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The Last of England Two figures, a man and wife, huddled together underneath an umbrella on a boat, dominate the foreground of this oval composition. Clasping hands, both figures face forward and have serious expressions on their faces. From the nature of their clothing, they appear to be middle class. On the left, the husband wears a brown woolen double-breasted coat with rows of stitching at the cuffs. He holds his collar around his neck, close to his face. His brown hat, with the front folded up, frames his brooding expression. The wife wears a gray loose woven, hooded shawl. Her bonnet is secured by a brilliant red ribbon that encircles her face and links her to her husband. Revealed in the triangular opening of her shawl, her left hand clutches a tiny hand, indicating the presence of a child. Her right hand is gloved and clutches her husband's. A brown tarpaulin shields her skirts from the elements. To the rear, a group of tightly packed figures include warmly dressed adults and children. They each appear to be holding on to someone or something. A small white boat, lettered with the word Eldorado, completes the grouping. White capped waves of blue green waters create a textured solid color background for this composition. The coloring is echoed in the roping at front and creates a frame for the central figures. A steamboat sails in front of white cliffs in the right rear background. Together with the horizon line, the straight lines of the cliffs and steamship contrast with the angular lines of figures and roping. The dull blue gray of the sky enunciates the contours of the cliff and is reflected in details on the figures on the boat. Background In 1852, 369,000 people emigrated from England. Looking away from the white cliffs of Dover for the last time, this middle class couple faces the perilous journey ahead of them. Brown referred to this situation, “...from the middle classes, high enough, through education and refinement, to appreciate all they are now giving up, and yet depressed enough in means to have to put up with the discomforts and humiliations incident to a vessel ‘all in one class’.” Middle class nomenclature is visually indicated in several ways. The couple is physically separated from the group, their backs to them. Their clothing, although plain, is of a better a quality. Rows of stitching on the gentleman’s coat and a wide brimmed, felted hat indicate an awareness of contemporary men’s fashion. The woman’s finely checked woolen shawl covers a functional day dress. Her hair, pulled back, is fashionably draped over her ears and a braid circles her head. A length of red satin ribbon brings the elliptical brim of her bonnet, fashionable in the 1850s, together. Their faces belie the fact that they are leaving their home. They were not forced to leave, however, as hundreds of prisoners, social outcasts, and troublesome workers were. This couple leaves England to seek a better life – as indicated in the lifeboat’s name: Eldorado. (Note placement of the lifeboat immediately above the gentleman’s head.) “...The Last of England! O’er the sea, my dear, Free emigration to South Australia, via Southampton. First class ships of large tonnage, with the best arrangements and equipment, will embark passengers in the Docks, at Southampton, on the 28th May, for Adelaide, South Australia; subsequently on fixed days each month. The undersigned are authorized by Her Majesty’s Colonial Land and Emigration Commissioners, to grant a free passage by these ships to this healthy and eminently prosperous colony, to agricultural labourers, shepherds, male and female domestic and farm servants, miners, mechanics of various trades, of good character. The demand for labour in the colony is urgent, with remuneration ensuring the comfort of every well-conducted man and his family. The Scheme I have to offer consists in the formation of these people into self-helping and self-sustaining communities, each being a kind of co-operative society, or patriarchal family, governed and disciplined on the principles which have already proved so effective in the Salvation Army.
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