81 MANCHESTER April, 1844, and the Borough is now governed by sixtoon aldermen aud forty-eight councillors, tho borough being divided into twelvo wards. It may prove interesting to not© that Salford received a charter, constituting it a froo borough, from Handle do Blundevillo, Earl of Chester, in tho reign of Henry III., and that its near neighbour, Manchester, obtained a similar charter about a century afterwards (1301), in tho reign of Edward I.,. from its baron, Thomas Grcsley, a descendant of one to whom tho manor had been givon by Roger of Poictou, who was created by William tho Con- queror lord of all the land between tho rivers Mersey and Ribble. Both charters are still in existence. Tho present area of the city of Manchester is 5,927 statute acres, and that of tho borough of Salford^lTl, the united areas being 11,098 statute acres. Man- chester now retains six representatives to tho House of Commons and Salford three, so that the combined representation constitutes a somewhat potent power within (ho walls of Parliament. In speaking of Manchester (which in this instance may be under- stood to include Salford), it is impossible to exclude from consider- ation the fact that it forms the very centre of a number of towns of groat magnitude and importance, each returning one or two members to Parliament, amongst which may bo mentioned Stockport, Staleybridge, Oldham, Ashton-uudor-Lyne, Bury, Bolton, and Rochdale. Besides these there are many other popu- lous manufacturing villages, all within a radius of some dozen miles of the city. Nearly every cotton spinner and manufacturer in these places makes Manchester his business headquarters. This circumstance adds enormously to the parliamentary and com- mercial influence and prestige of the city, and fully entitles it to be styled the great centre of cotton manufacture, and tho second city of the Empire. Perhaps no city in the provinces so nearly resembles the metropolis for bustle and excitemont, and, cer- tainly, in no provincial centre is there such inexhaustible manu- facturing facilities, such an amount of business transacted, or such influential commercial connections maintained as in Man- chester. As in the case of most large cities, the approaches to Manchester, from whichever way the traveller comes, are hardly likely to convey to him a just impression of tho Capital of the North. Should he arrive from London, four routes are open to him, all of which unite at Stockport or near it, and convey him over four miles or so of one of the busiest parts of England. On either side is a long, low expanse of fields, traversed by " cinder-paths," — paths paved, that is to say, with the clinkers from factory furnaces — and dotted with mills, weaving sheds, and cottages for the " hands." As the traveller approaches the end of his journey the houses grow thicker, the chimneys more numerous, and the atmosphere denser. Much the same impression is received by the traveller who approaches Manchester from the north, west, or south. In each case similar features present themselves — industrial activity, mills and factories, ironworks and coal pits innumerable, coinfortable- looking cottages, and a smoky and somewhat curiously oppressive atmosphere. However, when tho heart of the city is reached the sense of monotony wears off. Even those who arrive by road have to pass through much the same experience. On one side, indeed, there is little change until the voyager has passed the fuliginous town of Oldham. The other roads out of Manchester take one into pleasant suburbs, but ho who would reach the rural villages of Northenden, Cheadle, Didsbury, or Stretford must first pass through the regions of Old Garrett and tho lower end of the Oxford Road, whilst Eccles and its neighbourhood are approached through the fashionable thoroughfare of Deansgate. Highei Broughton with its pleasant villas, Kersal Moor with its pure air, and pleasant, sociable Cheetham Hill and Prestwich— inost attractive and select suburbs — are separated from tho city by tho loss inviting locality of Strangeways. Every black spot and unsavoury district within tho municipal boundaries is being rapidly purified and beautified. No peoplo iu England are more ready to display a really generous liberality in all matters which concorn their town than those of Manchester. Of this wo shall have something to say in its propor place. At present wo aro concerned only with externals. Manchester is a city of anomalies. It is at once the newest and the oldest of English towns ; it is the centre of a vast manufacturing district, and yet is not strictly speaking a manufacturing town ; it is one of the plainest, and at the same time one of tho handsomest, cities of tho kingdom; one of the richest, and yet one of the poorest; it is a Cathedral city, yet a stronghold of Dissent; it has an enormous Roman Catholic population, and is one of the most Protestant towns in the kingdom ; and finally, it has in proportion to its population probably more teetotalers than any other town, and yet much strong liquor is consumed within its limits. The late Mr. W. Harrison Ainsworth says in his preface to " Tho Manchester Rebels of the Fatal 45," " Little of the old town is now left. The lover of antiquity — if any such should visit Manchester — will search in vain for those picturesque black-and-white timber habitations, with pointed gables and latticed windows, that were common enough seventy years ago. Entire streets embellished by such houses have been swept away by the course of modern improve- ment, but I recollect them well." At tho samo time within the town of Manchester the number of factories is yearly decreasing. There is still a forest of chimneys, and the atmosphere is, perhaps, as thick with smoke as ever, but the chimneys which give it forth are those of warehouse steam engines and occasional ironworks. Under the municipal government of Manchester— which, bo it said by the way, is administered on tho whole in a most admirable fashion — very large sums have been expended on beautifying the city, whilst private enterprise and the public spirit of the inhabit- ants have done almost, if not quite, as much for the improvement of the place. The change within tho last thirty years has been something magical. In the " sixties" the well-known street called Deansgate was a narrow, dirty lane, not at all prepossessing, imposing, or attractive. To-day Deansgate is one of the hand- somest thoroughfares in England. The old Town Hall has been replaced by a magnificent new building in Albert Square, which is amongst the finest, if not absolutely the finest, in Europe. Manchester, too, boasts Assize and Police Courts such as are to be found nowhere else ; while the new Royal Exchange is, except tor one or two matters of detail, tho most imposing and grandiose edifice of the kind in England. THE HISTORY OF MANCHESTER possesses a degree of interest even for those who are not fortunate enough to be natives of the place. It was a town of some consequence in the reign of Henry VIII. During the sixteenth century it largely increased its trade, and became celebrated as the headquarters of the woollen industry. Fustians, baizes, and druggets were largely manufactured, and there were some other minor products. It was not, however, until the cotton trade fairly took root in England that Manchester attained its position of importance. Now the Capital of Cotton is the centre of the most thickly-populated district in the country. A circle of twenty miles radius drawn round the town includes a population of several millions. In point of fact the population and extent of the city are daily increasing. Day by day and week by week the neighbouring towns are approaching more and more
