ntenance--close by, Mr. Furniss went back
as far as he could possibly remember, to March 26th, 1854. That is the
date of his birthday.

"I am always taken for an Irishman," said Mr. Furniss. "Nothing of the
kind. My father was a Yorkshireman. He was in Ireland with my mother,
and I believe I arrived at an unexpected moment. Possibly my artistic
inclinations came through my mother. Her father was AEneas Mackenzie, a
well-known literary man of Newcastle-on-Tyne, and proprietor of several
newspapers. He founded the Newcastle School of Politics, and Mr. Joseph
Cowen--as a boy--got his first tuition in politics from sitting at the
knee of my grandfather. A bust of him is in the Mechanics'
Institute--which he founded."

[Illustration: "AT WORK."

_From a Photo. by Elliott & Fry._]

Little Harry was brought up in Wexford. He remembers being held up in
his nurse's arms to see the _Great Eastern_ pass on its first voyage,
whilst an incident associated with the marriage of the Prince of Wales
is vividly impressed upon his mind. He was struck on the top of his hat
by a "fizzing devil" made out of moist powder, which burnt a hole
through it. He says that he would rather have this recollection on his
mind now, than the "fizzer" on his head at the time. The young artist in
embryo was a rare young pugilist at school. He was forced to use his
fists, as friction was strong between the Irish and English lads at the
school he went to. But he did well in athletic sports, and was never
beaten in a hundred yards race. He firmly believes that this early
athletic training is responsible for the rapid way in which he does
everything to-day--be it walking or talking, eating or working, all is
done on the hundred yards principle--to get there first.

He was a spoilt boy--first of all because he was sent to a girls'
school, but mainly from a very significant incident which happened at
the Wesleyan College School in Dublin--a collegiate establishment from
which pupils (not necessarily Wesleyans, for Mr. Furniss is not of that
sect) passed to Trinity College--where he obtained all his education. He
was not a studious lad. He found the editing, writing, illustrating,
publishing, and entire bringing-out of a small journal he founded far
more agreeable to his taste than Latin verbs and algebraical problems.

[Illustration: STUDY OF AN IRISHMAN.]

"I was in knickerbockers at the time," he said, "and introduced to the
schoolboy public--_The Schoo