Page:A short history of social life in England.djvu/384

364 arms of an apothecary who has paid a license of £100 for the privilege of putting him to death &hellip; and he is gathered to his fathers to be taxed no more."

The abolition of the Corn Laws in 1846 was the first step towards Free Trade, as it was the first step towards the decline of agriculture. It was followed by the abolition of duties upon hundreds of other articles. Prosperity reigned in every department. The rush for gold to California in 1848 and to Australia two years later helped to enrich Englishmen, who spent their fortunes for the most part in the Mother Country. The increase of wealth told on rich and poor alike. Luxuries were indulged in by all classes of society. People ate more meat, they smoked more tobacco, they travelled, they read. One recalls Pendennis and his mother (1850): "Besides the ancient poets, you may be sure Pen read the English with great gusto. &hellip; He read Shakspere to his mother (which she said she liked, but didn't), and Byron and Pope and his favourite 'Lalla Rookh,' which pleased her indifferently. But as for Bishop Heber and Mrs. Hemans, above all, this lady used to melt away and be absorbed in her