of paper
of to-day, printed in bold German text, that are so well known, yet are
unlike any other bank-notes in existence. Around the large elliptical
table in the bank parlor the directors meet every Thursday to regulate
its affairs, and--not forgetting they are true Englishmen--eat a savory
dinner, the windows of the parlor looking out upon a little gem of a
garden in the very heart of London. The Mansion House, built in 1740, is
fronted by a Corinthian portico, with six fluted columns and a pediment
of allegorical sculpture. Within is the Egyptian Hall, where the lord
mayor fulfils what is generally regarded as his chief duty, the giving
of grand banquets. He can invite four hundred persons to the tables in
this spacious hall, which is ornamented by several statues by British
sculptors, over $40,000 having been expended for its ornamentation. The
lord mayor also has a ball-room and other apartments, including his
Venetian parlor and the justice room where he sits as a magistrate. From
the open space in front of the Mansion House diverge streets running to
all parts of London and the great bridges over the Thames.

THE INNS OF COURT.

The four Inns of Court in London have been described as the palladiums
of English liberty--the Inner Temple, Middle Temple, Lincoln's Inn, and
Gray's Inn. There are over three thousand barristers members of these
Inns, and the best known is probably Lincoln's Inn, which is named after
De Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, who died in 1312, and had his house on its
site, his device, the lion rampant, being adopted by the Inn. The
ancient gatehouse, which opens from Chancery Lane, is nearly four
hundred years old. The Inn has an old hall dating from 1506, and also a
fine modern hall, the Newcastle House, one hundred and twenty feet long,
built in Tudor style, with stained-glass windows and having life-size
figures of several eminent members in canopied niches. Here is Hogarth's
celebrated picture of "Paul before Felix." The Inn has a valuable
library, and among its members has counted More, Hale, Selden,
Mansfield, and Hardwicke.

[Illustration: THE LAW COURTS.]

Across Fleet Street, and between it and the Thames, is the Temple, a
lane dividing it into the Inner and the Middle Temple, while obstructing
Fleet Street there was the old Temple Bar, one of the ancient city
gates, which has recently been removed. The name is derived from the
Knights Templar, who existed here seven centuries ago; and t