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THIS volume aims to give scrupulously exact descriptions of
life and scenes in the great metropolis under three differ¬
ent aspects: 1st, "As Seen by a Woman;" 2d, "As Seen by
a Journalist;" 3d, "As Seen and Known by the Chief of the
New York Detective Bureau." It was essential that each of
the writers selected for this undertaking should possess a thor¬
ough practical knowledge of the subject, combined with ability
to describe what they have seen and experienced.

The first division was assigned to Mrs. Helen Campbell,
whose life has been spent in New York city, and whose well-
known sympathies for the poor and unfortunate, combined
with long experience in city missionary work and charitable
enterprises, peculiarly fitted her for this portion of the work.
Her interest in missions and her labors among the lower classes
have brought her face to face with squalor and misery among
the hopelessly poor, as well as with degraded men and women
in their owa homes; while her ready sympathy gained for her
access to their hearts, and thus gave her a practical insight into
their daily life possessed by few. Who but a woman could
describe to women the scenes of sin, sorrow, and suffering
among this people that have presented themselves to her wo-.
manly eye and heart ?

To Ool. Thomas W. Knox was assigned the task of delineat¬
ing phases of city life that a trained journalist of many years'
experience in New York is more familiar with than almost any
other person.    To the advantages of his facile pen and quick