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
That this must have tended to lower the Royal Family in most men's
eyes, there can be no doubt, so that we are not very much surprised at
the occasional practical manifestations of the mob. On the night of
1st February, there was more stone-throwing on the part of the
populace, which the _Times_ of 3rd February thus describes:--"On
Monday night, as the Royal Family were returning from Drury Lane
Theatre, just as they reached the middle of Pall Mall, a stone was
flung at the coach in which were their Majesties and the
lady-in-waiting, which broke the glass, and, entering the carriage,
struck the Queen on the cheek, and fell into Lady Harrington's lap.
"A deposition of the circumstances was taken yesterday at the Duke of
Portland's office, at which his Grace and some of the Bow Street
Magistrates were present; when four of the footmen attending their
Majesties were examined; a reward will be immediately offered to
discover the offender." And so it was to the extent of £1000, but
nothing came of it.
Whilst on the subject of the royal unpopularity, I may mention that
Kydd Wake, who last year was apprehended for hissing and hooting at
the King, was tried before Lord Kenyon, for "trespass, riot, and
misdemeanour," and found guilty--sentence being deferred. This,
however, was pronounced upon him by Mr. Justice Ashurst at the Court
of King's Bench 7th May. His judgment was somewhat long-winded, and he
concluded thus:--"It now becomes my duty to pronounce the sentence of
the Court; which is, that you be committed to the custody of the
keeper of the Penitentiary House, in, and for, the County of
Gloucester, and be kept to hard labour for the space of five years;
and, within the first three months of that time, that you stand in,
and upon, the Pillory for one hour, between the hours of eleven and
two o'clock in the afternoon, in some public street on a market day;
and that you give sureties in £1000, for your good behaviour for the
term of ten years, to be computed from the expiration of the said five
years; and that you be further imprisoned till you find the said
sureties."
On the 15th February, Mr. Grey, in the House of Commons, again
ventilated the subject of peace, this time in the shape of an address
to the King, praying him to communicate to the executive government of
France, his readiness to meet any disposition to negotiate a general
peace. Both Pitt and Fox spoke on the subject, but the motion was lost
by 189 to 50.
There was one crumb of comfort to the nation, which had hitherto been
suffering from a grievous scarcity of bread-stuffs, and this was the
great fall in wheat, which took place on 31st March. On that date,
owing to the large importations of foreign wheat, this grain fell 13s.
per quarter.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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