The Croaker, or The Miseries of Human Life

The Miseries of Human Life is a series of twelve humorous dialogues between two old curmudgeons, the book details the “petty outrages, minor humiliations, and tiny discomforts that make up everyday human existence.” Written in 1806 by James Beresford (1764–1840), it was first published in one volume as The Miseries of Human Life, or, The Groans of Samuel Sensitive and Timothy Testy. With a few supplementary sighs from Mrs Testy. by W. Miller in 1806- with a frontispiece by William Henry Pyne (1769–1843). It was then expanded to a two-volume edition later that year, illustrated by George Cruikshank. It became a minor classic in the satirical literature of the day. Apparently the public loved it, so dozens of editions were published, while printmakers rushed to illustrate their own versions of life’s miseries.

The Miseries of Human Life, article on the Princeton University Art Museum website[1]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Miseries_of_Human_Life

Facsimile version of the first edition of the book of dialogues, 1806, The Internet Archive[2]