"A lank-faced dissenter with squinting upturned eyes, and open gap-toothed mouth, sits up in bed, chanting: "O Lord what makes the fleas to bite / I never did them harm / At first they came by twos & three's / But now how they do swarm." His shirt is ragged and lank hair pokes through his night-cap. On the pillow beside him (left) is the sleeping face of a plump woman, framed by a cap-frill."--British Museum online catalogue
Alternative Title:
Psalm singer and Flea bites, or, The ballad singer
Description:
Title etched below image., Alternative title from the Lewis Walpole Library impression, on which the word "psalm" has been erased and replaced with "ballad" in manuscript., Date of publication from British Museum catalogue., Sheet trimmed within plate mark., and In addition to the alteration to the title, the word "Lord" in the speech text has been erased and changed in manuscript to "Dear".
