Top etching, "G. Cruikshank fect." Bottom etching, "G. Ck. fect."
"Published by W. Hone, 55 Fleet St. and 67 Old Bailey, Three Doors from Ludgate Hill."
A satire on Lord High Chancellor and Lady Eldon's domestic economy. "Bags" was the nickname for Chancellor Eldon, who carried his court cases in bags.
Two uncolored etchngs by George Cruikshank are head- and tail-piece to a ballad by Hone, printed in four columns of letterpress text.
First etching: "And ye Turkeycock burst right in twain" -- Eldon (left), in wig and gown, sits at a round dinner-table, facing his guest, a barrister in wig and gown. The Purse of the Great Seal hangs from the back of his chair and the cushion on its seat is inscribed 'Wool Sack'. He weeps, in shocked consternation. The barrister (Hugh Leycester) drops carving-knife and fork, facing a dish, empty except for a wisp of string. Lady Eldon, an elderly virago in old-fashioned dress, seated between the two men, screams at him with clenched fists; he registers terror. Meanwhile a thin lap-dog devours one half of a turkey, a cat the other. An emaciated footman behind Eldon's chair, also terrified, drops a tumbler and salver. A single bottle stands in a wine-cooler. The dinner is meagre and ill-served. On the wall behind Eldon is a picture of a feast; behind Lady Eldon is one of 'Starvation Farm Yard Islington', with a skeleton horse and other starving animals. Behind Leycester is a map showing 'Turkey in Europe' and 'Turkey in Asia' with the 'Black Sea'.
Second etching: "On ye half that was hot -- the raw half fast & closely I tied." -- A sordid kitchen scene. Lady Eldon, witch-like, with a huge bunch of keys at her waist, and a scarecrow cook-maid, tie up the turkey. Two dogs and a cat, all starving, watch hungrily. There is a wide kitchen grate, partly bricked up, and a smoky fire is produced by large rolled parchments and a docket of papers inscribed 'In Chancery'. Other papers lie by the fire. The Mace is thrust between the bars as a poker. Beside the fireplace notices are pinned: 'Domestic Cooking by a Lady--Rich Eggshell Broth--Bone Soup-- Gristle Haricot'. The kitchen is dilapidated, chipped dishes and cobwebs are conspicuous. A cupboard for 'Coals & Wood' is heavily padlocked and marked with a coronet, as are a wall-box for 'Grease & Dripping' (traditionally the cook's perquisite), a 'Salt-box' and (?) a small flour-bin. A mouse looks from a hole in the floor. A fiddle (the footman's) with a broken string leans against the table: it has supplied cat-gut to tie up the turkey.