CHARLES DICKENS. 203 



A dispute arose early in 1859 between Mr. Dickens and his 

 publishers, which led to the discontinuance of Household 

 Words, and also led to a return on his part to his old pub- 

 lishers. Messrs. Bradbury & Evans filed a bill in Chancery, 

 and the winding up of the publication was directed, both 

 parties refusing to sell their interest. Dickens owned five- 

 eighths, and he had command over another eighth. The 

 property on being put up to auction was bought back by 

 Dickens for ;^355o. 



What complicated the matter still further was the fact that 

 Mr. Evans' son had married Miss Dickens. All the Year 

 Round was the immediate successor of Hoiisehold PVords, and 

 being an exact counterpart of the latter in all but the name, 

 was immediately successful. Of the first quarter's statement 

 regarding his new periodical, he wrote : ' So well has All the 

 Year Round gone that it was yesterday able to repay me, with 

 five per cent, interest, all the money I advanced for its estal> 

 lishment (paper, print, etc., all paid, down to the last number), 

 and yet to leave a good ^^500 balance at the bankers.' The 

 first number contained the opening of a new tale by himself, 'A 

 Tale of Two Cities ; ' another of his novels, Great Expectations, 

 was also contributed to its pages. Amongst the novelists vv'ho 

 became contributors might be named Mr. Edmund Yates, Mr. 

 Percy Fitzgerald, and Mr. Charles Lever. Mr. Wilkie Collins 

 contributed his Woman in While, N'o Name, and Moonstone, 

 and Charles Reade wrote for it his Hard Cash, and Lord 

 Lytton his Strange Story. The sale of the extra Christmas 

 numbers, before they were discontinued, was enormous, 

 running as high as about 300,000 copies. A series of 

 detached papers in the character of an 2^«commercial 

 traveller, cuninbutL-d to this serial by the great novelist himself, 



