Cruikshank (Isaac)

, S.W. Fores, 1809.
A political satire on conflicts of business interests, corruption, and attempts to root them out amongst past and present mayors and aldermen of the City of London. It depicts four rams with the faces, left to right, of Alderman and MP, Sir William Curtis, sitting Mayor of the City, Sir Charles Flower, Alderman, MP and past Mayor, Sir Charles Price, and leading merchant and past Mayor, Sir James Shaw. Wrestling to shear them or comb their fleeces are three more radical and reformist City politicans, Mr Quin, Robert Waithman, and Lord Combe. The first two brandish large shears marked ‘Vox Popula’ (sic), while the third is holding a large comb. Aside from references in their speech to whaling contracts, the three ‘shearers’ were noted for their driving through parliament a motion drawn up by the radical MP, Gwyllym Lloyd Wardle, that gained huge popular support, but was opposed by the four ‘rams’, to force the resignation of the Duke of York as Commander-in-Chief of the army after it was discovered that he was allowing his former mistress, Mary Anne Clarke, to sell military commissions..
235 by 355mm (9¼ by 14 inches).