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October 8th. Father went to the worlds fair, and as mother Lill and I did not feel very well, we remained in the house. Father got into the fair building about nine o-clock, and had a fine uninterrupted time before the crowd got so great. He saw several interesting things which we had missed before, and was more pleased than any day yet. In the afternoon we went to see "Westminster Abbey, which is an old gothic building, extremely dirty outside, the under part of the ornaments and all the features, is black with coal smoke, and the tops washed clean showing the light gray stone, which gives a very peculiar appearance. The inside is filled with tombs, tablets and monuments with statues some of the latter however being very bad. We saw the stone on which the old Scotch Kings were crowned. It is about a foot square and two feet high, and pretty well worn. We also saw a monument to Mary Queen of Scotts, and one to Edward the third, of soft sand stone which 

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had weathered and pieces broken off, and was covered with dust. There is a fine statue of James Walt. We were in Henry the fourth's chappel and saw the stalls and arms of the Knights. We were through Edward the confessors chappel, which was like the rest of the building very dirty and all cluttered up. Father was very much disappointed to find the whole building so dirty and being of a soft sand stone, it is very much broken & crumbled. We next went to see the new houses of parliament, which are just being built. They are of Gothic design, and as far as we can judge, of very good workmanship. We were in the room in which Charles the first was tried. It is 270 feet long, upwards of 70 wide and over 90 high. They say it is the largest room in Europe, without columns to support the ceiling. The walls are plane, and the ceiling of oak, with great arched framing all of which is the natural wood oiled. We returned by Trafalgar Square. Saw