Page:A history of booksellers, the old and the new.djvu/79

THE BOOKSELLERS OF OLDEN TIMES. 57 Balzac, who, if he knows it better, is more unfortunate in his knowledge. With all Richardson's vanity, he drew a portrait of himself that is not far removed from caricature. " Short, rather plump than emaci- ated, notwithstanding his complaints ; about five feet five inches ; fair wig ; lightish cloth coat, all black besides ; one hand generally in his bosom, the other a cane in it, which he leans upon under the skirts of his coat usually, that it may imperceptibly serve him as a support, when attacked by sudden tremors or startlings, and dizziness which too frequently attacks him, but, thank God, not so often as formerly ; look- ing directly foreright as passers-by would imagine, but observing all that stirs on either side of him with* out moving his short neck ; hardly ever turning back ; of a light brown complexion ; teeth not yet failing him ; smoothish face and ruddy cheeked ; at some times looking to be about sixty-five, at other times much younger ;^ a regular even pace, stealing away ground rather than seeming to rid it ; a gray eye, too often over- clouded by mistiness from the head ; by chance lively very lively it will be, if he have hope of seeing a young lady whom he loves and honours ; his eye always on the ladies ; if they have very large hoops, he looks down supercilious, and as if he would be thought wise, but, perhaps, the sillier for that ; as he approaches a lady, his eyes are never set upon her face but upon her feet, and thence he raises it pretty quickly for a dull eye ; and one would think (if one thought him at all worthy of observation) that from her air and (the last beheld) her face, he sets her down in his mind as so and so, and then passes on to the next object he meets." Among other letters to Richardson we come across 4