That William and Daniel Grant were the prototypes of the “Brothers Cheeryble,” in “Nicholas Nickleby” does not admit of any doubt. A gentleman who had doubted, wrote to Mr. Charles Dickens, son of the novelist, in 1893, and received a reply containing these two sentences:—
“It is merely waste of time to argue about the prototypes of the Cheeryble Brothers. My father may be supposed to have known what he meant himself, and as he always distinctly said that the Cheerybles were taken from the Grants, the matter admits of no further discussion.”[1]
But there remains an interesting question about which a difference of opinion does exist, viz., Did Charles Dickens ever personally meet William and Daniel Grant?
In the original preface to “Nicholas Nickleby,” Dickens, having dealt with “Squeers,” says:—
“To turn to a more pleasant subject, it may be right to say that there are two characters in this book which are drawn from life. It is remarkable that what we call the world, which is so credulous in what professes to be true, is most incredulous in what professes to be imaginary, and that, while every day, in real life, it will allow in one man
- ↑ Preface to “The Country and Church of the Cheeryble Brothers.”
