Statesmen, No. 6

Pellegrini's chromolithograph, plate 236 of Vanity Fair's celebrated 'Men of the Day' series, presents its subject in three-quarter stance, hands loosely clasped, wearing a dark frock coat and bow tie against a sketched garden wall. The head is enlarged in classic caricature proportion—heavy-jowled, wide-eyed, hair swept back—emphasising cerebral bulk over physical dignity. The caption reads: 'The ablest professor in the cabinet of the tact by which power is kept: it is his mission to counteract the talk by which it is won and lost.' The legend identifies him as Statesmen No. 6, situating him early in the series. The epigram cuts gently but pointedly: praising tactical silence over oratorical brilliance, a backhanded compliment aimed at a figure valued more for behind-scenes management than platform eloquence.