Punch: Punch (91.1886)

Deoembeb 25, 1886.] PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.

309

TURNING OVER NEW LEAVES.

{By Our Own Paper-Knifer.)

Days with Sir Roger de Coverlet/. (Macmillan.) "Old friend
De Coverley Does look loverly," as Our Lazy Minstrel -would sing if
he weren't so uncommonly lazy. It is capitally got up, and most
of the illustrations—by a hand unknown to us and name not men-
tioned—are remarkably spirited and good. The only exception is the
frontispiece, which contains a most striking example of a Reversible
Woman, or carelessly-joined lady, who seems to be advancing and
receding at the same time while engaged in the mazy danee. It
might have been called in allusion to the dance and the lady " A
Complicated Figure."

Now if you want some volumes nice,

You'll start at once I'm su-er,
And go and fetch them in a trice,
From Messrs. Field and Titer. The Literary Cure.

Quite so ! The Leaden-

4flNfB!&__hall Press turns out a lot of

light literature, which is
1 surprising, seeing you have
to take lead and all. But
as Shakspeare says, " Take
it for Leadenhall, we ne'er
shall look upon its like
again." Here we have A
'Thousand Quaint Cuts,
from books of other days.
"The books of other days
have faded,"_ DUt their cuts
are as incisive as ever.
Also Sir Charles Orandison, and Solomon Gissner, both illustrated
with the original copper-plates—the latter after Stothard's draw-
ings. Drat the Boys, is the most delightful and humorous recollec-
tions of a French Master in England by Max 0' Rell. " Oh! relly,
Max, 'tis most diverting," say the boys,—and they ought to know.
Haste thee, Nymph, undo the "passell,"
Of the books that come from Cassell !

Rhymes before Reason. [Ready with the next Fog.

Yes, yes ! Bustle ye, my Nymph—and be in the fashion! Improve !
Character Sketches from Thackeray, capitally reproduced in photo-
gravure from Frederick Barnard's most excellent drawings.
These are all worth framing, if you happen to be in that frame of
mind. They will be popular among all lovers of Thackeray. Nil
Desperandum by the Rev. Frederick Langbridge. Boys need
never despair when this lang bridge carries them safely over the
stream of idleness. " It is a lang bridge that has no turning." And
this lang bridge seems to have a turn for amusing young folks.
But if you would improve your mind,

And not omit some fun,
You all of you are bound to go
To John Hogs or none! Haroun Alrasher'd.

"Why, cert'nly. Here's the Vicar of Wakefield—that delightful
bit of Goldsmith's art of which we are never weary. Then the in-
defatigable Davenport Adams gives us Master Minds in Art,
Science, and Letters. What's the sequel ? Pupil minds, &c, or
is punished. A Few Good Women, and what they Teach Us,
is a good girls' ,book, for good or naughty girls. Alas! says Our
Special Cynic, that there are so few good women ; and, according to
Tom Moore, whose only books were women's looks, folly is all they
teach us. A careful perusal of Miss Mart Mac Sorley's book will
show Our Special Cynic that he is altogether mistaken.

Yes, we will! We will refresh our memories by the aid of the
books published by Charles & Co. We will re-read all that Mrs.
Ellis has said about The Women of England, The Daughters of
England, The Wives of England, and The Mothers of England, and
then we will go and get married, or not, as the ease may be.
No children want to go abroad
Who get their books from Marcus Ward.
Ward and Reward, a Tintacular Romance. [Ready and Willing.

Certainly not! No child will ever want to go abroad if it can be
At Home Again with the pretty pictures by J. Q. Sowerby and
Thomas Crane, and the pleasant verses of Miss Eliza Keary.
Miss Keary has likewise sung a pleasant .accompaniment to Miss
Edith Scannell's clever pictures in Pets and Playmates. Pick
where you like they 're good throughout. A Momance of The Three
R.'s. A rare, right-rollickf ul, refreshing, radiant romance, in which
the rough road of students of The Three R.'s is rendered rosy by
the clever fancy and the skilful pencil of Walter Crane. And
then there's one moreIR, which stands for Routledge, whose Christ-
mas publications are "so far beyond all praise, that we can't find
words to express our delight, and so we stop short, that is as>hort,as
possible.

IN THE COURT OF COMMON. SENSE.

London Theatres v. Parisian^ Theatres.—Mr. Justice Punch said,
that this was a case strictly within the jurisdiction of this Court,
whose mandates, though they often are a considerable time in taking
effect, must be ultimately obeyed. There was no doubt in his mind
that, with the exception of the Eden Theatre, there was not a com-
fortable Theatre in Paris, at least not in the sense in which we
consider our principal Theatres comfortable, though as a matter of
fact, he might say that while the term comfortable could be applied
to most Theatres in London, the principal ones were, he should
distinctly say, with reference to their stall and circle accommodation,
positively luxurious.

Surely in the dead season of next year the Parisian Theatres might
be gutted, cleaned, refurnished, refitted, and properly ventilated,
and when this had been done the entr'actes need only be ten minutes
instead of about half an hour, and everybody would gain by the
improvement.

JOLLY DOGS AT CHRISTMAS.

Chorus.

Let dogs
delight,
To bark
and bite,
For now we've
got a chance!
Each dog,
Hooray!
Will have
his day!
So join our
Christmas
dance.

Solo.
Mr. Collie.

Bravo! Sir
Charles
Waeren,
Called back

from
foreign
Parts to solve difficult puzzles,
Tells the police,
That now they must cease
To bother poor dogs about muzzles.
Chorus.—Let dogs, &c.
Solo—British Bull-Dog.
When Sir Charles,
Mid growls and snarls,
Was back from abroad fast
hurry in',
Muzzles were foreign
To us, so Sir Warren,
We styled at once Sir Charles
Worryin' ?
Chorus.— Let dogs, &c.

Solo.

Little Cur Dog.

Do nothing by halves,
Up! jump at the calves,
Between us removed are all
barriers,
With children what larks,
With nags in the parks,
We '11 harry our recent har-
riers.

Chorus {doggedly).
Let dogs, &c,

{As before.)

" Dignity and Impudence."

{In the Court of Common Council, Dee. 16.)
Says Alderman De Keyser, " Ye Committee-men don't spare
More than half a golden sovereign on a badge for each to wear ! "
"Make it ninepence! " cries a Councilman, "buy tin 'uns round
and flatP'

'' A cabman," cries bold Stanley, wears a better badge than that!"
So they voted 'gainst De Keyser, for they didn't think it nice
To be worried thus for nothing, to be badgered at the price.

'' Who Keeps Diaries ? "—The other day the public was informed,
on excellent feminine authority, that a diary like a " little know-
ledge" is "a dangerous thing." This does not apply to the two
celebrated firms Messrs. Letts and Messrs. J. J. & J. Smith, who keep
diaries regularly, but get rid of them as fast as possible,—not because
they're dangerous, but because they are so uncommonly useful.
No. 21, in the Messrs. Smith's list is " The Daily Block Calendar,"
excellent as memoranda for School-masters and obstructionists.
No. 23, is "The Family iWashing Book—covered cloth,"—the last
item sounds nice and comfortable after the family-washing.

The'Rule ~ov the Hunting-Field.—Lex Tally-ho-nis.