|
 |
 |
|
|
|
| Author |
Message |
    
Justin Sherin
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 9:52 am: |       |
Interesting conservative marginalia found in 'A Satirical View of London at the Commencement of the Nineteenth Century, By An Obsever', Sterling Memorial Library, Yale University. Printed by T. Davison, White-friars, for G. Kearsley, Fleet-street, in 1801.
This is a short book with a restored binding. The pages are white and appear almost untouched.
On the title page, a crossed out, Regency-style signature, with flourish -- 'R. HAFFENDON' (?) Below it, in late Victorian 'copybook' style, is written
'No, Haffendon; by open leave, this is the book of George [?] [?]
46 Mecklenburgh Square
W.C.
April 1883'
On page 49, George made this note in the margin of a paragraph encouraging Jews to 'follow handicraft-art', to discourage their instinct for deception. Square brackets indicate illegible.
'The metropolis is at present (1883) overrun with Jews, native and foreign. Their political emancipation has been, these many years, complete; the social prejudices against them are diminished and the wealthiest Hebrews are [?] in the very highest society yet, with the [exaction? occasion? exception?] of the arts of music and painting which they cultivate with [?] [duty?] and success, and stage dancing and acting which in my judgment are [insufficient?] the majority of the Jews in London follow no industrious [?], no mechanical craft; they do not serve in the ranks of the army, they never have sailors; they live on the industry of others or no [? ?] in which consistent profits can be obtained. Thus, they keep bawdy houses, did in [?] and old clothes [? ?] are receivers of stolen goods and [?] in the [bottom of page, incomplete]'
Garden-variety anti-semitism, yes, but still an atmospheric contemporary example of why suspicion was so quickly placed on the Jews five years later.
Mecklenburgh Square is at the less fashionable (St Pancras) end of the Gray's Inn Road, adjoining Coram's Fields -- an area traditionally populated by students and solicitors.
|
|
Use of these
message boards implies agreement and consent to our Terms of Use.
The views expressed here in no way reflect the views of the owners and
operators of Casebook: Jack the Ripper.
Our old message board content (45,000+ messages) is no longer available online, but a complete archive
is available on the Casebook At Home Edition, for 19.99 (US) plus shipping.
The "At Home" Edition works just like the real web site, but with absolutely no advertisements.
You can browse it anywhere - in the car, on the plane, on your front porch - without ever needing to hook up to
an internet connection. Click here to buy the Casebook At Home Edition.
|
|
|
|
