Plate: PL. 170

"Some of the most heart-warming poster images ever created are those in which Steinlen gives us an intimate peek into his family life. You can virtually feel his adoring love for his wife Emilie and daughter Colette, and he never fails to let us know that cats were regarded as full-fledged family members in his house" (Gold p.40)

"The cozy breakfast time was a favourite theme of the great painters, and the Impressionists loved portraying the humble joys of the table. Steinlen also serves up a breakfast drink in appropriate style. Mother (Emilie) and child (Colette) sit side by side, the blonde daughter drinking her chocolate, while mamma enjoys a cup of aromatic Chinese tea made by the 'Compagnie Française des Chocolats et des Thes' (French Chocolate and Tea Company) The purring cat in the foreground signifies contentment. Steinlen's lines are smooth and sensitive, and he confines himself to a few well-synchronized colours"(Paris 1900, p.170)