Industrial explorings in and around London - 1896 - PREFACE - IN days of yore two men rode into a certain market-place from opposite directions, and it chanced that they halted on either side of a shield that was set up on high there, though what earthly use it could serve in that position I am at a loss to understand. Cc Good morning, said the first travellei, pleasantly. CC Charming weather for this time of the year. cc Lovely, rejoined the other. cc I was just admiring this quaint old silver shield. Call you tell me what it signifies Well, I should say it chiefly signifies that youare an ass to take a bit of wrought iron for sterling silver, retorted the other, brusquely. I expect he was a humorist. And then they proceeded to argue the matter in the blunt,, old-fashioned manner that inspired respect, even if it did not always carry conviction. As a matter of fact, the shield was of brass, tarnished on one side and tinned on the other. Now I also have set up a shield in the market-place, and I want you all to ride out in your thousands and buy it, and read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest it, and make presents of it to your friends, relatives, and acquaintances, and tell everybody what a really excellent shield it is. Only beware It is a two-sided shield and lest you should go astray over it, I will tell you that it has the silver of humour on the one side, and the iron of hard fact on the other, and if you drill through you may come tpon some solid metal of good sterling quality underneath. If you do, I hope you will let me know. It will surprise me rather but the gratification I shall obtain will more than compensate me for the shock, August, 1895. l T 1 Prologue . . . . . . ... ... . . xi In Piano-Land . . . . . ... . . . 1 In Rope-Land . . . . . . . . . . . . ... 2 3 In Tram-Land . . . . . . ... ... ... 4-3 I11 Candle-Land . . ... . . . . . 3 In Gas-Land . . . ... ... ... . . . 8 In Paper-Land . . . ... ... ... 111 In Soap-Land ... . . ... ... ... 1 34 In Pottery-Land ... . . ... ... ... 160 In Alatcli-Land ... ... . . . . . . . l. In Rnb11e1.-Land ... ... . . . ... ... 211 I11 Wire-Land ... ... ... ... ... .- 3 t I11 Sweet-Land ... ... ... ... ... 2ci4 PROLOGUE. THE travelling instinct has always been more or less strong upon me, and at one time I used to look forward to the day when I should spurn the sand of Saharas desert, which makes good, soft spurning material I have been led to understand, and tread mighty continents and untoured lands. As a matter of fact, I suppose, when the time came, I should do the continental treading in a railway train, as being less tiring and more practicable but that is the way I used to think about it and dream a, bout it. We never realise our ideals on this earth. The nearest point I have as yet reached to the Sahara is Jersey, and anything between Edinburgh and the North Pole is uiltraversed ground so far as I personally am concerned. But quite recently the compensating balance of life, which maintains the worlds equilibrium, indicated a sphere wherein I might exercise my bent, on a somewhat contracted scale, truly-a sort of parlour-billiards, so to speak-but with pleasure to myself and profit, I trust, in all that humility which is so conspicuou a feature in my character, to my readers. That same compensating balance, by the way, is a wonderful dispensation... --This text refers to the Paperback edition.