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.

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.

HAMMERSMITH

The parish of Hammersmith is mentioned in Doomsday Book under the name
of Hermoderwode, and in ancient deeds of the Exchequer as Hermoderworth.
It is called Hamersmith in the Court Rolls of the beginning of Henry
VII.'s reign. This is evidently more correct than the present spelling
of the name, which is undoubtedly derived from _Ham_, meaning in Saxon a
town or dwelling, and _Hythe_ or _Hyde_, a haven or harbour,
"therefore," says Faulkner, "Ham-hythe, a town with a harbour or creek."

Hammersmith is bounded on the south by Fulham and the river, on the west
by Chiswick and Acton, and on the east by Kensington. Until 1834 it was
incorporated with the parish of Fulham, and on Ascension Day of that
year the first ceremony of "beating the bounds" took place. The West
London Railway runs in the bed of an ancient stream which rose north of
Wormwood Scrubs and ended at Chelsea Creek, and this brook was crossed
by a bridge at the place where the railway-bridge now stands on the
Hammersmith Road. The stream was evidently the determining factor in the
old parish boundary line between Kensingt