‘The Crawlers’ were the lowest of the British poor. This elderly widow is sitting outside a tailor’s shop, holding a baby while its mother works. She was given a cup of tea and a slice of bread daily in return.
The photograph titled “The Crawlers” was taken in 1877 and captures one of the harshest realities of Victorian poverty in London. The term “crawlers” referred to some of the most destitute people in society — often the elderly, widowed, or disabled, who were too frail to work and forced to rely on scraps of charity to survive. They were called “crawlers” because many were so weakened by hunger, disease, or age that they could only move slowly, often crawling or dragging themselves along the streets.
In this haunting image, an elderly widow sits outside a tailor’s shop, cradling an infant. The baby’s mother, likely a working-class woman struggling to make ends meet, left her child in the widow’s care while she labored inside. The widow’s payment for this exhausting responsibility was meager: a cup of tea and a slice of bread a day. Such arrangements were common, as survival for the poorest relied on fragile networks of mutual aid and the charity of others.
Life event that changes all: Horse riding accident in Zimbabwe in 1993, a fractured skull et al including bipolar anxiety, chronic fatigue …. co-morbidities (Nietzche 'He who has the reason why can deal with any how' details my health history from 1993 to date). 17th 2017 August operation for breast cancer (no indications just an appointment came from BreastCheck through the Post). Trinity College Dublin Business Economics and Social Studies (but no degree) 1997-2003; UCD 1997/1998 night classes) essays, projects, writings. Trinity Horizon Programme 1997/98 (Centre for Women Studies Trinity College Dublin/St. Patrick's Foundation (Professor McKeon) EU Horizon funded: research study of 15 women (I was one of this group and it became the cornerstone of my journey to now 2017) over 9 mth period diagnosed with depression and their reintegration into society, with special emphasis on work, arts, further education; Notes from time at Trinity Horizon Project 1997/98; Articles written for Irishhealth.com 2003/2004; St Patricks Foundation monthly lecture notes for a specific period in time; Selection of Poetry including poems written by people I know; Quotations 1998-2017; other writings mainly with theme of social justice under the heading Citizen Journalism Ireland. Letters written to friends about life in Zimbabwe; Family history including Michael Comyn KC, my grandfather, my grandmother's family, the O'Donnellan ffrench Blake-Forsters; Moral wrong: An acrimonious divorce but the real injustice was the Catholic Church granting an annulment – you can read it and make your own judgment, I have mine. Topics I have written about include annual Brain Awareness week, Mashonaland Irish Associataion in Zimbabwe, Suicide (a life sentence to those left behind); Nostalgia: Tara Hill, Co. Meath.
canisgallicus 