Comments on: Vagabondiana of 1817

By: T F Smudge

T F Smudge — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 17:28:25 +0000

Wow again! And what a harsh environment these poor souls endured presumably while the fat cats lived in absolute luxury – things haven’t changed that much really! T

By: Paula Gaubert

Paula Gaubert — Wed, 17 Oct 2018 12:36:22 +0000

Thank you infinitely for this fascinating blog entry. I loved your introduction and am fascinated by these fine, compassionate pictures. It helps to imagine what life in Spitalfields at the time, I almost thought I could get a glimpse of my Spitalfields forbears as they walked along these streets, coming across these colourful characters.

By: Rod

Rod — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 13:21:46 +0000

I’m very pleased that I did not live in those times .

By: John Levin

John Levin — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 06:33:32 +0000

The one-eyed beggar is Charles McGee or Mckay,”sweeper at the Obelisk in Fleet Street” for some 40 years. More about his life, and his many appearances in paintings, can be found in Tim Hitchcock’s article:

http://historyonics.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/place-and-politics-of-past.html

By: Suji Beckett

Suji Beckett — Fri, 23 May 2014 05:37:03 +0000

Is it possible to purchase prints at reasonable cost? Where?

By: Robert Campbell-Lloyd

Robert Campbell-Lloyd — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 12:46:32 +0000

The Pedlars Act 1871 was preceded by Hawkers & Pedlars Act 1697. These rights to free trade are unique to the UK’s 50 million people above 17 who may decide at any time in their lives through needs or choice to become a pedlar. A pedlars certificate is a Crown protected cultural safety valve that since 1999 has been threatened by local fiefdom councils seeking monopoly control of public space economy and more recently by HMG/BIS who are swayed by private business interests to legislate against pedlars freedoms, rights and liberties in public spaces by seeking repeal of the Pedlars Act… on fallacious grounds of helping pedlars but in fact by subjecting them to local authority street trading regulators whose mission has been to rid the streets of competition to their own licensed street traders. In any other normal business such creation of monopoly is unlawful, is not in consumers best interest, and is certainly not the intention of the European Services Directive. The ability of BIS to corrupt common sense interpretation of both the Pedlars Act and the Services Directive is beyond belief. Pedlars already see the long term consequences… this current coalition government using the spin of private public partnership, PPP, to resolve how State has failed local High Street economies… politicians now say its up to private business to do the job… so they move control of the Urban Space [and the laws of Urban Space] into the hands of the Coorporation by first handing total control to Council Coorporations who are free to sell the Urban Space to Private Investors [as with streets surrounding Manchester Stadium & the South Bank]. Thereafter the notion of free trade is terminated, pedlars terminated, all trade only by private contract/arrangement, cultural life terminated, licence fees skyrocket, unhappiness throughout the land.
Who will have first pickings of UK Urban Space… available for purchase from your local authority.
How much for Spitalfields?
It’s not too late for 50 million people to stop this government stupidity… don’t let them use a back-door, deceptive Statutory Instrument to alter 315 years of free trade.

By: nic mcGerr

nic mcGerr — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 09:59:23 +0000

“Joe” please be in contact with us @ pedlars.info – your comment is exactly pertinent to how historically the pedlar has been but now how the pedlar should be allowed to trade according to law throughout the UK without harassment by ill informed or deliberately prejudiced local authority and police. Pedlars @pedlars.info provide update on all topics & background to pedlary and also support pedlars with advice and often indicate legal assistance to defend against “unlawful” prosecution in courts – TonyHawkins@aol.com is a good reference for correct “interpretation” and fact. Hugh Alford is way off the mark with his comments about BIS & Jo Swinson seeking to make pedlars lives easier by scrapping the Pedlars Act & introducing “burdensome” regulation where and as of now non at present exists. The mistaken or deliberately engineered proposal by HMG BIS to turn pedlars from being common law people into potential victims of criminal prosecution is not publicised at all by government or media and Hugh is complicit by yet again promoting ill-informed opinion for his own gratification and reward. Like the Local Authorities and now more often “private” agencies like G4S society is disintegrating into multiple fiefdoms controlled by bounty hunters.

By: Loretta Lewis

Loretta Lewis — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 05:28:51 +0000

These are wonderful, thank you for posting them.

By: David Whittaker

David Whittaker — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 20:15:45 +0000

Thank’s ..Wonderful..

By: cathay birch

cathay birch — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 15:26:55 +0000

absolutely breathtaking.my great grand father was a jewish chair maker around bethnal green at this time and this so brings it to lfe for me.wonderful.