lodging-houses, in which every room is let out to any and all comers, under a system full of mischief both to mind and body. And when, as sometimes happens, temporary causes lead to an influx of poor Irish to a greater extent than usual, the results are quite deplorable, for each court and cellar became the centre of an atmosphere of fever and misery. We have before said, that, when Liverpool gives herself a task to accomplish, she enters on it with a gigantic spirit. Here we have a call for the best that the energies of her merchants can accomplish. And it is only just to say that very enlarged schemes of social improvement are now in course of development, bearing more or less on the well-being of the humbler classes. Eight years have elapsed since the gloomy disclosures respecting the cellar and court population were made; and they have not been years of idleness. Building Acts, Drainage Acts, Water Companies, Gas Companies, Public Parks-all point to various phases of sanatory improvements. Not fewer than a dozen Acts of Parliament were obtained by the Corporation between the years 1842 and 1846, all bearing upon this matter. The most important of these was obtained immediately after the condition of the courts and cellars first became publicly known; giving power to the Corporate surveyors to exercise such a supervision over the construction and condition of the poorer class of houses, as must necessarily by degrees lessen the deplorable scenes that formerly occurred. When, therefore, we speak of these sad social disarrangements, we do so as of things that have been, rather than as existent usages. Let us now proceed on our walk through the busy town. The schools, of the usual varieties and grades, are very numerous. The Corporation, National, and Infant-Schools; the Church of England, the Kirk of Scotland, the Roman Catholic, the Unitarian, and the Quaker schools; the Sunday-schools, of which one is attached to almost every place of worship-all amount to a considerable number. Besides these, there are the "dame-schools," a class which society is frowning out of countenance, and the former existence of which will one day be a matter of astonishment to us. There are only a few of the Liverpool schools that present attractions for the eye. The oldest place of the kind in Liverpool is the Blue-coat School, which was founded in 1709, and which has now occupied one building for a period of a hundred and twenty years. It is a plain building, of red brick, situated a little eastward of the Revenue-buildings; and if its exterior is unadorned, its interior is at least commodious, for it affords entire support to three or four hundred children. Among the new buildings which the Corporation have undertaken to construct, and of which many were enumerated in a former page, schools of various kinds bear a notable part; and we may expect to see, year by year, new evidences of the awakened spirit of society in this matter. THE CHARITABLE AND CURATIVE INSTITUTIONS. Some of the buildings of Liverpool, devoted to charitable or correctional or curative purposes, are fine structures. Far to the east of the central part of the town, and not far from the Zoological Gardens, is the West Derby Union Workhouse, West Derby being one of the county divisions of this part of Lancashire. It is a large structure, and very conspicuous as seen by a person leaving Liverpool by the Islington and Brunswick roads. Situated rather nearer to the busy haunts of the town, south-east of the railway-station, is the Liverpool Workhouse, which has, we believe, the reputation of being the largest establishment of the kind in the kingdom. It is a brick structure, having a central compartment and two wings, and a large range of apartments occupied by inmates engaged in various industrial avocations. 66 are The Blind School, situated in London-road, was founded as an institution above sixty years ago; but the building itself dates from 1800. It is a plain, stone-fronted, substantial structure, comprising salerooms, refectories, dormitories, workshops, &c. "The pupils," we are informed in a local Guide Book, principally taught spinning and basket-making; the weaving of rugs; the manufacturing of thread, fishlines, and many other handicraft arts. They are also instructed in music, to qualify them for organists, and are familiarized with a new method of teaching music to others; and such has been the proficiency to which they have attained, that a considerable number have been pronounced competent to that office. Religious and moral tuition is sedulously afforded to them; and every domestic comfort is provided for, in the excellent arrangements of the institution. It is true that each blind one might say—— 'Seasons return, but not to me returns Day, or the sweet approach of eve or morn, but Providence seems kindly to have compensated them for the loss of one sense, by increased activity and power of those remaining; for a more happy, merry, chattering crew can scarcely be seen than this blind family of the Liverpool Asylum." The Deaf and Dumb School, situated in the northeast part of the town, is a neat modern building, fitted for the reception of a much smaller number of inmates than the Blind School. This spot is a very centre for charitable institutions. If we place ourselves in the street called Mount Pleasant, and look around us, we shall find, within a furlong's distance, a greater number of such institutions than is to be met with, perhaps, in an equal space in any other town. Some of those already noticed are within this small circle. Among others is the House of Recovery, a large, plain, stone structure, built in 1806, for the reception of poor persons afflicted with contagious disorders. Another is the Lunatic Asylum, a fine stone structure, erected, a few years ago, from the designs of Mr. Foster, whose name is connected with the architecture of Liverpool as much as Roscoe is with its literary reputation. Another is the Infirmary, one of the best buildings in Liverpool; it is built of stone, and on a large scale. There is a central projection, comprising a hexastyle Ionic portico; and two wings fall back beyond the level of this centre. The interior arrangements comprise everything which can conduce to the comfort and recovery of nearly two hundred and fifty patients. Another institution, still nearer the same spot, is the Charitable Institution House, built at the expense of three Liverpool merchants, for the free use of the various charitable societies, for the holding of their meetings. Besides all these there is a Fever Hospital; one or two other hospitals; three Dispensaries (one of which, in Vauxhall-road, is a large and elegant building, comprising accommodation for in-patients and medical students); an Ophthalmic Infirmary; an Infirmary for Diseases of the Ear; a Ladies' Charity; a Stranger's Friend Society and various others, likely to be rapidly increased in number, as the condition of the poor and sick become more generally known. It is impossible to hear and read of these multitudinous institutions for the alleviation of wretchedness, without feeling that a good and kindly feeling is abroad. Whether, as some thoughtful writers and careful observers allege, the independent spirit of the working classes becomes to a certain degree frittered away by this system of gratuitous aid, and families acquire a habit of looking to others instead of their own foresight and prudence-whether this be so or not, the wish to render service on the part of those who have the power to give practical value to the wish is something gained: it is a bright light, that will shine into all the dark places one by one; it only requires to be regulated by caution and judgment. A glance at the new buildings, enumerated in a former page as intended to be constructed within the last year or two, and some of them still in course of construction, will show that the number of institutions, bearing on the subjects just discussed, is likely to be still larger. One thing is certain, that benevolence and architecture go hand in hand in the matter; for while the new buildings are far more commodious than those which they have superseded or are about to supersede, they are unquestionably a greater ornament to the town. From Netherfield-road to Toxteth-road, from the river to the Botanical and Zoological Gardens, fine buildings are springing up in all directions. Our purpose brings us more immediately in contact with Liverpool as it is, than with Liverpool as it may hereafter be. Yet it would be unpardonable to omit mention of the Sailors' Home' among the buildings which call for our commendation. The object of the institution is pretty well indicated by its name. The plan of the institution having been determined on, a spot of ground was selected very near the Revenue Buildings, bounded on three sides by Hanover-street, Paradise-street, and Canning-place. Mr. J. Cunningham is the architect whose designs have been accepted. They comprise a building in the later Elizabethan style, the first stone of which was laid by Prince Albert. The structure comprises an imposing mass, upwards of seventy feet high, and having four complete frontages. At each corner will be a square tower, surmounted by an ogive dome, the summit of which will be upwards of a hundred feet from the ground. Its plan will be an irregular square, owing to the angles at which the boundary streets meet each: other. The longest side will be 175 feet, and the shortest 53. Along the summits of the building, between the corner towers, will be several gables of curvilinear and compound forms, crowned by gilt vanes, and richly adorned. Within the chief entrance, in Canning-place, there is a square entrance-hall, and within this again another hall of extremely lofty proportions, surrounded by galleries communicating with the rooms on the several floors. On the first floor, in the chief front, there is a large dining-hall; and other parts of the building comprise a lecture-room, readingrooms, a savings' bank, &c. THE CEMETERIES AND PUBLIC GARDENS. Have the people of Liverpool any public parks; any pleasant gardens and open pleasure spots; any picturesque cemeteries, to dissipate the gloom and the insalubrity of our old-fashioned churchyards? So much is now doing in London, in Manchester, in Birkenhead, and in other towns, in this matter, that we cannot fail to feel an interest in the solution of the question for so densely populated a place as Liverpool. We shall find that, though much may yet remain to be done, much has already been accomplished in this respect. Many of the cemeteries of Liverpool are very pretty. In the north-east part of the town, near the suburban village of Everton, is St. Mary's Cemetery, a tastefully laid out plot of ground, appropriated to its present purpose in 1837. The entrance building is constructed of stone, having in the centre a Gothic arched gateway. The ground occupies about three acres, and is arranged much in the same manner as most of the cemeteries near London. Another cemetery, situated at the eastern extremity of Liverpool, and called the Necropolis, is an oblong square comprising an area of about five acres, enclosed by a lofty wall. A part of the interior space, ten feet from the wall, is set apart for a colonnade, in which tombs and monumental tablets are placed; while the remaining space is occupied partly by graves, and partly by ornamental paths, shrubberies, and flower beds. But by far the most remarkable and beautiful cemetery in Liverpool is St. James's, situated in the southern half of the town. Here a happy use has been made of a vacant space of ground, which had been partly quarried out for building purposes. This piece of ground is of an irregular four-sided shape, bounded by Hope-street, Upper Duke-street, St. James's-road, and Upper Parliament-street. St James's Church is at the south-west corner, and near it is St. James's Market. The Necropolis, founded in 1825, was soon found to be insufficient to answer the designed purposes; and measures were speedily taken to fit up the open space at St. James's as a second cemetery. The first stone was laid in 1827, and preparations were made for enclosing an area of nearly fifty thousand square yards. There are four entrances by gates, the principal one leading through a fine archway to the lower part of the grounds. The eastern side of the cavity (for a cavity it is in the greater part of its extent) is bounded by a nearly perpendicular face, eleven hundred feet in length by about fifty in height; and along the face of this wall are carried several inclined roads, dipping at different angles, to allow hearses and carriages to descend to the catacombs and graves. The catacombs, upwards of a hundred in number, are formed in the perpendicular east face or margin, in such a way that the descending roads give easy access to them. Most of the catacombs are entered by easy doorways, about seven feet in height, formed of masonry round the sides. The whole area occupied is about fifteen hundred feet in length, the lower part of which is laid out much in the same way as the Pére la Chaise at Paris. sonous plants a fourth colour. If we remember rightly, the colours are-green for food plants, red for manufacturing plants, yellow for ornamental plants, and black for poisonous plants; but it matters little what the colours are, provided they are understood: bearing these symbols in mind, the visitors have a large amount of information given to them simply by the colours of the inscription-tablets. At the Derby Arboretum, founded by Mr. Strutt, the inscription, on most of the specimens, gives the number of the tree or plant (as referred to in a catalogue), the Latin or scientific name, the English name, the habitat, the full-grown height, the date of the introduction into England, &c. All these points are worth attending to; but for those whose time will permit only a rapid glance round the garden, it is something to know, simply by the colour of the tablet, to which of four large groups each individual plant belongs. The Zoological Gardens, situated a short distance southward of those just described, belong to a class which has spread considerably in England within the last few years. It contains all the usual features of such a place. Dens, and cages, and enclosures for the "wild beasts" and for the more gentle animalsThe Botanical Gardens, in the eastern vicinity of miniature lakes and Chinese bridges--walks and paths Liverpool, is a pleasant spot where a mouthful of fresh-flower-beds and groups of shrubs; and, occasionally, air, and a few scraps of knowledge, may be obtained. illuminations, music, and pictorial models, after the These gardens are situated at the extreme south-eastern fashion of one of our metropolitan holiday-places. verge of the town, in the vicinity of the villas of many of the Liverpool merchants. There is, near the entrance, a handsome stone building, which constitutes the residence of the curator, and adjoining to this is the entrance to the gardens themselves. The area occupied is about eleven acres, and is laid out in a most beautiful manner. Some of the choicest plants have been brought thither from foreign countries; and all are so admirably arranged as to form a course of instruction in Natural History to those who can devote time enough to study them. The most rare and delicate of the plants are placed in an elegant conservatory, two hundred and forty feet in length. There is one point connected with these gardens which is particularly worthy of the attention of those who are striving to introduce publice parks and gardens. It is a very small matter in itself; yet it is capable of producing much fruit. In all well-conducted gardens of this kind, there are tablets, made of some convenient and durable material, placed on or near the principal plants, and having inscribed on them the name of the plant, and often a few other particulars concerning it, as to growth, country, &c. Such has been done in the ornamental enclosure of St. James's Park; and, to a considerable extent, in Victoria Park, and elsewhere. Now, at the Liverpool Botanical Gardens, four great groups of subjects are indicated simply by the different colours of the tablets on which the inscriptions are written. Plants used for food have one coloured tablet; plants for use in medicine and the arts have another colour; ornamental plants (not yet brought to any useful purpose) have a third; and poi Liverpool is taking steps to provide herself with public parks and walks, open to all without fee or reward. One spot which, from its name, would seem to belong to this class-Toxteth Park-is now no park at all. It was anciently a park belonging to the Dukes of Lancaster, but afterwards passed into the hands of the Earls of Derby. It appears that the Liverpool people had the right to graze their cattle in that park; for, on occasion of a dispute between the Earl and the townsmen, in 1561, he took away the privilege, and only re-granted it on the earnest supplication of the inhabitants. In the next following century the estate fell into the hands of the Earls of Sefton, by whom, in recent times, various patches of ground have been let off on building leases. In 1770 the entire park was composed of farms; but in that year commenced the first demolition of farms, for the purpose of building dwelling houses on the ground. This process has gone on for three-quarters of a century, until at length Toxteth Park is entirely obliterated; it is a mass of houses and streets, forming the southern margin of Liverpool. Some of the villas of this district are situated upon rising ground, which commands a very fine view over the north of the town, the docks, the shipping, the Mersey, the Cheshire coast, and some of the lofty hills of Wales. There is a part of this Toxteth Park district, southward of the borough of Liverpool, where there is a finely laid out pleasure-ground, cailed the Dingle, which is opened to the public. merchants, as near as may be, to the Revenue-buildings and the Exchange. Let us traverse in succession North and South Castle-street, North and South Johnstreet, Lord-street, Church-street, Paradise-street, Bold-street, and Ranelagh-street, and we shall find ourselves immersed not only in a region of incessant bustle and traffic, but in one where the power of commerce often puts on a very luxurious appearance; and where, moreover, literary and other institutions are strewed with an unusually liberal hand. It is in a direction somewhat eastward of Toxteth | pool has sought the means of accommodating her Park, that a munificent Liverpool merchant has purchased from the Earl of Sefton upwards of forty acres of land, for the purpose of having it laid out as a public pleasure-ground, called Prince's Park. To the philanthropic spirit of Richard Vaughan Yates, Esq., are the public indebted for this ornament of the neighbourhood and blessing to the town. That gentleman having conceived the idea of forming a park, that should be delightful, both as a site for the mansions of the merchants, and as a place of recreation for the inhabitants of Liverpool, purchased a large plot of land for that purpose, from the Earl of Sefton; and that nobleman, with his wonted generosity, contributed £1000 towards beautifying the grounds. The place is yet but in its infancy; but, when we are dead and gone, the widespreading branches of its trees will form a pleasant shade to the members of young Liverpool; along its walks will they wander, and o'er its lake will they smoothly sail, and then will they bless the name of him who left them such a boon. That simple but impressive notice speaks volumes: "If you will carefully avoid walking on the grass, it will remain green and beautiful for you." What an improvement o'er, and how much more effective, is this appeal to the better feelings, than the hackneyed and often unheeded, "Trespassers will be prosecuted with the utmost rigour of the law." At present but a dozen houses are erected within the bounds of the park, but these, as well as the sites of those yet to be built, are so placed, that they interfere not with the imposing prospect we here have of the Mersey's stream, the hills of Cheshire, and the mountains of Wales, or of the beautiful surrounding wooded scenery. The Park is laid out with great taste and artistic skill, and the inequalities of the grounds are taken advantage of with great ingenuity and much judgment. At the entrance nearest the town is a classical lodge, a subject of general admiration to all. Passing from the park, at the gate by which we entered, we proceed along a beautiful avenue of trees, on either side of which are mansions, which princes might be proud to possess. A CONCLUDING GLANCE. In connexion with this matter, we ought especially to speak of one group of buildings, among the most recent which have been constructed. Brunswick-buildings, situated in the heart of the commercial district, is one of the finest ornaments of street architecture which the town possesses. It is a satisfactory answer to the query, whether architecture and commercial fitness can go hand in hand. Brunswick-buildings is not a street of houses, nor a public office or establishment; it is a group of offices and counting-houses, to be let out to different parties. But there is a unity of design about it which gives all the importance of a public building. The Italian Palazzo-style, which Barry has brought into such high repute in modern times, has been applied by the Messrs. Williams to this group of buildings. The structure stands at the corner of Fenwick and Brunswick-streets, and presents two frontages in the same style; the one having nine windows in width, and the other seven. The whole mass occupies an oblong square, about a hundred feet by sixty, having an internal court in the centre. The two lower stories combine to form a rusticated basement, which is built of light reddish-tinted freestone; above this are two other stories, filled with ranges of windows; and uppermost of all is a fine boldly projecting cornice. A vestibule leads from the central entrance in Brunswick-street to the central quadrangle, which is not merely an open court, like the quadrangle of the Royal Exchange, but is a very handsome' cortile' of uniform design, having rich balustrades running along the two upper floors, and a bold cornice above. The 'cortile' is at the same time converted into a covered hall; for there is a cove over the cornice, on which rests a fine skylight, with provision for ventilation. This building, taken as a whole, seems certainly to be a worthy ornament to the town. Commerce, Charity, Government, Amusement-all have passed rapidly under our notice, in respect to the buildings presented by Liverpool. But there are yet many others on which much might be said, and ought to be said, if a detailed enumeration of structures was professed to be given here. No one can pass through the chain of streets which bound the Revenue-buildings on the east and north, without seeing how numerous are the well-planned and ornate structures devoted more or less to trade and commerce. What a mass of small streets must have been removed, to make way for these finer thoroughfares, is known best to those who have watched the local proceedings for the last thirty or forty years; but, like Glasgow in the neigh-in the midst of bustle,-named Clayton-square, equally bourhood of Argyle and Buchanan-streets, and Manchester in the neighbourhood of Mosley-street, Liver A traveller by railway from the north to London finds that the hotels, at one or other of which he may perchance design to sojourn for a while, are situated widely apart. From Piccadilly or Oxford-street, in the west, to Aldersgate or Bishopsgate-street, in the east, he has a wide range for his selection. In Liverpool, however, where more centralisation prevails, in one street-Dale-street-close to the Railway-station, there are nearly a dozen hotels of greater or less mark; and in a small quadrangular inclosure, a quiet spot near to the station, is another group of half-a-dozen hotels; while in and near Ranelagh-street, still in the Q-VOL. 4. same vicinity, are three of the finest of all-the Adelphi, the Albion, and the Waterloo Hotels. The external merits of an hotel few persons care or think about, since their internal economy is a matter of much graver import; but if we choose to give a passing glance at the Adelphi Hotel, we shall find that it is really a fine specimen of its class, and worthy to rank with those which continental travellers so often meet with. And now, if we persevered in our enumeration, we might talk about the three theatres which Liverpool possesses, and the Wellington Rooms, and other gay places for assembly and amusement; and the Music Hall, rapidly rising into public favour; and the Exhibition Rooms, where the works of living artists are occasionally exhibited. And we might also dwell on the features of many of the more important manufacturing establishments of the town-such as its soap factories, the most numerous and vast of any in the kingdom; its engineers' and ship-building establishments, second to none in skill and to few in extent; its sugar-refineries, breweries, roperies, glass works, alkali works, chain-cable works, colour-mills, watchmovement manufactories (more numerous, it is said, than in any other town in the kingdom, not excepting even the metropolis), and many others. But enough has been said to show what a very world of bustle, what a centre of production and interchange, this great Lancashire seaport has become. Let us first imagine Lyrpole" which Leland visited, "a paved town, which hath but a chapel," and then let us follow it down to the year 1847: we should have an epitome of the history of British commerce. the " |