No. 10 is a very clever sketch of "The Whistling Oyster." A full
account of this supposititious discovery is given on page 142-3 of
Volume V. of _Punch_, in the year 1843, and this curiosity was stated
to be "in the possession of Mr. Pearkes of Vinegard Yard, opposite the
gallery door of Drury Lane Theatre."
The cartoon in No. 11 is the first by another of Mr. Punch's great
guns--the famous Richard Doyle. This appeared on March 16, 1844; and
"The Modern Sisyphus" is Sir Robert Peel, then Premier, seen in the
task of rolling up the great stone [Daniel O'Connell, the Irish orator,
who was then agitating for the repeal of the union between Ireland
and Great Britain], while Lord John Russell and others represent "The
Furies" who are watching Peel's unavailing exertions. The sign-manual
at the right of this cartoon--a dicky-bird perched on a D--was often
used by Richard Doyle, and may be seen on the present wrapper of
_Punch_. Although No. 11 is the first cartoon contributed by Doyle,
it is not the first work he did for _Punch_, for Doyle commenced his
association with the paper by drawing comic borders for the Christmas
number of 1842.
[Illustration: INNOCENCE.
GENTLEMAN.--Seed a little dog, ma'rm? no ma'rm. This here's the honly
dog I've seed to-day, and he don't answer to the name of _Fido_.