1936 On the Continent

But even if you have no time to sit in one of the courts, you can stand in front of the Law Courts for a few minutes and watch the barristers, in their wigs and gowns, threading their way through the incessant traffic.
The Law Courts—the Inns of Court
    But nowhere are the contrasts and variety of London more strikingly apparent than in the vicinity of the Law Courts. If you pass through the modest and almost hidden entrance of the Temple, you will find yourself in one of the secluded Inns of Court, the High Schools of English Law. Suddenly, you will be out of the big city, and in the middle of the idyllic peace of a monastery garden. Indeed, the atmosphere does derive from a monastery, for this site was once occupied by the monastery, of the Knights Templars, and only became associated with the Law in the 14th century. London does not possess many ancient landmarks, for everything that stood in the way of modern progress has been ruthlessly swept away; but the secluded and self-contained Temple hasbeen preserved unaltered in its medieval form. Its courts, halls, residences, and its wonderfully well-preserved 12th century church, hold so many impressions and surprises for the visitor at every turn that a visit to the Temple becomes unforgettable. Indeed, Temple Inn is one of the most worth-while “sights” in the world. To mention only a few of its historical and other interesting associations—William Shakespeare performed in its Hall; Dr. Johnson, Oliver Goldsmith, Thackeray, and other famous men lived in the Temple; and many world-famous lawyers, including Lord Reading, Lord Oxford and others had their chambers here.
Gray’s Inn—Lincoln’s Inn
    Naturally, everything in the Temple is designed for the convenience of lawyers, from the charming little bookshop where they can browse undisturbed among dusty law books, to the shop of the famous wigmaker, where barristers and judges order their wigs to-day, just as their predecessors did centuries ago; and from the Hall where the disciples of the Law gather for their meals—ceremonial or otherwise—to the tennis courts on the Embankment side, laid amidst flower beds which further enhance the peculiar charm of the Temple.
    Gray’s Inn, another of the Inns of Court, is no less charming; Lincoln’s Inn, on the other hand, has been somewhat disfigured by a few unsuccessful imitations of its lovely Tudor buildings.
    The buildings of Fleet Street screen a whole maze of courts and alleys. For instance, if, after visiting London’s oldest inn, “Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese”, you pass through Wine Office Court, you will find yourself in a bewildering maze of streets, whose buildings present nothing remarkable but which give a true picture of Old London.
Deserted at Night
    It will be clear even from these few hints that Fleet Street and its environment comprise one of the most interesting parts of London. However, in order to appreciate the atmosphere and contrasts of this area, it is best to visit Fleet Street on a weekday. This equally applies to the rest of the City, whose true character canonly be observed during working hours. From 7 p.m. from Monday till Friday, and from 12 midday on Saturday, the whole of the City rapidly loses its two million temporary inhabitants and assumes the character of a quiet provincial town on a Sunday afternoon. Naturally, the newspaper offices never cease their activities, but otherwise the streets are deserted, so that the City policemen on their beats must indeed feel lonely. Where only an hour ago hundreds of thousands of people filled the pavements, or were picking their way dangerously through dense motor traffic, it is now not unsafe to stand in the middle of the road and read a newspaper.
Back to the Bus
    The reader may now comment with justified irony on the writer’s forgetfulness and ask what has happened to the bus with which we have travelled thus far? Well, the writer can do no other than admit that, unable to resist the temptations of Fleet Street, he has left the bus at this point. This will enable him to pay attention to many a thing which he might otherwise have forgotten, and which will undoubtedly be of interest to the foreign visitor. For instance, there is the venerable building of the most venerated newspaper in the world,
The Times
, and the headquarters of the various other newspapers, only three of which we have mentioned so far. Fleet Street sends many millions of newspapers every day not only all over Great