The New Star of India
John Tenniel
Punch (20 August 1898)
Right Hon. A. Balfour. "Off to Calcutta! Then, good-bye, old man. Hope you won't find it too hot!"
Right Hon. A. Curzon. "Well! At times we've known it to be fairly sultry here. Eh?"
Lord Curzon, the highly competitive product of an ancient Norman family, a strict upbringing and an education at Eton and Oxford, had been fascinated by the East for some time. He had not had an easy ride as under-secretary of state at the Foreign Office, and successfully angled to become the Viceroy of India, a post he was to hold until 1905. As it turned out, Curzon would have a rough ride there too, particularly once Kitchener came on the scene. [commentary continues below]
Scanned image obtained by Jacqueline Banerjee, courtesy of the Cecil Hotel, Shimla