he People's Palace,
but he was not destined to see this mighty work on London take form. He
died when it was still incomplete. His scheme included several volumes on
the history of London as a whole. These he finished up to the end of the
eighteenth century, and they form a record of the great city practically
unique, and exceptionally interesting, compiled by one who had the
qualities both of novelist and historian, and who knew how to make the
dry bones live. The volume on the eighteenth century, which Sir Walter
called a "very big chapter indeed, and particularly interesting," will
shortly be issued by Messrs. A. and C. Black, who had undertaken the
publication of the Survey.

Sir Walter's idea was that the next two volumes should be a regular and
systematic perambulation of London by different persons, so that the
history of each parish should be complete in itself. This was a very
original feature in the great scheme, and one in which he took the
keenest interest. Enough has been done of this section to warrant its
issue in the form originally intended, but in the meantime it is proposed
to select some of the most interesting of the districts and publish them
as a series of booklets, attractive alike to the local inhabitant and the
student of London, because much of the interest and the history of London
lie in these street associations. For this purpose Chelsea, Westminster,
the Strand, and Hampstead have been selected for publication first, and
have been revised and brought up to date.

The difficulty of finding a general title for the series was very great,
for the title desired was one that would express concisely the undying
charm of London--that is to say, the continuity of her past history with
the present times. In streets and stones, in names and palaces, her
history is written for those who can read it, and the object of the
series is to bring forward these associations, and to make them plain.
The solution of the difficulty was found in the words of the man who
loved London and planned the great scheme. The work "fascinated" him, and
it was because of these associations that it did so. These links between
past and present in themselves largely constitute The Fascination of
London.

G. E. M.

CONTENTS

PAGE
PREFATORY NOTE