Star.
London, England, 1823-04-01 00:00:00

LONDON SPORTS AND PASTIMES.

PRO![ AN AMUSING ARTICLE, ENTITLED " ANCIENT
SPORTS AND PASTIMES," IN TUN PZRCY HISTOa
kiss, NO. I, JUST PUBLISHED.

Al the fields around London came, in the pro.
rof improvement, to be divided and enclosed,
estlilting at the quintain, archery,. wrestling, and
all other field sports began to decline; end• at the
period at which we have now arrived, they
.have en-
tirely disappeared. In L 514, much discontent Pre-
nailed among the populace,on account of the abridge
in-eats which were constantly taking
.place in the
theatre of their rural pastimes-; and being stilted up
by a fellow who went about disguised in the dress of
a merry-andrew, calling out for 44 spadevand sho-
vels,' they resolved to take the work of -redress into
their own hands. A great multitude of them 'asa
sembling, armed with these weapons; they soon
levelled with the ground all the newly-erected fences
and, enclosures about Shoreditch, Hoxton,
ton, &c. Government censured the Magistrates 'se.
verely for neglect of duty in not preventing this tu.
multuary proceeding ; but that cannot be considered
as a proceedingaltogether without apology, which
the Government itself, about a century after, sane-,
tioned by an act of.its own, as nearly similar (in in-
tention at least) as possible. Jamei the First, in the
eighth of his reign, granted a commission to-several
persons of distinction, for the purpose, it states, of
. " stopping the practice of .enclosing the ground for-
merly used for archery, by. making of banks. and
hedges in such fields and closes, as, time out of
mind, were allowed to be shot 'in." It empowers
the Commissioners 44 to go upon these places; and to
view and survey in such grounds next.. adjoining to
the City.ef London and the suburbs, within two miles
icompaisl and the same to reduce in such order and
state for the archers,: as they were in the reign of
-King Henry VIII. and to cause the banks, ditches,
and quieksets, to be made plain and refointed." It
is scarcely necessary to state, that this commission:
was never carried into effect; nor would it now be
of any avail, to inquire into the causes which made
it inoperative. That it would have been injurious to
the public interest, and oppressively unjust to indi-
viduals, had it been fully executed, must be suffi-
ciently Obvious ; but we may be permitted to regret,
that it should have been so entirely neglected, and
.the cultivation of the robust virtues so muck disre-
garded; that a population of about of itedi-
iduale is•now left n ith scarcely a single open *Pet on
which they can indulge in utliletidahly exercises.
Excluded froni the fields, the citizens were forced
to tarn to such pastimes as the darrower limits of
their streets, courts, and squares, and the safety of
the passengers would allow. The proscribed games of
the days of Edward lIL hand-ball, foot-ball, throwing
of bars, cock-fighting, &c. came again into fashion ;
and hence the skittle-grourida, bowling-greens, tennis..
courts, which'now farm the chief resorts of the Lon-
don artisans, in their hours of recreation.
It appears. that even as late as the time, of Charles
the Second, the citizens were stiU allowed, without
hindrance, to make the streets the scene of their most
boisterous amusements. Sir William Davenant, in
a sa:irical description which he gives of London, at
this, time, in a letter to a fiiend, says, " I would
now make a safe retreat, but that, methinks, I am
stopt by one of your heroic 'games, called foot-ball,
which, I conceive (under your favoeg, not 'Try. cab-
veniently civil in the streets, esp:eciii such &re-
gular and narrow roads as Crooked-lane. Yet it
argues your courage, much like your military pas-
time of throwing at cocks; but*lbur metal would be
much magnified (since you have long allowed thete'
two Valiant exercises in the Alltetly; to draw your
archers froni finsbUiy, and during high market let
Item shitot set butts, to Cheariside."
The citizens (41 under favour" t,o Davenant) had
seine reason to complain, that the streets alone were
left them to exercise in'; and it as thpeight prudent
probstaly, to allow their feelings on thE subject.to
die away, before the municipal gdvernment inter-
fered to put a stop to what inusrondeed, have 'been
a great uttisance.