The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-03-31 00:00:00

EASTER OBSERVANCES IN THE CITY
OF LONDON.

On Tuesday, in accordance with ancient usage on
Easter Tuesday, the scholars of Christ's Hospital,
numbering between 700 and 800, went in procession
from their school in Newgate-atreet to the Mansion
House, to receive from the Lord Mayor their customary
Easter gifts. They were accompanied by their nurses,
beadles, and porters in their quaint costumes. Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Sedley, the Warden of Christ's Hos-
pital was also in attendance. On arriving at the
Mansion House hot cross-buns were served out to them.
The Lord Mayor and the Lady Mayoress, attended
by the Sword and Mace Bearers and the City Marshal,
and accompanied by Mr. Sheriff Savory, the Under.
Sheriffs, the Comptroller, and several of the govenors
of the Hospital took their places in the saloon, and
the boys marched past them in single file, and each
lad received from the Lord Mayor a gift in new coin
fresh from the Mint, according to his rank in the
school. To the 13 Grecians a guinea each was given,
U. funior Grecians half a guinea, 42 monitors half-a-
crown, and 675 scholars a shilling each. In this way
nearly £6O was distributed. Before leaving each boy
was offered a glass of wine 'or lemonade, and it was
stated that the majority of them chose the latter.
After the ceremony the Lord Mayor and the civic
dignitaries and the boys went in state to Divine ser-
vice at Christ Church. A shortened form of evening
prayer was read by the Rev. T. D. C. Morse, the
vicar, and the schail choir sang the anthem "The
Lord is my strength and my song." The Spital, or
Hospital sermon was preached by the Bishop of
Rochester from the text, St. John, Bth chapter, 32nd
verse—"lre shall know the truth, and the truth shall
make you free." The discourse was addressed prin-
cipally to the boys, the Bishop pointing out in kindly
language the greatness of their opportunities and re-
eponsibilities in being, by their connexion with that
Royal foundation, launched upon the world with a
high education, ample equipment, grand traditions,
and a godly discipline. The service concluded with
the Easter hymn, "Jesus lives; no longer now."

THE COST OF LIVING AMONG THE
WORKING CLASSES IN FRANCE.

A computation has recently been made by M.
Armangaud as to the expenditure of sixteen working.
class families in the town of Mulhouse, in Alsace.
Similar expenses might be a little over or a little under
this estimate in other districts in France, but, upon
the whole, the results may be accepted as a fair
average.

The sixteen families tabulated by M. Armangaud
were chosen from different classes of workmen' and
their expenditure varied from 1,100 francs to 3,000
francs per annum—that is, from £44 to £l2O a year.
House accommodation, as a rule, swallowed up 15
per cent, of the total expenditure, clothing 16 per
cent., and food 61 per cent., 8 per cent, being reserved
for miscellaneous purposes. In the matter of food, the
highest expenditure registered was 72 per cent., and
this item of expenditure was thus distributed :-33
per cent. was for bread, 14 per cent. for meat, 13 per
cent. for milk, 24 per cent, for groceries, and 16 pet
cent. for miscellaneous aliments. The greatest ex,
penditure upon bread in any individual case was 48
per cent.

It was thus seen that the average expenditure of
these 16 working-class families of Mulhouse upon bread
was a little over one-fifth of their total expenditure.
This being the case in the average, and the greatest
expenditure being about one-third of the total
expenditure of the families, it will be seen that, taking
these figures as fairly representative of the expenditure
upon bread among working-class families, it is an ex-
aggeration to say that the chief item in a working-class
family's expenditure, in France at least, is the bread
bill.