One more ’lost river’ remains on our list, the Falcon Brook, which, rising on the south side of Balham Hill, flowed almost due north between Clapham and Wandsworth Commons to Battersea Rise, which it crossed, after which it turned sharply to the west, ran along Lavender Road, crossed the York Road, and discharged itself into the Thames through Battersea Creek, which is all that now remains of the river, except the underground sewer which represents its former course. Once many pleasant villas stood on its banks; at the present day the entire valley through which it flowed is covered by one of the densest masses of dingy streets to be seen anywhere near London. Nothing remains to recall even its name, except the Falcon Road, and a newly-erected public-house which has supplanted the original Falcon, a somewhat rustic building, which, however, harmonized well with the then surroundings, which were of a perfectly rural aspect, such as, looking at the present scene, we can scarcely realize. But it can be seen in a rare print of the river, engraved by S. Rawle, after an original drawing by J. Nixon. He was an artist, who, passing the Falcon, which was then kept by a man named Robert Death, saw a number of undertaker’s men regaling themselves after a funeral on the open space in front of the inn. They were not only eating and drinking and smoking, but indulging in various antics, endeavouring to make the maids of the inn join in their hilarity. This scene, and the queer coincidence of the landlord’s strange name, induced Nixon to make a sketch of it, which was engraved and published in 1802, the following lines from Blair’s poem ’The Grave’ being added to the print: ’But see the well-plumed hearse comes nodding on, Stately and slow, and properly attended By the whole sable tribe, that painful watch The sick man’s door, and live upon the dead, By letting out their persons by the hour To mimic sorrow, when the heart’s not sad.’ A cantata was also published about the same time, supposed to be sung by undertakers’ merry men, to celebrate the pleasure and benefit of burying a nabob, and drink to their ’...next merry meeting and quackery’s increase!’