Social England under the Regency 24

Social England under the Regency 24

This was the occasion, of which I have written, that Hunt got

fined. When he was bailed, he made a "triumphal entry" into London.

Of course, like all his class, he was nothing except he was _en

evidence_. It was well organized: there was the young man from

Manchester, who had got hurt at "Peterloo," there was a huge dog with

a large white collar, bearing thereon, "No dog tax," and, at last

came the procession itself.

 

[Illustration: Massacre at St. Peter's; or, "Britons, Strike Home!!!"]

 

Horsemen.

 

Footmen bearing a bundle of Sticks, the emblem of Unity.

 

Horsemen.

 

Six Irish footmen, bearing a green flag, with the inscription,

"Universal, Civil and Religious Liberty."

 

Horsemen.

 

Footmen, bearing a flag of mourning--Inscription, "To the

immortal Memory of the Reformers ... at Manchester."

 

Horsemen.

 

Footmen bearing a flag--Inscription, "The Palladium of

Liberty--Liberty of the Press."

 

Carriages for Gentlemen connected with the Press.

 

Horsemen.

 

Footmen, bearing a Red flag--Inscription, "Universal Suffrage."

 

A Landau, containing MR. HUNT, preceded by a flag, with this

inscription, "Hunt, the heroic Champion of Liberty," and

surrounded by six horsemen, and Members of the Committee.

 

Carriages and Footmen.

 

A Landau, with Watson, Thistlewood, and Preston, and their

Friends.

 

Flag--"Trial by Jury."

 

Horsemen and Footmen.

 

Flag--"Liberty or Death."

 

Carriages, Horsemen, and Footmen.

 

Flag--"Liberty or Death."

 

Closed by Horses, Carriages, and Footmen.

 

There! does not that read like a modern Irish Procession to the

Reformer's tree in Hyde Park? It had the same value and the same

result--somebody got paid something. There were also riots in

Scotland, both in Paisley and Glasgow.

 

I am approaching the end of my Chronicle of the Regency. In November,

it could not be concealed that the poor old King was very bad; in

fact, now and then it was rumoured that he was dead. And so he was

to himself, and to the world. Nature was having its grand and final

fight; and in a few weeks the mortal life of George III. would be

closed. How well the following description of the old King tallies

with the portrait, which is scarce: "HIS MAJESTY.--A gentleman

who has been in his presence a short time ago, states, that the

appearance of our aged Monarch, is the most venerable imaginable. His

hair and beard are white as the drifted Snow, and the latter flows

gracefully over a breast which now feels neither the pleasures nor

the pains of life. When the gentleman saw him, he was dressed in a

loose Satin robe, lined with fur, sitting in an apparently pensive

mood, with his elbows on a table, and his head resting on his hands,

and seemed perfectly regardless of all external objects" (_Bath

Journal_).

 

[Illustration: George III.]

 

Still they hoped when there was no hope, for, under date November

26th is the following: "The examination of his Majesty's Physicians

by the Members of the Council, at Lambeth Palace, has made a strong

sensation on the public mind, as they conceive that it could only

be occasioned by the conviction in the breast of his Royal Highness

the Duke of York, that the inquiry became necessary. The result of

the examination has not transpired. Report says that his Majesty has

shown symptoms of decay, by the wasting of his person, and general

weakness, which, at the advanced age of eighty-two, are signs not

to be overlooked: but we believe, that immediate danger is not

apprehended."

 

On the 23rd of January death claimed the Duke of Kent, the father of

our present Queen; and on the 29th God took to Himself the poor old

King--which event necessarily brings to a close my Chronicles of the

 

REGENCY.

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER XI.

 

A foreigner's view of England -- The packets -- Roads -- People

-- Posting -- Mail and Stage Coaches -- Amateur coachmen -- Fast

driving -- Perils of travelling -- A lioness attacks the Mail --

Dog-carts and donkey-riding -- The Streets and Houses.

 

 

What was England like at this time? I have notes enough, and to

spare, _de omnibus rebus_, for a volume upon it; but I withdraw, and

allow a foreigner to give his impressions, and we shall have the

advantage of viewing England with other spectacles.[31] I extract

from a book by "M. de Levis, Duke and Peer of France," an English

translation of which was published in 1815.

 

[Footnote 31:

 

"O wad some Pow'r the giftie gie us,

To see oursels as others see us!"

 

BURNS, "To a Louse, on seeing one on a

Lady's bonnet, at Church."]

 

Of course steamboats were not, and that "silver streak" between

France and England, was even more of a bugbear than it is at present.

"Foreigners who visit England in time of peace, usually pass through

Dover; this port being the nearest point of land to the Continent of

Europe. The distance is only seven leagues, but the passage is not

the less uncertain; it varies from two hours to thirty-six, when it

becomes excessively fatiguing; obliged to struggle against the wind

in a narrow sea, and in which it is impossible to make long tacks....

The cabin is so low that you cannot stand upright; it usually

contains eight beds placed two by two upon one another, like drawers,

in a bureau. The disagreeable smell of the bedding, and of the whole

furniture, increase the sickness which the horizontal position would

tend to alleviate. This sickness is not dangerous, but it is very

severe, and sometimes persons of a delicate habit experience the

effects of it for several days. However, if this passage be often

painful, and always disagreeable, it is, at least, very safe. _In

times of peace, few days pass without packet boats crossing the

Channel_,[32] and we never hear of shipwrecks. The usual price for

the passage is one guinea for gentlemen, and half for servants; the

hire of the whole vessel costs from five to ten guineas, according to

the condition of the travellers."

 

[Footnote 32: My italics.--J. A.]

 

[Illustration: Market Women.]

 

[Illustration: The Waggon.]

 

On landing, next to the comeliness of the women and children, the

men's dress seems to have struck him. "Their dress is equally

remarkable for its fulness, uniformity, and neatness. Those

scanty clothes, so mean, and strangely absurd, which we meet with,

on the Continent, are never found in Britain, still less are the

worn-out and dirty clothes, which, preserving the traces of a luxury,

unsuitable to the condition of those who wear them, appear to be

the livery of wretchedness: on the contrary, all the apparel here

seems at first sight fresh from the manufactory, and the same taylor

appears to have cut the Coats of the whole nation....

 

"Large scarlet cloaks, black silk bonnets, which preserve and

heighten the fairness of their Complexion, distinguish the country

women who come to market. When a class, so inferior, is so well

dressed, we cannot doubt of the prosperity and comfort of the nation

to which it belongs."

 

Of course there were no railroads, and people had the choice of three

conveyances, as they now have the choice of three classes. For people

of very slender purses, there was the Waggon--very slow, but bound to

get to its destination safely--with many horses, having bells, and

yokes to the hames of their Collars; broad-tyred wheels, which could

not even sink in the mud of a country lane. But M. le Duc de Levis

could not patronize such a vehicle--he, of course, must go post. "The

Post is not, as on the Continent, an establishment dependent upon the

Government; individuals undertake this business; most of the inns

keep Post Chaises; they are good Carriages with four wheels, shut

close, the same kind as we call in France '_diligences de ville_.'

They hold three persons in the back with ease; are narrow, extremely

light; well hung, and appear the more easy, because the roads are not

paved with stone. The postillions wear a jacket with sleeves, tight

boots, and, altogether, their dress is light, and extremely neat; and

they are not only civil, but even respectful.

 

"On your arrival at the Inn, you are shown into a good room, where a

fire is kept in winter, and tea is ready every hour of the day. In

five minutes at most, another Chaise is ready for your departure. If

we compare these customs with those of Germany, or particularly in

the North, where you must often wait whole hours to change horses,

in a dirty room, heated by an iron stove, the smell of which is

suffocating; or even those of France, where the most part of the

post-houses, not being Inns, have no accommodation for travellers, it

is evident that the advantage is not in favour of the Continent. The

only inconvenience attached to the manner which I am describing, is

being obliged at almost every stage to untie and pack up baggage and

parcels; but English gentlemen (which will appear very extraordinary

to French ladies) and English ladies carry so little with them, that

this inconvenience is little felt. By this manner of travelling we

avoid _ennui_, and immense expense, and delays caused by frequent

mending of Carriages, which sometimes occasion the loss of rest on the road.