The Sun.
London, England, 1842-09-05 00:00:00

,
steamer, Lieut. Gooch; Avon,. steairie (LIVA 114ITT
Spiteful' and Conflance, steamers ; Adventure, nav
transport ; Duck, lighter.
In the Sound—None.

CHIFFONNIERS, OR BONE-
PICKERS.

(From the "Report on the Sanitary Condition of this
Labouring Population of Great Britain.)
In Paris the interests of turbulent bodies of men,
the water-carriers, and another class of men called
the chiffonniers, who live by raking for what they
can find amongst the refuse cast into the streets, are
opposed to any change which will reduce the charge
of imperfect cleansing, and the disease promoted by
filth. The general practice in that metropolis is to
cast all the rubbish of the house into the street on the
overnight, or before seven o'clock in the morning,
when men attend with carts to sweep it np and rem
move it. In the night-time, however, the chigonnier
comes with a lantern and rakes amongst the refuse, and
picks from it bones, rags, or whatever may have been
thrown away by accident, or by the carelessness of
the servants. The offensive filth of their persons and
their occupation, makes them outcasts from other
classes of workmen ; they sleep amidst their collee-
tiohs of refuse, and they are idle during the day ;
they are like all men who live under such cireum•
stances, prone to indulgence in ardent spirits; being
degraded and savage, they are ready to throw away
their wretches lives on every occasion. There are
nearly 2,000 of the chiffoniers alone in Paris, and
they and the water-carriers were conspicuous actors
in the Revolution of 1830. During the administra-
tion of Casimir Perrier the householders had com-
plained of the inconvenient mode of cleansing the
streets by large heavy carts drawn by three horses,
which, during their slow progress throughout the
day, obstruct the public thoroughfares and occasion
great inconveniences, especially in the narrow streets.
In the beginning of the year 1834, when the cho-
lera broke out, the attention of the authorities was di.
rected to sanitary measures, and the municipality de-
cided that the cleansing of the streets should be done
by contract, by a quick relay of carts of a smaller
and more convenient shape, drawn by single horses ;
and in, order to diminish the inconvenience of the pre...
sence of these improved vehicles, the contractor was
allowed to collect one load for each of his carts on
the 9ver-night, which would have led to a practice
similar to that of London, where the dust-carts take
the refuse difect from the house without any ,deposit
in the streets. But in this arrangement an important
interest had been overlooked • the chiffonniers, who
were said to have been aided and directed
,by the
owners and men belonging to the superseded vehicles,
rose in revolt, attacked and drove away the conduc-
tors, broke to pieces the new carts, threw the frag-
ments into the river, or made bonfires with them.
Unfortunately at that time the cholera had broken
out at Paris. The mobs of chiffonniers which col-
lected on the following day were swollen by other
crowds of ignorant, terrified, and savage people, who
were persuaded that the deaths from the strange
plague were occasioned by poison. "My agents,"
says the then Prefet of Police, in an account, of this
revolt, " could not be at all points at once, to oppose
the fury of those crowds of men with naked arms and
haggard figures, and sinister looks, who are never seen
in ordinary times, and who seemed on this day to
have arisen out of the earth. Wishing to judge my-
self of the foundation for the alarming reports that
were brought to me, I went out alone and on foot. I
had great difficulty in getting through these dense
masses, scarcely covered with filthy rags; no descrip-
tion could convey their hideous aspect, or the sensa-
tion of terror which the hoarse and ferocious cries
created. Although lam not easily moved, lat one
time feared for the safety of Paris—of honest people
and their property." In fact, the riot was one of the
most dangerous that had been witnessed in that city,
and it was not suppressed without great exertions and
some loss of life. The anxieties which it occasioned
to the Minister, Casimir Perrier, and his disgust at
the political use made of it, were considered to have
contributed to his death. He was himself attacked
with the cholera, and died a few days after. Shortly
before his death, when expressing his disgust, he said
to the Prefet, "My friend, we are harnessed to a
vile carriage." " Truly so," replied the Prefet, " and
the ways are dreadfully dirty." The material ways
of the city continued as they were, the Prefet seeing
that the introduction of the new carts became " a
motive to discontent and collision," took upon him-
self to set aside the contract with the contractor, who,
he states, received no other compensation for his losses
than a permission which he could not use to collect
the refuse during the day, and the chiffonniers con-
tinue to the present time in the exercise of their
wretched vocation at the expense of the public health
and cleanliness.
The course of the present inquiry shows how
strongly circumstances that are governable govern the
habits of the population, and in some instances appear
almost to breed the species of the population. Con-
ceiving it probable that the amount of filth left by
defective cleansing had its corresponding description
of persons, I made inquiries of the Commissio:iers of
Metropolitan Police. From returns which they ob-
tained from their superintendents, it appears that of
the class of bone-pickers, mud-rakers, people living
on the produce of dung-heaps in mews, courts, yards,
and bye-lanes, insufficiently cleansed,
.598 are known
to the police. From an observation of the proportion
of filthy children and adults who appear amidst refuse
whenever there are new buildings and an unusual
quantity of rubbish, and from other circumstance; I
believe that, were the refuse of houses daily cast into
the streets in London in the same manner as in Paris,
London would soon have as large and as dangerous a
population of the chiffonnier class. I am informed
by Sir. Charles Shaw, the Chief Commissioner of
Police at Manchester, that there are 302. of them
known within the police jurisdiction of that town also. He complains that they have heretofore been
licensed in their occupation; that the children are
pilferers, and occupy the attention of the police, and
furnish a large • qunta to the stock of juvenile delin-
quents and the population of the prisons. • I am in-
formed that in Bath there are about 100 of them
known ; and in other towns and places I have little
doubt that they would be found in like pro portions
which 'approach the. proportions of the stated num:
hers of chiffonniers to the population of Paris. These
degraded creatures are also found amongst the in-
mates of the workhouses, and 'the close identity
their habits with those of the chiffonniers of Pam of
afford a striking proof of the similarity of the popu-
lation produced_ by similarity of circumstances. Th
are thus described to me by an eye-witness : ey
" The bone-pickers are the dirtiest of all the in-
mates of our workhouse ; I have seen them take a
bone from a dung heap, and gnaw it while reeking
hot with the fermentation of decay. Bones, from
which the meat had been cut raw, and which had still
thin strips of flesh adhering to them, they scraped
carefully with their knives, and put the 'bits, no
matter how befouled with dirt, into a wallet or pocket
appropriated to the purpose. They have told me,
that whether in broth or grilled, they were the most
savoury dish that could be imagined. I have not ob-
served that these creatures were savage, but th 43s
were thoroughly debased. Often hardly human, in
appearance, they had neither human tastes nor sym-
pathies, nor even human sensations, for the revelled
in the filth which is grateful to dogs, and ogler lower
animals, and which to our apprehension is redolent
only of nausea and abomination.
The following Report from one of the su-
tendents to the Commissioners of the metro perm
Lro e
Police describes the manner in which the pontaay appear to
the police, their moral character, and the
the means of prevention efficacy of
" " With reference to the question of the Commi.-
sioners as to the means of subsistence of that portion
of the population which at present exists by picki:og
bye-lanes, &e. in the event of t; nose
bones in the
places being properly cleansed I
, am of opinion that
they would be compelled to adopt some more laborious
and useful means of obtaining a livelihood, such as
field labour, &c. They are at present an idle dis-
solute class, prowling about the stables, yards, backs
of premises, and lanes, willing to connnit petty felony
wherever opportunity presents itself. -While it would
remove them, on the other hand, the instant remove)
of filth from the metro 1. mast prove beneficial to
the health of th_e inhabitants;'
."
It will then be found to be an ultimately beneficial
effect of the removal of the circumstances by the
adoption of such modes of cleansing as diminish the
Prevalent amount of filth or filthy ;processes, that it
will force a change to other occupations of a less de-
grading character, and diminish the number of per-
sons " brought up" to them. Any provision of the
nature of a Poor-law may be said to be badl con-
structed which does not allow the exercise
Atha dis-
cretionary authority to alleviate any severe -
veniences to the poorest classes from such chances. incon

_ _
LLOYD'S
s G.
LONDON, SEPT. 3.—Wind this day at noon S.,
able and cloudy.
DEAL, SEPT. 2.—Wind light and variabbe.—Sld.
Pestonjee Bomanjee tranvort, Quebec ; Lady Wood.
Prince Edward's Island.
PORTSMOUTH, SEPP. 2.—Wind N.W.---Sld. Switzer-
land, New York.
PLYMOUTH, SEPT. 2.—Wind N.W.—The Aurora,
Moon, of this port, took fire, was scuttled, and sunk.
LIVERPOOL, SEPT. 2.—Wind W., moderate.. Arrd.
Chieftain, Payne, Bomba Mary Queen of Scots
Kelly, Pernambuco; Navanno and Joseph Hume, Africa.
Arrd. vff Sarah Trotman, Barbadoes.

HAYMARKET THEATRE.—The production of Lon-
don Assurance, having been eminently successful at
this house, it has been repeated every night during the
past week, and it is announced for performance until
further notice. The house was crowded on Saturday
night in every part. Bernard's farce of LOcomotion,
and the Nabob for an _Hour, with the play, formed the
course served up for the entertainment of the public,
which showed markedly its gratification at being so well
catered for,