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Updated: June 13, 2025
In case you are wondering if there is a cryptic connection between Boz and Baum and Oz, you'll have to keep wondering about that. I was born at Portsea, Portsmouth, a few minutes before midnight on the seventh of February, 1812, forty-four years before Mr. Baum was born. I came to Oz in 1870, when Mr. Baum was only fourteen years old.
Here is Carlyle's description of his appearance at about that period of his life, quoted from Froude's History of Carlyle's Life in London: "He is a fine little fellow Boz I think. Clear blue, intelligent eyes, eyebrows that he arches amazingly, large, protrusive, rather loose mouth, a face of most extreme mobility, which he shuttles about eyebrows, eyes, mouth and all in a very singular manner when speaking. Surmount this with a loose coil of common-coloured hair, and set it on a small compact figure, very small, and dressed
He was clearly a neighbouring squire of limited ideas, or plain country gentlemen, that could do no more than love his Isabella. Yet, while Boz describes the "affairs" of Arabella and Winkle, of Emily and Snodgrass, he wholly passes by Trundle and his inamorata.
Then again, Boz is careful to state that Eatanswill was "one of the smaller towns." In this class we would not place Norwich, a large Cathedral City, with its innumerable churches, and population, even then, of over 60,000, whereas Ipswich was certainly one of these "smaller towns," having only 20,000.
About midnight on that eventful landing, "Boz," everybody called him "Boz" in those days, having finished his supper, came down into the office of the hotel, and, joining the young Earl of M , his fellow-voyager, sallied out for a first look at Boston streets. It was a stinging night, and the moon was at the full.
Where was he to find these? Now, we know how much Boz was inclined to draw from what was before his eyes. It saved him trouble and also set his imagination at work. The Cheeryble Brothers, each a Pickwick redivivus, were taken from the Grant Brothers, merchants, at Manchester. And here he had this very exceptional character daily before him, in the person of Edward Chapman.
I thought he had done with me after this, but I was deceived; for a long interval having elapsed, during which I imagine him to have been turning restlessly from side to side, and trying to go to sleep; he broke out again, with 'I suppose THAT Boz will be writing a book by-and-by, and putting all our names in it! at which imaginary consequence of being on board a boat with Boz, he groaned, and became silent.
Every object stood out sharp and glittering, and "Boz," muffled up in a shaggy fur coat, ran over the shining frozen snow, wisely keeping the middle of the street for the most part. We boys followed cautiously behind, but near enough not to lose any of the fun. Of course the two gentlemen soon lost their way on emerging into Washington from Tremont Street.
The great success of Pickwick brought down upon its author demands from all sides for another work, and "Boz" agreed to write Nicholas Nickleby, to be published in monthly parts.
It is said that he rushed into the publisher's office, exultingly proclaiming his selection. Few cities have had their society and manners sketched by such eminent pens as Bath Smollett, Miss Burney, Miss Austen, and Boz. The old walls and houses are thus made to live.
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