North Cadbury Women’s Group
It was with great delight that we welcomed the return of Felicity Herring to our April meeting. This time the subject of her talk was 19th Century Rural Britain, what better topic for a group in the heart of a farming community on St Georges Day? We settled ourselves down for an hour filled with images of rosy-cheeked families living in quaint thatched cottages amidst fields of rolling green – what followed was a real eye opener. Felicity used the Art of the time to illustrate the enormous differences between fantasy and reality and we swiftly came to realise that we, like the prosperous merchants and professionals who moved to the cities during the Industrial Revolution and who commissioned paintings to remind them of their roots, viewed rural life through rose tinted spectacles.
In reality many families lived in cramped, dirty and damp conditions. Men’s wages were poor and women’s likely to be half as much; even the children were expected to work to support the family as soon as they were able to. One charming painting showed three children holding open a gate; on the surface it appeared to be a scene of rural bliss. However, on closer inspection you could see that the children had no shoes and that, looming over them, was the shadowy figure of the squire on horseback. One young lad touched his forelock, as if hoping to be given a sixpence for his efforts. When the Tolpuddle Martyrs formed their association in an attempt to gain an increase in wages their actions were declared illegal and, rather than a pay rise, their efforts were rewarded with a pay cut! As families went hungry poaching became a way of life, but it was not without it’s risks and the penalty for being caught was invariably harsh. Under such terrible conditions it is hardly surprising that one in ten children died before reaching their first birthday. Felicity highlighted a large number of paintings where apparently well-fed and clothed subjects were, in fact, actors or relatives of the painter! For the ‘real’ inhabitants of both town and country who were unable to feed and house their families the Workhouse loomed like a spectre, with men being separated from their wives and mothers separated from their children. One mother, who heard her child crying for her in the night, was beaten when she went to soothe him.
The mid 1800’s saw the coming of the railways and many labourers took their families to the cities in an attempt to find a better life. It would seem that many failed as, during Queen Victoria’s reign, 11 million emigrated to North America. As Felicity’s talk drew to a close we all counted our blessings.
On a more cheerful note there were no signs of anyone going hungry on the day of the Village Fete when we once again served refreshments including cream teas and a huge array of delicious cakes. Despite our worse fears the weather was kind to us and it seemed as if the world and his wife (and all of their children and relatives too!) flooded to the Village Hall to enjoy the day. We struggled to keep up with the endless stream of hungry and thirsty visitors who poured in for a well-earned cuppa – thank you all for your support and for bearing with us when there were slight delays whilst we waited for the kettle to boil! Thank you also for supporting us during the recent Arts and Crafts Day at which we also provided refreshments. I’m delighted to be able to tell you that we raised £63.70, which has been donated to the Village Hall Refurbishment Fund.
As you are all aware, there are going to be changes to the Village Shop and Post Office in the future. April and Ted have always been key members of the village community, lending their support wherever they can, and long may they continue to do so. In recognition of their tireless efforts April has been awarded an Honorary Membership of the Women’s Group. We didn’t want Ted to feel left out but, although we can bend the rules a little, weren’t able to offer him a membership for obvious reasons! He was, however, awarded a Certificate, which we hope shows our appreciation.
There is no meeting in June instead our members are going on an outing to Milton Lodge Gardens in Wells. Our next meeting in the Hall will be on 23 July when our speaker will be Mr Roger Allen who will be talking to us about ‘A Day in the Life of a Magistrate.’ We look forward to seeing you all then, old members and new.