A NARROW ESCAPE.

4
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254 [June 27,1874.] ALL THB TBAB BOUND.
and ite mud-pond ? " Tuesday afternoon—a
ionmeyman cabinet maker went
into a little piece of water, in a field
at the back of Portland-square, to
bathe: he jumped in ; but there being
very little water, and a great quantity
of mud, he was suffocated in a few
minutes." Wych-street had its open-air
performances of a kind somewhat different
from those of the well-conducted little
theatre since erected in that narrow
locality. An Irish labourer annoyed and
insulted a carman in Wych-street; he was
always doing it, until the neighbours urged
the carman to give him a thrashlDg once
for all. A number of Irish assembled to encourage
their champion. " In about twenty
minutes the labourer received a very sound
and complete drubbing, to the great satisfaction
of several persons in the neighbourhood.
The populace, who had learned
the true story, hooted his companions for
taking the part of an insolent, overbearing
rascal." Of course, there were no police
in those days ; or, rather, there were no
neatly-dressed, well-drilled men perambulating
the streets day and night; " Charleys
" guarded, or did not guard, the
streete at night; while the Bow-street
ofScers were a small body of men for
special service. The poUce magistrates
had ample means of knowing that aU the
various kinds of street thieves and house
thieves were nimble and daring. They
put [an advertisement in the newspapers,
cautioning the public against a prevalent
mode of robbing houses. The thief " pretends
to have business with the master;
and, being told he is not at home, he goes
into the parlour and sends the servant for
pen, ink, and paper, in order to leave his
business in writing; and while the servant
is gone out, he tekes an opportunity of
pocketing anything that lies in his way,
especially plate." How familiar we are
vrith this dodge at the present day!
The Holbom Viaduct has recently cleared
away a rookery which was long a terror
to decent folks. The stete of matters a
century ago was adverted to by a correspondent
of one of the newspapers thus—
" An inhabitant of Snow-hill cautions all
persons whom business or conveniency
obliges to go from Eield-lane through
Newgate, to have their wite about them,
and to secure their pockefa iErom a swarm
of young pickpockets, who are easily distinguished
by their shabby and dirty
appearance. Three of them, about the
age of fourteen, assume the habit of sailors.
[Caadnot«il»
vrithout shirts or stockings, who solicit
charity, and at the same instant steal yom
handkerchief."
We meet with little mention ol the
state of the City sia-eets at that time
except to show that it was bad. A enrespondent
of one of the newspapci
eridently feeling the truth of what he
said, steted tlmt " many of the inhabitants
of Philip-lane, London-wall, will be greatly
obliged to the gentlemen commissionera to
order the horse pavement in the lower part
of the lane to be repaired, which is sank
down, and lies in a very bad condition as
most of the dirt from the upper pait of
the lane settles there, and which smells
very much, and is a great nuisance, benig
teken away but once a week by the
scavengers." The " gentlemen commissioners
" were, we suppose, the City com. I
missioners for lighting and paving. (We I
may just mention, en paasant, that in this
same Philip-lane may still be seen one of the
few remaining bite of the real old wall of
London.)
Among the corporate doings of tLi
time waa a contested election for sherifiii,
carried on vrith a degree of fierceness far
beyond our present experience. Thus
the Moming Chronicle, thick-and-thin
with one party, wrote thus—"Work awa/.
Master Wilkes! Work away. Master
Beynolds! Work away. Master Maskalll
Abuse away, my masters, all of yoo,
together! It will not do. Neither
Mr. Plomer, nor Mr. Hart, nor their
friends, will teke the least notice. This,
my masters, wiU serve for the present,
that Plomer and Hart are men of character,
and yon see, my masters, that they arc supported.
Good-bye, Master Wilkes !" This
waa met by mingled banter and abuse on
the other side; and the day after the
election gave birth to the following;—
" Tyoho Brahe, optician, presents his complimente
to the two present worthy slierifis
for the City of London, and, iinding from
their declaration at Guildhall, yesterday,
thatthe minority was the majority, their eyesight
is very defective, humbly craves the
honour of serving them with spectacles."
There were more denizens of London
then than there are now ; that is, a greater
number of persons who lived and slept in
the City. This may easily be accounted
for. At that time the whole area, aboat
equal to one square mile, was occnpied
with narrow streets and lanes, hned on
both sides vrith lofty houses, containbg ii
large number of dwellers. 'There was ne!