Volunteer wit, or, Not enough for a prime [graphic]Rowlandson, Thomas, 1756-1827, printmaker[not before 21 May 1808]eng"Six elderly volunteers in uniform, with pigtails, sit at dessert. The host (left), holding a decanter and small glass, says: Come Gentlemen Volunteers to the right and left--Charge if you please to the King [these words are linked to the mouth of the butler, but this seems inconsistent with the dialogue]. His vis-à-vis, rising from his chair, answers: I should be very happy to obey your Orders Colonel, but really your glasses are so small that d------n me if theres enough for a Prime [a specialized meaning of the word not in the O.E.D.] . . At the Colonel's feet are papers: A Penny saved is a 2 Pence got and Current Price of Port Shery--To one Pipe Old Port £120. The butler behind his chair grins delightedly. On the wall is a placard: Maxims--How to get Rich--Pinch Sque[eze], Gripe, Snat[ch]. The room has Gothic mouldings and a window on which are the arms of the City of London, suggesting that the host may be the Lord Mayor (John Ainsley 1807-8)."--British Museum online catalogue, description of an earlier stateTitle etched below image.Later state; imprint statement has been completely burnished from plate.Publication information inferred from earlier state with the imprint: Pubd. May 21, 1808, by Thos. Tegg, No. 111 Cheapside. Cf. No. 11136 in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum. Division I, political and personal satires, v. 8.Plate numbered "227" in upper right corner.Plate from: Woodward, G.M. Caricature magazine, or Hudibrastic mirror. London : Thomas Tegg, [1808?], v. 4.Also issued separately.Sheet trimmed to plate mark on three sides.Cf. Grego, J. Rowlandson the caricaturist, v. 2, page 86.1 print : etching with stipple on wove paper, hand-colored ; plate mark 25 x 35.1 cm, on sheet 25.6 x 41.8 cm.Watermark: 1817.Leaf 5 in volume 4.