Source 1a

Detail of The New Poor Law poster 1837 (EXT 6/1)

Transcript

[Man outside door:]

Pray, Sir, have mercy on us and let us in, or give us some relief, for we are actually starving.

 

[Man in doorway wielding a baton:]

Then go and rob for your living for ye can’t enter here – be off, ye varmint.

 

« Return to 1834 Poor Law

1. This is an extract from an anti-Poor Law Poster drawn in 1837.

  • How desperate are the people trying to get into the workhouse?
  • What is the response of the workhouse master?