rts at the
Green Man and meets the Kingston Road at the foot of the hill in Putney
Bottom, and facing this road are many fine houses, as well as the
reservoirs of the Chelsea Water Company, from which water is conveyed to
the Middlesex side of the Thames by pipes beneath the roadway of Putney
Bridge.

To the south of the reservoirs is a fine new house Wildcroft, the
residence of Sir George Newnes, Bart., which stands in the grounds of
the old Fireproof House, lately pulled down. This house was erected in
1776 by David Hartley, son of the celebrated Dr. Hartley, to demonstrate
the efficacy of his plan for securing buildings from fire. This plan
consisted in thin sheets of iron and of copper being laid between floor
and ceiling to prevent the ascent of heated air from the lower to the
upper rooms. The lower part of this house was repeatedly set on fire in
the presence, among others, of the King and Queen, the members of
Parliament, the Lord Mayor, and the Aldermen. The House of Commons
granted Hartley L2,500 in aid of the expenses incurred, and the
Corporation erected in the grounds an obelisk--which can be plainly seen
from the Kingston Road--recording the experiments of the grant. The
heath was the scene of many duels, among others, in May, 1652, Lord
Chandos and Colonel Compton fought with fatal issue, Compton being
killed. In May, 1798, on a Sunday afternoon, William Pitt, the Prime
Minister, who lived in the Bowling-Green House close by, fought a
bloodless battle with William Tierney, M.P.; and in September, 1809, an
encounter took place between Lord Castlereagh and George Canning, when
the latter was wounded in the thigh. This last duel was fought near the
Admiralty semaphore erected in 1796, the site of which is indicated by
the Telegraph Inn immediately behind Wildcroft. Across the corner of the
green from the inn is Bristol House, which owes its name to the Bristol
family, who possessed it till a few years ago, and which was for some
two years the residence of Mrs. Siddons. A part of the estate has been
built on; many handsome residences have been erected.

Next is a large mansion, Highlands, and west of it is the historical
Bowling-Green House, a low, two-storied mansion painted white, with
large windows, and the Pitt arms over the doorway. In this house, shaded
by fine trees, with a beautiful prospect from the lawn, lived for some
years William Pitt, the Prime Minister; and here, on June 23, 1806, he
died. Th