been taken away. Hast Saturday, when I was there, the market was in Tull swing at 4.15. Besides the enormous stores in the market itself there were

in the adjacent streets more than a hundred heavily la(ien waggons carts, the vegetables being roped on just as we in New Zealand rope on a load of straw. i saw sufficient mint to make mint sauce for the whole of Europe for a year. The flower market, which occupies part of the building, resembles a huge flower show. In many of the stalls the flowers were arranged according to their harmony of colour with beautiful effect. The rarest of rare plants and blossoms from every part of the United Kingdom and many parts of Europe find a place here. Some French on a label led to an inquiry as to France’s contribution to the market, and I was informed that Paris sends over a daily supply. What the Covent Garden Market is to the fruiterer and florist and greengrocer, the Smithfield Market is to the London butcher. Some years ago Smithfield was a cattle market as well as a meat depot but the space becoming inadequate the cattle market was removed to Islington, and in 1868 the present building was erected. It is a palatial structure of the Renaissance style, with four towers at the corners. It iis 630 ft long, 245 ft broad, and 30ft high, and covers an area of 3,1 acres. Like the Covent Garden Market it is divided and sub-divided into shops, which sell either retail or wholesale. Below the building is an extensive railway depot (connected with the principal underground railways) and a cold storage depot. When it is stated that through this market goes the bulk of the meat consumed daily in London, some idea can be gained of the amount of _ the business transacted. The Argentine’s shops were conspicuous, and I noticed, also, several that dealt in New Zealand mutton and rabbits. The consumption of frozen meat increases in the hot weather on account of the difficulty of keeping other meat"fresh. The Islington Live Stock Market is said to be the largest and best .n the world, and any one who has seen it is not inclined to doubt that claim. All told, the market covers 30 acres, and every inch is paved with stone. In the centre of the cattle, sheep, and pig yards, there is a beautiful clock tower, Italian in character, round the base of which cluster the banking houses, the post and. telegraph, and other public offices. The shelter sheds, which stand to the right, have accommodation fox--2500 cattle; last Cliristmas .when the entry was extra large, there were 3200 m the sheds for one night, but, as an official pointed out, this meant overcrowding. The killing sheds are close by. Unfortunately this magnificent market is now carried on at a loss of nearly £SOOO a year. When it> was opened, alLrlive stock from the Continent, well as the home-gra*vn, came to it; but as the law now stands, all imported live stock must be slaughtered at the port of arrival, which deprives the Islington market- of more -than half its former business. The principal sale days for cattle, sheep, and pigs are Mondays and Thursdays, and for horses and Fridays. The average number of cattle that change hands each sale day is 1000. Pat bullocks the day I was there were realising from £l6 to £26 a head; fat lambs, such as would in New Zealand pass for freezers, 355. Like the majority of draught- horses here, those offered at the Islington sales are only medium. By-the-way, there is no soft turf track to run the horses on—just the hard, stone-paved yards, which would scarcely suit. the “puffed” high .steppers that some of the New Zealand horse-dealers delight to palm off as perfectly “sound.” One never sees an auctioneer at the London markets. At Smithfield, Islington, and Co vent Garden everything is sold privately. Islington, too, is a cash market ; the owner stands by his stock on the qui vive for a likely customer, who, when found, is required to pay cash.-

“Cheap Jacks” are the same the world over! Along the Strand a young fellow and myself noticed a gentleman (I must call him a “gentleman,” for he had a top hat and a dress suit) selling by auction some jew'ellery at what he declared. and what appeared to be ridiculously low prices. We stepped into the room. Presently some watches which he represented to be “9-caiat. the best wearing carat of all,” with some backward, up-side-down sort o? movement, were offered. Six or seven were sold in as many minutes at 30s a piece. The last two had each been “the last one I have, gentlemen,” but somehow the auctioneer’s Clerk kept finding more. "When the ninth one was put up, my friend, who w r as wanting a time-piece, determined to bid up to 31s. The watch was liis. This wast about 10 .o’clock. At lunch time it was going alright, but apparently required regulating slightly, for if had lost 25 minutes. At 2 o’clock I noticed the owner was shaking it a good deal, and at last he admitted it was stopped. An inspiration, born of disgust, suddenly came to him he would pawn it for £2. “it must be worth that to melt down.” No one knew us so we set out to find that friend of humanity, the pawnbroker. The first two 'approached declined to allow even a pound for the watch; and the third — well, he started off at a. tangent by hinting that there was a great danger in dealing in jewellery or any article that may have been stolen in the first place.

Whether he was suspicious of us or the auctioneer was nob quite clear. Eventually, however, a bargain was effected with him—but at a figure that made me feel thankful I was not a partner in the watch transaction. Perhaps Dr Torrey who has opened his mission near this veracious dealer’s premises may be able to bring him to repentance by some of the doctor’s characteristic talk of the nether world.