Burlesques

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[Illustration]




[Illustration]

  BURLESQUES

[Illustration MR. GEORGE GRAVES IN "PRINCESS CAPRICE"]




  BURLESQUES

  BY

  H. M. BATEMAN

  WITH AN INTRODUCTORY NOTE BY A. E. JOHNSON

[Illustration]

  LONDON

  DUCKWORTH & CO.

  3 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN

[Illustration _First Published 1916_]


  PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY WM. BRENDON AND SON, LTD.
  PLYMOUTH, ENGLAND

[Illustration]



INTRODUCTORY NOTE

Mr. H. M. Bateman possesses in remarkable degree that
rare gift, a real power of comic draughtsmanship. He is
capable not only of comic vision, but of comic expression.
His "line" is an instinctive expression of the comic: it reveals an
innate feeling for the essentially humorous. To put it briefly, if
somewhat vaguely, he "draws funnily." He is the terse and witty
pictorial _raconteur_--a shrewd observer who can sum up a character,
or conjure up a scene, with a few strokes of such penetrating insight
that they carry instant conviction.

Humour of the kind which the drawings in this volume embody
is so spontaneous, and the expression of it so direct and incisive,
that there is perhaps a tendency to overlook the intensity of the effort
which produces the seemingly effortless result. Mr. Bateman's
method is sometimes described as caricature, but that is to miss its
true significance, though the term may seem, upon the surface,
appropriate enough. Caricature is the art of inducing humour, by
dint of satirical exaggeration, in a subject not necessarily humorous
of itself. Mr. Bateman's more difficult function is to reveal humour,
not to impose it.

There is no trace of the self-conscious humorist in these drawings.
Facetiousness is a quality conspicuously and gratefully absent. The
artist's only concern is to pluck the very heart out of his subject, and
that his mind has a trend towards the humorous aspect of life is merely
accidental. For it is the humour of life, not merely of men, that
attracts him, and even when he deals with seemingly quite trivial
subjects, there is nothing petty or trite about his comic treatment of
them.

He generalises. His observations are of types, not of individuals,
of situations rather than of scenes. He draws for us people whom
we all know but none of us have actually seen, for when he portrays
a type his sketch embodies all the salient characteristics that go to
make that type. If he draws a plumber, for example, he shows us
the Compleat Plumber--more like a plumber than any plumber ever
was. And as with character, so with action--whatever Mr. Bateman
elects to make his puppets do, they do it with an intensity and vigour
beyond all practical possibility, but not (and this is the artist's secret)
beyond the bounds of imagination and belief. When a man is seen
running in a Bateman drawing he does not merely run--he _runs_; if
he slumbers, one can veritably hear him snore! The intensity of the
artist's imaginative effort visualises for us that which cannot humanly
be, but would be if it could.

Pictorial exponents of the comic art are few, for of so-called
"humorous drawings" not many are inspired by the true comic spirit.
It is a fortunate opportunity, therefore, which the present volume
provides of preserving in collected form so much that bears the
evident stamp of the real thing.

A. E. J.

[Illustration]




[Illustration]




                LIST OF DRAWINGS


                                                   PAGE

  THEY CALL IT "FAME"                                 1

  MAESTROS: THE IMPRESSIVE                            3

  MAESTROS: THE UNEMOTIONAL                           5

  MAESTROS: THE SENTIMENTAL                           7

  THE WINTER VEST                                     9

  THE MAN WHO WON A MOTOR-CAR                        11

  THE ACCOMPANIST WHO DID HER BEST                   13

  THE POTTER-ABOUT-THE-HALL-ALL-DAY
  PERSON                                             15

  THE GRUMBLE-AT-THE-FOOD-AND-EVERYTHING-ELSE
  PERSON                                             17

  "I REMEMBER IN 1870----"                           19

  THE TEMPER                                         21

  GENUINE ANTIQUES                                   23

  SIGHTS UP IN TOWN                                  25

  SIGHTS DOWN IN THE COUNTRY                         27

  LITTLE TICH                                        29

  THE BLUE                                           31

  PREPARATIONS FOR A GREAT OFFENSIVE                 32, 33

  GARÇON!                                            35

  MAN AND WIFE                                       37

  SPEECHMAKERS: THE FAITHFUL OLD
  DOG                                                39

  SPEECHMAKERS: THE WORM                             41

  TWINS                                              43

  PLATONIC                                           45

  ALL THIS FOR 3D., 6D., AND 1/-                     47

  THE MISSED PUTT                                    49

  THE MAN WHO ONLY WANTED TWO
  HALFPENNIES FOR A PENNY                            51

  PSYCHIC: GLOOM                                     53

  LOST--A PEKINESE DOG                               55

  DANCERS AND DANCES: SPANISH                        57

  DANCERS AND DANCES: AMERICAN                       59

  DANCERS AND DANCES: ORIENTAL                       61

  THE PUBLIC LIBRARY                                 63

  MERELY A MATTER OF SECONDS                         65

  A HEART TO HEART TALK                              67

  HOW I WON THE MARATHON                             69

  99° IN THE SHADE                                   71

[Illustration]

_The drawings contained in this book originally appeared, with some
exceptions, in "The Sketch," "London Opinion," "The Graphic," "The
Bystander," "Printer's Pie" and "Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic
News." The author is indebted to the proprietors of these journals for
permission to issue them in this volume._




[Illustration THEY CALL IT "FAME"]




[Illustration]




[Illustration MAESTROS
I. The Impressive: Rachmaninoff's "Prelude"]




[Illustration]




[Illustration MAESTROS
II. The Unemotional: Bach's "Italian Fugue"]




[Illustration]




[Illustration MAESTROS
III. The Sentimental: A Chopin Nocturne]




[Illustration]




[Illustration STUDIES OF A RESPECTABLE MIDDLE-AGED GENTLEMAN WEARING A NEW
WINTER VEST FOR THE FIRST TIME]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE MAN WHO WON A MOTOR-CAR]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE ACCOMPANIST WHO DID HER BEST]




[Illustration]




[Illustration HOTEL HOGS
The potter-about-the-hall-all-day-and-watch-the-new-arrivals person]




[Illustration]




[Illustration HOTEL HOGS
The grumble-at-the-food-and-everything-else person]




[Illustration]




[Illustration "I REMEMBER IN 1870----"
London clubmen in war-time parading for practice in writing to the papers]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE TEMPER]




[Illustration THE GOBLETS\]




[Illustration GENUINE ANTIQUES]




[Illustration]




[Illustration SIGHTS UP IN TOWN]




[Illustration]




[Illustration SIGHTS DOWN IN THE COUNTRY]




[Illustration]




[Illustration LITTLE TICH]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE BLUE]




[Illustration PREPARATIONS FOR--]




[Illustration --A GREAT OFFENSIVE]




[Illustration]




[Illustration "GARÇON!"]




[Illustration]




[Illustration MAN AND WIFE]




[Illustration]




[Illustration SPEECHES AND THEIR MAKERS
The Faithful Old Dog]




[Illustration]




[Illustration SPEECHES AND THEIR MAKERS
The Worm]




[Illustration]




[Illustration TWINS]




[Illustration]




[Illustration PLATONIC]




[Illustration]




[Illustration ALL THIS FOR 3D.\, 6D.\, AND 1/-]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE MISSED PUTT]




[Illustration]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE MAN WHO ONLY WANTED TWO HALFPENNIES FOR A PENNY]




[Illustration]




[Illustration PSYCHIC]




[Illustration]




[Illustration LOST--A PEKINESE DOG]




[Illustration]




[Illustration]




[Illustration DANCERS AND DANCES
Spanish]




[Illustration]




[Illustration DANCERS AND DANCES
American]




[Illustration]




[Illustration DANCERS AND DANCES
Oriental]




[Illustration]




[Illustration THE PUBLIC LIBRARY]




[Illustration]




[Illustration MERELY A MATTER OF SECONDS]




[Illustration]




[Illustration A HEART-TO-HEART TALK]




[Illustration]




[Illustration HOW I WON THE MARATHON]




[Illustration]




[Illustration]




[Illustration 99° IN THE SHADE]




[Illustration]




       *       *       *       *       *

  Transcriber's Notes

  Obvious punctuation and spelling errors repaired.

  Italic text is denoted by _underscore_ and bold text
  by =equal signs=.

  The following numerous errors were left as is:
  endquote missing punctuation
  No punctuation at para end