xes were designed for our use, we, namely, my husband, the Quaker,
myself, and the waiting-maid, all got into the coach, the footmen were
mounted on horses behind, and in this manner the coach, after I had
given a guinea to one of the Quaker's daughters equally to divide among
the beggars at the door, drove away from the house, and I took leave of
my lodging in the Minories, as well as of London.

At St. George's Church, Southwark, we were met by three gentlemen on
horseback, who were merchants of my husband's acquaintance, and had come
out on purpose, to go half a day's journey with us; and as they kept
talking to us at the coach side, we went a good pace, and were very
merry together; we stopped at the best house of entertainment on
Shooter's Hill.

Here we stopped for about an hour, and drank some wine, and my husband,
whose chief study was how to please and divert me, caused me to alight
out of the coach; which the gentlemen who accompanied us observing,
alighted also. The waiter showed us upstairs into a large room, whose
window opened to our view a fine prospect of the river Thames, which
here, they say, forms one of the most beautiful meanders. It was within
an hour of high water, and such a number of ships coming in under sail
quite astonished as well as delighted me, insomuch that I could not help
breaking out into such-like expressions, "My dear, what a fine sight
this is; I never saw the like before! Pray will they get to London this
tide?" At which the good-natured gentleman smiled, and said, "Yes, my
dear; why, there is London, and as the wind is quite fair for them, some
of them will come to an anchor in about half-an-hour, and all within an
hour."

I was so taken up with looking down the river that, till my husband
spoke, I had not once looked up the river; but when I did, and saw
London, the Monument, the cathedral church of St. Paul, and the steeples
belonging to the several parish churches, I was transported into an
ecstasy, and could not refrain from saying, "Sure that cannot be the
place we are now just come from, it must be further off, for that looks
to be scarce three miles off, and we have been three hours, by my watch,
coming from our lodgings in the Minories! No, no, it is not London, it
is some other place!"

Upon which one of the gentlemen present offered to convince me that the
place I saw was London if I would go up to the top of the house, and
view it from the turret. I accepted the of