John Everett Millais Millais's interest in subjects connected to Britain's history and expanding empire. Millais also achieved great popularity with his paintings of children, notably "Bubbles" (1886) – famous, or perhaps notorious, for being used in the advertising of "Pears soap" – and "Cherry Ripe". His last project (1896) was to be a painting entitled "The Last Trek." Based on his illustration for his son's book, it depicted a white hunter lying dead in the African veldt, his body contemplated by two Africans. His many landscape paintings of this period usually depict difficult or dangerous terrain. The first of these, "Chill October" (1870)
Thomas J. Barratt as Barratt had acquired the copyright. Barratt followed this with a series of advertisements inspired by Millais' painting, portraying cute children in idealized middle-class homes, associating Pears with social aspiration and domestic comfort. Barratt also made effective use of testimonials, recruiting both scientists and glamorous high-society figures. He also established "Pears Annual" in 1891, in which he promoted contemporary illustration and colour printing. In 1897, he added "Pears Cyclopedia", a single volume encyclopedia. Barratt's methods led to much comment and parody, most famously a Harry Furniss Punch cartoon in which a tramp says "I used your soap two years ago,