Within the last fifty years the progress of Birmingham in wealth and population has been great and rapid. The annual increase of the population is about 9000, and the number of houses built every year about 2500. The annual rateable value is about £700,000. The population in 1801 amounted to 73,670; in 1831, 142,251; in 1841, 182,922; in 1851, 232,841. It is calculated that the present population cannot be under 280,000. With the increase of population the town experiences a corresponding growth. Along with the material growth of the town there is a growing regard for architectural beauty, both in public and private buildings; and each year sees something done to improve Birmingham in this respect. Birmingham forms a centre of railway communication with every part of the kingdom. It has been named by Burke "the toy shop of Europe." Many of its "toys" are used in the most serious of all games. Among its manufactures are, guns and pistols, swords, steam-engines, plate and plated wares, jewellery, glass, buckles and buttons, cast-iron articles, japannery, steel-pens, papier maché, ornamental articles in brass and bronze, locks, toys, etc.

Many names of note are connected with Birmingham, the most of them by residence. Richard Smallbroke, bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, was born here in the beginning of last century, and distinguished himself by his works in refutation of Woolston. James Watt, the inventor of the steam-engine, having in 1775 entered into partnership with Mr. Boulton of Soho, here developed the wondrous powers of the agent which was so soon to revolutionize the world. He died in 1819. About this time Birmingham had not a few eminent men among its residents, as may be seen from the following extract from M. Arago-" Birmingham, when Watt went to settle at Soho, could reckon among the inhabitants of its neighbourhood-Priestley, whose name says everything; Darwin, the author of the Zoonomia,' and of a well-known poem on the Loves of the Plants;' Withering, an eminent physician and botanist; Keir, a chemist, distinguished by his notes on his translation of Macquer, and by an interesting paper on the crystallization of glass; Galton, to whom we owe an elementary treatise on ornithology; Edgeworth, the author of various works, justly esteemed, and the father of Miss Maria, well known to fame.' John Baskerville, the eminent type-founder and printer, though not a native, lived and died here. He spent £600 before he produced a single letter to please himself. Dibdin says of his typography :-"It is eminently beautiful; his letters are generally of a very slender

and delicate form, calculated for an octavo, or even a quarto, but not sufficiently bold to fill the space of an imperial folio, as is evident from a view of the great Bible. In the italic letters, whether capital or small, he stands unrivalled, such elegance, freedom, and perfect symmetry, being in vain to be looked for among the specimens of Aldus and Colonæus." After Baskerville's death, which occurred in 1775, bis types were purchased by a literary association in Paris for £3700, and were employed in printing a magnificent edition of the works of Voltaire. Thomas Attwood, Esq., the chief originator of the Political Union, and one of the first representatives of the newly enfranchised borough, has been already alluded to in our brief sketch of the history of the town. We may also remark here that the clergy of Birmingham, both established and dissenting, have, both in former and recent times, occupied a worthy place in connection with the literature of the country.

THE TOWN HALL is the principal architectural ornament of Birmingham. It is a magnificent specimen of Grecian architecture, and is universally admired for its thoroughly classic style. It occupies a fine site at the top of New Street. This noble building was commenced in 1832, but was not perfectly completed till 1850. It is constructed of Anglesea marble, and is the work of Messrs. Hansom and Welch. We quote its principal dimensions:

Height of the basement
Height of the columns

Diameter of the columns

Height of the capitals
Weight of each column

23 feet.

36 feet.

3 feet 6 inches.
4 feet.

26 tons.

The principal room in this splendid building is magnificent, both in size and decorations. It is open for inspection (without charge) every day except Sunday, and the tourist will do well to pay it a visit. Its dimensions are-length, 145 feet; breadth, 65 feet; height, 65 feet. It can afford comfortable sitting room for upwards of 4000 persons; and it is stated that more than once, on the occasion of great political gatherings, at least 10,000 people have stood beneath its roof. The decorations are of the most elegant and tasteful description. The lower part of the walls is painted grey, toned with red and yellow; the upper part being enamelled in imitation of Sienna marble. The pilasters are richly gilt, strict attention being paid to classical models in their various details. The gallery fronts are in bronze and gold, and are

lined with crimson cloth. The covered sides of the roof are divided into recessed panels, and are adorned with the egg and tooth moulding, and richly gilt and painted. The ceiling is divided into three compartments, each inclosing a large circle, and divided into deeply recessed radiating panels, diminishing in size towards the centre of the circle. The gilding and painting of the ceiling are very gorgeous. In the centre of each circular compartment is a magnificent sunlight gas-burner. At the back of the orchestra is a splendid organ, said to be unsurpassed by any in Europe. It was built by Hill of London, and cost between £3000 and £4000. This organ, which is the property of the Governors of the General Hospital, was erected for the Triennial Musical Festivals, which are held here for the benefit of that institution. Its weight is about 45 tons; and its trackers, if laid out in a straight line, would extend above five miles. The orchestra is further adorned with a colossal bust of Mendelssohn.

On the ground-floor there is a room similar in size to the one already described. The building contains numerous other apartments. Both of the large rooms are let for public meetings and entertainments.

In the immediate neighbourhood of the Town Hall is a

STATUE OF SIR ROBERT PEEL, finely executed in bronze by Mr. Peter Hollins of Birmingham. It was publicly inaugurated, as the inscription on its base states, August 27, 1855. The only other monument at present erected, that calls for special mention, occupies a site near the entrance of Moor Street in the area above St. Martin's Church. This is

NELSON'S STATUE, in bronze, by Westmacott, a work worthy of that well-known sculptor. It was inaugurated

25th October 1809.

THE MARKET HALL, which extends from High Street to Worcester Street, is a vast building in the Grecian style. An Act of Parliament was procured for its erection in 1828, but it was not begun till 1833. It cost about £67,261. It has twelve entrances, the principal one being that towards High Street. The entire length of this building is 365 feet; the width 108; the height 60. Its area (4380 square yards) affords accommodation for 600 stalls. The commodities offered for sale here are, it need scarcely be said, of the most miscel

laneous description. The hall is adorned with a fine fountain, which cost upwards of £400. The Market Hall is open every day, but the principal market-day is Thursday.

THE CORN EXCHANGE, also situated in High Street, was completed in 1847, at a cost of £6000. In its external appearance there is nothing to attract admiration; but its interior, which is of the Italian Doric style, is very elegant.

ST. MARTIN'S CHURCH is the oldest ecclesiastical edifice in Birmingham, but the date of its original foundation and the name of its founder cannot be ascertained. The present structure is supposed to belong to the early part of the thirteenth century. It has undergone various alterations, the principal one being in 1690, when the church and tower were cased with brick. In 1781 part of the spire was rebuilt, forty feet of it having been injured with lightning. Five years later upwards of £4000 were expended on alterations and repairs on the church, especially in the interior; when little respect was shown to the ancient monuments which it contained. In 1849 a proposal to restore the church was made public, and about £5000 collected for the purpose; but the work was not begun till 1854. During the operations various interesting discoveries were made. The mouldings and other architectural ornaments, though much deteriorated by the effects of time and weather upon a soft friable stone, were found to have been extremely beautiful. Mr. Hardwick of London, the architect to whom the work has been entrusted, referred the oldest part of the tower to about the year 1180, the upper part and the spire being at least a hundred years more recent. In two arched recesses, discovered at the foot of this tower, were found several skeletons in a tolerable state of preservation.

The church contains some curious ancient monuments of the De Birmingham family, more or less defaced. After long experiencing injury and neglect, these monuments were restored in 1846. Hutton, the historian of Birmingham, has remarked that even Westminster Abbey, famous for departed glory, cannot produce a monument of equal antiquity. The oldest of them, that in the fifth window opening of the south aisle, is supposed to represent Sir William de Birmingham, who distinguished himself in foreign service in the reign of Edward I. Next in antiquity to this is an effigy, supposed to represent another member of the family of the same name,

who lived in the reigns of Edward II. and III. A third tomb bears the image of a knight in plate armour, said to represent John de Birmingham, Sheriff of Warwick and Leicester shires in 1379, as well as knight of the shire in the parliament held at Westminster in 1382. He built the two western towers of York Cathedral about 1402. Another very interesting monument is the effigy of an ecclesiastic, on a high altar tomb of alabaster. It is supposed to represent one of the members of the family of Marrow, upon whom the lordship was conferred by the crown after the execution of the Earl of Warwick. This has been pronounced by an authority in such matters to be one of the most curious monumental effigies extant. The church is adorned with some fine stained glass, and is well worthy of inspection. It can accommodate upwards of 2000 persons.

ST. PHILIP'S CHURCH, the other parish church, is a handsome and much admired structure, in the mixed Italian style. It was commenced in 1711, and finished in 1719. It will be observed from the steeple and cupola that the architect has been to some extent indebted for his design to St. Paul's, London. This edifice occupies the most elevated spot in the town, and a fine view of Birmingham may be obtained from the top of its steeple.

There are numerous other churches deserving of notice. Among them may be mentioned Christ Church, in New Street, Grecian in style, with a lofty portico and spire; St. George's, near Snowhill, decorated Gothic, with a fine tower, opened in 1822; Holy Trinity Chapel, Bordesley, with a noble Gothic arch for its entrance; and St. Thomas's, at Holloway Head, in the Grecian style, with a portico of six Ionic columns, surmounted by a tower 130 feet high. According to the census of 1851, Birmingham has 25 places of worship in connection with the Established Church, containing a total of 30,813 sittings. The number of places of worship belonging to the different denominations of dissenters is 67, containing 35,871 sittings. The Wesleyan Methodists have 13 chapels; other Methodists, 10; Independents, 12; Roman Catholics, 4; Presbyterians, 1. The Roman Catholic Cathedral, in Bath Street, erected at a cost of about £290,000, and consecrated in 1838, will be found worthy of inspection. The sacristan lives in the immediate neighbourhood.

The General Cemetery and the Church of England Cemetery, both in the vicinity of Warstone Lane in the suburbs on the north-west side of the town, are laid out with much taste.