re him on his wonderful etching of the "Tail of a Comet;"
still, he was unable to impart to his pupil's work either trained ease
or style. Cruikshank was on terms of intimacy with Mark Lemon, but he
never drew for _Punch_, save indirectly for its advertisement page in
1844--an announcement for his "Table-Book," in which appear the
portraits of Gilbert Abbott a Beckett (his literary Editor), Thackeray,
and himself. Yet the "Quarterly Review," in the course of an essay upon
that journal, declared that "_Punch_ owes at least half its popularity
to the pencil of George Cruikshank"! The fact is, that Cruikshank,
though on intimate terms with many of the Staff, would never allow
himself to be persuaded to draw for its pages. "We shall have you yet,"
said Mark Lemon one day. "Never," said Cruikshank, in his most
melodramatic tone and striking his favourite attitude. He had then
become the staunchest of total abstainers, and he held its very name in
abhorrence. Moreover, he professed to look upon their Dinners as orgies;
but it is far more likely that the predominance in its pages and in its
councils of his mighty rival, John Leech, had more to do with his total
abstinence--from _Punch_, I mean--than any other consideration. "Between
Cruikshank and Leech," says Mr. Frith, "there existed little sympathy
and less intimacy. The extravagant caricature that pervades so much of
Cruikshank's work, and from which Leech was entirely free, blinded him a
little to the great merit of Cruikshank's serious work. I was very
intimate with 'Immortal George,' as he was familiarly called, and I was
much surprised by the coolness with which he received my enthusiastic
praise of Leech. 'Yes, yes,' said George, 'very clever. The new school,
you see. Public always taken with novelty.'" Nevertheless, it must not
be forgotten that the only lessons in etching Leech ever had he received
from George Cruikshank. Moreover, George had a grievance, as will be
seen by the following letter addressed to Mr. G. H. Haydon, one of
_Punch's_ subsequent contributors, to whom reference will be made later
on:--

"263, Hampstead Road, N.W.,
January 7, 1867.

"MY DEAR SIR,

"I am sorry that I am not able to tell you where to find a 'Punch and
Judy,' but I think some of that family reside, or might be heard of, in
the vicinity of Leicester Square. The 'Punch' that I copied