In my boyhoood a chief

Some thirty years ago

and more, a chief source favorite

of juvenile pleasure amusement

lay in was drawn from the theatrical

character-sheets, “penny

plain, twopence coloured

or even halfpenny and penny [?]”

which were then abundant

at every toy shop and

cheap stationer's. These

were coloured[?] I believe on zinc plates &

published by Fairborn

City Road; Skelt, Swan

Street Minories; Park,

Leonard St. Finsbury; and

others. The/I still The earliest

publisher of them was

Added TextI believe

West of first of Exeter St. & afterwards of

Wych St. Strand, but

These were less spread

abroad than the others

mentioned at the date within my own

I speak of recollection.Fairborn

was also publisher of

the sensational religious

“Christmas Pieces”, bright

with daubed colour,

which aspiring youths

filled up by aspiring youths at Christmas

with efforts in calligraphy.

Can any reader of 1

& 2 throw light on the

production of all these works

of art referred to?

What artists were employed

on them & at what

periods? Some of the character-sheets are still

in the market, though

their popularity has

ebbed well nigh to nothing;

the only one of the above

firms still in existence

being Messrs Park of FInsbury.

I remember to have

met with some account

of the trade in an

old number of either

The Morning Chronicle

or Daily News (I think)

at the now remote period

ߞsomewhere about 1850—

when Henry Mayhew's

London labour series

and the other similar

businesses/reports newspaper articles produced

by in emulation of it were still in course

of per periodical issue.

Could any one refer me

to the exact place where

place & date of such

account? I remember

it was there stated that

some artists since ? well known

had been early engaged in

the production of some of

these prints. Could any

one give their names

or indeed any information

respecting this quaint

bypath of very ? popular art, which

must be remembered by

many with some affection

as a childish pleasure?