Thames

Thames (the River) commences at Thames Head, near Cirencester, and runs about 200 miles before it reaches the sea.

The most interesting part of it, for Londoners, commences at Oxford, on which the undergraduates of that University have their practice, hold their races, and prepare their crew for the great inter. University boat. race between Putney and Mortlake every spring.

The river runs from Oxford to Abingdon on to Wallingford, Goring, Pangbourne, Reading, Henley, Great Marlow, Cookham, Maidenhead, and Windsor. All these places are delightful river resorts, and attract huge numbers of boating men and parties during the summer. The regattas during the season are largely patronized, especially Henley, which is regarded as the red. letter day or days of the boating season.

Hotels on this part of the river are numerous, and a few days' holiday spent here is delightful. Closer London the river, too, is very pleasant, from Windsor to Staines, Kingston, Molesey, Hampton Wick up to Richmond. There are 32 locks from Oxford to London, and the distance by river is 93 miles.

River steamers run from London to Hampton Court during the summer season, leaving London Bridge about 9. 30 at a cheap fare, passing Chelsea, Putney, Barnes, Mortlake, Richmond and Kew.

Below bridge on the Thames has much interest to those who like shipping and the busy scene of such an important trading port as London.

Through the Tower Bridge (a great utility and ornament of London), with the ancient Tower close by, on to Wapping, with the huge docks, then to Limehouse Reach, the West India and Millwall Docks and the Isle of Dogs, past Blackwall to Greenwich, with its Hospital and Naval College and Observatory, to Woolwich, with its Arsenal, Erith, Gravesend, Tilbury, Sheerness to the Nore, where it joins the sea.