homely period of the past. There are no bedrooms to-day in the inn,
nor are there any comfortable so-called sitting- or coffee-rooms,
for all the available space is required for satisfying the hungry
city man.

The history of the "George and Vulture" goes back some centuries.
Originally it was the London lodging of Earl Ferrers, and in 1175
a brother of his was slain there in the night. It was then called
simply the "George," and described by Stow, the great historian of
London, as "a common hostelry for travellers."

[illustration: The "George and Vulture." Drawn by L. Walker]

Ultimately the "Vulture," for reasons undiscovered by the present
writer, was added to the sign, and the appellation the "George and
Vulture" has come through the history of London unaltered, gathering
with the flight of time many famous associations to keep its memory
green in each succeeding period, until Mr. Pickwick put the
coping-stone to its fame as one of London's imperishable heritages.

Poets and literary men of all degrees frequented it from the
earliest times, and although there is no record available to
substantiate a claim that the great Chaucer used the house,
it seems possible that his father, who was himself a licensed
victualler in the district, knew it well. But John Skelton, the
satirical poet of the fifteenth century, undoubtedly enjoyed
its hospitality, for he has left record in the following lines
that he was acquainted with it:
Intent on. signs, the prying eye,
The George & Vulture will descry.