The fat and florid lady buckinghamshire, seated at the head of her faro-table, throws up her arms in dismay, turning towards her husband, who enters through a door (left), saying, "the bank's stole! - we're ruin'd my lady! - but i'll run to bow street & fix the saddle upon the right horse, my lady!" she exclaims: "the bank stole, my lord? - why i secur'd it in the housekeepers-room myself! - this comes of admitting jacobins into the house! - ah! the cheats! seven hundred gone smack; - without a single cock of the cards!" she fills the centre of the design, and is much larger than her husband. Her guests are crowded together on the right. A pretty young woman, mrs. Concannon, seated on her left, clasps her hands, exclaiming, "bank stole! - why i had a gold snuffbox stole last night from my table in grafton street. " lady archer, on the extreme right, on the nearer side of the table, turns a corvine and angry profile towards lord buckinghamshire, saying, "stole! - bless me why a lady had her pocket pick'd at my house last monday. " opposite her sits fox, wearing a hat and putting his hand over his mouth, saying, "zounds! i hope they dont smoke me. " sheridan looks over his shoulder, saying, "nor me". Behind fox, hanger stands in profile to the left, wearing a hat and holding his bludgeon; he says: "o! if they come to the mount, if i don't tip them shelalee" (see bmsat 8889). After the title: "when greek meets greek, then comes the tug of war!" (cf. Bmsat 9023). The door (left) resembles that of a strongroom, with two heavy locks and three bolts. 2 february 1797
hand-coloured etching. Date: 1797. Dimensions: Height: 255 mm; Width: 354 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Lady Sarah Archer. Collection: British Museum. The loss of the faro bank; -or the Rook's Pigeon'd. (BM J,3.49)
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