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Parochial Tyranny: Or, the House-Keeper's Complaint Against the Insupportable Exactions, and Partial Assessments of Select Vestries, &C is a 1727 pamphlet by Daniel Defoe. It deals with the corruption of parishes. Similarly to Every-body's Business, Is No-body's Business (1725), The Protestant Monastery (1726), Augusta Triumphans (1728) and Second Thoughts are Best (1729), it was published under the pseudonym of Andrew Moreton. Defoe did not sign his name to the majority of his works. He preferred them to be published anonymously or under one of his pennames. This choice was “sometimes” made “to conceal his authorship or to stimulate sales, but more characteristically to establish a point of view”.

Augusta Triumphans: or, the Way to Make London the Most Flourishing City in the Universe was first published on 16 March 1728. Similarly to Every-body's Business, Is No-body's Business (1725), The Protestant Monastery (1726), Parochial Tyranny (1727), and Second Thoughts are Best (1729), it was issued under the nom de plume of Andrew Moreton.{{cite book |last=P B |first=Backscheider |date=1989 |title=Daniel Defoe.His Life |location=Baltimore and London |publisher=The John Hopkins University Press |page=517} These pamphlets offer suggestions to foster the general improvement of London. In addition, they revisit some of themes which their author, Daniel Defoe, had already dealt with in An Essay Upon Projects (1697).

Augusta Triumphans: or, the Way to Make London the Most Flourishing City in the Universe was first published on 16 March 1728. The fictitious author of this pamphlet, Andrew Moreton, is a man in his sixties who offers suggestions for the improvement of London. In particular, he fosters the establishment of a university, an academy of music, hospitals for foundlings and licensed institutions for the treatment of mental diseases. Moreover, he encourages the introduction of measures to prevent moral corruption and street robbery. In addition to Augusta Triumphans, other works were issued under the nome the plume of Andrew Moreton. They include Every-body's Business, Is No-body's Business (1725), The Protestant Monastery (1726), Parochial Tyranny (1727), and Second Thoughts are Best (1729). They respectively deal with high salary of servants, disrespect towards elders, corruption of parishes, and crime prevention. They all revisit themes which their author, Daniel Defoe, had already discussed in An Essay Upon Projects (1697). Compared to this earlier work, however, they are more project-oriented than focused on moral criticism.

Subject and overall structure
Augusta Triumphans offers suggestions for the enhancement of the city of London. It begins with two introductory paragraphs. The former is a brief reflection on “projecting heads” and the attitude of the English towards them. “Projecting heads”, that is to say writers who create schemes for social improvement, are invited to make proposals without fearing to be ridiculed. They should exclusively focus on offering honest advice. In addition, the possible shortcomings of their projects should be forgiven in that “It is a kind of good action to mean well, and the intention ought to palliate the failure”. As for the English, they are described as the least clement nation towards such writers. They “treat them in the vilest manner” and it is because of this reason that their country is “esteemed so bad at invention”. In the second opening paragraph, the narrator explains the reason why he has written this pamphlet. He wants to make good use of the remaining time of his life by putting innovative proposals down on paper. On the whole, this work is intended to be the “testimony of” his “good will to” his “fellow-creatures”. Immediately after this introductory discourse, Andrew Moreton moves on to illustrate the project upon which he has mostly reflected. He fosters the establishment of a London university to oppose the contemporary corruption of learning and education. Subsequently, four titled sections come one after the other and present other schemes for social improvement. Section one calls for the establishment of foundling hospitals. They would prevent many mothers from freeing themselves of their illegitimate offspring through abortion or abandonment in parishes which are too poor to offer them decent living conditions. Section two shows how a real academy of music would "prevent the expensive importation of foreign musicians, & c". Section three firstly offers advice to rescue "youths and servants" from moral corruption. Secondly, it denounces certain social evils: prostitution, gambling, and a series of dissolute manners to spend one's free time on Sunday such as alcohol misuse. Thirdly, it makes a digression on husbands's abuses of their wives and comments about contemporary private madhouses. Section four encourages the adoption of measures to stop street robbery. They include moral education and the introduction of a competent and paid body of watchmen as well as an adequate system of street lighting at night.

The final part of Augusta Triumphans is titled “Omissions”. It is a revision of two aspects of the projects which have been illustrated so far. Andrew Moreton begins with rejecting his initial idea of founding a London university which is composed by “only a hall or public room”. Rather, “it should be a large house or inn, in the nature of a college, with store of convenient rooms for gentlemen, not only to study separately, but wherein to lodge their books, for it would be most inconvenient to lug them backwards and forwards”. He then expands his “discourse on madhouses”, particularly by offering a suggestion to impede the unjust confinement of widows or other women who find themselves with a fortune and no male guidance. In order to prevent them from becoming victims of greedy and manipulatory “strangers”, the nearest male relative should succeed the deceased gentleman in the management of the estate.

To the end of the pamphlet is then attached a letter “To Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Robinson” which is dated “Sept. 23, 1728”. Its sender, Andrew Moreton, begins with briefly congratulating the addressee for his “election into the chamberlainship of the city of London”. He subsequently poses a series of questions to understand the purpose of “the orphan’s tax”.

"Projecting heads" and their time
At the beginning of Augusta Triumphans, Andrew Moreton touches upon the issue of "projecting heads" or "schemists". These figures and their cultural context are presented in An Essay Upon Projects(1697). As Maldonado explains, this work “explicitly” discusses the “theme […] of […] man’s capacity to project”. In addition, compared to Robinson Crusoe (1719), which "implicitly" deals with the same topic, its approach is social-oriented. It aims to the progress of a whole community rather than focusing on only an individual. In its introduction, the author points out the project-oriented climate of his time which “swarms with […] a multitude of” planners. This condition originates from the widespread need to cope with contemporary confusion. In addition, since it is the first time in history that humanity shows such a great interest in this practice, his epoque could be defined “Projecting Age”.

The establishment of new institutions
In Augusta Triumphans, Andrew Moreton promotes the foundation of a university, an academy of music and a hospital for foundlings. He begins with calling for a university in London and with no accommodation for its users. This place should be exclusively attended by students at daytime. By keep living under the same roof of their families of origin, they firstly are not left to their own devices. Therefore, they are less likely to fall in temptation. Young men who are sent to Cambridge or Oxford, on the other hand, waste their time drinking rather than educating themselves. Secondly, they contribute to the cultural flourish of London society by keeping in contact with it. In particular, they can spread the knowledge they acquire through conversation. Overall, the privileged beneficiary of this plan is the gentry. Its residential areas are included in the list of places where Moreton advices to establish colleges. They include Westminster, St. James and Ormond Street. This class is also invited to finance the whole project “by subscription”.

Subsequently, Andrew Moreton fosters the establishment of a foundling hospital. Its existence would prevent many mothers from getting rid of their illegitimate offspring through abortion or abandonment in parishes which do not offer them decent living conditions. This issue recurs in Defoe’s work, particularly in the novels Moll Flanders (1722), Roxana (1724), and in the essay Conjugal Lewdness (1727). In the early eighteenth century, London was populated by a great number of abandoned children. They were either left on the streets or put under the care of parishes. The service offered by the latter, however, was not considered reliable. Some dissipated the money which was supposed to be spent for the support of children. Others were accused of entrusting orphans to the care of dishonest nurses. They would frequently select them on the basis of the cheapness of the service they provided. Lastly, Defoe’s fictitious speaker fosters the establishment of an academy of music “to prevent the expensive importation of foreign musicians & c.”. He points out that the contemporary Italian opera, which is financed by high class lovers of this art, is “improperly called academy” in that it just hires costly foreign musicians. It does not encourage the “propagation of science, by training up persons thereto from younger to riper years, under the instruction and inspection of proper artists”. When Augusta Triumphans was published, it existed a joint stock company whose denomination was Royal Academy of Music. Although having been founded in 1719, it became operative in 1720. Thanks to governmental subsidies, it could afford paying salaries which were “beyond the theatre’s inherent capacity to pay”.

Preventing the moral corruption of youths and servants


Andrew Moreton encourages the introduction of measures to render servants faithful to their job. Firstly, they should be offered salaries which are not excessively high. In particular, they could be determined by their capability of working and managing money. Secondly, the judicial system should not allow them to resign with no just cause. Lastly, masters ought not to abuse them. This scheme aims primarily to keep them away from idleness and bad company in that they may lead them to vice and crime. Eighteenth century London was populated by a large number of migrants who were seeking for job opportunities. They came from other countries or areas of Britain. Being lonely and unaware of city dangers, they could easily become pray of unscrupulous people. Young girls, for instance, were frequently lead to prostitution by individuals who made them false promises. In some cases, they were even approached at their arrival. Procurers could take the advantage of “the custom of mistresses to meet the wagons which brought country girls to London in order to find and engage servants”. Therefore, as it is stated by M. Dorothy George, “the first scene in Hogarth’s Harlot’s Progress was one frequently played in real life”.

Reforming the madhouse system
Andrew Moreton reflects also upon the contemporary system of private madhouses and denounces its inefficiency. In the first place, he notices that it allows the institutionalisation of individuals who are affected by no mental disease. For instance, they frequently admit healthy wives. Their abusive husbands confine them in these place for the sole purpose of getting rid of them. In the second place, he points out that they do not guarantee adequate treatment of patients, especially because their staff may neglect or abuse them. In the light of these facts, he suggests to substitute them with “licensed madhouses” which are “subject to proper visitation and inspection” and where nobody can be “sent […] without due reason, inquiry, and authority”.

In the eighteenth century, private madhouses were discussed and evaluated. Nicholas Hervey points out that “Defoe” was “among the first to question the practice of these institutions in Augusta Triumphans (1728)”. He was then followed by others such as Tobias Smollett who wrote the novel Sir Lancelot Greaves (1762). The hero of the title criticised unfair detention of individuals. In addition, he reflected upon the difference between sanity and mental illness. In 1763, the Gentleman’s Magazine denounced the abuse of a series of patients in asylums.

Nicholas Hervey notices also that Defoe “attacked the way husbands were able to confine their wives for the most spurious of reasons”. On this point, Elizabeth Foyster claims that this “was an issue which caused much concern in eighteenth-century England”. Men’s right to confine their wives was frequently up for discussion. In the essay At the Limits of Liberty: Married Women and Confinement in eighteenth-century England (2002), she argues that husband’s detention of their spouses in family dwellings and madhouses had become a new form of conjugal violence. Her study is based on documents of the King’s Bench in that this court held jurisdiction over this issue.

Street robbery prevention
The last scheme of Andrew Moreton aims to prevent street robbery “first by heavenly, and then by earthly means”. The former consist of “enforcing and encouraging a reformation of manners, by suppressing of vice and immorality, and punishing profaneness and licentiousness”. Widespread immoral habits are the reading of indecent ballads, swearing, and alcohol abuse. The latter include the introduction of an efficient system of surveillance and lighting of the streets. First of all, it is necessary to substitute the current inept watch with a body of competent and physically strong men. These new guards should carry firearms, swords, and a horn to alert their co-workers. They should be assigned to areas which are not too large to be effectively monitored. In particular, “no watchman” should “stand above twenty doors distant from his fellow”. Moreover, they ought to be given salaries in recognition of their efforts. Secondly, streets need to be rendered visible a night. Therefore, it is important to set up a reasonable number of lamps which are technically capable of providing decent lighting.

In this section, the speaker recalls three peculiar aspects of the culture in Defoe’s time. The first to be mentioned is the reformation of manners. Throughout the 18th-century, several individuals were bitterly disappointed with the degree of social immorality and the difficulty to prosecute victimless offences. In order to remedy for this unsatisfactory situation, they founded a series of societies from 1690 on. Their members were chiefly committed to teach religious and moral values through a variety of means. They included the delivery of sermons and the production and distribution of pamphlets. Furthermore, they would organise and conduct the prosecution of targeted sinners. They could take you to court for offences such as drunkenness, swearing, gaming and sodomy.

The second cultural peculiarity is the Night watch. In this epoch, Britain had no law enforcement and private individuals had to pursuit criminals by themselves. They could be helped by thief-takers that is to say individuals who offered to find and catch criminals in exchange for governmental rewards. As an alternative, they could turn to part-time officials, particularly constables and watchmen. The former had to bring criminals to the justice of the peace but were not expected to carry out investigations. The latter had to watch streets at night so as to prevent crime. Initially, householders had to arrest by appointment or taking turns and guard the streets by rotation. Throughout the century, the roles of thief-takers, constables and watchmen came to be considered real occupations. In 1751, the magistrates John and Henry Fielding even established a permanent body of men who were in charge of carry out investigations and capture criminals. They named them ‘runners’ in order to persuade the public that, compared to the money-oriented thief-takers, they could be trusted. They were headquartered in Bow Street. In this area, the eminent magistrate Thomas de Veil had located his office from 1739 or 1740 until 1746.

Lastly, Andrew Moreton deals with street lighting and it does it in connection with night watch. As J. M. Beattie explains, several changes were made to the urban environment of London for the purpose of improving aspects such as paving and the availability of drinkable water. Plans were also made to improve street lighting which, compared to other issues, was considered of the utmost importance to prevent crime. By rendering places visible to both pedestrians and part-time officers, life was made difficult for felons and this point was highlighted in petitions to Parliament. Street lighting eventually became a public system through the Lighting Act of 1736. It was financed by taxes and provided by private companies.