Chapter 7 Summary and Analysis

One story carried in the Illustrated London News--from whose pages many of this book's illustrations are taken--occurred in November, 1847. Bridget O'Donnel, a mother who was pregnant with her fourth child, sick with fever, was evicted from her bed, the walls of her home torn down around her. Two weeks later, she gave birth to a stillborn infant and her eldest, her 13-year-old son, died of fever. She and her remaining two daughters were admitted to the Kilrush union workhouse in County Claire. Since wave after wave of laborers and small farmers could not pay their rent, the landlords found themselves suddenly destitute. At the time, landlord expenses were skyrocketing since they were taxed to pay for the workhouses and public works. The burden was, of course, greatest in counties where the food crisis was greatest. The landlords resisted paying the...