 By November 1830, the ration in the Andover area had been reduced to one quarter of a loaf per day (i.e., reduced by half).There was also a feeling amongst the middle and upper classes that they were paying the poor to be idle and avoid work.The way in which poor law funds were disbursed led to a further reduction in agricultural wages, since farmers would pay their workers as little as possible, knowing that the parish fund would top up wages to a basic subsistence level (see Speenhamland system).