Canvassing for Votes Plate II, William Hogarth, 1757

A rural scene with three inns: "the portobello" (celebrating the naval victory of 1739 in contrast with the recent loss of minorca), outside which two veterans sit reminiscing; "the excise office" (the whig stronghold, its name alluding to walpole's excise bill of 1733) with the sign of the crown and a rioting crowd; and "the royal oak" (recalling tory support for the stuart monarchy), its sign partly obscured by the banner of "punch candidate for guzzledown" in which the treasury is being emptied of money that the candidate throws at voters; in the centre, a young country gentleman is being bribed by agents of both parties, while, to right, a portly candidate buys trinkets from a jewish pedlar for two young ladies on the balcony of "the royal oak"; the landlady counts her bribe under the watchful eye of a soldier while she leans against a carved british lion about to devour the fleur-de-lis of france. Published state. 1757 etching and engraving. Date: 1757. Dimensions: Height: 438 mm; Width: 557 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Sir Charles Hanbury Williams. Collection: British Museum. Canvassing for Votes Plate II (BM S,2.131)