Theodore Hook was at Harrow with Lord Byron, and characteristically commenced his career there by breaking one of Mrs. Drury's windows at the suggestion of that nobleman. His father was a popular composer of music, and young Theodore's first employment was that of writing songs for him. This, no doubt, gave the boy a facility, and led to the great celebrity he acquired for his improvisatore talent. He was soon much sought for in society, and a friend has told me that he has heard him, on sitting down to the piano, extemporize two or three hundred lines, containing humorous remarks upon all the company. On one occasion, Sir Roderick Murchison was present, and some would have been a little puzzled how to bring such a name into rhyme, but he did not hesitate a moment running on:-- "And now I'll get the purchase on, To sing of Roderick Murchison." Cowden Clark relates that when at a party and playing his symphony, Theodore asked his neighbour what was the name of the next guest, and then sang:-- "Next comes Mr. Winter, collector of taxes, And you must all pay him whatever he axes; And down on the nail, without any flummery; For though he's called Winter, his acts are all summary." Horace Twiss tried to imitate him in this way, but failed. Hook's humour was not of very high class. He was fond of practical jokes, such as that of writing a hundred letters to tradesmen desiring them all to send goods to a house on a given day. Sometimes he would surprise strangers by addressing some strange question to them in the street. He started the "John Bull" newspaper, in which he wrote many humorous papers, and amused people by expressing his great surprise, on crossing the Channel, to find that every little boy and girl could speak French. He wrote cautionary verses against punning:-- "My little dears, who learn to read, pray early learn to shun That very silly thing, indeed, which people call a pun; Read Entick's rules, and 'twill be found how simple an offence It is to make the self-same sound afford a double sense. For instance, _ale_ may make you _ail_, your _aunt_ an _ant_ may kill, You in a _vale_ may buy a _veil_, and _Bill_ may pay the _bill_; Or if to France your bark you steer, at Dover it may be, A _peer_ appears upon the _pier_, who blind still goes to _sea_." But he was much given to the practice he condemns--here is an epigram-- "It seems as if Nature had cunningly planned That men's names with their trades should agree, There's Twining the tea-man, who lives in the Strand, Would be _whining_ if robbed of his T." Mistakes of words by the uneducated are a very ordinary resource of humorists, but, of course, there is a great difference in the quality of such jests. Mrs. Ramsbottom in Paris, eats a _voulez-vous_ of fowl, and some pieces of _crape_, and goes to the _symetery_ of the _Chaise and pair_. Afterwards she goes to the _Hotel de Veal_, and buys some _sieve_ jars to keep _popery_ in.