The pestilence in England : an historical sketch. / By John Netten Radcliffe.

  • John Netten Radcliffe
Date:
1852
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The pestilence in England : an historical sketch. / By John Netten Radcliffe. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

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    old and ruinous apparel, for most of your choyce and curious Gallants came vp in cloatlies, because they thought it very dangerous to deale with Sattin this plague-time, being Diuell ynough without the plague: beside there hath bene a great Dearth of Taylors, the propertie of whose deathes were wonderfull, for they were tooke from Hell to Heaven: All these were motiues sufficient to perswade Gentlemen as they loued their Hues, to come vp in their old sutes. and be very respectiue and carefull bow they make themselves new- ones, and to venture vppon a Burchen-lane Hose and Doublet, were euen to shunne the villanous Jawes of Oharibdis, and fall into the large swallow of Scylla, the deuouring Catch-pole of the Sea: for their bomb ait is wicked ynough in the best and soundest season, and there is as much perill betweene the wings and the skirts of one of their Doublets, as in all the liberties of London, take Saint Tooles Parish, and all the most infected places of England. (p. 10.) There was neuer a Gilt-Spur to be seene all the Strand ouer, neuer a Feather wagging in all Fleetstreete, vnlesse some Country Forehorse came by, by meere chaunce, with a Eaine-beaten Feather in his Costrill; the streete looking for all the world like a Sunday morning at sixe of the Clocke, three houres before seruice, and the Bells ringing all about London, as if the Coronation day had bene halfe a yeare long. (p. 12.) I could tell you now the miserable state and pittifull case of many Tradesmen whose wares lay dead on their hands by the burying of their seruants, and how those were held especially very dangerous and perilous Trades that had any woolen about them, for the infection being for the most part a Londoner, loued to be lapt warme, and there- fore was said to skip into wollen cloathes, and lie smothring in a shag-hayrde Rugge, or an old fashionde Couerlid: to confirme which, I have hard of some this last Sommer that would not venture into an Upholsters shoppe amongst dangerous Rugges and Feather-bed-tikes, no, although they had bene sure to haue bene made Aldermen when they came out againe: such was their infectious conceyte of a harme- lesse necessary Couerlid, and would stop their foolish Noses, when they past through Watling-street by a Ranke of Woolen Drapers. And this makes me call to memory the strange and wonderfull dres ■
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