A Happy Chance and An Unhappy Chance (both 12 x 9 cm) are a pair of previously unpublished drawings clearly attributable to Robert Seymour (1798–1836). The album that they appear in contains a number of illustrations that connect it with the Bentley's Miscellany, as well as with other original drawings by Seymour for his published work. From their titles, it seems that the two shown above were intended as a diptych, each depicting a comical incident during hunting expeditions in the countryside.
Both participants get into trouble. In the drawing on the left above, the hunter was evidently having a picnic lunch when something startled him on the other side of a fence. In picking up his gun he has spilled the contents of his bottle, and now he points the muzzle rather hopelessly straight at the tall fence. He cannot possibly see what lies behind it. Although he looks startled, and the scene is ludicrous, the title suggests that some prey might at last be at hand. On the right, another would-be sportsman has managed to get himself caught in a trap. He has one foot in a hoop, with netting trailing backwards from it to the other foot. To cap it all, this "unlucky" man is being mocked by a elderly local yokel, who leans over a tall fence like the one in the other illustration. He seems to be pointing in the other direction, even though the huntsman is quite unable to turn round. Perhaps being seen like this is more humiliating than the mere fact of having been snared: with his hands nonchalantly in his pockets, the huntsman seems to be trying to ignore the spectator.
The figures cut by these men strongly echo many of the illustrations in Seymour's other sketches, and are very reminiscent of his approach to The Pickwick Papers before Dickens reshaped the project. They correspond well with Seymour’s surviving illustrations for the book, especially The Sagacious Dog. Here perhaps was the seed of the project, making the two works of great interest to Dickens scholars, especially those engaged with its origins and illustrations.
The other sketches by Seymour, from 1830, are also rare as he burned his papers before committing suicide after his meeting Dickens. They include large print studies for a number of the illustrations published in his Sketches by Seymour (London, c. 1836).
Related Material
Bibliography
Seymour, Robert. Sketches by Seymour. London: Thomas Fry, c. 1836. Project Gutenberg. Ebook ed. David Widger. Web. 1 February 2026.
Wallace, Randall. "Album/Scrapbook (c.1838-1855): A Rich Source of Early Victorian Illustrations." Victorian Web. 1 February 2026.
Created 1 February 2026
Last modified 22 February 2026