i

EIGHTEENTH CENTURY WAIFS.

ii

EIGHTEENTH CENTURY WAIFS
BY
JOHN ASHTON
AUTHOR OF
“SOCIAL LIFE IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN ANNE,”
ETC., ETC.

IN ONE VOLUME.

LONDON:AND BLACKETT, PUBLISHERS,13, GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET.1887.All Rights Reserved.

iii

PREFACE.

It was probably Solomon, who, in Ecclesiastes,cap. 12, v. 12, said, ‘Of making many booksthere is no end.’ But, if this book had to havebeen written by him, he might, probably, havemodified his opinion.

I have read some books in my life-time, rethe sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries,and therefore was not taken aback whenI was advised by a learned friend, whom I consultedas to the subject of a new book, to trythe ‘Musgrave Tracts,’ in the British Museum.I thanked him, and wrote for them, when I waspolitely asked, ‘Did I want them all?’ ‘Ofcourse,’ was my reply; when I was told, withthe courtesy that particularly distinguishes theestablishment, that I had better come into aninner room, and have them down shelf by shelf.

The books came in a continuous stream, untilI asked if there were any more. ‘Oh, yes,’ wasthe reply; and, when I had finished my job, Iivfound I had gone through more than 1760 volumes.Add to this over 200 other books andnewspapers used for reference, &c., and that willrepresent some amount of the labour employedin writing a book.

I have strung together a series of chaptersof different phases of social life and biographyof the last century, none of which have (as faras I am concerned) appeared in any magazine,but which have all been specially written forthis book. And this I have done so that thebook may be taken up at any time, and laiddown again at the end of an article; and perhapsthe best reason for my publishing thisbook is, that it gives the reader a brief resuméof each subject treated, taken from sources,thoroughly original, which are usually inaccessibleto the general public, and known butto few students.

They are diverse, to suit all tastes; and ifthis, my venture, is successful, I may bashfullyhint that my store is not yet exhausted.

JOHN ASHTON.

v

CONTENTS.