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Passage Illustrated: Philip Frewin attacks his Adversary in the Street

"Here is your man!" cried Philip, pointing to Randulph, "upon him! don't leave an unbroken bone in his body."

Randulph, however, was prepared for the attack. Grasping the stout cane he held in his hand, he dealt Philip so severe a blow on the head with it, that he stretched him on his back on the ground. At the same moment, Trussell received a blow from the cudgel of the black-muzzled ruffian which sent him reeling against the door, to the posts of which he clung for support, while the fellow, turning to assault Randulph, encountered an unexpected adversary in the person of Jacob Post.

"I thought what you were after, you scoundrels, when I saw you doggin' these gen'l'men," cried Jacob; "I'm glad I got up in time. Turn your cudgel this way, you black-muzzled hound. Two can play at your game."

While Jacob and his antagonist rapped away at each other as hard as they could, making the welkin ring with their blows, Randulph turned upon Culpepper, who attempted to draw his sword to assail him, and belaboured him so lustily with his cane, that the latter was soon fain to cry for quarter. [Book III, Chapter V, "Abel's Conduct on Learning of the Miser's Illness — Sir Singleton Spinke Proposes to the Fair Thomasine — Randulph again Dines with Lady Brabazon — He Receives a Note From Kitty Conway; and is Assaulted by Philip Frewin and His Myrmidons on His Way to Sup with Her,"​ pp. 233-34]

Commentary

The incident realised closes the fifth chapter, but in the volume edition the plate is situated within Chapter VI. The illustration involves Philip Frewin's hiring street ruffians to assault his rival for Hilda's hand while making the targetted attack seem a random crime. Having left Lady Brabazon's house after dinner accompanied by his uncle, Trussell Beechcroft, and the Scarve butler, Jacob, Randulph Crew walks briskly through the village of Westminster to keep his appointment with the Haymarket actress, Kitty​ Conway, who is now living in Whitecomb-street, in one of the first houses built after the Great Fire of London. He has no sooner arrived at his destination (indicated by Kitty at the upper window and the date 1669 above the entrance). Although Crew is not wearing a rapier, he defends himself vigorously with a cane, knocking Frewin to the ground (down right). However, his uncle has been bested by one of Frewin's thugs, and holds onto the lintel (left) to support himself. As the watch approaches from the right rear, Jacob, just arrived on the scene after noticing the footpads and Frewin following Crew and Beechcroft, While Crew beats back Culpepper, Frewin's confederate, Jacob exchanges cudgel blows with Jack-in-the Water. Cruikshank excelled at organizing such complex action scenes, examples of which can be found across the range of novels he illustrated, from Oliver plucks up a spirit in Dickens's Oliver Twist (April 1837) through The Quarrel between Will Sommers and Patch in the great kitchen of the Castle in Ainsworth's Windsor Castle (March 1843). The correspondence between the Ainsworth letterpress and this particular Cruikshank plate is so marked that one might well credit Cruikshank's later contention that Ainsworth was so busy writing two novels — Windsor Castle and The Miser's Daughter — in tandem that he elected merely to write up the scenarios that the illustrator had provided him after the monthly meetings at Kensal Lodge. Certainly Cruikshank enjoyed greater creative freedom with Ainsworth than previously as the author agreed that the artist could make alterations to the drawings without the author's prior approval. As Richard A. Vogler summarizes the relationship between the 1842 illustrations and Ainsworth's writing, Cruikshank apparently "sent the tracings for the etchings to assist the author in the composition of his text" (p. 155).

Typically, Cruikshank adopts the strategy of foregrounding the principal character and placing a large number secondary characters well into subordinate positions in order to avoid detracting from the main action and the figure of the protagonist, whether it be Jack Sheppard, Oliver Twist, Friday, or Randulph Crew. In this 1842 illustration in what is admittedly a minor novel, Cruikshank is at the top of his form, using such details as the roof-tops and shop-fronts (right) to establish the urban setting, in such great contrast to the violence that has broken out as the denizens of the surrounding buildings sleep. He casts the action in partial darkness through intense shading of the right half of Kitty Conway's half-framed townhouse, and using a gas-jet to illuminate Crew, Post, and Beachcroft (left to centre)— Cruikshank offers no source of light, however, to explain how Kitty at the casement window should be so visible. He draws the eye towards the central figures (the butler and the protagonist) through having them raise their weapons above the heads above all eight characters.

Samples of Cruikshank's Action Scenes from four other novels, 1831 through 1843

Left: Cruikshank's illustration of Crusoe's adventure with Friday in the overland trip back to England, Friday and the Bear out on a limb, a scene full of apprehension. Centre: An equally complex action scene from Jack Sheppard, Jack Sheppard tricking Shotbolt the Gaoler. Right: In Dickens's novel, Oliver finally retaliates over the bully Noah's crude remarks about his mother, Oliver plucks up a spirit.

Above: A far more complicated and detailed full-page illustration of the confrontation of the jesters in the Great Kitchen of Windsor Castle in Ainsworth's other 1842 novel, with the servants and kitchen crew filling up the full-page illustration: The Quarrel between Will Sommers and Patch in the great kitchen of the Castle. [Click on the images to enlarge them.]

References

Ainsworth, William Harrison. The Miser's Daughter: A Tale. With 20 illustrations by George Cruikshank. First published in 3 volumes by Cunningham and Mortimer, London, 1842. London, Glasgow, and New York: George Routledge, 1892.

Vann, J. Don. "The Miser's Daughter in Ainsworth's Magazine January-October 1842." Victorian Novels in Serial. New York: MLA, 1988. Pp. 22-23.

Vogler, Richard A. Graphic Works of George Cruikshank. Dover Pictorial Archive Series. New York: Dover, 1979.

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Last modified 27 June 2018