1 note
The dispute featured prominently in the national and provincial press, and the weavers' delegates, notably George Cowell and Mortimer Grimshaw, became celebrities overnight.
References:
Dutton,H.I. & King J. E. Ten Per Cent and No Surrender The Preston Strike, 1853-1854 (Cambridge University Press 2008)
"Has your mother sold her mangle?" was one of several "catchwords and phrases used in the streets to deflate pomposity and tickle a crowd."
White, Jerry. London in the 19th Century (London, Vintage, 2008) p113
'Ten Per Cent and No surrender' was the cry of the textile workeres during the strike of 1853/54. Preston lock-out was only one more manifestation of a 'strike fever' which 'raged across the country' Working men who had accepted a reduction in their wages in the hungry 1840s read in the press about growing national prosperity, and demanded the 10 per cent be restored [i].
The town of Preston was the crucial battlefield, and here the masters and men fought out a bitter trial of strength. The strike of 1853-54 closed the Preston cotton industry for seven months, and disrupted production in many other towns in Lancashire. [ii]
References:
[i] Smith A, The Preston Strike 1853-1854 History Today. https://www.historytoday.com/anne-smith/preston-strike-1853-1854
[ii] Dutton,H.I. & King J. E. Ten Per Cent and No Surrender The Preston Strike, 1853-1854 (Cambridge University Press 2008)
Although this song is clearly in earnest, the phrase or saying, all my eye and Betty Martin meaning that something is total and complete nonsense. The, the phrase was clearly well established and well-known since the 1780s. The origins of the phrase are unknown except that Betty Martin was pretty obviously tacked on to the end of the existing all my eye (in similar vein, Londoners later created all my eye and elbow, all my eye and grandmother, and all my eye and Tommy, among others, as well as shortening it to the exclamation my eye! [i].
[i] Quinion, Michael. World Wide Words http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-all3.htm
