Walter Hely-Hutchinson, 'Natal'

Leslie Ward ('Spy') presents Sir Walter Hely-Hutchinson, Governor of Natal, in the magazine's signature mode: a full-length chromolithograph that flatters rank while gently mocking physique. Hely-Hutchinson stands in formal evening dress—black tail coat, white waistcoat and bow tie—wearing two breast medals and a star order partly tucked at his hip, the decorations signalling imperial service. His grey hair, prominent moustache, and slightly puffed cheeks are the caricaturist's only liberties; the pose is composed, even dignified. The caption 'Natal' anchors the subject to the Crown colony he administered on the eve of the Anglo-Boer War.