The Life of George Cruikshank in Two Epochs, Vol. 2. (of 2)Jerrold, Blanchard
History
The Life of George Cruikshank in Two Epochs, Vol. 2. (of 2)
Jerrold, Blanchard
Cruikshank, George, 1792-1878
“But I confess to feeling a little disturbed, when at his side, at
seeing so many long necks and bright eyes and glasses turned upon him
from all directions, and to perceive the whispering and commotion in
consequence. Here G. C.’s thumb-nails often served as ample Space for a
photo.
“As a thing of beauty is said to be a joy for ever, so at the period
above stated we had our glorious days together, and may be figuratively
described as ‘being in clover and sleeping in lavender’; for kind George
devoted many hours in taking me to some of his favourite, and it may
be added, requisite haunts, where he gathered his Fame for his simple
wants, without i hoarding. One morning he led me to the burial-ground
of St. James’s Chapel, Pentonville, near his house, and pointed out the
graves of Thomas Dibdin, son of the great sea-songster, and of his old
and ‘mutual friend,’ Joey Grimaldi, whose mortal coils are laid near
each other; and I wish I could remember so as to record the tender and
sympathetic little oration he then delivered.
“At night Sadler’s Wells was the scene of action, but poor Joey being
absent,
‘Greece was living Greece no more,’
and all things were changed since our boyhood Friend Cruikshank reminded
me of that passage (in Dickens’s ‘Life of the King of Clowns’) that
he illustrated in two vols., where Joey and his much better-half, one
evening, disputing about precedency, resolved upon taking poison to end
all contention, and to settle their differences of opinion for ever. But
not taking enough, and forgetting the oft-quoted maxim, now travestied,
‘Drink deep, or taste not any poisonous thing,’
the feeble dose merely kept them awake and talkative, and lying in
the same room, with a slight partition between them, sensations became
unpleasant, and so they held a colloquy in their fears as follows:
‘Joey, are you dead?’ ‘No, Mary,--are you?’ ‘No.’ And then they altered
their minds, and felt disposed to live a little longer, arose, had
a good supper and something warm and comfortable as a sedative and
antidote, and then jogged on a little more in unison.
“On passing through the Queen’s Bench with him, I called his attention
to the prison window, behind the bars of which stood a miserable inmate
with a black box before him, on which was written, ‘Remember the
poor debtors.’ George smiled, and said, ‘Yes, but think of the poor
creditors.’ And this scene I find recorded by him, and his own remarks,
on a small placard at the top of the picture ‘Remember the poor
creditors.’ But what numbers of similar Hogarthian hints he has left
behind him!
Shortly afterwards Cruikshank paid his friend a visit at Bath:--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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