James Steerforth at the school do, and a friendship begins to develop between the two. As Steerforth is several years older, David looks up to him as a sort of protector. Steerforth is said to be the only boy at the school bold enough to stand up to Mr Creakle, the school's strict headmaster, and to make Mr Creakle feel intimidated. Several years later, after moving to London, David encounters Steerforth, and the two resume their friendship. Steerforth takes David to his home in Highgate and introduces him to his mother, Mrs Steerforth, and her companion, Miss Rosa Dartle, an eccentric young
Charles Dickens Jr. months rest due to overwork. As the centenary of their grandfather's birth approached, the reduced circumstances of Charles Jr.'s daughters led to a public fundraising appeal. On 7 January 1912 a gala performance, where 'leading actors and actresses appeared as Dickens' characters' at the London Coliseum raised £2500, while a separate appeal by "The Daily Telegraph" added an additional £3882. By the close of the fund in March 1912 it held £12,000, which was to provide £150 per year to each of the daughters. Author Lucinda Hawksley, a descendant of the elder Charles Dickens, has written that 'the girls' begging