The Early History of English Poor Relief

by of Girton College E. M. Leonard

But it was in 1597 that the many aspects of legislation affecting the poor were thoroughly discussed.

3. The Bills and Statutes of 1597.

During the years from 1594 to 1597 there was a great dearth of corn and the price rose in some cases to four or five times the average price of the preceding years. There were rebellions in many parts of the country and great distress in all. Parliament met on the 24th Oct. 1597 and the first measure read a first time by the House of Commons was one dealing with forestallers, regrators and engrossers of corn[139]. Francis Bacon then spoke about enclosures. For "Inclosure of grounds," he said, "brings depopulation, which brings first Idleness; secondly decay of Tillage; thirdly subversion of Houses and decay of charity, and charges to the Poor; fourthly impoverishing the state of the realm." He therefore brought forward two Bills on the subject, "not drawn with a polished pen, but with a polished heart, free from affection and affectation[140]." A committee was appointed to consider the matter, which was to meet in the Exchequer Chamber in the afternoon of the same day.

Later, Mr Finch addressed the House, "shewing sundry great and horrible abuses of idle and vagrant persons greatly offensive both to God and the world; and further shewing the extream and miserable estate of the Godly and honest sort of the poor Subjects of this realm," and it was decided that these matters also should be referred to the committee already appointed for enclosures[141].

A few days later Sir Francis Hastings complained that this committee had so far "spent all their travel only about the said Inclosures and Tillage, and nothing about the said rogues and poor[142]." He therefore asked that Bills on these subjects should be considered by the House. At least seventeen Bills concerning this matter were brought forward during the Session of 1597-8, and on Nov. 19th a large and influential committee was appointed to which thirteen of these Bills were referred. To this committee belonged some of the most famous men in the House, for it included amongst its members Sir Francis Bacon, Sir Thomas Cecil and Sir Edward Coke. There were others also who seem to have had special knowledge in matters concerning the poor, such as Edward Hext, a justice of Somerset, who had already written a long letter to Cecil concerning vagabonds; and Sir Thomas Wroth, who seems to have been the special champion of the poor[143]. Their meetings were held in the Middle Temple Hall and continued for the greater part of the Session[144].

The titles of twelve of the Bills then considered give us some idea of the many sides of the question that were then discussed. The following drafts were submitted; the Bill for "erecting of Houses of Correction and punishment of rogues and sturdy beggars and for levying of certain sums due to the poor," for the "necessary habitation and relief of the poor, aged, lame, and blind in every parish," for "relief of Hospitals, poor prisoners and others impoverished by casual losses," for "supply of relief unto the poor," for "petite forfeitures," for "the better relief of souldiers and mariners," for "the better governing of Hospitals and lands given to the relief of the poor," for "extirpation of Beggery," "against Bastardy," "for setting the poor on work," and "for erecting of hospitals or abiding and working houses for the poor." These Bills concern both the relief of the poor and methods of dealing with vagrants; so far as the former was concerned the committee rejected all these proposals and brought in a new Bill of their own. But the Bill for Houses of Correction was amended in the Commons and sent up to the Lords[145].

In the Upper House also there was then much discussion. A bill "for the relief of the poor in time of extream dearth of corn" apparently originated there[146]. Most interest, however, was excited by the Bill for Houses of Correction. The Lords appointed one committee to discuss both Bills and amongst its members were Lord Burghley and Archbishop Whitgift. Several amendments were proposed by the committee which were not at first approved by the whole House. The Lord Chief Justice was therefore consulted and some, if not all, of the additions were accepted[147]. The Bill was sent down to the House of Commons with the amendments. The Commons referred the matter to a committee in which Sir Walter Raleigh took the chief part and which included Francis Bacon, Wroth and Hext. Raleigh proposed a conference with the Lords on the subject. The Lords assented to the conference with the proviso that whatsoever had been amended or added by their Lordships "could not now be altered by the orders of the House[148]." Sir Walter Raleigh reported this reply to the Commons but complained of the manner in which the answer had been delivered, "not using any of their Lordships' former and wonted courteous manner of coming down towards the members of this House to the Bar, but all of them sitting still in their great Estates very solemnly and all covered[149]." A somewhat heated discussion arose between the two Houses as to the way in which the Lords should answer the Commons, and perhaps the friction occasioned by this means contributed to the rejection of the Bill by the Commons by 106 Noes to 66 Ayes[150]. A new Bill for rogues was hastily passed through the House and sent up to the Lords.

The final result of all these discussions, Bills, committees and disputes was a series of Acts dealing with the problems concerning vagrants and the poor from many different sides.

The most important Act of the series is the 39 Eliz. c. 3, formerly the Bill for the relief of the Poor which the great committee appointed on Nov. 19th in the Commons brought in after they had discussed twelve other Bills on the subject. By this Act the relief of the poor was placed mainly in the hands of the Churchwardens and four Overseers of the Poor who were to be appointed every year at Easter by the justices of the peace. These churchwardens and overseers with the consent of two justices of the peace were to take such measures as were necessary for setting poor children to work or binding them apprentice, for providing the adult unemployed with work by means of a stock of hemp, flax, wool, thread, iron or other materials and for relieving the impotent, old and blind. For this last purpose they were empowered to build Hospitals on waste lands. The funds were to be raised by the taxation "of every inhabitant and every occupyer of Landes" and the rates might be levied by distress. An appeal against the assessment might be taken to Quarter Sessions but the assessment itself was to be made by the parochial officers with the consent of two justices of the peace. Rich parishes might be rated in aid of poorer ones and the forfeitures for negligence, made under the Act, were to go to the use of the poor. All beggars were declared rogues except those who begged for meat and victuals in their own parish and soldiers or sailors regularly licensed who were passing to their settlement.

A county rate was also to be levied on the parishes for the relief of prisoners and for the support of almshouses and hospitals, and a Treasurer for the County was to be appointed to administer this relief. Within corporate towns, the head officers had the same authority as justices of the peace in the country.