Emily Wilding Davison (1872-1913) was a militant member of the WSPU, which she joined in 1906. She was arrested several times for offences such as window breaking. Whilst in prison she went on hunger strike for periods lasting up to several months. This document refers to an incident when she was arrested for hiding in a ventilation shaft in the House of Commons.

When Emily Davison was asked what she was doing in the ventilation shaft by the policeman who discovered her, she replied, “I want to ask a question in the House of Commons.”