134 THE UEV. J. G. WOOD. 



And Wood, M.A., his best may say 



Rodential in laudation, 

 But the rat-pie will still defy 



All ratiocination. 



No doubt these various skits gave amusement to- 

 thousands, but they had besides this most beneficial 

 effect, that they made the sketch-lectures known. Those 

 few remarks concerning the flesh of the rat uttered in 

 parenthesis, and quite without forethought did what 

 110 amount of advertising could have done, for they, or 

 the references made to them, found their way into every 

 newspaper, and everywhere excited public interest and 

 attention. So that when, a few months later, the 

 sketch-lectures proper began, the way was already 

 paved for them, and thousands came to see in the flesh 

 the man who had actually eaten rat-pie ! 



Before these lectures could be undertaken, however, 

 many preliminaries had of necessity to be arranged. In 

 the first place, an agent had to be found, who should 

 undertake all the correspondence, advertising, and organ- 

 isation, and leave the lecturer nothing to do but to 

 travel to the appointed spot and deliver his lecture. 

 By a lucky chance my father almost immediately found 

 the very man he wanted, in the person of Mr. George 

 H. Eobinson, manager of the New Book Court in the 

 Crystal Palace. Terms were speedily arranged. Lec- 

 turer and agent were to share preliminary expenses, 

 and all arrangements were to be made by the latter, 

 who in return was to receive a commission on the fees. 



Here, perhaps, I should mention that my father on 



