A False Alarm. Phiz (Hablot K. Browne). 1866. Wood engraving. Errym's A Mystery in Scarlet. Courtesy Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Click on image to enlarge it.
Text Illustrated
The king stood, with his drawn sword in hand, fully and firmly on the defensive (227).
Commentary
The queen (left) is decidedly less amused in this illustration, as her son Frederick, Prince of Wales (left of centre, “close to the coffee table,” 227) glowers and the King draws on an entering page. On the coffee table is a tray, holding three covered demitasse cups of poisoned coffee. All three royals know that the King has poisoned one cup. Once again, the atmosphere of deception and distrust is accentuated by the presence of a folding screen (left).
Image scan by the Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Commentary by Rebecca Nesvet, University of Wisconsin, Green Bay. Formatting, color correction, and sizing by George P. Landow[You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and Indiana University and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]
Bibliography
Errym, Malcolm J [James Malcolm Rymer]. A Mystery in Scarlet, leading serial of The London Miscellany. Ed. James Malcolm Rymer, 1, no. 15 (1866): 1. From the copy in the collection of the Wells Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Courtesy Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington.
Last modified 13 July 2019