furnished forth a decent funeral, and would have erected a monument to his memory in the church of St. Giles-in-the-Fields, where he was interred; but the rector, blinded by the dust of royalty to the merits of the man, refused the necessary permission. Marvel's name is remembered, though the rector's has been long forgotten.*

Wood tells us, that Marvel was in his conversation very modest, and of few words; and Cooke, the writer of his life, observes that he was very reserved among those whom he did not know, but a most delightful and improving companion among his friends. John Aubrey, who knew him personally, thus describes him: He was of a middling stature, pretty strong set, roundish cherry-cheeked, hazel-eyed, brown-haired.' He was (as Wood also says) in conversation very modest, and of a very few words. He was wont to say, that he would not drink high or freely with any one with whom he would not trust his life.

Marvel lived among friends at Highgate; exactly opposite to his door was the residence of General Ireton and his wife Bridget, the eldest daughter of Oliver Cromwell; and which house still bears his name, and is described in Prickett's History of Highgate,' one of those local topographical works which deserve encouragement :- Cromwell House is supposed to have been built by the Protector whose name it bears, about the year 1630, as a residence for General Ireton, who married his daughter and was one of the commanders of his army; it is, however, said to have been the residence of Oliver Cromwell himself, but no mention is made, either in history or in his biography, of his having ever lived at Highgate. Tradition states, there was a subterraneous passage from this house to the mansion house which stood where the New Church now stands, but of its reality no proof has hitherto been adduced. Cromwell House was evidently built and internally ornamented in accordance with the taste of its military occupant. The staircase, which is of handsome proportions, is richly decorated with oaken carved figures supposed to have been of persons in the general's army, in their costume; and the balustrades filled in with devices emblematical of warfare. On the ceilings of

* On the death of this Rector, however, the monument and inscription was placed on the north wall of the church, near the spot where he is supposed to lie.

the drawing-room are the arms of General Ireton; this and the ceilings of the other principal apartments are enriched in conformity with the fashion of those days. The proportion of the noble rooms, as well as the brick-work in front, well deserve the notice and study of the antiquarian and the architect. From the platform on the top of the mansion may be seen a perfect panorama of the surrounding country.'

The staircase above described is here engraved. It is a remarkably striking and elegant specimen of internal decoration, of broad and noble proportion, and of a solid and grand construction suitable to the time of its erection; the wood-work of

the house is everywhere equally bold and massive; the door-cases of simple

but good design. There are some ceil

Staircase

ings in the first story which are in rich plaster work, ornamented with the arms of Ireton; and mouldings of fruit and flowers, of a sumptuous and bold enrichment. The house altogether has that pleasant and instructive air of antiquity, which, combining comfort with convenience, gives a peculiar character to houses of the olden time in England; they exhibit a happy mingling of confidence with domestic tranquillity.

The series of figures which stand upon the newels of the staircase are all engraved on the succeeding page. There are ten remaining out of twelve,

the original number; the missing two are said to have been figures of Cromwell and Ireton, destroyed at the Restoration. They stand about a

foot in height, and represent the different soldiers of the army, from the fifer and drummer to the captain, and originally, to the commanders. They

are curious for more reasons than one; their locality, their truthfulness, their history, and the picture they help us to realise of the army of Cromwell are all so many claims on our attention.

THE TOMB OF JOHN STOW.

ARE OLD LONDON! We pass with a gaze of chilled astonishment along the interminable lines of neatly reddened or stuccoed houses which, like the web of the spider, cross, and fret, and disturb at every step. Truly, those who dwell in modern tenements must put great trust in Providence, for they can have none in brick and mortar. Such things! Puff! We fancy we could blow them down; they will never live long enough to tell a story; they grow green, not grey, with age; and when in a humour for substantials,' it is indeed a pleasure to get away from them into the city, where the dwellings of old times were built to endure, and where enduring memories hang around them. Of all the time-honoured names associated with the antiquities of London there is none in which we so much delight as that of JOHN STOW; we feel grateful for the hours passed with so much profit and pleasure in his society, in traversing with him the lanes, and streets, and alleys-visiting the old churches (least changed of all) and contemplating the beauty of the monuments contained therein. Much as we owe him for the storehouse of antiquarian riches he bequeathed to such as desire to learn from the past what may be expected from the future, we

owe still more to the earnest and honest example of the simple and singleminded old pilgrim, who was entirely devoid of all love of display, without ostentation, without an aim to achieve aught but TRUTH-which, next to his GOD, he worshipped; humble-minded as to himself, and desirous of means, not for the indulgence of luxury, but that he might finish what he had begun, in the fear of God, and to the glory of the city of London.

*

The days we have spent in turning over his interesting survey of his favourite City and Westminster, until the shades of evening reminded us that we had been, with what might be called (despite its present living multitudes), a city of the dead! None of those senseless ones who sneered at his occupation are abroad now, nor of those, near to him in blood, but far

:

* The general aspect of the City of London from the bridge eastward to the Tower, may be seen in the annexed engraving, as it appeared in the year 1589. The principal feature is Old London Bridge, the only roadway at this time over the Thames between London and Southwark. This bridge was the especial glory of Londoners; and all the older writers speak of it in the most rapturous terms. In the edition of Abraham Ortelius's Epitome of the Theatre of the Worlde, published in London by James Shaw in 1603, its praises conclude the sum total of Great Britain's glories, when speaking of the 'Ancient and flourishing famous cittie of London, which, as wel for beautie, riches, and trade, is not inferior, but equal with the beste citties of Europe. The river of Thames is beautefied with statelye pallaces built on the side thereof, moreover a sumptuous bridge, sustayned upon nineteen arches with excellent and beauteous housen built thereon.' Times have indeed changed since this was written; when the nineteen arches were gloried in, which formed the strongest argument in our own time for its demolition. The fortified gate seen on the Southwark side of the bridge, was known as the Traitor's Gate; and above it were exhibited the heads of those who had suffered for treason the reader will perceive several stuck upon poles above the eastern tower. Here it was that the head of Sir Thomas More was placed; and afterwards when about to be cast into the Thames, was purchased by his daughter Margaret Roper and piously buried in a leaden case in the family vault in St. Dunstan's Church, Canterbury, where it still reposes. This entrance to London was defended by a portcullis and a draw-bridge beyond. The stack of houses beyond that formed a second Southwark gate and tower, which was finished in 1579, and it consisted of four circular turrrets, connected by curtains and surmounted by battlements, containing a great number of transom casements; beneath was a broad covered passage, the building projecting considerably over each side of the bridge. It was a noble and ornamental structure, but the most splendid and curious building which adorned London Bridge at this time, was the famous Nonesuch House, so called because it was constructed in Holland, entirely of wood, and being brought over in pieces, was erected in this place with wooden pegs only, not a single nail being used in the whole fabric. It is the next building seen in our view with central and side towers, and was most elaborately carved and painted. For further information on this structure, we must refer the reader to Mr. Thomson's learned and curious volume, The Chronicles of London Bridge.