"On 24 March 1877 Annie (Besant) worked with Bradlaugh to republish Dr Charles Knowlton’s Fruits of Philosophy [1832] (a pamphlet that advocated the use of contraceptive practice); an act that led to the arrest of Besant and Bradlaugh on 6 April 1877 for transgressing the Obscene Publications Act 1857. The following ‘Obscenity trial’ was held on 18 June... both were proclaimed guilty. However, the sentence was overturned on a technicality so Besant and Bradlaugh were able to walk free. The arrest and trial were widely publicised across the country...the associated press coverage succeeded in propelling the pamphlet’s informative advice far beyond their initial reach... 1891 saw the death of Charles Bradlaugh who had become one of Annie’s closest and longest friends. Perhaps in recognition of this, this is the year in which Annie chose to bring her autobiography to an end when she was writing it in 1893, aged 46."