"Tract Distributor"

Charles Samuel Keene

1870–1891 · Pen and brown ink, brush and wash, touches of white gouache (bodycolor) · Drawings and Prints

This design for a wood-engraving concerns an exchange between a woman who distributes tracts and a boy shoe black. The related caption (inscribed on a separate piece of paper) reads: 'Tract M'M. Thank'ee M'M. Have you shoes blacked by a nice little boy M'M!' (suggesting that the boy only accepts a tract to try to drum up trade). Keene was a leading British illustrator who worked for Punch between 1864 and 1890. His imagery generally focused on humorous situations in humble surroundings, unlike his contemporary George Du Maurier who satirized London society.

Artist

Charles Samuel Keene

Date

1870–1891

Medium

Pen and brown ink, brush and wash, touches of white gouache (bodycolor)

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1924