The Englishman and His Books - In the Early Nineteenth Century

THE ENGLISHMAN AND HIS BOOKS IN THE EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY BY AMY CRUSE AUTHOR OF THE SHAPING OF ENGLISH LITERATURE ENGLISH LITERATURE THROUGH THE AGES ETC. EDITOR OF A TREASURY OF CAROLINE LYRICS ETC. 1930 October PREFACE IN a former book, The Shaping of English Literature, the author attempted to tell the story of the readers of books in England from the earliest times to the closing years of the eighteenth century. This book takes up the story and carries it on to the accession of Victoria. The period dealt with, therefore, is even allowing for some inevitable overlapping less than fifty years, as compared with the thirteen hundred years covered by The Shaping of English Literature. There were in those later days so many more Englishmen who read books and so many more books for them to read that the story is a much fuller one, and has to be told in a different fashion. All this is discussed in the introductory chapter, in which the author has tried to tell what were her aims and ideals in writing this book. A. C. CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGB L INTRODUCTORY g II. THE SUBSCRIBERS TO CAMILLA 21 III. WORDSWORTHIANS AND ANTI-WORDSWORTHIANS 37 IV. THE CLAPHAM SECT 58 V. THE SCHOOLROOM 78 VI. THE MINERVA PRESS 93 VII. YOUNG GENTLEMEN AT THE UNIVERSITY 108 VIIL BOOKS AND POLITICS 127 IX. WORKING-MEN READERS 150 X. A PERFORMANCE OF THE ROAD TO RUIN 167 XL PERIODICALS AND THEIR READERS 178 XII. LECTURERS AND THEIR AUDIENCES 195 XIII. LONDON READERS IN THE DAYS OF THE REGENCY 209 XIV. THE WAVERLEY NOVELS AND THEIR READERS 224 XV. A SUPPER AT CHARLES LAMBS AND A DINNER AT HOLLAND HOUSE 240 XVI. MELODRAMA AT THE SURREY AND TRAGEDY AT COVENT GARDEN 257 XVII. DRAWING-ROOM BOOKS 276 INDEX 280 5ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE THE EFFECTS OF READING TALES OF MYSTERY AND HORROR Frontispiece TITLE-PAGE TO AN EARLY EDITION 1808 OF SANDFORD AND MERTON 32 DOVE COTTAGE, GRASMERE 44 CLAPHAM COMMON IN 1802 58 LORD MACAULAYS SCHOOL AT CLAPHAM 60 ILLUSTRATION FROM THE FAMILY MAGAZINE 70 COVER OF ONE OF HANNAH MORES CHEAP REPOSITORY TRACTS 74 ILLUSTRATION FROM THE HISTORY OF THE FAIRCHILD FAMILY 80 ILLUSTRATION FROM A NATURAL HISTORY OF QUADRUPEDS 86 TITLE-PAGE TO MISCELLANEOUS STORIES FOR CHILDREN 90 THE RAKES PROGRESS AT THE UNIVERSITY No. 5 no TRINITY COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE 118 MONSTROSITIES OF 1821 122 SANSCULOTTES FEEDING EUROPE WITH THE BREAD OF - LIBERTY 132 A GENUINE DANDY 144 LITERARY LADIES 148 OPENING PAGES OF PIGS MEAT, OR LESSONS FOR THE SWINISH MULTITUDE 156 AT A COMEDY 170 SCENE FROM THE ROAD TO RUIN 174 7 8 THE ENGLISHMAN AND HIS BOOKS FAGS THE FRIEND OF HUMANITY AND THE KNIFE-GRINDER 180 ILLUSTRATION FROM THE LADYS MAGAZINE, 1810 192 FINE LADIES IN BIG FEATHERED HATS AND LONG, HIGH WAISTED GOWNS 19 LONDON FASHIONABLE WALKING DRESSES, 1812 200 CHILDE HAROLDS PILGRIMAGE 216 ILLUSTRATION TO WAVERLEY 226 SCENE FROM PEVERIL OF THE PEAK 234 ONE OF CHARLES LAMBS HAUNTS IN THE TEMPLE 242 THE HOLLAND HOUSE LIBRARY 250 SURREY THEATRE PLAYBILL FOR THE FIRST NIGHT OF BLACK-EYED SUSAN 260 MR T. P. COOKE AS IN BLACK-EYED SUSAN 264 SCENE FROM ROMEO AND JULIET, COVENT GARDEN, 1829 270 TITLE-PAGE OF THE KEEPSAKE, 1829 278 THE ENGLISHMAN AND HIS BOOKS CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY NO history of literature can be complete unless it takes account of the readers as well as of the writers. To claim that if there were no readers there would be no writers would be going beyond the warrant of proven facts it isdifficult to imagine that under any conditions the greatest among the creators of our literature could have failed to give expression to the spirit that was in them...