In contrast, the birth control movement advocated for contraception so as to permit sexual intercourse as desired without the risk of pregnancy.[25] By emphasising "control", the birth control movement argued that women should have control over their reproduction - the movement was closely tied to the emerging feminist movement. The Malthusian League was established in 1877 and promoted the education of the public about the importance of family planning and advocated for the elimination of penalties against the promoters of birth control.[26] It was initially founded during the "Knowlton trial" of Annie Besant and Charles Bradlaugh in July 1877.[27] They were prosecuted for publishing Charles Knowlton's Fruits of Philosophy which explained various methods of birth control. Besant and Bradlaugh wrote that it was "...more moral to prevent the conception of children, than, after they are born, to murder them by want of food, air and clothing."[28] The trial of Bradlaugh and Besant counter-productively triggered a wave of public interest in contraception, and book sales of Knowlton's book surged.[29]