ed by the fire of 1748 which consumed
GARRAWAY'S and ELFORD'S (see map of the 1748 fire).

WILL'S, the predecessor of BUTTON'S, first had the title of the RED COW,
then of the ROSE. It was kept by William Urwin, and was on the north
side of Russell Street at the corner of Bow Street. "It was Dryden who
made Will's coffee house the great resort of the wits of his time."
(_Pope_ and _Spence_.) The room in which the poet was accustomed to sit
was on the first floor; and his place was the place of honor by the
fireside in the winter, and at the corner of the balcony, looking over
the street, in fine weather; he called the two places his winter and his
summer seat. This was called the dining-room floor. The company did not
sit in boxes as subsequently, but at various tables which were dispersed
through the room. Smoking was permitted in the public room; it was then
so much in vogue that it does not seem to have been considered a
nuisance. Here, as in other similar places of meeting, the visitors
divided themselves into parties; and we are told by Ward that the young
beaux and wits, who seldom approached the principal table, thought it a
great honor to have a pinch out of Dryden's snuff-box. After Dryden's
death WILL'S was transferred to a house opposite, and became BUTTON'S,
"over against THOMAS'S in Covent Garden." Thither also Addison
transferred much company from THOMAS'S. Here Swift first saw Addison.
Hither also came "Steele, Arbuthnot and many other wits of the time."
BUTTON'S continued in vogue until Addison's death and Steele's
retirement into Wales, after which the coffee drinkers went to the
BEDFORD, dinner parties to the SHAKESPEARE. BUTTON'S was subsequently
known as the CALEDONIEN.

[Illustration: GARRAWAY'S COFFEE HOUSE IN 'CHANGE ALLEY

Garway (or Garraway) claimed to have been first to sell Tea in England]

[Illustration: BUTTON'S COFFEE HOUSE, GREAT RUSSELL STREET

Afterward it became the Caledonien

From a water color by T.H. Shepherd]

SLAUGHTER'S, famous as the resort of painters and sculptors in the
eighteenth century, was situated at the upper end of the west side of
St. Martin's Lane. Its first landlord was Thomas Slaughter, 1692. A
second SLAUGHTER'S (NEW SLAUGHTER'S) was established in the same street
in 1760, when the original SLAUGHTER'S adopted the name of OLD
SLAUGHTER'S. It was torn down in 1843-44. Among the notables who
frequented it were Hogarth; young Gainsborough; Cipriani; Haydon;