New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-05-22
MIR. PICKWICK IN BATH.
TRACES OF THE GREAT MAN STILL LEFT
IN THE STATELY OLD ENGLISH TOWN


From The st. James's Gazette.
Bath Is a stately. dignified old city. and ia
parades, pumproOm and the rest are haunted
by ghosts OF antique personages who rufied
Il there In the last century. Boz too has done
much to kindle interest in the place: Pickwck
the immortal, containing better description Of
the tone and manners OF the place In the thrtes
than Miss Burney or Smollett has given Of
their eras In his account there is an air OF
faded gcntility old fashion and old customs
for then the ceremoniousness and state OF so.
ciety was barely lingering on and was presently
to disappear.
indeed II Is in the half dozen or so Pckwickian
towns Ipswich, Rochester, Bury-that is. Mr.
Pickwick has grown into a sort OF historical
parsonage, who actually visited the places and
STAYED at the old inns, where they invariably
show YOU hts particular rooms. American
guests often ask for the privilege Of Sleeping
in Mr. Pickwck's ROOM Lately Bath gen.
teman Of shrewd sense was at the Great White
Horse at Ipswich. and was perfectly beguiled
by the faith of the waiter, who spoke OF the
changes that had occurred since MI Pickwick
was here" The White Hart. at Bath. where
the great man put up mas iohs since been
pulled down.
Queen Square, a charming Old World square.
was where Mr. Bantam the M. c. resided-at
No. H. Bantam was drawn. with some dis
guise. from a well known Goionei 1erv1lse VINO
/ lived In this very house The place where the
! famous Bath foOtmen had their immortal
swarry-a billed leg OF mutton with the usual
trimmngs"-has been ascertained beyond
doubt In Princes-st-. Few uoo'S uo"". anu
turning out OF the square. there is rdtnef
urlty-looking publc-house known as the
Beaufort Arms. much fallen from us FORMER
st vie where one could imagine knives ana FORKS
/ OF various -colored handles being borrowed ior
occasions Of state. This Is remenDereI as tne
actual house Of call for the swell ioo'inen.
and here they had their meetings SOM 'eo aa
In tho palny days Of the Octagph Nhdpt 'ne
wholo posse Of the Bath foutmen attending IN
/ their splendid regmentais. veiVets goiu race;
.naulets canes etc: attendants VINO Jared
not say their masters. but their einp"ye's. Inc
house is no doubt, described as sie'h-sro-
/ ro,'e hut Roz az was his custom. did not Wish
10 be too minute and particular IN MS ueSc'p'
/ tons.
MR. PICKWICKs LODGINGS.
Mr. pickw,ck and his friends went into fur.
piehed lodgings In house In the peau-
tilu and unique Crescent MIS- o'a aocSr1
being his landlady 1t has been aS sr.
mined hy our Bath Pickwickians tina; there
Gre only one or two houses IN the Cres-
cent thus let out. the rest beine pFiNat, NAN nan
slons Mr. Pckwick must therefore nav Uetn
.ither AT No T. Or Ii IT II. the houses IN
uuestion-a comfort to know, 80 far as II soss
Something more distinct would have Deeh de
sirabc. but il Is really as near a. one o,. 80
Il is hard As you look up 10 me s'A''ly nrs
i,oor window not 10 think n the animated
s,.re-,he infuriatod powler shouting me Sc
dan AT the door ard Mr. Wrinkle IN his drrssing'
Gown aying round the Crescent. Charles DICK
ems Tho Younger by the way objects I" MS
nhr,s. Of his sirr's who he insists was con-
rounding IL with the circus but you can run
round semi-circle-that IS, turn back AT me
top with sweeper Il may b" that the sTouhu
I'm front was open and without raining
The old assembly rooms are there stu, win
the tearooms and cardrooms. 30 is thc vu
theatre. with it's venerable stone front ana the
baths still abound Everywhere we seem 10
meet MIR Pickwick walking about or going up
a hill-afler taking his lumber t"lth haVol
Of warm smoo,hin'-rons) which Was c'''a'"y
Milsom-st
The occasion ~ Dickenss Visit 10 pain "aS
the series u speeches which Lord John Russell
Was making al over that country FOR ms con-
test In $50 He had Just defeated Sir H. le"i
Government. The energetic Boz hai en- mo i'"h
with his fellow rep rter Bcari-bo,h being IN
the stan II The Morning Chronicle llr si"Isd
himself IN 10 point. d"tHrm'ncd y secure t,'e
best results for his einrl 1yers Th'y "'i, 10 ne
Bush Inn Bristol. In May. Arranging iht *
pressing" Of 81, ech from Bah and other places.
The Bush IN Corn-st, which WAS th' l"use
90 which Mr Wnklc fed IF IN the angry n,"!-
r. was pulled down some thirty or forty years
ago and bank the Wiltshire and Dorset
stands on the site. At Bath Boz con.r.Y'd TO
take in great dea' There IS quaint inn IN
Waicoi. most curious as specimen OF the OLD
carriers inn. IL has a table, dated ltl1. ana
here he put up There are some IN Bath VINO
: recall him and his pcrs"Nering efforts 10 ross
the little court. his candle being blown Out, ne
! returning with much perseverance, to have IL
lighted, only to be blown cut once more a
most interesting. piGuant monument thus, ony
10 be matched by Johnson's White House a.
Edinburgh The pumproom is exactly now as II
Is described In 'Pickwck'-even the TompI0n
clock" is in the place. is the statue OK
Nash. and there is the open book for those VINO
wish to put down their names
II was during this election. in the January OF
the same year. that Boz went To Ipswich and
witnessed the humOrs Of the Eatanswil election.
for though he brings his characters later 10
Ipswich under It's proper name. he could nor
venture To deal with the parliamentary ABUSES
50 freely as he did without some disguise.