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There was great emphasis on dress and 'respectability' (a term first used in 1785). The Magdalen Charity, which helped rescue penitent prostitutes, gave each woman a bed and a uniform. The Marine Society, founded by Jonas Hanway, took destitute boys off the streets, cleaned them up, gave them an outfit and turned them into sailors.
These children did better than those vagrants who were press-ganged into the navy. Hanway was adamant that his charges had to come to his society voluntarily and with the permission of their parents. They were nevertheless en route to a very dangerous and harsh life at sea as they marched through London on their way to Portsmouth, their uniforms advertising their patrons' good works.
Some 1,700 charity schools were set up in England in the 18th century. Many gave the children a distinctive uniform and taught them a narrow, religious curriculum, making them chant rhymes such as 'It is a sin/To steal a pin.'