on in the heart of the
borough, we find ourselves near the well-known Lord's Cricket Ground.
Thomas Lord first made a cricket-ground in what is now Dorset Square,
and in 1814 it was succeeded by the present one, which is the
headquarters of the Marylebone Cricket Club, the club that gives laws to
the cricketing world. Among the most popular matches which take place
here are the annual contests between Oxford and Cambridge, Eton and
Harrow, when the resources of space are taxed to the utmost. Besides
these, during the season, the M.C.C. matches, the Middlesex Club
matches, and Gentlemen _v._ Players are played here. Lord's has been
increased many times since its inauguration; most recently by a piece of
ground, about two acres, which was formerly part of the site of the
Clergy Orphanage. This was presented by the Great Central Railway
Company in return for the privilege of being permitted to tunnel a
corner of the cricket ground.
The extension of the Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway,
now known as the Great Central Railway, has completely altered the face
of Marylebone. The demolition caused by it extends up the west side of
the Wellington and Finchley Roads; but it is further south that the
greatest changes have taken place. St. John's Wood Road is itself
untouched, the line passing under it.
The part of the parish lying to the west and north contains nothing of
any exceptional interest. There are wide roads and well-built terraces,
and an air of prosperity that speaks well for the neighbourhood. A Home
for Incurable Children, founded in 1873, is near the Maida Vale end of
St. John's Wood Road, and in Hamilton Terrace is St. Mark's Church, in
modern Gothic style; a Presbyterian church and several chapels are also
to be found in this neighbourhood.
Returning to the point from whence we set out, we find St. John's Wood
Chapel, which is in the classical style, designed by Hardwicke in 1814.
The chapel stands well at the junction of four important roads; its
Ionic portico is dignified and suitable to the position. The body of the
chapel is covered with ivy, and the windows look down on a large
burial-ground, now open as a public garden, which is peculiarly bright
and well kept. In it are many fine trees, chiefly willows, which
overhang the seats placed for public comfort. The gravestones, which are
many, have not been removed, and with few exceptions are of the regular
round-topped pattern. In the vault
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