City is an elaborate measure of more than
forty clauses, and aimed at securing "the regularity, safety,
conveniency and beauty" of the new London that was to be. The buildings
were classified according to their position and character, and had to
maintain a prescribed level of quality. The materials to be employed
were named. New streets were to be of certain widths, and so on. This is
the Act that contains the first Betterment Clause: "And forasmuch as the
Houses now remaining and to be rebuilt will receive more or less
advantage in the value of the rents by the liberty of air and free
recourse for trade," it was enacted that a jury might be sworn to
assess upon the owners and others interested of and in the said houses,
such sum or sums of money with respect of their several interests "in
consideration of such improvement and melioration as in reason and good
conscience they shall think fit."

It takes nothing short of a catastrophe to suspend in England, even for
a few months, those rules of evidence that often make justice
impossible, and those rights of landlords which for centuries have
appropriated public expenditure to private gain.[126:1]

The moneys required to pay for the land taken under the Act to widen
streets and to accomplish the other authorised works were raised, as
Marvell informs his constituents, by a tax of twelve pence on every
chaldron of coal coming as far as Gravesend. Few taxes have had so
useful and so harmless a life.

All this time the Dutch War was going on, but the heart was out of it.
Nothing in England is so popular as war, except the peace that comes
after it. The king now wanted peace, and the merchants on 'Change had
glutted their ire. In February 1667 the king told the Houses of
Parliament that all "sober" men would be glad to see peace. Unluckily,
it seems to have been assumed that we could have peace whenever we
wanted it, and the fatal error was committed of at once "laying up" the
first-and second-rate ships. It thus came about that, whilst still at
war, England had no fleet to put to sea. It did not at first seem likely
that the overtures for peace would present much difficulty, when
suddenly arose the question of Poleroone. It is amazing how few
Englishmen have ever heard of Poleroone, or even of the Banda Islands,
of which group it is one. Indeed, a more insignificant speck in the
ocean it would be hard to find. To discover it on an atlas is no easy
task. Yet, but for Pole