Sponging-house
Encyclopedia
A sponging-house was a place of temporary confinement for debtors in the United Kingdom.
If someone were to get into debt, their creditor
would lay a complaint with the sheriff
, the sheriff sent his bailiffs, and the debtor would be taken to the local sponging-house. This was not a debtor's prison
, as such, but a private house, often the bailiff's own home. The debtor would be held there temporarily in the hope that they could make some arrangement with the creditors. Anthony Trollope
set out the system in his novel The Three Clerks of 1857:
If debtors could not sort matters out quickly, they were then taken before a court and transferred to a debtor's prison
.
Sponging-houses had a terrible reputation, which was made clear in a description by Montagu Williams, a London lawyer who knew them well, in his Down East and Up West of 1894:
The idea of the sponging-house was based on that of the sponge that gave it its name, which readily gives up its contents on being squeezed. The sponging-house was the place where debtors had any available cash squeezed out of them, partly to the creditor's benefit, but also to that of the bailiff who ran it.
In French, “éponger une dette” (sponge-up a debt) means to repay one’s debt.
If someone were to get into debt, their creditor
Creditor
A creditor is a party that has a claim to the services of a second party. It is a person or institution to whom money is owed. The first party, in general, has provided some property or service to the second party under the assumption that the second party will return an equivalent property or...
would lay a complaint with the sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
, the sheriff sent his bailiffs, and the debtor would be taken to the local sponging-house. This was not a debtor's prison
Debtor's prison
A debtors' prison is a prison for those who are unable to pay a debt.Prior to the mid 19th century debtors' prisons were a common way to deal with unpaid debt.-Debt bondage in ancient Greece and Rome:...
, as such, but a private house, often the bailiff's own home. The debtor would be held there temporarily in the hope that they could make some arrangement with the creditors. Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope was one of the most successful, prolific and respected English novelists of the Victorian era. Some of his best-loved works, collectively known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire, revolve around the imaginary county of Barsetshire...
set out the system in his novel The Three Clerks of 1857:
If debtors could not sort matters out quickly, they were then taken before a court and transferred to a debtor's prison
Debtor's prison
A debtors' prison is a prison for those who are unable to pay a debt.Prior to the mid 19th century debtors' prisons were a common way to deal with unpaid debt.-Debt bondage in ancient Greece and Rome:...
.
Sponging-houses had a terrible reputation, which was made clear in a description by Montagu Williams, a London lawyer who knew them well, in his Down East and Up West of 1894:
The idea of the sponging-house was based on that of the sponge that gave it its name, which readily gives up its contents on being squeezed. The sponging-house was the place where debtors had any available cash squeezed out of them, partly to the creditor's benefit, but also to that of the bailiff who ran it.
In French, “éponger une dette” (sponge-up a debt) means to repay one’s debt.
Notable sponging-house residents
- Henry FieldingHenry FieldingHenry Fielding was an English novelist and dramatist known for his rich earthy humour and satirical prowess, and as the author of the novel Tom Jones....
-author - Michael ArneMichael ArneMichael Arne was an English composer, harpsichordist, organist, singer, and actor. He was the son of composer Thomas Arne and lauded soprano Cecilia Young, the latter of which belonged to the famous Young family of musicians of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries...
– composer - Theodore Edward HookTheodore Edward HookTheodore Edward Hook was an English man of letters.- Biography :He was born in London. He spent a year at Harrow School, and subsequently matriculated at Oxford, but he never actually resided at the university...
– author - George MorlandGeorge MorlandGeorge Morland was an English painter of animals and rustic scenes.-Life:Morland was born in London, the 3rd son of Henry Robert Morland , artist, engraver and picture restorer...
– painter - John MurrayJohn Murray (minister)John Murray though sometimes recalled as founder of the Universalist denomination in the United States, might more fairly be described as a pioneer minister and an inspirational figure, as his theological legacy to the later Universalist denomination was minimal.-Early life:He was born in Alton,...
, Universalist minister http://books.google.com/books?id=MjQRAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=life+of+john+murray&hl=en&ei=idLyTfSmF4r1gAf379G3Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEwQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=sponging-house&f=false