See Cohn 1310 and George BM Satires 11524 for the print published by Laurie & Whittle on August 24th, 1809. At the time of drawing, Cruikshank, who went on to become one of Britain’s finest caricaturist and book illustrators, was only 16. His childhood was ‘cradled in caricature’, brought up watching his father, the artist and draughtsman Isaac Cruikshank, at work. He and his brother Isaac Robert assisted their father with his work. By 1803 George was supplying simple designs to wood-engravers for children's games and books. Isaac taught him the rudiments of copperplate etching and at the age of thirteen he was executing the titles of his father's caricatures, and also putting in backgrounds. ‘Many prints were collaborative efforts; Robert also painted miniature portraits and George produced hundreds of designs for advertisements, twelfth-night characters, drolls, songheads, and frontispieces’. This is for a song performed at the Lyceum by Mr Dowton in the comic opera Up All Night or, The Smuggler’s Cave. He undertook work for Laurie and Whittle, friends of his father, who produced song sheets with caricature illustrations. It was only in 1808 that George began to sign his name in full although both the original design and printed version of this illustration remain unsigned.