A New Road to Riches. Lottery Chances, William Dent, 1784

Illustration to a sheet of etched verses. The front of a 'lottery assurance office', the windows plastered with advertisements. Sam house stands on the doorstep, speaking to a ragged woman (right) with an infant in her arms and a little ragged boy. Sam's breeches are ragged; in his left hand is a paper inscribed 'policy n° 45', his right palm is extended to take a coin which the boy puts into it; he says to the woman, "come, give me the money - dam it i'll try once more". She holds in her hand a pawn-ticket inscribed 'duplicat[e] a coat 2 6'; she has given the half-crown to the boy to hand to sam. Behind sam, just inside the door, is a dog with the head and tail of a fox, looking up at a bird resembling a duck but intended for a pigeon, which flies towards him with a ticket in his mouth inscribed 'n° 342'. Behind the woman is the door of a pawnbroker's shop adjoining the lottery office. Over the door are three balls and 'money lent'; in the side-window are the words 'purse, pawnbroker', and watches, a tankard, &c. On the other side of the lottery office (left), perhaps belonging to it, is a door over which is 'anthony parkes'. On the doorstep stands a lottery-office tout, grotesquely dressed and blowing a trumpet from which hangs a flag inscribed 'take notice. A provision for life may be gained by a 6d chance'. In his right hand are hand-bills inscribed 'pretty plans'. He wears a conical hat on which is a feather inscribed 'riches now or never', with a tunic and trousers ornamented with large spots. The bills in the lottery office window are inscribed respectively 'solid acres. . '; 'terra firma'; 'an eligible plan. . '; 'read judge and compare. . '; '20 tickets may be gained if. . '; 'earth balloons. . '; 'an important consideration. . '; '300 i may be gained if. . '; 'no. At this office'; '. A caution'; 'lottery clubs'; 'observe the amicable society. . '; 'a rational mode. . '; 'affluence. . '. Beneath the design are verses in two columns headed by a scroll on which the title, 'lottery chances', is etched. Each end of the scroll is held by a christ's hospital boy holding his cap; these boys drew the tickets from the lottery wheels at the guildhall. 'a new song, to the tune of galloping dreary dun. A lott'ry we have and each has a chance, handle the cole's the fun, tho' he shou'd fly, in a balloon, to france. With a state roundabout gaming gaily, tricking, picking, galloping, gambling to handle the cole's the fun. ' {the first of eleven verses. ) 29 november 1784 etching. Date: 1784. Dimensions: Height: 346 mm; Width: 250 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Charles James Fox. Collection: British Museum. A New Road to Riches. Lottery Chances (BM 1868,0808.5386)