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Title: English Illustration 'The Sixties': 1855-70 - With Numerous Illustrations by Ford Madox Brown; A. Boyd Houghton; Arthur Hughes; Charles Keene; M. J. Lawless; Lord Leighton, - P. - R.A.; Sir J. E. Millais, - P. - R.A.; G. Du Maurier; J. W. North, R.A.: G. J. Pinwell; Dante Gabriel Rossetti; W. Small; Frederick Sandys: J. Mcneill Whistler; Frederick Walker, A.R.A.; and Others
Author: White, Gleeson
Language: English
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SIXTIES': 1855-70***
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ENGLISH ILLUSTRATION
THE SIXTIES
[Illustration: MORGAN LE FAY.]
ENGLISH ILLUSTRATION
'THE SIXTIES': 1855-70
by
GLEESON WHITE
With Numerous Illustrations by
Ford Madox Brown : A. Boyd Houghton
Arthur Hughes : Charles Keene
M. J. Lawless : Lord Leighton, _P._R.A.
Sir J. E. Millais, _P._R.A. : G. Du Maurier
J. W. North, R.A.: G. J. Pinwell
Dante Gabriel Rossetti : W. Small
Frederick Sandys: J. Mcneill Whistler
Frederick Walker, A.R.A. : and Others
London
Archibald Constable And Co. Ltd.
16 James Street Haymarket
1906
_THIRD IMPRESSION_
*.* _This is a re-impression of the original edition of 1897. A few
small errors have been corrected. In other respects the text has been
left, as it came from the late Mr. Gleeson White's hands, unaltered._
Edinburgh: T. and A. Constable, Printers to His Majesty
TO
A. M. G. W. AND C. R. G. W.
IN MEMORY OF THE
MANY HOURS SPENT
UNGRUDGINGLY IN
PROOF READING
PREFACE
In a past century the author of a well-digested and elaborately
accurate monograph, the fruit of a life's labour, was well content
to entitle it 'Brief Contributions towards a History of So-and-So.'
Nowadays, after a few weeks' special cramming, a hastily written
record of the facts which most impressed the writer is labelled often
enough 'A History.' Were this book called by the earlier phrase, it
would still be overweighted. Nor did an English idiom exist that would
provide the exact synonym for _catalogue-raisonné_, could the phrase
be employed truthfully. It is at most a roughly annotated, tentative
catalogue like those issued for art critics on press-days with the
superscription 'under revision'--an equivalent of the legal reservation
'without prejudice.' To conceal the labour and present the results
in interesting fashion, which is the aim of the Chancellor of the
Exchequer on a 'Budget' night, ought also to be that of the compiler
of any document crammed with distantly unrelated facts. But the time
required for rewriting a book of this class, after it has grown into
shape, would be enough to appal a person who had no other duties to
perform, and absolutely prohibitive to one not so happily placed.
In estimating the errors which are certain to have crept into this
record of a few thousand facts selected from many thousands, the author
is obviously the last person to have any idea of their number; for did
he suspect their existence, they would be corrected before the work
appeared. Yet all the same, despite his own efforts and those of kindly
hands who have re-collated the references in the majority of cases, he
cannot flatter himself he has altogether escaped the most insidious
danger that besets a compilation of this kind, namely, overlooking
some patently obvious facts which are as familiar to him as to any
candid critic who is sure to discover their absence.
The choice of representative illustrations has been most perplexing.
Some twenty years' intimacy with most of the books and magazines
mentioned herein made it still less easy to decide upon their abstract
merits. Personal prejudice--unconscious, and therefore the more
subtle--is sure to have influenced the selection; sometimes, perhaps,
by choosing old favourites which others regard as second-rate, and
again by too reticent approval of those most appreciated personally,
from a fear lest the partiality should be sentimental rather than
critical. But, and it is as well to make the confession at once,
many have been excluded for matters quite unconnected with their
art. Judging from the comments of the average person who is mildly
interested in the English illustrations of the past, his sympathy
vanishes at once if the costumes depicted are 'old-fashioned.' Whilst
I have been working on these books, if a visitor called, and turned
over their pages, unless he chanced to be an artist by profession as
well as by temperament, the spoon-bill bonnet and the male 'turban' of
the 'sixties' merely provoked ridicule. As my object is to reawaken
interest in work familiar enough to artists, but neglected at present
by very many people, it seems wiser not to set things before them which
would only irritate. Again, it is difficult to be impartial concerning
the beauty of old favourites; whether your mother or sister happen to
be handsome is hardly a point of which you are a trustworthy judge.
Other omissions are due to the right, incontestable if annoying, every
other person possesses in common with oneself, 'to do what he likes
with his own'; and certain publishers, acting on this principle, prefer
that half-forgotten engravings should remain so.
The information and assistance so freely given should be credited in
detail, yet to do so were to occupy space already exceeded. But I
cannot avoid naming Mr. G. H. Boughton, R.A., Mr. Dalziel, Mr. G. R.
Halkett, Mr. Fairfax Murray, and Mr. Joseph Pennell for their kind
response to various inquiries. Thanks are also due to the many holders
of copyrights who have permitted the illustrations to be reproduced. As
some blocks have changed hands since they first appeared, the original
source given below each picture does not always indicate the owner who
has allowed it to be included. The artists' names are printed in many
cases without titles bestowed later, as it seemed best to quote them
as they stood at the time the drawing was published. Lastly, I have to
thank Mr. Temple Scott for his elaborate index, prepared with so much
care, which many interested in the subject will find the most useful
section of the book.
The claims of wood-engraving _versus_ process have been touched upon
here very rarely. If any one doubts that nearly all the drawings of the
'sixties' lost much, and that many were wholly ruined by the engraver,
he has but to compare them with reproductions by modern processes
from a few originals that escaped destruction at the time. If this be
not a sufficient evidence, the British Museum and South Kensington
have many examples in their permanent collections which will quickly
convince the most stubborn. If some few engravers managed to impart a
certain interest at the expense of the original work, which not merely
atones for the loss but supplies in its place an intrinsic work of
art, such exceptions no way affect the argument. Wood-engraving of the
first order is hardly likely to die out. It is true that, as the craft
finds fewer recruits, the lessened number of journeymen, experts in
technique (whence real artist-engravers may be expected to spring up at
intervals), will diminish the supply. Given the artist as craftsman, he
may always be trusted to distance his rival, whether it be mechanism
or a profit-making corporation which reduces the individuality of
its agents to the level of machines. For in art, still more than in
commerce, it is the personal equation that finally controls and shapes
the project to mastery, and the whole charm of the sixties is the
individual charm of each artist. The incompetent draughtsman, then, was
no less uninteresting than he is to-day; even the fairly respectable
illustrators gain nothing by the accident that they flourished in
'the golden decade.' But the best of the work which has never ceased
to delight fellow-workers will, no doubt, maintain its interest in
common with good work of all schools and periods. Therefore, this rough
attempt at a catalogue of some of its most striking examples, although
its publication happens to coincide with a supposed 'boom,' may have
more than ephemeral value if it save labour in hunting up commonplace
facts to many people now and in the future. This plea is offered in
defence of the text of a volume which, although cut down from its
intended size, and all too large, is yet but a rough sketch.
Collectors of all sorts know the various stages which their separate
hobbies impose on them. First, out of pure love for their subject, they
gather together chance specimens almost at haphazard. Then, moved by
an ever-growing interest, they take the pursuit more seriously, and,
as one by one the worthier objects fall into their hands, they grow
still more keen. Later, they discover to their sorrow that a complete
collection is, humanly speaking, impossible: certain unique examples
are not to be obtained for love or money, or, at all events, for the
amount at their personal disposal. At last they realise, perhaps, that
after all the cheapest and most easily procured are also the most
admirable and delightful. This awakening comes often enough when a
catalogue has been prepared, and on looking over it they find that the
treasures they valued at one time most highly are only so estimated by
fellow-collectors; then they realise that the more common objects which
fall within the reach of every one are by far the best worth possessing.
A homely American phrase (and the word homely applies in a double
sense) runs: 'He has bitten off more than he can chew.' The truth
of the remark is found appropriate as I write these final words. To
mark, learn, and inwardly digest the output of ten to fifteen years'
illustration must needs be predestined failure, if space and time
for its preparation are both limited. The subject has hitherto been
almost untouched, and when in certain aspects it has attracted writers,
they have approached it almost always from the standpoint of artistic
appreciation and criticism. Here, despite certain unintentional lapses
into that nobler path, the intention has been to keep strictly to a
catalogue of published facts and with a few bibliographical notes added.
Setting out with a magnificent scheme--to present an iconography of
the work of every artist of the first rank--the piles of manuscript
devoted to this comprehensive task which are at my side prove the
impracticability of the enterprise. To annotate the work of Sir John
Gilbert or Mr. Birket Foster would require for each a volume the size
of this. But as _Punch_, _The Illustrated London News_, and the Moxon
_Tennyson_ have already been the subject of separate monographs, no
doubt in future years each branch of the subject that may be worth
treating exhaustively will supply material for other monographs. The
chief disappointment in preparing a reference-book of this class
belongs to the first compiler only; the rest have the joy of exposing
his shortcomings and correcting his errors, combined with the pleasure
of indulging in that captious criticism which any overheard dialogue in
the streets shows to be the staple of English conversation.
GLEESON WHITE.
10 THERESA TERRACE,
RAVENSCOURT PARK, W.,
_October 1896_.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
PAGE
THE NEW APPRECIATION AND THE NEW COLLECTOR, 1
CHAPTER II
THE ILLUSTRATED PERIODICALS BEFORE THE SIXTIES, 9
CHAPTER III
SOME ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINES OF THE SIXTIES: I. 'ONCE A WEEK,' 16
CHAPTER IV
SOME ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINES OF THE SIXTIES: II. 'THE CORNHILL,'
'GOOD WORDS,' AND 'LONDON SOCIETY,' 38
CHAPTER V
OTHER ILLUSTRATED PERIODICALS OF THE SIXTIES: 'CHURCHMAN'S
FAMILY MAGAZINE,' 'SUNDAY MAGAZINE, ETC., 63
CHAPTER VI
SOME ILLUSTRATED WEEKLY PAPERS IN THE SIXTIES, 88
CHAPTER VII
SOME ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF THE PERIOD BEFORE 1860, 95
CHAPTER VIII
SOME ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF THE PERIOD 1860-1864, 112
CHAPTER IX
SOME ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF THE PERIOD 1865-1872, 125
CHAPTER X
THE AFTERMATH: A FEW BELATED VOLUMES, 143
CHAPTER XI
CERTAIN INFLUENCES UPON THE ARTISTS OF THE SIXTIES, 150
CHAPTER XII
SOME ILLUSTRATORS OF THE SIXTIES, 155
INDEX, 181
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
(Where two or more illustrations follow each other with no text
between, the references are given to the nearest page facing)
FACING
PAGE
ANONYMOUS,
'Enoch Arden,' _Leisure Hour_ (Religious
Tract Society), 82
ARMSTEAD, H. H., R.A.,
A Dream, _Willmott's Sacred Poetry_
(Routledge), 112
BROWN, FORD MADOX,
Prisoner of Chillon, _Willmott's Poets of the
Nineteenth Century_
(Routledge), 104
Elijah and the Widow's Son, _Bible Gallery_ (Routledge), 150
Joseph's Coat, " " 156
Down Stream, from the original
drawing in the wood
(photographed by Mr. Fred
Hollyer)--(_photogravure_), " " 80
BURNE-JONES, Bt., Sir E.,
Parable of the Boiling-Pot, " " 146
CLAYTON, J. R.,
Olympia and Bianca, _Barry Cornwall's Dramatic
Scenes_ (Chapman and Hall), 108
CRANE, WALTER
Treasure-trove, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 176
DALZIEL, T.,
Bedreddin Hassan and the _Arabian Nights_
Pastrycook, (Ward, Lock and Co.), 178
The Destruction of Sodom, _Bible Gallery_ (Routledge), 178
DU MAURIER, G.,
On her Deathbed, _Once a Week_
(Bradbury and Evans), 34
Per l'Amore d'una Donna, " " 34
A Time to Dance, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 44
A Legend of Camelot (Nos. I. _Punch_ (Bradbury, Agnew,
to V.), and Co.), 88
Send the Culprit from the _Story of a Feather_ (Bradbury,
House instantly, Agnew, and Co.), 132
He felt the surpassing
importance of his position, " " 132
FILDES, S. L.,
The Farmer's Daughter, _Sunday Magazine_ (Strahan), 68
FOSTER, BIRKET,
The Green Lane, _Pictures of English Landscape_
(Routledge), 116
The Old Chair-Mender, " " 116
GILBERT, SIR JOHN, R.A.,
Hohenlinden, _Willmott's Poets of the
Nineteenth Century_
(Routledge), 106
GRAHAM, T.,
Honesty, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 48
GRAY, PAUL,
Cousin Lucy, _The Quiver_ (Cassell), 78
HERKOMER, HUBERT, R.A.,
Wandering in the Wood, _Good Words for the Young_
(Strahan), 78
HOUGHTON, A. BOYD,
My Treasure, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 166
A Lesson to a King, _Sunday Magazine_ (Strahan), 68
Luther the Singer " " 68
John Baptist, " " 68
The Parable of the Sower, " " 70
The Vision of Sheik Hamil, _The Argosy_ (Strahan), 74
Noureddin Ali, _Arabian Nights_ (Routledge), 122
Love, _Golden Thoughts from Golden
Fountains_ (Warne), 136
Don Jose's Mule, _Good Words for the Young_
(Strahan), 78
Reading the Chronicles, from
the original drawing on
the block (_photogravure_), (British Museum), 164
HUGHES, ARTHUR,
Fancy, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 54
The Letter, " " 170
The Dial (Sun comes, Moon
comes), " " 170
My Heart, _Sunday Magazine_ (Strahan), 70
Blessings in Disguise, " " 70
Barbara's Pet Lamb, _Good Words for the Young_
(Strahan), 78
Mercy, " " 78
HUNT, W. HOLMAN,
The Lent Jewels, _Willmott's Sacred Poetry_
(Routledge), 144
KEENE, CHARLES,
'A Good Fight,' _Once a Week_ (Bradbury and
Evans), 26
LAWLESS, M. J.,
Effie Gordon, " " 28
Dr. Johnson's Penance, " " 28
John of Padua, " " 28
Rung into Heaven, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 48
The Bands of Love, " " 48
The Player and the Listeners, " " 50
Honeydew, _London Society_ (Hogg), 56
One Dead, _Churchman's Family
Magazine_ (Hogg), 64
LAWSON, J.,
Ariadne, _Once a Week_ (Bradbury and
Evans), 144
LEIGHTON, LORD, P.R.A.,
Cain and Abel, _Bible Gallery_ (Routledge), 146
Moses views the Promised Land, " " 146
Abram and the Angel, " " 146
LEIGHTON, JOHN,
A Parable, _Sunday Magazine_ (Strahan), 70
MAHONEY, J.,
Summer, " " 66
Yesterday and To-day, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 68
MARKS, H. S., R.A.,
A Quiet Mind, _Willmott's Sacred Poetry_
(Routledge), 114
In a Hermitage, " " 114
MILLAIS, Sir J. E., P.R.A.,
There's nae Luck about the
House, _Home Affections_ (Routledge), 108
The Border Widow, " " 108
Grandmother's Apology, _Once a Week_ (Bradbury and
Evans), 22
The Plague of Elliant, " " 22
Tannhäuser, " " 24
Sister Anne's Probation, " " 24
The Hampdens, " " 24
Death Dealing Arrows, " " 24
The Prodigal Son, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 120
The Tares, " " 120
The Sower, " " 120
MORTEN, T.,
The Cumæan Sibyl, _Once a Week_ (Bradbury and
Evans), 34
Izaak Walton, _The Quiver_ (Cassell), 132
Gulliver in Lilliput, _Gulliver's Travels_ (Cassell), 134
The Laputians " " 134
NORTH, J. W., R.A.,
Glen Oona, _Wayside Poesies_ (Routledge), 130
Glen Oona (from the
original drawing), _Magazine of Art_ (Cassell), 130
The Nutting, _Wayside Poesies_ (Routledge), 130
Afloat, " " 130
Anita's Prayer, _Sunday Magazine_ (Strahan), 68
Winter, " " 66
PETTIE, J., R.A.,
The Monks and the Heathen, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 48
PICKERSGILL, F. R., R.A.,
The Water Nymph, _Willmott's Poets of the
Nineteenth Century_
(Routledge), 106
PINWELL, G. J.,
The Sailor's Valentine, _The Quiver_ (Cassell), 74
King Pippin, _Wayside Poesies_ (Routledge), 125
The Little Calf, " " 128
Madame de Krudener, _Sunday Magazine_ (Strahan), 68
What, Bill! you chubby rogue, _Goldsmith's Works_
(Ward and Lock), 126
From the original drawing on
the block for _She Stoops to
Conquer_--(_photogravure_), (British Museum), 1
POYNTER, E. J., P.R.A.,
Joseph before Pharaoh, _Bible Gallery_ (Routledge), 148
Pharaoh honours Joseph, " " 148
ROSSETTI, DANTE GABRIEL,
The Maids of Elfen-mere, _The Music-master_ (Routledge), 98
You should have wept _The Prince's Progress_
her yesterday, (Macmillan), 162
SANDYS, FREDERICK,
The Three Statues of Ægina, _Once a Week_ (Bradbury and
Evans), 30
The Old Chartist, " " 30
Harold Harfagr, " " 30
Death of King Warwolf, " " 143
Rosamund, Queen of the
Lombards, " " 30
Legend of the Portent, _Cornhill Magazine_
(Smith and Elder), 40
Manoli, " " 40
Cleopatra, " " 42
The Waiting Time, _Churchman's Family Magazine_
(Hogg), 64
Amor Mundi--(_photogravure_), _Shilling Magazine_ (Bosworth), 63
Sleep, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 48
Until Her Death, " " 48
'If,' _The Argosy_ (Strahan), 72
October, _The Quiver_ (Cassell), 174
Danae in the Brazen _The Hobby Horse_
Chamber, (Chiswick Press), 172
Life's Journey, _Willmott's Sacred Poetry_
(Routledge), 114
A Little Mourner, " " 114
Jacob hears the voice
of the Lord, _Bible Gallery_ (Routledge), 172
Morgan le Fay--
(_photogravure_), _Frontispiece_
SHIELDS, FREDERICK,
The Plague-Cart, _Defoe's History of
the Plague_ (Munby), 118
SMALL, W.,
Between the Cliffs, _The Quiver_ (Cassell), 78
Mark the Grey-haired Man, _Golden Thoughts from
Golden Fountains_ (Warne), 136
SOLOMON, SIMEON,
The Veiled Bride, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 46
The Feast of Tabernacles, _Leisure Hour_
(Religious Tract Society), 83
The Day of Atonement, " " 83
TENNIEL, Sir JOHN,
The Norse Princess, _Good Words_ (Strahan), 48
WALKER, FREDERICK,
The Nursery Friend, _Willmott's Sacred
Poetry_ (Routledge), 112
A Child in Prayer, " " 112
Out among the Wild-Flowers, _Good Word_ (Strahan), 46
Portrait of a Minister, _English Sacred Poetry_
(Religious Tract Society), 124
Autumn, _A Round of Days_ (Routledge), 126
Autumn, from the original
drawing on the block
(_photogravure_), (British Museum), 125
The Bit o' Garden, _Wayside Poesies_ (Routledge), 128
WATSON, J. D.,
Too Late, _London Society_ (Hogg), 56
Ash Wednesday, " " 56
WHISTLER, JAMES M'NEILL,
The Major's Daughter, _Once a Week_ (Bradbury and
Evans), 32
The Relief Fund in
Lancashire, " " 32
The Morning before the
Massacre of St.
Bartholomew, " " 32
Count Burckhardt, " " 32
[Illustration: SCENE FROM "SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER."]
ENGLISH ILLUSTRATION
THE SIXTIES, 1855-1870
CHAPTER I: THE NEW APPRECIATION AND THE NEW COLLECTOR
The borderland between the hallowed past and the matter-of-fact present
is rarely attractive. It appeals neither to our veneration nor our
curiosity. Its heroes are too recent to be deified, its secrets are all
told. If you estimate a generation as occupying one-third of a century,
you will find that to most people thirty-three years ago, more or less,
is the least fascinating of all possible periods. Its fashions in dress
yet linger in faded travesties, its once refined tastes no longer
appeal to us, its very aspirations, if they do not seem positively
ludicrous, are certain to appear pathetically insufficient. Yet there
are not wanting signs which denote that the rush of modern life, bent
on shortening times of waiting, will lessen the quarantine which a
period of this sort has had to suffer hitherto before it could be
looked upon as romantically attractive instead of appearing repulsively
old-fashioned. For the moment you are able to take a man of a former
generation, and can regard him honestly, not as a contemporary with
all human weakness, but with the glamour which surrounds a hero; he is
released from the commonplace present and has joined the happy past.
Therein he may find justice without prejudice. Of course the chances
are that, be he artist or philosopher, the increased favour bestowed
upon him will not extend to his subjects, or perhaps his method of
work; but so sure as you find the artists of any period diligently
studied and imitated, it is almost certain that the costumes they
painted, the furniture and accessories they admired, and the thought
which infused their work, will be less intolerable, and possibly once
again restored to full popularity.
Not very long ago anything within the limits of the century was called
modern. Perhaps because its early years were passed in yearnings for
the classic days of old Greece, and later in orthodox raptures over the
bulls of Nineveh and the relics of dead Pharaohs. Then by degrees the
Middle Ages also renewed their interest: the great Gothic revival but
led the way to a new exploration of the Queen Anne and Georgian days.
So in domestic life England turned to its Chippendale and Sheraton,
America to its colonial houses, and the word 'antique,' instead of
being of necessity limited to objects at least a thousand years old was
applied to those of a bare hundred. Now, when the nineteenth century
has one foot in the grave, we have but to glance back a few years to
discover that what was so lately 'old-fashioned' is fast attaining
the glamour of antiquity. Even our immediate progenitors who were
familiar with the railway and telegraph, and had heard of photography,
seem to be in other respects sufficiently unlike our contemporaries
to appear quite respectably ancestral to-day. It is true that we have
compensations: the new photography and electric lighting are our own
joys; and the new criticism had hardly begun, except perhaps in the Far
West, during the time of this previous generation--the time that begins
with a memory of the project for the Great Exhibition, and ends with an
equally vivid recollection of the collapse of the Third Empire.
In those days people still preserved a sentimental respect for
the artist merely because he was 'an artist,' quite apart from
his technical accomplishment. It was the period of magenta and
crinoline--the period that saw, ere its close, the twin domes of the
second International Exhibition arise in its midst to dominate South
Kensington before they were moved to Muswell Hill and were burnt down
without arousing national sorrow--in short, it was 'the sixties.' Only
yesterday 'the sixties' seemed a synonym for all that was absurd.
Is it because most of us who make books to-day were at school then,
and consequently surveyed the world as a superfluous and purely
inconsequent background? For people who were children in the sixties
are but now ripening to belief in the commonplace formulæ dear to an
orthodox British citizen. To their amazement they find that not a
few of the pupils of the 'seventies,' if not of the 'eighties,' have
already ripened prematurely to the same extent. Have we not heard a
youth of our time, in a mood not wholly burlesque, gravely discussing
the Æsthetic movement of the 'eighties' as soberly as men heretofore
discussed the movement of a century previous? Were the purpose of
this book phrase-making instead of a dull record of facts, we might
style this sudden appreciation of comparatively recent times the New
Antiquity. To a child the year before last is nearly as remote as the
time of the Norman Conquest, or of Julius Cæsar. Possibly this sudden
enlightenment respecting the artistic doings of the mid-Victorian
period may indicate the return to childhood which is part of a
nonagenarian's equipment. At seventy or eighty, our lives are spent in
recollections half a century old, but at ninety the privilege may be
relaxed, and the unfortunate loiterer on the stage may claim to select
a far more recent decade as his Golden Age, even if by weakening memory
he confuses his second childhood with his first.
To-day not a few people interested in the Arts find 'the sixties'
a time as interesting as in the last century men found the days of
Praxiteles, or as, still more recently, the Middle Ages appeared
to the early pre-Raphaelites. These few, however, are more or less
disciples of the illustrator, as opposed to those who consider 'art'
and 'painting' synonymous terms. Not long since the only method deemed
worthy of an artist was to paint in oils. To these, perhaps, to be
literally exact, you might add a few pedants who recognised the large
aims of the worker in fresco, and a still more restricted number who
believed in the maker of stained glass, mosaic, or enamel, if only his
death were sufficiently remote. Now, however, the humble illustrator,
the man who fashions his dreams into designs for commercial
reproduction by wood-engraving or 'process,' has found an audience, and
is acquiring rapidly a fame of his own.
For those who recognise most sincerely, and with no affectation, the
importance of the mere illustrator, this attempt to make a rough
catalogue of his earlier achievements may be not without interest.
Yet it is not put forward as a novel effort. One of the most hopeful
auguries towards the final recognition of the pen-draughtsmen of the
sixties quickly comes to light as you begin to search for previous
notices of their work. It was not Mr. Joseph Pennell who first
appreciated them. It is true that he carried the report of their powers
into unfamiliar districts; but, long before his time, Mr. J. M. Gray,
Mr. Edmund Gosse, and many another had paid in public due tribute to
their excellence. Nor can you find that they were unappreciated by
their contemporaries. On the contrary, our popular magazines were
filled with their work. Despite Mr. Ruskin's consistent 'aloofness' and
inconsistent 'diatribes,' many critics of their own day praised them;
their names were fairly well known to educated people, their works sold
largely, they obtained good prices, and commissions, as the published
results bear witness, were showered upon them.
But, until to-day, the draughtsman for periodicals was deemed a
far less important person than the painter of Academy pictures.
Now, without attempting to rob the R.A. of its historic glory, we
see there are others without the fold who, when the roll-call of
nineteenth-century artists is read, will answer 'Adsum.'
There are signs that the collector, always ready for a fresh hobby,
will before long turn his attention to the English wood-engravings
of this century, as eagerly as he has been attracted heretofore by
the early woodcuts of German and Italian origin, or the copper-plates
of all countries and periods. It is true that Bewick already enjoys
the distinction, and that Cruikshank and Leech have also gained a
reputation in the sale-rooms, and that Blake, for reasons only partly
concerned with art, has for some time past had a faithful and devout
following. But the prices realised, so far, by the finest examples
of the later wood-engravings, in the Moxon edition of _Tennyson's
Poems_, in _Once a Week_, and Messrs. Dalziels' books, are not such as
to inspire faith in the collector who esteems his treasures chiefly
for their value under the hammer. But in this case, as in others, the
moderate prices demanded in 1896 may not be the rule a few months
hence. Already, although books rarely fetch as much as the original
published cost, they are getting scarce. You may hunt the London shops
in vain, and ransack the second-hand stores in the big provincial towns
and not light on Jean Ingelow's _Poems_, 4to, Thornbury's _Legendary
Ballads_, or even _Wayside Poesies_, or a _Round of Days_, all fairly
common but a short time ago.
There are two great divisions of the objects that attract collectors.
In the first come all items of individual handiwork, where no two
can be precisely alike (since replicas by the authors are too rare
to destroy the argument), and each specimen cannot be duplicated.
Into this class fall paintings and drawings of all sorts, gems,
sword-guards, lacquer, and ivories, and a thousand other objects of
art. In the second, where duplicates have been produced in large
numbers, the collector has a new ideal--to complete a collection
that contains examples of every variety of the subject, be they
artistic:--coins, etchings, or engravings of any sort; natural
objects:--butterflies, or crystals, or things which belong neither
to nature nor art:--postage-stamps, the majority of book-plates, and
other trifles so numerous that even a bare list might extend to pages.
The first class demands a long purse, and has, of necessity, a certain
failure confronting it, for many of the best specimens are already in
national collections, and cannot by any chance come into the market.
But in the second class, no matter how rare a specimen may be, there is
always a hope, and in many cases not a forlorn one, that some day, in
some likely or unlikely place, its fellow may be discovered. And the
chance of picking up a treasure for a nominal price adds to the zest
of the collector, whose real delight is in the chase, far more than
in the capture. Who does not hope to find a twopenny box containing
(as once they did) a first edition of Fitzgerald's _Omar Khayyám_?
or a Rembrandt's _Three Trees_ in a first state? Or to discover a
_Tetradrachm_ Syracuse, B.C. 317, 'with the superb head of Persephone
and the spirited quadriga, on the obverse,' in some tray of old coins
in a foreign market-place?
Without more preamble, we may go on to the objects the new collector
wishes to acquire; and to provide him with a hand-book that shall set
him on the track of desirable specimens. This desultory gossip may
also serve to explain indirectly the aims and limits of the present
volume, which does not pretend to be a critical summary, not a history
of art, and neither a treatise on engravers, nor an anecdotal record of
artists, but merely a working book of reference, whatever importance
it possesses being due only to the fine examples of the subject, which
those concerned have most kindly permitted to be reproduced.
It is quite true that in collecting, the first of the two classes
demands more critical knowledge, because as it is not a collection but
only a selection that is within the reach of any one owner, it follows
that each item must reflect his taste and judgment. In the second
division there is danger lest the rush for comprehensiveness may dull
the critical faculty, until, by and by, the ugly and foolish rarity is
treasured far more than the beautiful and artistic items which are not
rare, and so fail to command high prices.
In fact the danger of all collectors is this alluring temptation which
besets other people in other ways. Many people prefer the exception
to the rule, the imperfect sport to the commonplace type. If so, this
discursive chatter is not wholly irrelevant, since it preludes an
apology for including certain references to work distinctly below the
level of the best, which, by its accidental position in volumes where
the best occurs, can hardly be ignored completely.
Another point of conscience arises which each must decide for himself.
Supposing that the collection of wood-engravings of the sixties assumes
the proportion of a craze, must the collector retain intact a whole
set of an illustrated periodical for the sake of a few dozen pictures
within it, or if he decides to tear them out, will he not be imitating
the execrable John Bagford, who destroyed twenty-five thousand volumes
for the sake of their title-pages? Must he mutilate a Tennyson's
_Poems_ (Moxon, 1857) or _The Music-master_, or many of Dalziels'
gift-books, for the sake of arranging his specimens in orderly fashion?
The dilemma is a very real one. Even if one decides to keep volumes
entire, the sets of magazines are so bulky, and in some cases contain
such a small proportion of valuable work, that a collector cannot find
space for more than a few of them. Possibly a fairly representative
collection might be derived entirely from the back-numbers of
periodicals, if any huge stores have yet survived the journey to the
paper-mill or the flames; the one or the other being the ultimate fate
of every magazine or periodical that is not duly bound before it has
lost its high estate, as 'a complete set,' and become mere odd numbers
or waste-paper.
So far the question of cost has not been raised, nor at present need it
frighten the most economic. Taking all the subjects referred to in this
book, with perhaps one or two exceptions (Allingham's _Music-master_,
1855, for instance), I doubt if a penny a piece for all the
illustrations in the various volumes (counting the undesirable as well
as the worthy specimens) would not be far above the market-price of
the whole. But the penny each, like the old story of the horse-shoes,
although not in this case governed by geometrical progression, would
mount up to a big total. Yet, even if you purchase the books at a fair
price, the best contain so many good illustrations, that the cost of
each is brought down to a trifle.
Having decided to collect, and bought or obtained in other ways, so
that you may entitle your treasures (as South Kensington Museum labels
its novelties) 'recent acquisitions,' without scrupulous explanation
of the means employed to get them, you are next puzzled how to arrange
them. It seems to me that a fine book should be preserved intact. There
are but comparatively few of its first edition, and of these few a
certain number are doomed to accidental destruction in the ordinary
course of events, so that one should hesitate before cutting up a fine
book, and be not hasty in mutilating a volume of _Once a Week_ or the
_Shilling Magazine_. But if you have picked up odd numbers, and want
to preserve the prints, a useful plan is to prepare a certain number
of cardboard or cloth-covered boxes filled with single sheets of thick
brown paper. In these an oblique slit is made to hold each corner of
the print. By this method subjects can be mounted quickly, and, as the
collection grows, new sub-divisions can be arranged and the subjects
distributed among a larger number of boxes. This plan allows each
print to be examined easily, the brown paper stands wear and tear and
shows no finger-marks, and affords a pleasant frame to the engraving.
Pasting-down in albums should be viewed with suspicion--either the
blank leaves for specimens still to be acquired are constantly
in evidence to show how little you possess, compared with your
expectations; or else you will find it impossible to place future
purchases in their proper order.
There is a process, known as print-splitting, which removes the
objectionable printed back that ruins the effect of many good
wood-engravings. It is a delicate, but not a very difficult operation,
and should the hobby spread, young lady artists might do worse than
forsake the poorly-paid production of nasty little head-pieces
for fashion-papers and the like, and turn deft fingers to a more
worthy pursuit. It needs an artistic temperament to split the print
successfully, and a market would be quickly opened up if moderate
prices were charged for the new industry.
One could wish that representative collections of the best of these
prints were gathered together and framed inexpensively, for gifts or
loans to schools, art industrial classes, and other places where the
taste of pupils might be raised by their study. The cheap process-block
from a photograph is growing to be the staple form of black and white
that the average person meets with in his daily routine. The cost of
really fine etchings, mezzotints, lithographs, and other masterpieces
of black and white prohibits their being scattered broadcast; but while
the fine prints by Millais, Sandys, Hughes, Pinwell, Fred Walker, and
the rest are still to be bought cheaply, the opportunity should not be
lost.
CHAPTER II: THE ILLUSTRATED PERIODICALS BEFORE THE SIXTIES
The more you study the position of illustrators during the last forty
years, the more you are inclined to believe that they owe their very
existence, as a class, to the popularity of magazines and periodicals.
From the time _Once a Week_ started, to the present to-day, the bulk
of illustrations of any merit have been issued in serial publications.
It is easy to find a reason for this. The heavy cost of the drawings,
and, until recent times, the almost equally heavy cost of engraving
them, would suffice to prohibit their lavish use in ordinary books.
For it must not be forgotten that every new book is, to a great
extent, a speculation; whereas the circulation of a periodical, once
it is assured, varies but slightly. A book may be prepared for twenty
thousand buyers, and not attract one thousand; but a periodical that
sold twenty thousand of its current number is fairly certain to sell
eighteen thousand to nineteen thousand of the next, and more probably
will show a slight increase. Again, although one appears to get as
many costly illustrations in a magazine to-day as in a volume costing
ten times the price, the comparative sales more than readjust the
balance. For a quarter of a million, although a record circulation of
a periodical, is by no means a unique one; whereas the most popular
illustrated book ever issued--and _Trilby_ could be easily proved to
merit that title--is probably not far beyond its hundred thousand. This
very book was published in _Harper's Magazine_, and so obtained an
enormous advertisement in one of the most widely circulated shilling
monthlies. One doubts if the most popular illustrated volumes published
at one or two guineas would show an average sale of two thousand
copies at the original price. Therefore, to regard the periodical, be
it quarterly, monthly, or weekly--and quite soon the daily paper may
be added to the list--as the legitimate field for the illustrator,
is merely to accept the facts of the case. True, that here and there
carefully prepared volumes, with all the added luxury of fine paper
and fine printing, stand above the magazine of their time in this
mechanical production. But things are rapidly changing. One may pick up
some ephemeral paper to-day, to find it has process-blocks of better
quality, and is better printed, than 'the art book of the season,'
be it what it may. The illustrator is the really popular artist of
the period--the natural product of the newer conditions. For one
painter who makes a living entirely by pictures, there are dozens who
subsist upon illustrating; while, against one picture of any reputable
sort--framed and sold--it would be impossible to estimate the number
of drawings made specially for publication. Nor even to-day--when
either the demand for illustration is ahead of the supply, or else
many editors artfully prefer the second best, not forgetting all the
feeble stuff of the cheap weeklies--would it be safe to declare that
the artistic level is below that of the popular galleries. Certainly,
even in the thirties, there were, in proportion, as many masterpieces
done for the engraver as those which were carried out in oil or
water-colour. Waiving the question of the damage wrought by engraver,
or process-reproducer, the artist--if he be a great man--is no less
worthy of respect as an illustrator in a cheap weekly, than when he
chooses to devote himself solely to easel pictures. It is not by way of
depreciating paintings that one would exalt illustration, but merely
to recognise the obvious truth that the best work of an artist who
understands his medium can never fail to be of surpassing interest,
whether he uses fresco, tempera, oil, or water-colour; whether he works
with brush or needle, pen or pencil. Nobody doubts that most of these
products are entitled, other qualities being present, to be considered
works of art; but, until lately, people have not shown the same respect
for an illustration. Even when they admired the work, it was a common
form of appreciation to declare it was 'as good as an etching,' or 'a
composition worthy of being painted.' Many writers have endeavoured to
restore black-and-white art to its true dignity, and the labours of Sir
F. Seymour Haden, who awakened a new popular recognition of the claims
of the etcher, and of Mr. Joseph Pennell, who fought with sustained
vigour for the dignity and importance of illustration, have helped to
inspire outsiders with a new respect. For it is only outsiders who ever
thought of making absurd distinctions between high art and minor arts.
If the thing, be it what it may, is good--as good as it could be--at
no age did it fail to win the regard of artists; even if it had to
wait a few generations to charm the purchaser, or awaken the cupidity
of the connoisseur. It is a healthy sign to find that people to-day
are interesting themselves in the books of the sixties; it should make
them more eager for original contemporary work, and foster a dislike to
the inevitable photograph from nature reproduced by half-tone, which
one feared would have satisfied their love for black-and-white to the
exclusion of all else.
If, after an evening spent in looking over the old magazines which
form the subject of the next few chapters, you can turn to the current
weeklies and monthlies, and feel absolutely certain that we are better
than our fathers, it augurs either a very wisely selected purchase from
the crowded bookstall, which, at each railway station as the first of
the month approaches, has its hundreds of rival magazines, or else that
it would be wiser to spend still more time over the old periodicals
until a certain 'divine dissatisfaction' was aroused towards the
average illustrated periodical of to-day.
Not that we are unable to show as good work perhaps, man for man, as
they offer. We have no Sandys, no Millais, no Boyd Houghton, it is
true; they had no E. A. Abbey, no Phil May, no ..., but it would be
a delicate matter to continue a list of living masters here. But if
you can find an English periodical with as many first-rate pictures
as _Once a Week_, _The Cornhill Magazine_, _Good Words_, and others
contained in the early sixties, you will be ... well ... lucky is
perhaps the most polite word.
That the cheapness and rapidity of 'reproduction by process' should be
directly responsible for the birth of many new illustrated periodicals
to-day is clear enough. But it is surprising to find that a movement,
which relatively speaking was almost as fecund, had begun some years
before photography had ousted the engraver. Why it sprang into
existence is not quite so obvious; but if we assume, as facts indicate,
that the system of producing wood-engravings underwent a radical change
about this time, we shall find that again a more ample supply provoked
a larger demand. Hitherto, the engraver had only accepted as many
blocks as he could engrave himself, with the help of a few assistants;
but not very long before the date we are considering factories for the
supply of wood-engravings had grown up. The heads of these, practical
engravers and in some cases artists of more than average ability, took
all the responsibility for the work intrusted to them, and maintained a
singularly high standard of excellence; but they did not pretend that
they engraved each block themselves. Such a system not merely permitted
commissions for a large quantity of blocks being accepted, but greatly
increased speed in their production.
There can be little doubt that something of the sort took place;
it will suffice to name but two firms, Messrs. Dalziel and Messrs.
Swain, who were each responsible often enough, not merely for all the
engravings in a book, but often for all the engravings in a popular
magazine. Under the old system, the publisher had thrown upon him
the trouble of discovering the right engraver to employ, and the
burden of reconciling the intention of the artist with the product
of the engraver. This, by itself, would have been enough to make
him very cautious before committing himself to the establishment of
an illustrated magazine. But if we also remember that, under such
conditions, almost unlimited time would be required for the production
of the engravings, and that, to ensure a sufficient quantity being
ready for each issue, a very large number of independent engravers must
needs have been employed, it is clear that the old conditions would not
have been equal to the task.
When, however, the publisher or editor was able to send all his
drawings to a reputable firm who could undertake to deliver the
engravings by a given time, one factor of great practical importance
had been established. It is not surprising to find that things went
even further than this, and that the new firms of engravers not only
undertook the whole of the blocks, but in several cases supplied the
drawings also.
Without claiming that such a system is the best, it is but fair to
own that to it we are indebted for the masterpieces of the sixties.
No doubt the ideal art-editor--a perfectly equipped critic, with the
blank cheque of a millionaire at his back--might have done better; but
to-day there are many who think themselves perfectly equipped critics,
and perhaps some here and there who are backed by millionaires, yet on
neither side of the Atlantic can we find better work than was produced
under the system in vogue in the sixties. But after all, it is not the
system, then or now, that is praiseworthy, but the individual efforts
of men whose hearts were in their professions.
The more you inquire into the practice of the best engravers then and
now, the more you find that ultimately one person is responsible for
the good. In the sixties the engraver saw new possibilities, and did
his utmost to realise them; full of enthusiasm, and a master of his
craft, he inspired those who worked with him to experiment and spare
no effort. That he did marvels may be conceded; and to declare that
the merely mechanical processes to-day have already distanced his most
ambitious efforts in many qualities does not detract from his share.
But in this chapter he is regarded less as a craftsman than as a
middleman, an art-editor in effect if not in name; one who taught the
artists with whom he was brought in contact the limits of the material
in which their work was to be translated, and in turn learned from them
no little that was of vital importance. Above all, he seems to have
kept closely in touch with draughtsmen and engravers alike; one might
believe that every drawing passed through his hands, and that every
block was submitted to him many times during its progress. When you
realise the mass of work signed 'Dalziels' or 'Swain,' it is evident
that its high standard of excellence must not be attributed to any
system, but to the personal supervision of the acting members of the
firms--men who were, every one of them, both draughtsmen and engravers,
who knew not only the effect the artist aimed to secure, but the best
method of handicraft by which to obtain it.
If, after acknowledging this, one cannot but regret that the
photographic transfer of drawings to wood had not come into general use
twenty years before it did, so that the masterpieces of the Rossetti
designs to Tennyson's _Poems_ and a hundred others had not been cut to
pieces by the engraver; yet at the same time we must remember that, but
for the enterprise of the engraver, the drawings themselves would in
all probability never have been called into existence in many cases.
This is especially true of the famous volumes which Messrs. Dalziel
issued under the imprint of various publishers, who were really merely
agents for their distribution.
_The Penny Magazine_ in 1832, and other of Charles Knight's
publications, _Sharp's Magazine_, _The People's Journal_, _Howitt's
Journal of Literature_, _The Illustrated Family Journal_, _The Mirror_,
_The Parterre_, _The Casket_, _The Olio_, _The Saturday Magazine_,
_Pinnock's Guide to Knowledge_, _Punch_, _The Illustrated London
News_, had led the way for pictorial weekly papers, even as the old
Annuals and the various novels by Ainsworth, Dickens, and Thackeray
had prepared the way for magazines; but the artistic movement of the
'sixties,' so far as its periodicals are concerned, need be traced back
no further than _Once a Week_. Perhaps, however, it would be unfair
to forget the influence of _The Art Journal_ (at first called _The
Art Union_), which, started in 1851, brought fine art to the homes of
the great British public through the medium of wood-engravings in a
way not attempted previously; and certainly we must not ignore John
Cassell, who, on the demise of _Howitt's Journal_ and _The People's
Journal_ in 1850, brought out an illustrated chronicle of the Great
Exhibition, which was afterwards merged in a _Magazine of Art_. As _The
Strand Magazine_--the first monthly periodical to exploit freely the
Kodak and the half-tone block--started a whole school of imitators,
so _Once a Week_, depending chiefly on drawings by the best men of
the day, engraved by the foremost engravers, was followed quickly by
the _Cornhill Magazine_, _Good Words_, and the rest. Many of these
were short-lived; nor, looking at them impartially to-day, are we
quite sure that the survivors were always the fittest. Certainly
they were not always the best. But the number of new ventures that
saw the light about this time can scarce be named here. Then, as
now, a vast army of quite second-rate draughtsmen were available,
and a number of periodicals, which it were gross flattery to call
second-rate, sprang up to utilise their talents. Besides these, many
weekly and monthly publications, ostensibly devoted to catering for
the taste of the masses, gained large audiences and employed talented
artists, but demand no more serious consideration as art, than do the
'snippet' weeklies of to-day as literature. But some of these popular
serials--such as _The Band of Hope_, _The British Workman_, _The
London Journal_, _The London Reader_, _Bow Bells_, _Every Week_, and
the rest--are not, relatively speaking, worse than more pretentious
publications. It is weary work to estimate the place of the second
and third bests, and whatever interest the subject possesses would
be exhausted quickly if we tried to catalogue or describe the less
important items. Yet, to be quite just, several of these, notably the
cheap publications of Messrs. Cassell, Petter, and Galpin, Messrs. S.
W. Partridge and Co., and many others, employed artists by no means
second-rate and gave better artistic value for their money than many of
their successors do at present.
It is well to face the plain fact, and own that at no time has the
supply of really creative artists equalled the popular demand. Not all
the painters of any period are even passable, nor all the illustrators.
Much that is produced for the moment fulfils its purpose admirably
enough, although it dies as soon as it is born. Nature shows us the
prodigal fecundity of generation compared with the few that ripen to
maturity. The danger lies rather in appreciating too much, whether
of 'the sixties' or 'the nineties'; yet, if one is stoical enough to
praise only the best, it demands not merely great critical acumen,
but no little hardness of heart. The intention always pleads to be
recognised. We know that accidents, quite beyond the artist's power to
prevent, may have marred his work. Each man, feeling his own impotence
to express his ideas lucidly, must needs be lenient to those who
also stammer and fail to interpret their imaginings clearly and with
irresistible power. Yet, although the men of the sixties survive in
greatly reduced numbers and one might speak plainly of much of its
trivial commonplace without hurting anybody's feelings, there is no
need to drag the rubbish to light.
CHAPTER III: SOME ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINES OF THE SIXTIES. I. 'ONCE A WEEK'
Once a Week.--On the second of July 1859 appeared the first number of
_Once a Week_, 'an illustrated miscellany of Literature, Art, Science,
and Popular Information.' Despite the choice of an extraordinary time
of year, as we should now consider it, to float a new venture, the
result proved fortunate. Not merely does the first series of this
notable magazine deserve recognition as the pioneer of its class; its
superiority is no less provable than its priority. The earliest attempt
to provide a magazine with original illustrations by the chief artists
of its time was not merely a bold and well-considered experiment
but, as the thirteen volumes of its first series show, an instant
and admirably sustained triumph. No other thirteen volumes of an
English magazine, at any period, contain so much first-class work. The
invention and knowledge, the mastery of the methods employed, and the
superb achievements of some of its contributors entitle it to be ranked
as one of the few artistic enterprises of which England may be justly
proud.
When the connection of Dickens with his old publishers was severed,
and _All the Year Round_ issued from its own office, Messrs. Bradbury
and Evans projected a rival paper that was in no sense an imitation of
the former. The reasons for its success lie on the surface. Started by
the proprietors of _Punch_, with the co-operation of an artistic staff
that has been singularly fortunate in enlisting always the services
of the best men of their day, it is obvious that few periodicals have
ever been launched under happier auspices. Its aim was obviously to
do for fiction, light literature, and _belles-lettres_, what _Punch_
had accomplished so admirably for satire and caricature. At that time,
with no rivals worth consideration, a fixed intention to obtain for a
new magazine the active co-operation of the best men of all schools
was within the bounds of possibility. To-day a millionaire with a
blank cheque-book could not even hope to succeed in such a project.
He would find many first-rate artists, whom no amount of money would
attract, and others with connections that would be imperilled if they
contributed to a rival enterprise. There are many who prefer the safety
of an established periodical to the risk which must needs attend any
'up-to-date' venture. Now _Once a Week_ was not merely 'up-to-date'
in its period, but far ahead of the popular taste. As we cannot rival
it to-day in its own line, even the most ardent defender of the
present at the expense of the past must own that the improvement in
process-engraving and the increased truth of facsimile reproductions
it offers have not inspired draughtsmen to higher efforts. Why so
excellent a magazine is not flourishing to-day is a mystery. It
would seem as if the public, faithful as they are to non-illustrated
periodicals, are fickle where pictures are concerned. But the memory
of the third series of _Once a Week_ relieves the public of the
responsibility; changes in the direction and aim of the periodical were
made, and all for the worse; so that it lost its high position and no
more interested the artist. _Punch_, its sponsor, seems to have the
secret of eternal youth, possibly because its original programme is
still consistently maintained.
In another feature it resembled _Punch_ more than any previous
periodical. In _The London Charivari_ many of the pictures have always
been inserted quite independently of the text. Some have a title,
and some a brief scrap of dialogue to explain their story; but the
picture is not there to elucidate the anecdote, so much as the title,
or fragment of conversation, helps to elucidate the picture. Unless
an engraving be from a painting, or a topographical view, the rule in
English magazines then, as now, is that it must illustrate the text.
This is not the place to record an appreciation of the thorough and
consistent way in which the older illustrators set about the work of
reiterating the obvious incident, depicting for all eyes to see what
the author had suggested in his text already, for it is evident that a
design untrammelled by any fixed programme ought to allow the artist
more play for his fancy. Nevertheless, the less frequent illustrations
to its serial fiction are well up to the level of those practically
independent of the text. In _Once a Week_ there are dozens of pictures
which are evidently purely the invention of the draughtsman. That a
modest little poem, written to order usually, satisfies the conventions
of established precedent, need not be taken as evidence that traverses
the argument. _Once a Week_ ranked its illustrators as important as its
authors, which is clearly an ideal method for an illustrated periodical
to observe. To write up to pictures has often been attempted; were not
_The Pickwick Papers_ begun in this way? But the author soon reversed
the situation, and once more put the artist in a subordinate place.
It is curious to observe that readers of light literature had been
satisfied previously with a very conventional type of illustration.
For, granting all sorts of qualities to those pictures by Cruikshank,
'Phiz,' and Thackeray, which illustrated the Dickens, Ainsworth,
Lever, and Thackeray novels, you can hardly refer the source of their
inspiration to nature, however remotely. Their purpose seems to have
been caricature rather than character-drawing, sentimentality in place
of sentiment, melodrama in lieu of mystery, broad farce instead of
humour. These aims were accomplished in masterly fashion, perhaps; but
is there a single illustration by Cruikshank, 'Phiz,' Thackeray, or
even John Leech, which tempts us to linger and return again and again
purely for its art? Its 'drawing' is often slipshod, and never infused
by the perception of physical beauty that the Greeks embodied as their
ideal, that ideal which the illustrators of _Once a Week_, especially
Walker, revived soon after this date. Nor are they inspired by the
symbolists' regard for nature, which attracted the 'primitives' of
the Middle Ages, and their legitimate followers the pre-Raphaelites.
Indeed, as you study the so-called 'immortal' designs which illustrate
the early Victorian novels, you feel that if many of the artists
were once considered to be as great as the authors whose ideas they
interpreted, time has wreaked revenge at last. If a boy happens to
read for the first time Thackeray's _Vanity Fair_ with its original
illustrations, the humour and pathos of the masterpiece lose half their
power when the ridiculously feeble drawings confront him throughout the
book. This is not the case with Millais' illustrations to Trollope, or
those by Fred Walker to Thackeray. The costume may appear grotesque,
but the men and women are vital, and as real in the picture as in the
literature.
Lacking the virility of Hogarth, or the coarse animal vigour of
Rowlandson, these caricaturists kept one eye on the fashion-book and
one on the grotesque. It was 'cumeelfo' to depict the English maiden a
colourless vapid nonentity, to make the villain look villainous, and
the benevolent middle-aged person imbecile. Accidental deformities
and vulgar personal defects were deemed worthy themes for laughter.
The fat boy in _Pickwick_, the fat Joe Sedley in _Vanity Fair_, the
_Marchioness and Dick Swiveller_, the _Quilps' Tea-Party_, and the
rest, all belong to the order of humour that survives to-day in the
'knockabout artists,' or the 'sketch' performances at second-rate
music-halls. Even the much-belauded _Fagin in the Condemned Cell_
appears a trite and ineffective bit of low melodrama to-day. We know
the oft-repeated story of the artist's despondency, his failure
to realise an attitude to express Fagin's despair, and how as he
caught sight of his own face in the glass he saw that he himself, a
draughtsman troubled by a subject, was the very model for one about
to be hanged. All the personality of anecdote and the sentimental
log-rolling which gathered round the pictures, that by chance were
associated with a series of masterpieces in fiction, no longer
fascinate us. We recognise the power of the writers, but wish in our
hearts that they had never been 'illustrated,' or if so, that they had
enjoyed the good fortune which belongs to the novelists of the sixties.
But to refuse to endorse the verdict of earlier critics does not
imply that there was no merit in these designs, but merely that their
illustrators must be classed for the most part (Leech least of all)
with the exaggerators--those who aimed at the grotesque--with Gilray or
Baxter, the creator of _Ally Sloper_, and not with true satirists like
Hogarth or Charles Keene, who worked in ways that are pre-eminently
masterly, even if you disregard the humorous element in their designs.
Without forcing the theory too far, it may be admitted that the
idea of _Once a Week_ owes more to these serial novels than to any
previous enterprise. Be that as it may, the plan of the magazine, as
we find in a postscript (to vol. i.), was at once 'ratified by popular
acceptance.' Further, its publishers admit that its circulation was
adequate and its commercial success established, after only thirty-six
numbers had appeared. It is no new thing for the early numbers of
magazines and papers to contain glowing accounts of their phenomenal
circulation; but, in this case, there can be no doubt that the
self-congratulation is both well deserved and genuine. To _Once a Week_
may be accorded the merit of initiating a new type of periodical which
has survived with trifling changes until to-day. Its recognition of
'fiction' and 'pictures,' as the chief items in its programme, has been
followed by a hundred others; but the editing, which made it readable
as well as artistic, is a secret that many of its imitators failed to
understand. Although _A Good Fight_ (afterwards rewritten and entitled
_The Cloister and the Hearth_) is the only novel within its pages that
has since assumed classic rank, yet the average of its art--good as
it was--is not as far above the standard of its literature, as the
illustrations of its predecessors fell below the text they professed to
adorn.
In sketching the life-history of other illustrated magazines it seemed
best to follow a chronological order, because the progress of the art
of illustration is reflected more or less faithfully in the advance and
retrogression they show. But the thirteen volumes which complete the
first series of _Once a Week_ may be considered better in a different
way. For to-day it is prized almost entirely for its pictures, and they
were contributed for the most part by the same artists year after year.
While in other periodicals you find, with every new volume, a fresh
relay of artists, _Once a Week_, during its palmy days, was supported
by the same brilliant group of draughtsmen, who admitted very few
recruits, and only those whose great early promise was followed almost
directly by ample fulfilment.
The very first illustration is a vignette by John Leech to a rhymed
programme of the magazine by Shirley Brooks. But Leech, who died in
1864, cannot be regarded as a typical illustrator of 'the sixties'--not
so much because his work extended only a few years into that decade, as
that he belonged emphatically to the earlier school, and represented
all that is _not_ characteristic of the period with which this book is
concerned.
It is unnecessary to belittle his art for the sake of glorifying
those who succeeded him in popularity. That he obtained a strong
hold upon English taste, lettered and unlettered, is undeniable. It
has become part and parcel of that English life, especially of the
insular middle-class, whose ideal permitted it to regard the exhibition
building of 1851 not as a big conservatory, but as a new and better
Parthenon, and to believe honestly enough that the millennium of
universal peace with art, no less than morals, perfected to the '_n_th'
degree (on purely British lines), was dawning upon humanity. That
the efforts of 1851 made much possible to-day which else had been
impossible may be granted.
The grace and truth of John Leech's designs may be recognised despite
their technical insufficiency, but at the same time we may own that, in
common with Cruikshank and the rest, he has received infinitely more
appreciation than his artistic achievement merited, and leave his share
unconsidered here, although no doubt it was a big commercial factor in
the success. To vol. i. of _Once a Week_ he contributed no less than
thirty-two designs, to vol. ii. forty-six, to vol. iii. seven, to vol.
iv. one, and to vol. v. four.
John Tenniel, although he began to work much earlier, and is still an
active contemporary, may be considered as belonging especially to the
sixties, wherein he represents the survival of an academic type in
sharply accentuated distinction to the pre-Raphaelism of one group or
to the romantic naturalism of a still larger section. On page 4 of vol.
i. we find his first drawing, a vignette, and page 5 a design, _Audun
and the White Bear_, no less typically 'a Tenniel' in every particular
than is the current cartoon in _Punch_. Those on pages 21, 30, 60,
90, 101, 103, and 170 are all relatively unimportant. _The King of
Thule_ (p. 250) is an illustration to Sir Theodore Martin's familiar
translation of Goethe's poems. Others are on pp. 285, 435, 446. To
vol. ii. he is a less frequent contributor. The designs, pp. 39, 98,
99, and 103 call for no comment. The one on p. 444 (not p. 404 as the
index has it), to Tom Taylor's ballad _Noménoë_, is reprinted in _Songs
and Ballads of Brittany_ (Macmillan, 1865). In vol. iii. there is one
(p. 52) of small value. On pp. 533, 561, 589, 617, 645, 673, and 701
are pictures to Shirley Brooks's _The Silver Cord_, showing the artist
in his less familiar aspect as an illustrator of fiction. The one on
p. 589 is irresistibly like a 'Wonderland' picture, while that on p.
225 (vol. iv.) suggests a _Punch_ cartoon; but, on the whole, they are
curiously free from undue mannerism in the types they depict. In vol.
iv. are more illustrations to _The Silver Cord_ (pp. 1, 29, 57, 85,
113, 141, 169, 197, 225, 253, 281, 309, 337, 365, 393, 421, 449, 477,
505, 533, 561, 589, 617, 645, 673, and 701), and illustrations to Owen
Meredith's poem, _Fair Rosamund_ (pp. 294, 295). In volume v. _The
Silver Cord_ is continued with ten more designs (pp. 1, 29, 57, 85,
113, 141, 169, 197, 225, 253), and there is one to _Mark Bozzari_ (p.
659), translated from Müller by Sir Theodore Martin.
In volume vi. Tenniel appears but four times: _At Crutchley Prior_ (p.
267), _The Fairies_ (p. 379), a very delicate fancy, _Prince Lulu_
(p. 490), and _Made to Order_ (p. 575). From the seventh and eighth
volumes he is absent, and reappears in the ninth with only one drawing,
_Clytè_ (p. 154), and in the tenth (Dec. 1863-June 1864) with one,
_Bacchus and the Water Thieves_ (p. 658). Nor does he appear again
in this magazine until 1867, with _Lord Aythan_, the frontispiece to
vol. iii. of the New Series. Sir John Tenniel, however, more than any
other of the _Punch_ staff, seems never thoroughly at home outside its
pages. The very idea of a Tenniel drawing has become a synonym for
a political cartoon; so that now you cannot avoid feeling that all
his illustrations to poetry, fiction, and fairy-tale must have some
satirical motive underlying their apparent purpose.
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. I. p. 241
GRANDMOTHER'S
APOLOGY]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. I. p. 316
THE PLAGUE OF
ELLIANT]
It is difficult to record Sir John Everett Millais' contributions
to this magazine with level unbiassed comments. Notwithstanding the
palpable loss they suffered by translation under the hands of even
the most skilful of his engravers, the impressions belong to a higher
plane than is reached by their neighbours save in a very few instances.
The Millais wood-engravings deserve a deliberately ordered monograph
as fully as do the etchings by Rembrandt and Whistler, or Hokousaï's
prints. It is true that not quite all his many illustrations to
contemporary literature are as good as the best works of the great
artist just named; but if you search through the portfolios of the
past for that purpose, you will find that even the old masters were
not always adding to a cycle of masterpieces. The astounding fact
remains that Sir John Millais, dealing with the hair-net and the
Dundreary whiskers, the crinoline and peg-top trousers, imparted such
dignity to his men and women that even now they carry their grotesque
costumes with distinction, and fail to appear old-fashioned, but at
most as masqueraders in fancy dress. For in Millais' work you are face
to face with actual human beings, superbly drawn and fulfilling all
artistic requirements. They possess the immense individuality of a
Velasquez portrait, which, as a human being, appeals to you no less
surely, than its handling arouses your æsthetic appreciation. At this
period it seems as if the artist was overflowing with power and
mastery--everything he touched sprang into life. Whether he owed much
or little to his predecessors is unimportant--take away all, and still
a giant remains. It is so easy to accept the early drawings of Millais
as perfect of their kind, beyond praise or blame, and yet to fail to
realise that they possess the true vitality of those few classics which
are for all time. The term monumental must not be applied to them, for
it suggests something dead in fact, although living in sentiment and
admired by reason of conventional precedent. The Millais drawings have
still the power to excite an artist as keenly as a great Rembrandt
etching that he sees for the first time, or an early Whistler that
turns up unexpectedly in a loan collection, or an unknown Utamaro
colour print. The mood they provoke is almost deprived of critical
analysis by the overwhelming sense of fulfillment which is forced on
your notice. In place of gratified appreciation you feel appalled that
one man should have done over and over again, so easily and with such
certainty, what dozens of his fellows, accomplished and masterly in
their way, tried with by no means uniform success. If every canvas by
the artist were lost, he might still be proved to belong to the great
masters from his illustrations alone; even if these were available only
through the medium of wood-engraving.
The first volume of _Once a Week_ contains, as Millais' first
contribution, _Magenta_ (p. 10), a study of a girl who has just read a
paper with news of the great battle that gave its name to the terrible
colour which typifies the period. It is badly printed in the copy at my
side, and, although engraved by Dalziels, is not an instance of their
best work. In _Grandmother's Apology_ (p. 41) we have a most delightful
illustration to Tennyson, reproduced in his collected volume, but not
elsewhere. _On the Water_ (p. 70) and _La Fille bien gardée_ (p. 306)
may be passed without comment. But _The Plague of Elliant_ (p. 316), a
powerful drawing of a woman dragging a cart wherein are the bodies of
her nine dead children, has been selected, more than once, as a typical
example of the illustrator at his best. _Maude Clare_ (p. 382), _A Lost
Love_ (p. 482), and _St. Bartholomew_ (p. 514), complete the Millais'
in vol. i.
In the second volume we find _The Crown of Love_ (p. 10), a poem by
George Meredith. This was afterwards painted and exhibited under the
same title in the Royal Academy of 1875. _A Wife_ (p. 32), _The Head
of Bran_ (p. 132), _Practising_ (p. 242), (a girl at a piano), and
_Musa_ (p. 598), complete the list of the five in this volume. In vol.
iii. there are seven: _Master Olaf_ (p. 63), _Violet_ (p. 140), _Dark
Gordon's Bride_ (p. 238), _The Meeting_ (p. 276), _The Iceberg_ (pp.
407, 435), and _A Head of Hair for Sale_ (p. 519). In vol. iv. but two
appear, _Iphis and Anaxarete_ (p. 98) and _Thorr's Hunt for the Hammer_
(p. 126), both slighter in execution than most of the _Once a Week_
Millais'.
Volume v. also contains but two, _Tannhäuser_ (p. 211) and _Swing
Song_ (p. 434), a small boy in a Spanish turban swinging. Volume vi.
houses a dozen: _Schwerting of Saxony_ (p. 43), _The Battle of the
Thirty_ (p. 155), _The Child of Care_ (pp. 2, 39), five designs for
Miss Martineau's _Sister Anne's Probation_ (pp. 309, 337, 365, 393,
421), _Sir Tristem_ (p. 350), _The Crusader's Wife_ (p. 546), _The
Chase of the Siren_ (p. 630), and _The Drowning of Kaer-is_ (p. 687).
The seventh volume contains eleven examples by this artist: _Margaret
Wilson_ (p. 42), five to Miss Martineau's _Anglers of the Don_ (pp.
85, 113, 141, 169, 197), _Maid Avoraine_ (p. 98), _The Mite of Dorcas_
(p. 224), (which is the subject of the Academy picture, _The Widow's
Mite_ of 1876; although in the painting the widow turns her back on
the spectator), _The Parting of Ulysses_ (p. 658), _The Spirit of the
Vanished Island_ (p. 546), and _Limerick Bells_ (p. 710), a design of
which a eulogist of the artist says: 'the old monk might be expanded as
he stands into a full-sized picture.'
In the eighth volume _Endymion on Latmos_ (p. 42), a charming study
of the sleeping shepherd, is the only independent picture; the other
nine are by way of illustration to Miss Martineau's _The Hampdens_ (pp.
211, 239, 267, 281, 309, 337, 365, 393, 421, 449). These are delightful
examples of the use of costume by a great master. Neither pedantically
correct, nor too lax, they revivify the period so that the actors are
more important than the accessories.
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. V. p. 211
TANNHÄUSER]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VI. p. 42
SISTER ANNE'S
PROBATION]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VIII. p. 365
THE HAMPDENS]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'ONCE A WEEK'
1868, Vol. I. p. 79
DEATH DEALING
ARROWS]
The ninth volume, like the eighth, has only one picture by Millais
not illustrating its serial. This is _Hacco the Dwarf_ (p. 504). The
others represent scenes in Miss Martineau's _Sir Christopher_ (pp.
491, 519, 547, 575, 603, 631, 659, 687), a seventeenth-century story.
The illustrators of to-day should study these and other pictures where
the artist was hampered by the story, and imitate his loyal
purpose to expound and amplify the text, accomplishing it the while
with most admirably dramatic composition and strong character-drawing.
In the remaining volume of the first series there are no other examples
by Millais; nor, with the exceptions _Death Dealing Arrows_ (Jan. 25,
1868, p. 79), one in the _Christmas Number for 1860_, and _Taking his
Ease_, 1868 (p. 65), does he appear as a contributor to the magazine.
It must not be forgotten that high prices are often responsible for the
desire, or rather the necessity, of using second-rate work. When an
artist attains a position that monopolises all his working hours, it is
obvious that he cannot afford to accept even the highest current rate
of payment for magazine illustration; nor, on the other hand, can an
editor, who conducts what is after all a commercial enterprise, afford
to pay enormous sums for its illustrations. For later drawings this
artist was paid at least five times as much as for his earlier efforts,
and possibly in some cases ten or twelve times as much.
Charles Keene, the great illustrator so little appreciated by his
contemporaries, whose fame is still growing daily, was a frequent
contributor to _Once a Week_ for many years. Starting with volume i. he
depicted, in quasi-mediæval fashion, Charles Reade's famous _Cloister
and the Hearth_, then called, in its first and shorter form, _A Good
Fight_ (pp. 11, 31, 51, 71, 91, 111, 131, 151, 171, 191, 211, 231, 251,
254, 273). Coincidently he illustrated also _Guests at the Red Lion_
(pp. 61, 65), _A Fatal Gift_ (p. 141), _Uncle Simkinson_ (pp. 201,
203), _Gentleman in the Plum-coloured Coat_ (p. 270), _Benjamin Harris_
(pp. 427, 449, 471), _My Picture Gallery_ (p. 483), and _A Merry
Christmas_ (p. 544). In volume ii. there are only five illustrations
by him (pp. 1, 5, 54, 111, and 451) to shorter tales; but to George
Meredith's _Evan Harrington_, running through this volume and the next,
he contributes thirty-nine drawings, some of them in his happiest vein,
all showing strongly and firmly marked types of character-drawing, in
which he excelled. Volume iii. contains also, on pages 20, 426, 608,
687, and 712, less important works: _The Emigrant Artist_ on p. 608 is
a return to the German manner which distinguished the _Good Fight_. The
drawings for _Sam Bentley's Christmas_ commence here in (pp. 687, 712),
and are continued (pp. 19, 45, 155, 158) in vol. iv., where we also
find _In re Mr. Brown_ (pp. 330, 332), _The Beggar's Soliloquy_ (p.
378), _A Model Strike_ (p. 466), _The Two Norse Kings_ (pp. 519, 547),
and _The Revenue Officer's Story_ (p. 713). In volume v. are: _The
Painter Alchemist_ (p. 43), _Business with Bokes_ (p. 251), _William's
Perplexities_ (pp. 281, 309, 337, 365, 393), also a romantic subject,
_Adalieta_ (p. 266): a poem by Edwin Arnold, and _The Patriot Engineer_
(p. 686). To the sixth volume, the illustrations for _The Woman I Loved
and The Woman who loved me_ (pp. 85, 113, 141, 169, 197, 225, 253, 281)
are by Keene, as are also those to _My Schoolfellow Friend_ (p. 334),
_A Legend of Carlisle_ (p. 407), a curiously Germanic _Page from the
History of Kleinundengreich_ (p. 531), _Nip's Daimon_ (p. 603), and _A
Mysterious Supper-Party_ (659). In vol. vii. and vol. viii. _Verner's
Pride_, by Mrs. Henry Wood, supplies motives for seventeen pictures.
In vol. viii. _The March of Arthur_ (p. 434), _The Bay of the Dead_
(p. 546), and _My Brother's Story_ (p. 617). In vol. ix. _The Viking's
Serf_ (p. 42), _The Station-master_ (pp. 1, 69), and _The Heirloom_
(pp. 435, 463) complete Charles Keene's share in the illustration of
the thirteen volumes of the first series.
Fred Walker is often supposed to have made his first appearance as an
illustrator in _Once a Week_, vol. ii. with _Peasant Proprietorship_
(p. 165); and, although an exception of earlier date may be discovered,
it is only in an obscure paper (of which the British Museum apparently
has no copy) barely a month before. For practical purposes, therefore,
_Once a Week_ may be credited with being the first-established
periodical to commission a young artist whose influence upon the art of
the sixties was great. This drawing was quickly followed by _God help
our Men at Sea_ (p. 198), _An honest Arab_ (p. 262), _Après_ (p. 330),
_Lost in the Fog_ (p. 370), _Spirit Painting_ (p. 424), and _Tenants at
No. 27_ (p. 481), and _The Lake at Yssbrooke_ (p. 538). Looking closely
at these, in two or three only can you discover indications of the
future creator of _Philip_. Those on pages 424 and 481 are obviously
the work of the Fred Walker as we know him now. But those on pp. 165,
198, 330, and 538 would pass unnoticed in any magazine of the period,
except that the full signature 'F. Walker' arouses one's curiosity, and
almost suggests, like Lewis Carroll's re-attribution of the _Iliad_,
'another man of the same name.'
[Illustration: CHARLES KEENE
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. I. p. 91
'A GOOD FIGHT']
In vol. iii. a poem, _Once upon a Time_, by Eliza Cook, has two
illustrations (pp. 24, 25), which, tentative as they are, and not
faultless in drawing, foreshadow the grace of his later work. In
_Markham's Revenge_ (pp. 182-184) the artist is himself, as also in
_Wanted a Diamond Ring_ (p. 210). _A Noctuary of Terror_ (pp. 294,
295), _First Love_ (p. 322), _The Unconscious Bodyguard_ (p. 359), are
unimportant. _The Herberts of Elfdale_ (pp. 449, 454, 477, 505, 508),
possibly the first serial Walker illustrated, is infinitely better.
_Black Venn_ (p. 583), _A Young Wife's Song_ (p. 668), and _Putting
up the Christmas_, a drawing group, complete the examples by this
artist in vol. iii. Volume iv. contains: _Under the Fir-trees_ (p.
43), _Voltaire at Ferney_ (p. 66), a very poor thing, _The Fan_ (p.
75), _Bring me a light_ (pp. 102-105), _The Parish Clerk's Story_ (p.
248), _The Magnolia_ (pp. 263, 267), _Dangerous_ (p. 416), _An Old
Boy's Tale_ (p. 499), _Romance of the Cab-rank_ (p. 585), and _The
Jewel Case_ (p. 631). In vol. v. we find _Jessie Cameron's Bairn_ (p.
15), _The Deserted Diggings_ (p. 83), _Pray, sir, are you a Gentleman_?
(pp. 127, 133), _A Run for Life_ (p. 306), _Cader Idris_ (p. 323), and
a series of illustrations to _The Settlers of Long Arrow: a Canadian
Story_ (pp. 421, 449, 477, 505, 533, 561, 589, 617, 645, 673, and
701). To volume vi. Walker contributes _Patty_ (pp. 126, 127), _A
Dreadful Ghost_ (p. 211), and nine to Dutton Cook's _The Prodigal
Son_ (pp. 449, 477, 505, 533, 561, 589, 617, 673, 701), which story,
running into volume vii., has further illustrations on pp. 1, 29, and
57. _The Deadly Affinity_ (pp. 421, 449, 477), and _Spirit-rapping
Extraordinary_ (p. 614) are the only others by the artist in this
volume. The eighth volume has but one, _After Ten Years_ (p. 378), and
_The Ghost in the Green Park_ (p. 309) is the only one in volume ix.,
and his last in the first series. Vol. i. of the New Series has the
famous _Vagrants_ (p. 112) for one of its special art supplements.
Amid contemporary notices you often find the work of M. J. Lawless
placed on the same level as that of Millais or Sandys; but, while few
of the men of the period have less deservedly dropped out of notice,
one feels that to repeat such an estimate were to do an injustice to a
very charming draughtsman. For the sake of his future reputation it is
wiser not to attempt to rank him with the greatest; but in the second
order he may be fitly placed. For fancy and feeling, no less than
for his loyal adherence to the Dürer line, at a time it found little
favour, Lawless deserves to be more studied by the younger artists
of to-day. A great number of decorative designers are too fond of
repeating certain mannerisms, and among others, Lawless in England and
Howard Pyle in America, two men inspired by similar purpose, should
receive more attention than they have done. _Once a Week_ contains
the largest number of his drawings. In vol. i., to _Sentiment from
the Shambles_, there are three illustrations attributed to him. Those
on pp. 505 and 509 are undoubtedly by Lawless, but that on p. 507 is
so unlike his method, and indeed so unimportant, that it matters not
whether the index be true or in error.
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. IV. p. 407
EFFIE GORDON]
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VI. p. 14
DR. JOHNSON'S PENANCE]
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. X. p. 71
JOHN OF PADUA]
In vol. ii. are ten examples, two on the same page to _The Bridal of
Galtrim_ (p. 88), _The Lay of the Lady and the Hound_ (p. 164), a very
pre-Raphaelite composition, _Florinda_ (p. 220), (more influenced by
the later Millais), _Only for something to say_ (p. 352), a study
of fashionable society, which (as Mr. Walter Crane's attempts show)
does not lend itself to the convention of the thick line, _The Head
Master's Sister_ (pp. 386, 389, 393), _The Secret_ (p. 430), and _A
Legend of Swaffham_ (p. 549). In vol. iii. _Oysters and Pearls_ (p. 79)
is attributed to Lawless, but one hopes wrongly; _The Betrayed_ (p.
155), Elfie Meadows (p. 304), _The Minstrel's Curse_ (p. 351), _The Two
Beauties_ (unsigned and not quite obviously a Lawless) (p. 462), and
_My Angel's Visit_ (p. 658) are the titles of the rest. In the fourth
volume there are: _The Death of OEnone_ (pp. 14, 15), _Valentine's Day_
(p. 208), _Effie Gordon_ (pp. 406, 407), and _The Cavalier's Escape_
(687), all much more typical. In vol. v. we find _High Elms_ (p. 420),
_Twilight_ (p. 532), _King Dyring_ (p. 575), and _Fleurette_ (p. 700).
In the sixth volume there are only three: _Dr. Johnson's Penance_
(one of the best drawings of the author), (p. 14), _What befel me at
the Assizes_ (p. 194), and _The Dead Bride_ (p. 462). In the seventh
volume there is one only to a story by A. C. Swinburne, _Dead Love_
(p. 434). Despite the name of Jacques d'Aspremont on the coffin, the
picture is used to a poem with quite a different theme, _The White
Witch_, in Thornbury's _Legendary Ballads_, which contains no less than
twenty of Lawless's _Once a Week_ designs. In vol. viii. are two, _The
Linden Trees_ (p. 644) and _Gifts_ (p. 712). In vol. ix. three only:
_Faint heart never won fair lady_ (p. 98), _Heinrich Frauenlob_
(p. 393), and _Broken Toys_ (p. 672). In vol. x. appears the last of
Lawless's contributions, and, as some think, his finest, _John of
Padua_ (p. 71).
The first work by Frederick Sandys in _Once a Week_ will be found in
vol. iv.: it is not, as the index tells you, _The Dying Hero_, on page
71, which is wrongly attributed to him; _Yet once more on the Organ
play_ (p. 350) is by Sandys, as is also _The Sailor's Bride_ (p. 434)
in the same volume. In vol. v. are three, _From my Window_ (p. 238),
_The three Statues of Ægina_ (p. 491), and _Rosamund, Queen of the
Lombards_ (p. 631). In vol. vi. we find _The Old Chartist_ (p. 183),
_The King at the Gate_ (p. 322), and _Jacques de Caumont_ (p. 614).
In vol. vii. _Harold Harfagr_ (p. 154), _The Death of King Warwolf_
(p. 266), and _The Boy Martyr_ (p. 602). Thence, with the exception of
_Helen and Cassandra_, published as a separate plate with the issue of
April 28, 1866 (p. 454), no more Sandys are to be found.
To _Once a Week_ Holman Hunt contributed but three illustrations:
_Witches and Witchcraft_ (ii. p. 438), _At Night_ (iii. p. 102), and
_Temujin_ (iii. p. 630); yet this very scanty representation is not
below the average proportion of the work of this artist in black and
white compared with his more fecund contemporaries.
A still more infrequent illustrator, J. M'Neill Whistler, is met with
four times in _Once a Week_, and, I believe, but twice elsewhere.
Speaking of the glamour shed upon the magazine by its Sandys drawings,
it is but just to own that to another school of artists these four
'Whistlers' were responsible for the peculiar veneration with which
they regarded an old magazine. The illustrations to _The Major's
Daughter_ (vi. p. 712), _The Relief Fund in Lancashire_ (vii. p. 140),
_The morning before the Massacre of St. Bartholomew_ (vii. p. 210), and
_Count Burckhardt_ (vii. p. 378), a nun by a window, are too well known
to need comment. That they show the exquisite sense of the value of a
line, and have much in common with the artist's etchings of the same
period, is evident enough.
G. J. Pinwell first makes his appearance in _Once a Week_, in the
eighth volume, with _The Saturnalia_ (p. 154), a powerful but entirely
untypical illustration of a classical subject by an artist who is
best known for pastoral and bucolic scenes, _The Old Man at D._ 8
(p. 197), _Seasonable Wooing_ (p. 322), _A Bad Egg_ (p. 392), and
_A Foggy Story_ (p. 477); but only in the latter do you find the
curiously personal manner which grew to a mannerism in much of his
later work. These, with _Blind_ (p. 645) and _Tidings_ (p. 700), are
all well-thought-out compositions. To volume ix. he contributes _The
Strong Heart_ (p. 29), _Not a Ripple on the Sea_ (p. 57) (a drawing
which belies its title), _Laying a Ghost_ (p. 85), _The Fisherman of
Lake Sunapee_ (p. 225), _Waiting for the Tide_ (p. 281), _Nutting_ (p.
378), and _The Sirens_ (p. 616). In volume x. he is represented by
_Bracken Hollow_ (pp. 57, 85), _The Expiation of Charles V._ (p. 99),
_The Blacksmith of Holsby_ (pp. 113, 154), _Calypso_ (p. 183), _Horace
Winston_ (p. 211), _Proserpine_ (p. 239), _A Stormy Night_ (p. 253),
_Mistaken Identity_ (p. 281), _Hero_ (p. 350), _The Vizier's Parrot_
(406), _A Pastoral_ (p. 490), _A' Beckett's Troth_ (p. 574), and _The
Stonemason's Yard_ (p. 701). The eleventh volume contains only four:
_Hettie's Trouble_ (p. 26), _Delsthorpe Sands_ (p. 586), _The Legend
of the Bleeding Cave_ (p. 699), and _Rosette_ (p. 713); and volume
xii. has three: _Followers not allowed_ (p. 71), _Homer_ (p. 127),
and _Dido_ (p. 527). The last volume of the first series (1866) has
but one, _Achilles_ (p. 239). Pinwell's work bulks so largely in the
sixties that a bare list of these must suffice; but this period, before
he developed the curiously immobile manner of his later years, is
perhaps the most interesting.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. V. p. 491
THE THREE STATUES
OF ÆGINA]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VI. p. 183
THE OLD CHARTIST]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VII. p. 154
HAROLD HARFAGR]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. V. p. 631
ROSAMUND, QUEEN
OF THE LOMBARDS]
The index asserts that George Du Maurier is responsible for the
pictures in _Once a Week_, vol. iii. pp. 378-379, signed M.B., and
as you find others unmistakably Du Maurier's signed with various
monograms, its evidence must not be gainsaid; but neither these nor
others, to _My Adventures ... in Russia_ (pp. 553, 557), _The Two
Hands_ (p. 640), and _The Steady Students_ (pp. 691, 695), betray a
hint of his well-known style. But _Non Satis_ (p. 575) is signed in
full, and obviously his, as a glance would reveal. In vol. iv., _Indian
Juggling_ (p. 41), _The Black Spot_ (p. 134), _A Life Story_ (p. 165),
_In search of Garibaldi_ (p. 210), and _The Beggar's Soliloquy_ (p.
378, more like a Charles Keene) are from his hand. In the picture here
reproduced, _On her Deathbed_ (p. 603), the artist has found himself
completely, yet _A Portuguese Tragedy_ (p. 668) has no trace of his
manner. In vol. v. _Recollections of an English Gold Miner_ (p. 361),
_Monsieur the Governor_ (p. 445), _A man who fell among thieves_ (p.
463), _Sea-Bathing in France_ (p. 547), and _The Poisoned
Mind_, are his only contributions. In vol. vi. are three illustrations
to _The Admiral's Daughters_ (pp. 1, 29, 57), _The Hotel Garden_ (p.
24), _The Change of Heads_ (p. 71), _The latest thing in Ghosts_ (p.
99), _Metempsychosis_ (p. 294), _Per l'Amore d'una Donna_ (p. 390),
_A Parent by Proxy_ (p. 435), and _Threescore and Ten_ (p. 644). Vol.
vii. contains _Miss Simons_ (p. 166), _Santa_ (pp. 253, 281, 309,
337), _Only_ (p. 490), and the _Cannstatt Conspirators_ (p. 561). _A
Notting Hill Mystery_ is pictured on pages 617, 645, 673, and 701 of
the seventh volume, and in vol. viii. is continued on pages 1, 5, 7,
85; _Out of the Body_ (p. 701), is also here. _Eleanor's Victory_
is illustrated on pages 295, 351, 407, 463, 519, 575, 631, and 687,
and continued in vol. ix on pages 15, 71, 127, 183, 239, 295, 351,
407. Vol. x. contains _The Veiled Portrait_ (p. 225), _The Uninvited_
(p. 309), _My Aunt Tricksy_ (p. 393), _The Old Corporal_ (p. 462),
and _Detur Digniori_ (pp. 505 and 533). In vol. xi. we find two
illustrations only by this artist, _Philip Fraser's Fate_, and vols.
xii. and xiii. contain no single example.
A few illustrations by T. Morten appear, and these are scattered over
a wide space. The first, _Swift and the Mohawks_ (iv. p. 323), is to
a ballad by Walter Thornbury; _The Father of the Regiment_ (v. p.
71), _Wish Not_ (x. p. 421), _The Coastguardsman's Tale_ (x. p. 561),
_Late is not Never_ (xi. p. 141), _The Cumæan Sibyl_ (xi. p. 603), and
_Macdhonuil's Coronach_ (xii. p. 161), make one regret the infrequent
appearance of one who could do so well.
Edward J. Poynter (the present director of the National Gallery) is
also sparsely represented: _The Castle by the Sea_ (vi. p. 84), a very
pre-Raphaelite decoration to Uhland's ballad, _Wife and I_ (vi. p.
724), _The Broken Vow_ (vii. p. 322), _A Dream of Love_ (vii. pp. 365,
393), _A Fellow-Traveller's Story_ (vii. pp. 699, 722), _My Friend's
Wedding-day_ (viii. p. 113), _A haunted house in Mexico_ (viii. p.
141), _Ducie of the Dale_ (viii. p. 476), and _A Ballad of the Page
to the King's Daughter_ (viii. p. 658), are all the examples by this
artist in _Once a Week_.
Charles Green, of late known almost entirely as a painter, was a
fecund illustrator in the sixties. Beginning with vol. iii., in which
seven of his works appear (pp. 246, 327, 330, 375, 472, 612, 633), he
contributed freely for several years; in vol. iv. there are examples
on pp. 41, 52, 53, 357, 359, 361, and 529, and on pp. 518, 519 of the
fifth volume, and 206 and 255 of the sixth, on pp. 306, 505, 589, and
670 of the seventh. But not until the eighth volume, with _The Wrath
of Mistress Elizabeth Gwynne_ (p. 169), do we find one that is of any
importance. Whether spoilt by the engraver, or immature work, it is
impossible to say; but the earlier designs could scarcely be identified
except for the index. In the same volume _The Death of Winkelried_ (p.
224), _Milly Leslie's Story_ (p. 225), _The Countess Gabrielle_ (p.
253), _Corporal Pietro Micca_ (p. 364), _Damsel John_ (p. 490), _My
Golden Hill_ (p. 505), _Five Days in Prison_ (p. 533), _The Queen's
Messenger_ (p. 561), _The Centurion's Escape_ (p. 589), and _The Cry
in the Dark_ (p. 673), are so curiously unlike the earlier, and so
representative of the artist we all know, that if the 'C. Green' be the
same the sudden leap to a matured style is quite remarkable. In volume
ix. but three appear: _Paul Garrett_ (p. 1), _A Modern Idyll_ (p. 322),
and _My Affair with the Countess_ (p. 337); but in the tenth are nine:
_Norman's Visit_ (pp. 1, 43), _Legend of the Castle_ (p. 14), _A Long
Agony_ (p. 127), _The Lady of the Grange_ (p. 141), _The Gentleman with
the Lily_ (pp. 169, 197), _The Mermaid_ (p. 295), and _T' Runawaa Lass_
(p. 630). _The Hunt at Portskewitt_ (p. 126) is in vol. xi., the last
appearance of the artist I have met with in this magazine.
F. J. Shields, so far as I can trace his drawings, is represented
but three times: _An hour with the dead_ (iv. p. 491), _The Risen
Saint_ (v. p. 378), and _Turberville_ (x. p. 378). As reference to
this comparatively infrequent illustrator appears in another place no
more need be said of these, except that they do not show the artist
in so fine a mood as when he illustrated Defoe's _History of the
Plague_. Simeon Solomon contributes a couple only of drawings of Jewish
ceremonies (vii. pp. 192, 193). J. Luard, an artist, whose work floods
the cheaper publications of the time, shows, in an early drawing,
_Contrasts_ (iii. p. 84), a pre-Raphaelite manner, and a promise which
later years did not fulfil, if indeed this be by the Luard of the penny
dreadfuls.
[Illustration: J. M'NEILL WHISTLER
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VI. p. 712
THE MAJOR'S DAUGHTER]
[Illustration: J. M'NEILL WHISTLER
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VII. p. 140
THE RELIEF FUND
IN LANCASHIRE]
[Illustration: J. M'NEILL WHISTLER
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VII. p. 210
THE MORNING BEFORE THE
MASSACRE OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW]
[Illustration: J. M'NEILL WHISTLER
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VII. p. 378
COUNT BURCKHARDT]
M. E. Edwards, a most popular illustrator, appears in the last volume
of the first series, with _Found Drowned_ (xiii. pp. 14, 42, 70, 98,
253, 281, 309, 337, 365, 393, 442, 471), in which volume J. Lawson has
three: _Ondine_ (p. 351), _Narcissus_ (p. 463), and _Adonis_
(686). Of a number of more or less frequent contributors, including
F. Eltze, R. T. Pritchett, P. Skelton, F. J. Slinger, J. Wolf (the
admirable delineator of animals), space forbids even a complete list of
their names.
Among other occasional contributors to the first thirteen volumes are:
J. D. Watson with _The Cornish Wrecker's Hut_ (viii. p. 602), _No
Change_ (ix. p. 210), and _My Home_ (ix. 266); A. Boyd Houghton:--_The
Old King Dying_ (xii. p. 463), _The Portrait_ (xiii. p. 209), _King
Solomon_ (xiii. p. 603), _The Legend of the Lockharts_ (xiii. p. 715),
and _Leila and Hassan_ (xiii. p. 769); Walter Crane:--_Castle of Mont
Orgueil_ (ix. p. 713) and _The Conservatory_ (xiii. p. 763); J. W.
North:--_Bosgrove Church_ (ix. p. 447), _The River_ (xii. p. 15), and
_St. Martin's Church, Canterbury_ (xii. p. 713)--the two latter being
worthy to rank among his best work; Paul Gray with _Hans Euler_ (xii.
p. 322), _Moses_ (xiii. p. 55), _The Twins_ (xiii. pp. 378-406), _Two
Chapters of Life_ (xiii. p. 519), and _Quid Femina Possit_ (xii. pp.
491, 517, 547, 575); A. R. Fairfield (x. pp. 546, 589, 617, 686, 712);
W. S. Burton, _Romance of the Rose_ (x. p. 602), _The Executioner_ (xi.
p. 14), _Dame Eleanor's Return_ (xi. p. 210), and _The Whaler Fleet_
(xi. p. 638); T. White (viii. p. 98); F. W. Lawson, _Dr. Campany's
Courtship_ (xii. pp. 351, 390, 407, 446), and others on pp. 586, 631,
722; (xiii. pp. 127, 141, 169, _Lucy's Garland_, p. 516); C. Dobell
(vi. p. 420); _Our Secret Drawer_, by Miss Wells (v. p. 98); and four
by Miss L. Mearns, which are of genuine interest (xiii. pp. 85, 153,
657, 742).
The New Series of _Once a Week_, started on January 6, 1866, was
preceded by a Christmas number, wherein one of the most graceful
drawings by Paul Gray is to be found, _The Chest with the Silver
Mountings_ (p. 30). It contains also a full-page plate by G. B.
Goddard, _Up, up my hounds_ (p. 34), and designs by W. Small, _A Golden
Wedding_ (p. 37); G. Du Maurier, _The Ace of Hearts_ (p. 56); J.
Lawson, _A Fairy Tale_ (p. 44), and others of little moment.
The New Series announced, as a special attraction, 'extra illustrations
by eminent artists, printed separately on toned paper.' Those to
the first volume include _Little Bo Peep_, a delightful and typical
composition by G. Du Maurier (_Frontispiece_); _The Vagrants_ (p. 112),
by Fred Walker; _Helen and Cassandra_ (p. 454), by F. Sandys; _The
Servants' Hall_ (p. 560), by H. S. Marks; _Alonzo the Brave_ (p. 359),
by Sir John Gilbert, and _Caught by the tide_, by E. Duncan (p. 280).
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. IV. p. 603
ON HER
DEATHBED]
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VI. p. 390
PER L'AMORE
D'UNA DONNA]
[Illustration: T. MORTEN
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. XI. p. 603
THE CUMÆAN SIBYL]
'A specimen of the most recent application of the versatile art of
lithography' which is also given, dates the popular introduction of
the coloured plate by which several magazines, _Nature and Art_,
_The Chromo-lithograph_, etc., were illustrated entirely; others,
especially _The Sunday at Home_, _Leisure Hour_, _People's Magazine_,
etc., from 1864 onwards issued monthly frontispieces in colours and
gold--a practice now confined almost wholly to boys' magazines. The
pictures by artists already associated with _Once a Week_ include (in
vol. i. p. 8) two by A. Boyd Houghton, _The Queen of the Rubies_ (p.
177) and _A Turkish Tragedy_ (p. 448); four by Paul Gray, _The Phantom
Ship_ (p. 43), _Blanche_ (pp. 291, 317), and _The Fight on Rhu Carn_
(p. 713); two by T. Morten, _The Dying Viking_ (p. 239), a drawing
curiously like Sandys's _Rosamunda_, and _King Eric_ (p. 435); six by
W. Small, _Billy Blake's Best Coffin_ (p. 15), _Kattie and the Deil_
(p. 99), _The King and the Bishop_ (p. 183), _The Staghound_ (p. 295),
_Thunnors Slip_ (p. 351), and _Larthon of Inis-Huna_ (p. 575); five by
J. Lawson: _The Watch-tower_ (p. 121), _Theocritus_ (p. 211), _In statu
quo_ (p. 463), _Ancient Clan Dirge_ (p. 491), and _Wait On_ (p. 631);
one by F. W. Lawson, _A Sunday a Century ago_ (p. 671), and others.
Among recruits we find R. Barnes with _Lost for Gold_ (p. 407), B.
Bradley with _A Raid_ (p. 659), eleven by Edward Hughes, and many by G.
Bowers, R. T. Pritchett, F. J. Slinger, and others. Altogether the New
Series started bravely. In vol. ii. New Series, the so-called 'extra
illustrations' include _The Suit of Armour (Frontispiece)_, by Sir John
Gilbert; _Evening_ (p. 97), by Basil Bradley; _Poor Christine_ (p.
245), by Edward Hughes; _Among the Breakers_ (p. 344), by E. Duncan;
_The Nymph's Lament_ (p. 476), by G. Du Maurier; and _The Huntress
of Armorica_ (p. 706), by Paul Gray. Of 'old hands' Du Maurier has
another of his graceful drawings, _Lady Julia_ (p. 239), and Paul Gray
has, besides the special plate, eleven to _Hobson's Choice_ (pp. 169,
197, 225, 253, 281, 309, 337, 365, 393, 421, and 449); three by A.
Boyd Houghton are _A Dead Man's Message_ (p. 211); and _The Mistaken
Ghost_ (pp. 687, 723); T. Morten has only a couple, _The Curse of the
Gudmunds_ (p. 155) and _On the Cliffs_ (p. 308); and G. J.
Pinwell one, _The Pastor and the Landgrave_ (p. 631); J. W North's
_Luther's Gardener_ (p. 99) is a curious drawing to a curious poem;
W. Small, with _Eldorado_ (p. 15), _Dorette_ (p. 379), _The Gift of
Clunnog Vawr_ (p. 463), _The Prize Maiden_ (pp. 491, 519, 560), and
_Tranquillity_ (p. 575), shows more and more that strong personality
which by and by influenced black and white art, so that men of the
seventies are far more disciples of Small than even were the men of
the sixties of Millais. M. E. Edwards's _Avice and her Lover_ (p.
141); six by Basil Bradley (pp. 140, 252, 279, 532, 603, and 659),
Charles Green's _Kunegunda_ (p. 71), _Hazeley Mill_ (p. 85), and
_Michael Considine's Daughter_ (p. 351); five by Edward Hughes (pp.
183, 407, 547, 585, and 599); three by J. Lawson: _Ariadne_ (p. 127),
_The Mulberry-tree_ (p. 323), and _Gabrielle's Cross_ (p. 699). F.
W. Lawson's _A Midshipman's Yarn_ (p. 113) and _Grandmother's Story_
(p. 223) deserve to be noted. Others by G. Bowers, F. Eltze, R. T.
Pritchett, P. J. Skelton, E. Wimpress (_sic_), and J. Wolf among the
rest, call for no comment. For the Christmas number for this year 1866,
W. Small has _The Brown Imp_ (p. 12); J. Lawson, _The Birth of the
Rose_ (p. 20); E. Hughes, _The Pension Latoque_ (p. 25); Ernest Griset,
_Boar Hunting_ (p. 57); G. B. Goddard, _Christmas Eve in the Country_
(p. 58); and Basil Bradley, _A Winter Piece_ (p. 62); John Leighton
contributes a frontispiece and illustrations to _St. George and the
Dragon_, a poem by the author of _John Halifax_.
In volume iii. 1867 the extra illustrations are still distinguished by
a special subject index; they include _Lord Aythan (Frontispiece)_, by
J. Tenniel; _Coming through the Fence_ (p. 112), by R. Ansdell, A.R.A.;
_Feeding the Sacred Ibis_ (p. 238), by E. J. Poynter; _Come, buy my
pretty windmills_ (p. 360), by G. J. Pinwell; _Hide a Stick_ (p. 569),
by F. J. Shields; and _Highland Sheep_ (p. 692), by Basil Bradley.
Another extra plate, a drawing by Helen J. Miles, 'given as an example
of graphotype,' is not without technical interest. In the accompanying
article we find that the possibilities of mechanical reproduction are
discussed, and the writer adds, as his highest flight of fancy, 'who
shall say that graphotype may not be the origin of a daily illustrated
paper?' It would be out of place to pursue this tempting theme, and
to discuss the _Daily Graphic_ of New York and succeeding illustrated
dailies, for all these things were but dreams in the sixties. Yet,
undoubtedly, graphotype set people on the track of process-work. By
and by the photographer came in as the welcome ally, who left the
draughtsman free to work upon familiar materials, instead of the block
itself, and presently supplanted the engraver also, and the great
rival of wood-cutting and wood-engraving sprang into life. Among the
ordinary illustrations A. Boyd Houghton is represented by _The Mistaken
Ghost_ (p. 15), _A Hindoo Legend_ (p. 273), and _The Bride of Rozelle_
(p. 663); G. J. Pinwell by _Joe Robertson's Folly_ (p. 225) and _The
Old Keeper's Story_ (p. 483); J. W. North by _The Lake_ (p. 303); W.
Small by _A Queer Story about Banditti_ (pp. 55, 83); S. L. Fildes by
a strongly-drawn design, _The Goldsmith's Apprentice_ (p. 723); Ernest
Griset by a slight yet distinctly grotesque _Tale of a Tiger_ (p. 7);
M. Ellen Edwards by _Wishes_ (p. 633) and Kate Edwards by _Cherry
Blossom_ (p. 543); J. Lawson by _The Legend of St. Katherine_ (p. 127),
_Sir Ralph de Blanc-Minster_ (p. 168), and _Hymn to Apollo_ (p. 406);
F. W. Lawson by _The Singer of the Sea_ (p. 603). The various examples
by F. A. Fraser, T. Green, T. Scott (a well-known portrait engraver),
E. M. Wimpress, and the rest may be dismissed with bare mention. In
vol. iv., New Series, we find Charles Keene with a frontispiece, _The
Old Shepherd_; _The Haymakers_ (p. 105), E. M. Wimpress; _Cassandra_
(p. 345), S. L. Fildes; _Fetching the Doctor_ (p. 494), H. S. Marks;
_Imma and Eginhart_ (p. 644), W. Small; and _The Christmas Choir_ (p.
762), F. A. Fraser, are the other separate plates. Those printed with
the text include _The Child Queen_ (p. 135) and _Feuilles d'Automne_
(p. 285), by S. L. Fildes; _Evening Tide_ (p. 255), a typical pastoral,
by G. J. Pinwell; _Zoë Fane_ (p. 705), by J. Mahoney; and others by B.
Bradley, E. F. Brewtnall, F. Eltze, T. Green, E. Hughes, F. W. Lawson,
E. Sheil, L. Straszinski, T. Sulman, E. M. Wimpress, etc. Despite the
presence of many of the old staff, the list of names shows that the
palmy days of the magazine are over. The Christmas number contains,
_inter alia_, a frontispiece by John Gilbert; _My Cousin Renie_ (p.
13), by J. Mahoney; _Scotch Cattle_, by Basil Bradley; and _The
Maiden's Test_, by M. E. Edwards (p. 49).
In 1868 another new series starts. A notable feature has disappeared:
the illustrations no longer figure in a separate list, but their
artists' names are tacked on to the few articles and stories which
are illustrated in the ordinary index. Yet the drawings by Du Maurier
to Charles Reade's _Foul Play_ (pp. 12, 57, 140, 247, 269, 312, 421,
464, 530) would alone make the year interesting. People, who regard
Du Maurier as a society draughtsman only, must be astonished at the
grim melodramatic force displayed in these. 'John Millais, R.A.,' also
appears as a contributor with _Death Dealing Arrows_ (p. 79); S. L.
Fildes has _The Orchard_ (p. 396); F. W. Lawson, _The Castaway_ (p.
242); Basil Bradley is well represented by _The Chillingham Cattle_
(p. 100), and _Another day's work done_ (p. 346); F. S. Walker appears
with _A Lazy Fellow_ (p. 211), John Gilbert with _The Armourer_ (p.
364), and M. E. Edwards with the society pictures, _The Royal Academy_
(p. 409) and _A Flower Show_ (p. 516). In the second volume for 1868
we find _Salmon Fishing_ (p. 292) and _Daphne_ (p. 397), both by S. L.
Fildes; _Found Out_ (p. 31), _A Town Cousin_ (p. 150), _Left in the
Lurch_ (p. 230), and _Blackberry Gatherers_ (p. 213), by H. Paterson;
_Sussex Oxen_ (p. 110) and _The Foxhound_ (p. 355), by Basil Bradley;
_The Picnic_ (p. 270), by F. W. Lawson, who has also _The Waits_, the
frontispiece of the Christmas number, which contains _Taking his ease_
(p. 264), the last Millais in the magazine; a clever gallery study;
_Boxing Night_, by S. L. Fildes, and a capital domestic group, _The Old
Dream_ (p. 48), by M. E. Edwards.
In 1869, vol. iii., New Series, contains a single example by G. J.
Pinwell, _A seat in the park_ (p. 518); five by S. L. Fildes; _The
Duet_ (p. 56), _The Juggler_ (p. 188), _Hours of Idleness_, the subject
of a later Academy picture (p. 475), _Led to Execution_ (p. 540), and
_Basking_ (p. 562); and others by Fred Barnard (pp. 166, 254, 346,
450), B. Bradley (pp. 78, 210, 496), Val Prinsep (p. 298), F. W. Lawson
(p. 34), and Ford Madox Brown, _The Traveller_ (p. 144). To state that
vol. iv., New Series, is absolutely without interest is to let it off
cheaply.
In the volume for 1870 the names of artists are omitted, and if we
follow the editor's example no injustice will be done, despite a few
clever drawings by R. M[acbeth]; the work, not merely in date but in
spirit, is of the new decade, and as it is exceptionally poor at that
for the most part, it no longer belongs to the subject with which this
volume is concerned.
CHAPTER IV: SOME ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINES OF THE SIXTIES: II. 'THE
CORNHILL,' 'GOOD WORDS,' AND LONDON SOCIETY'
THE CORNHILL MAGAZINE, which began in 1860 with Thackeray as editor,
showed from the very first that the aim of the Magazine was to keep
the level of its pictures equal to that of its text. In looking
through the forty-seven volumes of the first series it is gratifying
to find that this purpose was never forgotten. Many a rival magazine
has been started since under the happiest auspices, with the most
loyal intention to have the best and only the very best illustrations;
but in a few years the effort has been too exacting, and the average
commonplace of its padding in prose and verse has been equalled by
the dull mediocrity of its pictures. Only those who have experienced
the difficulty which faces an editor firmly resolved to exclude the
commonplace of any sort can realise fully what a strain a successful
effort, lasting over twenty years, must needs impose on the responsible
conductors. Thackeray, as we know, soon found the labour too great;
but his successors kept nobly to their purpose, and few magazines show
more honourable fulfilment of their projected scheme than the classic
_Cornhill_, which has introduced so many masterpieces in art and
literature to the public.
Curiously enough, the weakest illustrations under the _régime_ he
inaugurated so happily are those by the editor himself. Thackeray's
designs to _Lovel the Widower_, and the one example by G. A. Sala in
the first volume, link the new periodical with the past. They belong
to the caricature type of illustrations which had been accepted by
the British public as character-drawing. Like the 'Phiz' plates
for Dickens's works, and many of John Leech's sketches, they have
undoubtedly merit of a sort, but not if you consider them as pictures
pure and simple. Later experience shows that an illustration to a
story, which catches the spirit of the writer, and realises in another
medium the characters he had imagined, may also be fine art--art as
self-sufficient and as wholly beautiful as that of a Dürer wood-cut
or a Rembrandt etching. The masterpieces of modern illustrations to
fiction which the _Cornhill Magazine_ contains would by themselves
suffice to prove this argument up to the hilt. The collection of
drawings chiefly by Millais, Walker, and Leighton, in a volume of
carefully-printed impressions, from one hundred of the original
wood-blocks, issued under the title of the _Cornhill Gallery_ in 1864,
may in time to come be prized as highly as _Bible Wood-cuts_, _The
Dance of Death_, or the _Liber Studiorum_. It is true that the pictures
aimed only to fulfil their actual purpose, and it may be argued,
reasonably enough, that a picture which illustrates a story is for that
very reason on a different level to a self-contained work--inspired
solely by the delight of the artist in his subject. But, in their own
way, they touched high-water mark. Upon one of Dürer's blocks he is
said to have written in Latin, 'Better work did no man than this,'
and on many a _Cornhill_ design the same legend might have been truly
inscribed.
It is true that most of the etchings and wood-cuts beside which they
deserve to be ranked are untrammelled autograph work throughout, and
that here the drawing done direct on the block was paraphrased by an
engraver. Not always spoilt, sometimes (as even the draughtsman himself
admitted), improved in part, but still with the impress of another
personality added. And this argument might be extended to prove that
an engraving by another craftsman can never be so interesting as an
etching from a master's hand, or a block cut by its designer. Yet,
without forcing such comparison, we may claim that the engravings in
_Once a Week_, _Good Words_, and the _Cornhill_ enriched English art to
lasting purpose.
Although sets of the _Cornhill Magazine_ are not difficult to procure,
and a large number of people prize them in their libraries, yet by way
of bringing together those scattered facts of interest which pertain
to our subject, it may be as well to indicate briefly the principal
contents of the first thirty-two volumes which cover the period to
which this book is limited.
In 1860 we find six full-page illustrations to _Lovel the Widower_,
three to _The Four Georges_, two to _Roundabout Papers_, all by
Thackeray, to whom they are all formally attributed in the _Cornhill
Gallery_. Possibly one, entirely unlike the style of the rest to
The _Four Georges_, is from another hand--the fact that it is not
included in the reprint seems to confirm this suspicion. Millais'
first contributions included _Unspoken Dialogue_, _'Last Words,'_ and
the beginning of the illustrations to _Framley Parsonage_, which he
equalled often but never excelled. F. Sandys is represented by _Legends
of the Portent_ (i. p. 617), and Frederick Leighton by _The Great
God Pan_ (ii. p. 84) to Mrs. Browning's poem. _Ariadne in Naxos_, an
outline-drawing in a decorative frame, is unsigned, and so strangely
unlike the style of the magazine that it provokes curiosity.
In 1861 Thackeray started illustrating his serial story, _The
Adventures of Philip_, but, after four full-page drawings, relinquished
the task to Fred Walker, who at first re-drew Thackeray's compositions,
but afterwards signed his work with the familiar 'F. W.' We may
safely attribute eight solely to him. Millais continued his series of
drawings to illustrate _Framley Parsonage_, and has besides one other,
entitled _Temptation_ (iii. p. 229). A series of studies of character,
_The Excursion Train_, by C. H. Bennett, is a notable exception to
the practice of the magazine, which printed all its 'pictures' on
plate-paper apart from the text, the blocks in the text (always
excepting the initial letters) being elsewhere limited to diagrams
elucidating the matter and obviously removed from consideration as
pictures. This year Doyle began those outline pictures of Society which
attained so wide a popularity.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'CORNHILL MAGAZINE'
VOL. I. p. 62
LEGEND OF
THE PORTENT]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'CORNHILL MAGAZINE'
VOL. VI. p. 346
MANOLI]
In 1862 Walker concludes his _Philip_ series with eight full-page
drawings, including the superb _Philip in Church_, of which he made a
version in water-colours that still ranks among his most notable work.
The first two illustrations to Miss Thackeray's _Story of Elizabeth_
are also from his hand. Millais is represented by _Irené_, a kneeling
figure (v. p. 478), and by the powerfully conceived _Bishop and the
Knight_ (vi. p. 100), and the first four illustrations to Trollope's
_Small House at Allington_. Richard Doyle continues the series of
_Pictures of English Society_; but now that their actuality no longer
impresses, we fail to discover the special charm which endeared them
to contemporaries. F. Sandys is represented by _Manoli_ (vi. p. 346),
the second of his three contributions, which deepens the regret
that work by this fine artist appeared so seldom in this magazine.
But the most notable feature this year is found in the drawings
contributed by Frederick Leighton, then not even an Associate
of the Royal Academy, which illustrate George Eliot's _Romola_. With
these the _Cornhill_ departed from its ordinary custom, and gave two
full-page illustrations to each section of the serial month by month.
Consequently in the volumes in 1862 and 1863 the usual two-dozen plates
are considerably augmented.
In 1863 twelve more of the _Romola_ series complete Leighton's
contributions to the magazine. Millais has twelve more to _The Small
House at Allington_, Walker is represented by one drawing, _Maladetta_,
another to _Mrs. Archie_, two to _Out of the World_, and one more to
The _Story of Elizabeth_. Du Maurier, destined to occupy the most
prominent position in later volumes, appears for the first time with
_The Cilician Pirates_, _Sibyl's Disappointment_, _The Night before the
Morrow_, and _Cousin Phillis_. Possibly a drawing entitled 'The First
Meeting' to a story, _The ... in her Closet_, is from his hand; but
the style is not clearly evident, nor is it included in the _Cornhill
Gallery_ which, published in the next year, drew its illustrations from
the few volumes already noticed, with the addition of five others from
the early numbers of 1864. Another drawing, signed A. H., to _Margaret
Denzil_, is by Arthur Hughes.
In 1864 two other illustrations complete _The Small House at
Allington_, and Millais has also two others for _Madame de Monferrat_.
Sir Noel Paton appears for the only time with a fine composition,
_Ulysses_ (IX. p. 66). _Margaret Denzil_ has its three illustrations
signed R. B., probably the initials of Robert Barnes, who did much
work in later volumes. Charles Keene, a very infrequent contributor,
illustrated _Brother Jacob_, a little-known story by George Eliot.
Du Maurier supplies the first four illustrations to Mrs. Gaskell's
unfinished _Wives and Daughters_, and Fred Walker contributes
five to the other serial, also interrupted by its author's death,
the delightful _Denis Duval_. Here we see the artist employed on
costume-work, and hampered somewhat by historical details, yet infusing
into his designs the charm which characterises his idyllic work. G. J.
Pinwell is represented by _The Lovers of Ballyvookan_. G. H. Thomas
starts Wilkie Collins's _Armadale_ with two pictures that do not accord
with the rest of the _Cornhill_ work, but belong to a differently
considered method, popular enough elsewhere, but rarely employed in
this magazine. The volume contains also a portrait of Thackeray
engraved on steel, by J. C. Armytage, after Laurence.
In 1865 the _Armadale_ illustrations take up twelve full pages, and Du
Maurier supplies the remaining twelve stories to _Wives and Daughters_.
In 1866 six _Armadale_ and one _Wives and Daughters_ are reinforced
by eleven illustrations to _The Claverings_ by M. Ellen Edwards. Fred
Walker is again a contributor with five drawings for Miss Thackeray's
_Village on the Cliff_, and Frederick Sandys, with a fine composition
illustrating Swinburne's _Cleopatra_ (xiv. p. 331), makes his last
appearance in the magazine.
In 1867 M. E. Edwards signs five of _The Claverings_ and seven to _The
Bramleighs of Bishop's Folly_. _The Satrap_, an admirable composition,
is signed F. W. B., but for whom these initials stand is not clear.
Fred Walker completes his illustrations to the _Village on the Cliff_,
and adds one other to _Beauty and the Beast_, and two to _A Week in a
French Country House_ and one to _Red Riding Hood_. F. W. Lawson makes
his _entrée_ with the four drawings to _Stone Edge_, and Du Maurier has
a curiously massive _Joan of Arc_.
In 1868 Walker has three illustrations to _Jack the Giant Killer_,
'_I do not love you_,' and _From an Island_ respectively. M. Ellen
Edwards is responsible for ten to _The Bramleighs_, one to a story,
_The Stockbroker_, and the first two to _That Boy of Norcott's_. F.
W. Lawson has four to _Avonhoe_, and two to _Lettice Lisle_, and Du
Maurier two to _My Neighbour Nelly_, and one to _Lady Denzil_.
In 1869 _That Boy of Norcott's_ supplies the subjects for three others
by M. E. Edwards, and _Lettice Lisle_ for four by F. W. Lawson.
The first chapters of _Put yourself in his place_, Charles Reade's
trades-union novel, are illustrated by ten drawings by Robert Barnes,
F. Walker has one to _Sola_, for which tale Du Maurier supplies
another, as well as one to the _Courtyard of the Ours d'Or_, and the
three for _Against Time_.
In 1870 Robert Barnes continues illustrating Charles Reade's novel
with seven full pages. Du Maurier contributes ten to _Against Time_,
and four to George Meredith's _Adventures of Harry Richmond_, and S.
L. Fildes (more familiar to-day as Luke Fildes) comes in with three
admirable compositions to Charles Lever's _Lord Kilgobbin_.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'CORNHILL MAGAZINE'
VOL. XIV. p. 331
CLEOPATRA]
In 1871 the latter story engages twelve full pages, and _Harry
Richmond_ and eleven others, Du Maurier has the first to a _Story of
the Plébiscite_.
In 1872 Du Maurier continues _The Plébiscite_ with one full page (the
others to the same story are signed 'H. H.'), and has four others
to Francillon's _Pearl and Emerald_, and ten to _The Scientific
Gentleman_. Fildes concludes his embellishment of _Lord Kilgobbin_ with
three full pages. Hubert Herkomer (the 'H. H.' of _The Plébiscite_
probably) appears as a recruit with two most satisfactory designs to
_The Last Master of the Old Manor-House_, and G. D. Leslie, also a
fresh arrival, finds, in Miss Thackeray's _Old Kensington_, the themes
for nine graceful compositions.
In 1873 to Du Maurier are devoted twelve subjects illustrating _Zelda's
Fortune_. G. D. Leslie has four others concluding _Old Kensington_.
S. L. Fildes illustrates _Willows_ with two, and Marcus Stone is
represented by half-a-dozen idyllic and charming, if somewhat slight,
designs for _Young Brown_.
In 1874 H. Paterson, W. Small, and Du Maurier contribute all the
pictures excepting one by Marcus Stone. _Far from the Madding Crowd_ by
Thomas Hardy, illustrated by the first artist, and _A Rose in June_,
and Black's _Three Feathers_ by the second.
In 1875 H. Allingham supplies most graceful pictures to _Miss Angel_.
Du Maurier is the artist chosen for another Hardy novel, _The Hand of
Ethelberta_. A. Hopkins illustrates Mr. Henley's wonderful achievement,
_Hospital Outlines_, as the poems were called when they appeared in
July 1875. From this date to the last number of the shilling series,
June 1883, the artists are limited to Small and Du Maurier for the most
part, and as this record has already exceeded its limits, no more need
be said, except that until the last, the high standard of technical
excellence was never abandoned. Although the rare mastery of Millais
and the charm of Walker were hardly approached by their successors,
yet the magazine was always representative of the best work of those
of its contemporaries who devoted themselves to black and white, and
not infrequently, as this notice shows, attracted men who have made
few, if any other, attempts to draw for publication. It is curious to
find that, notwithstanding the evident importance it attached to its
pictorial department, no artist's name is ever mentioned in the index
or elsewhere. In a graceful and discriminative essay 'S. C.' speaks
feelingly and appreciatively of Fred Walker just after his death;
but that seems to be the only time when the anonymity imposed on the
artists was divulged in the magazine itself. It is but fair to add that
the literary contents were never signed, or attributed in the index,
except that a few articles bear the now familiar initials, 'L. S.', 'W.
E. H.', 'R. L. S.', 'G. A.', and others.
GOOD WORDS
This popular, semi-religious, sixpenny magazine, established in 1860,
achieved quickly a circulation that was record-breaking in its time.
Edited by Dr. Norman Macleod, it was printed by Thomas Constable,
and published (at first) in Edinburgh by Alexander Strahan and Co.
Although, viewed in the light of its later issues, one cannot help
feeling disappointed with the first volume, yet even there the pictures
are distinctly interesting as a forecast, even if they do not call for
any detailed notice by reason of their intrinsic merit. They rarely
exceed a half page in size, and were engraved none too well by various
craftsmen. Indeed, judging from the names of the artists, then as
afterwards, given fully in the index of illustrations, it might not be
unfair to blame the engravers still more strongly. The very fact that
the illustrations are duly ascribed in a separate list is proof that,
from the first, the editor recognised their importance. Such honourable
recognition of the personality of an illustrator is by no means the
rule, even in periodicals that have equal right to be proud of their
collaborators. Where the artists' names are recorded it is rare to find
them acknowledged so fully and thoroughly as in _Good Words_. In other
magazines they are usually referred to under the title of the article
they illustrate and nowhere else; or their name is printed (as in _Once
a Week_) with a bare list of numerals showing the pages containing
their pictures; but in _Good Words_ the subject, titles, and artists'
names have always been accorded a special index.
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'GOOD WORDS'
1861, p. 579
A TIME TO
DANCE]
In the first volume, for 1860, W. Q. Orchardson--not then even an
Associate of the Royal Academy--supplies nine drawings, engraved by
F. Borders. Admirable in their own way, one cannot but feel that the
signature leads one to expect something much more interesting; and,
knowing the quality of Mr. Orchardson's later work, it is impossible to
avoid throwing the blame on the engraver. Keeley Halswelle contributes
six; in these you find (badly drawn or spoilt by the engraver) those
water-lilies in blossom, which in after years became a mannerism in his
landscape foregrounds. J. W. M'Whirter has four--one a group of _Autumn
Flowers_ (p. 664), cut by R. Paterson, that deserves especial notice
as a much more elaborate piece of engraving than any other in the
volume. Erskine Nicol supplies two _genre_ pieces, the full-page, _Mary
Macdonell and her friends_ (p. 216), being, most probably, a thoroughly
good sketch, but here again the translator has produced hard scratchy
lines that fail to suggest the freer play of pencil or pen, whichever
it was that produced the original. Others by 'J. B.,' J. O. Brown,
C. A. Doyle, Clarence Dobell, Jas. Drummond, Clark Stanton, Gourlay
Steell, and Hughes Taylor, call for no particular comment.
From 1861 the chief full-page illustrations were printed separately
on toned paper. A series of animal subjects by 'J. B.,' twelve
'Illustrations of Scripture,' engraved by Dalziel Brothers,
were announced in the prospectus as a special feature. Somewhat
pre-Raphaelite in handling they are distinctly interesting, but hardly
masterly. But the volume will be always memorable for its early work
by Frederick Walker and G. Du Maurier. _A Time to Dance_, by the
latter, shows a certain decorative element, which in various ways has
influenced his work at different periods, although no one could have
deduced from it the future career of its brilliant author as a satirist
of society, a draughtsman who imparted into his work, to a degree
no English artist has surpassed, and very few equalled, that 'good
form' so prized by well-bred people. The drawing unsigned _The Blind
School_ (p. 505), attributed to Fred Walker in the index, suggests
some clerical error. Like one attributed to Sandys in a later volume,
you hesitate before accepting evidence of the compiler of the list
of engravings, which the picture itself contradicts flatly. _Only a
Sweep_ (p. 609) is signed, and, although by no means a good example,
is unquestionably attributed rightly. John Pettie has two designs,
_Cain's Brand_ (pp. 376, 422); J. M'Whirter and W. Q. Orchardson, one
each; H. H. Armstead, a pre-Raphaelite composition, _A Song which none
but the Redeemed ever sing_, which is amongst the most interesting of
the comparatively few illustrations by the Royal Academician, who is
better known as a sculptor, as his _Music, Poetry, and Painting_ in
the Albert Memorial, the panels beneath Dyce's frescoes at Westminster
Palace, and a long series of works shown at the Academy exhibitions
suffice to prove. T. Morten, a draughtsman who has missed so far his
due share of appreciation, is represented by _The Waker, Dreamer, and
Sleeper_ (p. 634), a powerful composition of a group of men praying at
night by the side of a breaking dyke. John Pettie has two drawings; and
J. D. Watson, six subjects--the first, _The Toad_, being singularly
unlike his later style, and suggesting a closer discipleship with the
pre-Raphaelites than he maintained afterwards. Two by Clarence Dobell,
and three by T. Graham--one, _The Young Mother_, a charming arrangement
in lines; with others by J. Wolf, Zwecker, W. M'Taggart, J. L. Porter,
A. W. Cooper, A. Bushnell, W. Fyfe, W. Linney, and C. H. Bennett, are
also included. Altogether the second volume shows marked advance upon
the first, although this admirable periodical had not yet reached its
high-water mark.
In 1862 we find added to its list of artists, Millais, Keene, Sandys,
Whistler, Holman Hunt, E. Burne-Jones, A. Boyd Houghton, Tenniel, S.
Solomon, and Lawless, a notable group, even in that year when so many
magazines show a marvellous 'galaxy of stars.' To Millais fell the
twelve illustrations to _Mistress and Maid_, by the author of _John
Halifax_, and two others, _Olaf_ (p. 25) and _Highland Flora_ (p. 393).
That these maintain fully the reputation of the great illustrator,
whose later achievements in oil have in popular estimation eclipsed his
importance as a black-and-white artist, goes without saying. If not
equal to the superb _Parables_ of the following year, they are worthy
of their author. Indeed, no matter when you come across a Millais, it
is with a fresh surprise each time that one finds it rarely falls below
a singularly high level, and is apt to seem, for the moment, the best
he ever did.
[Illustration: SIMEON SOLOMON
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 592
THE VEILED
BRIDE]
[Illustration: FREDERICK WALKER
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 657
OUT AMONG THE
WILD-FLOWERS]
The two illustrations by J. M'Neill Whistler seem to be very little
known. Those to _Once a Week_, possibly from the fact of their being
reprinted in Thornbury's _Legendary Ballads_, have been often referred
to and reproduced several times; but no notice (so far as I recollect)
of these, to _The First Sermon_, has found its way into print. The
one (p. 585) shows a girl crouching by a fire, with a man, whose head
is turned towards her, seated at a table with his hand on a lute. The
other (p. 649) is a seated girl in meditation before a writing-table.
Not a little of the beauty of line, which distinguishes the work of the
famous etcher, is evident in these blocks, which were both engraved by
Dalziel, and as whatever the original lost cannot now be estimated, as
they stand they are nevertheless most admirable works, preserving the
rapid touch of the pen-line in a remarkable degree.
The Charles Keene drawing to _Nanneri the Washerwoman_ is another
Dalziel block which merits praise in no slight measure; as here again
one fancies that the attempt has been to preserve a facsimile of each
touch of the artist, and not to translate wash into line. The _King
Sigurd_ of Burne-Jones has certainly lost a great deal; in fact,
judging by drawings of the same period still extant, it conveys an
effect quite different from that its author intended. Certainly, at the
present time, he regards it as entirely unrepresentative; but no doubt
then as now he disliked drawing upon wood. To-day it has been said that
his Chaucer drawings in pencil were practically translated by another
hand in the course of their being engraved on wood. Certainly technique
of lead pencil is hardly suggested, much less reproduced in facsimile
in the entirely admirable engravings by the veteran Mr. W. H. Hooper.
But if the designs were photographed on the block such translation as
they have undergone is no doubt due to the engraver.
A drawing by Simeon Solomon, _The Veiled Bride_ (p. 592), seems also
much less dainty than his pencil studies of the same period. Many
artists, when they attempt to draw upon wood, find the material
peculiarly unsympathetic. Rossetti has left his opinion on record, and
it is quite possible that in both the Burne-Jones and Solomon, as in
the Tennyson drawings, although the engravers may have accomplished
miracles, what the artist had put down was untranslatable. For the
delicacies of pencil may easily produce something beyond the power of
even the most skilful engraver to reproduce. The Sandys, _Until her
Death_ (p. 312), illustrating a poem, loses much as it appeared in the
magazine; you have but to compare a proof from the block itself, in a
reprinted collection of Messrs. Strahan's engravings, to realise how
different a result was secured upon good paper with careful printing.
A. Boyd Houghton is represented by four subjects: _My Treasure_ (p.
504), _On the Cliff_ (p. 624), _True or False_ (p. 721), and _About
Toys_ (p. 753); they all belong to the manner of his _Home Scenes_,
rather than to his oriental illustrations. _The Battle of Gilboa_ (p.
89), by Tenniel, is typical. M. J. Lawless is at his best in _Rung into
Heaven_ (p. 135), and in the _Bands of Love_ (p. 632) shows more grace
than he sometimes secured when confronted by modern costume.
T. Morten has a finely-engraved night-piece, _Pictures in the Fire_ (p.
200), besides _The Christmas Child_ (p. 56) and _The Carrier Pigeon_
(p. 121). The Holman Hunt, _Go and Come_ (p. 32), a weeping figure, is
not particularly interesting. _Honesty_ (p. 736), by T. Graham, gives
evidence of the power of an artist who has yet to be 'discovered' so
far as his illustrations are concerned. H. H. Armstead's _Seaweeds_
(p. 568), and eight by J. D. Watson (pp. 9, 81, 144, 201, 209, 302,
400, 433) need no special comment, nor do the ten by J. Pettie (pp.
264-713). Fred Walker is represented by _The Summer Woods_, a typical
pastoral (p. 368), _Love in Death_, a careworn woman in the snow
(p. 185), and _Out among the wild flowers_ (p. 657), the latter an
excellent example of the grace he imparted to rustic figures. These,
with a few diagrams and engravings from photographs, complete the
record of a memorable, if not the most memorable, year of the magazine.
[Illustration: T. GRAHAM
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 736
HONESTY]
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 153
RUNG INTO HEAVEN]
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 632
THE BANDS
OF LOVE]
[Illustration: J. PETTIE
'GOOD WORDS'
1863, p. 14
THE MONKS AND
THE HEATHEN]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'GOOD WORDS'
1863, p. 589
SLEEP]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 312
UNTIL HER
DEATH]
[Illustration: JOHN TENNIEL
'GOOD WORDS'
1863, p. 201
THE NORSE
PRINCESS]
In 1863 we find less variety in the artists and subjects, which is
due to the presence of the superb series of drawings by Millais,
_The Parables_, wherein the great illustrator touched his highest
level. To call these twelve pictures masterpieces is for once to
apply consistently a term often misused. For, though one ransacked
the portfolios of Europe, not many sets of drawings could be found
to equal, and very few to excel them. The twelve subjects appeared
in the following order: _The Leaven_ (p. 1), _The Ten Virgins_ (p.
81), _The Prodigal Son_ (p. 161), _The Good Samaritan_ (p. 241), _The
Unjust Judge_ (p. 313), _The Pharisee and Publican_ (p. 385), _The
Hid Treasure_ (p. 461), _The Pearl of Great Price_ (p. 533),
_The Lost Piece of Money_[1] (p. 605), _The Sower_ (p. 677), _The
Unmerciful Servant_ (p. 749), and _The Labourers in the Vineyard_
(p. 821). To F. Sandys two drawings are attributed; one is obviously
from another hand, but _Sleep_ (p. 589) undoubtedly marks his final
appearance in this magazine. T. Morten is represented by _Cousin
Winnie_ (p. 257), _Hester Durham_ (p. 492), _The Spirit of Eld_ (p.
629, unsigned), a powerful composition that at first glance might
almost be taken for a Sandys, and _An Orphan Family's Christmas_
(p. 844). In _Autumn Thoughts_ (p. 743) we have an example of J. W.
North, more akin to those he contributed to the Dalziel table-books,
a landscape, with a fine sense of space, despite the fact that it is
enclosed by trees. John Tenniel, in _The Norse Princess_ (p. 201) and
_Queen Dagmar_ (p. 344), finds subjects that suit him peculiarly well.
_The Summer Snow_ (p. 380), attributed to 'Christopher' Jones, is by
Sir Edward Burne-Jones of course, and the final contribution of the
artist to these pages. H. J. Lucas, a name rarely encountered, has
one drawing, _The Sangreal_ (p. 454). A. Boyd Houghton, in _St. Elmo_
(p. 64), _A Missionary Cheer_ (p. 547), and _Childhood_ (p. 636), is
showing the more mature style of his best period. G. J. Pinwell has but
a single drawing, _Martin Ware's Temptation_ (p. 573), and that not
peculiarly individual; John Pettie appears with six, _The Monks and the
Heathen_ (p. 14), _The Passion Flowers of Life_ (p. 141), a study of an
old man seated in a creeper-covered porch with a child on his lap, _The
Night Walk over the Mill Stream_ (p. 185), and _Not above his Business_
(p. 272), _A Touch of Nature_ (p. 417), and _The Negro_ (p. 476). To a
later generation, who only know the pictures of the Royal Academician,
these come as a surprise, and prove the versatility of an artist
whose painting was somewhat mannered. Walter Crane's--a fine group of
oriental sailors--_Treasure-trove_ (p. 795), and J. D. Watson's six
drawings are all capable and accomplished; _A Pastoral_ (p. 32), a
very elaborate composition which looks like a copy of an oil-painting,
_Fallen in the Night_ (p. 97), _The Curate of Suverdsio_ (p. 333), _The
Aspen_ (p. 401), _Rhoda_ (p. 520), and _Olive Shand's Partner_ (p.
774), with the not very important _Sheep and Goats_ wrongly attributed
to Sandys, two decorated pages by John Leighton, one drawing by E. W.
Cooke and five by T. Graham, complete the year's record.
The volume for 1864 is distinctly less interesting. Nevertheless it
holds some fine things. Notably five Millais', including _Oh! the
Lark_ (p. 65), _A Scene for a Study_ (p. 161), _Polly_ (p. 248), (a
baby-figure kneeling by a bed, which has been republished elsewhere
more than once), _The Bridal of Dandelot_ (p. 304), and _Prince
Philibert_ (p. 481), another very popular childish subject, a small
girl with a small boy holding a toy-boat. Frederick Walker, in his
illustrations to Mrs. Henry Wood's novel, _Oswald Cray_ (pp. 32-129,
202, 286, 371, 453, 532, and 604), shows great dramatic insight,
and a certain domestic charm, which has caused the otherwise not
very entrancing story to linger in one's memory in a way quite
disproportionate to its merits. The remaining illustrations to
_Oswald Cray_ are by R. Barnes (pp. 691, 761, 827), the same artist
contributing also _Grandmother's Snuff_, (p. 411), _A Burn Case_ (p.
568), _A Lancashire Doxology_, (p. 585), _Blessed to Give_ (p. 641),
and _The Organ Fiend_ (p. 697). M. J. Lawless is responsible for only
one subject, a study of a man and a harpsichord, _The Player and the
Listeners_; in this case, as, on turning over the pages, you re-read
a not very noteworthy poem, you find it has lingered in memory merely
from its association with a picture. Arthur Hughes has a graceful
design, _At the Sepulchre_ (p. 728), which seems to have lost much in
the engraving; John Tenniel is also represented by a solitary example,
_The Way in the Wood_ (p. 552); G. J. Pinwell, in five full-page
drawings, _A Christmas Carol_ (p. 30), _The Cottage in the Highlands_
(p. 427), _M'Diarmid explained_ (p. 504), _Malachi's Cove_ (p. 729),
and _Mourning_ (p. 760), sustains his high level. Other subjects,
animal pictures by J. Wolf, and figures and landscapes by R. P. Leitch,
Florence Claxton, F. Eltze, J. W. Ehrenger, R. T. Pritchett, and W.
Colomb, call for no special mention. To John Pettie is attributed a
tail-piece of no importance.
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'GOOD WORDS'
1864, p. 168
THE PLAYER AND
THE LISTENERS]
With 1865 comes a sudden cessation of interest, as seventy of the
illustrations are engraved 'from photographs of oriental scenes
to illustrate the editor's series of travel papers,' _Eastward_.
This leaves room merely for pictures to the two serials. Paul Gray
contributed those to Charles Kingsley's novel, _Hereward, the Last of
the English_; but the twelve drawings are unequal, and in few show
the promise which elsewhere he exhibited so fully. Robert Barnes
supplies nine for the story, _Alfred Hagart's Household_, by Alexander
Smith of _City Poems_ fame. These, like all the artist's work, are
singularly good of their kind, and show at once his great facility and
his comparatively limited range of types.
In 1866, although engravings after photographs do not usurp the space
to the extent they did in the previous year, they are present, and the
volume, in spite of many excellent drawings, cannot compare in interest
with those for 1862-64. The frontispiece, _Lilies_, is a most charming
figure-subject by W. Small, who contributes also three others: _The Old
Yeomanry Weeks_ (p. 127), _Deliverance_ (p. 663), a typical example
of a landscape with figures in the foreground, which, in the hands
of this artist, becomes something entirely distinct from the 'figure
with a landscape beyond' of most others; and _Carissimo_ (p. 736), a
pair of lovers on an old stone bench, 'just beyond the Julian gate,'
which seems as carefully studied as if it were intended for a painting
in oils. To compare the average picture to a poem to-day, with the
work of Mr. Small and many of his fellows, is not encouraging. Thirty
years ago it seemed as if the draughtsman did his best to evolve a
perfect representation of the subject of the verses; now one feels
doubtful whether the artist does not keep on hand, to be supplied to
order, a series of lovers in attitudes warranted to fit, more or less
accurately, any verses by any poet. Of course for one picture issued
then, a score, perhaps a hundred, are published to-day, and it might
be that numerically as many really good drawings appear in the course
of a year now, as then; but, while our average rarely descends to the
feeblest depths of the sixties, it still more rarely comes near such
work as Mr. Small's, whose method is still followed and has influenced
more decidedly a larger number of draughtsmen than has that of Millais,
Walker, Pinwell, or Houghton.
Studying his work at this date, you realise how very strongly
he influenced the so-called '_Graphic_ School' which supplanted
the movement we are considering in the next decade. Despite the
appreciation, contemporary and retrospective, already bestowed upon
his work, despite the influence--not always for good--upon the younger
men, it is yet open to doubt if the genius of this remarkable artist
has received adequate recognition. In a running commentary upon work
of all degrees of excellence, one is struck anew with its admirably
sustained power and its constantly fresh manner.
This digression, provoked by the four delightful 'Small' drawings,
must not lead one to overlook the rest of the pictures in _Good Words_
for 1866. They include _The Island Church_, by J. W. North (p. 393),
_The Life-Boat_, by J. W. Lawson (p. 248), _Between the Showers_, by
W. J. Linton, (p. 424), six illustrations to _Ruth Thornbury_, by
M. E. Edwards, and one by G. J. Pinwell, _Bridget Dally's Change_.
Perhaps the most notable of the year are the five still to be named:
A. Boyd Houghton's _The Voyage_, and a set of four half-page drawings,
_Reaping_, _Binding_, _Carrying_, _Gleaning_, entitled _The Harvest_
(pp. 600, 601). These have a decorative arrangement not always present
in the work of this clever artist, and a peculiarly large method of
treatment, so much so that if the text informed you that they were
pen-sketches from life-size paintings, you would not be surprised.
Whether by accident or design, it is curious to discover that the
landscapes in each pair, set as they are on pages facing one another,
have a look of being carried across the book in Japanese fashion.
1867 might be called the Pinwell year, as a dozen of his illustrations
to Dr. George Mac Donald's _Guild Court_, and one each to _A Bird in
the Hand_ and _The Cabin Boy_, account for nearly half the original
drawings in the volume. W. Small is seen in five characteristic designs
to Dr. Macleod's _The Starling_, and one each to _Beside the Stile_
(p. 645) and _The Highland Student_ (p. 663). Arthur Boyd Houghton
contributes _Omar and the Persian_ (p. 104) and _Making Poetry_ (p.
248); the first a typical example of his oriental manner, the latter
one of his home scenes. S. L. Fildes appears with _In the Choir_ (p.
537), a church interior showing the influence of William Small. F. W.
Lawson illustrates _Grace's Fortune_ with three drawings, also redolent
of Small, and Fred Walker has _Waiting in the Dusk_, a picture of a
girl in a passage, which does not illustrate the accompanying verses,
and has the air of being a picture prepared for a serial some time
before, that, having been delayed for some reason, has been served up
with a poem that chanced to be in type.
In 1868 Pinwell and Houghton between them are responsible for quite
half the separate plates, and Small contributes no less than
thirty-four which illustrate delightfully _The Woman's Kingdom_, a
novel by the author of _John Halifax_, together with a large number
of vignetted initials, a feature not before introduced into this
magazine. Without forgetting the many admirable examples of Mr. Small's
power to sustain the interest of the reader throughout a whole set of
illustrations to a work of fiction, one doubts if he has ever surpassed
the excellence of these. The little sketches of figures and landscapes
in the initials show that he did not consider it beneath his dignity to
study the text thoroughly, so as to interpret it with dramatic insight.
Your modern _chic_ draughtsman, who reads hastily the few lines
underscored in blue pencil by his editor, must laugh at the pains taken
by the older men. Indeed, a very up-to-date illustrator will not merely
refuse to carry out the author's idea, but prefer his own conception of
the character, and say so. That neither course in itself produces great
work may be granted, but one cannot avoid the conclusion that if it be
best to illustrate a novel (which is by no means certain) that artist
is most worthy of praise who does his utmost to present the characters
invented by the author. True, that character-drawing with pen and
pencil is out of date,--subtle emotion has taken its place,--it is not
easy to make a picture of a person smiling outwardly, but inwardly
convulsed with conflicting desires; the smile you may get, but the
conflicting desires are hard to work in at the same time. Appreciation
of Mr. Small's design need not imply censure of the work of others;
but, all the same, the cheap half-tone from a wash-drawing, in the
current sixpenny magazine, looks a very feeble thing after an hour
devoted to the illustrations to _Guy Waterman's Maze_, _The Woman's
Kingdom_, _Griffith Gaunt_, and the rest of the serials he illustrated.
In this volume two others, _The Harvest Home_ (p. 489) and _A Love
Letter_ (p. 618), are also from the same facile hand.
The first of the Boyd Houghtons is a striking design to Tennyson's
poem of _The Victim_ (p. 18); neither picture nor poem shows its
author at his best. Others signed A. B. H. are: _The Church in the
Cevennes_ (pp. 56, 57), _Discipleship_ (p. 112), _The Pope and the
Cardinals_ (p. 305), _The Gold Bridge_ (p. 321), _The Two Coats_ (p.
432), _How it all happened_ (seven illustrations), _Dance my Children_
(p. 568), a typical example of the peculiar mannerism of its author,
and a _Russian Farmyard_ (p. 760); also a number of small designs to
_Russian Fables_, some of which were illustrated also by Zwecker. G.
J. Pinwell illustrates _Notes on the Fire_ (pp. 47, 49), _Much work
for Little Pay_ (p. 89), _A Paris Pawn-shop_ (p. 233), _Mrs. Dubosq's
Daughter_ (four pictures), _Una and the Lion_ (p. 361), _Lovely, yet
unloved_ (pp. 376, 377), _Hop Gathering_ (p. 424), _The Quakers in
Norway_ (p. 504). S. L. Fildes has _The Captain's Story_, a good study
of fire-light reflected on three seated figures. Other numbers worth
noting are an excellent example of J. Mahoney, _Yesterday and To-day_
(p. 672), Briton Rivière's _At the Window_ (p. 630), R. Buckman's _The
White Umbrella_ (p. 473), and seven by Francis Walker to _Hero Harold_,
and one each to _Glenalla_ (p. 384), _The Bracelet_ (p. 753), and
_Thieves' Quarter_ (p. 553).
With 1869 we lose sight of many of the men who did so much to sustain
the artistic reputation of this magazine. W. Small has but one drawing,
_The Old Manor-House_ (p. 849). Hubert Herkomer is represented by
_The Way to Machaerus_ (pp. 353, 497). J. Mahoney by five designs to
_The Staffordshire Potter_, Francis Walker by nine to _The Connaught
Potters_ and _A Burial at Machaerus_ and _Holyhead Breakwater_. Arthur
Hughes, an infrequent contributor so far, contributes two illustrations
to _Carmina Nuptialia_. F. Barnard has two to _House-hunting_; F. A.
Fraser has no less than seventy-five: thirty-five to _Debenham's Vow_,
and thirty-three to _Noblesse Oblige_, with seven others, none of them
worth reconsideration, although they served their purpose no doubt at
the time.
With 1870 we reach the limit of the present chronicle, to which Francis
Walker and F. A. Fraser contribute most of the pictures. The most
interesting are: Arthur Hughes's _Fancy_ (p. 777) and _The Mariner's
Cave_ (p. 865); J. D. Linton, _Married Lovers_ (p. 601); J. Mahoney,
_The Dorsetshire Hind_ (p. 21), _Ascent of Snowdon_ (p. 201); and _Dame
Martha's Well_ (p. 680), and G. J. Pinwell's three very representative
drawings, _Rajah playing Chess_ (p. 211), _Margaret in the Xebec_ (p.
280), and _A Winter Song_ (p. 321).
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'GOOD WORDS'
1870, p. 777
FANCY]
1871 is memorable for three of Arthur Hughes's designs, made for a
projected illustrated edition of Tennyson's _Loves of the Wrens_, a
scheme abandoned at the author's wish; the three drawings cut down from
their original size, _Fly Little Letter_ (p. 33), _The Mist and the
Rain_ (p. 113), and _Sun Comes, Moon Comes_ (p. 183), are especially
dear to collectors of Mr. Hughes's work, which appeared here with the
lyrics set to Sir Arthur Sullivan's music; another by the same artist,
_The Mother and the Angel_ (p. 648), is also worth noting. One Boyd
Houghton, _Baraduree Justice_ (p. 464), twenty-one drawings by W. Small
to Katharine Saunders, _The High Mills_, and one by the same artist
to _An Unfinished Song_ (p. 641) are in this volume, besides four by
Pinwell, _Aid to the Sick_ (p. 40), _The Devil's Boots_ (p. 217),
_Toddy's Legacy_ (p. 336), and _Shall we ever meet again?_ (p. 817).
Without discussing the remaining years of this still flourishing
monthly one can hardly omit mention of the volume for 1878, in which
William Black's _Macleod of Dare_ is illustrated by G. H. Boughton,
R.A., J. Pettie, R.A., P. Graham, R.A., W. Q. Orchardson, R.A., and
John Everett Millais, R.A., a group which recalls the glories of its
early issues.
LONDON SOCIETY
This popular illustrated shilling magazine, started in February 1862
under the editorship of Mr. James Hogg, has not received so far its due
share of appreciation from the few who have studied the publications
of the sixties. Yet its comparative neglect is easily accounted for.
It contains, no doubt, much good work--some, indeed, worthy to be
placed in the first rank. But it also includes a good deal that, if
tolerable when the momentary fashions it depicted were not ludicrous,
appears now merely commonplace and absurd. A great artist--Millais
especially--could introduce the crinoline and the Dundreary whiskers,
so that even to-day their ugliness does not repel you. But less
accomplished draughtsmen, who followed slavishly the inelegant mode
of the sixties, now stand revealed as merely journalists. Journalism,
useful and honourable as its work may be, rarely has lasting qualities
which bear revival. Aiming as it did to be a 'smart' and topical
magazine, with the mood of the hour reflected in its pages, it remains
a document not without interest to the social historian. Amid its
purely ephemeral contents there are quite enough excellent drawings to
ensure its preservation in any representative collection of English
illustrations.
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'LONDON SOCIETY'
VOL. IV. p. 554
HONEYDEW]
[Illustration: J. D. WATSON
'LONDON SOCIETY'
1866, p. 35
TOO LATE]
[Illustration: J. D. WATSON
'LONDON SOCIETY,' VOL. I. p. 150
ASH WEDNESDAY]
In the first volume for 1862 we find a beautiful Lawless, _Beauty's
Toilet_ (p. 265), spoilt by its engraving, the texture of the flesh
being singularly coarse and ineffectual. Fred Walker, in _The
Drawing-room, 'Paris'_ (i. p. 401), is seen in the unusual and not
very captivating mood of a 'society' draughtsman. _Ash Wednesday_
(p. 150), by J. D. Watson, is a singularly fine example of an artist
whose work, the more you come across it, surprises you by its
sustained power. The frontispiece _Spring Days_ and _A Romance_ and
_A Curacy_ (p. 386), are his also. Other illustrations by T. Morten,
H. Sanderson, C. H. Bennett, Adelaide Claxton, Julian Portch, and
F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., call for no special comment. In the second
volume there are two drawings by Lawless, _First Night at the Seaside_
(p. 220) and _A Box on the Ear_ (p. 382); several by Du Maurier, one
_A Kettledrum_ (p. 203), peculiarly typical of his society manner;
others, _Refrezzment_ (p. 110), _Snowdon_ (p. 481), _Oh sing again_
(p. 433), _Jewels_ (p. 105), and a _Mirror Scene_ (p. 107), which
reveal the cosmopolitan student of nature outside the artificial, if
admirable, restrictions of 'good form.' _The Border Witch_ (p. 181),
by J. E. Millais, A.R.A., is one of the very few examples by the great
illustrator in this periodical. J. D. Watson, in _Moonlight on the
Beach_ (p. 333), _Married_[2] (p. 449), _A Summer Eve_ (p. 162), _On
the Coast_ (p. 321), _Holiday Life_ (p. 339), and _How I gained a
Wife_ (p. 551), again surprises you, with regret his admirable work
has yet not received fuller appreciation by the public. Walter Crane
contributes some society pictures which reveal the admirable decorator
in an unusual, and, to be candid, unattractive aspect. _Kensington
Gardens_ (p. 172), _A London Carnival_ (p. 79), and _Which is Fairest?_
(p. 242), are interesting as the work of a youth, but betray little
evidence of his future power. Robert Barnes, in _Dreaming Love and
Waiting Duty_ (p. 564), shows how early in his career he reached the
level which he maintained so admirably. A. Boyd Houghton's _Finding
a Relic_ (p. 89) is a good if not typical specimen of his work. The
designs by E. J. Poynter, _Tip Cat_ (p. 321), _I can't thmoke a pipe_
(p. 318), and _Lord Dundreary_ (pp. 308, 472), are singularly unlike
the usual work of the accomplished author of _Israel in Egypt_. To
these one must add the names of C. H. Bennett (_Beadles_,
three), W. M'Connell, C. A. Doyle, George H. Thomas, E. K. Johnson,
F. J. Skill, F. Claxton, H. Sanderson, and A. W. Cooper. So that 1862
offers, at least, a goodly list of artists, and quite enough first-rate
work to make the volumes worth preserving.
In vol. iii. 1863 there is a drawing, _The Confession_ (p. 37),
engraved by Dalziel, that is possibly by Pinwell. Three by T. Morten,
_After the Opera_ (p. 39), _A Struggle in the Clouds_ (p. 287), and
_Ruth Grey's Trial_ (p. 59), are good, if not the best of this artist's
work. Two by George Du Maurier (pp. 209, 216) employ, after the manner
of the time, a sort of pictured parable entitled _On the Bridge_ and
_Under the Bridge_. _Our Honeymoon_, by Marcus Stone, is interesting.
_Struck Down_ (p. 106) and _The Heiress of Elkington_ (p. 345), both by
J. D. Watson, are as good as his work is usually. _A May Morning_ (p.
428), by George H. Thomas, is also worthy of mention, but the rest, by
E. K. Johnson, E. H. Corbould, W. Brunton, W. Cave Thomas, Louis Huard,
etc., are not peculiarly attractive.
The concluding volume for 1863 has a very dainty figure, _Honey-Dew_,
by M. J. Lawless (p. 554). The three Du Mauriers are _A Little Hop in
Harley St._ (p. 469), _Lords: University Cricket Match_ (p. 161), and
the _Worship of Bacchus_ (p. 192) at first sight so curiously like a
Charles Keene that, were it not for the signature, one would distrust
the index. Nine drawings by T. Morten to _The First Time_ are good,
especially those on p. 180, and _A First Attempt_, Charles Green (p.
205), is also worth notice. Two drawings by G. J. Pinwell, _Wolsey_
(p. 311) and another (p. 319), are characteristic. For the rest, C.
H. Bennett, Louis Huard, Felix Darley, W. M'Connell, W. Brunton, Matt
Morgan, Florence Claxton, T. Godwin, Waldo Sargent, George Thomas, and
C. A. Doyle, provide _entrées_ and sweets a little flavourless to-day,
although palatable enough, no doubt, at the time.
In 1864, M. J. Lawless's _Not for You_ (p. 85); a fine J. D. Watson,
_The Duet_ (p. 268); _Charley Blake_, by G. Du Maurier (p. 385); _At
Swindon_ (p. 41), M. E. Edwards, and _Little Golden Hair_, by R.
Barnes, are the only others above the average. Adelaide Claxton, W.
M'Connell, H. Sanderson, and J. B. Zwecker provide most of the rest.
The second half of the year (vol. vi.) is far better, contains some
good work by the 'talented young lady,' M. E. E. (to quote contemporary
praise); that her work was talented all students of the 'sixties' will
agree. _A Holocaust_ (p. 433), _Dangerous_ (p. 353), _Gone_ (p. 185),
_Magdalen_ (p. 553), _Milly's Success_ (p. 269), and _Unto this Last_
(p. 252) are all by Miss Edwards. A fine Millais, _Knightly Worth_ (p.
247), and a good J. D. Watson, _Blankton Weir_ (p. 416), would alone
make the volume memorable. C. A. Doyle has some of his best drawings
to _A Shy Man_, and G. H. Thomas and others maintain a good average.
Rebecca Solomon has a good full page (p. 541). In the extra Christmas
number you will find E. J. Poynter's _A Sprig of Holly_ (p. 28), J.
D. Watson's _Story of a Christmas Fairy_ (p. 24), a notable design,
besides capital illustrations by Du Maurier, R. Dudley (_The Blue
Boy_), R. Barnes, and Marcus Stone.
1865 is a Du Maurier year. In vol. vii. eleven drawings by this fecund
artist on pp. 38, 193, 202, 289, 296, 428, 430, 481, 488, and 697,
all excellent examples of his early manner. Arthur Hughes, with _The
Farewell Valentine_ (p. 188), makes his first appearance within the
pages of _London Society_. A. W. Cooper, J. Pasquier, T. R. Lamont,
and A. Claxton are to the fore, and C. H. Bennett has a series of
typical members of various learned societies, which, characteristic
as they are, might have their titles transposed without any one being
the wiser. In vol. viii. 1865, Paul Gray appears with _My Darling_ (p.
253). T. Morten has three capital drawings: _Two Loves and a Life_
(p. 400), _A Romance at Marseilles_ (p. 549), and _Love and Pride_
(p. 16); and Du Maurier has _Codlingham Regatta_ (p. 284), _How not
to play Croquet_ (p. 61), _Where shall we go?_ (p. 17), _Old Jockey
West_ (p. 288), _The Rev. Mr. Green_ (p. 122), _Furnished Apartments_
(p. 481), and _Ticklish Ground_ (p. 488). G. J. Pinwell is represented
by a solitary example, _The Courtship of Giles Languish_ (p. 384), J.
D. Watson by _Green Mantle_ (pp. 385, 388, 389), and M. E. Edwards by
_Georgie's First Love-letter_ (p. 152), _Faithful and True_ (p. 263),
_Firm and Faithful_ (p. 60). The other contributors are A. W. Bayes
(_To Gertrude_, p. 460), L. C. Henley, T. R. Lamont, J. A. Pasquier,
Kate Edwards, W. Brunton, T. S. Seccombe, John Gascoine, etc.
In 1866, vol. ix., George Du Maurier signs the frontispiece, _Two to
One_, and also two illustrations to _Much Ado About Nothing_ (pp. 289,
296), two to _Second Thoughts_ (pp. 385, 391), and two to _Queen of
Diamonds_ (pp. 481-488). T. Morten has again three designs: _Mrs.
Reeve_ (p. 135), _On the Wrekin_ (p. 1), and _The Man with a Dog_
(p. 239); R. Dudley supplies one, _The Tilt-Yard_ (p. 441), and Kate
Edwards one, _The June Dream_ (p. 531). M. Ellen Edwards in three
admirable examples, _In Peril_ (p. 450), _Mutually Forgiven_ (p. 228),
and _The Cruel Letter_ (p. 364), shows how cleverly she caught the
influence in the air. Other artists contribute many drawings of no
particular interest.
Vol. x. shows W. Small with two drawings, _Agatha_ (p. 160) and
_The Reading of Locksley Hall_ (p. 8). It is curious to see how the
sentimentality of the poem has influenced the admirable draughtsman,
who is not here at his best. Paul Gray has also two, _An English
October_ (p. 289) and _To a Flirt_ (p. 373); G. Du Maurier is
represented by one only, _Life in Lodgings_ (p. 516); J. G. Thompson by
one also, _Caught at Last_ (p. 80); T. Morten again contributes three:
_Marley Hall_ (p. 560), _May's Window_ (p. 432), and _The Trevillians'
Summer Trip_ (p. 124); A. Boyd Houghton is represented by _Ready for
Supper_ (p. 146), and M. E. Edwards by two drawings to _Something to
My Advantage_ (pp. 481-488). The Christmas number contains one Boyd
Houghton, _The Christmas Tree_ (p. 80); a J. D. Watson, _Given back on
Christmas Morn_ (p. 63); a very good F. W. Lawson, _Did I Offend?_ (p.
32); a delightful Charles Keene, _How I lost my Whiskers_ (p. 27); _Sir
Guy's Goblet_ (p. 16), by M. E. Edwards, and one by George Cruikshank,
_My Christmas Box_, looking curiously out of place here.
In the eleventh volume (1867) the four by W. Small are among the most
important. They are _A Pastoral Episode_ (p. 406), _Quite Alone_ (p.
277), _The Meeting_ (p. 163), and _Try to Keep Firm_ (p. 361); a J.
D. Watson, _Changes_ (p. 373); a Paul Gray, _Goldsmith at the Temple
Gate_ (p. 392); a J. G. Thompson, _An Expensive Journey_ (p. 36); M. E.
Edwards's _Winding of the Skein_ (p. 177), and L. C. Henley's _How I
set about Paying my Debts_ (p. 388), are all that need be mentioned. In
the twelfth volume (1867) A. Boyd Houghton signs a couple of drawings
to _A Spinster's Sweepstake_ (pp. 376, 383), G. J. Pinwell supplies
two to _Beautiful Mrs. Johnson_ (pp. 136-248), F. W. Lawson two to
_Dedding Revisited_ (p. 433), _Without Reserve_ (p. 440), and four to
_Mary Eaglestone's Lover_ (pp. 97, 103, 207, 362). Charles Green is
responsible for _The Meeting at the Play_ (p. 276), and J. G. Thompson
for a series, _Threading the Mazy at Islington_. The Christmas number
is honoured by two fine drawings by Charles Keene (p. 18) and a good
double page by J. D. Watson, _Christmas at an old Manor-House_. Sir
John Gilbert, a rare contributor to these pages, is represented by _The
Rowborough Hollies_ (p. 41), M. E. Edwards by _The Christmas Rose_ (p.
16), and F. W. Lawson by _My Turn Next_ (p. 73).
With its thirteenth volume (1868) _London Society_ still keeps up to
the level it established. Among much that was intended for the moment
only there is also work of far more sterling value. Charles Keene, in
two drawings for _Tomkins' Degree Supper_ (pp. 224, 232), is seen at
his best, and how good that is needs no retelling. Sir John Gilbert,
among a new generation, keeps his place as a master, and in four
drawings (pp. 113, 249, 314, 429) reveals the superb qualities of his
work, coupled, it must be said, with certain limitations which are
almost inseparable from rapid production. G. Du Maurier is represented
by two, _Lift her to it_ (p. 324) and _The White Carnation_ (p. 558).
The inscription of _Expectation_ (p. 360), by 'the late M. J. Lawless',
marks the final discharge of an illustrator who did much to impart
permanent interest to the magazine. It is always a regret to find that
Mr. Sandys chose other fields of work, and that death withdrew Lawless
so soon; for these two, not displaying equal power, together with
Walter Crane maintained the decorative ideal through a period when it
was unpopular with the public and apparently found little favour in
editors' eyes. M. E. Edwards's _My Valentine_ (p. 114) and _Married
on her tenth Birthday_ (p. 206). To this list must be added W. Small,
with a delightful out-of-doors study, _'You did not come'_ (p. 368);
G. B. Goddard with some capital 'animal' pictures: _Spring of Life_
(p. 353), _Buck Shooting_ (p. 72), and _Dogs of Note_ (pp. 75, 179);
Wilfrid Lawson, _A Spring-tide Tale_ (p. 472); F. Barnard, _A Bracing
Morning_ (p. 60); A. W. Cooper, _The Old Seat_ (p. 268); and others by
Tom Gray, J. G. Thomson, W. L. Thomas, J. A. Pasquier, W. S. Gilbert,
S. E. Illingworth, Rice, W. Brunton, H. French, A. Crowquill, Edwin J.
Ellis, Fane Wood, and Isaac L. Brown. Vol. xiv., the second of 1868,
contains J. D. Watson's _The Oracle_ (p. 457); W. Small's _The Lights
on Gwyneth's Head_ (p. 165); A. Boyd Houghton, _The Turn of the Tide_
(p. 458); John Gilbert's _Cousin Geoffrey's Chamber_ (_Frontispiece_),
and _Box and Cox in Bay of Bengal_ (p. 392); Birket Foster's _The
Falconer's Lay_, probably engraved from a water-colour drawing (p.
529); Wilfrid Lawson's _Crush-room_ (p. 140); _For Charity's Sake_
(p. 112); _Behind the Scenes_ (p. 141), _The Gentle Craft_ (p. 86),
and _The Golden Boat_ (p. 579), with many others by the regular
contributors. In the Christmas number we find _Linley Sambourne_, whose
work is encountered rarely outside the pages of _Punch_, with a design
for a _Christmas Day Costume_ (p. 17); Charles Keene, with two drawings
for _Our Christmas Turkey_ (pp. 44, 46); G. B. Goddard's full-page,
_Knee-deep_ (p. 32); J. D. Watson's _Aunt Grace's Sweetheart_ (p. 19)
and _The Two Voices_ (p. 86) deserve noting.
In 1869 Wilfrid Lawson illustrates Whyte-Melville's _M. or N._, and has
several other full-page drawings in his best vein (pp. 8, 48, 89, 128,
152, 232, 307, 467, 540); J. Mahoney is first met here with _Officers
and Gentlemen_ (p. 284), and J. D. Watson supplies the frontispiece to
vol. xv., _Bringing Home the Hay_, and also that to vol. xvi., _Second
Blossom_. In this latter Wilfrid Lawson has illustrations to _M. or
N._ (pp. 156, 193, 236, 386); T. Morten, a powerful drawing, _Winter's
Night_ (p. 550); G. B. Goddard, _The Sportman's Resolve_ (p. 528). The
other artists, including some new contributors, are M. A. Boyd, Horace
Stanton, E. J. Ellis, T. Sweeting, James Godwin, F. Roberts, A. W.
Cooper, L. Huard, and B. Ridley. The Christmas number for 1869 contains
a good Charles Keene, _The Coat with the Fur Lining_ (pp. 1, 6);
Gilbert's _Secret of Calverly Court_ (p. 4); M. E. Edwards's _How the
Choirs were Carolling_ (p. 84); and J. Mahoney's _Mr. Daubarn_ (p. 49),
with others of no particular importance.
The numbers for 1870 contain, _inter alia_, in the first half-year, a
good J. D. Watson, _Going down the Road_ (_Frontispiece_); _A Leaf from
a Sketch-Book_, by Linley Sambourne (printed, like a series this year,
on special sheets of thick white paper, as four-page supplements),
which contained lighter work by artists of the hour, but none worth
special mention.
J. Mahoney's _Going to the Drawing-room_ (p. 321), and _Sir Stephen's
Question_ (p. 112), and _Spring-time_, drawn and engraved by W. L.
Thomas (p. 375), are among the most interesting of the ordinary full
pages. In the second half of the year, volume 18, there is a full page,
_Not Mine_ (p. 501), by Arthur Hughes, which links 1855 to 1870; A. W.
Small, _After the Season_ (p. 338); the very unimportant drawing by M.
J. Lawless, _An Episode of the Italian War_ (p. 97), has interest as
a relic; J. Mahoney contributes two to _The Old House by the River_
(pp. 67, 172), and many others by H. Paterson, Wilfrid Lawson, A.
Claxton. This year a Holiday number appeared, with a not very good J.
D. Watson, _A Landscape Painter_ (p. 47), and two Francis Walkers, _A
Summer Holiday_ and _Rosalind and Celia_, and other seasonable designs
by various hands. The Christmas number has a coloured frontispiece and
other designs by H. D. Marks; J. D. Watson illustrates _What might have
happened_ (pp. 8, 17, 19); and Charles Keene, _Gipsy Moll_ (pp. 39,
45); Francis Walker has _The Star Rider_ (p. 59) and _A Tale_ (p. 63);
F. A. Fraser, typical of the next decade, and one might say, without
undue severity, of the decadence also, and F. Gilbert, that facile
understudy of _Sir John_, show examples of work differing as far as it
well could; but 1870 is the last stage we need note here in the career
of a magazine which did notable service to the cause of illustration,
and brought a good many men into notice who have taken prominent part
in the history of 'black and white.' Without placing it on a level with
_Once a Week_, it is an interesting collection of representative work,
with some really first-rate drawing.
[Illustration: Frederick Sandys,del.
"Oh, what's that in the hollow, so pale I quake to follow?
Oh, that's a thin dead body which waits th'eternal term."
_Christina Rossetti._]
CHAPTER V: OTHER ILLUSTRATED PERIODICALS OF THE SIXTIES. 'CHURCHMAN'S
FAMILY MAGAZINE,' 'SUNDAY MAGAZINE,' ETC.
In devoting another chapter to periodicals one must insist upon their
relative importance; for the time and money expended on them in a
single year would balance possibly the cost of all the books mentioned
in this volume. In a naïve yet admirable article in the Christmas
_Bookseller_, 1862, written from a commercial standpoint, the author
says, speaking of some pictures in _Good Words_: 'Some of these,
we are informed, cost as much as £50 a block, a sum which appears
marvellous when we look at the low price of the magazine'; he instances
also the celebrated 'J. B.'[3], 'whose delineations of animals are
equal to Landseer. The magazines to be noticed are those only which
contain original designs; others, _The National Magazine_, the _Fine
Arts Quarterly_, and the like, which relied upon the reproductions of
paintings, are not even mentioned.
THE CHURCHMAN'S FAMILY MAGAZINE
Any periodical containing the work of Millais and Sandys is, obviously,
in the front rank, but _The Churchman's Family Magazine_, which started
in January 1863, did not long maintain its high level; yet the first
half a dozen volumes have enough good work to entitle them to more than
passing mention. This, like _London Society_, was published by Mr.
James Hogg, and must not be confounded with another of the same price,
with similar title, _The Churchman's Shilling Magazine_, to which
reference is made elsewhere. In the familiar octavo of its class, it is
well printed and well illustrated. The first volume contains two full
pages by Millais, _Let that be please_ (p. 15) and _You will forgive
me_ (p. 221); three illustrations by E. J. Poynter to _The Painter's
Glory_ (pp. 124, 131, 136); three by T. Morten (pp. 137, 432, and 531);
five by J. D. Watson, _Only Grandmamma_ (p. 89), _Christian Martyr_
(p. 104), _Sunday Evening_ (p. 191), _The Hermit_ (p. 260), and _Mary
Magdalene_ (p. 346); three by Charles Green to _How Susy Tried_ (pp.
57, 64, 71), and one each to _Henry II._ (p. 385), and _An Incident
in Canterbury Cathedral_ (p. 482), a drawing strangely resembling a
'John Gilbert.' H. S. Marks is represented by _Home Longing_ (p. 113)
and _Age and Youth_ (p. 337); H. H. Armstead by _Fourth Sunday in
Lent_ (p. 245) and _Angel Teachers_ (p. 539); J. C. Horsley by _Anne
Boleyn_ (p. 136); F. R. Pickersgill by _The Still Small Voice_ (p.
586); G. H. Thomas by _Catechising in Church_ (p. 225), and R. Barnes
by _Music for the Cottage_ (p. 289) and _The Strange Gentleman_ (p.
293). Besides these the volume contains others by Rebecca (sister to
Simeon) Solomon (p. 571), L. Huard, D. H. Friston, H. C. Selous, T.
Macquoid, W. M'Connell, T. Sulman, E. K. Johnson (_Spenser_, p. 576),
and J. B. Zwecker--a very fairly representative group of the average
illustrator of the period. The second half of 1863 (vol. ii.) enshrines
the fine Frederick Sandys, _The Waiting Time_, an incident of the
Lancashire cotton famine (p. 91). Another of M. J. Lawless's most
charming designs, _One Dead_ (p. 275), (reprinted under the title of
_The Silent Chamber_), will be found here. M. E. Edwards contributes
two, _Ianthe's Grave_ (p. 128) and _Child, I said_ (p. 405); G. J.
Pinwell is represented once with _By the Sea_ (p. 257); and T. Morten
with _The Bell-ringers' Christmas Story_ (p. 513). The other artists
include H. C. Selous, C. W. Cope, F. R. Pickersgill, E. Armitage, A. W.
Cooper, E. H. Wehnert, E. H. Corbould, Marshall Claxton, P. W. Justyne,
P. Skelton, Paulo Priolo, D. H. Friston, H. Sanderson, Creswick, and
T. B. Dalziel. In vol. iii. (1864) M. J. Lawless has _Harold Massey's
Confession_ (p. 65); C. Green, _Thinking and Wishing_ (p. 223); G.
J. Pinwell, _March Winds_ (p. 232); M. E. Edwards, _At the Casement_
(p. 354); and T. Morten, _The Twilight Hour_ (p. 553). Among other
contributors are Florence Caxton, L. Huard, H. M. Vining, W. M'Connell,
Rebecca Solomon, H. Fitzcook, John Absolon, Percy Justyne, F. W. Keyl,
W. J. Allen.
[Illustration: M. J. LAWLESS
'CHURCHMAN'S FAMILY MAGAZINE'
VOL. II. p. 275
'ONE DEAD']
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'CHURCHMAN'S FAMILY MAGAZINE'
VOL. II. p. 91
THE WAITING TIME]
In vol. iv. are J. D. Watson's _Crusaders in Sight of Jerusalem_
(p. 557), T. B. Dalziel's _In the Autumn Twilight_ (p. 441), and
A. W. Cooper's _Lesson of the Watermill_ (p. 339); Florence Caxton
illustrates the serial. And in vol. v. M. E. Edwards's _Deare Childe_
(p. 114), and _The Emblem of Life_ (p. 64), and A. Boyd Houghton's
_A Word in Season_ (p. 409), are best worth noting. Vol. vi. has a
good study of a monk, _Desert Meditations_ (p. 493), and a _Gretchen's
Lament_ (p. 82), by M. E. Edwards. From vol. vii. onwards portraits,
chiefly of ecclesiastical dignitaries, take the place of pictures.
THE SHILLING MAGAZINE
This somewhat scarce publication is often referred to as one of the
important periodicals of the sixties, but on looking through it, it
seems to have established its claim on somewhat slender foundation.
True, it contains one of Sandys' most memorable designs--here
reproduced in photogravure from an early impression of the block, a
peculiarly fine drawing--to Christina Rossetti's poem, _Amor Mundi_. It
was reproduced from a photograph of the drawing on wood in the first
edition of Mr. Pennell's admirable _Pen Drawing and Pen Draughtsmen_,
and in the second edition are reproductions by process, not only of Mr.
Sandys' original drawing as preserved in a Hollyer photograph, but of
preliminary studies for the figures.
The rest of the illustrations of the magazine, which only lived for
a few months, are comparatively few and not above the average in
merit. The numbers, May 1865 to May 1866, contain eight drawings by
J. D. Watson, illustrating Mrs. Riddell's _Phemie Keller_. Thirteen
by Paul Gray illustrate _The White Flower of Ravensworth_, by Miss
M. Betham-Edwards. Others noteworthy are: _Gythia_, by T. R. Lamont;
_Dahut_, and _An Incident_ of 1809, by J. Lawson; _Mistrust_ and
_Love's Pilgrimage_, by Edward Hughes; a fine composition, _Lost on the
Fells_, by W. Small, and a few minor drawings mostly in the text. It
was published by T. Bosworth, 215 Regent Street. This is a brief record
of a fairly praiseworthy venture, but there is really no more to be
said about it.
THE SUNDAY MAGAZINE,
Another sixpenny illustrated monthly more definitely religious in its
aim than _Good Words_, of which it was an offspring, was started in
1865. The illustrations from the first were hardly less interesting
than those in the other publications under the direction of Mr.
Alexander Strahan. Indeed, it would be unjust not to express very
clearly and unmistakably the debt which all lovers of black-and-white
art owe to the publisher of these magazines. The conditions of
oil-painting demand merely a public ready to buy: whether the artist
negotiates directly with the purchaser, or employs an agent, is a
matter of convenience. But black-and-white illustration requires a
well-circulated, well-printed, well-conducted periodical: not as a
middleman whose services can be dispensed with, but as a vital factor
in the enterprise. Therefore drawings intended for publication imply
a publisher, and one who is not merely a man with pronounced artistic
taste, but also a good administrator and a capable man of business.
These triple qualifications are found but rarely together, and when
they do unite, the influence of such a personality is of the utmost
importance. Mr. Strahan, who appears to have combined in no small
degree the qualities which go to make a successful publisher, set on
foot two popular magazines, which, in spite of their having long passed
their first quarter of a century, are still holding their own. A third,
full of promise, _Good Words for the Young_, was cut off in its prime,
or rather died of a lingering disease, caused by that terrible microbe
_the foreign cliché_. Others, _The Day of Rest_ and _Saturday Journal_,
also affected by the same ailment, succumbed after more or less effort;
but the magazines that relied on the best contemporary illustrators
still flourish. The moral, obvious as it is, deserves to be insisted
upon. To-day the photograph from life is as popular with many editors
as the _cliché_ from German and French originals was in the seventies;
but a public which tired of foreign electros may soon grow weary of the
inevitable photograph, and so the warning is worth setting down.
[Illustration: J. MAHONEY
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1866, p. 825
SUMMER]
[Illustration: J. W. NORTH
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1865, p. 328
WINTER]
Like its companion, _Good Words_, it has known fat years and lean
years; volumes that were full of admirable drawings, and volumes that
barely maintained a respectable average. From the very first volume of
the _Sunday Magazine_ we find among others R. Barnes, A. Boyd Houghton,
M. E. Edwards, Paul Gray, J. Lawson, F. W. Lawson, J. W. North, G. J.
Pinwell, and Marcus Stone well represented. The standard of excellence
implied by these names was preserved for a considerable time. To this
Pinwell contributes two drawings, _The House of God_ (p. 144) and
_Only a Lost Child_ (p. 592), a typical character-study of town life.
Paul Gray has a full page, _The Maiden Martyr_ (p. 272), engraved by
Swain; either the drawing is below his level, or it has suffered
badly at the hands of the engraver. _The Orphan Girl_ (p. 296), _Clara
Linzell's Commentary_ (p. 401), and _Dorcas_ (p. 617), by the same
artist, are all interesting, but do not represent him at his best. The
single contribution by A. Boyd Houghton, _Friar Ives_ (p. 384), is not
particularly good. In _Winter_, by J. W. North (p. 328), we have a
most excellent drawing of a snow-clad farm with a thrashing machine at
work in the distance, and two children in the foreground. The delicacy
and breadth of the work, and its true tonality deserve appreciation;
it was engraved by Swain. _Drowned_ (p. 585), by Marcus Stone, is not
very typical. _The Watch at the Sepulchre_ (p. 940), by J. Lawson, is a
spirited group of Roman soldiers. _Caught in a Thunderstorm_, by R. P.
Leitch, engraved by W. J. Linton, is interesting to disciples of 'the
white line.' Edward Whymper supplies the frontispiece, _The Righi_.
M. E. Edwards, in the drawings to _Grandfather's Sunday_ (pp. 481,
489), appears to be under the influence of G. H. Thomas. Robert Barnes
has twenty illustrations to _Kate the Grandmother_, and one each to
_Light in Darkness_ (p. 25) and _Our Children_. A series of fourteen
to _Joshua Taylor's Passion_, engraved by Dalziel, are unsigned; the
style leads one to credit them to F. A. Fraser, who in later volumes
occupied a prominent position. F. W. Lawson, in _A Romance of Truth_
(pp. 641, 649) and _The Vine and its Branches_ (p. 904), has not yet
found his individual manner. The rest of the pictures by T. Dalziel, F.
J. Slinger, R. T. Pritchett, F. Eltze, W. M'Connell, etc., call for no
special comment.
In 1866 J. Mahoney's _Summer_, the frontispiece to the volume, is a
notable example of a clever artist, whose work has hardly yet attracted
the attention it deserves; _Marie_ (p. 753), a study of an old woman
knitting, is no less good. Birket Foster's _Autumn_ (p. 1) is also
a very typical example. Paul Gray's _Among the Flowers_ (p. 624), a
group of children from the slums in a country lane, is fairly good.
W. Small, in _Hebe Dunbar_ 'from a photograph' (p. 441), supplies an
object-lesson of translation rather than imitation, which deserves
to be studied to-day. In it, a really great draughtsman has given
you a personal rendering of facts, like those he would have set down
had he worked from life, and thereby imparted individual interest to
a copy of a photograph. This one block, if photographers would but
study it, should convince them that a good drawing is in every way
preferable to a 'half-tone' block from a photograph of the subject; it
might also teach a useful lesson to certain draughtsmen, who employ
photographs so clumsily that the result is good neither as photography
nor as drawing, but partakes of the faults of both. Three designs to
the _Annals of a Quiet Neighbourhood_, by Dr. George Mac Donald, (pp.
641, 713, 785), the first quite in the mood of the hour, a capital
piece of work, and _A Sunday Afternoon in a London Court_, complete Mr.
Small's share in this volume. Robert Barnes supplies the other eight
drawings to Dr. Mac Donald's story, and another, _The Pitman and his
Wife_ (p. 17), an excellent specimen of his 'British Workman' manner.
F. J. Shields, a very infrequent contributor to these magazines, has
a biblical group, '_Even as thou wilt_' (p. 33). Edward Hughes (who
must not be confounded with Arthur Hughes, nor with the present member
of the Old Water-Colour Society, E. R. Hughes) is responsible for
_Under a Cottage Roof_ (p. 192), _The Bitter and Sweet_ (p. 249), _The
First Tooth_ (p. 337), and _The Poor Seamstress_ (p. 409); although a
somewhat fecund illustrator not devoid of style and invention, his work
fails to interest one much to-day. J. Gordon Thomson, so many years the
cartoonist of _Fun_, is represented by _On the Rock_ (p. 544). F. W.
Lawson's _Hope_ (p. 120) and A. W. Bayes's _Saul and David_ (p. 703),
with a drawing of wild animals drinking, by Wolf, complete the list of
original work, the rest being engraved from photographs.
[Illustration: S. L. FILDES
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE,' 1868, p. 656
THE FARMER'S DAUGHTER]
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1867, p. 817
A LESSON
TO A KING]
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1867, p. 258
LUTHER THE
SINGER]
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
JOHN BAPTIST]
[Illustration: J. MAHONEY
'GOOD WORDS' 1868, p. 672
YESTERDAY
AND TO-DAY]
[Illustration: J. W. NORTH
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1867, p. 609
ANITA'S PRAYER]
[Illustration: G. J. PINWELL
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1868, p. 704
MADAME DE
KRUDENER]
In 1867 A. Boyd Houghton is well to the fore with twelve illustrations
to the serial story by Sarah Tytler, _The Huguenot Family in the
English Village_, besides full-page drawings, some in his best manner,
to _A Proverb Illustrated_ (p. 33), _Heroes_ (p. 129), _Luther the
Singer_ (p. 256), _The Martyr_ (p. 348), _The Last of the Family_ (p.
393), and _A Lesson to a King_ (p. 817). W. Small is only represented
twice, with _Wind me a Summer Crown_ (p. 65) and _Philip's Mission_
(p. 752). J. W. North has three admirable drawings, _Foundered at Sea_
(p. 280), _Peace_ (p. 560), _Anita's Prayer_ (p. 609), the first and
last of these, both studies of shipwrecks, deserve to be remembered
for the truth of movement of the drawing of the waves, and one doubts
if any sea-pieces up to the date of their appearance had approached
them for fact and beauty combined. Both are engraved by Dalziels in an
admirably intelligent fashion. F. W. Lawson's _The Chained Book_
(p. 104) and _The Revocation of the Edict of Nantes_ (p. 496), and
_In the Times of the Lollards_ (p. 529), all deal with acrimonious
memories of the past. After the scenes of cruelty, persecution, and
martyrdom which unfortunately are too often the chief dishes in the
_menu_ of a religious periodical, it is a relief to turn to the
_Cottar's Farewell_ (p. 417), by J. D. Watson, or to the 'Norths'
before quoted. This most straightforward and accomplished study of a
dying peasant and his family shows the dignified and simple treatment
which the artist at his happiest moments employed with complete mastery.
In 1868 A. Boyd Houghton is again the most frequent contributor of
full-page designs; a bare list must suffice. _Sunday at Hippo_ (p.
57), _Three Feasts of Israel_ (p. 67), _Paul's Judge_ (p. 88), _Sunday
Songs, Sweden_ (p. 112), _The Charcoal Burners_ (p. 118), a drawing
which looks like an intentional 'exercise in the manner of Gustave
Doré,' who, despite his enormous popularity in England, seems to have
had singularly little influence on English artists, so that this
stands out as a unique exception. Houghton has also _The Feast of
the Passover_ (p. 185), _The Poor Man's Shuttle_ (p. 273), _Feast of
Pentecost_ (p. 296), _Samuel the Ruler_ (p. 357), _George Herbert's
Last Sunday_ (p. 424), _Baden-Baden_ (p. 520), _The Good Samaritan_ (p.
552), _Church of the Basilicas_ (p. 561), _Joseph's Coat_ (p. 616),
_St. Paul Preaching_ (p. 681), and _The Parable of the Sower_ (p. 777).
G. J. Pinwell is seen in three examples, _A Westphalian Parsonage_
(p. 192), _Madame de Krudener_ (pp. 704, 785); S. L. Fildes is here
for the first time with _The Farmer's Daughter_ (p. 656); J. Pettie
has a small drawing, _My Sister_ (p. 176); J. Wolf, a clever 'lamb'
study (p. 529); and W. Small a most typical, almost mannered, _Sunday
Morning_ (p. 182). J. Mahoney supplies twenty-eight illustrations
to _The Occupations of a Retired Life_, by Edward Garrett, besides
separate plates, _Sunday Songs from Denmark_ (p. 16), _Love Days_
(p. 137), and _Just Suppose_ (p. 649). J. Gordon Thomson contributes
eighteen drawings for Dr. George Macdonald's _The Seaboard Parish_,
and others of no particular interest are attributed to Shield, F. A.
Fraser, C. Morgan, Miles, Lamont, and Pasquier. Here, as in many other
volumes, are vignettes and tail-pieces by T. Dalziel, some of them most
admirably drawn and all charmingly expressed in the engraving.
In 1869 A. Boyd Houghton still maintains his position. This year his
drawings are _Wisdom of Solomon_ (p. 16), _The Jews in the Ghetto_ (p.
44), _Martha and Mary_ (p. 65), _Rehoboam_ (p. 85), _Jewish Patriotism_
(p. 125), _Sunday in the Bush_ (p. 161), _Miss Bertha_ (pp. 384, 513),
_Babylonian Captivity_ (p. 633), _John Baptist_ (p. 641), and _Samson_
(p. 760). G. J. Pinwell illustrates Edward Garrett's _The Crust and
the Cake_ with thirty-four cuts. In one of these (p. 529), as in two
other designs by the same artist, you find that in drawing the lines
of a harpsichord, or grand piano, he has forgotten that the reversal
required by engraving would represent the instrument with its curve on
the bass, instead of the treble side--a sheer impossibility, which any
pianist cannot help noticing at a glance. His one other contribution
this year is _The Gang Children_ (p. 25). Represented by a solitary
example in each case are J. M'Whirter, _Sunday Songs_ (p. 12); J.
Pettie, _Philip Clayton's First-born_ (p. 69); Edward Hughes, _Mother
Mahoney_ (p. 196); Towneley Green, _Village Doctor's Wife_ (p. 505);
Robert Barnes, _A Missionary in the East_ (p. 57); and Arthur Hughes,
_Blessings in Disguise_ (p. 156). J. Mahoney has _The Centurion's
Faith_ (p. 60), _Building of the Minster_ (p. 352), _Hoppety Bob_ (p.
417), _Roger Rolf_ (p. 608), and _Christmas Eighteenth Century_ (p.
252). Francis Walker, with his _Sunday Songs_ (p. 93), _Bird Fair,
Shoreditch_ (p. 409), _Feast of Tabernacles_ (p. 600), _Widow Mullins_
(p. 673), and _A Little Heroine_ (p. 736); H. French, with '_It is
more blessed_' (p. 229), and _A Narrative Sermon_ (p. 632); and F. A.
Fraser with _Jesuit Missions_ (p. 101), _Wesley_ (p. 152), _The Year_
(p. 217), _A Queer Charity_ (p. 576), and _A Schwingfest_ (p. 665); the
three latter belong by rights to the men of the seventies rather than
to the group with which this volume is concerned.
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1868, p. 777
THE PARABLE
OF THE SOWER]
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1871 p. 10
MY HEART]
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1869, p. 156
BLESSINGS IN
DISGUISE]
[Illustration: J. LEIGHTON
'SUNDAY MAGAZINE'
1871, p. 408
A PARABLE]
In 1870 A. Boyd Houghton, one of the heroes of the sixties, reappears
with five contributions, one, quite out of his ordinary manner, being
a design for a group of statues, _St. Paul's Companions_ (p. 33); the
others are _My Mother's Knee_ (p. 16), _Sunday at Aix-les-bains_ (p.
88), Achsah's _Wedding Gifts_ (p. 104), and _Sister Edith's Probation_
(p. 600). J. Mahoney signs but two: _A Sun-dial in a Churchyard_ (p.
704) and _Passover Observances_ (p. 736). F. A. Fraser and
Towneley Green supply the illustrations to the serials. W. J. Wiegand
contributes decorative head-pieces, and Hubert Herkomer has two
drawings, _Diana's Portrait_ and _Diana Coverdale's Diary_.
In 1871 Houghton has but two: _A Woman that was a Sinner_ (p. 104) and
_The Withered Flower_ (p. 512). Arthur Hughes, in three delightful
designs, _My Heart_ (p. 10), _The First Sunrise_ (p. 302), and _Tares
and Wheat_ (p. 353); J. Mahoney with _Diet of Augsburg_ (p. 417) and
_Our Milkmen_ (p. 217); and W. Small with _The Sea-Side Well_ (p.
249), _One of Many_ (p. 446), and fourteen illustrations to _The
Story of the Mine_, are about the only remnants of the old army. John
Leighton, a frequent contributor of decorative borders and head-pieces,
has a typical full-page, _A Parable_ (p. 408). The 'seventies' are
represented by R. Macbeth's _Tom Joiner's Good Angel_ (p. 313); and C.
Green (who, like Small, belongs to both periods) with his designs to
_The Great Journey_ (p. 119) and _Mills of Clough_ (pp. 560, 728).
CASSELL'S MAGAZINE,
A popular monthly periodical that is still in full vigour under a
slightly altered title, started in the decade immediately before the
date that this book attempts to cover. As _Cassell's Family Paper_,
a large folio weekly, beyond the fact that the ubiquitous Sir John
Gilbert did innumerable good things for its pages, one is not greatly
interested in it. But in 1865 it was changed to a quarto shape, and
although L. Huard supplied the front page pictures to vol. i., and so
the artistic position of the paper was not improved, yet soon after
the change we find a great illustrator contributing the weekly drawing
for its chief serial. For despite the indifferent engraving accorded
to many of the blocks and the absence of any signature, the autograph
of William Small is legible in every line of the illustrations to
_Bound to the Wheel_ which started with vol. ii. in August 26, 1866,
and has sixteen half-page illustrations. This was followed by _The
Secret Sign_, with the same artist for a few chapters. Then another
hand appears, and soon after the monogram F. G. shows that the second
Gilbert (a brother, I believe, of the more famous artist) has replaced
W. Small. To one drawing of another serial, _The Lion in the Path_,
the signature of T. Morten is appended.
In April 1867 its title is changed to _Cassell's Family Magazine_, and
it is printed on toned paper. The serial, _Anne Judge, Spinster_, by F.
W. Robinson, has thirty illustrations by Charles Green. No doubt the
originals were worthy of that admirable draughtsman; indeed, despite
their very ordinary engraving, enough remains to show the handling
of a most capable artist. The succeeding serial, _Poor Humanity_,
is illustrated by B. Bradley. J. D. Watson contributes occasional
drawings--_Ethel_, on p. 22, being the first. M. Ellen Edwards also
appears, with F. W. Lawson, F. A. Fraser, Henley, C. J. Staniland,
R. T. Pritchett, M. W. Ridley, J. Mahoney, and G. H. Thomas. It is
noteworthy of the importance attached to the illustrator at this date,
that the names of those artists who have contributed to the magazine
are printed in bold type upon the title-page to each volume. These, as
later, bear no date, so that only in volumes bound with the wrappers in
British Museum fashion can you ascertain the year of their publication.
In vol. iii. (May 1868 onwards) you discover on p. 9 a drawing,
_Cleve Cliff_, by G. J. Pinwell. Its serial, _A Fight for Life_, is
illustrated by G. H. Thomas, whose pictures are not signed, nor have
I found that the authorship is attributed to the artists within the
magazine itself. But in the 'In Memoriam' volume, published soon
after his death, several are reprinted and duly credited to him. They
were all engraved by W. Thomas. The first appearance of S. L. Fildes,
_Woodland Voices_, is on p. 137 of this volume. T. Blake Wirgman has
also a notable composition, _A Sculptor's Love_, and in this and in
volume iv. there are other drawings by Fildes, Pinwell, and many by F.
Barnard, F. S. Walker, and other popular draughtsmen of the period.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'THE ARGOSY'
1866, VOL. I. p. 336
'IF']
In 1870 we find another change, this time to a page that may be a
quarto technically, but instead of the square proportions we usually
connect with that shape, it seems more akin to an octavo. The
illustrations are smaller, but far better engraved and better printed.
W. Small illustrates Wilkie Collins's cleverly-constructed story, _Man
and Wife_, with thirty-seven pictures. His character-drawing appears at
its best in 'Bishopriggs,' the old Scotch waiter, his love of beauty of
line in two or three sketches of the athlete, 'Geoffrey Delamayne,'
the working villain of the story. The dramatic force of the group on
p. 305, the mystery of the scene on p. 529, or the finely-contrasted
emotions of Anne Silvester and Sir Patrick on p. 481, could hardly
be beaten. The other contributors to this vol. i. of the new series,
include R. Barnes, Basil Bradley, H. K. Browne, W. R. Duckman, E. H.
Corbould, M. E. Edwards, E. Ellis, S. L. Fildes, F. A. Fraser, E.
Hughes, F. W. Lawson, H. Paterson, and others, most of whom it were
kindness to ignore. For side by side with Mr. Small's masterly designs
appear the weakest and most commonplace full pages. Hardly one, except
S. L. Fildes's _A Sonnet_ (p. 9), tempts you to linger a moment. In
vol. ii. the serial story, _Checkmate_, is illustrated by Towneley
Green. The drawings throughout are mainly by those who contributed to
the first volume. In the third volume, Charles Reade's _A Terrible
Temptation_ is illustrated by Edward Hughes; a somewhat powerful
composition by J. D. L[inton], p. 377; one by W. Small (p. 9), and
others by J. Lawson, F. W. Lawson, M. E. Edwards, are all that can
claim to be noted.
BELGRAVIA
This illustrated shilling monthly, the same size and shape as most of
its predecessors, was not started until 1866, and its earlier volumes
have nothing in them sufficiently important to be noticed. In the
seventies better things are to be found.
THE ARGOSY
This monthly periodical, as we know it of late years, suggests a
magazine devoted to fiction and light literature, with a frontispiece
by some well-known artist, and small engravings in the text mostly
from photographs, or belonging to the diagram and the record rather
than to fine art. I am not speaking of the present shilling series,
but of the long array of volumes from 1868 until a few years ago.
Nor does this opinion belittle the admirable illustrations by Walter
Crane, M. Ellen Edwards, and other artists who supplied its monthly
frontispiece. But the first four half-yearly volumes were planned
on quite different lines, and these deserve the attention of all
interested in the subject of this book, to a degree hardly below that
of the better-known magazines; better known, that is to say, as
storehouses of fine illustrations. As these volumes seem to be somewhat
scarce, a brief _résumé_ of their contents will not be out of place. In
the year 1866 we have William Small at his best in twelve illustrations
to Charles Reade's dramatic novel, _Griffith Gaunt_. Whether because
the ink has sunk into the paper and given a rich tone to the prints, or
because of their intrinsic merit, it is not quite easy to say, but the
fact remains that these drawings have peculiar richness, and deserve
to be placed among the best works of a great artist not yet fully
recognised. One design by F. Sandys to Christina Rossetti's poem, _If_,
is especially noticeable, the model biting a strand of hair embodies
the same idea as that of _Proud Maisie_, one of the best-known works
of this master. A. Boyd Houghton has a typical Eastern figure-subject,
_The Vision of Sheik Hamil_; Edward Hughes one, _Hermione_; Paul Gray,
a singularly good drawing to a poem _The Lead-Melting_, by Robert
Buchanan. Another to a poem by George Macdonald, _The Sighing of the
Shell_, is unsigned, whether by Morten or Paul Gray I cannot say,
but it is worthy of either artist; J. Lawson has one to _The Earl
of Quarterdeck_, M. Ellen Edwards one to _Cuckoo_ and one to _Cape
Ushant_, a ballad by William Allingham; a group, with Napoleon as the
central figure, is by G. J. Pinwell, and J. Mahoney contributes three:
_Autumn Tourists, Bell from the North_, a girl singing by a Trafalgar
Square fountain, and _The Love of Years_. The next year, 1867, is
illustrated more sparsely. _Robert Falconer_, by George Macdonald,
has one unsigned drawing, and nine by William Small; these, with _A
Knight-Errant_ by Boyd Houghton, make up the eleven it contains. In the
next year Walter Crane illustrates the serial, _Anne Hereford_, by Mrs.
Henry Wood, and also a poem, _Margaret_, by his sister.
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'THE ARGOSY'
1866, VOL. I. p. 500
THE VISION OF
SHEIK HAMIL]
[Illustration: G. J. PINWELL
'THE QUIVER'
1867
THE SAILOR'S VALENTINE]
THE QUIVER
This semi-religious monthly magazine, published by Messrs. Cassell and
Co., was not illustrated at first. It is almost unnecessary to describe
it volume by volume, as a reprint of its principal illustrations was
made in 1867, when fifty-two pictures were sandwiched between poems,
and published in a small quarto volume entitled '_Idyllic Pictures_,
drawn by Barnes, Miss Ellen Edwards, Paul Gray, Houghton, R. P.
Leitch, Pinwell, Sandys, Small, G. Thomas, etc' The curiously
colloquial nomenclature of the artists on the title-page is the only
direct reference to their share in the book, which is well printed, and
includes some admirable illustrations. The book is now exceptionally
scarce, and like its companion, _Pictures of Society_, selected from
_London Society_, must be searched for long and patiently. Personal
inquiries at all the accessible shops in London, Bath, and Edinburgh
failed to find one bookseller who had ever heard of either book. Yet,
in spite of it, single copies of both turned up alternately on the
shelves of men who were at the moment of its discovery glibly doubting
its existence. The ignorance of booksellers concerning this period is
at once the terror and the joy of the collector. For when they do know,
he will have to pay for their knowledge.
Yet it would be unfair to the reputation of a periodical which issued
so many designs by representative artists of the sixties to dismiss it
without a little more detail. Started as a non-illustrated paper on
October 6, 1864, it entered the ranks with a very capable staff. In
1866 a third series on toned paper still further established its claim
to be considered seriously, and the fact that these few years supplied
the matter for the volume just mentioned shows that it fulfilled its
purpose well. In volume i. third series (1866), pictures by A. Boyd
Houghton will be found on pages 532, 585, 664, 728, 737, 776, and
868; and in vol. ii. 1867, he appears upon pages 88 and 456. Those by
William Small (pp. 90, 232), G. J. Pinwell (pp. 60, 641), and J. D.
Watson (p. 596) also deserve looking up. M. W. Ridley, an illustrator
of promise, is also represented. In vol. iii. 1868, J. D. Watson's
designs on pages 25, 57, 497, 680, 713, and 745 are perhaps his best.
Drawings by John Lawson (p. 108), Hubert Herkomer (p. 73), A. Boyd
Houghton (pp. 97, 705, 721, 737), S. L. Fildes (pp. 327, 417, 433), G.
J. Pinwell (pp. 121, 193, 449, 481, 585 and 753), C. Green (p. 241),
J. Mahoney (p. 328), and T. B. Wirgman (p. 649) all merit notice. In
vol. iv. many of the above artists are represented--S. L. Fildes (p.
396), J. D. Watson (p. 407), W. Small (p. 696), and the designs by S.
L. Fildes and J. D. Watson in the Christmas number being perhaps the
most noticeable. Other frequent contributors include R. Barnes, C J.
Staniland, M. E. Edwards, J. A. Pasquier, G. H. Thomas, F. W. Lawson,
and Edith Dunn. Although not to be compared artistically with its
rivals, _Good Words_ and the _Sunday Magazine_, it is nevertheless a
storehouse of good, if not of exceptionally fine, work.
THE CHURCHMAN'S SHILLING MAGAZINE,
A periodical of the conventional octavo size, affected by the
illustrated shilling periodicals of the sixties, was commenced in 1867.
The first two volumes contain little of note, and are illustrated by
R. Huttula, John Leigh, E. F. C. Clarke; the third volume has M. E.
Edwards, and in the fifth volume Walter Crane supplies two full pages
(pp. 267, 339). Despite the fact that it credited its artists duly in
the index, and seemed to have been most favourably noticed at the time,
it may be dismissed here without further notice.
TINSLEY'S MAGAZINE
This shilling monthly was started in August 1867 with illustrations by
'Phiz,' W. Brunton, D. H. Friston, and A. W. Cooper. A. Boyd Houghton's
contributions include _The Story of a Chignon_ (i. p. 544), _For the
King_ (ii. p. 149), and _The Return from Court_ (ii. p. 377). J. D.
Watson appears in vol. iii. pp. 87, 399, 665, and a drawing, signed
A. T. (possibly Alfred Thompson), is on p. 207. But the magazine,
although published at a shilling, and therefore apparently intended as
a rival to the _Cornhill_ and the rest, is not important so far as its
illustrations are concerned.
THE BROADWAY
This international magazine, heralded with much flourish in 1867 by
Messrs. Routledge, is of no great importance, yet as it was illustrated
from its first number in September 1867 to July 1874, it must needs be
mentioned. Examples of the following artists will be found therein:--F.
Barnard, G. A. Barnes, W. Brunton, M. E. Edwards, Paul Gray, E. Griset,
A. B. Houghton, R. C. Huttula, F. W. Lawson, Matt Morgan, Thomas Nash,
J. A. Pasquier, Alfred Thompson, and J. Gordon Thomson.
SAINT PAUL'S,
Yet another shilling magazine which was started in October 1867, and
published by Messrs. Virtue and Co., is memorable for its twenty-two
drawings by Millais. These appeared regularly to illustrate Trollope's
_Phineas Finn the Irish Member_. A few illustrations by F. A. Fraser
were issued to _Ralph the Heir_, the next story, and to _The Three
Brothers_, but from 1871 it appears without pictures. By way of
working off the long serial by Trollope, _Ralph the Heir_, independent
supplements as thick as an ordinary number, but entirely filled with
chapters of the story in question, were issued in April and October
1870. So curious a departure from ordinary routine is worth noting.
GOOD WORDS FOR THE YOUNG,
A most delightful children's magazine, which began as a sixpenny
monthly under the editorship of Dr. Norman Macleod in 1869, bids
fair to become one of those books peculiarly dear (in all senses) to
collectors. There are many reasons why it deserves to be treasured.
Its literature includes several books for children that in volume-form
afterwards became classics; its illustrations, especially those by
Arthur Hughes, appeal forcibly to the student of that art, which is
called pre-Raphaelite, Æsthetic, or Decorative, according to the
mood of the hour. Like all books intended for children, a large
proportion of its edition found speedy oblivion in the nursery; and
those that survive are apt to show examples of the amateur artist
in his most infantile experiments with a penny paint-box. From the
very first it surrounded itself with that atmosphere of distinction,
which is well-nigh as fatal to a magazine's longevity as saintliness
of disposition to a Sunday-school hero. After a career that may be
called truthfully--brilliant, it suddenly changed to a periodical of
no importance, illustrated chiefly by foreign _clichés_. How long it
lingered in this state does not concern us. Indeed, it is only by a
liberal interpretation of the title of this book that a magazine which
was not started until 1869 can be included in _the sixties_ at all; but
it seems to have continued the tradition of the sixties, and until the
first half of 1874, although it changed its editor and its title (to
_Good Things_), it kept the spirit of the first volume unimpaired; but
after that date it joined the majority of uninteresting periodicals for
children, and did not survive its recantation for many years.
In 1869 Arthur Hughes has twenty-four drawings to George Macdonald's
_At the Back of the North Wind_, and ten to the earlier chapters of
Henry Kingsley's _Boy in Grey_. The art of A. Boyd Houghton is seen in
three instances: _Cocky Locky's Journey_ (p. 49), _Lessons from Russia_
(p. 101), and _The Boys of Axleford_ (p. 145). J. Mahoney has about a
dozen; H. Herkomer one to _Lonely Jane_ (p. 28); and G. J. Pinwell one
to _Black Rock_ (p. 255). Although, following the example set by its
parent _Good Words_, it credits the illustrations most faithfully to
their artists in a separate index, yet it developed a curious habit
of illustrating its serials with a fresh artist for each instalment;
and, as their names are bracketed, it is not an easy task to attribute
each block to its rightful author. The list which I have made is by my
side, but it is hardly of sufficient general interest to print here;
as many of the sketches, despite the notable signatures upon them, are
trivial and non-representative. Other illustrations in the first volume
include one hundred and fifty-five grotesque thumb-nail sketches by W.
S. Gilbert to his _King George's Middy_, and many by F. Barnard, B.
Rivière, E. F. Brewtnall, E. Dalziel, F. A. Fraser, H. French, S. P.
Hall, J. Mahoney, J. Pettie, T. Sulman, F. S. Walker, W. J. Wiegand, J.
B. Zwecker, etc.
In 1870 Arthur Hughes contributes thirty-six illustrations to _Ranald
Bannerman's Boyhood_, by George Mac Donald (who succeeded Dr. Macleod
as editor), forty-eight to the continuation of the other serial by the
same author, _At the Back of the North Wind_, four to the concluding
chapters of Henry Kingsley's _Boy in Grey_, and one to _The White
Princess_. A. Boyd Houghton has but two: _Two Nests_ (p. 13), _Keeping
the Cornucopia_ (p. 33); _Miss Jane_ 'wandering in the wood' (p. 44) is
by H. Herkomer, while most of the artists who contributed to the first
volume reappear; we find also E. G. and T. Dalziel, Charles Green,
Towneley Green, and Ernest Griset.
[Illustration: PAUL GRAY
'THE QUIVER'
COUSIN LUCY]
[Illustration: H. HERKOMER
'GOOD WORDS FOR THE YOUNG'
1870, p. 44
WANDERING IN
THE WOOD]
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'GOOD WORDS FOR THE YOUNG'
1870, p. 28
DON JOSE'S
MULE]
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'GOOD WORDS FOR THE YOUNG'
1871, p. 100
BARBARA'S
PET LAMB]
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'GOOD WORDS FOR THE YOUNG'
1871, p. 145
MERCY]
[Illustration: W. SMALL
'THE QUIVER'
BETWEEN THE
CLIFFS]
In 1871, Arthur Hughes, the chief illustrator of this magazine, to
whose presence it owes most of its interest (since other artists
are well represented elsewhere, but he is rarely met with outside
its pages), contributes thirty pictures to Dr. George Mac Donald's
_Princess and the Goblin_, and fourteen others, some of which have been
republished in _Lilliput Lectures_ and elsewhere,--one,
_Mercy_ (p. 195), reappearing in that work, and again as the theme of
a large painting in oils, which was exhibited at the Royal Academy
1893, and reproduced in _The Illustrated London News_, May 3rd of
that year. A. Boyd Houghton, in _Don José's Mule_ (p. 28), has a most
delightfully grotesque illustration, and in two drawings for _The
Merry Little Cobbler of Bagdad_ (pp. 337-338), both in his 'Arabian
Nights' vein, is typically representative. For the rest, W. Small in
_My Little Gypsy Cousin_ (p. 95), a good full page, and Ernest Griset
with ten of his humorous animal pictures, combine with most of the
artists already named to maintain the well-deserved reputation of
the magazine. In 1872 Arthur Hughes supplies nine delightful designs
for _Gutta-Percha Willie_, by the Editor; twenty-four to _Innocent's
Island_, a long-rhymed chronicle by the author of _Lilliput Levée_,
and a curiously fantastic drawing to George Mac Donald's well-known
poem, _The Wind and the Moon_. Some one, with the initials F. E. F.
(not F. A. F.), illustrates _On the High Meadows_ in nineteen sketches;
with the exception of two by J. Mahoney, the rest of the pictures are
chiefly by F. A. Fraser, T. Green, F. S. Walker, W. J. Wiegand, and J.
B. Zwecker.
In 1873 the magazine changed its name to _Good Things_. The most
attractive illustrations are by Arthur Hughes: ten to _Sindbad in
England_ (pp. 25, 89, 129, 193, 236, 432, 481, 594, 641), two to _Henry
and Amy_ (pp. 72, 73), and one each to _A Poor Hunchback_ (p. 17), _The
Wonderful Organ_ (p. 24), and _My Daughter_ (p. 136). J. Mahoney has a
small design, _The Old Mill_ (p. 600). The rest are by Ernest Griset,
W. J. Wiegand, and Francis Walker. On and after 1874 the _cliché_
enters, and all interest ceases. At this time the business of trading
in _clichés_ had begun to assume large proportions. You find sometimes,
in the course of a single month, that an English periodical hitherto
exclusively British becomes merely a vehicle for foreign _clichés_. In
this instance the change is so sudden that, excepting a few English
blocks which we may presume had been prepared before, the foreigner is
supreme. That, in at least three cases, the demise of the publication
was merely a question of months is a sequel not to be regretted. But we
need not assume too hastily that the _cliché_ killed it--possibly it
had ceased to be profitable before, and the false economy of spending
less has tempted the proprietor to employ foreign illustrations.
BRITANNIA,
Another shilling illustrated magazine, was started in 1869. The British
Museum, it seems, possesses no set, and my own copy has disappeared,
excepting the first volume, but so far as that proves, and my memory
can be trusted, it was illustrated solely by Matt Morgan, a brilliant
but ephemeral genius who shortly after migrated to New York. The
peculiarity of this magazine is that, like _The Tomahawk_, a satirical
journal illustrated by the same artist, its pictures were all printed
in two colours, after the fashion of the old Venetian wood-blocks.
The one colour was used as a ground with the high lights cut away;
the other block, for the ordinary convention of line-drawing. Some
of the pictures are effective, but none are worthy of very serious
consideration.
DARK BLUE
Although _Dark Blue_, a shilling monthly magazine, did not begin until
March 1871, and ran its brief career until March 1873 only, it deserves
mention here, because quite apart from its literary contributions
which were notable, including as they did Swinburne's _End of a
Month_, Rossetti's _Down Stream_, its earlier volumes contain at least
two drawings that will be prized when these things are collected
seriously. Besides, it has a certain _cachet_ of its own that will
always entitle it to a place. Its wrapper in colours, with three
classically-attired maidens by a doorway, is singularly unlike that of
any other publication; possibly F. W. L. would not be anxious to claim
the responsibility of its design, yet it was new in its day, and not
a bad specimen of the good effect of three simple colours on a white
ground. Its serial, _Lost_, a Romance by J. C. Freund, was illustrated
by F. W. Lawson, T. W. Perry, T. Robinson, and D. T. White; and its
second serial, _Take care whom you trust_, by M. E. Freere and T. W.
Ridley. A full-page drawing (they are all separately printed plates in
this magazine), by Cecil Lawson, _Spring_, is far more interesting.
_Musaeus_, by A. W. Cooper, a somewhat jejune representation of the
Hero and Leander motive, and other illustrations by E. F. Clarke, W.
J. Hennessey, M. Fitzgerald, D. H. Friston, S. P. Hall, J. A. H. Bird,
are commonplace designs engraved by C. M. Jenkin; but _The End of a
Month_, a study of two heads, by Simeon Solomon, and _Down Stream_,
by Ford Madox Brown, (here reproduced from the original drawing on
wood by kind permission of Mr. Frederick Hollyer), represent the work
of two artists who very rarely appeared as magazine illustrators. The
literature includes many names that have since become widely known, but
the project failed, one imagines, to secure popular support, and so it
must be numbered with the long list of similar good intentions.
THE BRITISH WORKMAN
It would be unjust to ignore a very popular penny magazine because of
its purely philanthropic purpose. For from the first it recognised the
importance of good illustrations as its great attraction, and enlisted
some of the best draughtsmen to fulfil its didactic aim. We cannot help
admiring its pluck, and congratulating the cause it championed (and
still supports), and its fortune in securing coadjutors. The first
number, issued in February 1855, has a design, the _Loaf Lecture_, by
George Cruikshank on its first page; for some time H. Anelay and L.
Huard were the most frequent contributors; then came John Gilbert and
Harrison Weir, the earliest important Gilbert being _The Last Moments
of Thomas Paine_ (January 1862). As a sample of white-line engraving,
a block after a medallion of the _Prince Consort_, by L. C. Wyon, and
another of _H.M. The Queen_, would be hard to beat. Among these more
frequent contributors, we find drawings by J. D. Watson, _My account
with Her Majesty_ (August 1864) and _Parley and Flatterwell_ (December
1865) being the most notable; and others by A. W. Cooper, and lastly
many by R. Barnes, whose studies of humble life yet await the full
appreciation they deserve. These large and vigorous engravings maintain
a singularly high level of excellence, and, if not impeccable, are
yet distinctly of art, and far above the ephemeral padding of more
pretentious magazines.
THE BAND OF HOPE REVIEW
Of all unlikely publications to interest artist or collector a
halfpenny monthly devoted to teetotalism might take first place. Not
because of its price, nor because it was a monthly with a mission,
for many cheap serials have attracted the support of artists who gave
liberally of their best for the sake of the cause the publications
championed. _The Band of Hope Review_ is no esoteric pamphlet, but a
perfect instance of a popular venture unconcerned, one would think,
with art. It would be easy to claim too much for it; still the good
work in its pages merits attention. It was started in 1861 as a folio
sheet about the size of _The Sketch_, its front page being always
filled by a large wood-engraving. The first full page, by H. Anelay,
a draughtsman whose speciality was the good little boy and girl of
the most commonplace religious periodicals, promises little enough. A
series of really fine drawings of animals and birds by Harrison Weir
commenced in No. 2. The third issue included a page by L. Huard, whose
work occasionally found its way to the shilling magazines, although
the bulk of it appeared in the mass of journals of the type of the
_London Journal_, _Bow Bells_, etc. In the fifth number John Gilbert
(not then knighted) appears with a fine drawing, _The Golden Star_;
J. Wolf, honourably distinguished as an illustrator of animals, is
also represented. For December 1862 John Gilbert provided a decorative
composition of _The Ten Virgins_, that is somewhat unlike his usual
type. In August 1865 Robert Barnes appears for the first time with
admirably drawn boys and girls full of health and characteristically
British. Afterwards one finds many of his full pages all vigorous and
delightfully true to the type he represents. In August 1866 a group,
_Young Cadets_, may be selected as a typical example of his strength
and perhaps also of his limitations. In 1870 the falling off apparent
everywhere is as noticeable in this unimportant publication as in those
of far higher pretensions. Here, as elsewhere, the foreign _cliché_
appears, or possibly the subjects were engraved specially, and were
not, as was so often the case, merely replicas of German and French
engravings. But all the same they are from oil-paintings, not from
drawings made for illustration.
[Illustration: UNKNOWN
'LEISURE HOUR'
1864
ENOCH ARDEN]
[Illustration: SIMEON SOLOMON
'LEISURE HOUR'
1866, p. 604
THE FEAST OF
TABERNACLES]
[Illustration: SIMEON SOLOMON
'LEISURE HOUR'
1866, p. 540
THE DAY OF
ATONEMENT]
THE LEISURE HOUR
The publications of the Religious Tract Society have employed an
enormous mass of illustrations, but as the artist's name rarely appears
at the period with which we are concerned, either in the index
of illustrations or below the engravings, the task of tracing each
to its source would be onerous and the result probably not worth the
labour.
Yet, in the volumes of the _Leisure Hour_ for the sixties, there are
a few noteworthy pictures which may later on attract collectors to
a periodical which so far appealed more, one had thought, to parish
workers than to art students.
The 1861 volume starts with the 471st number of the magazine,
illustrated by 'Gilbert' (probably Sir John). In 1863 coloured plates
are given monthly, three being after originals by the same artist,
but, although attributed duly in the advertising pages of its wrapper,
the name of the design does not appear in the index. With 1864 a
surprise faces you in the illustrations to _Hurlock Chase_, which
are vigorous, dramatic, and excellently composed, full of colour and
breadth. That they are by G. Du Maurier internal evidence proves
clearly, but there is no formal recognition of the fact. Robert Barnes
has a full page, _Granny's Portrait_ (p. 825). _Enoch Arden_ is by
'an amateur whose name the publishers are not able to trace.'[4] In
1865 the illustrations to _The Awdries_, also unsigned, are distinctly
interesting; later the well-known monogram of J. Mahoney is met with
frequently. In 1866 a series of ten illustrations of the ceremonies
of modern Jewish ritual, domestic and ecclesiastical (pp. 72, 167,
216, 328, 376-475, 540, 603, 653, 823) appear. Contrary to the rule
usually observed here, they are entitled, 'by S. Solomon.' These are,
so far as I know (with four exceptions), the only contributions to
periodical literature by Simeon Solomon, an artist who at this date
bade fair to be one of the greatest pre-Raphaelite painters. They are
distinctly original both in their technical handling and composition,
and excellently engraved by Butterworth and Heath. For their sake no
collector of the sixties should overlook a book which is to be picked
up anywhere at present. The illustrations to _The Great Van Bruch
property_, unsigned, are most probably by J. Mahoney. Others include
_George III. and Mr. Adams_, a full page by C. J. Staniland (p. 494);
a series of _Pen and Pencil Sketches among the Outer Hebrides_, R.
T. Pritchett; _Finding the body of William Rufus_, J. M. In 1867 J.
Mahoney illustrates the serial, _The Heiress of Cheevely Dale_, and
contributes a full page, _The Blue-Coat Boy's Mother_ (p. 812);
Whymper has two series, _On the Nile_ and _A trip through the Tyrol_,
both oddly enough attributed to him in the index. Silent, with scarce
an exception, as regards other artists, the sentence, 'engraved by
Whymper,' finds a place each time. In 1868 are more Mahoneys; in 1869
Charles Green illustrates the serial.
THE SUNDAY AT HOME
This magazine, uniform with the _Leisure Hour_ in style and general
arrangement, is hardly of sufficient artistic interest to need detailed
comment here. Started in 1852 it relied, like its companion, on Gilbert
and other less important draughtsmen. In the sixties it was affected a
little by the movement. In 1863 there is one design by G. J. Pinwell,
_The German Band_ (p. 753), several by C. Green, and one probably by
Du Maurier (p. 513), who has also six most excellent drawings to _The
Artist's Son_ in the number for January, and one each to short stories,
_John Henderson_ and _Siller and Gowd_, later in the year. A serial
in 1865 and one in 1866 are both illustrated by J. Mahoney; and, in
the latter year, W. Small supplies drawings to another story. Beyond
a full page, obviously by R. Barnes, there is nothing else peculiarly
interesting in 1866; in the 1867 volume F. W. Lawson and Charles Green
contribute a good many designs. In 1868 S. L. Fildes has one full page,
_St. Bartholomew_ (p. 329), and F. A. F. appears; in 1869 Charles
Green is frequently encountered, but the magazine is not a very happy
hunting-ground for our purpose.
OTHER SERIAL PUBLICATIONS
Serial issues of Cassell's _History of England_, the _Family Bible_,
and other profusely illustrated works might also repay a close search,
but, as a rule, the standard is too ordinary to attract any but an
omnivorous collector. Still, men of considerable talent are among
the contributors, (Sir) John Gilbert for instance, and others like
H. C. Selous, Paolo Priolo, who never fell below a certain level of
respectability.
_Golden Hours_, a semi-religious monthly, started in 1864 as a penny
magazine. In 1868 its price was raised to sixpence, and among its
artist-contributors we find M. E. Edwards, R. Barnes, and A. Boyd
Houghton (represented once only) with _An Eastern Wedding_ (p. 849).
In 1869 Towneley Green, C. O. Murray, and others appear, but the
magazine can hardly be ranked as one representative of the period. Nor
is it essential to record in detail the mass of illustrations in the
penny weeklies and monthlies--to do so were at once impossible and
unnecessary; nor the mass of semi-religious periodicals such as _Our
Own Fireside_ and _The Parish Magazine_, which rarely contain work that
rises above the dull average.
THE BOYS' OWN MAGAZINE
The art of this once popular magazine may be dismissed very briefly.
J. G. Thomson made a lot of designs to _Silas the Conjuror_ and other
serials. R. Dudley, a conscientious draughtsman whose speciality was
mediæval subjects, illustrated its historical romances with spirit
and no little knowledge of archæological details. A. W. Bayes, J. A.
Pasquier, and others adorned its pages; but from 1863 to its death it
contains nothing interesting except to a very rabid collector.
EVERY BOY'S MAGAZINE
This well-intentioned periodical (Routledge, 1863, etc.), except for
certain early works by Walter Crane, would scarce need mention here.
Its wrapper for 1865 onwards was from a capital design by Walter Crane,
who contributed coloured frontispieces and titles to the 1864 and
1865 volumes. C. H. Bennett illustrated his own romance of _The Young
Munchausen_. In 1867 it called itself _The Young Gentleman's Magazine_;
an heraldic design by J. Forbes Nixon, with the shields of the four
great public schools, replaced the Crane cover. T. Morten, M. W.
Ridley, and others contributed. A. Boyd Houghton illustrated _Barford
Bridge_, its serial for 1866, and Walter Crane performed the same
offices to Mrs. Henry Wood's _Orville College_ in 1867. These few facts
seem to comprise all of any interest.
AUNT JUDY'S MAGAZINE
The sixpenny magazine for children, edited by Mrs. Alfred Gatty, issued
its first number, May 1866. The artists who contributed include F.
Gilbert, J. A. Pasquier, T. Morten, M. E. Edwards, E. Griset, F. W.
Lawson, E. H. Wehnert, A. W. Bayes, A. W. Cooper, and others. There are
two drawings by George Cruikshank, and later on Randolph Caldecott will
be found. In both cases the illustrations were for Mrs. Ewing's popular
stories, which had so large a sale, reprinted in volume-form. Neither
in the drawings nor in their engraving do you find anything else which
is above the average of its class.
Two other magazines remain to be noticed out of their chronological
order, both of little intrinsic importance, but of peculiar value to
collectors.
EVERYBODY'S JOURNAL,
A weekly periodical the size of the _London Journal_, and not more
attractive in its appearance, nor better printed, began with No. 1,
October 1, 1859, and ceased to exist early in the following year;
probably before the end of January, since the British Museum copy in
monthly parts is inscribed 'discontinued' on the part containing the
December issues. That a complete set is not in our great reference
library is a matter for regret; for the first published illustration
by Fred Walker, which was issued in _Everybody's Journal_, January 14,
must needs have been in the missing numbers. Those which are accessible
include drawings by (Sir) John Gilbert, T. Morten, and Harrison Weir,
none of peculiar interest. Among the names of the contributors will be
found several that have since become widely known.
ENTERTAINING THINGS
This twopenny monthly magazine, which is probably as unfamiliar to
those who read this notice as it was to me until a short time since,
was published by Virtue and Co., the first number appearing in January
1861. It contains many designs by J. Portch, F. J. Skill, M. S.
Morgan, E. Weedar, W. M'Connell, P. Justyne, and W. J. Linton, none
being particularly well engraved. But it contains also Walter Crane's
first published drawing--a man in the coils of a serpent (p. 327),
illustrating one of a series of articles, _Among the Mahogany Cutters_,
which is not very important; another a few pages further on in the
volume is even less so. Collectors will also prize _A Nocturne_ by
G. Du Maurier, and some designs by T. Morton (_sic_). The Christmas
number contains a delightful design by A. Boyd Houghton, _The Maid of
the Wool-pack_, and another drawing by Du Maurier. The publication
ceased, according to a note in the British Museum copy, in May 1862.
Among rarities of the sixties this magazine may easily take a high
place, for one doubts if there are many copies in existence. Should the
mania for collecting grow, it is quite possible this volume, of such
slight intrinsic value, will command record prices.
BEETON'S ANNUALS
These were of two sorts, a badly printed shilling annual, which
appealed to children of all ages, and a six-shilling variety, which
appealed to those of a smaller growth. In the higher-priced volumes
for 1866 T. Morten, J. G. Thomson, and J. A. Pasquier appear. In the
shilling issue, an independent publication, are more or less execrably
engraved blocks, after C. H. Bennett, G. Cruikshank, Jun., and others
who would probably dislike to have their misdeeds chronicled. These
publications added to the gaiety of nations, but when they ceased no
eclipse was reported. Yet a patient collation of their pages renewed
a certain boyish, if faded, memory of their pristine charm, which
the most cautious prophet may assert can never be imparted anew to
any reader. _Kingston's Annuals_ and _Peter Parley's Annuals_, also
revisited, left impressions too sad to be expressed here. Nor need
_Routledge's Christmas Annuals_ be noticed in detail. _Tom Hood's Comic
Annuals_, which contained much work typical of the seventies, although
it began its long career in 1869, includes so little work by heroes of
the 'sixties' that it need not be mentioned.
The mass of penny magazines for children do not repay a close search.
Here and there you will find a design by a notable hand, but it is
almost invariably ruined by poor engraving; so that it were kinder
not to attempt to dispel the obscurity which envelops the juvenile
'goody-goody' literature of thirty years ago.
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'PUNCH.' MARCH 3, 1866
A LEGEND OF CAMELOT, PART I]
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'PUNCH.' MARCH 10, 1866
A LEGEND OF CAMELOT, PART II]
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'PUNCH.' MARCH 17, 1866.
A LEGEND OF CAMELOT, PART III]
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'PUNCH.' MARCH 24, 1866
A LEGEND OF CAMELOT, PART IV]
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'PUNCH.' MARCH 31, 1866
A LEGEND OF CAMELOT, PART V]
CHAPTER VI: SOME ILLUSTRATED WEEKLY PAPERS IN THE SIXTIES
PUNCH.--It is impossible to overlook the famous weekly that from its
own pages could offer a fairly representative group of the work of any
decade since it was established; a paper which, if it has not attracted
every great illustrator, could nevertheless select a hundred drawings
from its pages that might be fairly entered in competition with any
other hundred outside them. But, at the same time, to give a summary
of its record during the sixties, even as compressed as those of _The
Cornhill Magazine_, _Once a Week_, etc., would occupy more pages than
all the rest put together. Fortunately the labour has been accomplished
quite recently. Mr. M. H. Spielmann's _History of Punch_ supplies a
full and admirably digested chronicle of its artistic achievements.
So that here (excluding the staff-artists, Sir John Tenniel, Mr. Du
Maurier, Mr. Linley Sambourne, and the rest, and the greatest _Punch_
artist, Charles Keene, who was never actually upon its staff) it will
be sufficient to indicate where admirers of the men of the sixties
may find examples of their work for _Punch_; Sir John Millais appears
twice upon p. 115 of vol. xliv. (1863) with a design to _Mokeanna_, Mr.
F. C. Burnand's laughable parody, and again with _Mr. Vandyke Brown's
sons thrashing the lay figure_, in the _Almanac_ for 1865, a drawing
that faces, oddly enough, one of Fred Walker's two contributions, _The
New Bathing Company, Limited, Specimens of Costumes to be worn by the
Shareholders_. The other Fred Walker, _Captain Jinks of the 'Selfish,'_
is on p. 74 of vol. lvii. 1869; George J. Pinwell is an infrequent
contributor from 1863 to 1869; Walter Crane appears but once, p. 33
(vol. li. 1866); Frederick Shields's three initials, which appeared in
1870, were drawn in 1867; M. J. Lawless is represented by six drawings,
which appeared between May 1860 and January 1861; F. W. Lawson has some
initials and one vignette in the volume for 1867; Ernest Griset appears
in the _Almanac_ for 1867; J. G. Thomson, for twenty years cartoonist
of _Fun_, is an occasional contributor between 1861 and 1864; H. S.
Marks appears in 1861, and Paul Gray, also with a few initials and
'socials,' up to 1865; Charles Keene's first drawing for
_Punch_ is in 1852, he was 'called to the table' in 1860, and on a few
occasions supplied the political cartoon. The mass of his work within
the classic pages is too familiar to need more than passing reference.
The first drawing by 'George Louis Palmella Busson Du Maurier' appears
in 1860, the _Legend of Camelot_, with five drawings, which are already
historic, in 1866. These delicious parodies (here reproduced) of the
pre-Raphaelite manner are as fascinating to-day as when they first
appeared.
FUN
This popular humorous penny weekly, which is still running, would be
forever memorable as the birthplace of the famous _Bab_ ballads, with
W. S. Gilbert's own thumb-nail sketches: yet it would be foolish to
rank him as an illustrator, despite the grotesque humour of these
inimitable little figures. The periodical, not (I believe) at first
under the editorship of Tom Hood, the younger, began in September 21,
1861. The mass of illustrations must be the only excuse for failing to
include an orderly summary; yet there is not, and there is certainly
no necessity for, an elaborate chronicle of the paper, like Mr.
Spielmann's admirable monograph in _Punch_. But those who are curious
to discover the work of less-known men of the sixties will find plenty
to reward their search. A clever parody of Millais' pre-Raphaelite
manner is given as a tail-piece to the preface of vol. i. A. Boyd
Houghton supplied the cartoons for a short period, November 1866 to
April 6, 1867. At least those signed A. H. are attributed to him, and
the first would almost suffice by itself to decide it, did any doubt
exist. Another cartoonist, who signed his work with the device of a
hen, is very freely represented. F. Barnard was also cartoonist for a
long time--1869 onwards--and J. G. Thomson, for a score of years, did
excellent work in the same department. The authorship of many of the
drawings scattered through its pages is easily recognised by their
style--others, as for instance one on page five of the _Almanac_ for
1866, puzzle the student. It looks like a Paul Gray, but the monogram
with which it is signed, although it is indecipherable, is certainly
not 'P. G.' W. J. Wiegand, W. Brunton, H. Sanderson, Matt Stretch,
Lieut. Seccombe, L. C. Henley, F. S. Walker, and F. W. Lawson (see for
instance, _Almanac_ for 1865, p. 11) contributed a great many of the
'socials' to the early volumes.
Then, as now, you find unconscious or deliberate imitations of other
artists' mannerisms. A rash observer might attribute drawings here
to C. Keene (_Almanac_ for 1865, vi.), and credit Tenniel with the
title-page to vol. iv. N.S.
Still, as a field to discover the work of young artists who afterwards
become approximately great, _Fun_ is not a very happy hunting-ground.
Despite some notable exceptions, its illustrators cannot be placed
even upon the average of the period that concerns us; the presence of
a half a dozen or so of first-rate men hardly makes a set of the comic
paper essential to a representative collection. After renewed intimacy
with its pages there is a distinct feeling of disappointment. That its
drawings pleased you mightily, and seemed fine stuff at the time, may
be true; but it only proves that the enjoyment of a schoolboy cannot be
recaptured in after-life if the quality of the drawing be too poor to
sustain the weight of old-fashioned dress and jokes whose first sparkle
has dimmed beyond restoration.
JUDY,
The twopenny rival to _Punch_, began life on May 1, 1867. Although Matt
Morgan supplied many of the early cartoons and 'socials,' the really
admirable level it reached in the eighties is not foreshadowed even
dimly by its first volumes. With vol. ii. J. Proctor, an admirable
draughtsman, despite his fondness for the decisive, unsympathetic line
which Sir John Tenniel has accustomed us to consider part and parcel of
a political cartoon, is distinctly one of the best men who have worked
this particular form of satire. Afterwards 'W. B.' contributed many.
The mass of work, in the volumes which can be considered as belonging
to the period covered by this book, contains hardly a single drawing
to repay the weary hunt through their pages. Yet the issues of a later
decade are as certain to be prized by students of the 'eighties' as the
best periodicals of the sixties are by devotees of that period.
PUNCH AND JUDY,
Beginning in October 1869, yet another paper on similar lines, ran
a short but interesting career of twelve weeks, and continued, in
a commonplace way, for a year or two longer. The reason the first
dozen issues are worth notice here is that the illustrations are all
by 'graphotype process' (which must not be confused with the far
earlier 'glyptography'), and so appeal to students of the technique
of illustration. The principle of the graphotype process, it is said,
was discovered accidentally. The inventor was removing, with a wet
camel-hair brush, the white enamel from the face of a visiting-card,
when he noticed that the printing on it was left in distinct relief.
After many experiments the idea was developed, and a surface of metal
was covered with a powdered chalky substance, upon which the drawing
was made with a silicate ink which hardened the substance wherever it
was applied. The chalk was then brushed away and the drawing left in
low but distinct relief on the metal-plate, from which electrotypes
could be taken in the usual way. The experiment gained some commercial
success, and quite a notable group of artists experimented with it for
designs to an edition of Dr. Isaac Watts's _Divine and Moral Songs_,
a most curious libretto for an artistic venture. In _Punch and Judy_
the blocks are by no means bad as regards their reproduction. Despite
the very mediocre drawing of the originals, they are nevertheless
preferable to the cheap wood-engravings of their contemporaries. After
its change, 'G. O. M.' (if one reads the initials aright), or 'C. O.
M.,'contributes some average cartoons. When it first appeared, at least
one schoolboy was struck with the curious difference of technique that
the illustrations showed, and from that time onwards had his curiosity
aroused towards process-work. Therefore, this lapse into anecdotage,
in the short record of a venture otherwise artistically unworthy to be
noticed here, may be pardoned.
WILL O' THE WISP
This, another periodical of the same class, started on September 12,
1868, but unlike its fellows relied at first solely upon a double-page
political cartoon. From the second number these were contributed
by J. Proctor until and after April 17, 1869, when other pictures
were admitted. With the 31st of July another hand replaces Proctor's
vigorous work. The volume for 1870 contains many woodcuts (I use the
word advisedly), unintentionally primitive, that should please a
certain school to-day. Whether the journal ceased with its fourth
volume, or lasted into the seventies, the British Museum catalogue does
not record, nor is it worth while to pursue the inquiry further.
THE ILLUSTRATED LONDON NEWS
To notice this important paper in a paragraph is little better than an
insult, and yet between a full monograph (already anticipated partially
in Mr. Mason Jackson's _The Pictorial Press_) and a bare mention there
is no middle course. As a rule the drawings are unsigned, and not
attributed to the artists in the index.
The Christmas numbers, however, often adopt a different method, and
print the draughtsman's name below each engraving, which is almost
always a full page. In that for 1865 we find Alfred Hunt, George
Thomas, S. Read, and John Gilbert, all regular contributors, well
represented. In the Christmas number of 1866 there is Boyd Houghton's
_Child's Christmas Carol_, and other drawings by Corbould, S. Read, J.
A. Pasquier, Charles Green, Matt Morgan, and C. H. Bennett.
OTHER ILLUSTRATED WEEKLIES
_The Illustrated Times_, first issued in October 1855, maintained a
long and honourable effort to achieve popularity. A new series was
started in 1867, but apparently also failed to gain a footing. The
artists included many men mentioned frequently in this volume. The
non-topical illustrations occasionally introduced were supplied chiefly
by M. E. Edwards, Adelaide and Florence Claxton, Lieut. Seccombe, P.
Skelton, and T. Sulman. Yet a search through its pages revealed nothing
sufficiently important to notice in detail.
_The Illustrated Weekly News_ and _The Penny Illustrated Weekly News_
are other lost causes, but the _Penny Illustrated Paper_, which started
in 1861, is still a flourishing concern; yet it would be superfluous
to give a detailed notice of its work. _Pan_ (date uncertain[5]), a
short-lived sixpenny weekly. Its cover was from a design by Jules
Chéret. Facsimiles of _A Head_ by Lord Leighton, and _Proud Maisie_ by
Frederick Sandys, appeared among its supplements.
THE GRAPHIC
That this admirably conducted illustrated weekly revolutionised
English illustration is granted on all sides. Its influence for good
or ill was enormous. With its first number, published on December 4,
1869, we find a definite, official date to close the record of the
'sixties'; one by mere chance, chronologically as well as technically,
appropriate. Of course the break was not so sudden as this arbitrary
limit might suggest. The style which distinguished the _Graphic_
had been gradually prepared before, and if Mr. William Small is
credited with the greatest share in its development, such a statement,
incomplete as most generalities must needs be, holds a good part of
the truth, if not the whole. The work of Mr. Small introduced new
qualities into wood-engraving; which, in his hands and those of the
best of his followers, grew to be meritorious, and must needs place him
with those who legitimately extended the domain of the art of drawing
for the engraver. But to discuss the style which succeeded that of the
sixties would be to trespass on new ground, and that while the field
itself is all too scantily searched. Mr. Ruskin dubbed the new style
'blottesque,' but, as we have seen, he was hardly more enamoured of the
manner that immediately preceded it.
Many of the surviving heroes of the sixties contributed to the
_Graphic_. Charles Green appears in vol. i. with _Irish Emigrants_, G.
J. Pinwell with _The Lost Child_ (January 8, 1870), A. Boyd Houghton
has a powerful drawing, _Night Charges_, and later, the marvellous
series of pictures recording his very personal visit to America.
William Small, R. W. Macbeth, S. L. Fildes, Hubert Herkomer, and
a crowd of names, some already mentioned frequently in this book,
bore the weight of the new enterprise. But a cursory sketch of the
famous periodical would do injustice to it. The historian of the
seventies will find it takes the place of _Once a Week_ as the happy
hunting-ground for the earliest work of many a popular draughtsman
and painter--that is to say, the earliest work after his student and
experimental efforts. To declare that it still flourishes, and with
the _Daily Graphic_, its offspring, keeps still ahead of the popular
average, is at once bare truth and the highest compliment which need be
paid.
The illustrated weeklies in the sixties were almost as unimportant,
relatively speaking, as are the illustrated dailies to-day. Yet to say
that the weeklies did fair to monopolise illustration at the present
time is a common truth, and, remembering what the _Daily Graphic_ and
the _Daily Chronicle_ have already accomplished, to infer that the
dailies will do likewise before 1900 has attained its majority is a
prophecy that is based upon a study of the past.
CHAPTER VII: SOME ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF THE PERIOD BEFORE 1860
To draw up a complete list, with the barest details of title, artist,
author, and publisher of the books in the period with which this
volume is concerned would be unnecessary, and well-nigh impossible.
The _English Catalogue_, 1863-1872, covering but a part of the time,
claims to give some 30,000 entries. Many, possibly a large majority,
of these books are not illustrated; but on the other hand, the current
periodicals not included contain thousands of pictures. The following
chapters cannot even claim to mention every book worth the collector's
notice, and refer hardly at all to many which seemed to the compiler
to represent merely the commercial average of their time. Whether this
was better or worse than the commercial average to-day is of no moment.
Nearly all of the books mentioned have been referred to personally, and
the facts reported at first hand. In spite of taxing the inexhaustible
courtesy of the officials of the British Museum to the extent of eighty
or more volumes during a single afternoon, I cannot pretend to have
seen the whole output of the period, for it is not easy to learn from
the catalogue those particulars that are needed to identify which books
are illustrated.
So far as we are concerned here, the interest of the book lies solely
in its illustrations, but the catalogue may not even record the fact
that it contains any, much less attribute them to their author. Of
those in which the artist's share has been recognised by the publisher
in his announcements, I have done my best to find the first edition of
each. By dint of patient wading through the advertisements, and review
columns of literary journals, trade periodicals, and catalogues, a
good many have turned up which had otherwise escaped notice; although
for the last twenty years at least I have never missed an opportunity
of seeing every illustrated book of the sixties, with a view to this
chronicle, which had been shaping itself, if not actually begun, long
before any work on modern English illustrators had appeared. When a
school-boy I made a collection of examples of the work of each artist
whose style I had learned to recognise, and some of that material
gathered together so long ago has been of no little use now. These
personal reminiscences are not put forward by way of magnifying the
result; but rather to show that even with so many years' desultory
preparation the digesting and classification of the various facts has
proved too onerous. A staff of qualified assistants under a capable
director would be needed to accomplish the work as thoroughly as Mr.
Sidney Lee has accomplished a not dissimilar, if infinitely more
important, task--_The Dictionary of National Biography_. A certain
proportion of errors must needs creep in, and the possible errors of
omission are even more to be dreaded than those of commission. A false
date, or an incorrect reference to a given book or illustration, is
easily corrected by a later worker in the same field; but an omission
may possibly escape another student of the subject as it escaped me.
As a rule, in a majority of cases--so large that it is practically
ninety-nine per cent., if not more--the notes have been made side by
side with the publication to which they refer. But in transcribing
hasty jottings errors are apt to creep in, and despite the collation
of these pages when in proof by other hands, I cannot flatter myself
that they are impeccable. For experience shows that you never open the
final printed text of any work under your control as editor or author,
but errors, hitherto overlooked, instantly jump from the page and
force themselves on your notice. An editor of one of the most widely
circulated of all our magazines confesses that he has made it a rule
never to glance at any number after it was published. He had too often
suffered the misery of being confronted with obvious errors of fact and
taste which no amount of patient care on his part (and he is a most
conscientious workman) had discovered, until it was too late to rectify
them. In the matter of dates alone a difficulty meets one at first
sight. Many books dated one year were issued several months before the
previous Christmas, and are consequently advertised and reviewed in
the year before the date which appears upon their title-page. Again,
many books, and some volumes of magazines (Messrs. Cassell and Co.'s
publications to wit), bear no date. 'Women and books should never be
dated' is a proverb as foolish as it is widely known. Yet all the same,
inaccuracy of a few months is of little importance in this context;
a book or a picture does not cease to exist as soon as it is born,
like the performance of an actor or a musician. Consequently, beyond
its relative place as evidence of the development or decline of the
author's talent, it is not of great moment whether a book was issued in
1869 or 1870, whether a drawing was published in January or February.
But for those who wish to refer to the subjects noted, the information
has been made as exact as circumstances permitted. When, however, a
book has been reissued in a second, or later edition, with no reference
to earlier issues, it is tempting to accept the date on its title-page
without question. One such volume I traced back from 1868 to 1849, and
for all I know the original may have been issued some years earlier;
for the British Museum library is not complete; every collector can
point with pride to a few books on his shelves which he has failed to
discover in its voluminous catalogue.
To select a definite moment to start from is not easy, nor to keep
rigidly within the time covered by the dates upon the cover of this
book. It is necessary to glance briefly at some work issued before
1855, and yet it would be superfluous to re-traverse ground already
well covered in _The History of Wood Engraving_, by Chatto and Jackson,
with its supplementary chapter by H. G. Bohn (in the 1861 edition),
in Mr. W. J. Linton's _Masterpieces of Engraving_, in Mr. Joseph
Pennell's two sumptuous editions of _Pen Drawing and Pen Draughtsmen_
(Macmillan), and the same author's _Modern Illustrations_ (Bell), not
to mention the many admirable papers read before learned societies
by Messrs. W. J. Linton, Comyns Carr, Henry Blackburn, Walter Crane,
William Morris, and others. Still less is it necessary to attempt to
indorse their arguments in favour of wood-engraving against process,
or to repeat those which support the opposite view. So that here, in
the majority of cases, the question of the engraver's share has not
been considered. Mr. Pennell, for one, has done this most thoroughly,
and has put the case for process so strongly, that if any people yet
believe a wood-engraving is always something sacred, while a good
process block of line work is a mere feeble substitute, there is
little hope of convincing them. Here the result has been the chief
concern. The object of these notes is not to prove what wood-engraving
ruined, or what might or ought to have been, but merely to record
what it achieved, without too frequent expression of regret, which
nevertheless will intrude as the dominant feeling when you study many
of the works executed by even the better class wood-engravers.
One must not overlook the very obvious fact that, in the earlier years,
an illustration was a much more serious affair for all concerned than
it is to-day. In Jackson's _Pictorial Press_ we find the author says:
'Illustration was so seldom used that the preparation of even a small
woodcut was of much moment to all concerned. I have heard William
Harvey relate that when Whittingham, the well-known printer, wanted
a new cut for his Chiswick Press Series, he would write to Harvey
and John Thompson, the engraver, appointing a meeting at Chiswick,
when printer, designer, and engraver talked over the matter with as
much deliberation as if about to produce a costly national monument.
And after they had settled all points over a snug supper, the result
of their labours was the production a month afterwards of a woodcut
measuring perhaps two inches by three. At that time perhaps only a
dozen persons besides Bewick were practising the art of wood-engraving
in England.'
But this preamble does not seek to excuse the meagre record it
prefaces. A complete bibliography of such a fecund illustrator as Sir
John Gilbert would need a volume to itself. To draw up detailed lists
of all the various drawings in _The Illustrated London News_, _Punch_,
and other prominent weeklies, would be a task needing almost as much
co-operation as Dr. Murray's great Dictionary. The subject, if it
proves to be sufficiently attractive, will doubtless be done piece by
piece by future workers. I envy each his easy pleasure of pointing out
the shortcomings of this work, for no keener joy awaits the maker of a
handbook than gibbeting his predecessors, and showing by implication
how much more trustworthy is his record than theirs.
[Illustration: D. G. ROSSETTI
'THE MUSIC-MASTER'
BY WILLIAM ALLINGHAM
1855
THE MAIDS OF
ELFENMERE]
Few artistic movements are so sharply defined that their origin can be
traced to a particular moment, although some can be attributed more or
less to the influence of one man. Even the pre-Raphaelite movement,
clearly distinct as its origin appears at first glance, should not
be dated from the formal draft of the little coterie, January 13th,
1851, for, as Mr. W. M. Rossetti writes, 'The rules show or suggest
not only what we intended to do, but what had been occupying our
attention since 1848. The day when we codified proved also to be the
day when no code was really in requisition.' Nor has the autumn 1848
any better claim to be taken as the exact moment, for one cannot
overlook the fact that there was Ford Madox Brown, a pre-Raphaelite,
long before the pre-Raphaelites, and that Ruskin had published the
first volume of _Modern Painters_. There can be little doubt that it
was the influence of the so-called pre-Raphaelites and those in closest
sympathy with them, which awakened a new interest in illustration, and
so prepared the ground for the men of the sixties; but to confine our
notice from 1857 to 1867--a far more accurate period--would be to start
without sufficient reference to the work superseded by or absorbed
into the later movement. So we must glance at a few of the books which
preceded both the _Music-master_ of 1855 and the _Tennyson_ of 1857,
either volume, the latter especially, being an excellent point whence
to reckon more precisely 'the golden decade of British Art,' as Mr.
Pennell terms it so happily.
Without going back too far for our purpose, one of the first books that
contains illustrations by artists whose work extended into the sixties
(and, in the case of Tenniel, far beyond) is _Poems and Pictures_,
'A Collection of Ballads, Songs, and Poems illustrated by English
Artists' (Burns, 1846). So often was it reprinted that it came as a
surprise to discover the first edition was fourteen years earlier than
the date which is upon my own copy. Despite the ornamental borders to
each page, and many other details which stamp it as old-fashioned,
it does not require a rabid apologist of the past to discuss it
appreciatively. From the first design by C. W. Cope, to the last, _A
Storm at Sea_, by E. Duncan, both engraved by W. J. Linton, there is no
falling off in the quality of the work. The influence of Mulready is
discernible, and it seems probable that certain pencil drawings for the
_Vicar of Wakefield_, engraved in facsimile--so far as was within the
power of the craftsmen at that time--did much to shape the manner of
book-illustrations in the fifties.
Nor does it betray want of sympathy with the artists who were thus
influenced to regret that they chose to imitate drawings not intended
for illustration, and ignored in very many cases the special technique
which employs the most direct expression of the material. In _The
Mourner_, by J. C. Horsley (p. 22), you feel that the engraver
(Thompson) has done his best to imitate the softly defined line of a
pencil in place of the clearly accentuated line which is most natural
in wood. Yet even in this there is scarcely a trace of that elaborate
cross-hatching so easily produced in plate-engraving or pen drawing, so
tedious to imitate in wood. Another design, _Time_, by C. W. Cope (p.
88), shows that the same engraver could produce work of quite another
class when it was required. Curiously enough, these two, picked at
random, reappear in almost the last illustrated anthology mentioned in
these chapters, Cassell's _Sacred Poems_ (1867).
Several books earlier in date, including De la Motte Fouqué's
_Undine_, with eleven drawings by 'J. Tenniel, Junr.' (Burns, 1846),
and _Sintram and his Companions_, with designs by H. S. Selous and
a frontispiece after Dürer's _The Knight and Death_ need only be
mentioned. The _Juvenile Verse and Picture Book_ (Burns, 1848), with
many illustrations by Gilbert, Tenniel, 'R. Cruikshank,' Weigall, and
W. B. Scott, which was reissued with altered text as _Gems of National
Poetry_ (Warne, 1868), and _Æsop's Fables_ (Murray, 1848), with 100
illustrations by Tenniel, deserve a bare mention. Nor should _The 'Bon
Gaultier' Ballads_ (Blackwood, 1849) be forgotten. The illustrations
by Doyle, Leech, and Crowquill were enormously popular in their day,
and although the style of humour which still keeps many of the ballads
alive has been frequently imitated since, and rarely excelled, yet its
drawings have often been equalled and surpassed, humorous although they
are, of their sort.
_The Salamandrine_, a poem by Charles Mackay, issued in a small
quarto (Ingram, Cooke, and Co., 1853), with forty-six designs by John
Gilbert, is one of the early volumes by the more fecund illustrators
of the century. It is too late in the day to praise the veteran whose
paintings are as familiar to frequenters of the Royal Academy now as
were his drawings when the Great Exhibition entered a formal claim for
the recognition of British Art. Honoured here and upon the Continent,
it is needless to eulogise an artist whom all agree to admire. The
prolific invention which never failed is not more evident in this
book than in a hundred others decorated by his facile pencil, yet it
reveals--as any one of the rest must equally--the powerful mastery
of his art, and its limitations. Thomson's _Seasons_, illustrated
by the Etching Club (1852), S. C. Hall's _Book of British Ballads_
(1852), an edition of _The Arabian Nights_, with 600 illustrations by
W. Harvey (1852), and _Uncle Tom's Cabin_, with 100 drawings by George
Thomas, can but be named in passing. Gray's _Elegy_, illustrated by 'B.
Foster, G. Thomas, and a Lady,' (Sampson Low), _The Book of Celebrated
Poems_, with eighty designs by Cope, Kenny Meadows, and others (Sampson
Low), _The Vicar of Wakefield_, with drawings by George Thomas, _The
Deserted Village_, illustrated by members of the Etching Club--Cope, T.
Creswick, J. C. Horsley, F. Tayler, H. J. Townsend, C. Stenhouse, T.
Webster, R.A., and R. Redgrave--all published early in the fifties--may
also be dismissed without comment. About the same time the great mental
sedative of the period--Tupper's _Proverbial Philosophy_ (Hatchard,
1854)--was reprinted in a stately quarto, with sixty-two illustrations
by C. W. Cope, R.A., E. H. Corbould, Birket Foster, John Gilbert, J.
C. Horsley, F. R. Pickersgill and others, engraved for the most part
by 'Dalziel Bros.' and H. Vizetelly. The dull, uninspired text seems
to have depressed the imagination of the artists. Despite the notable
array of names, there is no drawing of more than average interest in
the volume, except perhaps _To-morrow_ (p. 206), by F. R. Pickersgill,
which is capitally engraved by Dalziel and much broader in its style
than the rest.
_Poems by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow_ (David Bogue, 1854) appears
to be the earliest English illustrated edition of any importance of
a volume that has been frequently illustrated since. This book is
uniform with the _Poetical Works of John Milton_ with 120 engravings
by Thompson, Williams, etc., from drawings by W. Harvey, _The Works
of William Cowper_ with seventy-five illustrations engraved by J.
Orrin Smith from drawings by John Gilbert; Thomson's _Seasons_ with
illustrations 'drawn and engraved by Samuel Williams,' and _Beattie
and Collins' Poems_ with engravings by the same hand from designs by
John Absolon. The title-page of the Longfellow says it is illustrated
by 'Jane E. Benham, Birket Foster, etc.' It is odd to find the not
very elegant, 'etc.' stands for John Gilbert and E. Wehnert, also
to note that the engravers have in each of the above volumes taken
precedence of the draughtsman. Except that we miss the pre-Raphaelite
group for which we prize the Moxon _Tennyson_ to-day, the ideal of
these books is very nearly the same as of that volume. This edition
of Longfellow must not be confused with another, a quarto, issued the
following year (Routledge, 1855), 'with over one hundred designs drawn
by John Gilbert and engraved by the brothers Dalziel.' This notable
instance of the variety and inventive power of the artist also shows
(in the night pieces especially, pp. 13, 360), that the engraver was
trying to advance in the direction of 'tone' and atmospheric effect;
and endeavouring to give the effect of a 'wash' rather than of a line
drawing or the imitation of a steel engraving. This tendency, which
was not the chief purpose of the work of the sixties, in the seventies
carried the technicalities of the craft to its higher achievements, or,
as some enthusiasts prefer to regard it, to its utter ruin, so that the
photographic process-block could beat it on its own ground. But these
opposite views have been threshed out often enough without bringing
the parties concerned nearer together to encourage a new attempt to
reconcile the opposing factions. The Longfellow of 1855 was reissued
with the addition of _Hiawatha_ in 1856. Another edition of _Hiawatha_,
illustrated by G. H. Thomas, issued about this time, contains some of
his best work.
Allingham's _Music-master_ (Routledge, 1855) is so often referred to
in this narrative that its mere name must suffice in this context.
But, as the book itself is so scarce, a sentence from its preface may
be quoted: 'Those excellent painters' (writes Mr. Allingham), 'who on
my behalf have submitted their genius to the risks of wood-engraving,
will, I hope, pardon me for placing a sincere word of thanks in the
book they have honoured with this evidence through art of their varied
fancy.' To this year belongs also _The Task_, illustrated by Birket
Foster (Nisbet, 1855).
_Eliza Cook's Poems_ (Routledge, 1856) is another sumptuously
illustrated quarto gift-book with many designs by John Gilbert, J.
Wolf, Harrison Weir, J. D. Watson, and others, all engraved by Dalziel
Brothers. A notable drawing by H. H. Armstead, _The Trysting Place_ (p.
363), deserves republication. In this year appeared also the famous
edition of Adams's _Sacred Allegories_ with a number of engravings
from original drawings by C. W. Cope, R.A., J. C. Horsley, A.R.A.,
Samuel Palmer, Birket Foster, and George C. Hicks. The amazing quality
of the landscapes by Samuel Palmer stood even the test of enormous
enlargement in lantern slides, when Mr. Pennell showed them at his
lectures on the men of the sixties; had W. T. Green engraved no other
blocks, he might be ranked as a great craftsman on the evidence of
these alone.
In _George Herbert's Poetical Works_ (Nisbet, 1856), with designs by
Birket Foster, John Clayton, and H. N. Humphreys, notwithstanding the
vitality of the text, the drawings are sicklied over with the pale cast
of religious sentimentality which has ruined so much religious art in
England. A draughtsman engaged on New Testament subjects of that time
rarely forgot Overbeck, Raphael, or still more 'pretty' masters. In the
religious illustrations of the period many landscapes are included,
some of them exquisite transcripts of English scenery, others of the
'Oriental' order dear to the Annuals. The delightful description of one
of these imaginary scenes, by Leland, 'Hans Breitmann,' will come to
mind, when he says of its artist that
'All his work expanded with expensive fallacies,
Castles, towered walls, pavilions, real-estately palaces.
In the foreground lofty palm-trees, as if full of soaring love,
Bore up cocoa-nuts and monkeys to the smiling heavens above;
Jet-black Indian chieftains--at their feet, too, lovely girls
were sighing,
With an elephant beyond them, here and there a casual lion.'
George Herbert the incomparable may be hard to illustrate, but, if the
task is attempted, it should be in any way but this delineation of
pretty landscapes, with 'here and there a casual lion.' This reflection
upon the mildly sacred compositions of 'gift-book' art generally,
although provoked by this volume, is applicable to nearly every one of
its fellows.
In _Rhymes and Roundelays_, illustrated by Birket Foster (Bogue, 1856),
the designs are not without a trace of artificiality, but it contains
also some of the earliest and best examples of a most accomplished
draughtsman, and in it many popular blocks began a long career of
'starring,' until from guinea volumes some were used ultimately in
children's primers and the like.
_The Works of William Shakespeare_ illustrated by John Gilbert
(Routledge, 1856-8) will doubtless be remembered always as his
masterpiece. At a public dinner lately, an artist who had worked with
Sir John Gilbert on the _Illustrated London News_, and in nearly
all the books of the period illustrated by the group of draughtsmen
with whom both are associated, spoke of his marvellous rapidity--a
double-page drawing done in a single night. Yet so sure is his touch
that in the mass of these hundreds of designs to Shakespeare you
are not conscious of any scamping. Without being archæologically
impeccable, they suggest the types and costumes of the periods they
deal with, and, above all, represent embodiments of actual human
beings. They stand apart from the grotesque caricatures of an earlier
school, and the academic inanities of both earlier and later methods.
Virile and full of invention, the book is a monument to an artist who
has done so much that it is a pleasure to discover some one definite
accomplishment that from size alone may be taken as his masterpiece, if
merely as evidence that praise, scantily bestowed elsewhere, is limited
by space only.
[Illustration: FORD MADOX BROWN
WILLMOTT'S 'POETS OF THE
NINETEENTH CENTURY,' 1857
THE PRISONER
OF CHILLON]
Scott's _Lady of the Lake_, illustrated by John Gilbert, appeared in
1856. The other volumes, _Marmion_, the _Lady of the Lake_, and the
_Lay of the Last Minstrel_, appear to have been published previously;
but to ascertain their exact date of issue, the three bulky volumes of
the British Museum catalogue devoted to 'Scott (Walter)' can hardly
be faced with a light heart. This year saw an edition of Bunyan's
_Pilgrim's Progress_ with outline drawings by J. R. Clayton, who is
sometimes styled 'J. R.,' and sometimes 'John.' An illustrated guinea
edition of a once popular 'goody' book, _Ministering Children_, with
designs by Birket Foster and H. Le Jeune (Nisbet, 1856), an edition
of _Edgar Allan Poe's Works_, illustrated by E. H. Wehnert and others
(Addey, 1856); Coleridge's _Ancient Mariner_, with pictures by Birket
Foster, A. Duncan, and E. H. Wehnert, are also of this year, to which
belongs, although it is post-dated, Pollok's _Course of Time_ (W.
Blackwood, 1857), a book containing fifty fine illustrations by Birket
Foster, John Tenniel, and J. R. Clayton, engraved by Edward Evans,
Dalziel Brothers, H. N. Woods, and John Green. A block by Dalziel,
after Clayton, on page 19, shows a good example of the white line,
used horizontally, for the modelling of flesh, somewhat in the way,
as Pannemaker employed it so effectively in many of Gustave Doré's
illustrations years after. The twenty-seven Birket Fosters are full of
the special charm that his work possesses, and show once again how a
great artist may employ a method, which, merely 'pretty' in inferior
hands, has something of greatness when he touches it.
In the next year appeared the famous '_Poems by Alfred Tennyson,
D.C.L._, Poet-Laureate. London. Edward Moxon, Dover St., 1857.' Not
even the bare fact that it was illustrated appears on the title-page.
As the book has been re-issued lately in a well-printed edition, a
detailed list of its contents is hardly necessary; nor need any of
the illustrations be reproduced here. It will suffice to say that
Dante Gabriel Rossetti is represented by five designs to _The Lady of
Shallott_ (p. 75), _Mariana_ (p. 82), _Palace of Art_ (pp. 113-119),
_Sir Galahad_ (p. 305); Millais has eighteen, W. Holman Hunt seven, W.
Mulready four, T. Creswick six, J. C. Horsley six, C. Stanfield six,
and D. Maclise two. A monograph by Mr. G. Somes Layard, _Tennyson and
his pre-Raphaelite Illustrators_ (Stock, 1894), embodies a quantity
of interesting facts, with many deductions therefrom which are not so
valuable. In the books about Rossetti and the pre-Raphaelites, and
their name is legion, this volume has rarely escaped more or less
notice, so that one hesitates to add to the mass of criticism already
bestowed. The whole modern school of decorative illustrators regard
it rightly enough as the genesis of the modern movement; but all the
same it is only the accidental presence of D. G. Rossetti, Holman
Hunt, and Millais, which entitles it to this position. It satisfies
no decorative ideal as a piece of book-making. Except for these few
drawings, it differs in no respect from the average 'quarto poets'
before and after. The same 'toned' paper, the same vignetted pictures,
appear; the proportions of the type-page are merely that in ordinary
use; the size and shape of the illustrations was left apparently to
pure chance. Therefore, in place of talking of the volume with bated
breath as a masterpiece, it would be wiser to regard it as one of the
excellent publications of the period, that by the fortuitous inclusion
of a few drawings, quite out of touch with the rest, has acquired a
reputation, which, considered as a complete book, it does not deserve.
The drawings by Rossetti, even as we see them after translation by the
engraver had worked his will, must needs be valued as masterpieces,
if only for the imagination and thought compressed into their limited
space, and from their exquisite manipulation of details. At first
sight, some of these--for instance, the soldier munching an apple in
the _St. Cecilia_--seem discordant, but afterwards reveal themselves
as commentaries upon the text--not elucidating it directly, but
embroidering it with subtle meanings and involved symbolism. Such
qualities as these, whether you hold them as superfluous or essential,
separate these fine designs from the jejune simplicity of the mass of
the decorative school to-day. To draw a lady with 'intense' features,
doing nothing in particular, and that in an anatomically impossible
attitude, is a poor substitute for the fantasy of Rossetti. No amount
of poorly drawn confused accessories will atone for the absence of the
dominant idea that welded all the disturbing elements to a perfect
whole. One artist to-day, or at most two, alone show any real effort
to rival these designs on their own ground. The rest appear to believe
that a coarse line and eccentric composition provide all that is
required, given sufficient ignorance of academic draughtsmanship.
[Illustration: JOHN GILBERT
WILLMOTT'S 'POETS OF THE
NINETEENTH CENTURY,' 1857
HOHENLINDEN]
[Illustration: F. R. PICKERSGILL
WILLMOTT'S 'POETS OF THE
NINETEENTH CENTURY,' 1857
THE WATER
NYMPH]
Another book of the same year, _The Poets of the Nineteenth Century_,
selected and edited by the Rev. Robert Aris Willmott (Routledge, 1857),
is in many respects quite as fine as the Tennyson, always excepting the
pre-Raphaelite element, which is not however totally absent. For in
this quarto volume Millais' _Love_ (p. 137) and _The Dream_ (p. 123)
are worthy to be placed beside those just noticed. Ford Madox Brown's
_Prisoner of Chillon_ (p. 111) is another masterpiece of its sort.
For this we are told the artist spent three days in a dissecting-room
(or a mortuary--the accounts differ) to watch the gradual change in a
dead body, making most careful studies in colour as well as monochrome
all for a foreshortened figure in a block 3-3/4 by 5 inches. This
procedure is singularly unlike the rapid inspiration which throws off
compositions in black and white to-day. In a recent book received with
well-deserved applause, some of the smaller 'decorative designs' were
produced at the rate of a dozen in a day. The mere time occupied in
production is of little consequence, because we know that the
apparently rapid 'sketch' by Phil May may have taken far more time than
a decorative drawing, with elaborately minute detail over every inch of
its surface; but, other qualities being equal, the one produced with
lavish expenditure of care and thought is likely to outlive the trifle
tossed off in an hour or two. In the _Poets of the Nineteenth Century_
the hundred engravings by the brothers Dalziel include twenty-one of
Birket Foster's exquisite landscapes, all with figures; fourteen by W.
Harvey, nine by John Gilbert, six by J. Tenniel, five by J. R. Clayton,
eleven by T. Dalziel, seven by J. Godwin, five by E. H. Corbould, two
by D. Edwards, five by E. Duncan, seven by J. Godwin, and one each
by Arthur Hughes, W. P. Leitch, E. A. Goodall, T. D. Hardy, F. R.
Pickersgill, and Harrison Weir--a century of designs not unworthy as
a whole to represent the art of the day; although Rossetti and Holman
Hunt, who figure so strongly in the Tennyson, are not represented. This
year John Gilbert illustrated the _Book of Job_ with fifty designs;
_The Proverbs of Solomon_ (Nisbet, 1858), a companion volume, contains
twenty drawings.
Another noteworthy volume is Barry Cornwall's _Dramatic Scenes and
other Poems_ (Chapman and Hall, 1857) illustrated by many of the
artists already mentioned. The fifty-seven engravings by Dalziel
include one block on p. 45, from a drawing by J. R. Clayton, which is
here reprinted--not so much for its design as for its engraving; the
way the breadth of the drapery is preserved, despite the elaborate
pattern on its surface, stamps it as a most admirable piece of work.
Thornbury's _Legends of the Cavaliers and Roundheads_ (Hurst and
Blackett, 1857), was illustrated by H. S. Marks.
So far the few books of 1857 noticed have considerable family likeness.
The Bunyan's _Pilgrim's Progress_ (Nisbet, 1857), illustrated with
twenty designs by G. H. Thomas, more slight in its method, reflects
the journalistic style of its day rather than the elaborate 'book'
manner, which in many an instance gives the effect of an engraving
'after' a painting or a large and highly-wrought fresco. As one of
the many attempts to illustrate the immortal Protestant romance it
deserves noting. To this year belongs _The Poetical Works of Edgar
Allan Poe_, illustrated with some striking designs by John Tenniel,
and others by F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., Birket Foster, Percival
Skelton; and besides these, Felix Darley, P. Duggan, Jasper Cropsey,
and A. W. Madot--draughtsmen whose names are certainly not household
words to-day. In the lists of 'artists' the portrait of the author
is attributed to 'daguerreotype'! one of the earliest instances I
have encountered of the formal appearance of the ubiquitous camera
as an artist. Longfellow's prose romance, _Kavanagh_ (Kent, 1857),
with exquisite illustrations by Birket Foster, appeared this year;
_Hyperion_ (Dean), illustrated by the same author, being issued the
following Christmas.
_Poetry and Pictures from Thomas Moore_ (Longman, 1857), the _Poems
and Songs of Robert Burns_ (Bell and Daldy, 1857), both illustrated by
Birket Foster and others, and _The Fables of Æsop_, with twenty-five
drawings by C. H. Bennett, also deserve a passing word. _Gertrude of
Wyoming_, by Thomas Campbell (Routledge, 1857), is only less important
from its dimensions, and the fact that it contains only thirty-five
illustrations, engraved by the brothers Dalziel, as against the
complete hundred of most of its fellows. The drawings by Birket Foster,
Thomas Dalziel, Harrison Weir, and William Harvey include some very
good work.
_Lays of the Holy Land_ (Nisbet, 1858), clad in binding of a really
fine design adapted from Persian sources, is another illustrated
quarto, with one drawing at least--_The Finding of Moses_--by J.
E. Millais, which makes it worth keeping; a 'decorative' _Song of
Bethlehem_, by J. R. Clayton, is ahead of its time in style; the rest
by Gilbert, Birket Foster, and others are mostly up to their best
average. The title-page says 'from photographs and drawings,' but as
every block is attributed to an artist, the former were without doubt
redrawn and the source not acknowledged--a habit of draughtsmen which
is not obsolete to-day.
[Illustration: J. R. CLAYTON
BARRY CORNWALL'S
'DRAMATIC SCENES'
1857
OLYMPIA AND
BIANCA]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'HOME AFFECTIONS FROM
THE POETS,' 1858
THERE'S NAE LUCK
ABOUT THE HOUSE]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'HOME AFFECTIONS FROM
THE POETS,' 1858
THE BORDER
WIDOW]
Perhaps the most important illustrated volume of the next year is
_The Home Affections [portrayed] by the Poets_, by Charles Mackay
(Routledge, 1858), which continues the type of quarto gilt-edged toned
paper table-books so frequent at this time. Its illustrations are a
hundred in number, all engraved by Dalziels. Its artists include Birket
Foster, John Gilbert, J. R. Clayton, Harrison Weir, T. B. Dalziel, S.
Read, John Abner, F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., John Tenniel, with many
others, 'and' (as play-bills have it) J. Everett Millais, A.R.A.
_There's nae Luck about the House_ (p. 245) and _The Border Widow_
(p. 359) are curiously unlike in motive as well as handling; the one,
with all its charm, is of the Mulready school, the other intense and
passionate, highly wrought in the pre-Raphaelite manner. Yet after the
Millais' all the other illustrations in the book seem poor. A landscape
by Harrison Weir (p. 193), _Lenore_, by A. Madot (p. 159), a very
typical Tenniel, _Fair Ines_ (p. 135), _Oriana_ (p. 115), _Hero and
Leander_ (p. 91), _The Hermit_ (p. 67), and _Good-night in the Porch_
(p. 195), by Pickersgill, claim a word of appreciation as one turns
over its pages anew. Whether too many copies were printed, or those
issued were better preserved by their owners than usual, no book is
more common in good condition to-day than this.
Another book of the same size, with contents less varied, it is true,
but of almost the same level of excellence, is _Wordsworth's Selected
Poems_ (Routledge, 1859), illustrated by Birket Foster, J. Wolf, and
John Gilbert. This contains the hundred finely engraved blocks by
the brothers Dalziel, some of them of the first rank, which was the
conventional equipment of a gift-book at that time.
Other noteworthy volumes of 1858-9 are _Merrie Days of England,
Sketches of Olden Times_, illustrated by twenty drawings by Birket
Foster, G. Thomas, E. Corbould, and others; _The Scouring of the
White Horse_, with designs by Richard Doyle (Macmillan), his Foreign
Tour of _Brown, Jones, and Robinson_, and the same artist's _Manners
and Customs of the English_, all then placed in the first rank by
most excellent critics; _Favourite English Poems of the last two
Centuries_, illustrated by Birket Foster, Cope, Creswick, and the rest;
Wordsworth's _White Doe of Rylstone_ (Longmans), also illustrated by
Birket Foster and H. N. Humphreys; _Childe Harold_, with many designs
by Percival Skelton and others; Blair's _Grave_, illustrated by
Tenniel (A. and C. Black); Milton's _Comus_ (Routledge, 1858), with
illustrations by Pickersgill, B. Foster, H. Weir, etc.; and C. H.
Bennett's _Proverbs with Pictures_ (Chapman and Hall). _Thomas Moore's
Poems_ (Longmans, 1858); _Child's Play_, by E. V. B., appeared also
about this time. Krummacher's _Parables_, with forty illustrations by
J. R. Clayton (Bohn's Library, 1858), is another unfamiliar book likely
to be overlooked, although it contains good work of its sort; inspired
a little by German design possibly, but including some admirable
drawings, those for instance on pages 147 and 347. _The Shipwreck_,
by Robert Falconer, illustrated by Birket Foster (Edinburgh, Black,
1858), contains thirty drawings, some of them charmingly engraved by W.
T. Green, Dalziel Brothers, and Edward Evans in 'the Turner vignette'
manner; they are delightful of their kind.
In 1859 there seems to be a falling off, which can hardly be traced
to the starting of _Once a Week_ in July, for Christmas books--and
nearly all the best illustrated volumes fall into that category--are
prepared long before midsummer. C. H. Bennett's illustrated Bunyan's
_Pilgrim Progress_ (Longmans) is one of the best of the year's output.
A survival of an older type is _A Book of Favourite Modern Ballads_,
illustrated by C. W. Cope, J. C. Horsley, A. Solomon, S. Palmer, and
others (Kent), which, but for the publisher's announcement, might well
be regarded as a reprint of a book at least ten years earlier; but its
peculiar method was unique at that time, and rarely employed since,
although but lately revived now for half-tone blocks. It consists in
a double printing, black upon a previous printing in grey, not solid,
but with the 'lights' carefully taken out, so that the whole looks like
a drawing on grey paper heightened by white chalk. Whether the effect
might be good on ordinary paper, these impressions on a shiny cream
surface, set in gold borders, are not captivating.
_Odes and Sonnets_, illustrated by Birket Foster (Routledge, 1859), has
also devices by Henry Sleigh, printed in colours. It is not a happy
experiment; despite the exquisite landscapes, the decoration accords
so badly that you cannot linger over its pages with pleasure. _Byron's
Childe Harold_, with eighty illustrations by Percival Skelton, is
another popular book of 1859.
_Hiawatha_, with twenty-four drawings by G. H. Thomas, and _The
Merchant of Venice_ (Sampson Low, 1860), illustrated by G. H. Thomas,
Birket Foster, and H. Brandling, with ornaments by Harry Rogers, are
two others a trifle belated in style. Of different sort is _The Voyage
of the Constance_, a tale of the Arctic Seas (Edinburgh, Constable),
with twenty-four drawings by Charles Keene, a singularly interesting
and apparently scarce volume which reveals powers of imagining
landscape which he had never seen in a very realistic manner. I once
heard him declare that he had never in his life been near either an
Irish bog or a Scotch moor, both subjects being very frequent in his
work.
_The Seasons_, by James Thomson (Nisbet, 1859), illustrated by
Birket Foster, F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., J. Wolf, G. Thomas, and Noel
Humphreys, is another small quarto gift-book with the merits and
defects of its class. Yet, after making all due allowance, one feels
that even these average volumes of the fifties, if they do not interest
us as much as those of the sixties, are yet ahead, in many important
qualities, of the average Christmas gift-book to-day. The academic
scholarship and fine craft of this era would equip a whole school of
'decorative students,' and leave still much to spare. Yet if we prefer,
in our heart of hearts, the Birmingham books to-day, this is merely
to confess that modernity, whether it be frankly actual, or pose as
mediæval, attracts us more than a far worthier thing out of fashion
for the moment. But such preference, if it exists, is hardly likely to
outlast a serious study of the books of 'the sixties.'
CHAPTER VIII: SOME ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF THE PERIOD 1860-1864
Among the books dated 1860, or issued in the autumn of that year,
are more elaborately illustrated editions of popular poets--all, as
a rule, in the conventional quarto, or in what a layman might be
forgiven for describing as 'quarto,' even if an expert preferred to
call it octavo. Of these Tennyson's _The Princess_, with twenty-six
drawings by Maclise, may be placed first, on account of the position
held by author and artist. All the same, it belongs essentially to the
fifties or earlier, both in spirit and in style. A more ample quarto,
_Poems_ by James Montgomery (Routledge, 1860), (not the Montgomery
castigated by Lord Macaulay), 'selected and edited by Robert Aris
Wilmott (Routledge), with one hundred designs by John Gilbert, Birket
Foster, F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., J. Wolf, Harrison Weir, E. Duncan, and
W. Harvey, is perhaps slightly more in touch with the newer school.
Its engravings by the brothers Dalziel are admirable. _The Clouds
athwart the Sky_ (p. 23), by John Gilbert, and other landscapes by the
same hand, may hold their own even by the side of those in the Moxon
_Tennyson_, or in Wilmott's earlier anthology. Of quite different
calibre is Moore's _Lalla Rookh_, with its sixty-nine drawings by
Tenniel, engraved by the Dalziels (Longmans, 1861). If to-day you
hardly feel inclined to indorse the verdict of the _Times_ critic, who
declared it to be 'the greatest illustrative achievement by any single
hand,' it shows nevertheless not a few of those qualities which have
won well-merited fame for our oldest cartoonist, even if it shows also
the limitations which just alienate one's complete sympathy. Yet those
who saw an exhibition of Sir John Tenniel's drawings at the Fine Art
Society's galleries will be less ready to blame the published designs
for a certain hardness of style, due in great part (one fancies) to
their engraver.
[Illustration: H. H. ARMSTEAD
WILLMOTT'S 'ENGLISH SACRED
POETRY' 1862, p. 49
A DREAM]
[Illustration: FREDERICK WALKER
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED
POETRY,' 1862
THE NURSERY
FRIEND]
[Illustration: FREDERICK WALKER
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED
POETRY,' 1862
A CHILD IN
PRAYER]
In Bunyan's _Pilgrim's Progress_ (Routledge), with a hundred and ten
designs by J. D. Watson, engraved by the Dalziels, we are confronted
with a book that is distinctly of the 'sixties,' or perhaps it would be
more accurate to say that most of its illustrations are distinguished
by the broader treatment of the new school. It is strange that
the ample and admirable achievements of this artist have not received
more general recognition. When you meet with one of his designs set
amid the work of the greatest illustrators, it rarely fails to maintain
a dignified equality. If it lack the supreme artistry of one or the
fine invention of another, it is always sober and at times masterly,
in a restrained matter-of-fact way. Some sketches reproduced in the
_British Architect_ (January 22, 1878) display more freedom than his
finished works suggest.
_Quarles' Emblems_ (Nisbet), illustrated by C. H. Bennett, a
caricaturist whose style seems to have lost touch with modern taste,
with decorative adornments by W. H. Rogers, must not be overlooked;
nor Tennyson's _May Queen_ (Sampson Low), with designs by E. V. B.,
a gifted amateur, whose work in this book, in _Child's Play_, and
elsewhere, has a distinct charm, despite many technical shortcomings.
_Lyra Germanica_ (Longmans, 1861), an anthology of hymns translated
from the German by Catherine Winkworth, produced under the
superintendence of John Leighton, F.S.A., must not be confused with
a second series, with the same title, the same anthologist and art
editor, issued in 1868. This book contains much decorative work by John
Leighton, who has scarcely received the recognition he deserves as a
pioneer of better things. At a time when lawless naturalistic detail
was supreme everywhere he strove to popularise conventional methods,
and deserves full appreciation for his energetic and successful
labours. The illustrations include one fine Charles Keene (p. 182),
three by M. J. Lawless (pp. 47, 90, 190), four by H. S. Marks (pp. 1,
19, 57, 100), and five by E. Armitage (pp. 29, 62, 111, 160, 197).
The engraving by T. Bolton, after a Flaxman bas-relief, is apparently
the same block Bohn includes in his supplementary chapter to the
1861 edition of Chatto and Jackson's _History of Wood-Engraving_, as
a specimen of the first experiment in Mr. Bolton's 'new process for
photographing on the wood.' As this change was literally epoch-making,
this really beautiful block, with its companion p. 111, is of historic
interest.
_Shakespeare: His Birthplace_, edited by J. R. Wise, with twenty-three
pictures drawn and engraved by W. J. Linton (Longmans); _The Poetry
of Nature_, with thirty-six drawings by Harrison Weir (Low), and
_Household Song_ (Kent, 1861), illustrated by Birket Foster, Samuel
Palmer, G. H. Thomas, A. Solomon, J. Andrews, and others, including two
rather powerful blocks, _To Mary in Heaven_ especially, by J. Archer,
R.S.A.; _Chambers's Household Shakespeare_, illustrated by Keeley
Halswelle, must not be forgotten; nor _A Boy's Book of Ballads_ (Bell
and Daldy), illustrated by Sir John Gilbert; but _The Adventures of
Baron Munchausen_, with designs by A. Crowquill (Trübner), is not very
important.
An illustrated edition of Mrs. Gatty's _Parables from Nature_ (Bell
and Daldy) would be remarkable if only for the _Nativity_ by 'E.
Burne-Jones.' It is instructive to compare the engraving with the
half-tone reproduction of the original drawing which appears in Mr.
Pennell's _Modern Illustrations_ (Bell). But there are also good things
in the book by John Tenniel, Holman Hunt, M. E. Edwards, and drawings
of average interest by W. (not J. E.) Millais, Otto Speckter, F. Keyl,
L. Frolich, Harrison Weir, and others. In the respective editions of
1861 and 1867 the illustrations vary considerably.
Another book that happened to be published in 1860 would at any time
occupy a place by itself. Founded on Blake, David Scott developed a
distinctly personal manner, that has provoked praise and censure, in
each case beyond its merit. Yet without joining either detractors
or eulogists, one must own that the Bunyan's _Pilgrim's Progress_
(Edinburgh, 1860), illustrated by David and W. B. Scott, if a most
ugly piece of book-making, contains many very noteworthy designs. It
is possible, despite the monograph of J. M. Gray (one of the earliest
critics who devoted special study to the works of Frederick Sandys) and
a certain esoteric cult of a limited number of disciples, that David
Scott still remains practically unknown to the younger generation.
Yet this book, and Coleridge's _Ancient Mariner_, which he also
illustrated, contain a great many weird ideas, more or less adequately
portrayed, which should endear themselves to the symbolist to-day.
[Illustration: H. S. MARKS, R.A.
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED POETRY'
1862
A QUIET MIND]
[Illustration: H. S. MARKS
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED
POETRY,' 1862
IN A HERMITAGE]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED
POETRY,' 1862
LIFE'S JOURNEY]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED
POETRY,' 1862
A LITTLE
MOURNER]
_Goldsmith's Poems_, with coloured illustrations by Birket Foster,
appeared this year, which saw also many volumes (issued by Day and
Son), resplendent with chromo-lithography and 'illuminations' in
gold and colours. So that the Christmas harvest, that might seem
somewhat meagre in the short list above, really contained as
many high-priced volumes appealing to Art, 'as she was understood in
1860,' as the list of 1897 is likely to include. But the books we deem
memorable had not yet appeared, and the signs of 1860 hardly point to
the rapid advance which the next few years were destined to reveal.
In passing it may be noted that this was the great magenta period
for cloth bindings. 'Surely the most exquisite colour that ever left
the chemist's laboratory,' exclaims a contemporary critic, after a
rapturous eulogy.
The 'wicked fratricidal war in America,' we find by references in the
trade periodicals of the time, was held responsible for the scarcity of
costly volumes at this date. Perhaps the most important book of 1862 is
Willmott's _Sacred Poetry of the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries_ (like
many others issued the previous Christmas). It contains two drawings by
Sandys, which are referred to elsewhere, three by Fred Walker, seven by
H. S. Marks, two by Charles Keene, twenty-eight by J. D. Watson, one
by Holman Hunt, eight by John Gilbert, and others by G. H. Andrews, H.
H. Armstead, W. P. Burton, F. R. Pickersgill, S. Read, F. Smallfield,
J. Sleigh, Harrison Weir, and J. Wolf. Although the absence of Millais
and Rossetti would suffice to place it just below the Tennyson, it
may be considered otherwise as about of equal interest with that and
the earlier anthology of _Poets of the Nineteenth Century_, gathered
together by the same editor. It is distinctly a typical book of the
earlier sixties, and one which no collector can afford to miss.
_Poetry of the Elizabethan Age_, with thirty illustrations by Birket
Foster, John Gilbert, Julian Portch, and E. M. Wimperis, is not
quite representative of the sixties, but of a transitional period
which might be claimed by either decade. _The Songs and Sonnets of
Shakespeare_, with ten coloured and thirty black-and-white drawings by
John Gilbert, to whatever period it may be ascribed, is one of his most
superb achievements in book-illustration. _Christmas with the Poets_,
'embellished with fifty-three tinted illustrations by Birket Foster'
(Bell and Daldy), can hardly be mentioned with approval, despite the
masterly drawings of a great illustrator. As a piece of book-making,
its gold borders and weak 'tinted' blocks, printed in feeble blues and
browns, render it peculiarly unattractive. Yet in all honesty one
must own that its art is far more thorough and its taste possibly no
worse essentially than many of the deckle-edged superfluities with
neo-primitive designs which are popular at the present time. The
work of this artist is perhaps somewhat out of favour at the moment,
but its neglect may be attributed to the inevitable reaction which
follows undue popularity. There are legends of the palmy days of the
Old Water-Colour Society, when the competition of dealers to secure
drawings by 'Birket Foster' was so great that they crowded round the
doors before they opened on the first day, and one enterprising trader,
crushing in, went straight to the secretary and said, 'I will buy the
screen,' thereby forestalling his rivals who were hastily jotting
down the works by this artist hung with others upon it. But even
popular applause is not always misdirected; and the master of English
landscape, despite a certain prettiness and pettiness, despite a little
sentimentality, is surely a master. There are 'bests' and bests so
many; and if Birket Foster is easily best of his kind, and the fact
would hardly be challenged, then as a master we may leave his final
place to the future, sure that it is always with the great who have
succeeded, and not with the merely promising who just escape success.
Among the minor volumes of this year, now especially scarce, are Dr.
George Mac Donald's _Dealings with the Fairies_, with illustrations by
Arthur Hughes; and several of Strahan's children's books: _The Gold
Thread_, by Dr. Norman Macleod, with illustrations by J. D. Watson,
J. M'Whirter, and others; and _The Postman's Bag_, illustrated by J.
Pettie and others. A curious volume, _Spiritual Conceits_, 'illustrated
by Harry Rogers,' is printed throughout in black letter, and, despite
the title, would be described more correctly to-day as 'decorated'
by the artists, for the engravings are 'emblematical devices' more
or less directly inspired by the emblem books of the sixteenth and
the seventeenth centuries. As one of the few examples of conventional
design of the period, it is interesting. New copies are by no means
scarce, so it would seem to have been printed in excess of the demand,
which, judging by the laudatory criticism it received, could not have
been meagre.
[Illustration: BIRKET FOSTER
'PICTURES OF ENGLISH
LANDSCAPE,' 1864
THE GREEN LANE]
[Illustration: BIRKET FOSTER
'PICTURES OF ENGLISH
LANDSCAPE,' 1864
THE OLD CHAIR-MENDER
AT THE COTTAGE DOOR]
1862, the year of the second great International Exhibition, might have
been expected to yield a full crop of lavishly produced books, but as a
matter of fact there are singularly few. Two important exceptions
occur: Christina Rossetti's _Goblin Market_, with the title-page and
frontispiece by her brother, and _The New Forest_, by J. R. Wise, with
drawings by Walter Crane, 'a very young artist, whom we shall be glad
to meet with again,' as a contemporary criticism runs. Yet, on the
whole the men of the sixties appear to have exhausted their efforts
on the new magazines which had just attained full vigour; hence, as
we might expect, publishers refrained from competing with the annual
volumes, which gave at least twice as much for seven shillings and
sixpence as they had hitherto included in a guinea table-book. Birket
Foster's _Pictures of English Landscape_, with pictures in words by
Tom Taylor (Routledge 1863), contains thirty singularly fine drawings
engraved by Dalziels, of which the editor says: 'It is still a moot
point among the best critics how far wood-engraving can be profitably
carried--whether it can attempt, with success, such freedom and
subtlety of workmanship as are employed, for example, on the skies
throughout this series, or should restrict itself to simple effects,
with a broader and plainer manner of execution.' Its companion was
styled _Beauties of English Landscape_, and appeared much later.
_Early English Poems, Chaucer to Pope_ (Sampson Low, 1863), is another
book of the autumn of 1862, which like the rest is a quarto, with an
elaborately designed cover and the usual hundred blocks delightfully
engraved, after John Gilbert, Birket Foster, George Thomas, T.
Creswick, R.A., R. Redgrave, R.A., E. Duncan, and many others. Although
there is no reference to the fact in the book itself, many of the
illustrations had already done duty in other books, or possibly did
duty afterwards, for, without a tedious collation of first editions, it
is difficult to discover the first appearance of any particular block.
Probably this was the original source of many blocks which afterwards
were issued in all sorts of volumes, so frequently that their charm is
somewhat tarnished by memories of badly printed _clichés_ in children's
primers and the like.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SHIELDS
DEFOE'S 'HISTORY OF
THE PLAGUE,' 1862
THE PLAGUE-CART]
_The Life of St. Patrick_, by H. Formby, is said to be illustrated by
M. J. Lawless, but the labour in tracking it was lost; for, whoever
made the designs, the wood-engravings are of the lowest order, and
the book no more interesting than an illustrated religious tract is
usually. A sumptuously produced volume, _Moral Emblems_ (Longmans),
'from Jacob Cats and Robert Fairlie,' contains 'illustrations freely
rendered from designs found in their works,' by John Leighton. The
text is by Richard Pigot, whose later career affords us a moral emblem
of another sort; if indeed he be the hero of the Parnell incident,
as contemporary notices declared. Its two hundred and forty-seven
blocks were engraved by different hands--Leighton, Dalziel, Green,
Harral, De Wilde, Swain, and others, all duly acknowledged in the
contents. It is only fair to say that the decorators rarely fall to
the level of the platitudes, interspersed with Biblical quotations,
which form the text of the work. Among other volumes worth mentioning
are: _Papers for Thoughtful Girls_, by Sarah Tytler, illustrated by
J. E. Millais; _Children's Sayings_, with four pictures by Walter
Crane; _Stories of Old_, two series, each with seven illustrations by
the same artist; _Stories little Breeches told_, illustrated by C. H.
Bennett; and volumes of Laurie's _Shilling Entertainment Library_,
including probably (the date of the first edition is not quite clear)
Defoe's _History of the Plague_, with singularly powerful designs by
Frederick Shields,--'Rembrandt-like in power,' Mr. Joseph Pennell
has rightly called them; and _Puck on Pegasus_, a volume of humorous
verses by H. Cholmondeley Pennell, illustrated, and well illustrated,
by Leech, Tenniel, Doyle, Millais, Sir Noel Paton, 'Phiz,' Portch,
and M. Ellen Edwards. The Doyle tailpiece is the only one formally
attributed, but students will have little difficulty in identifying the
work of the various hands represented in its pages. A volume, artless
in its art, that has charmed nevertheless for thirty years, and still
amuses--Lear's _Book of Nonsense_ appeared this year; but luckily its
influence has been nil so far, except possibly upon modern posters;
Wordsworth's _Poems for the Young_, with fifty illustrations by John
Pettie and J. M'Whirter; an illustrated edition of Mrs. Alexander's
_Hymns for Little Children_, mildly exciting as works of art, _Famous
Boys_ (Darton), illustrated by T. Morten; _One Year_, with pictures by
Clarence Dobell (Macmillan), and _Wood's Natural History_, with fine
drawings by Zwecker, Wolf, and others, are also in the sterile crop of
the year 1862. _Passages from Modern English Poets_ (1862), illustrated
by the Junior Etching Club, an important book of its sort, is noticed
elsewhere.
In 1863 Millais' _Parables of our Lord_ was issued, although it is
dated 1864. Of the masterpieces it contained a reviewer of the period
wrote: 'looked at with unfeeling eyes there is little to commend them
to the average class of book-buyers.' This, which is no doubt a fairly
representative opinion, may be set against the wide appreciation
by artists they aroused at the time, and ever since, merely to
show that the good taste of the sixties was probably confined to a
minority, and that the public in 1867 or 1897, despite its pretence
of culture, is rarely moved deeply by great work. It is difficult to
write dispassionately of this book. Granted that when you compare it
with the drawings of some of the subjects which are still extant, you
regret certain shortcomings on the part of the engravers; yet, when
studied apart from that severe test, there is much that is not merely
the finest work of a fine period, but that may be placed among the
finest of any period. We are told in the preface that 'Mr. Millais
made his first drawing to illustrate the _Parables_ in August 1857,
and the last in October 1863; thus he has been able to give that
care and consideration to his subjects which the beauty as well as
the importance of _The Parables_ demanded.' It is not necessary to
describe each one of the many illustrations. Those which appeared
in _Good Words_ are printed with the titles they first bore in the
notice of that magazine. The other eight are: _The Tares_, _The
Wicked Husbandman_, _The Foolish Virgins_, _The Importunate Friend_,
_The Marriage Feast_, _The Lost Sheep_, _The Rich Man and Lazarus_,
and _The Good Shepherd_, all engraved by the brothers Dalziel, who
(to quote again from the preface), 'have seconded his efforts with
all earnestness, desiring, as far as their powers would go, to make
the pictures specimens of the art of wood-engraving.' Here it would
be superfluous to ask whether the designs could have been better
engraved, or even whether photogravure would not have retained more of
the exquisite beauty of the originals. As they are, remembering the
conditions of their production, we must needs accept them; and the
full admiration they demand need not be dashed by useless regret. In
place of blaming Dalziels, let us rather praise lavishly the foresight
and sympathy which called into being most of the books we now prize.
Indeed, a history of Dalziels' undertakings fully told would be no
small part of a history of modern English illustration. If any one who
loves art, especially the art of illustration, does not know and prize
these _Parables_, then it were foolish to add a line in their praise,
for ignorance of such masterpieces is criminal, and lukewarm approval a
fatal confession.
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'THE PARABLES OF OUR
LORD,' ROUTLEDGE, 1864
THE PRODIGAL
SON]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'THE PARABLES OF OUR
LORD,' 1864
THE TARES]
[Illustration: J. E. MILLAIS
'THE PARABLES OF OUR
LORD,' ROUTLEDGE, 1864
THE SOWER]
It is difficult to place any book of 1863 next in order to _The
Parables_; despite many fine publications, there is not one worthy
to be classed by its side. Perhaps the most important in one sense,
and the least in another, is Longmans' famous edition of the _New
Testament_, upon the preparation of which a fabulous amount of money
was spent. Yet, although an epoch-making book to the wood-engraver,
it represents rather the end of an old school than the beginning of a
new. Its greatly reduced illustrations, wherein a huge wall-painting
occupies the space of a postage-stamp, the lack of spontaneity in its
formal 'correct' borders, impress us to-day more as curiosities than as
living craft. All the same, it was considered a marvellous achievement;
but its spirit, if it ever existed, has evaporated with age; indeed,
one cannot help thinking that it was out of date when it appeared.
Ten years earlier it would have provoked more hearty approval; but,
with Millais' treatment of the similar subjects, who could look at
this precise, unimaginative work? That it ever exercised any influence
on wood-engraving is doubtful, and that it repaid, even in part, its
cost and labour is still more problematical. Bound, if memory can be
trusted, in sham carved and pierced oak, it may be still encountered
among the _rep_ and polished walnut of the period, a monument of
misapplied endeavour. Its ideal seems to have been to imitate
steel-plates by wood-blocks. Just as Crusaders' tombs had been modelled
in Parian to do duty as match-boxes, and a thousand other attempts,
then and since, with the avowed intention of imitation, have attracted
no little common popularity; so its tediously minute handiwork no doubt
won the approbation of those whose approval is artistic insult. One has
but to turn to the tiny woodcuts of Holbein's _Dance of Death_ to find
that size is of no importance; a _netsuke_ may be as broadly treated as
a colossus, but the art of the miniature is too often miniature art.
Therefore, side by side with the splendour of Millais, this mildly
exciting 'art-book' comes as a typical contrast. No matter how Millais
was rewarded, the mere engraver in this case must have been paid
more, if contemporary accounts are true; yet the result is that nobody
wants the one, and every artist, lay or professional, who is awake to
really fine things, treasures a chance impression of a _Parable_, torn
out of _Good Words_, as a thing to reverence.
On turning back to a scrap-book, where a number of them were preserved
by the present writer in the late sixties, the old surprise comes
back with irresistible force to find that things which he then ranked
first still maintain their supremacy. At that time, when the wonders
of Japanese Art were a sealed book, the masterpieces of Dürer and
Rembrandt, the triumphs of Whistler, and the exquisite engravings of
the French wood-engravers, past and present, all unknown to him, he,
in common with dozens of others, was conscious that here was something
so great that it was almost uncanny, for, obvious and simple as it
looked, it yet accomplished what all others seemed only to attempt.
There are very few pictures which after thirty years retain the old
glamour; but while the Longmans' _New Testament_ when seen anew raises
no thrill of appreciation, the _Parables_ appear as astoundingly great
to one familiar with modern illustrations as they did to an ignorant
boy thirty years ago. Other _fetishes_ have gone unregretted to the
lumber-room, but the Millais of 1863 is a still greater master in 1896.
They builded better than they knew, these giants of the sixties, and
that the approval of another generation indorses the verdict of the
best critics of their own may be taken as a promise of abiding homage
to be paid in centuries yet to come.
Curiously enough, among some literary notes for Christmas 1863, we
find that 'early next year Messrs. Dalziel hoped to issue their
Bible pictures,' and the writer goes on to praise several of the
drawings--notably the Leightons, which were even then engraved: this
note, nearly twenty years before the book actually appeared, is
interesting, but it must not be thought that the time was devoted
entirely to the engraving or in waiting for the perfection of
photographic transfer to wood.
An English edition of Michelet's _The Bird_, illustrated by Giacomelli
(Nelson), was issued this year, and the highly wrought naturalistic
details of the engravings became extremely popular. Its 'pretty'
finish, and tame, colourless effect influenced no little work of the
period, and, coupled with the _clichés_ of Gustave Doré engravings, so
lavishly reprinted here about this date, did much to promote a style
of wood-engraving which found its highest expression in the pages of
American magazines years afterwards, and its lowest in the 'decorated'
poems of cheap 'snippet' weeklies, which to-day are yet imitated
unconsciously by those who work in wash for half-tone processes.
The next important volume of the year, after Millais' _Parables_,
judged by our standard, is unquestionably Dalziels' edition of _The
Arabian Nights_ (Ward, Lock, and Tyler)--'illustrated by A. Boyd
Houghton,' one feels tempted to add to the title. But although the
book is often referred to as the work of one artist, as a matter of
fact it is the work of many. Houghton does not even contribute the
largest number; his eighty-seven designs are beaten by T. Dalziel's
eighty-nine. Nor is he the greatest draughtsman therein, for there
are two by Millais. Still, notwithstanding these, and eight by John
Tenniel, ten by G. J. Pinwell, one by T. Morten, two by J. D. Watson,
and six by E. Dalziel, it is for Houghton's sake that the book has
suddenly assumed importance, even in the eyes of those who do not
search through the volumes of the sixties for forgotten masterpieces,
but are content with _Once a Week_, the _Cornhill Gallery_, and
Thornbury's _Legendary Ballads_. One thing is beyond doubt: that
with the _Arabian Nights_ and the others on this short list you have
a National Gallery of the best things--not the best of all possible
collections, not even an exhaustive collection of specimens of each,
but a good working assortment that suffices to uphold the glory of 'the
golden decade,' and can only be supplemented but not surpassed by the
addition of all the others.
The book was issued in weekly numbers, as you see on opening a
first edition of the volume at the risk of breaking its back. Close
to the fold appears the legend, 'Printed by Dalziel Brothers, the
Camden Press, N.W.,' etc. It was eventually issued in two volumes
in October 1864, but dated '1865.' Mr. Laurence Housman's volume,
_Arthur Boyd Houghton_ (Kegan Paul, 1896), and his excellent article
in _Bibliographica_, are available for those who wish for a fuller
appreciation of this fine book.
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
DALZIELS' 'ARABIAN
NIGHTS,' p. 149
NOUREDDIN ALI ON
HIS JOURNEY]
By the side of the books already mentioned the rest seem almost
commonplace, but another edition of _The Pilgrim's Progress_, with one
hundred illustrations by T. Dalziel, must not be overlooked. These
show that one of the famous engravers was also an artist of no mean
importance, and explain much of the fine taste that distinguished the
publications of the firm with which he was associated. Elsewhere the
many original designs by other members of the firm go to prove this up
to the hilt.
It is curious to find 1864 the date of the 'new' illustrated edition of
_The Ingoldsby Legends_ (Bentley).[6] Those familiar with contemporary
volumes would have hazarded a time ten to fifteen years earlier, had
the matter been open to doubt. It is profusely illustrated by Leech,
Tenniel, and Cruikshank, but in no way a typical book of the sixties.
_English Sacred Poetry of the Olden Time_ (Religious Tract Society,
1864) was issued this year. It contains F. Walker's _Portrait of a
Minister_ (p. 184); _The Abbey Walk_ (p. 6), and _Sir Walter Raleigh_
(p. 60), by G. Du Maurier; ten drawings by J. W. North, three by C.
Green, three by J. D. Watson, and many by Tenniel, Percival Skelton,
and others, all engraved by Whymper; _Our Life illustrated by Pen and
Pencil_ (Religious Tract Society, undated), is a similar book with
designs by J. D. Watson, Pinwell, C. H. Selous, Du Maurier, Barnes, J.
W. North. Aytoun's _Lays of the Scottish Cavaliers_ is another book
of 1863 that is noticeable for its illustrations, from designs by
[Sir] Noel Paton. _Robinson Crusoe_, with one hundred designs by J. D.
Watson (Routledge); Wordsworth's _Poetry for the Young_, illustrated
by J. Pettie and J. M'Whirter (Strahan, 1863); C. H. Bennett's _London
People_, and the same artist's _Mr. Wind and Madam Rain_ (Sampson Low);
_Hymns in Prose_ by Mrs. Barbauld, illustrated by Barnes, Whymper,
etc.; Dr. Cumming's _Life and Lessons of our Lord_, with pictures by
C. Green, P. Skelton, A. Hunt, and others; yet another _Pilgrim's
Progress_, this time with illustrations by H. C. Selous and P. Priolo
(Cassell), and another _Robinson Crusoe_, illustrated by G. H. Thomas
(Cassell); The _Family Fairy Tales_, illustrated 'by a young lady of
eighteen,' signed M. E. E., the first published works of M. Ellen
Edwards, who soon became--and deservedly--one of the most popular
illustrators of the day; _Homes without Hands_, by J. G. Wood, with
animal drawings by F. W. Keyl; _Hacco the Dwarf_, with illustrations,
interesting, because they are (I believe) the earliest published work
by G. J. Pinwell; and _Golden Light_ (Routledge), with eighty drawings
by A. W. Bayes, are some of the rest of the books of this year that
must be dismissed with a bare record of their titles.
_The Lake Country_, with illustrations drawn and engraved by W. J.
Linton (Smith and Elder, 1864), is of technical rather than general
interest. Champions of the 'white line' will find practical evidence
of its masterly use in the engravings. _The Victorian History of
England_ (Routledge, 1864) has at least one drawing by A. B. Houghton,
but, so far as a rapid turn over of its pages revealed, only one--the
frontispiece. _The Golden Harp_ (Routledge) appears to be a re-issue
of blocks by J. D. Watson used elsewhere. _What Men have said
about Women_ (Routledge) is illustrated by the same artist, who is
responsible--indirectly, one hopes--for coloured designs to _Melbourne
House_, issued about this time. _The Months illustrated with Pen and
Pencil_ (Religious Tract Society, undated) contains sixty engravings by
Butterworth and Heath, after J. Gilbert, Robert Barnes, J. W. North,
and others; uniform in style with _English Sacred Poetry_, it does
not reach the same level of excellence. A book, _Words for the Wise_
(Nelson), illustrated by W. Small, I have failed to see; a critic calls
attention to it as 'the work of a promising young artist hitherto
unknown to us.' _Pictures of English Life_, with sixteen engravings
by J. D. Cooper, after drawings by R. Barnes (Sampson Low), contains
blocks of a size unusual in books. The superb drawings by Charles Keene
to _Mrs. Caudle's Curtain Lectures_ (Bradbury and Evans) enrich this
prolific period with more masterpieces.
[Illustration: FREDERICK WALKER
'ENGLISH SACRED POETRY'
R. T. S.
PORTRAIT OF
A MINISTER]
[Illustration: G. J. PINWELL
'WAYSIDE POESIES,' 1867
KING PIPPIN]
[Illustration: AUTUMN]
CHAPTER IX: SOME ILLUSTRATED BOOKS, 1865-1872
With 1865 we reach the height of the movement--this and the following
year being of all others most fertile in books illustrated by the best
representative men. It saw Rossetti's frontispiece and title to _The
Prince's Progress_ (Macmillan, 1866), these two designs being almost
enough to make the year memorable. _A Round of Days_ (Routledge), one
of the finest of the illustrated gift-books, contains Walker's _Broken
Victuals_ (p. 3), _One Mouth More_ (p. 58), and the well-known _Four
Seasons_ (pp. 37, 39, 41, 43), for one of which the drawing on wood
is at South Kensington Museum. A. Boyd Houghton appears with fourteen
examples (pp. 1, 2, 5, 19, 20, 21, 22, 30, 47, 48, 71, 73, 77, 78),
J. W. North with three exquisite landscapes (pp. 15, 17, 18), G. J.
Pinwell with five subjects, Paul Gray with one (p. 81), J. D. Watson
with five (pp. 26, 28, 62, 64, 66), T. Morten with one (p. 79), A. W.
Bayes with two, T. Dalziel with seven, and E. Dalziel with two. These
complete its contents, excepting two delicately engraved studies of
heads after Warwick Brookes. The book itself is distinctly a lineal
descendant from the annuals of the earlier half of the century; a
typical example of a not very noble ideal--a scrap-book of poems and
pictures made important by the work of the artists.
Yet, with full recognition of the greater literalism of reproductive
process to-day, one doubts if even _The London Garland_ (Macmillan,
1895), which most nearly approaches it, will maintain its interest more
fully, after thirty years' interval, than does this sumptuous quarto,
and a few of its fellows. That we could get together, at the present
time, as varied and capable a list of artists is quite possible; but
where is the publisher who would risk paying so much for original work
designed for a single book, when examples by the same men are to be
obtained in equally good reproductions, and not less well printed in
many of the sixpenny weeklies and the monthly magazines? The change of
conditions seems to forbid a revival of volumes of this class, although
the _Yellow Book_, _The Pageant_, _The Savoy_, and _The Quarto_, are
not entirely unrelated to them.
To 1864 belongs formally _The Cornhill Gallery_, a hundred impressions
from the original blocks of pictures. Among the early volumes issued
for Christmas 1865, this is, perhaps, the most important book, but, as
its contents are fully noticed elsewhere, no more need be said here. It
is amusing to read that a critic disliked 'Mr. Leighton's unpleasant
subjects'--the Romola designs! Dalziels' _Illustrated Goldsmith_ (Ward
and Lock, 1865), may be considered, upon the whole, the masterpiece of
G. J. Pinwell, who designed the hundred illustrations which seemed then
to be accepted as the only orthodox number for a book. How charming
some of these are every student of the period knows. Pinwell, as
certain original drawings that remain prove only too clearly, suffered
terribly at the engraver's hands, and, beautiful as many of the designs
are, one cannot avoid regret that they were not treated more tenderly.
It is quite possible that bold work was needed for the serial issue in
large numbers, and that the engravers simplified the drawings of set
purpose; but the delicacy and grace of the originals are ill-replaced
by the coarser modelling of the faces and the quality of the 'line'
throughout. This year saw also _Home Thoughts and Home Scenes_, a book
with thirty-five drawings of children, by A. Boyd Houghton (Routledge,
1865); which was afterwards reprinted as _Happy Day Stories_. This book
is absolutely essential to any representative collection of the period,
but nevertheless its designs can hardly be regarded as among the
artist's most masterly works.
Warne's edition of _The Arabian Nights_ (1866), with sixteen drawings,
eight by A. Boyd Houghton, must not be confused with the other edition
to which he contributed quite distinct subjects. This, and _Don
Quixote_ (Warne) appear in the Christmas lists for 1865. The great
Spanish novel hardly seems to have sustained the artist to his finest
achievements throughout. It contains 100 most interesting designs;
some that reveal his full accomplishment. At the same time it fails to
astound you, as the _Arabian Nights_ have a knack of doing again and
again, whenever you turn over their pages.
[Illustration: G. J. PINWELL
DALZIELS' 'ILLUSTRATED
GOLDSMITH,' p. 155
WHAT, BILL! YOU
CHUBBY ROGUE]
[Illustration: FREDERICK WALKER
'A ROUND OF DAYS'
AUTUMN]
This was a great year for Gustave Doré. So many English editions of
his books were issued that a summary of the year's art begins with
an apology for calling it 'l'année dorée.' Among these _Don Quixote_
gained rapid and firm hold of popular fancy. Many people who have
risen superior to Doré to-day, and speak of him with contempt now, at
that time grovelled before the French artist's work. A contemporary
critic writes of him as one who, 'by common consent occupies the first
place of all book-illustrators of all time.' As he is not in any sense
an English illustrator we need not attempt to appraise his work here,
but it influenced public taste far more than it influenced draughtsmen;
yet the fact that _Don Quixote_, as Houghton depicted him, even now
fails to oust the lean-armoured, grotesque hero (one of Doré's few
powerful creations), may be the reason for Houghton's version failing
to impress us beyond a certain point.
A book of the year, _Ballads and Songs of Brittany_, from the French
of Hersart de la Villemarqué, by Tom Taylor (Macmillan), should be
interesting to-day, if only for the two steel plates after Tissot,
which show that, in his great Eastern cycle of Biblical drawings,
he reverts to an earlier manner, which he had employed before the
_mondaine_ and the _demi-monde_ attracted him. The book contains
also four Millais', and a fine Keene, which, with most of the other
subjects, had already appeared with the poems in _Once a Week_.
_Enoch Arden_ (E. Moxon & Co., 1866), with twenty-five most dainty
drawings by Arthur Hughes, is said, in some contemporaneous
announcements of the season, to be the first successful attempts at
photographing the designs on wood; but we have already noticed the
fine example of Mr. Bolton's new process for photographing on wood,
a bas-relief after Flaxman, in the _Lyra Germanica_ (1861). Another
table-book, important so far as price is concerned, is _The Life of Man
Symbolised_ (Longmans, 1866), with many illustrations by John Leighton,
F.S.A. _Gems of Literature_, illustrated by Noel Paton (Nimmo); _Pen
and Pencil Pictures from the Poets_ (Nimmo), with forty illustrations
by Keeley Halswelle, Pettie, M'Whirter, W. Small, J. Lawson, and
others; and _Scott's Poems_, illustrated by Keeley Halswelle, were
also issued at this time. An epoch-making book of this season, _Alice
in Wonderland_ (Macmillan), with Tenniel's forty-two immortal designs,
needs only bare mention, for who does not know it intimately?
A very interesting experiment survives in the illustration to Watts's
_Divine and Moral Songs_ (Nisbet, 1865). This book, edited by H.
Fitzcock, the enthusiastic promoter of graphotype, enlisted the
services of notable artists, whose tentative efforts, in the first
substitute for wood-engraving that attained any commercial recognition,
make the otherwise tedious volume a treasure-trove. The Du Maurier
on page 14, the J. D. Watson (p. 22), T. Morten (p. 43), Holman Hunt
(p. 49), M. E. Edwards (p. 62), C. Green (p. 9), and W. Cave Thomas
(p. 75), are all worth study. A not very important drawing, _The Moon
Shines Full_, by Dr. C. Heilbuth (p. 3), is a very successful effort
to rival the effect of wood-engraving by mechanical means. The titles
of the poems come with most grotesque effect beneath the drawings. An
artist in knickerbockers, by Du Maurier, entitled 'The excellency of
the Bible,' for instance, is apt to raise a ribald laugh; and some of
the Calvinistic rhymes and unpleasant theology of the good old doctor
are strangely ill-matched with these experiments in a medium which
evidently interested the draughtsman far more than the songs which laid
so heavy a burden on the little people of a century ago.
_Legends and Lyrics_, by A. A. Procter (Bell and Daldy, 1865), is
another quarto edition of a popular poet, but here, in place of the
usual hundred Birket Fosters, Gilberts, and the rest, we have but
nineteen engravings; but they are all full pages. Charles Keene's two
subjects are _The Settlers_ and _Rest_ (a night bivouac of soldiers);
John Tenniel with _A Legend of Bregenz_, and Du Maurier with _A
Legend of Provence_ and _The Requital_, also represent the _Punch_
contingent. The others are by W. T. C. Dobson, A. R. A., L. Frolich,
T. Morten, G. H. Thomas, Samuel Palmer, J. D. Watson, W. P. Burton,
J. M. Carrick, M. E. Edwards, and William H. Millais; all engraved by
Horace Harral, who cannot be congratulated upon his rendering of some
blocks. A very charming set of drawings by J. E. Millais will be found
in Henry Leslie's _Little Songs for me to sing_ (Cassell, undated).
The subjects, seven in number, are slightly executed studies of
childhood by a master-hand at the work. The first volume of Cassell's
_Shakespeare_, which contains a large number of drawings by H. C.
Selous, was issued this year.
[Illustration: G. J. PINWELL
'WAYSIDE POESIES'
THE LITTLE CALF]
[Illustration: FREDERICK WALKER
'WAYSIDE POESIES'
THE BIT O'
GARDEN]
A fine collection of reprinted illustrations is _Pictures of Society_
(Sampson Low, 1866); its blocks are taken from Mr. James Hogg's
publications, _London Society_ and _The Churchman's Family
Magazine_, and include the fine Sandys, _The Waiting Time_, and M. J.
Lawless's _Silent Chamber_, both reproduced here by his permission. It
is a scarce but very interesting, if unequal, book.
The minor books at this time are rich in drawings by most of the
artists who are our quest in this chronicle. The number, and the
difficulty of ascertaining which of them contain worthy designs, must
be the excuse for a very incomplete list, which includes _Keats's
Poetical Works_, with a hundred and twenty designs by G. Scharf; _The
Children's Hour_ (Hunter, Edinburgh), W. Small, etc.; _Jingles and
Jokes for Little Folks_, Paul Gray, etc.; _The Magic Mirror_, W. S.
Gilbert (Strahan); _Dame Dingle's Fairy Tales_, J. Proctor (Cassell);
_Ellen Montgomery's Bookshelf_, twelve plates in colour by J. D. Watson
(Nisbet); _An Old Fairy Tale_, R. Doyle (Routledge); _What the Moon
saw_, eighty illustrations by A. W. Bayes (Routledge); _Ernie Elton
the Lazy Boy_, _Patient Henry_, _The Boy Pilgrims_, all illustrated by
A. Boyd Houghton and published by Warne; _Sybil and her Snowball_, R.
Barnes (Seeley); _Stories told to a Child_, Houghton, etc. (Strahan);
_Aunt Sally's Life_, G. Thomas, (Bell); _Mother's Last Words_, M. E.
Edwards, etc. (Jarrold), and _Watts's Divine Songs_ (Sampson Low), with
some fine Smalls and Birket Fosters.
Although the style of work that prevailed in 1865-66 was so widely
popular, it did not find universal approval. Critics deplored the
'sketchy' style of Dalziels' engraving and, comparing it unfavourably
with Longmans' _New Testament_, moaned, 'when shall we find again such
engraving as in Mulready's drawings by Thompson.' In _Don Quixote_
they owned Houghton's designs were clever, but thought, 'on the whole,
the worthy knight deserved better treatment.' And so all along the
line we find the then present contrasted with the golden past; even
as many look back to-day to the golden 'sixties' from the commonplace
'nineties.' This time saw the beginning of the superb toy-books by
Walter Crane--which are his masterpieces, and monuments to the skill
and taste of Edmund Evans, their engraver and printer. For wood-block
printing in colours, no western work has surpassed them even to this
date.
_Poems by Jean Ingelow_ (Longmans, 1867) is a very notable and scarce
volume, which was published in the autumn of 1866. It contains twenty
drawings by G. J. Pinwell, of which the seven to _The High Tide_ are
singularly fine; but that they suffered terribly at the engraver's
hands some originals, in the possession of Mr. Joseph Pennell, prove
only too plainly. J. W. North is represented by twenty-four, A. Boyd
Houghton by sixteen, J. Wolf by nine, E. J. Poynter by one, W. Small by
four, E. Dalziel by three, and T. Dalziel by twenty. The level of this
fine book is singularly high, and it must needs be placed among the
very best of one of the most fruitful years.
Another book published at this time, _Ballad Stories of the
Affections_, by Robert Buchanan (Routledge, undated), contains some
singularly fine examples of the work of G. J. Pinwell, W. Small, A.
B. Houghton, E. Dalziel, T. Dalziel, J. Lawson, and J. D. Watson,
engraved by the Brothers Dalziel; _Signelil_ (pp. 7 and 9), _Helga
and Hildebrand_ (p. 17), _The Two Sisters_ (p. 29), and _Signe at the
Wake_ (_frontispiece_) show Houghton at his best; _Maid Mettelil_ (p.
47) exhibits Pinwell in an unusually decorative mood. Indeed, the
thirty-four illustrations are all good, and the book is decidedly one
of the most interesting volumes of the period, and unfortunately one
least frequently met with to-day.
[Illustration: J. W. NORTH
'WAYSIDE POESIES'
GLEN OONA]
[Illustration: J. W. NORTH
FROM THE ORIGINAL DRAWING
GLEN OONA]
[Illustration: J. W. NORTH
'WAYSIDE POESIES,' 1867
THE NUTTING]
[Illustration: J. W. NORTH
'WAYSIDE POESIES'
AFLOAT]
If _Wayside Poesies_ (Routledge, 1867) is not the finest illustrated
book of the Christmas season of 1866, it is in the very front rank. Its
eighteen drawings by G. J. Pinwell are among the best things he did;
the five by Fred Walker are also well up to his best manner, and the
nineteen by J. W. North include some of the most exquisite landscapes
he ever set down in black and white. It was really one of Messrs.
Dalziels' projects, and its publishers were only distributors; so that
the credit--and it is not slight--of producing this admirable volume
belongs to the popular engravers whose names occur in one capacity or
another in almost every paragraph of this chronicle. Still more full
of good things, but all reprinted, is _Touches of Nature by Eminent
Artists_ (Strahan, 1866). This folio volume, 'into which is gathered
much of the richest fruit of Strahan and Company's magazines,' does not
belie its dedication. As almost every one of its ninety-eight subjects
is referred to in the record of the various magazines whence they were
collected, it will suffice to note that it contains three by
Sandys, nine by Fred Walker, four by Millais, five by A. Boyd Houghton,
eight by G. J. Pinwell, two by Lawless, and many by J. W. North, W.
Small, J. Pettie, G. Du Maurier, J. Tenniel, J. D. Watson, Robert
Barnes, with specimens of Charles Keene, J. Mahoney, Marcus Stone, W.
Orchardson, F. J. Shields, Paul Gray, H. H. Armstead, and others.
A volume of even greater interest is _Millais's Collected
Illustrations_ (Strahan, 1866). The eighty drawings on wood include
many subjects originally published in _Lays of the Holy Land_, _Once
a Week_, _Tennyson's Poems_, _Good Words_, _Orley Farm_, etc. etc.
Copies in good condition are not often in the market; but it should be
the blue riband of every collector, for the blocks here receive more
careful printing than that allowed by the exigencies of their ordinary
publication, and, free from any gold border, set on a large and not
too shiny page, they tell out as well as one could hope to find them.
As you linger over its pages you miss many favourites, for it is by no
means an exhaustive collection even from the sources mentioned; but it
is representative and full of superb work, interspersed though it be
with the less fine things done while the great draughtsman was still
hampered by the conventions of Mulready and Maclise.
_Idyllic Pictures_ (Cassell, 1867) is another reprinted collection,
this time selected entirely from one magazine, _The Quiver_. It
contains a fine Sandys here called _October_, elsewhere _The Advent
of Winter_, whereof the artist complained bitterly of the 'cutting.'
In March 1884, the _Art Journal_ contained a very excellent paper on
'Frederick Sandys,' by J. M. Gray, where the original drawing for this
subject is reproduced by process. The more important things in _Idyllic
Pictures_ are: G. J. Pinwell's _Faded Flowers_ (p. 13), _Sailor's
Valentine_ (p. 47), _The Angel's Song_ (p. 73), _The Organ-man_ (p.
121), and _Straight On_ (p. 169); A. Boyd Houghton's _Wee Rose Mary_
(p. 89), _St. Martin_ (p. 181), and _Sowing and Reaping_ (p. 189); Paul
Gray's _Cousin Lucy_ (_Frontispiece_), _A Reverie_ (p. 17), _By the
Dead_ (p. 21), _Mary's Wedding-day_ (p. 141), and _The Holy Light_ (p.
193); W. Small's _Between the Cliffs_ (p. 29), _My Ariel_ (p. 43), _A
Retrospect_ (p. 85), _Babble_ (p. 109), and _Church Bells_ (p. 173); T.
Morten's _Izaak Walton_ (p. 69) and _Hassan_ (p. 81); M. E. Edwards's
_A Lullaby_ (p. 49), _Seeing Granny_ (p. 117), and _Unrequited_ (p.
129), with others by the artists already named, and R. Barnes, H.
Cameron, R. P. Leitch, C. J. Staniland, and G. H. Thomas.
_Two Centuries of Song_, selected by Walter Thornbury (Sampson Low,
1867), is a book almost exactly on the lines of those of the earlier
sixties, which seems at first sight to be out of place amid the works
of the newer school. It has nineteen full-page drawings, set in
ornamental borders, which, printed in colours, decorate (? disfigure)
every page of the book. The illustrations, engraved by W. J. Linton,
Gavin Smith, H. Harral, are by eminent hands: H. S. Marks, T. Morten,
W. Small, G. Leslie, and others. The frontispiece, _Paying Labourers,
temp. Elizabeth_, by the first named, is very typical; _Phyllis_, by
G. Leslie, a pretty half-mediæval, half-modern 'decorative' subject;
and _Colin and Phoebe_, by W. Small, a delightful example of a
broadly-treated landscape, with two figures in the distance--a really
notable work. In my own copy, freely annotated with most depreciatory
criticisms of text and pictures in pencil by a former owner, the
illustration (p. 138) has vanished, but on its fly-leaf the late owner
has written--
'This verse its picture had,
A vulgar lass and lout;
The _wood-cut_ was so bad
That I _would cut_ it out.'
That it is signed G. W. is a coincidence more curious than pleasing to
me, and I quote the quatrain chiefly to show that the term 'wood-cut'
for 'wood-engraving' has been in common use unofficially, as well as
officially, all through this century. Nevertheless it is a distinct
gain to differentiate between the diverse methods, by refusing to
regard the terms as synonymous.
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'STORY OF A FEATHER'
p. 63
'SEND THE CULPRIT
FROM THE HOUSE
INSTANTLY']
[Illustration: G. DU MAURIER
'STORY OF A FEATHER'
p. 14
'HE FELT THE SURPASSING
IMPORTANCE OF
HIS POSITION']
[Illustration: T. MORTEN
'THE QUIVER'
IZAAK WALTON]
Foxe's _Book of Martyrs_ (Cassell, undated), issued about this time,
has a number of notable contributors; but the one-sided gruesome record
of cruelties which, whether true or false, are horribly depressing, has
evidently told upon the artists' nerves. The illustrators, according
to its title-page, are: 'G. H. Thomas, John Gilbert, G. Du Maurier,
J. D. Watson, A. B. Houghton, W. Small, A. Pasquier, R. Barnes, M.
E. Edwards, T. Morten, etc.' Some of the pictures have the names of
artist and engraver printed below, while others are not so
distinguished. Those most worthy of mention are by A. Boyd Houghton
(pp. 389, 480, 508, 572, 596, and 668), S. L. Fildes (p. 493), G. Du
Maurier (p. 541), and W. Small (pp. 333, 365, 624). Among artists not
mentioned in the title-page are F. J. Skill, J. Lee, J. Henley, and F.
W. Lawson. The first volume of Cassell's _History of England_ appeared
this year with many engravings after W. Small and others.
Another book of the season worth noting is _Heber's Hymns_ (Sampson
Low, 1867). It contains 100 illustrations by T. D. Scott, W. Small,
H. C. Selous, Wilfrid Lawson, Percival Skelton, and others; but they
can hardly be styled epoch-making. _Christian Lyrics_ (Sampson Low,
1868) (re-issued later in Warne's _Chandos Classics_), contains 250
illustrations by A. B. Houghton, R. Barnes, and others.
_The Story of a Feather_ (Bradbury, Evans, and Co. 1867), illustrated
by G. Du Maurier, is a book that deserves more space than can be
allowed to it. It holds a large number of drawings, some of which,
especially the initial vignettes, display the marvellously fecund and
dramatic invention of the artist. _The Spirit of Praise_ (Warne, 1867)
is an anthology of sacred verse, containing delightful drawings by W.
Small (pp. 57, 97, 149, 189), by Paul Gray (p. 89), by G. J. Pinwell
(pp. 19, 157), by A. Boyd Houghton (p. 53), and others by J. W. North
and T. Dalziel.
To 1866 belongs most probably _Gulliver's Travels_, illustrated
with eighty designs by 'the late T. Morten,' in which the ill-fated
artist is seen at his best level; they display a really convincing
imagination, and if, technically speaking, he has done better work
elsewhere, this is his most successful sustained effort.
_Moore's Irish Melodies_ (Mackenzie) contains many illustrations by
Birket Foster, Harrison Weir, Cope, and others. _Art and Song_ has
thirty original illustrations engraved on _steel_, which naturally
looks very out of date among its fellows. _A New Table-Book_ by Mark
Lemon (Bradbury) is illustrated by F. Eltze. Mackay's 1001 _Gems of
Poetry_ (Routledge) numbers among its illustrations at least one
Millais.
Books containing designs by artists whose names appear after the
title, may be noted briefly here. _Little Songs for Little Folks_,
J. D. Watson; _Æsop's Fables_, with 114 drawings by Harrison Weir
(Routledge); _Washerwoman's Foundling_, W. Small (Strahan); _Lilliput
Levée_, J. E. Millais, G. J. Pinwell, etc. (Strahan); _Roses and Holly_
(Nimmo); _Moore's Irish Melodies_, Birket Foster, H. Weir, C. W. Cope,
etc. (Mackenzie); _Chandos Poets: Longfellow_, A. Boyd Houghton, etc.
(Warne); _Things for Nests_ (Nisbet). The popularity of the illustrator
at this time provoked a critic to write: 'Book-illustration is a
thriving fad. _Jones fecit_ is the pendant of everything he does. The
dearth of intellectual talent among book-illustrators is amazing. The
idea is thought less of than the form. Mental growth has not kept pace
with technical skill'--a passage only worth quoting because it is
echoed to-day, with as little justice, by irresponsible scribblers.
In another criticism upon this year's books we find: 'For the
pre-Raphaelite draughtsman and the pre-Bewick artist, who love scratchy
lines without colour, blocks which look like spoilt etchings, and the
first "proofs" of artists' work untouched by the engraver, nothing can
be better.' It was the year of Doré's _Tennyson_, and Doré's _Tupper_,
a year when the fine harvests were nearly at an end, when a new order
of things was close at hand, and the advent of _The Graphic_ should set
the final seal to the work of the sixties and inaugurate a new school.
But, although the Christmas of 1866 saw the ingathering of the most
fertile harvest, the next three years must be not overlooked. In 1867
_Lucile_, with Du Maurier's designs, carries on the record; and _North
Coast and other Poems_, by Robert Buchanan (Routledge, 1868), nobly
maintains the tradition of Dalziels. It contains fifty-three drawings:
thirteen by Houghton, six by Pinwell, two by W. Small, one by J. B.
Zwecker, three by J. Wolf, twenty-five by T. and three by E. Dalziel,
and the engraving is at their best level, the printing unusually good.
[Illustration: T. MORTEN
'GULLIVER'S TRAVELS'
CASSELL
GULLIVER IN LILLIPUT]
[Illustration: T. MORTEN
'GULLIVER'S TRAVELS'
CASSELL
THE LAPUTIANS]
_Golden Thoughts from Golden Fountains_ (Warne, 1867) is another
profusely illustrated anthology, on the lines of those which preceded
it. The first edition was printed in sepia throughout, but the later
editions printed in black do more justice to the blocks. In it we find
seventy-three excellent designs by A. Boyd Houghton, G. J. Pinwell, W.
Small, J. Lawson, W. P. Burton, G. Dalziel, T. Dalziel, and others;
if the book, as a whole, cannot be placed among the best of its
class, yet all the same it comprises some admirable work. The _Savage
Club Papers_, 1867 (Tinsley), has also a galaxy of stars in its list of
illustrators, but their sparkle is intermittent and feeble. True that
Du Maurier, A. Boyd Houghton, J. D. Watson, and a host of others drew,
and Dalziels, Swain, Harral, and the rest engraved their work; but all
the same it is but an ephemeral book. _Krilof and His Fables_ (Strahan,
1867) enshrines some delightful, if slight, Houghtons, and many
spirited animal drawings by Zwecker. Wood's _Bible Animals_ is also
rich in fine zoological pictures. The _Ode on the Morning of Christ's
Nativity_ (Nisbet, 1867) would be notable if only for its three designs
by Albert Moore, who appears here as an illustrator, probably the
only time he ever contributed to any publication. Notwithstanding two
or three powerful and fantastic drawings by W. Small, the rest are a
very mixed lot, conceived in all sorts of manners. _The Illustrated
Book of Sacred Poems_ (Cassell, undated) is a big anthology, with a
silver-print photograph by way of frontispiece. It contains a rather
fine composition, _Side by Side_ (p. 17), with no signature or other
means of identification. W. Small (p. 21), J. D. Watson (pp. 69, 89,
105, 200, 209), M. E. Edwards, H. C. Selous, J. W. North, and many
others are represented; but the engravers, for the most part, cannot be
congratulated upon their interpretation of the artists' designs.
Other books worth mention are: _The Mirage of Life_, with twenty-nine
characteristic illustrations by John Tenniel (Religious Tract Society);
_The Story without an End_, illustrated by E. V. B.; _Cassell's
Illustrated Readings_, two volumes with a mass of pictures of unequal
merit, but the omnivorous collector will keep them for the sake of
designs by F. Barnard, J. D. Watson, J. Mahoney, W. Small, S. L.
Fildes, and many another typical artist of the sixties, in spite of
the unsatisfactory blocks; _Fairy Tales_, by Mark Lemon, illustrated
by C. H. Bennett and Richard Doyle; _Pupils of St. John the Divine_,
illustrated by E. Armitage (Macmillan); _Puck on Pegasus_ (the new and
enlarged edition); _Poetry of Nature_, illustrated by Harrison Weir;
and _Original Poems_ by J. and E. Taylor (Routledge, 1868), with a
large number of designs by R. Barnes, A. W. Bayes, etc.
With 1868 the end is near; the few books of real merit which bear
its date were almost all issued in the autumn of the previous year.
_The Savage Club Papers_, 1868, is a book not worth detailed comment;
_Five Days' Entertainment at Wentworth Grange_, by F. T. Palgrave
(Macmillan), contains some charming designs by Arthur Hughes; _Stories
from Memel_, illustrated by Walter Crane (W. Hunt and Co.), is a
pleasant book of the year; and, about this time, other work by the same
artist appeared in _The Merrie Heart_ (Cassell). _King Gab's Story Bag_
(Cassell), _The Magic of Kindness_ (Cassell), and other children's
books I have been unable to trace, nor the _Poetry of Nature_, edited
by J. Cundall.
_Lyra Germanica_ (Longmans), a second anthology of hymns translated
from the German, contains three illustrations by Ford Madox Brown, _At
the Sepulchre_, _The Sower_, and _Abraham_, six by Edward Armitage,
R.A., and many headpieces and other decorations by John Leighton, which
should not be undervalued because the taste of to-day is in favour of a
bolder style, and dislikes imitation Gothic detail. Of their sort they
are excellent, and may be placed among the earliest modern attempts to
decorate a page, with some show of consistency of treatment. Compared
with the so-called 'rustic' borders of earlier efforts, they at once
assume a certain importance. The binding is similar to that upon the
first series.
_Tom Brown's School Days_, illustrated by Arthur Hughes and S. P. Hall,
is one of the most notable books of the year. It is curious that at
the close of the period, as at its beginning, this artist is so much
to the fore, although examples of his work appear at long intervals
during the years' chronicle. Yet, as 1855 shows his work in the van
of the movement, so also he supplies a goodly proportion of the
interesting work which is the aftermath of the sixties, rather than the
premature growth of the seventies. _Tom Brown_ is too well known in
its cheap editions, where the same illustrations are used, to require
any detailed comment here. _Gray's Elegy_ (illustrated in colour by R.
Barnes, Birket Foster, Wimperis, and others) is of little importance.
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'GOLDEN THOUGHTS FROM
GOLDEN FOUNTAINS'
LOVE]
[Illustration: W. SMALL
'GOLDEN THOUGHTS FROM
GOLDEN FOUNTAINS'
MARK THE GREY-HAIRED
MAN]
In 1869 _The Nobility of Life_ (Warne), an anthology, edited by L.
Valentine, is attractive, less by reason of its coloured plates after
J. D. Watson, C. Green, E. J. Poynter, and others, than from its
headpieces, by A. Boyd Houghton (pp. 26, 106, 122, 136, 146, 178),
Francis Walker (pp. 82, 170), J. Mahoney (p. 98), which, subsidiary as
they appear here, are in danger of being overlooked. _Carmina Crucis_
(Bell and Daldy, 1860), poems by Dora Greenwell, has two or three
decorative pieces, by G. D. L[eslie], which might be attributed to
the influence of the _Century Guild Hobby Horse_, if direct evidence
did not antedate them by twenty years. _Miss Kilmansegg_, illustrated
by Seccombe; _The Water Babies_, Sir Noel Paton and P. Skelton; _In
Fairyland_, R. Doyle (Longmans); _Vikram and the Vampire_, E. Griset
(Longmans), and _Æsop's Fables_ (Cassell), with one hundred clever and
humorous designs, by the same artist, are among the few others that are
worth naming.
Several series of volumes, illustrated by various hands, may be noticed
out of their due order. For the date of the first volume is often far
distant from the last, and yet, as the series maintained a certain
coherency, it would be confusing to spread its record over a number of
years and necessitate continual reiteration of facts.
The _Choice Series_ of selections from the poets, published by Messrs.
Sampson Low and Co., include several volumes issued some time before
they were included as part of this series. The ideal of all is far
more akin to that of the early fifties--when the original editions
of several of these were first issued--than to that of the sixties.
They include Bloomfield's _Farmer's Boy_ (1857), Campbell's _Pleasures
of Hope_ (1855), Coleridge's _Ancient Mariner_ (1857), Goldsmith's
_Deserted Village_ and _Vicar of Wakefield_, Gray's _Elegy_ (1853),
Keats's _Eve of St. Agnes_, Milton's _L'Allegro_, Warton's _The
Hermit_, Wordsworth's _Pastoral Poems_, and Rogers's _Pleasures of
Memory_ (1864). All the volumes, but the last, have wood-engravings by
various hands after drawings by Birket Foster, Harrison Weir, Gilbert
and others; but in the _Pleasures of Memory_ 'the large illustrations'
are produced by a new method without the aid of an engraver, and some
little indulgence is asked for them on the plea of the inexperience of
the artists in this process. 'The drawing is made' (to continue the
quotation) 'with an etching needle, or any suitable point, upon a glass
plate spread with collodion. It is then photographed [? printed] upon
a prepared surface of wax, and from this an electrotype is formed in
relief which is printed with the type.' Samuel Palmer, J. D. Watson,
Charles Green, and others are the artists to whom this reference
applies, and the result, if not better than the best contemporary
engraving, is certainly full of interest to-day.
The _Golden Treasury_ Series (Macmillan and Co.) contains, in each
volume, a vignette engraved on steel by Jeens, after drawings by J. E.
Millais, T. Woolner, W. Holman Hunt, Sir Noel Paton, Arthur Hughes, etc.
Although the 'Household Edition' of Charles Dickens's complete works
was issued early in the seventies, it is illustrated almost entirely
by men of the sixties, and was possibly in active preparation during
that decade. Fred Barnard takes the lion's share, the largest
number of drawings to the most important volumes. His fame as a
Dickens illustrator might rest secure on these alone, although it is
supplemented by many other character-drawings of the types created by
the author of _Pickwick_. To _Sketches by Boz_ he supplies thirty-four
designs, to _Nicholas Nickleby_ fifty-nine, to _Barnaby Rudge_
forty-six, to _Christmas Books_ twenty-eight, to _Dombey and Son_
sixty-four, to _David Copperfield_ sixty, to _Bleak House_ sixty-one,
and to the _Tale of Two Cities_ twenty-five. 'Phiz' re-illustrates _The
Pickwick Papers_ with fifty-seven designs, concerning which silence
is best. J. Mahoney shows excellent work in twenty-eight drawings
to _Oliver Twist_ and fifty-eight each to _Little Dorrit_ and _Our
Mutual Friend_; Charles Green's thirty-nine illustrations to the
_Old Curiosity Shop_ are also admirable. F. A. Fraser is responsible
for thirty to _Great Expectations_, E. G. Dalziel for thirty-four to
_Christmas Stories_ (from _All the Year Round_), twenty-six to the
_Uncommercial Traveller_, and a few to minor pieces, issued with _Edwin
Drood_, which contain S. L. Fildes's excellent designs. H. French
contributes twenty to _Hard Times_, A. B. Frost illustrates _American
Notes_, J. Gordon Thomson _Pictures from Italy_, and J. M'L. Ralston
supplies fifteen for _A Child's History of England_. To re-embody
characters already stereotyped, for the most part, by the earlier
plates of the original editions, was a bold enterprise: that it did
not wholly fail is greatly to its credit. It is quite possible that
as large a number of readers made their first acquaintance with the
_dramatis personæ_ of the novels in these popular editions as in the
older books, and it would be interesting to discover what they really
felt when the much-vaunted copper-plates afterwards fell under their
notice. The sentiment of English people has been amply expended on
the Hablot K. Browne designs. Cruikshank is still considered a great
master by many people; but if one could 'depolarise' their pictures (to
use Wendell Holmes's simile), and set them before their admirers free
from early associations, free from the glamour of Dickens romance, and
then extract a frank outspoken opinion, it would be, probably, quite
opposite to that which they are now ready to maintain.
Recognising that the old illustrations are still regarded with a halo
of memory and romance, not unlike that which raises Mumbo Jumbo to a
fetish among his worshippers, a wish to estimate anew the intrinsic
value, considered as works of art, of these old illustrations, is not
provoked by merely destructive tendencies. So long as Thackeray's
drawing of _Amelia_ is accepted as a type of grace and beauty, how can
the believer realise the beauty of Millais's _Was it not a lie?_ in
_Framley Parsonage_. In the earlier and later engravings alike, the
costume repels; but in the one there is real flesh and blood, real
passion, real art, in the other a merely conventional symbol, which
we agree to accept as an interesting heroine, in the way a child of
five accepts the scratches on his slate as real pirates and savages.
There is little use in trying to appreciate the best, if the distinctly
second-best is reverenced equally; and so, at any cost of personal
feeling, it is simply the duty of all concerned to rank the heroes of
the sale-room, 'Phiz,' Cruikshank, and Leech at their intrinsic value.
This is by no means despicable. For certain qualities which are not
remotely connected with art belong to them; but the beauty of truth,
the knowledge born of academic accomplishment, or literal imitation of
nature, were alike absolutely beyond their sympathy. Hence to praise
their work as one praises a Dürer, a Whistler, or a Millais, is apt
to confuse the minds of the laity, already none too clear as to the
moment when art comes in. This protest is not advanced to prove that
every drawing mentioned in these pages surpasses the best work of the
men in question, but merely to suggest whether it would not be better
to recognise that the praise bestowed for so many years was awarded
to a conventional treatment now obsolete, and should not be regarded
as equivalent to that bestowed upon works of art which owe nothing to
parochial conventions, and are based on unalterable facts, whether a
Hokousaï or a Menzel chances to be the interpreter.
The _Chandos Poets_ (Warne), a series of bulky octavos, with
red-line borders, are of unequal merit. Some, _Willmott's Poets of
the Nineteenth Century_, _James Montgomery's Poems_, _Christian
Lyrics_, and _Heber's Poetical Works_, appear to be merely reprints
of earlier volumes with the original illustrations; others have new
illustrations by men of the sixties. The _Longfellow_ has several by A.
Boyd Houghton, who is also represented by a few excellent designs in
the _Byron_; _Legendary Ballads_ (J. S. Roberts) has three full-page
designs, by Walter Crane, to _Thomas of Ercildoune_ (p. 357), _The
Jolly Harper_ (p. 462), and _Robin Hood_ (p. 580). Later volumes, with
designs by F. A. Fraser and H. French, do not come into our subject.
Other series of the works of 'standard poets,' as they were called, all
resplendent in gold and colours, and more or less well illustrated,
were issued by Messrs. Routledge, Nimmo, Warne, Cassell, Moxon,
and others, beginning in the fifties. Here and there a volume has
interest, but one suspects that many of the plates had done duty
before, and those which had not are not always of great merit; as, for
instance, the drawings by W. B. Scott to the poetical works of L. E.
L. (Routledge). In these various books will be found, _inter alia_,
examples of Sir John Gilbert, Birket Foster, E. H. Corbould, W. Small,
and Keeley Halswelle.
_Hurst and Blackett's Standard Library_ is the title of a series
of novels by eminent hands in single volumes, each containing a
frontispiece engraved on steel. That to _Christian's Mistake_ is by
Frederick Sandys, engraved by John Saddler. _John Halifax_, _Nothing
New_, _The Valley of a Hundred Fires_, and _Les Misérables_, each have
a drawing by Millais, also engraved by John Saddler. In _Studies from
Life_ Holman Hunt is the draughtsman and Joseph Brown the engraver.
_No Church_, _Grandmother's Money_, and _A Noble Life_, contain
frontispieces by Tenniel, _Barbara's History_, one by J. D. Watson,
and _Adèle_, a fine design by John Gilbert. Others by Leech and Edward
Hughes are not particularly interesting. The steel engraving bestowed
upon most of these obliterated all character from the designs, and
superseded the artist's touch by hard unsympathetic details; but, all
the same, compositions by men of such eminence deserve mention.
With 1870 the end of our subject is reached; it is the year of _Edwin
Drood_, which established S. L. Fildes's position as an illustrator
of the first rank; it also has a pleasant book of quasi-mediæval
work, _Mores Ridicula_, by J. E. Rogers (Macmillan), (followed later
by _Ridicula Rediviva_ and _The Fairy Book_, by the author of _John
Halifax_, with coloured designs by the same artist), of which an
enthusiastic critic wrote: 'Worthy to be hung in the Royal Academy
side by side with Rossetti, Sandys, Barnes, and Millais'; Whymper's
_Scrambles on the Alps_, a book greatly prized by collectors, with
drawings by Whymper and J. Mahoney; _The Cycle of Life_ (S.P.C.K.);
and _Episodes of Fiction_ (Nimmo, 1870) containing twenty-eight
designs by R. Paterson, after C. Green, C. J. Staniland, P. Skelton,
F. Barnard, Harrison Weir, and others. _Novello's National Nursery
Rhymes_, by J. W. Elliott, published in 1871, belongs to the sixties
by intrinsic right. It includes two delightful drawings by A. Boyd
Houghton--one of which, _Tom the Piper's Son_ (owned by Mr. Pennell),
has been reproduced from the original by photogravure in Mr. Laurence
Housman's monograph--and many by H. S. Marks, W. Small, J. Mahoney, G.
J. Pinwell, W. J. Wiegand, Arthur Hughes, T. and E. Dalziel, and others.
_H. Leslie's Musical Annual_ (Cassell, 1870) contains a fine drawing,
_The Boatswain's Leap_, by G. J. Pinwell, and a steel engraving, _A
Reverie_, after Millais, which was re-issued in _The Magazine of Art_,
September 1896. _Pictures from English Literature_ (Cassell) is an
excuse for publishing twenty full-page engravings after elaborate
drawings by Du Maurier, S. L. Fildes, W. Small, J. D. Watson, W.
Cave Thomas, etc. etc. This anthology, with a somewhat heterogeneous
collection of drawings, seems to be the last genuine survivor of
the old Christmas gift-books, which is lineally connected with the
masterpieces of its kind.
Soon after the inevitable anthology of poems reappeared, in humbler
pamphlet shape, as a birthday souvenir, or a Christmas card,
embellished with chromo-lithographs, as it had already been allied
with photographic silver-prints; but it is always the accident of the
artists chosen which imparts permanent interest to the otherwise
feeble object; whether it take the shape of a drawing-room table-book,
gaudy, costly, and dull, or of a little booklet, it is a thing of no
vital interest, unless by chance its pictures are the work of really
powerful artists. The decadence of a vigorous movement is never a
pleasant subject to record in detail. Fortunately, although the king
died, the king lived almost immediately, and _The Graphic_, with its
new ideals and new artists, quickly established a convention of its
own, which is no less interesting. If it does not seem, so far as we
can estimate, to have numbered among its articles men who are worthy
in all respects to be placed by Rossetti, Millais, Sandys, Houghton,
Pinwell, Fred Walker, and the rest of the typical heroes of the
sixties, yet in its own way it is a worthy beginning of a new epoch.
Before quitting our period, however, a certain aftermath of the rich
harvest must not be forgotten; and this, despite the comparatively few
items it contains, may be placed in a chapter by itself.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. VII. p. 266
DEATH OF KING
WARWOLF]
CHAPTER X: THE AFTERMATH, A FEW BELATED VOLUMES
That Thornbury's _Legendary Ballads_ (dated 1876) should be regarded as
a most important volume in a collection of the 'sixties' is not odd,
when you find that its eighty-one illustrations were reprinted from
_Once a Week_. Many of the drawings were republished in this book, with
the poem they originally illustrated; others, however, were joined
to quite different text. If the memories of those living are to be
trusted, not a few of the artists concerned were extremely annoyed to
find their designs applied to new purposes. To take a single instance,
the Sandys design to _King Warwolf_ re-accompanied the poem itself, but
the drawing by John Lawson, which is herein supposed to illustrate the
lines,
'And then there came a great red glare
That seemed to crimson fitfully
The whole broad Heaven.'
was first published with a poem, _Ariadne_, by W. J. Tate, in August
1866, long after _King Warwolf_ first appeared. Its design is obviously
based on this passage:
'My long hair floating in the boisterous wind,
My white hands lightly grasping Theseus' knees,
While he, his wild eyes staring, urged his slaves
To some last effort of their well-tried skill.'
But it requires a great effort of perverted imagination to drag in the
picture, which shows a Greek hero on one ship, watching, you suppose,
the dying Norse king on another ship; when the ballad infers, and
the dramatic situation implies, that the old monarch put out at once
across the bar, and his people from the shore watched his ship burn
in the night. To wrench such a picture from its context, and apply it
to another, was a too popular device of publishers. As, however, it
preserves good impressions of blocks otherwise inaccessible, it would
be ungracious to single out this particular instance for blame. Yet
all the same, those who regard the artist's objection to the sale of
_clichés_ for all sorts of purposes, as a merely sentimental grievance,
must own that he is justified in being annoyed, when the whole
intention of his work is burlesqued thereby.
A contemporary review says that the illustrations had 'appeared before
in _Once a Week_, _The Cornhill_, and elsewhere.' It would be a long
and ungrateful task to collate them, but, so far as my own memory can
be trusted, they are all from the first named. In place of including
a description of the book itself, a few extracts, from a review by
Mr. Edmund Gosse in the _Academy_ (February 1876, p. 177), will not
only give a vivid appreciation of the work of two of the artists, but
show that twenty years ago the book was prized as highly as we prize
it to-day. He says: 'We have thought the illustrations sufficiently
interesting to demand a separate notice for themselves, the more so
as in many cases they are totally unconnected with Mr. Thornbury's
poems.... We are heartily glad to have collected for us some of the
most typical illustrations of a school that is, above all others, most
characteristic of our latest development in civilisation, and of which
the principal members have died in their youth, and have failed to
fulfil the greatness of their promise.
'The artists represented are mainly those who immediately followed the
so-called pre-Raphaelites, the young men who took up many of their
principles, and carried them out in a more modern and a more quiet way
than their more ambitious masters. Mr. Sandys, who pinned all his early
faith to Holbein, and Messrs. Walker, Pinwell, Lawless, and Houghton,
who promised to form a group of brother artists unrivalled in delicacy
and originality of sentiment, are here in their earliest and strongest
development.... M. J. Lawless contributes no less than twenty designs
to the volume. We have examined these singular and beautiful drawings,
most of them old favourites, with peculiar emotion. The present writer
[Mr. Edmund Gosse] confesses to quite absurd affection for all the few
relics of this gifted lad, whose early death seems to have deprived
his great genius of all hope of fame. Years ago these illustrations,
by an unknown artist, keenly excited a curiosity which was not to be
satisfied till we learned, with a sense of actual bereavement, that
their author was dead. He seems to have scarcely lived to develop a
final manner; with the excessive facility of a boy of high talent we
find him incessantly imitating his elder rivals, but always with a
difference.... No doubt, in M. J. Lawless, English art sustained one of
the sharpest losses it ever had to mourn.
[Illustration: W. HOLMAN HUNT
WILLMOTT'S 'SACRED
POETRY,' 1862
THE LENT
JEWELS]
[Illustration: J. LAWSON
'ONCE A WEEK'
VOL. II. N. S. p. 127
ARIADNE]
'Of Pinwell no need to say so much. He has lived, not long enough
indeed to fulfil the great promise of his youth, but to ensure his
head a lasting laurel. There have been stronger intellects, purer
colourists, surer draughtsmen among his contemporaries, but where
shall we seek a spirit of poetry more pathetic, more subtle, more
absolutely modern than his? The critics are for ever urging poets and
painters to cultivate the materials that lie about them in the common
household-life of to-day. It is not so easy to do so; it is not to be
done by writing "idylls of the gutter and the gibbet"; it is not to be
done by painting the working-man asleep by his baby's cradle. Perhaps
no one has done it with so deep and thorough a sympathy as Pinwell; and
it is sympathy that is needed, not curiosity or pity.' But it would
be hardly fair to quote further from Mr. Gosse's appreciation twenty
years ago of artists still living. The volume contains eight designs by
Sandys, namely, _Labours of Thor_ (_Harold Harfagr_), _King Warwolf_,
_The Apparitor of the Secret Tribunal_ (_Jacques de Caumont_),
_Tintoretto_ (_Yet once more on the organ play_), _The Avatar of Zeus_
(_The King at the Gate_), _The search of Ceres for Proserpine_ (_Helen
and Cassandra_), _The Boy Martyr_, _The Three Statues of Egina_, and
_The Miller's Meadow_ (_The Old Chartist_); the alternative title given
in brackets is that of the original as it first appeared in _Once
a Week_. To show how carelessly the author treated the artists, to
whom, in a flowery preface, he says he owes so much, 'for they have
given to his airy nothings a local habitation and a name, and have
caught and fixed down on paper, like butterflies in an entomologist's
cabinet, many a fleeting Cynthia of his brain,' it will suffice to
quote his profuse acknowledgments to 'Mr. Poynter, an old schoolfellow
of the author's, and now Professor in the London University, [who]
has expended all his learning, taste, and thought in the _The Three
Statues_. The drapery might be copied by a sculptor, it is arrayed with
such fine artistic feeling, and over the whole the artist has thrown
the solemnity of the subject, and has shown, in Pluto's overshadowing
arm, the vanity of all things under the sun--even the pure ambition
of a great artist.' This charming eulogy, be it noted, is bestowed
on a drawing that is by Frederick Sandys!!! not by Poynter, who is
unrepresented in the book.
The four Whistlers of _Once a Week_ are all here, absurdly renamed.
There are twenty by M. J. Lawless, seven by T. Morten, ten by J.
Lawson, one by A. Boyd Houghton, two by Fred Walker, eight by G. J.
Pinwell, six by W. Small, three by J. Tenniel, three by F. Eltze, and
one each by J. D. Watson, C. Keene, G. Du Maurier, Towneley Green, C.
Green, T. R. Macquoid, P. Skelton, A. Fairfield, E. H. Corbould, and A.
Rich. The book is well printed, and a treasure-house of good things,
which appear to more advantage upon its 'toned paper' than in the pages
of the periodical where they first saw daylight.
The preface to _Dalziels' Bible Gallery_ is dated October 1880, so
that the volume was probably issued for the season of 1880-81. As we
have seen, the work was in active preparation in the early sixties. It
contained sixty-nine blocks excellently printed upon an India tint.
These include nine by the late Lord Leighton, P.R.A., three by G. F.
Watts, R.A., five by F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., twelve by E. J. Poynter,
R.A., three by E. Armitage, R.A., two by H. H. Armstead, R.A., one by
Sir E. Burne-Jones, one by Holman Hunt, three by Ford Madox Brown, six
by Simeon Solomon, two by A. Boyd Houghton, two by W. Small, one by
E. F. Brewtnall, fourteen by T. Dalziel, one by E. Dalziel, two by A.
Murch, and one by F. S. Walker, and one by Frederick Sandys. The praise
lavished on these designs is amply justified if you regard them as a
whole; but, turning over the pages critically after a long interval,
there is a distinct sense of disillusion. At the time they seemed all
masterpieces; sixteen years after they stand confessed as a very mixed
group, some conscientious pot-boilers, others absolutely powerful and
intensely individual. The book is monumental, both in its ambitious
intention and in the fact that it commemorates a dead cause. It is
easy to disparage the work of the engravers, but when we see what fine
things owe their very existence to Messrs. Dalziels' enterprise, it is
but just to pay due tribute to the firm, and to regret that so powerful
an agency is no longer actively engaged in similar enterprises.
[Illustration: EDWARD BURNE JONES
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
THE PARABLE OF THE
BOILING POT]
[Illustration: SIR FREDERICK LEIGHTON, P.R.A.
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE GALLERY,' 1883
CAIN AND ABEL]
[Illustration: SIR FREDERICK LEIGHTON, P.R.A.
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
MOSES VIEWING THE
PROMISED LAND]
[Illustration: SIR FREDERICK LEIGHTON, P.R.A.
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
ABRAM AND
THE ANGEL]
As copies are both scarce and costly, it may be well to call attention
to a volume entitled _Art Pictures from the Old Testament_ (Society
for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1897), wherein the whole sixty-nine
reappear supplemented by twenty-seven others, which would seem to have
prepared for the _Bible Gallery_, but not previously issued:
thirteen of these added designs are by Simeon Solomon, two by H. H.
Armstead, R.A., three by E. Armitage, R.A., three by F. R. Pickersgill,
R.A., three by T. Dalziel, and one each by F. S. Waltges (_sic_), G. J.
Pinwell, and E. G. Dalziel.
As impressions of the famous blocks are obtainable at a low cost, it
would be foolish to waste space upon detailed descriptions. Of course
the popular reprint ought not to be compared with the fine proofs
of the great _édition-de-luxe_, which cost about twenty times as
much. But for many purposes it is adequate, and gives an idea of the
superb qualities of the Leighton designs, and the vigour and strongly
dramatic force of the Poynters. It is interesting to compare Sir Edward
Burne-Jones's original design for _The Boiling Pot_, reproduced in
_Pen-Drawing and Pen-Draughtsmen by Joseph Pennell_ (Macmillan, 1894),
with the engraving, which is from an entirely different version of the
subject. Other drawings on wood obviously intended for this work, but
never used, can be seen at South Kensington Museum.
A few belated volumes still remain to be noticed--they are picked
almost at random, and doubtless the list might be supplemented almost
indefinitely: _The Trial of Sir Jasper_, by S. C. Hall (Virtue,
undated), with illustrations by Gilbert, Cruikshank, Tenniel, Birket
Foster, Noel Paton, and others, including W. Eden Thomson and G. H.
Boughton. The latter, a drawing quite in the mood of the sixties, seems
to be the earliest illustration by its author. Another design by H. R.
Robertson, of a dead body covered by a cloth in a large empty room,
is too good to pass without comment. _Beauties of English Landscape_,
drawn by Birket Foster, is a reprint, in collected form, of the works
of this justly popular artist; it is interesting, but not comparable
to the earlier volume with a similar title. In _Nature Pictures_,
thirty original illustrations by J. H. Dell, engraved by R. Paterson
(Warne), the preface, dated October 1878, refers to 'years of patient
painstaking labour on the part of artist and engraver'; so that it is
really a posthumous child of the sixties, and one not unworthy to a
place among the best.
_Songs of Many Seasons_, by Jemmett Brown (Pewtress and Co., 1876),
contains two little-known designs by Walter Crane, two by G. Du Maurier
and one by C. M. (C. W. Morgan). _Pegasus Re-saddled_ (H. S. King,
1877), with ten illustrations by G. Du Maurier is, as its title
implies, a companion volume to the earlier _Puck on Pegasus_, by H.
Cholmondeley Pennell. _The Children's Garland_ (Macmillan, 1873),
contains fourteen capital things by John Lawson--no relative of 'Cecil'
or 'F. W. Lawson.'
_The Lord's Prayer_, illustrated by F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., and
Henry Alford, D.D. (Longmans, 1870), has a curiously old-fashioned
air. One fancies, and the preface supports the theory, that its nine
designs should be considered not as an aftermath to the sixties, but
as a presage of the time, near the date of _The Music-master_. Their
vigorous attempt to employ modern costume in dignified compositions
deserves more than patronising approval. Any art-student to-day would
discover a hundred faults, but their one virtue might prove beyond his
grasp. Although engraved on wood by Dalziel, printed as they are upon
a deep yellow tint, the pictures at first sight suggest lithographs,
rather than wood-engravings. _Rural England_, by L. Seguin (Strahan,
1885) has many delightful designs by Millais and Pinwell, but all,
apparently, reprints of blocks used in _Good Words_ and elsewhere.
Possibly the whole series of Mr. Walter Crane's toy-books, which began
to be issued in the mid-sixties, should be noticed here; but they
deserve a separate and complete iconography. In fact, any attempt to go
beyond the arbitrary date is a mistake, and this chapter were best cut
short, with full consciousness of its being a mere fragment which may
find place in some future volume, upon 'the seventies,' that I hope may
find its historian before long.
[Illustration: EDWARD J. POYNTER, R.A.
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
JOSEPH BEFORE
PHARAOH]
[Illustration: EDWARD J. POYNTER, R.A.
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
PHARAOH HONOURS
JOSEPH]
A book of this sort, which aimed to be complete, should contain a
critical summary of the period it attempts to record. But to extract
from the mass of material a clearly-defined purpose, and build up a
plausible theory to show that all the diverse tendencies could be
traced to a common purpose, would surely be at best merely an academic
argument. All that the sixties prove, to a very sincere if incapable
student, seems to be that the artist, if he be indeed an artist, can
make the meanest material serve his purpose. The men of the sixties
tried obviously to do their best. They took their art seriously, if not
themselves. It is tempting to affirm that the tendency now is for no
one to take himself seriously, and even at times to look upon his
art, whatever it may be, as merely a useful medium to exploit for his
own ends. Yet such an opinion would be probably too sweeping; and one
is driven back to the primal fact, that the energy and knowledge which
results in masterly achievement is, and must always be, beyond rules,
beyond schools, as it is beyond fashion or mood. A man who tries to do
his best, if he be endowed with ripe knowledge and has the opportunity,
will make a fine thing; which, whether intended for a penny paper, or a
guinea gift-book, will possess both vitality and permanent value.
But the men of the sixties took themselves quite seriously; and this
is surely evident from their drawings. Not a few committed suicide, or
died from over-work; neither catastrophe being evidence of flippant
content with the popularity they had achieved. Whether inspired by pure
zeal for art, by rivalry, or by money-making, they felt the game well
worth the candle, and did all they could do to play it fairly. Those
of us to-day who try to do our best may be inept, ignorant, and attain
only failure; yet the best is not achieved by accident, and the only
moral of the sixties is the moral of the nineties: 'Whatsoever thy hand
findeth to do, do it with all thy might.'
Whether it be the triumph of a master or a pot-boiling illustrator, the
real artist never takes his art lightly. Life, even reputation, he may
play with, but his craft is a serious thing. In short, the study of
the thousands of designs--some obviously burlesqued by the engraver,
others admirably rendered--will not leave an unprejudiced spectator
with a cut and dried opinion. That, as it happened, a number of really
distinguished men enlisted themselves as illustrators may be granted,
but each one did his own work in his own way; and to summarise the
complex record in a sentence to prove that any method, or any manner,
is a royal road to greatness is impossible. Yet no one familiar with
the period can avoid a certain pride in the permanent evidence it has
left, that English art in illustration, (no less than English music in
the part-songs of the Elizabethan period), has produced work worthy to
be entered on the cosmopolitan roll of fame. This is unquestionable;
and being granted, no more need be said, for an attempt to appraise the
relative value of totally distinct things is always a foolish effort.
CHAPTER XI: CERTAIN INFLUENCES UPON THE ARTISTS OF THE SIXTIES
Although it would be retraversing beaten paths to trace the illustrator
of the sixties back to Bewick, or to still earlier progenitors in Dürer
or the Florentines, there can be little doubt that the pre-Raphaelites
gave the first direct impulse to the newer school. That their work,
scanty as it is, so far as book-illustration is concerned, set going
the impulse which in Kelmscott Press Editions, the Birmingham School,
the Vale Press, Beardsley, Bradley, and a host of others on both sides
of the Atlantic, is 'the movement' of the moment is too obvious to
need stating. But for 'the sixties' proper, the paramount influence
was Millais--the Millais after the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood had
disbanded. Despite a very ingenious attempt to trace the influence
of Menzel upon the earlier men, many still doubt whether the true
pre-Raphaelites were not quite ignorant of the great German. Later
men--Fred Walker especially, and Charles Keene many years after--knew
their Menzel, and appreciated him as a few artists do to-day, and the
man in the street may at no distant future. But some of the survivors
of the pre-Raphaelites, both formal and associated, deny all knowledge
of Menzel at this date; others, however, have told Mr. Joseph Pennell
that they did know his work, and that it had a distinct influence.
Some who did not know him then regret keenly that they were unaware of
his very existence until they had abandoned illustration for painting.
All agree, of course, in recognising the enormous personality of one
who might be called, without exaggeration, the greatest illustrator
of the century; so that, having stated the evidence as it stands, no
more need be added, except a suggestion that the theory of Menzel's
influence, even upon those who declare they knew not the man, may
be sound. An edition of _Frederick the Great_, by Kügler, with five
hundred illustrations by Menzel, was published in England (according to
the British Museum Catalogue, the book itself is undated) in 1844.[7]
It is quite possible that any one of the men of the time might have
seen it by chance, and turned over its pages ignorant of its artist's
name. A few minutes is enough to influence a young artist, and the
one who in all honesty declares he never heard of Menzel may have been
thus unconsciously influenced. But, if a foreign source must be found,
so far as the pre-Raphaelites are concerned, Rethel seems a far more
possible agent. His famous prints, _Death the Friend_ and _Death the
Avenger_, had they met his eye, would doubtless have influenced Mr.
Sandys, and many others who worked on similar lines.
[Illustration: FORD MADOX BROWN
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
ELIJAH AND THE
WIDOW'S SON]
Whether Lasinio's 'execrable engravings,' as Ruskin calls them, or
others, will be found to have exerted any influence, I have no evidence
to bring forward. In fact the theory is advanced only as a working
hypothesis, not as an argument capable of proof. It is possible that
France at that time was an important factor as regards technique, as
it has been since, and is still. But, without leaving our own shores,
the logical sequence of development from Bewick, through Harvey,
Mulready and others, does not leave very many terrible gaps. It is true
that this development is always erratic--now towards the good, now to
meretricious qualities.
The more one studies the matter, the more one fancies that certain
drawings not intended for engraving by Mulready, and others by Maclise,
must have had a large share in the movement which culminated about 1865
and died out entirely about 1870. But whatever the influence which set
it going, the ultimate result was British; and, for good or evil, one
cannot avoid a feeling of pride that in the sixties there was art in
England, not where it was officially expected perhaps, but in popular
journals.
It is quite possible that the revival of etching as a fine art, which
took place early in the second half of this century, had no little
direct influence on the illustration of the period. Many artists, who
are foremost as draughtsmen upon wood, experimented with the etcher's
needle. _The Germ_, 1850, was illustrated by etchings; but, with every
desire to develop this suggestion, it would be folly to regard the much
discussed periodical as the true ancestor of _Once a Week_ and the
rest; even the etching which Millais prepared for it, but never issued,
would not suffice to establish such claim. Two societies, the Etching
Club and the Junior Etching Club, are responsible for the illustration
of several volumes, wherein the etched line is used in a way almost
identical with the same artists' manner when drawing for the engraver.
Indeed, the majority of these etchings would suffer little if
reproduced by direct process to-day, as the finesse of _rebroussage_
and the more subtle qualities of biting and printing are not present
conspicuously in the majority of the plates.
The _Poems by Tom Hood_, illustrated by the Junior Etching Club,
include two delightful Millais', _The Bridge of Sighs and Ruth_, a
_Lee Shore_ by Charles Keene, and two illustrations to the _Ode to the
Moon_, and _The Elm-tree_ by Henry Moore.
_Passages from Modern English Poets_, illustrated by the Junior Etching
Club, was issued (undated), by Day and Son, in 1862, in a large octavo.
In 1876 another edition in larger quarto, with the etchings transferred
to stone, and printed as lithographs, was published by William Tegg.
In this notable volume Millais is represented by _Summer Indolence_
(p. 10), a most graceful study of a girl lying on her back in a meadow
with a small child, who is wearing a daisy chain, seated at her side.
Mr. J. McNeill Whistler contributes two delightful landscapes, _The
Angler_ (p. 7) and _A River Scene_ (p. 45). In these the master-hand
is recognisable at a glance, although the authorship of many of the
rest can only be discovered by the index. They would alone suffice to
make the book a treasure to light upon. To praise them would be absurd,
for one can conceive no more unnecessary verbiage than a eulogy of
Mr. Whistler's etchings--one might as well praise the beauty of June
sunshine. There are many other good things in the book--a Tenniel,
_War and Glory_ (p. 3), four capital studies by Henry Moore (pp. 1,
16, 27, 28), which come as a revelation to those who only know him as
a sea-painter. Four others by M. J. Lawless, an artist who has been
neglected too long, _The Drummer_ (p. 2), _Sisters of Mercy_ (p. 12),
_The Bivouac_ (p. 30), and _The Little Shipwrights_ (p. 36), are all
interesting, if not quite so fascinating, as his drawings upon wood.
H. S. Marks has a _genre_ subject, _A Study in the Egyptian Antiquity
Department of the British Museum_. This portentous title describes an
etching of a country lad in smock-frock, who, with dazed surprise,
is staring into vacancy amid the gigantic scarabs, the great goddess
Pasht, and other familiar objects of the corridor leading to the
Refreshment-room in the great Bloomsbury building, which people of
Grub Street hurry through daily, with downcast eyes, to enjoy the
frugal dainties that a beneficent institution permits them to take by
way of sustenance during the intervals of study in the Reading-room.
Another plate, _Scene of the Plague in London_, 1665, by Charles Keene,
would hardly tempt one to linger before it, but for its signature.
It is a powerful bit of work, but does not show the hand of the
great _Punch_ artist at its best. The rest of the contributions to
this volume are by C. Rossiter, F. Smallfield, Viscount Bury, Lord
G. Fitzgerald, J. W. Oakes, A. J. Lewis, F. Powell, J. Sleigh, H. C.
Whaite, Walter Severn, and W. Gale. Two by J. Clark deserve mention. To
find the painter of cottage-life, with all his Dutch realistic detail,
in company with Mr. Whistler, is a curious instance of extremes meeting.
Without wishing to press the argument unduly, it is evident that
etching which afterwards developed so bravely, and left so many fine
examples, exerted also a secondary influence on the illustration of the
sixties. Hence the somewhat extended reference to the few books which
employed it largely for illustrations.
Those who would have you believe that the great English masters of
illustration failed to obtain contemporary appreciation should note
the three editions of this work as one fact, among a score of others,
which fails to support their theory. Whether from a desire to extol
the past or not, it is certain that those publishers who have been
established more than a quarter of a century claim to have sold far
larger editions of their high-priced illustrated volumes then than
any moderately truthful publisher or editor would dare to claim for
similar ventures to-day. Of course there were fewer books of the sort
issued, and the rivalry of illustrated journalism was infinitely less;
still the people of the fifties, sixties, and seventies paid their
tribute in gold freely and lavishly, and if they offered the last
insult of the populace--popularity--to these undoubted works of art,
it prevents one placing artists of the period among the noble army of
martyrs. Their payment was quite equal to that which is the average
to-day, as a file-copy of one of the important magazines shows. They
were reproduced as well as the means available permitted; the printing
and the general 'get-up' of the books, allowing for the different
ideals which obtained then, was not inferior to the average to-day,
and, as a rule, the authorship of the drawings was duly acknowledged
in the table of contents, and the artists 'starred' in contemporary
advertisements. It is painful to own that even the new appreciation is
not absolutely without precedent. One notable instance of depreciation
cannot be forgotten. Mr. Ruskin, who never expressed admiration of
the illustrations of the sixties, in _Ariadne Florentina_, chose the
current number of the _Cornhill Magazine_ for the text of a diatribe in
which the following passages occur:--
'The cheap popular art cannot draw for you beauty, sense, or
honesty; but every species of distorted folly and vice--the
idiot, the blackguard, the coxcomb, the paltry fool, the
degraded woman--are pictured for your honourable pleasure
in every page, with clumsy caricature, struggling to render
its dulness tolerable by insisting on defect--if, perchance,
a penny or two may be coined out of the cockneys' itch for
loathsomeness.... These ... are favourably representative of
the entire art industry of the modern press--industry enslaved
to the ghastly service of catching the last gleams in the
glued eyes of the daily more bestial English mob--railroad
born and bred, which drags itself about the black world it has
withered under its breath. In the miserable competitive labour
of finding new stimulus for the appetite--daily more gross, of
this tyrannous mob, we may count as lost beyond any hope, the
artists who are dull, docile, or distressed enough to submit
to its demands. And for total result of our English engraving
industry for the last hundred and fifty years, I find that
practically at this moment [1876] I cannot get a _single_ piece
of true, sweet, and comprehensible art to place for instruction
in any children's school.'
But ignoring Mr. Ruskin--if it be possible to ignore the absolute
leader of taste in the sixties--we find little but praise. Yet the
popularity of 1860-1870 naturally incurred the inevitable law of
reaction, and was at its lowest ebb in the eighties; but now late in
the nineties our revived applause is but an echo of that which was
awarded to the work when it appealed not only by all its art, but with
novelty and an air of being 'up to date' that cannot, in the course of
things, be ever again its portion. We are not so much better than our
fathers, after all, in recognising the good things of the sixties, or
in trying to do our best in our way. Which is just what they tried to
do in theirs.
CHAPTER XII: SOME ILLUSTRATORS OF THE SIXTIES
Although space forbids biographical notice, even in the briefest form,
of all the artists mentioned in the preceding pages, and it would be
folly to summarise in a few hasty sentences the complete life-work of
Sir J. E. Millais, P.R.A., Sir John Gilbert, R.A., Mr. Birket Foster,
or Mr. G. Du Maurier, to take but a few instances; yet in the case of
Mr. Arthur Hughes, the late M. J. Lawless, and others, to give more
exact references to their published illustrations is perhaps easier
in this way than any other, especially as a complete iconography of
all the chief artists in the movement had perforce to be abandoned for
want of space. Many illustrators--Ford Madox Brown, Charles Keene, A.
Boyd Houghton, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, W. B. Scott, Fred Walker, and J.
Wolf--have already been commemorated in monographs; not confined, it
is true, in every instance to the subject of this book, but naturally
taking it as part of the life-work of the hero, even when, as in
Rossetti's case, the illustrations form but an infinitesimally small
percentage of the works he produced. The artists hereafter noticed
have been chosen entirely from the collector's standpoint, and with
the intention of assisting those who wish to make representative or
complete collections of the work of each particular man.
* * * * *
GEORGE HOUSMAN THOMAS (1824-1868) was born in London, December 4,
1824. When only fourteen he became apprenticed to G. Bonner, a
wood-engraver, and at fifteen obtained the prize of a silver palette
from the Society of Arts, for an original drawing, _Please to remember
the Grotto_. After he had served his apprenticeship, in conjunction
with Henry Harrison he set up in Paris as a wood-engraver. The firm
became so successful that they employed six or seven assistants. He
was then tempted to go to New York to establish an illustrated paper,
which was also a success, although losses on other ventures forced the
proprietors to give it up. This led the artist to turn his attention
to another field of engraving for bank notes, which are estimated
among the most beautiful of their kind. A few years later he returned
to England, and became attached to the _Illustrated London News_. In
1848 a special expedition to Italy, which resulted in a long series of
illustrations of Garibaldi's defence of Rome against the French, not
merely established his lasting reputation, but incidentally extended
his taste and knowledge by the opportunity it gave him for studying the
works of the old masters. In 1854 a sketch of sailors belonging to the
Baltic Fleet, which was published in the _Illustrated London News_,
attracted the attention of the Queen, who caused inquiries to be made,
which led to the artist being employed by Her Majesty to paint for
her the principal events of her reign. Besides a series of important
paintings in oil, he executed a large number of drawings and sketches
which form an album of great interest.
'As an illustrator of books he was remarkable,' says his anonymous
biographer,[8] 'for facility of execution and aptness of character.'
His illustrations of _Hiawatha_ (Kent and Co.), _Armadale_ (Wilkie
Collins), and _The Last Chronicle of Barset_ (Anthony Trollope),
are perhaps the most important; but _London Society_, Mrs. Gatty's
_Parables_, _Cassell's Magazine_, _The Quiver_, _Illustrated Readings_,
and many other volumes of the period, contain numerous examples of his
work in this department. In the person of his brother, Mr. W. Luson
Thomas, the managing director of the _Graphic_ and the _Daily Graphic_,
and his nephew, Carmichael Thomas, Art Director of the _Graphic_, the
family name is still associated with the most notable movement in
illustration during the period which immediately followed that to which
this book is devoted.
* * * * *
[Illustration: FORD MADOX BROWN
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY' 1880
JOSEPH'S COAT]
SIR JOHN EVERETT MILLAIS, Bart., P.R.A. (born June 8, 1829, died August
13, 1896).--As these proofs were being sent to press, the greatest
illustrator of all (having regard to his place as the pioneer of the
school which immediately succeeded the pre-Raphaelites, the number of
his designs, and their superlative excellence), has joined the majority
of his fellow-workers in the sixties. It would be impossible in a
few lines to summarise his contributions to the 'black-and-white' of
English art; that task will doubtless be undertaken adequately. But, if
all the rest of the work of the period were lost, his contributions
alone might justly support every word that has been or will be said
in praise of 'the golden decade.' From the 1857 _Tennyson_ to his
latest illustration he added masterpiece to masterpiece, and, were his
triumphant career as a painter completely ignored, might yet be ranked
as a great master on the strength of these alone.
* * * * *
PAUL GRAY (1848-1868).--A most promising young illustrator, whose
early death was most keenly regretted by those who knew him best, Paul
Gray was born in Dublin, May 17, 1848. He died November 14, 1868. In
the progress of this work mention has been made of all illustrations
which it has been possible to identify; many of the cartoons for _Fun_,
being unsigned, could not be attributed to him with certainty. _The
Savage Club Papers_, First Series (Tinsley, 1863), contain his last
drawing, _Sweethearting_. In the preface we read: 'When this work
was undertaken, that clever young artist [Paul Gray] was foremost in
offering his co-operation; for he whom we mourned, and whose legacy
of sorrow one had accepted, was his dear friend. The shock which his
system, already weakened by the saddest of all maladies, received by
the sudden death of that friend was more than his gentle spirit could
sustain. He lived just long enough to finish his drawing, and then he
left us to join his friend.' In the record of the periodicals of the
sixties will be found many references to his work, which is, perhaps,
most familiar in connection with Charles Kingsley's _Hereward the Wake_.
* * * * *
DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI (_b._ 1828, _d._ 1882). The comparatively
few illustrations by Rossetti have been described and reproduced so
often, that it would seem superfluous to add a word more here. Yet,
recognising their influence to-day, we must also remember that many
people who are attracted by this side of Rossetti's art may not be
familiar with the oft-told story of his career. He, more than any
modern painter, would seem to be responsible for the present decorative
school of illustrators, whose work has attracted unusual interest
from many continental critics of late, and is recognised by them as
peculiarly 'English.' While the man in the street would no doubt choose
'Phiz,' Cruikshank, Leech, Tenniel, Gilbert, Fred Walker, or Pinwell as
typically 'English,' the foreigner prefers to regard the illustrations
by Rossetti, his immediate followers, and his later disciples as
representing that English movement, which the native is apt to look
upon as something exotic and bizarre.
Yet it is not necessary to discuss Rossetti's position as founder of
the pre-Raphaelite school, nor to weigh his claims to the leadership
against those of Ford Madox Brown and Holman Hunt. But, without
ignoring the black-and-white work of the two last named, there can
be no doubt that it is Rossetti who has most influenced subsequent
draughtsmen.
Nor at the time was his position as an illustrator misunderstood. When
we find that he received £30 each for the small Tennyson drawings on
wood, the fact proves at the outset that the market value of his work
was not ignored by his publishers. At the present day when any writer
on men of the sixties is accused of an attempt to 'discover' them, and
the appreciation he bestows is regarded as an attempt to glorify the
appreciator at the expense of the appreciated, it is well to insist
upon the fact that hardly one of the men in favour to-day failed to
meet with substantial recognition at the time. It was not their fate
to do drawings for love, or to publish engravings at their own cost,
or sell as cheap curios works which now realise a thousand times their
first cost.
Drawings paid for at the highest market rate, or, to speak more
accurately, at 'star' prices, published in popular volumes that ran
through large editions, received favourably by contemporary critics,
and frequently alluded to as masterpieces by writers in current
periodicals, cannot be said to have been neglected, nor have they even
been out of favour with artists.
That work, which has afforded so much lasting pleasure, was not
achieved without an undue amount of pain, is easily proved in the case
of Rossetti. So pertinent is a description by his brother, published
lately, that it may be quoted in full, to remind the illustrators of
to-day, who draw on paper and card-board at their ease to any scale
that pleases them, how much less exacting are the conditions under
which they work than those encountered by the artists who were forced
to draw upon an unpleasant surface of white pigment spread upon a
shining wooden block:--
'The Tennyson designs, which were engraved on wood and
published in the _Illustrated Tennyson_, in which Millais,
Hunt, Mulready, and others co-operated,' says Mr. William
Michael Rossetti, 'have in the long run done not a little
to sustain my brother's reputation with the public. At the
time they gave him endless trouble and small satisfaction.
Not indeed that the invention or the mere designing of these
works was troublesome to him. He took great pains with them,
but, as what he wrought at was always something which informed
and glowed in his mind, he was not more tribulated by these
than by other drawings. It must be said, also, that himself
only, and not Tennyson, was his guide. He drew just what he
chose, taking from his author's text nothing more than a hint
and an opportunity. The trouble came in with the engraver
and the publisher. With some of the doings of the engraver,
Dalziel (not Linton, whom he found much more conformable to
his notion), he was grievously disappointed. He probably
exasperated Dalziel, and Dalziel certainly exasperated him.
Blocks were re-worked upon and proofs sent back with vigour.
The publisher, Mr. Moxon, was a still severer affliction. He
called and he wrote. Rossetti was not always up to time, though
he tried his best to be so. In other instances he was up to
time, but his engraver was not up to his mark. I believe that
poor Moxon suffered much, and that soon afterwards he died;
but I do not lay any real blame on my brother, who worked
strenuously and well. As to our great poet Tennyson, who also
ought to have counted for something in the whole affair, I
gather that he really liked Rossetti's designs when he saw
them, and he was not without a perceptible liking and regard
for Rossetti himself, so far as he knew him (they had first met
at Mr. Patmore's house in December 1849); but the illustration
to _St. Cecilia_ puzzled him not a little, and he had to give
up the problem of what it had to do with his work.'[9]
Later on, in the same volume, we find an extract from a letter dated
February 1857, which Dante Gabriel Rossetti wrote to W. Bell Scott:--
'I have designed five blocks for Tennyson, save seven which
are still cutting and maiming. It is a thankless task. After
a fortnight's work my block goes to the engraver, like Agag
delicately, and is hewn in pieces before the Lord Harry.
'ADDRESS TO DALZIEL BROTHERS
'O woodman spare that block,
O gash not anyhow!
It took ten days by clock,
I'd fain protect it now.
_Chorus_--Wild laughter from Dalziels' Workshop.'
Several versions of this incident are current, but Mr. Arthur Hughes's
account has not, I think, been published. It chanced that one day,
during the time he was working in Rossetti's studio, the engraver
called, and finding Rossetti was out, poured forth his trouble and
stated his own view of the matter with spirit. For his defence, as
he put it, much sympathy may be awarded to him. The curious drawings
executed in pencil, ink, and red chalk, crammed with highly-wrought
detail, that were to be translated into clean black and white, were, he
declared, beyond the power of any engraver to translate successfully.
How Mr. Hughes pacified him is a matter of no importance; but it is but
fair to recollect that, even had the elaborate designs been executed
with perfection of technique, any engraver must have needs encountered
a task of no ordinary difficulty. When, however, the white coating had
been rubbed away in parts, and all sorts of strokes in pen, pencil,
and pigment added, it is not surprising that the paraphrase failed to
please the designer. Although the drawings naturally perished in the
cutting, and cannot be brought forward as decisive evidence, we may
believe that the engraver spoilt them, and yet also believe that no
craftsman who ever lived would have been absolutely successful.
The number of Rossetti's book-illustrations is but ten in all,
according to the list given in Mr. William Sharp's admirable monograph.
To these one might perhaps add the frontispiece to that volume; as
although the pen-drawing, _A sonnet is a moment's monument_, was never
intended for reproduction, it forms a most decorative page. There is
also a design for a frontispiece to the _Early Italian Poets_, which
was first reproduced in the _English Illustrated Magazine_, No. 1. The
actual frontispiece was etched but never used, and the exquisitely
dainty version survives only in two impressions from the plate, both
owned by Mr. Fairfax Murray. Another frontispiece, to _The Risen
Life_,[10] a poem by R. C. Jackson, in a cover designed by D. G. R.
(R. Elkins and Co., 10 Castle St., East Oxford St., W., 1884), belongs
to the same category, in which may be placed _The Queen's Page_,
drawn in 1854, and reproduced in _Flower Pieces_ by Allingham (Reeves
& Turner, 1888). The ten which were all (I believe) drawn upon the
wood include: _Elfen-mere_, published first in William Allingham's
_The Music-master_, 1855, and afterwards reprinted in a later volume,
_Life and Phantasy_, and again in _Flower Pieces_ (1888), by the same
author. This design 'revealed to young Burne-Jones' (so his biographer,
Mr. Malcolm Bell, has recorded) that there existed a strange enchanting
world beyond the hum-drum of this daily life--a world of radiant,
many-coloured lights, of dim mysterious shadows, of harmonies of form
and line, wherein to enter is to walk among the blest--that far-off
world of Art into which many a time since he has made his way and
brought back visions of delight to show his fellow-men. The first
suspicion of that land of faëry came to him when, in a small volume of
poems by William Allingham, he found a little wood-cut, 'Elfen-mere,'
signed with a curious entwinement of the initials D. G. R. The
slumbering spirit of fancy awoke to life within him and cast her spells
upon him never to be shaken off.'
In the _Oxford and Cambridge Magazine_, 1856, Mr. Burne-Jones wrote of
this very design: 'There is one more I cannot help noticing, a drawing
of higher finish and pretension than the last, from the pencil of
Rossetti, in Allingham's _Day and Night Songs_, just published. It is,
I think, the most beautiful drawing for an illustration I have ever
seen: the weird faces of the maids of Elfen-mere, the musical, timed
movement of their arms together as they sing, the face of the man,
above all, are such as only a great artist could conceive.'
This picture, 'three damsels clothed in white,' who came
'With their spindles every night;
Two and one, and three fair maidens,
Spinning to a pulsing cadence,
Singing songs of Elfen-mere,'
reproduced here, is still issued in William Allingham's volume of poems
entitled _Flower Pieces_ (Reeves and Turner, 1888).
Five illustrations to Moxon's edition of _Tennyson's Poems_, 1857,
two in Christina Rossetti's _The Goblin Market and other Poems_,
1862, and two in _The Princes Progress and other Poems_, 1866, by the
same author, complete the ten in question. As the _Tennyson_ has been
republished lately, and a monograph, _Tennyson and his pre-Raphaelite
Illustrators_, by G. Somes Layard (Elliot Stock, 1894), has brought
together every available scrap of material connected with the famous
quintette of designs, it would be superfluous to describe them here
in detail. Any distinctly recognised 'movement' is very rarely a
_crescendo_, but nearly always a waning force that owes what energy it
retains to the original impetus of its founder. Should this statement
be true of any fashion in art, it might be most easily supported, if
applied to Rossetti's ten drawings on wood, set side by side with the
whole mass of modern 'decorative' illustration. Even a great artist
like Howard Pyle has hardly added a new motive to those crowded into
these wood-engravings. The lady by the casement, '_The long hours come
and go_,' upon the title-page of _The Princes Progress_, is an epitome
of a thousand later attempts. Mr. Fairfax Murray has collected over
a dozen studies and preliminary drawings for this little block, that
would appal some of the younger men as evidence of the intense care
with which a masterpiece was wrought of old. Highly-finished drawings
were done over and over again until their author was satisfied. The
frontispieces to _Goblin Market_ and to _The Prince's Progress_,
no less than the Tennyson designs, form, obviously enough, the
treasure-trove whence later men have borrowed; too often exchanging
the gold for very inferior currency. Without attempting to give undue
credit to Rossetti, or denying that collateral influences--notably that
of Walter Crane--had their share in the revival of the nineties, there
can be no doubt that the strongest of the younger 'decorative' artists
to-day are still fascinated by Rossetti--no less irresistibly than 'the
young Burne-Jones' was influenced in 1855.
Therefore the importance of these ten designs cannot be exaggerated.
Whether you regard their influence as unwholesome, and regret the
morbidity of the school that founded itself on them, or prefer to see
in them the germ of a style entirely English in its renaissance, which
has already spread over that Continent which one had deemed inoculated
against any British epidemic, the fact remains that Rossetti is the
golden milestone wherefrom all later work must needs be measured.
No doubt the superb work of Frederick Sandys, had it been more
accessible to the younger artists when the new impetus to decorative
black-and-white began to attract a popular audience, would have found
hardly as ardent disciples.
[Illustration: DANTE GABRIEL ROSSETTI
You should have wept her yesterday
'THE PRINCE'S PROGRESS'
1866]
* * * * *
M. J. LAWLESS (born 1837, died 1864).--This artist, faithful to the
best tradition of the pre-Raphaelite illustrators, seems to have
left few personal memories. Born in 1837, a son of Barry Lawless, a
Dublin solicitor, he was educated at Prior Park School, Bath, and
afterwards attended several drawing schools, and was for a time a pupil
of Henry O'Neil, R.A. He died August 6, 1864. Mr. Edward Walford, who
contributes a short notice of Matthew James Lawless to the _Dictionary
of National Biography_, has only the barest details to record. Nor
do others, who knew him intimately, remember anything more than the
ordinary routine of a short and uneventful life. But his artistic
record is not meagre. In contemporary criticism we find him ranked with
Millais and Sandys; not as equal to either, but as a worthy third. A
fine picture of his, _The Sick Call_ (from the Leathart Collection),
was exhibited again in 1895 at the Guildhall.
But it is by his work as an illustrator he will be remembered, and,
despite the few years he practised, for his first published drawing was
in _Once a Week_, December 15, 1859 (vol. i. p. 505), he has left an
honourable and not inconsiderable amount of work behind him. No search
has lighted upon any work of his outside the pages of the popular
magazines, except a few etchings (in the publications of the Junior
Etching Club), three designs of no great importance in _Lyra Germanica_
(Longmans, 1861), and a pamphlet, the _Life of St. Patrick_, with
some shocking engravings, said by his biographer to be from Lawless's
designs. In the chapters upon _Once a Week_, _London Society_, _Good
Words_, etc., every drawing I have been able to identify is duly
noted. It is not easy to refrain from eulogy upon the work of a
draughtsman with no little individuality and distinction, who has so
far been almost completely forgotten by artists of the present day. The
selection of his work reproduced here by the courtesy of the owners of
the copyright will, perhaps, send many fresh admirers to hunt up the
rest of it for themselves.
* * * * *
ARTHUR BOYD HOUGHTON (1836-1875) was born in 1836, the fourth son of
his father, who was a captain in the Royal Navy. He visited India,
according to some of his biographers; others say that he was never in
the East, but that it was a brother who supplied him with the oriental
details that appear in so many of his drawings. Be that as it may,
his fellow-workers on the _Arabian Nights_ pretended to be jealous
of his Egyptian experience, and declared that it was no good trying
to rival from their imaginings the scenes that he knew by heart.
At present, when all men unite to praise him, it would almost lend
colour to a belief that he was unappreciated by his fellows to read in
a contemporary criticism: 'His designs were often striking in their
effects of black and white, but were wanting in tone and gradation--a
defect partly due to the loss of one eye.' This is only quoted by
way of encouragement to living illustrators, who forget that their
hero, despite sympathy and commissions, suffered also much the same
misunderstanding that is often their lot. Against this may be set a
criticism of yesterday, which runs:--
'As regards "the school of the sixties," now that it has
moved away, we can rightly range the heads of that movement,
and allowing for side impulses from the technique of Menzel,
and still more from the magnetism of Rossetti's personality,
we see, broadly speaking, that with Millais it arrived, with
Houghton it ceased. Under these two leaders it gathered others,
but within ten years its essential work was done. It has all
gone now nobly into the past from the hands of men, some still
living, some dead but yesterday.
'In Houghton's work, two things strike us especially, when we
see it adequately to-day: its mastery of technique and style,
and its temperament: the mastery so swift and spontaneous,
so lavish of its audacities, so noble in its economies; the
temperament so dramatic, so passionate, so satiric, and so
witty. In many of his qualities, in vitality and movement,
Houghton tops Millais. What is missing from his temperament,
if it be a lack and not a quality, is the power to look at
things coolly; he has not, as Millais, the deep mood of
stoical statement, of tragedy grown calm. His tragic note is
vindictive, a little shrill: when he sets himself to depict
contemporary life, as in the _Graphic America_ series, he is
sardonic, impatient, at times morose: his humour carries an
edge of bitterness. But in whatever mood he looks at things,
the mastery of his aim is certain.'[11]
[Illustration:
_Drawn by A. Boyd Houghton._ _Swan Electro-Engraving Co._
READING THE CHRONICLES]
The mass of work accomplished in illustration alone, between his
first appearance and his death in 1875, is amazing. There is scarce
a periodical of any rank which has not at least one example from his
pen. The curt attention given here to the man must be pardoned, as
reference to his work is made on almost every page of this book. For an
appreciative essay, that is a model of its class, one has but to turn
to Mr. Laurence Housman's volume[12] which contains also five original
drawings on wood (reproduced in photogravure) and eighty-three others
from _Dalziel's Arabian Nights_ (Ward, Lock & Co., 1863-65 and
Warne, 1866), _Don Quixote_, the two volumes of Mr. Robert Buchanan's
Poems--_Ballad Stories of the Affections_ (1866), and _North Coast_
(1868), _Home Thoughts_ (1865), _National Nursery Rhymes_ (1871), and
_The Graphic_ (1870).
* * * * *
FREDERICK WALKER[13] (1840-1875), who was born in Marylebone on the
26th of May 1840, has been the subject of so many appreciations, and at
least one admirable monograph, that a most brief notice of his career
as an illustrator will suffice here. His father was a designer of
jewelry and his grandfather had some skill in portrait-painting. How he
began drawing from the Elgin marbles in the British Museum at the age
of sixteen has been told often enough. Many boys of sixteen have done
the same, but it is open to doubt if any one of them has absorbed the
spirit of their models so completely as Fred Walker did. It would be
hardly asserting too much to say for him that they replaced humanity,
and that his male figures seem nearly always youths from the Parthenon
in peasant costume. At seventeen or eighteen he was working at Leigh's
life-class in Newman Street, and at the same time was employed in
Mr. Whymper's wood-engraving establishment. His first appearance in
_Everybody's Journal_ is duly noted elsewhere, also his first drawing
in _Once a Week_; but the peculiar affection he had inspired by his
work has kept most of his critics from saying that some of his earliest
designs, as we know them after engraving, appear distinctly poor. But,
from the time he ceased to act as 'ghost' for Thackeray, and signed his
work with the familiar F. W., his career shows a distinct and sustained
advance until the ill-fated 1875, in which George Mason, G. J. Pinwell,
and A. Boyd Houghton also died.
It is unnecessary to recapitulate in brief the various contributions
to the _Cornhill Magazine_, _Good Words_, _Once a Week_, etc., which
have already been noted in detail. Nor would it be in place here to
dwell upon the personality of the artist; sufficient matter has been
printed already to enable lovers of his works to construct a faithful
portrait of their author--lovable and irritable, with innate genius
and hereditary disease both provoking him to petulant outbursts that
still live in his friends' memories. One anecdote will suffice. A
group of well-known painters were strolling across a bridge on the
Upper Thames. Walker, who was passionately fond of music, had been
playing on a tin whistle, which one of the party, half in joke, half
weary of the fluting, struck from his mouth, so that it fell into the
stream below. In a moment Walker had thrown off his clothes, and,
'looking like a statue come to life, so exquisitely was he built,'
plunged from the wall of the bridge, and, diving, rescued his tin
whistle, which he bore to land in triumph. The trifling incident is
an epitome of the character of the wayward boy, who kept his friends
nevertheless. 'He did not seek beauty,' wrote an ardent student of
his work, 'but it came, while Pinwell thought of and strove for
beauty always, yet often failed to secure it.' That he knew Menzel,
and was influenced by him, is an open secret; but he also owes much
to the pre-Raphaelites--Millais especially. Yet when all he learned
from contemporary artists is fully credited, what is left, and it is
by far the largest portion, is his own absolutely--owing nothing to
any predecessor, except possibly to the sculptors of Greece. He died
in Scotland in June 1875, and was buried at the Marlow he painted so
delightfully, leaving behind him the peculiar immortality that is
awarded more readily to a half-fulfilled life than to one which has
accomplished all it set out to do, and has outlived its own reputation.
* * * * *
GEORGE JOHN PINWELL (1842-1875).--This notable illustrator, whose
work bulks so largely in the latter half of the sixties, was born
December 26, 1842, and died September 8, 1875. He studied at the
Newman Street Academy, entering in 1862. At first his illustrations
show little promise; some of the earliest, in _Lilliput Levée_, a book
of delightful rhymes for children, by Matthew Browne, are singularly
devoid of interest. No engraver's name appears on them, nor is it quite
clear by what process they were reproduced. They are inserted plates,
and, under a strong magnifying glass, the lines suggest lithography.
The unfamiliar medium, supposing they were drawn in lithographic ink,
or by graphotype, or some similar process, would account for the entire
absence of the qualities that might have been expected. Some others, in
_Hacco the Dwarf_ and in _The Happy Home_, the latter in crude colours,
are hardly more interesting.
[Illustration: A. BOYD HOUGHTON
'GOOD WORDS'
1862, p. 504
MY TREASURE]
According to Mr. Harry Quilter,[14] Pinwell began life as a butterman's
boy in the City Road, whose duty, among other things, was to 'stand
outside the shop on Saturday nights shouting Buy! Buy! Buy!' Later
on he seems to have been a 'carpet-planner.' If one might read the
words as 'carpet-designer,' the fact of turning up about this time at
Leigh's night-school, where he met Fred Walker, would not be quite so
surprising.
Between Walker and Pinwell a friendship sprang up, but it seems to
have been Thomas White who introduced the former to _Once a Week_,
wherein his first contribution, _The Saturnalia_, was published,
January 31, 1863. In 1864 he began to work for Messrs. Dalziel on
the _Arabian Nights_ and the _Illustrated Goldsmith_, which latter
is his most important volume. In 1869 he became a member of the Old
Water Colour Society, but his work as a colourist does not concern
us here. Nor is it necessary to recapitulate the enormous quantity
of his designs which in magazines and books are noticed elsewhere in
these pages. Some illustrations to _Jean Ingelow's Poems_, notably
seven to _The High Tide_, represent his best period. But he suffered
terribly by translation at the engravers' hands. The immobility,
which characterises so many of his figures, does not appear in the
few drawings which survive. Mr. Pennell is the fortunate possessor
of several of the designs for _The High Tide_; but the pleasure of
studying these originals is changed to pain when one remembers how many
others were cut away by the engraver. It is curious that three men, so
intimately associated as Walker, Pinwell, and Houghton, should have
preserved their individuality so entirely. It is impossible to confuse
the work of any of them. Walker infused a grace into the commonplace
which, so far as the engravings are concerned, sometimes escaped
Pinwell's far more imaginative creations; while Houghton lived in a
world of his own, wherein all animate and inanimate objects obeyed the
lines, the swirling curves, he delighted in. If, as has been well said,
Walker was a Greek--but a dull Greek--then Pinwell may be called a
Naturalist with a touch of realism in his technique, while Houghton was
romantic to the core in essence and manipulation alike.
* * * * *
ARTHUR HUGHES.--In 1855 appeared _The Music-master_, the second
enlarged and illustrated edition of _Day and Night Songs_, a book
of poems by William Allingham, to which reference has been made
several times in this chronicle. Of its ten illustrations, seven and
a vignette are from the hand of Arthur Hughes. The artist thus early
associated with the leaders of the pre-Raphaelite movement, and still
actively at work, was never, technically, a member of the Brotherhood.
In 1858, however, we find him one of the enthusiastic young artists
Rossetti had gathered round him with a view to the production of the
so-called frescoes in the Oxford Union. The oft-told tale of this noble
failure need not be repeated here. Those who were responsible for the
paintings in question appear more or less relieved to find that the
work has ceased to exist. True, the majority of picture-lovers who
have never seen them regard them, sentimentally, as the fine flower
of pre-Raphaelite art, which faded before it was fully open. Judging
from the restored fragments which remain, had they been permanent, they
would not have been more than interesting curiosities; examples of the
'prentice efforts' of men who afterwards shaped the course of British
art, not merely for their own generation, but, as we can see to-day,
for a much longer time. The great difficulties of the task these ardent
novices undertook so light-heartedly may or may not have checked
the practice of wall-painting in England, if, indeed, one can speak
of a check to a movement that never existed. To trace in detail the
course of Mr. Hughes's work, from this date to the present, would be a
pleasant and somewhat lengthy task. Yet, although greater men are less
fully dealt with, a running narrative showing where the illustrations
appeared will be more valuable than any attempt to estimate the
intrinsic value of the work, or explain its attractive quality. That
the work is singularly lovable, and has found staunch and ardent
admirers amid varying schools of artists, is unquestionable. Without
claiming that it equals the best work of the 'Brotherhood,' it has a
charm all its own. The sense of delight in lovely things is present
throughout, nor does its elegance often degenerate to mere prettiness.
The naïve expression of a child's ideal of lovely forms, with a
curiously well-sustained type of beauty, neither Greek nor Gothic, yet
having a touch of paganism in its mysticism, is always present in it.
With a peculiarly individual manner--so that the signature, which is
usually to be found in some unobtrusive corner, is needless,--a student
of illustration can 'spot' an Arthur Hughes at the most rapid glance as
surely as he could identify a Du Maurier.
There are painters and draughtsmen of all periods, before whose work
you are well content to cease from criticism, and to enjoy simply, with
all their imperfections, the qualities that attract you. Passionate
intensity, the perfection of academic draughtsmanship, dramatic
composition as it is usually understood, may, or may not, be always
evident. Whether they are or not is in this case of entirely secondary
importance. Certain indefinable qualities, lovable and lasting, are
sure to be the most noticeable, whether you light on a print that has
escaped you hitherto, or turn up one that you have known since the
day it was published. Like caters for the like, and this love which
the work provokes from those to whom it appeals seems also its chief
characteristic. In the whole mass of pictorial art you can hardly
find its equal in this particular respect. The care and sorrow of
life, its disillusions and injustice, are not so much forgotten, or
set aside thoughtlessly, as recognised at their relative unimportance
when contrasted with the widespread, yet absolutely indefinable thing,
which it is convenient to term Love. Not, be it explained, Love in its
carnal sense, but, in an abstract spiritual way, which seeks the quiet
happiness in adding to the joy of others, and trusts that somehow,
somewhere, good is the final end of ill.
It may be that this attempt to explain the impression of Mr. Hughes's
work is a purely personal one, but it is one that intimate study for
many years strengthens and raises to the unassailable position of a
positive fact. At the risk of appearing mawkishly sentimental, even
with the greater risk of reflecting sentimentality upon artistic work
which it has not, this impression of Mr. Arthur Hughes's art must be
set down unmistakably. Looking upon it from a purely technical aspect,
you might find much to praise, and perhaps a little to criticise; but,
taking it as an art addressed often enough to the purpose of forming
artistic ideals in the minds of the young, you cannot but regret that
the boys and girls of to-day, despite the army of artists of all ranks
catering for them, cannot know the peculiar delight that the children
of the sixties and early seventies enjoyed.
Arthur Hughes was born in London in 1832, and became a pupil of
Soames of the Royal Academy Schools, exhibiting for the first time
at the annual exhibition in 1854. In 1855 appeared, as we have just
seen, _The Music-master_. The artist seems to have worked fitfully at
illustrations, but his honourable labours in painting dispose of any
charge of indolence, and, did but the scope of this work permit it,
a still more interesting record of his artistic career could be made
by including a list of pictures exhibited at the Royal Academy, the
Institute, the Grosvenor, the New Gallery, and elsewhere. Between 1855
and 1861 I have found no illustrations, nor does he himself recall any.
In the latter year there are two designs in _The Queen_ to poems by
George Mac Donald and F. Greenwood. The next magazine illustration in
order is _At the Sepulchre_ in _Good Words_, 1864. In 1866 appeared an
edition of Tennyson's _Enoch Arden_, with twenty-five illustrations by
Arthur Hughes.' This noteworthy book is one of the essential volumes to
those who make ever so small a collection of the books of the sixties.
Although the work is unequal, it contains some of his most delightful
drawings. In the same year _London Society_ contained _The Farewell
Salutation_. In 1867 George Mac Donald's _Dealings with the Fairies_
was published. This dainty little book, which contains some very
typical work, is exceptionally scarce. Another book which was published
in 1868 is now very difficult to run across in its first edition,
_Five Days' Entertainment at Wentworth Grange_, by F. T. Palgrave,
illustrated with seventeen designs, the woodcuts (_sic_) being by J.
Cooper, and a vignette engraved on steel by C. H. Jeens.
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'GOOD WORDS'
1871, p. 33
THE LETTER]
[Illustration: ARTHUR HUGHES
'GOOD WORDS'
1871, p. 183
THE DIAL--'SUN COMES,
MOON COMES']
To 1869 belongs the book with which the artist is most frequently
associated, _Tom Brown's School Days_, by Tom Hughes, not a relative of
the illustrator as the name might suggest. To descant on the merits of
this edition to-day were foolish. When one hears of a new illustrated
edition being contemplated, it seems sacrilege, and one realises
how distinctly a newly illustrated _Tom Brown_ would separate the
generation that knew the book through Mr. Arthur Hughes's imagination
from those who will make friends with it in company with another
artist. Incidents like these bring home the inevitable change of
taste with passing time more vividly than far weightier matters enforce
it.
_Good Words_ in 1869 contains two drawings to _Carmina Nuptialia_,
and _The Sunday Magazine_ the same year has a very beautiful
composition, _Blessings in Disguise_. In 1870-1871 _Good Words for the
Young_ includes, in the first two volumes, no less than seventy-six
illustrations by Mr. Hughes to _At the Back of the North Wind_,
fourteen to _The Boy in Grey_, thirty to _Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood_,
thirty to _The Princess and Goblin_, ten to _Lilliput Revels_, six to
_Lilliput Lectures_, and two to _King Arthur_, besides one each to
_Fancy_, _The Mariner's Cave_, and a notable design to _The Wind and
the Moon_. In 1871 also belongs _My Lady Wind_ (p. 38), _Little Tommy
Tucker_ (p. 46), in _Novello's National Nursery Rhymes_.
In 1870 _Good Words_ contains four: _The Mother and the Angel_ and
three full-page designs, which rank among the most important of the
artist's work in illustration, to Tennyson's _Loves of the Wrens_.
This song-cycle, which the late Poet Laureate wrote expressly for
Sullivan to set to music, was issued in 1870 in a sumptuous quarto.
The publisher, Strahan, who at that time issued all Tennyson's work,
had intended to include illustrations, and three were finished before
the poet vetoed the project. These were cut down and issued with
the accompanying lyrics in _Good Words_. Although the artist, vexed
no doubt at their curtailment, and by no means satisfied with their
engraving, does not rank them among his best things, few who collect
his work will share his view. Despite the trespass beyond the limit
of this book, it would be better to continue the list to date, and it
is all too brief. In 1872 _Good Words_ contains five of his designs,
and _Good Words for the Young_ twenty-four to _Innocent's Island_, and
eight to _Gutta-Percha Willie_.
1872 saw two remarkably good volumes decorated by this artist, T.
Gordon Hake's _Parables and Tales_ (Chapman and Hall) and _Sing Song_,
a book of nursery rhymes by Christina Rossetti (Routledge).
In 1873 ten to _Sindbad the Sailor_, and six or seven others appeared
in _Good Words for the Young_, now entitled _Good Things_. To this year
belongs also _Speaking Likenesses_ by Christina Rossetti, with its
dozen fanciful and charming designs; and a frontispiece and full page
(p. 331), in Mr. George Mac Donald's _England's Antiphon_ (Macmillan).
In 1889 or 1890 _The Graphic_ Christmas number contained two full-page
illustrations by this artist. To 1892 belongs a delightful vignette
upon the title-page of Mrs. George Mac Donald's _Chamber Dramas_. With
a bare mention of seven drawings, inadequately reproduced in _The
London Home Monthly_, 1895, the record of Mr. Arthur Hughes's work
must close; Several designs to a poem by Jean Ingelow, _The Shepherd's
Lady_, the artist has lost sight of, and the date of the first edition
of _Five Old Friends and a Young Prince_, by Miss Thackeray, with a
vignette, I have failed to trace at the British Museum or elsewhere.
As Mr. Arthur Hughes, in the _Music-master_ (1855), heads the list, so
it seemed fit to mark his position by a fuller record than could be
awarded to other of his contemporaries still living; partly because
the comparatively small number of illustrations made a fairly complete
record possible.
* * * * *
FREDERICK SANDYS.--This most admirable illustrator 'was born in Norwich
in 1832, the son of a painter of the place, from whom he received his
earliest art-instruction. Among his first drawings was a series of
illustrations of the birds of Norfolk, and another dealing with the
antiquities of his native city. Probably he first exhibited in 1851,
with a portrait (in crayons) of "Henry, Lord Loftus" which appears
as the work of "F. Sands" in the catalogue of the Royal Academy to
whose exhibitions he has contributed in all forty-seven pictures and
drawings.'[15]
The above, extracted from Mr. J. M. Gray's article, 'Frederick Sandys
and the woodcut designers of thirty years ago,' gives the facts which
concern us here. A most interesting study of the same artist by the
same critic, in the _Art Journal_,[16] supplies more description
and analysed appreciation. The eulogy by Mr. Joseph Pennell in _The
Quarto_[17] must not be forgotten. Further references to Mr. Sandys
appear in a lecture delivered by Professor Herkomer at the Royal
Institution, printed in the _Art Journal_, 1883, and in a review of
Thornbury's _Ballads_ by Mr. Edmund Gosse in _The Academy_.[18]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'CENTURY GUILD HOBBY-HORSE'
VOL. III. p. 147
DANAE IN THE
BRAZEN CHAMBER]
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
JACOB HEARS THE VOICE
OF THE LORD]
It is quite possible, although only thirteen of the thirty or
so of illustrations by Frederick Sandys appeared in _Once a Week_,
that these thirteen have been the most potent factor in giving the
magazine its peculiar place in the hearts of artists. The general
public may have forgotten its early volumes, but at no time since they
were published have painters and pen-draughtsmen failed to prize them.
During the years that saw them appear there are frequent laudatory
references in contemporary journals, with now and again the spiteful
attack which is only awarded to work that is unlike the average.
Elsewhere mention is made of articles upon them which have appeared
from time to time by Messrs. Edmund Gosse, J. M. Gray, Joseph Pennell,
and others. During the 'seventies,' no less than in the 'eighties' or
'nineties,' men cut out the pages and kept them in their portfolios;
so that to-day, in buying volumes of the magazine, a wise person is
careful to see that the 'Sandys' are all there before completing the
purchase. Therefore, should the larger public admit them formally
into the limited group of its acknowledged masterpieces, it will
only imitate the attitude which from the first fellow-artists have
maintained towards them.
The original drawings, '_If_,' _Life's Journey_, _The Little
Mourner_, and _Jacques de Caumont_, were exhibited at the 'Arts and
Crafts,' 1893. That a companion volume to Millais's _Parables_, with
illustrations of _The Story of Joseph_, was actually projected,
and the first drawings completed, is true, and one's regret that
circumstances--those hideous circumstances, which need not be
explained fully, of an artist's ideas rejected by a too prudish
publisher--prevented its completion, is perhaps the most depressing
item recorded in the pages of this volume.
That some thirty designs all told should have established the lasting
reputation of an artist would be somewhat surprising, did not one
realise that almost every one is a masterpiece of its kind. Owing
to the courtesy of all concerned, so large a number of these are
reproduced herewith that a detailed description of each would be
superfluous. But, at the risk of repeating a list already printed and
reprinted, it is well to condense the scattered references in the
foregoing pages in a convenient paragraph, wherein those republished
in Thornbury's _Legendary Ballads_ (Chatto, 1876) are noted with an
asterisk:--
THE CORNHILL MAGAZINE: _The Portent_ ('60), _Manoli_ ('62), _Cleopatra_
('66); ONCE A WEEK: *_Yet once more on the organ play_, _The Sailor's
Bride_, _From my Window_, *_Three Statues of Ægina_, _Rosamund Queen of
the Lombards_ (all 1861), *_The Old Chartist_, *_The King at the Gate_,
*_Jacques de Caumont_, *_King Warwolf_, *_The Boy Martyr_, *_Harold
Harfagr_ (all '62), and _Helen and Cassandra_ ('66); GOOD WORDS: _Until
her Death_ ('62), _Sleep_ ('63); CHURCHMAN'S FAMILY MAGAZINE: *_The
Waiting Time_ ('63); SHILLING MAGAZINE: _Amor Mundi_ ('65); THE QUIVER:
_Advent of Winter_ ('66); THE ARGOSY: _'If'_ ('65); THE CENTURY GUILD
HOBBY HORSE: _Danae_ ('88); WILMOT'S SACRED POETRY: _Life's Journey_,
_The Little Mourner_; CASSELL'S FAMILY MAGAZINE: _Proud Maisie_ ('81);
and DALZIELS' BIBLE GALLERY: _Jacob hears the voice of the Lord_.
[Illustration: FREDERICK SANDYS
'THE QUIVER'
OCTOBER]
In addition, it may be interesting to add notes of other
drawings:--_The Nightmare_ (1857)[19], a parody of _Sir Isumbras at
the Ford_, by Millais, which shows a braying ass marked 'J. R.' (for
John Ruskin), with Millais, Rossetti, and Holman Hunt on his back;
_Morgan le Fay_, reproduced as a double-page supplement in _The British
Architect_, October 31, 1879; a frontispiece, engraved on steel by J.
Saddler, for Miss Muloch's _Christian's Mistake_ (Hurst and Blackett),
and another for _The Shaving of Shagpat_ (Chapman and Hall, 1865); a
portrait of Matthew Arnold, engraved by O. Lacour, published in _The
English Illustrated Magazine_, January 1884; another of Professor J.
R. Green, engraved by G. J. Stodardt, in _The Conquest of England_,
1883; and one of Robert Browning, published in _The Magazine of Art_
shortly after the poet's death; _Miranda_, a drawing reproduced in _The
Century Guild Hobby Horse_, vol. iii. p. 41; _Medea_, reproduced (as a
silver-print photograph) in Col. Richard's poem of that name (Chapman
and Hall, 1869); a reproduction of the original drawing for _Amor
Mundi_, and studies for the same, in the two editions of Mr. Pennell's
_Pen-Drawing and Pen-Draughtsmen_ (Macmillan); a reproduction of an
unfinished drawing on wood, _The Spirit of the Storm_, in _The Quarto_
(No. 1, 1896); _Proud Maisie in Pan_ (1881), reissued in _Songs of the
North_, and engraved by W. Spielmayer (from the original in possession
of Dr. John Todhunter) in the _English Illustrated Magazine_, May
1891, and the original drawing for the _Advent of Winter_ and one of
_Two Heads_, reproduced in J. M. Gray's article in the _Art Journal_
(March 1884). Whether the _Judith_ here reproduced was originally drawn
for engraving I cannot say.
To add another eulogy of these works is hardly necessary at this
moment, when their superb quality has provoked a still wider
recognition than ever. Concerning the engraving of some Mr. Sandys
complained bitterly, but of others, notably the _Danae_, he wrote in
October 1880: 'My drawing was most perfectly cut by Swain, from my
point of view, the best piece of wood-cutting of our time--mind I
am not speaking of my work, but Swain's.' To see that the artist's
complaint was at times not unfounded one has but to compare the _Advent
of Winter_ as it appears in a reproduction of the drawing (_Art
Journal_, March 1884) and in _The Quiver_. 'It was my best drawing
entirely spoilt by the cutter,' he said; but this was perhaps a rather
hasty criticism that is hardly proved up to the hilt by the published
evidence.
As a few contemporary criticisms quoted elsewhere go to prove, Sandys
was never ignored by artists nor by people of taste. To-day there
are dozens of men in Europe without popular appreciation at home or
abroad, but surely if his fellows recognise the master-hand, it is of
little moment whether the cheap periodicals ignore him, or publish
more or less adequately illustrated articles on the man and his work.
Frederick Sandys is and has been a name to conjure with for the last
thirty years. Though still alive, he has gained (I believe) no official
recognition. But that is of little consequence. There are laureates
uncrowned and presidents unelected still living among us whose lasting
fame is more secure than that of many who have worn the empty titles
without enjoying the unstinted approval of fellow-craftsmen which alone
makes any honour worthy an artist's acceptance.
* * * * *
SIR EDWARD BURNE-JONES.--The illustrations of this artist are so few
that it is a matter of regret that they could not all be reproduced
here. But the artist, without withholding permission, expressed a
strong wish that they should not be reprinted. The two in _Good Words_
have been already named. Others to a quite forgotten book must not be
mentioned; but it is safe to say that no human being, who did not
know by whom they were produced, would recognise them. A beautiful
design[20] for a frontispiece to Mr. William Morris's _Love is Enough_
was never engraved. The _Nativity_ in Gatty's _Parables from Nature_,
and the one design in the _Dalziel Bible_ have already been named.
Many drawings for _Cupid and Psyche_, the first portion of a proposed
illustrated folio edition of _The Earthly Paradise_, were actually
engraved, some of the blocks being cut by Mr. Morris himself. Several
sets of impressions exist, and rumour for a long time babbled of a
future Kelmscott Press edition. Of his more recent designs nothing
can be said here; besides being a quarter of a century later than the
prescribed limits of the volume, they are as familiar as any modern
work could be.
* * * * *
WALTER CRANE.--This popular artist was born in Liverpool, August 15,
1845, his father being sometime secretary and treasurer of the (then)
Liverpool Academy. After a boyhood spent mostly at Torquay the family
came to London in 1857. In 1859 he became a pupil of Mr. W. J. Linton,
the well-known engraver, and remained with him for three years. About
1865 he first saw the work of Burne-Jones at the Society of Painters
in Water Colours. These drawings, and some Japanese toy-books which
fell in his way, have no doubt strongly influenced his style; but the
earlier pre-Raphaelites and the _Once a Week_ school had been eagerly
studied before. Although Mr. Crane, with his distinctly individual
manner, is not a typical artist of the sixties any more than of the
seventies, or of to-day, and although his style had hardly found its
full expression at that time, except in the toy-books, yet no record of
the period could be complete without a notice of one whose loyalty to a
particular style has done much to found the modern 'decorative school.'
[Illustration: WALTER CRANE
'GOOD WORDS'
1863, p. 795
TREASURE-TROVE]
His first published drawing, _A man in the coils of a serpent_, appears
in a quite forgotten magazine called _Entertaining Things_, vol. i.
1861, p. 327 (Virtue); others, immature, and spoilt by the engraver,
are in _The Talking Fire-irons_ and similar tracts by the Rev. H.
B. Power. In many of the magazines, of which the contents are duly
noted,--_Good Words_, _Once a Week_, _The Argosy_, _London Society_,
etc.--reference has been already made to each of his drawings as it
appeared therein. A bibliography of his work, to be exhaustive, would
take up more room than space permitted here. As it will be the task
of the one, whoever he may be, who undertakes to chronicle English
illustrations of the seventies, it may be left without further notice.
For, with the exception of the _New Forest_ (1862), all the other books
which may be called masterpieces of their order, _Grimms' Household
Stories_, _The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde_, _The Baby's Bouquet_,
_Baby's Opera_, _Æsop's Fables_, _Flora's Feast_, _Queen Summer_, the
long series of Mrs. Molesworth's children's books, many 'coloured
boards' for novels, and the rest, belong to a later period.
To find that a large paper copy of _Grimms' Household Stories_ fetched
thirty-six pounds at Lord Leighton's sale is a proof that collectors
of 'Cranes' are already in full cry. Two hundred and fifty copies of
this book were issued in large paper; the copy in question, although
handsomely bound, did not derive its value solely from that fact.
Modern readers rubbed their eyes to find a recent _édition de luxe_
fetching a record price; but, if certain signs are not misleading, the
market value of many books of the sixties will show a rapid increase
that will surprise the apathetic collector, who now regards them as
commonplace. To believe that the worth of anything is just as much as
it will bring is a most foolish test of intrinsic value; but, should
the auctioneer's marked catalogue of a few years hence show that 'the
sixties' produced works which coax the reluctant guineas out of the
pockets of those who a short time before would not expend shillings, it
will but reflect the well-seasoned verdict of artists for years past.
In matters of science and of commerce the man in the street acts on the
opinion of the expert, but in matters of art he usually prefers his
own. If, when he wakens to the intrinsic value of objects about which
artists know no difference of opinion, he has to pay heavily for his
conceited belief in his own judgment, it is at once poetic justice and
good common sense.
Space forbids, unfortunately, detailed notices of Fred Barnard, C. H.
Bennett, T. Morten, George Du Maurier, John Pettie, R.A., and many
other deceased artists whose works have been frequently referred to in
previous chapters.
Fairly complete iconographies had been prepared of the works of Mr.
Birket Foster, Sir John Gilbert, and Ernest Griset. These, and other no
less important lists, have also been omitted for the same reason.
Nor is it necessary to include here notices of artists whose fame has
been established in another realm of art--such as Mr. Whistler, Mr.
Luke Fildes, R.A., Professor Herkomer, R.A., Messrs. W. Q. Orchardson,
R.A., H. S. Marks, R.A., H. H. Armstead, R.A., Edmund J. Poynter, R.A.,
G. H. Boughton, J. W. North, R.A., and George Frederick Watts, R.A.
Others, including W. Small, Charles Green, Sir John Tenniel, would each
require a volume, instead of a few paragraphs, to do even bare justice
to the amazing quantity of notable illustrations they have produced.
Fortunately most of them are still alive and active, so that a more
worthy excuse remains for omitting to give a complete iconography of
each one here, for they belong to a far more extended period than is
covered by this book.
DALZIEL BROTHERS
The firm of Dalziel Brothers deserves more notice than it has received
in the many incidental references throughout this book. To Mr. Thomas
Dalziel (still alive though past fourscore) and to his brother Edward
may be awarded the credit of exercising keen critical judgment in the
discovery of latent talent among the art students of their day, and
of acting as liberal patrons of the art of illustration. In a most
courteous letter, written in reply to my request for some details of
the establishment of the firm, the youngest brother of the four (Mr.
Thomas Dalziel) writes: 'We were constant and untiring workers with
our own hands, untiring because it was truly a labour of love. The
extension and development of our transactions and the carrying out of
many of the fine art works which we published, is unquestionably due to
my brother Edward Dalziel, and to this I am at all times ready to bear
unhesitating testimony.'
That these talented engravers were draughtsmen of no mean order might
be proved in a hundred instances; one or two blocks here reprinted
will suffice to establish their right to an honourable position as
illustrators.
[Illustration: T. DALZIEL
DALZIELS' 'ARABIAN
NIGHTS,' p. 161
BEDREDDIN HASSAN AND
THE PASTRYCOOK]
[Illustration: T. DALZIEL
DALZIELS' 'BIBLE
GALLERY,' 1880
THE DESTRUCTION OF SODOM]
Among the young artists to whom they gave commissions, at the
time in a student's career when encouragement of that description is
so vital, we find:--Fred Walker, G. J. Pinwell, A. Boyd Houghton, J.
D. Watson, John Pettie, R.A., Professor Herkomer, R.A., J. W. North,
A.R.A., and Fred Barnard. Artists of eminence, who in all human
probability would never have experimented in drawing upon wood but for
Messrs. Dalziels' suggestion, include the late Lord Leighton, P.R.A.,
Mr. G. F. Watts, R.A., and Mr. H. Stacy Marks, R.A. Other illustrators
who owe much to the enterprise of this firm, and who in turn helped to
make its reputation, include Mr. Birket Foster, Sir John Gilbert, R.A.,
Mr. George Du Maurier, Sir John Tenniel, and Mr. Harrison Weir.
It has been impossible to credit these engravers with their due
share in every work mentioned in our pages, because to do this would
have necessitated, in common justice, a complete record of the other
engravers also; in itself enough to double the length of the chronicle
already far too verbose. The engravings in _Punch_ in its early years,
and the _Cornhill_ through its finest period, were intrusted to Messrs.
Dalziel, while of _Good Words_ and _The Sunday Magazine_ the choice of
pictures and their reproduction alike were entirely under their control.
The Dalziel Brothers were born at Wooler, Northumberland, but spent
most of their early days in Newcastle-on-Tyne. Their craft was learned
from pupils of Thomas Bewick. In 1835 George Dalziel came to London,
followed soon after by Edward, and later by John and Thomas. They were
all draughtsmen as well as engravers. Thomas devoted himself entirely
to drawing. There was also a sister, 'Margaret' (who died in 1894),
who practised the art of wood-engraving for many years, with results
distinguished for their minute elaboration and fine feeling.
Soon after settling in London, George was associated with Ebenezer
Landells (who died in 1869); and the brothers later became intimate
with Bewick's favourite pupil, William Harvey, for whom they engraved
many of his drawings for Lane's _Arabian Nights_, Charles Knight's
_Shakespeare_ and _Bunyan_, and many other works. Still later they
became acquainted with [Sir] John Gilbert, and were 'the first who
endeavoured to render his drawings throughout according to his own
style of lining and suggested manipulation.'
Their effort was to translate the draughtsman's line, not to paraphrase
it by tint-cutting. As a former apologist has written: 'This has
been called "facsimile work"; but it is not so, strictly speaking.
Certainly, whatever it may be called, it required as much artistic
knowledge and taste to produce a good result as the so-called tint-work
against which they [Dalziel Brothers] have no word to say, having
practised that branch of art to a considerable extent, as may be seen
in hundreds of instances, but perhaps most notably in the Rev. J. G.
Wood's _Natural History_ and _The History of Man_.'
The Dalziels had clever pupils to whom they attribute most readily no
little of their success; of these Harry Fenn and C. Kingdon, who both
went to America, may be specially mentioned. But a record of so notable
an enterprise cannot be adequately treated here; yet a few authorised
facts must needs find place. Did space permit, the eulogies of many
artists who were entirely satisfied with Messrs. Dalziels' engraving
could be quoted as a set-off to the few, Rossetti included, who were
querulous. It would be invidious to pick out their best work, but
Millais's _Parables_, Birket Foster's _Beauties of English Landscape_,
and the illustrated editions of classics: _Don Quixote_, _Arabian
Nights_, _Goldsmith's Works_, _The Bible Gallery_, etc. etc., which
bear their imprint, may be numbered among their highest achievements.
The share of Mr. Edmund Evans in many notable volumes that owe at least
a moiety of their interest to his engraving, and of Messrs. Swain,
must needs be left without comment. Mr. Joseph Swain contributed to
_Good Words_ in 1888 some very interesting articles on Fred Walker,
C. H. Bennett, and G. J. Pinwell. These have since been issued in a
volume,[21] with essays, by various hands, on Frederick Shields, [Sir]
John Tenniel, and others. It contains ninety illustrations, including
the rare early 'Fred Walker' from _Everybody's Journal_, and specimens
of Mr. Shields's illustrations to an edition of _The Pilgrim's
Progress_, published (apparently) by the _Manchester Examiner_. But
so far as I know, neither Mr. Evans nor Messrs. Swain (in the sixties
at all events) projected works as Messrs. Dalziel did; and the
appreciation which they merit, in their own field, would be unfairly
recorded in a few hasty lines.
INDEX
ABNER, J., 108.
ABSOLON, J., illustrations to Beattie and Collins's 'Poems,' 101.
Adams's 'Sacred Allegories' (1856), illustrations to, by COPE, BIRKET
FOSTER, HORSLEY, HICKS, and S. PALMER, 102, 103.
'Adventures of Philip,' 40.
'Æsop's Fables' (1848), TENNIEL'S illustrations to, 100.
(1857) C. H. BENNETT, 108.
(1867) H. WEIR, 133.
(1869) E. GRISET, 137.
'Alice in Wonderland' (1866), TENNIEL'S illustrations to, 127.
ALLEN, W. J., 64.
Allingham's 'The Music-master' (1855), 6, 99, 102, 160, 168, 170.
---- 'Day and Night Songs,' 161, 168.
---- 'Flower Pieces,' 160.
---- 'Life and Phantasy,' 160.
_Ally Sloper_, 19.
ANDREWS, G. H., 155.
ANDREWS, J., 114.
ANELAY, H., 81, 82.
'Anglers of the Dove,' MILLAIS'S illustrations to, 24.
ANSDELL, R., 35.
'Arabian Nights' (1852), W. HARVEY'S illustrations to, 101.
---- Dalziels' edition (1865), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, T. and
E. DALZIEL, G. J. PINWELL, T. MORTEN, J. TENNIEL, and J. D. WATSON,
122.
---- (Warne, 1866) illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, etc., 126.
ARCHER, J., 114.
_Argosy_, illustrations and illustrators of, 73, 74.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 74.
CRANE, W., 73, 74.
EDWARDS, M. E., 73, 74.
GRAY, PAUL, 74.
HUGHES, E., 74.
LAWSON, J., 74.
MAHONEY, J., 74.
PINWELL, G. J., 74.
SANDYS, F., 74.
SMALL, W., 74.
'Armadale,' 41, 42.
ARMITAGE, E., 64; illustrations to:
'Lyra Germanica,' 113, 136.
'Pupils of St. John the Divine,' 135.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
ARMSTEAD, H. H., illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 45.
'Albert Memorial,' 46, 48.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
Eliza Cook's 'Poems,' 102.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
'Art Pictures from Old Testament,' 147.
ARMYTAGE, J. C., 42.
Art, the new appreciation for, 1-2.
---- old and new tastes in, 2.
---- of the 'sixties,' 2-3, 15.
---- of the 'thirties,' 10.
---- black and white, 10.
---- influence of Great Exhibition of 1851 on, 21.
'Art and Song' (1867), 133.
_Art Journal_, 14.
Artists of the 'sixties,' contemporary appreciation of, 4.
---- comparison with present-day artists, 11.
---- collectors of the works of, 4.
---- of the 'thirties,' 10.
---- value of, in various mediums, 10.
---- considerations which influence their quality of work, 25.
'Art Pictures from the Old Testament' (1894), reprints of the
illustrations in the 'Bible Gallery,' 146, 147.
_Art Union_, 14.
'Aunt Sally's Life' (1866), illustrations by G. THOMAS, 129.
_Aunt Judy's Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 85, 86.
BAYES, A. W., 86.
CALDECOTT, R., 86.
COOPER, A. W., 86.
CRUIKSHANK, G., 86.
EDWARDS, M. E., 85.
GILBERT, F., 85.
GRISET, E., 85.
LAWSON, F. W., 85.
MORTEN, T., 85.
PASQUIER, J. A., 85.
WEHNER, E. H., 85.
Aytoun's 'Lays of the Scottish Cavaliers' (1865), illustrations by
NOEL PATON, 123.
BAGFORD, JOHN, 6.
'Ballads and Songs of Brittany' (1866), illustrations by C. KEENE and
J. E. MILLAIS, 127.
_Band of Hope, The_, 14.
---- _Review_, illustrations and illustrators of, 81, 82; characters
of, 82.
ANELAY, H., 82.
BARNES, R., 82.
GILBERT, SIR J., 82.
HUARD, L., 82.
WEIR, H., 82.
WOLF, J., 82.
Barbauld's 'Hymns in Prose' (1864), illustrations by BARNES and
WHYMPER, 123.
BARNARD, F., 177, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 37.
_Good Words_, 54.
_London Society_, 60.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
_Fun_, 89.
Cassell's 'Illustrated Readings,' 135.
Dickens's 'Works' (Household Edition), 138.
'Episodes of Fiction,' 141.
BARNES, G. A., 76.
BARNES, R., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 34-37.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 41, 42.
_Good Words_, 50, 51.
_London Society_, 56, 57, 158.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 67, 68, 70.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 73.
_Quiver_, 74, 75.
_British Workman_, 81.
_Band of Hope Review_, 82.
_Leisure Hour_, 83.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
_Golden Hours_, 84.
'Our Life,' 123.
'The Months Illustrated,' 124.
'Pictures of English Life,' 124.
'Sybil and her Snowball,' 129.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 132.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132.
'Christian Lyrics,' 133.
'Original Poems' (Taylor), 135.
Gray's 'Elegy,' 136.
BAXTER (_Ally Sloper_), 19.
BAYES, A. W., 58, 68, 85, 86, 124, 125, 129, 135.
Beattie and Collins's 'Poems,' illustrations by J. ABSOLON, 101.
'Beauties of English Landscape,' 117.
---- illustrations by B. FOSTER, 147.
_Beeton's Annuals_, illustrators of, 87:
BENNETT, C. H., 87.
CRUIKSHANK, G., 87.
MORTEN, T., 87.
PASQUIER, J. A., 87.
THOMSON, J. G., 87.
_Belgravia_, illustrations of, 73.
BENHAM, J. E., 101.
BENNETT, C. H., illustrations to:
'The Excursion Train,' _Cornhill Magazine_, 40.
_Good Words_, 46.
_London Society_, 56, 57, 58.
_Every Boy's Magazine_, 85.
_Beeton's Annuals_, 87.
_Illustrated London News_, 92.
'Fables of Æsop,' 108.
'Proverbs with Pictures,' 109.
'Pilgrim's Progress,' 110.
Quarles's 'Emblems,' 113.
'Stories little Breeches told,' 118.
'London People,' 123.
'Mrs. Wind and Madam Rain,' 123.
Lemon's 'Fairy Tales,' 135.
Bewick, collectors of, 4.
'Bible Gallery.' _See_ Dalziel.
'Bible Woodcuts,' 39.
BIRD, J. A. H., 81.
Black and White Art, 10.
B[LACKBURN], J., illustrations to _Good Words_, 45, 63.
Blake, collectors of, 4.
Blair's 'Grave' (1859), illustrations by TENNIEL, 109.
'Bon Gaultier Ballads' (1849), illustrations to, by DOYLE, LEECH, and
CROWQUILL, 100.
Books, illustrated, the destruction of, for collecting purposes, 6.
---- the difficulty of collecting them, 96.
---- the value of dates in, 96, 97.
---- difficulties in compiling a complete bibliography of, 98.
'Book of British Ballads' (S. C. Hall, 1852), 101.
'Book of Celebrated Poems,' illustrations by COPE and K. MEADOWS, 101.
'Book of Favourite Modern Ballads' (1859), illustrations by COPE,
HORSLEY, A. SOLOMON, and S. PALMER, 110.
'Book of Job' (1858), illustrated by J. GILBERT, 107.
BORDERS, F., 44.
BOUGHTON, G. H., viii, 55, 147.
_Bow Bells_, 14.
BOWERS, G., 34, 35.
'Boy Pilgrims,' The (1866), illustrations by A. BOYD HOUGHTON, 129.
'Boy's Book of Ballads' (1861), illustrations by Sir J. GILBERT, 114.
_Boy's Own Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 1, 85.
BAYES, A. W., 85.
DUDLEY, R., 85.
PASQUIER, J. A., 85.
THOMSON, J. G., 85.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33, 34, 36.
_Good Words_, 46, 48, 49, 52, 53, 54, 55.
_London Society_, 56, 59, 61.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66-71.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 74, 75.
_Tinsley's Magazine_, 76.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78, 79.
_Golden Hours_, 84.
_Every Boy's Magazine_, 85.
_Fun_, 89.
_Illustrated London News_, 92.
_Graphic_, 93, 165.
Dalziels' 'Arabian Nights,' 122, 164.
'Victorian History of England,' 124.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
'Home Thoughts and Home Scenes,' 126, 165.
'Happy Day Stories,' 126.
'Arabian Nights,' 126, 164.
'Don Quixote,' 126, 165.
'Ernie Elton, the Lazy Boy,' 129.
'Patient Henry,' 129.
'Stories told to a Child,' 129.
'The Boy Pilgrims,' 129.
Jean Ingelow's 'Poems,' 130.
'Ballad Stories of the Affections,' 130, 165.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 131.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132, 133.
'Christian Lyrics,' 133.
'Spirit of Praise,' 133.
Longfellow's 'Poems,' 134, 140.
'North Coast and other Poems,' 134, 165.
'Golden Thoughts from Golden Fountains,' 134.
'Savage Club Papers,' 135.
'Nobility of Life,' 136.
Novello's 'National Nursery Rhymes,' 141, 165.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 144, 146.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
---- biographical account of, 163, 164, 165.
---- the quality of his designs, 164.
---- catalogue of forty designs exhibited (1896), 164.
---- his great fecundity in work, 164.
---- Mr. Laurence Housman's book on, 164, 165.
BRADLEY, B., 34-37, 72, 73.
BRANDLING, H., 110.
BREWTNALL (E. F.), 36, 78, 146.
_Britannia_, illustrations for, by MATT MORGAN, 80.
_British Architect_, 113.
_British Workman_, 14.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 81.
ANELAY, H., 81.
BARNES, R., 81.
CRUIKSHANK, G., 81.
COOPER, A. W., 81.
GILBERT, Sir J., 81.
HUARD, L., 81.
WATSON, J. D., 81.
WEIR, HARRISON, 81.
WYON, L. C., 81.
_Broadway, The_, illustrators of, 76.
BARNARD, F., 76.
BARNES, G. A., 76.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 76.
BRUNTON, W., 76.
EDWARDS, M. E., 76.
GRAY, PAUL, 76.
GRISET, E., 76.
HUTTULA, R. C., 76.
LAWSON, F. W., 76.
MORGAN, MATT, 76.
NASH, THOMAS, 76.
PASQUIER, J. A., 76.
THOMPSON, ALFRED, 76.
THOMSON, J. G., 76.
BROOKES, WARWICK, 125.
BROWN, FORD MADOX, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 37.
_Dark Blue_, 81.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 106.
'Lyra Germanica,' 136.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
BROWN, ISAAC L., 60.
BROWN, J. O., 45.
BROWNE, H. K. _See_ 'PHIZ.'
BROWNING (Mrs.) 'Ariadne in Naxos,' 40.
BRUNTON, W., illustrations to:
_London Society_, 57, 58, 60.
_Tinsley's Magazine_, 76.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Fun_, 89.
Buchanan's 'Ballad Stories of the Affections' (1867), illustrations
by BOYD HOUGHTON, E. and T. DALZIEL, J. LAWSON, G. J. PINWELL, W.
SMALL, and J. D. WATSON, 130.
---- 'North Coast and other Poems' (1863), illustrations by BOYD
HOUGHTON, E. and T. DALZIEL, G. J. PINWELL, W. SMALL, J. WOLF, J. B.
ZWECKER, 134.
BUCKMAN, W. R., 54, 73.
Bunyan's 'Pilgrim's Progress' (1856), illustrations by:
CLAYTON, 104.
(1857) J. H. THOMAS, 107.
(1859) C. H. BENNETT, 110.
(1860) D. SCOTT and W. B. SCOTT, 114.
(1863) DALZIEL, 123.
(1864) P. PRIOLO and C. H. SELOUS, 123.
BURNE-JONES (Sir E.), illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 46, 47, 49, 175.
Chaucer Drawings, 47.
'Parables from Nature,' 114, 176.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146, 175.
'Cupid and Psyche,' 175.
---- on Rossetti, 161.
---- summary of his work, 175.
---- design for 'Love is Enough,' 175.
Burns's 'Poems and Songs' (1857), illustrations by BIRKET FOSTER, 108.
BURTON, W. P., 115, 128, 134.
BURTON, W. S., illustrations to _Once a Week_, 33.
BURY, VISCOUNT, 153.
BUSHNELL, A., 46.
CALDECOTT, RANDOLPH, illustrations to _Aunt Judy's Magazine_, 86.
CAMERON, H., 132.
Caricaturists, Victorian, 18, 19.
CARRICK, J. M., 128.
Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland' (1866), TENNIEL'S illustrations to,
127.
Cassell and Co., publications of, 15.
_Cassell's Family Paper_, 71.
---- illustrations by W. SMALL, Sir J. GILBERT, L. HUARD, F. GILBERT,
and T. MORTEN, 71.
_Cassell's Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 71, 72, 73.
BARNARD, F., 72.
BARNES, R., 73.
BRADLEY, B., 72, 73.
BROWNE, H. K., 73.
CORBOULD, E. H., 73.
DUCKMAN, W. R., 73.
EDWARDS, M. E., 72, 73.
ELLIS, E., 73.
FILDES, S. L., 72, 73.
FRASER, F. A., 72, 73.
GREEN, C., 72.
GREEN, T., 73.
HENLEY, 72.
HUGHES, E., 73.
LAWSON, J., 73.
LAWSON, F. W., 72, 73.
LINTON, J. D., 73.
MAHONEY, J., 72.
PATERSON, H., 73.
PINWELL, G. J., 72.
PRITCHETT, R. T., 72.
RIDLEY, M. W., 72.
SMALL, W., 72, 73.
STANILAND, C. J., 72.
THOMAS, G. H., 72.
WALKER, F. S., 72.
WATSON, J. D., 72.
WIRGMAN, T. B., 72.
Cassell's 'History of England' (1867, vol. i.), illustrations by W.
Small, 133.
---- 'Illustrated Readings' (1867), illustrations by F. BARNARD, J.
MAHONEY, S. L. FILDES, W. SMALL, and J. D. WATSON, 135.
CASSELL, JOHN, 14.
_Casket, The_, 14.
'Chambers's Household Shakespeare' (1861), illustrations by K.
HALSWELLE, 114.
'Chandos Poets,' The (1869), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, FRASER,
and FRENCH, 140.
Chatto and Jackson's 'History of Wood Engraving,' 97, 113.
'Childe Harold' (1859), illustrations by SKELTON, 109, 110.
'Children's Garland,' The (1873), illustrations by J. LAWSON, 148.
'Children's Hour,' The (1866), illustrations by W. SMALL, 129.
'Children's Sayings' (1862), illustrations by W. CRANE, 118.
'Child's Play' (1858), 109.
'Choice Series,' The (1869), illustrations by B. FOSTER, GILBERT, H.
WEIR, etc., 137, 138.
'Christian Lyrics' (1868), illustrations by R. BARNES, BOYD HOUGHTON,
etc., 133.
'Christmas with the Poets' (1861), illustrations by BIRKET FOSTER,
115, 116.
_Chromo-Lithograph, The_, 34.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 63,
64, 65.
ALLEN, W. J., 64.
ARMITAGE, E., 64.
ARMSTEAD, H. H., 64.
BARNES, R., 64
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 64.
CLAXTON, F., 64.
CLAXTON, M., 64.
COOPER, A. W., 64.
COPE, C. W., 64.
CORBOULD, E. H., 64,
CRESWICK, 64.
DALZIEL, T. B., 64.
EDWARDS, M. E., 64, 65.
FITZCOOK, H., 64.
FRISTON, D. H., 64.
GREEN, C, 63, 64.
HORSLEY, J. C., 64.
HUARD, L., 64.
JOHNSON, E. K., 64,
JUSTYNE, P. W., 64.
KEYL, F. W., 64.
LAWLESS, M. J., 64.
M'CONNELL, W., 64.
MACQUOID, T., 64.
MARKS, H. S., 64.
MILLAIS, J. E., 63.
MORTEN, T., 63, 64.
PICKERSGILL, F. R., 64.
PINWELL, G. J., 64.
POYNTER, E. J., 63.
PRIOLO, P., 64.
SANDERSON, H., 64.
SANDYS, F., 64.
SELOUS, H. C., 64.
SKELTON, P., 64.
SOLOMON, R., 64.
SULMAN, T., 64.
THOMAS, G. H., 64.
VINING, H. M., 64.
WATSON, J. D., 63, 64.
WEHNERT, E. H., 64.
ZWECKER, J. B., 64.
_Churchman's Shilling Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of,
76.
CRANE, W., 76.
EDWARDS, M. E., 76.
HUTTULA, R., 76.
LEIGH, JOHN, 76.
CLARK, J., 153.
CLARKE, E. F. C., 76, 80.
CLAXTON, A., illustrations to _London Society_, 56.
---- other illustrations, 57, 58, 62, 92.
CLAXTON, FLORENCE, 50, 57, 64, 92.
CLAXTON, MARSHALL, 64.
CLAYTON, JOHN, illustrations to:
Herbert's 'Poetical Works,' 103.
'Pilgrim's Progress,' 104.
Pollok's 'Course of Time,' 104.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
'Dramatic Scenes,' 107.
'Lays of the Holy Land,' 108.
'Home Affections,' 108.
Krummacher's 'Parables,' 109.
_Clichés_, beginning of the use of, 79.
---- bad influence on original productions, 79.
'Cloister and the Hearth,' The, 20.
Coleridge's 'Ancient Mariner' (1856), illustrations by:
B. FOSTER, A. DUNCAN, and WEHNERT, 104.
(1860), D. SCOTT, 114.
Collecting, cost of, 7.
Collections, how to arrange, 7.
---- methods for preserving, 7.
Collectors, two objects of, 4-5.
---- delights of, 5.
---- objects supplied by the present volume for, x. 5-6.
---- dangers to be avoided by, 6.
Collins's (Wilkie) 'Armadale,' 41, 42.
COLOMB, W., 50.
Cook's (Eliza) 'Poems' (1856), illustrations by ARMSTEAD, J. GILBERT,
J. D. WATSON, H. WEIR, J. WOLF, 102.
COPE, C. W., 64, 99, 100, 101, 102; illustrations to:
'Favourite English Poems,' 109.
'Book of Favourite Modern Ballads,' 110.
Moore's 'Irish Melodies,' 133.
COOKE, E. W., 49.
COOPER, A. W., 46, 57, 58, 60, 64, 76, 80, 81, 86.
CORBOULD, E. H., 57, 64, 73, 92, 101, 107, 109, 140, 146.
'Cornhill Gallery': its quality and characteristics, 39, 126.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 14.
---- aim of its editor, 38.
---- the anonymity of artists in, 44.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 38-44.
ALLINGHAM, H., 43.
BARNES, R., 41, 42.
BENNETT, C. H., 40.
DOYLE, R., 40.
DU MAURIER, G., 41, 42, 43.
EDWARDS, M. E., 42.
FILDES, S. L., 42.
HERKOMER, H., 42.
HOPKINS, A., 43.
HUGHES, A., 41.
KEENE, C., 41.
LAWSON, F. W., 42.
LEIGHTON, F., 40.
LESLIE, C. D., 43.
MILLAIS, J. E., 40.
PATERSON, H., 43.
PATON, NOEL, 41.
PINWELL, G. J., 41.
SANDYS, F., 40, 42.
SMALL, W., 43.
STONE, MARCUS, 43.
THACKERAY, W. M., 39, 40.
WALKER, F., 40, 41, 42.
Cornwall (Barry), 'Dramatic Scenes' (1857), illustrations by DALZIEL,
CLAYTON, 107.
Cowper's 'Works,' illustrations by JOHN GILBERT, 101.
---- 'The Task,' illustrations by BIRKET FOSTER, 102.
CRANE, W., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33, 176.
_Good Words_, 49, 176.
_London Society_, 56, 60, 176.
_Argosy_, 73, 74, 176.
_Churchman's Shilling Magazine_, 76.
_Every Boy's Magazine_, 85.
_Punch_, 88.
_Entertaining Things_, 176.
'The New Forest,' 117, 176.
'Children's Sayings,' 118.
'Stories of Old,' 118.
Toy-Books, 129, 148.
'Stories from Memel,' 136.
'Merry Heart,' 136.
'King Gab's Story Bag,' 136.
'Magic of Kindness,' 136.
'Poetry of Nature,' 136.
Roberts's 'Legendary Ballads,' 140.
'Songs of Many Seasons,' 137.
'The Necklace of Princess Fiorimonde,' 176.
Grimms' 'Fairy Tales,' 176.
'The Baby's Bouquet,' 176.
'Baby's Opera,' 176.
Æsop's 'Fables,' 176.
'Flora's Feast,' 176.
'Queen Summer,' 176.
---- critical and biographical notice of, 175, 176.
---- a pupil of W. J. LINTON, 175.
---- influence of BURNE-JONES and Japanese art, 176.
CRESWICK, T., 64, 101; illustrations to:
Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105.
'Favourite English Poems,' 109.
'Early English Poems,' 117.
CROPSEY, J., 108.
CROWQUILL, A., 60; illustrations to:
'Bon Gaultier Ballads,' 100.
'Munchausen,' 114.
CRUIKSHANK (G.), collectors of, 4.
---- quality of his art work, 18, 19; illustrations to:
_London Society_, 59.
_British Workman_, 81.
_Aunt Judy's Magazine_, 86.
_Beeton's Annuals_, 87.
'Ingoldsby Legends,' 123.
CRUIKSHANK, R., 100.
Cumming's 'Life and Lessons of Our Lord' (1864), illustrations by C.
GREEN, A. HUNT, and P. SKELTON, 123.
'Cycle of Life,' The (1870), 141.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery' (1880-81), illustrations by F. LEIGHTON, G.
F. WATTS, F. R. PICKERSGILL, E. J. POYNTER, E. ARMITAGE, H. H.
ARMSTEAD, BURNE-JONES, HOLMAN HUNT, MADOX BROWN, S. SOLOMON, BOYD
HOUGHTON, W. SMALL, E. F. BREWTNALL, E. and T. DALZIEL, A. MURCH,
F. S. WALKER, and F. SANDYS, 146.
DALZIEL, E., 78, 122, 125, 130, 134, 138, 141, 146, 147.
DALZIEL, T. B., viii. 64, 67, 69, 78, 107, 108, 122, 123, 125, 130,
134, 141, 146, 147.
---- his own expressions about his work, 177.
DALZIELS, THE, 12, 13.
---- sketch of their careers, 177, 178, 179.
---- commissions given by them, 178.
---- works engraved by them, 178, 179.
---- their aims in engraving, 179.
---- their pupils, 179.
'Dame Dingle's Fairy Tales' (1866), illustrations by J. PROCTOR, 129.
'Dance of Death,' 39.
_Dark Blue_, illustrations and illustrators of, 80, 81.
BIRD, J. A. H., 81.
BROWN, FORD MADOX, 81.
CLARKE, E. F., 80.
COOPER, A. W., 80.
FITZGERALD, M., 81.
FREERE, M. E., 80.
FRISTON, D. H., 81.
HALL, S. P., 81.
HENNESSEY, W. J., 81.
LAWSON, CECIL, 80.
LAWSON, F. W., 80.
PERRY, T. W., 80.
RIDLEY, T. W., 80.
ROBINSON, T., 80.
SOLOMON, SIMEON, 81.
WHITE, D. T., 80.
DARLEY, FELIX, 57, 108.
'Day and Night Songs,' 161, 168.
_Day of Rest_, 66.
'Dealings with the Fairies' (1861), illustrations by A. HUGHES, 116.
Defoe's 'History of the Plague,' SHIELD'S illustrations to, 32, 118.
Defoe's 'Robinson Crusoe' (1863), illustrations by:
J. D. WATSON, 123.
(1804) G. H. THOMAS, 123.
DELL, J. H., illustrations to 'Nature Pictures,' 147.
'Denis Duval,' 41.
'Deserted Village' (Etching Club), 101.
Dickens's Works, illustrations of, 18, 19.
---- 'Household Edition' (1869), illustrations by FRED BARNARD,
'PHIZ,' J. MAHONEY, C. GREEN, F. A. FRASER, E. G. DALZIEL, S. L.
FILDES, H. FRENCH, G. B. FROST, J. G. THOMSON, J. M'L. RALSTON,
138, 139.
---- 'Edwin Drood' (1870), illustrations by S. L. FILDES, 141.
'Divine and Moral Songs' (1866), illustrations by DU MAURIER, M. E.
EDWARDS, C. GREEN, MORTEN, W. C. THOMAS, and G. D. WATSON, 127, 128.
DOBELL, C., 33, 45, 118.
DOBSON, W. T. C., 128.
'Don Quixote' (1866), illustrations by:
DORÉ, 126, 127.
BOYD HOUGHTON, 127.
DORÉ, G., 69.
---- illustrations to 'Don Quixote,' 126, 127.
DOYLE, C. A., illustrations to _London Society_, 57, 58.
DOYLE, J. O., 45.
DOYLE, R., 'Pictures of Society,' 40; illustrations to:
'Bon Gaultier Ballads,' 100.
'Foreign Tour of Brown, Jones, and Robinson,' 109.
'Manners and Customs of the English,' 109.
'Scouring of the White Horse,' 109.
'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
'An Old Fairy Tale,' 129.
'Lemon's Fairy Tales,' 135.
'In Fairyland,' 137.
DRUMMOND, J., 45.
DUDLEY, R., illustrations to:
_London Society_, 58, 59.
_Boys' Own Magazine_, 85.
DU MAURIER, G., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 30, 31, 33, 34, 37.
'Foul Play,' 37.
_Cornhill_, 41, 42.
'Wives and Daughters,' 41, 42.
'Harry Richmond,' 42, 43.
'The Hand of Ethelberta,' 43.
_Good Words_, 45.
_London Society_, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60.
_Leisure Hour_, 83.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
_Punch_, 88, 89.
'Sacred Poetry,' 123.
'Our Life,' 123.
Watts's 'Divine and Moral Songs,' 128.
'The Moon Shines Full,' 128.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132, 133.
'Story of a Feather,' 133.
'Lucile,' 134.
'Savage Club Papers,' 135.
'Pictures from English Literature,' 141.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
'Songs of Many Seasons,' 147.
'Pegasus Re-saddled,' 148.
DUNCAN, A., illustrations to 'Ancient Mariner,' 104.
DUNCAN, E., 34, 99, 107, 112, 117.
DUNN, EDITH, 75.
'Early English Poems' (1863), illustrations by CRESWICK, DUNCAN, B.
FOSTER, J. GILBERT, R. REDGRAVE, and J. THOMAS, 117.
EDWARDS, D., 107.
EDWARDS, KATE, 36, 58, 59.
EDWARDS, M. E., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 42.
_Good Words_, 52.
_London Society_, 57-61.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64, 65.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 67.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72, 73.
_Argosy_, 73, 74.
_Quiver_, 74.
_Churchman's Shilling Magazine_, 76.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Golden Hours_, 84.
_Aunt Judy's Magazine_, 85.
_Illustrated Times_, 92.
'Parables from Nature,' 114.
'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
'Family Fairy Tales,' 123.
Watts's 'Divine and Moral Songs,' 128.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Mother's Last Words,' 129, 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 132.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132.
'Illustrated Book of Sacred Poems,' 135.
EHRENGER, J. W., 50.
'Ellen Montgomery's Book-shelf' (1866), illustrations by J. D.
WATSON, 129.
ELIOT, G., 'Romola,' 41.
---- 'Brother Jacob,' 41.
ELLIS, E. J., 60, 61, 73.
ELTZE, F., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33, 35, 36.
_Good Words_, 50.
_Sunday Magazine_, 67.
Lemon's 'A New Table-Book,' 133.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
'English Sacred Poetry of the Olden Time' (1864), illustrations by DU
MAURIER, C. GREEN, J. W. NORTH, J. TENNIEL, P. SKELTON, F. WALKER,
and J. D. WATSON, 123, 124.
Engravers, old methods of, 12.
---- work in the 'sixties,' 13.
---- enterprise of, 13.
Engraving, responsibility of artist in, 12.
---- relation of publisher to, 12.
---- object of an, 17.
---- white line, 81.
_Entertaining Things_, its rarity, 87.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 86, 87.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 87.
CRANE, W., 86.
DU MAURIER, G., 86, 87.
JUSTYNE, P., 86.
LINTON, W. J., 86.
M'CONNELL, W., 86.
MORGAN, M. S., 86.
MORTEN, T., 86.
PORTCH, J., 86.
SKILL, F. J., 86.
WEEDAR, E., 86.
'Episodes of Fiction' (1870), illustrations by F. BARNARD, C. GREEN,
R. PATERSON, P. SKELTON, C. J. STANILAND, H. WEIR, etc., 141.
'Ernie Elton the Lazy Boy' (1866), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON,
129.
Etching, influence of the revival of, 151, 152, 153, 154.
Etching Club, The, 101, 151, 152.
'Evan Harrington,' Keene's illustrations to, 25.
EVANS, EDMUND, 180.
_Everybody's Journal_, the British Museum edition imperfect, 86.
---- illustrators of, 86.
GILBERT, SIR, J., 86.
MORTEN, T., 86.
WALKER, F., 86, 180.
WEIR, HARRISON, 86.
_Every Boy's Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 85.
BENNETT, C. H., 85.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 85.
CRANE, WALTER, 85.
MORTEN, T., 85.
NIXON, J. FORBES, 85.
RIDLEY, M. W., 85.
_Every Week_, 14.
Ewart, H. C., 'Toilers in Art,' 180.
Exhibition of 1851, influences of, on art, 21.
FAIRFIELD, A. R., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
Falconer's 'The Shipwreck' (1858), illustrations by B. FOSTER, 110.
'Family Fairy Tales' (1864), illustrations by M. E. EDWARDS, 123.
'Famous Boys' (1862), illustrations by T. MORTEN, 118.
'Favourite English Poems of the Last Two Centuries' (1858),
illustrations by COPE, CRESWICK, FOSTER, 109.
FILDES, S. L., 34, 35, 36, 37, 42, 52, 54, 69, 72, 73, 75, 84, 93,
133, 135, 138, 141.
FITZCOOK, H., 64.
FITZGERALD, LORD G., 153.
FITZGERALD, M., 81.
FOSTER, BIRKET, x, 61, 67, illustrations to:
Gray's 'Elegy,' 101, 136.
'Proverbial Philosophy,' 101.
Longfellow's 'Poems' (1854), 101.
Cowper's 'The Task,' 102.
Adams's 'Sacred Allegories,' 103.
Herbert's 'Poetical Works,' 103.
'Rhymes and Roundelays,' 103.
'Ministering Children,' 104.
'Ancient Mariner,' 104.
'Course of Time,' 104.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
Poe's 'Poetical Works,' 108.
'Kavanagh,' 108.
'Moore's Poetry,' 108.
Burns's 'Poems and Songs,' 108.
'Gertrude of Wyoming,' 108.
'Lays of the Holy Land,' 108.
'Home Affections,' 108.
Wordsworth's 'Poems,' 109.
'Merry Days of England,' 109.
'Favourite English Poems,' 109.
'White Doe of Rylstone,' 109.
'Comus,' 109.
'Shipwreck,' 110.
'Odes and Sonnets,' 110.
'Merchant of Venice,' 110.
'The Seasons,' 111.
Montgomery's 'Poems,' 112.
'Household Song,' 114.
Goldsmith's 'Poems,' 114.
'Poetry of the Elizabethan Age,' 115.
'Christmas with the Poets,' 115.
'Early English Poems,' 117.
'Pictures of English Landscape,' 117.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
Moore's 'Irish Melodies,' 133.
'Choice Series,' 137.
'Standard Poets,' 140.
'The Trial of Sir Jasper,' 147.
'Beauties of English Landscape,' 147.
---- rage for his drawings, 116.
'Flower Pieces,' 160.
'Foul Play,' DU MAURIER'S illustrations to, 37.
'Found Drowned,' EDWARDS'S illustrations to, 33.
'Four Georges,' The, 39.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs' (1867 ?), R. BARNES, BOYD HOUGHTON, DU
MAURIER, M. E. EDWARDS, J. GILBERT, J. HENLEY, J. LEE, F. W. LAWSON,
A. PASQUIER, T. MORTEN, F. J. SKILL, W. SMALL, G. H. THOMAS, and
J. D. WATSON, 132, 133.
'Framley Parsonage,' 40.
FRASER, F. A., 36, illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 54.
_London Society_, 62.
_Sunday Magazine_, 67, 69, 70.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72, 73.
_Saint Paul's_, 77.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78, 79.
Dickens's Works (Household Edition), 138.
Chandos Poets, 140.
FREERE, M. E., 80.
FRENCH, H., 60, 70, 78, 138, 140.
FRISTON, D. H., 64, 76, 81.
FRÖLICH, L., 114, 128.
FROST, A. B., 138.
_Fun_, illustrations and illustrators of, 89, 90.
BARNARD, F., 89.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 89.
BRUNTON, W., 89.
GILBERT, W. S., 89.
HENLEY, L. C., 89.
LAWSON, F. W., 89.
SANDERSON, H., 89.
SECCOMBE, LIEUTENANT, 89.
STRETCH, MATT, 89.
THOMSON, J. G., 89.
WALKER, F. S., 89.
FYFE, W., 46.
GALE, W., 153.
GASCOINE, J., 58.
Gaskell, Mrs., 'Wives and Daughters,' 41, 42.
'Gems of Literature' (1866), illustrations by NOEL PATON, 127.
'Gems of National Poetry' (1868), 100.
'Gertrude of Wyoming' (1857), illustrations by B. FOSTER, T. DALZIEL,
H. WEIR, W. HARVEY, 108.
GIACOMELLI, illustrations to Michelet's 'The Bird,' 121.
GILBERT, F., 62, 71, 85.
GILBERT, SIR JOHN, x.; illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33, 34, 36.
_London Society_, 60, 61.
_Cassell's Family Paper_, 71.
_British Workman_, 81.
_Band of Hope Review_, 82.
_Leisure Hour_, 83.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
Illustrations to Cassell's Serials, 84.
_Illustrated London News_, 92.
'The Salamandrine,' 100, 101.
'Proverbial Philosophy,' 101.
Longfellow's 'Poems' (1854), 101.
---- (1855), 102.
Cowper's 'Works,' 101.
Eliza Cook's 'Poems,' 102.
Shakespeare's 'Works,' 104.
Scott's 'Lady of the Lake,' 104.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
'Book of Job,' 107.
'Proverbs of Solomon,' 107.
'Lays of the Holy Land,' 108.
'Home Affections,' 108.
Wordsworth's 'Poems,' 109.
Montgomery's 'Poems,' 112.
'Boy's Book of Ballads,' 114.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
'Poetry of the Elizabethan Age,' 115.
'Songs and Sonnets of Shakespeare,' 115.
'Early English Poems,' 117.
'Months illustrated,' 124.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132.
'The Choice Series,' 137.
'Standard Poets,' 140.
'Standard Library' (Hurst and Blackett), 140.
GILBERT, W. S., illustrations to:
_London Society_, 60.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
_Fun_, 89.
'Juvenile Verse Picture Book,' 100.
'Magic Mirror,' 129.
GILRAY, J., 19.
GODDARD, G. B., 33, 34, 35, 60, 61.
GODWIN, J., 107.
GODWIN, T., 57.
'Golden Harp,' The (1864), illustrations by WATSON, etc., 124.
_Golden Hours_, illustrations and illustrators of, 84, 85.
BARNES, R., 84.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 84.
EDWARDS, M. E., 84.
GREEN, T., 85.
MURRAY, C. O., 85.
'Golden Light' (1864), illustrations by A. W. BAYES, 124.
'Golden Thoughts from Golden Fountains' (1867), illustrations by BOYD
HOUGHTON, W. P. BURTON, the DALZIELS, J. LAWSON, G. J. PINWELL, and
W. SMALL, 134, 135.
'Golden Treasury Series' (1869), illustrations by A. HUGHES, HOLMAN
HUNT, MILLAIS, NOEL PATON, and T. WOOLNER, 138.
'Gold Thread,' The (1861), illustrations by J. M'WHIRTER and J. D.
WATSON, 116.
Goldsmith's 'Poems' (1860), illustrations by B. FOSTER, 114.
---- 'Works,' illustrations by PINWELL (DALZIEL, 1865), 126.
---- 'Deserted Village,' illustrations by Etching Club, 101.
GOODALL, E. A., 107.
'Good Fight,' A, 20.
_Good Words_, 14.
---- poverty of early work in, 44.
---- good indexes in, 44.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 44-55.
ARMSTEAD, H. H., 45, 48.
BARNARD, F., 54.
BARNES, R., 50, 51.
BENNETT, C. H., 46.
B[LACKBURN], J., 45.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 46, 48, 49, 52, 53, 54, 55.
BROWN, J. O., 45.
BUCKMAN, R., 54.
BURNE-JONES, E., 46, 47, 49.
BUSHNELL, A., 46.
COOKE, E. W., 49.
COOPER, A. W., 46.
CRANE, W., 49.
DOBELL, C., 45.
DOYLE, C. A., 45.
DRUMMOND, J., 45.
DU MAURIER, G., 45.
EDWARDS, M. E., 52.
FILDES, S. L., 52, 54.
FRASER, F. A., 54.
FYFE, W., 46.
GRAHAM, T., 46, 48, 49.
GRAY, P., 50.
HALSWELLE, K., 45.
HERKOMER, H., 54.
HUGHES, A., 50, 54, 55.
HUNT, HOLMAN, 46, 48.
KEENE, C., 46.
LAWLESS, M. J., 46, 48, 50.
LAWSON, J. W., 52.
LEIGHTON, J., 49.
LINNEY, W., 46.
LINTON, J. D., 54.
LINTON, W. J., 52.
LUCAS, H. J., 49.
M'TAGGART, W., 46.
M'WHIRTER, J. W., 45.
MAHONEY, J., 54.
MILLAIS, J. E., 46, 48, 49, 50, 55.
MORTEN, T., 46, 48, 49.
NICOL, ERSKINE, 45.
NORTH, J. W., 52.
ORCHARDSON, 44, 45, 55.
PETTIE, J., 45, 46, 48, 49, 50, 55.
PINWELL, G. J., 49, 50, 52, 54, 55.
PORTER, J., 46.
RIVIERE, BRITON, 54.
SANDYS, F., 46, 47, 49.
SOLOMON, S., 46, 47.
SMALL, W., 51, 52, 53, 54, 55.
STANTON, CLARK, 45.
STEELE, GOURLAY, 45.
TAYLOR, HUGHES, 45.
TENNIEL, J., 46, 48, 49, 50.
WALKER, FRED, 45, 48, 50.
WALKER, FRANCIS, 54.
WATSON, J. D., 46, 48, 49.
WHISTLER, J. M'N., 46.
WOLF, J., 46.
ZWECKER, J. B., 46.
_Good Words for the Young_, 66.
---- its value to collectors, 77.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 77, 78, 79.
BARNARD, F., 78.
BOYD HOUGHTON, 78, 79.
BREWTNALL, E. F., 78.
DALZIEL, E., 78.
DALZIEL, T., 78.
FRASER, F. A., 78, 79.
FRENCH, H., 78.
GILBERT, W. S., 78.
GREEN, C., 78.
GREEN, T., 78, 79.
GRISET, E., 78, 79.
HALL, S. P., 78.
HERKOMER, H., 78.
HUGHES, A., 77, 78, 79.
MAHONEY, J., 78, 79.
PETTIE, J., 78.
PINWELL, C. J., 78.
RIVIÈRE, B., 78.
SMALL, W., 79.
SULMAN, T., 78.
WALKER, F. S., 78, 79.
WIEGAND, W. J., 78, 79.
ZWECKER, J. B., 78, 79.
GOSSE, E., 3.
---- on Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 144, 145.
---- on Sandys, 172.
_Germ, The_ (1850), 151.
GRAHAM, P., 55.
GRAHAM, T., illustrations to _Good Words_, 46, 48, 49.
_Graphic, The_, its influence on English illustration, 93.
---- W. SMALL'S work in it, 93.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 93, 94.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 93.
FILDES, S. L., 93.
GREEN, C., 93.
HERKOMER, H., 93.
MACBETH, R. W., 93.
PINWELL, C. J., 93.
SMALL, W., 92.
_Graphic_ School, 51.
Graphotype, 35, 36.
---- the beginning of 'process-work,' 36.
---- its principle and development, 91.
---- illustrations in _Punch and Judy_, 91.
---- Watts's 'Songs,' 127, 128.
Gray's 'Elegy' (1860), illustrations to, by B. FOSTER and G. THOMAS,
101.
(1868) R. BARNES, B. FOSTER, WIMPERIS, etc., 136.
GRAY, J. M., 3.
---- paper on Sandys in _Art Journal_, 131.
GRAY, PAUL, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33, 34.
_Good Words_, 50.
_London Society_, 58, 59.
_Shilling Magazine_, 65.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 67.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 75.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Punch_, 88.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
'Jingles and Jokes for Little Folks,' 129.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 131.
'Spirit of Praise,' 133.
---- biographical notice of, 157.
---- _Fun_ cartoons, 159.
---- his last drawing in 'Savage Club Papers,' 157.
---- illustrations to Kingsley's 'Hereward,' 157.
GRAY, TOM, 60.
GREEN, CHARLES, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 31, 32, 35.
_London Society_, 57, 59.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 63, 64.
_Sunday Magazine_, 71.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
_Illustrated London News_, 92.
_Graphic_, 93.
'Sacred Poetry,' 123.
Cumming's 'Life of our Lord,' 123.
Watts's 'Divine and Moral Songs,' 128.
'Nobility of Life,' 136.
'Choice Series,' 138.
Dickens's Works (Household Edition), 138.
'Episodes of Fiction,' 141.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
GREEN, T., 36, 70, 73, 78, 85, 146.
Greenwell, Dora, 'Carmina Crucis' (1860), 137.
Grimms' 'Fairy Tales,' illustrations by W. CRANE, 176.
GRISET, E., 35, 36, 76, 78, 79, 88, 137.
'Gulliver's Travels' (1866 ?), illustrations by T. MORTEN, 133.
'Hacco the Dwarf' (1864), illustrations by G. J. PINWELL, 123, 124.
HADEN, Sir SEYMOUR, 10.
HALKETT, G. R., viii.
Hall's 'Book of British Ballads' (1852), 101.
HALL, S. P., 78, 81, 136.
Hall's 'The Trial of Sir Jasper,' illustrations by CRUIKSHANK, B.
FOSTER, GILBERT, G. H. BOUGHTON, W. EDEN THOMSON, H. R. ROBERTSON,
NOEL PATON, and TENNIEL, 147.
HALSWELLE, K., illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 45.
'Pen and Pencil Pictures,' 127.
Scott's 'Poems,' 127.
'Standard Poets' (Routledge, etc.), 140.
'Hampdens,' The, MILLAIS'S illustrations to, 24.
'Happy Day Stories,' 126.
Hardy, Thomas, 'Far from the Madding Crowd,' 43.
---- 'The Hand of Ethelberta,' 43.
HARDY, T. D., 107.
_Harper's Magazine_, 9.
'Harry Richmond,' DU MAURIER'S illustrations to, 42, 43.
HARVEY, W., illustrations to:
'Arabian Nights,' 101.
Milton's 'Poetical Works,' 101.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
'Gertrude of Wyoming,' 108.
Montgomery's 'Poems,' 112.
Heber's 'Hymns' (1867), illustrations by W. LAWSON, T. D. SCOTT, H.
C. SELOUS, P. SKELTON, and W. SMALL, 133.
HENLEY, L. C., 58, 59, 72, 133.
HENNESSEY, W. J., 81.
'Herberts of Elfdale,' The, FRED WALKER'S illustrations to, 27.
Herbert's 'Poetical Works' (1856), illustrations by BIRKET FOSTER, J.
CLAYTON, H. N. HUMPHREYS, 103.
HERKOMER, HUBERT, illustrations to:
_Cornhill Magazine_, 43.
_Sunday Magazine_, 71.
_Quiver_, 75.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
_Graphic_, 93.
'Lecture on Sandys,' 172.
HICKS, G. C., 103.
'History of Wood Engraving' (Chatto and Jackson), 97, 113.
HOGARTH, W., 18.
'Home Affections' (1858), illustrations by B. FOSTER, J. GILBERT,
CLAYTON, H. WEIR, T. DALZIEL, S. READ, J. ABNER, PICKERSGILL,
MILLAIS, TENNIEL, MADOT, 108, 109.
'Home Thoughts and Home Scenes' (1865), illustrations by BOYD
HOUGHTON, 126.
'Home without Hands' (1864), illustrations by F. W. KEYL, 123.
_Hood's Comic Annuals_, 87.
HOOD'S 'Miss Kilmansegg' (1869), illustrations by SEECOMBE, 137.
---- 'Poems,' illustrations by Junior Etching Club (MILLAIS, C.
KEENE, and H. MOORE), 152.
HOOPER, W. H., 47.
HORSLEY, J. C., 64, 89, 100, 101, 103, 105, 110.
HOUGHTON. _See_ BOYD HOUGHTON.
'Household Song' (1861), illustrations by B. FOSTER, S. PALMER, G. H.
THOMAS, A. SOLOMON, and J. ANDREWS, 113, 114.
HOUSMAN, L., on BOYD HOUGHTON, 122, 164.
_Howitt's Journal of Literature_, 14.
HUARD, L., 57, 64, 71, 81, 82.
HUGHES, ARTHUR, illustrations to:
_Cornhill Magazine_, 41.
_Good Words_, 50, 54, 55, 170, 171.
_London Society_, 58, 62, 170.
_Sunday Magazine_, 70, 71, 171.
_Good Words for the Young_, 77, 78, 79, 171.
_The Queen_, 170.
_The Graphic_, 172.
_The London Home Monthly_, 172.
Tennyson's 'Loves of the Wrens,' 54, 55, 171.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
'Dealings with the Fairies,' 116, 170.
'Enoch Arden,' 127, 170.
'Five Days' Entertainment at Wentworth Grange,' 136, 170.
'Tom Brown's School Days,' 136, 170.
'Golden Treasury Series,' 138.
'National Nursery Rhymes,' 141.
'The Music-master,' 168.
Designs for _The Queen_, 170.
Hake's 'Parables and Tales,' 171.
Rossetti's 'Sing Song,' 171.
'Sinbad the Sailor,' 171.
Rossetti's 'Speaking Likenesses,' 171, 172.
'England's Antiphon,' 172.
'Chamber Dramas,' 172.
Ingelow's 'The Shepherd's Lady,' 172.
Miss Thackeray's 'Five Old Friends,' 172.
'At the Back of the North Wind,' 171.
'Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood,' 171.
'The Princess and Goblin,' 171.
'Lilliput Lectures,' 171.
---- biographical account of, 168-172.
---- appreciation of his work, 168, 169.
---- his association with the pre-Raphaelites, 168.
---- impression of his work, 168, 169.
HUGHES, E., 35, 36, 65, 68, 70, 73, 74, 140.
HUGHES, T., 'Tom Brown's School Days' (1868), illustrations by A.
HUGHES and S. P. HALL, 136.
HUNT, ALFRED, 92, 123.
HUNT, HOLMAN, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 30.
_Good Words_, 46, 48.
Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105.
'Parables from Nature,' 114.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
Watts's 'Divine and Moral Songs,' 128.
'Golden Treasury Series,'138
'Studies from Life,' 140.
HUMPHREY'S, H. N., illustrations to:
Herbert's 'Poetical Works,' 103.
'White Doe of Rylstone,' 109.
Thomson's 'Seasons,' 111.
Hurst and Blackett's 'Standard Library,' illustrations by F. SANDYS,
HOLMAN HUNT, J. GILBERT, J. D. WATSON, J. LEECH, and E. HUGHES, 140,
141.
HUTTULA, R., 76.
'Hymns for Little Children' (1862), 118.
'Hyperion' (1857), illustrations by B. FOSTER, 108.
'Idyllic Pictures' (1867), illustrations by R. BARNES, BOYD HOUGHTON,
H. CAMERON, M. E. EDWARDS, P. GRAY, R. P. LEITCH, G. J. PINWELL, F.
SANDYS, W. SMALL, C. J. STANILAND, and G. H. THOMAS, 131, 132.
ILLINGWORTH, S. E., 60.
'Illustrated Book of Sacred Poems' (1867?), illustrations by M. E.
EDWARDS, J. W. NORTH, H. C. SELOUS, W. SMALL, and J. D. WATSON, 138.
_Illustrated Chronicle of the Great Exhibition_, 14.
_Illustrated Family Journal_, 14.
_Illustrated London News_, 14;
illustrations of the 'seventies,' 92.
BENNETT, C. H., 92.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 92.
CORBOULD, E. H., 92.
GILBERT, J., 92.
GREEN, C., 92.
HUNT, ALFRED, 92.
MORGAN, MATT, 92.
PASQUIER, J. A., 92.
READ, S., 92.
THOMAS, GEORGE, 92.
_Illustrated Times_, illustrations in, by A. CLAXTON, F. CLAXTON, M.
E. EDWARDS, Lieutenant SECCOMBE, P. SKELTON, T. SULMAN.
_Illustrated Weekly News_, 92.
Illustration, reasons for serial issue of,
---- demand for, 10.
---- importance of, 10.
---- influence of 'process-work' on, 11.
---- earliest attempt of magazine, 16.
---- object of, 17.
---- to the early Victorian novels, 18.
---- to the _Cornhill_, 38, 39.
---- black and white, its requisites, 65, 66.
---- influence of photography on, 66.
---- preference of a drawing to a photograph, 67, 68.
---- in daily papers, 94.
---- new method employed in 'Pleasures of Memory' (1867), 137, 138.
---- regard for the older, 139.
---- comparisons of old and modern, 139.
Illustrator, position of the modern, 3, 9.
---- the popular artist of the period, 10, 134.
---- appreciation of, 10.
---- summary of the work of the sixties, 148, 149.
Ingelow, Jean, 'Poems' (1867, 4to), 4; illustrations to, by BOYD
HOUGHTON, E. and T. DALZIEL, J. W. NORTH, E. J. POYNTER, G. J.
PINWELL, and J. WOLF, 129, 130.
'Ingoldsby Legends,' The (1864), illustrations by CRUIKSHANK, LEECH,
and TENNIEL, 123.
JACKSON, MASON, 'The Pictorial Press,' 92, 98.
Jackson's 'Engraving.' _See_ Chatto.
Jerrold's 'Story of a Feather' (1867), illustrations by DU MAURIER,
133.
'Jingles and Jokes for Little Folks' (1866), illustrations by PAUL
GRAY, 129.
JOHNSON, E. K., 57, 64.
Journalism, 55.
_Judy_, general poorness of its drawings, 90.
---- illustrated by MATT MORGAN and J. PROCTOR, 90.
---- value as representative of the 'eighties,' 90.
Junior Etching Club, 118, 151, 152, 153.
JUSTYNE, P. W., 64.
'Juvenile Verse and Picture Book' (1848), GILBERT, TENNIEL, R.
CRUIKSHANK, WEIGALL, and W. B. SCOTT'S illustrations to, 100.
'Kavanagh' (1857), illustrations by BIRKET FOSTER, 108.
Keats's 'Poetical Works' (1866), illustrations by G. SCHARF, 129.
KEENE, CHARLES, 19.
---- quality of his work, 25; illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 25, 26, 36.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 41.
_Good Words_, 47.
_London Society_, 59-62.
_Punch_, 88, 89.
'Voyage of the _Constance_,' 110, 111.
'Lyra Germanica,' 113.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
'Mrs. Caudle's Curtain Lectures,' 124.
'Ballads and Songs of Brittany,' 127.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
Hood's 'Poems,' 152.
'Passages from Modern English Poets,' 153.
KENNEDY, T., 129.
KEYL, F. W., 64, 114, 123.
'King Gab's Story Bag' (1868), illustrations by W. CRANE, 136.
Kingsley, C., 'Hereward,' 50.
---- 'The Water Babies' (1869), illustrations by PATON and SKELTON,
137.
_Kingston's Annuals_, 87.
'Krilof and his Fables' (1867), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON and
ZWECKER, 135.
Krummacher's 'Parables' (1858), illustrations by CLAYTON, 109, 110.
'Lake County,' The (1864), illustrations by LINTON, 124.
LAMONT, T. R., 58, 65.
Landon (L. E.), 'Poetical Works' (1869), illustrations by W. B.
SCOTT, 140.
Lasinio, his influence, 151.
Laurie's 'Shilling Entertainment Library' (1862), 118.
Lawless, M. J., quality of his work, 28; illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 28, 29, 163.
_Good Words_, 46, 48, 50, 163.
_London Society_, 56, 57, 60, 62, 163.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Punch_, 88.
'Lyra Germanica,' 113, 163.
'Life of St. Patrick,' 117.
_Churchman's Shilling Magazine_, 129.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Legendary Ballads,' 144, 145.
'Passages from Modern English Poets,' 152.
---- biographical accounts of, 162, 163.
---- his picture 'The Sick Call,' 163.
LAWSON, CECIL, 80.
LAWSON, F. W., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 35-37.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 42.
_London Society_, 59-62.
_Shilling Magazine_, 65.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66-69.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72, 73.
_Quiver_, 75.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Dark Blue_, 80.
_Aunt Judy's Magazine_, 85.
_Punch_, 88.
_Fun_, 89.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 133.
Heber's 'Hymns,' 133.
LAWSON, J., 33-36; illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 52.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 67.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 73.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 75.
'Pen and Pencil Pictures,' 127.
'Ballad Stories of the Affections,' 130.
'Golden Thoughts,' 134.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 143, 146.
'Children's Garland,' 148.
LAYARD, G. S., 'Tennyson and his pre-Raphaelite Illustrators,' 105,
161, 162.
'Lays of the Holy Land' (1858), illustrations by MILLAIS, CLAYTON,
BIRKET FOSTER, GILBERT, 108.
Lear's 'Book of Nonsense,' 118.
LEE, J., 133.
LEECH (J.), collectors of, 4.
---- quality of his art work, 18, 38; illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 20, 21.
'Bon Gaultier Ballads,' 100.
'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
'Ingoldsby Legends,' 123.
Hurst and Blackett's 'Standard Library,' 140.
'Legends and Lyrics' (1866), illustrations by BURTON, CARRICK, DU
MAURIER, W. T. C. DOBSON, M. E. EDWARDS, L. FRÖLICH, BIRKET FOSTER,
JOHN GILBERT, CHARLES KEENE, MORTEN, W. H. MILLAIS, S. PALMER, J.
TENNIEL, and G. H. THOMAS, 128.
LEIGH, JOHN, 76.
LEIGHTON, LORD, P.R.A., illustrations to:
'Cornhill Gallery,' 39.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 40.
'Romola,' 41.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
LEIGHTON, JOHN, 35, 49, 71; illustrations to:
'Lyra Germanica,' 113, 136.
'Moral Emblems,' 118.
Dalziels' 'Bible Pictures,' 121.
'Life of Man Symbolised,' 127.
_Leisure Hour_, 34.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 82, 83, 84.
BARNES, R., 83.
DU MAURIER, G., 83.
GILBERT, Sir J. (?), 83.
GREEN, C., 84.
MAHONEY, J., 83.
PRITCHETT, R. T., 83.
SOLOMON, S., 83.
STANILAND, C. J., 83.
WHYMPER, 84.
LEITCH, R. P., 50, 67, 74, 107, 132.
LE JEUNE, H., designs to 'Ministering Children,' 104.
Lemon's, M., 'A New Table-Book' (1867), illustrations by F. ELTZE,
133.
---- 'Fairy Tales' (1867), illustrations by C. H. BENNETT and R.
DOYLE, 135.
LESLIE, G., 132.
Leslie's 'Musical Annual' (1870), illustrations by MILLAIS and
PINWELL, 141.
Lever, C., 'Lord Kilgobbin,' 42.
LEWIS, A. J., 153.
'Liber Studiorum,' 39.
'Life and Phantasy,' 160.
'Life of Man Symbolised' (1866), illustrations by JOHN LEIGHTON, 127.
'Life of St. Patrick' (1862), illustrations by M. J. LAWLESS, 117.
'Lilliput Lectures,' 79, 171.
'Lilliput Levée' (1864), illustrations by MILLAIS, PINWELL, etc.,
133, 134, 166.
LINNEY, W., 46.
LINTON, J. D., illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 54.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 73.
Linton's 'Masterpieces of Engraving,' 97.
LINTON, W. J., 52, 99; illustrations to:
Wise's 'Shakespeare,' 113.
'The Lake Country,' 124.
'Little Songs for Me to Sing' (1865), illustrations by J. E. MILLAIS,
128.
'Little Songs for Little Folks' (1867), illustrations by J. D. WATSON,
133.
'London Garland,' The (1895), 125.
_London Journal, The_, 14.
'London People' (1864), illustrations by C. H. BENNETT, 123.
_London Reader_, 14.
_London Society_, account of its neglect, 55.
---- its excellence, 55, 57.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 55-62.
BARNARD, F., 60.
BARNES, R., 56, 57, 58.
BAYES, A. W., 58.
BENNETT, C. H., 56, 57, 58.
BOYD, M. A., 61.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 56, 59, 61.
BROWN, ISAAC L., 60.
BRUNTON, W., 57, 58, 60.
CLAXTON, A., 56, 57, 58, 62.
CLAXTON, F., 57.
COOPER, A. W., 57, 58, 60.
CORBOULD, E. H., 57.
CRANE, W., 56, 60.
CROWQUILL, A., 60.
CRUIKSHANK, G., 59.
DARLEY, FELIX, 57.
DOYLE, C. A., 57, 58.
DUDLEY, R., 58, 59.
DU MAURIER, G., 56-60.
EDWARDS, K., 58, 59.
EDWARDS, M. E., 57-61.
ELLIS, E. J., 60, 61.
FRASER, F. A., 62.
FRENCH, H., 60.
FOSTER, BIRKET, 61.
GASCOINE, J., 61.
GILBERT, F., 62.
GILBERT, Sir J., 60, 61.
GILBERT, W. S., 60.
GODDARD, G. B., 60, 61.
GODWIN, T., 57.
GRAY, P., 58, 59.
GRAY, TOM, 60.
GREEN, C., 57, 59.
HENLEY, L. C., 58, 59.
HUARD, L., 57.
HUGHES, A., 58, 62.
ILLINGWORTH, S. E., 60.
JOHNSON, E. K., 57.
KEENE, C., 59-62.
LAMONT, T. R., 58.
LAWLESS, M. J., 56, 57, 60, 62.
LAWSON, F. W., 59-62.
M'CONNELL, W., 57.
MAHONEY, J., 61, 62.
MARKS, H. S., 62.
MILLAIS, J. E., 56, 58.
MORGAN, MATT, 57.
MORTEN, T., 56-62.
PATERSON, H., 62.
PASQUIER, J., 58, 60.
PICKERSGILL, F. R., 56.
PINWELL, G. J., 57, 58, 59.
PORTCH, J., 56.
POYNTER, E. J., 56, 58.
RICE, 60.
RIDLEY, B., 61.
SAMBOURNE, L., 61.
SANDERSON, H., 56, 57.
SANDYS, F., 60.
SARGENT, WALDO, 57.
SECCOMBE, T. S., 58.
SKILL, F. J., 57.
SMALL, W., 59, 60, 62.
SOLOMON, REBECCA, 57.
STANTON, H., 61.
STONE, MARCUS, 57, 58.
SWEETING, T., 61.
THOMAS, G. H., 57, 58.
THOMAS, W. CAVE, 57.
THOMAS, W. L., 61.
THOMSON, J. G., 59, 60.
WALKER, FRANCIS, 62.
WALKER, FRED, 56.
WATSON, J. D., 56-62.
WOOD, FANE, 60.
ZWECKER, J. B., 57.
Longfellow's 'Hiawatha' (1856), illustrations to, by G. H. THOMAS,
102, 110.
---- 'Poems' (1854), illustrations to:
JANE E. BENHAM, BIRKET FOSTER, GILBERT, and WEHNERT, 101.
(1867) BOYD HOUGHTON, etc., 134.
Longmans' 'New Testament' (1863), 121.
'Lord's Prayer,' The (1870), illustrations by F. R. PICKERSGILL, 148.
LUARD, J., illustrations to _Once a Week_, 32.
LUCAS, H. J., 49.
'Lucile' (1867), illustrations by DU MAURIER, 134.
'Lyra Germanica' (1861), illustrations by:
J. LEIGHTON, H. S. MARKS, E. ARMITAGE, M. J. LAWLESS, C. KEENE,
113.
(1868) E. ARMITAGE, MADOX BROWN, and J. LEIGHTON, 136.
M[ACBETH], R., 37, 71, 93.
M'CONNELL, W., 57, 64, 67.
Mackay's '1001 Gems of Poetry' (1867), illustrations by MILLAIS, 133.
MACLISE, (D.), illustrations to:
Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105.
'The Princess,' 111.
MACQUOID, T. R., 64, 146.
M'TAGGART, W., 46.
M'WHIRTER, J. W., illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 45.
_Sunday Magazine_, 70.
'The Gold Thread,' 116.
Wordsworth's 'Poems for the Young,' 118, 123.
'Pen and Pencil Pictures,' 127.
MADOT, A. W., 108, 109.
_Magazine of Art_, 14.
Magazines, collecting of, 6.
---- precursors of weekly papers, 14.
---- earliest attempt of illustrated, 16.
'Magic Mirror,' The (1866), illustrations by W. S. GILBERT, 129.
'Magic of Kindness,' The (1868), illustrations by W. CRANE, 135.
MAHONEY, J., 36, 54, 61, 62; illustrations to:
_Sunday Magazine_, 67, 69, 70, 71.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 75.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78, 79.
_Leisure Hour_, 83.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
Cassell's 'Illustrated Readings,' 135.
'Nobility of Life,' 136.
Dickens's Works (Household Edition), 138.
'Scrambles on the Alps,' 141.
'National Nursery Rhymes,' 141.
MARKS, H. D., 62.
MARKS, H. S., 34, 36, 64; illustrations to:
Thornbury's 'Legends of the Cavaliers,' 107.
'Lyra Germanica,' 113.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
'Two Centuries of Song,' 132.
'National Nursery Rhymes,' 141.
'Passages from Modern English Poets,' 152.
'Masterpieces of Engraving,' (LINTON), 97.
MEADOWS, KENNY, illustrations to 'Book of Celebrated Poems,' 101.
MEARNS, MISS L., 33.
'Melbourne House' (1864), 124.
MENZEL, his influence on English illustrators, 150.
---- his illustrations to Kügler's 'Frederick the Great,' 150, 151.
Meredith, G., 'Evan Harrington,' 25.
---- 'Adventures of Harry Richmond,' 42, 43.
'Merrie Days of England' (1858), illustrations by B. FOSTER, G.
THOMAS, and CORBOULD, 109.
'Merrie Heart,' The (1868), illustrations by W. CRANE, 136.
Michelet's 'The Bird' (1862), illustrations by GIACOMELLI, 121, 122.
MILES, HELEN J., 35.
MILLAIS, Sir J., P.R.A., illustrations to:
Trollope, 18, 40.
_Once a Week_, 22, 23, 24, 25, 37.
'Cornhill Gallery,' 39.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 39, 40.
'Small House at Allington,' 40, 41.
_Good Words_, 46, 48, 49, 50, 55.
_London Society_, 56, 58.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 63.
_Saint Paul's_, 77.
_Punch_, 88.
Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105, 157.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 106.
'Lays of the Holy Land,' 108.
'Home Affections,' 109.
'Papers for Thoughtful Girls,' 118.
'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
'Parables of Our Lord,' 48, 49, 119, 120, 121.
'Ballads and Songs of Brittany,' 127.
'Little Songs for Me to Sing,' 128.
'Gems of Poetry,' 131.
'Collected Illustrations,' 131.
'Lilliput Levée,' 133.
'Golden Treasury Series,' 138.
Hurst and Blackett's 'Standard Library,' 140.
Leslie's 'Musical Annual,' 141.
Hood's 'Poems,' 152.
'Passages for Modern English Poets,' 152.
---- characteristics of his work, 22, 23.
---- advantages in studying them, 25.
---- biographical notice of, 156, 157.
---- appreciation of his work, 156, 157.
MILLAIS, W., 114, 128.
Milton's 'Poetical Works,' HARVEY'S illustrations to, 101.
---- 'Comus' (1858), illustrations by FOSTER, PICKERSGILL, and WEIR,
109.
'Ministering Children' (1856), illustrations by B. FOSTER and H. LE
JEUNE, 104.
'Mirage of Life,' The (1867), illustrations by TENNIEL, 135.
_Mirror, The_, 14.
'Modern Illustration' (PENNELL), 97, 114.
'Months Illustrated by Pen and Pencil' (1864), illustrations by R.
BARNES, J. GILBERT, and J. W. NORTH, 124.
MOORE (ALBERT), illustrations to 'Ode on the Nativity,' 135.
MOORE, H., illustrations to:
Hood's 'Poems,' 152.
'Passages from Modern English Poets,' 152.
Moore's 'Poetry and Pictures' (1857), illustrations by B. FOSTER, 108.
---- 'Poems' (1858), 109.
---- 'Irish Melodies' (1867), illustrations by C. W. COPE, B. FOSTER,
and H. WEIR, 133, 134.
'Moral Emblems' (1862), illustrations by J. LEIGHTON, 118.
'Mores Ridicula' (1870), illustrations by J. E. ROGERS, 141.
MORGAN, C. W., 69, 90;
illustrations to 'Songs of Many Seasons,' 147.
MORGAN, MATT, 57, 76; illustrations to:
_Britannia_ and the _Tomahawk_, 80.
_Illustrated London News_, 92.
MORTEN, T., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 31, 34, 35.
_Good Words_, 46, 48, 49.
_London Society_, 56, 57, 58, 59, 61.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 63, 64.
_Cassell's Family Paper_, 71.
_Every Boy's Magazine_, 85.
_Aunt Judy's Magazine_, 85.
_Beeton's Annuals_, 87.
'Famous Boys,' 118.
Dalziels' 'Arabian Nights,' 122.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
Watts's 'Divine and Moral Songs,' 128.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 131.
'Two Centuries of Song,' 132.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132.
'Gulliver's Travels,' 133.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
'Mother's Last Words' (1866), illustrations by M. E. EDWARDS and T.
KENNEDY, 129.
'Mrs. Caudle's Curtain Lectures' (1864), illustrations by C. KEENE,
124.
'Mrs. Wind and Madam Rain' (1864), illustrations by C. H. BENNETT,
123.
Mulock (Miss), 'The Fairy Book' (1876), illustrations by J. E. ROGERS,
141.
MULREADY, W., illustrations in 'Vicar of Wakefield,' 99.
---- his influence on the 'sixties,' 151.
---- illustrations to Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105.
'Munchausen' (1861), illustrations by A. CROWQUILL, 114.
MURCH, A., 146.
MURRAY, C. O., 85.
MURRAY, FAIRFAX, viii;
his Rossetti collections, 160, 162.
'Music-master,' 6, 99, 102, 160, 168.
NASH, T., 76.
_Nature and Art_, 34.
'Nature Pictures' (1878), illustrations by J. H. DELL, 147.
'New Forest,' The (1862), illustrations by W. CRANE, 117.
NICOL ERSKINE, illustrations to _Good Words_, 45.
NIXON, J. FORBES, 85.
'Nobility of Life,' The (1869), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, C.
GREEN, J. MAHONEY, E. J. POYNTER, FRANCIS WALKER, and J. D. WATSON,
136, 137.
NORTH, J. W., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33, 35, 36.
_Good Words_, 52.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 67, 68.
'Sacred Poetry,' 123.
'Our Life,' 123.
'The Months Illustrated,' 124.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
Jean Ingelow's 'Poems,' 130.
'Wayside Poesies,' 130.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Spirit of Praise,' 133.
'Illustrated Book of Sacred Poems,' 135.
Novello's 'National Nursery Rhymes' (1870), illustrations by BOYD
HOUGHTON, E. and T. DALZIEL, A. HUGHES, H. S. MARKS, J. MAHONEY,
G. J. PINWELL, W. SMALL, W. J. WIEGAND, 141.
OAKES, J. W., 153.
Odd numbers, method for preserving, 7.
'Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity' (1867), illustrations by A.
MOORE, W. SMALL, etc., 135.
'Odes and Sonnets' (1859), illustrations by FOSTER, SLEIGH, 110.
'Old Fairy Tale,' An (1866), illustrations by R. DOYLE, 129.
_Olio, The_, 14.
_Once a Week_, collectors of, 4, 7, 14.
---- its original aim, 16.
---- its characteristics, 17.
---- its success and merits, 19, 20.
---- its illustrations and illustrators, 16-37.
ANSDELL, 34, 35.
BARNARD, F., 37.
BARNES, R., 34-37.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 33, 34, 36.
BRADLEY, 34-37.
BREWTNALL, 34, 35.
BROWN, FORD MADOX, 37.
BURTON, 33.
CRANE, W., 33.
DOBELL, C., 33.
DU MAURIER, G., 30, 31, 33, 34, 37.
DUNCAN, E., 33, 34, 35.
EDWARDS, KATE, 36.
EDWARDS, M. E., 32, 33, 35, 36, 37.
ELTZE, F., 33.
FAIRFIELD, 33.
FRASER, A. W., 34, 35, 36.
FILDES, S. L., 34, 35, 36, 37.
GILBERT, SIR J., 33, 34, 36.
GODDARD, 33, 34, 35.
GRAY, P., 33, 34.
GREEN, C., 31, 32, 35.
GREEN, T., 36.
GRISET, E., 35, 36.
HUGHES, A., 34, 35.
HUGHES, EDWARD, 35.
HUNT HOLMAN, 30.
KEENE, C., 25, 26.
LAWSON, J., 33, 34, 35, 36.
LAWSON, F. W., 35, 36, 37.
LEECH, J., 20, 21.
LEIGHTON, J., 35, 36.
LUARD, J., 32.
MACBETH, R., 37.
MAHONEY, J., 36, 37.
MARKS, H. S., 33, 34.
MEARNS (MISS), 33.
MILES, H. J., 34, 35.
MILLAIS, J. E., 22-25, 37.
MORTEN, T., 31, 34.
NORTH, J. N., 33, 36.
PATERSON, H., 36, 37.
PINWELL, G. J., 30, 31, 35, 36, 37.
POYNTER, E. J., 31, 35.
PRINSEP, VAL, 37.
PRITCHETT, R. T., 33.
SANDYS, F., 29, 30, 33.
SCOTT. T., 36.
SHEIL, E., 35, 36.
SHIELDS, F. J., 32, 35.
SKELTON, 33.
SLINGER, 33.
SMALL, W., 33, 34, 35, 36.
SOLOMON, S., 32.
STRASZINSKI, 36.
SULMAN, T., 36.
TENNIEL, J., 21, 22, 35.
WALKER, FRED, 26, 27, 33.
WATSON, J. D., 33.
WELLS (MISS), 33.
WHISTLER, J. M'N., 30.
WHITE, 33.
WIMPRESS, E. M., 36.
WOLF, J., 33.
'One Year' (1862), illustrations by C. DOBELL, 118.
ORCHARDSON, W. Q., illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 44, 45, 55.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Original Pictures' (1868), illustrations by R. BARNES, A. W. BAYES,
etc., 135.
'Our Life Illustrated by Pen and Pencil' (1864), illustrations by
BARNES, DU MAURIER, NORTH, PINWELL, H. C. SELOUS, and J. D. WATSON,
123.
_Oxford and Cambridge Magazine_ (1856), 161.
'Pageant,' The, 125.
Palgrave's 'Five Days' Entertainment at Wentworth Grange' (1868),
illustrations by A. HUGHES, 136.
PALMER, S., 103, 110, 114, 128, 137.
_Pan_, 92, 93.
'Papers for Thoughtful Girls' (1862), illustrations by J. E. MILLAIS,
118.
'Parables from Nature' (1867), illustrations by E. BURNE-JONES, M. E.
EDWARDS, L. FRÖLICH, HOLMAN HUNT, F. KEYL, OTTO SPECKER, J. TENNIEL,
and H. WEIR, 114.
'Parables of Our Lord' (1863), illustrations by J. E. MILLAIS, 119,
120, 121.
_Parterre, The_, 14.
Partridge and Co., publications of, 15.
PASQUIER, J., 58, 60, 69, 75, 76, 85, 87, 92, 132.
'Passages from Modern English Poets' (1862 and 1876), illustrations
by Junior Etching Club (MILLAIS, WHISTLER, TENNIEL, H. MOORE, M. J.
LAWLESS, H. S. MARKS, C. KEENE, C. ROSSETTI, F. SMALLFIELD, VISCOUNT
BURY, Lord C. G. FITZGERALD, J. W. OAKES, A. J. LEWIS, F. POWELL, J.
SLEIGH, H. C. WHAITE, W. SEVERN, W. GALE, and T. CLARK), 118, 152,
153.
'Patient Henry' (1866), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, 129.
PATERSON, H., 37, 43, 62, 73.
PATERSON, R., 45, 141.
PATON, SIR NOEL, illustrations to:
_Cornhill_, 41.
'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
Aytoun's 'Lays,' 123.
'Gems of Literature,' 127.
'The Water Babies,' 137.
'Golden Treasury Series,' 138.
'Pegasus Re-saddled' (1877), illustrations by DU MAURIER, 147, 148.
'Pen and Pencil Pictures from the Poets' (1866), illustrations by K.
HALSWELLE, J. LAWSON, J. M'WHIRTER, PETTIE, and W. SMALL, 127.
PENNELL, JOSEPH, viii, 3, 10.
---- 'Pen Drawing and Pen Draughtsmen,' 65, 97.
---- 'Modern Illustrations,' 97, 114.
---- arguments for wood-engraving, 97.
---- on Shield's illustrations, 118.
---- eulogy on F. Sandys in _The Quarto_, 172.
'Pen Drawing and Pen Draughtsmen' (PENNELL), 65, 97.
_Penny Illustrated Paper_, 92.
_Penny Illustrated Weekly News_, 92.
_Penny Magazine_, 13.
_People's Journal, The_, 14.
_People's Magazine_, 34.
Periodicals, legitimate field for illustration, 9.
---- estimation of, 14-15.
PERRY, T. W., 80.
_Peter Parley's Annuals_, 87.
PETTIE, JOHN, illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 45, 46, 48, 49.
_Sunday Magazine_, 69, 70.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
'The Postman's Bag,' 46.
Wordsworth's 'Poems for the Young,' 118, 123.
'Pen and Pencil Pictures,' 127.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
PHILLIPS (C.), Monograph on F. Walker, 165.
'Philip in Church,' 40.
'PHIZ,' quality of his art work, 18, 19, 38.
---- illustrations to 'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
PICKERSGILL, F. R., 56, 64, 101.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
Poe's 'Poetical Works,' 107.
'Home Affections,' 108.
'Comus,' 109.
'The Seasons,' 111.
Montgomery's 'Poems,' 112.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
'Art Pictures from Old Testament,' 147.
'The Lord's Prayer,' 148.
'Pickwick Papers,' 18, 19.
'Pictorial Press' (Jackson), 92, 98.
'Pictures from English Literature' (1870), illustrations by DU
MAURIER, S. L. FILDES, W. SMALL, W. C. THOMAS, and J. D. WATSON,
141.
'Pictures of English Life' (1864), illustrations by R. BARNES, 124.
'Pictures of English Landscape' (1863), illustrations by B. FOSTER,
117.
'Pictures of Society' (1866), reprints of illustrations by SANDYS,
LAWLESS, etc., 128, 129.
Pinnock's _Guide to Knowledge_, 14.
PINWELL, G. J., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 29, 30, 35, 36, 37, 167.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 41.
_Good Words_, 49, 50, 52, 54, 55.
_London Society_, 57, 58, 59.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 69, 70.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 74, 75.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
_Punch_, 88.
_Graphic_, 93.
'Arabian Nights' (Dalziels'), 122, 167.
'Our Life,' 123.
'Hacco the Dwarf,' 123, 124, 166.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
Dalziels' 'Goldsmith,' 126, 167.
Jean Ingelow's 'Poems,' 130, 167.
'Ballad Stories of the Affections,' 130.
'Wayside Poesies,' 130.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 131.
'Spirit of Praise,' 133.
'Lilliput Levée,' 134, 166.
'North Coast and other Poems,' 134.
'Golden Thoughts from Golden Fountains,' 134.
'National Nursery Rhymes,' 141.
Leslie's 'Musical Annual,' 141.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
'Art Pictures from the Old Testament,' 147.
'The Happy Home,' 166.
---- biographical account of, 166, 167, 168.
---- Quilter (H.), on, 167.
---- Comparison with WALKER and BOYD HOUGHTON, 167.
'Pleasures of Memory' (1869), illustrations by S. PALMER, J. D.
WATSON, C. GREEN, etc., 137, 138.
Poe's 'Poetical Works' (1856), illustrations by:
WEHNERT, etc., 104.
(1857), TENNIEL, PICKERSGILL, BIRKET FOSTER, P. SKELTON, FELIX
DARLEY, DUGGAN, J. CROPSEY, MADOT, 107, 108.
'Poems and Pictures' (1846), 99.
'Poems for the Young' (1862), illustrations by J. M'WHIRTER and J.
PETTIE, 118.
'Poetry of the Elizabethan Age' (1861), illustrations by B. FOSTER,
J. GILBERT, and E. M. WIMPERIS, 115.
'Poetry of Nature' (1861), illustrations by H. WEIR, 113.
---- New Edition (1867), 135.
---- (1868, edited by J. Cundall), illustrations by W. CRANE, 136.
'Poets of the Nineteenth Century' (1857), illustrations by MILLAIS,
FORD MADOX BROWN, BIRKET FOSTER, W. HARVEY, J. GILBERT, TENNIEL,
CLAYTON, T. DALZIEL, J. GODWIN, E. H. CORBOULD, D. EDWARDS, E.
DUNCAN, ARTHUR HUGHES, W. B. LEITCH, E. A. GOODALL, T. D. HARDY,
F. R. PICKERSGILL, H. WEIR, 106, 107.
Pollok's 'Course of Time' (1857), illustrations by B. FOSTER, CLAYTON,
and TENNIEL, 104, 105.
PORTCH, J., 56, 115, 118.
PORTER, J. L., 46.
'Postman's Bag' (1861), illustrations by J. PETTIE, 116.
POWELL, F., 153.
POYNTER, E. J., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 31, 35.
_London Society_, 56, 58.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 63.
Jean Ingelow's 'Poems,' 130.
'Nobility of Life,' 136.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
Pre-Raphaelitism, W. M. Rossetti on, 98, 99.
---- influence of, 99, 150.
---- Somes Layard on, 105.
---- exposition of, 168, 169.
PRITCHETT, R. T., 33, 34, 35, 50, 65, 67, 72, 83.
Process-Work, influence on illustration, 11, 108.
PROCTOR, J., illustrations to _Judy_, 90.
---- illustrations in _Will o' the Wisp_, 91, 129.
'Prodigal Son,' The, FRED WALKER'S illustrations to, 27.
PRINSEP, VAL, 37.
Print-splitting, 7, 8.
PRIOLO, PAULO, 64, 84, 123.
'Proverbs of Solomon' (1858), illustrations by J. GILBERT, 107.
'Proverbs with Pictures' (1858), illustrations by C. H. BENNETT, 109.
_Punch_, 14, 17.
---- Spielmann's History of, 88.
---- selected list of its illustrators, 88, 89.
CRANE, WALTER, 88.
DU MAURIER, G., 88, 89.
GRAY, PAUL, 88.
GRISET, ERNEST, 88.
KEENE, CHARLES, 88, 89.
LAWLESS, M. J., 88.
LAWSON, F. W., 88.
MILLAIS, Sir J., 88.
PINWELL, G. J., 88.
SAMBOURNE, LINLEY, 88.
TENNIEL, Sir J., 88.
THOMSON, J. G., 88.
WALKER, FRED, 88.
_Punch and Judy_, illustrations in graphotype, 91.
'Puck on Pegasus' (1862), illustrations by DOYLE, M. E. EDWARDS,
LEECH, MILLAIS, NOEL PATON, 'PHIZ,' and PORTCH, 118, 135.
'Pupils of St. John the Divine' (1867), illustrations by E. ARMITAGE,
135.
Quarles's 'Emblems' (1861), illustrations by C. H. BENNETT, 113.
_Quarto, The_, 125.
QUILTER, HARRY, on PINWELL, 167.
_Quiver_, illustrations and illustrators of, 74, 75.
BARNES, R., 74, 75.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 74, 75.
DUNN, EDITH, 75.
EDWARDS, M. E., 74.
FILDES, S. L., 75.
GRAY, PAUL, 74.
HERKOMER, H., 75.
LAWSON, J., 75.
LAWSON, F. W., 75.
LEITCH, R. P., 74.
MAHONEY, J., 75.
PASQUIER, J. A., 75.
PINWELL, G. J., 74, 75.
RIDLEY, M. W., 75.
SANDYS, F., 74.
SMALL, W., 74, 75.
STANILAND, C. J., 75.
THOMAS, G. J., 74, 75.
WATSON, J. D., 75.
---- reprint of illustrations in 'Idyllic Pictures,' 1867 in volume,
74.
RALSTON, J. M'L., 138.
READ, S., 92, 108, 115.
Reade, (C.), 'The Cloister and the Hearth' ('A Good Fight'), 20.
---- 'Foul Play,' 37.
---- 'Put yourself in his place,' 42.
REDGRAVE, R., 101, 117.
RETHEL'S influence, 151.
'Rhymes and Roundelays' (1856), illustrations by BIRKET FOSTER, 103.
RICE, 60.
RICH, A., 146.
'Ridicula Rediviva' (1870), illustrations by J. E. ROGERS, 141.
RIDLEY, B., 61.
RIDLEY, M. W., 72, 75, 80, 85.
RIVIÈRE, BRITON, illustrations to:
_Good Words_, 54.
_Good Words for the Young_, 78.
ROBERTSON, H. R., 147.
ROBINSON, T., 80.
ROGERS, W. H., 113.
---- 'Spiritual Conceits,' 116.
ROGERS, J. E., illustrations to 'Mores Ridicula,' 'Ridicula
Rediviva,' and Miss Mulock's 'Fairy Tales,' 141.
'Romola,' 41.
'Roses and Holly' (1867), 134.
ROSSITER, C., 153.
Rossetti, Christina, _Amor Mundi_, SANDYS'S illustration to, 65.
---- 'If,' SANDYS'S illustrations, 74.
---- 'Goblin Market' (1862), illustrations by D. G. ROSSETTI, 117,
162.
---- 'The Prince's Progress' (1865), illustrations by D. G. ROSSETTI,
125.
---- 'Sing Song' (1872), illustrations by A. HUGHES, 171.
Rossetti, Christina, 'Speaking Likenesses' (1874), illustrations by
A. HUGHES, 171.
ROSSETTI, D. G., opinion on wood as an artistic medium, 47.
---- designs to Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105, 158, 161.
---- 'Goblin Market,' 117, 161, 162.
---- 'The Prince's Progress,' 125, 161.
---- biographical notice of, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162.
---- his relations with A. Hughes, 159, 160.
---- prices received for his work, 158.
---- frontispiece to 'Early Italian Poets,' 160.
---- frontispiece to 'The Risen Life,' 160.
---- 'The Queen's Page,' 160.
---- Burne-Jones on, 161.
---- 'Day and Night Songs,' 161.
---- 'Flower Pieces,' 160.
---- 'Life and Phantasy,' 160.
---- number of book-illustrations and their importance, 160, 161, 162.
Rossetti, W. M., on pre-Raphaelitism, 98, 99, 105.
---- his biography of D. G. Rossetti, 158, 159.
'Round of Days,' A (1865), 4;
illustrations by A. W. BAYES, BOYD HOUGHTON, W. BROOKS, T. and E.
DALZIEL, P. GRAY, J. W. NORTH, T. MORTEN, F. WALKER, and J. D.
WATSON, 125.
_Routledge's Christmas Annuals_, 87.
ROWLANDSON, 18.
Ruskin, J., criticism of the engraving of the 'sixties,' 154.
'Sacred Poetry' (1862), illustrations by G. H. ANDREWS, H. H.
ARMSTEAD, W. P. BURTON, J. GILBERT, HOLMAN HUNT, C. KEENE, H. S.
MARKS, F. R. PICKERSGILL, S. READ, F. SMALLFIELD, J. SLEIGH, F.
SANDYS, F. WALKER, J. D. WATSON, and H. WEIR, 115.
_Saint Paul's Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 76, 77.
FRASER, F. A., 77.
MILLAIS, J. E., 77.
SALA, G. A., 38.
'Salamandrine,' The (1853), GILBERT'S illustrations to, 100, 101.
SANDERSON, H., illustrations to:
_London Society_, 56, 57.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Fun_, 89.
SANDYS, FREDERICK, quality of his work, 29; illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 29, 30, 33.
_Cornhill Magazine_, 40, 42.
_Good Words_, 46, 47, 49.
_London Society_, 62.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Shilling Magazine_, 65.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 74.
_Churchman's Shilling Magazine_, 129.
Supplement to the _British Architect_, 174.
_English Illustrated Magazine_, 173.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 131.
Hurst and Blackett's 'Standard Library,' 140, 141.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 143, 144, 145, 172.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
_Century Guild Hobby Horse_, 173.
'The Shaving of Shagpat,' 174.
---- complete list, 172, 173.
---- portraits of Arnold, Green, and Browning, 174.
---- Miss Mulock's 'Christian's Mistake,' 174.
---- critical and biographical summary of, 172, 173, 174, 175.
---- Mr. Gray on, 131, 172.
---- Mr. Pennell on, in _The Quarto_, 172.
---- Prof. Herkomer on, 172.
---- Mr. Gosse on, 172.
---- Sandys's complaint of engravers, 174.
SAMBOURNE, LINLEY, illustrations to:
_London Society_, 61.
_Punch_, 88.
SARGENT, WALDO, 57.
_Saturday Journal_, 66.
_Saturday Magazine, The_, 14.
'Savage Club Papers' (1867), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, DU
MAURIER, and J. D. WATSON, 135; (1868) 136.
_Savoy, The_, 125.
SCHARF, G., illustrations to Keats's 'Poems,' 129.
Scott's 'Poems' (1866), illustrations by K. HALSWELLE, 127.
---- 'Lady of the Lake' (1856), illustrations by GILBERT, 104.
SCOTT, DAVID, illustrations to:
'Pilgrim's Progress,' 114.
'Ancient Mariner,' 114.
SCOTT, T., 36, 133.
SCOTT, W. B., 100; illustrations to:
'Pilgrim's Progress,' 114.
Landon's 'Poetical Works,' 140.
'Scouring of the White Horse,' The (1858), illustrations by DOYLE,
109.
SECCOMBE, Colonel T. S., 58, 89, 92, 137.
Seguin, L., 'Rural England' (1885), 148.
SELOUS, H. C., 64, 84, 100, 123, 128, 133, 135.
'Settlers of Long Arrow,' FRED WALKER'S illustrations to, 27.
SEVERN, W., 153.
'Shakespeare, his Birthplace' (1861), illustrations by W. J. LINTON,
113.
Shakespeare's 'Works' (1856-8), illustrations by GILBERT, 104.
Shakespeare's 'Works' (1865), illustrations by H. C. SELOUS, 128.
---- 'Merchant of Venice' (1860), illustrations by G. H. THOMAS, B.
FOSTER, H. BRANDLING, H. ROGERS, 110.
_Sharp's Magazine_, 14.
SHARP (W.), Monograph on D. G. Rossetti, 160.
SHEIL, E., 36.
SHIELDS, F., illustrations to:
Defoe's 'History of the Plague,' 118.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
_Once a Week_, 32, 35.
_Sunday Magazine_, 68.
_Shilling Magazine_, 7.
---- illustrators and illustrations of, 65.
---- SANDYS'S designs to _Amor Mundi_, etc., 65.
---- WATSON'S, J. D., 65.
---- GRAY, PAUL, 65.
---- PRITCHETT, R. T., 65.
---- LAMONT, T. R., 65.
---- LAWSON, J., 65.
---- HUGHES, EDWARD, 65.
---- SMALL, W., 65.
'Sintram and his Companions,' SELOUS'S illustrations to, 100.
'Sir Christopher,' MILLAIS'S illustrations to, 25.
'Sister Anne's Probation,' MILLAIS'S illustrations to, 24.
'Sixties,' the, first public appreciation of the art of, 3.
---- contemporary appreciation of the artists of, 4.
---- collection of the wood-engravings of, 6.
---- interest in the art of, 11.
---- comparison with the art of the present day, 10, 12.
---- work of engraver in, 13.
---- origin of the movement in _Once a Week_, 14.
---- appreciation of, 15.
---- summary of the work of the artists of, 148, 149.
---- biographical notices of the artists of, 155-176.
SKELTON, P., 33, 35, 64, 92, 108, 109, 110, 123, 133, 137, 141, 146.
SKILL, F. J., 57, 133.
SLEIGH, H., 110, 115.
SLEIGH, J., 153.
SLINGER, F. J., 33, 34, 68.
SMALL, W., 43; illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33-36.
_Good Words_, 51-55.
---- quality of his work in, 51, 52.
'The Woman's Kingdom,' 53.
_London Society_, 59, 60, 62.
_Shilling Magazine_, 65.
_Sunday Magazine_, 67-69, 71.
_Cassell's Family Paper_, 71.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72, 73.
_Argosy_, 74.
_Quiver_, 74, 75.
_Good Words for the Young_, 79.
_Sunday at Home_, 84.
_Graphic_, 93.
'Words for the Wise,' 124.
'Pen and Pencil Pictures,' 127.
'Children's Hour,' 129.
Jean Ingelow's 'Poems,' 130.
'Ballad Stories of the Affections,' 130.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 131.
'Two Centuries of Song,' 132.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132, 133.
Heber's 'Hymns,' 133.
'Spirit of Praise,' 133.
'Washerwoman's Foundling,' 133.
'North Coast and other Poems,' 134.
'Goden Thoughts from Golden Fountains,' 134.
'Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity,' 135.
'Illustrated Book of Sacred Poems,' 135.
Cassell's 'Illustrated Readings,' 135.
'Standard Poets,' 140.
Novello's 'National Nursery Rhymes,' 141.
'Pictures from English Literature,' 141.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
SMALLFIELD, F., 115, 153.
'Small House at Allington,' 40, 41.
SOLOMON, A., 110, 114.
SOLOMON, REBECCA, 57, 64.
SOLOMON, SIMEON, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 32.
_Good Words_, 46, 47.
_Dark Blue_, 81.
_Leisure Hour_, 83.
Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
'Art Pictures from the Old Testament,' 147.
'Songs and Ballads of Brittany' (1865), TENNIEL'S illustrations to,
21.
'Songs of Many Seasons' (1876), illustrations by W. CRANE, DU MAURIER,
and C. W. MORGAN, 147.
'Songs and Sonnets of Shakespeare' (1861), illustrations by GILBERT,
115.
SPECKER, OTTO, 114.
'Spirit of Praise, The' (1867), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, T.
DALZIEL, P. GRAY, J. W. NORTH, G. J. PINWELL, and W. SMALL, 133.
'Spiritual Conceits' (1861), illustrations by H. ROGERS, 116.
STANFIELD, C., illustrations to Tennyson's 'Poems,' 105.
STANILAND, C. J., 72, 75, 83, 132, 141.
STANTON, CLARK, 45.
STANTON, H., 61.
STEELE, GOURLAY, 45.
STENHOUSE, C., 101.
STONE, MARCUS, illustrations to:
_Cornhill Magazine_, 43.
_London Society_, 57, 58.
_Sunday Magazine_, 66, 67.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
'Stories from Memel' (1868), illustrations by W. CRANE, 136.
'Stories little Breeches told' (1862), illustrations by C. H.
BENNETT, 118.
'Stories of Old' (1862), illustrations by W. CRANE, 118.
'Stories told to a Child' (1866), illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, 129.
'Story of Elizabeth,' 40.
'Story without an End' (1867), illustrations by E. V. B., 135.
STRAHAN, A., 65, 66.
_Strand Magazine_, 14.
STRASZINSKI, L., 36.
STRETCH, MATT, 89.
SULMAN, T., 36, 64, 78, 92.
_Sunday at Home_, 34.
---- illustrations and illustrators of, 84.
BARNES, R., 84.
DU MAURIER, G. (?), 84.
FILDES, S. L., 84.
GILBERT, SIR J., 84.
GREEN, C., 84.
LAWSON, F. W., 84.
MAHONEY, J., 84.
PINWELL, C. J., 84.
SMALL, W., 84.
_Sunday Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 65-71.
BARNES, R., 66, 67, 68, 70.
BAYES, A. W., 68.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 66-71.
DALZIEL, T., 67, 69.
EDWARDS, M. E., 66, 67.
ELTZE, F., 67.
FILDES, S. L., 69.
FOSTER, BIRKET, 67.
FRASER, F. A., 67, 69, 70.
FRENCH, H., 70.
GRAY, PAUL, 66, 67.
GREEN, C., 71.
GREEN, TOWNLEY, 70.
HERKOMER, HUBERT, 71.
HUGHES, A., 70, 71.
HUGHES, E., 68, 70.
LAMONT, MILES, 69.
LAWSON, F. W., 66-69.
LAWSON, J., 66, 67.
LEIGHTON, JOHN, 71.
LEITCH, R. P., 67.
MACBETH, R., 71.
M'CONNELL, W., 67.
M'WHIRTER, J., 70.
MAHONEY, J., 67, 69, 70, 71.
MORGAN, C., 69.
NORTH, J. W., 66, 67, 68.
PASQUIER, 69.
PETTIE, J., 69, 70.
PINWELL, G. J., 66, 69, 70.
PRITCHETT, R. T., 67.
SHIELDS, F. J., 68.
SLINGER, F. J., 67.
SMALL, W., 67, 68, 69, 71.
STONE, MARCUS, 66, 67.
THOMSON, J. GORDON, 68, 69.
WALKER, FRANCIS, 70.
WATSON, J. D., 69.
WHYMPER, E., 67.
WIEGAND, W. J., 70.
WOLF, J., 68, 69.
SWAIN, 12, 13, 179, 180.
SWEETING, T., 61.
'Sybil and her Snowball' (1866), illustrations by R. BARNES, 129.
Symbolists, 18.
TAYLER, F., 101.
TAYLOR, HUGHES, 45.
TENNIEL, JOHN, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 21, 22, 35.
_Good Words_, 46, 48, 49, 50.
_Punch_, 88.
'Juvenile Verse and Picture Book,' 100.
Pollok's 'Course of Time,' 104.
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
Poe's 'Works,' 107.
'Home Affections,' 108, 109.
Blair's 'Grave,' 109.
Moore's 'Lalla Rookh,' 112.
'Parables from Nature,' 114.
'Puck on Pegasus,' 118.
Dalziels' 'Arabian Nights,' 122.
'Ingoldsby Legends,' 123.
'English Sacred Poetry,' 123.
'Alice in Wonderland,' 127.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Mirage of Life,' 135.
'A Noble Life,' 140.
'Passages from Modern English Poets,' 152.
Tennyson's 'Poems,' (Moxon Edition), 4, 6, 99, 102.
---- illustrations by ROSSETTI, MILLAIS, HOLMAN HUNT, MULREADY,
CRESWICK, HORSLEY, STANFIELD, MACLISE, 105.
---- ROSSETTI'S designs to, 13, 105.
---- 'Loves of the Wrens,' A. HUGHES'S designs to, 54, 55.
---- 'Criticism of the Moxon Poems,' 105, 106.
---- 'May Queen' (1861), illustrations by E. V. B., 113.
---- 'Enoch Arden' (1866), illustrations by A. HUGHES, 127.
Tennyson's 'Loves of the Wrens' (1870).
---- HUGHES'S illustrations to, 171.
---- 'The Princess,' illustrations by MACLISE, 112.
Thackeray (Miss), 'Story of Elizabeth,' 40.
---- 'Village on the Cliff,' 42.
---- 'Old Kensington,' 43.
THACKERAY (W. M.), quality of his drawings, 18.
---- Walker's illustration to, 18.
---- 'Vanity Fair,' 19.
---- Editor of _Cornhill_, 38.
---- 'Love the Widower,' 38.
---- 'Adventures of Philip,' 40.
---- 'Denis Duval,' 41.
---- portrait by Armitage, 42.
'Things for Nests' (1867), 134.
THOMAS, G. H., illustrations to:
_Cornhill Magazine_, 41, 42.
_London Society_, 57, 58, 156.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 64.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72, 156.
_Quiver_, 74, 75, 156.
_Broadway_, 76.
_Illustrated London News_, 92, 156.
'Uncle Tom's Cabin,' 101.
Gray's 'Elegy,' 101.
'Vicar of Wakefield,' 101.
Longfellow's 'Hiawatha,' 102, 156.
'Pilgrim's Progress,' 107.
'Merrie Days of England,' 109.
'Hiawatha,' 110, 156.
Thomson's 'Seasons,' 111.
'Household Song,' 114.
'Early English Poems,' 117.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Robinson Crusoe,' 123.
'Aunt Gatty's Life,' 129.
'Idyllic Pictures,' 132.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 131.
---- biographical notice of, 155, 156.
---- obtains the Society of Arts prize, 155.
---- sets up as a wood engraver, 155.
---- engraves bank notes, 155.
---- the Garibaldi illustrations, 156.
---- is employed by the Queen, 156.
---- illustrations to 'Armadale,' 156.
THOMAS, W. CAVE, 57, 128, 141.
THOMAS, W. L., 60, 61.
THOMPSON, ALFRED, 76.
THOMPSON, ALICE, 76.
THOMSON, J. G., 59, 60, 68, 69, 85, 87, 88, 89, 138.
THOMSON, W. E., 147.
Thomson's 'Seasons' (1852), 101.
---- (1854), 101.
---- (1859), illustrations by B. FOSTER, HUMPHREYS, PICKERSGILL,
THOMAS, and WOLF, 111.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads' (1876), 4.
---- illustrations by BOYD HOUGHTON, LAWLESS, T. GREEN, DU MAURIER,
F. ELTZE, J. LAWSON, A. FAIRFIELD, E. H. COEBOULD, A. RICH, T. R.
MACQUOID, C. GREEN, T. MORTEN, J. TENNIEL, W. SMALL, P. SKELTON,
PINWELL, SANDYS, WHISTLER, and WALKER, 143, 144, 145, 146.
Thornbury's 'Legends of Cavaliers and Roundheads' (1857),
illustrations by H. S. MARKS, 107.
---- 'Two Centuries of Song (1867), illustrations by G. LESLIE, H. S.
MARKS, T. MORTEN, and W. SMALL, 132.
_Tinsley's Magazine_, illustrations and illustrators of, 76.
BOYD HOUGHTON, A., 76.
BROWNE, H. K. ('PHIZ'), 76.
BRUNTON, W. D., 76.
COOPER, A. W., 76.
FRISTON, D. H., 76.
THOMPSON, ALICE, 76.
WATSON, J. D., 76.
TISSOT, illustrations to 'Ballads and Songs of Brittany,' 127.
_Tomahawk_, illustrations to, by MATT MORGAN, 80.
'Toilers in Art,' 180.
'Touches of Nature by Eminent Artists' (1866), illustrations by
R. BARNES, BOYD HOUGHTON, H. H. ARMSTEAD, DU MAURIER, P. GRAY,
C. KEENE, J. MAHONEY, J. E. MILLAIS, J. W. NORTH, W. ORCHARDSON,
G. J. PINWELL, F. SANDYS, F. J. SHIELDS, MARCUS STONE, J. PETTIE,
W. SMALL, G. TENNIEL, F. WALKER, and J. D. WATSON, 130, 131.
TOWNSEND, H. J., 101.
'Trilby,' 9.
Trollope, MILLAIS'S illustrations to, 18, 39, 40.
---- 'Framley Parsonage,' 40.
---- 'Small House at Allington,' 40, 41.
Tupper's 'Proverbial Philosophy' (1854), illustrations by COPE,
CORBOULD, BIRKET FOSTER, JOHN GILBERT, HORSLEY, and PICKERSGILL,
101.
'Uncle Tom's Cabin,' illustrations to, by G. THOMAS, 101.
'Undine' (1846), TENNIEL'S illustrations to, 100.
'Vagrants,' The, by FRED WALKER, 27, 34.
'Verner's Pride,' KEENE'S illustrations to, 26.
'Vicar of Wakefield,' MULREADY'S illustrations to, 99.
---- THOMAS'S illustrations to, 101.
'Victorian History of England,' The (1864), illustrations by BOYD
HOUGHTON, 124.
'Vikram and the Vampire' (1869), illustrations by E. GRISET, 137.
VINING, H. M., 64.
'Voyage of the Constance,' The (1859), illustrations by C. KEENE,
110, 111.
WALKER, FRANCIS, 54, 62, 70, 72, 78, 79, 89, 136, 146.
WALKER, FRED, illustrations to Thackeray's Works, 18.
_Once a Week_, 26, 27, 33, 37, 165.
'Cornhill Gallery,' 39.
_Cornhill_, 40, 41, 42, 165.
'Adventures of Philip,' 40.
'Philip in Church,' 40.
'Story of Elizabeth,' 40, 41.
'Denis Duval,' 41.
'Village on the Cliff,' 42.
_Good Words_, 45, 48, 50, 165.
_London Society_, 56.
_Punch_, 88.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115, 123.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
'Wayside Poesies,' 130.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 144, 146.
---- biographical account of, 165, 166.
---- employed by Mr. WHYMPER, 165.
---- anecdote of him, 165, 166.
---- monograph on, by C. Phillips, 165.
---- MENZEL'S influence on, 166.
---- paper in _Good Words_ by J. Swain, 179.
WALTGES, F. S., 146.
'Washerwoman's Foundling' (1867), illustrations by W. SMALL, 133.
WATSON, J. D., illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 33.
_Good Words_, 46, 48, 49.
_London Society_, 56-62.
_Churchman's Family Magazine_, 63, 64.
_Shilling Magazine_, 65.
_Sunday Magazine_, 69.
_Cassell's Magazine_, 72.
_Quiver_, 75.
_Tinsley's Magazine_, 76.
_British Workman_, 81.
Eliza Cook's 'Poems,' 102.
'Pilgrim's Progress,' 112, 113.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
'The Gold Thread,' 116.
Dalziels' 'Arabian Nights,' 122.
'English Sacred Poetry,' 123.
'Our Life,' 123.
'Robinson Crusoe,' 123.
'The Golden Harp,' 124.
'What Men have said about Women,' 124.
'A Round of Days,' 125.
Watts's 'Divine and Moral Songs,' 128.
'Legends and Lyrics,' 128.
'Ellen Montgomery's Bookshelf,' 129.
'Ballad Stories of the Affections,' 130.
'Touches of Nature,' 131.
Foxe's 'Book of Martyrs,' 132.
'Little Songs for Little Folks,' 133.
'Savage Club Papers,' 135.
'Illustrated Book of Sacred Poems,' 135.
Cassell's 'Illustrated Readings,' 135.
'Nobility of Life,' 136.
'Choice Series,' 137.
'Barbara's History,' 140.
Leslie's 'Musical Annual,' 141.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 146.
WATTS, G. F., illustrations to Dalziels' 'Bible Gallery,' 146.
'Wayside Poesies' (1867), illustrations by J. W. NORTH, G. J.
PINWELL, and F. WALKER, 4, 130.
WEBSTER, T., 101.
WEHNERT, E. H., 64, 85, 101.
---- illustrations to Poe's 'Works,' 104.
WEIGALL, 100.
WEIR, HARRISON, 81, 82, 102; illustrations to:
'Poets of Nineteenth Century,' 107.
'Gertrude of Wyoming,' 108.
'Home Affections,' 108.
'Comus,' 109.
Montgomery's 'Poems,' 112.
'Poetry of Nature,' 113, 135.
'Parables from Nature,' 114.
'Sacred Poetry,' 115.
Moore's 'Irish Melodies,' 133.
Æsop's 'Fables,' 133.
'Choice Series,' 137.
'Episodes of Fiction,' 141.
WELLS, Miss, 33.
WHAITE, H. C., 153.
'What Men have said about Women' (1864), illustrations by J. D.
WATSON, 124.
'What the Moon Saw' (1866), illustrations by A. W. BAYES, 129.
WHISTLER, J. M'NEILL, illustrations to:
_Once a Week_, 29.
_Good Words_, 46, 47.
Thornbury's 'Legendary Ballads,' 145.
'Passages from Modern English Poets,' 152.
WHITE, D. T., 80.
White line engraving, 81.
WHITE, T., 33.
WHITTINGHAM, C., his care in choosing wood-engravings, 98.
WHYMPER, E., 67, 84.
---- 'Scrambles among the Alps' (1870), 141.
---- 'Ancient Mariner,' 104.
WIEGAND, W. J., 70, 78, 79, 141.
WILLIAMS, S., 101.
_Will o' the Wisp_, illustrations in, by J. PROCTOR, 91.
WIMPRESS, E., 35, 36, 115, 136.
WIRGMAN, T. B., 72.
'Wives and Daughters,' 41, 42.
WOLF, J., 33, 35, 46, 50, 68, 69, 82, 102, 109, 112, 115, 118, 130,
134.
'Woman I loved,' The, KEENE'S illustrations to, 26.
Wood Engravings _versus_ Process, ix; collection of, 6.
---- print-splitting, 7.
---- factories for the spply of, 11.
---- responsibility of artists in, 12.
---- work of publisher in, 12.
---- advantages of over etching, 39.
---- Rossetti's opinion of the material, 47.
---- white line, 81.
---- arguments in favour of, 97.
---- Whittingham's care in choosing, 98.
---- influence of G. Doré on, 122.
---- critics of 1865-66 on, 129.
WOOD, FANE, 60.
Wood's 'Natural History' (1862), illustrations by J. WOLF and
ZWECKER, 118.
---- 'Bible Animals' (1867), 135.
WOOLNER, T., 138.
'Words for the Wise' (1864), illustrations by W. SMALL, 124.
Wordsworth's 'Selected Poems' (1859), illustrations by FOSTER,
GILBERT, and WOLF, 109.
---- 'White Doe of Rylstone' (1859), illustrations by FOSTER and
HUMPHREYS, 109.
---- 'Poetry for the Young' (1863), illustrations by J. M'WHIRTER and
J. PETTIE, 123.
WYON, L. C., 81.
_Yellow Book, The_, 125.
ZWECKER, J. B., 46, 54, 57, 64, 78, 79, 118, 134, 135.
Printed by T. and A. CONSTABLE, Printers to His Majesty, at the
Edinburgh University Press
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Engraved by Dalziels about double the size of this page, the
subject was issued afterwards in _The Day of Rest_ (Strahan).
[2] This is entitled _Too Soon_, in _Pictures of Society_, 1867.
[3] 'J. B.' was Mrs. Blackburn, wife of Hugh Blackburn, Professor of
Mathematics in the University of Glasgow. Landseer said that in the
drawing of animals he had nothing to teach her.
[4] Possibly A. R. Fairfield.
[5] The British Museum has no copy, and my own has been mislaid.
[6] The first edition, 3 vols., 1841, was illustrated by Cruikshank and
Leech only.
[7] Virtues issued another edition in 1845.
[8] _In Memoriam, George H. Thomas_ (Cassell, undated), a folio volume
with about one hundred illustrations.
[9] _Dante Gabriel Rossetti: Letters and Memories_, by William Michael
Rossetti. Ellis and Elvey, 1895, vol. i. p. 189.
[10] A silver-print photograph only.
[11] A Catalogue of forty designs by A. Boyd Houghton, exhibited at
_The Sign of the Dial_, 53 Warwick Street, W. [1896].
[12] _Arthur Boyd Houghton_, by Laurence Housman, Kegan Paul & Co.,
1896.
[13] _The Portfolio_, June 1894: 'Frederick Walker,' by Claude Phillips.
[14] Preface to a Catalogue of the _Birmingham Society of Artists_,
March 1895.
[15] _Century Guild Hobby Horse_, vol. iii. p. 47 (1888).
[16] March 1884.
[17] No. 1, 1896.
[18] 1876, i. 176.
[19] A large broadsheet reproduced by some lithographic process.
[20] Owned by Mr. Fairfax Murray.
[21] _Toilers in Art_, edited by H. C. Ewart (Isbister and Co.).
* * * * * *
Transcribers' note:
Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant
preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected; occasional unpaired
quotation marks were retained.
Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained.
Repeated inconsistent spellings, such as "Mac Donald" and "Macdonald",
have beeen retained.
List of Illustrations: The illustation "Down Stream, from the original
drawing...." was not found in the printed book.
Page 61: "Linley Sambourne" was italicized, but most artists' names are
not.
Page 64: "Frederick Sandys,del." was printed without a space after
the comma in at least two editions.
Page 192: "1867, 4to" was printed that way.
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "English Illustration 'The Sixties': 1855-70 - With Numerous Illustrations by Ford Madox Brown; A. Boyd Houghton; Arthur Hughes; Charles Keene; M. J. Lawless; Lord Leighton, - P. - R.A.; Sir J. E. Millais, - P. - R.A.; G. Du Maurier; J. W. North, R.A.: G. J. Pinwell; Dante Gabriel Rossetti; W. Small; Frederick Sandys: J. Mcneill Whistler; Frederick Walker, A.R.A.; and Others" ***
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