They tried to explain to him that they made their living by painting pictures. After some strong expressions of doubt the farmer sobered down a little and asked Dodgson how much he would get for the one he was "doing." Dodgson, knowing the sort of man he had to deal with, said:
"Perhaps as much as ten shillings, or maybe twenty if I can find a friend who fancies it."
The answer came, "Thee be a domned liar as well as a lazy lout!" Then with a look of contempt the tiller of the soil stumped away.
"_From the window I look out, To mark thy beautiful parade; Stately marching in cap and coat, To some tune by fairies played._"
_By permission of Messrs. George Routledge & Sons._]
"The Poets of the Nineteenth Century," in addition to the two fine drawings by Millais already named, has many other good pictures; one of the most remarkable, perhaps, is the "Prisoner of Chillon," by Ford Madox Brown. Sir John Tenniel is well represented, the "Death of Marmion" being one of his best. Sir John Gilbert, too, has several: "The Vicar," "To my Mother's Picture," and "Hohenlinden." So pleased were we with the latter design that we offered him a commission for a water colour drawing of the subject. His reply was, "Yes, and it shall be one of my best." And it certainly was one of his most successful as a highly-finished work and will always hold its own. There are also several interesting drawings by William Harvey, J. D. Harding, Edward Duncan, and G. Dodgson; a large number of exquisite examples of Birket Foster, and several figure subjects by J. R. Clayton, F. R. Pickersgill, R.A., Edward Corbould, and Harrison Weir. Of our own many drawings in this book we will mention a small roadside landscape, "Taste," and a single figure, "The History of a Life."
On February 6th, 1856, Mr. Ford Madox Brown, in returning a volume of the Illustrated Edition of "Longfellow's Poems," wrote:
"The bearer will return the volume of 'Longfellow,' which I have looked through with great delight; and I think it bears honourable testimony to the high excellence which wood engraving has attained in this country."
Subsequently, on seeing the volume, "The Poets of the Nineteenth Century," he wrote:
"Let me take this opportunity of expressing my admiration of the work you last brought out, and the drawings by Dalziel[12] in particular, which are most poetic and took us by surprise, although whether yours or your brother's I, as yet, know not. The Millais' are admirable, both as regards him and the engraver."