The Harpies spoiling the feast an ancient Classical story. Adapted to the ninteenth century.

Charles Williams

The Harpies spoiling the feast an ancient Classical story. Adapted to the ninteenth century.

London, W Holland June 1805

255 x 355 mm

Etching

Original hand colouring

£180

Harpies, with the heads of members of the Opposition, defile Pitt’s dinner of loaves and fishes. They have webbed wings, barbed tails, and rapacious claws. Fox is directly over the large dish of loaves and fishes; he spits and excretes ‘Incapacity’, ‘Imbecility’, ‘Inability’. Sheridan flies over Pitt’s plate, excreting ‘Jests’, ‘Satire’, ‘Tameness’, spitting fiercely in Pitt’s face; ‘Assurance’ and ‘Puns’ have reached the table. Burdett, above Fox, excretes ‘Independence’ (see BMSat 10372). Sidmouth (l.) flies away from the table, excreting Incapacity on the dish. Norfolk flies off just above Sidmouth, and Bedford (l.) flies towards the table. Behind are smaller creatures, four completely uncharacterized; one has the unmistakable head of Lord Derby. Pitt, holding his knife and fork, rises from his chair; an end of the tablecloth is passed through a buttonhole of his coat. He looks up angrily at Sheridan, saying, “It is really very hard to be Obliged to get up from Table in this manner – without a moments notice, – and as pretty a dish of Loaves and Fishes as any Man would wish to sit down to.” A fish lies on his plate. On the left. is a wine-cooler filled with bottles