X.. '--\" S- ^ ^^^^ '^' /^ ■.■/■ 1 . -<:■ s i . vl' J \: « OLD TIMES. f^ashions for l]9J OLD TIMES H picture of Social %\tc at tbc £\\t> of tbe jEigbtcentb Century COLLECTED, 'AND ILLUSTRATED FROM THE SATIRICAL AND OTHER SKETCHES OF THE: DAY JOHN ASHTON AUTHOR OF "social LIFE IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN ANNE' ETC. ETC. aaHitf) €iG!)tp-ct8l)t 31Hu0tration0 LONDON JOHN C NIMMO 14, KING WILLIAM STREET, STRAND, W.C. 1885 DECORATIVE ART DECUKATJVe 1 \/^' D PREFACE. ,m:F the period of whieh this book treats, there have 1^:1^1 J been political histories, and scurrilous books written anent the Royal Family, ad nauseam .• and the Diaries which have been published, bearing on this time, deal only with the acts, and sayings, of the higher classes — leaving the life of the vastly greater proportion of the population — the middle classes — un- touched. No better source of information as to their mode of living, their amusements, the tattle, and passing follies of the times, can possibly be found, than in the Newspapers of the day ; and I selected the commence- ment of the Times, i Jan. 1788, as the starting point of a picture of the Social Life at the end of the Eighteenth Century. The copies of the Times, however, are very imperfect, — nay, in some years, totally missing — until 1/93 -1794 — from which date they are perfect ; so that, when any- thing noteworthy occurred, I have drawn from another source ; and, to establish the undoubted authenticity of each quotation, I have given the title of the Newspaper, with its date. 591 vi Preface. The daily Newspapers of those times were totally different to those to which we are accustomed. The absence of Railways, Steamships, and Electric Tele- graphs, combined with a very high rate of Postage, pre- vented the publication of all News, either from foreign or provincial sources, except it were of real importance ; and, as the daily sheets must be filled, it followed, as a matter of course, that a substitute was found in detailing the social life of the Metropolis — and the daily Newspapers, which now give us the latest news from all parts of the globe — had to be filled with social paragraphs, anecdotal, satirical, or otherwise. They were as open to correction, or contradiction, then, as now ; so that we may put trust in them ; and when these paragraphs are collected, and somewhat classified, they afford a view of the daily life of the period, such as is utterly unattainable else- where. This collection must, of necessity, be valuable to the student of those times, besides being of great interest to the general reader. The difficulty of obtaining contemporary illustrations, fitted for this work, from books, or pictures, has com- pelled me to draw freely on the satirical prints of the period — which are abundant, and perfectly well suited to the purpose, if the reader will only bear in mind, that they are sometimes a little exaggerated. Still, on the whole, they so truthfully represent the manners, costume, &c., of the age, that they could not be omitted ; and that they are faithful reproductions of the originals, I can guarantee, for I drew them all myself. JOHN ASHTON. CONTENTS. introduction . men's dress women's dress . navy and army social economy gaming, etc. the theatre . opera and ballet masquerades, concerts, monetary . law and police political . ROYALTY . VARIETIES . ETC. I 51 69 80 114 166 187 204 243 280 293 297 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. EDMUND BURKE . THE prince's bow TIGHT-LACING, 1 7 88 . MACARONIS, 1789 A JESSAMY, 1790 A CHOICE SPIRIT — A BUCK A SMART, 1790 . A RAIN-BEAU JIMMY LINCUM FEADLE, 1 79 1 A SCARAMOUCH . APING THE FRENCHMAN NECK OR NOTHING— A BACK VIEW OK THE CAPE, A SPENCER AND A THREAD PAPER, 1 792 "A JEAN DEBRY" (mR. SKEFFINGTON) FRENCH TAILOR FITTING JOHN BULL WITH DEBRY " A COTILLION, 1788 . FASHIONS FOR 1788. . INDOOR COSTUMES, I 7 88 THE DUCHESS OF YORK THE DUCHESS 179 JEAN PAGE 16 51 51 53 54 54 55 56 56 56 57 57 63 66 66 69 69 70 70 70 List of Illustrations. THE THE 1796 FRAILTIES OF FASHION, 1 793 THE HEIGHT OF FASHION, 1 793 THE TOILETTE, NO. I . DO. NO. 2 . DO. NO. 3 . A SCARECROW, 1793 . "shepherds! I HAVE LOST MY WAIST " 1794 FOLLOWING THE FASHION, " ST. JAMEs's GIVING TON " FOLLOWING THE FASHION, " CHEAPSIDE APING MODE " CROPS A LADY PUTTING ON HER CAP, 1 795 . CHARACTERS IN HIGH LIFE A MODERN BELLE GOING TO THE ROOMS OR CALLS waggoner's FROCK, OR NO BODYS OF 1 795 THE FASHION, DEC. 1 795 .... FASHIONABLE MODESTY, 1 796 HIGH CHANGE IN BOND STREET, 1 7 96 FASHIONS FOR 1 797 (SEE FRONTISPIECE) . MY POLL, AND MY PARTNER JOE, 1 796 BRITISH LADIES PATRIOTIC PRESENTS TO THE 1793 KIDNAPPING, OR A DISGRACE TO OLD ENGLAND MODERN MODE OF BEATING UP FOR VOLUNTEERS HEROES RECRUITING AT KELSEY's, 1 797 INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. I . DO. NO. 2, SIR F. JOHNSTON AN LADY, LORD BATHURST, MAJOR TOPHAM INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. 3, SIR GEORGE VOUN LADY INSTALLATION SUPPER, NO. 4, LORD AMHERST DO. NO. 5, LORD SANDWICH, DR BRILLAND, DR. PAIR ARMY G AN PAGE 70 70 71 71 71 71 72 73 74 73 73 75 75 75 76 76 76 78 80 95 99 104 108 114 114 114 114 114 List of Illustrations. THE ASSESSED TAXES TAKING THEIR DEPARTURE JOHN BULL AND THE INCOME TAX A PRETTY BAR MAID A LADY AT A CARD PARTY WHO DOES NOT PLAY GAMBLING, I 792 A KICK UP AT A HAZARD TABLE, NO. I, 1790 DO. NO. ?, T790 MODERN HOSPITALITY DIVIDING THE SPOIL, ST. JAMES'S, 1 796 DO. ST. GILES'S, 1 796 FARO's DAUGHTERS .... DISCIPLINE A LA KENYON, 1 797 THE THEATRE 1788 MACKLIN AS " SHYLOCK -HOLMAN AS "RICHARD POPE AS "hotspur" — JOHNSTONE AS " APOLLO " QUICK AS "scrub" — RYDER AS " FALSTAFF " KEMBLE AS " HAMLET " — KEMBLE AS " LEAR " . MRS. BELLAMY — MRS. ABINGTON AS " LAPPET " . MRS. SIDDONS AS " ANDROMACHE" — MRS. JORDAN AS "viola" MRS. BILLINGTON AS " ROSETTA " — MRS. MARTYR AS "euphrosyne" miss brunton as " juliet " — miss field as " ariel at the opera — at church .... the celebrated mademoiselle g — m — rd BALLET AT THE KING's THEATRE — PANTHEON, I 79 1 THE OPERATICAL FINALE TO THE BALLET OF " ALONZO E CARO " MDLLE PARISOT ....... DURHAM MUSTARD TOO POWERFUL FOR ITALIAN CAPERS 1798 ECCLESIASTICAL SCRUTINY, OR, THE DURHAM INQUEST ON DUTY, 1798 MADAME CORNELYS ...... XI PAGE 132 135 166 166 167 167 16S 177 177 177 179 187 190 190 190 190 190 190 190 190 204 21 I 211 212 213 213 214 217 xu List of Illiistj'ations. THE FEMALE COTERIE A COUNTRY CONCERT, OR AN EVENING'S ENTERTAIN MENT IN SUSSEX SAVOYARDS OF FASHION, 1 799 .... SEEN HOME BY THE WATCH, 1 792 THE MONSTER CUTTING A LADY, 179O . RENWICK WILLIAMS, 1790 PROTECTION FROM THE MONSTER . BOXING MADE EASY, OR HUMPHREYS GIVING A LESSON 1788 JEFFREY DUNSTAN — ORDINARY COSTUME . SIR JEFFREY DUNSTAN — COURT DRESS TREATMENT OF LUNATICS PAGE 221 225 226 243 248 256 258 274 292 293 298 Memorandum. — For binder's purposes some of the illustrations will not be found on the pages named, but a feio pages further on. OLD TIMES. LTHOUGH this book does not pretend to be a history of the times of which it treats, still, it will materially help the reader, if, at the out- set, some of the principal events which occurred during the period are succinctly narrated. We start with the year 1788 — and one of the first items of importance is the founding of the colony of New South Wales ; for Captain Phillips, on 28th January, landed the first batch of convicts, consisting of 561 men, 192 women, and 18 children, also a military force of 212 men. As soon as they were all on shore, Phillips ordered the King's Commission to be read, and assumed the office of Governor. Such was the modest foundation of our great Australian Empire. On the same day at home, Lord George Gordon, of Protestant rioting memory, was brought before the judges of the King's Bench, to receive sentence on two libels, one against the Queen of France, and another on the criminal justice of the country. His sentence for the former, was three years' imprisonment, for the latter, two years, to pay a 2 Old Times. [1788. fine of ^500, and find security for his good behaviour for fourteen years. He fled to Holland, was arrested, brought back, and lodged in Newgate. He did not live to regain his liberty, but death set him free 1st November 1793. An all-absorbing topic of conversation in this year was the trial of Warren Hastings, for his conduct whilst Governor-General of Bengal. The trial commenced on the 13th of February, and it took place in Westminster Hall, which was fitted up with a throne and canop}^ having the woolsack for the Lord Chancellor in front. On either side the throne was a private box, one for the use of the King, the other for the Queen : the King never used either throne or box, but, when he went to the trial, he went incognito. There were seats covered with green baize for the accommodation of members of the House of Commons, but all the rest of the hall was glowing with red baize. Boxes were also provided for the Ambassadors and Corps Diplomatique. The grand show commenced at eleven a.m. with the entrance of the committee appointed to manage the impeachment, all of them in full dress, followed by Burke, who headed the members of the House of Commons. Hardly had they taken their seats when a buzz of excitement filled the hall, for no one less than the Queen, attended by all her daughters, entered. She did not go to the royal box, but sat in part of the Duke of New- castle's Gallery. This attracted the attention of all, until the coming in of the peers, including the judges, and the Bishops, the string of Dukes being closed b}' the Prince of Wales (as Duke of Cornwall), and the Dukes of York, Gloucester, and Cumberland. Lord Thurlow, the Lord Chancellor, came last. The peers all wore their robes and collars, the robes of the royal 1788.] Old Times. 3 dukes being borne by pages. Then the Chancellor's mace-bearer cried " Oyez, Oyez, Oyez," and notified to all, that Warren Hastings had come to take his trial, and that his accusers might come forth and make good their charges against him. The Lord Chancellor addressed the prisoner, and told him to be prepared with his defence, to which Hastings replied, " My Lords, I am come to this high tribunal equally impressed with a con- fidence in my own integrity and in the justice of the court before which I stand." As this trial will not again be mentioned, I may state the fact, that it lasted seven years and three months, and ended in his acquittal, 17th April 1795. Another remarkable event happened in this year, for on 31st January there died at Rome, at the age of sixty- seven, the young Pretender, Prince Charles Edward Louis Casimir Stuart, grandson of James IL ; and, with him, died all hope for the Jacobite party, for he left behind him but one natural daughter, on whom he con- ferred the empty title of Duchess of Albany. It is true that he left his pretensions to the throne of England to his brother, Cardinal York, but all this Prince did to claim regal honours was to strike a medal, on which he styled himself Henry the IXth. He knew there was no use in continuing the struggle, so accepted a pension from George III., which was paid him until his death. There is little worth chronicling until we come to the (to Englishmen) most painful event of the year, namely, the King's illness. In July his physicians remarked symptoms in him which gave them grave concern, but he visited Cheltenham, and improved in his health. In October, however, rumours began to get about that all was not well. The Morning Post of 30th October 4 Old Times. [1788-9. mentions that " On 28th His Majesty complained of a pain in his bowels, and by the advice of his physicians, and the rest of His Majesty's attendants, he is not expected to leave Windsor for the course of a week or a fortnight." Next day we hear that " the chief symptom is said to be a swelling in the legs." Then news is brought, that on the 4th November he had a relapse ; on the 7th he is reported better, though, as a matter of fact, he was delirious at dinner on the 5 th. On the 9th they say he is better; on the loth he is much better, and HOPES ARE ENTERTAINED OF HIS RECOVERY. The bulletins of the nth are vague ; that of the 12th reports that he " was not better," and the newspapers of the 13th openly speak of a Regency. In the Morning Post of November 14th it plainly states that " his mental faculties were more deranged." Then his physicians quarrelled amongst them- selves as to his treatment, and wrote daily contradictory bulletins, until Dr. Willis took his patient under his sole charge, with good effect. And so ends 1788. 1789 opens with a great frost, one of the heaviest on record. It commenced on the 24th November 1788, and continued, with one intermission (from December 24th to December 26th) until 13th January 1789. On loth January the Thames at Irongate — which is below London Bridge, by the Tower, was frozen over, and several booths were erected on the ice. The day previously an ox was roasted whole, and eagerly bought by the people who were skating and sliding. The Annual Register thus describes the sight : — " The scene on the Thames is very entertaining ; from Putney Bridge upwards, the river is completely frozen over, and people walk to and from the different villages on the face of the deep. 1789.] Old Times. 5 Opposite to Windsor Street booths have been erected since Friday last, and a fair is kept on the river. Multi- tudes of people are continually passing and repassing ; puppet shows, roundabouts, and all the various amuse- ments of Bartholomew Fair are exhibited. In short, Putney and Fulham, from the morning dawn till the dusk of returning evening, is a scene of festivity and gaiety. On the I2th a young bear was baited on the ice, opposite to Redriffe (Rotherhithe), which drew multi- tudes, and fortunately no accident happened to interrupt their sport." The outward-bound vessels at Deptford and Gravesend cleared out with all despatch, lest they should be caught in the ice and detained or damaged. The usual royal gift of ;^iooo to the poor of London was this year not forthcoming, so the Prince of Wales ordered that sum to be given from his own treasury. He also sent large sums to the poor of Edinburgh and Brighton. A Bill to make the Prince of Wales Regent had been introduced in both Houses of Parliament at the latter end of 1788, but was negatived in each ; in the Commons by 251 to 178. There had been great squabbling over this Bill, especially between the rival leaders, Fox and Pitt ; the former asserting that the Prince of Wales had an absolute right to succeed to the Regency, and the latter would only admit that he had an irresistible claim. But the King did not get better, and something must be done, yet it was not thought fit to invest the Prince of Wales with altogether regal powers : there must be some limitation. Therefore Pitt wrote to His Royal Highness, detailing the plan intended to be pursued, which was, that the Queen should have the care of the King's person, and the disposition of the royal house- 6 Old Twies. [1789- hold, by which means she would enjoy the patronage of 400 places, amongst which were the offices of Lord Steward, Lord Chamberlain, and Master of the Horse : but the Prince should have no power of granting any office, reversion, or pension, for any other term than during the King's pleasure, nor might he confer any peerage. This, no doubt, was prudent, but was extremely dis- tasteful to the Prince, who wrote a dignified remonstrance to Pitt, at the end of which, however, he consented to accept the terms, being convinced of the evils which might arise were there no Regency. Fifty-five peers, together with the Dukes of York and Cumberland, signed a protest against the hmitations, but the Commons cared but little for it. They went on with their work, and, on the 1 2th February, sent up the Bill to their Lordships for consideration ; and they were debating it when the proverb of " There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip" was fulfilled. On the 19th February the Lord Chancellor announced to the House that the physicians reported that the King was rapidly recovering from his malady. On this the House adjourned, and practically no work was done, either by Lords or Commons, for three weeks. On 27th February the prayer for his recovery was discontinued, and, in its stead, a form of prayer, and thanksgiving for his restoration to health, was ordered to be read in all churches and chapels throughout England and Wales. So completely had he recovered, that he ordered Parliament to be opened by Commission, which was done on loth March. The 23rd April was appointed for a general thanksgiving, and his Majesty, accompanied by the Queen and the Royal Family, went 1789.] Old Times. 7 in solemn state to Saint Paul's, to render thanks to the Almighty for His great mercy. The following account is much condensed from the report in the Morning Post of 24th April 1789 : — " They started early, for, precisely at eight o'clock in the morn- ing, the first carriage that led the procession reached St. Clement's Church in the Strand. After the usual state pioneers, came the members of the House of Com- mons, followed by the peers according to their several degrees, then the Archbishops, and the princes of the blood royal, after whom came the Prince of Wales, whose equipage outshone all others. Their Majesties' House- hold came next, and lastly their Majesties themselves. " The Queen seemed inexpressibly happy : the loud huzzas, which from every quarter rent the air, testified to her, that he who was dearest to her was dearest to the people. "The King, as if impressed by the weight of the obligation which he owed to Heaven for his recovery, and full of the religious solemnity with which he was going, publicly, to acknowledge that obligation to the Almighty, seemed to be unusually grave and silent ; and behaved, at this first appearance in public since his recovery, in a manner which filled the spectators with reverence and awe. " His Majesty appeared to be much reduced in point of size, but he looked as if in perfect health." It was a quarter-past three when the procession, on its return, reached Temple Bar, and it was noted that the King looked more cheerful, whilst the Queen was in high spirits. London was, of course, brilliantly illuminated at night. 8 Old Times. [1789-90- This is the principal event of the year, and with it we will close 1789. As far as England, and its social cconom}', is con- cerned, 1790 is very barren. In France, there was the commencement of that dreadful revolution which terrorised all Europe, yet strangely enough all allusion to France was omitted in the Royal Speeches to Parlia- ment, either on 2 1st January or 26th November. The navy sadly wanted manning, so much so that a proclamation was issued for encouraging seamen, and landsmen, to enter themselves on board His Majesty's ships of war ; that officers on foreign stations should join their respective corps, and recalling, and prohibiting seamen from serving foreign princes, and states. This was all very well, for the fleet was in urgent need of men, owing to the number of ships being put in com- mission, and ordered to be got ready for sea with the greatest expedition : for instance — At Deptford, 3 ; „ Woolwich, 3 ; „ Chatham, 3 ; „ Sheerness, 3 ; ,, Portsmouth, 10 (one lOO, and another 98 guns) ; ,, Plymouth, 7 (one lOO another 80 guns) ; besides others which were expected to be commissioned in a few days. Ordinary means were not sufficient to provide men, and resort was made to impressment, a mode of obtain- ing seamen which is of ancient practice. In 1378 a statute of 2 Richard II. speaks of it as being well known, and so it must have been, for the first commis- sion for its use was issued 29 Edward III., 1355. In I790.] Old Times. 9 1641, Parliament declared the practice illegal, either for the land or sea service ; but this has always been ignored when the necessity for seamen arose. It has been regulated by Parliament even so lately as 1835, when, by the statute 5 and 6 William IV., compulsory service is restricted to five years. How should we feel if some day, in reading our morning paper, we should come across such a passage as the following : — " A very hot press took place in the river Thames, and at all the outports " ? — Would you like to know what a " hot press " means ? — then learn from the following excerpts from the St. James s Chronicle, May 4-6, 1790 :— " The report of the number pressed in the river on Tuesday night was delivered to the Lords of the Admiralty yesterday morning, which amounted to about 1500 taken in Wapping, and in Southwark, &c., more than 600; amounting in the whole to upwards of 2100 men, besides those at the different seaport towns, re- ports of which were not received." " Four tenders went down the river yesterday morn- ing, crowded with impressed men, to be shipped on board a vessel of war lying in Long-reach, ready to re- ceive them. The same tenders were expected up again with the return of the tide, upon the same errand." Extract of a letter from Chatham, May 5. — "Yesterday morning, between six and seven o'clock, an express arrived from the Lords of the Admiralty to Commodore Pasley, at this port, containing impress warrants : accord- ingly, a great press commenced about twelve o'clock last night, both in this town, Rochester, &c. &c., and on the river Medway, when many persons were taken, four of whom were lodged in the guardhouse in the yard, and lo Old Times, [1790-1- this morning sent on board the ' Scipio,' of 64 guns, lying as guardship at this port, and commanded by Commodore Pasley. A great press likewise commenced last night at Sheerness." " In consequence of the press warrants, stocks felt a most extraordinary depression yesterday ; the Consols opened at ^6^ and fluctuated from that price to 75^ until very nearly three o'clock." This then, was a " hot press " — but very little was ever said about it, except a passing notice. The im- pressed men themselves accepted their fate as inevi- table, and, according to the testimony of an old seaman whom I once knew (himself a pressed man), he assured me that, after the first shock was over, they set to work with a will, and did their duty as well as the volunteers. There were supposed to be exceptions, such as appren- tices, who were exempt, but I fear, when once in the hands of the pressgang, it was a very poor chance of any one's getting off. A social note worthy of being recorded, in this year, was that a man named John Frith, lieutenant of the second battalion of Royals, threw a stone at His Majesty's coach. He seems to have done no harm, and was evi- dently a lunatic, for no one in their senses would have endeavoured to injure a king who was just then in the zenith of his popularity. That he was insane the jury thought, for, on his trial for high treason on 21st May, he was acquitted as being of unsound mind, but he was put under safe watch and ward in Newgate, and only liberated on nth December 1791, on bail being given to take proper care of him. The year 1791 is remarkable for its unevcntfulness, 1 79 1.] Old Times. 1 1 nothing of national importance occurring during the twelve- month. Impressment still went on, as we see by the St. James's Chronicle, April 16-19. — " Friday night the press in the Thames, and on both sides the river, was the warmest that has been at all since press warrants were last issued. No fewer than eleven gallies were row- ing about between London Bridge and Deptford. Every one of His Majesty's frigates and sloops on Channel ser- vice, as well as those in the North Sea and on the Irish coast, have received orders to proceed upon the impress service. The smaller vessels, as soon as they have pro- cured forty seamen each, are to deliver them over to the receiving ships at Spithead and the Nore." In 1787 a societ}^ was formed in England having for its object the suppression of slavery, under the auspices of Granville Sharpe, Clarkson, and others, and Mr. Wil- berforce (by whose untiring efforts its downfall was at last obtained) joined it. On the i8th April 1791, the House of Commons resolved itself into a committee " to consider of the African slave trade." Wilberforce made an eloquent speech, in which he depicted the horrors of the trade. Among other barbarities he mentioned the whipping, and holding red-hot coals, to the mouths of those (in order to compel them to eat) who were desirous of putting an end to their existence, by starving themselves to death ; and, to prove the preference given by those unhappy creatures of death to slavery, he quoted part of the evidence, which told how they took every opportunity of leaping overboard, and that, in the agonies of death, when drowning, they would hold up their hands for joy in having escaped from their tormentors. He mentioned many cruelties which had passed unpunished, and particularly one, which was committed 12 Old Times. [1791-2- by a master upon his female slave, a girl about six years old, by cutting her mouth from car to ear ; he showed how injurious the slave trade was to our mer- cantile navy, quoting from the muster rolls of Liverpool and Bristol, that in one year, out of 12,263 seamen employed in the slave trade, 2643 had died. After many other arguments, he concluded with a motion, "That the Chairman be directed to move for leave to bring in a Bill for preventing the further impor- tation of African negroes into the British colonies and plantations." The debate was continued, and adjourned until the next day — when the battle pro slavery or its abolition waxed fierce ; but when it came to a decision, the numbers were — for the motion, 88; against, 163 — majority against the abolition, 75. 1792 opened, as we would fain have our financial years open now-a-days, with an increase of revenue over the preceding year of ;^300,ooo, and a surplus of more than ;^900,ooo, besides paying the annual million in reduction of the national debt. Pitt repealed ;^200,000 of burdensome taxes, added ^400,000 to the million to extinguish the debt, and discreetly kept the balance in hand for eventualities. Trade had vastly increased, as we may see from the following figures : — In 1783 the exports were valued at ;^I4,74I,000 ; and, in 1791, they had risen to ;^20, 1 20,000. On 2nd April, the House of Commons being in Com- mittee, Mr. Wilberforce again brought forward the question of the slave trade, and, after an eloquent speech, wound up with the motion : — " That it is the opinion of the Committee, that the trade carried on by 1792.] Old Times. 13 British subjects, for the purpose of procuring slaves from Africa, ought to be aboHshed." After a debate, Mr. Secre- tary Dundas moved as an amendment, to insert the word ^^ gradually" immediately before the word "abolished." This was carried by a majority of 6S, and the motion, so altered, being put, the numbers were — Ayes, 230 ; Noes, 85 — majority for the motion, 145. The Chairman was then ordered to move the House for leave to bring in a Bill, pursuant to the said resolution. England could not but be affected by the French Revolution. At the commencement of the movement there was some sympathy shown by the Whigs to a people who were struggling to free themselves from the trammels of despotism, but that sympathy rapidly grew cold, and faded, on witnessing the excesses committed by the people of Paris, and some other large cities, until the capture, and imprisonment of the Royal family, turned it to absolute loathing, and hatred. There was great uneasiness throughout the country as to whether the tide of anarchy might not reach us, especially as numbers of fugitives were daily reaching our shores. Take, for example, two instances quoted in the Annual Register, both of the date 12th September : — '^Southampton. — One Ayland, a fisherman of Hamble, a village about seven miles from Southampton, was fishing for lobsters on the coast of France on Thursday last, and had taken in about half his cargo, when he espied two boats full of men, seemingly in great dis- tress ; on which he bore down, and received them on board. They had swam to their boats to get away from the coast, and many of them were much bruised and pelted with stones by others on shore. They begged the fisherman to land them somewhere in 14 Old Times, [1792. England, to prevent their being murdered; which he promised to do, and offered them subsistence till he had completed his lading. They represented the danger of being intercepted, if he did not immediately proceed to sea, and offered him any sum he should ask, to land them as soon as possible. He waived his own interest, set sail, and landed them at the above village ; but with a spirit of humanity, which does honour to human nature, he absolutely refused any reward whatever, although he had not completed his fishing, which is the maintenance of his family." " Lewes. — Upwards of 500 unfortunate emigrants were, last week, landed on our coast, who have had the fury of the elements to contend with, after escaping that of their countrymen. The Brighton packets, heavily laden with them, were driven by the winds far eastward off their usual track, and with difficulty made Hastings, Pevensey, and Eastbourne. At the former place, on Wednesday morning, y6, all ecclesi- astics, came on shore, among whom were the Bishop of Auvranches, the Dean of Rouen, and several other dignitaries. The Bishop with great difficulty escaped from Auvranches by the assistance of one of his grand vicars, who, with domestics, accompanied him to Rouen, where they were for some days concealed. The popu- lace having again discovered them, they were again obliged to travel on foot, in disguise, to Dieppe. They arrived in the night, took refuge a few hours in an hotel; and, at the time appointed for the departure of the packet, ran to the sea side, and, it providentially being high water, were enabled to get out of reach of the rabble, who, in one minute after, pursued them to the shore." 1792.] Old Times. 15 Take again an extract or two from the St. Jameses Chronicle oi 11- 13th September 1792. " Between day- break and eight o'clock yesterday morning, thirteen broad-wheeled waggons, crowded with French emigrants, passed through the Borough. During the night, and the whole of yesterday forenoon, waggons, carts, and chaises, and carriages of almost every other description, continued arriving in town with emigrants, by way of Westminster, Blackfriars, and London Bridges." " It is a known fact, that upwards of forty thousand French men, women, and children, are at this moment in England : two-thirds of them of the lowest class, who, taking advantage of the convulsed state of their native country, come over under the plausible title of exiled aristocrats y " There are three powerful reasons why the very great number of arrivals here from France should excite the immediate attention of Government, One, that it may occasion a rapid rise in the price of provisions, already at a height that occasions much complaint among the lower orders of people. Second, lest under the appellation of fugitives, a multitude of insidious and evil- designing persons should intrude themselves, with the intention of raising similar disturbances in this kingdom. Third, lest it should be the means of introducing a great number of rascals, thieves, and villains, who are always cowards, and cannot have principle enough to take any side ; these, therefore, are the first to run. An inunda- tion of them, added to the bad among our own people, might not only render private property very precarious, but even prove dangerous to the state." The Government was fully alive to this great influx of Frenchmen, and the possible effect it might have on 1 6 Old Times. [1792- the people of England ; so they introduced, and passed, the " Act for establishing Regulations respecting Aliens arriving in this kingdom, or resident therein, in certain cases," 33 Geo. Ill, cap. 4. After the preamble, the gist of which has been given, this Act enacts that all masters of vessels are to give to the officer of the Custom, at the port of arrival, a written declaration specifying the names, &c., of foreigners on board. All aliens arriving after loth January 1793 were to give to the port officer of the Customs a written declaration of their names, rank, &c. If they failed in so doing, they were to depart out of the realm, or be transported for life. The officer of Customs had to furnish them with a certificate, and, if they wished to change their abode, they were to have a passport, which they were to show, or be committed for trial. They must also depart from the realm when ordered by His Majesty's proclama- tion, &c. &c. &c. This was a somewhat severe ordinance, but as far as I know, it was never acted on, for the French emigres were a quiet, law-abiding people, thankful for the refuge they had received. It was during the debate on this Bill that Burke made his historical coup dc theatre, the dagger scene in the House of Commons. I quote from the St. James's Chronicle 27-29th December 1792 : — Burke loquitur. "It had been declared by a noble Lord (Gran- ville) in another place, that there were known to be nine- teen assassins in this country with daggers for the extir- pation of kings — but it had been said that nineteen were of no consequence ; he thought differently, for there were in that number seven more than necessary to destroy the whole Royal family ; the number to him was alarming, for he knew not how many apprentices those murderers Q)3mund &ur/754 ,, Yarmouth . 50 ,, Edinburgh . 20S ,, Norman Cross 3,038 Total 25,646 Old Times. ^i MEN'S DRESS. The latter part of the last century was noticeable for the great, and grave, mutations which took place in masculine attire, and, most particularly, during the times here treated of. Previously, the wig, and dress (quaker cut) coat, had long had a successful run, but people visited the Continent more, especially France, and brought back French fashions, which at this time were particularly fantastic. The Prince of Wales, too, delighted in fine dress, and was " arbiter elegantianim " of his sex. At every levee, and public appearance, his dress was always expatiated on, and the " gilded youth " of the period, dressed tip to him, and copied his manner, even to his bow. We, in our days, cannot afford to jeer at the accom- panying illustration, when we see, in the advertisement sheets of some of our periodicals, men's stays advertised, and even vividly depicted ; and, therefore, we must not throw the first stone of laughter at the fashions of 1788. Here we see the transition stage, the modification of the old courtly wig, with its accompanying powder, and black silk bag for the queue, now only to be seen pinned on to the coat collars of court officials, and extremely magnificent major domos, &c., and, also, we see the old court dress coat has now taken unto itself a collar, of that exaggerated description which was so much in 52 Old Times. vogue during the next twenty years. Frilled shirts, and rufQes, still existed, and the curious custom of wearing two watches was the fashion. Here, again, history has some- what repeated itself in our modern double watch-chain, except that now only one watch is worn, the other side guarding a sovereign purse. Brighthelmstone or Brighton — beloved of George the Magnificent, whether as Prince, Regent, or King — was the place where the fashionable youth congregated, and there- fore we may take the following extract from the Morning Post (the doyen of the Daily Press) of i8th September, 1788 :— "Brighton Dress. " The fashionable bathing dress, at Brighton, is chiefly a pair oi buff trousers, with a slight jacket. " This is adopted by all the young men of the place, and a number of idle, sauntering la7id lubbers meet the eye every morning on the Steyne, that one cannot help wishing for a '-XVixiS.Y pressgang to give them useful employment, or at least keep them out of mischief " After breakfast they are accoutred for the sports of the field. " The sporting dress is a broton jacket, with a multiplicity of pockets, on each side, that reaches from the bottom to the top, so that, from this appearance, it is somewhat difficult to determine which the fashionable tribe most resemble — a set of grooms, or a company of smugglers. " When the dinner hour arrives, after these sprightly and heroic gentlemen have ^ slain their thousands, and ten thousands,' according to their own account, in the field, with as little 7vi?iki>ig and blinki?ig as Major Sturgeon himself, they then attire themselves in order to enjoy the pleasures of the table, and, however deranged they may afterwards be by convivial excess, they march or stagger away to the Rooms, as circum- stances may determine, and entertain the Ladies with elegant and decent gallantry." The prince's Bow Monstrous like the R-ince! the very bowj demmeC Old Times. 53 About this time flourished that curious being, the " Macaroni" but most of his portraits are evidently such gross caricatures, that I have not cared to reproduce them. I have been compelled to draw upon the satirical prints of the period, as a future historian would take the pictures from Punch, if he wanted to hit the passing folly of the day ; but we must not forget that the satirical prints of the last century, did not their spiriting so gently as our modern caricaturists, but exaggerated in every way, in facial expression, and in costume. The following brace of Macaronis is taken from a print of the ^^ Mock Duel, or a trip to Flanders^' 26th May, 1789 : and, although the costume is scrupulously correct, yet one can hardly help thinking that the designer of the wig, which was typical of the genus, has somewhat " drawn upon his imagination for his facts." The name Macaroni was applied, in derision, to those youths who had made the Grand Tour, and were fond, on their return, of shewing off their superior graces, and extolling the polished manners, and superior civilization, of the countries they had visited. In those days you were nothing unless classical. Modern languages were rarely taught. Science was all but unknown, Latin and Greek were the chief branches of education, and rich men were keen collectors of everything classical, marble statues and busts, bronzes, and coins — so Italy was naturally the bourne of these travelled youths, and John Bull, who then was, in the aggregate, a very stay-at-home animal, derided them, when they came back, with the epithet Macaroni, an elegant title derived from the popular Italian dish. The home-keeping youths imitated their brethren as well as they could, but it was at a very humble distance, 54 Old Ti7nes. and their dress, though partially modelled on that of their confreres, was much exaggerated, and did not display such simplicity or good taste. — John Bull had a name ready for him ; a home-manufactured Macaroni was " a Jessamy." These Jcssamics were, like the m.odern Mashers, effeminate, and comparatively harmless beings — entirely taken up with the contemplation of their external ap- pearance, and the attempted subjugation of the other sex. See the following quotation from the Morning Post 4th July 1789 : — "There is not a man in the nation, no not even Lord Effingham, who bestows so much time and attention in rendering the external appearance of his head, elegant in the extreme, than the Earl of Scarborough. It is said that his Lordship keeps six French frizeurs, who have nothing else to do than dress his hair. Lord Effingham keeps only Five ! ! ! " The Jcssajnies, however, were only one class among the youth of the time, and I fear, by far the smallest. The majority were what we now should term " fast." Animal spirits in young men must have vent somehow. There were then no rowing, cycles, or other means of getting rid of the superfluous energy they possessed. Men's social habits were not at all of a " blue riband " nature, and, after dinner, the bottle circulated freel}'. So those who, like Charles Reade's description of modern athletic young men, knew " only one language, and lived principally in the open air," naturally became either " A choice Spirit," " A Buck," or " A Blood," descendants of the " Hectors," " Muns," Titiretus," " Scourers," and " Mohocks " — men that hustled honest folk, sang roaring, maudlin, filthy songs — men from whom no woman was I i Old Times. 55 safe ; who, armed with bludgeons, and going in com- pany in large numbers, boxed the watch, set the con- stables at defiance, and made night hideous with their brawls and shouting. Far be it from me to say that the whole youth of this age could be classed either in one, or other, of these two categories ; there were good young men who probably " always came home to their tea," well dressed, well read, well mannered — such as " A Smart." As a rule, even now-a-days, a man when in the country, very seldom, or never, carries an umbrella : to a Londoner it is part of his costume. In Anne's reign the use of the umbrella was strictly set apart for the softer sex, and then only for those whose avocations compelled them to be out, whatever the weather. As Gay says in his " Trivia " — " The tuck'd-up sempstress walks with hasty strides, While streams run down her oil'd umbrella's sides." But for men, fie ! he must be an effeminate coxcomb who would carry one. Hear what fun was made of him (Female Taikr, December 12) : — " The Young Gentle- man belonging to the Custom House, that for fear of rain borrowed the umbrella at Will's Coffee House in Cornhill of the Mistress, is hereby advertised that to be dry from head to foot on the like occasion, he shall be welcome to the Maid's Pattens." One John Macdonald, a footman, who wrote his own biography, helps us to fix a date when the use of them, by men, was so rare as to make the user singular. He says that he had " a fine silk umbrella, which he brought from Spain ; but he could not, with any comfort to him- 56 Old Times. self, use it, the people calling out ' Frenchman ! why don't you get a coach ? ' " However, he " persisted for three months, till they took no further notice of this novelty. Foreigners began to use theirs, and then the English." Macdonald wrote in 1778. Jonas Hanway, the philanthropist, who had travelled much in Persia and the East, is said to have been the first Englishman who habitually carried an umbrella whilst walking in the street. He died- in 1786. That it was not in general use in the year 1790, is evidenced by the somewhat sneering title of a " Rain Beau," or one that was afraid of a drop of rain. This illustration shews several modifications of fashion besides the use of the umbrella. The cocked hat had gone out — and the galling yoke of the " chimney pot " was being inaugurated. As yet it was limp, of felt, but there is the hideous head covering that has martyrised at least three generations. Then we cannot but notice that the hair has lost all trace of the wig — and is allowed to be worn "aw naturcl." A huge cravat swathes the throat, the coat is cut shorter, and more fly-away than hitherto, that knee breeches are disappearing, and pantaloons coming in, to be in their turn superseded by the modern trouser. Lastly, the term Macaroni, or Jessamy, is re- placed by BcaiL — which will soon have to give way to Dandy. Jimmy Lincum Feadle shows us the Beau of 1791. Here the fashion is evidently imported from France — loud coloured striped coat — pantaloons, boots and all. The French Revolution was hastening on, rapidl}^ to its culmination, and, the younger Whigs, before the time came when they were utterly disgusted by the brutal /^ Jessamy. - //^O. i ^^Mr/A I Old Times. 57 excesses of the French, copied the dress of the Revolu- tionary party. The accompanying illustration will show how far they succeeded. There is an elaborately studied negligence about the coat, and a height about the hat, which could never be of native production, whilst the bludgeon must have belonged to some " Merveilleux," (the class whom Bonaparte so cordially detested), and have been imported direct from Paris. The supercilious look, and the mincing gait, are warranted truly Parisian, and I have very little doubt but that Isaac Cruikshank sketched him from the Hfe. The term " a Crop," is indicative of Revolutionary and Republican sympathies. Lucius Junius Brutus, and all the ancient Romans, wore their hair cut short — and so we must needs copy them, and have a revolution in hair cutting, just to show the outer world what our thoughts are on the present position of political parties. The elaborate hair of the Macaroni or the Jessaniy, or even the negligent, but natural cheveliire of the Beau, would not suit Republican simplicity, and, as in our own Commonwealth, the men of the RepubHc cropped their heads, as a testimony against their political opponents, so did they in 1791. The Duke of Bedford, especially, attracted public attention, by having his hair cut short, and many are the allusions to him, with respect to it, in the public prints. But with 1792 came another change of fashion, of which we get two views, back and front, and as they are by a lady (Miss Keate), they are probably not caricatured. Here we see a return to a more natural style of dress, the colours of which, in '^ Neck or Nothing,^' are well 58 Old Times. chosen, and very becoming. Of course the awful cravat is of white cambric or muslin, and he wears a pink under- waistcoat, white over-waistcoat, and knee-breeches, a mulberry-coloured coat, and blue and white stockings ; hair powdered. " A back view of the cape " is not so felicitous as regards colour, being somewhat ^^ prononcer The coat is green, breeches yellow, necktie yellow, stockings grey, powdered hair, and a liberal supply of powder on the back of the coat. In order to keep this hair powder on the hair, it was necessary to saturate it with some kind of grease, even if only, a tallow dip, or rushlight, were used ; but an advertisement in the Times, of 7th February 1793, gives us some notion as to the antiquity of Bears' Grease, which must have been undoubtedly genuine, if the last paragraph can be taken as a fact : — "JUST KILLED, an extraordinary fine Fat Russian Bear, at Ross's Ornamental Hair and Perfumery Warehouse, No. 119 Bishopsgate Street (late Vickery's), three doors from the London Tavern. " The excellent virtue which the fat of Bears possesses, has been experienced by thousands of both sexes, and of all Ages, in this Metropolis. To those who have used the real Bears' Grease, it is evident no Grease whatever beside, retains its moisture so long upon the head, it being the only thing pos- sible to make the Hair grow thick and long, recover it after illness, prevent it falling off, or turning grey, during life : being the most efficacious remedy for making the Hair grow on Horses' knees when broken or chafed. " It is sold at IS. per ounce, or i6s. the pound, to be seen cut off the Animal in the presence of the purchaser." Apropos of " cropping," take the following skit from the Tiynes, January 21, 1794 • — y^ C§/r?ar/ - //^^ A l^ai n — beau. Old Times. 59 "Sir Robert Mackworth is at Bath, and seems to be no otherways distinguished than by the particularity of his equipage: he drives four horses of different colours in his phaeton, which has four wheels painted to correspond with the colours of the horses : in the midst of his badge of distinction, the bloody hand, is the figure of 4, which he explains in this way, four in hand. The motto 'This is the Tippy.' If any- thing can add to the folly of the whole it is that he intends to crop four opposite ears of his horses, to make room for four monstrous roses, of different colours, to match." The Court dresses which the Nobility and Gentry then wore, were magnificent, and the following are only a few, taken as an example, from the Times, June 4, 1794: — "KING'S BIRTHDAY. "Yesterday, being the anniversary of the King's birthday, when His Majesty entered into the 57th year of his age, a Drawing-Room was held in the afternoon, and, at night, a Ball at St. James'. The Gentlemen's dresses were in general embroidered silks and silk cloths : but one half were dressed in Regimentals. " His Majesty, as usual on his own Birthday, was in a plain suit of clothes. The best dressed Gentlemen whom we saw at Court, and indeed their dresses were very generally noticed for their taste and splendour, were — " Mr. Skeffington, " A brown spotted silk coat and breeches, with a white silk waistcoat richly embroidered with silver, stones, and shades of silk : the design was large baskets of silver and stones, filled with bouquets of roses, jonquilles, &c., the e?iseinble producing a beautiful and splendid effect. " The Hon. Thomas Anson. " A striped silk coat and breeches, with a white silk waistcoat, richly embroidered with white silk and dentelle : the waistcoat embroidered to match the coat. 6o Old Times. "The Hon. Mr. Paget. " A brown and blue striped silk coat and breeches, with a white silk waistcoat, the suit elegantly embroidered with silver, stones, and bouquets of flowers. " Duke of Queensberry. "A striped, and spotted silk coat, and breeches, with diamond buttons, with a white silk waistcoat embroidered with silver, stones, and silk. " Marquis of Lorn. "A blue and brown striped silk cloth coat, and breeches, with a white silk waistcoat, embroidered with dentelle, and shades of silk, " Lord Willoughby de Broke. " A dark olive spotted silk coat, and breeches, with a white silk waistcoat, the suit richly embroidered in silver, coloured stones, and shades of silk." Anent Hair Powder, wc have the following, which may be a libel : — " As a Frenchman cannot exist without a powdered head, and meal being so dear in France, the Beaux are under the necessity of wearing poiodercd whiting. Rouge is plenty enough , that article not being put in requisition : the ladies there- fore, as usual, wear their faces under red masks. They go to bed as blooming as Sol, when he retires to the Lap of Thciis : and rise as pale as Cynthia, in her nocturnal visits to the earth." — [Titnes, Nov. 29, 1794.) " Mother of Pearl htiitons arc likely to take the lead in the fashionable world, as they are both beautiful and ornamental, as well as durable and economical : on the contrary, those made of steel, and other metals, soon rust, and want frequent cleaning." — {Times, Dec. 16, 1794.) By the 35 Geo. IIL, c, 49 — a Duty was laid on Hair powder — and " the Crops," besides their (as we should term it) Radical tendencies, were extra unpopular among yJ//?7/?7y l//7aj/77 faadk — //3/. /I Scdrdr?7ouc/?. Old Times. 6i the Tories, because they evaded the Hair Powder duty, by wearing none : — " A numerous club has been formed in Lambeth, called the Crop Chih, every member of which, on his entrance, is obliged to have his head docked as close as the Duke of Bridgewater's old bay coach-horses. This assemblage is instituted for the purpose of opposing, or rather evading, the tax on powdered heads." — {Times, April 14, 1795.) "The following Noblemen and Gentlemen were of the party with the Duke of Bedford at Woburn Abbey, when a general cropping, and combing out of hair powder took place : Lord W. Russell, Lord Villiers, Lord Paget, &c., &c. They entered into an engagement to forfeit a sum of money if any of them wore their hair tied, or powdered, within a certain period. Many Noblemen and Gentlemen in the county of Bedford have since followed the example : it has become general with the Gentry in Hampshire, and the Ladies have left off wearing powder." — {Times, Sept. 25, 1795.) "The Bedford Crops. — Something has at last fallen from this party to entertain the Public. We hope they will find their heads cooler for this salutary operation. Dr. Willis 1 is of opinion, that more than one of them ought to have been shaved. If the Shavces think by publishing their names they will gain proselytes, till their absurdity is lost in the crowd, they are mistaken. Can it be supposed that a few drunken persons in a frolic, will be followed by the sober part of the people of England ? " The new Crop is called the Bedford Level. " An Irish Member once proposed in the House of Com- mons of that Country, to encourage the breed of Crops. We believe no such proposition is likely to be renewed upon the present occasion." — {Titnes, Sept. 29, 1795.) " The price of hair is considerably fallen. The wig-makers declare people are so afraid of having anything from the crops, that they can't sell a single peruke." — {Times, Nov. 23, 1795.) ^ Dr. Willis was a Clergyman, who turned Physician, and his specialty was treatment of the insane. He attended George III. in his mental alienation, and was handsomely rewarded. 62 Old Times. We get a curious insight into the manners of the young men of that da}^, in the following cutting from the Times, Dec. 14, 1795 : — "If the young men of the present day have not much wit in their heads, they have it at least in their hats. Amongst the pleasantries we have seen in this way, are the following : ' Not yours.' — ' Hands off' — ' No vermin ' — and ' Rip this as you would a hot potato' — and other charming sallies of refined and elegant vivacity. But the wittiest linings are the political ones : Upon a table, the other day we observed one perfectly clean, in which was written '■ Avaunt, Guinea Pig!^ and on the lining, in a very powdery hat, that lay in a window in the same room, were inscribed the two following monosyllables, ' Ojf Crop: " " A Crop, who had begun to let his hair grow, was accused of aristocracy, and had his head shaved in the form of a horse-shoe at Wooburn, by a verdict of his Peers." — {Times, Dec. 30, 1795O Clothes were dear in those days, as the following Tailor's bill shows — because we must reckon the value of money then at more than double what it is now : — " Address to the Public. — Those Gentlemen who are in- clined to a solicitude to their interests, the undermentioned prices will be found to be highly advantageous : — "G. Brown & Co., Taylors, No. 17 Sun St., Bishopsgate. A suit of the best Superfine Cloth . j£,\ 4 o A Coat and Waistcoat ditto . . 3 8 o A Coat ditto . . 2126 A suit of the best Second Cloth . . 3 10 o A Coat ditto . . . i iS o An Elastic Cloth Coat . . . 220 A Florentine, or Satin Waistcoat and Breeches of the best . . . Z Z '^ A pair of Breeches ditto . . . i 18 o A Waistcoat ditto . . . 153 y^//7^ /'/Fe^rerrcAmsn Old Times. 63 I I 4 o 2 I I 3 12 o I 1 1 A Cassimere Waistcoat and Breeches . A pair of Breeches ditto All sorts of Manchester Cotton Breeches according to their respective sorts and qualities, from i6s. to A superfine Cloth Surtout Coat . A ditto of Second or Elastic Cloth A ditto of Bath Beaver, from 24s. to A frock suit of Livery, all Cloth . A ditto, with Shag Breeches A Livery Surtout of Drab Cloth . A Coach-Box Coat ditto A Cotton Thicksett Frock and Waistcoat A Pillow Fustian ditto A Duffil Jacket and Waistcoat ditto " The above Prices are calculated for middle-sized men only, and the difference in all colours in grain. Blues and Greys, gilt or extra buttons, Waistcoat sleeves, &c., must be paid for extra." — {Times, April 16, 1795.) Among the eccentricities of Costume, was a Coat de- vised by the then Earl Spencer. He made a bet that he would cut off the tails of the coat which he then wore, and appear in public in a jacket, which, within a week, should be the fashion. He did so, and won his bet. Gillray caricatured the Earl, in a picture 17th May, 1792. Earl Spencer wears (in the picture) a blue spencer red coat with brass buttons, yellow trousers, and blue and white stockings. The " Threadpaper " has a green coat and grey stockings. Both have plenty of powder on the backs of their coats. The fashion is alluded to in a paragraph in the Tinies of 1 6th May 1795, and the " livery " therein alluded to is a covert satire on the " Windsor Uniform," which has been the semi-court dress, from George HL's time to our own. It is said to have been taken from the uniform 64 Old Times. of a Berkshire Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, of which the King was Colonel : — " The general fashion of wearing Spencers^ reminds us of a wager laid by Lord March, who betted several years ago a considerable sum with some of his friends, that he would be able to introduce to general imitation, the most humiliating fashion he could think of. Accordingly he appeared several days successively about the Royal Exchange, dressed like a livery servant. The livery consisted of a blue coat, with crimson collar and cuffs ; and he gained the wager." — {Times, May i6, 1795.) The accompanying illustration by W. Hanlon (nth July 1795) is, of course, a caricature, but it is intended to show the eccentricities of dress, in which the " Crops " indulged. THE BOND STREET LOUNGE. AN IMPROMPTU. Modo vir, modo f(Bniina. — Virgil. ( Times, Jatitiary ']th, 1 796. ) When men in Petty- Coats appear, No wonder Wives the breeches wear : Assuming manners quite robust, Game, swear, drive, box, or take a thrust. But happier far would be the case. Were each to keep their proper place : The fair ones wear the female dress, And men adorn their persons less ; For such the fashion of the day. They make it difficult to say. Whether \\\q. pretty things we meet. Parading through their fav'rite street, A Male or Female we may call. Their shapes are so equivocal. V. London Coffee-House, yafiiiafy 'jtli, 1796. /\/zc/^ or No^/i/n^ // /ddck V'/cw o/'^h Qp& -/7SZ y/ ^pcncsr and 3 T/iread Paper.- IJ92. m Old Times. 65 " The high kick of fashion is to wear only one spur, like a postillion, and to have an assortment of long whips tied up behind the curricle, in case of wearing them all out in Bond St., during a ride in the morning." — {Times, August 3, 1796.) We need not go very far, any day in Winter, to see the young men of our da}^, doing the same thing, and looking extremely " Norse " — they never telling of the Chamois leather vests they wear. " One of the latest roads to fame that any of our young men of ton have discovered, is to wrap their bodies carefully in flannel under the shirt, and to keep the coat and waistcoat quite open, to show the strength of their constitution, and set the snow at defiance." — {Times, January 2, 1797.) " Margate is already beginning to be crowded, as usual, with all sorts, and for all purposes, some to undo, and some to be undone ; wives to leave their husbands, and misses to procure theirs. Some tradesmen gone down to get, and others to get rid of their money : old maids to display tresses not their own, and the young men to show off Brutus heads, when the grand point is, whether their's or their type's in Ross's shop window^ have the most brains : perhaps there cannot be situations more calculated to display what Shenstone terms ' The various ways of dressing a calf's head.' " — {Times, August 5, 1 799.) "Milan, July \^th. — In order to a due execration of the licentious dresses which our Government has forbidden, the executioner of this place, with his wife, appeared in the public walk. He was elega?itly dressed, with his head a la Bnitiis, a large cravat which, conceaUng the chin, reached to the mouth : long pantaloons, hanging loose : and shoes, the points of which were a finger's length. His wife was quite a la 66 Old Times. guillotine — naked shoulders, neck and arms." — {Times, August 5> I799-) ' " Our emaciated beaux in their quilted lappelles and stuffed sleeves are like a dry walnut in a great shell." — {Times, August 20, 1799.) This paragraph is easily explained by a reference to the two accompanying engravings. These peculiar garments were called " Jean Debry," after the French statesman of that name, who was born in 1760, died 1834. He was a somewhat prominent figure in the French Revolution, and, as his name was at this time much in men's mouths, he was made the peg on which to hang a coat. — " A French Taylor fitting John Bull with a Jean de Bry," is by Gillray, i8th Novem- ber 1799, and, although a gross Caricature, fairly repre- sents the garment. The tailor is in ecstasy with the fit. " Aha ! dere my friend, I fit you to de life ! dere is Liberte ! no tight Aristocrat Sleeves, to keep from you vat you like ! a ha ! begar, dere, he only want von leetle National Cockade to make look quite a la mode de Paris ! " John Bull surveys himself in the looking-glass, grum- bling at his change of costume. " Liberty ! quotha ! why, zounds, I can't move my arms at all ! for all it looks woundy big ! Oh ! damn your French Alamodes, they give a man the same Liberty as if he was in the Stocks ! give me my old Coat again, say I, if it is a little out of Elbows ! " "The items of a fashionable Taylor's bill are not a little curious at present : — Ditto, to pasteboard for your back ; ditto, yi Jean Debry" M' ^k^fffnj^ton.) ■11 Fpmoh %iloP fthagjohn ^u/I wi^h s"jc3a de "Bpy ■IIJ Old Times. 67 to buckram for your cape ; ditto, for wool for your shoulders, and cotton for your chest. Shakespeare talks of Nature's Journeymen who make men indifferently, but our Journeymen Taylors make their customers of any form and dimensions they think proper." — {Times, Sept. 6, 1799.) Modern Costume. "The Lo7ig-toed Shoe which now figures in Bond Street was regulated by an Act of Parliament so long ago as the reign of Edward III. No person under the rank of a Knight then had a right to advance his toe more than four inches beyond the natural extremity. . . If ever, in some centuries to come, the Httle hat, stuffed coat, and long-toed shoe of a modern fine Gentleman should be discovered in some Museum of Antiquities, or to survive upon the Stage, they would no doubt give birth to many learned doubts and extraordinary speculations. By the size of a pair of modern Leather Breeches, it will naturally be inferred that the present race of men were of a Colossal form. When we suppose in the same collection a pair of our Hussar Boots to have escaped the ravage of time, will not our descendants enquire by what descending scale of rapid decay and diminution mankind is hastening into the pigmy state, or the dwarf? Our Coats too, in which the Cotton, the Wool, the Tow, and all the et cetera of quilting, which now form one half of our bulk, will then only seem the remains of the art of the virtuoso : and the curious stuffing he has devised to represent the gigantic pro- portions of the wearer. It ought, however, to be known, for the honour of this commercial nation, that it is to the spirit of justice and liberality of our tradesmen, that this extraordinary augmentation of our bulk is to be attributed. Having doubled the price of every article upon us, they have very fairly given us double measure, both in our Coats, Boots, and Breeches. The Hatter, I am sorry to say, is not entitled to the same commendation, for he has of late years perpetually diminished 68 Old Times. and circumscribed the little brim he allows us," in the exact proportion that he has advanced the price of it, so that the scarcity of felt is like that of bread, the less you have, the more you are to pay for it. I paid a guinea and a quarter for the last I bought, and I was ingenuously told that by the time a hat cost two guineas, it would exactly be the size and the weight of one. All these tradesmen, in a fairer sense than the hatters, make the most of their customers : but he to whom the nobler part of man, the head, is committed, diminishes in the most scandalous manner the protection it requires — {Times, Sept. 20, 1799.) Brobdignag. Old Times. 69 WOMEN'S DRESS. The earliest Lady's fashion book I can find in the British Museum, is " The Lady's Monthly Museum," &c. " By a Society of Ladies," — and it was published in 1799 — or just the last year of which this book takes cognizance. But, luckily, the satirical prints supply the want, in a great measure, although they are somewhat exaggerated. From them we are able to see pictorially what might be hard to describe, and may be perfectly certain that they represent " the very last thing out " at their date of Publication. If, then, we have very little written about female attire, in 1788, and the next year, or two, we must be content with viewing the verce effigies of the belles of that time. Brighton, of course, was the fashionable watering- place, for there were the life and gaiety of the young Court, in contradistinction to the humdrum existence led by the King, Queen, and younger branches of the Royal Family, at Weymouth. So it will be interesting to know their habits at this famous sea-side resort. The Mortimg Post, 18th September 1788, has the following : — *' The Ladies have no particular dress for the morning, but huddle away to the bathing place, in close caps, oxidigipsey bonnets, so that they look like a set oivi?in6.Qxmg for tune- tellers, who have just had the opportunity of pillaging the contents of 5. frippery warehozise, with which they had bedecked themselves in haste. " It is to be remarked that the ladies do not atone for the negligence of the morning, by neatness, and elegance, during the rest of the day, but s/n/ffle on something by dinner time, "JO Old Times. covering themselves with an enormous nojidescript bonnet, which, to the confusion of all order, they afterwards think a proper garb for the Assembly." In doors, the dresses were not so outre, as we see by the two illustrations taken from "The School for Scandal," 1st August 1788. That ladies copied the eccentricities of male attire, and made them their own, we have proof in this cutting from the Morning Post, 15th January 1789 : — " Among other fashions lately introduced from Paris is the brace of gold watch chains now sported by our fashionable females. Some economical husbands may wish their wives were less imitative." The portrait of the Duchess of York (the Princess Frederique, Charlotte, Ulrique, Catherine, of Prussia, married to the Duke, November 1791), shews us the indoor dress of a lady of rank in 1792. She had a remarkably small foot, and many were the delineations of her shoes — actual size, &c. Of all curious freaks of fashion the following is the most incomprehensible, yet it doubtless obtained : — "The fashion of dressing, at present, is to appesLV J>romtnent, and the stays are made accordingly. This is holding out a wish to be thought in a thriving way, even without the authority of the Arches Court of Canterbury — something in the French way — a philosophical desire to be conspicuously great \s\\}ci mischief, with- out any regard to law or reason. The idea was at first sent for- ward by a few dropsical Ladies." — {Times, March 25, 1793.) "The Wapping Land-ladies are all at the very pinnacle of the fashion. Nature has given them prominences which far out- picture the false mountains at the West end of the town. It is not only the fashion of appearing six months gone, that pre- vails with the ladies — but that of not having any waists, so that, even with their prominences, they may be called — No-body." {Times, April x^, 1793.) ,/^ Q)t/7/,on-//88. uu j-ashions For IJ88 I I lUJ ! Ths Duchtss o/yor/c. Ull The Duchess. Frail he s of rashion - //9J. '77?e //c/f/7/- o/Fashior? —/p3. mil Jhc Jollcnc, fiv UUI The Jb/kttc. n°2. UlII Jhe Jbi/cftc n°3. lUli Old Times. 71 A series of prints were published which represent the amount of indebtedness, ladies were under, to Art, to re- pair the ravages made by Nature. No. I shows us most graphically the "levee au matin." — Tears drop from the eyeless socket — a yawn discloses the want of teeth, and, the handkerchief, tied round the head, which does service for a night cap, tells a sad tale of baldness. In No. 2 the defect of nature is being remedied by the insertion of a glass eye — which the subsequent illustrations prove to be very effective. No. 3 shows the triumph of the hairdresser's art ; and, certainly, it adds much to the ladies personal attractions. In No. 4 false teeth are being inserted, to replace those, of which unkind nature has robbed her. No. 5 applies the bloom of youth to the faded cheek, — a bloom that never yet deceived any one. In No. 6 the Belle has finished her toilette, and is now prepared to break all hearts. This series is attributed to Rowlandson — and, most pro- bably, is his work. It is called " Six Stages of making a face. — Dedicated with respect to Lady Archer," of which lady we shall hear more anon under the head of " Gaming." Waists, as may have been perceived by the last two, or three examples, have been gradually disappearing, until, as in " The Scarecrow," they became practically nil. High feathers were beginning to come in, and, in addition to the " panache," was worn a curious thing made of straw, very much resembling the " bristle plume" which used to be worn in the Shakos of our Engineers, and Artillery. In imitation of the men, the ladies' throats were swathed in voluminous wrappers. With very low bodices, and very high waists, came very 72 Old Twies. scanty clothing, with an absence of petticoat, a fashion which left very little of the form to the imagination. I do not say that our English Belles went to the extent of some of their French sisters, of having their muslin dresses put on damp — and holding them tight to their figures till they dried — so as absolutely to mould them to their form, or that they ever discarded stockings, and went to balls with bare feet, and only wearing sandals, having on but the lightest of classical clothing — but their clothes were of the scantiest, and we shall find that, as year succeeded year, this fashion developed, if one can call diminution of cloth- ing, development. Men made fun of it, vide the following from the Times, 1 2th August, 1794: — "Amongst prudent papas, the favourite toast at this time is * The present fashion of our wives and daughters,' viz. No Waste." There was a very pretty song, called " Shepherds, I have lost my love. Have you seen my Anna ? " — and this was parodied as follows — the music being the same as the original song: — SHEPHERDS, I HAVE LOST MY WAIST. ' e^^e^e^eS^ :t=£-J=:: Shep-herds, I have lost my waist, Have you seen my bo - - dy? Sac-ri-ficed to mo-dern taste, I'm quite a hod - dy dod - - dy. tT -•■v.-*-4 i 1 — — i^-T— ^ T^ — -]— =— f— ' 1 — »— o>>-»-«-T — I — -1— ;S— 1-5- L_^_- — -g c — B-^-l ^^ i 1 ^ — i^J. ,^ For fashion I that part for - sock Where sages place the bel - - - ly ; 'Tisgone.andl have not a nook For cheesecake, tart, or jel - ly. A (^carecrocj — //^3. IUM1 (§ hep herds ! I have los/- my ara/s/: - /794- UUil Fo//otV//7^ t/f£ Fss/?io/7. UUll Fo//oiV/r?^ ths Fsshion UUill Old Times. n " Never shall I see it more, Till, common sense returning, My body to my legs restore. Then I shall cease from mourning. Folly and fashion do prevail To such extremes among the fair, A woman's only top and tail. The body's banish'd God knows where ! ' That a fashion may become one person, and not another, is peculiarly exemplified by the two following pictures by Gillray, 9th December, 1794, both called " Followinsf the Fashion : " — " St. James's giving the Ton. a Soul without a Body." Cheapside aping the Mode a Body without a Soul." The tax on Hair powder was much objected to ; people had been used, for a long time, to grease, and powder their hair and wigs ; and, when the duty of a Guinea per head was passed, many left off using it. The illustration " Leaving off Powder, or a Frugal family saving a Guinea," was doubtless the fact in many a family. The man, in the coloured engraving, with his " crop," to our eyes does not look so singular, as the lad^', with her " fausse chevelure " unpowdered looks so bad, that, no wonder, ladies reverted to their own locks, as we see in future illustrations. So also shall we see the " Cap " of the period, the length of which is most amusingly por- tra3'-ed. The wearing of false hair is of very early origin, inas- much as we possess, in the British Museum, an early Egyptian wig, and, in every age, we find women supple- menting their natural attractions, by the addition of some one else's hair. Here is a Hair-dresser's advertisement of 1795, wherein is not only mentioned the price, &c., of 74 Old Times. hair, but shows the antiquity of the " Chignon," which, otherwise, many might think of modern date. "TO THE LADIES.— T. BOWMAN respectfully acquaints the Ladies, that he has entirely removed his Shop and Manu- factory to No. 1 02 New Bond Street, near Brook Street. Firmly relying upon the future favors and recommendation of his old Customers, and trusting to the superiority of his articles, he has augmented his stock of Chignons or Braids, from 600 to near 1000, in 14 shades (not 20) of brown colours, besides Auburns, Flaxens, &:c., and in 8 lengths (not 50) at los., 14s., £\ IS., £\ I IS. 6d., £2 2s., £1 3s., £^ 4s., and £6 6s. each. Any colour matched in all the sizes in a minute. T. Bowman formerly gave a description of his Braids, but that has been copied by another and applied unto his own, without their possessing one requisite for which Bowman's Braids have been distinguished : and, not contented with slaying by twenties, he now kills by fifties. Bravo ! Captain Boabdill, fifty more, kill them ! ! ! As for the shades, what with Chinese hairs, mixing, and dying, he may have them (as he says) of every tint, but for real, natural. Brown colours. T. Bowman, with by far the greatest stock in the Kingdom, cannot make more than 14 shades; he can only challenge a comparison, and pledges himself to make good every assertion he has at any time made. His Brunswick fillets, an entire new and elegant article, with curls complete, fit either for morning or full dress, from 7s. 6d. to los. 6d. each, with Tetes, Borders, and every article in ornamental Hair, much cheaper than at any shop in town : having a very large stock, and dealing for ready money only, he has as yet made no advance on his old prices, although the price of hair is now double. Country orders, with money, or reference, duly observed. Chignons, &c., changed when not approved of, if not powdered." — {Times, Jiific 22, 1795.) " Corsettes about six inches long, and a slight bi/ffon tucker of two inches high, are now the only defensive /^;v7///i';vm//V7 of our fashionable Belles, between the necklace and the apron- strings.— (7>'w(.y,//'///6' 24, 1795.) Crop I mil Charac^rs //? H/^h Life. /I /^oc/ern /3t//€S<^'^S^f'^^^oom6orJ3d//s -/J36. lUfli Old Times. 75 "The annual City Assemblies, from the glowing colours which decorate the belles, may be now fairly styled red-hot balls.'" — {Times, Dec. 29, 1795.) But Feathers were now used on the shafts levelled at the vagaries of Fashion. " At all elegant Assemblies, there is a room set apart for the lady visitants to put their feathers on, as it is impossible to wear them in any carriage with a top to it. The lustres are also removed upon this account, and the doors are carried up to the height of the ceiling. A well-dressed Lady, who nods with dexterity, can give a friend a little tap upon the shoulder across the room, without incommoding the dancers. The Ladies' feathers are now generally carried in the sword-case, at the back of the carriage." — {Times, Dec. 29, 1795.) "A young lady, only ten feet high, was overset in one of the late gales of wind, in Portland Place, and the upper mast of her feather blown upon Hampstead Hill." "The maroon fever has been succeeded by a very odd kind of light-headedness, which the physicians call the ptereo 7na?iia, or feather folly." " The Ladies now wear feathers exactly of their own length, so that a woman of fashion is twice as long upon her feet as in her bed." — {Times, Dec. 30, 1795.) " We saw a feather in Drury Lane Theatre, yesterday even- ing, that cost ten guineas. We should have thought the whole goose not worth the money." — {Times, Jan. 6, 1796.) Here is a contrivance by which "A Modern Belle going to the Rooms or Balls " can go fully dressed, with her feathers fixed : — " There is to be seen in Gt. Queen Street, a Coach upon a new construction. The Ladies set in this well, and see between the spokes of the wheels. With this contrivance the fair pro- " prietor is able to go quite dressed to her visits, her feathers being only a yard and a half high." — {Times, Jan. 22, 1796.) 76 Old Times. The freaks of fashion, towards the latter end of 1795, are most curious. " Waggoner's frocks," and the " Petticoat " dress, are singular illustrations of feminine taste. This latter is noticed in a paragraph in the Times, 27th Oct. 1795. " The present fashionable dress is the most simple imaginable. The petticoat is pinned to the Cravat, and the arms come out at the pocket holes." " The only new fashions that remain for our modern belles are certainly puzzling and difficult. There can be nothing new, but going either dressed or naked." — {Times, Jan. 27, 1796.) The following paragraph from the Times refers not only to the general absence of dress, but also to the famous (or infamous) Miss Chudleigh, a maid of Honour to the Queen, afterwards Duchess of Kingston, and tells the story of how the Princess of Wales, wife of Frederick (father of George III.), rebuked her for her nakedness. •' One night, when the late Duchess of Kingston appeared at Ranelagh in a dress which may be compared with the undress of some of our fashionable belles, a hatidkerchief v}^.s thrown to her, not from the Prince, but the Princess of Wales." — {Times, March 5, 1796.) " Lady Godiva's Rout, or Peeping Tom spying out Pope Joan," is by Gillray, 12th March 1796, and is a scath- ing satire on the extremely decollete'c, and diaphonous, dresses of the time. The fair one, whose uncovered bosom so attracts the candle snuffer, is intended to represent Lady Georgiana Gordon, afterwards Duchess of Bedford. " High Change in Bond Street" is by Gillray (27th March 1796), and is a most amusing caricature of the then prevalent fashions both of men and women. The " Bond Street Loungers," are depicted to perfection. Wa^oncfs ^roc^-or-Ro Bo^ys of l/p. L111I1 TJic Fashion. - Deer /7pJ .D /^/j/^ (77^/7 fs //? /dond (^oect-f/SS Old Times. 77 " At the late Fandango Ball in Dublin, a certain Lady of Fashion appeared in the following very whimsical dress: — Flesh coloured pantaloons, over which was a gauze petticoat, tucked up at each side in drapery, so that both thighs could be seen ; the binding of the petticoat was tied round the neck, and her arms were through the pocket holes. Her head dress was a man's pearl coloured stocking, the foot hanging down at the back of the head like a lappet, and in the heel of the stocking was stuck a large diamond pin, the tout ensemble not less novel, than ludicrous." — {Times, May 26, 1796.) " Whalebone- Veils are worn by all the fashionable dames at Weymouth. This invention is evidently borrowed from the head of a one horse chaise." — {Times, Azigust 27, 1796.) " High heels are once more the rage ; there is, however, no scarcity oi flats. During the reign of the Jlat sole, the Ladies make more faux-pas than ever, so that we need entertain no apprehensions for them, if they chuse to get upon stilts. What with high heels and high feathers, the betler half of many an honest man is just one third part of herself." — {Times, Aiigusi 27, 1796.) " Fashion would be its own murderer, if it were to be con- stant and permanent. The last year's dress seems to abdicate entirely ; even the waist is walking down towards the hip ; and three straps, with buckles in front, have abridged so much of the usurpation of the petticoat. One cannot see so many Ladies of high ton with the straps over the bosom, without thinking how much better they might have been employed over the shoulders." — {Times, Aug. 27, 1796.) " Before the waist is quite again in fashion, and while the thing exists (which will soon be incredible), we set down the measurement of a petticoat in the summer of 1796, which for a middling-sized woman is five foot and an inch." — {Times, Nov. 4, 1796.) "It would not be easily believed by our Great Grand- mothers, that their lovely daughters cannot make their appear- ance without a dozen combs in their heads, and as many 78 Old Times. false curls and cushions. The victory over black pins is com- plete." — {Times, May 30, 1797.) " Horse Hair has risen near 50 per cent, since Wigs have become so much the rage." — {Times, April 27, 1798.) " The women at Paris are every day divesting themselves of some of the customary articles of dress, and the rage for nudity is so great, that it is apprehended, even by the Parisian Journalists, they will shortly have the effrontery to present themselves to the public eye in a state of pure nature. One of them appeared a few days since in the Champs Elysees, in a simple robe of spotted black gauze, and shewed so much that little was left to guess. The spectators were struck with indignation at this flagrant violation of decorum, and she was compelled to make a shameful and precipitate retreat." — {Times, June 18, 1798.) " An Artist has advertised that he makes up worn out Umbrellas into fashionable Gypsey Bonnets. The transition is so easy, that he is scarce to be praised for the invention. " The Gypsey Bontiet is commonly worn by the Lancashire Witches."— (r////6'x,////y 7, 179S.) " We are very happy to see the waists of our fair country women walking downwards by degrees towards the hip. But, as we are a little acquainted with the laws of increasing velocity in fashionable gravitation, we venture to express, thus early in their descent, a hope that they will stop there." — {Times, April I s, 1799.) " Straw in the head-dress, according to the laws and im- memorial customs of the stage, denotes the unsoundness of the brain it covers. Several of those useful and respectable young men, who make the campaign of Bond Street, have thought proper to invest their temples with the sacred symbols, and wear straw hats to give notice of their light-headedness." — {Times, July ^, 1799.) The Censor could also be severe on the harmless " Reticule." Old Times. 79 " In the present age of political innovation, it is curious to observe the great veneration for antiquity which prevails in all our dresses and fashions. Queen Elizabeth's ruffs decorate our blooming belles ; and our beaux are puckered and stuffed on the shoulders a la Richard the Third. But what is still more remarkable, is the total abjuration of the female pocket. Those heavy appendages are no more worn at present than keys at the girdles. Every fashionable fair carries her purse in her workbag. Her money and her industry lie cheek by jowl : and her gambling gains lie snug by her housewife. Her handkerchiefs, her toothpick case, her watch, and her keys, if she has any, are the constant concomitants of her visits ; and while no part of the symmetry of her shape is altered or concealed by the old-fashioned panniers, she has the pleasure of laying everything that belongs to her upon the table wher- ever she goes." — {Times, Nov. 9, 1799.) " A dashing Lady of Fashion, inconvenienced by the new custom of carrying a bag with her handkerchief smelling-bottle, purse, &c., (Sec, went to a large party the other evening, attended by a Page, who was employed to present the articles as they might be wanted. The Page was well qualified to go through the fatigues of office, being well-made, active, and just one and twenty. Should the example be imitated, Pages will probably be more jn request than waiting-women." — {Times, Dec. 7, 1799.) " If the present fashion of nudity continues its career, the Milliners must give way to the Carvers, and the most elegant fig-leaves will be all the mode. "The fashion oi false bosoms has at least this utility, that it compels our fashionable fair to wear something.'' — {Times, Dec. II, 1799.) With which most pungent criticism, we will take our leave of lady's dress. So Old Times. NAVY AND ARMY. No history of England, that I know of, has ever given us so graphic a description of the ways and means for procuring men for the Navy, as the Newspapers of the time, and in this, as in many other things, their help is invaluable. When we find from what classes the Navy was re- cruited, we wonder at what the men went through, with- out much murmuring ; and, if their very moderate, and just, demands, had been met in a conciliatory spirit, or even, officially investigated, instead of being pooh-poohed, and shelved — there would have been no mutiny at the Nore, nor elsewhere. When afloat, sailors were kept in subjection, or as it was termed, discipline, by brutality, foul language, and a plentiful application of the lash, to be recouped by almost unlimited license, whilst on shore, or, for the matter of that, when afloat, if at home in harbour. When the Royal George went down, there were 200 women on board, and in Dibdin's song of " Wapping Old Stairs," the heroine plaintively reminds her temporary lover thus — " When I passed a whole fortnight between decks with you y Did I e'er give a kiss, Tom, to one of the Crew ? " When the War with France broke out, it was hardly to be imagined that Fishermen, and Merchant seamen, would ^ ^ is I HUIll Old Times, 8i volunteer to leave their quiet occupation, to be bullied by petty, and other officers ; to be triced up, and lashed unmercifully, for even a venial fault; to be no better paid, nor fed than they were already; and to have an extra chance of death in a Naval engagement, even if the English were victorious, or the certainty of semi-star- vation in a French prison, if captured. So the State, wanting food for slaughter, stretched out its strong hand, and took it, by means of the pressgang. I shall have to recount a long list of " severe," or " hot," presses — and, first of all, in order that we may perfectly understand what a " press " was, and so thoroughly identify our- selves with the position, let us see the very minute, and vivid, description of Smollett, in " Roderick Random." " As I crossed Tower Wharf, a squat, tawny fellow, with a hanger by his side, and a cudgel in his hand, came up to me calling, ' Yo ho ! brother, you must come along with me.' As I did not like his appearance, instead of answering his salutation, I quickened my pace, in hopes of ridding myself of his company ; upon which, he whistled aloud, and immediately another sailor ap- peared before me, who laid hold of me by the collar, and began to drag me along. Not being of a humour to relish such treatment, I disengaged myself of the assailant, and, with one blow of my cudgel, laid him motionless on the ground ; and, perceiving myself surrounded in a trice, by ten or a dozen more, exerted myself with such dexterity and success, that some of my opponents were fain to attack me with drawn Cutlasses ; and, after an obstinate engagement, in which I received a large wound on my head, and another on my left cheek, I was dis- armed, taken prisoner, and carried on board a pressing tender ; where, after being pinioned like a malefactor, I F 82 Old Times. was thrust down into the hold, among a parcel of miser- able wretches, the sight of whom well nigh distracted me. " As the commanding officer had not humanity enough to order my wounds to be dressed, and I could not use my own hands, I desired one of my fellow-captives who was unfettered, to take a handkerchief out of my pocket, and tie it round my head, to stop the bleeding. He pulled out my handkerchief ('tis true), but, instead of applying it to the use for which I designed it, went to the grating of the hatchwa}^, and, with astonishing composure, sold it before my face to a bum boat woman, then on board, for a quart of gin, with which he treated my companions, regardless of my circumstances, and entreaties. " I complained bitterly of this robbery, to the midship- man on deck, telling him, at the same time, that, unless my wounds were dressed, I should bleed to death. But compassion was a weakness of which no man could justly accuse this person, who squirted a mouthful of dissolved tobacco upon me through the gratings, told me ' I was a mutinous dog, and that I might die, and be damned.' Finding there was no other remedy, I appealed to patience, and laid up this usage in my memor}^, to be recalled at a fitter season. In the meantime, loss of blood, vexation, and want of food, contributed, with the noisome stench of the place, to throw me into a swoon ; out of which 1 was recovered by the tar who stood centinel over us, who at the same time regaled me witli a draught of flip, and comforted me with the hopes of being put on board the Tlnindcr next day, where I should be freed of my handcuffs, and cured of my wounds by the doctor." Old Times. Z^ Now let us see how the press worked — *' The Press in the River Thames, for the three last days, has been very severe. Five or six hundred seamen have been laid hold of." — {Times, February i8///, 1793.) " On Wednesday night the press was very hot on the river Thames ; all the ships, both homeward, and outward, bound, were stripped of their hands ; not excepting two outward bound East Indiamen, which were to have sailed yesterday." — {Times, March 9, 1793.) "The press has been so hot, for seamen, since the order of Friday last, that three Tenders, full of men, have been dispatched from the Tower to the ' Sandwich ' guardship at the Nore." — {Times, March 27, 1793.) " A hot press has, for the last two nights, been carried on from London bridge to the Nore ; protections are disregarded, and almost all the vessels in the River have been stripped of their hands." — {Times, April 26, 1793.) "The sailors are so scarce, that upwards of 60 sail of merchants ships, bound to the West Indies, and other places, are detained in the River, with their ladings on board ; seven outward bound East Indiamen are likewise detained at Graves- end, for want of sailors to man them." — {Times, Jan. 7, 1794.) " The number of seamen to be voted for the service of the present year, including 12,000 marines, will be 85,000 men," — {Times, Jan. 29, 1794.) " There was a smart press on Monday, on the river, for seamen, and, in many of the avenues to the town, several hundreds were picked up, and put on board the receiving ship at the Tower." — {Times, April 2, 1794.) " Poole, Nov. 30. " This morning arrived in Steedland Bay, the ' Maria,' from Newfoundland, having some passengers on board, besides the crew ; the officers of the impress service expecting to meet some resistance, had called for military assistance, and 20 84 Old Times, soldiers, armed, went on board the tender, which went down the harbour, to meet the vessel ; when coming alongside, and finding the people obstinate, orders were given to the soldiers to fire, which they did ; the pilot (then at the helm), and two other men, were killed on the spot, and seven others danger- ously wounded, one of whom is since dead. Lieutenants Phillips and Glover, with all who were on board the tender, are taken into custody, and the whole town is in the greatest commotion." — {Times, Dec. 3, 1794-) "That part of Mr. Pitt's plan for manning the navy, which recommends to the Magistrates to take cognizance of all idle, and disorderly people, who have no visible means of liveli- hood, may, certainly, procure a great number of able bodied men who are lurking about the metropolis, if properly enforced. But experience teaches, that, unless the Magistrates see that their Runners do justice to the public, this salutary measure may be in a great measure defeated, from the interest which the Rtinners are known to have, in nursing those vagabonds, which the law enacts should be laid hold of." — {Times, Feb. II, 1795.) " A meeting on the subject of the Navy was held last week at Newcastle, the result of which was, the choosing of a Com- mittee, three of whom are to confer with Mr. Dundas — ' to recommend the suspension of the impress, to send into actual service the gangs and crews of the tenders, (amounting, it is said, from seven to ten thousand,) to increase the wages of seamen in the navy, and to pay half of it, monthly, for the support of their families.'" — {limes, Feb. 11, 1795.) •' An Embargo is about to take place on all the shipping in our ports, which it is thought will last six weeks, or until 20,000 seamen are procured. The embargo was to take place as last mghX.:'— {Times, Feb. 19, 1795.) " There was a very hot press in the river, on Friday night last, when several hundred able seamen were procured. One of the gangs, in attempting to board a Liverpool trader, were resisted by the crew, when a desperate affray took place, in which many of the former were thrown overboard, and the Old Times. 8 D Lieutenant who boarded them, killed by a shot from the vessel." — {Times, June 9, 1795.) " A very general search for seamen has taken place in the river, for several nights past ; such is the greatest want of hands to mix on board the men-of-war now ready at the Nore, Chatham, Sheerness," &c. — {Times, June 18, 1795.) "The Press gallies are out in the river, night and day, in order to pick up men ; the demand for seamen being still very great from the vast quantities of shipping now employed in Government service." — {Times, Aug. 29, 1795.) " One of the Juries that was impannelled on the Coroner's Inquest, to examine the body of one of the unfortunate men that was killed in the affray that took place between the press- gang, and the sailors, belonging to the ' Maria ' of Poole, have returned their verdict of Wilful Mtcrder against the two Lieutenants of the Navy." — {Times, Dec. 5, 1794-) The following instructive little story will shew how mutinies were made : — " The mutiny which existed several days on board the 'Culloden' of 74 guns, and which, it is said, originated in the wish of the crew to have the shijD docked, previous to her sailing for the West Indies, was, on Wednesday, settled by an order from the Admiralty in the following manner : — ' That several Captains were to go on board and inform the crew, unless they immediately returned to their duty, the "Royal George " of 1 10 guns, and " Queen," of 98 guns, would directly be laid alongside them.' They were allowed half an hour to consider the matter. The officers, and others, who chose to leave the ship, were at liberty so to do. The ship's company several times wanted to make terms, which could not possibly be complied with : in about twenty minutes they all agreed to return to their duty ; 1 2 of the ringleaders were instantly seized, and put in irons, and will no doubt be tried by a Court Martial for the same. During the time the ship was in this mutinous state, the crew flogged several marines because they 86 Old Times. would not join them, and would have punished the whole, had they gone below." — {Times, Dec. 13, 1794.) " The cause of the mutiny, on board the ' CuUoden,' was briefly this. In coming into Spithead, the ' Sampson,' and ' CuUoden,' both run a-ground. The former was a good deal damaged : the latter lost only her rudder, which could easily be repaired at Spithead, but the ' Sampson ' was obliged to be carried into dock. Some of the seamen of the ' CuUoden,' in a mutinous manner, expressed their doubts of the safety of the ship : and, upon being remonstrated with, insisted upon going into harbour." — {Tmes, Dec. 16, 1794-) Which were right, the Sailors, or the Admiralty ? Here is a curious case, which shows the want of men to man the fleet, and how unscrupulously even magis- trates lent themselves against all justice, and equit}-, in helping to kidnap men for the use of the Navy Ser- vices : — ' "PUBLIC OFFICE, BOW STREET.— A master brick- layer, of the name of Whitehead, brought his apprentice before the sitting magistrate, on a charge of having stolen a scaffolding board, value under ninepoice: he had his choice, either to enlist as a soldier, or to be sent on board the fleet : to both of which he objected. The Magistrate then ordered a letter to be written to the Regulating Captain, Tower Hill, to have him sent on board the Navy." — {Times, Jan. 5, 1795.) On this, one of the spectators addressed Mr. Bond, and told him he was acting improperl3\ " Who are you ? " says Mr. B . " I am a ]\Ir. Thompson, a Member of the House of Commons for Evesham : and I teU you that you act iUegally." " Do you tell me, sitting here as a magistrate, that I act illegally ? " " I do : for if the boy has committed a crime, he is not to be punished by you, or any other justice : it is to the laws of the land, and to them alone, that he is amenable : and I say, that it Old Times. 87 is a violation of the liberty of the subject." Mr. Bond ob- served, that the King wanted men : and did not Mr. Thompson think that it was proper to procure those for him, who had forfeited their liberty? Mr. T. replied, that he knew that the King did want men, but that that was a very improper mode of coming at them. Mr. Bond then observed, that probably Mr. T. might investigate it in the House of Com- mons : but whether he did or did not, he should act as he thought proper for that time. He then sent for Major Leeson, and had him enlisted. Mr. Thompson signified as much to him, as that it should be brought before the House." (On Monday, 5th Jan., the matter was introduced in a speech of Mr. Thompson's, on the Habeas Corpus Bill, but nothing was done.) Jack did, occasionally, get some prize money, but nothing ever came up to the " Hermione " in 1762, when each ordinary seaman had about ;^8oo for his share ; but when we look at the disparity between the Captain's and Sailor's share, we can enter into the spirit of the Sailor's prayer, before an engagement, that the shots might be apportioned, like the prize money, — the greater part among the officers. " By the determination of the Lord Chancellor in. favour of the captors of the St. /ago Register ship, Admiral Gell will get, as his proportion, near ^100,000 prize money. All the captains of his fleet will divide about ;^3o,ooo, and so downwards in proportion. The precise value of the St /ago, Spanish ship, retaken in April 1793, from the French, which the Lords of Appeal adjudged to the captors, on Thursday evening last, is ;^935,ooo." — {Times, Feb. 4, 1795.) " The first payment of the immense St. Jago prize is commenced, Captain Sir A. Douglas having received his share. The following is the declared proportion of the specie only: Each Captain's share, ;^i 3,920 ; Lieutenant's share, ;^9io; Warrant officer's share, ^612; Petty officer's share, 88 Ohi' Times. £\\o\ Foremast-man's share, £2(3. Besides two seventh's shares of the whole in reserve, till the question, whether the Boyne, and Powerful, have a right to share with the Squadron. The above statement is independent of the valuable cargo, and bullion, which are yet to be shared. The Admirals shares are not yet declared."— (r/;;^^^, March 21, i795-) "Saturday, the 26th inst., the sailors on board the Sea Horse frigate, had 2800 dollars served out to them at Portsmouth, and leave of absence for 48 hours' recreation on shore. This ship shares the whole of the Spanish prizes taken by her, and carried into Portsmouth. Their cargoes consist principally of about 300,000 dollars and gold doubloons, and about 120,000 raw hides, tallow," &c. — {Times, Dec. 2, 1796.) "The Spanish prize, taken by the Raven brig, one of Admiral Earl St. Vincent's squadron, which was sent home, now lies at Deptford, where she is strongly guarded, and no persons suffered to go on board, till she has gone through a complete search, as it is suspected some other valuables, besides the Platina, of which 4000 ounces have been taken out and sold, are hid. Platina is a metal of the colour of silver, and about one eighth heavier than gold. None has ever been seen in Europe, at least in any quantity, but in Spain where it is consigned to the Crown, from South America." — {Times, Sept. 20, 1797.) " We stated several days since, that it had been determined by Mr. Pitt to alter, very materially, the Bill now before the House of Commons, for manning the navy. The principal alteration will be the taking off the burthen on ship-owners, of finding men before their ships can clear out ; instead of which they are to advance a certain proportion of money, and Com- missioners are to be stationed, at the out-ports, to find men out of this fund. The measure proposed is as follows, — that each Port shall, according to the number of seamen belonging to it, raise a certain number of men — that these men shall be fixed by Ballot — that those who have enrolled themselves to be balloted, shall receive a certificate of having done so, which shall secure them against pressing — that no man shall be per- Old Times. 89 mitted to serve on board a merchant ship, under a very heavy penalty, without such a certificate, that no ship shall be suffered to proceed from any Port, till the number of men required from the Port shall be raised ; and that those who do not enrol themselves, shall be liable to be apprehended." — {Times, Feb. 18, 1795.) As we see by the following paragraphs, the parishes offered bounties to fill up their quota of sailors : — " The Parish of St. James', Westminster, having, in a public manner, signified their wish, to raise hventy-five men, pursuant to the statute, to serve in His Majesty's Navy, had, by Wednes- day last, completed that number: and the regulating-ofiicer, in the course of the afternoon, examined them, and found them all extremely proper for His Majesty's service : and, on Thursday, they were examined and certified, by the Parochial Magistrates, when the men requesting to have ^7, the third part of the bounty-money, advanced to buy slops, bedding, and for other purposes, it was immediately complied with." — {Times, Apr. 7, 1795.) (Advt.) "Ancient and Loyal City of Westminster. " At a MEETING of the Vestries, Church-wardens, Over- seers, and the principal inhabitants, of the Parishes of St. Mar- garet, and St. John the Evangelist, Westminster, in St. Mar- garet's Vestry Room, on Thursday, the 2nd day of April 1795, it was agreed to give a bounty of Twenty-five Guineas each to Twenty ]\Ien, to be raised for the Naval Service of His Majesty King George, in defence of Old England. All able- bodied men, willing to serve in His Majesty's Navy, are desired to apply, from the hours of nine in the morning till four in the afternoon, at the Vestry Room, in St. IMargaret's Churchyard, Westminster, this, and the following days, Sundays excepted. To any man, who shall be approved by the Regulating Officer, part of the Bounty will be immediately paid, on his enrolment, either to himself or to his wife and family, or to any other person he may appoint to receive the same, and the remainder upon his being mustered on board of ship. He will have an 90 Old Times. opportunity of leaving a power for part of his wages and prize money, to be paid monthly for the support of his family, who will also be under the care, and protection of a kind and benevolent parish : and if his conduct is approved, he will have the preference, on his return, of any employment the Parish can give him. None need apply but able-bodied men. No volunteer, who shall enter as above, can be taken out of His Majesty's Service, but for a criminal matter. N.B. Persons enrolled, are not liable to serve more than three months after the War, if arrived in any port of Great Britain. "By Order, T. Drake, Vestry Clerks —{Times, Apr. 9, 1795.) " From the returns of the Regulating Officers, received at the Admiralty, it appears that on the average, about half the men for the navy, are likely to be raised throughout the counties, and that the deficiency will be paid in money. The average price given in the Eastern Counties is £,2K^ per man ; so that the fine of ;^io added to it, will make the parishes defaulting, advance ;^35, in lieu of a man, for every 68 assessed houses." — {Times, Apr. 9, 1795.) "A change is about to take place in the Naval Uniform. Epaulets are to be worn — two by Flag Officers, and these to mark their rank; two likewise by Post Captains, demonstrative of their rank ; one, on the right shoulder, by Masters, and Commanders, and one on the left by Lieutenants." — {Times, June 5, 1795.) "The City of London has now made up its quota of 5704 Seamen, under the Act which laid an embargo on all outward bound vessels, until 20,000 men were raised for the use of the Navy. Among this number arc about 1600 able seamen, who count each for two ordinary seamen. The expenses of raising them in London, are found to be much more moderate than the men raised in the country ports." — {Times, Sept. 24, 1795.) " One Samuel Caradise, who had been committed to the House of Correction, in Kendal, and there confined as a vagabond, until put on board a King's ship, agreeable to the late Act, sent for his wife, the evening before his intended Old Times. 91 departure. He was in a cell, and she spoke to him through the iron door. After which, he put his hand underneath, and she with a mallet, and chissel, concealed for the purpose, struck off a finger and thumb, to render him unfit for His Majesty's service." — {Times, Nov. 3, 1795.) "All superfluous ornaments to the heads, and sterns, of King's ships are, we understand, in future to be discontinued. Instead of a figure at the head, a scroll is to be substituted, and the sterns are to be as plain as possible."— (7/Vw.r, Sept. 9, 1796.) " The Navy Board have given orders, that ships of war shall be ornamented with carved work at their heads, and sterns, as formerly, which mode, some months since, had been sus- pended." — {Times, Oct. 6, 1797.) "Anecdote of Captain Drury of the ' Powerful.' " About an hour before the action with the Dutch Fleet, he assembled his men, and thus addressed them : — ' You are a set of damned, blackguard, mutinous, rascals, and you know I think so of you all : we shall soon see whether you have any cour- age : I have only this to say to you, you see the Dutch ship that we shall soon be along-side : if you don't silence her in 40 minutes, I shall know what to think of you. — Now return to your quarters.' Turning to the Master, he said, 'Do you take care that these rascals, may not have to complain that they were not near enough.' In 20 minutes the^ Dutch ship struck her colours, and the ' Powerful ' bore away to assist the * Venerable.' After the action, the Captains of the fore-castle came aft, and asked Capt. Drury if he still considered them a rascally set ? ' No,' said Capt. D., ' your behaviour has perfectly satisfied me.' ' Will you then shake hands ?' said the men, which he did most heartily, and assured them that he should never reproach them again for what had passed, and would, on his part, entirely forget that anything had ever happened. They then gave him three cheers, and, now, Capt. Drury is almost idolized by the crew." — {Times, Nov. 16, 1797.) "The French Government has ordered 16 sail of the line, 92 Old Times. i8 frigates, and 12 ships of war of a smaller size to be built. Good news this for Old England ! It saves us the trouble and expense of building them ourselves, as they are sure to find their way into our ports." — {Times, JSlov. 26, 1798.) " Lord Camelford. " By the Leeward Island INIail, which arrived yesterday, we have received some very circumstantial advices of what passed in the West Indies, respecting Lord Camelford, who was tried by a Court Martial, on the 13th of January last, at Fort Royal Bay, for the murder of Lieut. Peterson, and acquitted. " Antigua, Jamcary 23, 1798. "On the 13th inst. died, at English Harbour, Charles Peterson, Esq., first Lieutenant of H.M. ship Fe?-drix. This event was occasioned by a dispute between the deceased, and Lord Camelford, upon the right of commanding at English Harbour. Lord Camelford commanded H.M. sloop-of-war the Favourite, by virtue of an order, or warrant, from Admiral Harvey ; and INIr. Peterson, though an older Lieutenant than Lord Camelford, had lately served on board that ship under his command, but, having been removed to the Perdrix, and Lord Camelford not having a commission as Master, and Commander, Mr. Peterson, being then at English Harbour, supposed himself to be the Commanding Officer, and, under that idea, issued some orders to Lord Camelford, which were answered by other orders from Lord C. to Mr. P. Upon Mr. Peterson's refusal to obey these orders, a Lieutenant with a party of Marines were sent to put him under arrest, and Mr. P. prepared for resistance, and ordered the crew of the Perdrix to arm in his defence. But, before any conflict took place. Lord Camelford arrived, went up to Mr. P., demanded if he would obey his orders, or not, and, upon being answered in the negative, he immediately shot him dead upon the spot. An inquest was taken by the Coroner, the next day ; but the Jury, not being willing to take upon themselves the determination of the question upon whom the command at English Harbour had devolved, found only that the deceased had been shot by Lord Camelford, in conse- quence of a mutiny." — {Times, April 11, 179S.) Old Times. 93 Extract of a letter from an Officer in H.M. ship Vengeance, dated Antigua, February 9 : — " Lord Camelford appears to me to be a new character in his Class. He is very severe in carrying on duty ; seldom ties up a man but he gets six or seven dozen lashes, which is a more severe punishment in this country than what is produced by giving the same number in a northern climate. " Although his Lordship is a Master, and Commander, he makes use of no swabs (gold shoulder knots), but still appears in a Lieutenant's uniform. His dress is indeed extremely remarkable ; all the hair is shaved off his head, on which he wears a monstrous large Gold-laced cocked-hat. He is dressed in a Lieutenant's plain coat, the buttons of which are as green with verdigrease, as the ship's bottom ; and, with this, all the rest of his dress corresponds." Extract of a private letter, " Cronstadt, August 2. " Our countrymen who have been employed at Revel, in conducting the embarkation of the Russian troops, have been honoured with great marks of attention from the Emperor, and his Family. " His Imperial Majesty requested the Nile lugger, in which Captain Popham went to Petersburgh, to be brought up close to his palace at Peterhoff, where he went on board, accom- panied by only one Nobleman. The lugger was immediately got under weigh, and, there being a fine breeze of wind. His Majesty was highly surprised, and gratified, at the swiftness of her sailings. After a two hour's cruise, he was landed again at the palace, when the lugger gave him a royal salute. " It appears the account he gave of the English vessel had greatly excited the curiosity of the rest of the Royal Family, as, next day. Captain Popham was honoured with the company of the Empress, the Emperor, Four Princesses, and Three Princes, with their retinue, when they were, of course, treated with a sail, at which they were highly delighted, and, with great condescension, partook of some ship beef, and biscuit. The Emperor was particularly attentive to everything on board 94 Old Times. the lugger, visiting every part of her, and, when the sailors were hoisting the sails, he insisted on helping for once, to set the sails of a vessel belonging to his gracious Ally, and actually hauled the rope with the men. The Empress begged that the crew would sing ' God save the King,' which was instantly complied with, to Her IMajesty's entire satisfaction. " Captain Popham was presented by the Emperor, with an elegant snuff-box set with diamonds, and with a valuable ring from Her Imperial Majesty. His Majesty has likewise knighted Captain Popham, conferring on him the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Lieutenant Pratt, Captain Popham's Assistant in this business, has also been presented with a gold snuff-box, from the Emperor, and a handsome gold watch and chain, from the Empress." — {Times, August 28, 1799.) Was the under-mentioned lady the veritable heroine of the ballad of " Billy Taylor ? " " There is at present in the Middlesex Hospital, a young, and delicate female, who calls herself Miss T — lb — t, and who is said to be related to some families of distinction ; her story is very singular : — At an early period of her life, having been deprived by the villany of a trustee, of a sum of money be- queathed her by a deceased relation of high rank, she followed the fortunes of a young Naval officer, to whom she was attached, and personated a common sailor before the mast, during a cruise in the North Seas. In' consequence of a lover's quarrel, she quitted the ship and assumed for a time the military char- acter : but her passion for the sea prevailing, she returned to her favourite element, did good service, and received a severe wound, on board Earl St. Vincent's ship, on the glorious 14th of February, and again bled in the cause of her country, in the engagement off Camperdown. On this last occasion her knee was shattered, and an amputation is likely to ensue. This spirited female, we understand, receives a pension of ;^2o, from an illustrious Lady, which is about to be doubled." {Times, Nov. 4, 1799.) In 1793, the war with France, which was, on and oft", to last so long, was an accomplished fact — and one of the IBr/tish l^c//es /^atr/otic Presents to the Army. -/7S3. UtUil Old Times. 95 first notices thereof, at least, pictorially, makes fun of the good intentions of the patriotic ladies of England, towards the personal comforts of the army. Men were most urgently wanted — but it had hardly come to the following : — " Major Hanger has made a proposal to Government, rather of a singular nature, to raise a corps of men, from among the convicts. He has received his answer, that, at present. Government can give no countenance to his application." But it did come. — {Ti/iies, Afarcli 23, 1793.) " We have already mentioned that a number of convicts in Newgate, under sentence of transportation, have within the last few days, been permitted to enter into marching regiments. The crown debtors in the various prisons, have received similar offers." — {2'i/nes, Oct. 9, 1795.) " The French Emigrants, who are to serve in the legion now assembling at Jersey, have received orders to keep themselves ready, at a short notice, to repair to their destinations. About 400, have enlisted in town, and between 500, and 600, at Je?'sey." — {Times, JaJi. 29, 1794.) Here is a very early Notice of Volunteers : — "We are happy to hear that the Grand Juries of the different counties, intend to recommend the forming Volunteer Companies, to augment the Militia. The Grand Jury, at Reading, greatly approved this measure, and the sum of 14, c"^ ;^i5°o> has already been subscribed, at that place, for carry- ing it into effect." — (Times, March 8, 1794.) " The following are the terms for raising Independent Companies. For a Company, a Lieutenant on full pay is to raise fifty men, including three corporals, to be allowed five guineas levy money, and the pay of three Serjeants, and two drummers, during the levy, and to receive ;^i5o from^he suc- cessor to his lieutenancy. A Lieutenant on half pay, to raise the like number, but to be allowed eight guineas levy-money. For 96 Old Times. a Lieutenancy, an Ensign on full pay is to raise twenty men, including a corporal, and to be allowed five guineas levy-money with the pay of a sergeant, and a drummer, during the levy. An Ensign on half-pay, to raise the like number, but to be allowed seven guineas levy-money." — (Times, March 7, 1794.) " The following, we understand to be the heads- of the plan to be proposed for the consideration of the Lords Lieutenants of the different counties, for the internal defence of the Kingdom. " ist. The Militia is to be augmented by Volunteer Com- panies, or by an additional number of privates to each com- pany, in the option of His Majesty. " 2ndly. Volunteer Companies are to be formed in particular towns : in those particularly situated on the sea coast, for purposes of local defence. " 3rdly. A certain number of soldiers for each Regiment : to act as pioneers, as well as persons in different parishes, and districts, not attached immediately to the Militia, to act in the same capacity : and certain places to be appointed for their rendezvous, particularly upon the sea coast ; but these to be ready to assist the regular forces upon every emergency. "4thly. Volunteer Troops of Fencible Cavalry are to be raised, consisting of from 50, to 80, men per troop, which are liable to serve only during the war, and within the Kingdom : the Officers are to have temporary rank only, and are not to be entitled to half pay : arms, clothing, and accoutrements, to be furnished by the Government, but the levy-money to be found by the persons raising such troops, or troops, as also the horses ; for the horses, however, they are to be allowed the Government contract price. The person who, upon the above terms, raises two troops, is to have the temporary rank of Major ; he who raises four, that of Lieutenant Colonel ; and he who raises six, that of Colonel. " Fifthly, Bodies of Cavalry are, besides, to be raised within particular districts, or counties, to consist of the Gentlemen and Yeomanry, or ""such persons as they shall recommend, according to a plan to be approved of by the King, or by the Lords Lieutenant, under authority from His Majesty; the Officers are to receive Commissions from His Majesty, and the Muster Rolls are also to be approved of by His Majesty, Old Times. 97 or by the Lords Lieutenant, at particular periods to be here- after fixed ; no levy money is to be given, and the horses are to be provided by the Gentry or Yeomanry who compose the particular corps ; the arms and accoutrements, are, however, to be supplied at the public expense. Such corps are to be exercised only at particular times, fixed by warrant from His Majesty, or by the approbation of the Lords Lieutenant. They are to be liable to be embodied, or called out of their respective counties, only by special direction from His Majesty, in case of actual appearance of invasion ; and to be liable to be called upon by order from His Majesty, or by the Lords Lieutenant, or Sheriff of the county, to act within the county, or in the adjacent counties, for the suppression of riots and tumults. In either case, they are to receive pay as cavalry, and are to be liable to the provisions of the Mutiny Bill." — {Times, Alar. 13, 1794.) Qualifications. — "The officers of the London Militia, according to the Bill now in the House of Lords, are to be qualified according to the Act of the 26th George IH. Cap. 107, Sec. 8. Real or Personal. Field Officers . . . ;^3oo ^^5,000 Captains . . . . 150 2,500 Lieutenants . . . . 30 750 Ensign .... 20 400 One Moiety in the City, the other in any part of the Kingdom seised of an estate, either in law, or equity, the claim or grant whereof was originally made for 20 years, of the same annual amount, to be a qualification." — {Times, Jinie 26, 1794.) "An extraordinary circumstance lately happened to a sheriff's officer, in the neighbourhood of Covent Garden. Hot with juniper berry, not the Tuscan Grape, he had an idea of beating the Carmagnols ; and in consequence, going to a recruiting party in Bow Street, said he would enlist. The Captain of the party gave him a shilling, in the usual phrase oi His Majesty's name: — he said he must have more : — a guinea was given him in His Majesty's name, to serve so and so ; he G 98 Old Times. took it, and departed. The matter thus rested for five or six days, when he came back to return the money, which he said he had taken i7i a frolic. The money was refused. He said he would be revenged, and, having a writ some days after, against one of the enUsted recruits, he went to the rendezvous house to execute it, where the Captain took him up as a deserter^ and sent him to the Savoy Prison, from whence he has been released by a Habeas Corpus^ contrary, as military men say, to the law by which the military are governed. This will occasion a most curious contest." — {Times, June 30, 1 794-) "Something like a legal tmitiyiy has, it seems, already arisen in the long robed Corps of Volunteers. By a clause in their engrossed agreeme?it, every Member neglecting to attend the regular drill, is boimd to pay a fine of three shilli?igs and four- pence, towards purchasing parcJwmit to new head their drums. Against this penalty being levied, some of the absentees have demurred, on the plea that the instriunent is not valid in law, from its not being draivn on a six shilling stamp .'^ — {Times, July 17, 1794.) "A melancholy accident happened yesterday, about one o'clock, at the Recruiting Office, Angel Court, Charing Cross. A sergeant having kidnapped a man, for the better securing him, had confined him in a back-garret at the top of the house, after he had cut off his hair, to disfigure him, and, tying his hands behind him, and locking the door, left him by himself. By some means, the man got his hands loosened, and chose rather to risk his life by jumping from the window, than suffer himself to be any longer in their clutches ; accordingly, he attempted to pitch upon a leaded roof, which was about half way to the bottom, but, unfortunately, jumping short, he fell back, and his head falling against the wall, his skull was fractured in such a shocking manner, that he died in about an hour afterwards. The populace were so much enraged at this shocking enormity, which we are sorry to believe is too often repeated, that they almost demolished the Recruiting Office. The mob had increased to so great a degree at ten o'clock last night, that it was found necessary to call out a party of the I: buu:-- Old Times. 99 Horse Guards, for the protection of the neighbourhood." — {Times, Aug. 16, ijg4.) This was a serious riot. The mob at that time was pecuharly excitable, and had a great deal more of its own way than it has now. So a spark only was wanted to make a flame. This was found in a rumoured case of kidnapping for the army ; impressing for the navy could be understood, because it had obtained from time immemorial, that when the king wanted men to man his war vessels, he took seamen, or fishermen, but this was something new, and must be put down, otherwise no man was safe. The truth was not scrupulously adhered to, and the print shops, ever eager to make money by pandering to the passions of the hour, published exaggerated, and heartrending pictures, of the way in which the army was recruited, and, altogether, a very pretty riot was got up. " On Saturday morning, early, a mob again collected before Angel Court, Charing Cross, and attacked the house from whence the unfortunate young man had thrown himself into the street. The populace proceeded to gut the house, throwing the furniture out of the windows. The street was covered with feathers from the beds which were torn to pieces : they were proceeding to demolish an adjoining house, when the military were called in, and several officer's detachments, both of horse, and foot, again paraded the streets at Charing Cross. The mob having assembled again yesterday morning, and becoming very riotous, a troop of Horse Guards was very properly ordered out, and two or three of the principal rioters about the King's Arms Public House, taken into custody. " It is some satisfaction that we have heard the Coroner's report on the investigation of this unpleasant business. A most respectable jury sat five hours, on Saturday night, to consider of the verdict : and, after the most minute testimony of several witnesses, it was proved that the young man, whose lOO Old Times. name was Howe, and lived at Wandsworth, was a Lunatic, and had been several times confined by his friends. He had himself offered to enlist ; no blame whatever attaches in this instance, to the people of the house. We trust that this impartial enquiry will satisfy the minds of every one, and that there will be no more mobs." — {Times, Aug. i8, 1794.) "In consequence of a mob again assembling at Charing Cross, yesterday evening, the Horse Guards were again called out, and paraded the streets till midnight." — {Times, Aug. 19, 1794.) "THE RIOTS IN LONDON. "We had flattered ourselves with the hope, that the very fair, and public, investigation which took place on the Coroner's Inquest, which sat on Saturday last on the body of the unfortunate man, Howe, who threw himself out of a window of a Recruiting House, would have satisfied every man's mind, that Howe was a Lunatic, and had been so for many years past : and that it was in a fit of Lunacy, that he destroyed himself. We hoped after this investigation, all kinds of mobs would have ceased. "We are sorry to observe, that the people are instigated to riot by the false representations daily made in those Jacobin prints, which are, at all times, so eager to announce, and magnify, every public misfortune. One of these yesterday asserted, 'that a poor woman with five children, and herself now pregnant, suspecting the crimps had decoyed her husband into a house in Whitcomb St., watched it, and ^>' chance saw her husband chained to the floor. ' An evening paper of yesterday, observes * that the guards, both horse and foot, were ^5 7isuai, grossly insulting inoffensive passengers,' and it concludes with a piece of advice to these military gentlemen, ' that they are not always with musquets, and swords, in their hands, and that the people may be roused to resistance.' Now we know that no gentlemen could have observed greater caution than the military have done on this occasion : and the above remarks have no other object than to excite riot. " On Tuesday last, /ohn Kerr and John Ruggle, were com- •Old Times. loi mitted to Newgate for stripping a man of his cloaths. Kerr is the man who keeps a house in Whitcombe Street, Charing Cross ; which was assailed by a mob on Tuesday night, and very much damaged. It was owing to this riot, that the Horse Guards were again called out, and paraded the streets, through the night, as well as yesterday, to keep the peace. " Six of those who were found in Kerr's hoiAe throwing the furniture out of the windows, were taken into custody, and, yesterday morning, were all committed to Tothill-fields Bridewell. "A riot also was attempted to be raised at a recruiting- office in Tooley St., Southwark, on Tuesday night. " Yesterday, a mob assembled before a house of the same description, in Shoe Lane, at which several stones were thrown : and, at length, it became so serious, that the Lord Mayor was called upon to interpose his assistance, and attended, and, by the interference of a few constables, the mob dispersed, but, in the evening, the number of people con- tinuing to increase, a party of guards were sent from the Tower, and the Lord Mayor, at eight o'clock, read the Riot Act. The mob, after being driven out of Shoe Lane by the soldiers, rushed suddenly to Bride Lane, where they broke open a house which had been employed as a recruiting-office, and proceeded to throw the beds, and some little furniture that remained in it, out of the windows ; but, hearing of the approach of the military, they fled, saying they had plenty more business to do. It was reported, at the time this paper was going to press, that the Recruiting Offices on Mutton Hill, and Cow-Cross, near Clerkenwell Green, had likewise met a similar fate." — {Times., Aug. 20, 1794.) "On Wednesday, the examinations closed respecting Mrs. Hanna, who kept the recruiting office at Charing Cross, when she was acquitted, no evidence being adduced to criminate her. This acquittal has been the consequence of a very scrutinizing investigation. " The riots were not confined, on Wednesday night, to Fleet St. and the neighbourhood, but extended to the Raven, in Golden Lane, and the Sash, in Moorfields, and very much damaged the Rum Puncheon, in Old St., and a private house I02 Old Times, in Long Lane. They were all recruiting houses. A recruiting house, opposite Fetter Lane, in Holborn, was completely gutted. "Yesterday, bills were very properly stuck up in different parts of the town, to the following purport : — ' You are earnestly requested to depart hence, and not by remaining, encourage others to stop, by which a crowd will be accumu- lated, and your personal liberty may be endangered.' Parents were likewise warned from suffering their children to appear abroad. " It is greatly to be apprehended that there exists a scheme to raise mobs, and disturb the peace of the metropolis. On Friday, and Saturday, during the riots at Charing Cross, great pains were taken to persuade the people, that there were subterraneous passages from the houses to the Thames, and that men were sent off in the night. On Monday, and Tuesday, hand-bills were distributed, telling the people that men, and children, were kidnapped, and sent off to Canada, and elsewhere. Nothing can be more notoriously false than such assertions." — {Times, Aug. 22, 1794.) " On Thursday night there was an attempt made to raise a riot in St. George's Fields, at the Milk House, the corner of the London Road, the master of which is a temporary Ser- jeant to recruit for some of the volunteer corps ; but by the spirited behaviour of the recruits, soldiers and light horse volunteers, in that quarter, the incendiaries did not proceed to acts of violence. It was evidently apparent that the mob was led on by persons above the common rank, whose sole aim is, if possible, under the idea of some pretended grievance, to raise a general riot in the metropolis. On Thursday, several persons were committed to the New Compter, by the Lord Mayor, for being concerned in the riot in Shoe Lane; and six men were committed to Newgate, from the Public Ofhce, in Worship Street, for being concerned in the riots at the Sash, in Moorfields, and at the Black Raven, in Golden Lane. *' In the course of the same day, several attempts of a similar nature were made in different quarters of the town, which were prevented, however, by the appearance of the regular military, and, in some places, by the City Horse Old Tunis. 103 Volunteers, who have been out on duty every day. The recruiting offices in Drury Lane, and at Shoreditch, were attempted to be demolished. As the continuance of these riotous proceedings is of the most dangerous nature, we trust that some more decisive steps will be taken, by Government, for their suppression." — {Times, Ajig. 23, 1794.) **The activity of the IMagistrates, and the arrival of the Oxford Blues, to assist the Civil Power, caused the mobs to be cautious of appearing on Saturday. They found that it was determined to fire upon them if they did not desist ; and, therefore, they thought personal safety the best policy. A very rigid, and severe, investigation will, no doubt, be made into the practice of crimping, and a stop put to the disgraceful manner oi recrui^i/ig." — {Times, Aug. 26, 1794.) " Old Bailey. " Five men were indicted for a riot, on the 20th of last month, at a Public House, known by the name of the Old Sash, in IMoorfields. After a trial of five hours, the Jury found all the prisoners — A^of Guilty. John Osborn and R. Piggott were indicted for riotously assembling on the 20th August last, in Golden Lane, and beginning to demolish the dwelling house of Hugh Case. Piggott found guilty, sentence, Death. Osborn, not Guilty. J. Strutt, was afterwards tried for begin- ning to demolish the dwelling house of W. Ostiff, in Johnson's Court, Charing Cross, and, after a trial of several hours, was found guilty, sentence Death. Antony Purchase, and R. Warnbeck, were next tried, for beginning to pull down the house of R. Lazell, and found guilty, sentence Death. They were both of them strongly recommended, by the Jury, to mercy, on account of their youth, and the goodness of their character." — {Times, Sept. 22, 1794.) " Sunday evening, an affray hajDpened in Whitcomb Street, between a recruiting party, and the mob, on account of the former attempting to trepan a young man, in a state of intoxi- cation. The windows of the recruiting-house were broke, and the affair, which for some time bore an alarming aspect, was at I04 Old Ti7nes. last terminated by the arrival of a party of the Horse Guards." {Times, Dec. 23, 1794.) RIOT IN ST. GEORGE'S FIELDS. " However expedient it is to recruit our Land Forces, and strongly as it is requisite to make our Navy respectable, and superior to the enemy, yet, in attaining these essential points, the constitutional liberty of the subject should be preserved. It is, therefore, with a degree of regret, we mention that the power of enlisting men for the Land Service, in particular, has been entrusted to persons who have abused the confidence reposed in them, and who have used the most unjustifiable means to accomplish their purposes. As an instance, among others that have previously been brought before the public, we are authorised, from the circumstances of the case, to state, that on Friday last, a very great mob assembled in Lo?idon Road, leading from the Obelisk, in St. George's Fields, to the Elephant and Castle, at Newington Butts, and, having intima- tion that a number of men were there imprisoned by a certain description of Crimps, they attacked the house where these persons were confined, demoUshed the windows, and released eighteen men, who were chained together by hand-cuffs, and other iron ligaments, "The Borough Magistrates, on hearing of this outrage, im- mediately sent down their officers : and the Acting Recruiting Serjeant being taken into custody, he was, after a short examination, committed to the New Gaol. The circumstances which led to the discovery of this imprisonment, was, that of kidnapping a pot-boy, who, before he was chained down, contrived to break a pane of glass in the drawing-room window (for the house was a private one, and elegantly furnished), from whence he cried out ' Murder ! ' This alarmed the neighbour- hood, and, as it had been suspected by them, that persons were illegally confined there, the doors, and windows, were soon demolished, and the prisoners liberated. The Serjeant, and his crew, had two women of the town genteelly dressed up for the purpose of inveigling young men into the house, which they styled their lodgings, where the deluded were instantly hand-cuffed, and, about three or four o'clock, in the morning, J2 —■■ " Old Times. 105 sent off in coaches, hired for the purpose, to the country. On Saturday, several more youths, who were confined in other parts of the Fields, were released by the Magistrates, amidst the plaudits of a numerous multitude of spectators." — {Times, Jan. 12, 1795.) " On Tuesday night some disturbance happened in Charles Street, Westminster, occasioned by some crimps having in- veigled a boy from his parents, and lodged him in a house there. The mob broke the windows of it, and the boy was rescued. We have every reason to hope that the most severe punishment will be inflicted on the crimps. Government having taken every possible pains to prevent such abuses." — {Times, April 16, 1795.) "Yesterday evening, about seven o'clock, a very consider- able mob assembled about Charing Cross, and, under the pretence of delivering a man from the Crimping House, they attacked the house, which is up a little court near Northum- berland House, a'nd threw all the furniture out of the windows. Charing Cross was covered with feathers. The mob became so numerous, and disorderly, that it was found necessary to call in the assistance of the Horse Guards : and the Riot Act was twice read by a Magistrate. The street was much thronged, and the tumult continued, when this Paper went to press : although there had been no other act of serious mischief. No one can detest the business of Crimping more than we do : but we have strong reasons to believe that this is very fre- quently made a stalking horse with the factious, to provoke a riot." — {Times, July 12, 1795.) "A Mob collected themselves again, last night, at Charing Cross, when, after making every one pull off their hats, as they passed, they proceeded to Mr. Pitt's, in Downing St., and broke several windows in his house; but, the Guards being immediately called out, and appearing in sight, very soon dis- persed them. " The Mob, afterwards, went over Westminster Bridge, and paraded to St. George's-fields, where they attacked the Royal George Public-house, near the Obelisk, and threw all the fur- niture of it into the road, and there burnt it. They gutted io6 Old Times. another Recruiting house, in Lambeth-Road, and, afterwards, made a bonfire of the furniture. This was mistaken by many, to be houses on fire. There were some of the Mob who kept watch on the outside of the houses, to give notice of the arrival of the miUtary, who did not come till after the furniture of these two houses were consumed. The Mob compelled the inhabitants of the houses in the neighbourhood, to put up lights. " The Riot at Charing Cross, on Sunday night, was begun by a very few persons who wished for mischief, and called out the words, Crimps, and Kidnappers ! The damage was done almost instantaneously, and the villains escaped, leaving a numerous assembly of people, who were only drawn together by an idle curiosity, on the Surrey-road, near the Circus. Yesterday morning, however, about seven o'clock, it was assailed by a mob, and, notwithstanding it was well defended, and that the door was plated with iron, it was forced, and the prisoners rescued. Last night the mob again assembled about half past eight o'clock, near the Obelisk, in St. George's fields, where they gutted another Recruiting Office, and threw the furniture into the road, of which they made a bonfire. At first, the mob consisted only of about one hundred men, but the flames soon attracted great numbers. About nine, the Horse Guards arrived, and soon dispersed the crowd. We wish they had come sooner, as it is extremely injudicious to the public interest, that such indecent sights should be repeated. It was very well known that a Mob meant to assemble, and, of course, the Military should have been at hand, to meet it. Several persons Avere much hurt, in not being able to disperse soon enough, which ought to be a warning not to mingle in such a crowd. The Duchess of Gloucester, who was at the Circus, with her daughter, was escorted home by a party of horse." — {Times, July 14, 1795.) " The Riots continued on Monday evening in St. George's Fields, until the Military arrived to disperse the mob. Several persons were taken into custody, and lodged in the watch- house." — {Times, July 15, 1795-) The way in which the patronage in the Army was Old Ti7nes. 107 managed, was a crying shame — children in their cradles had Cornetcies presented to them, and their promotion went on several steps before they left school. We hear of the natural consequence, in the following extract from the Times, 4th Jan. 1794 : — "We are extremely sorry that our public duty should call upon us to make any unpleasant remarks on the officers of our Army abroad, but repeated letters from the Continent, received by all descriptions of persons, agree in saying that there is a great want of Subordination among our troops. We shall not enter into particulars on this subject, as our only object is, that this observation should meet the eye of the Commander-in-Chief, and other General Officers, and that they should take the matter into their serious considera- tion. The evil is certainly increased by having so many young men introduced into the Army, and placing them over the heads of veteran Soldiers." " The scandalous abuses which have been so often, and so justly, complained of, as detrimental to the public service, of children being taken from school, and appointed Officers, cannot be too soon remedied, though it will be a Herculean task to cleanse the Augean stable. In mentioning the follow- ing circumstance, we have certainly no kind of ill-will towards the party concerned ; but it is a fact, that a child, not fourteen years of age, is now under orders for embarkation at Plymouth, who has been taken from school, to join his regiment at St. Domifigo, as Captain ! ! ! It is impossible for any man, who has the interest of his country at heart, to hear of such abuses without commenting on them with the utmost severity. The fault is not with Government, but is attached to the custom which prevails in officering the army ; a custom which cannot be too soon corrected." — {Times, Feb. 10, 1795.) " The Duke of York has ordered circular letters to be sent round to the Colonels of Regiments, desiring a return to be immediately made to his Office, of the number of Captains in each Regiment, under twelve years of age ; and of Lieu- tenant Colonels under the age of eighteen ! ! ! The very io8 Old Times. scandalous abuses that have, of late, crept into the mode of officering the army, are such, as to have demanded a very serious enquiry : for numberless are the evils that have resulted from it, besides that it has given so much disgust to veteran Officers, whose fortunes were not adequate to the purchase of ranL Various are the instances of boys having been taken from school, to take the command of Companies of Regi- ments." — {Times, March 20, 1795.) "Over a Warehouse for fashionable dresses, in Fleet St., is written up 'Speculum modorum,' or, the mirror of the fashions; and several young Gentlemen of the Guards are actually learning Latin, in order to understand them. Others have sent for the Alphabet, in gingerbread, as preliminary education." — {Times, Oct. 27, 1795.) " An alteration, we understand, is shortly to take place in the uniform of the officers of all the regiments of the line. The present full dress coat is to be abandoned in favour of a very short one, without any lace, or lappels, which the officers are always to wear when on duty, but discretionally at other times." — {Times, Nov. 16, 1797.) "A number of baby officers have threatened to sell out of the Guards. They purchased for the privilege of wearing handsome regimentals, and the new uniform they say is so ugly." — {Times, Nov. 20, 1797.) " Some of the sucking Colonels of the Guards have ex- pressed their dislike of the short skirts. They say they feel as if they were going to be flogged." — {Times, Nov. 21, I797-) Kelscy's was a famous fruiterer's, &c., in St. James's Street, and we are here presented with one of the boy officers, whose legs cannot reach the ground, and who has not yet lost his childish predilection for " Sugar Plums." As a foil to him is given Colonel Burch, of He roes ^(ecruih'n^ af ffelsey's /J37. Old Times, 109 the Royal Household Troops — who is actively engaged in demolishing Ice Creams. The following paragraph tells a sad tale : — "The late order of the Cabinet for furnishing all His Majesty's troops with bread, in the same manner as if in camp, namely, a loaf of six pounds weight for five-pence, will, we doubt not, have the desired effect in preventing a continu- ance of those outrages, to which the military, in many parts of the kingdom, have been compelled, by absolute want." — {Tijnes, April 2 'J, 1795.) But this order was modified, as we see. "A new regulation has been made throughout the whole Army, that instead of the additional allowance of Bread- Money, each Soldier is to receive 8d. per day clear." — {Times, Oct. 2, 1795.) The fate of a prisoner of War is always hard, and, as a rule, they are not too luxuriously treated. When first we had large quantities of French prisoners over here, they were nearly starved, but, afterwards, their lot was much'ameliorated. Probably they were better treated than our people who were imprisoned in France, for, if the following letter can be believed, they certainly were neither luxuriously housed, nor fed. "The following is an Extract of a letter from an Officer of the 'Castor' Frigate, captured some time since, by the French, dated Qiiimpernedj: Brest, Feb. 27, 1795 : — 'I wrote by Lady Ann Fitzroy, which I hope you have received ; we were in a very bad state at that time : but since she has been gone, we have been a great deal worse. They now serve out nothing but bread, and horse-beans, for three weeks, or a month, together : and, when they do give meat, it is but six ounces of salt pork per man. It would make your I TO Old Times. heart ache, to see our poor sailors, without money, without cloaths, worn down by sickness, and emaciated to the last degree, fighting over the body of a dead dog, which they sometimes pick up, and devour with the most voracious appetites : and it is a fact, that the head, and pluck, of a dog, sold for 30 sous, the other day. Such scenes as this, was I obliged to undergo : but I am now in a house allotted for the officers, and am rendered very comfortable by the friendship of our second lieutenant, Mr. Hadaway. I am the only sur- viving midshipman of four, who came here, belonging to our ship. I have lost all my hair by sickness : but I live in hopes of seeing Old England, and my friends again.' — ( Times, April 16, 1775-) "Several persons escaped from prison, bear the strongest testimony of praise towards Lady Ann Fitzroy, late a prisoner of war at Qidmper, in France, who perhaps, suffered more insults, and bad usage, from her jailors, than any of her rank ever suffered before : but, regardless of her own distresses, she made it her sole business to alleviate those of her fellow- prisoners : made shirts, and caps, for all those in need, besides purchasing some hundreds of jackets, and trowsers, which she distributed amongst her unfortunate countrymen, in want of cloathing. Her Ladyship, also, every day, had a great quantity of veal, and soup, dressed, to distribute amongst the sick. Her unparalleled benevolence saved the lives of hundreds." — {Times, June 12, 1795.) "TWENTY GUINEAS BOUNTY. "Gray's Inn, in the county of Middlesex, 13th Dec, 1796. " To all able-bodied MEN, willing to serve in His Majesty's Army. — The Hon. Society of Gray's Inn will give Twenty Guineas, without any deduction whatever, to any i\Ian who shall be approved by the Regulating Officer. No Volunteer who shall enter, as above, can be arrested for Debt, or taken out of his Majesty's Service, but for a criminal Matter. — Appli- cation to be made any Day, from the Hour of 10, till 3 o'clock, at the Steward's Office, Gray's Inn. Old Times, 1 1 1 "Persons enrolled are not liable to serve more than one Calendar Month after the end of the present War." — {Times, Dec. 17, 1796.) "At the Roscommon Assizes, Lord Viscount Dillon was cast in a verdict of ^60, for illegally confining a poor mechanic, a fortnight underground, with a view oi forcing him to enlist." — {Times, Sept. 20, 1797.) " On Saturday last, the sentence of a Regimental Court Martial was carried into execution, on a private soldier, belong- ing to the 2nd Battalion of the Breadalbane Fencibles, now in the Castle of Edinburgh. He received 1000 lashes, and was drummed out of the Battalion, for having, while on sentry at Leith, on the night of the 15th of September last, loaded his piece, and fired the same into the house of an inhabitant, the Civil ]\Iagistrates having delivered him over to the INIilitary Law." — {Times, Oct. 7, 1797.) The sale of Commissions is here openly acknow- ledged, although it was not allowed, vide the two fol- lowing advertisements in the same paper (1798, Jan. 15):- " MiLiTL^. — Any young Gentleman wishing for an Ensignsy in a highly respectable Regiment of Militia, where he will have the opportunity of forming the very first connections, may, on certain conditions of honour, solely between the parties, be so respectably introduced. The Advertiser, who is of the Church, and of undoubted character, as will be known, means to apply this only to a young person of some income of his own ; or whose friends would add an allowance to his pay, so as to place him upon a more equal footing with his brother Ofiicers, and superior rank. On a proper behaviour, there is no doubt but that he would soon have a Lieutenant's Commission, and it is to be considered that at the end of the War, he will be entitled to half pay, the same as the line. It is apprehended, too, that it might still more peculiarly suit one who may mean to ultimately go into the regulars, and would prefer having his ■■Kvn 1 1 2 Old Times. first steps in the Militia. The Advertiser, not residing in London, a letter at Messrs. Wilson and Wright's, Walker's Court, Soho, for A. P., will be duly honoured in the course of 2 or 3 days, provided it is signed with real name, and address, without which it cannot be noticed. " Marines. — A young man of respectable connections, and of the best morals, is very anxious to be in the service of his King, and Country, in these momentous times, and therefore ardently intreats the patronage of any Lady or Gentleman, who has the interest to procure him, or the power to bestow upon him, a Lieutenancy of Marines. He does not mean to offer the insult of any pecuniary recompence ; but he will assure a greatly more pleasing return to a benevolent mind, that of ever- lasting gratitude, and the most unimpeachable conduct. The honor of a line to F. G.," &c.' "A company in the Guards has lately been sold for the enormous sum of 8ooo guineas." — [Times, April 26th, 1796.) Commissions in the army were notoriously sold, but one would imagine that a line would be drawn at Chaplains. Advt.— " TO BE DISPOSED OF, A CHAPLAINCY, in a new Regiment of Dragoons, and a Quarter-Master's Warrant, in a Regiment of Dragoon Guards. Apply to Mr. Hawkes, No. 1 7 Piccadilly. " — ( Times, June 9, 1795.) "MILITIA INSURANCE. Advt. — " Such persons as wish not to venture the risk of finding a substitute, by being drawn for the Old Militia, Supple- mentary Militia, and Tower Hamlets, may be secured on the following Terms, viz. Old Militia — 7s. 6d. or los. per annum; Supplementary Militia;^! is. or ;^i iis. 6d ; Ditto, together, ;£i, 7s. 6d., or ;£2 per annum; Tower Hamlets ;£\, or jQi los., per annum; by Mr. Cox, Junr., No. 36 Holborn." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1798.) "The trial of Capt. F. Arthur of the Yeoman Artillery, commenced on Saturday, at Limerick, and terminated, on Old Tillies. 1 1 3 Monday, the 25th, when he was sentenced by the Court- Martial, to be transported for life, and to pay a fine to the Kiftg of ^^000." — {Times, July 2, 1798.) "Some accounts of our present Volunteer Associations will, no doubt, when read a few years hence, excite no small degree of surprise. Of this class are the following paragraphs. 'The Reverend Doctor F gave the word of command.' — ' Counsellor G led his detachment to the charge with uncommon spirit and vigour.' — 'An Anthem was sung by Captain-Lieutenant Sale,^ &c." — [Titties, Sept 5, 1798.) "Lewes. — Last week the Volunteers for regular Service from the Derby, Westminster, North Gloucester, and Surrey regiments of Militia, marched into this town, from their respective stations, on their routes to the grand depot, at Horsham. The large bounties which these men have received, enable them to keep up a scene of drunkenness, and insub- ordination, which it is very difficult to restrain. After parade here, on Saturday evening, Sir Joseph Mawbey, and other Officers, commanding the Surrey Volunteers, were compelled to have recourse to their drawn swords, to enforce order, and maintain their command, which was for some time powerfully resisted, on their ordering a man to the guard-house. And, on dismissing the parade, yesterday evening, a similar disturbance took place. No swords were then drawn, but the clamour demanded the interference of General Hulse, who, in conse- quence, ordered out a piquet guard of infantry, and a patrole of horse, by which tranquillity was restored, and preserved. Others who have passed through this ■ town, in their drunken frolics, distinguished themselves by swallowing Bank-notes between slices of bread and butter, and lighting their pipes with them, to the no small advantage of the Bankers." — {Times, July 31, 1799.) 1 1 4 Old Times. SOCIAL ECONOMY. Under this head are placed many matters which could scarcely be classified. Take, for instance, the series of groups copied from a long picture of the " Installation Supper, as given at the Pantheon, by the Knights of the Bath, on the 26th of May 1788." In looking at this series, we must never lose sight of the fact, that, here, we are getting a peep at liaiit ton — none of your common folk — and, if the picture be a true one, they must have been contented with the roughest accommodation. Hard seats, plain tables, with no Plate, nor floral decorations, no napkins ; Knives and forks brandished in a most reckless, and uncouth manner ; an utter disregard for the proprieties of the table, even to drinking the gravy out of a plate ; and intoxication, in its various phases, passing, seemingly, unchallenged. A tankard of beer admitted to such a banquet, and two people sharing the same " dish of tea," are all, to us, astounding revelations of the social manners of our grandfathers. From the following we get a curious glimpse of the Social economy, of the times — a phase of thinking which would scarcely do nowadays : — " In a complicated machine, any of the inferior parts getting out of order, will soon obstruct the whole : and, conceiving such may be the case with public society, we are led to make Installation Supper. :C^fc) (^/^ f^ Johns/-on & Lady Lord ^af'hurs/' Old Times. 1 1 5 a few observations on some improprieties which occur in the present day. "The wages given to servants have increased during the last 10 years, more than for 30, or perhaps 40, years before: and the misfortune is, that dissipation, and want of morals, have also much increased, particularly among manufacturing labourers, who now have got, in many places, only to work three, or four, days in the week, and to be drunk the remaining time, leaving their wives, and children, neglected, and in rags, "As to household servants, the accommodation offices for hiring of them, have had the worst effect. They make them indifferent about keeping their places ; lure them on with false hopes, and often before a servant gets fixed, they, and the pawnbroker, put them under difficulties. "Travelling expences, by the profusion in the perquisites given to waiters, post boj-s. (S:c., have become enormous, and their attention is less ; but, if those who give in that way, were to consider the injury they do the public, and of how Uttle use it is to those who receive it, they would certainly think such money so squandered away, would have been better bestowed, if applied to some public charity, or left for the poor of the parish. " Increase of trade, and wealth, having produced an increase of luxury, and made the necessaries of life more expensive, it is proper that wages should be increased : but yet not beyond the bounds of proportion ; for it will be found in those manu- facturing occupations, in which labourers get the most money, they are the most disorderly, continually combining together to leave their work, unless their masters consent to increase their wages, and which only proves a temporary compromise, till they have an opportunity of making a further demand. On the contrary, where less wages are given, we shall find the people more happy, and contented, their wives more attended to, and their children brought up with more religion, and better morals." — (Times, Sept. 5, 1794.) "To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. "Sir, — Various are the receipts for cheap puddings, and many long, and useful, letters have appeared in your very 1 1 6 Old Times. excellent paper, towards alleviating (as much as is in the power of every Housekeeper) the scarcity, and dearness, of bread : by substituting rice, and potatoes, in the room of pies, or flour puddings : but there still exists an evil which I have not seen spoken against, and which certainly occasions a very great consumption of starch : I mean the general fashion which has i)revailed for some years, and does still, from the highest, to the lowest, of wearing white dresses, which, upon a moderate computation, for every individual, must consume at least double the soap, and starch, than when coloured callicoes, silks, and stuffs, were in fashion : Added to this, that every maid servant (who, though she is perhaps not worth a second pair of shoes) will wear her muslin handkerchiefs. I think it is the duty of every good master, and mistress, to stop, as much as possible, the present ridiculous, and extravagant, mode of dress in their domestics. View, on a Sunday, a tradesman's family coming from church, and you would be puzzled to distinguish the porter from his master, or the maid from her mistress. Formerly a plaited cap, and a white hand- kerchief, served a young woman three, or four, Sundays. Now a mistress is required to give up, by agreement, the latter end of the week for her maids to prepare their caps, tuckers, gowns, &c., for Sunday, and, I am told, there are houses open on purpose, where those servants who do not choose their mis- tresses shall see them, carry their dresses in a bundle, and put them on, meet again in the evening, for the purpose of dis- robing : and where, I doubt, many a poor, deluded, creature, has been disrobed of her virtue. They certainly call aloud for some restraint, both as to their dress, as well as insolent manner. Tell a servant, now, in the mildest manner, they have not done their work to please you, you are told to pro- vide for yourself, and, should you offer to speak again, they are gone. Surely no set of people are more capable of render- ing our families comfortable, or the reverse, than domestic servants, nor any set of people who feel the present dearness of provisions so little. I look upon their exorbitant increase of wages, as chiefly conducive to their impertinence : for, when they had five, or six, pounds a year, a month being out of place, was severely felt ; but now their wages are doubled, they have, in a great measure, lost their dependence : And c^/r George VounJ and Lady. S3 -ex Old Times. 1 1 7 what is this increase of wages for ? not in order to lay by a little, in case of sickness, but to squander in dress. No young woman, now, can bear a strong pair of leather shoes, but they must wear Spanish leather, and so on in every article of dress. No wonder, then, that there should be so many prostitutes, and so few good wives. " By inserting these hints, as soon as you conveniently can, you will much oblige, A Cotistant Reader^ — {Tinies^ Dec. 25, 1795.) "We trust that the measure, which was, last year, so laudably attempted by the Brewers, Bakers, and Publicans, for the abohshing Christmas-Boxes, will not only be continued by them, but will also be followed up by the other trades, who have hitherto been compelled, by custom, to continue a practice so destructive to the lower orders of people." — {Times, JDec. 17, 1794.) Advt.— " CHRISTMAS BOXES.— The BUTCHERS, resi- dent within the Parish of HACKNEY, beg leave respectfully to inform their Customers, and the Public, that, on account of the excessive high price of Provisions, they find it impossible to continue the practice of giving CHRISTMAS BOXES to the servants of their customers, without sustaining, on the one hand, a deduction from their profits, which the trade will not allow, or, on the other hand, increasing their charges : they have, therefore, unanimously resolved to discontinue the prac- tice, in time to come, and hope that their conduct, on this occasion, will not be deemed improper, or disrespectful." — {Times, Dec. 9, 1795.) The following Advertisements, which are only a few out of many, shew how common was the sale of Govern- ment appointments : — "Place under Government. ;;^2ooo or ^^3000 or more will be presented to any Gentleman, who has interest to pro- cure for the Advertiser, a Place in any of the Public Offices, of 1 1 8 Old Times. respectability, and an adequate income. No Agent, or Broker, will be attended to. Letters to be addressed &:c., &c." — {Times, March 13, 1793.) *' Place under Government. To be disposed of, a Genteel Place under Government : present Salary ;^ioo a year, with the chance of rising, and other advantages : the next rise will be a considerable one. — Any Young Gentleman, who can command from 500;^ to 1000^ will be treated with : and by addressing a line to A. Batson's Coffee-house, with real name and place of abode, will be informed of further particulars. N. B. No Brokers will be attended to." — {Times, April 15, 1793.) " A PLACE under GOVERNMENT. "To be sold, a permanent Place, which can always be disposed of at pleasure, the salary ^^76 per annum, net, payable quarterly, the attendance not more than 20 times in the year, and about 2 or 3 hours each time : the duty is agreeable, and in the line of a Gentleman, and can at all times at a small expence be executed by a Deputy. Address &c., &c." — {Times, Feb. 3, 1798.) Advt. — " Three hundred Pounds. An adequate Premium of ;^3oo or upwards, will be given to any Lady, or Gentleman, who has interest to procure the Advertiser a Place in one of the Government Offices. As the parties are of the utmost respectability, the greatest honour and secrecy may be depended on. Address to &:c., &c." Advt. — "Fifty Guineas will be given to any Gentleman, or Lady, who has interest to procure the Advertiser, a young I\Lan, 25 years of age, a Situation in any of the Public Offices under Government. Address but which was mitigated to jQ^o. The Magistrate, and officers, then went to a Baker's in Little Turnstile, and found 54 loaves short of the standard, 142 ounces, amounting at 5s. an ounce tO;^36, but which was mitigated to ^30. The loaves were dis- tributed to the poor in the neighbourhood of Covent Garden." — {Times, July ^, i~,9S) "A Baker was convicted, yesterday, at the Public Office, Whitechapql, of making Bread, to the amount of 307 ounces, deficient in weight, and fined in the penalty of ^{^64, 7s." — {Times, Aug. 27, 1796.) "A Baker was, yesterday, convicted in the penalty of ^106, 5s. on 420 ounces of bread, deticient in weight." — {limes, Aug. 30, [796.) Old Times. 1 5 1 " On Thursday a great deal of bread was brought before Alderman Cadell, by the Inquest of one of the City Wards, being under the regular standard of weight. The Alderman ordered the loaves to be all weighed before him, and desired the Bakers who were present, to attend to the weights. " The Bakers expressed their sorrow for it, and said it was an accident occasioned by the carelessness of their Journeymen, in suffering it to be an hour too long in the oven. They not bringing the men forward, to substantiate the defence, the Alderman told them he should fine them the full penalty, of five shillings an ounce, for all deficient ; which came to above twenty pounds, besides the forfeiture of the bread. Mr. Kirby, the Keeper of Newgate, being present, solicited part of it, for his prisoners. Some of the Inquest likewise solicited the bread, for the poor of their ward : but the Alderman told them that half of the penalty came to them, which would compensate for the bread." — {Times, Nov. 30, 1799.) " Forestalling " and " Regrating " were heinous sins. — They consisted in buying any thing on its way to market, before it had been exposed for public sale — and in purchasing at any market at one price, and selling it again at a higher. " In consequence of the serious enquiry making into the infamous practices of the salesmen, in Smithfield market, and the conviction of a leading man among them, for regrating, mutton, and lamb, fell i|d. per pound, in Friday, and yesterday's, market. If the Magistrates would but exert them- selves, to put in force the laws against monopolizers, and forestallers, provisions would soon be at a moderate price, as we are convinced there is no 7-eal scarcity : and ar6 of opinion that the farmers and graziers, who are now holding back their corn, and cattle, will experience the fate of those, who, in the hard weather, refused to sell their potatoes under 2jd. per lb., and now cannot get |-d. per lb., but have the well deserved prospect of being obliged to give them to the hogs, for want of a consumption." — {Times, May 26, 1795.) 1=^2 Old Times. " HIGH PRICE OF MEAT. This alarming circumstance is not owing to any real scarcity of oxen, sheep, or hogs, but, partly, to a combination among the carcass-butchers in the wholesale markets, and the salesmen in Smithfield, who fix the prices, and who regulate what quantity of cattle shall come to town : and, partly, to a very shameful practice among the retail butchers, especially where a contract is made to supply a family at so much per pound for the year. When the butcher has made his contract at 5d., 5^d., or 6d., he can make a very great profit, although, as is now the case, he can purchase a carcass at 7|d. in the wholesale markets : and the mode by which he does this, is in defrauding his customers of the due weight, to which the person, who attends to see the meat weighed, too often connives at, for a Christmas present, or an Easter gift. The weight, no doubt is in the scale, at the time of weighing : but when the meat is put by, in order to be sent home, a considerable part is purloined : and it is a well known fact, that, in these large lots, the same leg of beef (?) has been weighed to, perhaps, ten or twelve families, in the same day, and not sent to any of them. The leg is con- sidered as the most convenient for this theft, because it is so large, and is, when weighed with the lot, hung on the end of the beam of the scales, from whence it is taken down, and thrown, not where it ought, with the meat, but to another part of the shop. If this was not the case, how is it possible that a butcher can make a livelihood, when he buys 2d. per pound dearer than he sells ? The fact speaks for itself. The mode which all families should adopt, is to weigh their meat when it is sent \\oxi\&:'— {Times, Jtdy 3, 1795.) "A few days ago, 11 acres of growing wheat, belonging to the Duke of Hamilton, in Scotland, were sold at ;j^2o per acre. This species of forestalling, we fear, is now too gene- rally attempted, which is evidently most injurious to the com- munity, viz., 'to buy corn growing in the fields.' This practice, surely, has a direct, and apparent, tendency to enhance the present price of corn : also, that of ' selling corn in the sheaf.' We think it expedient, however, to notify, that both these Old Times. 153 practices are deemed highly criminal by the ' common law of England,' and for which the offenders may be indicted, and punished, as they deserve, with great severity, viz., by fines, pillory, and imprisonment. See Inst. 197 : also Hatvk c. 30." — {Times, Aug. 19, i795-) " The contrivances to keep up the price of wheat, having been discovered, and defeated, we hope the attention of the worthy Chief Magistrate will now be directed towards some plan for the relief of the Metropolis, against the extortion of the Graziers, and Salesmen, in Smithfield Market. The prices of the latter, on Monday, were higher than almost ever remembered, and mutton is now sold at 7|d. per lb. What real cause there is for such extravagant prices, after such a mild winter, is a matter we are at a loss to account for." — {Times, April 13, 1796.) "An action for regrating, in Smithfield Market, is now pending in the Court of Common Pleas : against one of the five brothers, who have so long supported themselves, and their families, by jobbing in Cattle at that Market. A Carcass Butcher, in Whitechapel, is also in dread of a similar action, the penalties on which will be very heavy, as it is for purchas- ing near 70 oxen, on a Friday, driving them to his farm, near Clapton, and bringing them to Smithfield, for sale, on the following Monday." — {Times, Nov. 29, 1796.) Before this time of Scarcity, however, the good folks did not deny themselves luxuries of the table, nor, seem- ingly, care what they paid for them. " The first green peas which have been produced this season, were sold, on Monday, in Covent Garden market, at iivelve shillings per pottle." — {Times, April 17, 1793.) " As a proof of the forwardness of the season, green peas have already made their appearance in Covent Garden market, 1 54 Old Times. where they are 'retailed to the curious in vegetables at the moderate price of huo guineas a quart." — {Times., March i, 1 794-) " The Fishmongers Company are such jolly soles., as to have annually nine quarts of peas at a guinea a quart." — {Times, May 1 6, 1794.) " Lemons have attained a price never before arrived at in London, namely, ninepence each ; buying them wholesale, the price is at the rate of from 6d. to 8d. each. About 400,000 were imported during the week from St. Ubes, and as a large supply is daily expected, the prices must of course fall." — {Times, Jany. 2, '1797.).' " The arrival of the Lisbon fleet, will make Lemons once more plenty. They were sold, a week ago, at the enormous price of IS. a piece." — {Times, July 16, 1799.) It may be interesting to some to learn when Sea Kale first came into use. Advt. — "SEA-KALE, a new Culinary Vegetable Mr. Curtis respectfully informs the Nobility and Gentry, that the small quantity of Sea-Kale fit for the table, which he has to dispose of this season, will by his appointment, be sold by Messrs. Dickson and Anderson, Seedsmen, Covent Garden Market, to whom he will continue to send it daily, fresh cut, for the short period it may last. Printed directions for dressing it, are tied up with each bundle." — {Times, April 30. I795-) In the subjoined advertisement we learn the prices, and qualities, of various Wines, and the list gives us all the information required to find out the different sorts of wine then drank. Old Times. 155 "At Priddy's Foreign Warehouse, and Vaults, No. 14 Poland St., a large quantity of the following Wines, &c., which being, himself, the Importer of, can warrant genuine, at the following prices, viz., at per Dozen : — Ten years old Slierry . . 25/ Red Port, vintage 17S8 . . 20/ Old Lisbon 20/ Calcavella 22/ Fine Hock 30/ Claret 36/ Ditto, first growth .... 42/ Burgundy 60/ Red Champagne .... 70/ White ,, 70/ Vin de Grave 26/ ! Hermitage 42/ Madeira 36/ i Frontigniac 36/ " Rich Aliatico, and Montepulciano, Florence Wines, real Cogniac Brandy, Jamaica Rum, Rotterdam Geneva, and Orange Shrub, on the very lowest terms." — {Times, April 16, 1793.) Coals, though, of course, not an article of Food, were undoubtedly of use in cooking it : and may therefore be mentioned here. Our Grandfathers paid very dearly for them : but it must be remembered there was no land carriage, and a continued contrary wind, or a " hot press," would leave the London Market bare. The magnificent basins of Inland Coals were scarcely known, and only those like the Moira Collieries, near to a Canal, could be worked. They were sold to the consumer at per Chaldron of 2800 lbs., and the prices below quoted represent them ex-ship. Add to this the cost of delivery and profit 12s., and take the Sovereign as being worth 30s., and it will much account for the small stoves then in vogue. " The price of Coals in the Pool, yesterday, were : — Best 43s. Inferior sorts from 36s. to 38s. Delivered to housekeepers 49s. to 44s. The price rose considerably yesterday from a report that several colliers had been captured." — {Times, Feby. 12, 1793.) 156 Old Times, "COAL EXCHANGE. " On Monday the price was 70s. per Chaldron all sorts. On Wednesday, the price was 60s. and some sorts lower. On Yesterday, the price was 50s. to 45s. per Chaldron. We are happy at giving such an agreeable account to our readers." — {Times, March 7, 1794.) " The prices of Coals still continue very high, notwithstanding above 100 ships have, this week, arrived at market, which are nearly all sold from 38s. to 44s. per Chaldron : so that the best sorts cannot be fairly delivered under 50s. per Chaldron. The number of ships taken out of the trade, into the transport, and other services, is the cause of the present high price, as the demand is greater than the supply." — {Times, Oct. 4, 1794.) " Many complaints have been made of the high price of coals, and it is supposed to arise from a combination, but we are well assured no such cause exists. The long frost having stopped the navigation of the Thames, what coals remained in the lighters, and barges, were nearly exhausted at the wharfs, and naturally, every man possessed of a commodity, looks to extraordinary profits on unusual events, which has, we under- stand, occasioned six, and seven, guineas to be given for a chaldron of coals, within a few days past, but, had the frost continued, coals would have been considerably cheaper, than at present, as the ice admitted the coals being worked over it. There are, at present, near 50 sail of colliers in the river, not unladen, which contain about 10,000 chaldrons, for an imme- diate supply, (but not ten times that quantity, as erroneously stated in most of the papers) and, before they can be consumed, we may expect a fresh fleet at Market." — {Times, /any. 30, I795-) " Yesterday, there was only one ship of coals, at Market, which sold at three guineas and a half per chaldron. About 30 sail more were at sea, and forced into the Humber." — {Times, Fcby. 24, 1795.) Old Times. 157 "Coals were on Friday {\2th April) sold in the Pool at five guineas per Chaldron. There was only one ship-load at market. " — ( Times, April 1 5 , ' 1 7 9 9 . ) THE ROAD AND STREETS. The Highwa3's and Streets were in very far from good condition, the roads being full of ruts, and the streets when paved, were made of large " Cobble " Stones, and were full of holes, ofttimes very dangerous, as we shall see. The foot pavement, except in some of the best streets, which were flagged, was very narrow, and made of " Kidney " stones on end, such as may still be met with in the bye-ways of some country towns. Consequently no one stirred out more than they could help ; the men always on horseback, if single — by " Post," if accompanied by ladies. It will have been noticed in " Men's dress " that they all wear boots, if not in the house, and the reason is plain — they had to be protected against the mud of the streets, and ready for the saddle. Every man had to learn to ride, and no doubt this laid the foundation of the Continental opinion, that every Englishman is a good horseman. "Young Gentlemen during their Holidays, are supplied with gentle pleasant Horses of all sizes, and the most careful Attend- ance and Instructions for . . . ^2 12 A Horse to ride for Exercise in the House o 3 Twelve lessons when convenient . . 2 Sixteen lessons in four weeks . . 2 Single lesson o Book of Instructions for Ladies . . o Breaking a horse . , . . 276 &:c." — {Morni7ig Post, Ja?iy. 2, 1788.) 158 Old Times. "Amr.—A CAUTION to all Gentlemen who drive Jobb Horses by their own Coachmen, the Gentleman paying yearly wages to them : From a Gentleman w-ho has had experience of it. — That the Coachmaster and Coachmen do agree, the one to give, the other to receive, annually, a certain sum of money, which can be for no oiher purpose than to defraud their employers, demanding so much more for the price of their horses, to bribe the said Coachmen to conceal defects in them, and to engage the said Coachmaster to recommend the said Coachmen : and so vice-versa to employ each other, if out of place or business. This is a most dishonest, but general practice of the Coachmasters. The writer of this, to avoid and discourage the practice of this Knavery, has purchased his own horses, persuaded no other means will be effectual. This is written merely to put Gentlemen on their guard, at the expense of the Advertiser, and will not be inserted again." — {Times, July 2, 1795.) Of course those that could afford it travelled Post — which was charged one shilling per horse per mile, besides a gratuity to the " boy," but this was raised to fourteen pence in 1796, when food became so dear. "So great is the itch of pleasure at this time of year, that on Sundays it is difficult to find post-horses in London. Last Sunday General Fox, and several other persons of Considera- tion, who had business out of town, were confined for want of them, though they sent as far as the extremity of White- chapel." — {7 ivies, Sept. 2, 1795-) "The rate of Posting still continues at i4d. per mile, and nothing but the unanimous determination of the public to resist so extravagant a charge, can possibly do it away. Some few Post Masters have, it is true, advertised at is., but the general rate still remains at i4d. This charge took its rise from the scarcity, and, consequently, the high price of corn : but, at this moment, when corn has (ell one third, nothing can justify the continuance of what may be justly reprobated as an imposi- tion.''^ —{Times, July 9, 1796.) Old Times. 159 But it was not every one who could afford Posting or even the Stage Coach, — for them existed the " Stage Wagon " — a most cumbrous affair with very broad wheels — and some eight horses, the driver being mounted on a pony — so as to be able to ride round his team. The following is a very humorous story of a journey by Wagon : — "A DELIGHTFUL RIDE, " In the ten-wheeled Caravan, from Greenwich to London. " We were twenty-four passengers within side, and nine without. It was my lot to sit in the middle, with a very lusty woman on one side, and a very thin man on the other. ' Open the window,' said the former, and she had a child on her lap, whose hands and face were all besmeared with gingerbread. ' It can't be opened,' said a little prim coxcomb, ' or I shall get cold.' — ■'■ But I say it shall, Sir,' said a Butcher, who sat opposite to him, and the Butcher opened it ; but, as he stood, or rather bent forward to do this, the caravan came into a rut, and the Butcher's head, by the suddenness of the jolt, came into contact with that of the woman who sat next to me, and made her nose bleed. He begged her pardon, and she gave him a slap on the face that sounded through the whole caravan. Two sailors, that were seated near the helm of this machine, ordered the driver to cast anchor at the next public- house. He did so ; and the woman next to me, called for a pot of ale, which she offered to me, after she had emptied about a pint of it, observing, that 'as how she loved ale mightily.' I could not drink, at which she took much offence ; and said, ' I was mighty squeamish ; but thank God, she was as good as I, and kept a lodging-house in Craven St., where she saw her betters every day, and so,' continues she, ' here's to you, my dear : ' and she finished the pot. A violent dispute now arose between two stout looking men, the one a Recruiting Sergeant, and the other a Gentleman's Coachman, about the i6o Old Times. liighis of Man: and, having struck two or three blows in the Caravan, they got out into the road, to decide whether T0171 Paine was an Atheist, or a Deist. In this contest, victory fell to the Sergeant, and the driver of the horses was so mauled by the leader of men, that he was lifted into the vehicle, where he sat in sullen silence all the rest of the journey. " Another dispute afterwards arose about poUtics, which was carried on with such warmth, as to draw the attention of the company to the head of the Caravan, where the combatants sat wedged together like two pounds of Epping butter, whilst a child incessantly roared at the opposite side, and the mother abused the two politicians for frightening her babe. The heat was now so great that all the windows were opened, and with the fresh air, entered clouds of dust, for the body of the machine is but a few inches from the surface of the road. "I trust, Mr. Conductor, you will give this journey to London, a place in your paper, and, I am, &c. Sic. "Lucy Treadneedle." —{Tit?ies, Sept. 5, 1794.) It will be noticed that then, as now, the Times, was a powerful organ for calling public attention to social grievances, and that people " wrote to " that paper as at the present time. We, in our time, know the little social inconveniences arising from staying at Hotels, where, not only does the proprietor charge for attendance, which we, no more than the writer of this letter, can understand is not included in his servants' wages — but we, also, if we want good attendance, have to " tip " the servants as well. "To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. " Sir, — Having frequent occasion to travel many of the prin- cipal roads of England, I have often witnessed the exorbitant demands of Inn-keepers, and the no less serious ones of their domestics, sanctioned only by custom, yet arisen to such Old Times. i6i a pitch as to become a burthen unable to be borne by the poor Tradesman who is obliged to travel to sell his goods, as as well as an inconvenience to the person in middling circum- stances of life, who, for his health, or otherwise, has occasion to travel. Grievances (the latter of which especially), are only suflfered to exist from the disinclination people have to break through a custom, or to appear singular. Having hinted at the former, I shall only shew the nature, and point out a remedy for the latter. It is well known, that let an Inn- keeper's bill be ever so exorbitant, you must not only comply with it, but also give the servants just as much as if it was reasonable : so that there is no end of the expence : for instance, if a man who has a horse, puts up at an inn, besides the usual bill, he must at least give is. to the waiter, 6d. to the chamber- maid, 6d. to the hostler, and 6d. to the jack-boot, making together 2S. 6d., and this to be repeated every night he lays on the road (I speak now of what's expected from those who appear in middling circumstances of life). The same expence in proportion occurs in the course of the day : at breakfast, you must give at least 6d. between the waiter and hostler. If the traveller only puts up to have a refreshment, besides paying for his horse's standing, he must give 2,^. to the hostler : at dinner 6d. to the waiter and 3^. to the hostler : at tea 6d. between them, so that he gives away in the day 2s. 6d., which added to the 2s. 6d. for the night, makes 5^-. per day on an average to servants. Thus he is putting his hand in his pocket from morning till night, not merely to satisfy the Landlord's demand, but to appease the croaking of domestics, who, it is well known, will let you see, or feel, their displeasure in some way or other if you do not, so that it is disagreeable to go to that inn the second time where you do not behave with pro- fuseness at the first, and there is not only the above incon- venience, but also this, that after all your givings they are not satisfied, but often abuse you for your liberality. The follow- ing anecdote proves this : — Coming home from Colchester some time since, I put up at an Inn at Ingatestone, the Inn- keeper's bill was as follows : — Supper is., beer 3^., bed \s., horse and corn is. ']d. — together 3^. 10^. I gave away as 1 62 Old Times. follows : waiter li-., chambermaid 6^., jack-boot 6^., hostler, the change out of 2S. I paid him for the horse, being 5^., together 2s. 5^., being i^. t^d. less than the bill. Yet the hostler was so abusive, because I did not give him more than the odd 5^/. change, that he actually threatened me that he would mark me if I came there again. I therefore did, what I wish every one would do in the like case, punish him on the spot for his insolence. I appeared to relent that I had not given him more, and desired him to give me the half-pence again that I might see for silver for him, which after he had done, I rode off, leaving him to repent he had not kept what I first gave him. It may be alleged that these servants have little or no wages, and therefore ought to receive liberally. Be that as it may, it is very hard that I am to pay wages to another man's servants. I pay the master his bill, in which he makes a charge sufficient to cover his servants' wages, and then he leaves me to pay his servants besides. If Innkeepers have nothing to pay for servants, their charges ought to be reasonable in proportion. But I would meet another objection that is likely to be made, which is, that what is given to servants at inns is not to be considered as wages, but as their perquisites. There are two answers to this, the one, that the very notion of per- quisites, signifies something gotten over and above their usual wages, whereas it is notorious, that most Innkeepers allow their servants no wages : the other, that perquisites signify a gift, now a gift is free, and may be much, or little, as suits the inclination of the giver, but, according to the modern custom at inns, he is not permitted to use his discretion, but there must be a settled sum given to each servant, fixed as to the lowest quantum, though as much above that mark as he pleases, and, if he gives less than custom warrants, they have the impudence to tell him of it. Besides, why should Inn- keepers, be exempted from paying their servants wages, any more than any other tradesman. If I go into a shop, to buy a few yards of any thing, I am not charged so much for the trouble of the shopman who cut it off. Tradesmen are con- tented to pay their servants out of the i)rofit of their bills, without saddling it upon their customers : and I am fully per- Old Times. 163 suaded, were travellers of all descriptions to withhold for a certain time their usual gifts to servants at inns, it would ulti- mately tend to the benefit of those servants themselves, as well as the comfort of travellers, for when the servants find their finances so low, they would insist upon, and would not hire themselves without stipulated wages, after which, travellers might again resume their former generosity, and what they then gave, would be looked upon in the light it ought, as a gift, and not a debt. " A Constant Reader." — {Times, Oct. 17, 1795.) The following notices will show that, what with over- crowding, and bad roads, accidents were as frequent by road as they are now by rail — indeed, the per centage, considering the relative number of passengers, was much greater. The basket mentioned below, was a huge wicker work machine attached to the Coach, intended to carry parcels. " Yesterday the driver of the Chelmsford and London Stage Coach, was convicted before the Magistrates at the Public Office, Whitechapel, in three separate penalties of ^os. each, for suffering more than six persons to ride on the roof of the said Coach. "The owner and driver of the Bishop Stortford, and London, Stage Coach, was also convicted in the penalty of ^^ for the same offence : and the driver of the Westham Stage Coach, in the same penalty, for suffering eight persons to ride on the roof of the said Coach." — {Ti?nes, Oct. 5, 1795.) " In despite of continual and fatal accidents, not to mention the inferior consideration of pains and penalties, the Stage Coaches still continue to carry extra numbers on the outside. There were eleven on the coach," and box, of the Gosport Coach, beside the driver, and nine in the basket, on Thursday last."— (7"m«, Oct. 16, 1795.) 164 Old Twtes. " The pavement in Bridge St. Blackfriars, which has been so long in a most dangerous state, has sunk near a foot more, within the last week, so that the roof of the main shore is every hour expected to give way." — {Times, Aug. 6, 1794.) " On Wednesday afternoon, about four o'clock, the Boston Coach broke down, on the lowest part of Snow Hill, soon after it left the Saracen's Head Inn. The outside j^assengers, which were fourteen in number, and mostly soldiers, were thrown with such violence on the pavement, that several were bruised, and one woman was taken to St. Bartholomew's Hospital, where she died, on Thursday night. The inside passengers, which were five, and a young child, were not much hurt. " The frequent accidents which arise from the outsides of coaches being so overladen, calls highly for reprehension. The laws are either inadequate to remedy the evil, or they are not properly enforced : and we sincerely hope that the coach- man, and those who are concerned, will be severely punished, as an example to prevent the same accidents in future. We think there should be a fresh Act of Parliament, and, if the inside passengers were empowered, after taking their seats, to hire a post-chaise where there was above a stipulated number (at the owner's expence), it would remedy the evil." — {Times, Aug. 8, 1795.) " The pavement in Bridge St. Blackfriars, still grows worse, and worse, and not the least notice is taking of it by the Paving Committee. This is a most scandalous act of neglect ; as, publicly, and privately, the parties have been applied to, who ought to make the necessary repairs. The ground has now sunk near three feet In so well regulated a city, as that of London, this is a most disgraceful business." — {Times, Oct. 16, 1799.) " A few days since, the axle-tree of a carriage was broken in descending the slope of Blackfriars Bridge, in consequence of the very large hole, at the bottom of it, on the Surry-side, Old Times. 165 which is in the highest degree dangerous. We are not certain that an indictment would not lay against the Trustees of the Surry Roads, for the scandalous manner in which they are kept. They vie with the Paviours, in some parts of the City, and we know not which are the worst of them. It is not to be conceived the number of horses that are foundered, by holes in the streets, and roads." — [Times, Oct. 5, 1799.) " From the dangerous state of the pavement in some parts of London, it might be supposed that the Public paid nothing towards it. The thoroughfare about the New Church, in the Strand, is so bad, that two, or three, accidents have lately happened by horses tumbling down, from their feet catching in the holes." — {Times, Sept. 30, 1799.) 1 66 Old Times. GAMING, &c. We, in this Nineteenth Century of ours, are not so free from the vice of gambling, that we can afford the luxury of being particularly censorious over the habits of the last century. We have legislated against gambling, we are better educated, all our surroundings are refined, compared to those which our forefathers had to make the most of. Literature, Art, and Music, are all far more popular, and yet — are there not Clubs, thinly veiled indeed, but really, and truly, solely existing for card playing for high stakes, as much as Crockford's ever was ? Have we not reduced the Turf to a science ? and has it not come to such a pass, that an honest Nobleman like Lord Falmouth, will no longer run his race horses, because of the roguery on the Turf? Is not the Stock Exchange one huge Gamble ? Therefore, in reading the notes about gaming, in " Old Times," let us remember the beams in our own eyes, before making a fuss about the motes, that used to be in the eyes of those that are dead and gone. But, although Card playing was the rule at every house, in the evening, yet some did not play, and the utter weariness which is shewn in this little sketch of Gillray's, is extremely natural and vivid. It is in 1789 that we first hear of Lady Archer, who, with Lady Buckinghamshire, figures so prominently in keeping gaming tables. A /ady at a Qrd 'Parly a/ho does no/- pJay.-//88. Old Times. 167 " The Lady Archer, whose death was announced in this paper of Saturday, is not the celebrated character whose cos- metic powers have been long held in public estimation." — {Morning Post, Jan. 5, 1789.) " It is said that the dealers in Carmine and dead white, as well as the Perfumers in general, have it in contemplation to present an address to Lady Archer, in gratitude for her not having died according to a late alarming report." — {Afornitig Post, Jan. 8, 1789.) " A Kick up at a Hazard Table," by Rowlandson, is not only well drawn — but, doubtless, depicts a gambling affray, to the life. Lady Archer, and Lady Buckinghamshire did not monopolise the gaming tables, there were other ladies in the field, and, as the game generally played, was Faro, these brdandieres were called Faro's Daughters. " Mrs. Sturt's house, in St. James Square, was opened yes- terday evening, for the first time this season, for pubUc play. The visitors were numerous." — {Times, Feb. 5, 1793.) " Many of our young sprigs of fashion, when the campaign opens, will have other game to attend to than the game of Faro. By risquing their persons they may serve their country ; but by risquing their property, they can neither benefit the nation, nor do any good to themselves. Cocking a fire lock will redound more to their honour than cocking a card : and as they are fond of a game of Hazard, let them take the chance of the field, in preference to that of the gaming table : " Some of the Faro Ladies have opened their play houses, and announced the Road to Ruin until further notice. The Gamesters was publicly rehearsed in St. James Square on Monday night." — {Times, Feb. 6, 1793.) 1 68 Old Times. "The number of new gaming-houses, established at the West End of the town, is, indeed, a matter of very serious evil : but they are not likely to decrease while examples of the same nature are held forth in the higher circles of life. It is needless to point out any one of these houses in particular : it is suf- ficient for us to expose the tricks that are practised at many of them to swindle the unsuspecting young men of fortune who are entrapped into these whirlpools of destruction. The first thing necessary is, to give the guests a good dinner and plenty of wine, which many of these houses do, gratis. When they are sufficiently intoxicated, and, having lost all the money about them, their acceptance is obtained to Bills of Exchange to a considerable amount, which frequently are paid to avoid the disagreeable circumstance of a public exposition in a Court of Justice, which is always threatened, though the gamesters well know that no such measure durst be adopted by them. "Should any reluctance, or hesitation, be shewn by the injured party, to accept these bills, he is shewn into a long room, with a target at the end of it, and several pistols lying about, where he is given to understand these sharpers practice a considerable time of the day in shooting at a mark, and have arrived to such perfection in this exercise, that either of them can shoot a pistol ball within an inch of the mark, from the common distance taken by duellists. A hint is then dropped, that further hesitation will render the use of the pistols necessary, and which will again be the case, should he ever divulge what he has seen, and heard. " If further particulars, or proofs, are wanting, they may be known on application to certain Military characters, who have already made some noise in the world."— (7/wfi-, Feb. 14, I793-) The Illustration " Modern Hospitality, or a Friendly Party in High Life," is by Gillray, 31st Mar. 1792, and in it we see Lady Archer, and Lady Buckinghamshire, keeping a Faro Bank : and, as they are rather passe'es, I ^5 Old Times. 169 the picture has the following, " To those earthly Divinities who charmed 20 years ago, this Honorable method of banishing mortifying reflections is dedicated. O, Woman! Woman ! everlasting is your power over us, for in youth, you charm away our hearts, and in your after years you charm away our purses ! " It is a pity we have not the key to the portraits of the bystanders, for portraits they, undoubtedly, are, because there is such individuality in the expression of their several countenances. The players we can easily recog- nise — Lady Archer, at the extreme left, has won largely, rouleaux of gold, and bank notes, are before her, and on her right hand are two heaps of loose gold ; — with what a smiling countenance does the painted old gambler shew her cards, saying, " The Knave wins all ! " Her next door neighbour, the Prince of Wales, who has staked, and lost, his last piece, lifts his hands, and eyes, in astonishment at the luck. Lady Buckingham- shire has doubled her stake, playing on two cards, and is evidently annoyed at her loss — whilst poor, black muzzled Fox, laments the loss of his last three pieces. " The profits of Faro are become so considerably reduced, that most of the Banks now lose almost every evening, after defraying the expences of the house, which are very consider- able. Those public-spirited Ladies who give such frequent routes, do so at a certain gain : for the sum of twenty-five guineas is regularly advanced by the bank holders towards the night's expences. The punters at Mrs. Hobart's, and Mrs. Sturt's, Faro Banks have dropped off considerably : and those who continue, are got so knowing, that heavy complaints are made that they bring no grist to the mill. There have not been above eight punters at Mrs. Sturt's bank, any night this season. The pigeons are all flown, and the punters are nothing better than /ia7C'ks." — {limes, Feb. 10, 1793.) Old Times. 169 the picture has the following, " To those earthly Divinities who charmed 20 3'ears ago, this Honorable method of banishing mortifying reflections is dedicated. O, Woman ! Woman ! everlasting is your power over us, for in youth, you charm away our hearts, and in your after years you charm away our purses ! " It is a pity we have not the key to the portraits of the bystanders, for portraits they, undoubtedly, are, because there is such individuality in the expression of their several countenances. The players we can easily recog- nise — Lady Archer, at the extreme left, has won largely, rouleaux of gold, and bank notes, are before her, and on her right hand are two heaps of loose gold ; — with what a smiling countenance does the painted old gambler shew her cards, saying, " The Knave wins all ! " Her next door neighbour, the Prince of Wales, who has staked, and lost, his last piece, lifts his hands, and eyes, in astonishment at the luck. Lady Buckingham- shire has doubled her stake, playing on two cards, and is evidently annoyed at her loss — whilst poor, black muzzled Fox, laments the loss of his last three pieces. " The profits of Faro are become so considerably reduced, that most of the Banks now lose almost every evening, after defraying the expences of the house, which are very consider- able. Those public- spirited Ladies who give such frequent routes, do so at a certain gain : for the sum of twenty-five guineas is regularly advanced by the bank holders towards the night's expences. The punters at Mrs. Hobart's, and Mrs. Sturt's, Faro Banks have dropped off considerably : and those who continue, are got so hiowing, that heavy complaints are made that they bring no grist to the mill. There have not been above eight punters at Mrs. Sturt's bank, any night this season. The pigeons are all flown, and the punters are nothing better than hmvks." — {limes, Feb. 10, 1793.) 1 70 Old Times. "No less than six Faro Banks are held in Pall Mall, viz., Philips's, Nelson's, Curtis's, Hall's, Whitnoll's, and Bullock's." — (Times, Feb. 18, 1793.) " It is become necessary to put our young men on their guard against the swindling tricks of some French ladies in this metropolis, of elevated rank, who have introduced assem- blies in their lodgings, and houses, of an evening, for the pur- pose of attracting company, whose pockets are to be taxed by Gallic address, for the support of these nocturnal estabUsh- ments. " In one of these, the Lady who presides, has not yet lost her personal charms, nor those arts of seduction, and that address, for which her weli-mfonned countrymen are so notorious. She, however, outwitted herself some day since, by employing one of her mitred attendants to dispose of a watch set with diamonds. This right reverend Father in God turned pedlar, in his extreme zeal to execute the orders of his fair hostess, offered the bauble to a gentleman who, the evening before, had been present at this splendid assemblage of GaUic Noblesse, and had seen the watch by the side of the lady herself. On finding that double the value was demanded for the trinket, he was at no loss to discover the ways and means by which this gaudy display of independence, comfort, and hilarity, was supported." — {Times, Feb. 27, 1793.) " The Banking Ladies in St. James Square, do not see themselves much obliged to the Abbe de St. Farre, and his brother, for introducing so many noble Emigrants to their houses. These people come with their crown pieces and half- guineas, and absolutely form a circle round the Faro tables, to the total exclusion of our English Lords and Ladies, who can scarcely get one pini during a whole evening." — {Times, March 14, 1793.) " The i)lay at the Faro Banks is reduced to so low a standard, except where they/«/// on tick, that a rouleau of 20 guineas is quite a novelty." — {Times, March 19, 1793-) 1 Old Times. 171 " A principal Faro Bank was broken twice last week — on Monday night at Mrs. Hobart's, and on Wednesday at Mrs. Concannon's. On the first night it lost 2000, and, on the last, 600 guineas. Lord C. S******* is one of the keenest punters of the present day. Poor Mazzmghi, who deals the cards at Mrs. Sturt's Bank, was threatened on Tuesday night, by his Lordship, to have his bones broken, because he disputed the noble Lord's intention of cocking a card. The money was not deposited on the card in the regular manner, but the young Lord said he intended to stake on the winning card, and therefore claimed it as if he had actually done so. Some- thing was muttered about the highway, but it was impossible it could allude to the circumstance in question." — {Times, April 29, 1793.) " Mrs. G. is said to understand Faro better than any other Lady of the town, particularly in the art of doubling the corner of a card, so as to win triple stakes if it is successful. She has doubled the Faro Bank holders out of so much money, that they shrink at the sight of her presence. There is so much running upon tick with the Faro Tables, that, like the Country Banks, they are breaking every day. They will soon want some other assistance than Cards, and Wax Lights, to keep up some of the Establishments at the West end of the town. "The Faro Bank holders now lose money almost every evening. The punters are now becoming the rooks, and the bankers the pigeons. The Ladies understand the game so well, and play so keen, that it requires the eyes of Argus to detect all their tricks. As little Quick says in the play, a greenhorn has only to put down his money, and he is sure to find some one to take it up for him.^' — {Times, May i, 1793) "A Banking Lady, in St. James Square, is about to com- mence a prosecution, because it is said, that there was much filching at her Faro table. The house was quite in an uproar on Tuesday night, in consequence of a paragraph that appeared in a Morning Paper of the preceding day. The Lady vows she will call in the aid of an Attortiey to support her reputation : 1 7 2 Old Times. and observes, that the credit of her house will suffer if such reports are permitted to go unpunished. The Faro Ladies are, in the sporting phrase, almost dotie up. Jewels, trinkets, watches, laces, &c., are often at the pawnbrokers, and scarce any- thing is left to raise money upon, except \}i\€\x pads. If justice is to be hoodwinked, and gamblifig, and sharking, permitted, why not make it an article of revenue, as in foreign countries, and lay a heavy tax on it. A tax on excessive gaming would, in the course of a year, produce as much as would fit out a 50 gun ship." — (Times, May 2, 1793.) "The war has lessened the receipt of the Faro Tables, insomuch, that they can barely allow lemonade. " The Faro Tables now really come within the true meaning oi plundering shops. They are attended by a gang of sharpers, who talk of knocking down the Croupiers if any offence is taken at the most barefaced frauds. Surely the Police may now make forcible entry into the Houses, fashionable, or unfashionable, which hold out a bait for the purpose of robbery." — {Times, May 3, 1793.) " The Faro Bank holders at the fashionable routs are nearly done tip ; for what with the punters running away with their winnings, and never paying when they lose, and the 25 guineas per night, paid to the fashionable landladies for the use of their houses, the profits are pared down to a very nothing." — {Times, March 28, 1794.) " Lord Hampden's Fa7-o Bank is broken up for the present season. Lady Buckinghamshire, Mrs. Sturt, and Mrs. CoNCANNON alternately divide the Beau vwnde at their respec- tive houses. Instead of having two different hot suppers, at one and three o'clock in the morning, Xht-Faro Banks will now scarcely afford bread and cheese, and porter. " One of the Faro Banks in St. James Square lost 7000/^ last year by bad debts. A young son of Levi is a consider- able debtor to one of them ; but not finding it convenient to pay what is not recoverable by law, he no longer appears in these fashionable circles." — {Times, April 2, 1794.) 1^ I- I Old Times, 173 "A Card. — The Lady Gamblers at the West end of the town, present their compliments to several Ex noble Emigres, who frequent their card routs, and inform them, through the channel of this paper, that their absence would be more agreeable than their company. They beg leave to suggest that hot suppers, and French wines, brilliant illuminations, cards, and other expences, cannot be afforded out of the profits of such peddling play as staking an ecu, or half a guinea, on the turn up of a card, and they beg leave to observe, that it is not considered as a mark of their good breeding, to engross the whole round of the Faro table, which might be turned to so much better advantage, by the pluckings of a few rich young Lords, and Commoners, who would wish to sport their rouleaus. It is hoped this hint may be attended to, as it may prevent further observation." — (Times, April ^i-, i794-) " It is impossible to conceive a more complete system of fraud and dishonour than is practised every night at the Faro Ba7iks. Though every table has four croupiers, yet the Bank holders find, that double the number are necessary to watch all the little tricks, and artifices, of some of the fashionable punters. But Mrs. G beats all her associates in the art of doubling, or cocking a card." — {Times, April 4, 1794.) " The Faro Banks being no longer a profitable game, certain Ladies in St. James' Square have substituted another instead of it, called Roulet : but it is in fact only the old game of E.G. under a different title. Roulet is now therefore the order of the ?iight." — {Times, June 25, 1794.) " The late King was passionately fond of Masquerades, where there was always a Pharo Bank prepared for his enter- tainment. Upon one occasion the crowd was so great in all parts of the Theatre, that the late Mr. Crawford was called for, and ordered to stop the further admission of company at the door : in which, however, he found so much difiiiculty, that 2700 guineas were forced into his pocket, whilst he stood purposely to advertise the public that there was no more room." — {Times, April 13, 1795.) 174 Old Twics. "The two gambling houses in St. James's Square are in despair. The suppers are ordered with great caution : and of things that will keep. The two last companies have been composed, literally, of t\\Q privileged 7vives, and of foreigners." — {Times, Dec. 2, 1795.) " It is to the credit of the rising generation of females, that they have unanimously quitted those infamous meetings, called Private Pharoes, where some of their shameless Mammas, and the faded reputations of the present age, still expose their vices, and cheat the boys who have not been long enough in the army, to wear out their first cockades."— (7>V/^^, Dec. 30, I795-) " To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. << Sir^ — London is certainly an eligible place for persons who have nothing but their labour to depend on, to get forward in life, provided they steer clear of the many snares, and tempta- tions, which hover in every alley, street, winding, and corner. " The mischief is, however, that the generality of young men, the moment they set foot in town, or, if brought up in the Metropolis, directly they enter the world on their own account, are hurried away, thoughtlessly, with the stream of error, and dissipation. If he happens to be a young man possessed of a moderate independence, without the suggestion of prudence, the caution of experience, the councils of wisdom or the restraint of authority, his whole conduct is then influenced by the passion with which he is actuated, which becomes at once, whether good or bad, his impulse, and his guide. " The Play-house is the first place of resort, which from the frequency of his visits, instead of being an instructive amuse- ment, or a moral lesson, turns out a rendezvous of intrigue, and intemperance, where he soon acquires an intimacy with the idle, the profligate, the gambler, and the prostitute, who eye him as their lawful prey, and with all that ease, dexterity, and artifice, which a knowled,u;e of the town, and its vicissi- tudes, has furnished them with, they imperceptibly lead him from one crime to another, till at length he becomes extra- Old Times. 175 vagant, and irregular, callous, and abandoned. Bagnios, gaming-tables, horses, and black-legs, are now his only wish, theme, and delight, and, so long as his pocket will endure the burden, so long, and no longer, is he duped, flattered, caressed, and encouraged, by those who surround him. But everything must have an end, and enormous expenditures cannot keep pace with that income which should be managed wnth care and frugality. The young Gentleman runs short, as it is termed, and, on his first embarrassment, is advised to apply for the assistance of some friendly advertising fnoney lender^ who, upon proper security, has the modesty to procure him from time to time, sums of money, at the equitable premium of 100 per cent. A repetition so involves him, that, by degrees, his estate falls into the hands of Mr. Usurer, who takes an absolute assigfiment of Jiis estate., for a consideration less than half its true value : and reflection never once enters his head, but he unfortunately squanders the last shilling : but it is, now, he conceives, a folly to repent, or retreat : consequently he gets into debt, is arrested, carried to a spunging house, and from thence is removed to the King's Bench, or Fleet Prison. " Far be it from me to throw any odium on an unfortunate class of people immured in the walls of either of those places, there are no doubt, imprisoned, as worthy, and as good a set of people, as any in society. But the young spark I am speaking of, being mortified at his late companions standing aloof, and resigning him to his fate, becomes loaded with obloquy, associates with characters equally as vicious as himself, smoaks, swears, and carouses, and, all at once, is wholly lost, as it were to himself, and to the world. "R. K— y." — {Times, Dec. 31, 1795.) " Capt. H. of the Guards, the nephew of the Banker, who a short time since lost 13,000 guineas at one sitting, at Back- gammon, to an Irish Gambler, revenged himself last week for this loss, by winning the enormous sum of 45,000 Guineas, at Billiards, in one night, of Mr. B. S. of the Guards. It is said 1 76 Old Times. that ;^25,ooo of the money was paid him the next day." — {Times, March 16, 1796.) " It is said to be the intention of some of the leading circles in the Fashionable World, to abolish the tax of Card-money,'^ as an imposition upon hospitality. This would prove the return of good sense, inasmuch as it tends to substantiate the truth — that when one person invites another to partake of the con- viviality of his house, he should not lay an impost upon him, even more exorbitant than that which he would pay, were he to attend a Tavern Club. When a friend is invited, it is an insult to friendship to make that friend pay for his entertain- ment." — {Times, Dec. 17, 1794-) " The tabbies at Bath are in a state of insurrection, in con- sequence of an example set by Lady Elcho, who neither visits, nor receives, company \}[v2X pay for Cards: the laudable refor- mation is adopted so generally, that many of the Dotvagers, who have so long fed upon Card-money, are turning their thoughts to some more creditable means of earning their livehhood."— (7/V;/^^, March 22, 1796.) " We hope the Ladies in London, who stand upon a nice point of honour, will follow the example of the Bath Ladies, and exclude the odious, and pitiful, custom of taking card- money at their houses. It is a meanness, which no persons who pretend to the honour of keeping good company, ought to allow. We are afraid that many a party is formed, rather to derive benefit from the Card tables, than for the sake of hospitality."— (7/'w,fi', March 2^, 1796.) "We hope, now that the business of informations against the Gambling Houses has found its way into the Court of King's Bench, that we shall hear of some effectual measures being taken to suppress them. What other than the most unworthy considerations could have suffered these houses to be open night after night, in defiance of every law, and to the ^ The guests paid a small sum each, for every new Pack of Cards used, which it was supposed the seivants took. I to Old Times. 177 destruction of young women, whose parents are so profligate, as to take them thither. If certain Mammas have no regard for their reputation, surely they should consider that their daughters are yet to be provided for. " We state it as a fact, within our own knowledge, that two Ladies of Fashion who keep open houses for Gaming, at the West End of the Town, have lately paid large douceurs^ to ward off the hand of justice." — {Times, Apr. 23, 1796.) "The Gambling-houses in and about Oxenden St., live in a stile of unprecedented luxury, and dissipation. It was stated some time ago, in the Court of King's Bench, that their dinners amounted to ;^i5o,ooo per annum." — {Times, May 27, 1796.) These two illustrations are almost Hogarthian in their contrast, and preach a homily, better than pages of text would do, on the similarity of plunder. St. James, with Lady Archer and Lady Buckinghamshire quarrelling over gold, bank notes, a sword, and an Order. One other lady, probably Lady Mount Edgcumbe, scrutinising a bill — whilst the fourth, with a pile of gold, and notes, before her, looks calmly on. The artist (who, unfortunately, is anonymous,) shows what very little difference there is between that, and the woman of St. Giles — who, to the accompaniment of Gin, are dividing their spoil, a pipe, a foot rule, a razor, &c. — little things reft from working men — on a very common deal table. It was about this time that special attention was called to this gaming mania, and Gillray (?) on the i6th May, 1796, published a Caricature called " Faro's Daughters, or the Kenyonian blow up to gamblers." Here we see the Lady Archer, and Mrs. Concannon, placed together in the pillory, and mutually upbraiding each other. The motif for this picture was a speech of Lord M 178 Old Times. Kenyon's, who, at a trial to recover ^15, won at gaming, on Sunday, at a public house — commented very severely on the hold, the vice of gaming had, on all classes of society, from the highest, to the lowest. The former, he said, set the example to the latter — and, he added, " They think they are too great for the law ; I wish they could be punished," — and then continued, " If any prosecutions of this kind are fairly brought before me, and the parties are justly convicted, whatever be their rank, or station, in the country — though they be the first ladies in the land — they shall certainly exhibit themselves in the pillory." "A new stratagem has been hit on to gain early intelligence of the drawings of the ensuing Irish Lottery. As Pigeons are found sometimes not to fly quick enough, some of our speculating Lottery Rooks have been for some time past trying experiments on high eminences in North Wales, by exhibiting rockets about seven o'clock in the evening. It is to be seen whether this mode of communication can be rendered suffi- ciently intelligible, to answer the purposes of fraud." — {Times, Nov. 4, 1796.) " It is said, and we hope with truth, that the Archbishop of Canterbury, at the head, and with the concurrence of the Episcopal Lords, means to introduce a Bill into Parliament to prevent gambling on a Sunday. An act at present does exist against this pernicious practice ; but the penalty amounts to a fine, that the Groom-porters at Hazard, or the Dealer at Faro, can with ease pay by the pjvjiis of an ho2ir. The punishment for the offence of playing any game of chance on a Sunday is, by this new intended Bill, to be transportation for seven years to Botany Bay. The owner of the house, by a particular clause, is more severely dealt with. He, or she, permitting such gambling, shall be transported for life." — {Times, Feb. 13, I797-) .^ -^ ^ ^ Old Times. 179 "PUBLIC OFFICE, MARLBOROUGH St. FARO BANKS. On Saturday came on to be heard, informations against Lady Buckinghamshire, Lady Elizabeth Luttrell, Mrs. Sturt, and Mr. Concannon, for having, on the night of the 30th of last January, played at Faro, at Lady Bucking- hamshire's house, in St. James's Square, and Mr. Martindale was charged with being the proprietor of the table. "The evidence went to prove that the Defendants had gaming parties at their different houses by rotation, and that when they met at Lady B.'s, the witnesses used to wait upon them in the gambling room, and that they played at E.O., Rouge et Noii% &c., from about eleven, or twelve, till three, or four, o'clock in the morning. After hearing Counsel, the Magistrates convicted Hy. Marthidak in the penalty of ;^2oo, and each of the Ladies in £^0. The Information against Mr. Concannon was quashed, on account of his being summoned by a wrong Christian name."— (TzwiJi-, Mar. 13, 1797.) The Magistrates were not quite so severe as Lord Kenyon had promised to be, should he ever get any of these ladies into his clutches : perhaps they had heard of the recent loss of Lady Buckinghamshire's, when in Feb^- her Faro Bank was stolen, or, at least, she said it had been. Gillray caricatured it very cleverly — as also he did in the accompanying illustration, " Discipline a la Kenyon " — in which the Lord Chief Justice, is admini- stering a sound flogging to Lady Buckinghamshire, whilst Lady Archer, and Mrs. Concannon, stand in the pillory, guarded by a stalwart constable. " The expence of entertainments at a Gaming House of the highest class, in St. James' Square, during the eight months of last season, has been said to exceed 6000 Guineas ! what must be the profits to afford such a profusion ? " — {Times, March 21, I797-) " The Pharo Trade is likely to experience a more severe I So Old Times, check from the recent refusal of some fashionable Gamesters to liquidate their debts, than from the accumulated terrors of Police persecution. If the punters won't /a;;', the dealers may as well shut up shop." — {Times, Sept. 23, 1797.) " If a man should happen, in a Cockpit, to make a bet which he is not able to answer, he is put into a basket, and pulled up to the ceiling, where he remains suspended during the sport. It is recommended to the Pharo Bankers to institute some such punishment for the Lady ' Levanters.'" — {Times, Sept. 23, 1997.) " To such a height has the spirit of gambling arisen, that at some of the great Tables it is not uncommon to see the stake consist wholly of property in Jdnd. A house of furniture was last week lost to a Lady in the neighbourhood of Pall Mall. " The successful party had played against it, the stock of a farm in the County of Essex." — {Ti?iies, Sept. 25, 1797.) " At some of our first Boarding Schools, the fair pupils are now taught to play whist, and cassino. Amongst their zvi?ming ways, this may not be the least agreeable to Papa and Mamma. " It is calculated, that a clever child, by its cards, and its novels, may pay for its own education." — {Times, Nov. 2, I797-) "At a boarding-school in the neighbourhood of IVIoor- fields, the mistress complains that she is unable to teach her scholars either Whist, or Pharo. However, she says, they play perfectly well at Kissifio, and all-fours." — {Times, Nov. 2, I797-) " So completely has gambling got the better of dancing, that at a private Ball, last week, a Gentleman asking a young Lady, from Bath, to dance the two next dances, she very ingenuously I Old Times. 18 1 replied, ' Yes, if you will play two rubbers at Cassino.' ''—{Times, Dec. 22, 1797.) "Gaming, that hydra of calamities, has again made its appearance with its black catalogue of horrors. Notwithstand- ing the late interference of the Police, there are at present, exclusive of subscription tables, no less than 18 public gambling houses, at the West End of the Town. The golden table in Leicester Square takes the lead in guilty pre-eminence. The gaming crimps are already very numerous. They dress well, frequent the most fashionable taverns, and coffee houses, and, having succeeded in insinuating themselves into company, take an opportunity of introducing a card, or bill of fare, of their respective establishments." — [Times, Sept. 13, 1798-) "Last week 1272 packs of cards, unstamped, pretended to be made for exportation, but really intended for honie con- sumption, were burned in the High Street of Shoreham, by order of the Commissioners." — {Times, Dec. 6, 1798.) "In every part of the Metropolis, that most destructive game of E. O.^ is now in high practice, but more particularly so in the neighbourhood of S. James's Street, Pall Mall, and what is called the fashionable end of the town. The Tables, even if they were fairly constructed, must be the ruin of all adventurers ; because, in the course of one hour, they play at a game where the Table has clearly o}ie Jmndred and tiventy- ^ "A thousand witnesses might be produced to prove, that at every Ridolio, part of the company is seated at a round table, which has a hollow, moveable, circle in the middle, with a declivity from the centre, and its circumference divided into little separate cavities, or cells, distinguished by the letters E, and O, placed over them alternately : the hollow circle is put in motion, and a small ivory ball thrown upon it in a contrary direc- tion ; after several turns, the inclination of the surface carries the ball down towards the cavities prepared for its reception, in one of which, having rebounded several times, it at last rests, and the parties concerned in this interesting event, succeed, or fail, as they chance to have chosen, or not, the letter under which the ball happens to lie."— "The World," No. l8o, loth June, 1756. wnrv 182 0/d Times. four chances to one in its favor within that hour. If this does not rouse the Magistracy, Justice may then be announced to be in a somniferous state — occasioned probably, by a yellow mineral application." — {Ti?nes, June 22, 1795.) "It is impossible that the Magistrates can be ignorant of the number of E. O. Tables, now held at the West end of the town. At one of these, established close to King's Place, a young man lost, on Sunday, £1^00."— {Times, Jtcne 20, 1795.) "PRIVATE LOTTERIES. "Amongst the various species of Gaming that have ever been practised, we think none exceeds the mischiefs, and calamities, that arise from the practice of private Lotteries, which at present are carrying on, in various parts of the town, to very alarming extents, much to the discredit of those whose province it is to suppress such nefarious practices, as they cannot be ignorant of such transactions. ' The little go,' which is the technical term for a private Lottery, is calculated only for the meridian of those understandings, who are unused to calculate, and discriminate, between right, and wrong, and roguery, and fair-dealing ; and, in this particular case, it is those who compose the lower order of society, whom it so seriously affects, and on whom it is chiefly designed to operate. No man of common sense can suppose that the Lottery Wheels are fair, and honest, or that the proprietors act upon principles anything like honor, or honesty ; for, by the art, and contri- vance, of the AV'heels, they are so constructed, with secret springs, and the application of gum, glue, &c., in the internal part of them, that they can draw the numbers out, or keep them in, at pleasure, just as it suits their purposes ; so that the insurer, robbed, and cajoled, by such unfair means, has not the most distant chance of ever winning : the whole being a gross fraud, and imposition, in the extreme. We understand the most notorious of these standards of imposition are situ- ated in Carnaby Market, Oxford Road, in the Borough, Islington, Clcrkenwell, and various other places, most of Old Times. 183 which are under the very nose of IMagistracy, in seeming security, bidding defiance to law, and preying upon the vitals of the poor and ignorant. " We hope the Magistrates of each jurisdiction, and those who possess the same power, will perform their duty on behalf of the poor, over whom they preside, and put a stop to such a growing, and alarming, evil, of such pernicious, and dangerous tendency : particularly, as the Proprietors are well-known bad characters, consisting of needy beggars, desperate swindlers, gamblers, sharpers, notorious thieves, and common convicted felons, most of whose names stand recorded in the Newgate Calendar for various offences of different descriptions." — {Times, July 22, 1795.) "The term of little goes for the private lotteries is apt enough, for the poor devils who risk their property there, have but little, and that little goes to nought. " If the wheels of fortune, and the cash, seized at the private lotteries, become the property of the police runners, the old adage will be strongly verified, ' What is got over the devil's back, will be spent under his belly.'"— (r/w^^, Aug. 13. I795-) " On Friday night last, in consequence of searching warrants from the Parochial Magistrates of St. James's, Westminster, upwards of 30 persons were apprehended at the house of one M'Call, No. 2, Francis St., near Golden Square, and in the house of J. Knight, King St., where the most destructive practices to the poor were carrying on, that of Private Lotteries (called Little Goes.) Two wheels, with the tickets, were seized on the premises. Upon examination of those persons, who proved to be the poor deluded objects that had been there plundered, they were reprimanded, and discharged. " The wives of many industrious mechanics, by attending these nefarious houses, have not only been duped out of their earnings (which ought to have been applied to the providing bread for their families) but have even pawned their beds, wedding rings, and almost every article they were possessed of for that purpose."— (7/V//(?^-, Avg. 11, i795-) 184 Old Times. But nothing was said against the big State Lotteries — which were going on without let, or hindrance — and, absolutely, educating the people in the taste for gambling. Here are two anecdotes of the lottery : — " Dr. B., a physician at Lime (Dorset), a few days since, being under pecuniary embarrassment, and his house surrounded by bailiffs, made his escape by a window, into a neighbour's house, from whence he fled to London. The furniture was seized, and the sale actually commenced, when it was stopped by a letter, stating that the Doctor, upon his arrival in London, found himself the proprietor of the ;^2 0,000 prize. We guarantee the truth of this fact." — {Times, Dec. 27, 1797.) " The ;^2o,ooo prize, drawn on Friday, is divided amongst a number of poor persons : a female servant in Brook St., Holborn, had a sixteenth ; a woman who keeps a fruit-stall in Grays-Inn-lane another ; a third is possessed by a servant of the Duke of Roxburghe's ; a fourth by a Chelsea Carrier of vegetables to Covent Garden ; one eighth belongs to a poor family in Rutlandshire, and the remainder is similarly divided." — {Times, Mar. 19, 1798.) Of Horse Racing we do not hear much — the prizes were small — and gambling on the Turf was not reduced to a Science as it is now-a-days. Even when attending races, the chief losses were at the gaming tables which accompanied them. " Poor Newmarket is completely done up ! The Spring Meeting boasts so few bets in the calendar of gambling, that the chance will not pay post-chaise hire to the black legs. Thus falls the destructive sport of the Turf— and, as that is the case, it would do honour to his Majesty to change the King's Plates into rewards for the improvement of Agriculture'^ — {Times, April 17, 1794.) I 1 I .«t5 to Old Times. 185 "The Duke of Queensberry was a principal loser at Epsom Races. The Noble Duke had his vis-a-vis, and six horses, driving about the course, with two very pretty emigr'ees in it. The Duke was in his cabriolet. The Duke of Bedford, Lords Egremont, and Derby, were also on the course. Several carriages were broken to pieces : and one Lady had her arm broken. "There was much private business done in the swindling way at the last Epsom races. One black legged fellow cleared near a thousand pounds by the old trick of an E.O. Table. Another had -xfaro tabic, and was on the eve of doing business, when he was detected with o. palmed c2lx6. : almost the whole of what may be justly styled ' vagabond gamblers ' of London were present. " Mr. Bowes, half brother to the Earl of Strathmore, was robbed of a gold watch, and a purse, containing 30 guineas, at Epsom races, on Thursday last. Many other persons shared a similar fate, both on the same evening, and Friday. Upwards of 30 carriages were robbed coming from the races." —{Times, May 25, 1795.) " Never since racing was patronised by the Merry Monarch, has the Turfheen so much on the decline as at this period. His Grace of Bedford is the only person who retains a con- siderable stud. Lord Grosvenor has disposed of nearly the whole of his, with the reserve of two, or three, capital horses, and some few brood mares." — {Times, Sept. 8, 1797.) "A Mr. Marsion, of the Borough, has laid a bet of 2000 guineas, that he will, in the course of the ensuing week, go into one of the great wheels of the water-works at London Bridge, while it is in its swiftest motion with an ebb-tide, stay there five minutes, and come out again with safety, though not without accident, in a different part from that in which he went in : and afterwards walk one mile within an hour, on condition that the lower bucket of the wheel is two feet dis- tance from the river bottom." — {Times, Sept. 11, 1797.) 1 86 Old Ti7nes. These water-wheels which were situated where Fish- mongers Hall now stands, were commenced in 1582, by a Dutchman, named Peter Moritz, or Morrice, with one wheel. Hatton, in his " New View of London," published in Queen Anne's time, says, " besides the old work erected by Mr. Morris, the New, placed in the 4th Arch of the Bridge, consists of 2 Wheels with 7 Engines, set up about the year 1702, so that there are in all 13 engines. They are the contrivance of that great English Engineer Mr. Sorocold, whereby the Thmncs Water is raised from the N. end of the Bridge, to a very great altitude, hy which means, many parts of the City, &c., are served with the Thames Water." Old Times. 187 THE THEATRE. Our forefathers were fond of the Theatre, and patronised it nightly. They were exacting as to the quaUty of the acting represented before them, and that very exigeance procured them what they wanted. In the years of which I treat, there were, in London, the following Theatres : — The King's (now Her Majesty's) in the Haymarket — Drury Lane — Covent Garden — The Theatre Royal, Haymarket — Royalty Theatre, Wells Street, Goodman's Fields — Royal Circus, St. George's Fields — Sadler's Wells— The Royal Grove, and Amphi- theatre (Astley's) Westminster Bridge — afterwards Astley's Royal Saloon — and still later called, Astley's Amphitheatre of Arts. Whilst at the Lyceum in the Strand, there were Musical Entertainments, and a New Circus. It was an age of good actors, and, taking them hap- hazard, we have only to glance at the following names, to prove the assertion, were it needed. Sitett, who drank himself to death in 1805. John Kemblc, the best tragic actor since Garrick. From an education for the priest- hood, to performing with a strolling company, was a great leap — but his success was assured when, in 1783, he made his debut, at Drury Lane, as Hamlet. He retired from the stage in 1817, and died in 1823. Baddeley was not a first rate actor, and I but mention him because of his bequest of Cake, and Wine, to be 1 88 Old Times. partaken of, annually, by the Company, in the Green room of Drury Lane, every Twelfth night. Quick was irresis- tibly comic — and none could see him act without laugh- ing. He lived to a good old age (acting up to 1813), above 83 — dying in the year 1831. Edmund Kean was born in i jZy, and went on the stage as soon as he could walk. — After his education at Eton, he went on the provincial boards — not playing in London, until 1 8 14, when he played Shylock, at Drury Lane. Died 1833. Macklin, "the Jew, that Shakespeare drew," acted until he was 90 — appearing, for the last time, on the occasion of his benefit. May 7, 1789. After he was dressed for Shylock, he went into the Green Room, and, seeing Mrs. Pope there, said "My dear, are you to play to-night?" " To be sure I am. Sir," she replied, " do you not see I am dressed for Portia ? " — " Ah ! very true ; I had for- gotten — but who is to play Shylock ! " They got his poor old feeble mind, at last, to grasp the situation, and he went on the stage — but, after two, or three, speeches, he was obliged to give it up, and had to ask the indul- gence of the audience, and beg of them to accept Mr. Ryder, as his substitute. He lived some years after- wards, till I ith July 1797 — when he died, at the age of 98. Bajinistcr began his theatrical career at the early age of 12. At his engagement at Drury Lane, in I779> ^^^ played tragedy, but, after the death of Edwin, he supplied his place, and played Comedy. He died 8th Nov. 1836, aged jS. Indedon was the sweetest singer of his time, and made his debut at Covent Garden in 1790 — Died 1826. Elliston first appeared in London, at the Hay- market in 1796. Although he was not a famous actor, he cannot be omitted from a list of theatrical celebrities. Then, too, among the lesser stars, were Banymojx, Ryder, /he /hcatre. Old Times. 189 Johnstone^ Pope, Holman and Mtindeii — not even forget- ting Delpini the famous Clown, and Scaramouch. Among the chief actresses, was Mrs. Jordan, whose real name was Dorothy Bland, who became a decided favourite, with a London audience, at her first appear- ance at Drury Lane, in 1785. Her connection with the Duke of Clarence, afterwards WilHam 4th, is well known. They lived very happily together, and had ten Children, but the connection was broken off in 181 1 — and she was left to shift for herself. She died in 18 16. The name of Sarah Siddons is too well known to elicit any remark ; as a tragedian, her equal has, pro- bably, never been seen on an English Stage. She had a long career — from her debid, at Drury Lane, in 1775, till her last appearance, in London, in 18 16. Died 1 83 1 — aged ^6. Miss Farrat, was a most lady-like, and elegant actress. She was tall and slim, and was caricatured as being positively scraggy — but she captivated the then Lord Derby, who, in physique was her complete antithesis, having short legs, a very corpulent body, and a hydro- cephalous head. She retired from the stage before her marriage, in 1796. Mrs. Crouch, and Mrs. Billington, the rival songstresses, were actresses, but they generally had parts assigned them, in which they could exercise their vocal powers, and they sang at Oratorios, and Concerts. Mrs. Billing- ton did not retire from her profession until 1800. She died in 1817. Mrs. Frances Abington first appeared before a London audience on 21st Aug, 1755, and played, with few inter- missions, until 1798. After Mrs. Clive, she was the best comic actress on the English stage, and could equally I go Old Times. play Lady Teazle, Lady Betty Modish, a Chambermaid, a Romp, or a Country girl — Died, 1815. Mrs. Bellamy, can just claim a notice, because she died in 1788, but she left the stage in 1785. She was a tragic actress, and was reckoned equal to Mrs. Cibber. Chief among the next rank of actresses, we must place Miss Brtmton, Mrs. Maiiyr, and Mrs. Pope. Thinking it would interest my readers, I have taken some portraits of the chief Actors, and Actresses, of the time, from a very rare book, and they are interesting to the present generation, as shewing the Costumes in which the plays were acted, and, which, I suppose, satisfied the aesthetic, and archaeological, taste of our grandfathers. Both audience, and press, were very outspoken in their criticisms, and, indeed, in those days, dramatic criticism was real, and had not been reduced to a fine art, as now. Take the following instance : — "Theatre, Covent Garden. Hoadley's agreeable Comedy of The Stispicious Husband, was, last night, in general, presented here with spirit, and attended by a considerable audience. The Character of most prominent merit, as to performance, was Strickland, which Farren supported with strong emotion, and probable impression. Mrs. Abington would have repre- sented Clarinda with more effect, if she had not directed all her share of the dialogue entirely to the audience. Pope was the Frankly, but he must take great pains before he will acquire the ease necessary for genteel Comedy. Lewis's Rafiger was not sufficiently marked by the appearance of that airy dis- sipation which the part demands. Mrs. Wells' Jaci?ii/ui was only distinguished for rustic dialect, and awkward deport- ment.'" Mrs. Bernard had the merit of being decent in Mrs. Strickland." — {The Morning Post, Jan. 3, 17SS.) The Theatre, was, then, as now, a passion with & Old Times. 191 some people, and amateur theatricals were in high favour. "At the Blenheim Theatre, her Grace the Duchess of Marlborough attended her guests in person, and superintended the refreshments of Sandwiches, fruit and wines, which were distributed in profusion." — {Morning Post, Mar. 28, 1788.) The Newspapers gave Theatrical Gossip — as the following, all from the Morning Post, Jan. 15, 1789, shews : — "It has lately been a practice with one, or two, of the female performers at Drury Lane Theatre, to refuse appearing on the stage, though much after the time of commencing the play, because the boxes may not happen to be filled with fashionable visitors, regardless of any disapprobation which may arise from the impatience of the audience. "When the New Theatre is erected for the Managers of Old Drury, it is in contemplation to fix a Clock over the Stage, where the inscription is now placed, that, if the per- formance should be improperly delayed, and the audience become clamorous, the Public may be informed to whom the blame should be appHed." " A whimsical incident happened the other night, at the reading of Cumberland's new Comedy. The Author, who read the piece himself, began with the D^-amatis Persons, thus, ' The Impostor, by Mr. Palmer : ' A laugh occurring at this, the Author became embarrassed on seeing Mr. Palmer in the room, but, recovering himself, he added, 'being his first appearance in that character.' " " Mrs. Jordan and Kemble, according to Green Room report, are not upon the most amicable footing. It is supposed that the lady takes advantages of her popularity to be ill ivhen she pleases, and has refused to perform in a farce when ]\Irs. Siddons appears in the play, and for this modest reason, * that she will not fill the house, and let Mrs. Siddons run away with the reputation of it.'" — {Morning Post, Mar. lo, 1789.) ■■I 192 Old Times. We come across a curious glimpse of Mrs. Robinson — the " Perdita," (deserted by her " Florizel,") in the Morning Post, March 11, 1789. "Perdita, the once beautiful Perdita, parades, every day, along Pall Mall, in her carriage, from Avhich she frequently ' Casts a longing ling'ring look,' in hopes that her charms, which, formerly, commanded the grave and the gay, may revive an attachment long since extin- guished. This unhappy beauty had better try Hyde Park, if she must have a little morning air — such a daily excursion would be more serviceable to her health, than an anxious ride through Pall Mall, can be gratifying to her pride." Theatrical Salaries were not very high — for, teste, the Morning Post, of March 13, 1789: — " It is said that Mrs. Jordan has but Six Pounds a week. Who will venture to say, that, considering the present attrac- tion of her talent, this is an adequate recompense ? " Th& Morning Post, Oct. 27, 1798, has the following two paragraphs as to behaviour at the theatres : — " Two men in the pit at Drury Lane Theatre, last night, were so turbulent, and riotous, during the last act of Henry the Fifth, that the performance was interrupted upwards of a quarter of an hour. The audience, at last, asserted their power, and turned them disgracefully out of the Theatre. This should always be done to crush the race of disgusting puppies that are a constant nuisance at the playhouse every night." " A box lobby puppy having insulted a gentleman at Covent Garden Theatre, on Friday night, received a very suitable drubbing. When this necessary chastisement was completed, the beater demanded satisfaction. * Have I not thrashed you to your heart's content?' said the gentleman. The other I I ^ ^^^ S. Old Times. i93 replied, with great simplicity, 'Sir, that is no satisfaction to me.'" Fancy our modern Royal Family, on their visits to the Theatre — -joining heartily in the choruses, and witness- ing slang dances : yet so it was in 1793. "The very pleasant Comedy of Notoriety was, yesterday evening, performed before their Majesties, the three elder Princesses, and a very brilliant house. Some well-timed songs introduced into the pantomime of Harlequin's Museum, gave the audience an opportunity of testifying their loyalty to the King, and attachment to both her Majesty, and her family, who joined heartily in the choruses. We never saw them better entertained. But surely the Slang dance which is introduced might be very properly omitted : — it is too vulgar for so elegant, and well conducted, a theatre." — {Times, Feb. 5> I793-) " The private boxes at the Haymarket Theatre are so thinly partitioned, that we are surprised any person should deem them proper places to recapitulate domestic bickerings.^' — {Times, Feb. 6, I793-) The following is apropos of Mrs. Jordan : — " Performers at the Theatres are now paid more liberally than heretofore. AVe are sorry when their public conduct gives reason for complaint. As the frequenters of them are their support, it will ever be necessary, in the public, to bring them to a proper sense of their situation. It is only by this means the conductors of our entertainments can have any sway over them." — {Times, Mar. 10, 1793.) " Brandenburgh House Theatricals, " The opening of the New Theatre, belonging to the Margrave of Anspach's Villa, at Hammersmith, took place on Thursday evening, with an entertainment the most costly, N 194 01'^ Times. and at the same time, the most tasty, and elegant, we ever remember to have witnessed. The Prince of Wales, who was present, declared he had never seen anything more splendid, and handsomely conducted. The Theatre is built at a short distance from the house, between which there is a communication by means of a colonnade. The outside appear- ance rather resembles an old Gothic building, than a Temple devoted to the Muses. The inside is prettily fitted up, but the ceiling is too low for the size of it. " The performance opened by a prelude : after which a little piece was represented, entitled Fanfan and Colas, the characters by the Margravine, young Keppel Craven, Mons. and Medame Texier, and Count d'Alet, Lord High Chaviberlam of the Household. The third petite piece was a very humorous dialogue called Le Poulet, betw^een Mrs. Hobart, as an English servant maid, and Mons. Le Texier, as a French Valet. Both were inquisitive after news : the one told all the chit chat of the town in her English dialect : the other told the great exploits going forward in France, in French. Mrs. Hobart played her part to admiration, and very aptly introduced, among other things, the story of her own public Fete, last summer, at Ham, where the torrents of rain poured down, in such abundance, as to turn all her fine creams into poor milk and water. "The supper, after the play, was magnificent in the extreme, and consisted of a profusion of all the delicacies of the season. Besides Soups, and every dainty meat, there were pine apples, new grapes, cherries, strawberries, &c. "After the supper, there was a Masquerade, and Ball, which was quite unexpected to the Company. The Margravine had provided new dresses for all the company, and the Ladies, and Gentlemen, each dressed in separate rooms. The Duke of Clarence changed his dress seven different times, and greatly added to the hilarity of the entertainment. The Prince was in a domino." — {Times, April 27, 1793.) " It having been observed, in some public prints, that the Hon. Mrs. Twisleton was the first female of fashion who had ^ ^ 4 Old Times. 195 made the stage her profession, it is but justice to notice, that Mrs. HoLMAN (the ci-devant Mrs. Hughes) who made her debut in Dublin, some years since, has a priority to public notice on this account : if real rank by birth, education, and fortune, give a title to distinction, if admission to the first orders of fashionable society have pretensions, the friends of that Lady have certainly a right to enter her claims on this subject." — {Times, Feb. 13, 1794.) OPENING OF NEW DRURY. "Public curiosity, which has long been on the tip-toe of expectation, was yesterday gratified by the opening of this superb edifice, under the immediate management of Mr. Kemble, whose approved talents well entitle him to so flatter- ing a mark of distinction. Of this Theatre, language must be inadequate to give even a faint idea of the effect it produces on the spectator, at his entre : nor does the first impression in the least diminish from a more minute examination into its structure, and decorations : the whole forming a happy com- bination of the gay, and the grand. The Stage, fitted as it was for an Oratorio, presented a nouvelle, and pleasing, prospect. The representation of a Gothic Cathedral, with the 'Long sounding Isle,' and ' Storied windows richly dight Casting a dim religious light,' was admirably adapted to suit with the solemnity appertaining to sacred selections. " From the opening of the doors, to the first crash of the band, most able in all its movements, the satisfaction and delight of the audience was expressed by repeated, and increasing, plaudits — encouraged not a little by the care, and attention, evinced by the Proprietors, for the convenience of the public, in the approaches to the House — in every respect answering to the magnificence, and accommodation, within. Independent of the attraction, long, very long, to be expected from the novelty, as well as beauty, of the New Drury, some 196 Old Times. credit ought to be given to that which must ever have its weight with the people at large, as well as amateurs— a numerous, and well appointed, set of vocal performers. The names of Harrison, Storage, Kelly, Crouch, and Dignum, are too proverbial for excellence in their several lines, to need our eulogium. Miss Leake, whose unaffected correctness of style, and melody of tone, must shortly place her deservedly high in her profession, may also be deemed almost as powerful an acquisition as Miss Parke, at the other House. Mr. Meredith, from Liverpool, possesses a fine deep volume of voice, which he exerted to great advantage. This Gentleman, we recollect some years since at Ranelagh, a7id, if we are not very much mistaken, at the Little Theatre, as the Prodigal Son of Dr. Arnold's charming Oratorio. " Giornovici's Concerto would have gone off much better, had the subject not been so tedious. This is a fault we have too often cause to find with Concerto Performers, who fre- quently give us too much of a good thing. His mode of introduction was particularly awkward — some other might be contrived than pitching him upon a plank, brought in at the hazard of discomfiting the head dresses, or breaking the noses of the ladies in the Orchestra. " The sound was rather too redundant, in general, and the language of the Gods, now and then, too plainly heard in the pit ; but, as it arises merely from the freshness of the building, this inconvenience will gradually be amended. " The Prince of Wales was with Mrs. Fitzherbert, and Mr. Sheridan, in the box appropriated to his Royal High- ness. Lord Thuri.ow sat, apparently well pleased, in the box beneath. Mr. and Mrs. Kemble, Mrs. Siddons, and Sir Francis Bourgeois, saw that all was well, in one of the orchestra boxes. " From the frequent encores, the Selection was not over till a late hour. The usual cry of ' take care of your pockets' on quitting the Theatre, was superfluous : for Tounisend attended to keep a 'wary eye;' so the pickpockets, of course, found it impracticable to make any 'palpable hits.'" — {Times, March 13' ^94) \ Old Times. 197 " Miss Farren has left London for Dublin where she is to perform 12 nights. The terms of her engagement, arc ;^5oo, and a clear benefit. It is not true that she takes Derby in her route." — {Times, Jime 26, 1794.) " The high demands made by some Actresses on the Management of Theatres, are so exorbitant, that we trust they will not be complied with. Mrs. Jordan, and Storage, have demanded, the first, ^^30, and the latter, ;^2o, a night. Much as we admire the abilities of each on the stage, yet we know, from experience, that the higher the salaries of some performers are, the more they are prone to disrespect the public, and to give themselves insufferable airs." — {Times, Oct. 4, 1794.) Storacc has come down to the terms of her last engagement, and they are adequate to her abilities. The ci-devant Princess of Petersham still holds out : but it is thought that ivant of ammunition will occasion her soon to capitulate. When the theatre was opened in Goodman's fields a first rate actress thought herself amply paid With, forty shillings per week : but, now, a first rate actress has the conscience to demand /^r/j' pounds Per night." — {Times, Oct. 9, 1794.) " Mrs. Jordan has at last condescended to descend to her former situation in the Theatre, at her former salary." — {Times, Oct. 18, 1794.) " The popular Dramatist, in his rage for hunting down the follies of the day, we hope will not forget to be in at the deatli. of our masculine women of fashion. Their hunting, shooting, driving, cricketing, faroing, and skating, present a monstrous chaos of absurdity, not only making day, and night, hideous, but the sex itself equivocal. Lady men, or men ladies, * you'll say 'tis Persian, but let it be changed.'" — {Times, Oct. 18, I794-) " Much has been said upon the Bath Fracas, but the cir- cumstance has never yet been explained. It is briefly this : 198 Old Times. The Hon. Mrs. Twisleton was at the Ball-room, and stood up to dance : she stickled a little for precede?ice as an Honorable: the Master of the Ceremonies began to object to her dancing at all, as a Public Paformer. Her partner instanced a Performer, M. Yanievitz, who was in the constant habit of appearing there. The Master of the Ceremonies went up to this amiable, and distinguished, foreigner, and intimated that his appearance there was thought too frequent, by the Subscribers. Mr. Yanievitz, demanded who had given the Master of Cere- monies this intimation : a satisfaction which was refused. Next morning Mr. Yanievitz wrote a proper letter to the M. C. expressive of his sentiments upon this occasion. " A meeting of subscribers was called, and they resolved, that, in future, no Pubhc Performer, of any description, should be permitted to appear in any of the Public rooms." — [Times, March 4, 1795.) " Annual tickets, and orders are accompanied with a very great inconvenience : the side boxes are filled, at present, with butlers, and valets-de-chambre. It is not that these persons conduct themselves amiss, but they deter gentlemen from entering, whose appearance might prove distressing to them." — {Times, Sept. 26, 1795.) " On an information being Ukely to be made against many of the performers in both Theatres, on the Act against profane cursing, and swearing— it became a question, as the Act is a discriminating one, whether they swore as gentlemen : when it was decided that they should be treated according to the Character they personified." — {Times, Dec. 17, 1795.) "The Theatres were shut on Saturday evening, to com- memorate, with the greater solemnity, the Martyrdotn of King Charles."— (Tm^i-, Feb. i, 1796.) Drury Lane Theatre has not experienced a riot so wild, and unappeasable, as that of Tuesday evening, since the Blacka- moor Washed White, of famous memory. The Entertainments •0 1?. Old Times. 199 advertised for the niglit's amusements were three. The Smugglers, having nothing contraband on board, was not only suffered to pass, but was hailed with three cheers :— The Virgin Un- masked had her admirers — but the Deserter was mauled most dreadfully— for Young Welsh had permitted a new Skirmish to make his ddmt, as Suctt phrased it : and, being a miserable wretch, when the audience expressed a disapprobation, the Performers, to shorten the ridicule, shortened the scenes, which on such occasions, is usual, and prudent — but, the cur- tain dropping at ten minutes past ten, created a violent burst of indignation. Kelly first attempted to enquire the wishes of John Bull, and expressed himself, in the name of the Performers, ignorant of how he was disobliged. All striving to be heard, none, of course, could be so, and he retired. Uproar still increased, and, after near half an hour of this din, Suett made his appearance, and apologised for the badness of the stage struck hero, but he was soon given to understand, that that was not the cause of the Row, but that the audience expected to have the " Deserter " played wholly over again. Mr. S., after "looking as queer as a quartern of soap after a week's wash," expressed his concern that many of the Performers were gone, and the stage lights out, but this was the cause of fresh howUngs, and as somebody cried out, * God save the King,' he promised to send as many of the Orchestra, as could be found. In five minutes this popular hymn was received with acclamation. The curtain drew up, and all the Performers in the Theatre sung it. The curtain again dropt amid violent tumults which continued, and increased. Again Mr. Suett appeared, and declared ' how much hurt the Pro- prietors were at any part of the Performance being omitted : that it was without their concurrence, or even knowledge, and that such a circumstance should never happen again.' This rather mollified the audience, and many dispersed at a quarter past 1 1. Almost the whole of the lights in the house had been long extinguished : and some of the benches were torn up." — — {Times, May 13, 1796.) " On Thursday last a ludicrous _/>'a;/^^, Sept. 27, 1797-) " The Dollars having been taken out of circulation, there Old Thnes, 239 is now such a scarcity of silver, as to impede the 'ordinary negotiation of business very materially. It would be a public convenience if the new 7s. gold coin was put in circulation." — {Times, Oct. 5, 1797.) "The new gold coinage of seven shilHng pieces is to be issued from the Bank, this day." — {Times, Dec. i, 1797.) Up to this time forgeries of Bank of England notes had been very rare. " Last week a man was apprehended at Manchester, on a charge of forging Bank of England notes. On searching his house, was found a plate, with a one pound note engraved, on one side of it, and a two pound note, on the other ; together with a number of notes just struck off, but not filled up. On his examination he confessed the fact, and thereby impeached his brother, who, he said, was then in Yorkshire : and acknow- ledged that they had practised it about six months, during which time they had disposed of about 200." — {Times, March 30, 1798.) •'A small delivery of Mr. Boulton's 2d. pieces, was, on Friday, made at the Treasury ; the likeness of the King is much better executed than in the id. pieces : they are full twice their thickness, weighing rather better than two ounces each." — {Times, Feby. 12, 1798.) " The trade of counterfeit halfpence, though it got a tem- porary check within the last five weeks, is again getting for- ward. The turnpike men, coffee-house waiters, haberdashers' shops, fruit women, and porter houses, are at their old work. The turnpike men will give bad, but not take them at present. If the traveller objects, he is abused and kept waiting, perhaps ten minutes, for change of 6d. : the coffee-house waiters say they have no others, and that they give and take ; the haber- dashers fold the change up in a clean bit of paper, which when"^ opened, contains the worst of counterfeit halfpence : UH 240 Old Times. and the fruit women and porter houses say * they give what they take.'" — {Times, Oct. 2, 1794.) " Bad shillings are sold to chandlers shops, turnpike men, and waiters at coffee-houses and taverns, at the rate of tivcnty shillings for five and sixpence. No wonder they are in such general circulation." — {Times, Nov. 29, 1794.) " At this season the Jew fruitmen should be particularly guarded against. They care not at how small a price they sell, so the quantum reaches to silver. In that case it is their custom 'to hope you will give them good silver, as the gardeners are very particular.' They then rub it with both thumbs, dexterously contriving to fillip up your shilling, and drop down another, which they beg you to change, protesting that they believed it good biit are not certain. Serving you the same a second or third time, and you are induced through an appearance of great civility, and apparent ignorance, to indulge them. The silver you receive as your own is speciously good : but it changes black in a few hours. The writer of this bought his experience at the price of three succeeding shillings." — {Times, July, 30, 1795.) "BAD HALFPENCE. "To THE Master of the Mint — "The Petition of more than Ten Millions of bad Halfpence, " Most humbly showeth, " That your Petitioners, for a number of years, have given bread to thousands of his Majesty's subjects, called Coiners : and that they have been long in uncontrouled circulation : "That your Petitioners have enabled Waiters at Taverns, and other houses, to wear hair-powder, to the manifest increase of his Majesty's Stamp-duties. " That your Petitioners have been the means of the Turnpike Tolls increasing in value, on account of the Toll-takers being Old Times. 241 obliged to put off a certain quantity of your Petitioners, each week, at a stipulated price from the Renters. " That your Petitioners have long been a fine bonus to the Paymaster Serjeants of the different Regiments, who bought your Petitioners at the rate of 30s. for 20s., thereby making those brave fellows to live more comfortably, than their regular pay would allow them to do : " That your Petitioners have, for a series of time, been of infinite service to those industrious men, the Tribes of Levi, and Manassa, who distributed your Petitioners, in the most plentiful manner, to their own great advantage : " That your Petitioners have, in some manner, been the means of peopling Botany Bay, as numbers of persons, who were first in the habit of forming your Petitioners, afterwards mounted to the honour of making shillings, and sixpences : " That your Petitioners, with great sorrow, perceive, by the effect of a new coinage of Penny, and Twopenny Pieces, that their existence is rapidly on the decline : *' Your Petitioners therefore pray that their grievances may be taken into consideration : and they will, as in duty bound, ever pray. Bad Halfpence." —{Times, Ang. 17, i795-) "FALSE COINAGE. " The numerous evils arising from the now general circula- tion of Base Money, are too well known, to make it necessary that they should be dwelt on by us. We have always consi- dered the different Administrations of this Country, as highly blameable for not paying more attention, than they have done, to prevent the nefarious practices which are introduced in the introduction of almost every species of Counterfeit Coin into the circulation of the country, because it certainly has the means in its own power, of lessening the mischief, by issuing a new coinage, particularly of Halfpence, which are, now, so generally bad, and so profligately circulated, that scarce a good halfpenny is to be seen. . . . The vast increase, and the extensive circulation, of base Money, particularly of late years, . . . almost exceeds credibility, and the dexterity, and ingenuity, of these criminal people have enabled them to Q ISH 242 Old Times. finish the different kinds of counterfeit Money, in so masterly a manner, that it has become extremely difhcult, for the common observer, to distinguish the base Coin, now in circu- lation, from the worn out Silver, from the Mint. And, so systematic has this nefarious traffic become, that the great dealers, who in most instances are the employers of the Coiners, execute orders for the Town, and Country, with the same regularity as other manufacturers in fair branches of trade. Scarce a waggon, or coach, departs from the metro- polis, that does not carry boxes, and parcels, of base coin, to the camps, seaports, and manufacturing towns, insomuch, that the country is deluged with counterfeit Money. In London, regular markets, in various public, and private, houses, are held by the principal Dealers, where Hawkers, Pedlars, fraudu- lent Horse-dealers, Unlicensed Lottery Office Keepers, Gam- blers at Fairs, Itinerant Jews, Irish Labourers, Servants of Toll Gatherers, and Hackney-Coach Owners, fraudulent Publicans, Market Women, Rabbit Sellers, Fish Cryers, Barrow Women, and many who would not be suspected, are regularly supplied with counterfeit Copper, and Silver, with the advantages of nearly 100 per cent, in their favour : and thus it happens, that through these various channels, immense quantities of base Money get into circulation, while an evident diminution of the Mint Coinage, is apparent to every common observer. . . . Discoveries have been recently made, of no less than 120 persons, in the metropolis, and the country, who are employed, principally, in coining, and selling, Base ISIoney: and this, independent of the numerous horde of utterers, who chiefly support themselves by passing it at its full value. " It will scarcely be credited, that of these criminal people who have either been detected, prosecuted, or convicted, within the last seven years, there stand upon the register of the Solicitor of the Mint, no less than 608 names ! and yet the evil increases rapidly. And when it is known, that two persons can finish from ;^2oo, to ;^3oo, in base silver, /// six days, and that three people, within the same period will stamp the like amount, in Copper, and when the number of known coiners are taken into the calculation, the aggregate in the course of the year must be immense !" — {Times, Oct. 5, 179G.) Old Times. 243 LAW AND POLICE. In treating the above heading, I have no wish to intro- duce the " Newgate Calendar " element into this book. Let those who like such literature, consult that work — and, doubtless, they will be rewarded for their pains ; but, in going through these old papers, much that is curious is met with, which throws light on the manners, and customs, of our forefathers. Of Police, as we understand the word, there was none — and the parochial Constables, and watchmen, who were supposed to guard the premises of the rate payers, and to keep the peace, were veritably of the Dogberry and Verges type — utterly useless for the detection, or suppression, of crime, and only fit to " comprehend all vagrom man," or lead some roysterer home. All day long they were not ; but, at night, they came out with the bats, and owls, armed with a long staff, and a lantern, periodically droning out the hour of the night, and the state of the weather. This was done with the laudable intention of shewing their vigilance, but it must equally have acted in an opposite direction, for every thief must have had due warning of the watchman's whereabouts. They had temporary shelters, larger than the Military Sentry box, and the wild spirits of those days delighted to catch a watchman napping, and over- turn his box, thus temporarily incapacitating him from 244 ^^^ Times. giving an alarm, or following their flight. For the former purpose they used huge rattles, smaller specimens of which were carried, for the same purpose, by our own Metropolitan Police, until 1884. Each parish looked after its own interests, had its own watch and ward, and was mightily jealous of inter- ference from another parish — an arrangement evidently very much to the advantage of a thief. People were always grumbling — but the state of things was never altered. Hear what they said about it in 1788 : — *'The Decrepid old Dotards, to whose vigilance the different Vestries have confined their fellow Citizens, are likely to profit from the order of nature being reversed by the life of our modern nobility, who, rising at two, dining at eight, and paying afternoon visits at midnight, have superseded the neces- sity of having watchmen, and are, in fact, with their servants, a much better patrole than any of the Bow Street Justices could {uxmzh" —{Mor!ii7ig Fost, April 21, 1788.) There were amateur thief catchers like Jonathan Wild, men who would be the companions, and con- federates, of Highwaymen, Housebreakers, and Thieves, drawing Money from them until they were sucked dr}', and then sacrifice them without an atom of remorse. And there were the detectives of that time, the Bow Street Runners, or Robin Red breasts as they were called, from their wearing red waistcoats. Peter Pindar sang of them, especially of the three that were detailed for the protection of the Royal family at the time of the French Revolution. What a bright thought in George and Charlotte, Who to escape each wicked Varlet, And disappoint Tom Paine's disloyal crew, 5^ k. ^ 4> I «-, Old Times. 245 Fixed on Maci/iauies, Tozunscnd, Jealous., Delightful company, delicious fellows, To point out, every minute, who is who ! To hustle from before their noble graces, Rascals with ill looks, designing faces, Where treason, murder, and sedition dwell ; To give the life of every Newgate wretch. To say who next the fatal cord shall stretch. The sweet historian of the pensive cell." Townsend, was undoubtedly the sharpest of the three, but he was a pushing, boastful fellow, and never hid his light under a bushel. He was, however, courageous, and never heeded where he went, or what odds were opposed to him ; so that the criminal classes began to respect him, and, at last, never thought of opposing him. He was extremely natty in his dress, and his flaxen wig was as well known, as his short stout figure, and his red face — " Of all the wigs in Brighton Town, The black, the gray, the red, the brown. So firmly glued upon the crown. There's none like Johnny Townsend's ; It's silken hair, and flaxen hue, It is a scratch, and not a queue, When e'er it pops upon the view, Is known for Johnny Townsend's." It was by his means, that the famous pickpocket, Harrington, was convicted, and transported, a fact which was very much to Harrington's advantage, for he helped to put down a mutiny on board, whilst on his passage out, for which he was well rewarded, and, by his good conduct, he rose from step to step, always in the Colonial police — until he died Chief of the Constabulary in New South Wales. 246 Old Times. The laws were then frightfully severe in their punish- ments, but this severity did not act as a deterrent to crime. The punishment of death, (and hanging was the punishment for many trivial crimes) seems to have had no terror — for we read in the Morning Post, July 1 1 th 1788, "The number of Capital Convicts at present in Newgate is eighty-one ! " Of course, these were not all executed, some having their sentences commuted to transportation for life. Let us take a few cases from one Newspaper only, the Morning Post, September 11, 1788. It was the Sessions at the Old Bailey, 9th September : — ^^ John Da7icer, was put to the bar, and tried before Judge Grose, for a burglary, and robbery, in the empty dwelling-house of Daniel Dancer,^ a farmer, near Uxbridge. This offence is made capital by the 39th Elizabeth. The jury brought in a verdict, guilty, of the value of ;^5. — Death. " Johti Crmvford, for a burglary in the house of Francis Bias. The crime being fully proved. — Guilty — Death. " William Johnson, for a burglary and robbery of poultry, in the dwelling house of Margaret Allen, at Hampstead. — Guilty — Death. " Thomas Jones, for a highway robbery of a watch nes, Dec. 29, 1794.) '« The unfortunate DEBTORS, in Ludgate Prison, beg leave to return their grateful Thanks, to the Right Hon. the LORD MAYOR, for 448 lbs. of Beef and Mutton of the best sort, which he has sent them since the loth day of Nov., also for two Chaldron, and an half, of Coals sent yesterday." — {Times, Jan. I, 1795.) " As the Debtor and Creditor Bill comes on to-morrow, it is recommended to its noble framer, to try the pulse of the Law Lords, by introducing a clause which shall interdict the Marshal of the King's Bench, and the Warden of the Fleet, from taking a shilling per week from each debtor for his bed, unless as the very foundation, and cause of this fee originally was, that the Keeper of the Prison furnishes the Debtor with furniture to the amount of £2^0. The Keepers have very handsome salaries, and therefore, there should be no exactions from the prisoners. Indeed the nature of their imprisonment interdicts such a practice, for how is the insolvent man to find money? ex-nihilo, nihil fit." — {Times, May 8, 1793.) " Were any one Lord in the House of Peers to move that the Royal Assent to Acts of Parliament should be given in plain English, and not in old Nor/nan French, the House would unanimously adopt the idea of banishing, in future, the barbarous \a.r\g\x^gQ of that Country." — {limes, May 10, 1793.) 268 Old Times. " A curious matter was heard yesterday before the Borough Police, respecting the wife of a gentleman at Sheerness, who had eloped with a black servant. They were pursued to the Nags Head in the Borough on Sunday, where Blackey fired a pistol at his pursuers, for which he was taken up and committed. The Lady had two children by her husband. The matter, we understand is made ?//." — {Times, Feb. ii, 1794) ** The manner in which the Black business was settled, in the Borough, was this : — The husband took her two children, and all the property he found in the coach, desired his wife to go where she pleased, (after she said she'd live with no one but the Black) and Mungo was taken by a press gang, and put on board the tender." — {Times, Feb. 12, 1794.) •' Monday last two Bailiffs followers made a seizure for rent at a house in Kingswood, near Bristol : an alarm being given, they were surrounded by a number of colliers, who conveyed them to a neighbouring coal-pit, and let them down, where they were suffered to remain till about two the next morning, when they were had up, and, each having a glass of gin, and some gingerbread, given him, were immersed again into the dreary bowels of the earth, where they were confined, in all, near twenty four hours. On being released they were made to pay a fine of 6s. 8d. each, for their lodging, and take an oath never to trouble, or molest, any of them again." — {Times, April 2S, I79S-) "The friends of an apprentice to a stocking-weaver, at Lambeth, brought the lad to this office (Public Office, Bow St.) to shew one of the modes of punishment adopted by the master, when the boys committed any fault. It consisted of an iron collar, fastened round the neck, by a padlock. The lad said that he had worn it for above a month, and that he understood it was his master's, intention he should wear it till he was out of his time. The master living in the county of Surrey, Mr Bond could not interfere in the business, but advised the parties to go to Union-Hall, in the Borough. The master of the apprentice alluded to, we understand, has got Old Times. 269 between 60 and 70 boys, most of whom he has had from the different workhouses in the county of Surrey." — {Times, Aug. 27, 1795.) *' Owing to the high price of victualling, the demand for shipping and risque of capture, or the price of insurance, the contract for conveying the last convicts from Great Britain, and Ireland, to Botany Bay, was ;^8o per man ; and the ex- pence exceeding all the good that could arise to either country, from the banishment, or the evil that could arise from the continuance in either country, of the miscreants. " It is a known fact, that so far are the miscreants, who usually come under sentence of transportation, from consider- ing it a punishment, that they laugh at the joke, and consider it a very great benefit. — Adventurous spirits like those, averse to all manner of industry, insensible to ignominy, and totally unconscious of any such feelings as the ajiior patrioe, delight in nothing more, than shifting the scene, and being conveyed to a distant country, from that in which they have no hope of existing, but at the perpetual risk of the gallows. " It is more than probable that severe flagellation, such as military codes prescribe, would prove infinitely more formid- able in detering villainy : and it is, at least, worth the experi- ment of a statute, which costs nothing, to try whether the penalty of 500, or 1000 lashes, which would not cost the country one shilling, would not prove a stronger barrier against larcenies, and clergyable felonies, than transportation to Botany Bay, at the enormous expense of ;£6o or 80 per man, which operates in reality as a heavy penalty on the Republic of honest men, and a bounty on villainy. Besides, have we not copper mines, coal mines, canals, and other such places of employment, at home, for those criminals, which, at present, alienate the husbandmen, and honest labourers of the country, from the business of agriculture. The labour of criminals, in this way, would prove a benefit to the country, and some compensation to the State, their crimes had injured." — {Times, Sept. 9, 1795.) " The Cala?nities of War. Amongst the distresses it has occasioned, it is a lamentable fact, that five Aitornies have 270 Old Times. been deprived of an honest livelihood, and have actually entered as foremast men, on board a frigate in the Thames." — {Times, A^ov. 2, 1795.) "The Lord Chancellor was occupied on Friday, and Saturday, with hearing an important cause. Earl Pomfret v. Sir Ch. Turner. " It respects a very valuable lead mine, in the vale of Arking- hall, Yorkshire. Such is the expedition of our laws, that this cause has lasted only ninety three years, being first instituted in the year 1703 ! ! !" — (Times, Apr. 12, 1796.) " The King v. Middleton. "The defendant was convicted of enticing a number of Artificers from this country, to go to Kentucky in America ; a rule was afterwards obtained, to shew cause why the judg- ment should not be arrested, for reasons, which appeared insufficient to the Court. That Rule therefore, was dis- charged, and the Defendant received judgment according to the Statute, that is, he was ordered to pay a fine of j£,^oo, and to be confined in Neiv gate for the space of one yeai:" — {Times, June 10, 1796.) " On Saturday /M// Paviour (one of these persons called Bullock Hunters) was tried at the Old Bailey — for driving a bullock out of Smithfield Market, early on the morning of the 23rd May last and was found guilty — death. It is hoped therefore, that this prosecution will greatly check, if not wholly put an end to that pernicious practice, by which not only the Property, but the lives of the Public are so much endangered, in and about this metropolis." — {Times, June 28, 1796.) " The trial which was to have come on at the Assizes in York, concerning estates in Cleveland, for which a Special Jury was to be summoned, oi four Kjiights, and their tivelve Esquires, girt with swords, is deferred until next Assizes." — {Times, July 27, 1796.) " Yesterday, a Jew was convicted at the Public Office Bow Street, for selling a hat, in the street, without a stamped Old Times. 271 lining, contrary to the late Act of Parliament, and was sentenced to be imprisoned for two months, in the House of Correction. Hatters selling Hats, without a stamped lining, are liable to the penalty of ;£\o. In the above case, im- prisonment is the only mode of punishment." — {Times, Sept. 3j 1796.) " Certainly the number of Lawyers, which is ojtly computed to be 20,000 in Great Britain, is not so much their fault, as our own. We can neither marry, nor die, without them : but then there is no living for them." — {Ti/iies, Sept 2S, 1796.) " The number of Attornies posted up for admission next term, outside the Court of King's Bench, are eighty-two. Surely some stop should be put to this growing evil, for there is not a doubt, but that, with an increase of Attornies, must consequently follow an increase of litigation. For where the numbers surpass all reasonable bounds, they will have re- course to the most desperate means to excite business." — {Times, Jan. 31, 1797.) "The convict who was lately executed at Leicester, and who adopted the singular mode of travelling, in a post chaise, to the place of execution, was no less remarkable for his crimes, than a copious fund of low humour. He got the following notice put up in the most frequented houses in the town, 'Wanted an agreeable companion, in a post chaise, to go a journey of cojisiderahle length, and upon equal terms. Enquire for particulars at the Castle.' It is almost super- fluous to mention that upon the terms being made known, the gentleman could not find a partner." — {Times, Sept. 8, 1797.) The following is a somewhat curious Police Case {Times, Jan. 17, 1798) : " Robert Richards, and William Packer, were indicted on a charge of assaulting R3ran Thackars, on the 30th of December, and robbing him of half a guinea, a 7s. piece, and is. 6d., in silver, his property. " The Prosecutor was a Jew, and a common informer, 272 Old Times. in which character he had gone, on the above mentioned day, to the Fleet Prison, to serve the wife of Mr. Richards, with a notice to answer to an information for wearing hair powder without a hcence. On his serving the Notice, Mr. Richards called him back, but he refusing to return, the other assaulted him, threw him down upon his back, said he knew him very well, that he was a damned informer, and that he should be pumped. Then the two Prisoners dragged him to the pump, and, with the assistance of others, kept pouring water upon him, for a quarter of an hour. A pail of water was afterwards thrown, by somebody, on his face. His clothes were all torn : and, when they let him go, he missed his money. Being asked by the Court if he could charge the Prisoners with having robbed him, he answered he could not ; nor was the money found on them when apprehended. The Recorder then told the Jury, that as no charge was made out against the prisoners, they must acquit them. — Not GuilfyJ' "BASE COIN FINISHED AT NEWGATE. " A very singular circumstance occurred a few days ago at the gaol of Newgate : One of the Magistrates of Police having received information that a person of the name of Pullcn, a notorious offender who was sentenced to a year's imprison- ment for dealing in base money, had been carrying on his former trade, while in confinement : that the base money of the similitude of a shilling, being previously prepared of blanched copper, with King William's head faintly impressed on one side, and plain on the other, was brought into the prison privately by Agents whom he employed : that after the Cells were locked up, this adroit Coiner prepared a liquid in which very thin pieces of silver were mixed, which, being rubbed upon the Copper shillings, instantly give them the appear- ance of worn down coin of the Mint : that he was assisted in the operation by several of the prisoners in the same ward. Old Times. 273 some of whom were his associates in iniquity, and convicted of offences against the Mint Laws : That his customers came regularly to the prison, and purchased the base money so finished at two for cne^ paying sixpence for each shilling, although intrinsically not worth a halfpenny : that the dies, and some other implements for coining belonging to these delinquents, had been actually lodged in their trunks at New- gate, and they were brought there privately, on every alarm of danger from officers of justice, as a place of greater security. This information having been communicated to Sir William Staines, one of the present Sheriffs of London and Middlesex, with the zeal for the public good which characterises the active Magistrate, he went alone to Newgate, early in the morning, before the cells were unlocked, and caused the trunks, and boxes, belonging to the persons convicted of offences against the Mint Laws, to be searched ; and, in a trunk concealed under Pullen's bed, were found no less than ;^io7, 2S. of base money, of the similitude of shillings, ready for circulation, and a machine for rounding, or milling, the edges of half crowns ; and in another trunk belonging to an associate of PiiUeji, were found two plain dies, and two others for halfpence, and farthings. It would appear that some other dies for halfcrowns, and shillings, which had been deposited for some time in a trunk belonging to Piilleti, were removed, together with the book he kept for entering the names of his customers who visited him, for the purpose of purchasing base money for the town, and country, circulation. . . . The Lord Mayor and Sheriffs have investigated the means by which these nefarious practices have been carried on, and, we are happy to learn, that it arose entirely from the arts, and devices, so familiar to criminals, without the knowledge, or privity, of the Turnkeys. The result is, that the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs are taking immediate steps for establishing such rules, as will probably prevent a repetition of the same evil." — {Times, Nov. 29, 1796.) PRIZE FIGHTING AND DUELS. Prize fighting was beginning to develop into a fine art, and it was thought no more derogatory in a fine S 2 74 ^^^ Times. gentleman to assist, by his presence, at a " Mill," than to be present at a Cock fight. It was patronised by Royalty, as we see by the following Newspaper Cutting. Indeed, the Prince of Wales attended several prize fights, until a man was killed, and then he left the ring to itself. "On Friday, a battle was fought at Blackheath between Crabbe, a Jew, and Oliver, commonly called Death ; in which the former was victorious. All the great patrons, and distinguished professors of this fine art were present, and many bets were laid. The battle was honoured, in particular, by the attendance of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales."— (Morm'ng Fost, April i8, 1788.) Even those " feeble folk," those superfine gentlemen, the Macaronis, learned to use their fists, as we see by this illustration. Any one caring for such particulars will well know that this was the golden age for pugilism. There were Tom Johnson, 1 783-1791. Benjamin Brain (Big Ben), 1786-1791. Daniel Mcndoza, a Jew, 1784-1820. Richard Humphries, " the Gentleman boxer," 17S4-1790. John Jackson, 1 788-1 795. Bill Hooper (the Tin man), 1789-1797. Tom Owen, 1796- 1 799- 18 20. Tom Jones (Paddington Jones), 1786-1805. Bill Warr (of Bristol), 1787-1792. Will Wood, the Coachman, 1788-1804. George Ingleston, the Brewer, 1 789-1 793. Bob Watson, of Bristol, 1788-1791. Tom Tyne, "the Tailor," 1788- 1792. Symonds (the Ruffian), 1791-1795. Jem Belcher, 1798— 1809. This is the list of the Chief Gladiators of the period. " Mendoza's terms for teaching are reasonable enough — eight lessons for a guinea." — {Morning Post, May 26, 17 88.) ^^Mefidoza and Ward, finding that the blackguard exercise of boxing had fallen into disrepute, took up the genteel trade S9 ^ I- ^ Old Times. 275 of crimping, and became acting Serjeants, at a house in St. George's Fields, until a stop was put to that nefarious business by authority. We are sorry to find that these notorious blackguards have since returned to their former occupation." — {Times, April 16, 1795.) Duels were of as common occurrence, as highway robberies, and need as much comment. Still, I give two, or three, instances to show on what trifles, men, then, ventured their lives. The first is an ordinary duel between two officers, reported in the Morning Post of 22nd June 1788 — in which one of them was wounded in the thigh. This report brings a letter from some one, probably a second, who gives his version thus : — " Sir, in your account of the duel between Captains Tonge and Paterson, in your Paper of the 22nd, there is a mistake or two, which, for the sake of truth, I beg leave to correct. You say, ' that Capt. T. wished to apologise for the injury he had done.' The truth is. Captain T. being not quite himself when the affray happened, remembered very little of what had passed, except that, on some provocation, he had struck Capt. P. Considering himself, therefore, as having, palpably broken the peace, he was ready to ask Capt. P.'s pardon. " This was not deemed sufficient satisfaction, and the duel took place. You tell us, that Capt. T.'s ball passed Capt. P., thereby implying that Capt. T. actually fired at his antagonist. Now, Sir, I can positively affirm that Capt. T. was determined not to fire his pistol, and that it was involuntarily discharged, after he was wounded, and not levelled at Capt. P. You tell us then, that Capt. T., upon falling, declared that ' he had merited his fate, and begged Capt. P.'s pardon.' His words were, Are you 276 Old Times. satisfied ? I fear I am dangerously wounded, I therefore advise you to fly. " To enable the Public to judge properly of this affair, it is necessary they should be told, that the first offence was, Capt. T.'s treading accidentally on Capt. P.'s heel, who, though he saw Capt. T. was intoxicated, continued to follow him. Rich. Weeks." " Captain Parkhurst and "a Mr. Kelly, are the names of the gentlemen who exchanged blows at the Opera House on Saturday evening." — (Times, March 11, 1794.) "On Sunday morning a duel was fought in Hyde Park between Mr. Parkhurst and Lieut. Kelly of the Navy. The dispute originated in some difference about places at the Opera pit on the preceding night. A brace of pistols was discharged, and the latter gentleman wounded in the shoulder. The seconds then interfered, and brought the matter to a termination." — {Times, March 13, 1794.) "Friday morning a duel was fought in a field on the Uxbridge Road, between Mr. Duke, surgeon, and Captain D s, in consequence of an old dispute revived a few nights ago in the Haymarket Theatre. The parties discharged a brace of pistols without effect, but upon Mr. D. discharging his second pistol, a ball was lodged in Capt. D.'s arm — upon which the seconds interfered, and a reconciliation took place." — {Times, Feb. 18, 1793.) FRENCH EMIGRANTS. We have seen how, at the outbreak of the French Revolution, the French came over here in thousands — escaping here as to a haven of refuge. For the most part they were of the better class ; still there were, as in 1 870, a large number of very suspicious characters (to use the mildest term) among them — and the government was compelled to keep a very jealous eye on their movements. Old Times. 277 Taken, however, as a whole, they behaved wonderfully well, and in no wa3'S abused the asylum, and protection, they had sought. "Government is ridding the country very fast of Jacobins : and in doing so, it is taking only a proper precaution during a time of war. Some hundreds have been already either expelled, or have quitted the country through apprehension ; but many more still remain here ; and we recommend very strongly to the notice of the Police Department, the general body of Frcncli Dancmg Masters practising in London, who are the veriest Jacobins in existence. An exportation of some of these Hop Merchants, and certain French Milliners, whom we could name, might be permitted without a drawback, and without doing any injury to the Revenue." — {Times, Feb. 15, 1793.) "Tl:e Maitre d' Hotel of the Duke of York was, on Saturday last, ordered to quit the country. We some time since remarked that there were several rank Jacobins in his Royal Highness's household." — (Times, Feb, 16, 1793.) He was sent out of the Country either for theft or embezzlement. " The Jermyn-Street Gun, which is filled with combustible matter, should be unloaded, and spiked, or it may become more dangerous than it is even at present. A clause ought to be added to the Alien Bill, interdicting Frenchmen to meet, either in public, or private, houses, in a greater number than 5, at one and the same time. We cannot be too strict at this moment : and, being sojourners here, as objects of public bounty, they cannot complain of any regulations which Govern- ment may deem necessary to make." — {Times, Feb. 16, 1793.) "The French Emigrants.^ " Some of the papers have circulated very idle reports rela- tive to the arrival, in London, of 140 French soldiers \ the story ^ On March 6, there was a letter from the agents of the owners of the ship, putting a different complexion on the matter : the mutinous conduct of the emigrants beinc: the cause of all the trouble. 278 Old Times. is precisely as follows : These unfortunate Emigrants, most of them descended from opulent, and illustrious, families in France, having saved themselves, with the French Princes, from the daggers of assassins, were necessitated, at the end of the campaign, to enter the service of Spain. They embarked, on the 4th Dec, at Bois le Due, for Rotterdam, and from thence, they sailed in the ship David and Abraham, commanded by Captain Riendirk. It would be impossible to describe the bad usage they received on board. ObUged to lay upon the bare deck, without a bed, and fed with mouldy biscuit, and beer, mixed with salt water ; in this lamentable situation they remained five weeks. These miserable men were covered with vermin, most of them, dreadfully galled with sores, and ulcers. Some had not changed their hnen for two years and an half : others had no linen of any kind, and the clothes of the whole troop were in tatters. There is reason to beheve that the Captain of the vessel proposed to sell them as malefactors, to be sent to Batavia. The ship, however, was driven on our coast, and as soon as our Government was apprized that these poor men were at anchor in Sheerness, they took every measure to soften the rigour of their fate. Two of their countrymen were dispatched to bring them to London. The barbarous inhumanity of the Dutch Captain was notoriously conspicuous, and we hope some measures will be taken to bring him to justice, and make him an example to others, to avoid similar acts of inhumanity." — {Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) " It is said that Lord Moira, notwithstanding the strange part he acts in domestic politics, distributes the amount of ;i^io,ooo annually amongst the French Emigrants, who are only known to him by their distresses." — {Times, Dec. 27, I797-) A French Emigrant was, yesterday, examined before Mr. Ford, at the Duke of Portland's Office, on a charge of being a Spy. The circumstances adduced were on the information of a Journeyman Shoemaker, against his Master, a Mr. Deboo, for making a pair of boots with a Cavity between the Soles ; covered with sheet lead to prevent the wet perforating, for letters of a secret nature. After a long examination, it was Old Times. 279 proved that he was employed by the Duke d'Harcourt, on a mission to the officers of his corps in Germany, and, his papers containing nothing improper, he was discharged : but, the maker of the boots having been, for some time, considered a disaffected person, is to be sent out of the Kingdom under the AHen BiW— {Times, /aft. 6, 179S.) " In order to obtain a correct information of all the Foreigners who reside in this vast metropolis, and whose numbers are said to amount to 80,000, and upwards, Govern- ment has ordered the parish Officers to go from house, to house, and to take down the name of any foreigner who resides in the parish. This measure, w-e conceive, would become still more efficacious, if every landlord, or tenant, of a house, who lets out lodgings, were obliged to inform the Justice of the Peace, of every Foreigner who comes to lodge in his house, or leaves it. None but suspicious persons will have to complain of the severity of these measures." — {Times, March II, 1797.) 28o Old Times. POLITICAL. With Politics I had no intention of dealing, but the book would be incomplete if there were no indication of the party strife of the period, so that I have been tempted to make a few extracts principally of 1793-4, when party spirit ran very high. The revelations as to Elections, will, probably, somewhat astonish the next generation. " The Marquis of Lansdowne's carriage conveyed the whole phalanx of opposition, in the house of Lords, to their respec- tive homes, after the debate of Friday night : and even then, one corner of the coach was unoccupied. "The opposition in the Commons, who are a little more numerous, were all bundled into Mr. Fox's coach, and that of Michael Angelo Turner, with the assistance of a hackney- coach for Jack Courtney, and Jekyll. " Opposition, sunk to a minority that is insignificant in the extreme, was afraid to try the question, on Friday, in either House, well knowing that they could not reckon more than a dozen, in the Commons, and three in the House of Lords. Must not this convince the French of the unanimity of the people of England?" — {Times, Feb. 4, 1793) "All the Members of the Opposition, in both Houses of Parliament, are to have a grand civic feast on Saturday next Dinner is bespoke for fourteen! ! !" — {Times, Feb. 5, 1793.) " The Irish papers are full of information of indictments on the part of the Crown, against the printers of newspapers in Ireland. Thirty or forty names are mentioned in one of the latest Gazettes from thence." — {Times, Feb. 6, 1793-) Old Times. 281 COUNTY OF LEICESTER.— Dec. 19, 1792. " It appearing to be the unanimous opinion of all true friends of the Constitution, that, in order to prevent the mis- chievous consequences attending a misrepresentation of their sentiments, either at home, or abroad, some public avowal of their principles is become necessary; We, whose names are hereunto subscribed, adopting the resolutions of the Society, at the Saint Alban's Tavern, do hereby declare, that we are unanimously, and decidedly, of opinion, that, for the security and happiness of all classes of our fellow-subjects, for the maintenance of our own rights, and liberties, and, for the dearest interests of our posterity, it is, in the present moment, incumbent upon us to give to the Executive Government, a vigorous, and effectual, support, in counteracting the numerous efforts of sedition, in detecting, and bringing to legal punish- ment, the persons concerned therein, and in suppressing, in their beginning, all tumults, or riots, on whatever pretence they may be excited : do hereby publicly declare our determination to take all such steps for these purposes, as are within the limits of our duty, in the several stations in which the Con- stitution of our country has placed us, and to afford, by our individual exertions, that active assistance to the authority of the lawful Magistrate, and to the maintenance of the Estab- lished Government, which is at all times due from the subject of this realm ; but which we feel to be more particularly necessary, under the circumstances of the present time. "For these purposes, and to this intent, we are resolved, and do declare — 1. " That we will jointly, and individually, use our utmost endeavours to discover the Authors, Publishers, and Distri- butors, of all Seditious Writings, which shall be published, and distributed, within the County of Leicester, and particularly, all persons who shall be engaged in any illegal Associations, or Con- spiracies, for the Publication, and Distribution, of such writings, or for the exciting Tumults, and Riots, within the said County. 2. " That, in order to carry the above resolutions into effect, we do hereby, mutually, bind ourselves to each other, that whenever it shall come to our Knowledge, that any person, or persons, have, within the said County, Published, or Distributed, 282 Old Times. Seditious Writings, or engaged themselves in such Associations, or Conspiracies, for the purposes aforesaid, we will do our utmost endeavours to put the laws strictly in force against him, or them. 3. " That we will, on every occasion, exert ourselves, on the first appearance of Tumult, or Disorder, to maintain the public peace, and to act in support of the civil authority, for suppress- ing all Riots, and for bringing the promoters of them to legal punishment. " Those who agree in the principles here stated, are invited to set their names to this Declaration — Copies of which will be sent, for that purpose, to every town, and village, in the county, at the Banks of Boultbee & Co., and Bensley & Co., in Leicester, and at the Post Offices, in the several Market Towns of the county, Subscriptions will be received, from such persons, as may be willing to contribute, towards defraying the expenses, which may be incurred in carrying into execution the measures here stated, and in counteracting the mistaken, and pernicious, notions which are so industriously circulated." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) "ST. MARY, ISLINGTON, Mitre Tavern, opposite the Church, Jan. 23. We, the undersigned, being PUBLICANS within this Parish, from a sense of duty we owe to the present Constitution, and Government of this country ; and, having a desire to preserve to the utmost of our Power, Peace, and Good Order, by preventing the assembling of Persons as Societies, or Clubs, for seditious purposes, in our several Houses — have this day met, and resolved, and, by this, do pledge ourselves, to give immediate Information to the Com- mittee appointed at the Church, on the 8th Day of Dec. last, for the preservation of the Public Peace, &:c., of any Person, or Persons, making use of disloyal Expressions or otherwise offending against the Peace of the Parish, whereby he, or they, may be brought to Punishment for the same. Agreed, That this Resolution be signed by as many Publicans within this Parish, as shall approve the same, and that it may be advertised in the daily Papers. " N.B. — The signatures contain the whole Number of Publi- cans in this Parish." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) Old Times. 28 o "It is rather extraordinary, that the Whig Club should forget to drink the Duke of Portland's health last Tuesday, and the House of Cavendish. There was a time, when the Whig Club was respectable; but that is over, and perhaps never to return. The last meeting was a-la-mode D'Egaltte." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) "As the Members of the National Convention are so very fond of Fain, it cannot be deemed unfeeling to ex- press a sincere wish that they all felt it." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793-) " Lady Dover's house, it is confidently said, was set on fire by a Frenchvia7i. The person's name has been publicly men- tioned. What may, and must, surprise a number of Britons is, that in most of the late Opposition families of eminence, the principal servants are Frenchmen : — and it is necessary to make public, that these foreigners, under the roofs of those who give them bread, utter the most treasonable blasphemies against the present Government of this country. As some new tax may be requisite, to assist the necessary resources of Government, a most heavy impost on French servants would be extremely popular. The Steward, the Butler, the Cook, the Valet, and the rest of the principal servants in one of the first families of Opposition, are French. Does this accord with national friendship?" — {Times, Feb. 8, 1793.) " There are no patriotic gifts now made for carrying on the war in France ! — no bodkins, scissors, thimbles, rings, and necklaces! The Army is left to shift for itself: and, if they cannot plunder a day's subsistence, they must fast." — {Times, Feby. 9, 1793.) " In the year 1782, when Mr. Fox gave notice of motion on the state of the nation, the House was filled at an early hour to an overflow. But on a similar notice, from the same person, in 1793, there were not sufificient Members to make a House, and the Speaker adjourned to next day. Tempora mutantur." — {Times, Feb. 9, 1793.) 284 Old Times, " QUERIES. *'Why is opposition like a stumbling horse? Because it is broken down. Why is Lord Lansdowne like a man with the gout ? Because his mind is engrossed by Paine. Why is the National Assembly of France like a Croco- dile? Because it deceives, in order to destroy. Why is Mr. Courtney like an apothecary's bill ? Because he is ditto repeated on all occasions. Why is Mr. Erskine like the first two words of the begin- ning of the Eclogues of Virgil ? Because he commences with Ille Ego. Why is Michael Angelo Taylor like a barrel organ ? Because any person can play upon him. Why is Lord Courtney like Narcissus ? Because he is in love with himself. Why is Mrs. Sturt like a young kitten ? Because she is fond of play. Why is the Club at Brookes' s like cannibals ? Because they prey one upon another. Why is Mrs. Siddons like the late Sir Joshua Reynolds ? Because she deceives the public into a belief that art is nature. Why is Lord Wycombe an advocate for peace ? Because his father made nothing until he put an end to the war. Why are the Members of Opposition like the live stock of a Register Office ? Because they want places P — {Times, Feb. 9, 1793.) " In days of yore, Lady Wallace would have been burnt for a witch from the prophecies, now verified, which she published a year ago, in a letter to her son :— She foretold that the Prince would soon throw off the corrupt ministers to his youthful pleasures, and shew himself the protector of that happy Government, which alone can insure the wealth, free- dom, and glory, of England ! She says, " he will emerge in all the splendour which attends the noon-day sun, after having Old Times. 285 dispersed the clouds exhaled from foul vapours beneath him." She foretold that the united forces would not succeed in their attack upon France: that England must inevitably be speedily involved in war, from the convulsed state of the Continent : — She said, that if foreign Powers would take no hostile part against the French, that they would prey like wolves upon each other, and do more towards a Counter- revolution, by their frenzy being vented in internal discord, than all Europe would ever force them to do. It was her Ladyship who first boldly exposed to a great personage, and society, Egalitc's crimes, and foretold, that, after having washed his daggers in Royal blood at Paris, he would send his hireling ruffians to attempt like horrors here ! truths which are well known now, although they appeared then incredible. Her information when on the Continent, and knowledge of foreign politics, are most accurate, and valuable."— (r/;;/^;r, Feb. 12, 1793.) " The first speech Mr. Grey ever delivered in Parliament, was on the subject of the Commercial Treaty with France At that time Mr. Grey expressed, in very forcible language, his abhorrence of any connexion whatever with the French, and, strongly insisting on their inbred hatred to this country, declared, they were a perfidious, and treacherous, people, and on no account to be trusted." — {Times, Feb. 14, 1793.) " On Mr. Grey, being the only Man not in Mourning in the House of Commons, on a late melancholy occasion." — {Times, Feb. 14, 1793.) " 'Twas unfeeling forsooth. Every ]\Ian in the House Was in mourning, but one who drest gay ; As he would not be Black, He'll be made to look Blue, A mixture which forms a bad Grey." " It is said that there have been one hundred and twenty- one Changes in the Peerage since the commencement of Mr. Hastings's trial in l^Z^."— {Times, Feb. iS, 1793.) 286 Old Times. " An Expostulation with John Bull, in favour of the Marquis of L — nsd — n : — " Of the Candidates John for thy favour of late, Among all who are noble, and wish to be great, Sure L — nsd — n, with reason may fairly complain. That his merits could never your confidence gain ! The Moralists too, will confess with a tear. That Virtue performs but a Pilgrimage here ! Else had L — nsd — n long since been possess'd of that pow'r Which England took from him, in splenetic hour. He was always a Friend to his Country's Cause, The prop of her Church, the support of her Laws ; He ne'er with Republicans chose to accord, And his Foes never call'd him the Levelling Lord, He made the fam'd Peace of the year Eighty Three, A Peace, John, as good for himself, as for thee. In his speech he is open, and candid no doubt. For which side he espouses, no man can find out ; Whether Whig, whether Tory, of High Church, or Low ; You may puzzle your brains, but you never will know. As a proof that the Marquis is no Partizan, Let the world call six persons his Friends — if it can.^ Great Jekyll, that man so renowned at the Bar, More witty than Fielding, more learned than Parr, Who punning despises, as L — nsd — n does place, Says, his Patron's pure mind, is as fair as his face, That his Bounty and Eloquence equally flow, To comfort the Weak, and to succour the Low. Yet this eloquent speaker, this statesman so just, No Sect will confide in, no Party will trust ; And I speak it, alas ! with reproach to mankind. To his Merits and Virtue, his Country is blind ! And when full of honours and Years he shall die, Ungrateful Britannia, will not heave a sigh ; 1 We imagine Political Friends must here be alluded to — for the amiable and endearing qualities of the Marquis's sympathising heart, must have insured him, in private life, the warm affections of all his relations and dependants. i Old Times. 2 87 Nay, perhaps with a sneer, she may scoffingly say, The Sun of my Glory, is faded away ! ! ^ a ZTIF." — (Times, Feb. 16, 1793.) " No less than eighty four actions of bribery are brought on the business of the Stockbridge election ; the penalties sued for amount to ;^42,ooo." — {Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) " ' Want of information is our bane,' says'the female politician in the Humo:irist : but the following anecdote, which is a fact, will prove that want of information is not numbered among the wants of Administration. A Young Gentleman, Clerk in an Office under Government, in consequence of strong entreaties from a friend, accompanied him to a meeting of about thirty, at a tavern, when, after dinner, several very seditious toasts were given, the visitor was called on, and gave the King ; this toast, however, being rejected, and all expostulations proving in vain, he left the company soon after, and the next day, by the advice of his friends, waited on Mr. Pitt, to tell his story. But, judge his surprise, when the Minister, interrupting him, produced a paper, in which was written the names of the parties, the order in which they sate, the toasts drank, and here, sir, added Mr. Pitt, observe your own name placed at the bottom ! ! ! " — (Times, Marcli 5, 1794.) " Diamond cut Diamond. — Dr. Priestly, we will not say lately, gave 'the Sans Culottes of Engla7id^ at a dinner party. A Clergyman of the Church of England, willing to get rid of politics, archly exclaimed — ' Yes, with all my heart, I presume you mean the single ladies, for the married ones generally wear the breeches.' The wit being called upon in his turn, Dr. Priestley desired the President to be on his guard, for he saw plainly that the Clergyman, if presented with an inch, would take an ell. * Thank you for the hint, Doctor,' replied the Clerical Humourist. ' Yes, I'll take three L's, so here's Liberty, Loyalty, and Lawn Sleeves ! ' The ^ At the conclusion of the American War, when the noble Marquis came into power, he emphatically said " the Sun of England's Glory was set for ever," and many grave people entertained that opinion during the short time his Lordship was Minister of this Country. 288 Old Times. room, of course, was in a roar, and the Doctor, quite shocked, went off like ■ lightning without a conductor." — (r/w^^, March 4, 1794-) " The late contest at Wycombe, between Sir F. Baring and Mr. Dashwood, was carried on to a very high pitch by the mob. Lord Wycombe was thrown down in the mud. Mr. Dashwood lost his hat in the affray, and all was confusion and riot. The Lajisdowne interest, however, prevailed, and Sir Francis was returned." — (^Times, Feb. 7, 1794-) " Sir Francis Baring is elected Member for High Wycombe, in the room of Sir John Jervis. Sir Francis was opposed by Sir John Dashwood. The votes were, for Sir F. B. 29, Sir John D. 22."— {Times, Feb. 5, 1794.) " The Society for CoJistitutional Informatioi, held a meeting at the Crown and Anchor, in the Strand, on Friday last, where toasts of the most seditious tendency were drunk, and senti- ments expressed which ought to send the speakers to Botany Bay. The number of seditionists who met on the above occasion, amounted to 300 persons ; among whom were not to be found above three who possessed an acre of land in this country. They were men mostly in desperate circumstances, who had everything to gain, and nothing to lose, by a Revolu- tion. They toasted success to the French, sung the Marseillois treasonable Hymn, and Qa ira, arraigned the justice of the law that had punished traitors in Scotland, Ireland, and England, and gave the health of those traitors. They abused and vilified the House of Commons, called the Royal Family, and the Nobility of Great Britain, beggars : said it was the interest of the people to join with those struggling in the cause against which our Country was fighting. In short they did everything short oi active rebellion:"— {Times, May 5, 1794-) " On a lamp post, in the Westminster-Road, is a paper with the Title of Public Notice, respecting some parish business, and immediately underneatli it, is Sir Joseph Mawbey's late speech at Epsom. Two sailors stopping on Sunday to read it, when one had began, the other cried out—" Stop, Jack : you're Old Times. 289 wrong, don't you see it is beneath Public Notice ? ' alluding to the paper above it : and they both walked away." — {Times, Nov. 3, 1794.) A Reform Bill was sorely needed in the matters of Elections. " Election for Launcesto7i, Comtmll. Candidates, Hon. Mr. Rawdon, INIr. Brogden. The numbers were as follows : — Hon. Mr. Rawden and Mr. Brogden, . . 12. Dalkeith and Garthshore, 11. "This contest here was a hard fought battle between the Duke of Northumberland and the Duke of Buccleugh. Both parties have spent a great deal of money : but the former has carried th e day. " — ( Ti?jies, Jime 6, 1796.) " Shrrcvsbury Electioji. — The state of the Poll on Monday was as follows : — Sir W. Pulteney, 1607 ; John Hill, Esq., 834; Hon. W, Hill, 832. The Election, it is thought, will cost Sir Richard Hill ;^ioo,ooo. The expence to each party is about ;^iooo per day." — {Times, June 9, 1796,) "A certain new IMember for a Borough in the West of England, is indebted to the family Jewels of his wife for bear- ing the expence of his Election. Not only her diamonds, but the greater part of her cloaths have been withheld. Those that were returned to her, would have disgraced her waiting woman." — {Times, July 4, 1796.) *' Yesterday conformable to an ancient ridiculous custom, came on the Election, at Wandsworth, for a Mayor of Garratt. The candidates were two — Sir George Cooke, Greengrocer and Inhabitant of Lambeth : and Sir Harry Di77isdale, a Muffin Baker. Sir George set off from his house in the morning, surrounded by all the appendages of grandeur, and placed in an open landau, drawn by six beautiful horses, with postillions on the first four, elegantly attired in red. A coach and four preceded him all the way in equal style. " After he had arrived at the entrance of Wandsworth, his horses were taken out by the mob, and he was drawn by them to the Hustings, where he joined his opponent, who was little T 290 Old Times. short of Sir George in point of etiquette. After a long preamble from each party, promising unremitting attention to the duties of the office, the honours of the day were conferred on Sir George Cooke." — {Times, Aug. 25, 1796.) " Garrat Election. — Most of the Morning Prints of yesterday misstated this business. It was Sir Harry Ditnsdale, and not Sir George Cooke, who was returned. Those who supported Sir George, did not even put him in nomination. He was drawn there, it is true, but he made no stand : he gave up the contest, and Sir Harry was crowned with a green bough, and the horses taken from his carriage by the populace, who drew him in triumph to the Bull, at East Sheen, to dinner, .where above six hundred people sat down to a plentiful dinner. After dinner, it was proposed that Sir Harry should go, on Friday, in State, to the Royal Circus, in St. George's Fields, and this motion being carried, we understand the Muffin Knight will actually be there this evening." — {Times, Aug. 26, 1796.) This was the last of these mock elections — and we may well pause for a while, and examine this curious institution — unique in its way — not thoroughly well- known — and whose origin, even, is in dispute. Not far from Wandsworth, on the road to Tooting, is found the hamlet of Garrett, or Garrat, which, in the time of Queen Elizabeth, appears to have consisted of a single house, called " the Garvett." This was, at the time of its destruction, about the year 1760, in the possession of the Broderick family, and its grounds were then let to a market gardener. Ly son's, writing in 1792, says the hamlet consisted of about 50 houses — but it grew until it became incorporated into Wandsworth, and its site is still known by " Garret Lane," " Garret Green," " Garret Hill," cS:c. As regards the curious mock election which took place here with each new Parliament, nothing certain is known, Jeffrey Di/nsfan, — Orc/mary (ostume. Old Times. 291 and opinions are divided, as to its origin. Dr. Ducarel, an antiquary, writing in 1754, tells us, that as far as he can find out, it began, some 60 or 70 years previously, with some Wandsworth Watermen, who went to a public house, called the Leather Bottle, at Garrat, to spend a merry day — and, it being a general election, they, in fun, chose one of their number as Member for Garrat. Another version is given in the " Gentleman's Maga- zine " for 1 78 1, in which a writer says he was told, that about thirty years previously, several persons who lived near that part of Wandsworth which adjoins to Garrat Lane, had formed a kind of Club, not merely for the pleasures of the table, but to concert measures for remov- ing the encroachments made on that part of the Common; and to prevent any others being made, for the future. When a sufficient sum of money had been subscribed amongst them, they brought an action against the encroacher, in the name of the president (or, as they called him, Mayor,) of the Club. They gained their suit, with costs, and, ever after, the president, was called "the Mayor of Garrat." This event happening at the time of a general election, the ceremony, which took place every new parliament, of choosing outdoor members for the borough of Garrat, was continued. The earliest record of Members being chosen, is in 1747, when three Candidates for the honour appeared. Lord Twankum Squire Blow me down (Willis, a Water- man) and Squire Gubbins, (one Simmonds, a publican.) The " Clerk," and " Recorder," issued from an imaginary Town Hall. There were proper Hustings, at which an oath was administered to the electors which, according to Grose, was sworn on a brick bat — and the quahfication 292 Old Times. was, that the juror had had an amour in the surrounding open fields. There was a great deal of rough wit in the candidate's speeches, and Foote, Garrick, and Wilkes, were credited with writing their addresses. Foote even wrote a play, called " the Mayor of Garratt," which was produced at Drury Lane. There were elections in 1761, 1763, 1768, &c. That of 1 78 1 — was famous for the magni- ficence of its procession — having a real live man in armour. In 1784, Sir Jeffrey Dunstan (they all dubbed themselves knights) was elected to the honourable post, and he held it till his death in 1796. This worthy needs a passing notice. His birth, and education, were but humble, for he was found, wrapped in a cloth, on the door step of a Church warden, of St. Dunstan's in the East — hence his name of Dunstan. He grew up deformed, and rickety, and, at the age of 12, was apprenticed to a greengrocer, for 9 years — but the servitude galled him, and he ran away, finding employ- ment at Birmingham. He returned to London in 1776 and soon afterwards married — and had two daughters, who were really fine young women. He was squalid, and filthy, in his dress, and got his Hving by buying, and selling, old wigs. His humour, however, gained him his election for Garrett. The accompanying illustrations shew him in his ordinary dress, as " Old Wigs," and in the superb court suit which he sported at election times. The Election, at last, led to such disgraceful scenes, that even the publicans, who were its chief mainstay, would no longer support it : and Sir Harry Dimsdale, holds the proud pre-eminence of being the last elected Member. S'^j'^ff^*^ Dunbtan, — (j)urt Dress. Old Times. 293 ROYALTY. Lives of the Georges, and their families, have been written ad nauseam, and I did not intend making any notes upon the Royal personages, then living — but I found some few paragraphs, which lie outside regular history, and may interest my readers. " It was rather unfortunate for the Prince of Wales's proxy at the Court of Brunswick, that he should be attacked with the Gout, on the night of the marriage ceremony ! Lord Malmesbury continued to be confined to his room when the last accounts came from Brunswick." — {Times, Dec. 15, I794-) "TO LORD MALMESBURY, " On his being attacked by the Gout, the day he represented the Prince of Wales, in marriage with the Princess of Brunswick : — " At such a time, the Gout to have, Is much to be lamented, What must the Royal Bride conceive Of him you represented ? CUPID." — {Times, Dec. 16, 1794.) "LORD MALMESBURY'S GOUT. " His Lordship's sent to Brunsiuick^s Court By Proxy, there to wed A Royal Princess : as Consort To George, our Prince's, bed. 294 ^^^ Times. But charms like hers, in bloom of life, Too strong for age to meet : As he approached th' intended wife : Deprived him of his feeV^ — {Times, Dec. 17, 1794.) "THE LAME LOVER, or BRITISH AND FRENCH SYNONIMY. "With coach and six, with servants eight, With liveries spic and span ; Too sure, alas ! a wretched fate Befel the splendid, happy man. At such a time, as this, the Gout ! 'Twas pity, Sirs, and yet 'tis true : The Proxy s good, if Fame's not out — His Royal Highness has a GoutP — {Times, Dec. 18, 1794.) " Her Majesty is very busily employed in embroidering a coat and waistcoat, for his Majesty, which are to be worn at the approaching nuptials of the Prince, and Princess of Wales. The coat is made of garter blue, broad cloth, and the waistcoat of white satin. The ornamental part is spoken of as being extremely beautiful."— (r/;//^^, /(:?«. 13, i795-) " The usual dress liveries of the Prince of Wales, while a bachelor, cost fifty guineas each : those, in which they will appear before the Princess, have cost one hundred guineas eo.c\\.''— {Times, March ij, 1795.) "Amidst the curioiis l)i//s which are daily being brought to light, under the investigation of the Prince's Trustees, is one of Mr. Layton the farrier, which, for the last seven years, amounts to no less than ^17,500 V'— {Times, Aug. 29, 1795.) " The King being prevented, by the severity of the weather, from taking his usual diversion of hunting, at Windsor, his Majesty, with his usual suite, makes daily pedestrian excursions, some of which amount to a route little short of 20 miles." — {Times, Dec. 9, 1796.) Old Times. 295 The Times of Jan. 17, 1798, contains a paragraph, showing the domesticity, and simplicity of life, in the Royal Family. " The Princess of Wirtemberg expects to lie in, towards the latter end of next month ; and her Majesty, and the Princesses, are very busily employed in making the childbed Hnen, which is to be a present from the Queen." (The Queen's Birthday.) " The BALL-ROOM. The Ball was the thinnest, in com- pany, that we have ever witnessed, there being only two Ladies on the benches allotted for those who dance. Neither the Prince, nor Princess, of Wales, the Duke, or Duchess of York, were present. Soon after nine o'clock, their Majesties entered the Ball-room. The Duke of Clarence danced the two first minuets with the Princess Augusta, and two more with the Princess Elizabeth, which is very unusual. Prince William danced the next two with the Princess Mary, and two more with the Princess Sophia. Lord Morton then danced two dances with Lady Murray, daughter to the Duke of Athol, and two more with Lady M. Thynne. There were four country Dances, but only six couple. The Ball broke up soon after 11 o'clock." — {Times, Jan. 19, 1798.) Here is a specimen of Royal economy, which was certainly unpopular : — " Some of the cream-coloured horses formerly attached to the Royal Coach, and which were only used on state days, are now employed in the daily drudgery of hackney coaches. The present proprietor values them very highly, and thinks, from their great receipt of custom, that they will draw him into an easy fortune." — (Times, Aitg. 10, 1796.) "To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. " Sir, — Among many others, I was yesterday a spectator of what you notice in your paper of this morning. A pair of those noble animals, which, for several years, have drawn his Majesty's State Coach, degraded to a hack. The spectacle 296 Old Times. really gave me concern, and must certainly reflect disgrace somewhere. It necessarily suggests two considerations, one relative to the dignity of Majesty itself, the other to the natural emotions of sensibility. What ! say the vulgar, are the Kin^s State Horses come to this ? Oh ! what a pity ! says the man of sensibility, that these poor creatures recently, and habitually, so caressed, and pampered, should experience such a lament- able reverse ! How fallen, how abused, how galled ! I assure you, Mr. Editor, they are literally, and gncrouslj, galled. Surely his Majesty must be a stranger to all this : and it would be of no dis-service to him, to let the Public know that he is so. Those who love him, cannot but feel for his horses, nor refrain from thinking that his sensibility, as a man, must be hurt, at hearing of the sufferings of those stately animals, which once contributed to his most magnificent public appear- ance. A Dutiful Subject." — {Times, Aug. 12, 1796.) Here is a bit of Satire on the Prince of Wales, who was notoriously at variance with both his father and mother. "An illustrious Personage is now engaged in making a collection of the profile likenesses of his friends. The number already collected is stated to amount to fifty. His friends are certainly more numerous than those of almost any Prince we ever heard of, except our own Sovereign. The wealthy Croesus had but one friend, and that was his son." — {Times, Avv. 6, I799-) Old Times. 297 VARIETIES. The year 1788 begins well, with an account of a coming of age, which seems to have been conducted in the classical taste peculiar to this period, "The late celebration of Miss Pulteney coming of age, bore much the appearance of idolatrous sacrifice. The procession headed by an ox, adorned with flowers, his horns painted blue, and tipped with gold, preceded by a band of music, and after- wards offered up, were all so much in character, that could the High Priest, himself, of Rome been present, and beheld the charming object of their veneration, he would have mis- taken her for a Venus, and joined the throng, with all that ardour the immediate presence of a divinity ought to inspire." — [Morning Post, Jan. i, 17SS.) The following advertisement from the Morning Post of March 13, 1788, gives us perhaps the earliest glimmer of reform on the old tinder box, flint and steel, and matches, Lucifer Matches not being generally used till 1834 : — "For Travellers, IMariners, &c. "Promethean Fire and Phosphorus. " G. Watts respectfully acquaints the public, that he has pre- pared a large variety of machines of a portable, and durable kind, with Promethean fire, paper and match inclosed, most admirably calculated to prevent those disagreeable sensations, which frequently arise in the dreary hour of midnight, from the sudden alarm of thieves, fire, or sickness ; as, by procuring an instantaneous light, the worst calamities and depredations might often be prevented in famihes. Experience has likewise proved this invention to be of the first utility to the traveller, 298 Old Tunes. mariners, and those people who frequently rise in the night- time, as they can, with one of these matches procure light instantly, without the great expence, and danger, of burning a lamp or candle." Anything that illustrates the Social Life of " Old Times," must needs be of interest, even though, as in the accompanying engraving, the subject be painful. It is by Rowlandson, and shews, better than words can convey, the then treatment of that saddest of all human maladies — mental aberration. Chained by the neck to a wall — scantily clothed — . barefoot, and with but straw to lie on, was hardly the usage by which the alienated intellect could be restored to its proper tone — yet so it was, in too many cases, that mad people were treated : the whip, and even harsher punishment following, should they show any signs of rebellion. "The bet of his Grace of Bedford, that Lord Barrymore will not eat a live Cat, is not without precedent on the records of sporting. On a wager of fifty pounds, a fellow who lived near the race-course of Kildare, in Ireland, devoured five fox cubs, and literally began eating each while alive. It is, however, to .be observed, that the devourer was a natural fool, having been born deaf, dumb, and without a palate." — {Morning Post, Mar. 15, 1 7 8 8 . ) "A fine topaz sold at Tenducci's sale for seven guineas ; the finest in the kingdom : is the property of Mrs. More of Stock- well, and what, perhaps, would increase its value in the esti- mation of many people, this topaz once belonged to Queen Anne. It is near an inch in diameter, and of most uncommon brilliancy." — {Mor?it?ig Post, Ap. 17, 17S8.) That Agriculture was not neglected, wc can well imagine, for England had to be almost self contained, as regarded food for her population — but few know to V^ . M. Irea/'mcnt of LunaHcs. d Old Times. 299 what a pitch of perfection sheep breeding was carried — nor the enormous prices paid for the hire of stud rams. " Mr. Bakewell, the famous grazier, has lost one of his most remarkable rams. It was of such value, that he let it out to hire, and received ;^4oo for the season." — {Morning Post, Sept. 12, 1788.) This was the far famed agriculturist. Robert Bake- well — who brought his father's famous " Dishley " sheep to such perfection, that in 1787, he let three rams, for a year, for ^1250, and was offered, but refused, ;;^I050 for twenty ewes. When we think of the difference of the value of Currency, then, and now, these prices are fairly staggering. These Dishley sheep had good qualities, they were quiet — they fattened quickly, and well — and they had small bones. But Bakewell, even in his cattle, as well as his sheep, always kept in view, what, even now, are the guiding principles in our Cattle shows — Perfection of form — the most meat from the least food — the least offal — and large joints with small bones. " The following is a copy of a hand bill, which was a few days ago distributed in the city of Edinburgh : — " ' TJioii shalt not steal — All persons whom it may concern are desired to take notice, that steel traps of the largest sort, for catching breakers of the eighth Commandment, are, every night, placed in the garden at St. Bernard's, between Stockbridge and the Water of Leith, on the North side of the water : That spring guns are set to rake the Walls with shot, upon a touch of a wire ; and, that a tent, having in it an armed Watchman, is pitched in the middle, with orders to fire without mercy. " ' If, therefore, any evil disposed unhappy person or persons, shall attempt to break into the ground of St. Bernard's, their blood be upon their own heads. " ' Of the fruit of the garden thou shalt not eat ; for in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die,' " Gen. 2. 27. —{Morni7ig Fost, Sept. 17, 178S.) 300 Old Times. "One day last week a Sub distributor of Stamps, who resides a few miles from London, and who is also a Glover, was convicted in the penalty of Eighty Pounds, before the Sitting Magistrates at the Public Office, in St. Martin's Lane, for sell- ing Four Pair of Gloves without Stamps." Probably under 25 Geo. 3, cap. 55. {iiZ^.)— {Morning Post, Oct. 20, 1788.) The following singular inscription is literally taken from a sign in the vicinity of Reading : — "Beards taken off and registered. ^'- By Isaac Fac-totum. "Barber, Peri-wig maker, Surgeon, Parish Clerk, Scool master, and Man midwife. " Shaves for a penne, cuts hare for toopense and oyld and powdird into the bargain — Young Ladys genteely edicated, Lamps lited by the hear or quarter. Young Gentlemen also taut their Grammer Langwage in the neetest maner and great cear takin of their Morels and SpeHn — iVlso Saline singing and horse Shewin by the real maker ! Likewise makes and mends all sorts of Butes and Shoes. Teches the Ho-boy and Jews-harp, Cuts corns bledes and blisters on the lowes Terms \ Glisters and purgis at a penne apiece. Cow-tillions and other dances taut at home and abrode. Also deals holesale and retale pirfum- mery in all its branchis. Sells all sorts of Stationary wair twogether with blackin balls red herrins gingerbred Coles scrubbin brushes traycle mouce traps and other swetemetes. " Likewise Godfathers Cordiel red rutes Tatoes Sassages and all other gardin stuff. N.B. — I teches joggrafy and those outlandish kind of things — A Bawl on Wensdays and Fridays all pirfomed god willin by me Isaac Factotum." — {Aforning Post, Nov. 19, 1788.) "An Impromptu ON Mr. Domford's Piety. " So pious was Josiah's care He sacred would keep one day, And in the gutter threw his beer For Working on a Sunday." — {Morning Post, Jan. 6, 17 89.) Old Times. 301 Who can say after reading the following that our grandfathers were not a match for the Americans, at telling a " tall " story : — " Natural History. " A very curious incident happened near Edmonton last week, to account for which we are unable, and leave the explanation to botanical and Chirurgical professors. "A farmer requested some lettuces from a gentleman in the neighbourhood, who permitted the farmer's maid to gather what she wanted ; she gathered likewise some Cucumbers, and near them were glasses covering sensitive and humble plants, which the wench gathered as small sallad. " The farmer eat heartily of these, and the effect was, that after dinner, tho' he is a very fat man, a slight touch from another person made him shrink at least five stone; but, towards the evening, he recovered gradually his usual bulk and weight ; and, when he had evacuated the sallad and mimosa, he retained his corpulency as if nothing extraordinary had happened. "This we insert as a caution to persons not to mix this plant with other pot herbs." — {Morning Post, Aztg. 31, 1789.) Gillray, Oct. 4, 1791, gives us the accompanying extremely graphic illustrations — shewing the difference of behaviour at the Opera and at Church — the vivacity of the one, and the somnolence of the other. "A Card "Addressed to those among the female sex, whose desires are neither Romantic nor Extravagant, who stand in need and wish for such an opportunity as is now offered. " A SINGLE GENTLEMAN who is blest with an Inde- pendence, adequate to every real comfort in life, and having none to provide for, prefers permanent friendship and protec- tion to a Lady possessing the following requisites : age not exceeding 35, person well shaped, teeth sound and regular, good voice, a stranger to the hackneyed tricks of the town : good temper, constancy, a social disposition, engaging manners, a turn to economy, and a ; knowledge by experience of 302 Old Tijues. domestic concerns, a taste for simplicity and elegance in dress, spruce in her person, and attentive to neatness in others ; free from incumbrance, affectation and unpleasant habits : a pleas- ing countenance, if the face should neither be beautiful nor pretty — musical talents, vocal and instrumental — and she who may be the greatest proficient on the pianoforte or harpsichord, or what is still more irresistible, the harp, if in other respects equal, will claim the preference. The Lady, of course, must be totally at her own disposal : if a native of Britain, a Know- ledge of French so as to speak it fluently ; if a foreigner, capable of speaking and writing the English language with ease and propriety : and both native, and foreign, habituated to the English Customs in every point of cleanliness and delicacy. " Should she be conversant with Italian, with a genius for painting, poetry, astronomy, botany, &c,, she would be the more acceptable. Not only the utmost regard to decorum will be observed upon this occasion, but that respect which the delicacy of the sex demands, shall be manifested as early as possible. He hopes, therefore, since his motives are so obvious, that those whose sentiments are congenial with his own, who mean to notice this address will do it speedily, as the Author will soon be going to the Continent on an exten- sive tour. " For this and other cogent reasons, which hereafter may be specified. Principals only will be treated with. Such communi- cations, and positively no other, as are written in the Party's own hand, at once explicit respecting situation, intention and expectation, &c., shall according to their merits be duly acknow- ledged, and the necessary steps in consequence will be pointed out to bring the matter with safety to an immediate issue. " Should an object whose person, talents, and accomplish- ments, &c., are superior to the generality of females, be dis- covered with proofs of serious intention, a marriage may be the result. The want of pelf, if of a respectable connection, should with the Author, be no impediment thereto, being, with prudence, amply provided for. The Advertiser forbears saying any more of himself, than that his person, age, qualities, &c., would probably suit such a Lady as he has described : and as a well cultivated mind, united with the requisites above stated, would be preferred to the consideration of either family, Old Times. 303 or fortune, he hopes some credit will be allowed him for his good intentions. "Letters free of postage will be received if addressed to G. A. S., at the Recorder Printing Office, No. 12 Duke St. Drury Lane." — {Times, Feby. 7, 1793.) "ELEGANT PRIZE FOR LADIES. " Marriage Ceremonies, Science of Match-Making, Names Qualifications and Fortunes, of Heirs and Heiresses — Copious and Alphabetical List of Marriages in Great Britain and Ireland — New and Chaste Love Epistles — Matrimonial Bon Mots — Art of Tormenting — New and predominant Fashions, delineated by the Pen and Pencil, — And a new Cassino Fan, by way of reward, to the Lady who shall best answer the prize Enigma, Charade, or Puzzle. "This day is pubHshed, price 6d, embellished with — i. Ludicrous representation of a Foreign Marriage Ceremony. — 2. Exact sketches of the newest and most prevailing Male and Female Dresses. — 3. A new Matrimonial Song set to Music. Number i. (to be continued monthly) of "THE MATRIMONIAL MAGAZINE for January 1793. To contain, besides what is above enumerated, original Essays, Biographical Sketches, Dramatic Tales, Tales humorous and pathetic, alike calculated for the Maid, the Widow, and the Wife, the Stripling and the Greybeard. Wit will be combined with decency, and humour with sense. " London : Printed for H. D. Symonds, No. 20 Paternoster Row." — {Times^ Feb. 15, 1793.) "Advt.— BOLD STROKE FOR A WIFE. " A person who has been six months deprived of what he calls Heaven's chiefest blessing, domestic happiness, is not ashamed of thus avowing his intention of again endeavouring to regain, by Marriage, that solid felicity he so much regrets the loss of, and hopes this way to become acquainted with some Maiden Lady, who has a soul superior to vulgar pre. judices, and who will venture to go a little out of the beaten road, in order to form a truly rational plan for that sociable happiness which is only to be found in the Marriage State. The writer of this has no children, his age is between 40 and 304 Old Times. 50 : he has acquired, by trade, ;^2o,ooo, has a house at the West end of the town, another in Kent, and a Coach to take him from one to the other : so that he thinks himself deserv- ing of a Lady of equal fortune : the more so, as he will permit her to make it over to herself or her relations : and if she should not possess more than half that sum, 'he'd ne'er quarrel for that.' — A line, addressed to W. W., No. 32 Snow Hill, by any Lady, or her friends, will be considered as a mark of good sense, and treated with the respect that is due from a man of sense to the fair sex" — {Times, March 10, i^*4-) Advt. — " Matrimony. A Gentleman of small independent Fortune, occupying a Farm in a retired Part of the Country, within 20 miles South AVest of London, takes this public method of addressing any Lady, who may feel happy, and disposed to place herself under the protection of such a person. He is a Widower, 28 years of age, with an only child, who is amply provided for. On the part of the Lady, it will be expected that her person be fair, her mind amiable, and well-informed, her disposition feminine. In return, the conduct of the Gentleman will be found to be in every respect manly, honourable, and sincere. A line by way of introduc- tion, addressed to Mr, Amiens, Epsom, will be paid every attention to, and it is particularly entreated, that no other, but of the above description, will give themselves that trouble." — {Ttjnes, Novr. 26, 1798.) The French were very badly off for clothing, and as war was on the very eve of commencement — (diplomatic relations between the two Countries having ceased, and the French already having begun open hostilities) — clothing, naturally, was considered "Contraband of War : " hence the following : — " K vessel loaded with cloathing, to the amount of ^i 20,000, was on Tuesday stopped in the River. She was bound to a port in France." — {Times, Feb. 7, 1793.) " The Earl of Bute's grand Orrery was sold yesterday for the trifling sum of sixty guineas, and the celebrated annual Old Times. 305 clock, regulating the revolutionary movements of two globes, and of an orrery for twenty-six guineas." — (Times, Feb. 9, I793-) " Tuesday as Mrs. Fitzherbert, (George 4tli's wife) attended by Miss Bell Pigott, was riding in her carriage in Pall Mall, the carriage of Colonel Strickland came in close contact with that of the ladies, by which they were both overturned. " On Mrs. Fitzherbert and Miss Bell Pigott's overturn — " What ups and downs a Woman feels In almost every station ; Down went our Heads, up came our Heels ' Talk of a Coronation ! ! ! ' "CCETERA DESUNT." — [Times, Feb. 28, 1793.) "On the late INUNDATION in OLD PALACE YARD. " On one side Duke Norfolk^ pushed forward with strife For he never liked Water throughout his whole life." — {Times, March i, 1793-) " The Duke of Norfolk is attacked by the Hydrophobia, he can't bear the sight of water. His Physicians have pre- scribed Wine, The Marquis of Stafford, Marquis of Bath, and Lord Thurlow who were present, sanctified this prescrip- tion with their most hearty consent." — (Times, Feb. 17, 1794.) " A new way to travel expeditiously and safely. " The Duke of Luxembourg, wishing to return to his family at Lisbon, and being apprehensive of going in one of the common packets, which, if taken by the French, would probably cost him his life, lately applied to Lord Chatham, for a passage in an English frigate going to Lisbon. His Lordship very obligingly acquiesced, and a few days since the Duke sailed in her from Portsmouth. It turns out, however, that this frigate has been ordered to cruise for six weeks before she makes for Lisbon : and thus is the unfortunate Duke exposed to the risk of the elements and the hazard of an engagement, ■^ He was notorious for his drinking propensities. 3o6 Old Times. from having employed his influence to procure a safe passaged — {Times, May, lo, 1793.) '* There was a rapid trade between Birmingham and France, of base coin, carried from the former to the latter in Folkstone vessels, and with this coin great part of the Army was paid, but the whole is now stopped, and the French Soldiers are paid in paper." — {Times, May 10, 1793.) "The Duke of Bedford has just completed at Wooburn a Dog-Kennel, that far exceeds his Grace of Richmond's in all points of extent and magnificence : independently of the immense suite of canine apartments, it has baiJis, coffee rooms, billiard room, &c., and in the centre is a most spacious riding house, &c., for the equestrian amusement of his friends in bad weather." — {Times, Jan. 31, 1794-) "We know not the Nobleman or Gentleman alluded to lately in the House of Commons, as contracting at ;^Soo a year for supplying his Dog-Kennel; but we have heard it said on very good authority, that there are two kennels, not far from Brighton, in Sussex, which cost very little short of this sum. The Duke of Bedford's Dog-Kennel is a mere nothing to either of those alluded to." — {Times, April 13, 1796.) " THE FUNERAL ! ! " It was not a Tom Cat, for its melodious squalls plainly proved it had long been qualified for the Opera. — It was, how- ever, a prodigious favourite with its Mistress. Long had it lived upon the fat of the land, in Charlotte St., Queen Anne St., where it took great care of Number One ! For the space of six years and three months did its Mistress indulge it with •Rivers of Milk;' and besides it was a sad Cat, for the matter of that, in skimming the cream off everything worth skimming. But as Cats, though they may have nine lives, are not immortal, poor Ralph fell sick and died — without giving time even for a consultation of Physicians ! His Mistress, after the first transports of grief were subsided, sent for a Surgeon, who opened the body. He reported that poison was not the cause, as suspected, of his death, but that he was Old Times, 307 literally killed with kindness. In plain English, he died of a Plethora, for he was fat at heart. "Away posted the Lady and purchased a piece of ground, just large enough to swing a Cat in, at the new burial ground in Mary-le-bonne. The charge was trifling, only two guineas ; an Undertaker provided a coffin in miniature : Grimalkin^ after having lain in state, and several of the frail sisterhood, friends of the Lady, partaken of wine and cake, of which plenty was provided ; a Hearse with White Plumes drove to the door, and the Lady, a Chief Mourner, attended by her weeping friends, who filled several Mourning Coaches, fol- lowed Ralph to the grave last Tuesday week, like 'Niobe all in tears ; ' and after the body had been deposited in the earth, though with but ' maimed rites,' 'tis true, she returned slowly to the house of mourning. "But now comes the sad CAT-astrophe — Whether the Under- taker who had imdertaketi to keep the secret, had blabbed, or whether the spectators of this sad ceremony smelt, as the Cat had often done, a rat, so it was, however, that the body had not remained an hour, quietly inurned, ere they burst open the hinges of its sepulchre, and parading with it to the place from whence it came, proceeded to break the windows of the afflicted fair one's house : and but for the timely inter- position of the Magistrates, the Lady, as well as her house, in all probability would have been pulled to pieces ! ! ! ^^ N.B. — The above is strictly a matter of fact." — {TimeSy March 21, 1794.) "The access to Kensington Gardens is so inconvenient to the visitors, that it is to be hoped the politeness of those M^ho have the direction of it will induce them to give orders for another door to be made for the convenience of the public — one door for admission, and another for departure, would prove a great convenience to the visitors. For want of this regulation the Ladies frequently have their cloaths torn to pieces; and are much hurt by the crowd passing different ways." — {Times, March 28, 1794.) "Two Ladies were lucky enough to escape thro' the gate of Kensington Gardens, on Sunday last, with only a broken 3o8 Old Times. arm each. When a few lives have been lost, perchance then a door or two more may be made for the convenience of the families of the survivors." — {Times, May 8, 1794.) "We noticed last year the nuisance at the door of Kensing- ton Gardens, leading from Hyde Park, and was in hopes, those who have the care would attend to it. As the season is approaching when company frequent it, we again recom- mend that an additional door should be made, and an inscrip- tion put over it 'The company to go in at this gate, and return at the other,' by which means the press will be avoided, and directions given, that all servants do keep away from the doors, who behave with great impertinence to their superiors as the company go in. If the gardens are to be a public accommodation, surely so trifling an expence can be no object. A greater number of seats in the gardens is very desirable." — {Times, April 2 d^, 1795.) "The public in general, and the ladies in particular, are much obliged to the Ranger of Hyde Park, for having taken the hint given in this paper towards their accommodation, by ordering a new gate to be made, as an entrance into Kensing- ton Gardens. This convenience was yesterday much noticed, as there is now one gate for the entrance, and another for leaving the gardens, which were extremely crowded. But so little regularity was observed in the procession of carriages, on the Park Road, that there was a general stoppage about four o'clock, for nearly an hour; in the throng, several carriages were overset, and many much injured. We never witnessed so much confusion on any similar occasion." — {Times, May 4, 1795.) "After a very elegant dinner given by the Lord Mayor to the visitors at the Mansion House on INIonday, there was a ball as usual, which was very numerously attended : and was honored by the presence of the Turkish Ambassador, several of the Corps Diplomatique and many of our own Nobility. The harmony and gaiety of the Entertainment was, however, interrupted about two o'clock yesterday morning, by the intru- sion of a number of Gentlemen in the Dancing Room, who Old Times. 309 had sacrificed too freely to the Jolly God, and seemed deter- mined to kick up a riot. They had continued drinking till one o'clock in the Dining parlour, and on entering the Ball- room behaved in such an improper manner, as to make it necessary to call in the Peace Officers to turn them out. A terrible uproar ensued ; and we understand that two or three of the Rioters were sent to the Poultry Compter : and we hope they remained there till they recovered their senses." — {Times, April 2T,, 1794.) *' City Extravagance. — During the Rout, we had almost said Riot, at the INIansion House on Tuesday Morning, several very prudent Citizens were observed to be out-running the Constable ! " — {Times, April 24, 1794.) "We are informed from Abbey Laddercroft, in Cumber- land, that a woman called Jane Forrester, who lives in that parish, is now in the 138th year of her age. When Cromwell besieged the City of Carlisle, 1645, she can remember, that a horse's head sold for 2s 6d, before the garrison surrendered. At the martyrdom of King Charles I., she was nineteen years of age. At Brampton, about six years ago, she made oath before the Commissioners, in a Chancery suit, to have known an estate, the right of which was then disputed, to have been enjoyed by the ancestors of the present heir loi years. She hath an only daughter living, aged 103. And we are further informed, that there are six women now living in the same parish where she resides, the youngest of whom is 99 years of age." — [Times, May 16, 1794.) Pidcock's Menagerie was the nearest substitute for our present Zoological Gardens, that London could boast of, and Exeter Change, where the Exhibition took place, stood on the site now occupied by the Gaiety Theatre. Advt. " Elephants. — Lately arrived in the Rose East India- man, a most wonderful living Male Elephant, and to be seen in a commodious room, over Exeter Change, in the Strand. Admittance is each. Likewise is lately added to the Grand Menageries, as above, two very singular and most astonishing 3IO Old Times. Kanguroos, male and female, from Botany Bay. Admittance is. Also, just arrived, and to be seen in a commodious apartment, under the Great Room, as above, three stupendous living Pelicans of the Wilderness, two males and a female. Admit- tance IS. The three Exhibitions may be viewed for 2s 6d. each person. Foreign Birds and Beasts bought, sold, &c., by G. Pidcock." — {Times ^ May 22, 1794.) Advt. "FOREIGN BIRDS. —Just arrived at No. i Coventry St., opposite the Haymarket, among which is, that renowned Bird the Ostrich, described in ancient and modern History, to be the largest in the world, it measures 9 feet high, and can admit of two young Ladies or Gentlemen to ride on its back at a time. This Bird exceeds, also, in strength, swiftness, and running, all the feathered tribe in the Creation ; it has the best plumage ever seen on an Ostrich, in this country, for many years. There is also a very extraordinary Bird, whose feathers resemble hair, and which has very much the appear- ance of a beast, weighing near 200 lbs. weight. The Great Horned Owl, described as the inhabitant of Babylon : the Royal crowned Crane of Africa, and other curious and un- common Birds : also a very singular Animal resembling a Spider, called the Bush Devil \ it makes use of its Tail as other Animals do their paws. Admittance is. each. Children and Servants 6d." — {Times, Jan. 5, 1795.) We get a very vivid description of how illuminations after a great victory, were managed and received — in those which took place after Lord Howe's " Glorious first of June." Earl Howe's VictorJ^ " Several mobs paraded about the streets, at one, and two o'clock, yesterday morning, breaking the windows of those who had already shown their good wishes to the general cause, by illuminating their windows, but had retired to rest. Other houses again, belonging to the Quakers, were damaged because no liglits were put forth. Such acts are contrary to the way of thinking of this very respectable class of Citizens. In this outrageous manner did several mobs proceed during Old Times. 311 the early part of yesterday morning, to the very great incon- venience of domestic comfort, and infringement on public tranquillity." — {Times^ June 13, 1794-) "The Lord Mayor requests the Inhabitants of the City to discontinue the Illuminations which have taken place since the News received of the very glorious Victory obtained by the British Fleet, under the command of Lord Howe. The Lord Mayor hopes, that the Public will be satisfied with the general Joy which has been so conspicuously expressed, and thinks that a further display of it will tend to disturb the peace and good order of the Metropolis." — {Times, June 14, 1794-) " Illuminations. — The very idea of the horrors attending the cry of ' Put out your lights,' made a poor Loyal German, in Bedfordbury, watch his little farthing rush-lights, on Wednes- day last, till a late hour. At length he ventured really to put out his lights : prudently pasting up at his door the following notice in capitals : ' Two o'clock — gone to bed. If I am to light again, pray be so obliging as to ring the bell.'" {Times, June 19, 1794.) " Mr. Wilkes bears the loss of his fine windows with that pleasant humour so peculiar to him, and absolutely refuses to prosecute any of the mob — ' They are only,' said he, ' some of my pupils now set up for themselves.'" — {Times, June 21, 1794.) Mr. Editor. " A Gentleman of a village near town, in his zeal for illumi- nating on the late joyful Victory by Lord Howe, placed so many candles in his windows, and that in so negligent a manner, that by two in the morning, three or four of his sashes were burnt. A Constant Reader will be favoured by your making room for the following on the occasion : — " Village Illuminations. " Quoth Dick, I scorn such mean display As rush-lights, sixes and such trash is ; I show my zeal in a nobler way — I d— n the French and burn my sashes." — {TimeSy Jtily 14, 1794.) 312 Old Times. "The following circumstance occurred last week at Long Milford near Bury St. Edmund's : Three young Ladies of that place, one of whom is very much celebrated for her mental, as well as personal, accomplishments, agreed a few days since, to bathe in a river about half a mile distant from the town, there being no private accommodation for that purpose in the neighbourhood. " An early hour, at which they would be the least liable to be discovered by strangers, was determined on, and at four o'clock in the morning, they proceeded from home to the appointed place. As they walked through the town, they were espied by a blacksmith, who, about the same hour, usually gets up to his work. Curiosity prompted him to find out whither the fair ones were bound : but he did not discover himself to them till they were in the river, the perfect images of their mother Eve ; when perceiving him approach, they screamed out, and prudently sat down in the water. The Modern Vulcan, dead to the distresses of the Venus's, determined to divert his uncouth fancy by carrying off their clothes, with which he did not return. In this pitiable situation they were obliged to remain for near an hour, when a poor woman passing that way, on hearing the rude behaviour they had experienced, and their consequent embarrassment, procured them such necessary articles of apparel, as enabled them to get home. "The blacksmith has since made a public boast of his exploit, saying it was a fine piece of sport : and, owing to his unfeeling and brutish conduct, the young Ladies have ever since been ashamed to be seen, even by their relations." — {Times, Aug. 8, 1794.) "The three watc?- nymphs at Bury have preferred an in- dictment against the blacksmith who stole their cloaths, and this may probably turn out a very serious affair, and make poor Vulcan pay for his peeping." — {Times, Aug. 9, 1794.) " Bath Charter. — A further degree of power, to be vested in the Magistrates, being deemed necessary, a new charter was a short time since granted for that purpose. It was sent by the Mail Coach, and for want of care in the packing, the impression of the Great Seal was knocked to atoms. It was presented to the Lord Chancellor to be resealcd : but this his Old Times. 313 Lordship refused unless the Mayor and Corporation would petition the Court setting forth the reasons. The Charter of Bath conveys the exclusive privilege of electing two Members to the British House of Commons to the select Corporation of 26, excluding all the other inhabitants." — {Times, Aug. 9, 1794.) We have seen, in the Historical Summar^^ attached to this book, how gallantly, year after year, Wilberforce attacked slavery. In England, we see, they euphemised the word slave, and called them Indented Black Servants, the same as those poor wretched white slaves, the " Redemptioners " who sold themselves into bondage in the Plantations. See the following Advertisement. " Absconded from his master's service at Cheltenham, on Friday night the 8th iVugust, between the hours of 9 and 10, an INDENTED BLACK SERVANT LAD, named TONEY, aged about 19 or 20 years. He is very black, and slender made, but with remarkably long feet. He went off in a striped dressing jacket, nankeen waistcoat and breeches, ribbed cotton stockings, shoes and plated buckles. He is articled for 5 years, from the 21 April last; and upwards of £2,0 has been laid out upon him, in having him taught to shave and dress, cloathing, and other necessaries for him. A reward of TEN POUNDS will be paid to any person who shall apprehend, and deliver him, to Mr. Coningham, Sherborne Lane, London ; or lodge him in any Gaol in this Kingdom, and give notice thereof as above. There is every reason to believe, that great art, and industry, have been used to seduce, and spirit away, the lad ; otherwise that he would not have formed a thought of quitting his master. If, therefore, any person will give such information, and evidence, as shall be sufficient to convict any responsible person of having enticed, seduced, or carried away, the negro lad above described, a reward of TWENTY GUINEAS will be paid to the person so informing, and giving evidence." — {Times, Ajig. 13, 1794.) " On Tuesday last, the corpse of a Gentleman, as it was proceeding in a hearse to the Burial Ground, was arrested by a Sheriff's officer and his followers, under a warrant as usual 314 Old Times, granted against the body. The friends who followed, imme- diately left their coaches, and told the officer, if he chose, he was welcome to the body, but he should have neither coffin, shroud, nor any particle in which the body was enveloped ; and if he took them by force, he should be indicted for a high- way robbery, as those matters were the property of the Executors; nay, they went further, and said, that as the deceased had, by his will, bequeathed his body to the Executors, no execution would hold good against the corpse, the process must be against them. The Bailiff, very properly being persuaded that the spirit of the law meant a living, and not a dead body, marched off without insisting on the legality of his capture. This is the first instance of the kind that has happened since the arrest of the dead body of a Sheriff of London, not many years since." — {Times, Sept. 5, 1794.) " To the CONDUCTOR of the TIMES. " Sir, — Leaving a shop in the City a few days ago, I fell into a reverie with the thoughts of what trade would come to next century : how it would be conducted, and by what description of persons : as in the shop I had just left, one servant said to another, ' Do you know were Master S is gone ' ? Another answers, Mr. R (which was an apprentice) knows : ask him. Presently came down stairs a maid servant, to enquire whether all the gentlemen (meaning the shopmen) would come to dinner. Half these gentlemen were booted, as if going to take a morning's ride. O tempore ! O mores ! " — {Times, Sept. 30, 1794.) " The Glove Manufacturers in the different counties, will no doubt make the most of the Princess of Wales's delicate hand : but there is something more than ordinarily ludicrous in the extravagant anticipation of a Shopkeeper, at the West End of the Town, who puts up in Roman characters, " Wed- DiNG-ring maker to the Princess Caroline of Brunswick." — {Times, Nov. 15, 1794.) The Lady Lade, here mentioned, once rode a race on horseback at New Market — but lost it : — Old Times. 315 " Lady Lade and Mrs. ILodges are to have a curricle race at Newmarket, at the next Spring Meeting, and the horses are now in training. It is to be ^five mile course, and great sport is expected. The construction of the traces is to be on a plan similar to that by which Lord March, now Duke of Queensbury, won his famous match against time. The odds, at present, are in favour of Lady Lade. She runs a grey mare, which is said to be the best horse in the Baronefs stables." — {Times, Dec. 20, 1794.) " The following circumstance is extraordinary beyond parallel : — On Tuesday se'nnight died, on her return from Bath, Miss Henrietta Dickenson, the fourteenth daughter of the late John Dickenson, Esq. of East Place, in Yorkshire, having attained precisely that age at which each of her 13 sisters died." — {Times, Dec. 22, 1794.) " Crosthwaite Church, in the Vale of Keswick, Cumberland, hath five chapels belonging to it. The Minister's stipend is five pounds per annum, and goose grass, or the right of com- moning his geese : a whittle gate, or the valuable privilege of using his knife for a week at any time, at any table in the parish ; and lastly, a hardened sark, or a shirt of coarse linen : whereaslhe Rectory of Winweck, a small village in Lancashire, is the richest living in England. The Rector is Lord of the Manor, and has a glebe of ;^'i4oo annual rent. The whole living is worth ;^3ooo a year." — {Times, Dec. 26, 1794.) " At Hanworth Booths, a public-house near to Lincoln, a few days ago, a man dropped a Boston Bank Bill, value five guineas, which momentarily disappeared, and a strict search was made without producing any favourable effect. At length a woman present recollected a playful 7uhelp chewing something apparently white. This observation consigned the life of the poor dog to an immediate sentence and he was instantly hanged, and his thorax opened, wherein the lost bill was found in a mangled state : but nevertheless the purport of the paper was evidently discoverable, and cash to the amount was got for it at the Boston Bank."— (7};//^i-,/<7;/. 14, 1795.) *' In the various researches made throughout the house of 3i6 Old Times. Langlcys, the scat of John Jolliffe Tuffnell, Esq. in Essex, two caskets of family Jewels have been found concealed amongst old linen, and near pTi 50,000 in specie, behind the books in the library, the chief part of which sum he is sup- posed to have sold out of the funds, with a view of purchasing some advertised estates in that county." " It is worthy of remark, that the number of deaths in this metropolis, within the last few months past, amounts to double what it ever has been, within the same space of time, since the plague, which desolated London in the last century." {Times, Feb. 20, 1795.) " So great has been the mortality in the metropolis, that the Undertakers, like the distressed Prompter we read of, have been obliged ' to mow away brown.' A hearse with bay horses was actually observed in one of the many melancholy processions in the course of last week." — {Times, March 7, I795-) "We are informed there is a Cask now building at Messrs Meux and Co.'s Brewery, in Liquor-pond Street, Grays Inn Lane, the size of which exceeds all credibility, being designed to hold twenty thousand barrels of porter ; the whole expense attending the same will be upwards of ;^i 0,000." — {Times, April I, 1795.) " Numbers, it is said, have gone into the King's Bench and Fleet Prison, under an idea that there would be an Act of Grace, on account of the Prince's marriage — but no such act is to take place." — {Ivnes, April 27, 1795.) '^ In the absence of our Reporter, we understand that i\Ir. Mainwaring, on Monday, presented a Petition to the House of Commons signed by above 10,000 Livery Servants, against the Employing of Foreigners in that capacity ; v/hich not being seconded, was not received." — {Times, April 2^0, 1795.) Advt.— ASTROLOGY. Mrs. NEWTON respectfully in- forms her friends and the Public, that she continues at No. in in Wardour St. Soho, where she may be consulted on Plane- tary Influence, as it relates to, involves, and guides all the Old Times. 3 1 7 Events and Occurrences, as Marriages, Legacies, Possession of Wealth, Attainment of any particular Desire, the State of an Absent Friend by Sea or Land, or whatever can interest our Hopes, or agitate our Fears. The private Door in Port- land St., and the Name under the one-pair-of-stairs window." — {Times, May 6, 1795.) Medicinal Waters were in great repute, and if there were any spring, at all charged with mineral matter, near the Metropolis, it was a good thing for the pro- prietor. They existed at the Beulah Spa, Norwood — Spa fields, Bermondsey — Hampstead — Clerkenwell — Holy- well Street, and at this " Duck and Dog " St. George's Fields. This was a famous suburban publichouse — much as the Welsh Harp is nowadays — where shooting matches at small birds was a favourite pastime. "Advt— DOG AND DUCK SPA AND BATH, St. Georges Fields. — J. Hedger respectfully informs the Public, that the Gardens of the above Spa are open for the reception of those who wish to drink the Waters on the spot, at the usual terms of 3d. each person. The general salubrity of this Spa is well known : and its happy medicinal effects in Scor- butic, Scrophulous, and eruptive Complaints : as well as in the Gravel, and several other Disorders, have been long and incontestibly established. It will be sent to any part of the town in bottles, corked and sealed at the pump, on receiving orders as above. The Bath and Bowling Green are also open to Subscribers." — {Times, May 26, 1795.) The Mr. Brothers mentioned in the following para- graph had been a Lieutenant in the Navy — and held most extravagantly visionary religious views — he pre- tended to have revelations from the Deity, and set up as a Prophet. He was imprisoned in 1/94 for fear he should create some political disturbance. " Many persons were yesterday not a little terrified by St. o 1 8 Old Times. FauPs clock" striking lo three times within an hour, expecting every moment, that Mr. Brothers' s prophecy was about to be fulfilled, which had appointed some dreadful calamity to befal the City of London before the 4th day of June instant." — {Tmes,Ju}ie 4, 1795.) In the next paragraph, we must bear in mind the difference in the value of the Currency then and now. " It is with infinite pleasure we hear, that the Bishops in their respective dioceses, in conjunction with the opulent pluralists and other beneficed Clergy, are advancing the sti- pends, and making contributions, for their necessitous Curates, in these times of scarcity. A liberality (or rather an act of justice) which most probably originated with the Bishop of London, who declared in his Charge to the Clergy of his dioceses, as long since as the year 1790, that he would licence no Curate to a single church under £$0, nor to two under £-^0 per an."— (TzVwj, Aug. 13, 17 95-) "That practical bulls are not confined to Ireland, take the following specimen : A tradesman of this city, out of charity, took a French boy into his family, who was sent out one evening in a great hurry for butter. His haste threw him into the kennel, butter and all. This was an unfortunate mishap : the dirt he could scrape off, but that partial adhesion of water to grease could not so easily be removed. At last he hit upon an experiment : The maid was bawling out for the butter — ' Well, well,' quoth Jaques, ' you shall have it quickly. I had the misfortune to wet it, and have just hung it up on a string, before the great stove — it will be dry in a moment, for it dripped before I came away.'" — {Times, Aug. 21, I795-) " What would our forefathers have thought to see a board with this inscription : — * JVifh the nicest taste, and by inen tnost exquisite for their professional abilities ' over a Barber's shop 1 " —{Times, Aug. 21, 1795.) Old Times. 319 " EPIGRAM. In utramque paratus. *•' How shall we Dr. Drawl obey, His different counsel keep : Whose Text advises ' Watch and pray,' Whose Sermon bids you ' Sleep.' " —{Times, Aug. 27, 1795.) " In an advertisement addressed to a young lady who has eloped, she is most earnestly requested to return to her most disco7isolate parents : but it is added, that if she does not choose to come herself, she is most particularly desired to send the key of the tea chest !'''' — {Times, Sept. 4, 1795.) " The grand match of Cricket, for one thousand guineas, between Kent and All England, was some days since ter- minated at Dandelion,^ in favour of Kent." — {Times, Sept. 15, I795-) " A Clergyman in Essex, who had long farmed his tythes alternately among his parishioners, began at last to suspect that the rogues endeavoured to keep the income of his sniall living still less, and so determined, this year at least, to take his tythes in kind. To ' Cheat the Parsoti ' is one of the oldest jokes in the history of agriculture, and stands on the same authority with the wittier malevolaice of distj-essing him. These gentlemen, determined not to be behindhand with their predecessors : and, in the last harvest, sent to the Parson to take away his hay the moment it was cut down, alleging, that as soon as it was cut into szvathes, it was no longer grass, and that he might turn it, a7id cook it, himself. Rather than ' go to law ' the Parson submitted, and took his next Sunday's text on brotherly kindness, beginning thus — ' Brotherly kindness may be divided into tliree parts — domestic affection — social love — and charity : from all which proper inferences may be drawn for instruction. Thus brethren, I give you a sermon in swathes — you may turn it, and cook it, yourselves.' The plan suc- ceeded ; his parishioners doubled the income, acknowledging . ^ Dent de Lion, Margate. 320 Old Times. it even then less than it should be : and thus, vAizX. justice^ and law, might have kept from him for years, was given up to a clerical joker — {Times, Sept. 19, 1795.) " A curious circumstance occurred here (Brighton) yesterday. Sir John Lade, for a trifling wager, undertook to carry Lord Cholmondely, on his back, from opposite the Pavilion, twice round the Steine. Several ladies attended to be spectators of this extraordinary feat of the dwarf carrying a giant. When his Lordship declared himself ready, Sir John desired him to strip. ' Strip ! ' exclaimed the other : ' why surely you promised to carry me in my clothes ! ' ' By no means,' replied the Baronet. ' I engaged to carry you, but not an inch of clothes. So therefore, my Lord, make ready, and let us not disappoint the ladies.' After much laughable altercation, it was at length decided that Sir John had won his wager, the Peer declining to Qxhihit in puris naturalilms." — {Times, Oct. 2, 1795.) What would the writer of the following have thought if he could only have seen Girton and other cognate female Colleges ? " Nobody can doubt of the use and advantage of Boarding- Schools in an immense capital like this. When a Tradesman's daughter is taught to jump a dance, to play a tune, and spit French, she is fit for any thing — but a wife." — {Times, Oct. 17, I795-) " An amiable great lady, though very accomplished in the English language, now and then makes some innocent mis- takes. She lately asked Lady Jersey if her child would not like new milk?" — {Times, Nov. 23, 1795.) "A Gentleman lamenting the robbery committed at Mr. Erskine's house last week, after enquiring the particulars, said, he ' hoped none of the Family were alarmed ? ' ' No,' replied Mr. E., 'but I wish they had.'" — {Times, Dec. 23, I795-) " The name of Merchant of London will be as common in London as in France. A fellow who keeps a caricature shop !J I . , .. »»J..rff(*^^^^3rT— J. " ^U. ' liJI Old Times. 321 in Oxford-Road, has the impudence to write in large characters against his house, Caricature Merchant. " We think the Magistrates are deficient in their duty, when they permit such a number of obscene prints to be exposed in their windows. It is well known that some of them have likewise rooms in their houses, where they expose those prints to debauch the rising generation, and have agents at the public seminaries, where they introduce them among the boys." — (Times., Dec. 25, 1795.) " The Confectioners begin to tremble from the fear that there will not be frost enough to enable them to lay in a stock of ice sufficient for the consumption of the ensuing summer. Ice is become so much a necessary of life in this climate, that the Island has not always produced a sufficient quantity for the supply of the inhabitants, and many vessels sent to Norway have returned freighted with this new luxury. How would Queen Elizabeth's Maids of Honour have stared at iced oranges after a hot dinner? They would probably have given them the same emphatical appellation with a late English Admiral — painted snoiu balls.'" — {Times, Jan. 22, 1796.) " The vast estate of the Duke of Portland, in Marybone, cost his ancestors, about 100 years ago, but ;^9ooo ; and the estate of Mr. Berners, (all the streets about the Middlesex Hospital) now ;^6ooo a year, were in the year 1730, at a rental of ^330 a year." — {Times, Jan. 25, 1796.) "The Balls at Southampton are exceedingly lively, and well-attended. The young Ladies are particularly favourable to a German Dance, called the Volse: for squeezing, hugging, &:c., it is excellent in its kind, and more than one Lady has actually fainted in the middle of it." — {Times, Feb. 19, 1796.) •' Thirteen thousand, five hundred vessels, freighted with property, to the value of between 60, and 70, millions sterling, sailed from, and arrived at, the port of London, in the course of a year." — {Times, Aug. 29, 1796.) "Campus Nautica may be sailor-latin for a pleasant exhibition, though not quite concordical. A sailor at Oxford X 32 2 Old Times. some time ago, wished to prove the whole University to be sailor-Uke, and he managed it in this way. 'The Gownsmen are Fitppes, the Tradesmen are Naves, and the women are nautoe: What though the puns don't quite spell, they are not less true for all ihvA."— {Times, Feb. 29, 1796.) " Lately died, in Scotland, James Anderson, a well-known itinerant tinker, at the astonishing age of 114, after carrying his budget since his 14th year." — {Times, March 12, 1796.) *' We learn from Chester, that the Grand Jury at Conway Assizes found an Indictment against the Bishop of Bangor, his Agent, Chaplain, and two other Divines, for a riot ; and also another Bill against the Bishop for an assault ! ! ! " — Times, April s, 1796. "There was a Bank Note came into the Bank the other day, the interest of which, calculated from the time it had been in circulation, amounted to more than ;^43oo." — {Times, April 26, 1796.) " Mrs. Mills had fourteen rooms open at her famous Rout and Supper, in Piccadilly, the other night. The bill for green- peas was seventy-five pounds." — {Times, May 18, 1796.) "At one of Lady B 's elegant Entertainments at Ham- Common, amongst other amusements provided for her refined company, were a pig with a soaped-tail and a smock-race. A Great Number of young women were collected by curiosity, but none of them could be prevailed upon to contend for the last prize. They declared ingenuously, that they only came for curiosity, as they thought her Ladyship and her Company were to run for it." — {Times, June 29, 1796.) " ' I should like to be an emigre,' said INIr. V n the other day. ' Why so ? ' answered a gentleman present. ' Be- cause,' he replied, ' the emigrants are the only people in town who know how to amuse themselves.' " And surely nothing can exceed the refined elegance of the balls given by some of the emigrated Ladies, where the widows of twenty guillotined poor souls, trip the merry country-dance with all the swiftness of a fairy. We must, however, observe that these eminent dancers disdain the name of emigrees, and Old Times. j^o call themselves Americaines, from the property they possess in the West Indies, in order to avoid the reproach of thus squandering the superfluities of their incomes, which would be better employed in comforting so many unfortunate families, driven from their own country." — {Times, Aug. i, 1796.) "A DAY AT MARGATE. " Rose at seven ; went to Saver's Bathing House, set my name down on the slate : took a walk on the Pier. Came back and waited a quarter of an hour, then bathed. Not a little delighted with the idea of realising in some degree la theorie des se7itimens agreables by dipping in the same ocean with the sea nymphs from the City. Returned to my lodgings to dress for breakfast. Finding nobody in the Coffee-room, went back to the Pier, arrived at the happy moment, just as a hoy was vomiting out its sick : witnessed, as Peter Paragraph says, the Queen of France abuse, like a drab of Drury, one of the passengers. The case seemed a strong one, and well made out on the part of the Lady, but produced, as far as I saw, no conviction. " Went to breakfast at Benson's, having first called at the Post-Office, and found not sorted on the door : eat my shilling's worth, one buttered roll, one dry toasted, and one cold ditto : heard who had won, or lost, at whist, and billiards, the night before ; read the newspapers, and wrote a letter. Went over the way to Silver's library, who at my request gave me the choice of three rides, observing, that I might take a little of each by going round by Kingsgate, the North Foreland, and Broadstairs to Ramsgate, then crossing over to the Camp, and figuring in by Dandelion. 'What a charming General ' (said I) 'spoilt in a Toyman. How you understand tactics, Mr. Silver!' ' Used to it all my life. Sir,' (said he with a pleasing flippancy) 'plan rides for the company daily all over the Island.' Set out with the carte du pays in my pocket : visited all the places in it, and finished with the cricket match, and the place of the public breakfast. Heard a lady say she had won two lotteries, and saw Tom Lord run without winning a notch. Went to the ordinary in the gardens at 6s. 6d. a head, for cold chicken, and roast lamb, with a haunch of venison given by a Noble 324 Old Times. Lord, who, very kindly, having helped himself to the first slice, sent it on. The heat on the cricket ground was intense. I was sorry I did not bring my white hat : but a remedy was at hand, as I learnt afterwards, if I had been ingenious enough to have tied a white handkerchief round the crown of my black one. Having finished my second breakfast, I rode home to dine at Margate. The green where the breakfast was, was much cooler than the burning cricket field, having the advan- tage of being shaded by the trees in the garden at its back ; but I found I was out of luck, as there was no dancing, and, indeed, at the public breakfast, it sometimes happens, that the wagtails, and the yellow-hammers from the Capital are so numerous, and frisky, that the humming birds, the cockatoos, and the birds of Paradise of the higher order won't always hop with them. Got back to Margate on my pony, for which I was to pay i8d. a side, and thought as I rode along on the sands, where I should dine. The boarding houses were all open to me, on paying for a week, or one guinea. This was a great temptation : but having been offered a party at the Bowling green, on Prospect Place, I conceived this to be a better thing, on account of the humours of the loaded pigeon, and the fun of the canting machine, and the fireworks at night. I accordingly rode to my lodgings to dress, and went immedi- ately to dinner. After dinner proceeded to the libraries, where the raffling lists were filUng fast : was induced to throw in my shillings at Silver's and Were's : from thence passed on to Wood's, Surflen's, and Garner's. At Surflen's heard music, and several favourite glees : from thence to the playhouse, where I was invited to the rehearsal of a new piece, which was to be full of good things, if it had been suffered to be represented. It was now time to go to supper : I accord- ingly returned to the Coffee House, and from thence to the Billiard Room, where there was a violent cry of swindler, black-legs, and pickpocket, at which Mrs. Benson interfered, whilst her husband walked coolly up and down the Piazza, not venturing to intrude. The obnoxious person being turned out, and order restored, I retired at one o'clock in the morning. EPHEMERIS." —{Times, Oct. 2, 1795.) ^-, w,... . '.Hi *^^f^F^B^^M^^^"^IWF Old Times. 325 Fancy seeing an advertisement like the following, in the Times nowada3's : — Advt. "AMARE'S tobe SOLD, About six years old, That's warranted perfectly sound : Her height's fourteen hands, And an inch as she stands. And will trot freely all the way round. The JNIare's to be seen Any time that's between The hours of twelve, and of three. At the Inn called One Bell, In the Strand they will tell. Price twenty-five Guineas and three." — Times, June ij, 1796. " RAMSGATE. (Extract of a letter.) " Our early season has already begun, and those who are fond of cheap lodgings, have made their appearance hirundim prima. I assure you, we have City Misses here at this moment, each of whom, in the vain idea of rising * A new born Goddess from the Sea ' sowces into salt water every morning. Our company is of the greater sort. We have Mrs. Deputy Plumb, with her naked daughters, who have scarce more cloathing than z.fig leaf on them, and imitate their great grand-dame Eve in much more even than that. Then we have JNIrs. Pop from Whitechapel. She came down in state in her own job-coach, which was loaded so full with unredeemed Articles for family wear, that her dear pledges of domestic Love, her daughters, who are the very duplicate of herself, in delicacy and beauty, were forced to come in the Hoy. But she vows it is so shocking to her feelings, that they never shall ride down no more in that nasty sort of water convey- ance, though she should spend upon their luxury and elegance ten, out of that thirty per cent., which she grinds from the necessitous miseries of hard-earned industry. Then we have three learned Ladies, who, after the great fatigues of novel- writing in the winter, have retired hither to display themselves to the vast pleasure, and edification, of some ancient enamo- ratus, who would not yield to Old Q himself in pretensions to gallantry. In truth, we begin to look gaily, early as it is : and 326 Old Times. I would that the salt-water, for the benefit of the Pops, and the Plumbs, who frequent our watering places, could as easily wash away the mud of vulgarity, and affectation, from their hearts, as it does the rouge from their faces." — {Times, July 8, 1796.) "BRIGHTON.— The Prince and Princess of Wales's arrival has been talked of much in London ; but as yet we have no signs of it here. The Duke and Duchess of Marl- borough pass their time in a very retired manner indeed. His Grace walked for some time yesterday evening upon the Steync ; the company consisted chiefly of opulent Jews, needy fortune hunters, broken-down Cyprians, fishermen's daughters, and several fat city-dowdies, from the environs of Norton Folgate. Her Grace commands the Play on Friday evening, which will be \vqx first appearance xw public here for this season. The Officers of the Blues are the great dashers of the place : they associate with no one but their own Corps. The most of them keep their blood-horses, their curricles, and their girls. At one o'clock they appear on the parade, to hear the word of com- mand given to the Subaltern Guard : afterwards they toss off \h.€\xgoes of brandy, dine about five, and come about eight to the Theatre, Viz'e?it L^ A moicret Bacchus" — {Times, July 13, 1796.) "Yesterday a curious cricket match was played at IMont- pelier Gardens, between 11 of the Greenwich Pensioners, wanting an arm each, against the same number of their fellow sufferers with each a wooden leg. Not fewer than 5000 people were assembled on the occasion, who were highly entertained with the exertions of the old veterans of the ocean, who never acted against their most inveterate enemy with more energy, each party striving to quit the field victorious. The evening coming on, the contest could not be decided, but it was so much in favour of the Timber toes, as never to be recovered by the dint of Arms." — {Times, Aitg. 10, 1796.) " On Wednesday morning the 1 1 men with one arm, and 1 1 men with but one leg, were brought by three Greenwich stages engaged for that purpose, to the new Cricket Ground, the back of the Montpelier Tea Gardens, Walworth, when the match was played out, and the men, with one leg, beat the one arms, by 103 runnings. After the match was finished, the eleven one- Old Times. 327 legged men ran a race of 100 yards distance, for 20 Guineas, and the first three had prizes." — {Ti/ncs, Aug. 12, 1796.) "A new embankment of the River, on the Middlesex shore, from Westminster to Chelsea, is just commencing, to prevent the encroachments which are making almost daily." — {Times, Aug. 20, 1776.) " On Tuesday morning, a young whale came up the River as far as Rotherhithe, and was killed near Execution Dock after having overset two boats. It measured 19 feet in length." — {Times, Aug. 25, 1796.) " This day, the Publicans in the Metropolis, and its vicinity, have, conformable to an agreement amongst themselves, with- drawn from the Public the accommodation of finding them Pewter Pots, agreeable to a long established custom, which will, of course, occasion great inconvenience to workmen of every description, who are employed in raising buildings, repairing houses, &c. ; as well as lodgers, and, even, to many respectable families. The profits upon Porter, for a length of time, have been very considerable, which proves itself beyond a doubt, by their acknowledging, in a Bill left at the houses of their customers, that they, collectively, sustain a loss, annually, of ;^ 1 00,000 per annum, in Pots, which, by no means, could have been afforded, were not their returns somewhat enormous. Under that idea, it is presumed, having availed themselves of an opportunity, no longer to be liable to losses of that kind, in future, they will, as a recompence to the Public, make a reduction in price of the necessary article of Porter." — {Times, Sept. 2, 1796.) "The late determination of several of the Publicans, to alter the established mode of serving their outdoor customers, with quart, and pint pots, seems to have been copied from an old resolution of a certain Borough, which ran thus : ' Re- solved, that the best means of preserving our lamps from being broken, is to take them down by night, and put them up in the day.' Such of the Publicans as have come into this new regulation, seem to estimate the loss of a few pots, be- yond that of the most respectable of their customers. It is, however, very probable, that the Small-Beer Brewers will 328 Old Times. profit by this circumstance, as table-beer may be ordered in by those who cannot be served any longer in the usual manner." — {Times, Sept. 21, 1796.) "The university of Oxford has lately printed, at its own expence, to be distributed gratis among the French Clergy who have taken refuge in Great Britain {ad Usutn Cleri Gallicant in Anglia exiilantis^ as the title states) 2000 copies of the Vulgate of the New Testament, which is the Latin version used by the Roman Church in all Public Prayers. " The Marquis of Buckingham, distinguished for his muni- ficence towards the Clergy, has likewise caused to be printed at his expence, 2000 copies at the same press, and for the same use. The University of Oxford has sent its copies to the vener- able Bishop of St Pol de Leon, for distribution, accompanied by a letter, analogous to the generous sentiments which dictate this honourable mark of esteem for the French Clergy, who are fully sensible of the value of the gift." — {Times, Oct. 25, 1796.) "Christmas Eve, 1796, will be recorded hereafter, as the Frost was more rapid, and more rigorous, it is supposed, than in 1739-40, or any degree of cold ever experienced in England : the quicksilver in a thermometer in Somerset-place sunk from 28 to 4 degrees above o in 12 hours, 3 degrees below the depression of the Mercury in 1794 and 28 degrees below the freezing point, while it must necessarily have been still lower in the country." — {Times, Dec. 28, 1796.) Bartholomew fair was first held a.d. 1 133, and it was then the principal mart for the vendors, and bu3'ers, of cloth : in fact the name of a street, contiguous to Smith- field, where the fair was held, and which has come down to us, — " Cloth fair," proves it, were there any need. Of late years it got a nuisance, and public opinion demanded its dissolution. The shows were discontinued in 1850, and the fair was proclaimed, for the last time, in 1855. We see by the following paragraph, from the Times, what was thought of it by decent-minded people, as far back as 1796. ^^^K"^?^? Old Times. 329 "BARTHOLOMEW FAIR. " The various troops of itinerant Comedians, Showmen, Ropedancers, Jugglers, Conjurors, Fortune Tellers, Giants, Dwarfs, wild Beasts, learned Beasts, and every lusus naturce that can be collected throughout the Kingdom, with all the appen- dages of immorality, and vice, were on Saturday put in legal possession of Smithfield, as the theatre of their achievements. When we add to these, the numerous tribe of pickpockets, ring-droppers, and sharpers of every description, we cannot but sincerely regret, that a scene, productive of so much idleness, and debauchery, should be sanctioned by the ktter of the law, while the spirit of it shudders at the toleration of such excesses. "The purposes for which this fair was held by its original tenure were of a nature directly opposite to those to which it is now prostituted. They went to the encouragement of in- dustry by the previous manufacture, and subsequent sale, of necessary articles ; but they are now made subservient to cor- rupt the public mind by the most abandoned, and dissolute, manners. The motley multitude that infests the fair, are the more audacious in their conduct, from knowing that they are warranted in their proceedings, at least by the appearayice of law, which sanctions this annual ribaldry. " We seriously lament, that this ' congratulation ^ of living vapours ' so foul and pestilential to society, should be suffered to exist in the metropolis, and that the Chief Magistrate of the City of London should be annually compelled to degrade his dignity as the principal guardian of the public peace and morals, by going in state, to license a scene, which constantly terminates in the most fatal abuses." — {Times, SeJ>. 5, 1796.) " At the general Meeting of the Magistrates for the division of Kensington, on Saturday last, complaints were made not only by the Bishop of London, as Lord of the Manor, but by other respectable inhabitants thereof, of a nuisance that has prevailed from time to time on Wormholt Scrubs by bull- baiting, to the great annoyance of the neighbourhood, and the disturbance of the public peace, when the Magistrates came to the laudable resolution of issuing warrants to the High, and ^ Sic in original. 330 Old Times. Petty, Constables of the Division, requiring them to exert their utmost endeavours to prevent the same in future. And, having understood that many Publicans within their division had conveyed beer, and other liquors, from their 'respective houses to Wormholt Scrubs, where they had retailed it during such bull-baiting, they determined not to renew their licences." — {Times, Sept. 8, 1796.) " A few days ago some villains broke into the Lea Church, Gloucestershire, and stole a quantity of money, the property of a company of singers belonging to the said church. A reward of ;^2o was immediately offered for discovering the offenders, accompanied by a threat that application would be immediately made to a conjuror, who lived not far off, to tell who the robbers were. The sacrilegious rascals, being convinced that the Devil would betray them, by informing the cunning man who they were, went in the night to the church, and pushed all the money they had taken through a slit in the door, where it was found the next morning." — {Times, Oct. 4, 1796.) " An ingenious artist has invented a new Coffin, for which he has taken out a Patent. In his advertisements he says, he thinks no family would like to be without one, and that all who have made trial of them, prefer them to anything in that way, and recommend them to their friends." — {Times, Nov. 2, 1796.) " We hope the Corporation of Bath will avoid a similar mistake as happened when the Duke of York was there last year, when the gold box was presented to the Duke, but some- how or other, it was forgotten to put i\\Q freedom into it." — {Times, Nov. 28, 1796.) The gushing, and eloquent, George Robins could hardly exceed the following : — Advt. "RUS in URBE PULCHERRIMAM. To be LET furnished, the first, second and third Floors with a Kitchen, altogether the most convenient and beautiful little Dwelling in Europe. Satisfactory references will be required. Enquire at Messrs &c." — {Times, Oct. 14, 1796.) " Lady E. being lately complimented upon her excellent complexion, assured her friend it was owing to her custom of dipping into cold water every morning. * But I see,' said she, J^^JH. 'iP \U Old Times. 331 'you don't believe me.' 'Pardon me,' said the Gentleman, ' if your Ladyship said you bathed in the Red Sea, I should have believed you.'" — {Times, Nov. 24, 1796.) "Last Sunday, agreeable to his sentence in the Ecclesias- tical Court, a Butcher of Newport Market, did penance in St. Ann's Church, for scandalizing a neighbour's character." — {Times, Dec. 2, 1796.) " There is a Club in St. James St. called the Transalpine. To be a Member, it is indispensable that you have crossed Mont Cenis. One of the advantages of modern travelling is, to be entitled upon your return to waste your time at home, with those who have wasted theirs abroad. This is the reward of what is called seeing the world : namely, seeing those who have seen it too." — {Times, /an. 25, 1797.) " A noble Viscount has instituted a Club, called the Ubi- qiiarians — the Club is ambulatory, and held, in turn, at as many chop-houses as there are parishes in the capital. The dinner is at half-a-crown, but it costs as much more to those who are not good walkers to get at it." — {Times, Jan. 25, 1797.) " It is a very curious fact, that the Turkish custom of taking opium is beginning to prevail in what are called the first circles of London. This dissipation is spreading wide amongst female fashion." — {Times, Feb. 10, 1797.) "The Gentlemen of the Rainbow (footmen), whose only wear is motley, have within these few days, shewn evident symptoms of uniting. They declare their wages are very inferior in value to their services, and threaten their masters with a revolution in their conduct. When pampered valets claim an increase of salary, on the ground of meritorious ser- vice, a general discharge would certainly be the most effectual way of quieting their complaints." — {Times, June 6, 1797.) "We are pleased to be able to commend one change of fashion, at least, that which has deprived the servants of Officers of the cockade in their hats : and we hope to see it spread, till it becomes as singular, as it is absurd, to dress up a Domestic in the characteristics of the field!" — {Times, June 10, 1797.) 332 Old Times. " On Sunday, for the first time, the Civil Power interested itself in breaking up what was called Cooper's Fair in the Spa Fields, in consequence of the weekly holdings forth of a variety of Enthusiasts : such as Mystics, Methodists, Quaking Jews, &c. One of the latter description being eager for per- secution, insisted upon going into confinement, and was con- veyed to Clerkenwell Bridewell." — {Times, July 20, 1797.) "On the 25th of February, died in the Barony of Ivereagh, in the County of Kerry, Ireland, in the 112th year of his age Daniel Bull Macarthy Esq. He had been married to five wives : he married the fifth, who survives him, when he was 84 and she 14, by whom he had twenty children, she bearing a child every year. He was very healthy : no cold could affect him : and he could not bear the warmth of a shirt in the night time, but put it under his pillow, for the last seventy years. In company he drank plentifully of rum, and brandy, which he called naked truth ; and when, out of complaisance to other gentlemen, he took claret, or port, he always drank an equal glass of rum, or brandy, to qualify those liquors : this he called a wedge. He used to walk eight, or ten, miles in a winter's morning with greyhounds, and finders, and seldom failed to bring home a brace of hares." — {Times, Aug. 5, 1797-) " On Sunday morning, about five o'clock, ten Police officers came to Norwood in three hackney-coaches, threw down all the gypsey tents, and exposed about 30 men, women, and children, in the primitive state of man. They carried them to prison, to be dealt with according to the Vagrant Act. " It appears that they have made good harvest, this summer, of female credulity, and have often gained a guinea on a Sunday. Not only young girls, panting for matrimony, have been their dupes, but the well experienced dames, curious to trace the steps of their dear spouses, have paid liberally for discovery, as the following story will prove : On Thursday, as two Gentlemen, who dined at Norwood, were looking out of a window, they observed a respectable, well-dressed woman in deep consultation, for a sum paid to the old gypsey. They observed the good woman greatly agitated, and heard her ask ' If she was sure it was true ' ? On being answered ' As sure as God was in heaven' she gave the gypsey a further sum, ■VBB—^ Old Times. 333 and made further enquiry, and at last gave her a gOod pocket- handkerchief, and departed seemingly full of vengeance. The gentlemen, curious to learn the nature of the good woman's consultation, sent for the old gypsey, who candidly told them, that she enquired of her if her husband was continent, and that she answered he was not, and thereby obtained three presents instead of one." — {Times, Aug. 22, i^gj.) Partridge shooting began on 14th September then, instead of the ist as now. FOURTEENTH OF SEPTEMBER. " Bemired up to the knees, wetted from head to foot by the incessant rain, fatigued and disappointed, the Cocknies yester- day returned from their annual field-sport, with very little game indeed. A detachment from Cheapside, which had filed off early in the morning, toward Hampstead, with the locks of their fowling-pieces wrapped up in their handkerchiefs, were so galled by the rain, that they got no further than 0/d Mother Red Cap's, where they diverted themselves all day with firing from a window at some Dutch-pins in the skittle ground. One of these pins was mortally wounded in the belly by Ensign Tight Breeches, a man milliner's foreman, who drove a ball into it, at the amazing distance of two yards, without letting the gun fall out of his hand. *• Six journeymen weavers, from Spital-fields, who went in a chaise cart, to Ealing, with two guns, were rather more for- tunate, in respect to Game. They killed a lame hen at Acton, shot one goose on the Common, wounded a large sow, and filled their pockets and Game-bags with turnips, and cabbages. They imagined they sprung a pheasant near Gunnersbury House, — but it proved to be an old turkey-cock. At Eleven, they returned, very wet, and very drunk, having lost one of their guns, and broke the stock of the other, by flinging it at a tame rabbit, in a farmer's yard. " Four gentlemen from Leadenhall-Market, who went on the long-coach to Woolwich, as there are partridges in that part of Kent, killed two crows in Hanging-Wood Lane, blinded a jackass near the Warren, and wounded a sparrow, several feathers being perceived to drop from its wings. They had 334 ^^^ Times. tolerable good sport with a bat, their terriers'' being of an excellent breed, and having worried a flock of ducks in a ditch, and killed one, they returned from Partridge shooting about nine at night, very much fatigued indeed. " Five gentlemen who went sporting from Kent Bar to Lewisham, notwithstanding the wetness of the day, had toler- able good luck. " They belonged to the Trained Bands, and depended more upon their bayonets, than their guns. At the Half- Way-House they killed a fine buck-cat, as he was watching a chaffinch. From the Half-Way-House to New-Cross Turnpike, every sparrow was affrighted by the noise of their guns : but the rain by this time having completely wetted the locks, and damped the powder, they were obliged to charge with bayonets, and every tree bore marks of their prowess, to the Lion and Lamb at Lewisham, where they dined, got drunk, killed two hogs, and a Chinese sow, and, in the evening, were carried home by the Lewisham stage. " St. George's Fields, once the mart of London sportsmen, being now almost covered with houses, very few prentice-boy gunners were seen there. The birds which now inhabit that quarter, are many of them jail-birds, and if the new Magistrates were to sport their authority a little more than they do, they might bring down some of the most dangerous game with which a neighbourhood was ever infested. " Very few were the sportsmen on Blackheath, to the great joy of sheep and jackasses, and to the safety of stage-passen- gers, who were often endangered by the random shot of those one-day sportsmen. As to partridges, their lives were in no danger, not one of those sportmen out of fifty knowing the difference between a partridge and a crow ; besides, as their dogs are generally of the bull-dog kind, of the terrier, or the fox breed, the game are in very little danger of injury from their ability." — {Times, Sept. 15, 1797.) "There will be more Powder expended to-day against the innocent Partridges, than would drive Buonaparte and his crew out of Asia. The Bank Clerks, India House Jemmies, Men Milliners, and tippy Apprentices, most loudly complain against the enclosures of that Cochiey Manor, St. George's Old Times. 335 Fields, bewailing the loss of their sport, and lamenting that there is not a sparrow left to exercise their prowess upon." — {Times, Sept. 14, 1798.) " So great is the rage for watering places, that the Margate Packet had, the week before last, one hundred and fifty-two passengers on board, who were 27 hours on their passage; during the greater part of the time, it rained so as to drive them under deck, and made them as comfortable as the people in the black hole at Calcutta." — {Times, Sept. 16, 1797.) " On Thursday evening last, one George Kent, a Callender, in New Compton St., St. Giles's, eat, for a trifling wager, the enormous quantity of 30 boiled eggs, a two-penny loaf, and a quarter of a pound of butter, in the short space of 27 minutes, being three minutes less than the time given to perform it." — {Times, Oct. 2, 1797.) (Advt.) " GUILDHALL. "THREE GUINEAS will be given for a Gentleman's Ticket to Dine this Day at Guildhall, by sending it before 12 o'clock, to Mr. Short, Hair Dresser, Bearbinder-lane, near the Mansion House." — {Times, Nov. 9, 1797.) " Never could any Country boast an equal respect, and even partiality, for age, with our own. Our favourite Sultanas are grandmothers, at the least : the Actresses that charmed our grandfathers return to the stage, in the full bloom of their \vrinkles : and we have boys of seventy, and fourscore, in our regiments." — {Times, N'ov. 15, 1797.) " Amongst the great, and worthy, pluralists of the Church, few can equal, and none exceed, in spiritual, and temporal, fortune, young Dr. Price, nephew to Bishop JBarringtoJi ; ^ he is Canon, and Prebendary, of Salisbury, worth ^^300 per annum. Golden Prebendary of Durham, worth _;^i2oo per annum : and Rector of Milksham, worth ;^iooo per annum, and is possessed of a temporal fortune of between 2 and ;^3ooo per annum ! " Dr. Moss, a lately appointed Residentiary of St. Paul's, ^ Shute Barrington. Bishop of Llandaff 1769. Bishop of Salisbury 1782. Bishop of Durham 1791. 336 Old Times. worth ;^i2oo per annum, is Chancellor of the Diocese of Wells, Prebendary of Wells, Westminster, and Salisbury, and also Canon Residentiary of the latter, to which he was elected when he was about 24 years of age, on the resignation of his father. In addition to the above preferments. Dr. Moss is also rector of Newington in Oxfordshire, worth ;!{^6oo per annum. The present Bishop of Wells, with his family, it is computed has received upwards of ;3£"ioo,ooo out of the Cathedrals of Salisbury and Wells. He strongly insisted that his son should continue his Canonry of Salisbury, which Mr. Pitt would not allow." — {Times, Nov. 17, 1797.) " In investigating a trivial cause yesterday, at Bow-Street, arising from an infamous practice, which we hope will be represented to Lord Kenyon, of issuing Marshalsea Court Writs for debts of 8s. or 12s., a fraud of some importance was discovered. It appears that it was the custom of Publicans, when they want to let their houses, to get a number of people together, whom they treat with beer. "They call them show-men, and this is done for the pur- pose of deceiving the persons who come to view their house, and to make them suppose it has good custom." — {Times, Nov. 23' I797-) Advt. "PROCESSION TO ST. PAULS.i "To BE LET, a DRAWING-ROOM about 20 feet long, the windows nearly level with his Majesty's Carriage. Twenty Persons may be comfortably accommodated. It is wished by the Proprietor of the above Premises, that the Party may be of their own selection : a strange mixture of Company on these occasions is unpleasant to inost Families who wish to enjoy their own society. Price 20 Guineas. Enquire at Salmon's Goldsmith, No. 49 facing Old Round Court, Strand, between York buildings and the x^delphi." — {Times, Dec. 8, 1797.) Advt. "ROYAL PROCESSION. " One of the grandest sights since the days of Queen Anne, and in all probability we shall never see the like again. Those Ladies and Gentlemen who are desirous of beipg * To return thanks for Admiral Duncan's victory over the Dutch fleet. Old Times. 337 accommodated with one of the best views in the City to see the procession (not only as it passes by, but of seeing the Company go into Church), will apply to No. 28 Ludgate- Street, the corner of Ave Maria-Lane, next the Churchyard. The Front Seats in the Dining Room are only 2 Guineas, the second seats \\ guinea, third seats i Guinea : seats in the shop, which is very pleasant i Guinea each : a two pair front room, with 3 windows, for a large party, at 20 Guineas for the day, an excellent prospect. Also a 3 pair of stairs front room which has a capital view of the Churchyard, for 12 Guineas. Ladies and Gentlemen will be accommodated with sight of the procession at the west end of the Town, where they may have small rooms, or large, on moderate terms, that is to say, a very handsome dining-room for 15 Guineas, a small room adjoining for 5 Guineas, large room, 2 pair, for 10 Guineas, small room adjoining for 4 Guineas, by applying to Mr. Farrance, Pastry Cook, the Corner of Spring Gardens, Charing Cross." — {Times, Dec. 12, 1797.) " The eight cream-coloured horses belonging to the King's State-Coach, are every morning drove to St. Paul's Church to train them to the flags in Queen Ann's Church-yard." — {Times, Dec. 14, 1797.) "In England the amount of French prisoners is 23,600. In France the British do not exceed 1500." — {Times, Dec. 14. I797-) In an article of half a column length (Times, Jan. 8, 1 798), treating of the French Prisoners of v^ar — the follow- ing is the concluding paragraph : — " In respect to the quantity of their allowance, we state, on the most certain authority, that their sub- sistence is a pound of bread, and half a pound of good fresh beef, every day in the week, together with a full proportion of vegetables. A subsistence which thou- sands of our own poor would be glad to have." "The firm conduct of our Government in refusing any y 2,^S Old Times. longer to make advances for the maintenance of French Prisoners, has had the good effect of obliging the Executive Directory to come forward with the necessary supplies, and as the French agents have now the whole management of this concern, we shall no longer be subject to their odious calumnies against the humanity of this country. The number of French prisoners in England, amounts to about 22,000; the Dutch prisoners are about 2,500. The daily cost of these men, since the French agents had the charge of them, has been ;^i,37o sterhng a day (about IS. id. each) : and their annual expence is upwards of One Million sterling. The number of English prisoners in France does not exceed 4000." — {Times, Feb. 27, 179S.) "Southampton was thrown into consternation on Saturday morning, by an event which was variously reported by different narrators in the course of the day; but, 'ere night, all ideas of French spies, false Emigrants, Szc, subsided, and the event turned out to be ' that three French prisoners from Por- chester, had made their escape to Southampton.' A party of pleasure had engaged Wassell^s vessel to go to the Isle of Wight. At an early hour on Saturday morning, on repairing to the Quay, the man could not discover his pleasure boat. Every one was concerned for his loss, and many hours elapsed before any tidings could be heard of her, when some fishing boats gave information that they had met her near Calshot Castle, about three o'clock in the morning, but had no suspicion she had been run away with. In the ev-ening, news arrived, that in steering, to keep as far from Spithead as possible, the Frenchmen were near running on shore at Eide. This cir- cumstance convinced the pilots that Wassell was not on board when they went to her assistance, secured the three French men, and saved the vessel for the owner." — {Times, July 2, I799-) " * To which university,' said a lady, some time since, to the late sagacious Dr. Warren, 'shall I send my Son?' — 'Madam,' replied he, 'they drink, I believe, near the same quantity of port in each of them.'" — {Times, Feb. 19, 179S.' Old Times. -^-^^ It was in this year that Jenner first wrote on Vaccina- tion. The following paragraph refers to Inoculation, which was introduced into England, circa l/lS, by Lady Mary Wortley Montague, who had seen it practised in Turkey : — ^'■Memento 7iarare multis officiiim alterius. — Vix. W. Holt, Surgeon, of the parish of Tottenham High Cross, has generously undertaken (within the last two months) to inocu- late the poorer part of the inhabitants of the parish, for the small pox, which he has done (and that gratis) to the amount of some hundreds, the whole of which number have done well, not one patient excepted. The above act is praise- worthy, and will redound much to ]\Ir. Holt's honour. It is to be hoped the above example will be followed by other Medical Gentlemen, if so, in a few years we shall not see, as we now daily do, the ill-effects of that dreadful disease, the small pox, in the natural way." — {Times, March 28, 1798.) '■'Previous to the Humane Society's Procession (at the London Tavern, next Tuesday) of those who have been restored to life tins year, an Introductory Dialogue, written after the manner of Virgil's pathetic and beautiful pastorals, by John Gretton Esqre, will be spoken by two young Gentlemen. Rising genius was fully experienced at the last Anniversary. What then must not be the gratification to a British heart, where to the solemn scene of our resuscitated brethren,^ is superadded the efforts of these able advocates in the cause of humanity, and the sublime views of this most excellent Institution?" — {Times, April 14, 1798.) "ANECDOTE. " It is a fact of which we can assure our readers, that the following extraordinary Letter was sent to a worthy Baronet not a hundred miles from Whitehall. It was tied round the neck of an unfortunate animal, who, we are sorry to say, ^ The persons recovered during the year, by the instrumentality of the Society, appeared in solemn procession at the anniversary dinner. 340 Old Times, appears to have been made the victim of party malice, and the unfeeling passions of men : "THE RATS LETTER. (" Health and F^rt!/ernity.) "SiR^ — I am a despem/e Rat, gm/ified indeed in the present opportunity of congra/ulating you, though lately separ^/ed from my family and connexions, having been caught in the gra/ing of ]\Ir. Pitt's cage, in Downing St., prostr^/'e at his feet, I escaped death, and even castra/ion, in the considerrt'rion that I belong to your worthy fr^/ernity, and upon condition that I should inform you of certain truths, however gr^/ing. Since the discovery of the conspiz-ar/ors, your ora/ions have not been under^'/ed, for they have not been r^/ional. If your treaty with them has been r^/ified, you will be well scra/ched, and so forbear pm/ing for the present. Besides it is a desidera/um that you should have nothing to say to ]\Ir, Gr(7/tan, and that you should not Co-oper^/e with the Irish- ]Ma;-^/s. Let your narr^'/ions concerning i?^/isbon, or y^rt-Zstadt, be modera/e, and endeavour to make repam/ion for all the nonsense you have talked, and the mischief you have not opera/ed. Sequestra/e yourself with your venera/ed old Aunts, and deal out ^-^/ions of oatmeal, and cheese, to your prizing br^/s, whom everybody commiser^'/es, and arbitrrt'/e betw^een cowherds, and bullock drivers. Demonstr^/e that you are a wise man in your genera/ion : Exempli gr^/ia, this year, having been beat blind by the bulk of bullocks, try next to run down your successor in a race of amelior^/ed Rats. Full of admira/ion, and great gr^/itude, I give you the frrt'/ernal hug, and ratt myself, with great considerrt-Zion, without altera/ion. Your gra/eful Yrattx (Gr^r/is) " Democ/-^/." — {Times, June d^, i79S-) " We arc sorry to hear that the Rat that wrote the famous letter, was cruelly murdered by the enraged servants. The Rat is now said to have been over-driven, and made mad in Downing St., in order that he might scratch the Knight into the C«/-aphobia. He anxiously expects thej f^Aastrophe. Old Times. 341 The Rafz letter has very much exaspe?'rt'/ed the Worthy Baronet to whom he addressed it." — {Times, June 8, 1798.) " Colonel Tvviss, and other officers of the engineers, have been employed by government to examine a proposition made by a Mr. Dodd, for forming a tunnel under the River Thames, from Gravesend, to Tilbury." — {Times, July 16, 1798.) " Toii'cr Hill is soon to lose that name, and, in compliment to the Trinity House, it is in future to be called Trinity Square.'^ — {Times, July 16, 1798.) They knew how to puff — in those days : — " Advt. — Thirty Thousand Pounds gained for Five shiUings, without a Lottery. A Gentleman of the Navy had, for some time, been paying his addresses to a Tady of Fortune, and gained her affections : being suddenly ordered off to the West Indies, the marriage was deferred until his return. On arriving at St. Domingo, he was attacked by the Yellow Fever, which appeared externally in scabby eruptions, arising from living in too free a manner in that destructive climate, which disfigured his face so much, that, on his return to England, the Lady was disgusted, and broke off the match. This turn so affected the Gentleman that a slow nervous fever resulted, which reduced him so low that his recovery was despaired of. Fortunately, an officer of the Guards, his intimate friend, calling on him, told him he thought the per- usal of Dr. Brodum's Guide to Old Age would be of service : and, in consequence, purchased a Guide for five shillings, which, with the aid of the Dr.'s Botanical Syrup, completely restored him, and on calling on the Lady after his recovery, she was so well-pleased at his healthy appearance, as to immediately consent to unite herself with him, and make over a fortune of ;^3o,ooo." — {Times, Nov, 20, 1798.) " A story is told at Brighton of a certain Baronet having been most cruelly imposed upon by some young Bucks, at that place, who sent him a pretended letter from the wife of a Dentist, requesting a tender interview. The Baronet flew to 342 Old Times. her lodgings on the wings of love, but the first person he met was her husband. The Baronet, with a ready attention to pro- fessional circumstances, said he came to ask advice for the toothache: the operator rejoined, that an extraction was the most certain cure, and the unfortunate Baronet actually sub- mitted to an incision in his jaw, to save the rest of it from being broken." — {I'imes, Nov. 30, 1798.) " This being the first day of May, Mrs. Montague will give her annual entertainment of roast beef, and plum-pudding, to the Chimney-sweepers of the Metropolis, in the court yard of her house in Portman Square, in commemoration of discovering her child among them, long after it had been trepanned away." -—{Times, May i, 1799.) "The donations given by Mrs. Montague, of Portman Square, every May-day, proceed from pure benevolence towards the distressed poor. The story, which has been generally believed, of her having once lost a child, who was trepanned from her house, is wholly unfounded." — {Times, May 2, 1799.) "The Lady Mayoress is in the straw, and the Bambino, according to the customs of the City, is to be rocked in a cradle of solid silver. This is a very ancient privilege, and, as it costs the City about Five Hundred Pounds, the Aldermen will probably look twice, before they elect family men again with their wives in the family way." — {Times, July i, 1799.) What occasioned the following ? " Such senseless extravagance as eating Bank notes has not been known since the French Courtezan, who curled her hair with them : or the days of Cleopatra, who swallowed a jewel as a rich repast." — {Times, Aug. 22, 1799.) The singular belief that used to obtain, and still is prevalent, especially among the lower classes, that a man might sell his wife to any bidder, provided that he did so in open market, and with a halter round her neck, was in full force at the latter end of the 1 8th Century. Old Times. 343 That this belief has not died out may be seen in an article on " Wife Selling," by my brother, in " All the year Round" 20th Dec. 1884, in which he cites cases as recently as 1862, 1870, 1881 — and two in 1882 — in one of which, the wife was sold for a glass of ale, and the other, for a penny and a dinner. " By some mistake, or omission, in the report of the Smith- field Market, we have not learned the average price of wives for the last week. " The increasing value of s}\e.fair sex is esteemed by several eminent writers as the certain criterion of increasing civiliza- tion. Smithfield has, on this ground, strong pretensions to refined improvement, as the price of Wives has risen in that market from half a guinea, to three guineas and a half." — {Ti>nes, July 22, 1797.) " An Hostler's wife, in the country, lately fetched twenty-five guineas. We hear there is to be a sale of wives soon at Christie's. We have no doubt they will soon go off well." — {Ti?nes, Sept. i9» I797-) " On Friday a butcher exposed his wife to sale in Smithfield Market, near the Ram Inn, with a halter about her neck, and one about her waist, which tied her to a railing, when a hog- driver was the happy purchaser, who gave the husband three guineas, and a crown, for his departed rib. Pity it is, there is no stop put to such depraved conduct in the lower order of people." — {Times, /uly i8, 1797.) "On Saturday evening last, John Lees, steel-burner, sold his wife for the small sum of ()d. to Samuel Hall, fell-monger, both of Sheffield. Lees gave Hall one guinea immediately, to have her taken off to Manchester the day following by the coach : she was delivered up with a halter round her neck, and the clerk of the market received 4^. for toll. It would be well if some law was inforced to put a stop to such degrading traffic ! ! (Sheffield Register) "—{Times, March 30, 1796.) 344 Old Times. " At the last sale of wives there was but a poor show though there were plenty of bidders. One alone went off well, being bought by a Taylor, who outbid eight of his competitors." — {Thnes, Dec. 2, 1797.) Advt " To THE Curious. J. Harrison begs leave to inform his Friends, and the Public, that he has, for sale, a great variety of grafted Gooseberry Plants, in pots, with red, white, and black Currants growing on each, the fruit of the finest flavour : and handsome standard Currant Trees, 5 feet high, with red, white, and black, fruit on each, likewise dwarf Apple Trees, handsome plants, suitable for the borders of pleasure gardens, being full of fine fruit. Gentlemen and Ladies are invited to come and view his plants, now the fruits are on them, at his Nursery, opposite the Turks Head, half-way to Deptford Upper Road." — {Times, Aug. 9, 1799.) " When the order for the embargo was received at Graves- end, two hoys, the one for Margate, the other for Ramsgate, lay off the town, and were immediately subjected to the restric- tion. One had nearly 200 persons on board, the other, upwards of 150 ; they were obliged to land, and the place not affording accommodation for so large, and unexpected, an influx of com- pany, a whimsical scene of confusion, disorder, and embarrass- ment, ensued : some in carts, (Sic, got on to Rochester, and Can- terbury : but, owing to the march, and embarkation of troops, all the carriages, and horses, on the road were engaged, and several days elapsed before these unfortunate people reached the place of their destination." — {Times, Aug. 19, 1799.) "Lately died at Lynn, in her 78th year Miss Mary Breese. She never lived out of the parish she was born in, was a remarkable sportswoman, regularly took out her shooting license, kept as good greyhounds, and was as sure a shot, as was in the county. At her desire, her dogs, and her favourite mare, were killed at her death, and buried in one grave." — {Times, Oct. 8, 1799.) " Late on Sunday evening last a beautiful Circassian arrived at the Turkish Ambassador's Hotel. She was brought from -Oi?^ Old Times. 345 Smyrna in the ' Princess^ Capt. W. Lee, as a present from the Grand Seignior to his Excellency the Ambassador, She is peculiarly elegant, and beautiful, and was escorted hither by six black eunuchs. The Ambassador showed great attention to Capt. Lee on account of the care he had taken of his mistress." — {Times, Dec. 19, 1799.) " The fair Circassian has not yet made her appearance in public. A very splendid equipage is now building in Long Acre for her. Several of our dashing young men of fashion have offered themselves as drivers to the Eastern beauty." — {Times, Dec. 24, 1799.) I have not been able to trace the fate of this lady — she was only a nine days' wonder in fashionable society. INDEX. Abington, Mrs., the actress, 189, 190 "Academy of Sciences and Belles Lettres," 222 Actresses of good birth, 194, 195 Adams, Daniel, 23 Advertisement, curious, in the Times, 325. 330 Albany, Duchess of, 3 Aldermen, regulate price of bread, 148 ; visit fraudulent bakers, 150 Aliens, 16, 22 All fours, 180 Ancient Music, Concert of, 226 Androides, 228 Anecdote of Lady E., 330 Angerstein, John Julius, 248, 249, 261 Anson, Hon. Thomas, 59 Anspach, Margrave of, 147, 193, 216 Apprentice, cruel treatment of an, 268 Archer, Lady, 71, 166, 167, 168, 169, 177, 179 Arms, seizure of in Ireland, 44 Army, strength of, 36 ; patriotic gifts to, by ladies, 95 ; convicts enrolled, 95 ; French emigrants enrolled, 95 ; curious enlistment, 97, 98 ; kidnapping, 98, 99, lOO, loi, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 ; young officers, 107, 108 ; soldiers' bread, 109 ; bounty for soldiers, no; courtmartial, in; sale of commissions, in, 11 2-; hair powder dispensed with, 130 " Army of England," 42 Arnold, Dr., musical composer, 196, 207 Artificers, enticing, punishment for, 270 Ashurst, Mr. Justice, 34 Assessed taxes, 131, 132 Assize of bread, 148 Astrology, 316 Automata, 228, 229 B Baddeley, the actor, 187 Bailiffs imprisoned, 268 Bakers, fraudulent, 150 Bakewell, Robert, agriculturist, 299 Ballet and Opera, 204, 211 Bangor, Bishop of, indicted for riot, 322 Bank Bill, singular recovery of, 315 Bank of England, 37, 44 Bank notes, issue of, 37 ; £\ and £2, 237 ; interest on a, 322 ; eating them, 342 Bannister, the actor, 1 88 Barber's shop, inscription over, 318 Baring, Sir Francis, 288 Barrington, the pickpocket, 245 Barrymore, the actor, 188 Barrymore, Lord, his wager, 29S ;48 Index. Bartholomew Fair, history of, 32S ; description of, 329 Bartolozzi, 220 Bath, its cliartcr, 312 ; its freedom, 330 Bath, knights of the, installation supper, 1 14 Bathing-ladies, 312 Bear's grease, 58 Beau, a, 56 Beef, price of, 146 Bedford, Duke of, 24, 25, 61, 1S5, 298, 306 Bellamy, Mrs., 190 Bernard, Mrs., the actress, 190 Bigg, W.R., A.R.A., 227 Billington, Mrs., 1S9, 225 Black servants, (Indented), 313 Blood, a, 54 Boarding schools, advance in price of, 146 Boarding schools, lady's, 320 Bonaparte, (see Napoleon) Bond Street Lounge, the, 64, 76 Borouwlaski, Jos., 222 Boswell, James, 230 Bounty for soldiers, no Bourgeois, Sir Francis, 196 Bow Street Runners, 244 Bowes, Mr., 185 Bowyer, Admiral, 26 Box-lobby loungers, 200 Bread, household, recommended by Privy Council, 138 ; subscriptions to reduce price of to the poor, 139 ; noblemen, &c., pledge them- selves to cat household bread, 140 ; to make good bread, 141 ; to consume but little, 143, 144 ; bread used at the Royal table, 147 ; price regulated by the Aldermen, 148 ; assize of bread, 148 ; short weight of, 150 Bridgewater, Duke of, 61 Bridport, Lord, 38, 39 Brighton, dress, 52 ; company at, 326 Brothers, Lieut, (a pretended pro- phet), 317 Bruni, vocalist, 209 Brunton, Miss, the actress, 190 Buck, a, 54 Buckingham, RLarquis of, 42 Buckinghamshire, Lady, 166, 167, 168, 172, 177, 179 " Bull," a, 318 Bullock stealing, punishment for, 270 Burke, Edmund, 16 Bute, Lord, 304 Butter, price of, 146 CAMBACERitS, 50 Camelford, Lord, 93, 94 Camperdown, \'ictory off, 42 " Campus nautica," 321 Cant phrases, 200, 201 Canterbury, Archbishop of, 1 78 Capital punishment, 246, 265, 266 Card money, 176 Cards, unstamped, 181 Caricature sellers, 320 Carlisle, Earl of, 43 Carlisle House, 218, 220, 222, 223 Cask, large one at Meux's Brewery, 316 Cassino, I So, iSi, Cat, funeral of a, 306 Chamber Music, 225 Chaplaincy, sale of, 112 Charing Cross, kidnapping riots at, 98, 99, 100, loi, 102 Charlotte, Queen, 2, 5, 6, 7, 26, 31, 33. 44, 294 Chatham, Earl of, 29, 305 Choice spirit, a, 54 Christmas boxes, 117 Chudleigh, Miss (afterwards Duchess of Kingston), 76 Cibber, ]\Irs., 190 Cipriani, 220 Circassian, the fair, 344 Clarence, Duke of, 1S9, 194, 209, 216, 295 Clergyman's stipend, curious, 315 Clerical pluralists, 335 Clive, Mrs., the actress, 1S9 Clothes, cost of, 62 Clubs, the Transalpine, 331 ; the Ubiqiiarian, 331 Coals, price of, 155, 156 Cockade, disuse of, 331 Coffin, a patent, 330 Coin, base, 239, 240, 241, 242, 272, 273. 306 Commercial failures, 232, 233, 234 Commissions in the army, sale of, III, 112 Common Council and dinners, 136 ; ofler bounty for fish brought to market, 137 ; abolition of dinners, 142 i ij ^.. \m Index. ;49 Concannon, Mrs., 171, 172, 177, 179 Conceits, 226 Convicts, cost of transportation, 269 ; a jocular, 271 Cooper's Fair, abolition of, 332 Cornelys, Mdme., 212, 217, 219, 222, 223 Cornwallis, Lord, 45 Corpse seized by bailiffs, 313 Corresponding Society, 29 "Coterie, the," 221 Court dresses, 59 Covent Garden Theatre, 31 " Coventry Act," the, 249 Cricket match for 1000 guineas, 319 ; one-armed and one-legged match, 326 Croix, M. de la, 42 Crop, a, 57, 61, 62, 64, 12S Crouch, Mrs., 189, 205 " Culloden," Mutiny on board of the, 85, 86 Cumberland, Duke of, 2-6-220 256 Curates, increase of stipend, 31S Curtis, Sir Roger, 25, 26 D Dandy, a, 56 Death, singular, 315 Deaths, extraordinary number of, in I795> 316 Debiy, Jean, 66 Debtors, 266, 267, 316, 336 Dentist, anecdote of a, 341 Derby, Lord, 185, 1S9 Devonshire, Duke of, 129 Didelot, a dancer, 212, 213 Dignum, the vocalist, 196 Dillon, Viscount, iii Dimsdale, Sir Harry (Mayor of Garratt), 289, 290, 292 Dockwra, 21 Dogs, tax on, 128 Dog-kennels, 306 Dollars, forgery of, 238 ; issue of, 235, 236, 237, 238 Don Giovanni, opera of, 209 Douglas, Capt. Sir A., 87 Draper's Company, the, 139 Drury, Anecdote of Captain, 91 Drury Lane Theatre, 195 Duels, 275, 276 Duncan, Admiral, 42 Dundas, Mr,, 84 Dunstan, Sir Jeffrey (Mayor of Garratt), 292 Durham, Bishop of, 213, 214 E East India Company, 138 Effingham, Lord, 54 Egremont, Lord, 185 Elcho, Lady, 176 Elections, see Politics Elliston, the actor, 188 Elopement, advertisement respecting an, 319 Elopement with a negro, 26S Embargo, 344 Emigrants, French, 276, 277, 27S, 279, 322 Enlistment, curious, 97, 98 E. O., 173, 181, 182, 185 Epigram, on a dull sermon, 319 Erskine, Mr., robbery at the house of, 320 " Factotum, Isaac," 300 Farms, large or small, 137, 138 Faro, 167, 16S, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173. 174, 179 Farren, the actor, 190 Farren, Miss, 189, 197 Fast, General, 47 Feadle, Jimmy Lincum, 56 Feathers, 75 Fees to servants, 160 Fitzgerald, Lord Edward, 44 Fitzherbert, Mrs., 196, 305 Fitzroy, Lady Ann, 107, 108 Food, 135 Food riots, 28, 261 Footmen, dissatisfaction of, 331 Forestalling, 150, 152 Fox, Charles James, 5, 25, 27, 31, 169 France, war with, iS Franking letters, 121, 122, 123 Frederick the Great, 204 French emigrants, 13, 14, 15, 22, 276, 277, 278, 279, 338 French, Invasion of Ireland and defeat, 45, 46 French prisoners, numbers in Eng- land, 50, 337 350 Index. French Revolution, 8, 13, 17, 21, 22 Friih, 'John, threw a stone at the King, 10 Frost, great, 4, 37, 328 Funds, the, 234, 235 Fuseli, H., 227 Gallini, Sir John, 208, 209 Gaming, 166 Gardner, Admiral, 26' Garratt, account of, 290 ; election for, 289, 290, 291, 292 Gell, Admiral, 87 George III., his illness in 17S8, 3 ; his recovery, 6 ; thanksgiving, goes to St. Paul's, 7 ; stone thrown at his coach, 10 ; message to Parliament declaring war with France, 18 ; inspects the guards, 20 ; shot at and hissed, 29 ; stone thrown into his carriage, 33 ; asked to dismiss liis Ministry, 41 ; gives ;i^20,ooo as patriotic sub- scription, 44 ; reviews volunteers in Hyde Park, 48 ; inspects vol- unteers, 49 ; receives a letter from Napoleon, 50 ; eafs brown bread, . 147 ; at the theatre, 193 ; lets his cream coloured horses for hire, 295,296 Gibbon, death of, 230 Giornovici, musical composer, 196 Gloucester, Duchess of, 106 Gloucester, Duke of, 2-29, 220, 256 Gloves, stamps on, 300 Gluttonous wager, 335 Gooseberries, curious, 344 Gordon, Lady Georgiana, 76 Gordon, Lord George, i Government appointments, sale of, 117, 118, 119 Grenville, Lord, 42, 50 Grey, Charles Earl, 27, 34 Grey, Mr., M.P., epigram on, 2S5 Grosvenor, Lord, 185 Guadagni, vocalist, 221 Guildford, Earl of, 24 Guildhall dinner, ticket for, 335 Guimard, Mdlle., ballet dancer, 211 Gypsies at Norwood, 332 H Hair, false, 73, 74 Hair-powder, 60, 61, 73, 12S, 129, 130 Halfpence, bad, 239, 240 Hamilton, Duke of, 152 Hampden, Lord, 172 Handbill, curious, 300 Hanway, Jonas, 56 Hardy, Thomas, 23, Harrington, Lady, 33 Harrison, the vocalist, 196 Harvest, bad, 27, 28 Hastings, Warren, his trial, 2 Hats, stamp on, 270 Hats, subscription for, 131 Hectors, 54 Highway robberies, 262 Hill, Sir Rowland, 21 Hobart, Mrs., 169, 171, 194 Hogs, number of, 147 Holland, French occupation of, 26, English defeat, 27 Holman, the actor, 189 Hood, Sir Alexander, 26 Horses, the royal cream coloured, 29s. 296, 337 Horse racing, 1S4, 185 Howe, Lord, 25-26-38, 39, 310, 311 Humbert, General, 45, 46 Hyde Park, 308 Ice, 321 Illuminations, 310, 311 Incledon, the singer, 188, 206 Impromptu, an, 300 Income ta.x, 132 Informer, common, punishment of a, 271, 272 Inoculation for small-pox, 338, 339 Inspection of volunteers, 49 Insurance against being drawn for militia, 112 Invasion of England, 40, 41 Ireland, French invasion of, 45, 46 Ireland, rebellion in, 44, 46 Ireland, union with England, 47 Ireland, Sam., 202 Ireland^ W. H., 202, 203 Jackson, W., musical composer, 207, 208 Index, oD Jenner, Dr., 338 Jerse}', Lady, anecdote of, 320 Jervis, Sir John (Lord St. Vincent), 41 Jessamy, a, 54 Job-masters, knavery of, 15S Johnson, Dr. S., 230 Johnstone, the actor, 189 Jordan, Mrs., 1S9, 191, 192, 193, 197, 216 Joyce, Rev. Jeremiah, 23 June, glorious first of, 25, 310, 311 K Kean, Edmund, 1S9 Kelly, the vocalist, 196, 199,206, 207 Kelsey's, 108 Kemble, John, 187, 191, 196, 203 Kensington Gardens, 307, 30S Kenyon, Lord, 34, 178, 179 Ketch, Jack, 266 Kidnapping for the army, 98, 99, 100, loi, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 Killala, landing of French at, 45 Lade, Lady, 314 Lade, Sir John, his wager with Lord Cholmondeley, 320 "Lady's Monthly Museum," 68 Lake, Lord, 45 Lashes, one thousand given, 1 1 1 Law and police, 243 Lawsuit, a long, 270 Lawyers, number of, 271 Le Brun, 50 Lemons, price of, 154 Letters, franking, I2I, 122, 123; rates for, 123 Letters of marque, 19 Lewis, the actor, 190 Linley, Thos., musical composer, 207, 208 Litchfield, Bishop of, 43 Livery Servants, petition from, 316 Lloyd's, 26 Loan, 42 ; subscriptions to, 43 London, port of, commerce of, 321 Longevity, 309, 322, 332 Lorn, Marquis of, 60 Lotteries, 17S, 184 Lotteries, private, 182, 183 Lough Swilly, defeat of tlie French off, 46 Louis XVL, 17 Loyalty loan, 36 Lucifer matches, 297 Ludgate Prison, 266, 267 Lunatics, treatment of, 2j8 Luttrell, Lady Elizabeth, 179 Luxembourg, Duke of, 305 M Macaroni, the, 53, 274 Macdonald, John, 55 ^Licklin, the actor, 18S Mackworth, Sir Robert, 59 Malmesbury, Lord, 35, 42, 293, 294 Mansion House, riot at the, 308, 309 Mara, Mdlle., vocalist, 204, 206, 209 March, Lord, 64 IMargate, 65 ; a day at, 323 ; crowded state of, 335 Marlborough, Duchess of, 191, 223 Marlborough, Duke of, 43 Marston, Mr., his bet, 185 Martyr, Mrs., the actress, 190 Masquerades, 215, 223 I^Iatrimonial advertisements, 301, 302, 303, 304 Matrimonial Magazine, the, 303 Meat, high price of, 152 Mechanic Theatre, 228 Medicinal waters, 317 Menageries, 309, 310 Mendoza, the prize fighter, 274 IMen's dress, 50 Merveilleux, the, 57 Milford, Lord, 40 Militia, 97, III, 112 Millerd, vocalist, 209 Milton Gallery (H. Fuseli's), 227. 228 Mohock?, 54 Moira, Lord, 278 Monetary, 232 ct seq. Money and jewels, great find of, 315. 316 "Monster, the," 247 to 261 IMontague, Mrs., the chimney sweeps' friend, 341, 342 Moritz, Peter, 186 Mount Edgcumbe, Lady, 177 Munden, the actor, 189 Muns, 54 Musical composers, 207 Mutiny in the navy, 37, 38, 39, 40, 85, 86 Mutton, price of, 151, 153 352 Index. N Napoleon I., 42, 47. 5° "Natural History," 301 Navy, ships commissioned, 8; press- ing for, 8, 9, 10, 19, 83, 84, 85 ; bounty for sailors, 20 ; strength of, 36 ; mutiny in, 37, 38, 39, 40 ; victory off Cape St. Vincent, 41 ; victory off Camperdown, 42 ; defeat of French off Lough Swilly, 46 ; battle of the Nile, 46 ; 'treatment of seamen, 80 ; pressgang described by Smollet, 81 ; mutiny on board the Cullo- den, 85, 86 ; recruiting for, 86, 87 ; prize money, 87, 88 ; parishes raise men, 89, 90; mutilation to avoid service, 90, 91 ; a female sailor, 94 Needlework, curious, 228 Negro, elopement with, 268 Newgate, number of prisoners there- in,'247 ; dancing party therein, 250 Newland, Abraham, 36 Newspapers, hire of, forbidden, 133 New South Wales, colonization of, I Nile, battle of the, 46 Norfolk, Duke of, his dislike to water, 305 Northumberland, Duchess of, 129 Norwood, Gypsies at, 332 Novels, 231 Oats, bmising of, 143 Officers in the army, youth of, 107, 108 Opera, loud talking at, 21 1 Opera and Ballet, 204 Opium, taking, 331 Orange, Prince of, 26 Orrery, sale of Lord Bute's, 304 Oxford (city of), 43; University print book for benefit of French clergy, 328 Paget, Hon. Mr., 60, 61 Palmer, the actor, 191 Pantheon Theatre, 212, 215, 22 1 Parishes raise men {or the navj', 89, 90 Parisot, Mdlle., ballet dancer, 212, 213 Parker, Rd. (mutineer), 40 Pasley, Admiral, 26 Pastry, disuse of, 138, 139 Patriotic gifts, 42, 43 Paul's, St., procession to, 336 Pavement, bad, 165, 166 Pawnbrokers rates, 133, 134 Peace, rumour of, 32 ; debate on, 34 ; negotiations for, 35 ; failure of, 36 ; negotiations for, 42 Peas, price of green, 153, 154. 322 Peel, Mr., 43 Penance, a butcher doing, 331 Penny Post, 21, 119, 120 Peterson, Lieut, (shot by Lord Camelford), 92 Phillips, Capt., first Governor of New South Wales, I Pidcock's Menagerie, 309 Pillory, curious case, 247 Piozzi, Mrs., 230 Pitt, WilUam, 5, 6, 13, 27, 32, 34, 36, 37,41. 84, 88, 105, 131, 132, 233, 234, 287 Pluralists, 335 Police and law, 243 Politics, 2S0 to 292 Poor, rules for the, 145 Pope, the actor, 1S9, 190 Pope, Mrs., the actress, iSS, 190 Popham, Captain, 93, 94 Portland, Duke of, 29, 30, 33, 4°. 45. 131 , , Portland estate, value of, 321 Posting, 158 Post Office, franking letters, 1 2 1, 122, 123; rates for letters, 123; uniform for men, 124 Potatoes, bounty for growing, 1 35 ; price of, 151 Poultry, scarcity of, 138 Pressing for the navy, 8, 9, ID, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85 Pretender, (Prince Charles Edward), death of, 3 Priestley, Dr., 2S7 Princesses, the Royal, 295 Prisoners of war in France, 109, 1 10 Prize fighters, list of, 274 Prize fighting, 273, 274 Prize money, 87, 88 Procession, Royal, to St. Paul's, 336 Promethean fire and phosphorus, 297 Provisions, price of, 136; sugges- tions for economy, 142 Public Houses, 134, 135. Index. 353 Publicans and pint pots, 327 ; and "showmen," 336 Puff, a, 341 Pulteney, Miss, coming of age, 297 Q. QUEENSBERRY, Duke of, 60, 185 Quick, the actor, 171, 188 R. Rain beau, a, 57 Ramsgate, 325 Rat's letter, the, 339 Regrating, 150, 153 Reinagle, P., 227 Resurrection men, 262, 263, 264, 265 Review of Volunteers in Hyde Park, 48 Rich, rules for the, 144 "Ride, a delightful," 159 Riding lessons, price of, 157 Road, the, and streets, 157 Robinson, Mrs., the actress, 192 Rose, Miss, ballet dancer, 212, 213, 214 Ross, the hairdresser, 65 Roulette, 173 Royal family, domesticity of, 295 " Royal George," loss of, 80 Royalty, 293, 294, 295, 296 Russell, Lord W., 61 Russia, Emperor of, 93, 94 Ryder, the actor, 188 Sacrilege, 330 St. George's Fields, kidnapping riots at, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 St. Jean d'Acre, 47 St. Paul's clock strikes wrongly, 31S St. Vincent Cape, victory off, 41 Sale of Government appointments, 117, 118, 119 Scarborough, Earl of, 54 Scourers, 54 Sea Kale, 154 Sedition, see Politics September 14th (commencement of partridge shooting), 333 Servants, fees to, 160 Servants wages, &c., 115, 116, 117 Seven shilling pieces, issue of, 239 Sheep (Dishley), price of, 299 " Shepherds, I have lost my waist," 72 Sheridan, Richard Brinsley, 17, 196, 202, 207 Shield, W., musical composer, 207 Shillings, bad, 240, 241, 242 Shopmen, manners of, 314 Siddons, Mrs., 189, 191, 196 Silver, scarcity of, 235, 236, 237 Skeffington, Mr., 59 Slave trade, abolition of, 11, 12, 20, 27 Smart, a, 55 Smock Race, a, 322 Social Economy, 114 "Society, The," 218 Sorocokl, the engineer, 1S6 Soup, consumption of, 136 Spas, 317 Spencer, a, (>t„ 64 Spencer, Earl, 63 Sportswoman, a, 344 Spring guns set in a garden, 299 Stage coaches, 163 Stage wagon, 159 Stanhope, Earl, 23-26 Stationers Company, dinner at the, 146 Statue of George HI. at Pall Mail, 49 Storace, S., musical composer, 207, 208 ^ Storace, Signora, the vocalist, 196, 197, 205 Storm, destructive, 32 Story, a " tall," 301 Strathmore, Earl of, 185 Sturt, Mrs., 167, 169, 172, 179 Suett, Rd., 187, 199 Sussex, Duke of, 225 Talbot, Miss, (the female sailor), 94 Talleyrand, 50 Telegraph, the, 1 24, 125, 126, 127, 128 Thames, embankment, 327 ; tunnel under, 340 Thames frozen, 4, 266 Thanksgiving for the king's recovery from illness, 7 Theatre, the, 187 Theatres, private, 201 Thelwall, John, 23 Z 354 Index. Thrale, Mrs., 230 Thurlow, Lord, 2, 6, 30, 196 Titiretus, 54 Tooke, Rev. John Ilorne, 23 Topaz, a cheap, 298 Townsend, (Bow street runner), 196, 245 Trinity Square first named, 340 Tunnel under the Thames, 340 Twopenny pieces, issue of, 239 Tythes, story respecting, 319 U Umbrellas, 55 University, choice of a, 338 Vaccination, 338 Varieties, 297 to end VilUers, Lord, 61 Vinegar Hill, battle of, 45 Volunteers, 24, 48, 49, 95, 96, 98, 113 Vortigern and Rowena, 202 W Wake, Kidd, 32, 33 Wales, Prince of, 2, 5-7, 33, 51, 169, 194, 196, 209, 215, 216, 274', 293, 294, 295, 296 Wales, Princess of, 76, 293, 294, 295. 314 Waltz, the, 321 Warren, Sir John Borlase, 46 Watchmen, 243, 244 Waters, medicinal, 317 Water wheels at London Bridge, 185, 186 i Wells, Mrs., the actress, 190 Westmoreland, Lord, 30, 31 Wheat, bounty on, 28 ; cheapness of, 34; scarcity of, 135; rise in price, 138 Whist, 180 Whitbread, Samuel, 24 Wife selling, 342, 343 Wilberforce, W^illiam, ir, 12, 20, 27 Wilkes, John, 311 Williams, Renwick (the Monster), 247 to 261 Willis, Dr., 4, 61 Willis's Rooms, 224 Willoughby de Broke, Lord, 60 Windsor uniform, 64 Wines, price of, 155 Women's dress, 69 Worcester, Marquis of, 125 Wormholt Scrubs, nuisance on, 330 X YZ Yanievitz, the actor, 19S York, Cardinal, 3 York, Duchess of, 70, 295 York, Duke of, 2, 6, 20, 107, 256, 277, 295 THE END. PRINTED BY BALLANTVNE HANSON AND CO. EDINBURGH AND LONDON. Bff^ FEBRUARY i88s. PUBLICATIONS JOHN C. NIMMO, 14 KING WILLIAM STREET, STRAND, LONDON, V/.C. ■FT-TW3I Publications of John C. Nimmo, PROSPECTUS. J[Mbe ::^li3abctban dramatists. Post %vo, cloth. Published price^ ^s. 6d. net per volume. Note. — The type will be distributed after each work is printed, the impression of which will be four hundred copies, post 8vo, and one hundred and twenty large fine-paper copies, medium 8vo, which will be numbered. To realise the supremacy of Shakespeare we must be acquainted with the writings of his contemporaries. Such masterpieces as Dr. I-austiis, the Duchess of Malfi, and the Maid's Tragedy are of the highest value in preparing the student to appreciate the unique power of Lear and Macbeth and Othello. But putting aside Shakespearean considerations, it may be justly said that there is no study more fascinating to thoughtful men than the study of the Elizabethan Dramatists. 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