Sauer (1978) found that some pregnancies in the 19th century were desperately unwanted by women. For this reason, desperate measures such as child rearing, infanticide and abortion were adopted to eliminate pregnancy. Abortion, which is the termination of a human pregnancy, was made illegal in 1803, but was still practiced on the back streets of Britain (Knight 1977). However, only a few cases were brought to attention as, according to Latham (2002), there was difficulty in identifying abortion, however Bulwer-Lytton (1833, cited in Sauer 1978) still believed that abortion occurred frequently in city ​​for reasons such as illegitimacy Illegitimacy was only one of the reasons why abortion was carried out and according to Macfarlane (2002), who believed that illegitimacy was a burden, and the child was seen as "The bastard, as the prostitute, thief and beggar… a living symbol of social irregularity.” Women feared being degraded and losing their social status within society, and would voluntarily kill their children to forget the existence of children. illegitimate, so it was no surprise that women had abortions to still be accepted within society. Extreme poverty was also one of the reasons why many parents and women could barely feed themselves, much less another child (Sauer). 1978). Knight (1977) also argued that in the 19th century the depression hit so much so that both the working class and the middle class could not afford children. There were numerous ways in which a woman could have an abortion. According to Knight (1977), women could purchase medicines and abortion drugs, such as quinine, in pharmacies. There have also been numerous cases of lead poisoning, as one doctor had seen 100 cases from age 18... to the middle of the paper... In the 19th century, abortion was one of the most popular ways to deal with the problem. unwanted pregnancies even if illegal. The fact that both men and women, even married women, took it up as a profession gives the idea that it was a well-paid job and, due to the high demand, it was most likely a profession worth pursuing undertake. Even though legislation had been passed to combat abortion, it was still difficult to locate a case, as it was difficult to prove due to the lack of healthcare in the 19th century. The woman wanted an abortion, which provides the answer to why abortionists performed the work and with the use of herbs, medications, and instruments how the abortion was performed. The legislation helped catch some people who had abortions and had them as a profession, but not many cases were brought to light as they mostly took place on the back streets hidden from the law.