These Misfortunes did indeed awaken the Attention of
the City, and led the Magistrates in to a Survey of the Pri-
son, in which the Seeds o this Infection had been long
treasured up. The Consequence of this Survey was a
Discovery o a Vast Quantity of Filth, which had been
many Years accumulating in the several Apartments of
the Prison, of such various Kinds, as left very little Room
to doubt of the Causes of that Contagion to which the
above Calamity was owing.

Upon this the City set about a Work which it would
have been happy if they had thought of sooner: viz. the
Cleansing the Prison; the Filth was collected together,
and, for very obvious Reasons, the Night was chosen as
the properest Time for its Removal to some Distance
from the Town, and to some or other of the Adjacent
Fields it was carried by Cart Loads, and buried, and,
through the Providence of God, since that Time, no such
Misfortune has happened

The City affect to consider their Connexion with the
County as a Burthen on them; whether it is so or not, let
their own Charters Speak. By these it appears that they
are possessed of may valuable Privileges, in Consequence
of this Connection.

In some of the most antient of these Charters the Citi-
zens are declared to hold the Shrievalty of Middlesex to
gether with that of London , in Farm; and, to adopt the
Metaphor, a most profitable Farm it has proved to them;
for, to go no farther back then the Year 1672, it appears
by Accounts produced by themselves, that the Suns re-
ceived by the City to excuse Persons nominated by the
Mayor, from serving the Office of sheriffs of London and
Middlesex , amount to upwards of 148,750l.

The Connexion between the Office of Sherif, and a
Place of Security for the Persons of those whose Escape
from Justice he is at Law answerable for, does very natu-
rally point out a Method of applying the sums above
raised, which, had it been attended to, would have ren-
dered the present Attempt unnecessary: The Citizens
might have reasoned in this Way.Money has been
raised by Sheriffs Fines; the Strength of the Prison is the
Sheriffs Security; let therefore the Person who serves the
Office avail himself of the Default of him who has declined
it; and let the Money so raised be a fund for the Main-
tenance of that Prison, without which no Man could
serve it at all.-But whether the City ever reasoned thus,
or not, can only be guessed from the Methods which of
late Years have been practised, as well in the raising, as
the disposing of Fines for that Office.

But why, say the City, must we take upon ourselves
the Charge of any of the County Prisoners? The Answer
is, Because upon your own repeated Solicitations, ye have
obtained what no other City in the Kingdom possesses, then
Power of nominating;not barely your own sheriffs,
but a Sheriff for your Neighbours; and though this Power
is no Injury to the County, it is evident that the Burthen.
of

Through the Providence of God, such a Misfortune
has not since happened, but the Goal bath Frequently been
visited with this Disease since that Time, and the Prisoners
are hourly exposed to it, which is powerfull Call upon the
Humanity of the Public.

The City do not complain of the Burthens which their
Connection with the County bring upon them-They have
a due Sence of the Value of the Privileges they derive from
itThey complain, that they are opposed and abused for
endeavouring to make that Connection as useful to the
County, as it is Honourable to themselves.

The Citizens are Purchasors for a valuable Consideration
of their most ancient Charters, Particularly of those under
which they hold the Shrievaky of Middlesex together with
that of London , in Farm, as it is Called.To this Day
they pay annually into the Exchequer the Sum of 300l. as
a Fee Farm Rent for the Shrievalty. It is said to have been
a most profitable Fam, in a much as since the Year 1672,
it has produced a Sum of 148, 750l. but the County have
forgot to take the Debtor Side of the Account into their Es-
timation of the Profits of this Farm. It the Metaphor is to
be adopted, let it be adopted fairly, if the Landholders of
the County of Middlesex , were called upon to give an Ac-
count of the Profits of their Farms, they would think it
reasonable to take Taxes and Repairs into the Estimate.-
In this Case, unfortunately for the Metaphor, the Taxes
and Repairs of this Farm, have eat up all the Profits; for
it can be made appear, that from the Year 1672, to this
Time, the City have expended, on account of the Charges,
incident to the Shrievalty, independent of the great Expence
which individuals have sustained in the Office, a sum ex-
ceeding the Gross Amount of the Sums received by the City
for the Sheriffs Fines.

It has been already Shewn, that the Application of the
Profits of the Shrievalty, in the Way that is here supposed,
to be so naturally pointed out, would go but a little Way
towards rendering the present Attempt unnecessary. But
what is this Connection between the Office of Sheriff, and
a Place of Security for Criminals and Debtors; does the
Expences of rebuilding, repairing, or otherwise supporting
such place of Security, fall upon the Sheriff? which the
other Expences which do fall upon the Sheriff, which the
City have and do defray, and they have a Right, as be-
tween them and the County, now to apply the Sheriffs
Fines to reimburse themselves those Expences. whatever
may have been the Appropriations of them in the Arrange-
ment of their own private affairs, for this obvious Reason,
that if the Fines have been other wise appropriated, yet those
Expences have been defrayed from Time to Time, out
of other Revenues belonging to the City.

It is infinuated, that improper Methods have been prac-
tised, as well in the raising, as in the Disposal of Fines for
that Office.

The Citizens, of London have nothing to reproach them-
selves with in the Exercise of the Franchise of the Shriev-
alty There are ready to gove Account of their Conduct,
when they are properly called upon, but a malevolent In-
sinuation throuwn in only to inflame and mislead, is un-
worthy of a particular Answer.

The City have near asked this Question; they have for
Centuries taken upon themselves the Charges of the County
prisoners, without murmuring. If they had asked the
Question, they would have expected a more Satisfactory
Answer, then is here given;for this Charge does not
attend upon the City's Power of nominating their own
Sheriffs, or a Sheriff for their Neighbours; their having
obtained