Part 94

The informer system for enforcing laws had its drawbacks. Informers were not trained and were sometimes retaliated against for informing. Sometimes this meant being tortured to death. Sometimes there were schemes in which a leader of thieves, would take a profit in the stolen goods by posing as a good citizen who tracked down and returned them to the owners for a fee. Also he might inform on his companions to get the reward for informing or to punish a troublesome one. Sometimes the owner of goods was involved in a fake robbery. An effort in 1749 to turn the whole haphazard system of informers, into a specialized organization for the detection and apprehension of criminals had caused a mob to form and make threats; Englishmen associated a police force with French tyranny. Nevertheless, about 1750, Sir John Fielding, a Bow Street magistrate, and his half-brother picked men to police the street under the direct control of the Bow Street magistrates. This first police district made an impact on the increasing violence of the times. In 1753, a proposal before Parliament to have a national census was also defeated by public fear of liberty being curtailed by having to make account of the number and circumstances of one's family and giving out information that could be used by enemies both in the realm and abroad.

Though grammar schools were endowed for the education of local poor boys, they sought fee-paying sons of gentlemen. They now taught arithmetic as well as reading and writing. Translation and reading of Latin was still important, e.g. Aesop's Fables, Virgil, Cicero's Letters, Caesar's Commentaries, Horace, Pliny, Juvenal, Ovid, Livy, and Plautus. The "Eton Grammar" book replaced the "Royal Grammar" as the standard for Latin and English grammar. The boys lived in boarding houses superintended by "dames" or older boys. There were usually two boys to a bed. There was bullying and initiation ceremonies such as tossing small boys up from a held blanket or having younger boys run naked in the snow. There were occasional rebellions by the boys and fights with the townspeople. Flogging with a birch or caning with a rod until blood was drawn from the bare buttocks was the usual punishment. There were some national boys' boarding schools such as Eton, Winchester, and Westminster. In these schools, boys could mix with sons of rich and powerful people, thus establishing important connections for their adult life. But there was more bullying of small boys by large boys at these schools and the smaller boys became menial servants of their seniors. Occasionally there were student riots. However, most grammar schools were not residential. Because the grammar schools were limited to boys, many boarding schools for girls were established. Tradesmen's daughters were often sent to these to learn to act like ladies. Most upper class girls were taught, at home or at school, English, writing, arithmetic, drawing, courtly dancing, needlework, music, and French. Dissenting academies were established for those who did not pass the religious tests of the grammar schools. Pencils were now in use.

Sons of gentlemen usually took "The Grand Tour" of the continent before going to university. These tours lasted for months or years, and always included Paris and a Protestant French university. The students went in groups with tutors. The chief purpose was now cultural, instead of practical. On these tours there was often misbehavior such as drinking and fighting. In 1720, Travelers Checks were developed for those on the Grand Tour.

The universities began to teach science. The new professorships at Cambridge University were: chemistry, astronomy, experimental philosophy, anatomy, botany, geology, geometry, and Arabic. Ideas in geology challenged the Bible's description of the creation of the world and there was a controversy over the origin and nature of fossils. In 1715, a large pointed weapon of black flint was found in contact with the bones of an elephant in a gravel bed in London. Oral and written examinations began to replace disputations. Few professors lectured.

Dissenters were excluded from universities as well as from offices and grammar schools. Oxford and Cambridge Universities were open only to members of the Church of England, so other universities were established for dissenters. They taught geography, mathematics, science, physics, astronomy, mechanics, hydrostatics, and anatomy. At Oxford and Cambridge and Harvard Universities, students in science were relegated to different instructors, buildings, and degree ceremonies than students in literature, who often looked down on them as socially and intellectually inferior.

The Inns of Court had ceased to provide residence. The period of education at law school at the Inns of Court was now reduced in 1760 from seven to five years for ordinary students and to three years for graduates of Oxford or Cambridge Universities. The textbooks were: "Doctor and Student" by Christopher Saint-German (1518) and "Institutes of the Laws of England" by Thomas Wood (1720). Most landed families tried to ensure that at least one member of the family in each generation was educated at the Inns of Court after going to Oxford or Cambridge. In 1739, attorneys formed a "Society of Gentlemen Practitioners in the Courts of Law and Equity". In order to earn a living, most attorneys had to attach themselves to some great patron and serve his interests. So it was hard for an ordinary person to find an impartial attorney or to find any attorney willing to contest a powerful family.

The first encyclopedia came into existence in 1728. In 1740 was the first public circulating library in London. Samuel Johnson put together the first dictionary in 1755. It standardized spelling and pronunciation. Then came dictionaries for the arts, sciences, and commerce. There were histories with political biases such as the Earl of Clarendon's "History of the Great Rebellion". Alexander Pope wrote witty satire on human faults of the period such as "Rape of the Lock". Daniel Defoe wrote "Robinson Crusoe", "Moll Flanders", and "The Poor Man's Plea" protesting disparity of judicial treatment of rich and poor, for instance for drunkenness. Henry Fielding wrote one of the first novels: "Tom Jones". Joseph Addison wrote essays on social behavior. Jonathan Swift wrote the satire on the times, "Gulliver's Travels". Samuel Richardson wrote some of the first novels, such as "Clarissa"; he wrote on values such as religious faith, moral virtue, and family closeness. Catherine Macaulay started writing her weighty and impressive "History of England". Many schoolmistresses wrote textbooks on a variety of subjects. Poet and essayist Hester Chapone wrote "Letters on the Improvement of the Mind". Elizabeth Carter wrote poetry and translated Greek works; her work was published in "The Gentleman's Magazine". Hannah More wrote the play "The Inflexible Captive". The diaries of Caroline Girle Powys Daniel told of her extensive travels in the nation, and the various life styles of polite society she visited. Defoe's newspaper was the first great political journal. He claimed that the people have a right to control the proceedings of Parliament. Essayists like Richard Steele, who introduced the periodical essay in his newspaper, and Joseph Addison, in his newspaper, wrote in a conversational style about the social life around them and the thoughts and behavior of common men and women in a light and good-humored way. They separated humor from the old-style farce and gave it taste and gentility. And with this came a moderation, reserve, and urbanity in matters of religion, politics, and society. Religious issues even became a matter of indifference. Fairies, witches, astrology, and alchemy were no longer taken seriously by educated men. Tales of fairies, witches, ghosts, and miracles were deemed appropriate for children. Childrens' stories were becoming a distinct literary form. Nursery rhymes included "Hush-a-bye baby on the tree top" and the five little piggies. "Mother Goose's Melody" was published in 1765. There were picture books for children such as Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, and Sleeping Beauty. Craftsmen made small models of their wares, such as dolls' china, dolls' furniture, silver, and flat lead soldiers. Babies had rattles and teething rings.

In 1710 copyrights for books was given for 14 years, renewable for another 14 years. Alexander Pope's translation of the Iliad and Odyssey made him financially independent. He collected advance payments from subscribers who would be listed in the book. A new book industry emerged in London with booksellers as master manufacturers who employed writers, authors, copyers, and subwriters. Booksellers sold books of sermons, histories, political and literary satires, literary criticism, and dictionaries. There was a growing popularity of novels. Books were expensive to buy. Regular magazines on the new and strange were published. There were three daily, six weekly, and ten thrice yearly newspapers. Newspapers increased in number from 8 founded in 1700 to a total of 25 in 1727. By 1753, there were over a million throughout the country. Workmen usually began their day by reading a newspaper at a coffee house.

Authors of books which have been registered at the Stationers Hall shall have the sole liberty of printing and reprinting such book for 14 years. Others who print or sell or publish such shall forfeit the books and pay one penny for each sheet found in their custody, 1/2 to the Queen and 1/2 to the suer. The printer shall give a copy of each book printed to the Company of Stationers, the Royal Library, the libraries of the Oxford and Cambridge universities, and certain other libraries.

In 1775, the two universities in England, the four universities in Scotland, and the several colleges of Eton, Westminster, and Winchester were given in perpetuity a copyright in books given or bequeathed to them.

The British Museum was incorporated to hold the collections of Robert Cotton of manuscripts, books, records, coins, and medals and of Hans Sloane, which contained rare books, coins, precious stones, pictures, plants, and mathematical instruments and had been left to the public.

Italian opera was introduced in 1706 by Georg Handel on his visit to England. His music became the standard music of Georgian England. The Academy of Ancient Music was founded in 1710. It set the standard of selection and performance. In existence were the violin (including ones made by Stadivari), viola, cello, double bass, oboe, trumpet, clarinet, bassoon, trombone, horn, flute, harp, organ, harpsichord, in which the strings were plucked, and piano, in which the strings are struck by little hammers. Orchestras had at least thirty members. Many hymns were written.

Painting by artists developed. Gentlemen had portraits painted of their horses and dogs as well as of family. Joshua Reynolds painted the wealth and beauty of England. Painters such as Gainsborough did landscapes and dramatic history paintings too, but neither of these sold as well as portraits. Scenery was painted for the theater. Places of business had signs painted which portrayed animals. Coaches were painted with mythological creatures and such. Gentlemen collected antique statuary and painting, such as by Rembrandt and Rubens. In 1711 an academy of painting was founded, which included women painters. The first public exhibition of paintings was in 1760. The Society of Artists was formed in 1761 and incorporated by royal charter in 1765. This differentiated them from the Painter-Stainers Company of face painters, coach painters, and house painters. The Royal Academy of London was founded in 1768 to merge all private academies and societies into one official body and to recognize the best artistic work. Joshua Reynolds was its first president. It was at first financed by the king. Under George I, sculptors became distinct from masons. They did monuments and portrait busts of the royal family, nobles, and great men. From Italian influence, Palladian architecture came into vogue. It was typified externally by a panoramic look achieved by horizontal lines, balanced alternatives of plain wall and openings, and portico with a heavy pediment like the front of a Roman temple. Stucco was often used to plaster housefronts, flute columns, and ornament pediments. Architects took students. Designers of engraved, etched, and historical prints were given the sole right to print them for 14 years. Copiers had to forfeit 5s. per print.

Foreigners were now interested in learning about English life, philosophy, and opinion. They learned English to read English literature such as Shakespeare. No longer were France and Italy the only centers of culture and influence on other nations. By 1713, England was the leading sea power by far.

The Royal Society was still the principal focus of scientific activity. Issac Newton was its President for several years and drew in more foreigners. Its members were mathematicians, chemists, botanists, physicians, engineers, authors, poets, and theologians. Papers given there generated much discussion at its meetings. Newton opined that particles attract each other by some force in a similar way that large bodies attracted each other. This force in immediate contact was exceedingly strong, at small distances performed chemical interactions, and at greater distances had no effect. Also there were local associations and societies. There were learned journals such as "Philosophical Transactions".

In 1714, the mercury thermometer was invented by Gabriel Fahrenheit of Germany; this was much more accurate than the alcohol and water thermometers. Sweden's Anders Celcius invented the Celsius scale. The hydrometer, which measures air humidity, was also invented. These made possible weather forecasting. In 1718, the French chemist Etienne Geoffroy published a table of affinities among chemical substances, a precursor to the periodic table of elements. Carolus Linneaus, a Swedish naturalist and botanist, established the scientific method of naming plants and animals by genus and species. When he showed that there was a sexual system in plants, church authorities were so shocked that they suppressed this knowledge as they did other scientific knowledge. Rev. Stephen Hales made ventilators for ships, prisons, and granaries, using the method of injecting air with bellows. This saved many lives in the prisons. In 1727, he discovered that water that plants lost by evaporation was restored by the roots up the stems. He found that gas could be obtained from plants by dry distillation and invented a way to collect gases by heating certain substances.

Hans Sloane, the son of a receiver-general of taxes, who became a physician, had collected hundreds of species of plants in Jamacia while physician to its governor. He became physician to George II and was a benefactor to many hospitals and devised a botanic garden in London for the Society of Apothecaries.

Italian Luigi Marsigli started the science of oceanography with a treatise discussing topography, circulation, ocean plants and animals, along with many measurements. Frenchman Jean-Etienne Guettard prepared the first true geological maps, showing rocks and minerals. He identified heat as the causative factor of change in the earth's landforms. John Mitchell studied earthquakes.

In 1735, George Hadley, a London lawyer and philosopher, determined that the cause of the prevailing westerly winds was the rotation of the earth to the east. Benjamin Franklin in 1743 observed that a particularly violent storm occurred in Boston a day after a particularly violent occurred in Philadelphia, and realized that they were the same storm, even though the storm's surface winds were from the northeast. He determined that Atlantic coastal storms traveled from the southwest to the northeast. In 1770, he prepared the first scientific chart of the Gulf Stream.

Daniel Bernoulli, a Swiss university lecturer in physics, mechanics, medicine, and anatomy, proved his theorem that any degree of statistical accuracy can be obtained by sufficiently increasing the observations, thereby also representing the first application of calculus to probability theory. In 1738, he showed that as the velocity of horizontal fluid flow increases, its pressure decreases. This followed from his theorem that the total mechanical energy of a flowing liquid, comprising the energy associated with fluid pressure, the gravitational potential energy of elevation, and kinetic energy of fluid motion remains constant; that is, the mechanical energy is conserved. This was the first mathematical study of fluid flow. He demonstrated that the impact of molecules on a surface would explain pressure, and that assuming the constant random motion of molecules, pressure and motion will increase with temperature. He explained the behavior of gases with changing pressure and temperature, establishing the kinetic theory of gases. Jean Nollet from France discovered osmosis, the passage of a solution through a semi-permeable membrane separating two solutions with different concentrations.

In 1754, Scotsman physician Joseph Black identified carbon dioxide, the first gas recognized as distinct from everyday breathing air. He did this by using a balance to weigh alkalies before and after exposure to heat. They lost weight by losing carbon dioxide. His development of the concept of latent heat, the quantity of heat absorbed or released when a substance changes its physical phase at constant temperature, was the first application of quantitative analysis to chemical reactions. He ascertained the effects of carbon dioxide on animals and its production by respiration, fermentation, and burning of charcoal. At this time, all flammable materials were thought to contain "phlogiston", which was given off as they burned and was associated with the transfer of heat. Plants were thought to remove phlogiston from the air and therefore burned when they were dry.

In 1773, Joseph Priestly, a nonconformist minister, schoolmaster, and tutor, discovered oxygen by heating red oxide of mercury. He became interested in the study of gases by watching the process of fermentation in a brewery next to his house. His gas collection techniques enabled him to work with gases soluble in water. He showed that the processes of combustion, respiration, and putrefaction caused one-fifth of air exposed over water to disappear, and that plants restored air vitiated by these processes. When he isolated oxygen, he noted that it was better than air in supporting respiration and combustion produced by heating certain metallic nitrates. It was called "respirable air".

Hydrogen (inflammable air) and nitrogen were discovered. The differences between acids, bases, and salts and their relationship to one another became understood. There was some theoretical as well as empirical knowledge about metals, e.g. in boiling points, intermetallic compounds, and changes in properties.

In 1742, Benjamin Frankin invented the Franklin stove, which greatly improved heating efficiency. As a freestanding cast-iron fireplace, it supplied heat in all directions instead of only from the one direction of the usual wall fireplace. Also, the heat absorbed by its cast-iron sides provided warmth even after the fire went out.

Static electricity was being discerned. It had been noticed that shaking a mercury barometer produced a strange glow in its "vacuum". Experiments showed that a glass rubbed in vacuo would shine brightly and that an exhausted glass globe rapidly whirled on a spindle and rubbing against the hand produced a brilliant glow. And further, as Newton wrote: "if at the same time a piece of white paper or white cloth, or the end of ones finger be held at the distance of about a quarter of an inch or half an inch from that part of the glass where it is most in motion, the electric vapor which is excited by the friction of the glass against the hand, will by dashing against the white paper, cloth, or finger, be put into such an agitation as to emit light, and make the white paper, cloth, or finger, appear lucid like a glowworm". In the study of electricity, conductors and insulators were recognized. There were demonstrations of electrical phenomena such as seeing the ignition of brandy by a spark shooting from a man's finger and the feeling the transfer of an electrical impulse created from a rubbed glass globe among a circle of people by their holding hands. In 1733, Frenchman Charles DuFay discovered that there are two types of static electric charges, and that like charges repel each other while unlike charges attract, linking electricity to magnetism.

In 1750, Benjamin Franklin "caught" lightning with a sharp pointed wire attached to the top of a kite which led down to a key at the other end. When a thunder cloud electrified the kite, a charge could be seen coming from the key to an approaching finger. This charge was then stored in an early type of capacitor (1745 Leyden jar) and then reproduced to create the same feeling of transfer of electrical impulse among a circle of hand-holders, thereby illustrating that it was the same phenomenon as electricity. This countered the theological belief that thunder and lightning were signs of divine displeasure or the work of the devil. He invented the lightening rod, which was then used to protect houses. About ten years later, the first lightening rod on an English church was erected, which showed the church's acceptance of his theory. Franklin theorized that there were electric charges everywhere and designated them as positive or negative. He observed that opposite charges attracted each other, but that like charges repelled each other. In 1766, Joseph Priestly did an experiment suggested by Franklin and showed that electrical force follows the same law as gravitational force; that is, that the attraction or repulsion between two electrical charges varies inversely in proportion to the square of the distance between them.

Joseph-Louis LaGrange from France developed differential equations. Natural history museums were established. A group split off from the Royal Society to show collections of curiosities.

In 1754, a self-educated mechanic founded the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce. It had sections on agriculture, manufactures, mechanics, chemistry, liberal arts, and trade and colonies. It sponsored contests at which prizes were given, such as that in 1761 for the best invention of a machine that would spin six threads of wool, flax, cotton, or silk at onetime with only one person attending it.