Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 10.djvu/129

Rh midst of the cheerful atmosphere of Paris he had been struck chieﬂy by the ridiculous aspects of vulgarity and Vice, and he had laughed at them. But the debasement of human nature which he saw in London appears to have affected him so forcibly that from that time the cheerful caricaturist never laughed, or made others laugh again. What he had witnessed there became the almost exclusive subject of his drawings, as powerful, as impressive as ever, but better calculated to be appreciated by cultivated minds than by the public, which had in former years granted him so wide a popularity. Most of these last compos1tions appeared in the weekly paper L’Illustratz'on. In 1857 he published in one volume the series entitled Jllasques and Visages (1 vol. 12mo), and in 1869, about two years after his death, his last artistic work, Les Dome Jlfois (1 vol. fol.), was given to the world. Gavarni was much engaged, during the last period of his life, in scientiﬁc pursuits, and this ‘fact must perhaps be connected with the great change which then took place in his manner as an artist. He sent several communications to the Académie des Sciences, and till his death, which happened on the 23d of November 1866, he was eagerly interested in the question of aerial navigation. It is said that he made experiments on a large scale with a view to ﬁnd the means of directing balloons; but it seems that he was not so successful in this line as his fellow-artist, the caricaturist and photographer, Nadar.

1em  GAVELKIND is a peculiar system of tenure prevailing chieﬂy in the county of Kent, but found also in other parts of England. In Kent all land is presumed to be holden by this tenure until the contrary is proved. It is more correctly described as socage tenure, subject to the custom of gavelkind. The chief peculiarities of the custom are the following. (1.) A tenant can aliene his lands by feoffment at ﬁfteen years of age. (2.) There is no escheat on attainder for felony, or as it is expressed in the old rhyme—

(3.) Generally the tenant could always dispose of his lands by will. (4.) In case of intestacy the estate descends not to the eldest son but to all the sons in equal shares. “ Every son is as great a gentleman as the eldest son is.” It is to this remarkable peculiarity that gavelkind no doubt owes its local popularity. The 4 «S: 5 Vict. c. 35, for commuting manorial rights in respect of lands of copyhold and custom- ary tenure, contains a clause specially exempting from the operation of the Act “ the custom of gavelkind as the same now exists and prevails in the county of Kent." Gavelkind is one of the most interesting examples of the customary law of England, and it is no doubt correctly traced to the Saxon land—law prevailing before the Conquest. Its sur- vival in this instance in one part of the country is regarded as a concession extorted from the Conqueror by the superior bravery of the men of Kent.  GAVIAL. See.  GAY, (1688—1732), one of the most eminent of the secondary English poets, was a native of Devonshire, born in 1688 at Frithelstock, near Torrington, where his family had been long settled. His father dying when the future poet was only about six years of age, and leaving four children, the prospects of the family were unpromising ; and John, after receiving his education at the grammar school of Barnstaple, was put apprentice to a silk mercer in London. He disliked the employment, obtained his discharge, and embarked in a literary life, varied only by incessant efforts to obtain the patronage of the great. How he lived up to his twenty-second year is not stated. In 1710 he published his poem of ll'z'ne, an enumeration of the charms of the “ enlivcning grape,” written in the grave, mock-heroic, and minutely descriptive style, which he after- wards displayed with greater power in his Trivia. In 1712 he was received into the household of the duchess of Monmouth in the capacity of secretary. Next year he published his Rural Sports, inscribed to Pope ; and this seems to have led to a friendship between the poets uninterrupted and sincere. The superiority of Pope was freely conceded. There could be no rivalry on the part of Gay, and Pope appears to have exerted himself on every occasion to serve his friend. Gay’s ambition was limited to a life of ease, ﬁne-dressing, and a luxurious table, in all of which he had marvellous success, but little content— ment. In the years 1713 and 1714-, besides the Rural Sports, he produced a comedy, The Wife of Bath, which was acted only three nights; The Fan, a poem ; and The Shepherd’s ll'eeh, a series of six pastorals drawn from English rustic life. Pope is believed to have incited his friend to this task in order to cast ridicule on the Arcadian pastorals of Ambrose Philips, who had been lavishly praised in the Guardian (ignoring the claims of Pope) as the ﬁrst pastoral writer of the age, and the true English Theocritus. The malicious wit was completely successful, but Gay’s ludicrous pictures of the English swains and their loves were found to be interesting and amusing without reference to their sarcastic origin. The poem was popular, and the author’s reputation considerably advanced. In this fortn- nate year Gay was appointed secretary to the earl of Clarendon, ambassador to the court of Hanover ; but the death of Queen Anne, August 1, 1714, soon put an end to his hopes of permanent oﬁicial employment. He then tried the drama, and produced his farce of What d’ye Call it? which was acted with little success in February 1714-15. In 1716 appeared his Trivia, or the Art of Walking the Streets of London, a poem in three books, for which he ac- knowledged having received several hints from Swift. It is an excellent town poem, containing graphic and humorous descriptions of the London of that period. In January 1716—17 the comedy of Three Hours after Jllarrz'age was brought on the stage, and emphatically condemned. In this piece Gay was assisted by Pope and Arbuthnot. Pope is distinctly visible in his allusions to Dennis the critic; and it is remarkable that three such men should have pro- duceda play so dull, unnatural, and gross. Gay was taken to Aix by Mr Pulteney in 1717. In 1720 he collected his poems and published them by subscription, by which he is said to have realized £1000. Secretary Craggs also pre- sented him with some South Sea stock ; and Gay called in his friends to advise as to the investment of his riches. Erasmus Lewis, according to Johnson, advised him to in- trust his money to the funds, and live upon the interest; Arbuthnot bade him intrust it to Providence, and live upon the principal ; while Pope directed him, and was seconded by Swift, to purchase an annuity. This was Pope’s own prudent system ; but Gay, like many others who ask advice, followed none, but took his own way. He embarked all in South Sea stock ; and, refusing to sell out before the bubble burst, he lost the actual principal as well as the anticipated proﬁt. The calamity overwhelmed him ; his life was despaired of ; but his friends exerted themelves to cheerOand succour the desponding bard. Lord Burlington entertained him for months in his princely house at Chiswick; and Pope, Arbuthnot, and the other members of the circle were