, 1879-01-03
LONDON GUILDS.
Curious Relics Of Early English
Timess..Their History.
How Trade Societies Have Grown
into Great Monopolles.
Revenues to the Amount Of 81, 600, 900
q Year-How the Vast lt,-
come ID Spent,

Revenues to the Amount Of 81, ,60O, 600
Year-How the Vast ln-
coms Ia Spent.
Corrtsponjtnet Cincinnati Gazette.
LoHDON. Dee, ,A7.-Among Tho curiouL relics
Of easly English times are the City Guilds, or
Livery Companies, Of London. The CITY OF
London " comprises but small fraction Of the
entire area and population Of the meesopolis,-
tho former having an area OF about 100 acres and
lcss thau Il, 900 people, willis The latter has IN
area Of eome $1,000 acres, anil nearly, OF per-
haps quite. 4,000. 600 people. The term "city"
applies only to this small tract Of 700 acres at
the very heart Of the metropolis. where tho
heaviest part Of tho business Ia centercd. Tho
halls Of tho Livery Companies arc all within
tho limits Of the city, aud these organizations
ara 20 closely connected With the government
may truly be callol tho vita! part Of tho corpo
which
ABOUT oxE.uA1F TIE ENTIRE ctr
s built, from whtrh they draw Qroslsid rent, aud
In very large aupber Of !nssaneeh they also
OWN tho buildings Upon +, though this Is by no
means always tho case. It ts very usual in En-
aaao thsn .. o propsft1 n ebe budnes
hut upon the expiration Of tho lease tho build
in9s beeo.no absolutely hts witllont any pay
ment whatever. Nlns,y.n!ne @ ysars ~! T. ! e. nysry ny
axs constantly growing in wealth By the lapse
uf such leases.
These a,,illA are about eighty in number. A
large number OF them took thoir rise In the
times OF the Plantagcnet Kjogs, and some Of
them even back TO Norman times. Tho charters
| Of the elder ones Hcro mostly granted er Ed
ward III. and Richard H., ID tho fourteenth
e1istenee from loo 10 100 ye.rs prsviou. TO that
time, but wcre then mostly without charters,
and had none OF the rights Of corporate socio-
tlcs. The guild Of tho 1oldsmths can BE- GER
GERS back 10 1172. Probably both came into cr-
tsteucc considerably before those known dates.
Tho FfshmonRefs are attll older, and wore char
tered BY Edward l., Ia the latter part OF the
THE rHElva GREAT coMrANIns
| src the MerccIs, 0roccrs. Drapsrs, Fishmongere,
0oldsnlths, skinners, Merchant Taylols {s.c).
sd nny 6 bem a7s
great wealth, and all the prominent ones have
magnificent halls, where they occasionally give
expansive fcaats. About forty Of the minor
I compsnics have no halls. and 4oms Of these
baso 20 diminished IN numbers Is scarcely to bo
able to keen UP their organization. i
As their namcs imply. they were ali ori9i-
naliy trade assocattons. London has always
| Norman and Flantagcnot times, wheu tho city
contained nearly tho whole population OF the
METROPOLIS, the citizens wero almost wholly
| !EaucaHen. At n!1s tu0 term Runu seems u
hare meant much the same thing Is ward; At
oil events, the members Of tho different tFades
| bad generally appropriated diatiutt parts
Of London to themselves. It was not long, how
use. After these bodies became Incorporated,
they hAd Tho absolute monopoly and control OF
their own trades. No ous could follow tho
business OF draper without the consent Of the
that Ill who pfacticed that trade should b
I members al the guild. BY and BY tbs different
trades began to adopt 4 dress peculiar to them
! selves, and this gave them their name Of
| LIVERY CoMrAN1hB.
At tlrat ali melnbera must bo actually engaged
in the peculiar trade Of their several guilds. Az
the guilds grew in wealth soa power, this rulo
vas 80 far relaxed as to allow the. admission Of
trude. When momber;. was in full
standing, III. Was aaia TO have The free-
dor, Of tho company. They a!wnys held tue
freedom TO those who did not practice their
trade. Finally, their Influence became go great,
and their support 70 important, that kiags ware
wiling to beepme p a1:aI1s members: Queen Elizabeth
member, and James ]. was Cloth Worker.
Charles II: and William III. were Gsoecrs, aud
lleury VII. was Merchant Tailor.
these wealthy guilds were often compelled to
furnish the sovrreigns money for carrying on
foreign wsrs, aud for other purposes: Tbs
W.. net Esnsrai rstusasH Henry
Of money. In lAb they paid him more than
st00. COO toward tho Scotcn war. TO Ket tho
yaluo ot that a'ln fu our present currency,
s Il sqeai eas asesn % s47 tesk x o e1 e
eJo5, 400 toward the French wRr, aud Queen
Elizabeth is said TO have taken $s0l,000 from
them. Charles !. also took large auns, over
s50o. .o0n being handcd over at one time. They
suffered In TIM same way during the Common
wealth, hut recovered 10 Tar that when Chnrlea
II. came to the throne theywcte ablo 10 wei.
come him With most cxpcntlso prcseuts and
tury. nlonarchs found other mcans OF raising
money, and tho guilds mcro left free to grow
IN wealth and monopolous power O. fast a.
the, could, aod their trade character then began
| to disappear.
AZ present tho Livery Companies hava
| ALMOST WHOLLY Lost
| their ancient trade character. Indeed, Doi
OF this character lett, aud these only in limited
degree. Among these last ara the Fnhmongers
who have tho p0wcr u ordering the destruction
ofall bad liah coming Into London, and thoy con
Of tho Company Is really connected with tn.
Dab trade. In nearly all cuses tho mc.nbers O
thcsa bodies have nothing TO do with tito trade,
they arc esopi.oeed 10 practice. and only two O
Htationers-lnake this a condition Of member
ship. Some Of The more powerful colnpan.s4
have each several hundred .nctnbcss. mud Tho I'll
that binds them together ia the socIa
J influence. dinners, etc, that 80 With member
, ship. Should business misfortune oYertak
them, they stand chance OF good fat snc
, cure, an otllce without duties, or OF good zen
, sion OF t500 to u 800 year. Meubeszhp wa
fornsr'y obtained mostly by servitude; that II
ay going through An apprenticeship Of seyc
In SONG Of the minor eul1ds. fee Of : fey
4uineas will admit to full membership, but Il
all tho we2tihter ot,es, the freedom Ut the cum
psny cannot, IN any case, bs had for less tha
, $500, and, III many cases, 1t costa fully 81 ,N
, Over 1870 members vi the present House q
Commons arc free OF the various city compute.
In most OF these cases the freedom Ia presented
for they aru wise enough to know that tho
cannot have too many friends tn Parliament
Thcte city Eu.lAs are among tho
NosT OBJECTIONABLE MoNor0LIKs
| civilized country ev CT tolerated. In ail!tlo
to ther property In tho city, they own Va.