Old and new London : a narrative of its history, its people, and its places . was attended by his subordinates in greatstate. He was a fat, jolly man, rather slow in hismovements, not very capable of detecting abusesby his own observation, and not much assistedin his explorations by others. It was a mere farceto see him waddle round the prison. His visitsproduced no beneficial effect: the place, somewhatmore orderly during the time of his stay, on the 66 OLD AND NEW LONDON. [Southwark. moment of his departure relapsed into its normalstate of irregularity and disorder. In the halcyondays of his
Old and new London : a narrative of its history, its people, and its places . was attended by his subordinates in greatstate. He was a fat, jolly man, rather slow in hismovements, not very capable of detecting abusesby his own observation, and not much assistedin his explorations by others. It was a mere farceto see him waddle round the prison. His visitsproduced no beneficial effect: the place, somewhatmore orderly during the time of his stay, on the 66 OLD AND NEW LONDON. [Southwark. moment of his departure relapsed into its normalstate of irregularity and disorder. In the halcyondays of his authority there was no such institutionas the Court for the Relief of Insolvent legislature from time to time cleared out theover-gorged prisons by passing Acts to discharge ranks, callings, professions and mysteries—noblesand ignobles, parsons, lawyers, farmers, tradesmen,shopmen, colonels, captains, gamblers, horse-dealers, publicans, butchers, &c. The wives ofmany of these shared the fortunes and misfortunesof their husbands; and scores of widows and. THE MAR5IIALSEA IRISON, unfortunate insolvents, and what was called theLords Act helped to prevent the enormousconflux of such people. But this inefficient kindof legislation was not what was wanted; it actedas a temporary alleviation of the miseries andabominations of the system, but it failed to abatethe nuisance, which may be said to have nourishedwith renewed vigour from the prunings whichremoved its effects. The consequence was thatthe prison was crowded with persons of all classes, EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. spinsters were amongst the majority who could notpass the gates. It may be calculated that thenumerical strength of this strange colony amountedto an average of eight hundred or a thousandindividuals. The state of this gaol is thus described bySmollett, about the time of its establishment in theBorough Road; it was much in the same statedown till late in the present century :— TheKings Bench Prison . . appea
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