Nancy Dawson’s fortune was made in 1759 in the Beggars’ Opera. The man who danced the hornpipe among the thieves happened to have fallen ill, and his place was taken by Nancy, who was then a rising young actress. From that moment her success was secure. Her real monument is the song beginning--
“Of all the girls in our town, The black, the fair, the red, the brown, That dance and prance it up and down, There’s none like Nancy Dawson!
Her easy mien, her shape so neat, She foots, she trips, she looks so sweet, Her ev’ry motion’s so complete, I die for Nancy Dawson!”
[24] Musgrave’s note continues: “Whom she deserted upon his discovering that she had an intrigue with the exciseman of that district.”
[25] Rubens’s beautiful second wife, Helena Fourment, who was only sixteen when he married her. She is the subject of not a few of his pictures.
[26] Nollekens, the sculptor, highly approved of puddings for children, and would say, “Ay, now, what’s your name?” “Mrs. Rapworth, sir.” “Well, Mrs. Rapworth, you have done right; I wore a pudding when I was a little boy, and all my mother’s children wore puddings.”
[27] The parent of the Royal Academy, as an exhibiting body, was the Foundling Hospital in Guilford Street. A number of painters, including Hogarth, Reynolds, Richard Wilson, and Gainsborough, agreed to present pictures to Captain Coram’s charity. These were shown with such success, that the possibility of holding remunerative exhibitions was perceived, and in 1760 a free exhibition was opened in the rooms of the Society of Arts. In following years exhibitions were held in Spring Gardens. In 1765 the “Incorporated Society of Artists of Great Britain” obtained its charter; but disputes arose, and three years later twenty or more painters successfully petitioned George III. to establish the “Royal Academy of Arts in London.” So many of the original members of the Royal Academy are mentioned by Smith, that it will be useful to insert their names. They were all nominated by George III.:
Sir Joshua Reynolds. Benjamin West. Thomas Sandby. Francis Cotes. John Baker. Mason Chamberlin. John Gwynn. Thomas Gainsborough. J. Baptist Cipriani. Jeremiah Meyer. Francis Milner Newton. Paul Sandby. Francesco Bartolozzi. Charles Catton. Nathaniel Hone. William Tyler. Nathaniel Dance. Richard Wilson. G. Michael Moser. Samuel Wale. Peter Toms. Angelica Kauffman. Richard Yeo. Mary Moser. William Chambers. Joseph Wilton. George Barret. Edward Penny. Agostino Carlini. Francis Hayman. Dominic Serres. John Richards. Francesco Zuccarelli. George Dance. William Hoare. Johan Zoffany.