Passage Illustrated: Scrambling for Loose Change

I'm certain you'll be more reasonable," simpered Jekyl, as he drew a very weighty-looking purse from his pocket, and, with a considerable degree of ostentation, seemed preparing to open it.

The notion of bribery, and in such a cause, was too much for Andy's feelings; and with a sudden jerk of his hand, he dashed the purse out of Jekyl's fingers, and scattered the contents all over the landing and stairs. “Ha, ha!” cried he, wildly, “'t is only ha'pence he has, after all!” And the taunt was so far true that the ground was strewn with kreutzers and other copper coins of the very smallest value.

As for Onslow, the scene was too ludicrous for him any longer to restrain his laughter; and although Jekyl laughed too, and seemed to relish the absurdity of his mistake, as he called it, having put in his pocket a collection of rare and curious coins, his cheek, as he bent to gather them up, was suffused with a deeper flush than the mere act of stooping should occasion. It was precisely at this moment that Kate Dalton made her appearance.

“What is the matter, Andy?” asked she, turning to the old man, who appeared, by his air and attitude, as if determined to guard the doorway. [Chapter XIV, "An Embarrassing Question," 101]

Commentary: Old Andy's Misinterpretation of Albert Jekyl and George Onslow

Although Phiz's society group scenes often look a bit stilted in The Daltons, in informal group scenes such as this one he more than adequately individualizes the characters by their expressions, postures, and juxtapositions. The comic scene involves the elderly servant, Andy's misinterpretation of the young, fashionably-dressed English visitors, Albert Jekyl and Captain George Onslow. Based on prior experience, Andy is sure that the pair of swells are debt-collectors. To protect the family, Andy bars the staircase leading from the street to the family's font door. When Jekyl intimates that he intends to tip Andy, the old man knocks the purse right out of Jekyl's hands, spilling coins everywhere. Stooping to pick up his money, Jekyl will shortly feel embarrassed, but Phiz illustrates his present focus on the coins, which the old Irish servant (left) eyes cupidinously, as George and Kate observe the animated Jekyl. An interesting touch is the Daltons' ornate exterior balustrade and portico, with the demonic holder of the family crest and a pair of angels. Such architectural ostentation is hardly indicative of the humble home of an Irish family of modest means. Phiz's title points not so much to the scattered coins as to Andy's mistaking the visitors for bailiffs come to take up the master for debt.

The serious side of this chapter complements this humorous scene as Sir Stafford Onslow's attorney, Mr. Prichard, pays a call to acquaint Peter Dalton with the fact that Godfrey's will regarding the disposition of the Irish estate had in fact left his younger brother, Peter, an annuity "from one hundred and fifty to two hundred pounds per annum" (100), which, unpaid for twenty years, now amounts to three thousand two hunded pounds, including interest. Quite suddenly, the Daltons are wealthy, and should be prepared to be ushered into the society of Lady Hester Onslow, who arrives to visit Kate and Nelly while Prichard is conferring with Dalton.

Bibliography

Browne, John Buchanan. Phiz! Illustrator of Dickens' World. New York: Charles Scribner's, 1978.

Downey, Edmund. Charles Lever: His Life in Letters. 2 vols. london; William Blackwood, 1906.

Fitzpatrick, W. J. The Life of Charles Lever. London: Downey, 1901.

Lester, Valerie Browne. Phiz: The Man Who Drew Dickens. London: Chatto and Windus, 2004.

Lever, Charles. The Daltons, or, Three Roads in Life. Illustrated by "Phiz" (Hablot Knight Browne). London: Chapman and Hall, 1852, rpt. 1872.

Lever, Charles James. The Daltons, or, Three Roads in Life. http://www.gutenberg.org//files/32061/32061-h/32061-h.htm

Skinner, Anne Maria. Charles Lever and Ireland. University of Liverpool. PhD dissertation. May 2019.

Stevenson, Lionel. Dr. Quicksilver: The Life of Charles Lever. New York: Russell & Russell, 1939, rpt. 1969.

_______. "The Domestic Scene." The English Novel: A Panorama. Cambridge, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin and Riverside, 1960.

---

Victorian
Web

Illustra-
tion

Phiz

The
Daltons

Next

Last modified 5 April 2022