The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 298: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE HANGMAN IN HIS GLORY AGAIN 271 characters. Every feeling of decency totally lost sight of, persons of both sexes and all ages sleeping promiscuously; erown-up brothers and sisters thus sleep together. “ Southgate’s Lodging-houses are in Mitre Court, St. John’s Street; New Court, Cow Cross, Smithfield; Turn- mill Street, Clerkenwell; and on Saffron Hull; altogether making up three hundred beds every night. ‘“‘Grout’s Lodging-houses in St. Giles’s are filled with low truckle-beds, supplied with a straw mattress, two coarse sheets, and an old rug. Here the poor but honest labouring man is in nightly company with the professional thief; while perhaps his wife and grown-up daughters are com- pelled to herd with the vilest prostitutes. As a matter of course, the people frequenting these lodging-houses consist of various descriptions, and each description may again be subdivided into various classes. It is a most truthful remark which I have heard, that ‘ the miscroscope shows the subdivision of atoms, and a minute inquiry into various classes subdivides society into unimagined grades.’ ‘No. —, Wentworth Street, Whitechapel, is a kinchin- ken. The fellow who keeps it is called the kidsman; he boards and lodges young boys, training them up to be thieves. Always has at least twenty boys in his establish- ment; the young ones are instructed by the elder, and are never allowed to go out before they are quite perfect.’’ These and numerous other entries, especially those regarding the Hangman’s favourite haunts, met his view; nor did he fail to observe that Taggarty’s shop on Mutton Hill was mentioned in the category as a place where cheeses, flitches of bacon, bladders of lard, and all kinds of chandlery were purchased “ without any questions being asked.”’ - But no words can describe the amazement, the consterna- tion, and even the stupefaction which seized upon Daniel Coffin when on searching for the entry relative to Bencull’s Dark Crib in Jacob’s Island, he found the following memoran- dum appended: ‘‘See my journal, Wednesday, Sept. 19, 1814, for the account of how I visited this place disguised as a knife-grinder, and how I was thrown into the black ditch, escaping with my life in a manner truly miraculous.’’ Yes, stupefied indeed was the Hangman as these words met his view. All his thoughts were suddenly congealed, all his ideas were frozen in a moment. But when he some- COUN (A) INOOKS (C(O)