A scene on the parade at bath. Pitt sits in profile to the right in a roughly made bath chair with solid wooden wheels, his swathed and gouty legs stretched out and supported on a bolster. His head is skull-like and his long neck emaciated; he wears a dressing-gown which reveals a bare chest on which is a paper: 'strengthening plaister for the conscience'. His right arm is outstretched, the fist clenched; his cap is held out in his left hand. He says in a paroxysm of anger: "d------ the cap------ d------ the french d------ the war o my stomach". Dundas stands on the farther side of the chair putting to his patient's mouth a decanter inscribed 'water of oblivion', and saying, "come come you must not be so obstreperous put on your cap your stomach will be easy when this qualm is over here take a sip lad". He wears a scots bonnet and over his coat a tartan plaid. On the chair: 'wp \ parade. Bath. ' two yokels stand together on the extreme left. One (left) says, pointing to pitt, "zooks, be that there the kings great high minister, what the man who taxed old dobbin" [cf. Bmsat 6672]. The other, who holds a pitchfork and leans on his friend's shoulder, answers: "aye zure dom 'un i wish un in our mill pond id tax un". The scene is a flat pavement backed by a stone balustrade beyond which stretches open country. On the extreme right is the corner of a building inscribed 'parad[e]'. 9 june 1798
hand-coloured etching. Date: 1798. Dimensions: Height: 258 mm; Width: 360 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville. Collection: British Museum. The Treasury spectre. Or the head of the nation in a queer situation (BM 1868,0808.6748)
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