It was not until Mr. Charles Booth published in 1891 the results of his exhaustive inquiries that the actual conditions of poverty in London became known.... about 30 per cent of the entire population of London were found to be unable to obtain the necessaries for a sound livelihood.... About ten years later Mr. B. S. Rountree incited by the work of Mr. Booth undertook a similar inquiry in his native town York.... His comments are as follows: "... we are faced by the startling probability that from 25 to 30 per cent of the town populations of the United Kingdom are living in poverty."
p. 17-19 - Poverty (1912)