CHAPTER XI
THE SOCIAL SIDE OF LA BELLE SAUVAGE
From early days the spirit of camaraderie has been strong at the Yard. It has manifested itself in many ways—in the formation of clubs, in the holding of festive gatherings, in the emulations of sport, in a rally of sympathetic colleagues when one of the band has had a stroke of bad fortune, and the like. The most ancient of the social functions was the annual wayzgoose. It had its origin in days so far back that it was the custom for the men's delegates to circularize the firm's customers—i.e. the booksellers—for subscriptions. Apparently that was a general practice in the printing trade, and at first it was not felt to be unbecoming. Presently, however, its unseemliness became apparent, and the House undertook to defray the expenses of the fixture; though in course of time this arrangement, in turn, was subjected to various modifications. "Once," records an old hand, "we went to Ramsgate, a daring project upwards of forty years ago, when the Chatham and Dover was the 'undertaker' so far as travelling was concerned. It was agreed that there was an intolerable deal of railway to the day's pleasure, and the experiment was voted 'no good.' Brighton was far more manageable, and was several times the venue, the Pavilion affording space enough to dine the largest company. The 'Star and Garter' entertained us at Richmond; and I can remember the situation when, through some unfortunate misunderstanding, the dinner was not ready at the appointed time. If 'one hungry man is an angry man,' as the proverb assures us, imagination quails
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