ls, and public buildings; with the greatest bridge, and the
greatest city in the world, made famous by the opulence of its merchants,
the increase and extensiveness of its commerce; by its invincible navies,
and by the innumerable fleets of ships sailing upon it to and from all
parts of the world.

As I meet with the river upwards in my travels through the inland country
I shall speak of it, as it is the channel for conveying an infinite
quantity of provisions from remote counties to London, and enriching all
the counties again that lie near it by the return of wealth and trade
from the city; and in describing these things I expect both to inform and
divert my readers, and speak in a more masculine manner, more to the
dignity of the subject, and also more to their satisfaction, than I could
do any other way.

There is little more to be said of the Thames relating to Hampton Court,
than that it adds by its neighbourhood to the pleasure of the situation;
for as to passing by water to and from London, though in summer it is
exceeding pleasant, yet the passage is a little too long to make it easy
to the ladies, especially to be crowded up in the small boats which
usually go upon the Thames for pleasure.

The prince and princess, indeed, I remember came once down by water upon
the occasion of her Royal Highness's being great with child, and near her
time--so near that she was delivered within two or three days after. But
this passage being in the royal barges, with strength of oars, and the
day exceeding fine, the passage, I say, was made very pleasant, and still
the more so for being short. Again, this passage is all the way with the
stream, whereas in the common passage upwards great part of the way is
against the stream, which is slow and heavy.

But be the going and coming how it will by water, it is an exceeding
pleasant passage by land, whether we go by the Surrey side or the
Middlesex side of the water, of which I shall say more in its place.

The situation of Hampton Court being thus mentioned, and its founder, it
is to be mentioned next that it fell to the Crown in the forfeiture of
his Eminence the Cardinal, when the king seized his effects and estate,
by which this and Whitehall (another house of his own building also) came
to King Henry VIII. Two palaces fit for the kings of England, erected by
one cardinal, are standing monuments of the excessive pride as well as
the immense wealth of that prelate, who kn