1822.

SEARCHED BY DOUANIERS ON THE FRENCH FRONTIERS.

'Indeed, a small bribe would have prevented all this, but I was too much out of temper to submit to give alms to these beggars who had so rudely disturbed my meditations; for this reason my obstinacy—why should I not call the child by its right name?—had received a severe reproof.'

1821.Le Don Quichotte Romantique, ou Voyage du Docteur Syntaxe à la Recherche du Pittoresque et Romantique.28 Illustrations drawn on stone (after the designs of Rowlandson) by Malapeau. Lith. de G. Engelmann. Paris. (See description ofThe Three Tours of Doctor Syntax, 1812.)

1822.The History of Johnny Quæ Genus; the little Foundling of the late Doctor Syntax. A poem by the author of the Three Tours(William Combe). Embellished with twenty-four coloured engravings by T. Rowlandson. 8vo. London: Published by R. Ackermann, at the Repository of Arts.

What various views of our uncertain stateThese playful, unassuming rhymes relate!—Anon.

Introduction to the history ofQuæ Genus.—'The favour which has been bestowed on the different tours of Doctor Syntax has encouraged the writer of them to give a "History of the Foundling," who has been thought an interesting object in the latter of those volumes, and it is written in the same style and manner, with a view to connect it with them.

'This child of chance, it is presumed, is led through a track of life not unsuited to the peculiarity of his condition and character, while its varieties, as in the former works, are represented by the pencil of Mr. Rowlandson with its accustomed characteristic felicity.

'The idea of an EnglishGil Blaspredominated through the whole of this volume, which must be considered as fortunate in no common degree, if its readers, in the course of their perusal, should be disposed to acknowledge even a remote similitude to the incomparable works of Le Sage.

'The Author.

'Johnny Quæ Genus!What a nameTo offer to the voice of Fame!But howsoe'er the thing we view,Our little Johnny's title's new:Or for the child, or for the man,In an old phrase, 'tisspickandspan.Besides, as most folks do agree,To find a charm in novelty,'Tis the first time that grammar rule,Which makes boys tremble when at school,Did with the name an union craveWhich at the font a sponsor gave.But whether 'twas in hum'rous moodOr by some classic whim pursued,Or as, in Eton's Grammar known,It bore relation to his own,Syntax, it was at Whitsuntide,And a short time before he died,In pleasant humour, after dinner,Surnam'd, in wine, the little sinner.And thus, amid the table's roar,Gave him, from good old Lilly's store,A name which none e'er had before.'

'Johnny Quæ Genus!What a nameTo offer to the voice of Fame!

But howsoe'er the thing we view,Our little Johnny's title's new:Or for the child, or for the man,In an old phrase, 'tisspickandspan.Besides, as most folks do agree,To find a charm in novelty,'Tis the first time that grammar rule,Which makes boys tremble when at school,Did with the name an union craveWhich at the font a sponsor gave.But whether 'twas in hum'rous moodOr by some classic whim pursued,Or as, in Eton's Grammar known,It bore relation to his own,Syntax, it was at Whitsuntide,And a short time before he died,In pleasant humour, after dinner,Surnam'd, in wine, the little sinner.And thus, amid the table's roar,Gave him, from good old Lilly's store,A name which none e'er had before.'

This quotation from the opening of Combe's Hudibrastic narrative will account for the originality of the hero's eccentric title.

Rowlandson's illustrations are as follows:—

1822.Rowlandson's Sketches from Nature.

A View near Richmond. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.A View near Newport, Isle of Wight. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.Temple at Strawberry Hill. Rowlandson del., 1822. Stradler aquatinta.Stamford, Lincolnshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.Taunton Vale, Somersetshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.The Seat of M. Mitchell Esq., Hengar, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.West Loo, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.Village of St. Udy, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.A view in Devonshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.View near Bridport, Dorsetshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.Fowey, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.View on the River Camel, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.A View in Camelford, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.A Cottage in the Duchy of Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.View at Blisland, near Bodmin, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.Clearing a Wreck on the north coast of Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.Rouler Moor, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

A View near Richmond. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

A View near Newport, Isle of Wight. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

Temple at Strawberry Hill. Rowlandson del., 1822. Stradler aquatinta.

Stamford, Lincolnshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

Taunton Vale, Somersetshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

The Seat of M. Mitchell Esq., Hengar, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

West Loo, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

Village of St. Udy, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

A view in Devonshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

View near Bridport, Dorsetshire. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

Fowey, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

View on the River Camel, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

A View in Camelford, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

A Cottage in the Duchy of Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson. Stradler aquatinta.

View at Blisland, near Bodmin, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

Clearing a Wreck on the north coast of Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

Rouler Moor, Cornwall. Drawn and etched by Rowlandson.

1822.The Third Tour of Doctor Syntax. In Search of a Wife.Royal 8vo., with 25 Illustrations by Thomas Rowlandson. Published by R. Ackermann. (See description ofDoctor Syntax's Three Tours, 1812.)

1822.Die Reise des Doktor Syntax, um das Malerische aufzusuchen. Ein Gedicht frei aus dem Englischen ins Deutsche übertragen.Lith. v. F. E. Rademacher, Berlin. (See description ofThe Three Tours of Doctor Syntax, 1812.)

1822.Crimes of the Clergy.8vo. Two plates by Thomas Rowlandson.

June 13, 1823.Not at Home, or a Disappointed Dinner-hunter.Published by John Fairburn. Broadway, Ludgate Hill.—The dinner-hunter, evidently a well-to-do but miserly person, to whom avarice dictates the pursuit of the victuals of his acquaintances, has called at the well-appointed house of a friend at the exact dinner-hour, since a boy from an adjacent public-house is handing in the beer; but the footman, who recognises the visitor's object, is prepared with the chilling information, 'Not at home.' On the opposite side of the street is represented anà la modebeef shop, to which sundry stout diners are resorting. The execution of this plate is above the average, the etching being worked out with both care and spirit. A companion print, executed with similar finish, was issued by the same publisher.

June 19, 1823.An Old Poacher Caught in a Snare.—The old poacher has evidently come on a dangerous quest, and is fairly trapped. The object of his snares, a handsome and elegantly-drawn lady, is thrusting the old sinner, suddenly disturbed by the unexpected return of the husband, into the embrasure of the fireplace, and endeavouring to conceal the marauder with the board which was used to close the chimneypiece. The injured spouse has evidently been out hunting, and has purposely returned on a more particular quest; whip in hand, he is bursting into the room. The hat and stick of the hoary poacher are thrown to the ground, and the hunter's hounds are tearing in on a good scent which promises fitting retribution to be dealt on the head of the detected evil-doer.

1823.Hot Goose, Cabbage, and Cucumbers.

September 18, 1823.The Chance-seller of the Exchequer Putting an Extinguisher on Lotteries.Published by Tom Brown, Peter Street, Westminster.—The Chancellor of the Exchequer is literally extinguishing Fortune, who is represented as a comely and youthful winged female holding a well-filled purse in one hand and a lottery prize for 2,000l.in the other. At her feet are caskets of gems and jewels; she is seated on well-filled sacks; behind her is the wheel of fortune. A crowd of Bluecoat Boys are urging their entreaties. 'Come, madam,' cries the Chancellor, 'put on your nightcap.' A chorus of cries ofdisappointment proceeds from a mob of persons in front. One agonised lady of elegant exterior is praying: 'Stop; let me get a prize first.' A laundress, pointing to the washing-tub, cries, 'Let her alone; take off the soap tax.' 'Shut up the subscription houses,' urges another. A cobbler shouts, 'Give us a lottery, and no leather tax;' another cries out, 'No tax on tallow,' and a parson denounces horse-racing. On the column behind Madame Fortune suggestive placards are pasted: 'Races, King's Cup,' 'Reform Parliament, Public Morals,' and 'Fudge: a Farce.' Various Ministerial and Parliamentary critics are discussing the new measure. One is saying, 'Little Van [Vansittart] knew better than to abolish a voluntary tax;' another is pointing out, 'He's only a young Chancellor;' while a third, alluding to the popular outcry in relation to existing imposts, remarks, 'Hear, hear! I knew they'd grumble.' A less disinterested party is taking the opportunity to secure prize bags, gold-dust 'pickings and fillings' from the upset of Fortune's cornucopia; he cries, 'Persevere, and the saints shall praise you.'

1823.Third Tour of Doctor Syntax.Royal 8vo.

1823.The Three Tours of Doctor Syntax.Pocket edition, 3 vols. 16mo. (See description ofThe Three Tours of Doctor Syntax, 1812.)

1823.Oliver Goldsmith.The Vicar of Wakefield.8vo. Illustrated with 24 plates by Thomas Rowlandson. (See 1817.)

1823.C. M. Westmacott. The Spirit of the Public Journals for the years 1823–4–5.3 vols. 8vo. (See 1825.)

1823.The Toothache, or Torment and Torture.—The village Jack-of-all-trades, a very imposing, grave, and learned professor in appearance, is drawn in the exercise of one branch of his multifarious vocations. A stout wench has called in to have an obstinate grinder dragged out of her head; 'torment and torture' are mild terms for the operation. The patient is seated in the chair of agony. Factotum's assistant, a lad whose offices seem as diversified as those of his master, has brought an elegant pair of horse-pliers for the delicate process of extraction. A dog is setting up a sympathetic howl; this animal is one of the grotesque nondescripts which Rowlandson delighted to depict after his own theories, careless whether literal critics, unfamiliar with his admirable studies after nature, took upon themselves to assert that he could not master the drawing of animals. From the agonised expression which the artist has succeeded in throwing into the canine features it would appear as if Toby was also a patient attending the dentist's tender offices in his turn. An old country dame who is also distracted with a raging molar is waiting without. One branch of our friend's business is obviously flourishing. Although the rustic practitioner does not display his diploma from the College of Surgeons, or his licence to kill by authority, he has nailed up a certificate with which, it is probable, he is equally satisfied: 'BarnabyFactotum; Draws Teeth, Bleeds and Shaves; Wigs made here; also Sausages. Wash Balls, Black Puddings, Scotch Pills, Powder for the Itch, Red Herrings, Breeches Balls, and Small Beer by the Maker. 'In Utrumque Paratus.'There is an air of verisimilitude about this advertisement which reads like an actual transcript.

THE TOOTHACHE, OR TORMENT AND TORTURE.

1825.Bernard Blackmantle. The Spirit of the Public Journals for the Year 1824. With Explanatory Notes by C. M. Westmacott.With illustrations on wood by T. Rowlandson, R. and G. Cruikshank, Lane, and Findlay. London: Published by Sherwood, Jones, & Co., Paternoster Row.

Advertisement.—In the preliminary notice the editor, Mr. Westmacott, specially alludes to the assistance given by our artist: 'It is with some degree of pride the editor requests his reader's examination of the illustrations to this volume, combining as they do specimens of the first graphic humour of the time; not the least admirable of which are eleven original designs by the veteran Rowlandson, whose facetious pencil appears to acquire additional richness with his lengthened years. For these the editor is more indebted topersonal friendshipthanmotives of interest, and they are therefore in his estimation doubly valuable.'

Designs by T. Rowlandson.

Vignette to title.—A group of little Cupids, harnessed, and drawing a car of classic shape, loaded with contributions from thenewspapers—

The choicest fancies, grave and gay,They register'd from day to day.

Mrs. Ramsbottom in the Packet. ('Mrs. Ramsbottom's Tour,'John Bull.)Ill-requited Love, or Miss Hannah Maria Juliana Shum. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Herald.)Two at a Time, or Irish Accidents. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Bell's Life in London.)The Petticoat Whip, or a Lift for Love. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Bell's Life in London.)The Charley's Mistake, or Royalty Doubly Endangered. (Bell's Life in London.)Teddy the Tailor, or a Troublesome Customer. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Bell's Life in London.)The Man-of-War's Man, or Sketches of Society. ('Greenwich Hospital,'Literary Gazette.)The Mayor of Portsmouth and the Horse Witness.The Bold Dragoon, or the Adventure of my Grandfather. ('Tales of a Traveller,'News of Literature and Fashion.)Sporting Extraordinary, or Cockney Comicalities. By Charley Eastup. (Annals of Sporting and Fashion.)

Mrs. Ramsbottom in the Packet. ('Mrs. Ramsbottom's Tour,'John Bull.)

Ill-requited Love, or Miss Hannah Maria Juliana Shum. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Herald.)

Two at a Time, or Irish Accidents. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Bell's Life in London.)

The Petticoat Whip, or a Lift for Love. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Bell's Life in London.)

The Charley's Mistake, or Royalty Doubly Endangered. (Bell's Life in London.)

Teddy the Tailor, or a Troublesome Customer. ('Sketches at Bow Street,'Bell's Life in London.)

The Man-of-War's Man, or Sketches of Society. ('Greenwich Hospital,'Literary Gazette.)

The Mayor of Portsmouth and the Horse Witness.

The Bold Dragoon, or the Adventure of my Grandfather. ('Tales of a Traveller,'News of Literature and Fashion.)

Sporting Extraordinary, or Cockney Comicalities. By Charley Eastup. (Annals of Sporting and Fashion.)

R.—A.—YS OF GENIUS REFLECTING ON THE TRUE LINE OF BEAUTY

1825.Bernard Blackmantle(Charles Molloy Westmacott).The English Spy.The illustrations designed by Robert Cruikshank. In two volumes. London, 8vo. Plate 32.R.—A.—ys of Genius Reflecting on the True Line of Beauty at the Life Academy, Somerset House.By Thomas Rowlandson.—This plate, which is dated June 1, 1824 (published by Sherwood & Jones), was not, we fancy, designed expressly for theEnglish Spy, as we cannot fail to recognise it as an adaptation of a very spirited caricature by the artist belonging to a considerably earlier period, and described asDrawing from the Nude. In the original the students are dressed in the costume of some forty years anterior to 1824; their quainter persons are delineated with more grotesque spirit and boldness of treatment. Be this as it may, whether Rowlandson has obliged his friend Westmacott by adding new figures, or whether the original design hasbeen otherwise supplemented with later portraits, the female model remains much as she is found in the larger drawing. The artists, who are working from the life in this more modern version, are chiefly Royal Academicians, as far as the privileged circle is concerned, and the portraits are studied with care. M. A. Shee is seated on the ground; one of the Landseers is above him; the person of Benjamin West, arrayed in decorous black, with his knee-breeches, silk stockings, and laced frill, bears a resemblance to a Court physician; Westmacott, Jones, Chantrey, and half a dozen other artists, evident likenesses, are portrayed with a certain attention to securing resemblance. In the right-hand corner, standing at an easel, is the figure of B. R. Haydon; and seated between this unfortunate artist and the fair model is another student, on whose drawing-board are the initials 'C. W.,' which may be intended as a complimentary introduction of the person of Charles Westmacott, the author of the publication in question. This plate, which is a highly interesting addition to Blackmantle'sEnglish Spy, is the only full-page illustration due to the caricaturist; and Mr. William Bates, B.A., commenting on this contribution in an interesting sketch of Rowlandson's works, pronounces it decisively 'the best plate in the work.' The first volume contains numerous vignettes on wood, which the index describes as being 'from original designs by Cruikshank, Rowlandson, Gillray, and Finlay, engraved by Bonner and Hughes.' These engravings are neither signed nor ascribed to the respective designers mentioned in the index; but, as far as we can trace, very little is offered of Rowlandson's beyond the advertisement of his name.

THE HUMOURIST.

A COMPANION FOR THE CHRISTMAS FIRESIDE. BY W. H. HARRISON.

Embellished by Fifty Engravings, exclusive of numerous Vignettes from Designs by

THE LATE THOMAS ROWLANDSON.

LONDON: PUBLISHED BY R. ACKERMANN, 96 STRAND; AND SOLD BY R. ACKERMANN, JUN.,191 REGENT STREET, 1831.

The author, in his preface, thus refers to the circumstances under which these illustrations by a deceased artist have been imported into an annual:—

'Of the embellishments to which, after the manner of annuals in general, the matter has been adapted, it will be a sufficient recommendation to state that the designs have been carefully selected from a great variety of original drawings by the late Mr. Rowlandson, the humour of whose pencil has been long universally acknowledged, and no expense has been spared to render the engravings worthy of the subjects.'

The principal illustrations are as follows:—

Frontispiece.The Humourist and her Crew.—The model of a ship, drawnby a donkey, followed by an escort of seamen, who have severally lost a leg in theservice of their country; they are singing lustily, and appealing to the charitablyinclined.

Vignette.The Doctors Puzzled.—A circle of grave practitioners.

"""A learned consultation."Death pounding a mortar, as the apothecary's assistant. ('Great allowance to dealers in quack medicines.') This subject occurs in theDance of Death(1814).

I have a secret art to cureEach malady which men endure.

Uncle Timothy.—A fat equestrian trying to mount a restive steed.

Vignette. Umbrella flirtations on horseback.

The March of Intellect.—A bibliophilist doctor rummaging a bookstall.

The Man of Business.—A grave curmudgeon turning his back on the beguilements of certain pretty oyster-wenches at their stall.

The Rivals.—A scene outside the premises of Dorothy Dump, clear-starcher, and the box of a tailor. The knight of the thimble has thrust his head out of his narrow window, while he listens in consternation to the railings of the elderly clear-starcher, who is jealously disputing the right of a young and buxomly-developed fair to the attentions of the 'snip' their neighbour.

An Enemy bearing down: Hope in the distance.—An enraged bull is throwing various rural pedestrians into commotion. A stout lady is endeavouring to escape over a stile; a one-legged veteran is hurrying her movements, as his own position is becoming precarious; and a young damsel is left sprawling on the grass; meanwhile the infuriated brute is receiving a check from a dog, which he is endeavouring to toss.

Too Hot and too Late.—Several stout Sunday excursionists, at various distances apart, are toiling up a hill in the broiling midday sun to reach a suburban tavern, where is held, as was the custom at that period, an ordinary on holidays for the benefit of Cockney travellers. A stout pedestrian, mopping his forehead, and followed by his panting dog, who takes after his master in obesity, is at the bottom of the hill; the pair are evidently epicures, and the prospect of the ascent with the probability of arriving only to find the viands swept away by the eager appetites of earlier arrivals is evidently filling their minds with dread.

Fire and Water.—A riverside alehouse; customers on benches, indulging in pots and pipes. A waterman, who is probably indebted to the alewife, is receiving a warm reception on the ground of unliquidated scores of long standing which he has attempted to increase.

Steering.—An old admiral, driving his wife in a curricle, has some difficulty in restraining the skittishness of a pair of badly-trained steeds, whose eccentric career is threatening the whole concern with annihilation.

Bar Practice.—Interior of a tavern, guests at tables; in the front of the picture is the saloon; a showy counter-maid is compounding a bowl of punch for a brace of customers, a military and a sporting buck, who are leaning over the bar and exchanging pleasantries with the landlady.

Getting Cash for Notes.—A blind Scotch bagpiper, going his rounds of the country, is passing a cottage; certain charitable damsels, who are clustered about the portal are acknowledging the piper's notes with coppers.

A Timekeeper.—A Doctor of Music, in his robes, is beating time with a roll of music, and conducting a mixed choir of girls and lads; all the members of the party are evidently bawling their utmost and straining their tuneful throats.

The Italian Scribe. An out-of-doors Amanuensis.—A similar subject to that represented in theLetters from Italy, republished asNaples and the Campagna Felice(1809–13). (SeeThe Letter Writer, 1815.)

Love in a Box.—A Hebrew gentleman, evidently a Shylock, is gravely trudging along the ways of some Continental city—it may be Venice—with a bunch of keys in his hand; three picturesque and Masaniello-like looking porters are in his train, one is bearing a trunk, and two are carrying, suspended on a pole, a large square receptacle, the contents of which are implied to be of a romantic nature.

The Pleasures of Solitude.—An old gourmand is solacing his solitary state of dining by an excess of creature-comforts; his servants are bringing in fresh courses to add to a selection of dishes already amply sufficient for the needs of an individual, and his butler is supplying him with wine on an excessive scale.

Rich and Poor.—A pensioner, minus a leg, and otherwise under the 'slings of adverse fortune,' has called to solicit some trifling assistance from a wealthy sybarite; the poor man's exertions in the representation of his case seem thrown away, as the person solicited is so deaf to his eloquence that, even with the assistance of a trumpet, he fails to hear the appeal of the suitor.

Village Politicians.—The wiseheads of the hamlet are portentously discussing the contents of a news sheet in the vicinity of the sign of the 'Bugle Horn.'

A Disciplinarian.—A Zantippe of a wife, with a flood of invective, is driving her cowed husband before her, whose advance is further accelerated by the liberal exercise of a stout cudgel, which is raining strokes on the bent back of the unmanned and overawed victim.

An Admirer.—A comely maiden, standing with her pitcher beside a pump, is asking assistance to raise her load of an idiotic rustic dandy, who is staring and grinning his imbecile admiration with a face marvellously well fitted to fill a horse-collar, but who does not otherwise respond to the girl's request.

The Cow Doctor.—A consultation over the condition of a suffering cow.

Taking a Horse to Water.—In this case, it rather seems, the steeds are taking their riders there and leaving them—soused in the brook.

Lost and Won.—A gaily-apparelled nymph is leaning over the palings of a waterside landing-stage. A waterman is looking on in dudgeon; he is evidently the 'loser;' whilst the fickle fair is making tender demonstrations in favour of a dashing young soldier, whose uniform and martial trim have evidently won the changeable lady's heart.

A Man of Colour.—At the portico of a villa stands the black butler, who is emptying a plateful of victuals into the apron of a comely female tramp, with a child slung on her back; thedarkieis evidently moved by the attractions of the gipsy, since his face expresses the most unqualified admiration for her personal allurements.

Civic Enjoyments.—A dinner party assembled in a Guildhall. The health of the entertainer is being uproariously received as a 'standing toast' with full-charged bumpers.

A Siege.—A highly genteel, youthful, and elegantly clad lady—whether maid or widow it is difficult to determine—is surrounded by a crowd of suitors, recruited from pretty nearly all the professions, and of all ages and sizes. The object of this profuse idolatry, perfectly unmoved, is waving off her too presumptuous assailants, whose assiduities interfere with her comfort.

Recruiting.—A party of soldiers on ''listing' service in a country town have secured certain volunteers. One of the new recruits, a sprightly damsel, is creating no little consternation in the breasts of the villagers by joining the troopers' march; a cobbler and a tailor, armed with the implements of their trade, are offering some show of resistance to the abduction of this Helen by a smart young Paris 'in the line;' but these deserted swains are kept at a respectful distance by the bayonet of the gay Lothario's comrade.

Knowledge of the World.—A village pedagogue is instructing his pupils in that elaborate branch of fashionable education (according to school prospectuses at the beginning of the century), 'the use of the globes.' Certain mischievous urchins are taking advantage of the preceptor's preoccupation to insert quill pens into the 'Busby' wig of the learned Doctor.

Modern Antiquities.—A variation of the larger engraving on this subject published (by Tegg) under the same title.

A Man of Taste.—A fat old voluptuary, in a 'nautical rig,' in person not unlike (and probably expressly designed for) the convivial and yachting alderman, Sir William Curtis, is critically inspecting through his eyeglass a small selection of shellfish held out for his gratification by a pretty shrimper-maid of pronounced personal graces.

Looking a Broadside.—A stout party of the old school, of great breadth and solidity, is looking daggers at a dandified fop of the period, a mere scarecrow of a figure, who is 'quizzing' the substantial piece of antiquity through a spyglass. The indignation of the old boy is barely appeased by the soothing caresses of a tender and pretty maiden who is clinging to the incensed veteran.

Credulity.—A fashionable, elegant, and good-looking lady is seated at her breakfast-table, while her maid is arranging the apartment. A messenger or letter-carrier has just brought abillet-doux, which the confiding beauty is eagerly perusing.

Indecision.—An obese prebendary, his gouty limb supported on cushions, is in all the perplexities ofembarras de choix; one maiden is bringing in poultry, as appropriate to the day's dinner, shortly to follow in due course; and a fish-girl has offered an equally attractive choice of fish. The arrival of these luxuriesand the necessity of selecting between them is vexing the soul of the good man.

Spoiling a Cloak and Making a Fortune.—Another version of the traditional episode of the gallant Raleigh laying down his mantle at the feet of his sovereign lady Queen Elizabeth to bridge over an undesirable crossing.

A Military Salute.—A gallant officer engaged in amorous dalliance with a tender-hearted fair, who is leaning out of a cottage window to receive the courtesies of the dashing warrior. Another version ofKissing for Love, or Captain Careless Shot Flying by a Girl of Fifteen, who unexpectedly popped her Head out of a Casement(May 1810).

A Bagman.—A tired commercial traveller, cloaked, booted, and spurred, is alighting at the 'Woolpack;' his horse is taken to the stable; his saddle-bag is under his arm; and the buxom and broadly-expanded hostess of the inn is standing at the portal to bid the weary pilgrim welcome.

Obtaining the Countenance of the Minister.—An Italian itinerant vendor of 'images' is offering a citizen the chance of purchasing the head of the Government on easy terms, as far as his plaster bust is concerned.

Training.—A jockey, with his saddle strapped on his back, ready to mount for the race, is receiving the final and special instructions of his patron, a venerable and evidently deep file, well versed in the iniquities of the turf, whose face wears an expression of experienced and long-trained cunning. Another version ofTricks of the Turf, or Settling how to Lose a Race(1821).

An Exhibition.—The fashionable attendants at a gallery of pictures. All the spectators are lost in wonder and admiration at the collection of paintings. The figure of the Duke of Gloucester is 'taken off,' with that of other visitors. A partial transcript of thePortrait Painters Gallery.—Adventures of Johnnie Quæ Genus.

A Banquet.—Threeconvivesare enjoying their soup, seated in a sort of supper-box; the Frenchchefis prominently shown before his cooking-range, busied in the compounding of some extensivepot au feu.

The Ratcatcher.—As the title expresses, the figure of a professional ratcatcher, with a cage full of prisoners, which he is exhibiting to a venerable couple—probably his employers; his dogs are excited at the prospect of the sport. Another version of Rowlandson'sLondon Characters.

A Court Day.—A small rendering ofA Levée at St. James's Palace. The Beef-eaters are on duty, and crowds of courtiers and distinguished representatives, clerical, military, diplomatic, civil, foreign, &c., are proceeding through the reception-room for the privilege of making their bow to royalty.

A Dark Prospect.—A master-sweeper and his lad are seated, on their soot-bags, by the can of a pretty and picturesquely-attired dairymaid, who has supplied the dark customers with cups of 'clean milk from the cow.'

Symptoms of a Dinner.—A meeting of dignified prelates of the Church; amongst the company are certain bigwigs, bishops, who are received with flattering deference by the lower clergy. Two eager members of the cloth, more set on the serious gratifications of a Convocation festival than the empty ceremonial courtesies of the hour, are examining a sun-dial in the foreground and comparing it with their watches, in expectation of dinner-time.

The Studio.—A painter, in Court costume, is daubing away boldly at his picture, surrounded at a respectful distance by a circle ofdilettanticonnoisseurs, all of whom sport spectacles or eyeglasses; these critical spectators are engaged in cold contemplation of the work before them.

Vignette.—A second group ofcognoscenti, whose faces in this case express more interest and admiration, and justly so, since the work before them appeals to their tenderest susceptibilities; it is one they can all appreciate—a lively turtle, ready to be converted into real soup. A number of clergymen are following the lead of their bishop, who, excellent man, is evidently longing to bless the good things which beneficent Nature has here provided for the faithful.

Hydrophobia: the Church in Danger.—A pastor is running his hardest, pursued by a dog, which we are to suppose is suffering fromrabies; the venerable prelate is doing his best to keep in advance of his pursuer, who in turn is followed by aposséof eager philanthropists, armed with pitchforks, flails, spits, pokers, choppers, shovels, and even pistols and guns, which are being discharged ineffectually, as the dog is managing to keep ahead of his would-be executioners.

The Way to Fill a Wherry.—A party, including the fair, have secured their places in a wherry at the riverside; the waterman is taking in one more customer before starting, an elephantine and venerable gentleman, whose advent has filled the occupants of the bark with alarm, the aquatic party evidently anticipating that they will be swamped at the very least by the ponderous weight of the last comer, who is vainly trying to find a seat in the boat without capsizing it.

A View of the Coast.—A village inn, with a blind fiddler and his daughter stationed upon the green outside; almost identical with the subject published by Ackermann in Rowlandson'sWorld in Miniature(seeApril 1, 1816).

Operatives.—The title of this plate goes by contraries.Inoperativesshould be the description. A pair of soakers are sunk in heavy slumber over the table of the taproom; a brace of industrious working-men, whose ambitions in the direction of exertion are limited to 'raising their elbows,' 'tilting measures,' 'reducing the liquid contents of receptacles for intoxicants,' and similar performances of an anti-temperance order.

Home, Sweet Home.—A drunken convivialist is, pipe in hand, unconsciously approaching the spot whose praises he is tipsily chaunting, quite unprepared for the reception that is awaiting his roystering at the hands of his outraged andfuriously indignant wife, who is anticipating his arrival with a cane prudently provided in advance for further arguments upon thedouceursof his rooftree.

The last print in Volume I. ofThe Humouristis a vignette representing a bench of fox-hunting justices, who have gone fast asleep in their respective armchairs, their legs on the table; bottles and bowls strewing the floor, and their dogs, scattered around, sunk in sleep as heavy as that indulged in by their masters. A transcript of the plateJohnny Quæ Genus Attending on a Sporting Finale—Adventures of Johnny Quæ Genus(1832).

The illustrations to Volume II. ofThe Humouristare supplied by another hand. It does not contain any further rendering of subjects after Rowlandson.

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CARICATURES,

ENGRAVED BY OR AFTER

THOMAS ROWLANDSON.

WITH HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO BOOK ILLUSTRATIONIN THE ORDER OF PUBLICATION.

SUMMARY OF ROWLANDSON'S CARICATURES.

1774.June 8.A Rotation Office. Pub. by H. Humphrey, Bond St."The Village Doctor.Do.1780.Mar.Special Pleading. Pub. by A. McKenzie, 101 Berwick Street, Soho.July 18.The School of Eloquence. Probably designed by Rowlandson, and badly etched by some one unknown. Pub. by Archibald Robertson, Savile Passage.Scene at Streatham. Bozzi and Piozzi.Sept. 1.Italian Affectation. (Real characters.) Pub. by T. Rowlandson and J. Jones, at 103 Wardour Street, Soho.How happy could I be with eitherWere t'other dear charmer away.—Brookes.18.Sir Samuel House. Do.Do.Do.Nov. 13.Naval Triumph, or Favours Conferred.1781.June 30.The Power of Reflection. I. Harris, Sweeting's Alley, Cornhill.Oct. 28.E O, or the Fashionable Vowels.Nov. 27.Brothers of the Whip. A. Grant del.27.Charity Covereth a Multitude of Sins. H. Humphrey, 18 New Bond Street.Dec.The State Watchman Discovered by the Genius of Britain Studying Plans for the Reduction of America.(N.D.)Luxury.(N.D.)Bob Derry of Newmarket.1783.Feb. 11.Long Sermons and Long Stories are apt to Lull the Senses. Pub. by W. Humphrey.Oct. 17.Amputation. Republished. (See 1793.)(N.D.)The Rhedarium. (1783?)(N.D.)Interior of a Clockmaker's Shop. (1783?)The Discovery. (Political.)Dec. 22.Great Cry and Little Wool.The Times. Regency of the Prince.Scene in a farce called the Quaker.Two New Slides for the State Magic Lantern.1784.Jan. 1.The Pit of Acheron, or the Birth of the Plagues of England.4.The Fall of Dagon, or Rare News for Leadenhall Street.7.The Loves of the Fox and the Badger, or the Coalition Wedding.19.His Highness the Protector.23.The Times, or a View of the Old House in Little Britain.24.A Sketch from Nature.Feb.Long Sermons and Long Sieges are apt to lull the senses.Feb. 3.The Infant Hercules."Britannia Roused, or the Coalition Monsters Destroyed.7.Billy Lackbeard and Charley Blackbeard Playing at Football.Mar. 1.The Apostate Jack Robinson, Political Ratcatcher.3.A Peep into Friar Bacon's Study.8.Master Billy's Procession to Grocers' Hall.11.The Champion of the People.26.The State Auction.29.The Drum-Major of Sedition.30.Sir Cecil's Budget for Paying the National Debt.31.The Hanoverian Horse and the British Lion.April 1.The Duenna and Little Isaac.3.The Two Patriotic Duchesses on their Canvass. (Duchesses of Portland and Devonshire.)4.The Incurable. 'My Lodging is on the Cold Ground.'8.The Rival Candidates.10.The Parody, or Mother Cole and Loader. (VideFoote's 'Minor,' p. 29.)12.The Poll.12.The Devonshire, or most Approved Method ofSecuring Votes.12.The Westminster Watchman.14.Lords of the Bedchamber.20.The Covent Garden Nightmare.22.King's Place, or a View of Mr. Fox's Best Friends.22.The Wit's Last Stake, or Cobbling Voters and Abject Canvassers.22.Madame Blubber on her Canvass. (See verses.)22.Political Affection.23.Reynard put to his Shifts.29.Madame Blubber's Last Shift, or the AerostaticDilly.29.The Case is Altered.30.Procession to the Hustings.May 1.Every Man has his Hobbyhorse.4.La Politesse Française, or the English Ladies' Petition to his Excellency the Mushroom Ambassador.4.Wisdom Led by Virtue and Prudence to the Temple of Fame.11.The Westminster Mendicant.11.A Coat of Arms. Dedicated to the newly-created Earl of Lonsdale.12.A New Insect. A Buck. (It is not certain the print is by Rowlandson.)18.The Westminster Deserter Drummed out of the Regiment.18.Preceptor and Pupil—Not Satan to the ear of EveDid e'er such pious counsel give.18.The Departure.18.Secret Influence Directing the New Parliament.20.For the Benefit of the Champion.25.Liberty and Fame Introducing Female Patriotism (Duchess of Devonshire) to Britannia.28.The Petitioning Candidate for Westminster—From the heath-covered mountains of Scotia I come.July 24.1784, or the Fashions of the Day.Aug. 8.The Vicar and Moses. (Song heading.)Sept. 5.Manager (Garrick) and Spouter. T. R. Smith, 83 Oxford Street.25.Bookseller and Author. H. Wigstead del., S. Alken fec. Pub. by S. W. Fores. (Repub. July 1, 1802.)25.The Historian Animating the Mind of a Young Painter.(N.D.)English Curiosity, or the Foreigner Stared out of Countenance. (Republished. See 1794.)(N.D.)Counsellor and Client.Nov. 1.New-invented Elastic Breeches. Nixon inv. Pub. by W. Humphrey.8.Money Lenders.8.Apollo and Daphne. (Broderip and Wilkinson.)25.The Minister's A—— (Vide'Gazetteer,' Nov. 11.)25.A Peasant Playing the Flute. After J. Mortimer.Opening a Vein.Lunardi. (See 1785.)Dec. 10.Anticipation. (Chr. Atkinson, Contractor, in the Pillory.)10.The Rhedarium. (See 1783.)10.Colonel Topham Endeavouring with his Squirt to Extinguish the Genius of Holman. (See 1785.)10.Billingsgate.(N.D.)John Stockdale, the Bookselling Blacksmith, one of the King's New Friends. (Vide'Intrepid Magazine.')Rest from Labour. Sunny Days.Miller's Waggon. Pub. by E. Jackson.A Timber Waggon. Do.Country Cart-horses. Do.Dray-horses, Draymen, and Maltsters. Do.Higglers' Carts. Do.A Postchaise. Do.A Cabriolet. Do.The Dead-alive. H. W. pl. 1; do. pl. 2.

How happy could I be with eitherWere t'other dear charmer away.—Brookes.

Not Satan to the ear of EveDid e'er such pious counsel give.

Rowlandson's Imitations of Modern Drawings.(Folio) 1784–8.

Back to Index Next