46 Before the Bobbies
intriguing as an endorsement of the more formal law enforcement Robert
Shoemaker has described as occurring in wealthier parishes. Its failure may
be indicative that there were still significant doubts about the desirability of
such a system. The bills embodying these suggestions were never reported
out of committee and the bill died in June 1752.^7
In contrast, the 1756 constables bill passed smoothly. It was much more
limited in scope and ambition, addressing more specific concerns. The
House of Commons was not happy with the traffic control provided by
Westminster's constables in the streets near Parliament. Parish authorities
were not happy with the quantity and quality of constables appointed by the
Court of Burgesses.^8 The bill increased the number of constables to 80,
specifying how many for each parish and made specific regulations regardin~
who could be appointed. It also formalized the hiring of deputy constables.
And, in striking contrast to the proposals of 1751-52, there are expressions
of active support in local records. The joint vestries of St Margaret and St
John resolved unanimously that the bill 'will be greatly Beneficial to the
Inhabitants .. .'.^10
Parliament's interest in law enforcement at mid-century marked a depar-
ture from the more common view that policing was a matter for local
officials. Enforcing the law in London particularly was increasingly seen as
a special challenge. Parishes were concerned about the night watch, Parlia-
ment focused on the criminal law and constables, and the king's ministers
turned their attention to magistrates.
Henry Fielding had two careers: one as a successful novelist and play-
wright and the other as one of London's first salaried, or stipendiary,
magistrates, directly employed by the Secretary of State. Fielding and his
brother John are also well known as founders of the Bow Street Runners.
First organized in 1750, the Runners were a body of constables who were
paid a retainer to be available for investigating specific crimes, serving
warrants, or whatever other kinds of constabulary services the Bow Street
magistrates might need. The initial group was recruited from parish con-
stables.11 They gained a reputation for honesty and efficiency above that
enjoyed by the usual 'thief-taker', 'believed to be no better than a common
informer or worse'.^12 To combat that image, the Fieldings made an effort to
encourage a sense of pride and professionalism in their officers. The Run-
ners deserve their fame as the first professional detectives.
Under Henry Fielding, however, the Runners did not patrol the streets on
any regular basis, or supervise those who did. They were thus not a police
force in the narrow sense of the term - they were not a body of men whose
presence on the streets was supposed to deter potential criminals. That was a
function fulfilled by the night watch. The Runners represented, however, an
aspect of preventive policing because the Fieldings believed that certainty of
apprehension and punishment would act as a deterrent to crime. In his An