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The dearness of house-rent in London arises, not only from those

causes which render it dear in all great capitals, the dearness

of labour, the dearness of all the materials of building, which

must generally be brought from a great distance, and, above all,

the dearness of ground-rent, every landlord acting the part of a

monopolist, and frequently exacting a higher rent for a single

acre of bad land in a town, than can be had for a hundred of the

best in the country; but it arises in part from the peculiar

manners and customs of the people, which oblige every master of a

family to hire a whole house from top to bottom. A dwelling-house

in England means every thing that is contained under the same

roof. In France, Scotland, and many other parts of Europe, it

frequently means no more than a single storey. A tradesman in

London is obliged to hire a whole house in that part of the town

where his customers live.