Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-01-21
MAN NEkS IN LONDON
Some CT the Customs of London Two Hun
dred Years Ago.


The manners Of the city differed little
in essentials. as las been said already.
from those of Queen Elizabeth 5 time
Let US note, however, two or three points.
sI1ll keeping the unspeakabIe court out of
sight, and cOnhning ourselves as much az
possible to the city. Here are a few notes,
which must not be taken as finished
picture of the tine.
Ii was a great time for drinking.
Even grave diyines drank large quanti-
ues or wine. Pepys is constantly getting
''foxed with drink; on one occasion he
Is afraid Of reading evening prayers lest
the servants should discover his con dition
o. course they did discover it, and went
to bed laughing not aloud; and as
the maids kept no diary, tbs world never
learned 1t. London drank freely. Pepys
tells how one lady, dining at Sir William
Builen's, drank at one draught pint and
half OF white wine. They all went to
church great deal, and had fast days on
every occasion Of doubt and difficulty.
On the first Sunday in the year the long.
est psalm IN the book could it have been
The 18th? If so, Cruel!-was given out
after sermon. This took an hour to sing,
and all the while the sexton went about
the church making a Collection. On Val
entlne's day the married men took each
others wives for valentines. Public
wrestling matches were held, followed by
bouts with the cudgels.
They still carried on the sports of bull
and bear batting. Once they baited a saw
age horse to death. Traits, they attempt
ed it, but he drove all tae dogs, and, the
people insisting On his death the stabb4 ID
him to death. The king issued two pat
ents for theatres-one to Henry Kiliigrew,
at Drury Lane, whose company called
themselves the kings servants; the other
to Sir William Davenant, of Dorset
Gardens, whose company was the dukes
servants, There were still left very
many fine superstitions. These are illus.
trated by the remedies advertised for the
plague and other diseases. A spider, for
instance, placed In a nutshell and wrapped
in silk was onsidered a sovereign remedy
for ague. They believed In the magli-
grant influence of the planets. One even
ing at dancing house half a dozen boys
and girls were taken suddenly ill. Prob.
ably they had swallowed some poisonous
stuff. They were supposed to be planet
struck. And of course they believed in
astrology and chiromancy, the latter of
which has again come into fashion.
Saturday was the day of duns. Cred
itors then went about collecting their
money. Ia the autumn the march ants
rode out into The country and looked after
their country customers.-W alter Besant,
in Harpers Magazine.
A contributor to the Breeders Gaz.tte
submits the following:
There is story that king from 2. dis
tant country was once travelling in Swiz-
erland, where, noticing the excellence of
the butter and cheese that he found he
demanded of souae of his courtiers who
were with him why it was that in their
own country these products of the dairy
were not so good. They told him that it
was because the Swiss cows gave better
milk. Wbereupon the king had q suffi-
Gent number Of the COWS sent to his own
country 70 furnish the royal dairy. After
this the king again d mandeu why it was
that their dairy products were not equal to
those they had enjoyed in Switzerland
ALAS, said the courtiers, "we fad that
we must have not only the COWS but also
the grass of Switzerland to feed them
with before we can furnish Swiss milk
The moral OF the story is obvious-good
cows require also good feed for the best
results. Aud the moral might be traus-
posed-good feed requires also good
COWS for the best results. Running good
feed through scrub cows is waste of
good material II don 4 nav