FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79  
80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   >>   >|  
nsisted of a _tete-a-tete_ between Sir John Tenniel and Mr. Arthur a Beckett)--not more than three or four consecutive weeks, certainly--the "Sussex," or more often the old "Bedford Hotel," or latterly the "First Avenue," has been the scene of the feast; while "special dinners" (and they have been many) have been held in special places. And not invariably has the weekly repast been a "dinner" at all, be it observed; for on certain rare occasions, when some important Parliamentary matter has intervened, a luncheon has been held instead. Once, in September, 1845, it was postponed from the Saturday night at the intercession of Charles Dickens, so that a new play by Macready might be produced with the full advantage of the _Punch_ men's presence. And the Dinner was once more made a movable feast, and was held on the Tuesday instead of the Wednesday, on the occasion of the production of Mr. Burnand's and Sir Arthur Sullivan's opera of "The Chieftain" in December, 1894. [Illustration: WILLIAM BRADBURY'S INITIALS.] [Illustration: F. M. EVANS' INITIALS. (Unfinished)] In the "Bedford Hotel"--beloved of Thackeray, for in it he wrote much of "Henry Esmond," and stayed there when his house was in the painters' hands--the room occupied was that known as the "Dryden." Here the Staff would make no attempt at self-repression; and I have been told how the idle and the curious would congregate outside upon the pavement and listen to the voices of the wits within, and wait to gape at them as they passed in and out. [Illustration: HENRY SILVER'S INITIALS.] The places at Table once occupied by the members of the Staff are nowadays regarded as theirs by right. But in earlier days the places were often shuffled, as at a game of "general post." Proof of it may be had from the following plans of the Table between 1855 and 1865--perhaps the most interesting years in the history of _Punch_, as demonstrating the transitional stage, when the ancient order of things was rapidly developing into the modern as we know them to-day. In 1855, then, the disposition was as follows:-- WILLIAM BRADBURY* DOUGLAS JERROLD JOHN LEECH TOM TAYLOR W. M. THACKERAY GILBERT A BECKETT SHIRLEY BROOKS HORACE MAYHEW MARK LEMON PERCIVAL LEIGH JOHN TENNIEL F. M. EVANS* --only two artists and a half (Thackeray being a commixture of writer and draughtsman) to seven writers and a half! Five years
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79  
80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
places
 

Illustration

 

INITIALS

 
occupied
 

Thackeray

 
BRADBURY
 

WILLIAM

 

special

 

Bedford

 

Arthur


commixture

 
writer
 

draughtsman

 

shuffled

 

earlier

 

regarded

 

artists

 

SILVER

 

listen

 
voices

pavement

 

curious

 
congregate
 

writers

 

general

 

members

 

passed

 
nowadays
 

MAYHEW

 
disposition

modern

 

DOUGLAS

 

JERROLD

 

SHIRLEY

 
THACKERAY
 

BECKETT

 

GILBERT

 
BROOKS
 

HORACE

 

TAYLOR


developing

 
rapidly
 

TENNIEL

 

interesting

 

PERCIVAL

 

ancient

 

things

 

transitional

 

history

 

demonstrating