seurs. The works have the good fortune to receive
distinguished and even royal patronage; and the show-rooms form one of
the attractions of the city.

The Iron trade, so far as regards the manufacture of bridges, machinery,
and general castings, notwithstanding the distance from the iron making
districts, is well represented by the Vulcan Works, and those of Messrs.
Padmore and Hardy. Other establishments on a large scale have sprung
into existence in the city and its suburbs, in which chemistry and
machinery, singly or combined, produce results the most astounding. Among
them are those of Hill, Evans, and Co., where the visitor wanders amidst
enormous vats, from which as many as 1,208,600 gallons of vinegar have
been produced in a single year; and those of Lewis, Watkins, and Co.,
where a large portion of the vinegar is used in preparing pickles, and
where hundreds of tons of preserved fruits and jam are annually produced
for sale. There are also those of the well-known firm of Lea and Perrin;
the chemical works of Webb; the extensive carriage manufactory of
McNaught and Smith, and others upon which space forbids us to dwell.

[Old waterworks: 7.jpg]

The Severn supplies the inhabitants with water, which is purified by
means of extensive filter-beds at the upper end of Pitchcroft, and then
thrown by machinery to the top of Rainbow Hill, a position sufficiently
elevated to ensure its distribution over the upper stories of the highest
houses. The "Old Waterworks" remain, and, as will be seen from our
sketch, form a picturesque object in the landscape. The Severn is,
however, no longer the fast-flowing stream poets have described it, but
what it has lost in speed it has gained in depth, breadth, and majesty;
the locks and weirs at Diglis--the former two abreast, and the latter
stretching 400 feet across the stream--giving to it the aspect of a lake,
an aspect aided by the appearance upon its surface of a number of swans.
Its contrast with itself, whilst yet in its rocky cradle on Plinlimmon,
will be seen from the accompanying sketch of _Blaen Hafren_, or the "Head
of the River," two miles from its source. Anglers will find pleasant
spots at which to indulge in the "gentle art," near Henwick, where the
old Worcester monks had weirs; also near Bevere Island, and Holt Castle;
at the confluence of the Severn with the Teme (two miles

[Blaen Hafren: 8.jpg]

below Worcester), thence to the tail of Kempsey Lake; and s