single heirs of great estates, whereby the collateral line are for ever excluded, reversionary patents, and reversionary promises of preferments, leases upon single lives, and play-debts upon joint lives, and that the persons so aggrieved have no hope of being speedily relieved any other way, than by the dispensing of drugs and medicines in the manner they now are: burying alive being judged repugnant to the known laws of this kingdom.

That there are many of the deceased, who, by certain mechanical motions and powers, are carried about town, who would have been put into our hands long before this time, by any other wellordered government: by want of a due police in this particular, our company have been great sufferers.

That frequent funerals contribute to preserve the genealogies of families, and the honours conferred by the crown, which are nowhere so well illustrated as on this solemn occasion: to maintain necessitous clergy; to enable the clerks to appear in decent habits to officiate on Sundays; to feed the great retinue of sober and melancholy men, who appear at the said funerals, and who must starve without constant and regular employment. Moreover, we desire it may be remembered, that, by the passing of this bill, the nobility and gentry will have their old coaches lie upon their hands, which are now employed by our company.

And we further hope, that frequent funerals will not be discouraged, as it is by this bill proposed, it being the only method left of carrying some people to church.

We are afraid, that, by the hardships of this bill, our company will be reduced to leave their business here, and practice at York and Bristol, where the free use of bad medicines will be still allowed.

It is therefore hoped, that no specious pretence whatsoever will be thought sufficient to introduce an arbitrary and unlimited power for people to live (in defiance of art) as long as they can by the course of nature, to the prejudice of our company and the decay of trade.

That as our company are likely to suffer, in some measure, by the power given to physicians to dissect the bodies of malefactors, we humbly hope, that the manufacture of cases for skeletons will be reserved solely to coffin-makers.

We likewise humbly presume, that the interest of the several trades and professions, which depend upon ours, may be regarded; such as that of hearses, coaches, coffins, epitaphs, and bell-ropes, stonecutters, feathermen, and bell-ringers; and especially the manufacturers of crapes; and the makers of stuff; who use great quantities of old coffins, and who, considered in the consumption of their drugs, employ by far the greatest number of hands of any manufacture of the kingdom.

TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

THE MAYOR AND ALDERMEN

OF THE

CITY OF LONDON.

THE

HUMBLE PETITION

OF THE

COLLIERS, COOKS, COOK-MAIDS, BLACKSMITHS, JACKMAKERS, BRASIERS, AND OTHERS.

TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

THE MAYOR AND ALDERMEN

OF THE

CITY OF LONDON.

THE

HUMBLE PETITION

OF THE

COLLIERS, COOKS, COOK-MAIDS, BLACKSMITHS, JACKMAKERS, BRASIERS, AND OTHERS,

SHOWETH,

THAT whereas certain virtuosi, disaffected to the government, and to the trade and prosperity of this kingdom, taking upon them the name and title of the CATOPTRICAL VICTUALLERS, have presumed by gathering, breaking, folding, and bundling up the sunbeams, by the help of certain glasses, to make, produce, and kindle up several new focuses or fires within these his majesty's dominions, and there to boil, bake, stew, fry, and dress all sorts of victuals and provisions, to brew, distil spirits, smelt ore, and in general to perform all the offices of culinary fires; and are endeavouring to procure to themselves the monopoly of this their said invention: We beg leave humbly to represent to your honours,

That such grant or patent will utterly ruin and reduce to beggary your petitioners, their wives,