Heath (William) After.

, S. Gans (attributed to.), 1831.
Potentially a pirated copy, the original caricature, a political satire on the supposed nepotism of the Prime Minister, Earl Grey, was first issued under the name of William Heath by Thomas McLean on January 12th, 1831. This close copy, which includes the letter ‘e’ of ‘Grey-vy’ being scored through and replaced with a letter ‘a’, is unsigned, but dated January 14th, and is ascribed to fellow London publisher, S. Gans, though his address is given as ‘Southampton St Stranb’ [sic]. It depicts Grey wearing an apron and holding an enormous pot over a large open fire, stirring it with a very long spoon. The pot is labelled ‘State Sauce Pan’ and contains a group of ten figures, including a bishop and a military officer, sitting comfortably, commenting on how warm and snug it is, how kind of Uncle Grey, and discussing the coal trade. Grey looks over his shoulder to the gaunt-faced, stocky yokel figure of John Bull, humbly holding his hat as the statesman invites him to smell the fine, rich, soup he expects him to enjoy. Instead, John Bull, with a look of consternation on his face, says ‘Why I can smell a rat master Cook, & I fancy the smell is all I’m likely to get – them chaps in the pan seem to get all the thick of it’..
245 by 350mm (9¾ by 13¾ inches).