Old times : $b A picture of social life at the end of the eighteenth centuryAshton, John
History
Old times : $b A picture of social life at the end of the eighteenth century
Ashton, John
Great Britain -- Social life and customs
Gentleman's Coachman, about the _Rights of Man_: and, having
struck two or three blows in the Caravan, they got out into the
road, to decide whether _Tom 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 politics, 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. &c.
"Lucy Treadneedle."
--(_Times, 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.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account