New Means to Old Ends 61The challenge for economical reformers like Pitt was to provide efficient
and honest administration while keeping costs down. Paying civil servants
adequate salaries as professionals reduced the attraction of bribes but was
usually not cheap.^24 But as John Ehrman expressed it, Pitt 'made very skilled
use, by and large, of the tangle he was trying to clear .... Much could be
accomplished by unspectacular, detailed work; by putting fresh life into old
forms, by specific individual changes .. .'.^25 This style of pragmatic reform,
that worked within traditional structures, was familiar to local authorities.
What the movement for economical reform added was the emphasis on
professionalization and accountability in government administration. Rad-
icals stressed accountability in their critique of England's legal system. John
Brewer states:
one single general principle that bound nearly all radicals ... the magis-
trate - whether he be a justice of the peace, MP, the king, or lowly parish
officer -was a servant of the public, appointed to execute their will and to
look after their general good, and that, in consequence, he was account-
able to the people in law for his actions.2^6
In the parishes, economical reform of law enforcement meant enhancing
accountability and impartiality. This too reflects the influence of eighteenth-
century radicals who had a 'ruthless determination that the old shibbo-
leth ... that all Englishmen had an equal right to recourse to the law, should
be more than a hoary cliche'.^27 Reform also meant increasing the preventive
function of the night watch. The standards of efficiency and conduct
expected of the night watch rose. The extent to which those standards were
met is difficult to tell; what is certain was the increasing expectations of
parish authorities who set those standards. The goal was a system of street
policing that was honest, accountable, and impartial in its administration and
operation, part of 'a new bureaucratic ideology of public service'.^28
For many local government services, lines of accountability were not always
clear. The Webbs have shown how local officials contracted for local services
such as garbage removal or street lighting, 'farming out' the work to the lowest
bidder. This often led to problems, as contractors attempted to do the work as
cheaply as possible to enhance their profit. The Webbs blame this practice for
'an unchecked, and indeed, an entirely unashamed prevalence of what is now
stigmatized as favouritism and corruption'.^29 However, of all the services local
officials provided, only the watch was not 'farmed out'. The night watch in all
the parishes and regions examined for this study remained under the control of
the vestry, commissioners, or watch committee as appointed by statute. The
officers and men of the watch were employed directly by the parish or turnpike
trust, not through a contractor. While this did not resolve all jurisdictional
issues, the more pressing concern was how to make sure the watch carried out
its duties efficiently.