The Gentle Lash

May 26, 2007

The proceedings of the Old Bailey, described as “A fully searchable online edition of the largest body of texts detailing the lives of non-elite people ever published, containing accounts of over 100,000 criminal trials held at London’s central criminal court,” are a rather addictive read.

Here’s a random example:

The next was a little confident ungrateful Slut, taken up in the streets by an honest laborious Market-woman, who first employed her, and afterwards admitted her to lie with her: she took an advantage one morning when her kinde Dame was gone out early, leaving her in bed, to rob the poor woman of almost all the clothes she had, sending them away by some Confederates, and devoutly forswearing her own knowing any thing of the matter; but finding a Warrant like to come, fled, and was found with an Ends of Gold and Silver woman, to whom she had pawn’d part of the things: she was Convicted only to the value of ten Pence; and consequently instead of riding in a Cart, shall only have the honour to follow it, under the correction of a gentle Lash.

Tags: history