File:The Patriotic barber of New York, or the Captain in the suds (BM 1877,1013.859).jpg

English: The interior of a barber's shop. A customer is in the barber's chair, draped in a sheet, without his wig, one half of his face covered with soap. From the pocket of his coat hangs a paper inscribed "Orders of Government". A man standing on the right. hands him a letter inscribed "To Capn Crozer"; the letter-carrier is raising his hat and grinning. The barber frowns and pushes his customer by the shoulder as if to eject him from his shop; he holds a razor in his left hand and points to a broken barber's bowl on the ground, from which soapy water is pouring out. On the left is a door, the lower part closed by a gate; a man standing outside, points to the captain, with a grin. Over the door is the word "Barclay", showing that the shop was in Barclay Street, New York.

On a shelf against the back wall at right. angles with the door are two wig blocks with carved faces. On one (left) is an elaborately curled wig with a queue evidently belonging to the captain, since on it is a laced three-cornered hat with a cockade. At this shelf (right) sits the barber's assistant dressing a wig, a comb is stuck in his unkempt hair; he looks over his shoulder grinning at the captain's plight, showing a lean and grotesque profile. On the wall above the shelf are pasted up: (left to right.) "The Speech of Lord Chatham"; an engraved three-quarter length portrait of Chatham seated at a table writing, inscribed "Pitt" (it resembles the engraving by Houston after Hoare of Pitt when Paymaster-General, but unlike the original Pitt holds a pen instead of a letter); an engraved half length portrait of Chief Justice Camden in judge's wig and gown, surrounded by a wreath. (None of the engraved portraits in the B.M. collection resembles this.) Camden was popular owing to his part in the repeal of the Stamp Act, and his statue was erected in New York (Van Tyne, 'Causes of the War of Independence', 1921, 195-6). Next are the "Articles of Association"; the Association was signed by all members of Congress on 20 Oct. 1774, binding themselves and their constituents to cut off all trade with Great Britain; committees were named to secure signatures and all who refused to sign or who infringed the Articles were declared "enemies to liberty", ibid. 441-8, cf. BMSat 5297. Above the portraits and "Articles" is a row of four wigs of different patterns hanging on the wall. Over these is a shelf on which are wig-boxes inscribed with the names of colonial patriots: "Cornelius Low the big"; "Abraham Levingston"; "Alexander McDugell"; "John Lamb". On the floor in the foreground are other wig-boxes: "Isaac Sears"; "Bleck Johnno"; "William Lugg"; "Antony Griffiths"; "Francis Van-Dyke"; ". . . el Broome: Jacobus Vn Zent"; "Welle Franklin". Beneath the title is engraved,
"Thou Patriot grand, maintain thy Stand,
And whilst thou sav'st Americ's Land,
Preserve the Golden Rule;
Forbid the Captains there to roam,
Half shave them first, then send 'em home,
Objects of ridicule."
14 February 1775

Mezzotint