# The Story of the House of Cassell

THE STORY OF THE
HOUSE OF CASSELL
With Twenty Illustrations
CASSELL AND COMPANY, LTD
London, New York, Toronto and Melbourne
1922
JOHN CASSELL
FOREWORD
The House of Cassell, now nearly eighty years old, holds a unique place among English publishing houses. It was the pioneer of some important movements—the bringing of educational literature within reach of the mass of English people, the serial publication of great books, and the modern development of illustration in both books and periodical publications. It has grown from small beginnings into a huge institution whose name is familiar all over the world.
The history of the House of Cassell falls into four epochs. The first was that in which John Cassell's individuality counted for everything, and ran from his vague beginnings as a publisher in the early 'forties to his death in 1865. The second was the eighteen years of George William Petter and Thomas Dixon Galpin's supremacy, from 1865 to 1883. The third, dating from the formation of the Company in 1883, was chiefly dominated by the personality of Sir Wemyss Reid, the general manager from 1887 to 1905.
The last epoch began with the appointment in 1905 of Sir Arthur Spurgeon, the present general manager, and has been noteworthy for a complete reorganization of the business on modern lines and the restoration of its old prosperity and activity, which had been somewhat dimmed during the latter years of the nineteenth century.
The records here presented owe much to the collaboration of various members of the staff of Cassell's, past and present. The narrative has drawn largely upon their recollections.
CONTENTS
PART I john cassell :
| CHAPTER | CHAPTER | PAGE |
| 1. | Factory Hand and Temperance Reformer | 3 |
| 2. | From Tea Merchant to Publisher | 12 |
| 3. | La Belle Sauvage | 19 |
| 4. | The Growth of Educational Literature | 25 |
| 5. | John Cassell and Lord Brougham and Others | 35 |
| 6. | The Taxes on Knowledge — American Experiences | 43 |
| 7. | The Last Years | 54 |
| PART II the house of cassell |||
| 1. | Cassell, Petter and Galpin | 63 |
| 2. | Some Editors and Arnold-Forster | 71 |
| 3. | Departmental Managers | 80 |
| 4. | The New Order | 85 |
| 5. | Forty Years of Illustration | 96 |
| 6. | Magazines and Periodicals | 114 |
| 7. | The First Halfpenny Newspaper, and Some Others | 147 |
| 8. | Serials and Books | 157 |
| 9. | The Novelists: "R.L.S," and Others | 207 |
| 10. | The Machinery at La Belle Sauvage | 221 |
| 11. | The Social Side of La Belle Sauvage | 230 |
| | Index | 237 |
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
| John Cassell | Frontispiece |
| | FACING PAGE |
| La Belle Sauvage Inn | 18 |
| Coach Emerging from La Belle Sauvage Yard | 22 |
| Relief from Old La Belle Sauvage (showing the Crest of the Cutlers' Company) | 24 |
| The Entrance to La Belle Sauvage Yard in 1782 | 24 |
| George William Petter | 64 |
| Thomas Dixon Galpin | 66 |
| Sir Wemyss Reid | 70 |
| Rt. Hon. H. O. Arnold-Forster | 78 |
| W. E. Henley | 98 |
| Sir J. E. Millais | 110 |
| Sir Luke Fildes, K.C.V.O., R.A. | 110 |
| Henry Morley | 160 |
| Dean Farrar | 160 |
| Robert Louis Stevenson | 208 |
| Sir Rider Haggard, K.B.E. | 216 |
| Col. Burnaby | 216 |
| H. G. Wells | 218 |
| Fleet Lane View of Cassell and Company's Premises | 222 |
| La Belle Sauvage Yard, 1921 | 228 |
This work was published in 1922 and is anonymous or pseudonymous due to unknown authorship. It is in the public domain in the United States as well as countries and areas where the copyright terms of anonymous or pseudonymous works are 101 years or less since publication.
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