Seeing clearly that it would be useless to pursue their point, the gentlemen withdrew. Scrooge resumed his labours with an improved opinion of himself, and in a more facetious temper than was usual with him.
—Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
Two gentlemen attempt to solicit a donation for the poor from the miser Ebenezer Scrooge. An edition of the classic Dickens Christmas tale with illustrations by Ronald Searle was published in 1961 by Perpetua, the artist's own imprint. The original artwork illustrating the gentlemen leaving the premises of Scrooge and Marley's empty-handed was sold at Christie's South Kensington in 2008.
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| Ronald Searle, "...The gentlemen withdrew..." A Christmas Carol, Perpetual Books, 1961, page 17 |
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| Christie's South Kensington Sale 5360, Lot 23, July 29, 2008 |
Note: Perpetua (get it?), the Ronald Searle tribute blog, has a host of Dickensian images by Searle under the title More Dickens. You might want to have a look.
Attempted Bloggery has a few more seasonal posts as well as a number of posts about Ronald Searle.
Go for it! You might want to see some more original book illustrations as well.
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