7 OCTOBER

1836 William Horseman, a longstanding inmate of the workhouse of St Paul's, Covent Garden, was charged at Bow Street magistrates of illicitly smuggling spirits into the establishment. The gatekeeper, Peter Attwell, said that on the occasion in question, suspecting Horseman had spirits concealed upon his person, he had searched him and found a flat stone bottle containing a quarter pint of rum, hidden between his shirt and waistcoat. Horseman told the magistrate that he was troubled with a very bad cold and asthma and took the rum in merely to mix with hot water and sugar to ease his complaints. Attwell stated that when Horseman had left the workhouse earlier that day, he had warned him not to bring back spirits. He believed he had done so previously from having observed the inmates in an intoxicated state from the use of spirits which could only have been supplied by the accused. The workhouse master stated that Horseman acted as a messenger for the paupers and was allowed out occasionally. He was generally a very orderly well conducted man. Horseman was fined ten shillings, in default of which he would spend seven days in the House of Correction.