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diff --git a/41018-8.txt b/41018-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index b843ce2..0000000 --- a/41018-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7133 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of John Leech, His Life and Work, Vol. II (of -II), by William Powell Frith - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: John Leech, His Life and Work, Vol. II (of II) - -Author: William Powell Frith - -Release Date: October 10, 2012 [EBook #41018] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN LEECH, LIFE AND WORK, VOL II *** - - - - -Produced by Chris Curnow and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -JOHN LEECH - -His Life and Work - -[Illustration: _The Marchioness going to execution._] - - - - - JOHN LEECH - - His Life and Work - - BY - - WILLIAM POWELL FRITH, R.A. - - [Illustration] - - _WITH PORTRAIT AND NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS_ - - IN TWO VOLUMES - VOL. II. - - LONDON - RICHARD BENTLEY AND SON - Publishers in Ordinary to Her Majesty the Queen - 1891 - [_All rights reserved_] - - - - -CONTENTS OF VOL. II. - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. "PUNCH" 1 - - II. CARTOONS 15 - - III. THE LAWYER'S STORY 35 - - IV. LOVE OF FIELD SPORTS 40 - - V. INVENTORS AND ILLUSTRATORS 54 - - VI. "INGOLDSBY LEGENDS" 59 - - VII. DICKENS AND THACKERAY ON LEECH 66 - - VIII. DEAN HOLE 80 - - IX. TYPES 89 - - X. LEECH AND HIS PREDECESSORS 96 - - XI. KENNY MEADOWS 103 - - XII. "COMIC HISTORY OF ROME" 106 - - XIII. PERSONAL ANECDOTES 113 - - XIV. PERSONAL ANECDOTES--CONTINUED 119 - - XV. SPORTING NOVELS 130 - - XVI. THE "BON GAULTIER BALLADS" 137 - - XVII. SPORTING NOVELS--CONTINUED 152 - - XVIII. MICHAEL HALLIDAY AND LEECH 163 - - XIX. THOMAS HOOD AND LEECH 182 - - XX. DR. JOHN BROWN AND LEECH 218 - - XXI. AUTOGRAPH-HUNTERS AND OTHERS 229 - - XXII. ARTISTS' LIVES 239 - - XXIII. LEECH EXHIBITION 247 - - XXIV. MILLAIS AND LEECH 275 - - XXV. MR. H. O. NETHERCOTE AND JOHN LEECH 283 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - PAGE - THE MARCHIONESS GOING TO EXECUTION _Frontispiece_ - - THE DRUNKEN POST-BOY 11 - - "THEY MAY BE OFFICERS, BUT THEY ARE NOT GENTLEMEN" 13 - - JACK ARMSTRONG 17 - - THE JEW AND SKELETON TAILORS 29 - - "I'LL THIN YOUR TOP!" 37 - - "GIVE HER HER HEAD, JACK" 42 - - "OH, IF THIS IS ONE OF THE PLACES CHARLEY SPOKE OF, - I SHALL GO BACK!" 44 - - JACK JOHNSON ATTEMPTS TO RESCUE DERVAL _To face p. 57_ - - THE MAID AND THE HEAD OF GENGULPHUS 62 - - ELOPEMENT OF ROMAN YOUTH WITH SABINE LADIES 109 - - ROME SAVED FROM THE GAULS BY GEESE 111 - - LITTLE JOHN AND RED FRIAR 140 - - LITTLE JOHN AND THE POPISH BULL 142 - - GEORGE OF GORBALS 149 - - THE LOVER'S FRIEND AND THE LOVER 150 - - AFTER AIMING FOR A QUARTER OF AN HOUR, MR. B. - FIRES BOTH HIS BARRELS, AND MISSES! 173 - - WHAT WIDE REVERSES OF FATE ARE THERE! 188 - - MISS KILMANSEGG 191 - - THE FOREIGN COUNT 197 - - THE WEDDING--"WILT THOU HAVE THIS WOMAN?" 202 - - LOVE AT THE BOARD 204 - - HE BROUGHT STRANGE GENTLEMEN HOME TO DINE 208 - - THE TORN WILL 212 - - BEDTIME 216 - - "HE BLOWS HIS OWN NOSE!" 228 - - THE SEAL 235 - - A CYPRESS BRANCH FOR THE TOMB OF JOHN LEECH 301 - - - - -JOHN LEECH: - -_HIS LIFE AND WORK_ - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -"PUNCH." - - -In the year 1841 I exhibited a picture at the Suffolk Street Gallery, -and I recollect accidentally overhearing fragments of a conversation -between a certain Joe Allen and a brother member of the Society of -British Artists in Suffolk Street. Allen's picture happened to hang near -mine, and we were both "touching up" our productions. Joe Allen was the -funny man of the society, and, though he startled me a little, he did -not surprise me by a loud and really good imitation of the peculiar -squeak of Punch. - -"Look out, my boy," he said to his friend, "for the first number. We" (I -suppose he was a member of the first staff) "shall take the town by -storm. There is no mistake about it. We have so-and-so"--naming some -well-known men--"for writers; Hine, Kenny Meadows, young Leech, and a -lot more first-rate illustrators," etc. - -Whether Allen's friend took his advice and bought the first number of -_Punch_, which appeared in the following July, I know not; but I bought -a copy, and remember my disappointment at finding Leech conspicuous by -his absence from the pages. In the hope of finding him in the second -issue, I went to the shop where I had bought the first. The shopman met -my request for the second number of _Punch_, as well as I can recollect, -in the following words: - -"What paper, sir? Oh, _Punch_! Yes, I took a few of the first; but it's -no go. You see, they billed it about a good deal" (how well I recollect -that expression!), "so I wanted to see what it was like. It won't do; -it's no go." - -I have been told that, like most newspapers, _Punch_ had some difficulty -in keeping upon his legs in his first efforts to move; but as those -elegant members, so exquisitely drawn by Tenniel, have supported the -famous hunchback for nearly half a century, there is no need for his -friends' anxiety as to his future movements. - -Though Leech had engaged himself to the then proprietors of _Punch_ as -one of the illustrators of the paper, it seems strange that his first -contribution did not appear till the 7th of August, and in the fourth -number, and stranger still that its appearance should have damaged the -paper. Under the heading of "Foreign Affairs," the artist represents -groups of foreigners such as may be seen any day in the neighbourhood of -Leicester Square. The reader is told in a footnote that the plate does -not represent foreign _gentlemen_, an unnecessary intimation to anyone -who knows a foreign gentleman. - -It is said that this engraving sent down the circulation of _Punch_ to -an alarming point. I confess my inability to understand this, and would -rather attribute the decadence to some other cause, contemporary with -the production of "Foreign Affairs." The drawing is somewhat hard upon -the foreign frequenters of the purlieus of Leicester Square, and would -only have been more acceptable to John Bull on that account. By Leech's -non-appearance in _Punch_ for many months after "Foreign Affairs" was -published, one is driven to the conclusion that the managers had little -faith in him as an attraction. The second volume contains very few of -Leech's designs, while it bristles with inferior work. - -My own admiration for Leech's genius, so constantly roused by his works, -with which I was familiar, created a great desire for his acquaintance; -but being perfectly unknown at that time as an artist, and knowing none -of Leech's friends, I began to despair of the realization of my wishes, -when accident helped me. - -A Scottish painter--a Highlander and fierce Jacobite--named McIan, who -was also an actor and friend of Macready, to whose theatrical company he -was attached, lived with his wife, an accomplished artist, somewhere in -the neighbourhood of Gordon Square. Calling one morning to see Mrs. -McIan, I found her in her studio, not, as usual, hard at work at her own -easel, but superintending the labours of a pupil, who was hard at work -at another; and the pupil, a tall, slim, and remarkably handsome young -man, was John Leech. - -I made some remark about the different method in which he was employed -to that with which he was familiar. I forget what he was copying--some -still life, I think. - -"I like painting much better than what I have to grind at day after day, -if I could only do it," said Leech; "but it's so confoundedly difficult, -you know, and requires such a lot of patience." - -I fancy I thought his efforts in oil-painting on that occasion very -promising; but the exigencies of his position quite prevented the -unceasing devotion to the study of painting which is required before any -success can be assured. - -Leech was once heard to say that he would rather be the painter of a -really good picture than the producer of any number of the "kind of -things" he did. I, for one, am very thankful that he never did produce a -good picture, for he would have been tempted to repeat the success, to -the loss of numbers of delightful sketches. - -Mrs. McIan appeared to think that Leech would soon cease to draw for -_Punch_; indeed, she doubted, as did many others, that _Punch_ would -long succeed in attracting the public; and I joined her in the -hope--rather hypocritically, I fear--that her young friend would -persevere in mastering the difficulty of the technicalities of -oil-painting, and thus place himself amongst the best painters of the -country. Leech had taken many lessons from Mrs. McIan, and that lady -seemed convinced that he had but to persevere and the difficulties would -fall before him, as, to use her own figure, the walls of Jericho fell -before the sound of the trumpet. Ah, perseverance! "there's the rub." - -From the time of my introduction to Leech I became gradually very -intimate with him, and the more I knew of his nature, the more I became -convinced that he totally lacked the disposition for continuous, steady, -mechanical industry necessary for success in painting. He constantly -ridiculed the care spent on the details in pictures; finish, in his -opinion, was so much waste of time. "When you can see what a man intends -to convey in his picture, you have got all he wants, and all you ought -to wish for; all elaboration of an idea after the idea is comprehensible -is so much waste of time"--this was his constant cry, a little -contradicted by the fact that he as constantly tried to paint his ideas, -but in a fitful and perfunctory manner. - -I can imagine the enthusiasm that was lighted up in Leech upon his first -sight of one of our annual exhibitions. After a visit to one of them he -was known to have gone home, and getting out easel, canvas, and colours, -he would set to work in a fury of enthusiasm, which evaporated at the -encounter of the first technical difficulty. He used to take pleasure in -watching my own attempts at painting, and I remember on one occasion, -when I was finishing a rather elaborate piece of work, he said: - -"Ah, my Frith, I wasn't created to do that sort of thing! I should never -have patience for it." - -He was right, and, happily for the world, he became convinced that, even -if he had the power to fully "carry out"--as we call it--one of his -drawings into a completed oil picture, the time required would have -deprived us of immortal sketches; and though he undoubtedly "left off -where difficulties begin"--as I once heard a painter, who was -exasperated at Leech's sneers at his manipulation, say to him--he has -left behind him work which will continue to delight succeeding -generations so long as wit, humour, character and beauty are -appreciated--that is to say, so long as human nature endures. - -I feel I ought to apologize for what I am about to tell, because it has -nothing to do with my hero beyond the fact of its occurrence having -taken place on the memorable morning when I first had the happiness of -meeting him. - -I have said that McIan was a Scotchman, a Highlander of the clan McIan, -and a worshipper of Charles Stuart, whose usual cognomen, the Pretender, -I should have been sorry to have used in the presence of my Jacobite -friend. As Leech left the room to go to his "grind," as he called his -woodwork, McIan entered, and we were discussing Leech's prospects when -McIan's servant--an old, hard-featured Scotchwoman--hurried into the -room, and, in an awe-stricken voice, said: - -"Sir--sir, here's the Preences!" - -The words were scarcely out of her mouth, when two gentlemen -entered--tall, rather distinguished but melancholy, looking young men. -No sooner did McIan and his wife catch sight of them, than, without a -word, they both dropped upon their knees, and while the lady kissed the -hands of one of the gentlemen, her husband paid a similar attention to -the hands of the other. I was holding my hat, and I remember I dropped -it in my astonishment, for I was not aware that I was in the presence of -the last of the Stuarts; or that these two young men claimed to be the -great-grandsons of the hero of Culloden, and amongst a large section of -Scotchmen, and not a few Englishmen, had their claim allowed. Anyone -curious about this delusion can read for himself how it was dispelled, -but the men themselves implicitly believed in their royal descent. They -are both dead now. I once saw one of them again at a garden-party at -Chelsea Hospital, where his likeness to the Stuarts was the talk of the -company. It was certainly striking. - -It is a melancholy task to me to try to recall the social scenes in -which Leech so often figured--sad indeed to think how few of his -friends, more intimate with him than I, now remain amongst us! Though -Leech very seldom illustrated any ideas but his own, I can recall an -example or two to the contrary; and still oftener have I seen, by the -sparkle of his eye, that something occurring in conversation had -suggested a "cut." - -I think it was Dickens who said that a big cock-pheasant rising in -covert under one's nose was like a firework let off in that locality. -Elsewhere we have Leech's rendering of the idea. - -When cards, or some other way of getting rid of time after dinner, had -been proposed, I have heard Leech say: - -"Oh, bother cards! Let us have conversation." - -And talk it was, often good talk; but Leech was more a listener than a -partaker. Not that he could not talk, and admirably; but he was always -on the watch for subjects which he hoped something in conversation might -suggest. - -Leech's mental condition was certainly deeply tinged with the sadness so -common to men who possess wit and humour to a high degree. He sang well, -but his songs were all of a melancholy character, and very difficult to -get from him. Indeed, the only one I can remember, and that but -partially, was something about "King Death," with allusions to a -beverage called "coal-black wine," which that potentate was supposed to -drink. As I write I can see the dear fellow's melancholy face, with his -eyes cast up to the ceiling, where Dickens said the song was written in -ghostly characters which none but Leech could read. - -I may give another example--rare, no doubt--of Leech's having used a -suggested subject. Many years ago my brother-in-law, long since dead, -took a party of friends to the Derby. They drove, or, rather, were -driven, down to Epsom, the usual post-boy being recommended as a -careful, steady driver--a character very desirable, considering the -crowded state of the road, more especially on the return journey. The -post-boy quite realized all that was said of him as the party went to -the course, but when the time came for departure he was found, after -considerable searching, to be as nearly dead-drunk as possible. What was -to be done? The man could scarcely stand; his driving was, of course, -out of the question. - -[Illustration] - -"Well," said my brother-in-law to his friends, "if you will trust -yourselves to me, I will ride and drive you back;" and, after tying the -post-boy on to the carriage, where he soon fell fast asleep, my -brother mounted and drove his party safely home. - -This I thought a good subject for Leech, and I suggested it to him. He -smiled faintly, and said not a word. Very nearly a year after I had told -him of the incident, as I was walking with him one day, he said: - -"By the way, Frith, are you going to use the subject you mentioned to me -of the drunken post-boy and your brother-in-law?" - -"I? No," said I; "it's more in your way than mine." - -"Then I'll do it next week." - -He was as good as his word. - -Nothing could be less like my brother-in-law than the delightful "swell" -who is driving home some charming women, who are, however, left to our -imagination; and as to the post-boy, the artist has awoke him to some -purpose. What could surpass that drunken smile? - -[Illustration] - -Long, long ago there might have been seen on the sands at Ramsgate two -stuffed figures, the size of life, intended to represent soldiers; for -they were bedecked with the red coat, cap, and trousers of the ordinary -private. The clothes were simply stuffed out into something resembling -human forms, but the effect, as may be supposed, was ludicrous in the -extreme. They were the work of a professor of archery, who supplied his -customers with bows and arrows, with which the archer showed how seldom -he could hit the target made by the two soldiers. Leech and I watched -the shooting for some time, till the little sketch-book was produced, -and Leech made a rapid drawing of the two soldiers, afterwards to figure -in an inimitable cut in _Punch_. - -A young lady is seen bathing with her aunt, whose attention she is -directing to the two stuffed figures. The aunt is short-sighted, and the -girl is wickedly pretending that the figures are live officers, watching -the bathers. The aunt says, "They may be officers, but they are not -gentlemen," etc. - -I am sure that Leech never used a model, in the sense that the model is -commonly used by artists, for the thousands of human beings made -immortal by his genius; but that he made numberless sketches for -backgrounds, detail of dresses, landscapes, foregrounds, and bits of -character caught from unconscious sitters, there can be no doubt. How -wonderful was the memory, how sensitive the mental organization, that -could retain and reproduce every variety of type, every variety of -beauty and character! - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -CARTOONS. - - -As I fancy I am one of the few of Leech's friends who have figured -personally in _Punch_, I may be excused for the egotism of the -following: - -About the year 1852 I began the first of a series of pictures from -modern life, then quite a novelty in the hands of anyone who could paint -tolerably. When the picture which was called "Many Happy Returns of the -Day" (a birthday subject, in which the health of the little heroine of -the day is being drunk) was finished, Leech came to see it, and -expressed his satisfaction on finding an artist who could leave what he -called "mouldy costumes" for the habits and manners of everyday life. As -he was speaking, two of my brother artists, whose practice was on -different lines to mine, called, and saw my picture for the first time. -They both looked attentively at it, and the longer they looked--judging -from their faces--the less they liked it. I shall not forget Leech's -expression when I gave him a sort of questioning look as to the -correctness of his judgment. - -"Well, what do you think of the picture?" said Leech to one of the -painters. - -"Well, really I don't know what to think," was the reply. - -It never occurred to me that the incident was one likely to serve my -friend for a drawing; lively was my surprise, and great was my pleasure, -therefore, when I saw myself "immortalized for ever," as my old master -used to say, in the pages of _Punch_. - -In this drawing may be seen a striking proof of the avoidance of -personality which always distinguished Leech. I cannot see my own back, -but I have been assured by those who have had that privilege that there -is a dashing, not to say aristocratic, character about Jack Armstrong to -which I have no claim. While Messrs. Potter and Feeble are quite -curiously unlike the persons they are supposed to represent--neither of -my high art friends wore beards--yet the attitudes of the men were -exactly reproduced; while the background, with armour, oak-cabinet, -etc., for which no sketch was taken, was a perfectly correct -representation of my old painting-room. - -[Illustration: "JACK ARMSTRONG."] - -In one of my autumnal holidays Leech stayed a few days with me. He had -not been well; picking up "a thousand stones in a thousand hours," to -which he likened his unceasing work, had begun to tell upon him; and in -reply to my warning, that, for his own sake, to say nothing of the -interests of _Punch_, he should husband his strength--for, I added, "If -anything happened to you, who are 'the backbone of _Punch_,' what would -become of the paper?"--I can see his smile as I hear him say, "Don't -talk such rubbish! backbone of _Punch_, indeed! Why, bless your heart! -there isn't a fellow at work upon the paper that doesn't think _that_ of -himself, and with about as much right and reason as I should. _Punch_ -would get on well enough without me, or any of those who think -themselves of such importance." - -Among the many admirable qualities that adorned the character of John -Leech his modesty was remarkable; he thought little or nothing of his -own work. "Talk of drawing, my dear fellow," he once said to me, "what -is my drawing compared to Tenniel's? Look at the way that chap can draw -a boot; why, I couldn't do it to save my life." - -Though Leech in his modesty chose to ignore the fact, it was no less a -fact that for nearly a quarter of a century he was the leading spirit of -_Punch_. "Think," said Thackeray, "what a number of _Punch_ would be -without a drawing by Leech in it!" - -In addition to the wonderful political cartoons, Leech contributed more -than three thousand illustrations of life and manners to the paper; and -it is said--I know not how truly--that he received from first to last -more than £40,000 for his contributions to _Punch_ alone. If he did, -what did he do with the money? That he was in no way extravagant I know, -and that he was frequently in dire straits after his connection with -_Punch_ I also know. Let my reader imagine what pecuniary trouble must -have been to this man, whose mind was racked by the constantly recurring -demands for intellectual work such as Leech supplied week after week, -and often day after day! Did he lend or give away his hardly-earned -money? Did he accept bills for so-called friends, and find that he had -to meet them? Leech was one of the most open-hearted and generous of -men, an easy victim to a plausible tale of real or fictitious distress. -I suppose we shall never know why a man who made so large an income, who -had not a large family to absorb much of it, and who never lived -expensively, should have died comparatively poor. Let me leave these -painful considerations and "pursue the triumph and partake the gale" of -the artist's glorious career. - -Between Cruikshank and Leech there existed little sympathy and less -intimacy. The extravagant caricature that pervades so much of -Cruikshank's work, and from which Leech was entirely free, blinded him a -little to the great merit of Cruikshank's serious work. I was very -intimate with "Immortal George," as he was familiarly called, and I was -much surprised by the coolness with which he received my enthusiastic -praise of Leech. - -"Yes, yes," said George, "very clever. The new school, you see. Public -always taken with novelty." - -For the larger part of fifty-seven years Cruikshank told me he had been -in the habit of drinking wine and spirits, often a great deal too much -of both; but from his fifty-seventh birthday to his seventy-fifth, when -he lectured me for taking a single glass of sherry, he had devoted -himself to strict teetotalism, the interests of which he advocated by -tongue, brush, and etching-needle. - -Unlike Leech, Cruikshank was a painter, and the last years of his life -were spent in painting a huge picture, or, rather, a series of pictures -upon one canvas, which he called "The Worship of Bacchus." From this -work he executed a large engraving, a proof of which he presented to -me, telling me to study it well and I should see what dire results might -arise from drinking a glass of sherry. Like most proselytes, Cruikshank -carried his faith in his creed to the verge of absurdity, and sometimes -beyond it; but in the "Worship of Bacchus," and more powerfully still in -a series of etchings called "The Bottle," he gave his tragic power full -play, and produced scenes and incidents in which the consequences of -"drink" are portrayed--now with pathos, now with the terrible -retribution that often ends the drunkard's career in madness. - -In one of the large cartoons in _Punch_ Leech used the awful figure of -"Fagin in the Condemned Cell" (one of Cruikshank's finest illustrations -to "Oliver Twist"), changing him into King Louis Philippe. That -sovereign was always somewhat of a red rag to Leech, as many cuts, in -which the king is turned into ridicule, prove; and when the crash of -1848 came, Leech received the fugitive with a shower of drawings, -culminating in the tragic figure exiled and in the condemned cell. The -student of Leech does not require to be told that the artist was as -great in the tragedies of life as he was when he shot the follies as -they flew about him, or when he touched so caressingly the beauty of -childhood and of women. - -During the Crimean War, when such fearful news came to us of the -sufferings of our soldiers during the inclement winter of 1854-55, the -Emperor of Russia is said to have invoked the aid of Generals January -and February in our ruin. Those officers certainly destroyed many of our -men, but one of them laid his icy hand upon the man who had called him -for so different a purpose. Never can I forget the impression that -Leech's drawing of the Emperor's death-bed made upon me! There lay the -Czar, a noble figure in death, as he was in life, and by his side a -stronger King than he--a bony figure, in General's uniform, -snow-besprinkled, who "beckons him away." Of all Leech's serious work, -this seems to me the finest example. Think how savage Gillray or vulgar -Rowlandson would have handled such a theme!--the Emperor would have been -caricatured into a repulsive monster, and Death would have lost his -terrors. Moreover, neither of those artists was capable of conceiving -the subject. - -To show the infinite variety of Leech's powers, I may draw attention in -this place to another of the political cartoons. - -The uneasiness created in this country by what was called the "Papal -Aggression" always seemed to me as absurd and unfounded as it has since -proved to have been. I remember asking Cardinal Manning, then -Archbishop of Westminster by order of the Pope, for his autograph. He -wrote his name for me, but when I asked him to add his title, he smiled -and said, "I dare not do that; I might be sent to prison if I wrote my -Popish title." - -Lord John Russell was in power at that time, and was of course very -active in the crusade against the Catholics. The Cardinal in England was -Wiseman; and Leech drew Lord John as a street boy, running away from the -Cardinal's door, after chalking "No Popery" upon it. Perfect in -workmanship, and perfect in idea, is this admirable drawing. - -I may note here one very bad consequence of the "Papal -Aggression"--namely, the secession of Richard Doyle from the _Punch_ -staff. Doyle was a Catholic; it was therefore impossible for him to -remain amongst men who, by pen and pencil, opposed what was called the -audacious attempt to "tithe and toll in our dominions." It was a pity, -for Doyle was, next to Leech, by far the strongest man on the staff of -_Punch_ artists--quaintly humorous, and full of a delicate fancy, but -without the broad views of life or the grasp of character that -distinguished Leech. Of course, as personality was the essence of the -political cartoons, the use of it was unavoidable; but Leech managed to -be personal without being offensive to the chief actor, unless, as in -the case of Louis Philippe and a few others, he considered that their -escapades deserved severe castigation; he then took good care to apply -the whip with a will. Lord Russell, in his "Recollections," speaks of -the "No Popery" satire as "a fair hit." - -In many of the political cartoons official personages are represented as -boys, well-behaved or ill-behaved, obstinate or stupid, or both, in the -work appointed for them. For example, when Sir Robert Peel resigned, in -1846, Lord John Russell figures as page-boy applying for the vacant -place. The Queen looks the button boy up and down, and then says, "I -fear, John, you are not strong enough for the situation." - -Then we have Disraeli, also as a boy, in whose figure that statesman's -curious foppery in dress is felicitously noted, confronted with a -majestic figure of Sir Robert Peel, who says: - -"Well, my little man, what are you going to do this Session, eh?" - -"Why--aw--aw--I've made arrangements--aw--to smash everything." - -Events of the past, looked at by the light of the present, assume -sometimes very strange, almost incredible aspects. Can there have been a -time, one is inclined to ask, when a man's religion could prove a bar to -college, Bench, and Parliament? Assuredly there was such a time, and not -long ago--say forty years or so--when no Jew could be a judge or a -member of Parliament; and it was only after severe battles and many -defeats that victory at last attended the Jewish banner. One of the most -violent opponents of the Jews was Sir Robert Harry Inglis, a very -conscientious and worthy gentleman. By a happy thought of Leech's, Sir -Robert is made to figure in one of the most humorous of the political -cartoons. - -About this time my old friend Frank Stone had painted two pictures in -illustration of his favourite theme--love. They were called "The First -Appeal" and "The Last Appeal." In the first a kind of peasant lover is -beseeching his "flame" to listen to his vows. She listens, but without -encouraging a hope in the swain that he will prevail. Time is supposed -to pass, leaving terrible traces of suffering--apparently to the verge -of consumption--in the young man, who, on finding the girl at a well, -makes his last, almost dying, appeal. He seizes her hand; but she turns -away, deaf to his passionate beseeching. - -In the Leech drawing the composition of Stone's picture is exactly -preserved; but in place of the lady we have Sir Robert Inglis, who turns -away in horror from a young gentleman of a very marked Jewish type -indeed. - -The present _Punch_ artists have greatly the advantage of Leech, in -respect of the aid derivable from photography. In these days, there is -scarcely a statesman whose photograph cannot be seen in the London -shop-windows, to the great advantage of the political caricaturists of -to-day. It was only at the latter part of Leech's time that photography -became so generally used to familiarize us with the features of our -legislators, and even then I doubt if Leech took much advantage of it. -He had seen all these men, and a rough sketch in his note-book, aided by -his marvellous memory, was sufficient to enable him to produce -unmistakable likenesses. - -It remains for me to note some of the instances in which Leech's powers -were brought to bear upon the social questions of the time--questions -admitting of a humorous or a pathetic treatment, apart from those of a -merely political character. - -In 1850 a motion by Lord Ashley, afterwards Shaftesbury, was carried -against the Government by a majority of ninety-three to sixty-eight, -ordering that the transmission and delivery of letters on Sunday should -cease in all parts of the kingdom. The new law was acted upon for some -weeks, and caused so much public inconvenience, and so great and -indignant a popular outcry, that the obnoxious rules were rescinded. -Leech took full advantage of the opportunity thus afforded him. His -ready imagination supplied him with instances in which the operation of -the new law would cause loss and suffering. This was shown in a drawing -which, amongst other proofs, depicts a mother in great distress because -she can have no news of her sick child. And when, in September, 1850, -the obnoxious regulation was withdrawn, Leech celebrated the event in an -admirable cartoon, in which the promoters, Lords Russell and Ashley, -dressed as Puritans, are ruefully contemplating each other, Russell -addressing his fellow-Puritan with, "Verily, Brother Ashley, between you -and me and the _post_ we have made a nice mess of it!" - -The neglect of our troops during the Crimean campaign afforded the -artist many humorous and tragic subjects. The Government was accused, -rightly or wrongly, of many sins of omission and commission; amongst the -rest, of not providing the army with clothing suitable to the terrible -winter which it was sure to have to pass in front of Sebastopol. And -one of Leech's most telling drawings represents two ragged soldiers -shivering in the snow. One tells the other that news has arrived of a -medal that is to be awarded. "Yes," says his comrade; "but they had much -better send us a coat to put it on." - -Two pictures may be noted--one by Tenniel, which is infinitely pathetic, -the other by Leech, ghastly in its contrast to the humorous side of the -author's powers. The first represents a fashionable lady, whose -magnificent ball-dress has just been fitted upon her by the dressmaker, -who says: - -"We would not have disappointed your ladyship at any _sacrifice_, and -the robe is finished À MERVEILLE." - -But the _sacrifice_! The lady turns to the looking-glass, wherein she -sees the dress, and part of the cost of making it, in the appalling -figure of the workwoman, whose haggard form leans back exhausted, dully -lighted by a dying lamp, by the help of which all night long the lady -has not been "_disappointed_." - -[Illustration: "THE JEW AND SKELETON TAILORS."] - -The sufferings of the workers, through which their employers so often -became rich, touched the tender heart of Leech, and he never lost an -opportunity of pointing out the selfish tyranny of both the men and -women traders who almost ground the life out of their unhappy -assistants. - -If John Leech could have entertained a prejudice against any human -beings, it must have been against the Jewish race, for there is scarcely -an instance in which he deals with the Jews that they do not suffer -under his hand. The points of their physiognomy are rather cruelly -prominent sometimes, even almost to caricature, and they are constantly -placed in ludicrous positions. There can be no doubt that in some -instances the tailor is no less a bloodsucker than the dressmaker, but I -think there are as many, or more, Christian--or, rather, -unchristian--tailors who "sweat" their workpeople as there are Jewish. -However, in one of Leech's most powerful prints, he gives the _pas_ to -the Jew, who watches a group of skeleton tailors as they labour in their -bones for his benefit. It is a gruesome drawing, which, once seen, can -never be forgotten. - -Leech was happily left to his own devices as regards the contributions -to _Punch_, with the sole exception of the large cartoons, the subjects -of which were always settled by the whole staff at a dinner, which took -place every Wednesday. At this dinner no strangers were present. This -was, and is still, the rule. Exceptions, however, were made on one or -two occasions in favour of Charles Dickens, Sir Joseph Paxton, and some -others. - -It was, of course, open to any member to suggest a subject, and in the -early Leech days it is said that the discussions on a proposed theme -waxed fast and furious, Thackeray and Douglas Jerrold generally taking -opposite sides. The dinners were usually held in the front room of the -first-floor of No. 11, Bouverie Street--the business-place of the -proprietors of the paper--and the Bedford Hotel, Covent Garden, was -sometimes honoured by the presence of the staff. During the summer -months the dinners took place at Greenwich, Richmond, or Blackwall; and -once a year there was a more comprehensive banquet, at which -compositors, readers, printers, clerks, etc., assisted. This dinner was -called the "Way-goose." I am speaking of long ago. Whether these details -would apply to the present time I know not. - -I never knew Jerrold. I have frequently seen him, but always avoided an -introduction; for, to speak the truth, I was afraid of him. I had heard -so many stories of his making "dead sets" at new acquaintances as to -disincline me to become one. By anybody quick at repartee I was told he -was easily silenced, and an example was mentioned when a barmaid -succeeded in stopping a torrent of "chaff" of which she was the victim. -It appears that Jerrold went with some friends to a supper-room one -night after the theatre. The supper was "topped up" with hot grog, which -was served to the guests in large, old-fashioned rummers. - -"There," said the girl, as she placed the big glass before Jerrold, -"there's your grog, and mind you don't fall into it." - -Jerrold was a very little man, and the hit told to the extent of dulling -him for the rest of the evening. - -At the Wednesday dinner the whole of the contents of the forthcoming -number of _Punch_ were discussed. When the cloth was removed and dessert -laid upon the table, the first question put by the editor was: - -"What shall the cartoon be?" - -It is said of Tenniel that he rarely suggested a subject for the -cartoon, but that the readiness with which he saw and explained the -possibilities of a subject was remarkable. During the Indian Mutiny, -Shirley Brooks proposed that the picture should represent the British -Lion in the act of springing upon the native soldiers in revenge for the -cruelties at Cawnpore. Tenniel rose to the occasion, and, as Brooks -told me, he exclaimed, "By Jove, that will do for a double-page cut!" -and a magnificent double-page drawing was made of it by him. - -In the inevitable difference of opinion that arose on the occasion of -these dinners--the chief disputants being, as I have just observed, -Thackeray and Jerrold--Jerrold, being the oldest as well as the -noisiest, generally came off victorious. In these rows it is said to -have required all the suavity of Mark Lemon to calm the storm, his award -always being final. Jerrold used to say: - -"It's no use our quarrelling, for we must meet again and shake hands -next Wednesday." - -The last editions of the evening papers were always brought in, so that -the cartoon might apply to the latest date. On the Thursday morning -following the editor called at the houses of the artists to see what was -being done. On Friday night all copy was delivered and put into type, -and at two o'clock on Saturday proofs were revised, the forms made up, -and with the last movement of the engine the whole of the type was -placed under the press, which could not be moved till the Monday -morning. - -By means of the Wednesday meetings, the discussions arising on all -questions helped both caricaturist and wit to take a broad view of -things, as well as enabled the editor to get his team to draw well -together and give uniformity of tone to all the contributions. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE LAWYER'S STORY. - - -By the courtesy of the proprietors of _Punch_, I am allowed to reproduce -in this place a delightfully humorous drawing, the scene of which is -laid in a barber's shop. - -This picture explains itself, but there is a circumstance connected with -it which is, I think, well worth relating; and as I heard it from -Leech's own lips at one of the pleasant Egg dinners, I will give it in -Leech's own words, the strangeness of the incident having left a very -vivid impression on my memory. The usual company--Dickens, Forster, -Lemon, etc.--was present; Leech was singing. We had listened for some -time to the inevitable "King Death," when Dickens exclaimed: - -"There, that will do; if you go on any longer, you will make me cry. -Tell them about the lawyer who lost his client. Yes, I know the story, -but they don't; and I would much rather hear it again than listen to -any more of that lugubrious song." - -"Well, here goes," said Leech. "I suppose there is no one at this table -who neglects to improve his mind by the weekly study of _Punch_; at any -rate, all civilized people are familiar with the illustrations which -adorn that famous periodical. Amongst those classical works the other -day was a high-art drawing by me, representing a gentleman in a barber's -shop, having his hair cut. In the course of talk peculiar to his -fraternity, the little hairdresser remarks that his customer's hair _is -very thin on the top_. This mild observation moved the object of it, a -person of irascible temper, into ungovernable fury. He springs from his -chair, which he upsets in the action, and flying at the terrified -barber, he exclaims, 'Confound you, you puppy! Do you think I came here -to be insulted and told of my imperfections? _I'll thin your top!_' - -[Illustration: "I'LL THIN YOUR TOP."] - -"Well, I don't see anything particularly facetious in the drawing, but a -friend of mine, a lawyer in Bedford Row, did, and laughed whenever he -thought of it. Unfortunately, the day on which the drawing was published -had been fixed for a consultation upon a matter in which an old and -respected client's interests were seriously involved. Legal points of -extreme intricacy and difficulty were to be examined and discussed; -hopes were to be encouraged, and anxiety appeased. In his information to -his legal adviser, the client had arrived at a point of extreme gravity, -when my unfortunate drawing obtruded itself upon the legal mind, and so -disturbed it as to cause the lawyer to repress a laugh with much -difficulty. - -"'I see you smile,' said the client. 'Surely the very serious character -of the evidence which I put before you should strike you as convin----' - -"'Oh, I beg your pardon; I was not smiling.' - -"'Well, you did something very like it. I really must ask for your -strictest attention to facts which are capable of such absolute---- -There you go again! My dear sir, what _can_ there be in my statement to -cause a smile? Pray think of the gravity of the case--how deeply my -interests are at stake--and give me your most serious attention.' - -"'I will--indeed I will,' said the lawyer, mentally devoting me and my -drawing to the devil. - -"For some minutes the legal gentleman succeeded in banishing the little -barber and his enraged victim; but suddenly they again ruthlessly seized -upon his imagination, and he laughed aloud. - -"'Good God!' said the client; 'what is there to laugh at in that?' - -"'I assure you, sir, I was not laughing at what you told me, which is -important indeed, but at a ludicrous idea that crossed my mind.' - -"'What business have ludicrous ideas in your mind when you require all -its attention for business which--excuse my saying so--you are well paid -for listening to?' - -"The consultation proceeded; graver and graver grew the details; when, -at a moment of extreme importance, the barber came again upon the scene, -and the lawyer laughed loud and long. - -"'It's no use; I can't get rid of it,' he said to his astonished and -indignant visitor. 'There is a drawing in _Punch_ to-day that is so -irresistibly funny that I can't get it out of my head, and I can't help -laughing whenever I think of it.' - -"'I don't believe a single word you say!' said the angry client; 'and as -you persist in treating my case with such insulting levity, I will go -elsewhere, and endeavour to find someone who will attend to me. And as -for you, sir, I will never trouble you again on this or any other -matter.' - -"That," said Leech, "is how my friend lost his client." - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -LOVE OF FIELD SPORTS. - - -Leech had long passed his boyish days before his love for field sports -showed itself in his works. I recollect his saying how fruitful of -subject the hunting-field, the stubble, and the stream would prove to -the artist who was also a sportsman. In his early works, dealing as they -did chiefly with the London life of the street or the home, we find the -horse playing an inferior part; and it was not till he felt the -importance of varying his subjects, and of supplying the public with the -sporting scenes they love so much, that, mounted by his friend Adams, he -joined the "Puckeridge" and became one of the "field." - -Leech was a timid rider. He much preferred an open gate to a thickset -hedge, and the highroad to either. He must, however, have frequently -been in full career with the "field"; how otherwise could he have -acquired his knowledge of the thorough sportsman's seat on horseback, -the cut of his clothes--correct even to the number of buttons--and, -above all, display that Heaven-gifted power of showing the horse in -repose, as well as in all the varieties of action? Landseer and all the -animal-painters within my knowledge studied the horse from casts, often -from the Elgin marbles, before they attempted drawing from the living -animal. Landseer made himself acquainted with the superficial structure -by dissection; but Leech, without any preparatory study whatever, drew -the hunter, the cab-horse, the hackney, the rough pony, the cob--no -matter which--in absolute perfection. - -[Illustration: "GIVE HER HER HEAD, JACK."] - -In the autograph letters which, through Mr. Adams' kindness, I am -permitted to publish, Leech's constant charge to his friend to get him a -horse suitable to a "timid, elderly gentleman," or to give the animal -some preliminary gallops himself so as to take the _freshness_ out of -him, prove, as I said before, that Leech was anything but a daring -rider. In spite of his care, however, he had some ugly falls, in which, -happily, his hat was the greatest sufferer. Numbers of the hunting -scenes were _facts_, and the persons represented were Leech and his -friend--notably one in which the artist is riding a mare afflicted -with the "freshness" he dreaded, which his friend observing, shouts, -"Give her her head, Jack! give her her head!" while it is pretty evident -that more "head" will lead to the rider being swept from the saddle by -the branches through which the mare is plunging. - - - "Barlow, Derbyshire, - "July, 1852. - - "MY DEAR CHARLEY, - - "You will see from the above address that I am still rusticating. I - expect to be in town soon after the 12th of August, and then, after - I have done my month's work, I am your man. You say when, and, if - you are quite sure it will not distress Mrs. Adams, I will bring my - wife with me. Charles Eaton [Mrs. Leech's brother] says he will - come too. I am sure nothing would please him more than to run down - to Barkway. Don't make yourself uncomfortable about the quantity of - sport. I shall be quite satisfied with what you offer me. I rejoice - to hear such good accounts of your wife and little ones. Pray give - our united regards to her and them, and believe me ever, - - "Yours faithfully, - - "JOHN LEECH." - -[Illustration: "OH, IF THIS IS ONE OF THE PLACES CHARLEY SPOKE OF, I -SHALL GO BACK!"] - -Yet another fact. Somewhere in the Puckeridge country there is a deep -gully, or dried-up water-course, with precipitous sides, with which -Leech, one hunting-morning, found himself face to face. Some of the -"field" had crossed, and were climbing the opposite bank. Leech pulled -up, and said to his friend: - -"Oh, if this is one of the places Charley spoke of, I shall go back!" - -I am able here to give the rough sketch, now in Mr. Adams' possession, -from which the drawing was taken that afterwards appeared in _Punch_. - -Some years ago I took my exercise chiefly on horseback, and, after -risking my neck several times from the "freshness" of a thoroughbred -mare, I thought it best to get rid of her. Amongst the rest of my horsey -friends, I thought Leech would be likely to know of an animal that might -suit me, and I spoke to him on the subject. Leech soon succeeded, and -sent the horse for my inspection. The man who brought the animal for -approval assured me that a child could ride him with perfect safety. I -liked his looks, and bought him. My first and last ride upon my new -purchase was to Rotten Row in the height of the season. Whether he was a -horse of Radical or Socialistic principles, or not, I cannot say; but -what I soon discovered was a determined dislike to the aristocratic -company in which he found himself; he shied at the ladies and kicked at -the gentlemen, and finally took to what is called "buck-jumping," an -amusement which would speedily have relieved him of my company if I had -not taken advantage of a momentary cessation of his antics and safely -descended from his detestable back. Leech soon heard of "the dangers I -had passed," when he wrote to me as follows: - - - "6, The Terrace, Kensington, - "Sunday. - - "MY DEAR FRITH, - - "I was shocked last night at the Garrick to hear from Elmore that I - had nearly killed you through recommending a horse which had - misbehaved himself in the Park. To be sure, I told you that I had - been to look at an animal for my little girl, and that it did not - suit, and I told you that it might be worth your looking at, as I - had heard that it was young, sound, and steady; but if you ride a - beast that you know nothing about in Rotten Row, and if that beast - has not been out for a week, or probably a fortnight, I must - protest against being made answerable for the consequences. I most - sincerely hope, however, that you are not hurt or come to grief in - any way. - - "Believe me, - "Yours always, - "JOHN LEECH." - -It goes without saying that so true-hearted a man as John Leech, would -be--as indeed he was--a model of the domestic virtues--the best of -husbands and fathers, and a most dutiful and affectionate son. In -evidence of the latter, I put before my readers some letters written to -his parents in his maturer years, which will amply justify what I say of -him. - - - "32, Brunswick Square, - "February 25, 1854. - - "MY DEAR PAPA, - - "I am sure you will be glad to hear that you have a little - granddaughter. - - "She came into the world at a quarter-past eleven o'clock--just - now--and she is, with dear Annie (to me a _novel_ phrase), 'as well - as can be expected.' - - "Kind love to all. - "Your affectionate son - "JOHN. - -"Tell Polly that the flag will be hoisted!" - - - "8, St. Nicholas Cliff, Scarboro', - "August 30, 1858. - - "MY DEAR MAMMA, - - "Thank you with my best love for thinking of my birthday. I hope - you will be able to wish me happy returns of the day for many and - many a year to come. The children gave your kisses very heartily, I - assure you. You will be glad to hear, I am sure, that they were - never better. - - "Thank God they are thriving beautifully, which is a great - happiness to me. I wish you could see them making dirt pies and - gardens on the sands. A great many people notice them--indeed, - although I say it, between you and me, I don't see any nicer little - folks down here. If either you or papa could come here for a time - we would endeavour to take the best care of you. I am no great hand - at pen-and-inking, as you know, so you will excuse a very short - note. I thought, however, that you would like to know that I got - from Ireland safe and sound, and always believe me, - - "My dear mamma, - "Your affectionate son, - "JOHN." - - - "1, Crescent, Scarboro', - "August 29, 1859. - - "MY DEAR MAMMA, - - "It would be a great comfort to me, and I think it would be - pleasant for you, if you would come here and see us for as long as - you can spare the time. I want very much to go into the north, but - I do not like leaving Annie quite alone with the chicks. We can - give you a bed in, I think you will say, a tolerably comfortable - house. Come as soon as you can, and stay as long as you can. I - think it would do you good; only bring warm things, as when it is - cold here, it is very cold. By the way, it is my birthday. What - shall I say? Well, I wish you many happy returns of the day, and - believe me, with best love from all to all, - - "Your affectionate son, - "JOHN." - - - "5, Pleydell Gardens, - "Sandgate Road, Folkestone, - "August 29, 1862. - - "MY DEAR MAMMA, - - "Many thanks for your note this morning. You will be glad to know, - I am sure, that it found us all very well. May you be able to send - me such a congratulation for many a year to come. And with best - love to you, and to all at home, believe me ever, - - "Your affectionate son, - - "JOHN. - - "Tell papa that if he would like to run down here, we can give him - a bed. He would like to see a couple of little brown faces. I am - going away for a few days (on Monday, I think); so if any of you - could keep Annie with the chicks, and keep her company while I am - absent, it would be very nice, I think." - -A great deal has been said--and with a certain amount of truth, no -doubt--about the difference between a drawing on wood as it leaves the -hands of the artist, and as it appears after its sufferings at the hands -of the wood-engraver. Leech is reported to have replied to an admiring -friend, who was extolling one of his drawings: - -"Ah, wait till you see what it looks like in _Punch_ next week." - -I once saw one of Leech's drawings on the wood, and I afterwards saw it -in _Punch_, and I remember wondering at the fidelity with which it was -rendered. Some of the lines, finer than the finest hair, had been cut -away or _thickened_, but the character, the vigour, and the beauty were -scarcely damaged. To Mr. Swain, who for many years cut all Leech's -drawings, the artist owed and acknowledged obligation; he thought -himself fortunate in avoiding certain other wood-cutters, who were -somewhat remorseless in their operations. - -Mr. Swain, the wood-engraver, writes: - - "For twenty-five years I engraved nearly all Mr. Leech's drawings. - I always found him kind, and willing to forgive any of my - shortcomings in not rendering his touches in all things. My work - was always against time. I seldom had more time than two days to - engrave one of his drawings in. - - "Photographing drawings on wood was not known in his time, or it - would have been a great advantage to him; instead of drawing on the - block, he would then have drawn on paper, as most artists do in the - present day, and had his drawings photographed on the wood, thus - preserving the finished drawings, which would have been of great - value now; besides, it would have been a great help to the - engraver, always to have the original drawing to refer to in - engraving the blocks. - - "He never had any models, and rarely ever made any sketches. He - showed me a little note-book once with a few thumb-nail sketches of - bits of background, but he seemed never to forget anything he saw, - and could always go back in his memory for any little bit of - country street he might want for background, etc. - - "It was generally very late in the week before he could get his - drawings ready, which gave very little time to the engraver to do - justice to his work. - - "His first introduction to _Punch_ was through Mr. Percival Leigh. - - "Mr. Leech was a man of very nervous temperament. I will give you - an instance of this. Mr. Mark Lemon told me one day that Leech had - been invited to a gentleman's house in the country for a few days' - hunting. He arrived there in the evening. He was awakened early in - the morning by a grating noise made by the gardener rolling the - gravel under his window--noise he could never endure. This had such - an effect upon his nerves, that he got up, packed his things, and - was off to town before any of the family were aware of it. A - barrel-organ was to him an instrument of torture. - - "He had lived in Russell Square for many years, but for some time - before his death he took a large house--6, The Terrace, Kensington. - - "I remember going to see him at his new house. He took great - delight in showing me over it, and pointing out that he had had - double windows put in all over the house _to keep all noises - out_." - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -INVENTORS AND ILLUSTRATORS. - - -In looking at the plethora of lovely women's faces in the "Pictures of -Life and Character," the spectator may fairly ask himself to realize, if -he can, anything more exquisite; and if he fail, he will also fail to -imagine that the charming creatures could have suffered much in their -passage from the wood to the paper. - -I have said elsewhere that Charles Dickens was an occasional guest at -the _Punch_ Wednesday dinners; he was also an intimate friend of several -of the writers, notably of Leech, Lemon, and Douglas Jerrold. Dickens -was, of course, one of Thackeray's warmest admirers, but I am pretty -sure that the friendship between those great men could never have -reached intimacy. Though Leech failed in his application for the post of -illustrator of the "Pickwick Papers," he showed himself to be at one -with the great writer in the etchings and woodcuts with which he -ornamented Dickens' Christmas books, in conjunction with Stanfield, -Maclise, Cattermole, and others. Though Leech's etchings are inferior as -works of art to his wood-drawings, they still show the same beauty, and -perfect realization of character; in this assertion I am borne out by -the illustrations in the "Christmas Carol," and by those in the "Haunted -Man and the Battle of Life." - -In my own profession I have observed, almost as a rule, that the artist -who habitually invents his own subjects--in other words, draws upon -himself for original ideas--generally fails, comparatively, in his -attempts to realize the ideas of others. May I not say the same of many -writers? Dickens, for instance, wrote of the life about him; but if, -like Scott, he had attempted to revive the past, would he have produced -work worthy to rank with "David Copperfield"? Scott seems to me a still -more conspicuous supporter of my theory, for he tried modern life in -"St. Ronan's Well," and produced a book incontestably inferior to -"Kenilworth." - -Our historical painters have almost invariably failed in their attempts -upon everyday life; this extends even to the painters of _genre_. -Witness the works of the elder Leslie, who painted scenes from -Shakespeare, Molière, and the poets of the last century, with a success -that would have delighted the authors; but when he sought inspiration -from the life about him, the result was far from -satisfactory--conspicuous, indeed, in its contrast with his perfect -rendering, of "Sir Roger de Coverley" or "Uncle Toby," and the alluring -"Widow Wadman." - -But the greatest of English painters is the greatest help to me in the -contention into which I venture to enter. Hogarth was beguiled by a -spirit, which must have been evil, into painting huge Scripture -subjects. The _size_ of these pictures, always of the proportion of full -life, was unsuited to his hand, while the themes became ludicrous under -his treatment. He failed completely also as an illustrator, witness his -designs from "Hudibras." In the Bristol Gallery, and in the Foundling -Hospital, these specimens of perverted genius may be seen; and no one -can look at them without regret that time should have been so -misspent--time which might have given us another immortal series like -the "Marriage à la Mode." - -[Illustration: _Jack Johnson's attempt to rescue Derval._] - -I fancy I can hear my readers say--And what has all this to do with John -Leech? Well, this: Leech is now about to pose as the destroyer, in his -own person, of my theory--he is, in fact, the exception to my rule; -for though the incidents in Albert Smith's "Ledbury" and "Brinvilliers" -bear no comparison in human interest with the delightful transcripts of -real life to be found in such profusion in the pictures of "Life and -Character," Leech's rendering of them could not be surpassed. - -The tragic and humorous powers of the artist are fully displayed in the -examples which follow. In the first, from "Ledbury," "Jack Johnson -attempts to rescue Derval": the awful swirl of the river as it engulfs -the drowning man, while his would-be rescuer, finding the stream too -strong for him, clings frantically to a ring in the stonework of the -bridge, a full moon lightning up the scene, and throwing the Pont Neuf -which spans the Seine in the distance into deep shadow--all are combined -with admirable skill into, perhaps, the most powerful etching and the -most perfect illustration in the book. - -In the second example the artist is in full sympathy with his -author--"Mrs. De Robinson holds a Conversazione of Talented People;" and -amongst them is "the foreign gentleman who executes an air upon the -grand piano." Here we have Leech using the scene as a peg upon which he -can hang the humorous character in which he takes such hearty, healthy -delight. The performer himself is scarcely a caricature of the foreign -pianist; while his audience, not forgetting the deaf old lady in the -corner--includes the affected gentleman, whose soul is in Elysium; -together with a variety of types, in which "lovely woman" is not -forgotten. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -"INGOLDSBY LEGENDS." - - -In the "Ingoldsby Legends" Leech found a very congenial field for the -exercise of his powers. Though I will not presume to prophesy respecting -literary merit, I venture to think that, during the course of his -practice, Leech's illustrations have occasionally appeared attached to -literature scarcely worthy of them; they will, doubtless, in some cases, -act as the salt, which will preserve for posterity certain books of an -ephemeral character. This remark cannot apply to the "Ingoldsby -Legends," which is a work that "the world will not willingly let die," -until delightful wit and humour, wedded to no less delightful verse, -cease to charm. The burden of the illustrations of the "Legends" falls -upon the worthy shoulders of John Tenniel, and they show some of the -strongest work of that admirable artist. Leech appears in diminished -force as to numbers, but in the examples I give he leaves nothing to -wish for. - - "For, only see there! in the midst of the Square, - Where, perch'd upon poles six feet high in the air, - Sit, chained to the stake, some two, three, or four pair - Of wretches, whose eyes, nose, complexion, and hair - Their Jewish descent but too plainly declare; - Each clothed in a garment more frightful by far, a - Smock-frock sort of gaberdine called a _Samarra_, - With three times the number of devils upon it-- - A proportion observed on the sugar-loaf bonnet; - With this further distinction, of mischief a proof, - That every fiend-Jack stands upright on his hoof! - While the picture flames, spread over body and head, - Are three times as crooked, and three times as red! - All, too, pointing upwards, as much as to say, - 'Here's the real _bonne-bouche_ of the Auto da Fé!' - - "Torquemada, meanwhile, with his cold, cruel smile, - Sits looking on calmly, and watching the pile, - As his hooded 'Familiars' (their names, as some tell, come - From their being so much more 'familiar' than 'welcome') - Have by this begun to be 'poking their fun,' - And their fire-brands, as if they were so many posies - Of lilies and roses, up to the noses - Of Lazarus Levi and Moses Ben Moses, - And similar treatment is forcing out hollow moans - From Aby Ben Lasco and Ikey Ben Solomons, - Whose beards--this a black, that inclining to grizzle-- - Are smoking and curling, and all in a frizzle; - The King, at the same time, his Dons and his Visitors, - Sit, sporting smiles, like the Holy Inquisitors!" - - - "16, Lansdowne Place, Brighton, - - "September 3, 1863. - - "MY DEAR SIR, - - "I have been obliged to make the 'Auto da Fé' this size, as I found - I could not possibly get the subject on to a small block. You will - see, too, that I have altered the appearance of the victims. It - occurred to me that a real human being burning alive was hardly - fun, so I have made them a set of Guy Fawkeses, and added, I hope, - to the humour while getting rid of the horror. - - "Believe me, my dear Sir, - - "Yours faithfully, - - "JOHN LEECH. - - "RICHARD BENTLEY, ESQ." - -In the second example we have the figure of a maid at a well, which -Leech has given us with the charm that never fails him. Her astonishment -at the head in the bucket might have been indicated more forcibly, but -there, I fancy, the engraver must have been to blame; yet he gives the -head of Gengulphus with such perfection of expression and character as -to make one feel that the original drawing of it could scarcely have -been better. - - A LAY OF ST. GENGULPHUS. - - "But scarce had she given the windlass a twirl, - 'Ere Gengulphus's head, from the well's bottom said, - In mild accents, 'Do help us out, that's a good girl!' - -[Illustration] - - "Only fancy her dread when she saw a great head - In her bucket--with fright she was ready to drop! - Conceive, if you can, how she roared and she ran, - With the head rolling after her, bawling out 'Stop!'" - -As this memoir progresses I propose to submit further illustrations -from some of the many serials, novels, tales, poems, etc., with which -Leech was connected. I also propose, in the course of my narrative, to -quote opinions of Leech's powers from men better qualified to judge of -them, and able to express their opinions in far more felicitous language -than mine. Amongst those Dickens takes a foremost place. I think the -friendship between Leech and Dickens began very early in the life of the -former; the nature of Leech's work, and the modest and gentle character -of the man, were especially attractive to Dickens. - -In the amateur company of actors formed by Dickens, Leech was a -conspicuous figure; but his heart was not in the work, though he -entirely sympathized with the object of it, which was of a charitable -nature, resulting in many performances--very successful in a pecuniary -sense--for the benefit of poor and deserving literary men. The company -consisted of Dickens, Mark Lemon, John Forster, G. H. Lewis, Douglas -Jerrold, Leech, Egg, Wilkie Collins, Frank Stone, and others, who -christened themselves "The Guild of Literature and Art." The late Lord -Lytton took great interest in the Guild, for which he wrote a play -called "Not so Bad as We Seem; or, Many Sides to a Character," and to -this he added a gift of land on his estate in Hertfordshire, where some -houses of a superior cottage form were built, in which decayed artists -and authors were to end their days; but these gentlemen declined to -_begin_ any days there under the conditions prescribed; and when the -houses were built, tenants for them could not be found. The Guild, -therefore, was something of a fiasco, with the exception of the relief -it afforded in several instances to worthy objects. - -Leech acted in the first play that the amateurs ventured upon, no less -than Ben Jonson's "Every Man in his Humour," in which Dickens played -Bobadil and Leech Master Matthew. This occurred about 1847, I think, and -I was honoured by an invitation to the first or second performance. _Par -parenthèse_, I may add that I had the honour of being asked to join the -company, but feeling that I could not learn a part, or, if I did get -over that difficulty, the footlights would paralyze my memory, and also -having neither face nor figure for the stage, I thought it best to -"stick to my last." - -Though Leech had a good part in "Every Man," strange to say, I have no -recollection of his performance; though that of Dickens, Jerrold, Egg, -and others remains vividly in my memory. Dickens gave proofs in -Bobadil, and in many other characters, that he might have been a great -actor. The same, nor anything like it, could not be said with truth of -Leech, if he played his other parts no better than he did that of -Slender in the "Merry Wives of Windsor." It is only in that character -that I can remember him, though I must have seen him in others. The tone -in which he said "Oh, sweet Anne Page!" can I ever forget? There was a -ring of impatience in his performance, a kind of "Oh, I wish this was -all over!" that was plainly perceptible to those who knew him -intimately. Leech's tall figure and handsome face told well upon the -stage, but with those his attractions as an actor ceased. In Lord -Lytton's play Leech had no part, I think, but my old friend Egg played -that of a poor poet, who is discovered in a miserable attic when the -curtain rises, and the poet soliloquizes to the effect that "Years ago, -when under happier circumstances"--something or other. Egg always begun, -"Here's a go, when under," etc. Unlike Leech, Egg was fond of acting, -but, like Leech, he displayed no capacity for the art. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -DICKENS AND THACKERAY ON LEECH. - - -Perhaps the most striking difference between Leech and the caricaturists -who preceded him, as well as those who were his contemporaries, was -shown in the part that beauty played in every drawing in which it could -be appropriately introduced; he may be credited with the creation of -many of the loveliest creatures that ever fell from the pencil of an -artist. Leech revelled in beauty as Gillray and Rowlandson revelled in -ugliness. - -In 1841 a work appeared, in book-form, of sketches by Leech, entitled -"The Rising Generation," in which the rising youth, with their mannish -manners, were satirized. Of this book Dickens wrote: - -"We enter our protest against those of the rising generation who are -precociously in love being made the subject of merriment by a pitiless -and unsympathizing world. We never saw a boy more distinctly in the -right than the young gentleman kneeling in the chair to beg a lock of -hair from his pretty cousin to take back to school. Madness is in her -apron, and Virgil, dog-eared and defaced, is in her ringlets. Doubts may -suggest themselves of the perfect disinterestedness of the other young -gentleman contemplating the fair girl at the piano--doubts engendered by -his worldly allusion to 'tin,' although that may have arisen in his -modest consciousness of his own inability to support an establishment; -but that he should be 'deucedly inclined to go and cut that fellow out' -appears to us one of the most natural emotions of the human breast. The -young gentleman with the dishevelled hair and clasped hands, who loves -the transcendent beauty with the bouquet and can't be happy without her, -is to us a withering and desolate spectacle. Who _could_ be happy -without her? The growing youths are not less happily observed and -depicted than the grown women. The languid little creature, who 'hasn't -danced since he was quite a boy,' is perfect; and the eagerness of the -small dancer, whom he declines to receive for a partner at the hands of -the glorious old lady of the house (the little feet quite ready for the -first position, the whole heart projected into the quadrille, and the -glance peeping timidly at the desired one out of a flutter of hope and -doubt), is quite delightful to look at. The intellectual youth, who -awakens the tremendous wrath of a Norma of private life by considering -woman an inferior animal, is lecturing at the present moment, we -understand, on the Concrete in connection with the Will. The legs of the -young philosopher who considers Shakespeare an overrated man were seen -by us dangling over the side of an omnibus last Tuesday. We have no -acquaintance with the scowling young gentleman, who is clear that 'if -his governor don't like the way he is going on, why, he must have -chambers and so much a week;' but, if he is not by this time in Van -Diemen's Land, he will certainly go to it through Newgate. We should -exceedingly dislike to have personal property in a strong-box, to live -in the quiet suburb of Camberwell, and to be in the relation of bachelor -uncle to that youth. In all his designs, whatever Mr. Leech desires to -do he does. His drawing seems to us charming, and the expression, -indicated by the simplest means, is exactly the natural expression, and -is recognised as such at once. Some forms of our existing life will -never have a better chronicler. His wit is good-natured, and always the -wit of a gentleman. He has a becoming sense of responsibility and -restraint; he delights in agreeable things, and he imparts some pleasant -air of his own to things not pleasant in themselves; he is suggestive -and full of matter, and he is always improving. Into the tone as well as -into the execution of what he does, he has brought a certain elegance -which is altogether new, without involving any compromise of what is -true. Popular art in England has not had so rich an acquisition." - -In the endeavour to satisfy Dickens with the type required for the -characters in his stories, Leech encountered the difficulty that all the -author's illustrators had to master. "Phiz" made many drawings in -Dickens' presence before he could realize the author's idea of Mr. -Dombey; Cruikshank was more than once required to redraw a whole scene -from "Oliver Twist"; and Leech has often been heard to speak of the -minute details as to feature, height, thinness or fatness--in fact, -every physical and, so far as it could be shown by appearance, mental -quality--that Dickens insisted upon before he could be satisfied with -the _vera effigies_ of one of his characters. The feelings of the great -author, then, may be imagined when he found--too late for correction--a -terrible error into which Leech had fallen in the drawing of a scene -from "The Battle of Life," by introducing a personage into a scene which -closes the second part of the tale, who was not intended to have been -present. - -It was in December, 1846, that "The Battle of Life" made one of the -series of Christmas stories. In Leech's unfortunate illustration, which -represented the flight of the bride, he made the mistake of supposing -that Michael Warden had taken part in the elopement, and introduced his -figure with that of Marian. Leech's error was not discovered until too -late for remedy, the publication of the book having been delayed to the -utmost limit expressly for those drawings; and it is highly -characteristic of Dickens, and of the true regard he had for the artist, -that, knowing the pain he must inflict, under the circumstances, by -complaining, he never reproached Leech; excusing him, no doubt, on the -ground of the hurry and confusion under which so much of his work was -produced; but anyone who reads the story carefully will see what havoc -the mistake makes of one of the most delicate turns in it. - -Dickens wrote thus to Forster in reference to the grievous error: "When -I first saw it, it was with a horror and agony not to be expressed. Of -course, I need not tell _you_, my dear fellow, that Warden had no -business in the elopement scene; he was never there. In the first hot -sweat of this surprise and novelty, I was going to implore that the -printing of that sheet might be stopped, and the figure taken out of the -block; but when I thought of the pain this might give to our -kind-hearted Leech, and that what is such a monstrous enormity to me as -never entered my brain, may not so present itself to others, I became -more composed, though the fact is wonderful to me. No doubt a great -number of copies will be printed by the time this reaches you, and -therefore I shall take it for granted that it stands as it is. Leech -otherwise is very good, and the illustrations altogether are by far the -best that have been done for any of my Christmas books." - -It may appear presumptuous in me to differ from Dickens in respect to -the illustrations to "The Battle of Life"; but, in my opinion, these are -not to be compared favourably with those of the "Christmas Carol." With -the well-known readiness of people to ferret out mistakes, it seems -strange that the illustrator's mistake was never publicly noticed. - -The first series of "The Pictures of Life and Character," reprinted from -_Punch_, appeared in 1854. They were heartily welcomed by the public; -and it is as follows that Thackeray, Leech's intimate friend, speaks of -them in the _Quarterly Review_, in an article published at that time: - -"This book is better than plum-cake at Christmas. It is one enduring -plum-cake, which you may eat, and which you may slice and deliver to -your friends, and to which, having cut it, you may come again, and -welcome, from year's end to year's end. In the frontispiece you see Mr. -Punch examining the pictures in his gallery--a portly, well-dressed, -middle-aged, respectable gentleman, in a white neck-cloth and a polite -evening costume, smiling in a very bland and agreeable manner upon one -of his pleasant drawings, taken out of one of his handsome portfolios. -Mr. Punch has very good reason to smile at the work and be satisfied -with the artist. Mr. Leech, his chief contributor, and some hundred -humorists, with pencil and pen, have served Mr. Punch admirably. There -is no blinking the fact that in Mr. Punch's cabinet John Leech is the -right-hand man. - -"Fancy a number of _Punch_ without John Leech's pictures! What would you -give for it? The learned gentlemen who wrote the book must feel that -without him it were as well left alone. Look at the rivals whom the -popularity of _Punch_ has brought into the field--the direct imitators -of Mr. Leech's manner--the artists with a manner of their own. How -inferior their pencils are to his humour in depicting the public -manners, in arresting and amusing the nation! The truth, the strength, -the free vigour, the kind humour, the John Bull pluck and spirit of that -hand are approached by no competitor. With what dexterity he draws a -horse, a woman, a child! He feels them all, so to speak, like a man. -What plump young beauties those are with which Mr. Punch's chief -contributor supplies the old gentleman's pictorial harem! What famous -thews and sinews Mr. Punch's horses have, and how Briggs on the back of -them scampers across the country! You see youth, strength, enjoyment, -manliness, in those drawings, and in none more so, to our thinking, than -in the hundred pictures of children which this artist loves to design. -Like a brave, hearty, good-natured Briton, he becomes quite soft and -tender with the little creatures, pats gently their little golden heads, -and watches with unfailing pleasure their ways, their jokes, laughter, -caresses. _Enfants terribles_ come home from Eton, young miss practising -her first flirtation, poor little ragged Polly making dirt-pies in the -gutter, or staggering under the weight of her nurse-child, who is as big -as herself--all these little ones, patrician and plebeian, meet with -kindness from this kind heart, and are watched with curious anxiety by -this amiable observer. - -"Now, anyone who looks over Mr. Leech's portfolio must see that the -social pictures which he gives us are authentic. What comfortable little -drawing-rooms and dining-rooms, what snug libraries, we enter! What fine -young gentlemanly wags they are, those beautiful little dandies, who -wake up gouty old grandpapa to ring the bell; who decline aunt's pudding -and custards, saying that they will reserve themselves for anchovy-toast -with the claret; who talk together behind ball-room doors, where Fred -whispers Charley, pointing to a dear little partner seven years old, 'My -dear Charley, she has very much gone off; you should have seen that girl -last season!' - -"Look well at the economy of the famous Mr. Briggs. How snug, quiet, and -appropriate all the appointments are! What a comfortable, neat, clean, -middle-class house Briggs' is (in the Bayswater suburb of London, we -should guess from the sketches of the surrounding scenery)! What a good -stable he has, with a loose-box for those celebrated hunters which he -rides! How pleasant, clean, and warm his breakfast-table looks! What a -trim maid brings in the boots that horrify Mrs. B.! What a snug -dressing-room he has, complete in all its appointments, and in which he -appears trying on that delightful hunting-cap which Mrs. Briggs flings -into the fire! How cosy all the Briggs party seem in their drawing-room, -Briggs reading a treatise on dog-breaking by a lamp, mamma and grannie -with their respective needlework, the children clustering round a big -book of prints--a great book of prints such as this before us, at this -season, must make thousands of children happy by as many firesides! The -inner life of all these people is represented. Leech draws them as -naturally as Teniers depicts Dutch boors, or Morland pigs and stables. -It is your house and mine; we are looking at everybody's family circle. -Our boys, coming from school, give themselves such airs, the young -scapegraces! Our girls, going to parties, are so tricked out by fond -mammas--a social history of London in the middle of the nineteenth -century. As such future students--lucky they to have a book so -pleasant!--will regard these pages; even the mutations of fashion they -may follow here, if they be so inclined. Mr. Leech has as fine an eye -for tailory and millinery as for horseflesh. How they change, these -cloaks and bonnets! How we have to pay milliners' bills from year to -year! Where are those prodigious _chatelaines_ of 1850, which no lady -could be without? Where are those charming waistcoats, those _stunning_ -waistcoats, which our young girls used to wear a few seasons back, and -which caused 'Gus, in the sweet little sketch of 'La Mode,' to ask Ellen -for her tailor's address? 'Gus is a young warrior by this time, very -likely facing the enemy at Inkerman; and pretty Ellen, and that love of -a sister of hers, are married and happy, let us hope, superintending one -of those delightful nursery scenes which our artist depicts with such -tender humour. Fortunate artist, indeed! You see he must have been bred -at a good public school, and that he has ridden many a good horse in his -day; paid, no doubt out of his own pocket, for the originals of those -lovely caps and bonnets; and watched paternally the ways, smiles, -frolics, and slumbers of his favourite little people. - -"As you look at the drawings, secrets come out of them--private jokes, -as it were, imparted to you by the author for your special delectation. -How remarkably, for instance, has Mr. Leech observed the hairdressers of -the present age! Mr. Tongs, whom that hideous old bald woman who ties on -her bonnet at the glass informs that 'she has used the whole bottle of -Balm of California, but her hair comes off yet'--you can see the bears' -grease not only on Tongs' head, but on his hands, which he is clapping -clammily together. Remark him who is telling his client 'there is -cholera in the hair,' and that lucky rogue whom that young lady bids to -cut off a long thick piece--for somebody, doubtless. All these men are -different and delightfully natural and absurd. Why should hairdressing -be an absurd profession? - -"The amateur will remark what an excellent part hands play in Mr. -Leech's pieces; his admirable actors use them with perfect naturalness. -Look at Betty putting down the urn; at cook laying her hands upon the -kitchen-table, whilst the policeman grumbles at the cold meat. They are -cooks' and housemaids' hands without mistake, and not without a certain -beauty, too. That bald old lady tying on her bonnet at Tongs' has hands -which you see are trembling. Watch the fingers of the two old harridans -who are talking scandal; for what long years they have pointed out holes -in their neighbours' dresses and mud on their flounces! - -"'Here's a go! I've lost my diamond ring!' - -"As the dustman utters this pathetic cry and looks at his hands, you -burst out laughing. These are among the little points of humour. One -could indicate hundreds of such as one turns over the pleasant pages. - -"There is a little snob, or gent, whom we all of us know, who wears -little tufts on his little chin, outrageous pins and pantaloons, smokes -cigars on tobacconists' counters, sucks his cane in the streets, struts -about with Mrs. Snob and the baby (the latter an immense woman, whom -Snob nevertheless bullies), who is a favourite abomination of Leech, and -pursued by that savage humourist into a thousand of his haunts. There he -is choosing at the tailor's--such waistcoats! Yonder he is giving a -shilling to the sweeper who calls him 'Capting.' Now he is offering a -paletot to a huge giant who is going out in the rain. They don't know -their own pictures very likely; if they did, they would have a meeting, -and thirty or forty of them would be deputed to thrash Mr. Leech. One -feels a pity for the poor little bucks. - -"Just one word to the unwary specially to note the backgrounds of -landscapes in Leech's drawings--homely drawings of moor and wood and -sea-shore and London street--the scenes of his little dramas. They are -as excellently true to nature as the actors themselves. Our respect for -the genius and humour which invented both increases as we look and look -again at the designs. May we have more of them--more pleasant Christmas -volumes over which we and our children may laugh together! Can we have -too much of truth and fun and beauty and kindness?" - -In this delightfully appreciative spirit wrote Thackeray--a man of -profounder genius than Leech--of his friend's work. It is said that when -he was asked to name the most intimate and dearest friend of his life, -Thackeray replied, "John Leech." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -DEAN HOLE. - - -In 1858 a second series of "Pictures of Life and Character," and later a -third, were presented to a delighted public. The history of the immortal -Briggs, collected from _Punch's_ pages, was also published in separate -form. In this year Leech made the acquaintance of the Rev. S. Reynolds -Hole, now Dean of Rochester, a kindred spirit, whose admiration of the -artist's work had long created a burning desire for his personal -acquaintance. It was upon Easter Monday that the first meeting took -place, and thus Mr. Hole describes very correctly Leech's appearance: - -"Well, he was very like my idea of him, only 'more so.' A slim, elegant -figure, over six feet in height, with a grand head, on which nature had -written 'gentleman'--with wonderful genius in his ample forehead; -wonderful penetration, observation, humour, in his blue-gray Irish -eyes; and wonderful sweetness, sympathy and mirth about his lips, which -seemed to speak in silence." - -These words bring my old friend again before me, but I think Mr. Hole -fails to notice the slight shadow of melancholy that was never long -absent from his handsome face. Mr. Hole says that, vividly as the first -interview comes back to him, he can recall but little of the -conversation. It appears Leech had been out with the hounds on this -special Monday, in company with his friend Adams, in the Belvoir -country, where his presence soon became known to the "field"; and Leech -as speedily discovered, by the whisperings among the sportsmen, that he -was expected to perform acts of horsemanship which would throw those of -"Herne the Hunter" into insignificance. "He being the quietest and most -retiring of riders, much as he loved the sport, and never going over a -fence if he could find a gap or a gate, it seemed, nevertheless, to be -the general impression and belief of the yeomen who followed his Grace -of Rutland's hounds that when a fox was found the celebrated Mr. Leech -would utter a wild Irish yell, clench his teeth, put both spurs into his -steed, and bound over the country like a mad buck. His complete -inaptitude for these gymnastics, and the consequent disgust and -disappointment of the agricultural interest when he made early deviation -from the chase in favour of the King's highway, seemed to please him -vastly." - -Mr. Hole also speaks enthusiastically of his first meeting Thackeray at -a dinner at Leech's, when he and Thackeray stood up together, like -Thornhill and Olivia in the "Vicar of Wakefield," to see which was the -taller. Mr. Hole won the day by proving himself to be two inches -"longer" than Thackeray, who was six feet two, the longer gentleman -being six feet four. - -The story of Thackeray and a very tall friend going to see a giant, and -being asked by the man at the door of the exhibition if they "were in -the business," I have heard told differently. My friend Alfred Elmore, -R.A., who was intimate with Thackeray, in speaking of that great -writer's personal appearance (which, never prepossessing, had been -injured by a broken nose acquired in the same way as that misfortune -happened to Michael Angelo), told me that he--Thackeray--was passing by -an exhibition of a giant, when the humour took him to ask the man at the -door if he was in want of a giant. - -"Well," said the man, "yes, we do; but not such a d----d ugly one as -you." - -"John Leech's consideration for others," says Mr. Hole, "was patent -wherever he went; but his anxiety for his friends and their enjoyment -and amusement in his own house was a very winsome sight to see.... Far -too much of a gentleman to be a gourmand, though he was wont to say he -deserved a good dinner when he had done a hard day's work, and that, as -a matter of economy, he was reluctantly compelled to eat and drink of -the best lest he should injure his manipulation, he seemed to think, -nevertheless, that his guests were bound to be greedy, and that it was -his duty to provide the material. I remember that on one occasion the -strawberries were so large that he put the largest on a plate and handed -it to a servant, with a request that it might be carved on the -sideboard." - -Mr. Hole gives a charming picture of Leech and himself in the sunny -glades of Sherwood Forest. After lamenting that the country might be -dull to the artist with only his friend's company to amuse him, and -expressing his anxiety on the subject, he says: - -"I soon saw that my anxiety was foolish. It was evidently, as he said, a -grand enjoyment to him simply to sit under a tree and rest; to hear the -throstle instead of the hurdy-gurdy; to see the sun instead of the -smoke.... He could only sigh his admiration. Presently he opened his -pocket sketch-book, and put a point to his pencil; but he turned from -one bit of loveliness to another as he sauntered on, and soon closed his -book in a kind of profound but calm resignation. 'Much too beautiful for -work,' he said; 'I can do no work to-day.' So we sat among the bracken, -and drank that delicious air...." - -Mr. Hole was, and perhaps still is, a great rose-grower; and the day -after the forest walk he gave a garden-party in honour of Leech and the -roses. The roses, it appears, were not only brilliant in their summer -glory on their native trees, but also glorious indeed on the faces of -the young ladies who fluttered about Leech, "with evident expectation of -having their portraits taken, for the future admiration of the world." -All this was delightful to Leech, but not "to one young man of sullen -temperament, who, after watching the idol of his heart 'making up,' as -he called it, to Leech with her fascinations, retired to a shrubbery to -smoke, and murmured a desire to 'punch that fellow's head.'..." I can -well imagine the pleasure of Leech in all his kind friends' care to -gratify him; and I can also imagine "the perplexity and annoyance" with -which he listened to the lady--let us hope she was neither pretty nor -young--who made him a speech in which she ended by telling him he was -"the delight of the nation." - -It was in the evening of the day of the rose-show that Leech proposed a -visit to Ireland for a fortnight's holiday, begging his friend to go -with him. To this Mr. Hole consented, little dreaming that on the -following morning, just as he was leaving, Leech would say to him, "You -must write your impressions, and I will illustrate." Mr. Hole's modesty -took alarm, but with no reason, as the "Impressions" subsequently -proved. The result of this trip was the publication, in 1859, of a -volume entitled, "A Little Tour in Ireland; being a visit to Dublin, -Limerick, Killarney, Cork," etc., by an "Oxonian." The "Oxonian" was, of -course, Mr. Hole; and the illustrations showed Leech in his happiest -vein. These were in the form of coloured folding-plates and numerous -woodcuts. - -The travellers did a great deal in the fortnight. They saw "Dublin, -Galway, the wild grandeur of Connemara, the scenery of the Shannon from -Athlone to Limerick, the gentle loveliness of Killarney, the miniature -prettiness of Glengariff, and that 'beautiful city called Cork.' ... Ah -me, how happy we were! Looking from the steamer at the calm -phosphorescent waves (so thankful they were calm, for we were miserable -mariners, though Leech had represented himself in a letter as revelling -in stormy seas), or gliding along the rails, or riding in cars, or -rowing in boats; listening to quaint carmen, oarsmen, and guides; -talking and laughing in genial converse with each other, or silent in -the serene fruition of the exquisite scenery around...." - -Mr. Hole had ample opportunity for seeing Leech's method of making notes -from nature. It was not sketching from nature in the true sense of the -phrase, but simply memoranda, in a kind of shorthand, which was -afterwards elaborated into backgrounds, which are as true to nature as -the figures they relieve and foil. The same with faces that attracted -the artist from their peculiarities of character or expression; a few -touches were sufficient as guides for the finished heads and figures. I -have some examples in a sketch-book in my possession. - -"Nothing," says Mr. Hole, "escaped him that was in any way absurd, -abnormal, incongruous, or in any way ridiculous; and a touch of his -elbow or a turn of his thumb drew my attention continually to something -amusing in the aspect or the remarks of those about us at the _table -d'hôte_, or the steamer, or public car, which else, in my obtuseness, I -had never relished.... It was always his rule, however pressed for time, -surrounded with engagements, or enticed by pleasures, never to 'scamp' -his work. Sometimes his rapidity of execution was marvellous, but there -was never haste. I have known him to send off from my own house three -finished drawings on the wood, designed, traced, and rectified, without -much effort, as it seemed, between breakfast and dinner. How I wish that -the world could have seen those blocks! They were entrusted, no doubt, -to the most skilful gravers of the day, but the exquisite fineness, -clearness, the faultless grace and harmony of the drawing, could not be -reproduced. If the position of an eyelash was altered, or the curve of a -lip was changed, there might be an ample remainder to convey the -intention and to win the admiration of those who never knew their loss, -but the _perfection_ of the original was gone. Again and again I have -heard him sigh as he looked over the new number of _Punch_; and as I, -seeing nothing but excellence, would ask an explanation, he would point -to some almost imperceptible obliquity which vexed his gentle soul." - -Mr. Hole continued to be the intimate friend of Leech during the latter -part of a life that was indeed "too short for friendship, not for -fame"; and he speaks of the many eminent men whom he met at Leech's -house, with the gratification that might be expected from one who was -fully able to share in the "flow of soul" that distinguished those -meetings. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -TYPES. - - -During one of the "sittings" which Dickens gave me when I painted his -portrait, I asked him if, when he drew the character of Pecksniff, any -of his inspiration had arisen from a knowledge of the character, and -even personal appearance, of an individual known to both of us, whose -name I mentioned. - -"Why, yes," was the reply; "I had him in my eye." - -In like manner, I think, in his most favourite type of beauty, Leech was -thinking of his wife, who was in all respects a charming woman. She -permeates a little to the destruction of variety of character many of -the lovely figures in _Punch_, where now and again may be found an -excellent likeness of Mrs. Leech. That she was a striking person is -evident from the fact that she struck Leech to the heart as he met her -in the street; so hard was the blow, that the artist forgot his errand, -and followed the enslaver to her own door. Inquiries were set on foot; -an introduction followed; he came, he saw, conquered, and was married in -1843 to Miss Eaton, who made the best of wives and mothers. - -It goes without saying that Leech was a worshipper of female beauty in -all its bewitching variety. I remember watching with him the riders in -Rotten Row, and after some startlingly lovely creatures had passed us, -he said: - -"Ah, my Frith, don't you wish you were a Turk, and able to marry all -that little lot?" - -Only two of Leech's children lived to maturity, and both survived him. -His son, John Charles Warrington Leech--a fine boy, whom I well -remember--was the darling of his father's heart, and the boy returned -his love with all the fervour of his loving nature. If Leech had lived -to learn that his son was accidentally drowned by the capsizing of a -boat at South Adelaide--a deplorable event that took place in 1876--the -intelligence would have broken his heart. This affliction was mercifully -averted from him, as also was the death of his daughter, which occurred -a few years ago, soon after she became a happy mother. - -Leech's working coat was made of black velvet, something in shape like -a shooting-coat; Leech the younger, at the age of five, was allowed to -dress exactly like his father; and he might have been seen on most -mornings, palette in hand, standing before a little easel, working away -at copies of the engravings in the _Illustrated London News_, which he -coloured literally with all the colours of the rainbow, whilst the -father sat by with block and pencil. The young gentleman not only -inherited his father's love of art, but also some of his humour; for he -informed a new servant, who appeared for the first time in the nursery, -that his papa said that he was "one of those children that can only be -managed by kindness"--"So please go and get me some sponge-cake and an -orange." This served Leech for an excellent cut in _Punch_. - -Mr. Hole gives another instance of Master Leech's Leech-like cleverness. -He says: - -"My wife's maid had paid a long visit to the nursery for a chat with his -lady-in-waiting, and when he began some display of disobedience, she -said: - -"'Really, Master Leech, if you won't be good, I must tell your mamma.' - -"'And I shall tell her,' he rejoined, 'if you do, what a time you've -been idling here.'" - -I may add in this place an anecdote sent to me by an intimate lady -friend of Leech's, who, after speaking of his devotion to his wife and -children, tells me that she was taking luncheon with him one day at his -house in Brunswick Square. - -"His two children dined at the same time. Leech said with a very grave -voice: - -"'Now, children, say your grace.' - -"Both children began to say it together as fast as they could. Leech -said when they had finished: - -"'Well run--Ada first, Bougie a good second.'" - -Mrs. Hall, a daughter of Mr. Adams--the Chattie of Leech's -letters--supplies me with an example, "one out of many instances of -great kindness to her as a child," which I present to my readers: - -"I was about eight years old," says Mrs. Hall, "and on one rough morning -during my stay with him at Broadstairs I was sent in charge of a maid to -play upon the beach. The wind carried away my bonnet. Regardless of -danger, I rushed into the sea after it, and after many struggles I -recovered it, but was horrified to find that a crowd had collected round -me. I was taken home dripping, and feeling very guilty. You can imagine -the relief it was to find my dear friend ready to comfort and not to -scold; and I have a happy recollection of being snugly tucked up on his -knee for some hours after the event, while he continued his drawing." - -The publication of my desire for information respecting John Leech's -youthful days has put into my possession one of his earliest drawings; -for this I am indebted to one of his Charterhouse schoolfellows, a very -young old gentleman indeed. Mr. Charles Maitland Tate's name may be -found in the first division of the fourth form in the list of scholars -of 1828. Mr. Maitland's first acquaintance with "little Johnny Leech" -began at Brighton in 1823, where he found our embryo six-year-old artist -learning equestrian accomplishments, with the help of a small pony and -the instruction of "an old retired jockey," who was one of the stable -servants of George IV. at the Pavilion. - -"Leech was a gentle, dear little fellow," says Mr. Maitland. "I -accompanied him on several of his pony excursions, and the more I saw of -him, the better I liked him." - -Leech was entered at Charterhouse in 1824, Maitland a year or two -afterwards, having grown into a strapping boy of eleven. Mr. Maitland's -father was a Dean of St. Paul's, able, no doubt, from his position to -procure a presentation--as he did from Lord Grey--for his son, who -entered as a Gown boy, thus taking, and maintaining, a higher position -in the school than Leech ever succeeded in reaching. Young Maitland had -been a few days in the Charterhouse, when he was accosted by a small -boy, who was obliged to tell his name before his early friend could -recognise him. Boy-like, Maitland immediately took young Leech under his -protection, and threatened dire consequences to anyone who bullied or -ill-treated him. The protector's prowess, however, was not wanted, for -Leech never made an enemy then or afterwards. - -Amongst the scholars was one named Douglas, whose powers of sketching in -caricature were very remarkable. Of this I convinced myself by a book of -drawings in the possession of Mr. Maitland. Douglas's talent made him -very attractive to Leech, and the boys became great friends. - -"Leech copied several of his friend's drawings," says Mr. Maitland; but, -as might have been expected, he soon abandoned copying and took to -original work, a specimen of which I give below, as perhaps the earliest -known drawing by Leech.[A] - -If, before I had written the first portion of this book, I had known Mr. -Maitland's story, I should have introduced it earlier; for this and -other shortcomings and irregularities, I hope to be forgiven on the -ground of my inexperience and ignorance of the laws of literary -composition. With this apology I proceed to make more mistakes, but -mistakes only in the _order_ in which the _truth_ should be told. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -LEECH AND HIS PREDECESSORS. - - -John Leech may be truly said to be _sui generis_; there has been nothing -like him before his time, or since his bright and short career ended. It -would be difficult to imagine a greater contrast than that existing -between the works of Leech and those of his predecessors, at the head -and front of whom must be placed Hogarth, who stands _longo intervallo_ -above any of his successors. In his terrible lashing of the vices and -follies of his own time--vices and follies that are common to all -time--Hogarth sometimes, though rarely, indulged in an exaggeration of -character amounting to caricature. Leech dealt with the life about him -in a totally different spirit; his was a lighter, a more genial, and a -kinder hand. Unlike Hogarth, he made us laugh at the follies of our -fellow-creatures, and would have nothing to do with their vices, though -he has shown us in many examples how keen was his sympathy with the -poor and the oppressed, and how intense was his hatred of the oppressor. -The name of caricaturist is as inappropriate to Leech as it is to -Hogarth, though instances may be found, as in Hogarth, of occasional -indulgence in exaggeration. These examples are mostly to be found in the -illustration of books which in themselves somewhat outrage the modesty -of nature. Hogarth's pictures are often disfigured by a coarseness -closely bordering on indecency; instances may, indeed, be found where -the great artist has passed the border with revolting audacity. In the -thousands of drawings by Leech, instead of the _double entendre_, we -have some delightful trait of child-life; instead of the adulterous -husband, we have paterfamilias living a healthy, happy life among his -children, only amused at his schoolboy son's tricks played upon his -sisters. - -Consideration should, no doubt, be shown to Hogarth and his immediate -successors in respect of the coarseness of the time in which they lived; -certainly the works of Bunbury, Woodward, Rowlandson and Gillray require -all the excuses that can be made for them. Compared to the two -latter-named artists, the two former may be said to be harmless. In the -hands of all four, however, caricature reigned triumphant. - -Rowlandson had less excuse for the constant displays of vulgarity and -ugliness that abound in his works, than the other designers, who were -destitute of any sense of beauty. It was not so with Rowlandson. I have -seen early drawings by him full of the charm of beauty in women: -refined, and graceful. This power, which one would have thought was a -part of the man's nature, vanished altogether as he advanced in life; -swamped in the whirl of dissipation in which he lived, his originally -better nature became utterly vulgarized by his surroundings. That -Rowlandson had a certain very coarse humour, a facility in grouping -masses of figures in large compositions, and a power of inventing faces -and figures for which he had no authority in nature, cannot be denied; -but there is always an intense vulgarity, in which the man seems to -revel with as intense a pleasure. - -Gillray altogether differed from Rowlandson, both in his subjects and in -the way he treated them. In politics he was a savage partisan, lashing -his opponents with merciless fury and cruel personality. Gillray was in -art what Churchill was in literature. He had a grim humour all his own; -witness his constant attacks upon Bonaparte, then, and always, the -_bête noire_ of this country. There are many examples in which the -Corsican tyrant is made ridiculous, ferocious, or cowardly, according to -the events of the time and the humour of the artist. - -In a parody of Belshazzar's feast, Bonaparte, as Belshazzar, has caught -sight of the writing on the wall; he looks with extended arms and an -expression of cowardly horror at the warning. By his side sits the -Empress, an outrage upon the fattest of fat women, ill-drawn and vulgar -in the extreme. A man with a face hideous beyond the dreams of ugliness -(caricature _in excelsis_) is devouring the Tower of London, which -figures as a _plat_ in the banquet; the rest of the guests round the -monarch's table, vying with the dreadful gourmand in repulsiveness, are -one and all caricatured out of nature. The meats provided for this -singular entertainment consist of what may be called English fare, the -_pièce de résistance_ in front of Bonaparte, which he will presently -demolish, being the Bank of England; and that indigestible dish is -flanked by St. James's Palace. Then we have the head of Pitt, which is -labelled "The Roast Beef of Old England," and served up appetizingly on -a trencher, etc. Behind the Emperor stand his guards with huge uplifted -sabres, from which blood is dripping, while behind the dropsical -Empress stand her ladies-in-waiting, three female ghouls of wondrous -hideousness, in dresses so _décoletté_ as to shock persons less nice -than Mrs. Grundy. - -In another example the great Corsican is represented as "Teddy Doll, the -great French Gingerbread Baker, drawing out a new Batch of Kings," while -his man, Talleyrand, is making up the dough for others. Bonaparte is -pictured in uniform, with boots and spurs, and a huge cocked-hat with an -impossible feather, drawing out a batch of newly-made kings--Bavaria, -Würtemburg, and Baden--from an enormous oven, labelled "New French Oven -for Imperial Gingerbread." Beneath the oven-door is what is called "an -ash-hole for broken gingerbread." Amongst the _débris_ which has been -swept into the ash-hole by a broom labelled "Corsican Besom of -Destruction," Spain, a crowned death's head, is prominent; together with -Austria, Holland, Switzerland, Venice, etc., "all in wild destruction -blent." In the background Hanover is being destroyed by the Prussian -Eagle, as Talleyrand is busy kneading up the dough to be presently -passed from "the Political Kneading-Trough," to reappear in the shape of -gingerbread kings of Poland, Turkey, and Hungary, after the -manipulation of the King-maker and a visit to the French oven. - -There is much grim humour in this piece, and humour as well as a deeper -meaning in the parody of "Belshazzar's Feast"; but, turning from such -work and the thoughts that arise from it to that of Leech is like -turning from a slaughter-house to a flower-garden, from ugliness to -beauty. - -From the time of Gillray to that of Leech, there is little to be said of -the caricaturists, with one splendid exception, "Immortal George." I do -not agree with those who place Cruikshank above Leech. Cruikshank was -essentially a caricaturist; Leech was not. Comparisons, as Mrs. Malaprop -says, are "odorous," but we are sometimes forced into them; and, while -admitting that there were certain paths--heights, perhaps--which -Cruikshank ascended with honour, and on which Leech could not have found -foothold, there was a highroad, bordered by beautiful things, on which -he would have easily distanced his formidable rival. - -In my young days the political drawings of "H. B.," the father of -Richard Doyle, were much esteemed and in great request. They dealt -solely with the political events of the hour, and, though feebly drawn -and ineffective as works of art, the designer managed to produce -unmistakable likenesses of Sir Robert Peel, the Duke of Wellington, _et -hoc genus_, with remarkable certainty, and always without a trace of -caricature. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -KENNY MEADOWS. - - -The reader has only to look at the early numbers of _Punch_ to see how -inferior were the drawings compared to Leech's work, or to that of the -excellent artists now at work on _Punch_. Kenny Meadows was perhaps the -best; indeed, he was a fellow of excellent fancy, quaintly humorous at -times--seen, I think, at his best in his Shakespeare illustrations; -which, in spite of some extravagance, are full of character, and, as in -the "Midsummer Night's Dream," almost poetical in their realization of -the scenes of that immortal play. But Kenny was a sad Bohemian, a jovial -soul, loving company and the refreshments that attend it, in which he -indulged in happy forgetfulness till "all but he departed." - -In illustration of Kenny's habits, I introduce a little story told to me -by himself. Long years ago Mr. Carter Hall edited a book of British -ballads, and engaged a number of artists to illustrate them; Kenny -Meadows amongst the rest. I also had the honour of supplying a -contribution. When the drawings were finished, we were invited one -evening to the Rosery--as Mr. Hall called his Brompton cottage--to -submit our work for his criticism, and approval or condemnation, as the -case might be. Our refreshment was coffee and biscuits, a repast very -unsatisfactory to all of us, more or less--to Meadows especially. Kenny -bore his disappointment very well till we left the Rosery--this we did -at the earliest moment consistent with good manners--when he said, after -criticising our entertainment in strong language: - -"There is a house close by where we can get supper. What do you fellows -say?" - -We all said "that was the place for us." - -Under Meadows' guidance, we found an inn and an excellent supper, and -about midnight, when the fun was getting fast and furious, I left; -Meadows remaining with two or three other choice spirits--how long I -only knew when I met him a few days afterwards. The time of his return -home may be guessed by what follows. Day was breaking as Meadows -stealthily entered his bedroom, almost praying that Mrs. Meadows might -be asleep; but that lady awoke, and, catching sight of her husband, -said: - -"You are very late, Meadows." - -"Oh no," said Meadows, "I am not; it's quite early." - -("So it was, you know," said the Bohemian to me, as he told me of his -reception.) - -"Early!" exclaimed the wife. "Why, what o'clock is it?" - -"Oh, about one, or a little after," said Kenny. - -Unluckily, at that moment the peculiar but unmistakable cry of the -milkman was heard--"and that pretty well settled the time, you know, -Frith." - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -"COMIC HISTORY OF ROME." - - -The extreme difficulty--in some instances the impossibility--of -procuring copies of some of the books illustrated by Leech makes exact -chronological sequence impossible in any attempt to describe the career -of the artist. I hope to be pardoned, therefore, for the irregularity of -my dates. - -In 1852 a "Comic History of Rome" appeared, written by Gilbert à -Beckett, with "ten coloured etchings and numerous woodcuts by Leech." -Rome fares pretty much the same as England at the hands of both writer -and illustrator. In Mr. À Beckett's part of the work the history of Rome -becomes a very comic history indeed, and Leech, of course, enters into -the spirit of the fun with all his exuberance of fancy and irresistible -humour. Visitors to the National Gallery, should they be curious to see -the difference of treatment of the same subject by different minds, can -be gratified by comparing Rubens' "Rape of the Sabines" with Leech's -rendering of that famous historical event. - -In one particular the illustration of the scene is identical in both -pictures. Rubens dresses the ladies in the costume peculiar to his own -time; Leech in the time of Queen Victoria. In the great Fleming's work -the principal victim of the Roman youth is the wife of the painter, in -the dress of Rubens' day; in Leech's drawing, strange to say, we have an -excellent likeness of Mrs. Leech, as she sits complacently on the -shoulders of a Roman youth. Rubens, however, pays more attention to -truth in the habiliments of his ravishers, for if they, in all -probability, did not much resemble Roman soldiers in their habits as -they lived, they present a tolerable resemblance to the ancient Roman as -we know him. Whereas Leech--while preserving something like the form of -the upper part of the Roman costume--cannot be said to be correct when -he puts Hessian boots upon one man, hunting-tops upon another, and -consigns the nether portion of a third to the military trousers, boots -and spurs of the modern Life-Guardsman. Nobody, I think, will believe -that umbrellas were known to the Romans, as Leech would have us to -understand, by putting one as a weapon into the hands of the stout, -very modern woman belabouring the Roman who is carrying off her -daughter. - -In explanation of the following cut, I may remind readers of Roman -history that Romulus sent cards of invitation to attend certain games to -the Latins and Sabines, with their wives and daughters. - -"The weather being propitious," says Mr. À Beckett, "all the Sabine -beauty and fashion were attracted to the place, and the games, -consisting of horse-racing, gave to the scene all the animation of Ascot -on a Cup-day. Suddenly, at a preconcerted signal, there was a general -elopement of the Roman youth with the Sabine ladies, who were in the -most ungallant manner abandoned to their fate by the Sabine gentlemen. -It is true the latter were taken by surprise, but they certainly made -the best of their way home before they thought of avenging the wrong and -insult that had been committed. Had they been all married ladies who -were carried off, the cynic might have suggested that the Sabine -husbands would not have objected to a cheap mode of divorce; but--to -make use of an Irishism--there was only one single woman who happened to -be a wife in the whole of that goodly company." - -[Illustration] - -An Etruscan ruler named Porsenna had a difficulty with Rome. He speedily -besieged that city, frightening the people in the suburbs "out of their -wits and into the city, where he never enjoyed a moment's peace till -peace was concluded." Presently a treaty of peace was negotiated, -greatly to the advantage of Porsenna; for not only was Rome compelled to -restore the territory taken from the Veii, but the victor also "claimed -hostages, among whom were sundry young ladies of the principal Roman -families. One of these was named Clælia, who, with other maidens, having -resolved on a bold plunge for their liberty, jumped into the Tiber's -bed, and swam like a party of ducks to the other side of the river." - -This delightful drawing reminds one of many a seaside sketch in -"Pictures of Life and Character," leaving us wondering how a few -pencil-lines can call up such visions of beauty. - -Everyone knows of the tradition of Rome's being saved from the Gauls by -the cackling of geese, and my readers are here presented with Leech's -historical picture of the event. - -[Illustration] - -"The Gauls," says Mr. À Beckett, "crept up, one by one, to the top of -the rock, which was the summit of their wishes. Just as they had -effected their object, a wakeful goose commenced a vehement cackle, and -the solo of one old bird was soon followed by a chorus from a score of -others. Marcus Manlius, who resided near the poultry, was so alarmed at -the sound that he instantly jumped out of his skin--for in those days a -sheep-skin was the usual bedding--and ran to the spot, where he caught -hold of the first Gaul he came to, and, giving him a smart push, the -whole pack behind fell like so many cards to the bottom." - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -PERSONAL ANECDOTES. - - -The late Frederick Tayler, whose water-colour drawings are familiar to -all lovers of art, was a guest for some days at the mansion of the Duke -of Athole--an elderly gentleman thirty years ago, but how nearly -connected with the present Duke I am unable to say. According to Tayler, -the old Duke was a very eccentric person; one of his whims being an -insistence upon all the male guests at his castle wearing the Scottish -national dress. On my friend's pleading that he could not wear a costume -that he didn't possess, he was supplied with the kilt and the rest of -it, from a store kept for unprovided visitors--"and," said Tayler, "I -was immediately compelled to ride about eighteen miles in a condition of -discomfort that may be imagined." Another little peculiarity was -scarcely less distressing, for dinner was never served till near -midnight. Hungry guests were kept waiting till, folding-doors being -thrown open, the major-domo appeared, holding a wand, and in solemn -tones announced "His Grace!" - -In 1850 this remarkable Duke "took it into his head" to close his -beautiful Glen Tilt to tourists. I was fortunate enough to have passed -through it before this decree was issued; but multitudes--noisy -multitudes, as they proved themselves--not having had my advantage, -became clamorous for their right, as they believed, of unobstructed -passage through the lovely glen. Many letters from indignant tourists -appeared in the press, which almost universally condemned the Duke's -action, _Punch's_ baton being brought into play in the tourists' cause; -and to this weapon was added Leech's pencil, which, in a vigorous -drawing, portrayed the old Duke as a dog in the manger, with a snarl on -his face that portended a bite if his position was assailed. The drawing -was entitled "A Scotch Dog in the Manger," and was immediately followed -by another blow, happily paraphrasing Scott's lines in the "Lady of the -Lake," and supposed to apply to "a scene from the burlesque recently -performed at Glen Tilt": - - "These are Clan Athole's warriors true, - And, Saxons, I'm the regular Doo." - -How far these drawings were the means of causing the Duke to reverse his -decision I know not; but it was reversed, and that he took Leech's -somewhat severe treatment good-humouredly is shown by his treatment of -the artist, whom he met near the glen soon after the drawings appeared. -Leech was alone, sketch-book in hand, no doubt noting, by pencil and -observation, for future use, some of the beauties around him, when a -horseman approached, attended by a groom. Leech was probably on -forbidden ground, for the rider, who was the Duke of Athole, immediately -asked his name and "what he was doing there." Under ordinary -circumstances Leech would have said, "What is _your_ name?" for the -matter of that, "and what do you want to do with mine if I give it to -you?"; but whether the manner of his questioner impressed him, or -conscious guilt shook him, I cannot say. It is certain, however, that he -replied he was an artist, and that his name was Leech. - -"Not John Leech?" said the Duke. - -"Yes, John," was the reply. - -And Leech now, feeling sure that he was in the presence of the Duke, and -that he was about to hear some strong language about his daring to -caricature so august a personage for merely asserting his rights, -proceeded to explain that he would not intrude further, but return at -once to his inn, where he intended to pass the night. - -The Duke turned to his groom, and told him to dismount, and called to -Leech to take the servant's place. - -Leech obeyed, when the Duke said, "No, sir; no inn for you to-night: you -must dine and sleep at my house. I am the Duke of Athole." Further -hesitation on Leech's part was met by a warmer and more pressing -invitation. - -Leech yielded, and the two rode off together. The road to the castle lay -through some rather perilous country, culminating in a narrow and broken -path, with cliff on one side and a precipice on the other. The artist -hesitated; the Duke called upon him to come on. "Has he brought me here -to revenge himself by breaking my neck?" thought Leech. He timidly -advanced, and reached the Duke, who had stopped for him at a point where -the path was most dangerous. - -"Are you, sir, the man who has maligned me in _Punch_?" fiercely -demanded the Duke. - -The fearful position in which Leech found himself, terrible to anyone, -but to a nervous man especially frightful, extorted from him an -apologetic confession, excusable under the circumstances. - -"Your Grace," said he, "we--we--that is, nearly everyone--has done -something that he--he--regrets having done. I am very sorry I have---- I -regret very much that anything I have done should have given you any -annoyance." - -The Duke's affected fierceness was exchanged for the jovial manner said -to be peculiar to him, and the pair rode off pleasantly together. - -The castle was reached, and Leech was shown to a dressing-room, where he -made himself as presentable as he could under the circumstances, in -anticipation of the usual announcement that dinner was served. I can -imagine my friend's feelings as he waited in hungry expectation. "As he -could not manage to break my neck," thought Leech, as hour after hour -passed without a summons to dinner, "he means to starve me." - -At last, thinking that perhaps his room was too far off for the sound of -the gong to reach him, he rang the bell. A servant appeared. - -"I am afraid," said Leech, "that I did not hear the dinner-bell; is -dinner ready?" - -"Not yet, sir; you will be informed when it is." - -Another hour passed. Leech became desperate; starvation seemed to stare -him in the face. Again he rang the bell; again the servant answered it, -and the reply was again, "Not yet." - -The clock had struck ten before the welcome sound of the gong reached -the famished man. If Mr. Frederick Tayler is to be believed, the Leech -dinner with the Duke was an _early_ one. No explanation was ever given -to Tayler of these abnormal dinner-hours, but Leech was told that "his -Grace" always took a nap after his rides, and his guests were fed when -he awoke. - -Leech was fond of telling of this adventure with the Duke, whose -likeness can be seen in more than one of Landseer's pictures. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -PERSONAL ANECDOTES (_continued_). - - -At the time when the troop of artists and literary men were stumping the -country with their theatrical performances, Leech lived in Alfred Place, -which he soon left for a charming little house in Notting Hill Terrace. - -Dickens wrote an amusing account of one of the amateur excursions, which -the immortal Mrs. Gamp is supposed to join, and about which she -discourses to her friend Mrs. Harris, not forgetting her opinion of the -artists, Cruikshank and Leech: - -"If you'll believe me, Mrs. Harris, I turns my head, and sees the very -man" (George Cruikshank) "a-making pictures of me on his thumb-nail at -the window; while another of 'em" (John Leech), "a tall, slim, -melancolly gent, with dark hair and a bage voice, looks over his -shoulder, and with his head o' one side, as if he understood the -subject, and coolly he says: - -"'I've drawed her several times in _Punch_,' he says, too. The owdacious -wretch! - -"'Which I never touches, Mr. Wilson,' I says out loud--I couldn't have -helped it, Mrs. Harris, if you'd took my life for it--'which I never -touches, Mr. Wilson, on account of the lemon!'" - -From the nature of Leech's work, he was never able to take a holiday in -the true sense of the word. To say nothing of the numberless works which -he had engaged himself to illustrate, the inevitable _Punch_ must appear -every week, and almost equally inevitable was the appearance of one or -two of Leech's drawings in it. Proof is abundant of the rapidity with -which those inimitable works were executed; but it must be borne in mind -that they were the outcome of a sensitive organization--a power of -seeing and seizing the humorous and the beautiful in the everyday -incidents of life; in short, of a mind always on the watch for subjects -for illustration. - -When one thinks of the constant wear and tear of such a life, it is -scarcely a matter for wonder that it was so lamentably short. - -The localities of Leech's so-called holidays can easily be recognised by -his drawings, or rather by their backgrounds, which showed, in -admirable truthfulness, whether the artist was at Scarborough or -Broadstairs, at Folkestone, Dover, Lowestoft, or Ramsgate, or, by their -unfamiliarity to us, at some less frequented place. - -It was in 1848, and while Mr. and Mrs. Leech were staying with the -Dickens family at Brighton, that a very unpleasant incident of the visit -took place: no less than the sudden insanity of the landlord of the -house in which the party lodged, resulting in as sudden an exeunt of the -lodgers. But before the people still in their senses could take -themselves off, there was a duty to be done. A doctor must be fetched; -and no sooner did he appear than the madman attacked him, and would very -soon have made a vacancy in the list of M.D.'s if Dickens and Leech had -not rushed to the rescue. In a letter to Forster, Dickens gives a -humorous description of Mrs. Leech and Mrs. Dickens doing their best--in -their fear for their husbands' safety--to assist the maniac in his -murderous endeavours by pulling their husbands back just as the doctor -had fainted from fear. More assistance, however, arrived, and the mad -landlord was soon rendered harmless. - -I vividly recollect the alarm that the news of an accident to Leech--in -which it was rumoured that he had been seriously, even dangerously, -injured--caused to everyone, and acutely to his friends. A huge wave -was said to have struck him while bathing--killing him on the spot, -according to some reports; fracturing his skull, or producing concussion -of the brain, from which recovery was hopeless, according to others. -These alarming accounts came to us from the Isle of Wight, where Leech -was staying with Dickens in the autumn of 1849. The fact was, that one -of the tremendous waves that, under certain atmospheric conditions, roll -in upon the shore at Bonchurch, struck Leech on the forehead, and -rendered him senseless. - -"He was put to bed," said Dickens, "with twenty of his namesakes upon -his temples." - -The day following, congestion of the brain became unmistakable, -accompanied by great pain; ice was applied to the head, and bleeding -again was thought necessary, this time in the arm. For some days Leech -was in great danger, Dickens sitting up with him all night on more than -one alarming occasion. He says, in a letter to Forster: - -"My plans are all unsettled by Leech's illness, as of course I do not -like to leave this place so long as I can be of any service to him and -his good little wife. Ever since I wrote to you he has been seriously -worse, and again very heavily bled. The night before last he was in -such an alarming state of restlessness, which nothing could relieve, -that I proposed to Mrs. Leech to try magnetism. Accordingly, in the -middle of the night, I fell to, and, after a very fatiguing bout of it, -put him to sleep for an hour and thirty-five minutes. A change came on -in his sleep, and he is decidedly better. I talked to the astounded Mrs. -Leech across him, when he was asleep, as if he had been a truss of hay." - -Whether from Dickens' magnetic efforts or the efforts of Nature, Leech -gradually, but very slowly, recovered. On being questioned about his -accident, Leech is reported to have said that he remembered an enormous -angry, white-topped wave coming at him, and, in what seemed to him the -next moment, he found himself in bed in great pain--the interval having -been some days. - -In corroboration of this, I may mention an accident that happened to Mr. -Elmore (brother of the R.A. and great friend of Leech), who was terribly -injured by a blow on the head in a railway accident on the Marseilles -line. - -"I was reading a novel," said Mr. Elmore to me, "and the next instant, -as it seemed, I found myself suffering great pain in a strange bed, with -strange surroundings, in what I afterwards found was a French cottage." - -The sufferer also found that more than three weeks had elapsed between -the blow and the recovery of consciousness from it. Where, in my blind -ignorance I venture to ask, was the ever-living soul all this time? - -One of the amusements of the visitors at Folkestone consists in watching -the arrival of the French packet; and I have noticed that the more -stormy the day, the greater is the crowd that forms itself into an -avenue, through which the voyagers must pass in landing. This amusement, -I think, is not very creditable to us, because it is derived from an -enjoyment arising from the sufferings of our fellow-creatures. The rosy -passenger, who is evidently "a good sailor," attracts no attention--we -rather resent his condition as inappropriate to the occasion; but the -man from whose face every vestige of colour has flown, whose legs can -scarcely support him as he walks up the gangway, is an object of great -delight to us. We are generally--not always--silent in our enjoyment, -scarcely ever receiving a poor sea-sick creature as Leech was once -welcomed at Boulogne. - -In 1854, Leech and his wife went to Boulogne to stay with Dickens. The -day was stormy, and when the artist stepped ashore, he was received with -cheers by a crowd of people, mostly English, who loudly congratulated -him as looking more intensely miserable than any of the wretched -passengers who had preceded him. Leech told Dickens that he had realized -at last what an actor's feelings must be when a round of applause greets -his efforts. - -"I felt," he said, "that I had made a great hit." - -My intimacy with Leech led to the usual exchange of hospitalities. I -recall with pleasure the occasions on which I had the great delight of -welcoming him at my house in London or at the seaside. He never varied -from the simple, modest demeanour of the perfect gentleman, was never -noisy or argumentative, and always considerate of the feelings of -others; prodigal in his praise of his brother artists; never, if he -could avoid it, speaking of himself or his works, but if, in course of -conversation, allusion had been made to some cut more than commonly -attractive, he would meet it with: "Glad you like it, my dear fellow; -don't see anything particularly funny in it myself;" or, "Ah! I wish you -could have seen it on the wood; they seem to me to have cut all the -prettiness out of the girl's face." - -The first time I dined with Leech was at his house in Notting Hill -Terrace, on the occasion of some Highland sports that took place in Lord -Holland's park hard by, out of which Leech made some capital sketches, -that afterwards appeared in _Punch_. Leech's dinners, without being too -lavish or extravagant, were always unexceptionable as to food, and -notably so as to wine; of the latter, being no judge himself, he took -care it should be supplied by "one who knew," and who was also reliable. -One of the guests at this particular dinner was the Rev. Mr. White, -whose acquaintance our host had made at the Isle of Wight. I mention -this gentleman because he was not only a very jovial clergyman, but a -great friend of Leech and Dickens, and the author of some plays which -had more or less success--one of them, with the title of "The King of -the Commons," was played under Phelps' management, and had a -considerable run. - -"White," Leech whispered to me, "is a great judge of port. I hope to -goodness he will like some I have got on purpose for him--and for you, -my boy; only you know nothing about it, do you?" - -"Not a bit," said I. - -When the port appeared we watched the clergyman, and, judging by his -expression, the port was successful; but Leech was not satisfied till in -reply to his inquiry as to its qualities the clergyman, smacking his -lips, said: - -"Sir, the Church approves." - -At one of the delightful dinners at Leech's double-windowed -house--double-windowed to keep out noise, which distressed him all his -life--on the Terrace, Kensington, I first met Shirley Brooks, thus -commencing a life-long friendship with one of the most charming -companions, one of the wittiest men and the best story-tellers that ever -made "the hours go by on rosy wing." One of the strongest men on the -_Punch_ staff--afterwards editor--Brooks and Leech became somewhat -intimate, but whether the intimacy ever became merged into close -friendship, I doubt. I frequently dined at Brooks's, but never met Leech -there--indeed, from what I have heard, I am pretty sure that, with the -exception of his old fellow-student, Percival Leigh, who was one of his -nearest and dearest friends, Leech's feeling towards his brother members -of the _Punch_ staff never reached friendship in the true meaning of the -word. Albert Smith, of whose entertainments Leech said one of the -severest things I or anyone ever heard him say--"After all, Frith, it is -only bad John Parry"--was a loud, and, to me, a rather vulgar -person--too antagonistic to the gentle Leech for the growth of -friendship. At the _Punch_ meetings, however, I have it from one who was -occasionally present, that Albert Smith always addressed Leech as -"Jack," being the only one of the company who used the familiarity. This -provoked Douglas Jerrold, who had often winced under the infliction, to -ask Leech one day, "How long is it necessary for a man to know you -before he can call you 'Jack'?" - -After this remark "Jack" was less frequently heard. My authority for the -above is the late Mr. George Hodder, an author who I fear has left no -"footprints in the sands of time." It was said of him that, on being -introduced to a very distinguished artist, he remarked--perhaps feeling -the necessity of making a complimentary speech--"Art is a grand thing, -sir." This unfortunate gentleman died from injuries received by the -upsetting of a coach in Richmond Park. - -It is not at all uncommon for middle-class entertainers--though they may -possess a fair staff of servants--to seek outside assistance when they -gather an unusual number of guests round their hospitable boards. On one -occasion--and very likely oftener--Leech sought such supplementary aid, -and found it in the form of his parish clerk, a solemn person who was -not too proud to add to his stipend by "going out to wait." As is usual -with his class, the clerk-waiter arrived in good time to help in -furnishing forth the dinner-table, having an eye to the placing of the -flowers, plate, etc. The guests, amounting to ten or twelve, were -announced in due course, all old acquaintances, and all expecting their -dinners with the punctuality for which their host was noted. Hungry men, -though they may be good talkers under happier circumstances, are seldom -brilliant; on this occasion, though Dickens and Jerrold may have been -amongst the guests, the conversation languished at last into silence. -Half an hour passed. What could have happened? Suddenly one of the -guests--was it Dickens or Jerrold?--sprang from his chair, and going to -Leech, with extended hand, said: - -"Well, it's getting late; I'm afraid I must go. Thank you, dear boy, for -a delightful evening; the dinner was capital, the turtle first -rate--never tasted finer salmon; and as to the champagne----" - -The puzzled looks of Leech and his guests ended in a roar of laughter, -in the midst of which a black and solemn figure appeared, and in the -tones in which he would have given the responses at church, said: - -"Dinner is served." - -The assembled guests received the welcome announcement with a chorus of -"AMEN!" - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -SPORTING NOVELS. - - -Amongst the many books illustrated by Leech are some sporting novels, -written, I think, by a Mr. Surtees. "Ask Mamma," "Handley Cross," "Plain -or Ringlets," "Mr. Romford's Hounds," etc., owe their origin to this -prolific gentleman. As these works are ornamented by coloured steel -engravings and innumerable woodcuts by Leech, it has been my duty to -look into them; read them, I cannot. I hope if the author is still -living he will attribute my want of appreciation to a want of sympathy -with his heroes and heroines, though I admit, in the portions I have -read, that he shows considerable humour as well as power in expressing -it. This, from one who knows his own ignorance of the subject in -question, should be gratifying to Mr. Surtees. - -Though to my mind Leech is quite at his best in "Pictures of Life and -Character," there are examples of his powers in all these books which -quite justify my selection of some of them for the gratification of my -readers. "Mr. Romford's Hounds" is "embellished" with twenty-five large -steel plates, in one of which a certain Mr. Facey, who has a charming -Miss Lucy for his hunting companion, is checked by an obstacle which -causes him to exclaim to Lucy, "Dash it! this is a rum customer," "as he -stood in his stirrups, looking at what was on the far side." - -"Oh, throw your heart over it," said Lucy, "and then follow it as -quickly as you can." - -"Heart!" muttered Facey. "I shall never find it again if I do. It would -be like looking for a needle in a bundle of hay." - -"Let _me_ try, then," said Lucy. - -It would be difficult indeed to surpass the beauty of the girl's figure -in this drawing, exquisitely drawn, true in character and action as it -is. Mr. Facey's expression, too, exactly conveys the idea that the -longer he looks at the awkward place the less he likes it. The -horses--notably the action of the one ridden by the young lady--are in -every way admirable. The background, with a few slight touches, gives us -a stretch of country--a withered tree, a flock of birds, and the cloudy -sky, with no doubt the southerly wind that "proclaims the hunting -morning." - -"Mr. Romford's Hounds" gives us another sportsman, who rejoices in the -name of Muffington. This gentleman is possessed for the moment of a -horse called, or, rather, miscalled, Placid Joe, whose former name, Pull -Devil, seems better-suited to his propensities, as shown in the drawing, -in which Placid Joe has taken the bit between his teeth, to the -discomfiture of Mr. Muffington. From the following telegram it would -seem that Placid Joe had been borrowed for the day's hunting. Thus it -ran: - - "Mr. Martin Muffington, at the White Swan, Showoffborough, to Mr. - Green, Brown Street, Bagnigge Wells Road, London. - - "That brute Placid Joe has no more mouth than a bull. He's carried - me right into the midst of the hounds, and nearly annihilated the - huntsman. I will send him back by the 9.30 a.m. train to-morrow, - and won't pay you a halfpenny for his hire." - -The character of Mr. Muffington, together with his action as he tugs in -vain at Placid Joe, are admirable; but the horse, good as it is in -action, appears to me less well proportioned than Leech's horses almost -invariably are, the head and neck being too small. But what could -surpass the huntsman and his steed just recovering from the "cannoning" -received from Placid Joe? The scattered hounds, the riders behind, and -the landscape leave nothing to be desired. - -"Plain or Ringlets" contains twelve coloured plates and no less than -forty-three woodcuts. Judging from a slight acquaintance with the -letterpress and a careful study of the illustrations in this book, I -find that the author deals less exclusively with the feats of the hunter -than in "Mr. Romford's Hounds"; shooting, racing, etc., are allowed to -figure prominently, and the pursuit of "lovely woman"--in which there -seem to be as many false scents and heavy falls as beset the chasing of -the fox--plays an important part in "Plain or Ringlets." Unlike the -policeman's, I have often thought that the riding-master's life must "be -a happy one." I am borne out in this, I think, by the illustration, in -which Leech is delightfully at home. Says our author: - -"Smiling, cantering bevies of beauties, with their shining hair in gold -or silver beaded nets, and party-coloured feathers in their jaunty -little hats, alone imparted energy to the scene as they tit-tupped along -with quickly following tramp, led by the most magnificent and affable of -riding-masters, who thus advertise their studs, just as Howes and -Cushing advertise their grand United States Circus. Bless us, what a -pace some of them go!" - -What life and motion there are in this group! How is it, by what occult -influence do we find those two lovely creatures right and left of the -riding-master, instead of one place of honour being reserved for the -stout middle-aged lady, who, strange to say, seems quite contented with -her position? I don't believe those two girls want any teaching, for do -they not sit their horses with perfect grace, as safely at home in their -saddles as they would be in one of the lounges in their drawing-rooms, -which either of them would fill so charmingly? Look what pretty -creatures the magician Leech can call up for us by a few scratches of -his pencil, in the rear of this cantering procession! - -The Duke of Tergiversation (Phoebus, what a name!), says the author of -"Plain or Ringlets," found on inheriting his estate that "the life had -been eaten out of it" before the death of his father put him in -possession of his ancestral property. The Duke, however, seems to have -made the acquaintance of a banker, named Goldspink, who yielded to his -persuasions and promises to the extent of allowing his aristocratic -customer to overdraw his account to such a formidable amount as -seriously to imperil the stability of the bank. Mr. Goldspink then seeks -an interview with his Grace, which the Duke, after endeavouring by all -sorts of shifts to avoid, was at length compelled to grant. - -"Ah, my dear Mr. Goldspink!" exclaimed the Duke, advancing with -outstretched hands and all the cheerful cordiality imaginable as our -"crab-actioned" friend followed the smoothly-gliding butler, Mr. -Garnett, into the presence. "Ah, my dear Goldspink, this is indeed most -kind and considerate! First neighbour that has come to greet us. How, -may I ask, is your worthy wife and your excellent son?" taking both the -banker's hands and shaking them severely. - -The banker makes a mental calculation of the Duke's liabilities, with a -clear understanding that "his Grace is on the gammon-and-spinach tack," -and then says: - -"Thank your Grace--his Grace--my Grace--that is to say--they are both -pretty well. Hope the Duchess and Lord Marchhare----" - -"The Duchess and Marchhare are both at this moment enjoying a quiet cup -of tea in her pretty little boudoir, where, I am sure, they will be most -happy to see Mr. Goldspink," said the Duke, motioning him to the -gilt-moulded white door opposite. - -This cut seems to me to show Leech's power of marking the difference of -character in the persons represented in a degree noticeable by the most -ordinary observer. The Duke is an aristocrat from top to toe; the -insincerity of his welcome even is apparent; while the squat and -"crab-like" figure of the banker is no less true to nature; his delight -at shaking hands with a Duke making him forget for the moment the -serious issues dependent upon the interview. - -At the eleventh hour I find myself forbidden to show my readers any of -the admirable drawings which illustrate this book. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -THE "BON GAULTIER BALLADS." - - -I will here leave the sporting novels for a time and introduce my reader -to the "Bon Gaultier Ballads," and if he make his first acquaintance -with that work through this introduction, I respectfully advise him to -improve it by a more intimate knowledge, for he will not only find -excellent reading, but illustrations by Richard Doyle and others, -scarcely inferior to those by Leech. - -It will be remembered that at the time of the Papal aggression Lord John -Russell, according to Leech, chalked "No Popery" on Cardinal Wiseman's -door and then ran away. In the "Bon Gaultier Ballads" we find his -lordship face to face with Cardinal Wiseman, disguised as a friar, in -Sherwood Forest, where Little John is supposed to reign in place of -Robin Hood, deceased. The ballad is entitled "Little John and the Red -Friar," and begins: - - "The deer may leap within the glade, - The fawns may follow free-- - For Robin is dead, and his bones are laid - Beneath the greenwood tree. - - * * * * * - - "Now, Little John was an outlaw proud, - A prouder ye never saw; - Through Nottingham and Leicestershires - He thought his word was law, - And he strutted through the greenwood wide - Like a pestilent jackdaw. - - * * * * * - - "Now, word had come to Little John, - As he lay upon the grass, - That a friar red was in merry Sherwood - Without his leave to pass." - -Little John inquires from his little foot-page what manner of man is -this burly friar who intrudes into his domain. - - "'My master good,' the little page said, - 'His name I wot not well; - But he wears on his head a hat so red, - With a monstrous scallop-shell. - - "'He says he is Prior of Copmanhurst, - And Bishop of London town, - And he comes with a rope from our Father the Pope - To put the outlaws down.'" - -Little John searches the forest for his scarlet enemy-- - - "O'er holt and hill, through brake and breere, - He took his way alone. - - * * * * * - - "Then Little John, he strutted on, - Till he came to an open bound, - And he was aware of a Red Friar - Was sitting upon the ground. - - "His shoulders they were broad and strong, - And large was he of limb; - Few yeomen in the north countrie - Would care to mell with him. - - * * * * * - - "'What dost thou here, thou strong friar, - In Sherwood's merry round, - Without the leave of Little John - To range with hawk and hound?' - - "'Small thought have I,' quoth the Red Friar, - 'Of any leave, I trow; - But Little John is an outlawed thief, - And so, I ween, art thou! - - "'Know I am, I am Prior of Copmanhurst, - And Bishop of London town, - And I bring a rope from our Father the Pope - To put the outlaws down.' - - "Then out spoke Little John in wrath, - 'I tell thee, burly frere, - The Pope may do as he likes at home, - But he sends no Bishops here!'" - - "'Up and away, Red Friar,' he said, - 'Up and away right speedilie; - And were it not for that cowl of thine, - Avenged on thy body I would be!' - -[Illustration] - - "'Nay, heed not that,' said the Red Friar, - 'And let my cowl no hindrance be; - I warrant I can give as good - As ever I take from thee!' - - "Little John he raised his quarter-staff, - And so did the burly priest; - And they fought beneath the greenwood tree - A stricken hour at least." - -Little John gets much the worst of the fight, and endeavours to come to -terms with the Red Friar: - - "'There's some mistake, good friar,' he said; - 'There's some mistake 'twixt thee and me; - I know thou art Prior of Copmanhurst, - But not beneath the greenwood tree. - - "'And if you will take some other name, - You shall have ample time to bide; - With pasture also for your Bulls, - And power to range the forest wide.' - - "'There's no mistake!' the friar said; - 'I'll call myself just what I please: - My doctrine is that chalk is chalk, - And cheese is nothing else but cheese.' - - "'So be it then!' quoth Little John" - -from his refuge in the tree, to which, according to Leech, he has been -tossed by the Popish Bull. - -Cardinal Wiseman, as I remember him, was a huge burly figure, not unlike -Leech's drawing; a stronger resemblance to Lord John can be traced in -the swaggering little figure in the first illustration and also in the -second. - -Most of the "Bon Gaultier Ballads" are illustrated by Doyle and other -hands. Leech's contributions are confined to four of them. The next from -which I select drawings is called "The Rhyme of Sir Launcelot Bogle." It -appears that "this valiant knight, most terrible in fight," had married -the sister of another valiant knight named George of Gorbals, and with -his bride he had retired to his castle near Glasgow. For some reason or -other this marriage was very distasteful to the brother of the bride--so -distasteful, indeed, that nothing but the blood of Sir Launcelot would -wipe out the disgrace. In pursuit of his revenge, George of Gorbals -armed his followers and approached the castle, where - - "A donjon keep arose, that might baffle any foes, - With its men-at-arms in rows - On the towers. - -[Illustration] - - "And the flag that flaunted there showed the grim and grizzly bear, - Which the Bogles always wear for their crest. - And I heard the warder call, as he stood upon the wall, - 'Wake ye up! my comrades all, - From your rest! - - "'For, by the blessed rood, there's a glimpse of armour good - In the deep Cowcaddens Wood, o'er the stream; - And I hear the stifled hum of a multitude that come, - Though they have not beat the drum, - It would seem! - - "'Go tell it to my lord, lest he wish to man the ford - With partisan and sword just beneath; - Ho, Gilkison and Nares! Ho, Provan of Cowlairs! - We'll back the bonny bears - To the death.' - - "To the towers above the moat, like one who heedeth not, - Came the bold Sir Launcelot, half undressed; - On the outer rim he stood, and peered into the wood, - With his arms across him glued - On his breast. - - "And he muttered, 'Foe accurst, thou hast dared to seek me first? - George of Gorbals, do thy worst; for I swear - O'er thy gory corpse to ride, ere thy sister and my bride - From my undissevered side - Thou shalt tear!'" - - * * * * * - -Sir Launcelot, not being sure that Cowcaddens Wood really hides his -mortal enemy, despatches a "herald stout," accompanied by - - "Sir Roderick Dalgleish, and his foster-brother Neish, - With his bloodhounds in the leash," - -to see whether the party in the wood are friends or foes. All doubt on -the subject is put to rest by a shower of arrows which - - "Sped their force, and a pale and bleeding corse - He (the herald) sank from off his horse - On the plain! - - "Back drew the bold Dalgleish, back started stalwart Neish, - With his bloodhounds in the leash from Brownlee. - 'Now shame be to the sword that made thee knight and lord, - Thou caitiff thrice abhorred, - Shame on thee!'" - -After this burst of not unnatural rage at the unhandsome treatment of a -herald, whose office should have made his person sacred, Sir Launcelot -gives orders that there must be - - "'Forthwith no end of those heavy bolts; - Three angels to the brave who finds the foe a grave, - And a gallows for the slave - Who revolts!' - - "Ten days the combat lasted; but the bold defenders fasted, - While the foemen, better pastied, fed their host; - You might hear the savage cheers of the hungry Gorbaliers, - As at night they dressed the steers - For the roast. - - "And Sir Launcelot grew thin, and Provan's double chin - Showed sundry folds of skin down beneath; - In silence and in grief found Gilkison relief, - Nor did Neish the spell-word 'beef' - Dare to breathe." - -Then Edith, the bride, made her appearance upon the ramparts. - - "And she said unto her lord, as he leaned upon his sword, - 'One short and little word may I speak? - I cannot bear to view those eyes so ghastly blue, - Or mark the sallow hue - Of thy cheek. - - "'I know the rage and wrath that my furious brother hath - Is less against us both than at me. - Then, dearest, let me go, to find among the foe - An arrow from the bow, - Like Broomlee!'" - -To this noble offer of self-sacrifice Sir Launcelot will not listen for -a moment. He replies: - - "'All our chances are not lost, as your brother and his host - Shall discover to their cost rather hard! - Ho, Provan! take this key; hoist up the malvoisie, - And heap it, d'ye see, - In the yard. - - "'Of usquebaugh and rum you will find, I reckon, some, - Beside the beer and mum, extra stout; - Go straightway to your task, and roll me all the casks, - And also range the flasks - Just without. - - "'If I know the Gorbaliers, they are sure to dip their ears - In the very inmost tiers of the drink. - Let them win the outer court, and hold it for their sport, - Since their time is rather short, - I should think!' - - "With a loud triumphant yell, as the heavy drawbridge fell, - Rushed the Gorbaliers pell-mell, wild as Druids; - Mad with thirst for human gore, how they threatened and they swore, - Till they stumbled on the floor - O'er the fluids. - - "Down their weapons then they threw, and each savage soldier drew - From his belt an iron screw in his fist; - George of Gorbals found it vain their excitement to restrain, - And, indeed, was rather fain - To assist. - - "With a beaker in his hand, in the midst he took his stand, - And silence did command all below; - 'Ho, Launcelot the bold! ere thy lips are icy cold, - In the centre of thy hold - Pledge me now!' - - * * * * * - - "Dumb as death stood Launcelot, as though he heard him not; - But his bosom Provan smote and he swore, - And Sir Roderick Dalgleish remarked aside to Neish, - 'Never, sure, did thirsty fish - Swallow more! - - "'Thirty casks are nearly done, yet the revel's scarce begun; - It were knightly sport and fun to strike in!' - 'Nay, tarry till they come,' quoth Neish, 'unto the rum-- - They are working at the mum - And the gin!' - - "Then straight there did appear to each gallant Gorbalier - Twenty castles dancing near, all around; - The solid earth did shake, and the stones beneath them quake, - And sinuous as a snake - Moved the ground. - - "Why and wherefore had they come seemed intricate unto some, - But all agreed the rum was divine; - And they looked with bitter scorn on their leader highly born, - Who preferred to fill his horn - Up with wine." - -Like the fateful moment at Waterloo, the time had now come to strike, -and Sir Launcelot and his friends took full advantage of it. - - "'Now make the trumpets blast, and comrades follow fast, - Smite them down unto the last,' - Cried the knight. - - * * * * * - - "Saint Mungo be my guide! it was goodly in that tide - To see the Bogle ride in his haste; - He accompanied each blow with a cry of 'ah!' or 'oh!' - As he always cleft the foe - To the waist. - - "'George of Gorbals, craven lord! thou didst threat me with the - cord; - Come forth and brave my sword, if you dare!' - But he met with no reply, and never could descry - The glitter of his eye - Anywhere." - -The Gorbaliers were destroyed to a man, and in obedience to an order -from Sir Launcelot the casks and empty flasks were removed by the -"cellar master," but not without a shock-- - - "For he swore he heard a shriek - Through the door. - - "When the merry Christmas came, and the Yule-log lent its flame - To the face of squire and dame in the hall, - The cellarer went down to tap October brown, - Which was rather of renown - 'Mongst them all. - - "He placed the spigot low, and gave the cask a blow, - But his liquor would not flow through the pin; - 'Sure, 'tis sweet as honeysuckles!' so he rapped it with his - knuckles, - But a sound as if of buckles - Clashed within. - - "'Bring a hatchet, varlets, here!' and they cleft the cask of beer-- - What a spectacle of fear met their sight! - There George of Gorbals lay, skull and bones all blanched and gray, - In the arms he bore the day - Of the fight!" - -[Illustration] - -From Leech's contributions to the "Bon Gaultier Ballads" my third -selection consists of an illustration of "The Lay of the Lover's -Friend." The "Lay" is a capital skit on the propensity of certain lovers -to inflict the sorrows caused by the loss of their hearts upon friends -to whom the loss is a matter of indifference. Says the friend: - -[Illustration] - - "'I would all womankind were dead, - Or banished o'er the sea; - For they have been a bitter plague - These last six weeks to me. - It is not that I am touched myself, - For that I do not fear; - No female face has shown me grace - For many a bygone year. - But 'tis the most infernal bore, - Of all the bores I know, - To have a friend who's lost his heart - A short time ago. - - "'Whene'er we steam it to Blackwall, - Or down to Greenwich run, - To quaff the pleasant cider-cup, - Or feed on fish and fun; - Or climb the slopes of Richmond Hill - To catch a breath of air-- - Then, for my sins, he straight begins - To rave about his fair. - Oh, 'tis the most tremendous bore, - Of all the bores I know, - To have a friend who's lost his heart - A short time ago.'" - -Judging from the angry face of "the lover's friend" as he stretches out -his hand towards the claret, it will require even more than the -consolation to be derived from the finest brand to enable him to endure -his friend's moaning with common patience. One studies with wonder and -admiration the few touches with which the story is told in this little -drawing. See the handsome frowning face of "the lover's friend," so -perfectly in contrast with that of the absorbed lover, whose voice can -almost be heard expatiating on the beauty of the lost one, and the -hardness of her heart! - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -Sporting Novels (_continued_). - - -"Handley Cross" is another of the sporting novels so admirably -illustrated by Leech. The hero of this book is a certain Mr. Jorrocks, a -retired "great city grocer of the old school." A fortune gained in the -grocery business enabled Mr. Jorrocks to retire into country life, where -the sports of the field awaited him. He became a mighty hunter, the -possessor of the finest horses and "the best pack of 'ounds in all the -world," who would make the foxes cry "Capevi!" He is M.F.H., and so -great an authority on sporting matters as to warrant his announcing -himself as a lecturer on the duties of all concerned in the truly -British sport of the chasing of the fox. Mr. Jorrocks's antecedents were -such as to preclude the possibility of the display of brilliant -oratorical powers. His mode of expression--including the absence of the -letter "h," where it should be used, and its presence where it should -not--was what might have been expected from the retired grocer whose -little figure adorns the illustration. - -Leech's old friend, Mr. Adams, tells me that a man named Nicholls, Lady -Louise Clinton's coachman, was the model for Mr. Jorrocks. Leech never -went anywhere, not even to church, without his little sketch-book; and -on a special Sunday at Barkway Church, where Lady Clinton had her pew, -she was followed by a little man who, after handing her ladyship her -books of devotion, took his seat outside the pew, and became an -unconscious study for Leech; who in a few minutes transferred an exact -likeness to the sketch-book, which was afterwards as exactly reproduced -in the "hunting lecture." - -A curious reader can study Mr. Jorrocks's lecture in the pages of -"Handley Cross." He will there wonder with me how it came about, that so -distinguished an audience of aristocratic men, and lovely women, could -listen for many minutes to an oration which must have lasted at least -two hours, and which ends with the following peroration: "So shall -little Spooney jog on rejoicin'! Each succeedin' year shall find him -better mounted, and at each fresh deal he will become a wiser and I -'opes a nappier man." - -Mr. Jorrocks concluded amidst loud and universal applause. - -Leech's mastery of character--unexaggerated, true to nature, without a -trace of caricature--can be seen in the foreground figures of this -etching. The man standing behind the lady with the lovely profile is a -gentleman, though perhaps not a wise one; but what can the beautiful -profile find in Mr. Jorrocks's discourse to amuse or enlighten her? And -those pretty creatures in the distance, who certainly seem a little -bored, how is it that they did not slip away with their cavaliers behind -them, and so leave Mr. Jorrocks to talk about 'unting to 'is 'eart's -content? - -One of Mr. Jorrocks's sporting friends is Mr. Charley Stobbs, a -good-looking young gentleman who finds himself belated after a hard -day's hunting. He wanders about an unknown country, darkness comes upon -him, and he endeavours in vain to find his way to Handley Cross. "The -night was drear and dark, the wind whistled and howled with uncommon -keenness, the cutting hail drifted with the sharpness of needles against -his face. Horse and rider were equally dispirited," says the -chronicler. This free and easy, or, rather uneasy, fox-hunter, -determined to seek shelter for the night at the first house he came to, -that promised from its appearance a comfortable bed, with, perhaps, an -introductory supper. He soon found himself "under the lee of a large -house, and having dismounted, and broken his shins against a scraper, he -at length discovered a bell-pull in the door-post, which having sounded, -the echoing notes from afar proclaimed the size and importance of the -mansion." "A little maiden" gave Charley admission, and, with surprising -alacrity, provided him with "ham sandwiches, hot water, lemon, nutmeg," -etc., to say nothing of a bottle of sherry! - -To the common mind the ease with which Mr. Charles Stobbs managed to -procure for himself a supper and lodging in a stranger's mansion will be -a matter of surprise; in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred he would -have met with a very different reception. We rejoice in his success, -because it gives us a likeness of his good-looking self, in conjunction -with that of one of the prettiest and daintiest waiting-maids ever -created by Leech's pencil. - -Had I been permitted I should have selected a drawing from "Handley -Cross," which heads a chapter called "The Waning Season," not from its -subject (which has little interest), but because it is an admirable -example of Leech's mastery of landscape. The figure of the old hedger, -with his big gauntlets and bill-hook, is as true as possible to nature, -well drawn, and perfect in action, as he stoops over the faggots he has -collected; but I would call more attention to the drawing of the -foreground and distance of the landscape; the stunted tree and the -wattled fence in its perspective cunningly going off almost to the -horizon--thus leading the eye into space--with its lines so skilfully -broken by the leafless trees. The sky, too, though represented by a few -lines, composes artistically with the forms in the distance and the rest -of the wintry landscape. - -With "Ask Mamma"--another of the many sporting books illustrated by -Leech--I shall close my selections from that kind of literature for the -present. - -In the frontispiece of the book, which represents "The Ancestors of our -Hero," the female ancestor is such a bewitching creature as to make a -reproduction of her in this place irresistible. This charming person is -Mrs. William Pringle, _née_ Willing, about whose birth, parentage, and -education history is silent. Her acquaintance is first made by the -reader of "Ask Mamma" in the position of assistant in a milliner's shop, -which she soon left for a shop of her own. In this venture Miss Willing -failed disastrously, and, leaving dressmaking, she became a lady's-maid -in the service of "the beautiful, newly-married Countess Delacey." "It -was to the service of the Countess Delacey," says our author, "that Miss -Willing was indebted for becoming the wife of Mr. William Pringle." The -acquaintance between Miss Willing and Mr. Pringle, which soon ripened -into love and marriage, began on the stage-coach, in which Miss Willing -was journeying to London to buy dresses for her mistress, the Countess. -Alas! it must be confessed that Miss Willing was an unscrupulous -adventuress, and Mr. Pringle a very green goose indeed; for when he -found Miss Willing installed in the Countess's house in Grosvenor -Square, dressed in her mistress's emerald-green velvet costume, he -believed her to be, as she represented herself, the mistress of the -mansion. A big footman played into Miss Willing's hand, and "my lady'd" -her to her heart's content, and to the delight of Mr. Pringle, as the -refreshments were supplied to which the victim had been invited. Under -the inspiring influence of brandy-and-water Mr. Pringle's love grew -apace; and in reply to the lady's prudent inquiries as to his means of -keeping her surrounded by the luxury to which she had been accustomed, -she was assured that "she should have everything she wanted: a tall -footman with good legs, an Arab horse, an Erard harp, a royal -pianoforte, a silver tea-urn, a gold coffee pot, a service of gold, _eat -gold_ if she liked;" and, as he made this declaration, "he dropped upon -his salmon-coloured knees, and with his glass of brandy in one hand and -hers in the other, looked imploring up at her--a beautiful specimen of -heavy sentimentality." - -As one looks at the comical figure of Mr. Pringle, it would be difficult -to believe that, even with the golden advantages with which he surrounds -himself, he could be rendered acceptable to the lovely creature of -Leech's fancy; if a finger could not be put upon couples amongst our own -acquaintances even more strangely contrasted. - -With respect to personal appearance, Mr. Pringle fares better at Leech's -hands in a drawing representing a halt in the stage-coach journey to -London. The passengers have stopped for refreshment. The coachman -attends for his fee. Mr. Pringle, "who was bent upon doing the -magnificent, produced a large green-and-gold tasselled purse, almost as -big as a stocking, and drew therefrom a great five-shilling piece, which -he handed ostentatiously to the man, saying: 'For this lady and me,' -just as if she belonged to him." - -Here Mr. Pringle fairly resembles a good-looking buck of sixty years -ago, and the coachman might have been one of those whom I remember on my -own first journey to London, with his "Beg pardon, sir, I've drove you -fifty miles," when his fee was less than he expected. The coat of many -capes, the red cheeks and redder nose, the action of the man as he holds -his hat and whip, are all true to life; here again without the least -exaggeration. In composition, light and shade, and general effect, this -drawing leaves nothing to wish for. The expression of Miss Willing, as -she looks sideways at her victim, should be noted. - -Mr. William Pringle did not long enjoy his married life, for his only -son (the hero of "Ask Mamma") was but a child, when, "after an -inordinate kidney supper, Mr. Pringle was found dead in his chair." - -The widow was very rich, and after educating her son regardless of -expense, she launched him into high life, and somehow or other brought -about an acquaintance between "Billy" and a sporting nobleman, the Earl -of Ladythorne. From that time "Ask Mamma" becomes a chronicle of -sporting adventure, with which I shall not trouble my reader, beyond the -explanation required for the understanding of one or two examples of -Leech's work. - -The noble Earl of Ladythorne seems to have been a very impressionable -personage, in a constant state of suffering from "Cupid's shafts"; and -though for some reason or other he objected to hunting ladies, an -"equestrian coquette, Miss De Glancey, of half the watering-places in -England, and some on the Continent," had but to show herself amongst the -field and the noble lord was again transfixed; this time the dart seems -to have gone through and through the tender heart, only to be released -by an event which occurred shortly afterwards. - -It appears that Miss De Glancey's love of hunting was affected, in order -to further her designs upon the Earl; she really feared and hated it; -and though on the fatal day, which was destined to extinguish her hope -of becoming a Countess, she had ridden boldly by the Earl through what -he calls "a monstrous fine run," she "found no fun in it at all," and -was "monstrous glad when it was over." No sooner was the fox -despatched, than the sky darkened, the lightning flashed, the thunder -bellowed, and the rain came down in torrents. "Poor Miss De Glancey," -says our author, "was ready to sink into the earth." There was nothing -for it but to seek the nearest shelter, which seems to have been the -Punch Bowl at Rockbeer, in search of which "my lord" and the coquette -ride off together. "An opportune flash of lightning so lit up the -landscape as to show the clump of large elms at the entrance to -Rockbeer." The hard driving rain beats downways and sideways, frontways -and backways--all ways at once. The horses know not which way to duck to -evade the storm. In less than a minute Miss De Glancey is as drenched as -if she had taken a shower-bath. "The smart hat and feather are -annihilated; the dubious frizette falls out; down comes the hair; the -_bella-donna_-inspired radiance of her eyes is quenched; the crinoline -and wadding dissolve like ice before the fire; and ere _the love-cured -Earl_ lifts her off her horse at the Punch Bowl at Rockbeer, she has no -more shape or figure than an icicle. Indeed, she much resembles one, for -the cold sleet, freezing as it fell, has encrusted her in a rich coat of -iced lace, causing her saturated garments to cling to her with the -utmost pertinacity. A more complete wreck of a belle was perhaps never -seen." - -"Brief as woman's love," says Shakspeare. That this remark will -sometimes apply to man's love cannot be contested, for have we not an -example before us in the rapid way in which our noble friend's passion -was, so to speak, washed out of him? The love-stricken Earl "cured" by a -shower of rain! We ought to be thankful for the downpour, for it was the -cause of Leech's drawing, in which the unfortunate coquette is still, -under the artist's tender treatment, an elegant creature, with grace and -beauty in every line of her bedraggled form. How admirable, too, is the -Earl! the rain dripping from the brim of his hat, and with every -opportunity for making him ridiculous, he is still dignified, his face -and figure noble, as he bends forward to meet the storm. It goes without -saying that the horses are admirable in character and action, and that -the whole scene exactly realizes a wet and stormy night. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -MICHAEL HALLIDAY AND LEECH. - - -"No man can put more into a picture than there is in himself," says Sir -Joshua Reynolds. As an art student I have always felt the force of this -aphorism. I would even go further, and add that no man can avoid the -disclosure in numberless ways of what "there is in himself" of special -mental organization, under the heads of taste, temper, delicacy, -honesty, kindliness, and the true and full appreciation of the beauties -of nature. - -"I cannot see nature as you represent it," someone is said to have -remarked to Turner. - -"Don't you wish you could?" was the reply. - -It is not the subject of a great artist's work that we admire, but the -artist's mind as reflected in his subject. Reynolds was fortunate in -having for his sitters most of the beauties of the last century, and -they were more fortunate still in falling into the hands of a painter -who had such intense sympathy with their loveliness--so intense in some -instances as to emphasize it somewhat to the sacrifice of individuality. -It is what Turner sees in nature that we reverence, producing beauties -for us to which we were blind, till they were called up by the spell of -the great magician. Heads as fine as any of those painted by Vandyke can -be seen any day, but there is no Vandyke to show us the impression they -make upon him. Let anyone compare Vandyke's Charles I. with a -contemporary rendering of that monarch, and he will feel with me that it -is the great painter's power of penetrating the inner man before him, so -to speak, added to his sympathy with the melancholy and dignified King, -that, combined with his transcendent technical power, enabled him to -present to us both the person and the mind of the unfortunate King. The -contemporary painters give us but the husk and shell of him. - -But of all artists who have reflected themselves in their works, Leech -is the best example. Save when his hatred of injustice and oppression is -aroused, the man's loving, tender nature, and his honest English, manly -character, are apparent in everything he does. As he was to all who knew -him well, he shows himself in his treatment of every theme he touches -with his pencil. Of his life--quiet, studious, and ever observant--there -is little to relate that cannot be gathered from his works. His -passionate love of children and childish ways and tricks, his sympathy -with beauty in all its forms, his eager participation in manly sports, -with numberless other delightful qualities, are part and parcel of the -man who was never tired of giving us unconscious revelations of himself -in his drawings. Even when a certain amount of ridicule is attached to -the principal incidents in the career of a ludicrous personage, we never -have a feeling for him approaching contempt. - -In the history of Messrs. Briggs and Tom Noddy these gentlemen present -themselves in positions of laughable difficulty. Laugh at them we -certainly do, but we never despise them; for do they not show the good -qualities of courage and fortitude? Tom Noddy is thrown from his horse; -nothing daunted, he instantly remounts. He drops his whip; he recovers -it: is thrown again, and this time his horse gallops off; but though the -little hunter pursues as fast as his little legs can go, the horse has -the best of it and escapes. An ordinary being would despair and bemoan -his loss; not so Tom Noddy, who gives up the pursuit for a time, and -being no doubt a little tired, lights a cigar as he sits upon a stile. -When refreshed by tobacco and repose he resumes his horse-chase, and -ultimately succeeds in finding the animal in the possession of a rustic, -who had amused himself by nearly galloping him to death. Tom Noddy is a -delightful little creature; his numerous escapades are plentiful in -"Pictures of Life and Character," and will be for all time a hearty, -healthy pleasure to all who study them. - -Many attempts were made to betray Leech into personality. Subjects were -suggested, and offers were made to him, by persons who had real or -imaginary grievances, to place well-known public characters in positions -ridiculous or contemptible. Those attempts would not have been made if -the proposers had known Leech; such suggestions were always rejected, -and sometimes in terms very unpleasant to their proposers. I was not -aware that Tom Noddy had a prototype until I was informed by my old -friend, Mr. Holman Hunt, in a paper of Leech reminiscences, originally -intended for this memoir, that Mike Halliday, a man I knew well forty -years ago, was the original Tom Noddy. Halliday's figure was intended -for an ordinary-sized man, but when Nature had produced his head and -shoulders she seemed to have changed her intention, and the rest of his -figure was that of a diminutive form, a full foot shorter altogether -than an ordinary middle-sized man. When I first became acquainted with -Halliday he was a clerk in the House of Lords. "He then," says Holman -Hunt, "took to poetry, to love that never found its earthly close, and -to our art--for he found time for all. So well did he succeed in -picture-making that he once completed an oil-painting of two lovers -sitting under a ruined abbey window, habited in contemporary costume, -the gentleman intent on taking the size of the lady's marriage-finger." - -I remember this picture being exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1856; I -thought highly of it, and looked, but in vain, for a repetition of a -success so complete as to cause the purchase of the picture by a -well-known dealer, who had an engraving made from it, the print meeting -with extensive popularity. Halliday's face was a very plain one, but -totally unlike that of Tom Noddy: his hair was pale yellow, "a vapoury -moustache joining a soft beard, long but sparse whiskers;" he was -slightly lame, and altogether an elf-like quaintness in his appearance -made him quite a remarkable little figure. - -"Leech," says Mr. Hunt, "became intimate with him, and so under many -names and ingenious disguises did Leech's public make his -acquaintance--Tom Noddy, and a variety of names he figured under. Leech -told of an expedition which formed a small party with Halliday one -evening in the country, where there was to be a meet with the hounds -next morning. As they dined and chatted, the attractions became greater -every minute to the cavalier instincts of Halliday's youth. Leech and -the others had horses coming, and on inquiry it was found that it would -be possible for Mike to find a mount at hand, and so it was pointed out -that he could sleep there and have a good day on the morrow. - -"'No,' said Halliday, 'I must find a train from town in time to be at -the cover.' - -"'Why, in the name of mystery--why go to town?' said they all. - -"But all was useless--the little man would go, and would come back by a -train starting very early from town; and so, to the bewilderment of all, -he did. The next morning the friends went to see the train come in. As -it stopped, down jumped the little Nimrod, decked out in carefully -preserved pink, well-stained cords, with top-boots, and falling over the -rim a tassel of ribbons in emulation of Sixteen-stringed Jack, as dandy -hunting-men had dressed twenty years before. He was capped with -hunting-helmet, and he carried a magnificent riding-whip in hand. Seeing -him thus walking and skipping with that outward turn of the feet, which -is denominated in horsey parlance 'dishing,' Leech said that with all -the desire in the world to treat the matter with supreme seriousness, as -Halliday did, it was almost impossible for him to curb his provoked -risibility." - -Leech, in speaking of Halliday at a party, of which Holman Hunt made -one, said: - -"Mike is a mine of resource to me. Whenever I am in difficulties I can -remember something of him that it is possible to turn into a 'subject'; -and," he added earnestly, "I do hope he never recognises the -resemblance, for I often put some point to prevent recognition." - -The surprise at this innocence made the whole table burst into laughter, -but in undeceiving Leech we were able to assure him that Halliday was by -no means pained by the darts which had struck him; that he wore them -proudly as decorations, and so disarmed the ill-nature that might be -disposed to take advantage of the chance. He often achieved this by -drawing the attention of his visitors to the last addition to his -gallery of _Punch_ portraits, exhibited on the walls of his studio. - -It must have been from some peculiarity of dress or manner, to which -Halliday's attention was called by "a candid friend," that he discovered -that in drawing Tom Noddy Leech "had him in his eye"; for, as I said -before, his face was as unlike that of Tom Noddy as Leech's own face was -unlike the round, good-humoured physiognomy of Mr. Briggs, though some -of the escapades of Briggs had their origin in Leech's personal -experiences: a happy accident to the roof of Leech's house, and the -noise and varied troubles caused in repairing it, was the suggestion of -the famous scene of the Briggs disaster; and it was Leech himself who -was caught by the leg by a policeman as--finding his front door blocked -by scaffolding--he was attempting to enter in what that functionary -considered a burglarious manner. - -Leech was more fortunate than another artist of my acquaintance, for the -officer listened to his explanation of the unusual way of entering his -house, and, believing the statement, assisted him to "make himself at -home." But my other friend, who had been "dining," finding something the -matter with his latch-key--for do what he would he could not induce it -to perform its usual office--mounted his area railings, and would very -likely have fallen into the area if he had not been stopped by a -policeman. The artist's attempts to explain his position were either -incomprehensible by the officer, or they were not believed, for he was -taken to the station and locked up for the night. - -Leech gives us no hint by which we might guess in what condition of life -the immortal Briggs made the fortune that enabled him to retire to his -comfortable home in Bayswater; whatever his pursuit may have been, the -taste for sport of every kind must have possessed the prosperous -gentleman, to be indulged to the full--happily for us--when he had -achieved independence. - -Leech's powers are seen in their highest development in the Briggs -drawings. Mr. Briggs is unfortunate in respect of horseflesh; the -animals he selects are none of them free from vice, and in their -various--and often successful--attempts to unseat their rider, they give -the artist opportunities of showing his power of representing almost -every action of which the horse is capable in the indulgence of that -propensity. The enterprising sportsman chases the fox, coming in at the -death, or soon after it--anyway, in time to give the huntsman -half-a-sovereign for the brush, only he must "say nothing about it." He -rides steeplechases, and though he is half drowned in a water-jump, and -suffers other hindrances, he wins the race. - -But it is in the shooting and fishing exploits that the sportsman and -his illustrator shine most. Among so many triumphs of art and -sportsmanship, it is difficult to say which of the many excellent -examples is to be preferred; all are admirable, but I think the one I -have chosen for illustration is my favourite. Mr. Briggs is -deer-stalking, and though he occasionally suffers, even to prostration, -from the heat of the weather, and the difficulties presented by hills, -rocks, and heather, he really enjoys creeping and hiding with his -gillies, until the royal hart, which the forester has seen through his -glass, is well within rifle shot. He fires, misses; and behold the -result! - -[Illustration: "AFTER AIMING FOR A QUARTER OF AN HOUR, MR. B. FIRES BOTH -HIS BARRELS AND MISSES!! TABLEAU: THE FORESTER'S ANGUISH."] - -In expression, drawing, character, and action, the figure of the -forester is perfect; there is a tragic grandeur in the pose that would -be appropriate in the gravest scene of misfortune. Poor Mr. Briggs -plainly shows us that he not only suffers from the mortification of -having missed so splendid an opportunity of distinguishing himself, but -also from the misery his mishap has inflicted upon the forester. The -skilful way in which this drawing is composed--the three figures -separated from each other presenting a difficult problem to the -artist--excites one's admiration. Without the connecting links -afforded by the forms in the landscape, and the lines made by the dogs -in the leash, held by the young gilly, the figures would be unpleasantly -separated. As it is, with the masterly effect of light and shadow, this -drawing is above all criticism. - -My elderly readers may remember a certain Mr. Rarey, an American, I -think, who "took the town" by his horse-taming feats. A horse named -Cruiser, which was in the habit of indulging in every wickedness that -could disgrace a horse, became docile under the Rarey treatment. The -tamer's method was a profound secret; he allowed no one to witness the -working of the charm by which a furious animal was changed into -lamb-like meekness. In Cruiser's case, what was certain was, that a -creature unapproachable without risk to limb and life, was transformed -to such an extent that a child might--and did--ride him. - -In a number of admirably humorous drawings, Leech pictures Mr. Briggs, -who comes to grief in all his attempts to emulate Mr. Rarey. He -evidently does not possess the secret, and though we laugh over his -failures, we respect the courage which led to them. "Mr. Briggs tries -his shooting pony" is an inimitable drawing. Mr. B. has no doubt been -assured that the pony will take no more notice of a gun when fired from -his back than "if you was to whistle a tune as you was riding of him." -In perfect confidence in the truthfulness of the dealer's assurance, Mr. -Briggs fires. The pony instantly flies, rather than gallops, -away--without, however, unseating Mr. Briggs, who clings to the saddle, -clutching his gun still smoking from the recent discharge. - -Mr. Briggs goes to Scotland after salmon, as well as deer and grouse. As -a fisherman he is more successful with the rod than he was as a -deer-stalker with the gun. A huge salmon, for which "he would not take a -guinea a pound," rewards him for a long and desperate struggle, in which -he encounters obstacles in the shape of the slippery rocks and -deep-water holes that distinguish a Highland river. - -In Scottish scenery Leech is as much at home as he is in the -turnip-field or the covert. No praise can be too extravagant for all the -backgrounds that form so perfect a setting for the gem-like figures of -Mr. Briggs. Nor must his attendants be forgotten. Witness the difference -of character, so completely marked, between the snuff-taking bearer of -the "gaff," with his Scotch bonnet, and the forester in his kilt, who so -pathetically mourns Mr. Briggs' failure, and who afterwards makes him -"free of the forest" by smearing his face with the blood of a stag which -has died by the accidental discharge of his gun. - -During the quarter of a century of Leech's work, the British public had -its crazes--Bloomerism, crinoline, spirit-rapping, and other less -dangerous absurdities than the last, seized upon the minds of large -portions of the people, to be thrown aside and replaced by other -ridiculous fancies. Even games, after a time, seem to pall upon the -players: cricket, happily, bids fair to be perennial; but croquet, once -so fashionable, is no more. When one looks at Leech's drawings, in which -crinolines figure so prominently, it is really difficult to believe that -the artist has not exaggerated a frightful fashion; from observation I -can assure a doubter that Leech has frequently under, rather than over, -done the swell of those voluminous skirts. Of course, whenever they are -permitted to do so, servants will imitate their masters and mistresses, -and it was by no means uncommon for the ribs of a housemaid's crinoline -to assert themselves through the outer skirt, as we see in some of -Leech's drawings. - -I would draw attention to the opposite, or antithesis, of this. In some -of the cuts, prior, I think, to the "crinoline mania," Leech's -delightful girls wear jackets of a form that follows the lines of -nature, and of a very picturesque shape. These have a very short reign, -being discarded in their turn by that Goddess of Fashion, the -dressmaker, for "something new" and outrageous. There is amongst the -"Pictures of Life and Character" a drawing of a dinner-party in which -the male guests are so hidden and covered by ladies' crinolines that -their heads and a small portion of their shoulders only are visible. How -the gentlemen's hands are to be used in the consumption of their dinners -is left to the imagination of the beholder, and of the sufferers. - -For the unexaggerated truth of this print I, who write, can vouch; for -have I not again and again been obliged to solve the difficulty of using -my knife and fork? In spite of the attacks upon it, crinoline had its -day--and far too long a day it was. - -The Bloomer costume--a Yankee invention--made but a feeble struggle for -existence, though it had many advocates, notably a _belle Americaine_, -one of whose lectures at the Hanover Square rooms I had the curiosity to -attend. The lady wore a red velvet overcoat and loose trousers, a -broad-brimmed black hat and feather, and looked and talked like a pretty -boy. - -Bloomerism afforded Leech many opportunities of showing that his pencil -could invest eccentricity with beauty. A study of the Bloomer sketches -will also show that the attempt to adopt the manly dress was, in his -estimation, an insidious attempt to usurp manly work and offices. In -proof of this see the charming Bloomer omnibus-conductor, who is -threatened by an elderly male passenger with a summons for abusive -language; or the group of Bloomer police, who fly from a riotous mob -instead of arresting the ringleaders. Look at her again as "the man at -the wheel" who must not be "spoken to." Those who have suffered from -sea-sickness will see by the expression of the Bloomer's countenance why -she should not be spoken to, and what the effect of conversation under -the circumstances would most probably be. Leech gave his imagination -full play in this fruitful theme. Granting the assumption of the -masculine dress, he sees no reason why a proposal should not be made by -the female lover instead of the male. Why, he seems to ask, should the -gentleman have to undergo that terrible ordeal? - -I advise my reader to seek in "Pictures of Life and Character" for a -drawing of an elopement in which the positions of the principals are -reversed. It is the lady who is pouring words of passionate persuasion -into the ears of her frightened and half-reluctant lover, as he looks -back at the home he is leaving for ever; she almost drags him to the -carriage which is to bear the happy pair away to Gretna Green. - -Spirit-rapping, table-turning, and the rest of it, fare badly at the -hands of Leech. Happy was the thought that possessed him when, by a -touch of his magic pencil, he changed the heads of a seance-party into -those of geese. And how admirably humorous is the drawing in which -furniture starts into life at the bidding of a medium, to the -astonishment and dismay of the housemaid! Hats were supposed to "turn -about and wheel about" under the influence of encircled hands round the -brims. It would be a mistake to suppose that the handsome Guardsman who, -with the assistance of the fingers of those pretty creatures, so -patiently waits for the hat to move, has either the expectation or the -desire that the experiment will be successful. No, he greatly enjoys the -situation, and is eager to prolong it for any unreasonable time. - -Here I cannot resist interposing a little anecdote of an experience of -which I should like to have an explanation by the spiritualists. The -incident took place on one of the many occasions when I served as a -member of the dreaded Hanging Committee of the Royal Academy. As is well -known, the Academicians have a vast variety of works of art offered for -exhibition, perpetrated, as a rule, by human hands. But there is no rule -without an exception, and it was my fate to witness the exception in the -form of pictures painted by spirits, and sent for exhibition by their -thrice-blessed proprietor. These were very striking works indeed. At -first sight they looked like masses of many-coloured weeds, very weird -vegetation, unlike anything "in heaven above or on the earth beneath." -On nearer inspection, some childishly-drawn, half-naked figures were -discernible amongst the weeds, intended to represent spiritual forms of -departed friends, probably, who had been changed into these unfortunate -figures. These works received our most careful examination, created -laughter, and were rejected. Now, I respectfully ask what the spirits -were about thus to subject themselves and their doings to the ignorant -ribaldry of the Academicians? They must have known that we were in a -state of darkest unbelief, and the least they could have done was to -warn the owner of these works of their certain fate at our hands, and -thus have saved him the trouble of sending them to Burlington House, to -say nothing of the expense of the handsome frames in which they were -enshrined. "I pause for a reply." - -Archery and croquet afforded Leech opportunities for the display of -beauty in many forms. His lady-archers are bewitching creatures, their -male competitors always manly, graceful gentlemen. The pursuit of both -amusements offered chances of love-making and flirtation, of which full -advantage is sometimes taken; indeed, in one instance we see a game of -croquet stopped altogether by a couple who find an interchange of--shall -we say vows?--more interesting than the game; a feeling which, judging -from the other players, is by no means shared. - -Leech seems to have left no phase of human life and character untouched: -whether he deals with the aristocrat or the plebeian, the Duchess or the -beggar, the very poor or the very rich, the beautiful or the ugly, he is -ever true to Nature; turning away from our vices, dealing lovingly with -us in all ways, touching our follies lightly, humorously, and always -good-naturedly--in short, invariably reflecting in his work his own -disposition to what is pure, manly, and true. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -THOMAS HOOD AND LEECH. - - -The difficulty of gauging public taste in matters literary and artistic -can be proved by numberless examples. How often does the manager of a -theatre place in trembling anxiety a piece before his audience which -afterwards runs for hundreds of nights! "Our Boys" has had a long life -upon the stage; but so doubtful was everyone connected with its -production of its living for one night even, that another play was held -in readiness to take the place of the damned one. Books that have made -reputations for their authors have been refused by publisher after -publisher. Engravings run the same perilous course. Print-sellers, from -long experience of public wants, should know what will satisfy them; but -they seem to find the difficulty that befalls publishers and the -managers of theatres. - -Many years ago a very pretty servant-maid became a part of my -household. I induced her to sit for me, having noticed the graceful way -in which her various duties were performed; and I made a half-length -figure of her carrying a silver salver, on which was a decanter, -thinking that the contrast between the silver, glass, and a pretty gray -dress would make an effective scheme of colour. The picture was -beautifully engraved by Holl, and offered for publication by a friend, -who bought it, to one of the most experienced print-sellers in London. -To please my friend, to whom the print-seller was under great -obligation, he bought the right of publication; but having no faith in -its success, my pretty servant was passed on--at a sacrifice--to another -print-seller, and she afterwards found great favour with the public, and -was highly remunerative to her proprietor, under the name and title of -"Sherry, sir?" This title was the "happy thought" of the print-seller, -who, on my remonstrating with him for vulgarizing my picture, informed -me that the title had been the sole cause of the success of the -engraving. - -A print was published many years ago of three chorister boys in surplice -and cassock, who, with open mouths and upturned eyes, are supposed to be -singing. In a moment of inspiration the artist, who, I believe, was -also the engraver, christened his subject, "We praise Thee, O Lord!" and -then offered it at most of the principal print-shops in London, where it -was invariably refused. The artist published "We praise Thee," etc., -himself, and, I was told, made more than two thousand pounds by it. - -All this is introductory to the most astonishing example that could be -conceived of the fallacy of what I may call expert opinion, on literary -merit and public taste. - -I am not sure of the precise date, but I think it was about 1848 or 1849 -that Hood's "Song of the Shirt" appeared in _Punch_. There is, or was, a -letter in existence from Hood to Mark Lemon, then editor of _Punch_, in -which the writer tells his friend he has enclosed a poem that he may -publish in _Punch_ if he likes; but he "most likely won't like," and -refuse it, as the publishers, one and all, to whom it has been offered, -had done without hesitation. "In that case," said Hood, "tear it up, and -put it in the waste-paper-basket; for I am sick of the sight of it." -This was the "Song of the Shirt," one of the most powerful, touching, -and pathetic poems in the English language. - -My old friend, Willert Beale, whose recently-published "Light of Other -Days" has charmed so many readers, sends me the following account of the -introduction of the "Song of the Shirt" into _Punch_: - -"Mark Lemon" (then editor of _Punch_) "was looking over the immense heap -of _Punch_ letters on his desk, when he opened one enclosing a poem, -which the writer said had been rejected by three contemporaries, and if -unavailable for _Punch_, he begged the editor, whom he knew but -slightly, to consign the paper to his waste-basket, as he was sick of -the sight of it. The poem was signed 'Tom Hood,' and entitled 'The Song -of the Shirt,' now so famous among us all. Of a totally different -character to anything that had previously appeared in the pages of -_Punch_, most of the staff were dead set against the insertion of it; -but Mark Lemon, whose quick appreciation of its merits made him -unwilling to let so valuable a prize slip from his grasp, over-ruled all -objections with quiet though firm determination, and brought it before -the public through the medium of _Punch_. The insertion _trebled_ the -sale of the number. Mark Lemon was always very proud of this success, -which was certainly attributable to his efforts. - -"'Hood wants but one thing to make him famous,' he used to say, 'and -that is death.' - -"His words were verified, for in poverty and comparative obscurity died -one of England's cleverest men." - -In 1849 some very painful disclosures were made in the Metropolitan -police-courts, when it appeared "that numbers of poor sempstresses were -paid by the slop-sellers only three-halfpence for making a shirt, and in -proportion for other articles of ready-made clothing." In all -probability these disclosures suggested the "Song of the Shirt," as they -assuredly did the charming designs by Leech, called "Pin-Money" and -"Needle-Money." It seems to me almost an impertinence for a commentator -on such admirable designs as these to point out the beauties so palpable -to all who look at them. We sympathize with each of these classes of -beings, for they are both the results of conditions that they have done -nothing to create. It is certain that one of them is miserable, and it -is by no means sure that the lovely girl's pin-money brings happiness -with it. - -There was everything in the shape of similarity of thought and feeling -to have brought Leech and Hood into intimacy, but I doubt if they ever -saw much of each other. Hood's comparatively premature death, preceded -by much sickness and seclusion, took place while Leech was far from the -position in public estimation that he afterwards reached. In proof of -similarity of humour I give the following note from Hood to Dickens: - - - "17, Elm Tree Road, 1841, - _Saturday_. - - "DEAR DICKENS, - - "As you are going to America, and have kindly offered to execute - any little commission for me, pray, if it be not too much trouble, - try to get me an autograph of Sandy Hook's. I have Theodore's. - - "Yours very truly, - - "THOS. HOOD. - - "My boy does _not_ wait for an answer." - -"Miss Kilmansegg and her Precious Leg: a Golden Legend," is perhaps one -of the best, as it is certainly the longest, of Hood's poems, -remarkable, indeed, for its puns and ingenious play upon words, its -felicitous rhyming, and its underlying moral. Miss Kilmansegg was born -with a golden spoon in her mouth, and her condition is shown in the -charming drawing with which Leech illustrates the following lines: - - "What wide reverses of fate are there! - Whilst Margaret, charmed by the Bulbul rare, - In a Garden of Gull reposes, - Poor Peggy hawks nosegays from street to street, - Till--think of that, who find life so sweet!-- - She hates the smell of roses! - -[Illustration: "WHAT WIDE REVERSES OF FATE ARE THERE!"] - - "Not so with the infant Kilmansegg-- - She was not born to steal or beg, - Or gather cresses in ditches; - To plait the straw, or bind the shoe, - Or sit all day to hem and sew, - As females must--and not a few!-- - To fill their insides with stitches." - -The christening of the golden child was an affair so splendid as to tax -the poet's invention for tropes and figures worthy of the occasion: - - "Gold! and gold! and nothing but gold! - The same auriferous shine behold - Wherever the eye could settle! - On the walls--the sideboard--the ceiling--sky--, - On the gorgeous footmen standing by, - In coats to delight a miner's eye - With seams of precious metal. - - "Gold! and gold! and besides the gold, - The very robe of the infant told - A tale of wealth in every fold-- - It lapped her like a vapour! - So fine! so thin! the mind at a loss, - Could compare it to nothing except a cross - Of cobweb with banknote paper." - -Powerful as the poet's imagination shows in these glittering rhymes, it -fails him in his endeavour to find a prefix in the form of a name worthy -of accompanying Kilmansegg. He says: - - "Then the babe was crossed and blessed amain, - But instead of Kate, or Ann, or Jane, - Which the humbler female endorses-- - Instead of one name, as some people prefix, - Kilmansegg went at the tails of six, - Like a carriage of state with its horses." - -The names, therefore, are left to the imagination of the reader, who may -learn, if he will, some particulars of the nameless Kilmansegg's -childhood: - - "Turn we to little Miss Kilmansegg, - Cutting her first little toothy-peg - With a fifty-guinea coral-- - A peg upon which - About poor and rich - Reflection might hang on a moral. - - "Born in wealth, and wealthily nursed, - Capp'd, papp'd, napp'd, and lapp'd from the first - On the knees of Prodigality, - Her childhood was one eternal round - Of the game of going on Tiddler's ground, - Picking up gold in reality. - - * * * * * - - "Gold! and gold! 'twas the burden still! - To gain the heiress's early goodwill - There was much corruption and bribery. - The yearly cost of her golden toys - Would have given half London's charity boys - And charity girls the annual joys - Of a holiday dinner at Highbury." - -The kind of education permitted to this unfortunate heiress may be -gathered from the following extracts: - - "Long before her A B and C - They had taught her by heart her £ s. d., - And as how she was born a great heiress; - And as sure as London was made of bricks - My Lord would ask her the day to fix - To ride in a fine gilt coach and six, - Like her Worship the Lady Mayoress. - - "The very metal of merit they told, - And praised her for being as 'good as gold'! - Till she grew as a peacock haughty; - Of money they talked the whole day round, - And weighed desert like grapes, by the pound, - Till she had an idea from the very sound - That people with naught were naughty. - - "Gold! still gold.... - Gold ran in her thoughts and filled her brain, - She was golden-headed, like Peter's cane, - With which he walked behind her." - -[Illustration] - -Leech's drawings which decorate "Miss Kilmansegg" display his -appreciation of beauty and character, and are, in some examples, of -great artistic excellence--notably in the portrait of the foreign -gentleman who became the husband of the heiress. Some of them are, of -course, deficient in the artistic qualities with which his long practice -enabled him to enrich his latest work. - -My space will not permit of my making many extracts from Hood's -admirable work--only, indeed, so far as to explain Leech's drawings; but -to those of my readers who make Miss Kilmansegg's acquaintance for the -first time in these pages, I heartily recommend a perusal of the poem, -and envy them the pleasure they will find in reading it. - -Of course Miss Kilmansegg - - "... learnt to sing and to dance, - To sit on a horse although he should prance, - And to speak a French not spoken in France - Any more than at Babel's building." - -The steed was a thoroughbred of great spirit-- - - "A regular thoroughbred Irish horse, - And he ran away, as a matter of course, - With a girl worth her weight in guineas." - -I think it would be very difficult to find a description of any event in -any book to equal Hood's account of the mad career of the Irish horse -and its unfortunate rider: - - "Away went the horse in the madness of fright, - And away went the horsewoman mocking the sight; - Was yonder blue flash a flash of blue light, - Or only the flash of her habit? - - "Away she flies, and the groom behind"-- - -encountering all the perils of London streets, till the inevitable -catastrophe takes place: - - "On and on! still frightfully fast! - Dover Street, Bond Street, all are past! - But--yes--no--yes!--they're down at last! - - * * * * * - - There's a shriek and a sob - And the dense dark mob - Like a billow closes around them! - 'She breathes!' - 'She don't' - 'She'll recover!' - 'She won't.' - 'She's stirring! she's living by Nemesis!' - Gold, still gold, on counter and shelf, - Golden dishes as plenty as delf, - Miss Kilmansegg's coming again to herself - On an opulent goldsmith's premises!" - -The heiress recovers; but, alas! in her fall she broke her leg, and as -"the limb was doomed it couldn't be saved." A substitute must be found. -Of what, then, shall the "proxy limb" be made? - - "She couldn't--she shouldn't--she wouldn't have wood! - Nor a leg of cork, if she never stood; - And she swore an oath, or something as good, - The proxy limb should be golden! - - So a leg was made in a comely mould - Of gold--fine virgin, glittering gold-- - As solid as man could make it; - Solid in foot, and calf, and shank, - A prodigious sum of money it sank; - In fact 'twas a Branch of the family Bank, - And no easy matter to break it." - -The golden leg became the talk of the town, kicking away all other -attractions. The new novel, the new murder, even "wild Irish riots and -rum-pusses," were neglected; in fact, "the leg was in everybody's -mouth," and a grand fancy ball was given at the Kilmansegg mansion to -celebrate the heiress's recovery, as well as to exhibit the golden leg. -All the world and his wife worship at the golden shrine: - - "In they go--in jackets, and cloaks, - Plumes and bonnets, turbans and tokes, - As if to a congress of nations: - Greeks and Malays, with daggers and dirks, - Spaniards and Jews, Chinese and Turks-- - Some like original foreign works, - But mostly like bad translations. - - * * * * * - - But where--where--where? with one accord - Cried Moses and Mufti, Jack and my Lord, - Wang-Fong and Il Bondacani-- - When slow and heavy, and dead as a dump, - They heard a foot begin to stump, - Thump! lump! - Lump! thump! - Like the spectre in 'Don Giovanni!' - - "And lo! the heiress, Miss Kilmansegg, - With her splendid, brilliant, beautiful leg, - In the garb of a Goddess olden-- - Like chaste Diana going to hunt - With a golden spear--which of course was blunt, - And a tunic looped up to a gem in front, - To show the leg was golden." - -The fancy ball was a great success, and at supper--which the poet -describes in glowing language--the heiress's health was proposed: - - "'Miss Kilmansegg, - Full glasses I beg. - Miss Kilmansegg and her Precious Leg!' - And away went the bottle careering! - Wine in bumpers! and shouts in peals! - Till the clown didn't know his head from his heels, - The Mussulman's eyes danced two-some reels, - And the Quaker was hoarse with cheering!" - -The party being over, and the last guest gone, Miss Kilmansegg went to -bed and to dream: - - "Miss Kilmansegg took off her leg - And laid it down like a cribbage-peg, - For the rout was done and the riot; - The square was hushed, not a sound was heard - The sky was gray, and no creature stirr'd - Except one little precocious bird - That chirped--and then was quiet. - - * * * * * - - "And then on the bed her frame she cast, - The time for repose had come at last; - But long, long after the storm is past - Rolls the turbid, turbulent billow." - -She dreams: - - "Gold! she saw at her golden foot - The Peer whose tree has an olden root; - The Proud, the Great, the Learned to boot, - The handsome, the gay, and the witty-- - The man of Science--of Arms--of Art, - The man who deals but at Pleasure's mart, - And the man who deals in the City." - -The poet now rhymes delightfully of the time--the perilous time--when a -choice has to be made of a partner in life for the heiress. The dream -was realized so far as regards the number of her suitors, for-- - - "to tell the rigid truth, - Her favour was sought by Age and Youth, - For the prey will find a prowler! - She was followed, flattered, courted, address'd, - Woo'd and coo'd and wheedl'd, and press'd - By suitors from North, South, East, and West, - Like that Heiress in song, 'Tibbie Fowler.'" - -The _embarras de choix_ resulted, as often happens, in the selection of -the worst of the group: - - "A foreign Count--who came incog. - Not under a cloud, but under a fog, - In a Calais packet's fore-cabin, - - To charm some lady British-born, - With his eyes as black as the fruit of the thorn, - And his hooky nose, and his beard half shorn, - Like a half-converted Rabbin. - - * * * * * - - "He was dressed like one of the glorious trade-- - At least, when Glory is off parade-- - With a stock, and a frock, well trimmed with braid, - And frogs--that went a-wooing." - -[Illustration: "THE FOREIGN COUNT."] - -He could - - "act the tender, and do the cruel; - For amongst his other killing parts, - He had broken a brace of female hearts, - And murdered three men in a duel. - - "Savage at heart, and false of tongue; - Subtle with age, and smooth to the young, - Like a snake in his coiling and curling, - Such was the Count--to give him a niche-- - Who came to court that heiress rich, - And knelt at her foot--one needn't say which-- - Besieging her Castle of _Sterling_." - -In the whole range of Leech's art, no more subtle realization of -character can be found than this wonderful drawing presents; in every -touch, in every line, can be read the savage brutality of the man to -whom the happiness of Hood's poor rich heroine is confided. How evident -is "the trail of the serpent" over features not unhandsome! The love -that could fail to be warned by such a face must be blind indeed. The -poet's comments, and the contrast he shows between the lots of those who -"marry for money" and those in whom simple and true love have been the -guiding stars, are delightful. I add an example: - - "But, oh! the love that gold must crown! - Better, better, the love of the clown, - Who admires his lass in her Sunday gown, - As if all the fairies had dressed her! - Whose brain to no crooked thought gives birth, - Except that he never will part on earth - With his truelove's crooked tester! - - "Alas! for the love that's linked with gold, - Better, better a thousand times told-- - More honest and happy and laudable, - The downright loving of pretty Ciss, - Who wipes her lips, though there's nothing amiss, - And takes a kiss, and gives a kiss, - In which her heart is audible." - -The Count has been accepted; he has presented his betrothed - - "With a miniature sketch of his hooky nose, - And his dear dark eyes as black as sloes, - And his beard and whiskers as black as those. - The lady's consent he requited: - And instead of the lock that lovers beg, - The Count received from Miss Kilmansegg - A model, in small, of her precious leg-- - And so the couple were plighted!" - -But a short time probably elapsed between the betrothal and the -marriage, which was solemnized, with golden splendour, of course, at St. -James's Church. Thus the poet sings: - - "'Twas morn--a most auspicious one! - From the golden east, the golden sun - Came forth his glorious race to run - Through clouds of most splendid tinges; - Clouds that had lately slept in shade, - But now seemed made - Of gold brocade, - With magnificent gold fringes. - - * * * * * - - "In short, 'twas the year's most golden day, - By mortals called the first of May, - When Miss Kilmansegg, - Of the golden leg - With a golden ring was married. - - * * * * * - - "And then to see the groom! the Count - With Foreign Orders to such an amount, - And whiskers so wild--nay, bestial; - He seemed to have borrowed the shaggy hair, - As well as the stars, of the Polar Bear, - To make him look celestial!" - -Of course the church was crowded inside and out, - - "For next to that interesting job, - The hanging of Jack, or Bill, or Bob, - There's nothing that draws a London mob - As the noosing of very rich people. - - * * * * * - - "And then, great Jove! the struggle, the crush, - The screams, the heaving, the awful rush, - The swearing, the tearing, the fighting; - The hats and bonnets, smashed like an egg, - To catch a glimpse of the golden leg, - Which between the steps and Miss Kilmansegg - Was fully displayed in alighting. - - * * * * * - - "But although a magnificent veil she wore, - Such as never was seen before, - In case of blushes, she blushed no more - Than George the First on a guinea! - - * * * * * - - "Bravely she shone--and shone the more, - As she sailed through the crowd of squalid and poor, - Thief, beggar, and tatterdemalion; - Led by the Count, with his sloe-black eyes, - Bright with triumph, and some surprise, - Like Anson, in making sure of his prize, - The famous Mexican galleon. - - * * * * * - - "Six 'Handsome Fortunes,' all in white, - Came to help the marriage rite, - And rehearse their own hymeneals; - And then the bright procession to close, - They were followed by just as many beaux-- - Quite fine enough for ideals. - - "And how did the bride perform her part? - Like any bride who is cold at heart, - Mere snow with the ice's glitter; - What but a life of winter for her? - Bright but chilly, alive without stir, - So splendidly comfortless, just like a fir - When the frost is severe and bitter. - - "Yet wedlock's an awful thing! - 'Tis something like that feat in the ring - Which requires good nerve to do it, - When one of a 'grand equestrian troop' - Makes a jump at a gilded hoop, - Not certain at all - Of what may befall - After his getting through it. - - "Such were the future of man and wife, - Whose bale or bliss to the end of life - A few short words were to settle: - Wilt thou have this woman? - I will--and then, - Wilt thou have this man? - I will, and Amen---- - And those two were one flesh in the angels' ken, - Except one leg--that was metal." - -[Illustration: THE WEDDING--"WILT THOU HAVE THIS WOMAN?"] - -Here we have the Count in profile, only more agreeable because the view -affords less of his villainous face. - -I confess I am disappointed with Leech's rendering of Miss Kilmansegg. I -cannot see why she should be deprived of a portion of the sympathy one -always feels for "beauty in distress." Why should she be represented as -the commonplace, red-nosed creature who plays the part of the bride in -Leech's drawing? To be sure, the contrast she affords to the sweet -little bridesmaid behind her heightens that young lady's attractions; -but I cannot help thinking the heiress is hardly treated. - -I pass over the wedding-breakfast, which was composed of everything in -season, and of much that was out of it-- - - "For wealthy palates there be that scout - What is _in_ season for what is _out_, - And prefer all precocious savour; - For instance, early green peas, of the sort - That costs some four or five guineas a quart, - Where _mint_ is the principal flavour." - -The inevitable honeymoon follows-- - - "To the loving a bright and constant sphere - That makes earth's commonest scenes appear - All poetic, romantic, and tender; - Hanging with jewels a cabbage-stump, - And investing a common post or a pump, - A currant-bush or a gooseberry clump, - With a halo of dream-like splendour." - - "Oh, happy, happy, thrice happy state, - When such a bright planet governs the fate - Of a pair of united lovers! - Tis theirs, in spite of the serpent's hiss, - To enjoy the pure primeval kiss, - With as much of the old original bliss - As mortality ever recovers." - -[Illustration: "LOVE AT THE BOARD."] - -I hope my readers will agree with me, that amongst the pleasures we -receive from this delightful poem, one of the greatest is the charming -little sketch which it has suggested to Leech in these two happy lovers, -completely wrapped up in each other, with love in the cottage, at the -board, and all about them. - -But the Kilmansegg moon! - - "Now, the Kilmansegg moon, it must be told, - Though instead of silver it tipped with gold, - Shone rather wan, and distant, and cold; - And before its days were thirty, - Such gloomy clouds began to collect, - With an ominous ring of ill-effect, - As gave but too much cause to expect - Such weather as seamen call dirty. - - "She hated lanes, she hated fields, - She hated all that the country yields, - And barely knew turnips from clover; - She hated walking in any shape, - And a country stile was an awkward scrape, - Without the bribe of a mob to gape - At the leg in clambering over. - - "Gold, still gold, her standard of old-- - All pastoral joys were tried by gold, - Or by fancies golden and crural, - Till ere she had passed one week unblest - As her agricultural uncle's guest, - Her mind was made up and fully imprest - That felicity could not be rural." - -And the Count? - - "To the snow-white lambs at play, - And all the scents and sights of May, - And the birds that warbled their passion, - His ears, and dark eyes, and decided nose, - Were as deaf, and as blind, and as dull as those - That overlook the Bouquet de Rose, - The Huile Antique, - And Parfum Unique, - In a Barber's Temple of Fashion. - - "And yet had that fault been his only one, - The pair might have had few quarrels or none, - For their tastes thus far were in common; - But faults he had that a haughty bride - With a golden leg could hardly abide-- - Faults that would even have roused the pride - Of a far less metalsome woman. - - * * * * * - - "He left her, in spite of her tender regards, - And those loving murmurs described by bards, - For the rattling of dice and the shuffling of cards - And the poking of balls into pockets. - - "Moreover, he loved the deepest stake - And the heaviest bets the players would make, - And he drank--the reverse of sparely! - And he used strange curses that made her fret; - And when he played with herself at picquet, - She found to her cost-- - For she always lost-- - That the Count did not count quite fairly. - - "And then came dark mistrust and doubt, - Gathered by worming his secrets out, - And slips in his conversation-- - Fears which all her peace destroyed, - That his title was null, his coffers were void, - And his French château was in Spain, or enjoyed - The most airy of situations. - - "But still his heart--if he had such a part-- - She--only she--might possess his heart, - And hold her affections in fetters. - Alas! that hope, like a crazy ship, - Was forced its anchor and cable to slip - When, seduced by her fears, she took a dip - In his private papers and letters-- - - "Letters that told of dangerous leagues, - And notes that hinted as many intrigues - As the Count's in the 'Barber of Seville.' - In short, such mysteries came to light - That the Countess-bride, on the thirtieth night, - Woke and started up in a fright, - And kicked and screamed with all her might, - And finally fainted away outright, - For she dreamt she had married the Devil!" - -In short, poor Miss Kilmansegg, or, rather, the "Golden Countess," was -utterly wretched: - - "Her cheek is pale, and her eye is dim, - And downward cast, yet not at the limb - Once the centre of all speculation; - But downward drooping in comfort's dearth, - As gloomy thoughts are drawn to the earth-- - Whence human sorrows derive their birth-- - By a moral gravitation. - - "How blessed the heart that has a friend - A sympathizing ear to lend - To troubles too great to smother! - But friend or gossip she had none - To hear the vile deeds the Count had done, - How night after night he rambled; - And how she learned by sad degrees - That he drank and smoked, and, worse than these, - That he 'swindled, intrigued, and gambled'! - - * * * * * - - "He brought _strange_ gentlemen home to dine - That he said were in the Fancy Line,-- - And they fancied spirits instead of wine, - And called her lap-dog 'Wenus.'" - -[Illustration: "HE BROUGHT STRANGE GENTLEMEN HOME TO DINE."] - -Leech has pretty well marked the profession of the "strange gentlemen" -in this admirable drawing; their attitudes, the cut of their clothes, -the character in their figures, to say nothing of the sticking-plaster -on a face that could belong to no one but a "fighting man," sufficiently -proclaim their habits. The figure of the Count is tragic in its -intensity of drunken self-abandonment. - -A leg of solid gold would, no doubt, if turned into cash, represent a -large sum of money. It seems to have been the determination of the -Countess, while still Miss Kilmansegg, to have reserved to herself all -rights over the golden leg, for that auriferous limb was settled, as -well as fixed upon herself, to be disposed of by will or otherwise, as -she pleased. Says the poet: - - "So the Countess, then Miss Kilmansegg, - At her marriage refused to stir a peg - Till her lawyers had fastened on her leg, - As fast as the law could tie it." - -Means which seem illimitable very speedily vanish when they fall into -the hands of such people as the foreign Count. It was said of a famous -_roué_ of the last century that he "practised every vice except -prodigality and hypocrisy--his insatiable avarice exempted him from the -first, and his matchless impudence from the second." Our Count seems to -have surpassed his prototype, whose "impudence" may not have been of the -brutal character from which the poor Countess suffered; whilst a slight -dash of avarice might have prevented the golden leg from being all that -was left of her golden fortune. - -The following lines eloquently describe the Count's state of mind after -his orgies: - - "And then how wildly he used to stare, - And shake his fist at nothing, and swear, - And pluck by the handful his shaggy hair, - Till he looked like a study of Giant Despair - For a new edition of Bunyan! - - "For dice will run the contrary way, - As is well known to all who play, - And cards will conspire as in treason." - -At all events, cards, dice, and other expensive amusements had so -reduced the Count that he had not a leg to stand upon, except his wife's -golden one, and as that limb was in her own control, it was but a -doubtful security. The Countess had made a will in which the leg was -left to the Count, but life is uncertain--the Countess might outlive her -husband; moreover, he was so placed that delay was not only dangerous, -but inconvenient. The chronicler thus continues: - - "Now, the precious leg while cash was flush, - Or the Count's acceptance worth a rush, - Had never excited dissension; - But no sooner the stocks began to fall, - Than, without any ossification at all, - The limb became what people call - A perfect bone of contention. - - "For altered days made altered ways, - And instead of the complimentary phrase - So current before her bridal, - The Countess heard, in language low, - That her precious leg was precious slow, - A good 'un to look at, but bad to go, - And kept quite a sum lying idle. - - * * * * * - - "But spite of hint, and threat, and scoff, - The leg kept its situation; - For legs are not to be taken off - By a verbal amputation. - - "Firmly then--and more firmly yet-- - With scorn for scorn, and with threat for threat, - The proud one confronted the cruel; - And loud and bitter the quarrel arose, - Fierce and merciless--one of those - With spoken daggers, and looks like blows-- - In all but the bloodshed a duel. - - "Rash and wild, and wretched and wrong, - Were the words that came from weak and strong, - Till, maddened for desperate matters, - Fierce as a tigress escaped from her den, - She flew to her desk--'twas opened--and then, - In the time it takes to try a pen, - Or the clerk to utter his slow 'Amen,' - Her will was in fifty tatters! - - "But the Count, instead of curses wild, - Only nodded his head and smiled, - As if at the spleen of an angry child; - But the calm was deceitful and sinister! - And a lull like the lull of the treacherous sea-- - For Hate in that moment had sworn to be - _The golden leg's sole legatee, - And that very night to administer_." - -[Illustration: "THE TORN WILL."] - -"That very night!"--one more night of golden dreaming, in the midst of -which comes death; the deliverer from an existence which the worship of -gold has made so pitiful: - - "'Tis a stern and startling thing to think, - How often mortality stands on the brink - Of its grave without any misgiving: - And yet in this slippery world of strife, - In the stir of human bustle so rife, - There are daily sounds to tell us that life - Is dying, and Death is living! - - "But breath and bloom set doom at nought-- - How little the wretched Countess thought, - When at night she unloosed her sandal, - That the fates had woven her burial-cloth, - And that Death, in the shape of a death's head moth, - Was fluttering round her candle! - - "As she looked at her clock of ormolu, - For the hours she had gone so wearily through - At the end of a day of trial, - How little she saw in the pride of prime - The dart of Death in the hand of Time-- - That hand which moved the dial! - - "As she went with her taper up the stair, - How little her swollen eye was aware - That the shadow which followed was double! - Or when she closed her chamber-door, - It was shutting out, and for evermore, - The world and its worldly trouble. - - "Little she dreamt as she laid aside - Her jewels--after one glance of pride-- - They were solemn bequests to Vanity; - Or when her robes she began to doff, - That she stood so near to the putting off - Of the flesh that clothes humanity. - - "And when she quenched the taper's light, - How little she thought, as the smoke took flight, - That her day was done and merged in a night - Of dreams and duration uncertain; - Or along with her own - That a hand of bone - Was closing mortality's curtain! - - * * * * * - - "Thus, even thus, the Countess slept, - While death still nearer and nearer crept, - Like the Thane who smote the sleeping; - But her mind was busy with early joys, - Her golden treasures and golden toys, - That flashed a bright - And golden light - Under lids still red with weeping. - - "The golden guineas in silken purse, - And the 'Golden Legends' she heard from her nurse, - Of the Mayor in his gilded carriage-- - And London streets that were paved with gold, - And the golden eggs that were laid of old-- - With each golden thing - To the golden ring - At her own auriferous marriage! - - "And still the golden light of the sun - Through her golden dream appeared to run, - Though the night that roared without was one - To terrify seamen or gipsies-- - While the moon, as if in malicious mirth, - Kept peeping down at the ruffled earth, - As though she enjoyed the tempest's birth, - In revenge of her old eclipses. - - "But vainly, vainly the thunder fell, - For the soul of the sleeper was under a spell, - That time had lately embittered-- - The Count, as once at her foot he knelt-- - That foot which now he wanted to melt! - But, hush! 'twas a stir at her pillow she felt, - And some object before her glittered. - - "'Twas the golden leg! she knew its gleam! - And up she started and tried to scream; - But even in the moment she started, - Down came the limb with a frightful smash, - And, lost in the universal flash - That her eyeballs made at so mortal a crash, - The spark called vital departed. - - "Gold, still gold, hard, yellow, and cold, - For gold she had lived, and died for gold-- - By a golden weapon, not oaken; - In the morning they found her all alone-- - Stiff, and bloody, and cold as a stone-- - But her leg, the golden leg, was gone, - And the 'golden bowl was broken.' - - "HER MORAL. - - "Gold! gold! gold! gold! - Bright and yellow, hard and cold, - Molten, graven, hammered, and rolled; - Heavy to get, and light to hold; - Hoarded, bartered, bought, and sold, - Stolen, borrowed, squandered, doled; - Spurned by the young, but hugged by the old - To the very verge of the churchyard mould; - Price of many a crime untold; - Gold! gold! gold! gold! - Good or bad a thousandfold! - How widely its agencies vary-- - To save, to ruin, to curse, to bless-- - As even its minted coins express, - Now stamped with the image of good Queen Bess, - And now of Bloody Mary!" - -[Illustration: "BEDTIME."] - -The admirable design--the "tailpiece" to the legend of "Miss Kilmansegg -and her Golden Leg"--which Leech calls "Bedtime," is reproduced, not -only for its excellence as a composition, but also in evidence of the -readiness of the artist's imagination to adopt an idea that has been -suggested by the poem, and of the skill with which that cunning hand has -realized it. The little old miser has been "counting out his money" with -the delight that "time cannot wither, nor custom stale." His shrunken -shanks, thin face and hands, betray his age. Death cannot be far off; -but no thought apart from the treasure can be spared for the inevitable -visitor who surprises the miser at last in the midst of his golden -worship. He is far from being tired; but he must go to bed, and sleep -the sleep that knows no waking. His skeleton nurse has come for him; her -bony hands encircle him. His shroud is on her arm; she cannot wait--no, -not for him to handle once more those glittering coins, on which his eye -sparkles, and his claw-like fingers make vain attempts to reach. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -DR. JOHN BROWN AND LEECH. - - -Whether that charming writer, Dr. John Brown, knew Leech in the flesh or -not, I cannot say; but that he knew and fully appreciated him in spirit -is evident enough in a paper published in a collection of essays -entitled "Horæ Subsecivæ." I gather from the concluding passages of the -Doctor's brilliant essay that it had been his intention to have written -Leech's life, having collected much material for the purpose, but that -"ill-health put a stop to this congenial labour." How admirably the -labour would have been executed may be shown by the following extracts: - -"Leech," says Dr. Brown, "was singularly modest, both as a man and an -artist. This came by nature, and was indicative of the harmony and -sweetness of his essence; but doubtless the perpetual going to Nature, -and drawing out of her fulness, kept him humble, as well as made him -rich--made him (what every man of sense and power must be) conscious of -his own strength. But before 'the great mother' he was simple and -loving, attentive to her lessons as a child, for ever learning and -doing." - -Again: "Of all our satirists, none have such a pervading sense and power -of girlish, ripe, and womanly beauty as Leech.... There is a genuine -domesticity about his scenes that could come only from a man who was -much at his own fireside, and in the nursery when baby was washed. You -see, he is himself _pater familias_, with no Bohemian trait or raffish -turn. What he draws, he has seen; what he asks you to live in, and laugh -at and with, he has laughed at and lived in. It is this wholesomeness -and (to use the right word) this goodness that makes Leech more than a -drawer of funny pictures, more even than a great artist. It makes him a -teacher and an example of virtue in its widest sense, from that of -manliness to the sweet devotion of a woman, and the loving open mouth -and eyes of _parvula_ on your knee." - -I find it difficult to believe that these remarks were written by one -who had no personal knowledge of Leech; indeed, I should have thought -the writer must have enjoyed an amount of intimacy with him. If Dr. -Brown and Leech were strangers to each other, the writer's accurate -estimate of the artist shows how exactly the drawings reflect the -delightful nature of their producer, so familiar to his nearest -friends. - -"What we owe to him," adds Dr. Brown, "of wholesome, hearty mirth and -pleasure, and of something better than either--good as they are--purity, -affection, pluck, humour, kindliness, good-humour, good-feeling, -good-breeding, the love of Nature, of one another, of truth, the joys of -children, the loveliness of our homely English fields, with their -sunsets and village spires, their glimpses into the pure infinite -beyond, the sea and all its fulness, its waves 'curling their monstrous -heads and hanging them,' their crisping smiles on sunlit sands--all that -variety of Nature and of man, which is only less infinite than its -Maker! Something of this and of that mysterious quality called humour, -that fragrance and flavour of the soul, which God has given us to cheer -our lot, to help us to 'take heart and hope and steer right onward,' to -have our joke, that lets us laugh and make game of ourselves when we -have little else to laugh at or play with, of that which gives us when -we will the silver lining of the cloud, and paints a rainbow on the -darkened sky out of our own 'troublous tears'--something of all these -has this great, simple-hearted, hard-working artist given to us and to -our children as a joy and a possession for ever. Let us be grateful to -him; let us give him our best honour, affection, and regard." - -Walking with Leech one day, we met an old gentleman, to whom I -introduced my friend: early in the fifties it was. The old man, though -well stricken in years, sported a dark and heavy moustache. - -"And so," said Leech, when, after a few commonplaces, we separated, -"that is old Mr. Blank the portrait-painter, is it? What on earth -induces him to wear purple moustachios?" Purple they were, certainly, -and of rather a bright tinge. - -"Well," I replied, "he has dyed them, for they were white the other -day." - -"In my opinion," said Leech, "only soldiers should be allowed -moustachios." - -In my early days, that "hirsute appendage" created such a prejudice -against the wearers as would not be credited in these beard-bearing -times. There were places of business the doors of which were closed -against the moustache. At a well-known bank complete shaving of -moustache and beard is insisted upon to this day. The sufferings of our -troops in the Crimea were sufficiently agonizing without the torment or -even the possibility of the morning's shave; and it is to the Russian -campaign we owe the "beard movement," which from that time to the -present is so universal. Our officers returned from their battles -covered with glory and hair, and so much improved by the latter--in the -opinion of those whose approval was most valued--as to make a sacrifice -of it out of the question. Little did Leech imagine when he made his -sweeping objection to the moustache, what a factor he would find it in -his future work. How many delightful sketches turn upon it! Who can -forget those two little rival snobs--rivals in the love of some fair -approver of beards--who have withdrawn themselves from society during -the incubation of their moustachios, and who, having accidentally sought -the same suburban retirement, meet face to face, stubbly beard to -stubbly beard, at a corner of a lane? And that precocious young -gentleman who asks his sisters if they approve of the removal of a -moustache, the presence of which they had never been able to discover! - -Under the heading of "The Beard Movement," we have a British swell in a -fainting state in the arms of a policeman; this serious condition having -arisen from the sight of a postman with moustachios. In another drawing, -policemen are marching to their posts of duty decorated by beards of -such magnitude as to strike terror into the street boys, who scatter in -all directions at the sight of them. - -In "Pictures of Life and Character" other examples of the alarm excited -by the beard movement are given with the refined humour peculiar to -Leech. - -I find I have to modify somewhat my conviction that Leech rarely adopted -the subjects proposed to him for illustration; no doubt by far the -largest number were the outcome of his own conception, or observation of -incidents in his experience; but I have proof of several examples to the -contrary. For instance, Mr. Holman Hunt says: "One Friday night I had -sat down to much correspondence, intending before concluding to write of -two or three amusing facts picked up that might suit him (Leech) for -illustration. It had become very late, and I was clearing away my paper, -when, with vexation, I remembered his letter had not been written. I -seized the pen, and on a page I drew two horizontal lines quite dividing -the space. In the top I put: 'Scene--Kitchen garden, country cottage. -_Dramatis Personæ_: Factotum, master entering,' and then a line or two -of dialogue. - -"The second subject I treated similarly, and the third also, which was -not so promising. I enclosed this without a word to Leech, and posted it -with my other letters about two in the morning. The following Wednesday -the two subjects, admirably treated, were in _Punch_. When next I saw -him he was eager with excuses for not having written. He added: 'The -letter when it was opened at breakfast was most opportune, for I had to -leave town by five, and I was bound to furnish two designs before -going, and I had come down without having the wildest notion what to do. -The subjects in your note were ready-made, and I was able to sketch them -without a moment's waste of time." - -Mr. Hunt tells an anecdote of Kenny Meadows, the jovial Bohemian, whom, -I hope, the reader of these pages may remember, that is so -characteristic and amusing, and illustrative of his own nature and of -that of Leech, that I insert it in this place. "Meadows was quite at the -head of the _Punch_ artists when Leech joined them, and was naturally -delighted by the praise bestowed upon his drawings by 'this ruler -amongst the illustrators of _Punch_.' He--Meadows--declared that a sight -of Leech's illustrations had so disgusted him with his own work that he -felt inclined to give up art altogether. 'Why,' said he, 'should I go on -giving proof after proof of my incapacity when you leave me so far -behind?' This modest effusion was uttered early in the evening, and -before the setting in of the gin-and-water period, which was destined to -effect a striking change in Meadows' estimate of himself, and of the -recent addition to the pictorial staff. - -"Leech was a sincere admirer of Meadows' work, and of this he assured -the self-condemning artist in no measured terms, instancing for special -praise many of Kenny's designs brimming over with poetic conceits in the -illustrations of Shakespeare. Meadows listened to Leech's compliments, -and said it was 'deuced liberal' of him to say what he did. He then -mixed himself a glass of gin and water, saying, 'Well, after all, it's -wise to make the best of things, and be as jolly as one can under all -circumstances.' - -"The two artists then fell into general conversation, and into--on the -part of one of them--the imbibing of much gin and water. Under the -influence of the latter, Meadows returned to the subject of his own -works, and proceeded to show in what respect they surpassed those of -others--even Leech's, which were worthless from the absence of 'poetry,' -which ought to sanctify all art. - -"'Give me imagination or nothing, my dear boy!' he exclaimed. 'I don't -want your commonplace facts done with a little trick of caricature, as -it is called. Why don't you aim at something better, something higher? I -would rather do nothing than the things you do, which, not only in -design, but in execution, are unworthy of a true artist.'" - -All this was told to my friend by Leech himself, and, says Mr. Hunt, -"Leech's shrug of the shoulders, expressive of bearing infinite -disgrace, was the gesture of a comedian, but a hearty, good-natured -laugh gave the real expression of the feeling left in his kind soul; -there was not a jot of malice there against the severe judgment upon -himself. The Scandinavian hero returning so sedate from victory that he -might have been supposed to have suffered a defeat, or from disaster in -the field, so composed that he might have been thought victorious, could -not have surpassed Leech's manner in accepting both the praise and the -censure of his elder rival." - -Another old friend of mine, Mr. Horsley, R.A., offers further proof of -Leech's occasional acceptance of suggestions for his designs. In the -course of a walk Mr. Horsley was accosted by one of those itinerant -traders to whom the street is the shop, and solicited to buy a rope of -onions. - -"Take the last rope, sir," says the man. My friend looks like a -prosperous gentleman, to whom the offer might be made with a prospect of -success, though the awkwardness of his appearance with the addition of a -long rope of large onions in his hand would most likely prove a -deterrent to the purchase. Mr. Horsley declined the offer, but it -instantly occurred to him that such a proposal, if made to one of -Leech's "swells," would be intensely comic, and he accordingly -mentioned the incident to Leech, who smiled as usual and said nothing. A -drawing, however, appeared immediately in _Punch_, but, strange to say, -the incident is defrauded of much, if not all, its humour. The swell -leaves nothing to be desired, except that he certainly should have been -alone, and not, as according to Leech, accompanied by a lady, to whom -the onions might have been useful. The absurdity surely consisted in the -ludicrous position of a young gentleman who was subjected to an offer of -which he would scarcely know the meaning, and much less likely to take -advantage of it. My friend expressed his disappointment to Leech, who, -with characteristic modesty, acknowledged his mistake. - -"I may mention another curious failure," says Mr. Horsley. "Leech came -into my room one day roaring with laughter at a story he had just heard -of two small boys who had been overheard discussing the age of a -companion, and one said to the other, 'Well, I don't 'zactly know how -old Charley is; but he must be very old, for he blows his own nose.' -This is delightful as coming from the little chaps that Leech drew so -perfectly; but, wonderful to relate, he represented the conversation as -passing between a boy looking fourteen or fifteen and a girl in a -riding-habit." - -[Illustration] - -I subjoin the first idea of that which seems to be the incident told to -Mr. Horsley, though it fails to illustrate the scene as described by Mr. -Horsley, or the rendering of it afterwards adopted by Leech. The sketch, -however, will show the rough manner in which all the thoughts so -perfectly expressed on the wood-block were first sketched by the -artist. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - -AUTOGRAPH-HUNTERS AND OTHERS. - - -No doubt all painters, poets, literary men, Churchmen--in short, all men -who have attained to more or less celebrity--become the prey of the -autograph-hunter, either in the form of a boy at school, a young lady -whose life is made continuous sunshine by the contemplation of your -pictures or the study of your delightful poems, or an elderly gentleman -who has watched your career with intense interest from its beginning. -Each of these applicants, strange to say, avers that he or she will be -made happier by the possession of your name on a card or a piece of -paper which is enclosed for your signature, and in addition to your -"valued name," if you happen to be an artist, "if you will add a slight -sketch," the gratitude of the hunter will know no bounds. I have been -guilty on one or two occasions of complying with a desire that seems to -verge upon the unreasonable; but my folly is as nothing compared to -that of Edwin Landseer, who was a frequent and willing victim to such -imposition. On one of the many occasions when I had the happiness of -receiving Landseer at my house, the conversation turned upon the -autograph-hunter, whose habits were strongly anathematized by some of -us; the great painter defended the craze as harmless, easily gratified, -and complimentary to the objects of it. - -"Only this morning," said he, "I had an application from someone at -Birmingham for my name, and for a sketch of a dog's head added to it; -well, I complied with both desires." - -I confess to my surprise when I heard this, and I was amused on hearing -artists who were present exclaim loudly against such a proceeding, as -creating a precedent that they would be expected to follow. Harmless, -however, is the autograph pest in comparison with the really terrible -_album_, which bids unblushingly for work that may consume many hours of -the time of the painter or the poet. Here, again, Landseer was a great -sinner; many a splendidly bound album lies at this moment on gilded -tables in stately English mansions, the homes of our "old nobility," -with delightful drawings of sporting scenes by that cunning hand; and -there are instances, I am sorry to say, of the possessors being unable -to resist the sums offered for the purchase of their treasures so -cheaply acquired. - -As I am speaking of Edwin Landseer, I seize the opportunity of -expressing my great regret that my friend Mr. Sidney Cooper, R.A., in -his recently published memoirs, should have created an impression in the -public mind that Landseer was a drunkard. From my intimate knowledge of -Landseer, I can aver that nothing could be further from the fact. I have -dined in his company scores of times, and I have met him in all kinds of -society, and under conditions which would have made the propensity, if -it possessed him, irresistible; and never in a single instance did I, or -anyone else, see Landseer even _excited_ by drink. This was the habit of -the man until about a year and a half before his death, when the brain -disorder began which afterwards destroyed him. I cannot disguise from -myself that if Mr. Cooper had questioned the physicians who attended -Landseer in his last illness, he would have been told that a craving for -drink of every kind is one of the peculiarities of the disease which -every sufferer from it is quite unable to resist. I know that great care -was taken to keep stimulants from the illustrious patient; but that he -may have secretly possessed himself of wine or spirits on certain -occasions, and in that way given a colour to the report of his drunken -habits, is probable enough; but I venture to think a -brother-artist--even if the charge of habitual intoxication could have -been proved against this great painter--should have been mournfully -silent; how much more careful, then, should he have been, if he -desired--perhaps as a warning--to proclaim this terrible failing, to -ascertain whether he had truthful ground to go upon. - -I do not in the least apologize for the above, though it is "far wide" -of the purpose of this chapter; but I feel that my complaint against -albums is a little ungracious and ungrateful in the face of the -admirable page of sketches with which my publisher has supplied me. (See -note at the end of this chapter.) - -Mr. Richard Bentley was the possessor of an autograph-book and album -combined; but he did not solicit the aid of strangers to fill it, -thereby creating a wide difference between himself and the ordinary -album nuisance. "My father," says Mr. George Bentley, "started an -autograph-book, and got Cruikshank, Leech, and some others to give a -sketch, or, if not an artist, an autograph. Leech did one in colour. It -was so superior to anything in the volume that I cut it out and framed -it, and so see it every day in my life." - -The idea is to reproduce some of the characters he was so fond of -sketching, and some he had actually given; for instance, the girl in bed -is, I think, from the scene where a man gets up at night to fire at some -cats. The wife suddenly awakes, and finds him looking out of window, gun -in hand, and imagines thieves. The _voyez vous_[Illustration] is -delicious, and the old gentleman with "Now, it's my opinion," etc., I am -pretty sure is taken from a sketch in some work he had illustrated. - -So far Mr. George Bentley, who shows that his father, who was the -liberal employer of Leech, Dickens, Cruikshank, and so many others, had -a _raison d'être_ for his requests in favour of his album. - -I supplement Mr. Bentley's remarks on this delightful page by calling my -readers' special attention to that charming little boy and his dreadful -old grandmother--"Will Charley come and live with his gran-ma?" Study -well that little boy's face, beautiful as an angel's, as he looks -wondering at the hideous old woman--will he live with her? not, I -think, if he can help it. See, also, the lovely little group of the -ill-assorted couple--old husband and young wife. More terrible the -lady's fate there than Charley's with his "Gran-ma." - -I have now to notice another album belonging to no less a person than -the late Duke of Devonshire. Leech made the Duke's acquaintance while -staying with Millais at the Peacock, Baslow, a place within easy -distance of Chatsworth; where, by the way, Millais painted the perfect -likeness of Leech which, by his kindness, is allowed to enrich this -volume, and where, by Sir Joseph Paxton, I think, Leech was introduced -to the Duke, and entertained with much kindness at Chatsworth. How the -album was introduced to Leech, and whether the Duke asked for a sketch -or the artist volunteered it, I have no evidence to offer; but that a -design was made and repeated, the following letters from the Duke -sufficiently prove: - - - "August 6, 1851. - - "DEAR SIR, - - "I am so much charmed with your device that I must have a seal - engraved from it. Perhaps you would have the kindness to renew the - sketch for me on a smaller scale, as I am unwilling to extract the - leaf made valuable by you from the book. The stone should not be - larger than this, which, I fear, makes my request hardly possible. - - "Most sincerely yours, - - "DEVONSHIRE." - -[Illustration] - -The reduced scale proved no obstacle, and the success was gracefully -acknowledged as follows: - - - "London, April 14, 1852. - - "DEAR SIR, - - "In these critical days of the Crystal Palace, let me request your - acceptance of the seal for which you gave me the idea. - - "And that you may not have any feeling as to depriving me of it, I - must tell you that I have another. - - "Believe me, - - "Most sincerely yours, - - "DEVONSHIRE." - -But what was the subject of the drawing? In a courteous reply to my -inquiry, I find from the present Duke that he has no such drawing in -any of his books, and he knows nothing of the seal. In a postscript to -one of Leech's letters to his friend Adams, however, I find the -following mention of it: - - "Look at the seal on this envelope. I told you, I think, some time - ago about my making a little sketch for the Duke of Devonshire, and - how kind he was about it, saying he must have a seal made of it. - Well, he called here himself, and left me a most handsome and - valuable seal the other day, of which, I confess, I am proud to - send you an impression. As you say of some of your people, 'It's - very nice to be treated so, isn't it?' The design of the seal is a - spade turning up the Crystal Palace, in allusion to Paxton being a - gardener. - - "Ever yours, my dear Charley, - "JOHN LEECH. - - "31, Notting Hill Terrace, - "April 20, 1852." - -Though the present Duke of Devonshire knows nothing of the seal, or the -drawing from which it was made, I am happy to say that I am able to -present to my readers an impression from it, through the kindness of -Leech's son-in-law, Mr. Gillett, to whom I applied in my perplexity. - -Everybody may not know that Sir Joseph Paxton, the Duke of Devonshire's -gardener, was the architect of the glass house of 1851, afterwards -christened the Crystal Palace, which--greatly enlarged--now flourishes -at Sydenham. I conclude this chapter with an extract from _Notes and -Queries_, evidently written by a friend of Leech. The writer, under date -November, 1864, says: - - "Leech's success was owing to his almost daily practice of jotting - in his note-book every remarkable physiognomy or incident that - struck him in his rambles. Such, at any rate, was his practice at - the commencement of his too brief career. On one occasion he and I - were riding to town together in an omnibus, when an elderly - gentleman in a very peculiar dress, and with very marked features, - stepped into the vehicle, and sat down immediately in front of us. - We were the only inside passengers. For whom or for what he took, - or probably mistook, us, I know not; but he stared so hard, and - made such wry faces at us, that I could hardly refrain from - laughter. My discomfiture was almost completed when Leech suddenly - exclaimed, 'By the way, did Prendergast ever show you that - extraordinary account that has been recently forwarded to him?' - and, showing me his note-book, added, 'Just run your eye up that - column, and tell me what you can make of it.' Instead of a column, - the features of the old gentleman were reflected upon the page with - life-like fidelity. On another occasion I saw him strike off with - promptitude and skill the scene of a quarrel between some dirty - little urchins in a suburban village." - -_Note._--To my great regret, I find that the material in which Mr. -Bentley's drawing was executed made its reproduction impossible. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -ARTISTS' LIVES. - - -"Silent, gentle, forbearing, his indignation flashed forth an eloquence -when roused by anything mean or ungenerous. Manly in all his thoughts, -tastes, and habits, there was about him an almost feminine tenderness. -He would sit by the bedside, and smooth the pillow of a sick child with -the gentleness of a woman. No wonder he was the idol of those around -him, but it is the happiness of such a life that there is so little to -be told of it." - -I do not know to what friend of Leech's we are indebted for these few -words; which are, however, sufficient to convey a perfect idea of the -subject of them to those to whom he was only known by his works. - -The lives of most artists are uneventful. Leech's short life was -especially so. His incessant labour prevented his giving the time to -what is called society--that is so often devoted to it--to the loss of -the happiness that home always afforded to him. He was a -self-sacrificing and most dutiful son, a good and loving father and -husband, and a true and faithful friend. In the quotation above we read -that there is little to be told of Leech's life. I have talked with -those who had the happiness of greater intimacy with him than I can -boast of, without being able to learn anything beyond the ordinary -events of an everyday life, void of dramatic incident, commonplace in -fact, except for the constant triumph of an unapproachable genius. - -Leech had a large circle of friends and acquaintances, with here and -there an aristocrat amongst the latter; but his intimates were few: -between them and him, however, there were unusually strong ties of -affectionate regard; his nervous, modest, retiring nature often conveyed -a false impression of him to casual acquaintances. I have heard him -described as haughty, "stand-offish," cold, and so on; and his manner to -some of those who may have met him for the first time, occasionally -admitted of that construction; but it arose from nervousness, or from an -aversion to loud and ill-timed compliment, feeling, as he sincerely did, -his "little sketches" deserved no such eulogium. Though Leech's life -offers no field for the description of stirring events, the delightful -nature of the man affords matchless opportunities for study, reflection, -and emulation; and that study may be pursued in the examination of his -works, in which, as in a looking-glass, the nature of their producer is -reflected. There may be seen ever-recurring proofs of the artist's -intense love of Nature in all her forms; whether he deals with woman, -the most beautiful of all Nature's works, or with children in the -endless variety of their attractiveness, absolute truth, tenderness and -beauty are paramount; and not only are these creatures natural and -beautiful, but the artist is at one with them in all their doings, from -the sympathy peculiar to him with all that is simple, pure, and lovable. -Side by side with this tenderness of heart, we have a robust manliness -which shows itself constantly. - -As a matter of course Leech's love of Nature was not confined to -humanity, but was extended to the animal creation, to the trees and the -fields, the sea-shore and the sea--in short, to every form of animate -and inanimate nature. Think what a delight such a constituted heart and -mind must be to the possessor of them! and not only to him, but to us to -whom he so freely offers the results of his sympathies, making us -certainly happier, and it is to be hoped better, by the taking in of so -much that is exhilarating, healthy, and true. Evidence is frequent of -pity for the sufferings of the poor and the oppressed. In many a scene -Leech becomes a warm sympathizer with unmerited distress; and constantly -his honest heart is stirred into indignation at some instance of -injustice; then we find that the pencil which can deal so gently with -childhood and woman can also, in indelible lines, stigmatize the -stony-hearted oppressor. - -Underlying the refined and delicate humour that distinguishes the -greater part of Leech's work we frequently find some more or less -serious social grievance smartly satirized. In "Servant-Gal-ism," for -example, the airs and graces, the impudent assumption, and the -dishonesty even, which sometimes disgrace those otherwise worthy people, -are shown to us in drawings so humorous as to make us laugh heartily, -but at the same time we feel the full force of the satire intended. In -the encounters between servant-girls and their mistresses the ladies -sometimes get the worst of it; notably in a drawing that represents a -mistress and her maid in conflict respecting the dressing of their hair. -The old lady has tortured her few remaining locks into miserable little -ringlets, that make a shocking contrast to the long curls of her young -and pretty servant; and no sooner does she catch sight of the girl's -ringlets, than she angrily tells her she will not permit such bare-faced -imitation of the way she chooses to wear her hair. Here I am afraid we -cannot help feeling a certain amount of contempt for the blind vanity -and tyranny of the mistress, while we sympathize with the maid. - -Footmen afford a wide field for the good-humoured banter of Leech. - -Amongst the many striking proofs of the genius that distinguished him, -is one that to me, as an artist, is astonishing. I allude to the -individual character with which Leech invests each of his servant-girls -and footmen, as well as every type that comes under his hand. I have not -counted the number of servants of "all sorts and sizes" that appear in -"Pictures of Life and Character," but I am quite sure that a comparison -of one with another will prove that not one can be found in the -slightest degree to resemble another; each is an individual by himself -or herself, separate and distinct--a footman from top to toe; take away -his uniform, and, from some peculiarity of manner or action, he is -unmistakably a footman still. The same may be said of the maid-servants, -in whom Leech's wonderful power of individualizing is shown even more -palpably; for the cook is a cook, and perfectly distinct from the -scullery-maid and the charwoman; and no two cooks or kitchen-maids -resemble each other personally, but only in their offices. - -The same may be truly said of numberless types immortalized by Leech; -but, strange to say, it cannot be said of the _young_ ladies: they -almost all have a family likeness to one another--a resemblance that can -be traced to Mrs. Leech. This fault, for it is a fault, and a grave one, -is as strange to me as the infinite variety shown in his representation -of all sorts and conditions of men and women is astounding. In marking -this I point to the only shortcoming in all Leech's work, and though, as -I think (I may be wrong), he has this fault in his treatment of young -ladies, it is absent in his drawings of elderly or old ones; the -aristocratic or plebeian old women are as well marked in personal -contrast with each other as the rest of his delightful creations. - -The rest of his creations! What a dazzling, bewildering mass of humanity -crowds upon the mind when one attempts to point out special scenes for -examination and criticism! If I were to say a tithe of what I feel about -hundreds of Leech's drawings, I should greatly exceed the space -permitted to me in this book, and I should also show how inferior my -powers of analysis are to those of Dickens and Thackeray, and others -whose delightful appreciation of beauty, humour and character are so -eloquently set forth elsewhere in this memoir; and perhaps I may add -that I have sufficient respect for the intelligence of my readers to -convince me that they require no directions from me as to when they -should laugh and when look grave, or where to discover the point of a -joke that is palpable to the "meanest capacity." - -With Leech's work in an artistic sense I have more to do. Considering -the limited means employed, the results produced are very wonderful. -Nothing is left to desire in character or expression; the story is -perfectly told in every drawing; and it can be read without reference to -the few lines beneath, which in the wording of them appear to me as -perfect as the cuts themselves. The composition of groups and figures, -which looks so simple and natural, is the result of consummate art. The -drawing, notably of figures and animals in action, is always correct. -Chiaroscuro is too comprehensive a word to apply to the light and shadow -of Leech's drawings; but in what we call "black and white," or, in other -words, in the distribution of the masses of dark, and what I may term -semi-dark, and light, they are always skilfully effective. - -I have been told that Leech's work, in the opinion of a high authority -in matters of art, resembles, and successfully rivals, the silver-point -drawings of the old masters. I have seen many examples of those -beautiful drawings, but I have never seen one that bore the faintest -resemblance to the way in which Leech "lays his lines." The same judge -tells us that Leech's work betrays an ignorance of the principles of -effect--in other words, a neglect of the laws that should guide an -artist in the selection of his scheme of light and shadow. An -intelligent glance at any of Leech's drawings will show the fallibility -of that judgment. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -LEECH EXHIBITION. - - -About the year 1860--or thereabouts--there was exhibited in London a -huge picture of Nero contemplating the ruins of Rome, by a German artist -named Piloti. On seeing the picture I was much struck by a certain -somewhat coarse vigour in the work, which asserted itself in spite of -crude and harsh colouring; the principal figure--as often happens--was -disappointing and theatrical. Nero stood in a melodramatic posture, with -his arms folded, enjoying the destruction of the city. Leech, -accompanied by his friend, the late Sir Edgar Boehm, R.A. (the eminent -sculptor who made an admirable statuette of Leech), saw the picture, and -after a long study of it he turned to Boehm and said: "I would rather -have been the painter of that picture than the producer of all the -things I have ever perpetrated!" Leech's friend received this avowal -with incredulous laughter, and, pointing out some of the glaring faults -of the Nero, endeavoured to convince his companion that one of his -drawings was worth acres of such work as Piloti's; in which I, for one, -entirely agree with him. - -The hankering after oil-colours which always possessed Leech was -destined to be gratified; for soon after this--in 1862--he came before -the public as the painter of a series of "sketches in oil," being -reproductions of his own drawings in _Punch_. These--almost -virgin--attempts were exhibited at the Egyptian Hall, where they were -visited by thousands of admiring spectators, who left several thousand -pounds behind them. Everyone knows what a few inches of space are taken -up by one of Leech's drawings as it appears in "Pictures of Life and -Character." A sketch of such small dimensions would have been -ineffective in colours, and it was owing to an invention by which the -originals were enlarged, that the artist was enabled to offer to the -public copies of drawings four or five inches square, increased in some -instances to three feet by two. - -"'The idea originated,' says Dr. Brown, 'with Mr. Mark Lemon, Leech's -friend and colleague, who saw that by a new invention--a beautiful piece -of machinery--the impression of a block in _Punch_ being first taken on -a sheet of indiarubber, was enlarged; when by a lithographic process -the copy thus got could be transferred to the stone and impressions -printed upon a large sheet of canvas. Having thus obtained an outline -groundwork, consisting of his own lines enlarged to some eight times the -area of the original block, Leech proceeded to colour these. His -knowledge of the manipulation of oil-colours was very slight, and it was -under the guidance of his friend Millais that his first attempts were -made, and crude enough they were. He used a kind of transparent colour, -which allowed the coarse lines of the enlargement to show through, so -that the production presented the appearance of indifferent lithographs -slightly tinted. In a short time he obtained great mastery over -oil-colour, and instead of allowing the thick, fatty lines of printer's -ink to remain on the canvas, he, by the use of turpentine, removed the -ink, particularly with regard to the lines of the faces and figures. -These he redrew with his own hand in a fine and delicate manner. To this -he added a delicacy of finish, particularly in flesh-colour, which -greatly enhanced the value and beauty of his later works." - -The catalogue to the sketches in oil is prefaced by a few modest words -by the artist, who concludes some remarks upon their production thus: - -"These sketches have no claim to be regarded, or tested, as finished -pictures. It is impossible for anyone to know the fact better than I do. -They have no pretensions to a higher name than the name I give them, -'Sketches in Oil.'" - -The exhibition consisted of sixty-seven works, and the room containing -them was filled all day long by a laughing crowd. Leech shrank from -crowds at all times, and an assembly drawn together by his own works -would have special terrors for him. After the opening of the gallery he -was never known to visit it, mainly from his innate modesty, but also -from his dread of being "caught and talked at by enthusiastic people." - -A story is told of a visit of a sporting lord who took his -huntsman--whose judgment of hounds and horses was celebrated for its -acumen--to give his verdict on the Leech Exhibition in general, and on -dogs and horses in particular. - -"'Ah, my lord, nothin' but a party as knows 'osses could have drawed -them there 'unters.'" - -If the huntsman offered an opinion on other features of the exhibition, -it is not recorded; he criticised only what he understood--therein -giving a much-needed example to many critics. - -In the few remarks in the way of criticism on the Leech Exhibition -which I allow myself to make, I claim to be in the position of the -huntsman whose experience of the horse made his opinion of that animal -valuable; my own experience of pictures, as it extends over fifty years, -may fairly claim for me the right of judgment, and I acknowledge myself -to be one of those who thought the exhibition of "Sketches in Oil" did -not increase Leech's reputation; though it happily did increase his own -fortune, or the fortune of somebody else. - -Dr. Brown says that Leech "obtained a great mastery over oil-colours." -The huntsman may have thought as much; if he did, he was as much in -error as Dr. Brown. The sketches lost much charm by their enlargement, -and they were further greatly damaged by the crude and inharmonious way -in which they were coloured. The girls' lovely faces, which delight us -so thoroughly in their pencilled forms, became almost vulgar under the -artist's attempts to paint flesh--the most difficult of all things to -render truly. When he first gives them to us fresh from the wood block, -conveying to us, as he does, the most ravishing beauty by a few -pencil-marks, we paint the faces for ourselves with the colours and -brushes of the mind, with a result unattainable by the colourman's tools -unless they are in the hands of a Reynolds or a Vandyke. Leech's -delightful backgrounds, too, were terribly spoilt by his oil-paints: air -and distance disappeared altogether in many of them. But it is time my -grumbling gave place to what Mr. Thackeray had to say about the Leech -Exhibition in the _Times_ of June 21, 1862: - -"Now, while Mr. Leech has been making his comments upon our society and -manners, one of the wittiest and keenest observers has been giving a -description of his own country of France in a thousand brilliant pages; -and it is a task not a little amusing and curious for a student of -manners to note the difference between the two satirists--perhaps -between the societies they describe. Leech's England is a country -peopled by noble elderly squires, riding large-boned horses, followed -across country by lovely beings of the most gorgeous proportions, by -respectful retainers, by gallant little boys emulating the pluck and -courage of the sire. The joke is the precocious courage of the child, -his gallantry as he charges his fences, his coolness as he eyes the -glass of port, or tells grandpapa he likes his champagne dry. How does -Gavarni represent the family father, the sire, the old gentleman, in -_his_ country--the civilized country? Paterfamilias, in a dyed wig and -whiskers, is leaning by the side of Mademoiselle Coralie on her sofa in -the Rue de Bréda. Paterfamilias, with a mask and a nose half a yard -long, is hobbling after her at the ball. The _enfant terrible_ is making -papa and mamma alike ridiculous by showing us mamma's lover, who is -lurking behind the screen. A thousand volumes are written protesting -against the seventh commandment. The old man is for ever hunting after -the young woman; the wife is for ever cheating the husband. The fun of -the old comedy never seems to end in France, and we have the word of -their own satirists, novelists, painters of society, that it is being -played from day to day. - -"In the works of that barbarian artist, Hogarth, the subject which -affords such playful sport to the civilized Frenchman is stigmatized as -a fearful crime, and is visited by a ghastly retribution. The English -savage never thinks of such a crime as funny, and, a hundred years after -Hogarth, our modern 'painter of mankind' still retains his barbarous -modesty, is tender with children, decorous before women, has never once -thought he had the right or calling to wound the modesty of either. - -"Mr. Leech surveys society from the gentleman's point of view. In old -days, when Mr. Jerrold lived and wrote for that famous periodical, he -took the other side; he looked up at the rich and great with a fierce, -a sarcastic aspect, and a threatening posture, and his outcry or -challenge was: 'Ye rich and great, look out! We, the people, are as good -as you. Have a care, ye priests, wallowing on a tithe pig and rolling in -carriages and four; ye landlords, grinding the poor; ye vulgar fine -ladies, bullying innocent governesses, and what not--we will expose your -vulgarity, we will put down your oppression, we will vindicate the -nobility of our common nature,' and so forth. A great deal has to be -said on the Jerrold side, a great deal was said, perhaps, even, a great -deal too much. It is not a little curious to speculate upon the works of -these two famous contributors to _Punch_, these two 'preachers,' as the -phrase is. 'Woe to you, you tyrant and heartless oppressor of the poor!' -calls out Jerrold as Dives' carriage rolls by. 'Beware of the time when -your bloated coachman shall be hurled from his box, when your gilded -flunkey shall be cast to the earth from his perch, and your pampered -horses shall run away with you and your vulgar wife and smash you into -ruin.' The other philosopher looks at Dives and his cavalcade in his own -peculiar manner. He admires the horses and copies, with the most curious -felicity, their forms and action. The footmen's calves and powder, the -coachman's red face and flock wig, the over-dressed lady and plethoric -gentleman in the carriage, he depicts with the happiest strokes; and if -there is a pretty girl and a rosy child on the back seat, he 'takes them -up tenderly' and touches them with a hand that has a caress in it. The -artist is very tender to all these little people. It is hard to say -whether he loves girls or boys most--those delightful little men on -their ponies in the hunting field, those charming little Lady Adas -flirting at the juvenile ball, or Tom the butcher's boy on the slide, or -ragged little Emily pulling the go-cart, freighted with Elizerann and -her doll. Steele, Fielding, Goldsmith, Dickens, are similarly tender in -their pictures of children. We may be barbarians, monsieur; but even -savages are occasionally kind to their papooses. 'When are the -holidays?' Mothers of families ought to come to this exhibition and -bring the children. Then there are the full-grown young ladies--the very -full-grown young ladies--dancing in the ball-room or reposing by the -sea-shore: the men can peep at whole seraglios of these beauties for the -moderate charge of one shilling, and bring away their charming -likenesses in the illustrated catalogue (two-and-six). In the -'Mermaids' Haunt,' for instance, there is a siren combing her golden -locks, and another dark-eyed witch actually sketching you as you look at -her, whom Ulysses could not resist. To walk by the side of the -much-sounding sea and come upon such a bevy of beauties as this, what -bliss for a man or a painter! The mermaids in that haunt, haunt the -beholder for hours after. Where is the shore on which those creatures -were sketched? The sly catalogue does not tell us. - -"The outdoor sketcher will not fail to remark the excellent fidelity -with which Mr. Leech draws the backgrounds of his little pictures. The -homely landscape, the sea, the winter road by which the huntsmen ride, -the light and clouds, the birds floating overhead, are indicated by a -few strokes which show the artist's untiring watchfulness and love of -Nature. He is a natural truth-teller, as Hogarth was before him, and -indulges in no flights of fancy. He speaks his mind out quite honestly -like a thorough Briton. He loves horses, dogs, river and field sports. -He loves home and children--that you can see. He holds Frenchmen in -light esteem. A bloated 'mosoo,' walking Leicester Square with a huge -cigar and a little hat, with _billard_ and _estaminet_ written on his -flaccid face, is a favourite study with him; the unshaven jowl, the -waist tied with a string, the boots which pad the quadrant -pavement--this dingy and disreputable being exercises a fascination over -Mr. Punch's favourite artist. - -"We trace, too, in his work a prejudice against the Hebrew nation, -against the natives of an island much celebrated for its verdure and its -wrongs. These are lamentable prejudices indeed, but what man is without -his own? No man has ever depicted the little 'snob' with such a -delightful touch. Leech fondles and dances this creature as he does the -children. To remember one or two of these dear gents is to laugh. To -watch them looking at their own portraits in this pleasant gallery will -be no small part of the exhibition; and as we can all go and see our -neighbours caricatured here, it is just possible that our neighbours may -find some smart likenesses of _their_ neighbours in these brilliant, -life-like, good-natured _Sketches in Oil_." - -The publication of this sympathetic article in such a paper as the -_Times_, by such a writer as Thackeray, no doubt increased the -popularity of "Sketches in Oil." However that may have been, its -appearance gave the keenest pleasure to Leech, who is said to have -"rejoiced like a child, exclaiming: - -"'That's like putting a thousand pounds into my pocket!'" - -By far the best examples of Leech's oil paintings are in the collection -of his old warmly attached friend, Mr. Charles Adams, of Barkway. -Instead of a garish stain of washy colour merely passed over an -engraving, these small sporting subjects are painted in a good solid -style, well drawn and carefully finished; carrying with them the -conviction, to my mind, that Leech might possibly have been as great -with the brush as he was with the lead pencil. - -Amongst the "Pictures of Life and Character" there is a drawing of two -young ladies sitting _vis-à-vis_ on a rustic seat; from the books held -by both of them it might be supposed they were reading, as no doubt they -were, till one of them caught sight of their partners at the ball the -night before, who by a strange coincidence are advancing upon them -through the wood. The drawing is entitled "Remarkable Occurrence," with -the following explanation: "On the morning after the dispensary ball, as -Emily Deuxtemps and Clara Polkington were sitting in the plantation, who -should come to the very spot but Captain Fastman and young Reginald -Phipps!" - -I forget the year in which this drawing appeared. The scene is laid at -Scarborough, where Leech was passing his summer holiday. I was so taken -with the beauty of the girls, the composition of the drawing, and its -general adaptability to the making of an oil picture, that I wrote to -the artist; and, pointing out these characteristics, begged him to -"paint the subject." I received no reply to my entreaty, but on meeting -him afterwards in London, he apologized, and declared he would take my -advice. - -"You don't mind my not answering you, old fellow: I hate letter-writing. -It was very kind of you to write--glad you like the girls on the -garden-seat. Well, I will try my hand at it the moment _I have time to -spare_." The time never came. A "Remarkable Occurrence" did not even -appear amongst the "Sketches in Oil." - -It would have been a very onerous task for a man in perfect health, and -accustomed to the use of the brush, to have prepared those sixty-seven -sketches in oil for exhibition, even if his time could have been wholly -devoted to it. To Leech, with the hand of Death nearly touching him, in -almost entire ignorance of the method in which he was working--the -ordeal was terrible. To the entreaties of his friends that he should -stick less closely to his easel at Lowestoft or Whitby, he would reply -that the fine air of the former, and the picturesque scenery abounding -at the latter, were intended for idle people, and not for him. - -To the man with well-strung nerves Leech's sensibility to noises of all -kinds seems incomprehensible; but for years before the oil sketches were -undertaken I knew of his sufferings from himself; and the world must -have guessed them from his attacks upon the organ-grinders, the -bellowing street-hawkers, and the thousand and one noises that distress -the London householder whose livelihood depends upon his brain. Of -course most of the drawings in which the organ-grinder and the itinerant -vendor of stale fish figure, are highly humorous; causing the unthinking -to laugh, unconscious of the terrible seriousness under which they have -been produced. - -Humour was so much a part of Leech's nature that it sometimes asserted -itself incongruously. For example: One evening a convivial party of the -Ancient Order of Foresters returning from, perhaps, the Crystal Palace, -where high festival had been held, roused poor Leech almost to madness -by a yelling uproar opposite his door. He left his work, and rushed -bare-headed amongst them. - -"What are you making this horrible row for?" - -Then seeing the extraordinary Robin Hood kind of costume affected by -these people, he said: - -"What's it all about--who are you?" - -"We are Foresters, that's what we are," was the reply. - -"Then, why on earth don't you go into a forest and make your infernal -row there, instead of disturbing a whole street with your noise?" said -Leech. - -There is no doubt that hyper-sensitiveness to noises troubled Leech -"from his youth up," for we find in comparatively early drawings in -_Punch_ examples of the nuisances created by the fish-hawkers, and the -sellers of the great variety of things that nobody wants, at the -different seaside places where he took his so-called holidays. He was -naturally hard upon the encouragers of these pests. There is an -inimitable sketch of an old lady who has called an organ-grinder into -her parlour. The man, a perfect type of the Italian performer, grinds -away at his instrument, the old woman snaps her fingers and kicks up her -heels in mad delight; her parrot screams, and her dog howls an -accompaniment. Cake and wine are on the table, and there is a stuffed -cat in a glass case on the wall. The drawing is called a "Fancy Sketch -of the Old Party who rather likes Organ-grinding." - -In another sketch an elderly paterfamilias is seen sitting upon the -beach attempting to read his newspaper under the difficulties caused by -a boy with guinea-pigs, and others with something to sell; a sailor -proposes a sail, an old woman has a box of baby linen, and the -inevitable sweetstuff merchant looms in the near distance. The drawing -is entitled "The Bores of the Beach," with the following explanatory -lines: - -"So, as it's a fine day, you'll sit on the beach and read the paper -comfortably, will you? Very good! Then we recommend you to get what -guinea-pigs, brandy-balls, boats, and children's socks, to say nothing -of shell-work boxes, lace collars, and the like you may want, before you -settle down." - -Perhaps the drawing that most happily illustrates the terrible suffering -that is caused by those wandering minstrels, the Italian organ-grinders, -is in double form--two _scenes_, so to speak. The first represents a -dignified, middle-aged father of a family who stands at his door -"expostulating with an organ-grinder, who is defying him with extreme -insolence, alternated with performances on the instrument of torture," -says Leech. The Italian, who is an embodiment of brutal impudence, -says, "Ha! ha! P'lice! Where you find p'lice?" - -In the second drawing we see why the noise is more than commonly -distressing, for it represents a bedroom in the indignant father's -house, where a "sick boy, tended by his mother, is suffering from -nervous fever." - -I dwell at some length upon these drawings, because they greatly aided -Mr. Bass in his efforts to put a stop to some extent--alas! only to some -extent--to a serious public nuisance. The Bill which that gentleman -carried through Parliament still requires amendment before the author, -the musician, the artist, or the tradesman even, can pursue his calling -in the peace so essential to success. - -An eminent artist friend of mine lived in a part of the town where -organ-grinders greatly congregate. The interruptions to his work were -constant and terrible. After finding that remonstrance, threats of the -police, and other inducements, failed to procure relief, he armed -himself with a pea-shooter, with which he practised upon his lay figure -until he acquired considerable skill in the use of it; and when he -considered he was enough of a marksman, he stood by his shutter window -and waited; not for long, for the notes of "Champagne Charley is my -name"--a favourite melody some years ago--pierced his ears from "an -instrument of torture" opposite to his window. Through a narrow aperture -made by the shutter the pea-shooter was projected, a smart blow on the -cheek of the organ-grinder stopped "Champagne Charley" in the middle of -one of his notes; the man rubbed his face and looked about him, up and -down and round about, with an expression of pained surprise pleasant to -behold. He then took up the tune where he had left it, and had produced -a few more notes when a blow upon the grinding hand, and another almost -instantly on his face, again stopped the performance. "It was very -gratifying," said my friend, "to study the puzzled expression of the -fellow as he looked about for the cause of his trouble." After another -attempt to play out his tune, and another salute from the pea-shooter, -he shouldered his organ and took himself off. "Yes," said the sportsman, -"after a while they found me out, but they couldn't get at me, and now I -am never troubled by any of them." - -I am writing these pages at Lowestoft, where Leech passed several summer -holidays. Under the name of "Sandbath," this place had the honour of -appearing in _Punch_ as the scene of several humorous incidents, -notably of one in which the street-horrors are stigmatized under the -heading of "How to Make a Watering-place Pleasant, particularly to -Invalids." Time 6.30 a.m. (a hint to the powers that be at Sandbath). -The principal performer is an admirably drawn figure of a big burly -ruffian--ugliness personified--from whose monstrous mouth one can almost -hear "Yah-ha-bloaters!" Two little boys, carrying baskets of shrimps, -are yelling "Ser-imps, fine ser-imps!" while two more youths add to the -din by ringing bells by way of announcing other delicacies likely to be -in request early in the morning. The date of this drawing can be fixed -pretty accurately, for I hear from Mr. Adams that several of the -sketches in oil exhibited in 1862 were finished at this place, Mr. Adams -constantly watching his friend as he worked. - -To the unexaggerated truth of the incident I can speak, for the cry of -"Bloaters!" arouses me every morning, and precisely at the time -indicated by Leech. Added to this, even as I write about the -organ-grinder detested of Leech, comes one, as if in revenge, under my -window; and in reply to my threat of police, I am told to "go and _find_ -a policeman"--an impossibility, as the wretch well knows, for there is -but one in Sandbath--as far as my observation goes--and he never -appears in this part of it. - -A petition, very numerously signed by eminent members of all the -professions, and by others, was a formidable weapon in Mr. Bass's hands -in his crusade against street musicians and other peace-breakers. The -Bill passed both Houses, and became law. Leech signalized the success by -an admirable drawing called "The Rival Barrels." - - "Three cheers for Bass and his barrel of beer, and out with the - foreign ruffian and his barrel-organ." - -One of Mr. Bass's draymen is using a cask of beer in the form of a -weapon as he rolls it against a foreign organ-grinder, who finds himself -perilously near the edge of a cliff at Dover or Folkestone, _en route_ -from the country he has tormented so long. The brutal Italian scowls and -threatens as the barrel rolls upon him, but we feel he must go; the -stalwart, good-humoured drayman is too much for him. - -If--as I feel sure--the brilliant powers possessed by Leech were certain -to be attended by a highly sensitive and nervous organization, absolute -tranquillity and ease of mind were required for the exercise of them; -but in this unhappy case what do we find? No repose--no cessation--no -peace. The conditions under which these wonderful drawings were -produced were no doubt to some extent uncontrollable--the public -appetite grew with what it fed on; it was not _Punch_ only who insisted -upon his weekly portion, but numberless publications, stories, -biographies, poems, taxed the genius of the popular illustrator. - -It was not till I undertook this task that I had any idea of the -_quantity_ of work done by Leech: to say nothing of the excellence of -it, the quantity is astonishing. But surely, I hear my reader say, -though _Punch_ required ever-recurring contributions, other demands upon -the artist were within his own control. There are men, and plenty of -them, who would have turned deaf ears to appeals from relatives and -friends; but John Leech was not one of those, and I fear it cannot be -denied it was to meet pressing solicitation for money from various -quarters that we must look to account for the worn brain and the -shattered nerves that throbbed with agony at noises which would scarcely -have disturbed a healthy man. - -For some years before his death he suffered from sleeplessness, and at -length he yielded to the suggestion of his friends and the order of his -doctor--that change of air and scene should be tried as a remedy. Mark -Lemon became his companion, and the two went to Biarritz, staying a -short time in Paris on their way. - -"That Leech's pencil was not idle on this holiday," says Shirley Brooks, -"two well-known pictures will testify. One of them is a general view of -that now famous watering-place, with specimens of its curious -frequenters. The other is a very remarkable drawing. It represents a -bull-fight as seen by a decent Christian gentleman, and, for the first -time since the brutal fray was invented, the cold-blooded barbarity and -stupidity of the show is depicted without any of the flash and flattery -with which it has pleased artists to treat the atrocious scene. That -grim indictment of a nation professing to be civilized will be on record -for many a day after the offence shall have ceased. - -"This brief visit," continues Mr. Brooks, "to the Continent was his last -but one. His strength did not increase, and he no longer found pleasure -in hunting, of which he had been exceedingly fond, and later he -discontinued riding on horseback. He was then not merely advised, but -ordered to travel. About this time the great man who had been to him as -a brother, the schoolmate of his boyhood, the chief friend of his -manhood--Thackeray--died. He told Millais of his presentiment that he, -too, should die suddenly, and soon. In the summer of 1864 he went to -Homburg, accompanied by his friend, Alfred Elmore, and afterwards he -sojourned at Schwalbach. His mind was amused if his body was not -strengthened by these visits to new scenery, and his sketch-book was -soon filled with memorials, some of which he embodied in his last large -_Punch_ engraving--a view of the place where the residents of Schwalbach -meet to drink the waters, and with figures of illustrious political -people. - -"Soon after his return he resolved to try what pure fresh English air -would do for him, and accompanied by his family he went to Whitby. -Several friends were also staying there at the same time, and he wrote -to London that he liked the place. In September, on his writing to me -that he would prolong his stay if I and wife would come down, we went, -and remained at Whitby till he left it, on the 3rd of October. - -"The scenery round Whitby is varied, and some of it is exceedingly fine; -and Leech, when we could induce him to leave the painting in oil--to -which he devoted far too many hours--enjoyed the drives into the wild -moors, and up and down the terrible but picturesque roads; and he was -still more delighted with the rich woods, deep glades, and glorious -views around Mulgrave Castle. I hoped that good was being done; but it -was very difficult to stir him from his pictures, of which he declared -he must finish a great number before Christmas. It was not for want of -earnest and affectionate remonstrance close by his side, nor for lack of -such remonstrance being seconded by myself and others, that he -persevered in over-labour at these paintings, which he had undertaken -with his usual generosity, in order to provide a very large sum of money -_for the benefit of his relatives, not of his own household_. It need -hardly be said that he was never pressed for work by his old friend the -editor of _Punch_. His contributions to that periodical had not exceeded -one half-page engraving for some time, until he volunteered to compose -the large Schwalbach picture. Let me note another instance of his -kindness to utter strangers. A deputation from the Whitby Institute -waited upon him to ask him to attend a meeting, and to speak in -promotion of the interests of the association. He was on that day too -ill to bear an interview with more than one of the gentlemen, and was, -of course, compelled to refuse their request. But it occurred to him -that they might think his refusal ungracious (as I am sure they could -not), and he sent for all his 'Sketches of Life and Character' from -London, and presented them to the Institution." - -Amongst the party at Whitby was Mr. George Du Maurier, whose charming -drawings are familiar, not only to the readers of _Punch_, but also as -excellent illustrations in other newspapers and periodicals; especially -good are they in Thackeray's great novel of "Esmond." Du Maurier only -made Leech's acquaintance a few months before his death, but he tells me -that in the Whitby walks and talks he found him to be the most -delightful companion, and the most "lovable" of men. My friend also -tells me that he was the last of the craft that shook the hand to which -we all owe so much. Du Maurier called upon Leech the day before his -death to present a little drawing to him; he seemed "much as usual," and -the artists parted, little dreaming that they had parted for ever. - -On the day after Mr. Hill's party the weekly dinner of the _Punch_ staff -took place. Leech attended as usual, but the readiness with which he was -wont to make suggestions, or to discuss those already made, seemed to -have deserted him. He was dull, silent, and appeared, says Shirley -Brooks, "scarcely to understand what was going on"--requiring a question -to be repeated two or three times before he could frame a reply to it, -and then his answer was often wide of the mark. This condition, I -suppose, showed the alternations of the disease that was killing him, -for he was perfectly free from such a distressing symptom only the night -before the _Punch_ dinner, and as free from it, according to Du Maurier, -the day before his death. - -The journeys abroad, and the Whitby sojourn, even if the sufferer could -have been prevailed upon to cease work altogether, came too late. The -sword had worn out the scabbard. Leech's conversation and letters after -his return from Whitby expressed ardent hope, but feeble conviction, -that he had materially benefited by the change of air and scene. I think -he knew that his prophecy, so mournfully spoken to Millais by the -death-bed of Thackeray, was near its fulfilment. In common with all -Leech's friends, I knew that he had suffered from attacks of angina -pectoris, or breast pang; but in our ignorance of the serious character -of the disease, most of us thought lightly of its attacks. One idea -amongst us was that he had strained, and perhaps injured, some muscle in -one of his hunting tumbles. That the agony of the spasms was very -dreadful we knew, because on one occasion, after a severe attack, he -said, "If it had lasted a little longer, I must have died." But how -often have sufferers used the same words when they were in no danger -whatever! - -I approach the end of my endeavour to show my illustrious friend in his -true colours, with sad feelings, grievously increased by the conviction -that under happier circumstances he might have been the delight of all -who did--and did not--know him for many years beyond the time so cruelly -shortened. The letter to a friend which follows--written at Kensington -after his return from Whitby--gives us in his own melancholy words a sad -account of his condition. - - - "6, The Terrace, Kensington, - - "October 6, 1864. - - "MY DEAR ----, - - "I received your most kind note last night on my return from Whitby - in Yorkshire, where I have been with my family since I came from - Germany; and I assure you I have so many things to put in order, - that to go away from my work would be impossible just now. I was - amused with Homburg, and to some extent I think the waters did me - some good; but I am sorry to say I can give but a sorry account of - my health. Nothing seems to quiet my nervous system, and I suffer - still from sleeplessness dreadfully. Alas for Sheldrake! Why, I - could not ride him if I had him; anything out of a walk would bring - on a spasm that would occasion me to drop from his back. I trust I - may be able to ride some time yet, but do not see my way. As for - shooting, you would see me disappear amongst the turnips in about - five minutes from exhaustion. But, however, I look forward with - hope, and with a will, shall try and make myself a better man; and - I am not yet incapable, thank God, to enjoy the society of a - friend, and hope you will find me out--no, not out, but at - home--should you come to London this autumn or winter. You must see - a pantomime, you know. I have one great consolation--that the air - of Yorkshire did my wife and children great good; and hoping that - you and all your kind relations at ... are well, - - "Believe me, - - "Yours faithfully, - - "JOHN LEECH." - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -MILLAIS AND LEECH. - - -The way to a certain place is said to be paved with good intentions. If -that be so, a large space in the pavement must be filled by intentions -to write the life of Leech. In the Dean of Rochester--the intimate -friend of the artist when known as the Rev. Reynolds Hole--the intention -still exists, as I gather from a letter received from him in reply to my -appeal for assistance. The Dean tells me he possesses "above a hundred -letters" by Leech--one and all denied to me--barred by the "intention," -which seems to have come to life again, after being resigned by him many -years ago in favour of Dr. John Brown; who in his turn relegated his -intention to its place in the pavement. - -I think it was about the year 1882 that, when calling on my old friend -Sir John Millais, I was introduced to a Mr. Evans, who was presented to -me as a literary man engaged in writing the life of Leech--a stranger to -Millais in quest of information. Though I felt that Millais, in the -genial and hearty way peculiar to him, over-estimated the importance of -my assistance in his advice to Mr. Evans to tax my memory, "and he would -find the tax paid in full," I promised to try to remember something of -interest, and communicate with him further. The result of the "taxation" -was a paper, which I sent to the address given to me at Manchester. - -Years passed, and as I heard nothing I concluded that the Evans life was -abandoned, and thought no more of the matter. Alas! events proved that -the Evans intention was destined to take its place amongst the others, -for the promoter died; but not till he had collected a quantity of -material, to which I have been greatly indebted in writing this memoir. -After my interview with Mr. Evans at Millais', I never saw or heard from -him, except in acknowledgment of my contribution; and it is strange to -me, that with every requisite for the carrying out of the intention, -into which, judging from his manner, he entered enthusiastically and -lovingly, he should have made such little way with it--probably from -ill-health--when the material fell into the hands of Messrs. Bentley, -and from theirs into mine. - -Amongst the papers I found the following from Sir John Millais, of all -the friends of Leech one of the dearest, the most loving and steadfast, -and the best able to appreciate his qualities as an artist and a man. In -a letter to Mr. Evans--February, 1882--Millais says: - -"I knew John Leech intimately, and I think saw more of him than any -other of his friends. He was one of the very best gentlemen I ever knew, -with an astounding appreciation of everything sad or humorous. He was -both manly and gentle, nervous and brave, and the most delightful -companion that ever lived. I loved John Leech (and another who is also -gone) better than any other friends I have known." - -In a further communication, Sir John says: - -"I will endeavour to find some letters which may be of interest. -Unfortunately, I have given most of them away at the time I received -them, many containing sketches; I cannot remember now where they are. I -am sure I had more than anyone, as I was for years his daily companion. -There is another friend of his--Percival Leigh, attached to -_Punch_--whom you do not mention. You should see him, as he could give -you a great deal of information. Mr. Adams was a hunting friend, and -many times Leech and myself stayed with him. Mr. Parry was the master of -the Puckeridge hounds, and most of the hunting sketches were the upshot -of scenes in Hertfordshire. - -"Leech stayed with me twice in Scotland, and out of those visits came -Mr. Briggs's exploits in deer-stalking, salmon-fishing, and -grouse-shooting. - -"The late Duke of Athole asked him to Blair, and took him for a -deer-drive. Previously to that there had been a good deal written in the -papers against the Duke, in consequence of his Grace having stopped two -University men from crossing the forest; and Leech made a drawing in -_Punch_ by no means complimentary of the Duke, who was represented -turning back the tourists, exclaiming, 'I am the regular Do-Dhu.' But -you must turn to _Punch_, and you will find the illustration for -yourself. I speak from memory as to the exact words; but I well -recollect Leech, in his jocose way, asking me whether I thought he would -be safe in the Duke's hands after that squib. I afterwards heard his -Grace was delighted with it, and carried the woodcut about in his pocket -to show to his friends. - -"I have seen Leech make his first sketch (of which I have specimens), -and trace them on to the block, scores of times. The first was rapid; -but on the wood he was very deliberate, knowing how necessary clearness -of execution is to the engraver. - -"The late Mr. Trelawney--the intimate friend of Byron and -Shelley--speaking one day to me of his recollections, said that Shelley -and Leech were the two men he had loved best, and that he cared to know -me only because I was a great friend of the man he admired so much." - -Here I may interpose to remind my readers that the figure of the sailor -in Millais' superb picture of the North-West Passage was painted from -Trelawney, who is supposed to say, "It should be done, and England must -do it." The man's head, painted with all Millais' power, is a most -perfect likeness of Shelley's friend. - -Millais goes on to tell us that "some of the happiest days we spent -together were at the Peacock Inn at Baslow, in Derbyshire, close to -Chatsworth, where every kindness was shown to Leech by the Duke and Sir -Joseph Paxton--shooting, fishing, and cricketing." - -I again interpose to say that the portrait given as frontispiece to -this volume was drawn on one of the "happy days" at the Peacock Inn at -Baslow. - -"We played together in a match with a neighbouring village, and at a -supper which he gave to the teams he sang 'King Death' with becoming -gravity, and was much entertained by the local amorous ditties sung by -the young farmers." - -In further advice to Mr. Evans, Sir John says: - -"You cannot dwell too much on his tender anxiety for his wife and -children, almost distressing at times to those about him." - -The great painter continues: - -"I should tell you that he was always careful in his dress, and always -went to the best houses for everything he purchased, probably from -having early in life discovered the wisdom of such a course--see his -satire of everything shoddy--but chiefly from inherent good taste. His -choice was so quiet that one only _felt_ he was perfectly attired. Leech -was six feet high, slim, well but rather delicately made. Strangers felt -when they were introduced to him that they were in the presence of a -gentleman grave and courteous always, and a merry fellow when harmless -fun was demanded. Like Landseer, he had the power of telling a story in -the fewest words, and with astonishing effect upon his hearers; but as -a rule he was averse to taking the initiative in conversation. He would -sit placidly smoking his cigar in an easy-chair, and only chime in to -cap what was said by some voluble speaker, and then retire again into -the full enjoyment of his weed and silence." - -In his evidence before a Committee of the House of Commons which was -formed to inquire into the constitution and working of the Royal -Academy, with a view to certain changes in that body, Millais said that -he thought Leech was deserving of full membership in the institution, -for, indeed, said he: - -"Very few of us painters will leave behind us such good and valuable -work as he has left--work which is in great part historical. His -appreciation of the pathetic was as strong as his sense of the -ridiculous, and you will never find a bit of false sentiment in anything -he did." - -Landseer is reported to have said--after expressing enthusiastic -admiration of Leech's genius--that the worst thing he ever did deserved -to be framed and placed before students as an example for their -emulation and improvement. Sir John Millais concludes his remarks upon -his friend--remarks for which I am sure my readers will be as grateful -as I am--by a few pathetic words heralding the sad and final scene: - -"He became so nervous latterly that he used to take my arm when we were -walking together, jerking it perceptibly at any sudden noise, or at any -vehicle passing rapidly near us; lingering an unnecessary time at the -street crossings; and the morning he came from Thackeray's house, on -coming downstairs after seeing his dead friend, he said, 'I also shall -die suddenly.' - -"I arrived from a Continental tour," concludes Millais, "the day of his -death, and by arrangement went immediately to his house to dine with -him. His wife told me he had been asking for me; but I did not think it -wise to disturb him then. A little later I returned, ran upstairs to his -bedside, and found him dead." - - - - -CHAPTER XXV. - -MR. H. O. NETHERCOTE AND JOHN LEECH. - - -For the following interesting paper my readers are indebted to Mr. -Nethercote, of Moulton Grange, Northamptonshire, who sent it to my -predecessor, Mr. Evans, amongst whose Leech material I found it. As Mr. -Nethercote's anecdotes were intended for publication, I reproduce them -without alteration or abbreviation. Mr. Nethercote and Leech were at -Charterhouse together. - -"Leech," says his friend, "was the most popular boy in the school, and -the margins of his grammars were a delight to boyish eyes. After leaving -Charterhouse I lost sight of him for many years; but through the medium -of our common friend Reynolds, now Canon Hole, we came together again -when he was living in Brunswick Square, and we frequently met at each -other's houses. On one occasion, after telling me of his sufferings -from street bands, he said: - -"'May I come to you with wife and family for a few days? I am dying of -"Dixie's Land."' - -"He came, and the very first day after dinner, on taking our evening -stroll round the garden, our ears were greeted with the hateful tune! -The village band had just mastered the homicidal air, and were -inadvertently making themselves _particeps crimines_ in the murder of my -friend. I shall never forget his delightful smile as, when the doleful -tune burst upon our ears, he said: - -"'Ah, well! "Dixie's Land" in Brunswick Square and "Dixie's Land" at -Moulton Grange are two very different tunes; in the latter case a mile -of atmosphere intervenes between it and me, and in the former I was in -the very bowels of it.' - -"He was fond of going to see a meet with hounds, but he was no rider. He -once asked me to sell him a horse I was riding, on the ground of its -apparent quietness. I declined doing this because it was not right in -its wind. - -"'All the better,' said he; 'it will not be able to run away far;' and -he bought it. - -"He was fond of being here (at Moulton Grange), and used to enjoy taking -quiet rides along the lanes, and over the many-acred, well-gated grass -fields, full of heavy Hertford and Devon cattle; and many a delightful -chat have I had with him _in rebus Punchibus_, its contributors, -artists, publishers, editors, etc. I am inclined to think that the man -he liked best in the world was R. Hole, and then Thackeray and Millais; -but of course I cannot say this with any certainty." - -I stop Mr. Nethercote's narrative for a moment for Mrs. Leech to be -heard; that lady assured Canon Hole--now Dean of Rochester--after -Leech's death, that the two men whom her husband loved best in the world -were himself and Millais. Thackeray was asked to name the man he loved -above all others, and he named Leech; but on another occasion, when he -was asked the same question by his daughter, as recorded in Fitzgerald's -"Memoirs," he said: - -"Why, Fitz, to be sure; and next to him Brookfield." - -We will now listen again to Mr. Nethercote, who says: - - "By his desire I accompanied him one night to see 'Lord Dundreary,' - and I shall never forget his dismay on seeing that neither the - farce nor the acting had 'fetched' me. He could not understand my - feeling that the whole thing was non-natural, and that no lord who - ever lived was half so great a fool as Lord Dundreary. - - "On one occasion he was staying at Moulton Grange on the eve of the - great fight between Tom Sayers and Heenan. A lady of great beauty, - one of the party, was enlarging overnight on the brutality of all - prize-fights, and expressed a hope that this fight might be - prevented. On hearing of Sayers' conduct in the fight, the lady - could not help expressing her admiration of his bravery, whereon - Leech made a charming sketch of his fair friend crowning Sayers - with a laurel-wreath, and entitled it 'Beauty crowning Valour.' - - "I need not say how greatly the sketch is valued by its possessors. - - "Leech used to like hearing his work criticised by friendly - amateurs, and seemed to take in and, as it were, masticate their - comments. - - "I remember once, over our after-dinner cigar, telling him that I - considered he failed in portraying the periphery of a wheel--that - he made it over-fluffy--and failed also in drawing a stake and - bound fence. - - "The latter he admitted, and begged me to find him a model to - study. This I did, and an excellent 'stake and bound' appeared in - the _Punch_ of the following Wednesday. - - "He stuck to his wheel, and doubtless he was right and I was wrong. - - "The last letter I received from him was in reply to an invitation - to come for a week's shooting. I knew that he had been ill, and - hoped it might do him good. His answer was: - - "'Shoot, my dear Nethercote; I couldn't walk round a turnip.' - - "When that was written the end was not far off. The news reached me - as I left home to hunt, and heavy indeed was my heart all that day, - and for many a succeeding one, and still is when I think of him, - the warmest-hearted, most generous, gracious, kindly, hospitable, - endearing friend that man ever had. - - "Such are some of the recollections of my dear friend, written off - in a hurry. If they prove of any use to you, you are most welcome - to them. - - "H. O. NETHERCOTE. - - "October 12, 1885." - - -MR. ASHBY STERRY. - -The name which heads the few words below is one that is very familiar as -the writer of many charming verses; and it is no wonder that Mr. Evans, -on discovering the sonnet addressed to Miss Rosie Leech, should have -mistaken the source of its inspiration, the more readily, as Miss Leech -was christened Ada Rose. - -In the belief that my readers will be glad to have the verses, and Mr. -Ashby Sterry's account of their production, I add them to Mr. Sterry's -sympathetic appreciation of Leech. - -"For as long as I can remember, I have had the most profound admiration -for the genius of John Leech," says Mr. Sterry; "and he gave me as much -delight in my childhood as he subsequently did when I became a man. I am -grieved to say that I hardly knew him at all; it was many years after -his death that I became connected with _Punch_. I should be most happy -for you to quote the lines to Miss Rosie Leech; they, however, do not -refer to John Leech's daughter. Several girls that I knew some years ago -reminded me forcibly of the works of various artists. I sketched their -portraits in sonnets, and added their Christian name to the surname of -the master they represented." - -Rosie was emphatically a "Leech girl" in all respects, and one that he -would have gloried in drawing. - - -"MISS ROSIE LEECH. - - "Down on the sands there strolls a merry maid, - Aglow with ruddy health and gladsome glee; - She breasts the breezes of the summer sea, - And lets each zephyr trifle with each braid; - Laughs gaily as her petticoats evade - Her girlish grasp and wildly flutter free, - As, bending to some boisterous decree, - The neatest foot and ankle are displayed. - Her rounded youthful figure you may trace - Half pouting, as rude Boreas unfurls - A wealth of snowy frillery and lace, - A glory of soft golden-rippled curls. - Comes blushing with a rare unconscious grace, - The bonniest of England's bonny girls!" - - -MR. H. CHOLMONDELEY PENNELL AND LEECH. - -"PUCK ON PEGASUS." - -Mr. C. Pennell (_loquitur_): "My acquaintance began with his making some -illustrations for my book 'Puck on Pegasus.' I found him liberal to -generosity in all his professional dealings with me. Indeed, I have -since ascertained that, seeing I was a débutant in literature, he only -let me pay him about half his usual price--a generosity in which he was -equalled by my friend Mr. John Tenniel. The charming drawings of these -two inimitable artists on wood were, I have not the slightest doubt, -the principal cause of the success of the verses to which they were so -unequally mated. - -"The Athenæum, I recollect, whilst using the scalping-knife freely on -the letterpress, observed that 'the illustrations were of Leech's -loveliest.' Naturally, I have always felt towards Leech and Tenniel the -gratitude which a young author owes to men who, already famous -themselves, so frankly and generously first lent him a helping hand. - -"I think Mr. Tenniel and Mr. Leech were at the time I speak of great -friends, and I remember their once asking me to go down somewhere to -hunt with them--an invitation which I have since regretted not being -able to accept. Leech was an enthusiast about hunting, and hence his -admirable and accurate delineations of horses and hunting scenes. - -"He was a decidedly handsome man; tall, square, and well built, and in -manners delightfully genial and frank. I was young when I knew him, and -had not had much experience of the world; but I have often thought since -that he was one of the most fascinating men it has ever been my good -fortune to meet. - -"Out of the artists whose pencils graced the pages of 'Puck on Pegasus,' -not only those I have mentioned, but also Sir John Millais and Sir Noël -Paton, are, as everyone knows, striking instances of exceptional--well, -what shall I call it, to spare their blushes?--say 'good looks.' Since I -last met the 'Queen's Limner for Scotland,' his hair has become gray, -but, notwithstanding, as I told Lady Paton a few weeks ago, her husband -is still the handsomest man in North Britain. - -"The only little special circumstance I can recall of Leech's -'individualism,' so to speak, is the fondness he had for sitting half on -the table--one leg resting on the ground, and one dangling--the attitude -in which he is represented in the photograph I have of him." - -As the foregoing--found amongst Mr. Evans' Leech material--was evidently -intended for publication, I make no scruple in presenting it to my -readers. Without presuming to pose as a literary critic, I venture to -differ from the author of "Puck on Pegasus" where he relegates his -rhymes so far to the limbo of poetical failures as to claim for their -chief merit that of having been the cause of some most admirable -illustrations. Mr. Cholmondeley Pennell was unusually fortunate in all -his illustrators; but surely such brilliantly clever youthful efforts as -"Puck on Pegasus" displayed well deserved their good fortune. I confess -I was disappointed in finding two drawings only which, from internal -evidence, I can attribute to Leech; these, and, indeed, most of the -others, strange to say, are unsigned. - -Readers of Longfellow will, I think, agree with me that the "Song of -In-the-Water" is an admirable imitation of the manner of the American -poet's "Hiawatha," without the caricature, not to say vulgarity, which -so often disfigures those attempts. - -The "Song of In-the-Water" is short, and I am tempted to treat my -readers to the whole of it. - -I also note the delightful little initial letter W, pictorially -rendered, evidently by Doyle: - - "When the summer night descended - Sleepy, on the white witch water, - Came a lithe and lovely maiden, - Gazing on the silent water-- - Gazing on the gleaming river-- - With her azure eyes and tender - On the river glancing forward, - Till the laughing wave sprang upward, - Upward from his reedy hollow - With the lily in his bosom, - With his crown of water lilies-- - Curling every dimpled ripple - As he sprang into the starlight, - As he clasped her charmed reflection - Glowing to his crystal bosom, - As he whispered, 'Fairest, fairest, - Rest upon this crystal bosom!' - And she straightway did accordin';-- - Down into the water stept she, - Down into the wavering river, - Like a red deer in the sunset-- - Like a ripe leaf in the autumn: - From her lips, as rose-buds snow-filled, - Came a soft and dreamy murmur, - Softer than the breath of summer, - Softer than the murm'ring river, - Than the cooing of Cushawa-- - Sighs that melted as the snows melt, - Silently and sweetly melted; - Sounds that mingled with the crisping - Foam upon the billow resting: - Yet she spoke not, only murmured. - - "From the forest shade primeval, - Piggey-Wiggey looked out at her; - He, the very Youthful Porker-- - He, the Everlasting Grunter-- - Gazed upon her there, and wondered! - With his nose out, Rokey Pokey-- - And his tail up, Curley Wurley-- - Wondered what on earth the joke was, - Wondered what the girl was up to-- - What the deuce her little game was, - Why she didn't squeak and grunt more! - And she floated down the river - Like a water-proof Ophelia; - FOR HER CRINOLINE SUSTAINED HER." - -We may look, and look in vain, through the long list of Leech's -delightful creations for anything more lovely, more exquisitely dainty, -than this floating damsel, with grace and charm in every line of her. I -am sure my readers will join me in gratitude to Mr. Pennell for having -given occasion for a picture that is "a joy for ever." - -Leech's remaining drawing illustrates a poem entitled "Rejected -Addresses," not in any way, I think, intended as a parody of any of the -celebrated "Rejected Addresses" of Messrs. Smith--addresses, it will be -remembered, that were written in the manner of various poets who -flourished early in this century. Mr. Pennell deals with a certain -Alderman, a Sir Toby, who was - - "An Alderman of the very first degree, - But neither wife nor son had he: - He had a daughter fair-- - And often said her father, 'Cis, - You shall be dubbed "my Lady," Miss, - When I am dubbed Lord Mayor.'" - -"Sir Gobble Grist" was the aged swain of parental choice, but, as is not -uncommon in such cases, the choice was not favoured by one of the -parties concerned in it. The Alderman was, however, peremptory, for he -says to the pretty Cis: - - "'The day I don the gown and chain, - In Hymen's modern Fetter Lane - You wed Sir Gobble Grist; - And whilst with pomp and pageant high - I scrape, and strut, and star it by - St. George's in the East, you'll try - St. George's in the West.' - - "Oh, vision of parental pride! - Oh, blessed Groom to such a Bride! - Oh, happy Lady Cis! - Yet sparks must always strike the match, - And miss may chance to lose her 'catch,' - Or he may catch _a miss_! - - "Such things do happen, here and there - When knights are old, and nymphs are fair, - And who can say they don't? - When Worldly takes the gilded pill, - And Dives stands and says, 'I will,' - AND BEAUTY SAYS, 'I WON'T.' - - * * * * * - - "Alas! that beaus will lose their spring, - And wayward belles refuse to 'ring,' - Unstruck by Cupid's dart! - Alas that--must the truth be told-- - Yet oft'ner has the archer sold - The 'white and red' to touch 'the gold,' - And Diamonds trumped the Heart! - - "That luckless heart! too soon misplaced, - Why is it that parental taste, - On sagest calculation based, - So rarely pleases Miss? - Let those who can the riddle read; - For me, I've no idea indeed, - No more, perhaps, had Cis. - - "It may be that she found Sir G. - Less tender than a swain should be,-- - Young--sprightly--witty--gay. - It might have been she thought his hat - Or head too round, or square, or flat, - Or empty--who can say? - - * * * * * - - "I know not! but the Parson waited, - The Bridegroom swore, the Groomsmen rated, - Till two o'clock or near;-- - Then home again in rage and wrath, - Whilst pretty Cis--was rattling North - With Jones the Volunteer!" - -Surely the poet has no occasion to blush for these verses, or to think -that they needed Leech's aid to preserve them. To me they seem admirable -of their kind, and well worthy of affording employment for Leech's -inimitable pencil; and how perfectly has he realized for us the happy -pair! Let us hope that pretty Cis has made a prudent choice in the -handsome Volunteer, whose uneasy glance conveys a fear that the journey -'due North' may still be interrupted. To those who desire to read -sprightly verse, and to see the verse illustrated with very uncommon -perfection by such artists as Doyle, Millais, Tenniel, Sir Noël Paton, -and others, I heartily commend "Puck on Pegasus." - -On Tuesday, the 25th of October, 1864, I dined at the house of Mr. -Hills, in Queen Ann Street. The party consisted of several gentlemen, -most of whose names I forget. I think Landseer and Millais were amongst -the guests. I am sure Leech was, for I sat next to him. I cannot say I -noticed much difference in his appearance; he was perhaps even quieter -than usual, and when he joined in general conversation I fancied I -noticed a slight change in his deep voice, which seemed to me to have a -kind of far-away sound in it, more noticeable still when he spoke to me. -I heard he had not been well, and, in reply to my inquiry, he said he -should be well enough if he could get away from the horrible noises that -never seemed to cease in his neighbourhood. Back and front of his house, -he said, noises of all kinds were incessant; his servant's time was -taken up in sending away street musicians; the cries of the hawkers were -awful, work was impossible to him except under agonizing conditions--a -butcher's cart passed and repassed his house repeatedly with a dog in it -that barked continually. He then mentioned other nuisances, and -concluded his grievances with a sentence which I can never forget. -"Rather, Frith," he said, "than continue to be tormented in this way, I -would prefer to go to the grave where there is no noise." Before that -day week his desire was accomplished, his ever-to-be-honoured grave had -received him, and he was deaf to all noises for evermore. - -Leech's doctors had warned him against excitement of any kind; he was -forbidden to ride on horseback or to walk rapidly; and he was told that, -if he would cease to work, and dismiss all anxiety from his mind, they -had good hope of his recovery. Cease to work and dismiss anxiety! What -vain words to a man who was consumed by the desire to raise money, which -nothing but work would bring! And for whom were these dying energies put -forth? Clearly not for himself or "his own household." - -The day before his death Leech went to see Dr. Quain, who again -prescribed absolute rest as his only chance. And how did the poor fellow -follow this advice? He went home and wrote to the _Punch_ office, saying -that a messenger might be sent for a drawing in progress, which "he -would finish if he could." Strange to say, the fancy was as bright and -the imagination as powerful as ever, and, for the moment, the hand -itself had lost none of its cunning; but the physical strength failed -utterly, and the pencil fell from that wonderful hand for ever. The -messenger came, and was sent empty away. - -On the day of his death--having spent the rest of the previous day, -after his failure to complete the _Punch_ drawing, in bed--he begged to -be allowed to draw. "It would amuse me," he said. A medical friend who -was present gave a reluctant permission, and seeing no immediate -appearance of danger, the doctor left him to his amusement. "Instead, -however, of beginning at once," says Miss Leech, "he threw himself upon -a couch in the room, and after a little while he was persuaded to go to -bed and keep himself perfectly quiet. This he did, but scarcely had he -composed himself for sleep than he suddenly started up and, calling to -his father and sister, fell back and expired in their arms without a -sigh." - -Thus, on the 29th of October, 1864, died John Leech, done to death by -overwork in his anxiety for others, who, let us hope, were worthy of the -sacrifice. It is not too much to say that the death of this inimitable -artist was a sorrow to all English-speaking people, and no less to many -foreign peoples, who--"as one touch of nature makes the whole world -kin"--fully relished the beauty, truth, and humour of all Leech's work. -Of this we have ample proof in the elaborately appreciative remarks of -French and German writers. Among the former, M. Ernest Chesnau, in the -_Gazette des Beaux Arts_ of June, 1875, has an exhaustive article on -Leech and his works--too long for reproduction here. Of the loving -sympathy felt by his German brethren, the following tribute from the -German _Punch_--the _Kladderadatsch_--offers ample evidence. It is -entitled "A Cypress Branch for the Tomb of John Leech." - -"Poor John! Thy German brethren, too, stand in the shape of a weeping -willow at thy grave, for our locks are turned to mourning branches that -droop down over thy simple cross. Ungrudgingly we behold thy glory, thy -'like nature' which stirred up the foul carp-pond of life. We remember -thy fox-hunting and angling gentlemen, thy ladies, the pretty ones and -the declining, thy blue stockings, thy gentlemen, thy volunteers, thy -sportsmen, thy Flunkeiana, and thy immortal Mr. Briggs, this pearl of -English _bonhommie_. Mr. Punch, too, whose greatest ornament thou wert, -sits mourning on thy tomb. He has cast off his merry Punchinello -costume, and is nothing but a sorrowing old man. Farewell, merry John, -thou boy of endless good-humour. - -"We erect this little monument in thy own spirit, with an eye that -laughs through tears, for after thou hadst conquered the first bitter -pangs of death, thou must surely at thy last moment have smiled at -leaving this miserable world." - -[Illustration] - -The English journals vied with each other in expressions of sorrow for -this irreparable loss. The death of Garrick, said Dr. Johnson, "eclipsed -the gaiety of nations." How much more truly this may be said of the -premature death of Leech! Never was man so loved and honoured by his -personal friends, never was a man's death more sincerely mourned than -that of "dear, kind John Leech" by those who had the delightful -privilege of knowing intimately all the endearing qualities of his heart -and mind. See what that great man, who was so soon to follow him to the -grave, says, and think what the simple words imply! Says Dickens, in a -letter to Forster written a few days after Leech's death, "I have not -done my number ('Our Mutual Friend'). This death of poor Leech has put -me out woefully." - -It was predicted that Leech's death would be death to _Punch_. How false -and foolish that prophecy was, none knew so well as Leech himself; but -while admitting to the full the great talent of the present _Punch_ -staff of artists, it cannot be denied that Leech's place is vacant, and -I assume the prophetic mantle and proclaim (I hope mistakenly) that it -will never be filled. It should always be borne in mind that though it -is impossible to exaggerate the benefit that _Punch_ derived from -Leech's pencil, the artist is also deeply indebted to _Punch_ for the -exceptional opportunities the peculiar character of the paper offered -for the display of his powers. The fact is, the paper and the -illustrations were exactly suited to each other, and always worked -harmoniously together. - -That Leech's death would be keenly felt by all connected with _Punch_ -goes without saying, and if tears are evidences of grief, those that -fell from the eyes of the whole of the staff as they stood round Leech's -grave gave full assurance of their sorrow. - -On the 3rd of November, by a notice in the daily papers, the public were -informed that the funeral of John Leech would take place at Kensal Green -on the following day. At two o'clock on the afternoon of the 4th, great -crowds of people lined the ways from the chapel to the grave, which was -already surrounded by the friends and acquaintances of the dead. The -pall-bearers were Mark Lemon, Shirley Brooks, Tom Taylor, J. E. Millais, -R.A., Horace Mayhew, M. Evans (Bradbury and Evans, of _Punch_), John -Tenniel, F. C. Burnand, Samuel Lucas, and Henry Silver (all members of -the staff or contributors to _Punch_). These were followed by John -Leech, the artist's father; Dr. Quain, poor Leech's unwearied attendant -in his illness; Charles Keene, George Du Maurier, and others, all more -or less associated with Leech in their relation to _Punch_. In -attendance were Charles Dickens, W. H. Russell, Perceval Leigh, Edmund -Yates, Charles F. Adams, German Reed, H. K. Browne ('Phiz'), Thomas -Landseer, A.R.A., George Cruikshank, Godfrey Turner, Creswick (the -tragedian), Marcus Stone, J. Phillip, R.A., W. P. Frith, R.A., and many -others. The red coats of two soldiers made bright spots amongst the -sombre crowd. The service for the dead was read by the Rev. S. R. Hole, -now Dean of Rochester, whose warm friendship for Leech distressingly -affected him in his delivery of the solemn passages in the burial -service. The last words had scarcely ceased when we crowded together, -and without a dry eye amongst us, as we took our farewell look into the -resting-place of the man we loved so well. One tomb only divides the -graves of Thackeray and Leech. Of both these men it may be justly said -that, like Saul and Jonathan of old, "they were beautiful in their -lives," and but a short time and a small space divide them in their -deaths. - -Leech's wife and children soon followed him to the grave; and though, to -the surprise and regret of all who knew of the immense mass of work that -he produced, he was unable to leave even a moderate fortune behind him, -it is satisfactory to know that his family did not suffer. Anything -approaching privation was warded off by means which it is not necessary -to particularize. - -The whole world is the inheritor under the will of Leech; and what a -legacy he has bequeathed! Posterity will be able to study us in our -habits as we lived, in our pleasures and our pains, in our follies and -eccentricities, in our sports and amusements--in short, in every -condition of life, high and low. A type, or types, of every class, from -the very poor to the very rich, from the beggar to the King, spring -perfect from Leech's pencil. He revels in beauty; tenderness and manly -strength combine in his works, as they did in himself, a love of what is -good and pure, and a hatred of the ignoble and the base is shown in all -he drew, and in every act of his private life. My endeavour in these -pages has been to convey to those to whom Leech will be but a name, as -clear an idea as lay in my power of the "life and character" of the -author of the matchless works which will be a delight for all time. -Death only sanctifies the loving memory in which Leech will be held by -those who knew him. The kindly and intelligent of future generations -will, I hope and believe, not only appreciate the humour and character, -the fun and frolic, in Leech's drawings, but discover also the -delightful nature of their producer in many a tender touch, in many a -good-natured rendering of matter that was susceptible in other hands of -severe or vulgar treatment; and if I can create for him something of the -affectionate regard in the future that is universally felt for him in -the present, my object in writing this imperfect memoir will be -attained. - -[Illustration] - - - - -FOOTNOTES: - - -[A] I regret to say that, from the nature of the material in -which this early drawing is made, it has been found impossible of -reproduction.] - - - - -BILLING AND SONS, PRINTERS, GUILDFORD. - -_J. D. & Co._ - - - - -Transcriber's Notes: - - -Hyphenation has been standardised. - -"Duval" has been changed to "Derval" on page 57 for consistency. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of John Leech, His Life and Work, Vol. II -(of II), by William Powell Frith - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOHN LEECH, LIFE AND WORK, VOL II *** - -***** This file should be named 41018-8.txt or 41018-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/0/1/41018/ - -Produced by Chris Curnow and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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