[Illustration: SAVED.]
The place from which the child fell was the corner of the pier head, in the foreground of the picture, where you see the post, just beyond the stone steps.
There is a boat pulling off from the vessel to the rescue of the little girl in the foreground, to the left; but its assistance will not be required.
Now, Rollo's chief interest in going to see the docks was the anticipation of witnessing scenes and incidents of this and other kinds; but Mr. George expected to be most interested in the docks themselves.
The construction of the docks was indeed a work of immense magnitude, and the contrivers of the plan found that there were very great difficulties to be surmounted before it could be carried into effect. It was necessary, of course, that the place to be selected should be pretty low land, and near the river; for if the land was high, the work of excavating the basins would have been so much increased as to render the undertaking impracticable. It was found on examination that all the land that was near the river, and also near the city, and that was in other respects suitable for the purpose, was already occupied with streets and houses. These houses, of course, had all to be bought and demolished, and the materials of them removed entirely from the ground, before the excavations could be begun.
Then, too, some very solid and substantial barrier was required to be constructed between the excavated basins made and the bank of the river, to prevent the water of the river from bursting in upon the workmen while they were digging. In such a case as this they make what is called a coffer dam, which is a sort of dam, or dike, made by driving piles close together into the ground, in two rows, at a little distance apart, and then filling up the space between them with earth and gravel. By this means the water of the river can be kept out until the digging of the basins is completed.
The first set of docks that was made was called the West India Docks. They were made about the year 1800. Very soon afterwards several others were commenced; and now there are five. The following table gives the names of them, with the number of acres enclosed within the walls of each:-
NAMES. ACRES.
West India Docks, 295
East India Docks, 32
St. Catharine's Docks, 24
London Docks, 90
Commercial Docks, 49
If you wish to form a definite idea of the size of these docks, you must fix your mind upon some pretty large field near where you live, if you live in the country, and ask your father, or some other man that knows, how many acres there are in it. Then you can compare the field with some one or other of the docks according to the number of acres assigned to it in the above table.
If you live in the city, you must ask the number of acres in some public square. Boston Common contains forty-eight acres.
St. Catharine's Docks contain only twenty-four acres; and yet more than a thousand houses were pulled down to clear away a place for them, and about eleven thousand persons were compelled to remove.
Most of the docks are now entirely surrounded by the streets and houses of the city; so that there is nothing to indicate your approach to them except that you sometimes get glimpses of the masts of the ships rising above the buildings at the end of a street. The docks themselves, and all the platforms and warehouses that pertain to them, are surrounded by a very thick and high wall; so that there is no way of getting in except by passing through great gateways which are made for the purpose on the different sides. These gateways are closed at night.
Mr. George and Rollo, when the time arrived for visiting the docks, held a consultation together in respect to the mode of going to them from their lodgings at the West End.
Of course the docks, being below the city, were in exactly the opposite direction from where they lived-Northumberland Court. The distance was three or four miles.
"We can go by water," said Mr. George, "on the river, or we can take a cab."
"Or we can go in an omnibus," said Rollo. "Yes, uncle George," he added eagerly, "let us go on the top of an omnibus."
Mr. George was at first a little disinclined to adopt this plan; but Rollo seemed very earnest about it, and finally he consented.
"We can get up very easily," said he; "and when we are up there we can see every thing."
"I am not concerned about our getting up," said Mr. George. "The difficulty is in getting down."
However, Mr. George finally consented to Rollo's proposal; and so, going out into the Strand, they both mounted on the top of an omnibus, and in this way they rode down the Strand and through the heart of London. They were obliged to proceed slowly, so great was the throng of carts, wagons, drays, cabs, coaches, and carriages that encumbered the streets. In about an hour, however, they were set down a little beyond the Tower.
"Now," said Mr. George, "the question is, whether I can find the way to the dock gates."
"Have you got a ticket?" asked Rollo.
"No," said Mr. George; "I presume a ticket is not necessary."
"I presume it is necessary," said Rollo. "You never can go any where, or get into any thing, in London, without a ticket."
"Well," said Mr. George, "we will see. At any rate, if tickets are required, there must be some way of getting them at the gate."
Mr. George very soon found his way to the entrance of the docks. It was at the end of a short street, the name and position of which he had studied out on the map before leaving home. He took care to be set down by the omnibus near this street; and by this means he found his way very easily to his place of destination.
The entrance was by a great gateway. The gateway was wide open, and trains of carts, and crowds of men,-mechanics, laborers, merchants, clerks, and seamen,-were going and coming through it.
"We need not have concerned ourselves about a ticket," said Mr. George.
"No," said Rollo. "I see."
"The entrance is as public as any street in London," said Mr. George.
So saying, our two travellers walked on and passed within the enclosures.
As soon as they were fairly in, they stopped at the corner of a sort of sidewalk and looked around. The view which was presented to their eyes formed a most extraordinary spectacle. Forests of masts extended in every direction. Near them rose the hulls of great ships, with men going up and down the long plank stairways which led to the decks of them. Here and there were extended long platforms bordering the docks, with immense piles of boxes, barrels, bales, cotton and coffee bags, bars of iron, pigs of lead, and every other species of merchandise heaped up upon them. Carts and drays were going and coming, loaded with goods taken from these piles; while on the other hand the piles themselves were receiving continual additions from the ships, through the new supplies which the seamen and laborers were hoisting out from the hatchways.
Here and there, too, the smoke and the puffing vapor of a steamer were seen, and the clangor of ponderous machinery was heard, giving dignity, as it were, to the bustle.
"So, then, these are the famous London Docks," said Mr. George.
"What a place!" said Rollo.
"I had no idea of the vast extent and magnitude of the works," said Mr. George.
"How many different kinds of flags there are at the masts of the vessels, uncle George!" said Rollo. "Look!"
"What a monstrous work it must have been," said Mr. George, "the digging out by hand of all these immense basins!"
"What did they do with the mud?" asked Rollo.
"They loaded it into scows," said Mr. George, "and floated it off, up or down the river, wherever there were any low places that required to be filled up.