hours on the Saturday afternoon to deliver,
and the same on the Monday to collect, I thought it was pretty good pay.
But never any more! for it took me nearly three weeks to complete, and at
least two-thirds of the papers I had to worry out the particulars and
fill them up myself as best I could, for the people were very suspicious
and had a notion that the government had a sinister motive in getting
these returns. One was supposed to be that there was a conscription for
the army, and every able-bodied man was to serve, and another was that
they were going to introduce passports as they did on the continent, and
anything continental at that time was not at all popular.

I recollect the passing of the Reform Bill in '32, when there was a great
illumination, and gangs of men and boys went about breaking the windows
of all the houses that were not lit up. Nearly all the windows on one
side of Smith Street were broken. The illumination consisted of tallow
candles stuck in square lumps of clay, about six in each window. Chelsea
has always had a strong radical element, for during the agitation over
the Reform Bill, the Unionists had one or two meeting houses. There was
one in Leader Street, and another in Doyley Street, and in '48, the time
of the Chartists, one of the sections met on the Chelsea Common and
marched with their portion of the partisans to the great meeting on
Kennington Common, and returned in procession along the Kennington Road
to the Westminster Bridge. Here they were broken up by the police and
not allowed to proceed in procession, and the petition was sent on in two
four-wheeled cabs. There was great excitement, and it was generally
expected that there would be serious rioting. Great precautions were
taken, the military were all confined to barracks, and a large number of
artillery with their guns from Woolwich were drafted into London
overnight, and all the body of local reserve men--old soldiers with
pensions--were kept under arms, and 100,000 special constables were sworn
in.

The recruiting sergeant in Chelsea on Whitsun and Easter Mondays and
during the regatta was very active. There would be two or three smart
fellows from the cavalry with one or two young fellows, posing as
recruits, for decoys. The artillery sergeant would be in smart blue
uniform, and then came the regiments of the line. The decoys for the
latter were two or three smartly dressed girls of doubtful character.
Then came