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London Lives 1690 to 1800
Crime, Poverty and Social Policy in the Metropolis
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With Regard to their Families, this pernicious Liquor is equally
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fatal, whilst the Husband & perhaps his Wife also are drinking & Spending
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their money in Geneva Shops, their Children are Starving
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& Naked at home
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without bread or Cloaths, and either become a Burthen to their parishes
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or being Suffered to Ramble about the streets, are forced to begg whilst
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they are Children, And Learn as they grow upto pilfer and Steal
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which your Committee conceive to be one of the Chief Causes of the
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Vast Increase of Thieves and pilferers of all Kinds, and may be
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the true Reason why the yould for Some Years last past have
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been observed Sooner to grow vitious and to throw off all Regard
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to Laws both human & Divine.
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We would here further Observe, that rather than go
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without this destructive Liquor, Custom having made the Habit
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so strong upon them, they will even pawn their own & Children's
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Cloaths, and Cheat by all the Ways and Means they can Devise to
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raise Money on this Occasion, the usuall and almost Certain
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Consequence of which is, the Husband is thrown into a Goal, And his
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whole Family on the Parish. And this your Committee conceive to be
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one of the principle Causes of the great Increase of Beggars &
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Parish Poor, Not withstanding the high Wages now given to all
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Sorts of Workmen and Servants
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And Lastly with Regard to Trade and the publick Wellfare
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of
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the Consequences are visibly Ruinous and destructive, and will be
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Every day more and more felt & perceived.
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It has been already observed, that the Constant use of Strong
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Waters and particularly of Geneva never fails to produce an
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invincible Aversion to work and Labour, this by necessary Conse-
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-quence Deprives us of great Numbers of usefull hands which
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would be otherwise Employed to the advantage of the Publick
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And as to those who yet do work sometimes or follow any Employment
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the less of their time in frequent tippling, the getting often drunk
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in a Morning and the spending of their Money this way, must
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very much Straiten them and so farr diminish their Trade
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And the profit which Would Accrue from thence to the publick
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as well as to themselves.
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It appears, as has been already mentioned, that great Numbers
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of Weavers, and other persons of Inferior Trades concerned in our
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Manufactures, deal in these Liquors; And as they generally employ
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many
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Journeymen
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, and Artificers under them, this Liquor being
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thus allways ready at hand at their Masters houses, they are Easily
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tempted to Drink freely of it, Especially as they may drink a
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whole Week upon Score and too often without minding how fast the
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Score runs upon thence, whereby at the Weeks End they find them-
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-selves without any surplus age to Carry home to their Families which
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of Course must Starve or be thrown on the Parish.
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Your Commee are also of Opinion that the publick Wellfare & Safety of
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the Nation will be greatly affected by it Considering the Strong Inili-
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-nations in the Soldiery to drink freely and to Excess of this destruc-
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-tive Liquor. Let any person pass a Shop where Geneva is sold
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it is great Odds but that he will find there one or more Soldiers either
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drinking of, or Drunk with these Liquors And it is to be feared
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the Constitutions & Strength of many of our Soldiers are already
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Greatly Impaired by this pernicious Custom, And how farr
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they
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