PUNCH,

OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.

VOL. 100.



January 10, 1891.




MR. PUNCH'S PRIZE NOVELS.

NO. X.--THE FONDMAN.

(_BY CALLED ABEL, AUTHOR OF "THE TEAMSTER."_)

[The eminent Author writes to us as follows:--"How's this for
a Saga? Do you know what a Saga is? Nor do I, but this is one
in spite of what anybody may say. History be blowed! Who cares
about history? Mix up your dates and your incidents, and fill
up with any amount of simple human passions. Then you'll get
a Saga? After that you can write a Proem and an Epilogue. They
must have absolutely nothing to do with the story, but you can
put in some Northern legends, and a tale about MAHOMET (by the
way, I've written a play about him) which are bound to tell,
though, of course, you were not bound to tell them. Ha, ha!
who talked about thunderstorms, and passions, and powers and