The Cries of London: Exhibiting Several of the Itinerant Traders of Antient and Modern TimesSmith, John Thomas
History
The Cries of London: Exhibiting Several of the Itinerant Traders of Antient and Modern Times
Smith, John Thomas
Cries -- England -- London; London (England) -- Social life and customs -- Illustrations; Peddling -- England -- London
His memory is good, and among other things he recollects Old Vinegar, a
surly fellow so called from his brutal habits. This man provided sticks
for the cudgel players, whose sports commenced on Easter Monday, and were
much frequented by the Bridewell-boys. He was the maker of the rings for
the boxers in Moorfields, and would cry out, after he had arranged the
spectators by beating their shins, "Mind your pockets all round." The name
of Vinegar has been frequently given to crabbed ringmakers and boxers.
Ward, in his "London Spy," thus introduces a Vinegar champion:
"Bred up i' th' fields of Lincoln's Inn,
Where _Vinegar_ reigns master;
The forward youth doth thence begin
A broken head to loose or win,
For shouts, or for a plaister."
It is to be hoped that this industrious man has saved some little to
support him when his sinews are unable to do their duty; for it would be
extremely hard, that a man who has conducted himself with such honesty,
punctuality, and rigid perseverance, should be dependent on the parish,
particularly as he declares, and Conway may be believed, that he never got
drunk in his life. The present writer was much obliged to this man for a
deliverance from a mob. He had when at Bow commenced a drawing of a
Lascar, and before he had completed it, he found himself surrounded by
several of their leaders, who were much enraged, conceiving that he was
taking a description of the man's person in order to complain of him.
Conway happened to come up at the moment, and immediately exclaimed, "Dear
heart, no, this gentleman took my picture off the other day, he only does
it for his amusement; I know where he lives; he don't want to hurt the
man;" on hearing which speech, a publican kindly took upon him to appease
the Lascars.
[Illustration: _Dancing Dolls_]
DANCING DOLLS.
PLATE XXI.
By all the aged persons with whom the author has conversed, it is agreed
that from the time of Hogarth to the present day the street strollers with
their Dancing Dolls on a board have not appeared.
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