2-652-733 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Gang system of child labour, c1885. Teams of children were formed by a contractor or 'ganger' and hired out to farmers as agricultural labour for tasks such as sowing and hoeing. They would be made to worked for 8 or 9 hours a day and often had to walk 3 or 4 miles to and from work. The practice was particularly widespread in East Anglia. In this wood engraving a girl tries to revive a boy who has collapsed, probably from exhaustion, while the rest of the gang continue hoeing around them. (Colorised black and white print).