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102
"gave to a woman to look after him 1/6," "gave for a shroud
to wrap him in 1/6;" another pathetic story is told in the
following words "Expended about Elizth Green being wth
child 3/-; gave Mrs- Moore for delivering of Elizth Green 5/-,
gave for a coffin for Elizth Green & child 5/-'
A case of apparent death from starvation, possibly, as no
name is given, of a provincial who had walked to London
and found its streets were not paved with gold, is narrated in
an entry, "gave to a coach to carry a poore man that was
taken up in Pickadille and died psently afterwards 1/." A very
common entry in this account of "extraordinary" expenses,
is one relating to midwifery; thus Elizabeth Nash received
2/6 on her lying in, 2/- was paid to a woman to look after
her, and 5/- to the midwife; a woman "that fell in labour in
Brewer Street" received 5/-, and the comparatively frequent
paymentof a like sum under similar circumstances seems to suggest
a struggle for existence on the part of poor single women
compelled to work for their living almost until seized with the
pangs of labour. A few miscellaneous items taken almost at
random from the accounts speak of the payment of 1/- for a
child " that dyed an orphan," 2/- for a lame woman, 2/- for
a "poore woman," while "a very poore woman" had to be
content with 1/6, William Simmons and a shroud involved
an outlay of 5/6, and a month's lying in for a woman 20/-,
the sum of 6/- was paid for " looking to two women," and
2/6 for 11 laying Margaret Storey," 3/6 for nursing Mary
Knight, 2/- to a woman in labour, and 2/- for carrying two
women to their nurses. Payments for shrouds varied from
1/- to 2/6, a coffin ''for an orphant'' cost 1/-, and 2/- was
paid for the keep of "a child yt was found." The sum of
20/- was paid to John Brown, Surgeon, but no particulars
are given of the services rendered fur this remuneration.
Even allowing for the difference in the cost of living, 21does
not seem an extravagant sum to pay for "lodging a