This collection of essays seeks to shed light on the politics of those people who are normally thought of as being outside the political nation. It shows that these people were not, in fact, excluded from politics; not only did the mass of the population possess political opinions which they were capable of articulating in a public forum, but they were also often active participants in the political process themselves and taken seriously in that capacity by the governmental elite. The various essays deal with topics as wide ranging as riots, rumours, libels, seditious words, public opinion,...