Star.
London, England, 1816-09-05 00:00:00

116.
POLICE OF THE METROPOLIS.

.

XasMTEte OF EVIDENCE AKEN BEFOiiE THE COM-
MITTEE OF THE HOIFSE of CoMVIONS. ON TIM
SPATE OF THE VOLICE OF TRepous.
TEe Hon. Hes RY Gs N PIET in the Chair.

The Roe, JOSHUA KING examined.
How looe have you been Rector of Bethnal-green
parish I—Seven yeas.
Is it a very ladle parish I—lt consists of a popula-
tion of ab-out 40,000, generally the lowest description
'of people.
You felt it your dety to make yourself acquainted
with the condition of the Police ?--Surely.
'`What is that ?-01. am sorry that it is most deplor-
able; every Sunday morning. duriligDivine sea vice,
several hundred persons assemble in a field adjoining
the Church-yard, where they fi;ht dogs, hunt ducks,
gamble, and enter into subscriptions to tee drovers for
a bullr.ck : I have shall them drive the arum .1 through
the most popultais parts of the parish, force sticks,
pointed with iron, up the body, put peas into the ears
and infuriate the beast so as to endanger the lives of
all persons passing.
This on the Sunday ?—Chiefly on the Sunday,
Monday, and sometimesVuesday : Monday ;stile prin
cipal day. One or two thousand men and fury,. will,
on these occasions, leave their loo.its and join in the
pursuit; pockets are frequently picked, persons are
tossed and torn. One day in the last summer, lam
informed, that one man was killed, and two so se-
verely wounded, that their lives were despaired of.
Did you ever learn whether that information was
correct I—T am persuaded, with respect to one of them
wbo was tossed in St. John's-street. near my house;
the other two were in Hackney parish; they drove
the beast into Hackney, where the accidents hap.
pened ; one was taken to the Hospital, where' I un-
derstood he died.
Do they ever drive the bullocks across the Church-.
yard ?—Yes; about two months ago, during the time
of Divine service, to the great consternation of the
congregation, a bullock washunted in the church-yard,
and•although Mr. Merceron, a Magistrate, the Bea-
dles, and Mr. Mercernn's deck, who is a Constable,
were pres:.nt, t cannot learn that they took any steps
to put a stop to so disgraceful an outrage:
What reason have you to believe that t—l have
sentior• a mutable to request that be would furnish
mew ith the manses of some of the ringleaders, and I
never could yet obtain a single name, though most of
them resident in the neighbourhood, and must
be Ise. • ,r 1 ; and have sometimes seen him
act 111 the chace.
Did you :•ver speak to Mr. Merceron on the sub-
ject complained to Mr. blereerun, about five
years n; of the disgraceful practice of bullock-hunt-
ing. Mid :•-tpresstrsl a wish to be in the commission of
the Pe mei., that I might more effectually prevent
Stich. practices. Upon that occasion Mr. Merceron
declared, that there was no kind of amusement he
was so fond of as bullock-hunting; and that, in
his younger days, he was generally the first in
.the chace. He discouraged me from entertain-
ing any hopes of getting into the Commission, by
saying, no person could be appointed unless lie was
recommended by the other Magistrates, and that, it
any of ier rate was necessary for the district,
he should take cue to recommend his friend Mr.
Timmings, and not me.
Did you ever make any complaint to any other
Magistrate ?—I have complained to the Police-oilice.
Worship-street, twa,:e ; they have sent Officers both
• tin es.
Did the iuterference of the Officers put a atop to the
. evil you complained of I—lmmediately ; the mob
dispersed, and I believe they took the bullock from
them; in fact, I have taken two bullocks from them
vihichthey had driven into the Church-yard ; I open-
ed a stable-door in the Church-yard, the bullocks took
refuge there, and I put a lock on and locked them in.
Do these bullocks, according to your belief, belong
to any butcher, or are they purchased for the purpose'
of hunting 1-1 believe they belong to large droves,
• which are coming to Smithfield, and that the persons
. who assemble in this field, fee the drovers to let them
.select one.
In the way to market ?—Yes ; on the Sunday, and
Anstnetimes in their coming irom market on Monday.
• Are those scenes of riot more frequent on the Sun-
day ,or the Monday 1-0 a both .days ; but bullocks
Ate more frequently hunted ea the Monday than the
Sunday.
Was two months ago the last period in which the
bullock-hunting has taken place 1—No; there has been
bulleck•bunting since; and I apprehend. from the
enquiries I have made within the last few days, that
•it has been discontinued within the last fortnight or
three weeks. Since this Committee has been sitting,
an alarm has been produced,' and more pains taken
to prevent those outrages.
You have mentioned the name of Mr. Timmings,
whom Mr. Merceron called his friend; didyou know
him I—Be was a person who had retired from keep,.
log an alehouse—a man extremely ignorant.
- Were you acquainted with him I—Yes ; he is since
dead.
Have you made any application to the Lord Lieu-
len.int, for the purpose of being in the Commission t
• -4 wrote to the two Members for the County; from
the one I received a leiter, saying that he never in-
terfered, and from the other I received no answer.
Independent of the buttock-hunting, me the scenes
of riot and disorder great duriog the Sunday in the
fields adjoining the Church I—Extremely so.
Crowds of disorderly peopl, of both sexes 1--Yes;
but principally men and boys ; and when I have
spoken to the Police Official, they have told me that
they durst not interfere, on account of their being so
numerous and so desperate.
Are you at all acquainted with the condition hi
which the. public-houses are in, in your parish
Some of them, I apprehend, are very disorderly.
Do you know any that have been in that disorderly
state for several years I—Some of them have been
• represented as being very disorderly ' and I will take
•tire liberty of mentioning those that have been parti-
cularly specified, it it is wished.
• What are the particular houses, the names of
which you have loam I—There are three that have
been•particularly plated out; the Sua, in Slater-
street; the Three Sugar Loaves, in St. John-street;
Arid the 'Seven Stars, in Fleet-street.
Ur) jou know wbetlia zany complaint has ever been

laid betas the Magistrate*, intespeetti awn home; ?

—I do not
Do yo* know any thing is to the *tolein'ivittch
those houses are held; or who is the proprietor. or
with whom they deal, that would lead you to think
that and protection would be given them against sach
complisitta—The three houses I have mentioned
belong to property of which Mr. Metceron is rcpt-
gatherer t he toolr a lease 01 the Seven Stars in 1788,
and afterwards underlet it Messrs. Flinbnry ; that
I and the Three Sugar Loaves are in Messrs. liaubury's

track.
Is the manner in which those houses are conducted
particularly disorderly ?—The Seven Stars and Three
Sugar Leaves are receptacles for suspicious charac-
ters, at hours whet; all other public-houses Are closed;
and at the Sun, a Club, significantly termed a Cock
and Hen Club, has been, and, I believe, still is

held. •
In which boys and girls meet ?—Yest and get
(Amok, .and debauch one another.
:Do you know whether Mr. Mercernn has the IDA-
*lawmen' of, as rent.gatherer, or is the proprietor of
many pubhc.houses in the parish ?—I have been given
to understand, that Mr. liAubury holds ten or twelve

public•lmuses under him.
You do not knuw 04 of your own knowledge 3

No, I do not.
Is there any personal difference between you and
Mr. blerceron ?—Nothing, except what has arisen
from a disapprobation of his official conduct; he is
the Treasurer of the Parish ; has mussed a large
fortune ; takes care to elect the most ignorant to fill
parochial offices, and to audit his maws; when I
say elect, I mean that his influence is so extensive in
the parish, that whoever he nominates, the Vestry is

sure to appoint.
Has there been. a considerable opposition to that
influence by the parishioners ?.-Yes, there has; aid,
indeed, I as told, that previous to my coming into
the parish, the same opposition was mandated ; that
tor the last 25 years, the respectable part of the pa-
rich have been contending with him for an eximina•
ties of his accopnts, and have never succeeded : with
the assistance of the Dissenters. with whom be has
identified himself; and the publicans, who dare nut
withhold their support, he bears down all opposition.
A grant of upwards of ‘ll.OOO from Parliament,
during a time of great distress in the parish, in the
year 1800, passed through his hands for the relief of
the out-door poor, which •I have reason to believe is
not satisfactorily accounted for.
From what cause ?—Mr. Merceron did not think
proper to give any account of it.
Wei e you not strong enough in the Vestry to force
him to an account ?—By no means ; I will state what
.occurred a very abort time ago: in order to prevent
investigation, I have seen him instigate his creatures
to riot and clamour even within the wails of the
church ; he has taken his sand on the Church steps,
and proposed three times three Inizzas ; taking his oat
cif, and being the toreni..st nit the si.out. S. success-
ful was he on that occasion, that lately lie has ad-
journed ,a 1 public Vestry meetings to the church-yard,
where a mob has collected to support him He in-
stigated that mob at a late Meeting, to .attack a
person of the name of Shevol, who, had he not taken ,
retuge in my house, would probably have fallen a
sacrifice to their fury. .
What was the cause of the supposed quarrel be-
tween Mr. Mercerun and Mr. Shevitt ?-..Mr. Stu:trill
had addressed the parishioners, requiring that Mr.
Merceron should publish an anuu.ll account of the
monies passing through his hands; Mr. Shevill pub-
lished' two Addresses, which appeared to me very
candid, and those, I believe, were the reasons of Mr.
Merceron attacking him.
Es it the practice for the Vestry to amiable in the
Church-yard t—That is a thing tines known till
lately.
Has every householder a right to vote at Vestry.
meetings l—Every one rated at £l5 and upwards
Do yon believe that all those who have assembled
were rated at stlls ?—The bulk of the mob were not
rated at that sum.
Of course they had no means in the Church-yard
of keeping the Vestry distinct from the others ?—Cer-,
tainly not.
Have any legal measures ever been taken to cor-
rect the abuses of which you complain ?—About three
years ago I advocated the cause of the parishioners,
and instituted two indictments against Mr. Merceron;
the one for having fraudulently altered the Pour-
rates;, alter they had been allowed, whereby he doubled
and trebled the rates of some, and reduced the rates
of others; the other was for perjury, founded upon a i
aeries of oaths he bad taken before the Commons, the
Court of Delegates, and the Chancellor, upon the
authenticity of which it chiefly depeaded, whether he
retained some property he had possessed himself of,
belonging to a poor idiot and her orphan sisters or
no. C:ontrary to the uniform tenour of which oaths,
the three Courts unequivocally decided and compelled
him to restore the property.
'f he property was restored ?—lt was, in pursuancel
of a decree in Chancery.
By what means did you become acquainted with
the fact, as to his altering she Poor-rates ?—From the
Vestry Clerk himself, who furnished me with the
Poor-rates Book, and pointed out the alterations.
Did you obtain a verdict against him ?- I was dis-
suaded by the person whom I employed as my Soli-
citor, from being in Court at the time of the trial;
he contrived to insu uct the leading Counsel to declare.
that I had consented to a verdict of acquittal without
trial, although I had given positive instructions to
proceed with the trial ; the Counsel having declared,
both before and subsequent to-that mysterious trans-
action, that had the trials gone on, there was no
doubt of his being convicted.
Is the Vestry Clerk now living ?- He is ; I have
extracts by me, which I think amount to about 500
cases, where alterations took place in the rates point-
Led out by the Vestry Clerk, and who still holds that
office. What is his name ?-,-James May.
Is Mr. Merceron popular among the lower classes
of the inhabitants in your parish ?—Universally a!-,
horred ; but having the collection of rents to a very
considerable extent, and a number of houses, and can
command the publicans, ,by being a licensing Magi-
strate,, and having been a Commissioner of the Pro-
perty-tax, and.utting on all appeals with respect to
the Assessed as well as Parochial Taxes, he has had
an opportunity of most despotically tyrannizing over
the parish.
Is it. the prevailing opinion in the puisbi that a

iktttsiter his a bitter .thince oT obtaining a liCenitS
if he applies for that licenie through the medium of
'one person more thin another ?_Unquestionably; a
span is considered a fool who applies for a license
throsigh the medium of any other person than Messrs.
Hanbuty ; 1 know there is a connexion he:weest Mr.
Merceron and them, fair I heard Mr. Meice-on for-
merly declare, that Banbury was a devilish good
fellows that he was always sending him present! ;
that he supplied his house with tieer gratis; and that
the week before be had sent him halt a b:arel of porter.
What is the state• of the poor At ti,IS moment in
your parish ?—Truly wretched; the house is over•
flowing with poor; there are six or seven in a bed ;
the men and women are in separate wards, that is the
only distinction that can be made; the Master of the
Workhouse has declared to me, that the house is not
capable of containing more than S5O, and 1 believe
at the present time there are ,00.
It has been stated that there are nearly 3,000 looms
out of employ in that vicioity at the present moment;
do you know whether that is correct ?—I am not
aware of the exact number.
Is the situation of the poor in your path!) worse
now than it was last year ?—I should conceive much;
and the great inhumanity of the Parish•odlcer s, con-
sists in the very scanty pittance they allow the out-
door poor; they compel them, in the very crowded
state of the house, to conic into the house, or they do
not allow them more than from Is. to 3s. per family,
according to their number.
What is the allowance paid by the parish for each
person in the Workhouse per head per week ?-1 be.
lieve they cost the parish aboat 55.41. per head.
From your observation, can you state to the Com-
mittee, what is the moral condition of the inhabitants
of your parish, contrasting k will what it was a few
years back ?—Not at all improved, or likely to be, in
consequence of the want of education ; for although
we have such an enormous population, we are only
educating 120 children under the Establishment, and
we have only one parish church, capable of contain-
ing about 1200, for the accommodation of all. I
am not awaie what number are educating by the
Methodists, but I believe a considerable number.
Are there any other schools in your parish ?
None, where they are educated free of disrobe, ex-
cepting those which the Dissenters have established ;
they are principally Sunday schools.
Is there any school of the British and Foreign
School Society ?—Not immediately in my parish, but
in the parish of Spitalfields, ad oitung, dune is a very
large one.
Do many of the children of you: parish attend ?
I should conceive a considerable number.
You consider the state of your parish as more indi-
gent, and as ignorant as it was some years back ?
Quite, or more so. •
It is then to the joint operation of increased indi-
gence, and not augmented knowledge, that you at.
ttihute, most materially,' the deprived si.ite of the
lower orders ?—Certainly.
Do you know whether the Parish.cfficers pay a re-
gular Attention to keeping the street; order ly at night ?
—I think they areas order:y as can be expected.
By whom are the Constables named ?.—Every Of-
ficer in the parish is appointed by Mr. Merce:on, and
all obey his mandates.
Is he High Constable ?—No, be is not. •
Who is the legal Offieer holding this officeq—l rin
not know who is the Constable for this year; they are
elected on Faster Monday, and 1 think the lift is not
yet printed.
Whoever Mr. Merceron thinks proper to nominate,.
is chosen as a matter of course?—Quite so.
Mr. JAMES MAIN ratty Cleri. essawiseaL
I am Vestry Clerk of St. Matthew, Bethnal-green;
I have held that situation, on my own account, since
1788; the parish rate is made by me or by my clerk.
These are the books... producing them).—After the
rate-books are allowed by the Magistrates, the turn
ought not be altered, either to be diminished or in-
creased. The collectot, myself, or my clerk, may
correct clerical errors, but certainly not alter the
sums. Turning to the year 1807, the rates assessing
individuals have been altered for instance, John
Johnson, rated at £24, paid £7 10s. the rate is al.
tered to £4O; George Titkins, front 416 to £18;
Charlotte Cowdry, rated at £4O, paid 47 101. changed
to 460, paid sell Ss.— All these alterations are in
Mr. Merceron's band-writing. I know no reason why
they were altered. lam sorry to say that Charlotte
Cowdi y, who was raised by a stroke of Mr. Merceron's
pen from £4O to £6O, was very distressed, and was
obliged so quit almost in the situation of a pauper.
I never saw .Mr. Mereeron alter a single rate;
aOs positive of that. I cannot tell by the books
when Mr. Merceron began .to alter the rates. Upon
looking at the books I was ordered to bring, 1 per-
ceive there are alterations in the years ISM, 1806,
1807, and.lBoB ; not having the books of 1809 with
me, 1 cannot tell whether they are altered. Recently
the meetings of the vestry have been adjourned to the
portico of the church : all those who were in the
church-yard were lookers on, whether vestrymen or
not. I have never seen Mr. Merceron wave his hat
and give threocheers as a token of triumph for having
gained any particular object.
It appears, by a list of between 60 and 70 houses
produced to the Committee, and stated to 'be rented
by Mr. Merceron up to the year 1807, that the houses
were rated together at £96 9s. 2d. and that upon
Mr. Mitchell's becoming tenant of thosetouses, in the
year 1808, the rate was increased to £227 9s. 7d.
being an advance of £l3l ; can you state to the Com-
mittee the reason of that advance :—No, I do not
know of any'such advance; I know %list when Mr.
Mitchell Caine into poasession of the premises they
were let at a very small rent, and shortly ',after Mr.
Mitchell came into possession of them, I have inva-
riably understood, that he raised the rents double, and
some more.
Have you ever witnessed bullock-hunting, and that'
riotous assemblage of persons in the neighbunliood
of the church-and• the church-yard, which have been
detailed in eviderice befetethis Committee ? —Oh yes,
many times; the.,rnost disgraceful thing in the coun-
try ; I have often offered to turn out as a volunteer
to prevent on Moodayand'Friday we have a bul-
lock or a poor cow hunted; 'the butchers round
Hackney and Bethnal-green have paid the. ;slime
for braving their bullocks brought home sale,
sad as soon as that pay ceased, their attention ceased.
Haverty ever seen in 'the neighbourhood of the
Am& or 'church-yard; 'duck-hunting.. or dog-fight-
ing t....Tbeet is scantly a Sunday that there is not ;