,,the ,,man ,,in ,,the ,,high-,,water ,,boots ,by ,f4 ,hopkinson ,smith #aiji ,now and then in my various prowlings ,i have met a man with a personality2 one with mental equipment1 heart endowment1 self-forgetfulness1 and charm--the kind of charm that makes you glad when he comes and sorry when he goes4 ,one was a big-chested1 straight-backed1 clear-eyed1 clean-souled sea-dog1 with arms of hickory1 fingers of steel1 and a brain in instant touch with a button marked 8,experience and ,pluck40 ,another was a devil-may-care1 barefooted ,venetian1 who wore a ,leporello hat canted over one eye and a scarlet sash about his thin1 shapely waist1 and whose corn teeth gleamed and flashed as he twisted his mustache or threw kisses to the pretty bead-stringers crossing ,ponte ,lungo4 ,still a third was a little sawed-off1 freckled-faced1 red-headed ,irishman1 who drove a cab through ,london fogs in winter1 poled my punt among the lily-pads in summer1 and hung wall-paper between times4 ,these ,i knew and loved2 even now the cockles of my heart warm up when ,i think of them4 ,others ,i knew and liked2 the difference being simply one of personality4 ,this time it is a painter who crosses my path--a mere lad of thirty two or three1 all boy-heart1 head1 and brush4 ,i had caught a glimpse of him in ,new ,york1 when he 8blew in0 7no other phrase expresses his movement7 where his pictures were being hung1 and again in ,philadelphia when some crushed ice and a mixture made it pleasant for everybody1 but ,i had never examined all four sides of him until last summer4 ,we were at ,dives at the time1 lunching in the open courtyard of the inn1 three of us1 when the talk drifted toward the young painter1 his life at his old mill near ,eure and his successes at the ,salon and elsewhere4 ,our host1 the ,sculptor1 had come down in his automobile--a long1 low1 double-jointed crouching tiger--a forty-devil-power machine1 fearing neither ,god nor man1 and which is bound sooner or later to come to an untimely end and the scrap heap4 ,all about1 fringing the tea tables and filling the summer air with their chatter and laughter1 were gathered not only the cream1 but the very top skimmings of all the fashion and folly of ,trouville--twenty minutes away1 automobile time--their blossoming hats1 full-blown parasols1 and pink and white veils adding another flower-bed to the quaint old courtyard4 ,with the return of the ,man from the ,latin ,quarter1 his other guest1 who knew the ins and outs of the cellar1 and who had gone in search of a certain vintage known only to the initiated 7don't forget to ask for it when you go--it has no label1 but the cork is sealed with yellow wax2 ,m4 ,ramois1 the good landlord1 will know the kind--if he thinks you do71 our host1 the ,sculptor1 his mind still on his friend the painter1 looked up and said1 as he reached for the corkscrew3 8,why not go to-morrow8 ,the mill is the most picturesque thing you ever saw--an old ,louis ,,xiii house and mill on the ,river ,rille near ,beaumont-le-,roger1 once inhabited by the poet ,chateaubriand4 ,the river runs underground in the sands for some distance and comes out a few miles from ,knight's--cold as ice and clear as crystal and packed full of trout4 ,besides ,knight is at home--had a line from him this morning40 ,the ,man from the ,quarter laid down his glass4 8,how far is it80 ,this man is so daft on fishing that he has been known to kiss the first trout he hooks in the spring4 8,only fifty-six miles1 my dear boy--run you over in an hour40 8,and everything else that gets in the way10 said the ,man from the ,quarter1 moving his glass nearer the ,sculptor's elbow4 8,no danger of that--,i've got a siren that you can hear for a mile--but really1 it's only a step40 9999999999 ,i once slid down a salt mine on a pair of summer pantaloons and brought up in total darkness 7a godsend under the circumstances74 ,i still shudder when ,i think of the speed2 of the way my hair tried to leave my scalp2 of the peculiar blink in my eyes2 of the hours it took to live through forty seconds2 and of my final halt in the middle of a moon-faced1 round-paunched ,german who was paid a mark for saving the bones and necks of idiots like myself4 ,this time the sliding was done in an overcoat 7although the summer sun was blazing71 a steamer cap1 and a pair of goggles4 ,first there came a shivery chuggetty-chug1 as if the beast was shaking himself loose4 ,next a noise like the opening of a bolt in an iron cage1 and then the ,inn of ,william the ,conqueror--the village-beach1 inlet--wide sea1 streamed behind like a panorama run at high pressure4 ,the first swoop was along the sea1 a whirl into ,houlgate1 a mad dash through the village1 dogs and chickens running for dear life1 and out again with the deadly rush of a belated wild goose hurrying to a southern clime4 ,our host sat beside the chauffeur1 who looked like the demon in a ballet in his goggles and skull-cap4 ,the ,man from the ,quarter and ,i crouched on the rear seats1 our eyes on the turn of the road ahead4 ,what we had left behind1 or what might be on either side of us was of no moment2 what would come around that far-distant curve a mile away and a minute off was what troubled us4 ,the demon and the ,sculptor were as cool as the captain and first mate on the bridge of a liner in a gale2 the ,man from the ,quarter stared doggedly ahead2 ,i was too scared for scenery and too proud to ask the ,sculptor to slow down1 so ,i thought of my sins and slowly murmured1 8,now ,i lay me40 ,when we got to the top of the last hill and had swirled into the straight broad turnpike leading to ,lisieux1 the ,sculptor spoke in an undertone to the demon1 did something with his foot or hand or teeth--everything with which he could push1 pull1 or bite was busy--and the machine1 as if struck by a lash1 sprang into space4 ,trees1 fences1 little farmhouses1 hay-stacks1 canvas-covered wagons1 frightened children1 dogs1 now went by in blurred outlines2 ten miles1 thirty miles1 then a string of villages1 ,liseau among them1 the siren shrieking like a lost soul sinking into perdition4 8,watch the road to the right10 wheezed the ,sculptor between his breaths2 8that is where the ,egyptian prince was killed--0 this over his shoulder to me--8a tram-car hit him--you can see the hole in the bank4 ,made that last mile in sixty-five seconds--running fifty-nine now--look out for that cross-road--',wow-wow-oo--wow-wow'0 7siren74 8,damn that market cart--',wow-wow-o-o-wow4'0 8,slow up1 or we'll be on top of that donkey--just grazed it4 ,can't tell what a donkey will do when a girl's driving it40 ',wow-oo-w-o--4' ,up a long hill now1 down into a valley--the road like a piece of white tape stretching ahead--past school-houses1 barns1 market gardens2 into dense woods1 out on to level plains bare of a tree--one mad1 devilish1 brutal rush1 with every man's eyes glued to the turn of the road ahead1 which every half minute swerved1 straightened1 swerved again2 now blocked by trees1 now opening out1 only to close1 twist1 and squirm anew4 ,great fun this1 gambling with death1 knowing that from behind any bush1 beyond every hill crest1 and around each curve there may spring something that will make assorted junk of your machine and send you to ,ballyhack6 8,only one more hill10 breathed the ,sculptor1 wiping the caked dust from his lips4 ,woo-oo-wow-o-o 7nurse with a baby-carriage this time1 running into the bushes like a frightened rabbit74 8,see the mill stream--that's it flashing in the sunlight6 ,see the roof of the mill8 ,that's ,aston ,knight's6 ,down brakes6 ,all out--fifty-six miles in one hour and twenty-two minutes6 ,not bad60 ,i sprang out--so did the ,man from the ,quarter--the flash from the mill stream glistening in the sunlight had set his blood to tingling2 as for myself1 no sheltering doorway had ever looked so inviting4 8,marie6 ,marie6 ,where's monsieur80 cried out the ,sculptor from his seat beside the demon4 8,up-stairs1 ,i think10 answered a stout1 gray-haired1 rosy-cheeked woman1 wiping her hand and arms on her apron as she spoke4 ,she had started on a run from the brook's edge behind the house1 where she had been washing1 when she heard the shriek of the siren1 but the machine had pulled up before she could reach the door-step4 8,he went out early1 but ,i think he's back now4 ,come in1 come in1 all of you4 ,i'm glad to see you--so will he be40 ,marie was cook1 housemaid1 valet1 mother1 doctor1 and any number of things beside to ,knight2 just as in the village across the stream where she lived--or rather slept o' nights--she was billposter1 bell-ringer1 and town crier1 to say nothing of her being the mother of eleven children1 all her own--,knight being the adopted twelfth4 8,the mill might as well be without water as without ,marie10 said the ,sculptor4 8,wait until you taste her baked trout--the chef at the ,voisin is a fool beside her40 ,we had all shaken the dear woman's hand how and had preceded her into the square hall filled with easels1 fresh canvases1 paintings hung on hooks to dry1 pots of brushes1 rain coats1 sample racks of hats1 and the like4 ,all this time the beast outside was snorting like a race-horse catching its breath after a run1 the demon walking in front of it1 examining its teeth1 or mouth1 or eyes1 or whatever you do examine when you go poking around in front of it4 ,up the narrow stairs1 now in single file1 and into a bedroom--evidently ,knight's--full of canvases1 sketching garb1 fishing-rods and reels lining the walls2 and then into another--evidently the guest's room--all lace covers1 cretonne1 carved chests1 ,louis ,,xvi furniture1 rare old portraits1 and easy-chairs1 the ,sculptor opening each closet in turn1 grumbling1 8,just like him to try and fool us10 but no trace of ,knight4 ,then the ,sculptor threw up a window and thrust out his head1 thus bringing clearer into view a stretch of meadow bordered with clumps of willows shading the rushing stream below4 8,louis6 ,louis6 ,where the devil are you1 you brute of a painter80 ,there came an halloo--faint--downstream4 8,the beggar's at work somewhere in those bushes1 and you couldn't get him out with dynamite until the light changed4 ,come along60 ,there's no telling what an outdoor painter will submit to when an uncontrollable enthusiasm sweeps him off his feet1 so to speak4 ,i myself barely held my own 7and within the year1 too7 on the top step of a crowded bridge in ,venice in the midst of a cheering mob at a regatta1 where ,i used the back of my gondolier for an easel1 and again1 when years ago1 ,i clung to the platform of an elevated station in an effort to get1 between the legs and bodies of the hurrying mob1 the outlines of the spider-web connecting the two cities4 ,i have watched1 too1 other painters in equally uncomfortable positions 7that is1 out-of-door painters2 not steam-heated1 easy-chair fellows1 with pencil memoranda or photos to copy from7 but it was the first time in all my varied experiences that ,i had ever come upon a painter standing up to his armpits in a swift-flowing mill or any other kind of stream1 the water breaking against his body as a rock breasts a torrent1 and he working away like mad on a #c x #d lashed to a huge ladder high enough to scale the mill's roof4 8,any fish80 yelled the ,man from the ,quarter4 8,yes1 one squirming around my knees now--shipped him a minute ago--foot slipped4 ,awful glad to see you--stay where you are till ,i get this high light40 8,stay where ,i am60 bellowed the ,sculptor4 8,do you think ,i'm ,st4 ,peter or some long-legged crane that--0 8,all right--,i'm coming40 ,he had grabbed both sides of the ladder by this time1 and with head in the crotch was sloshing ashore1 the water squirting from the tops of his boots4 8,shake6 ,mighty good of you fellows to come all the way down to see me4 ,here1 you stone-cutter--help me off with these boots4 ,marie's getting luncheon4 ,don't touch that canvas--all this morning's work--got to work early40 7,it looked to be a finished picture to me47 ,he was flat on the grass now1 his legs in the air like an acrobat about to balance a globe1 the water pouring from his wading boots1 soaking the rest of him1 all three of us tugging away--,i at his head1 the ,sculptor at his feet4 ,how ,marie ever helped him squirm out of this diving-suit was more than ,i could tell4 ,we had started for the mill now1 the ,man from the ,quarter lugging the boots1 still hoping there might be some truth in the trout story1 the ,sculptor with the palette 7big as a tea-tray71 ,knight with the ladder1 and ,i with the wet canvas4 ,again the cry rang out3 8,marie6 ,marie60 and again the old woman started on a run--for the kitchen this time 7she had been listening for this halloo--he generally came in wringing wet7--reappearing as we reached the hall door1 her apron full of clothes swept from a drying line stretched before the big1 all-embracing fireplace4 ,these she carried ahead of us upstairs and deposited on the small iron bedstead in the painter's own room1 ,knight close behind1 his wet socks making ,man-,friday footprints in the middle of each well-scrubbed step4 ,once there1 ,knight dodged into a closet1 wriggled himself loose1 and was out again with half of ,marie's apronful covering his chest and legs4 ,it was easy to see where the power of his brush lay4 ,no timid1 uncertain1 niggling stroke ever came from that torso or forearm or thigh4 ,he hewed with a broad axe1 not with a chisel1 and he hewed true--that was the joy of it4 ,the men of ,meissonier's time1 like the old ,dutchmen1 worked from their knuckle joints4 ,these new painters1 in their new technique--new to some--old really1 as that of ,velasquez and ,frans ,hals--swing their brushes from their spinal columns down their forearms 7,knight's biceps measure seventeen inches7 and out through their finger-tips1 with something of the rhythm and force of an old-time blacksmith welding a tire4 ,broad chests1 big boilers1 strong arms1 straight legs1 and stiff backbones have much to do with success in life--more than we give them credit for4 ,instead of measuring men's heads1 it would be just as well1 once in a while1 to slip the tape around their chests and waists4 ,steam is what makes the wheels go round1 and steam is well-digested fuel and a place to put it4 ,with this equipment a man can put 8,,go0 into his business1 strength into his literature1 virility into his brush2 without it he may succeed in selling spool cotton or bobbins1 may write pink poems for the multitude and cover wooden panels with cardinals and ladies of high degree2 in real satin and life-like lace1 but no part of his output will take a full man's breath away4 9999999999 ,sunshine1 flowers1 open windows letting in the cool breezes from meadow and stream2 an old beamed ceiling1 smoke-browned by countless pipes2 walls covered with sketches of every nook and corner about us2 a table for four1 heaped with melons1 grapes1 cheese1 and flanked by ten-pin bottles just out of the brook2 good-fellowship1 harmony of ideas1 courage of convictions--with no heads swelled to an unnatural size2 four appetites--enormous1 prodigious appetites2 ,knight for host and ,marie as high chamberlainess1 make the feast of ,lucullus and the afternoon teas of ,cleopatra but so many quick lunches served in the rush hour of a downtown restaurant6 ,not only were the trout-baked-in cream 7,marie's specialty7 all that the ,sculptor had claimed for them1 but the fried chicken1 souffls--everything1 in fact1 that the dear woman served--would have gained a ,blue ,ribbon had she filled the plate of any committeeman making the award4 ,with the coffee and cigars 7cigarettes had been smoked with every course--it was that kind of a feast7 the four mouths had a breathing spell4 ,up to this time the talk had been a staccato performance between mouthfuls3 8,yes--came near smashing a donkey--don't care if ,i do--no--no gravy0 7,sculptor74 8,let me put an extra bubble in your glass0 7,knight74 8,these fish are as firm as the ,adirondack trout0 7,man from the ,quarter74 8,more cream--thank you4 ,marie60 7,knight1 of course7 8more butter40 8,donkey wasn't the only thing we missed--grazed a baby carriage and--0 7,scribe74 8,i'm going to try a red ibis after luncheon and a miller for a tail fly--pass the melon0 7,man from the ,quarter73 ,that sort of hurried talk without logical beginning or ending4 ,but now each man had a comfortable chair1 and filled it with shoulders hidden deep in its capacious depths1 and legs straight out1 only the arms and hands free enough to be within reach of the match-safe and thimble glasses4 ,and with the ease and comfort of it all the talk itself slowed down to a pace more in harmony with that peace which passeth all understanding--unless you've a seat at the table4 ,the several masters of the outdoor school were now called up1 their merits discussed and their failings hammered3 ,thaulow1 ,sorolla y ,bastida1 the new ,spanish wonder1 whose exhibition the month before had astonished and delighted ,paris3 the ,glasgow school2 ,zorn1 ,sargent1 ,winslow ,homer--all the men of the direct1 forceful school1 men who swing their brushes from their spines instead of their finger-tips--were slashed into and made mincemeat of or extolled to the skies4 ,then the 8patty-pats10 with their little dabs of yellow1 blue1 and red1 in imitation of the master ,monet2 the 8slick and slimies10 and the 8woollies0--the men who essayed the vague1 mysterious1 and obscure--were set up and knocked down one after the other1 as is the custom with all groups of painters the world over when the never-ending question of technique is tossed into the middle of the arena4 ,outdoor work next came into review and the discomforts and hardships a painter must go through to get what he is after1 the ,man from the ,quarter defending the sit-by-the-fire fellows4 8,no use making a submarine diver of yourself1 ,knight10 he growled4 8,go and look at it and then come home and paint the impression and put something of yourself into it40 ,knight threw his head back and laughed4 8,i'd rather put the brook in--all of it40 8,but ,i don't see why you've got to get soaked to the skin every time you want to make a sketch40 8,the soaking is what helps10 replied ,knight1 reaching for a match4 8,i like to feel ,i'm drink-some of it in4 ,then1 when you're right in the middle of it you don't put on any airs and try to improve on what's before you and spoil it with detail4 ,one dimple on a girl's cheek is charming2 two--and you send for the doctor4 ,and she's so simple when you look into her face--,i'm talking of the brook now1 not the girl--and it's so easy to put her down as she is1 not the form and color only1 but the mood in which you find her4 ,a brook is worse1 really1 than your best girl in the lightning changes she can go through--laughing1 crying1 coquetting--just as the mood seizes her4 ,there1 for instance1 hanging over your head is a 'gray day0'--and he pointed to one of his running-water sketches tacked to the wall4 8,i tried to cheer her up a little with touches of warm tones here and there--all lies--same kind you tell your own chickabiddy when she's blue--but she wouldn't have it and cried straight ahead for four hours until the sun came out2 but ,i was through by that time and waded ashore4 ,you can see for yourselves how unhappy she was40 ,he spoke as if the sketch was alive--and it was4 8,but ,i always work out of doors that way10 he continued4 8,in winter up in ,holland ,i sit in furs and wooden shoes1 and often have to put alcohol in my water-cups to keep my colors from freezing4 ,my big picture of ',the ,torrent'--the one in the ,toledo ,art ,gallery--was painted in ,january1 and out of doors4 ,as for the brushwork1 ,i try to do the best ,i can4 ,i used to tickle up things ,i painted2 some of the fellows at ,julian's believed in that1 and so did ,fleury and ,lefebvre to some extent40 8,and when did you get over it80 ,i asked4 8,when my father persuaded me to send a bold sketch to the ,volney ,club1 which ,i had done to please myself1 and which they hung and bought4 ,so ,i said to myself3 ',why trim1 clean up1 and make pretty a picture1 when by simply painting what ,i love in nature in a free1 breezy manner while my enthusiasm lasts--and it generally lasts until ,i get through2--sometimes it spills over to the next day--,i please myself and a lot of people beside40 ,we were all on our feet now examining the sketches--all running-brook studies--most of them made in that same pair of high-water boots4 ,no one but the late ,fritz ,thaulow approaches him in giving the reality of this most difficult subject for an outdoor painter4 ,the ocean surf repeats itself in its recurl and swash and by close watching a painter has often a chance to use his 8second barrel10 so to speak1 but the upturned face of an unruly brook-is not only million-tinted and endless in its expression1 but so sensitive in its reflections that every passing cloud and patch of blue above it saddens or cheers it4 8,yes1 painting water is enough to drive you mad10 burst out ,knight1 8but ,i don't intend to paint anything else--not for years1 any way4 ,hired the mill so ,i could paint the water running away from you downhill4 ,that's going to take a good many years to get hold of1 but ,i'm going to stick it out4 ,i can't always paint it from the banks1 not if ,i want to study the middle ripples at my feet1 and these are the ones that run out of your canvas just above your name-plate4 ,got to stand in it1 ,i tell you4 ,then you get the drawing1 and the drawing is what counts4 ,oh1 ,i love it60 ,knight stretched his big arms and legs and sprang from his chair4 8,really1 fellows1 ,i don't know anything about it4 ,all ,i do is to let myself go4 ,i always feel more than ,i see1 and so my brush has a devil of a job to keep up4 ,marie6 ,marie60 ,had the good woman been a mile down the brook she could have heard him--she was only in the next room4 8,bring in the boots--two pairs this time--we're going fishing4 ,and1 ,marie--has the chauffeur had anything to eat80 8,yes1 monsieur40 8,anything to drink80 8,no1 monsieur40 8,what6 ,hand him this10 and he grabbed a half-empty bottle from the table4 ,i sprang forward and caught it before ,marie got her fingers around it4 8,not if ,i know it60 ,i cried4 8,we've got to get back to ,dives4 ,when he lands me inside my garden at the inn he shall have a magnum1 but not a drop till he does40 9999999999 ,when the two had gone the ,sculptor and ,i leaned back in our chairs and lighted fresh cigars4 ,my enthusiasm has not cooled for the sports of my youth4 ,with a comfortable stool1 a well-filled basket1 and a long jointed rod1 ,i1 like many another staid old painter1 can still get an amazing amount of enjoyment watching a floating cork1 but ,i didn't propose to follow those two lunatics4 ,i knew the ,man from the ,quarter--had known him from the day of his birth--and knew what he would do and where he would go 7over his head sometimes7 for a poor devil of a fish half as long as his finger1 and ,i had had positive evidence of what the other web-footed duck thought of ice-cold water4 ,no1 ,i'd take a little sugar in mine1 if you please1 and put a drop of--but the ,sculptor had already foreseen and was then forestalling my needs1 so we leaned back in our chairs once more4 ,again the talk covered wide reaches4 8,great boy1 ,knight10 broke out the ,sculptor in a sudden burst of enthusiasm over his friend4 8,you ought to see him handle a crowd when he's at work4 ,he knows the ,french people--never gets mad4 ,he bought a calf for ,marie last week1 and drove it home himself4 ,told me it had ten legs1 four heads1 and twenty tails before he got it here4 ,old woman lost hers and ,knight bought her another--he'd bring her a herd if she wanted it4 ,all the way from the market the boys kept up a running fire of criticism4 ,when the ringleader came too near1 ,knight sprang at him with a yelp like a dog's4 ,the boy was so taken aback that he ran4 ,then ,knight roared with laughter1 and in an instant the whole crowd were his friends--two of them helped him get the calf out of town4 ,when a ,french crowd laughs with you you can do anything with them4 ,he had had more fun bringing home that calf1 he told me1 than he'd had for weeks1 and he's a wonder at having a good time40 ,then followed--much of which was news to me--an account of the painter's earlier life and successes4 ,he was born in ,paris1 ,august #c1 #ahgc2 his father1 ,ridgway ,knight1 the distinguished painter1 and his mother1 who was ,rebecca ,morris ,webster1 both being ,philadelphians4 ,not only is he1 therefore1 of true ,american descent1 but his eight great-grandparents were ,americans1 dating back to ,thomas ,ridgway1 who was born in ,delaware in #agac4 ,thus by both the ,french and ,american laws he is an ,american citizen4 ,at fourteen he was sent to ,chigwell ,school in ,england by his father1 to have 8art knocked out of him0 by the uncongenial surroundings of the quiet old school where the great ,william ,penn had been taught to read and write4 ,he left in #ahij1 having won the ,special ,classical ,prize1 ,oxford and ,cambridge certificate ,prize1 besides prizes for carpentering1 gymnasium1 running1 and 8putting the weight40 ,at home the boy always drew and painted for pleasure1 as well as at school during the half-holidays4 ,some water-colors made during a holiday trip in ,brittany in #ahij decided his father to allow him to follow art as a career4 ,he entered ,julian's studio1 with ,jules ,lefebvre and ,tony ,robert-,fleury as professors in #ahia1 and studied from the nude during the five following winters4 ,his principal work was1 however1 done in the country at and around ,poissy1 under the guidance of his father4 ,his exhibits in the ,paris ,salon 7artistes ,franais7 were twenty-four oils and water-colors from #ahid to #aijf1 obtaining an honorable mention in #aija with the 8,thames at ,whitchurch02 a gold medal1 third class1 in #aije1 with 8,the ,torrent02 and a gold medal1 second class1 in #aijf1 with his triptych 8,the ,giant ,cities0 7,new ,york1 ,paris1 ,london71 which makes him hors concours1 with the great distinction of being the first ,american landscape painter to get two ,salon gold medals in two consecutive years4 ,he won also a bronze medal in the ,american section of the ,paris ,universal ,exhibition in #aijj with a water-color1 and a gold medal of honor at ,rheims1 ,cherbourg1 ,geneva1 and ,nantes4 ,his most important pictures are3 8,the ,torrent10 #d #a_/b x #f feet1 owned by the ,toledo ,art ,gallery2 8,the ,abandoned ,mill10 #d #a_/b x #f feet2 8,the ,end of the ,island10 #f x #h feet2 8,clisson ,castle10 #c x #d #a_/b feet1 a water-color2 8,after the ,storm10 #c x #e feet2 and 8,winter in ,holland10 #cx#d feet4 ,i had listened to the ,sculptor's brief account of his friend's progress with calm attention1 but it had not altered my opinion of the man or his genius4 ,none of it really interested me except that somebody beside myself had found out the lad's qualities--for to me he is still a lad4 ,none of the jury who made the awards ever looked below the paint--that is1 if they were like other juries the world over4 ,they saw the brush-mark1 no doubt1 but they missed the breeze that came with it--was its life1 really--a breeze that swept through and out of him1 blowing side by side with genius and good health--a wind of destiny1 perhaps1 that will carry him to climes that other men know not of4 ,but what a refreshing thing1 this breeze1 to come out of a man1 and what a refreshing kind of a man for it to come out of6 ,no pose1 no effort to fill a ,no4 #h hat with a ,no4 #g head2 just a simple1 conscientious1 hard-working young painter1 humble-minded in the presence of his goddess1 and full to overflowing with an uncontrollable spontaneity4 ,this in itself was worth risking one's neck to see4 ,again the cry rang out1 8,marie60 and two half-drowned water-rats stepped in2 the ,man from the ,quarter in his underpinning--his pair of boots leaked and he had stripped them off--and ,knight with his own half full of water4 ,both roared with laughter at ,marie tugging at the huge white-rubber boots1 the floor she had scrubbed so conscientiously spattered with sand and water4 ,then began the customary recriminations3 8,hadn't been for you ,i wouldn't have lost him60 8,what had ,i to do with it80 etc41 etc4--the same old story when neither gets a bite4 ,that night1 bumping over the thank-you-marms1 flashing through darkened villages1 and scooting in a dead heat along ribboned roads ghostly white in the starlight1 on the way back to my garden--and we did arrive safely1 and the chauffeur had his magnum 7that is1 his share of it7--,i could not help saying to myself3 8,yes1 it's good to be young and bouyant1 but it's better to be one's self40