"I had intended waiting till my return to town to see whether I could find John Leech's letters before writing to you; but as you ask for the story, here it is, to the best of my recollection, and it is heartily at your service. When I was a boy at Eton I sent to _Punch_ an incident which happened at a dance. Young Oxford complaining to his partner of the dearth of 'female society' at the University, she retorts, 'What a pity you didn't go to a girls' school instead!' Its appearance beneath an illustration of Leech's caused great excitement in our house at Eton, and as great tales of Mr. Punch's liberality were current--as, for example, that the sender of the advice 'To persons about to marry--_don't_,' had received £100--I began to look anxiously for some tip for my contribution. An enterprising pal said, 'It's a beastly shame; and if you'll go halves, I'll write to _Punch_ and wake 'em up.' This speedily resulted in the receipt of a post-office order for two guineas from John Leech, accompanied by a rather dry note, to the effect that Mr. Punch considered that he had already done enough in providing an original illustration to my joke. I was indignant, and wrote back to Leech returning the money, but he would not hear of this. He told me I could buy gloves with the money for the young lady if I liked--which I am afraid I didn't. Several kind letters from him followed, with an invitation, gladly accepted, to call and see him in the holidays, and a present, which I still treasure, of two volumes of his 'Life and Character.' [Illustration: "DREADFUL FOR YOUNG OXFORD." LADY: "Are you at Eton?" YOUNG OXFORD: "Aw, no! I'm at Oxford." LADY: "Oxford! Rather a nice place, is it not?" YOUNG OXFORD: "Hum!--haw! pretty well; but then I can't get on without female society!" LADY: "Dear! dear! pity you don't go to a girls' school, then!"] "At the time I remember my schoolfellows considered me a born caricaturist, an opinion I naturally shared. Leech was most indulgent to my early efforts--gave me some wood-blocks to work upon, and encouraged me to persevere, which, alas! I have not done, etc. "Yours truly." Here follows Leech's "dry note": "32, Brunswick Square, London, "June 6, 1859. "DEAR SIR,