The Of these the finest and most fashionable is Hyde Park (q.v.), which lies between the Uxbridge and Kensington roads, and contains about 364 acres. Kensington Gar dens (275 acres), with which Hyde Park com municates at several points, are beautifully wooded and finely laid out. Here carriages are not admitted. Saint James' Park (93 acres) extends from Buckinghim Palace to the Horse Guards, and in its centre is an ornamental sheet of water, studded with islets covered with trees and shrubs, and around which swim a great variety of aquatic fowls. The Green Park, 53 acres in extent, lies between Saint James' Park on the south and Piccadilly on the north. Re gent's Park, on the north side of London, covers an area of 472 acres. Round the park is a drive nearly three miles long, and an inner circular drive encloses the Botanic Gardens. At the north end are the Zoological Gardens, to which a fine broad avenue leads along the centre of the park. Battersea Park (200 acres) is on the south bank of the Thames, opposite to Chelsea Hospital. Victoria Park (217 acres) is in the northeast of London, laid out and panted as a place of recreation for the poorer inhabitants of this part of London. Southwark Park (63 acres) is another artificially formed recreation ground. Greenwich Park (185 acres) is one of the most delightful features of South London, and has great natural beauties; the famous Greenwich Observatory is situated here. There are many other parks acquired for use of the public during late years. Brocicwell Park and Dulwich Park in the south; Avery Hill in the southeast; Finsbury Park and Clissold Park, on the north borders of London, are the most extensive. But even more typically a part of modern London are the numerous and beautiful heaths and commons preserved for the public: Hampstead Heath on the north, Hackney Marsh on the northeast, Blackheath and Plumstead Common on the southeast and Tooting and Streatham commons on the south.
Places of Popular are vari ous places of popular resort in London. The Exhibition at Earl's Court, a vast open-air en tertainment accompanied by exhibits of special descriptions arranged in courts and buildings within the grounds, is the largest. Olympia at Kensington is of less magnitude. The Zoologi cal Gardens and the Botanical Gardens. both in Regent's Park, are very largely frequented. The People's Palace, established by contribu tions of the benevolent, in the East End of London (Mile-end road), and opened in 1887, provides a hall for concerts and other enter tainments, a library and reading-rooms, swim ming baths, gymnasiums, social meeting-rooms, winter garden, technical schools, etc. Outside London there are other places of this descrip tion. The most important is the Crystal Palace (q.v.), at Sydenham, formed to a considerable extent of the materials of the exhibition build ing of 1851, removed from Hyde Park. It was originally designed as a great educational mu seum of art, natural history and ethnology; and its gardens and fountains were to rival or sur pass those of Versailles. For years music has taken an important place in the arrangements of the palace. Entertainments of a merely amus ing character have also been largely introduced.
A somewhat similar building is the Alexandra Palace, occupying a conspicuous site on Mus well Hill on the north. Both the Crystal Pal ace and the Great White City at Shepherd's Bush, also an amusement centre, were used for military purposes during the Great European War. Kew Gardens (q.v.) on the west and Hampton Court palace (q.v.) and grounds, built by Cardinal Wolsey and enlarged by William III, are situated further out toward the southwest.
Lighting, Sewerage and is supplied with gas by three separate com panies. These companies include in their area of supply a considerable district outside Lon don. Since 1886 a large number of electric lighting companies have come into existence• in 1916 13 companies and 16 local administra tions possessing statutory powers to supply electricity. The county council has been given powers to buy out the electricity undertakings. The sewage works, with which the metro politan board was charged, were formally opened in 1865. The system consists of lines of intercepting sewers on both sides of the Thames intersecting the old o-atlets, which are retained for service during heavy rainfalls. It consists of three main lines on the north of the river, at different levels, called, respectively. the High Level, Low Level and Middle Level sewers; and of three on the south side, called the High, the Effra and Low Level sewers. The lines on the north side converge at Lee River, whence, after the Low Level sewage has been pumped to the higher level, the whole flows in five parallel brick culverts, built in an embankment upward of five miles in length, on to the Northern Outfall and reservoir, about 14 miles below London Bridge. On the south side the Low Level sewage is pumped to the higher level at Deptford, whence the whole is conveyed to a point near the mouth of the river. Works have been established for precipitating the sewage; the deposit after precipitation is carried out to sea and deposited several miles from land. There were formerly eight water companies supplying London and an extensive area around, extending into Essex, Hertford shire, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey. In June and July 1904, the undertakings of these com panies were transferred to the metropolitan water board. The total quantity of water sup-. plied in 1914-15 amounted to nearly 243,000,000 of gallons daily, an average per head of 36.08 gallons. About 56 per cent of the supply is drawn from the Thames area, 24.7 from the Lee, and 19.3 from wells and springs. The reservoir now under construction at Chingford, with those to be built at Littleton and Stanwell, will enable the board to face its obligations for the next 20 years. By an act passed in 1852 all the companies making use of the Thames are obliged to draw from above the limit of the tidal flow. Even above this point the water is not free from pollution by the sewage of numerous populous towns and by the drainage of richly-manured land. Means are adopted for storing the water, and it is all filtered through layers of gravel and sand before en tering the mains; but the system of supply is liable to various objections.