No. 2 is the “Bellman”—Dekker’s “Bellman of London and Dog.” (as at [page 49].) He carries a halberd lanthorn, and bell, and his “cry” is curious:—
| “Maids in your smocks, look to your locks, Your fire and candle-light; For well ’tis known much mischief’s done By both in dead of night; Your locks and fire do not neglect, And so you may good rest expect.” |
No. 3 is the “Orange Woman,” a sort of full-grown Nell Gwynne, if we can only fancy Nelly, the favourite mistress of King Charles the Second, grown up in her humble occupation. She carries a basket of oranges and lemons under her arm, and seeks to sell them by the following “cry”:—
| “Fine Sevil oranges, fine lemmons, fine; Round, sound, and tender, inside and rine, One pin’s prick their vertue show: They’ve liquor by their weight, you may know.” |
No. 4 is the “Hair-line Man,” with a bundle of lines under his arm, and a line in his hand. Clothes-pegs was, perhaps, a separate “cry.” Here is his:—
| “Buy a hair-line, or a line for Jacke, If you any hair or hemp-cord lack, Mistris, here’s good as you need use; Bid fair for handsel, I’ll not refuse.” |
No. 5 is the “Radish and Lettuce Woman.”—Your fine “goss” lettuce is a modern cry:—
| “White raddish, white young lettis, White young lettis white; You hear me cry, come mistris, buy, To make my burden light.” |
No. 6 is the man who sells “Marking Stones,” now, unless we except slate-pencils, completely out of use:—
| “Buy marking-stones, marking-stones buy, Much profit in their use doth lie: I’ve marking-stones of colour red, Passing good, or else black lead.” |