The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-12-26
THE DARK SIDE OF ENGLISH LIFE.


Lecture by the Author Of "Ginx's Baby."I
The amazing vitality and wealth of England
tTanslx the foreigner with aStOnishment. The
endless streets OF noble mansions in Belgravia
and May Fair, the magnificence OF the mer-
chants, the shipping on the rivers, gives the
spectator ideas OF fabulous wealth, among
which it would seem impossible for poverty to
have G place. But there exists q poverty and
degradation 80 terrible that it Is q greater mar
vel than the splendOr which covers 1t. I stood
the other day gazing at the magnificent pile Of
buildings IN London erected on the plans of
England's greatest achitecta. Where all these
now stand, | used eight years ago to visit week
after week the population Of the artisan and
laboring classes. Hero were alleys with rude
tenements occupied by families, each occupy
ing one room, The population was so dense that
III one square were 1000 people. There was an
innumerable quantity OF gin-Sbops, which could
not be diminished by prayer-meetings. or
churches rbibles. What use vast to preacht tenn
perance and morality where the circumstances
made them not merely self-denisl, hut martyr
domS But the government walked IN and
showed out these people. Where were they to
goa They hadto live near their work. HI single
ones got quartered on other families, occupy
ing q share OF the room and q ninth OF the bed.
The families got into the cellars or encroached
on other families; got into holes like spiders.
IntOlerable are the conditions of life of q popu-
lace packed like that. Health is simply q name
for modified disease. An they care for is 4
| nights lodging. Most of them live in the streets
all day. You look at q huge animal cruelty
! striking the thin creature which strives to
guide him homeward. You SEQ boys OF ten or
twelve with old, hard faces and cunning eyes,
taking their brandy and cigars. Considering
how they all live, what is left to them but to
| seek nepenthe in suicide or intoxication In
| England / have heard men deny these things,
which existed around the corner. This picture,
| yon say, is that of q philanthropist. 1t Is true
not only of London, but OF hundreds and thou
sands of other places. It is reported that there
are 10000 houses in Liverpool occupied by fam
lilies in single rooms; that at least One-third of
the population OF thatcity were living in that
condition. What are their rooms like1 In
rooms II feet and u feet high lived eight per-
sons paying q rent of four Shillings per week.
Some of the rooms are occupied by relays of
human animals. PerEOns attending the theaters
let them out to market people who begin their
work when the Others cease. Wecan give worse
examples than that. Sir James Simpson visited
q mar living at the top Of the house in whose
room was an enormous pig. .Heasked the man
How did this pig get up hereH Z" "SuTe,' said
he, che never was down."
Let us hasten to breathe the purer air Of the
country. There, amid clipped hedges, the
fields of wheat, where the meanest dwellings,
arc covered with running vines, there, at all
events, you say we shall find health and hap
piness. You talk with the old, bent man, who
Is still t0iling with the spade, and he takes you
to his garnet, where he has slept with seven
or eight others for Is or 90 years. Or il
you are a novelist, you may have stories told
you of the very depth of wickedness of this fair
country. Earning two or three dollars per week,
the family regularly fall back in tho winter up.
on the poor rates. Such in many r county OF
England Is the lot Of those who till the soil
Now when you consider these facts You may
begin TO think of the problem that English re.
formers have to face. | can only say this: Il
you were to go out into the street and think
that every seventh man was receiving helE
from your pocket, or one man in every twenty
of those you would meet in the country. yot
may imagine it.