Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1875-02-06
Chimney.SMeeps.


are still employed in cleaning chimneys
In Great Britain law had been passed
forbidding the practice; but less than
fifteen years ago the sweeps, or "climb-
ing boys" were very numerous.
Until thereign of James l., the houses
were built only one story high, and the
chimneys were swept from the floor.
The Scotch fashion of multiplying the
stories than came in, and twice or three
times year boys were sent up to sweep
down the soot
There was once famous highwayman
who had been " climbing boy" and
he was the only one of the tribe who
ever became notorious. At all events,
we do not hear more about them in his
tory from the time Of James /. until
about the middle of the last century,
when Jonas Hanway called public at
tention to their condition. Hanway, you
must know, was one of the great philan-
thropists of his day, and was the man
who first carried an umbrella in London,
a performance which exposed him to the
ieers of all the impudent little bakers
and butchers boysin the city. No doubt
he looked rather queer as he trotted
along in the rain with the newly tangled
thing over his head, and some folks
thought him utterly crazy. But he was
a wise and good man, living a life that
most of us might initiate to advantage.
When climbing boy" came to his
house, one day, Hanway was struck with
the poor fellows woeful face, and asked
him how and where he lived. The an
swers that were made excited the philan-
thropists sympathy, and, through public
prints and the benevolent societies with
which he was connected, he drew atten-
ton to one of the worst kinds of slavery
that ever existed The "climbing boys"
were mostly the children of dissolute
parents, who sold them to the men
chimney-sweeps for few sovereigns, or
in American money, fifteen or twenty
dollars.
The novices had the greatest dread OF
ascending the chimney for the first time,
and there are several instances, of un-
doubted truth, in which the little fellows
were violently thrust in by their masters
and driven up by fire lighted under
them. This seems to horrible for belief,
but it was sworn to by master chimney
sweep before committee of the British
House of Commons. The same man de-
clared that he did not use his own ap-
prentices in that manner, and that when
the chimney was small and the boy hesi-
ted about ascending, he simply used
stick or his fist
Sometimes the beginner was instructed
at the house of his master before real
duty was required of him. An older
boy would follow him up chimney and
teach him how to climb by pressing the
knees and elbows against the sides of the
fue 1t was q most painful operation,
and the skin would be torn from the
child's arms and feet before he had near
ly reached the top. By striving very
hard he would probably succeed, but not
until he had tumbled down several times
and alighted on the shoulders OF his
stouter companion, who always kept him
self firmly fixed in expectation of such
mishap. Every time he fell he had to
begin anew, and, no matter how sore he
was, his master forced him to reach the
top.
A story is told, that very small boy,
not more than four years of age, was
once sent up chimney in country
house at Birdlington, Yorkshire, and
that he tumbled down and hurt himself
so severely that the young ladies OF the
house took him from his master and
nursed him Themselves. Some food was
brought to him, and seeing silver fork,
he was quite delighted, exclaiming |:
Papa had such forks as those. He
also said that the carpet in the drawing
room was like "papa's," and when
silver watch was shown him, he declared
that "papa's" was gold one. Atnight
he would not go to bed until he had said
the Lords prayer, which he knew per-
fectly, and he lay awake for hours com
pairing the furniture in the room to that
in his own home. When he was asked
how he came to leave his papa, he said
that he was gathering flowers in his
mothers garden, and that women came
in and asked him if he liked riding. He
said eyes" and she told him that he
should ride with her. She put him on
a horse in lane near by, drove him to
the seaside, and carried him on board a
vessel
The story does not tell what became Of
the little fellow afterward, and we can
only hope that he was restored to his
parents, or that the young ladies at the
country-house adopted him.