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MYSTIC LONDON:
OR,
PHASES OF OCCULT LIFE IN THE METROPOLIS.
BY
REV. CHARLES MAURICE DAVIES, D.D.
AUTHOR OF "ORTHODOX" AND "UNORTHODOX LONDON," ETC.
"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy."
_Hamlet._
LONDON: TINSLEY BROTHERS, 8, CATHERINE STREET, STRAND. 1875.
[_All rights of Translation and Reproduction are reserved._]
LONDON:
SAVILL, EDWARDS AND CO., PRINTERS, CHANDOS STREET,
COVENT GARDEN.
CONTENTS.
CHAP. PAGE
I. LONDON ARABS 1
II. EAST LONDON ARABS 11
III. LONDON ARABS IN CANADA 21
IV. WAIFS AND STRAYS 29
V. A LUNATIC BALL 38
VI. A BABY SHOW 51
VII. A NIGHT IN A BAKEHOUSE 58
VIII. A LONDON SLAVE MARKET 67
IX. TEA AND EXPERIENCE 73
X. SUNDAY LINNET-SINGING 85
XI. A WOMAN'S RIGHTS DEBATE 92
XII. AN OPEN-AIR TICHBORNE MEETING 100
XIII. SUNDAY IN A PEOPLE'S GARDEN 108
XIV. UTILIZING THE YOUNG LADIES 116
XV. FAIRLOP FRIDAY 122
XVI. A CHRISTMAS DIP 129
XVII. BOXING-DAY ON THE STREETS 134
XVIII. THE VIGIL OF THE DERBY 141
XIX. THE WIFESLAYER'S "HOME" 150
XX. BATHING IN THE FAR EAST 157
XXI. AMONG THE QUAKERS 164
XXII. PENNY READINGS 172
XXIII. DARWINISM ON THE DEVIL 179
XXIV. PECULIAR PEOPLE 198
XXV. INTERVIEWING AN ASTROLOGER 204
XXVI. A BARMAID SHOW 212
XXVII. A PRIVATE EXECUTION 217
XXVIII. BREAKING UP FOR THE HOLIDAYS 224
XXIX. PSYCHOLOGICAL LADIES 228
XXX. SECULARISM ON BUNYAN 233
XXXI. AL FRESCO INFIDELITY 242
XXXII. AN "INDESCRIBABLE PHENOMENON" 250
XXXIII. A LADY MESMERIST 260
XXXIV. A PSYCHOPATHIC INSTITUTION 269
XXXV. A PHRENOLOGICAL EVENING 277
XXXVI. A SPIRITUAL PICNIC 284
XXXVII. A GHOSTLY CONFERENCE 290
XXXVIII. AN EVENING'S DIABLERIE 300
XXXIX. SPIRITUAL ATHLETES 307
XL. "SPOTTING" SPIRIT MEDIUMS 313
XLI. A SÉANCE FOR SCEPTICS 320
XLII. AN EVENING WITH THE HIGHER SPIRITS 328
XLIII. SPIRIT FORMS 340
XLIV. SITTING WITH A SIBYL 347
XLV. SPIRITUALISTS AND CONJURERS 355
XLVI. PROS AND CONS OF SPIRITUALISM 362
INTRODUCTION.
It is perhaps scarcely necessary to say that I use the term Mystic, as
applied to the larger portion of this volume, in its technical sense to
signify my own _initiation_ into some of the more occult phases of
metropolitan existence. It is only to the Spiritualistic, or concluding
portion of my work, that the word applies in its ordinary signification.
C. M. D.
MYSTIC LONDON.
CHAPTER I.
LONDON ARABS.
Of all the protean forms of misery that meet us in the bosom of that
"stony-hearted stepmother, London," there is none that appeals so
directly to our sympathies as the spectacle of a destitute child. In the
case of the grown man or woman, sorrow and suffering are often traceable
to the faults, or at best to the misfortunes of the sufferers
themselves; but in the case of the child they are mostly, if not always,
vicarious. The fault, or desertion, or death of the natural protectors,
turns loose upon the desert of our streets those nomade hordes of
Bedouins, male and female, whose presence is being made especially
palpable just now, and whose reclamation is a perplexing, yet still a
hopeful problem. In the case of the adult Arab, there is a life's work
to undo, and the facing of that fact it is which makes some of our
bravest workers drop their hands in despair. With these young Arabs, on
the contrary, it is only the wrong bias of a few early years to
correct, leaving carte blanche for any amount of hope in youth,
maturity, and old age. Being desirous of forming, for my own
edification, some notion of the amount of the evil existing, and the
efforts made to counteract it, I planned a pilgrimage into this Arabia
Infelix--this Petræa of the London flagstones; and purpose setting down
here, in brief, a few of my experiences, for the information of
stay-at-home travellers, and still more for the sake of pointing out to
such as may be disposed to aid in the work of rescuing these little
Arabs the proper channels for their beneficence. Selecting, then, the
Seven Dials and Bethnal Green as the foci of my observation in West and
East London respectively, I set out for the former one bleak March
night, and by way of breaking ground, applied to the first
police-constable I met on that undesirable beat for information as to my
course. After one or two failures, I met with an officer literally
"active and intelligent," who convoyed me through several of that
network of streets surrounding the Seven Dials, leaving me to my own
devices when he had given me the general bearings of the district it
would be desirable to visit.
My first raid was on the Ragged School and Soup Kitchen in Charles
Street, Drury Lane, an evil-looking and unfragrant locality; but the
institution in question stands so close to the main thoroughfare that
the most fastidious may visit it with ease. Here I found some twenty
Arabs assembled for evening school. They were of all ages, from seven to
fifteen, and their clothing was in an inverse ratio to their dirt--very
little of the former, and a great deal of the latter. They moved about
with their bare feet in the most feline way, like the veritable Bedouin
himself. There they were, however, over greasy slates and grimy
copy-books, in process of civilization. The master informed me that his
special difficulties arose from the attractions of the theatre and the
occasional intrusion of wild Arabs, who came only to kick up a row. At
eight o'clock the boys were to be regaled with a brass band practice,
so, finding from one of the assembled Arabs that there was a second
institution of the kind in King Street, Long Acre, I passed on thereto.
Here I was fortunate enough to find the presiding genius in the person
of a young man engaged in business during the day, and devoting his
extra time to the work of civilizing the barbarians of this district.
Sunday and week-day services, night schools, day schools, Bands of Hope,
temperance meetings, and last, not least, the soup kitchen, were the
means at work here. Not a single officer is paid. The task is undertaken
"all for love, and nothing for reward," and it has thriven so far that
my presence interrupted a debate between the gentleman above-mentioned
and one of his coadjutors on the subject of taking larger premises. The
expenses were met by the weekly offerings, and I was surprised to see by
a notice posted in the room where the Sunday services are held, that
the sum total for the past week was only _19s. 4d._ So there must be
considerable sacrifice of something more than time to carry on this
admirable work. Under the guidance of the second gentleman mentioned
above, I proceeded to the St. George's and St. Giles's Refuge in Great
Queen Street, where boys are admitted on their own application, the only
qualification being destitution. Here they are housed, clothed, boarded,
and taught such trades as they may be fitted for, and not lost sight of
until they are provided with situations. A hundred and fifty-four was
the number of this truly miraculous draught from the great ocean of
London streets, whom I saw all comfortably bedded in one spacious
dormitory. Downstairs were the implements and products of the day's
work, dozens of miniature cobblers' appliances, machines for sawing and
chopping firewood, &c., whilst, in a spacious refectory on the first
floor, I was informed, the resident Arabs extended on a Friday their
accustomed hospitality to other tribes, to such an extent, that the
party numbered about 500. Besides the 154 who were fortunate enough to
secure beds, there were twenty new arrivals, who had to be quartered on
the floor for the night; but at all events they had a roof above them,
and were out of the cruel east wind that made Arabia Petræa that evening
an undesirable resting-place indeed. Lights were put out, and doors
closed, when I left, as this is not a night refuge; but notices are
posted, I am informed, in the various casual wards and temporary
refuges, directing boys to this. There is a kindred institution for
girls in Broad Street. Such was my first experience of the western
portion of Arabia Infelix.
The following Sunday I visited the Mission Hall belonging to Bloomsbury
Chapel, in Moor Street, Soho, under the management of Mr. M'Cree, and
the nature of the work is much the same as that pursued at King Street.
The eleven o'clock service was on this particular day devoted to
children, who were assembled in large numbers, singing their cheerful
hymns, and listening to a brief, practical, and taking address. These
children, however, were of a class above the Arab type, being generally
well dressed. I passed on thence to what was then Mr. Brock's chapel,
where I found my veritable Arabs, whom I had seen in bed the previous
evening, arrayed in a decent suit of "sober livery," and perched up in a
high gallery to gather what they could comprehend of Mr. Brock's
discourse--not very much, I should guess; for that gentleman's long
Latinized words would certainly fire a long way over their heads, high
as was their position. I found the whole contingent of children provided
for at the refuge was 400, including those on board the training ship
_Chichester_ and the farm at Bisley, near Woking, Surrey. This is
certainly the most complete way of dealing with the Arabs par
excellence, as it contemplates the case of utter destitution and
homelessness. It need scarcely be said, however, that such a work must
enlarge its boundaries very much, in order to make any appreciable
impression on the vast amount of such destitution. Here, nevertheless,
is the germ, and it is already fructifying most successfully. The other
institutions, dealing with larger masses of children, aim at civilizing
them at home, and so making each home a centre of influence.
Passing back again to the King Street Mission Hall, I found assembled
there the band of fifty missionaries, male and female, who visit every
Sunday afternoon the kitchens of the various lodging-houses around the
Seven Dials. Six hundred kitchens are thus visited every week. After
roll-call, and a brief address, we sallied forth, I myself accompanying
Mr. Hatton--the young man to whom the establishment of the Mission is
due--and another of his missionaries. I had heard much of the St.
Giles's Kitchens, but failed to realize any idea of the human beings
swarming by dozens and scores in those subterranean regions. Had it not
been for the fact that nearly every man was smoking, the atmosphere
would have been unbearable. In most of the kitchens they were beguiling
the ennui of Sunday afternoon with cards; but the game was invariably
suspended on our arrival. Some few removed their hats--for all wore
them--and a smaller number still joined in a verse or two of a hymn,
and listened to a portion of Scripture and a few words of exhortation.
One or two seemed interested, others smiled sardonically; the majority
kept a dogged silence. Some read their papers and refused the tracts and
publications offered them. These, I found, were the Catholics. I was
assured there were many men there who themselves, or whose friends, had
occupied high positions. I was much struck with the language of one
crop-headed young fellow of seventeen or eighteen, who, seeing me grope
my way, said, "They're not very lavish with the gas here, sir, are
they?" It may appear that this "experience" has little bearing on the
Arab boys; but really some of the inmates of these kitchens _were_ but
boys. Those we visited were in the purlieus of the old "Rookery," and
for these dens, I was informed, the men paid fourpence a night! Surely a
little money invested in decent dwellings for such people would be well
and even remuneratively spent. The kitchens, my informant--who has spent
many years among them--added, are generally the turning point between
honesty and crime. The discharged soldier or mechanic out of work is
there herded with the professional thief or burglar, and learns his
trade and gets to like his life.
The succeeding evening I devoted first of all to the Girls' Refuge, 19,
Broad Street, St. Giles's. Here were sixty-two girls of the same class
as the boys in Great Queen Street, who remain until provided with
places as domestic servants. A similar number were in the Home at
Ealing. The Institution itself is the picture of neatness and order. I
dropped in quite unexpectedly; and any visitor who may be induced to
follow my example, will not fail to be struck with the happy, "homely"
look of everything, the clean, cheerful appearance of the female Arabs,
and the courtesy and kindness of the matron. These girls are considered
to belong to St. Giles's parish, as the boys to Bloomsbury Chapel. So
far the good work has been done by the Dissenters and Evangelical party
in the Established Church. The sphere of the High Church--as I was
reminded by the Superintendent Sergeant--is the Newport Market Refuge
and Industrial Schools. Here, besides the male and female refuges, is a
Home for Destitute Boys, who are housed and taught on the same plan as
at St. Giles's. Their domicile is even more cosy than the other, and
might almost tempt a boy to act the part of an "amateur Arab." I can
only say the game that was going on, previously to bed, in the large
covered play room, with bare feet and in shirt sleeves, was enough to
provoke the envy of any member of a Dr. Blimber's "Establishment." The
Institution had just had a windfall in the shape of one of those
agreeable _1000l._ cheques that have been flying about lately, or their
resources would have been cramped; but the managers are wisely sensible
that such windfalls do not come every day, and so forbear enlarging
their borders as they could wish.
Strangely enough, the Roman Catholics, who usually outdo us in their
work among the poor, seemed a little behindhand in this special
department of settling the Arabs. They have schools largely attended in
Tudor Place, Tottenham Court Road, White Lion Street, Seven Dials, &c.,
but, as far as I could ascertain, nothing local in the shape of a
Refuge. To propagate the faith may be all very well, and will be only
the natural impulse of a man sincere in his own belief; but we must not
forget that these Arabs have bodies as well as souls, and that those
bodies have been so shamefully debased and neglected as to drag the
higher energies down with them; and it is a great question whether it is
not absolutely necessary to begin on the very lowest plane first, and so
to work towards the higher. Through the body and the mind we may at last
reach the highest sphere of all.
Without for one moment wishing to write down the "religious" element, it
is, I repeat, a grave question whether the premature introduction of
that element does not sometimes act as a deterrent, and frustrate the
good that might otherwise be done. Still there is the great fact, good
_is_ being done. It would be idle to carp at any means when the end is
so thoroughly good. I could not help, as I passed from squalid kitchen
to kitchen that Sunday afternoon, feeling Lear's words ring through my
mind:--
O, I have ta'en
Too little care of this. Take physic, pomp,
Expose thyself to feel what wretches feel,
That thou mayst shake the superflux to them,
And show the heavens more just.
And now "Eastward ho!" for "experiences" in Bethnal Green.