Anecdotes of the Manners and Customs of London, During the Eighteenth Century (Volume 1); With a Review of the State of Society in 1807. to Which Is Added, a Sketch of the Domestic and Ecclesiastical Architecture, and of the Various Improvements in the Me

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1810 Excerpt: ... CHAP. III. MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE INHABITANTS OF LONDON FROM 1700 TO l800. A Weekly Paper, intituled "The Dutch Prophet," was published at the commencement of the Century. The Author, in one of those, gives the outlines of each day in the week as employed by different persons; it is a filthy publication, and the following is almost the only decent part. "Wednesday, several Shop-keepers near St. Paul's will rise before six, be upon their knees at chapel a little after; promise God Almighty to live soberly and righteously before seven; take half a pint of Sack and a dash of Gentian before eight; tell fifty lies behind their counters by nine; and spend the rest of the morning oyer Tea and Tobacco at Child's Coffee-house." "Sunday, a world of women, with green aprons, get on their pattens after eight; reach BrewersBrewers-hall and White-hart court by nine; are ready to burst with the Spirit a minute or two after, and delivered of it by ten. Much sighing at Salters-hall about the same hour; great frowning at St. Paul's while the service is singing, tolerable attention to the Sermon, but no respect shewn at all to the Sacrament," &c. &c. These extracts inform us that Tradesmen were in the habit of attending Matins, Which is certainly not the case at present; that they breakfasted upon sack and the root Gentian, and drank tea and chewed tobacco at the Coffee-house. Mark the change of 100 years: they now breakfast upon tea, and never chew tobacco; nor do many of them enter the Coffee-house once in a year. The Halls of the different Companies appear to have been used at the above period for almost every public purpose, but particularly for the sighings of grace and over-righteousness, and to reverberate in thrice dissonant thunder the voices of the Elect, who sa...