,transcriber's note3 ,obvious printer's errors have been corrected1 all other inconsistencies are as in the original4 ,the author's spelling has been maintained4 ,illustration3 ,sarah ,bernhardt as ,cleopatra4 ,,great ,,men ,,and ,,famous ,,women ,a ,series of ,pen and ,pencil ,sketches of ,,the ,,lives ,,of ,,more ,,than #bjj ,,of ,,the ,,most ,,prominent ,,personages ,,in ,,history ,,vol4 ,,viii4 ,copyright1 #ahid1 ,,by ,,selmar ,,hess edited by ,charles ,f4 ,horne ,illustration3 ,publisher's arm4 ,new-,york3 ,selmar ,hess ,publisher ,,contents ,,of ,,volume ,,viii4 ,,subject ,,author ,,page ,,michael ,,angelo1 ,anna ,jameson1 #bad ,,beethoven1 ,c4 ,e4 ,bourne1 #cai ,,sarah ,,bernhardt1 ,h4 ,s4 ,edwards1 #chb ,,rosa ,,bonheur1 ,clarence ,cook1 #bgf ,,edwin ,,booth1 ,clarence ,cook1 #cgj ,,charlotte ,,cushman1 ,dutton ,cook1 #cee ,letter from ,miss ,cushman to a young friend on the subject of ,self-conquest1 #cfb ,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci1 ,anna ,jameson1 #bji ,,gustave ,,dor1 ,kenyon ,cox1 #bih ,,albert ,d,,rer1 ,w4 ,j4 ,holland1 #bca ,,edwin ,,forrest1 ,lawrence ,barrett1 #cdi ,,david ,,garrick1 ,samuel ,archer1 #cdc ,g,r,,me1 ,clarence ,cook1 #bha ,,handel1 ,c4 ,e4 ,bourne1 #cjb ,,haydn1 ,c4 ,e4 ,bourne1 #cae ,,william ,,hogarth1 #bdg ,,joseph ,,jefferson1 ,clarence ,cook1 #cgd ,,franz ,,liszt1 ,rev4 ,hugh ,r4 ,haweis1 ,m4,a41 #ccb ,,meissonier1 ,clarence ,cook1 #bgb ,,mendelssohn1 ,c4 ,f4 ,bourne1 #cbf ,,jean ,,fran,,ois ,,millet1 ,clarence ,cook1 #bfe ,,mozart1 ,c4 ,e4 ,bourne1 #cjh ,,paganini1 #cbe ,,adelina ,,patti1 ,frederick ,f4 ,buffen1 #cgh ,,phidias1 ,clarence ,cook1 #bjc ,,rachel1 ,dutton ,cook1 #cfc ,,raphael1 ,mrs4 ,lee1 #bba ,,rembrandt1 ,elizabeth ,robins ,pennell1 #bdj ,,sir ,,joshua ,,reynolds1 ,samuel ,archer1 #bej ,,dante ,,gabriel ,,rossetti1 ,edmund ,gosse1 #bhg ,,rubens1 ,mrs4 ,lee1 #bcf ,,thorwaldsen1 ,hans ,christian ,andersen1 #beh ,,titian1 ,giorgio ,vasari1 #bbf ,,giuseppe ,,verdi1 #cdb ,,richard ,,wagner1 ,franklin ,peterson1 ,mus4 ,bac41 #cch ,,benjamin ,,west1 ,martha ,j4 ,lamb1 #bed ,,list ,,of ,,illustrations ,,volume ,,viii4 ,,photogravures ,,illustration ,,artist ,,to ,,face ,,page ,,sarah ,,bernhardt ,,as ,,cleopatra1 ,georges ,clairin ,frontispiece ,,michael ,,angelo ,,and ,,vittoria ,,colonna1 ,hermann ,schneider #bbj ,,albert ,d,,rer ,,visits ,,hans ,,sachs1 ,richard ,gross #bcd ,,marie ,,de ,,medici ,,at ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,rubens1 ,florent ,willems #bdj ,,connoisseurs ,,at ,,rembrandt',s ,,studio1 ,adolphe-,alexandre ,lesrel #bdd ,,meissonier',s ,,atelier1 ,georges ,bretegnier #bgb ,,mozart ,,singing ,,his ,,requiem1 ,thomas ,w4 ,shields #cad ,,an ,,anecdote ,,about ,,beethoven1 ,paul ,leyendecker #cbb ,,franz ,,liszt1 ,fortun-,joseph-,seraphin ,layraud #ccd ,,wagner ,,and ,,his ,,friends1 ,wilhelm ,beckmann #cdj ,,rachel ,,as ,,the ,,muse ,,of ,,greek ,,tragedy1 ,jean ,lon ,grme #cfh ,,joe ,,jefferson ,,as ,,bob ,,acres1 ,from life #cgf ,,wood-,,engravings ,,and ,,typogravures ,,raphael ,,introduced ,,to ,,da ,,vinci1 ,brune ,pags #bab ,,leo ,x4 ,,at ,,raphael',s ,,bier1 ,pietro ,michis #bbd ,a ,f,,te ,,at ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,titian1 ,f4 ,kraus #bbh ,,albert ,d,,rer',s ,,wedding1 ,a4 ,bodenmller #bcb ,,hogarth ,,sketching ,,the ,,highway ,,of ,,queenborough1 #bdh ,,benjamin ,,west1 ,,president ,,of ,,the ,,royal ,,academy1 ,sir ,thomas ,lawrence #beh ,,rosa ,,bonheur1 ,e4 ,dubufe #bgh ,,handel',s ,,river-,,concert ,,for ,,george ,i41 ,a4 ,hamman #cjd ,,haydn ,,composing ,,his ,,creation1 ,a4 ,hamman #cah ,,paganini ,,in ,,prison1 ,louis ,boulanger #cbf ,,garrick ,,as ,,richard ,,iii41 ,william ,hogarth #cdf ,,forrest ,,as ,,metamora1 ,from ,photograph #ceb ,,charlotte ,,cushman ,,as ,,mrs4 ,,haller1 ,watkins #cfj ,,painters ,,and ,,sculptors ,,phidias#a ,footnote #a3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7,,about #ejj-dcb ,b4,c47 ,phidias1 one of the greatest sculptors the world has seen1 and whose name has become1 as it were1 the synonym of his art1 was born at ,athens about #ejj ,b4,c4 ,he belonged to a family of artists1 none of whom indeed were distinguished in their profession1 but their varied occupations furnished the atmosphere in which such a talent as that of ,phidias could best be fostered and brought to maturity4 ,his father was ,charmides1 who is believed to have been an artist1 because the ,greeks1 in their inscriptions1 did not associate the name of the father with that of the son unless both were of the same calling4 ,a brother of ,phidias1 ,panoenos1 was a painter1 and is mentioned among those artists1 twenty or more in number1 who in conjunction with ,polygnotus1 one of the chief painters of his day1 were employed in the decoration of the ,poecile or ,painted ,portico1 one of the many beautiful buildings erected by ,cimon4 ,the ,poecile was simply a long platform1 with a roof supported by a row of columns on one side and by a wall on the other4 ,it was called the painted1 because the wall at the back was covered with a series of large historical pictures containing many figures1 and recording some of the chief events of the time1 together with others relating to an earlier and more shadowy epoch4 ,the subject of the painting1 executed1 at least in part1 by the brother of ,phidias1 was the ,battle of ,marathon1 in which great event it is thought he may himself have taken part4 ,the boyhood of ,phidias fell in a time of national revival1 when under the influence of an ennobling political excitement1 all the arts were quickened to a fresh1 original1 and splendid growth4 ,the contest between the ,greeks and ,persians1 which had begun with the ,ionian revolt1 was in full activity at the time of his birth4 ,he was ten years old when the battle of ,marathon was fought1 and when he was twenty1 four of the most striking events in the history of ,greece were crowded into a single year2 the battle of ,thermopyl1 the victory at ,salamis1 and the twin glories of ,plata and ,mycale4 ,his early youth1 therefore1 was nourished by the inspiring influences that come from the victorious struggle of a people to maintain their national life4 ,he was by no means the only sculptor of his time whom fame remembers1 but he alone1 rejecting trivial themes1 consecrated his talent to the nobler subjects of his country's religious life and the ideal conception of her protecting gods4 ,no doubt1 ,phidias1 like all who are born with the artistic temperament1 would be interested from childhood in the progress of the splendid works with which ,athens was enriching herself under the rule of ,cimon4 ,but his interest must have been greatly increased by the fact that his brother ,panoenos was actively engaged in the decoration of one of those buildings4 ,it would be natural that he should be often drawn to the place where his brother was at work1 and that the sight of so many artists1 most of them young men1 filled with the generous ardor of youth1 and inspired by the nature of their task1 should have stirred in him an answering enthusiasm4 ,it gives us a thrill of pleasure to read in the list of these youths the name of the great tragic poet1 ,euripides1 who began life as a painter1 and in whose plays we find more than one reference to the art4 ,it cannot be thought unreasonable to suppose that two such intelligences as these must have had an attraction for one another1 and that1 as in the case of ,dante and ,giotto1 the great poet and the great artist would be drawn together by a likeness in their taste and aims4 ,phidias studied his art first at ,athens1 with a native sculptor1 ,hegias1 of whom we know nothing except from books4 ,later1 he went to ,argos1 and there put himself under the instruction of ,ageladas1 a worker chiefly in bronze1 and very famous in his time1 of whom1 however1 nothing remains but the memory of a few of his more notable works4 ,for us1 his own works forgotten1 he remains in honor as the teacher of ,myron1 of ,polycletus1 and of ,phidias1 the three chief sculptors of the next generation to his own4 ,on leaving the workshop of ,ageladas1 ,phidias executed several statues that brought him prominently before the public4 ,for ,delphi1 he made a group of thirteen figures in bronze1 to celebrate the battle of ,marathon and apotheosize the heroes of ,attica4 ,in this group1 ,miltiades was placed in the centre1 between ,athena1 the tutelary goddess of ,athens1 and ,apollo1 the guardian of ,delphi2 while on each side were five ,athenian heroes1 ,theseus and ,codrus with others1 arranged in a semicircle4 ,this important work was paid for by ,athens out of her share in the spoils of ,marathon4 ,another important commission executed by ,phidias was a statue of ,athena made for her temple at ,plata1 and paid for with the eighty talents raised by the contributions of the other ,grecian states as a reward for the splendid services of the ,platans at ,marathon1 where they played somewhat the same part as the ,prussians at the battle of ,waterloo4 ,the head1 hands1 and feet of this statue were of marble1 but the drapery was of gold2 so arranged1 probably1 as in the case of the great statue of ,athena designed later by ,phidias for the ,parthenon1 as to be removable from the marble core at pleasure4 ,phidias made so many statues of the virgin goddess ,athena1 that his name became associated with hers1 as at a later day that of ,raphael was with the ,virgin ,mary4 ,in the first period of his artistic career1 moved perhaps by his patriotic gratitude for her intervention in behalf of his native state1 he had represented the goddess as a warlike divinity1 as here at ,plata2 but in his later conceptions1 as in a statue made for the ,athenians of ,lemnos1 ,athena appeared invested with milder attributes1 and with a graceful and winning type of beauty4 ,in their invasion of ,attica the ,persians had destroyed the city of ,athens1 and the people1 who had fled to all quarters of the peninsula to seek refuge from the enemy1 returned after the victory at ,salamis and the flight of the ,persians1 to find their homes a heap of ruins4 ,the dwelling-houses of the ,greeks were everywhere1 even in their largest cities1 built of mean materials3 walls of stubble overlaid with stucco and gayly painted4 ,it was not long1 therefore1 before ,athens resumed something of her old appearance1 with such improvements as always follow the rebuilding of a city4 ,the most important change effected was that brought about in the character of the great plateau1 the fortified rock of the ,acropolis4 ,here1 as in many ,greek cities1 the temples of the gods had been erected1 and about them1 as about the cathedrals of the ,middle ,ages1 there had grown up a swarm of houses and other buildings built by generations of people who sought there at once the protection of the stockade which enclosed the almost inaccessible site1 and the still further safeguard of the presence of the divinities in their temples4 ,the destructive hand of the ,persian invaders had swept this platform clear of all these multiplied incumbrances1 and in the rebuilding of the city it was determined to reserve the ,acropolis for military and religious uses alone4 ,the work of improvement was begun by ,cimon1 who1 however1 confined his attention chiefly to the lower city that clustered about the base of the ,acropolis4 ,here1 among other structures1 he built the temple of ,theseus and the ,painted ,portico1 and he also erected1 near the summit of the ,acropolis1 on the western side1 the little gem-like temple of the ,wingless ,victory1 ,nike ,apteros1 in commemoration of the success of the ,athenian arms at the battle of the ,eurymedon4 ,it was from ,cimon that ,phidias received his first commission for work upon the ,acropolis1 where later he was to build such a lasting monument to his own fame and to the fame of his native land4 ,the commission given him by ,cimon was to erect a bronze statue of ,athena which was to stand on the citadel1 at once a symbol of the power of ,athens and a tribute to the protecting goddess of the city4 ,the work upon the statue was probably begun under ,cimon1 but according to ,ottfried ,mller it was not completed at the death of ,phidias4 ,it stood in the open air1 and nearly opposite the ,colonnade at the entrance of the great flight of marble steps that led from the plain to the summit of the ,acropolis1 and was the first object to meet the eye on passing through the gateway4 ,it represented the goddess1 armed1 and in a warlike attitude1 from which it derived its name1 ,athena ,promachos3 ,athena1 the leader of the battle4 ,with its pedestal it stood about seventy feet high1 towering above the roof of the ,parthenon1 the gilded point of the brazen spear held by the goddess flashing back the sun to the ships as in approaching ,athens they rounded the promontory of ,sunium4 ,we read that the statue was still standing so late as #cie ,a4,d41 and it is said that its towering height and threatening aspect caused a panic terror in ,alaric and his horde of barbarians when they climbed the ,acropolis to plunder its temple of its treasure4 ,but it was under the rule of ,pericles that ,phidias was to find at ,athens his richest employment4 ,pericles had determined1 probably by the advice of ,phidias1 to make the ,acropolis the seat and centre of the new and splendid city that was to arise under his administration4 ,the first great undertaking was the building of a temple to ,athena ,parthenos1 ,athena the ,virgin1 a design believed to have been suggested to ,pericles by ,phidias4 ,the plans were intrusted to ,ictinus1 an ,athenian1 one of the best architects of the day2 but the general control and superintendence of the work were given to ,phidias4 ,as the building rose to completion1 workmen in all branches of the arts flocked to ,athens from every part of ,greece and were given full employment by ,phidias in the decoration and furnishing of the temple4 ,the taste of ,phidias controlled the whole scheme of decoration applied to the building1 into which color entered1 no doubt1 to a much greater extent than was formerly believed4 ,even after time and the destructive hand of man have done their worst1 there still remain sufficient traces of color to prove that the sculpture1 and the whole upper part of the temple1 were painted in bright but harmonious colors1 and that metal ornaments and accessories accented the whole scheme with glittering points of light reflected from their shining surfaces4 ,the sculptures with which the ,parthenon was adorned by ,phidias1 and which were executed under his immediate superintendence1 consisted of two great groups that filled the eastern and western pediments2 of groups of two figures each in the ninety-two metopes or panels above the outer row of columns2 and1 finally1 the famous frieze that ran completely round the temple itself1 just below the ceiling of the colonnade1 and at a height of about thirty-nine feet from the floor4 ,the subject of the group that filled the eastern pediment1 the one above the entrance door of the temple1 was the birth of ,athena4 ,just how the event was represented we do not know because quite half the group1 including the principal figures1 disappeared very early in our era1 and no description of them remains in any ancient or modern writer4 ,the group in the western pediment represented the contest between ,athena and ,poseidon for the dominion over ,attica4 ,according to the legend1 the strife between the two divinities took place in an assembly of the gods on the ,acropolis1 who were to determine which of the two contestants should be the protector of the city4 ,to prove his power1 ,poseidon struck the rock with his trident1 and a salt spring leaped forth1 as if the sea itself had obeyed the call of its lord4 ,athena struck the ground1 and an olive-tree sprang up1 the emblem of peace and of the victories of commerce1 and the assembly awarded the prize to her4 ,the goddess having thus received the sovereignty of ,athens1 it was but natural that a day should be set apart for her special honor1 and a festival instituted to commemorate the great event4 ,this was the greater ,panathenaia1 or ,all ,athenians ,day1 which was celebrated every fourth year in honor of the goddess1 and which1 as its name implies1 was taken part in by all the people of the city4 ,it occurred in the early summer and lasted five days4 ,on the fifth day1 it closed with a procession which went through all the chief streets of the city and wound its way up the ,great ,stairway to the ,acropolis1 bearing the peplos or embroidered robe woven by young virgin ladies of ,athens1 chosen from the highest families1 and known for their skill in this kind of work4 ,after the peplos had been consecrated in the temple it was placed with due solemnities upon the ancient and venerable figure of the goddess1 made of olive-wood1 and said to have descended from heaven4 ,from its subject1 which thus celebrates the ,panathenaic procession1 the frieze is often called the ,panathenaic frieze4 ,it is carved from ,pentelic marble1 of which material the marble building is constructed4 ,its original length1 running as it did around the entire building1 was #ebb4hj feet1 of which about #daj feet remain4 ,of this portion1 #bdi feet are in the ,british ,museum in slabs and fragments2 the remainder is chiefly in the ,louvre1 with scattered fragments in other places4 ,as a connected subject this was the most extensive piece of sculpture ever made in ,greece4 ,from all that can be gathered from the study of the fragments that remain1 the design of the frieze was of the utmost simplicity and characterized by the union of perfect taste and clear purpose that marks all the work of the great sculptor4 ,the subject begins in the frieze at the western end of the temple1 where we watch the assembling of the procession4 ,it then proceeds along the northern and southern sides of the building1 in what we are to suppose one continuous line1 moving toward the east1 since all the faces are turned that way2 and at the eastern end1 directly over the main entrance to the building1 the two parts of the procession meet1 in the presence of the magistrates and of the divinities who had places of worship in ,athens4 ,of the grace1 the skill in arrangement1 the variety of invention1 the happy union of movement and repose shown in this work1 not only artists--men best fitted to judge its merits from a technical point of view--but the cultivated portion of the public1 and a large and ever-increasing circle of every-day people1 have by common consent agreed in praise4 ,by the multiplication of casts1 to be found now in all our principal museums1 we are enabled to study and to enjoy the long procession even better than it could have been enjoyed in its original place1 where it must have been seen at a great disadvantage in spite of the skill shown by ,phidias in adapting it to its site2 for1 as the frieze stood thirty-nine feet from the floor1 and as the width of the portico between the wall and the columns was only nine feet1 it was seen at a very sharp angle1 and owing to the projection of the roof beyond the wall of the temple the frieze received only reflected light from the marble pavement below4 ,apart from the marble sculptures on the exterior of the ,parthenon1 the two most famous works of ,phidias were the statues of ,athena1 made for the interior of the ,parthenon1 and of ,zeus for the temple of the god at ,olympia in ,elis4 ,both these statues were of the sort called ,chryselephantine1 from the ,greek chrousous1 golden1 and elephantinos1 of ivory2 that is1 they were constructed of plates of gold and ivory1 laid upon a core of wood or stone4 ,the style was not new1 though its invention was at one time ascribed to ,phidias4 ,it came from the ,east1 but it was now employed for the first time in ,greece in a work of national importance4 ,in the ,athena1 the face1 neck1 arms1 hands1 and feet were made of ivory1 and the drapery and ornaments1 the helmet1 the shield1 and the sandals of gold1 which as in the case of the statue made for ,plata1 was removable at pleasure4 ,the height of the statue1 including the pedestal1 was nearly forty feet4 ,the goddess stood erect1 clothed with a tunic reaching to the ankles1 and showing her richly sandalled feet4 ,she had the gis on her breast1 her head was covered with a helmet1 and her shield1 richly embossed with the ,battle of the ,amazons1 rested on the ground at her side4 ,in one hand she held a spear1 and in the other1 an image of ,victory six feet high4 ,a still more splendid work1 and one which raised the fame of ,phidias to the highest point1 was the statue of the ,olympian ,zeus1 made for the ,eleans4 ,in this statue1 ,phidias essayed to embody the ,homeric ideal of the supreme divinity of the people of ,greece sitting on his throne as a monarch1 and in an attitude of majestic repose4 ,the throne1 made of cedar-wood1 was covered with plates of gold1 and enriched with ivory1 ebony1 and precious stones4 ,it rested on a platform twelve feet high1 made of costly marble and carved with the images of the gods who formed the council of ,zeus on ,olympus4 ,the feet of the god rested on a footstool supported by lions1 and with the combat of ,theseus and the ,amazons in a bas-relief on the front and sides4 ,in one hand ,zeus held the sceptre1 and in the other a winged ,victory4 ,his head was crowned with a laurel wreath2 his mantle1 falling from one shoulder1 left his breast bare and covered the lower part of his person with its ample folds of pure gold enamelled with flowers4 ,the whole height of the statue with the pedestal was about fifty feet2 by its very disproportion to the size of the temple it was made to appear still larger than it really was4 ,this statue was reckoned one of the wonders of the world4 ,in it the ,greeks seemed to behold ,zeus face to face4 ,to see it was a cure for all earthly woes1 and to die without having seen it was reckoned a great calamity4 ,the downfall of ,pericles1 due to the jealousies of his rivals1 carried with it the ruin of ,phidias1 his close friend1 to whom he had entrusted such great undertakings4 ,an indictment was brought against the sculptor1 charging him with appropriating to himself a portion of the gold given him for the adornment of the statue of ,athena2 and according to some authorities ,pericles himself was included in the charge4 ,the gold had1 however1 been attached to the statue in such a manner that it could be taken off and weighed1 and in the proof1 the charge had to be abandoned4 ,but ,phidias did not escape so easily4 ,he was accused of sacrilege in having introduced portraits of himself and ,pericles on the shield of the goddess1 where1 says ,plutarch1 in the bas-relief of the ,battle of the ,amazons1 he carved his own portrait as a bald old man lifting a stone with both hands1 and also introduced an excellent likeness of ,pericles fighting with an ,amazon4 ,phidias died in prison before the trial came off1 and his name must be added to the long list of those whom an ungrateful world has rewarded for their services with ignominy and death4 ,signature of the author4 ,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci ,by ,,anna ,,jameson 7#adeb-aeai7 ,illustration3 ,leonardo ,da ,vinci4 ,leonardo da ,vinci seems to present in his own person a rsum of all the characteristics of the age in which he lived4 ,he was the miracle of that age of miracles4 ,ardent and versatile as youth2 patient and persevering as age2 a most profound and original thinker2 the greatest mathematician and most ingenious mechanic of his time2 architect1 chemist1 engineer1 musician1 poet1 painter--we are not only astounded by the variety of his natural gifts and acquired knowledge1 but by the practical direction of his amazing powers4 ,the extracts which have been published from ,,mss4 now existing in his own handwriting show him to have anticipated by the force of his own intellect some of the greatest discoveries made since his time4 ,these fragments1 says ,mr4 ,hallam1 are1 according to our common estimate of the age in which he lived1 more like revelations of physical truths vouchsafed to a single mind than the superstructure of its reasoning upon any established basis4 ,the discoveries which made ,galileo1 ,kepler1 ,castelli1 and other names illustrious2 the system of ,copernicus1 the very theories of recent geologists1 are anticipated by ,da ,vinci within the compass of a few pages1 not perhaps in the most precise language1 or on the most conclusive reasoning1 but so as to strike us with something like the awe of preternatural knowledge4 ,in an age of so much dogmatism he first laid down the grand principle of ,bacon1 that experiment and observation must be the guides to just theory in the investigation of nature4 ,if any doubt could be harbored1 not as to the right of ,leonardo da ,vinci to stand as the first name of the fifteenth century1 which is beyond all doubt1 but as to his originality in so many discoveries1 which probably no one man1 especially in such circumstances1 has ever made1 it must be by an hypothesis not very untenable1 that some parts of physical science had already attained a height which mere books do not record4 ,it seems at first sight almost incomprehensible that1 thus endowed as a philosopher1 mechanic1 inventor1 discoverer1 the fame of ,leonardo should now rest on the works he has left as a painter4 ,we cannot1 within these limits1 attempt to explain why and how it is that as the man of science he has been naturally and necessarily left behind by the onward march of intellectual progress1 while as the poet-painter he still survives as a presence and a power4 ,we must proceed at once to give some account of him in the character in which he exists to us and for us--that of the great artist4 ,leonardo was born at ,vinci1 near ,florence1 in the ,lower ,val d',arno1 on the borders of the territory of ,pistoia4 ,his father1 ,piero da ,vinci1 was an advocate of ,florence--not rich1 but in independent circumstances1 and possessed of estates in land4 ,the singular talents of his son induced ,piero to give him1 from an early age1 the advantage of the best instructors4 ,as a child he distinguished himself by his proficiency in arithmetic and mathematics4 ,music he studied early1 as a science as well as an art4 ,he invented a species of lyre for himself1 and sung his own poetical compositions to his own music1 both being frequently extemporaneous4 ,but his favorite pursuit was the art of design in all its branches2 he modelled in clay or wax1 or attempted to draw every object which struck his fancy4 ,his father sent him to study under ,andrea ,verrocchio1 famous as a sculptor1 chaser in metal1 and painter4 ,andrea1 who was an excellent and correct designer1 but a bad and hard colorist1 was soon after engaged to paint a picture of the baptism of our ,saviour4 ,he employed ,leonardo1 then a youth1 to execute one of the angels2 this he did with so much softness and richness of color1 that it far surpassed the rest of the picture2 and ,verrocchio from that time threw away his palette1 and confined himself wholly to his works in sculpture and design1 enraged1 says ,vessari1 that a child should thus excel him4 ,the youth of ,leonardo thus passed away in the pursuit of science and of art2 sometimes he was deeply engaged in astronomical calculations and investigations2 sometimes ardent in the study of natural history1 botany1 and anatomy2 sometimes intent on new effects of color1 light1 shadow1 or expression in representing objects animate or inanimate4 ,versatile1 yet persevering1 he varied his pursuits1 but he never abandoned any4 ,he was quite a young man when he conceived and demonstrated the practicability of two magnificent projects3 one was to lift the whole of the church of ,san ,giovanni1 by means of immense levers1 some feet higher than it now stands1 and thus supply the deficient elevation2 the other project was to form the ,arno into a navigable canal as far as ,pisa1 which would have added greatly to the commercial advantages of ,florence4 ,it happened about this time that a peasant on the estate of ,piero da ,vinci brought him a circular piece of wood1 cut horizontally from the trunk of a very large old fig-tree1 which had been lately felled1 and begged to have something painted on it as an ornament for his cottage4 ,the man being an especial favorite1 ,piero desired his son ,leonardo to gratify his request2 and ,leonardo1 inspired by that wildness of fancy which was one of his characteristics1 took the panel into his own room1 and resolved to astonish his father by a most unlooked-for proof of his art4 ,he determined to compose something which should have an effect similar to that of the ,medusa on the shield of ,perseus1 and almost petrify beholders4 ,aided by his recent studies in natural history1 he collected together from the neighboring swamps and the river-mud all kinds of hideous reptiles1 as adders1 lizards1 toads1 serpents3 insects1 as moths1 locusts1 and other crawling and flying obscene and obnoxious things2 and out of these he composed a sort of monster or chimera1 which he represented as about to issue from the shield1 with eyes flashing fire1 and of an aspect so fearful and abominable that it seemed to infect the very air around4 ,when finished1 he led his father into the room in which it was placed1 and the terror and horror of ,piero proved the success of his attempt4 ,this production1 afterward known as the ,rotello del ,fico1 from the material on which it was painted1 was sold by ,piero secretly for one hundred ducats to a merchant1 who carried it to ,milan1 and sold it to the duke for three hundred4 ,to the poor peasant1 thus cheated of his ,rotello1 ,piero gave a wooden shield1 on which was painted a heart transfixed by a dart1 a device better suited to his taste and comprehension4 ,in the subsequent troubles of ,milan1 ,leonardo's picture disappeared1 and was probably destroyed as an object of horror by those who did not understand its value as a work of art4 ,during this first period of his life1 which was wholly passed in ,florence and its neighborhood1 ,leonardo painted several other pictures of a very different character1 and designed some beautiful cartoons of sacred and mythological subjects1 which showed that his sense of the beautiful1 the elevated1 and the graceful was not less a part of his mind than that eccentricity and almost perversion of fancy which made him delight in sketching ugly1 exaggerated caricatures1 and representing the deformed and the terrible4 ,leonardo da ,vinci was now about thirty years old1 in the prime of his life and talents4 ,his taste for pleasure and expense was1 however1 equal to his genius and indefatigable industry2 and anxious to secure a certain provision for the future1 as well as a wider field for the exercise of his various talents1 he accepted the invitation of ,ludovico ,sforza il ,moro1 then regent1 afterward ,duke of ,milan1 to reside in his court1 and to execute a colossal equestrian statue of his ancestor1 ,francesco ,sforza4 ,here begins the second period of his artistic career1 which includes his sojourn at ,milan1 that is from #adhc to #adii4 ,vasari says that ,leonardo was invited to the court of ,milan for the ,duke ,ludovico's amusement1 as a musician and performer on the lyre1 and as the greatest singer and improvisatore of his time2 but this is improbable4 ,leonardo1 in his long letter to that prince1 in which he recites his own qualifications for employment1 dwells chiefly on his skill in engineering and fortification2 and sums up his pretensions as an artist in these few brief words3 ,i understand the different modes of sculpture in marble1 bronze1 and terra-cotta4 ,in painting1 also1 ,i may esteem myself equal to anyone1 let him be who he may4 ,of his musical talents he makes no mention whatever1 though undoubtedly these1 as well as his other social accomplishments1 his handsome person1 his winning address1 his wit and eloquence1 recommended him to the notice of the prince1 by whom he was greatly beloved1 and in whose service he remained for about seventeen years4 ,it is not necessary1 nor would it be possible here1 to give a particular account of all the works in which ,leonardo was engaged for his patron1 nor of the great political events in which he was involved1 more by his position than by his inclination2 for instance1 the invasion of ,italy by ,charles ,,viii4 of ,france1 and the subsequent invasion of ,milan by ,louis ,,xii41 which ended in the destruction of the ,duke ,ludovico4 ,the greatest work of all1 and by far the grandest picture which1 up to that time1 had been executed in ,italy1 was the ,last ,supper1 painted on the wall of the refectory1 or dining-room1 of the ,dominican convent of the ,madonna delle ,grazie4 ,it occupied ,leonardo about two years1 from #adif to #adih4 ,the moment selected by the painter is described in the #bfth chapter of ,st4 ,matthew1 #bast and #bb;d verses3 ,and as they did eat1 he said1 ,verily1 ,i say unto you1 that one of you shall betray me3 and they were exceeding sorrowful1 and began every one of them to say unto him1 ,lord1 is it ,i8 ,the knowledge of character displayed in the heads of the different apostles is even more wonderful than the skilful arrangement of the figures and the amazing beauty of the workmanship4 ,the space occupied by the picture is a wall twenty-eight feet in length and the figures are larger than life4 ,of this magnificent creation of art1 only the mouldering remains are now visible4 ,it has been so often repaired that almost every vestige of the original painting is annihilated2 but from the multiplicity of descriptions1 engravings1 and copies that exist1 no picture is more universally known and celebrated4 ,perhaps the best judgment we can now form of its merits is from the fine copy executed by one of ,leonardo's best pupils1 ,marco ,uggione1 for the ,certosa at ,pavia1 and now in ,london1 in the collection of the ,royal ,academy4 ,eleven other copies1 by various pupils of ,leonardo1 painted either during his lifetime or within a few years after his death1 while the picture was in perfect preservation1 exist in different churches and collections4 ,while engaged on the ,cenacolo1 ,leonardo painted the portrait of ,lucrezia ,crivelli1 now in the ,louvre 7,no4 #dhc74 ,it has been engraved under the title of ,la ,belle ,ferronnire1 but later researches leave us no doubt that it represents ,lucrezia ,crivelli1 a beautiful favorite of ,ludovico ,sforza1 and was painted at ,milan in #adig4 ,it is1 as a work of art1 of such extraordinary perfection that all critical admiration is lost in wonder4 ,of the grand equestrian statue of ,francesco ,sforza1 ,leonardo never finished more than the model in clay1 which was considered a masterpiece4 ,some years afterward 7in #adii71 when ,milan was invaded by the ,french1 it was used as a target by the ,gascon bowmen1 and completely destroyed4 ,the profound anatomical studies which ,leonardo made for this work still exist4 ,illustration3 ,raphael ,introduced to ,da ,vinci4 ,in the year #aejj1 the ,french being in possession of ,milan1 his patron ,ludovico in captivity1 and the affairs of the state in utter confusion1 ,leonardo returned to his native ,florence1 where he hoped to re-establish his broken fortunes1 and to find employment4 ,here begins the third period of his artistic life1 from #aejj to #aeac1 that is1 from his forty-eighth to his sixtieth year4 ,he found the ,medici family in exile1 but was received by ,pietro ,soderini 7who governed the city as ,gonfalonire perpetuo7 with great distinction1 and a pension was assigned to him as painter in the service of the republic4 ,one of his first works after his return to ,florence was the famous portrait of ,madonna ,lisa del ,giocondo1 called in ,french ,la ,joconde1 and now in the ,louvre 7#dhd71 which after the death of ,leonardo was purchased by ,francis ,i4 for #d1jjj gold crowns1 equal to #de1jjj francs or #a1hjj1 an enormous sum in those days2 yet who ever thought it too much8 ,then began the rivalry between ,leonardo and ,michael ,angelo1 which lasted during the remainder of ,leonardo's life4 ,the difference of age 7for ,michael ,angelo was twenty-two years younger7 ought to have prevented all unseemly jealousy2 but ,michael ,angelo was haughty and impatient of all superiority1 or even equality2 ,leonardo1 sensitive1 capricious1 and naturally disinclined to admit the pretensions of a rival1 to whom he could say1 and did say1 ,i was famous before you were born6 ,with all their admiration of each other's genius1 their mutual frailties prevented any real good-will on either side4 ,leonardo1 during his stay at ,florence1 painted the portrait of ,ginevra ,benci1 the reigning beauty of her time4 ,we find that in #aejb he was engaged by ,csar ,borgia to visit and report on the fortifications of his territories1 and in this office he was employed for two years4 ,in #aejc he formed a plan for turning the course of the ,arno1 and in the following year he lost his father4 ,in #aeje he modelled the group which we now see over the northern door of the ,san ,giovanni1 at ,florence4 ,in #aead he was invited to ,rome by ,leo ,x41 but more in his character of philosopher1 mechanic1 and alchemist1 than as a painter4 ,here ,raphael was at the height of his fame1 and engaged in his greatest works1 the frescos of the ,vatican4 ,the younger artist was introduced to the elder2 and two pictures which ,leonardo painted while at ,rome--the ,madonna of ,st4 ,onofrio1 and the ,holy ,family1 painted for ,filiberta of ,savoy1 the pope's sister-in-law 7which is now at ,st4 ,petersburg7--show that even this veteran in art felt the irresistible influence of the genius of his young rival4 ,they are both ,raffaelesque in the subject and treatment4 ,it appears that ,leonardo was ill-satisfied with his sojourn at ,rome4 ,he had long been accustomed to hold the first rank as an artist wherever he resided2 whereas at ,rome he found himself only one among many who1 if they acknowledged his greatness1 affected to consider his day as past4 ,he was conscious that many of the improvements in the arts which were now brought into use1 and which enabled the painters of the day to produce such extraordinary effects1 were invented or introduced by himself4 ,if he could no longer assert that measureless superiority over all others which he had done in his younger days1 it was because he himself had opened to them new paths to excellence4 ,the arrival of his old competitor1 ,michael ,angelo1 and some slight on the part of ,leo ,x41 who was annoyed by his speculative and dilatory habits in executing the works intrusted to him1 all added to his irritation and disgust4 ,he left ,rome1 and set out for ,pavia1 where the ,french king1 ,francis ,i41 then held his court4 ,he was received by the young monarch with every mark of respect1 loaded with favors1 and a pension of #gjj gold crowns settled on him for life4 ,at the famous conference between ,francis ,i4 and ,leo ,x41 at ,bologna1 ,leonardo attended his new patron1 and was of essential service to him on that occasion4 ,in the following year1 #aeaf1 he returned with ,francis ,i4 to ,france1 and was attached to the ,french court as principal painter4 ,it appears1 however1 that during his residence in ,france he did not paint a single picture4 ,his health had begun to decline from the time he left ,italy2 and feeling his end approach1 he prepared himself for it by religious meditation1 by acts of charity1 and by a most conscientious distribution by will of all his worldly possessions to his relatives and friends4 ,at length1 after protracted suffering1 this great and most extraordinary man died at ,cloux1 near ,amboise1 ,may #b1 #aeai1 being then in his sixty-seventh year4 ,it is to be regretted that we cannot wholly credit the beautiful story of his dying in the arms of ,francis ,i41 who1 as it is said1 had come to visit him on his death-bed4 ,it would indeed have been1 as ,fuseli expressed it1 an honor to the king1 by which destiny would have atoned to that monarch for his future disaster at ,pavia4 ,,michael ,,angelo ,by ,,anna ,,jameson 7#adgd-aefd7 ,illustration3 ,michael ,angelo4 ,we have spoken of ,leonardo da ,vinci4 ,michael ,angelo1 the other great luminary of art1 was twenty-two years younger1 but the more severe and reflective cast of his mind rendered their difference of age far less in effect than in reality4 ,it is usual to compare ,michael ,angelo with ,raphael1 but he is more aptly compared with ,leonardo da ,vinci4 ,all the great artists of that time1 even ,raphael himself1 were influenced more or less by these two extraordinary men1 but they exercised no influence on each other4 ,they started from opposite points2 they pursued throughout their whole existence1 and in all they planned and achieved1 a course as different as their respective characters4 ,michael ,angelo ,buonarroti was born at ,setignano1 near ,florence1 in the year #adgd4 ,he was descended from a family once noble--even among the noblest of the feudal lords of ,northern ,italy--the ,counts of ,canossa2 but that branch of it represented by his father1 ,luigi ,leonardo ,buonarroti ,simoni1 had for some generations become poorer and poorer1 until the last descendant was thankful to accept an office in the law1 and had been nominated magistrate or mayor 7,podesta7 of ,chiusi4 ,in this situation he had limited his ambition to the prospect of seeing his eldest son a notary or advocate in his native city4 ,the young ,michael ,angelo showed the utmost distaste for the studies allotted to him1 and was continually escaping from his home and from his desk to haunt the ateliers of the painters1 particularly that of ,ghirlandajo who was then at the height of his reputation4 ,the father of ,michael ,angelo1 who found his family increase too rapidly for his means1 had destined some of his sons for commerce 7it will be recollected that in ,genoa and ,florence the most powerful nobles were merchants or manufacturers71 and others for civil or diplomatic employments2 but the fine arts1 as being at that time productive of little honor or emolument1 he held in no esteem1 and treated these tastes of his eldest son sometimes with contempt and sometimes even with harshness4 ,michael ,angelo1 however1 had formed some friendships among the young painters1 and particularly with ,francesco ,granacci1 one of the best pupils of ,ghirlandajo2 he contrived to borrow models and drawings1 and studied them in secret with such persevering assiduity and consequent improvement1 that ,ghirlandajo1 captivated by his genius1 undertook to plead his cause to his father1 and at length prevailed over the old man's family pride and prejudices4 ,at the age of fourteen ,michael ,angelo was received into the studio of ,ghirlandajo as a regular pupil1 and bound to him for three years2 and such was the precocious talent of the boy1 that1 instead of being paid for his instruction1 ,ghirlandajo undertook to pay the father1 ,leonardo ,buonarroti1 for the first1 second1 and third years1 six1 eight1 and twelve golden florins1 as payment for the advantage he expected to derive from the labor of the son4 ,thus was the vocation of the young artist decided for life4 ,at that time ,lorenzo the ,magnificent reigned over ,florence4 ,he had formed in his palace and gardens a collection of antique marbles1 busts1 statues1 fragments1 which he had converted into an academy for the use of young artists1 placing at the head of it as director a sculptor of some eminence1 named ,bertoldo4 ,michael ,angelo was one of the first who1 through the recommendation of ,ghirlandajo1 was received into this new academy1 afterward so famous and so memorable in the history of art4 ,the young man1 then not quite sixteen1 had hitherto occupied himself chiefly in drawing2 but now1 fired by the beauties he beheld around him1 and by the example and success of a fellow-pupil1 ,torregiano1 he set himself to model in clay1 and at length to copy in marble what was before him2 but1 as was natural in a character and genius so steeped in individuality1 his copies became not so much imitations of form as original embodyings of the leading idea4 ,for example3 his first attempt in marble1 when he was about fifteen1 was a copy of an antique mask of an old laughing ,faun2 he treated this in a manner so different from the original1 and so spirited as to excite the astonishment of ,lorenzo de ,medici1 who criticised it1 however1 saying1 ,thou shouldst have remembered that old folks do not retain all their teeth2 some of them are always wanting4 ,the boy struck the teeth out1 giving it at once the most grotesque expression2 and ,lorenzo1 infinitely amused1 sent for his father and offered to attach his son to his own particular service1 and to undertake the entire care of his education4 ,the father consented1 on condition of receiving for himself an office under the government1 and thenceforth ,michael ,angelo was lodged in the palace of the ,medici and treated by ,lorenzo as his son4 ,michael ,angelo continued his studies under the auspices of ,lorenzo2 but just as he had reached his eighteenth year he lost his generous patron1 his second father1 and was thenceforth thrown on his own resources4 ,it is true that the son of ,lorenzo1 ,piero de ,medici1 continued to extend his favor to the young artist1 but with so little comprehension of his genius and character1 that on one occasion1 during the severe winter of #adid1 he set him to form a statue of snow for the amusement of his guests4 ,michael ,angelo1 while he yielded1 perforce1 to the caprices of his protector1 turned the energies of his mind to a new study--that of anatomy--and pursued it with all that fervor which belonged to his character4 ,his attention was at the same time directed to literature1 by the counsels and conversations of a very celebrated scholar and poet then residing in the court of ,piero--,angelo ,poliziano2 and he pursued at the same time the cultivation of his mind and the practice of his art4 ,engrossed by his own studies1 he was scarcely aware of what was passing around him1 nor of the popular intrigues which were preparing the ruin of the ,medici2 suddenly this powerful family were flung from sovereignty to temporary disgrace and exile2 and ,michael ,angelo1 as one of their retainers1 was obliged to fly from ,florence1 and took refuge in the city of ,bologna4 ,during the year he spent there he found a friend1 who employed him on some works of sculpture2 and on his return to ,florence he executed a ,cupid in marble1 of such beauty that it found its way into the cabinet of the ,duchess of ,mantua as a real antique4 ,on the discovery that the author of this beautiful statue was a young man of two-and-twenty1 the ,cardinal ,san ,giorgio invited him to ,rome1 and for some time lodged him in his palace4 ,here ,michael ,angelo1 surrounded and inspired by the grand remains of antiquity1 pursued his studies with unceasing energy2 he produced a statue of ,bacchus1 which added to his reputation2 and in #aejj1 at the age of five-and-twenty1 he produced the famous group of the dead ,christ on the knees of his ,virgin ,mother 7called the ,piet71 which is now in the church of ,st4 ,peter's1 at ,rome2 this last being frequently copied and imitated1 obtained him so much applause and reputation1 that he was recalled to ,florence1 to undertake several public works1 and we find him once more established in his native city in the year #aejb4 ,in #aejf ,michael ,angelo was summoned to ,rome by ,pope ,julius ,,ii41 who1 while living1 had conceived the idea of erecting a most splendid monument to perpetuate his memory4 ,for this work1 which was never completed1 ,michael ,angelo executed the famous statue of ,moses1 seated1 grasping his flowing beard with one hand1 and with the other sustaining the tables of the ,law4 ,while employed on this tomb1 the pope commanded him to undertake also the decoration of the ceiling of the ,sistine ,chapel4 ,pope ,sixtus ,,iv4 had1 in the year #adgc1 erected this famous chapel1 and summoned the best painters of that time1 ,signorelli1 ,cosimo ,roselli1 ,perugino1 and ,ghirlandajo1 to decorate the interior2 but down to the year #aejh the ceiling remained without any ornament2 and ,michael ,angelo was called upon to cover this enormous vault1 a space of one hundred and fifty feet in length by fifty in breadth1 with a series of subjects representing the most important events connected1 either literally or typically1 with the fall and redemption of mankind4 ,no part of ,michael ,angelo's long life is so interesting1 so full of characteristic incident1 as the history of his intercourse with ,pope ,julius ,,ii41 which began in #aeje1 and ended only with the death of the pope in #aeac4 ,michael ,angelo had at all times a lofty idea of his own dignity as an artist1 and never would stoop either to flatter a patron or to conciliate a rival4 ,julius ,,ii41 though now seventy-four1 was as impatient of contradiction as fiery in temper1 as full of magnificent and ambitious projects as if he had been in the prime of life2 in his service was the famous architect1 ,bramante1 who beheld with jealousy and alarm the increasing fame of ,michael ,angelo1 and his influence with the pontiff1 and set himself by indirect means to lessen both4 ,he insinuated to ,julius that it was ominous to erect his own mausoleum during his lifetime1 and the pope gradually fell off in his attentions to ,michael ,angelo1 and neglected to supply him with the necessary funds for carrying on the work4 ,on one occasion1 ,michael ,angelo1 finding it difficult to obtain access to the pope1 sent a message to him to this effect1 that henceforth1 if his ,holiness desired to see him1 he should send to seek him elsewhere2 and the same night1 leaving orders with his servants to dispose of his property1 he departed for ,florence4 ,the pope despatched five couriers after him with threats1 persuasions1 promises--but in vain4 ,he wrote to the ,gonfaloniere ,soderini1 then at the head of the government of ,florence1 commanding him1 on pain of his extreme displeasure1 to send ,michael ,angelo back to him2 but the inflexible artist absolutely refused2 three months were spent in vain negotiations4 ,soderini1 at length1 fearing the pope's anger1 prevailed on ,michael ,angelo to return1 and sent with him his relation1 ,cardinal ,soderini1 to make up the quarrel between the high contending powers4 ,on his return to ,rome1 ,michael ,angelo wished to have resumed his work on the mausoleum2 but the pope had resolved on the completion of the ,sistine ,chapel2 he commanded ,michael ,angelo to undertake the decoration of the vaulted ceiling2 and the artist was obliged1 though reluctantly1 to obey4 ,at this time the frescos which ,raphael and his pupils were painting in the chambers of the ,vatican had excited the admiration of all ,rome4 ,michael ,angelo1 who had never exercised himself in the mechanical part of the art of fresco1 invited from ,florence several painters of eminence1 to execute his designs under his own superintendence2 but they could not reach the grandeur of his conceptions1 which became enfeebled under their hands1 and one morning1 in a mood of impatience1 he destroyed all that they had done1 closed the doors of the chapel against them1 and would not thenceforth admit them to his presence4 ,he then shut himself up1 and proceeded with incredible perseverance and energy to accomplish his task alone2 he even prepared his colors with his own hands4 ,he began with the end toward the door1 and in the two compartments first painted 7though not first in the series71 the ,deluge1 and the ,vineyard of ,noah2 he made the figures too numerous and too small to produce their full effect from below1 a fault which he corrected in those executed subsequently4 ,when almost half the work was completed1 the pope insisted on viewing what was done1 and the astonishment and admiration it excited rendered him more and more eager to have the whole completed at once4 ,the progress1 however1 was not rapid enough to suit the impatient temper of the pontiff4 ,on one occasion he demanded of the artist when he meant to finish it2 to which ,michael ,angelo replied calmly1 ,when ,i can4 ,when thou canst6 exclaimed the fiery old pope1 thou hast a mind that ,i should have thee thrown from the scaffold6 ,at length1 on the day of ,all ,saints1 #aeab1 the ceiling was uncovered to public view4 ,michael ,angelo had employed on the painting only1 without reckoning the time spent in preparing the cartoons1 twenty-two months1 and he received in payment three thousand crowns4 ,the collection of engravings after ,michael ,angelo in the ,british ,museum is very imperfect1 but it contains some fine old prints from the ,prophets which should be studied by those who wish to understand the true merit of this great master1 of whom ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds said that1 to kiss the hem of his garment1 to catch the slightest of his perfections1 would be glory and distinction enough for an ambitious man6 ,when the ,sistine ,chapel was completed ,michael ,angelo was in his thirty-ninth year2 fifty years of a glorious though troubled career were still before him4 ,pope ,julius ,,ii4 died in #aeac1 and was succeeded by ,leo ,x41 the son of ,lorenzo the ,magnificent4 ,as a ,florentine and his father's son1 we might naturally have expected that he would have gloried in patronizing and employing ,michael ,angelo2 but such was not the case4 ,there was something in the stern1 unbending character1 and retired and abstemious habits of ,michael ,angelo1 repulsive to the temper of ,leo1 who preferred the graceful and amiable ,raphael1 then in the prime of his life and genius2 hence arose the memorable rivalry between ,michael ,angelo and ,raphael1 which on the part of the latter was merely generous emulation1 while it must be confessed that something like scorn mingled with the feelings of ,michael ,angelo4 ,the pontificate of ,leo ,x41 an interval of ten years1 was the least productive period of his life4 ,in the year #aeai1 when the ,signoria of ,florence was negotiating with ,ravenna for the restoration of the remains of ,dante1 he petitioned the pope that he might be allowed to execute1 at his own labor and expense1 a monument to the ,divine ,poet4 ,he was sent to ,florence to superintend the building of the church of ,san ,lorenzo and the completion of ,santa ,croce2 but he differed with the pope on the choice of the marble1 quarrelled with the officials1 and scarcely anything was accomplished4 ,clement ,,vii41 another ,medici1 was elected pope in #aebc4 ,he had conceived the idea of consecrating a chapel in the church of ,san ,lorenzo1 to receive the tombs of his ancestors and relations1 and which should be adorned with all the splendor of art4 ,michael ,angelo planned and built the chapel1 and for its interior decoration designed and executed six of his greatest works in sculpture4 ,while ,michael ,angelo was engaged in these works his progress was interrupted by events which threw all ,italy into commotion4 ,rome was taken and sacked by the ,constable de ,bourbon in #aebg4 ,the ,medici were once more expelled from ,florence2 and ,michael ,angelo1 in the midst of these strange vicissitudes1 was employed by the republic to fortify his native city against his former patrons4 ,great as an engineer1 as in every other department of art and science1 he defended ,florence for nine months4 ,at length the city was given up by treachery1 and1 fearing the vengeance of the conquerors1 ,michael ,angelo fled and concealed himself2 but ,clement ,,vii4 was too sensible of his merit to allow him to remain long in disgrace and exile4 ,he was pardoned1 and continued ever afterward in high favor with the pope1 who employed him on the sculptures in the chapel of ,san ,lorenzo during the remainder of his pontificate4 ,in the year #aeca he had completed the statues of ,night and ,morning1 and ,clement1 who heard of his incessant labors1 sent him a brief commanding him1 on pain of excommunication1 to take care of his health1 and not to accept of any other work but that which his ,holiness had assigned him4 ,clement ,,vii4 was succeeded by ,pope ,paul ,,iii41 of the ,farnese family1 in #aecd4 ,this pope1 though nearly seventy when he was elected1 was as anxious to immortalize his name by great undertakings as any of his predecessors had been4 ,his first wish was to complete the decoration of the interior of the ,sistine ,chapel1 left unfinished by ,julius ,,ii4 and ,leo ,x4 ,he summoned ,michael ,angelo1 who endeavored to excuse himself1 pleading other engagements2 but the pope would listen to no excuses which interfered with his sovereign power to dissolve all other obligations2 and thus the artist found himself1 after an interval of twenty years1 most reluctantly forced to abandon sculpture for painting2 and1 as ,vasari expresses it1 he consented to serve ,pope ,paul only because he could not do otherwise4 ,the same ,pope ,paul ,,iii4 had in the meantime constructed a beautiful chapel1 which was called after his name the chapel ,paolina1 and dedicated to ,st4 ,peter and ,st ,paul4 ,michael ,angelo was called upon to design the decorations4 ,he painted on one side the ,conversion of ,st4 ,paul1 and on the other the ,crucifixion of ,st4 ,peter1 which were completed in #aedi4 ,but these fine paintings--of which existing old engravings give a better idea than the blackened and faded remains of the original frescos--were from the first ill-disposed as to the locality1 and badly lighted1 and at present they excite little interest compared with the more famous works in the ,sistine4 ,with the frescos in the ,pauline ,chapel ends ,michael ,angelo's career as a painter4 ,he had been appointed chief architect of ,st4 ,peter's1 in #aedg1 by ,paul ,,iii4 ,he was then in his seventy-second year1 and during the remainder of his life1 a period of sixteen years1 we find him wholly devoted to architecture4 ,his vast and daring genius finding ample scope in the completion of ,st4 ,peter's1 he has left behind him in his capacity of architect yet greater marvels than he has achieved as painter and sculptor4 ,who that has seen the cupola of ,st4 ,peter's soaring into the skies1 but will think almost with awe of the universal and majestic intellect of the man who reared it8 ,it appears1 from the evidence of contemporary writers1 that in the last years of his life the acknowledged worth and genius of ,michael ,angelo1 his widespread fame1 and his unblemished integrity1 combined with his venerable age and the haughtiness and reserve of his deportment to invest him with a sort of princely dignity4 ,it is recorded that1 when he waited on ,pope ,julius ,,iii41 to receive his commands1 the pontiff rose on his approach1 seated him1 in spite of his excuses1 on his right hand1 and while a crowd of cardinals1 prelates1 and ambassadors1 were standing round at humble distance1 carried on the conference as equal with equal4 ,when the ,grand ,duke ,cosmo was in ,rome1 in #aefj1 he visited ,michael ,angelo1 uncovered in his presence1 and stood with his hat in his hand while speaking to him2 but from the time when he made himself the tyrant of ,florence he never could persuade ,michael ,angelo to visit1 even for a day1 his native city4 ,the arrogance imputed to ,michael ,angelo seems rather to have arisen from a contempt for others than from any overweening opinion of himself4 ,he was too proud to be vain4 ,he had placed his standard of perfection so high1 that to the latest hour of his life he considered himself as striving after that ideal excellence which had been revealed to him1 but to which he conceived that others were blind or indifferent4 ,in allusion to his own imperfections1 he made a drawing1 since become famous1 which represents an aged man in a go-cart1 and underneath the words ,ancora impara 7still learning74 ,he continued to labor unremittingly1 and with the same resolute energy of mind and purpose1 till the gradual decay of his strength warned him of his approaching end4 ,he did not suffer from any particular malady1 and his mind was strong and clear to the last4 ,he died at ,rome1 on ,february #ah1 #aefd1 in the ninetieth year of his age4 ,a few days before his death he dictated his will in these few simple words3 ,i bequeath my soul to ,god1 my body to the earth1 and my possessions to my nearest relations4 ,his nephew1 ,leonardo ,buonarroti1 who was his principal heir1 by the orders of the ,grand ,duke ,cosmo had his remains secretly conveyed out of ,rome and brought to ,florence2 they were with due honors deposited in the church of ,santa ,croce1 under a costly monument1 on which we may see his noble bust surrounded by three very commonplace and ill-executed statues1 representing the arts in which he excelled--,painting1 ,sculpture1 and ,architecture4 ,they might have added ,poetry1 for ,michael ,angelo was so fine a poet that his productions would have given him fame1 though he had never peopled the ,sistine with his giant creations1 nor suspended the ,pantheon in the air4 ,the object to whom his poems are chiefly addressed1 ,vittoria ,colonna1 ,marchioness of ,pescara1 was the widow of the celebrated commander who overcame ,francis ,i4 at the battle of ,pavia2 herself a poetess1 and one of the most celebrated women of her time for beauty1 talents1 virtue1 and piety4 ,she died in #aedg4 ,illustration3 ,michael ,angelo and ,vittoria ,colonna4 ,,raphael ,by ,mrs4 ,,lee 7#adhc-aebj7 ,illustration3 ,raphael4 ,the solemn and silent season of ,lent had passed away2 and1 on the second evening of the joyful ,easter1 a house was seen brightly illuminated in one of the streets of ,urbino4 ,it was evident that a festival was held there on some happy occasion4 ,the sound of music was heard1 and guest after guest entered the mansion4 ,no one1 however1 was more cordially welcomed than ,pietro ,perugino1 the fellow-student of ,leonardo da ,vinci1 at the school of the good old ,andrea ,verocchio4 ,for a moment1 general gayety was suspended in honor of the guest4 ,he was considered at that time one of the greatest painters of the age2 and the host1 ,giovanni di ,sanzio1 though himself only ranking in the second or third order of limners1 knew well how to prize the rare talents of his visitor4 ,the wife of ,giovanni came forward1 leading her son ,raphael4 ,perugino had the eye of an artist3 he gazed upon the mother and son with enthusiastic feeling2 the striking resemblance they bore to each other1 so exquisitely modulated by years and sex1 was indeed a study for this minute copyist of nature4 ,benvenuto1 ,messer ,perugino1 said the hostess1 with her soft musical voice and graceful ,italian accent1 and she placed the hand of her boy in that of the artist4 ,gently he laid the other on the head of the youthful ,raphael1 and in a solemn and tender manner pronounced a benediction4 ,your blessing is well timed1 my honored friend1 said ,giovanni1 our festival is given to celebrate the birthday of our son4 ,is this his birthday8 inquired ,perugino4 ,not so1 replied the father1 he was born on ,april #gth1 the evening of ,good ,friday1 and it well befits us to be gay on the joyful ,easter that succeeds it4 ,my friend1 said ,perugino1 if thou wilt entrust thy boy to my care1 ,i will take him as my pupil4 ,the father acceded with delight to this proposal4 ,when the mother became acquainted with the arrangement1 and found that her son was to quit his paternal dwelling at the early age of twelve1 and reside wholly with ,perugino1 she could not restrain her tears4 ,with hers the young ,raphael's mingled1 though ever and anon a bright smile darted like a sunbeam across his face4 ,he remained with ,perugino several years4 ,raphael was made for affection1 and fondly did his heart cling to his instructor4 ,for a time he was content to follow his manner2 but at length he began to dwell upon his own beau ideal2 he grew impatient of imitation1 and felt that his style was deficient in freshness and originality4 ,he longed to pass the narrow bounds to which his invention had been confined4 ,with the approbation of ,perugino and the consent of his parents1 he repaired to ,siena2 here he was solicited to adorn the public library with fresco1 and painted there with great success4 ,but while he was busily engaged1 his friend1 ,pinturrichio1 one day entered4 ,after looking at his friend's work very attentively1 ,bravo6 he exclaimed1 thou hast done well1 my ,raphael--but ,i have just returned from ,florence--oh1 would that thou couldst behold the works of ,leonardo da ,vinci6 ,such horses6 they paw the ground and shake the foam from their manes4 ,oh1 my poor ,raphael6 thou hast never seen nature2 thou art wasting time on these cartoons4 ,perugino is a good man and a good painter1 ,i will not deny that--but ,leonardo's horses6 ,raphael threw aside his pencil and hastily rose4 ,where now8 asked his friend2 whither art thou going so hastily8 ,to ,florence1 exclaimed ,raphael4 ,and what carries you so suddenly8 ,the horses of ,leonardo1 replied the young artist1 sportively2 seriously1 however1 the desire of excellence implanted in my soul4 ,when he arrived at ,florence he was charmed with the appearance of the city2 but his whole mind was absorbed in the works of ,leonardo da ,vinci and of ,michael ,angelo1 the rival artists of the age4 ,as his stay was to be short1 he did not enter upon laborious occupation4 ,his mornings were passed in the reveries of his art2 his evenings in the gay and fascinating society of ,florence1 where the fame of ,perugino's beloved pupil had already reached4 ,the frescos at ,siena were spoken of2 and the beautiful countenance and graceful deportment of ,raphael won him the friendship of distinguished men4 ,taddeo ,taddei1 the learned friend of ,cardinal ,bembo1 solicited him to reside in his house2 he consented1 and in return for the courtesy painted for him two pictures1 in what is called his first style1 that of ,perugino4 ,one evening he retired to his couch at a late hour4 ,he had been the hero of a fte1 and love and beauty had heedlessly scattered their flowers in the path of the living ,adonis4 ,in vain he sought a few hours of slumber4 ,he had quaffed the juice of the grape1 emptying goblet after goblet1 till his beating pulse and throbbing temples refused to be quieted4 ,he started from his couch and approached the lattice2 the heavens had changed their aspect1 the still serenity of the evening had passed away1 and the clouds were hurrying over the pale and watery moon4 ,nothing was heard but the low sighing of the wind1 and now and then a sudden gust swept through the lattice1 and threatened to extinguish the taper which was burning dimly on the table4 ,a slight noise made him turn his eyes1 and he perceived a note that the wind had displaced4 ,he hastily took it up4 ,it was ,perugino's handwriting4 ,he cut the silken cord that fastened it1 and read3 ,on me1 my beloved ,raffaello1 devolves the task of informing you of the events which have taken place at ,urbino4 ,may this letter find you prepared for all the changes of life2 a wise man will never suffer himself to be taken by surprise2 this is true philosophy1 and the only philosophy that can serve us6 ,an epidemic has prevailed at ,urbino1 and has entered your paternal dwelling4 ,need ,i say more8 ,come to me1 my son1 at ,perugia1 for ,i am the only parent that remains to you4 ,pietro ,perugino4 ,as he hastily arose1 a crucifix which his mother had suspended to his neck at parting1 fell from his bosom4 ,even the symbols of religion are sacred where the living principle has been early implanted in the heart4 ,he pressed it to his lips3 ,ah6 thought he1 what is the philosophy of ,perugino1 compared to the faith of which this is the emblem8 ,his thoughts went back to infancy and childhood1 and his grief and remorse grew less intense4 ,he dwelt on the deep and enduring love of his parents till he felt assured death could not extinguish it1 and that he should see them again in a brighter sphere4 ,when morning came it found ,raphael calm and composed2 the lines of grief and thought were deeply marked on his youthful face2 but the whirlwind and the storm had passed4 ,he took leave of his friends1 and hastened to ,perugino1 who received him with the fondness of a parent4 ,here he remained some time1 and at length collected sufficient resolution to return to ,urbino1 and once more enter the mansion of his desolated home4 ,it was necessary for him to reside at his native place for a number of months4 ,during that time he painted several fine pictures4 ,his heart1 however1 yearned for ,florence1 and he returned to it once more with the determination of making it his home4 ,with far different sensations did he a second time enter the city of beauty4 ,the freshness of his gayety was blighted2 lessons of earthly disappointment were ever present to his mind1 and he returned to it with the resolute purpose of devoting himself to serious occupation4 ,how well he fulfilled this resolution all ,italy can bear witness4 ,from this time he adopted what has been called his second manner4 ,he painted for the ,duke of ,urbino the beautiful picture of the ,saviour at sunrise1 with the morning light cast over a face resplendent with divinity2 the flowers glittering with dew1 the two disciples beyond1 still buried in slumber1 at the time when the ,saviour turns his eyes upon them with that tender and sorrowful exclamation1 ,could ye not watch one hour8 ,raphael enriched the city of ,florence with his works4 ,when asked what had suggested some of the beautiful combinations of his paintings1 he said1 ,they came to me in my sleep4 ,at other times he called them visions2 and then again said they were the result of una certa idea che mi viene alla mente4 ,it was this power of drawing from the deep wells of his own mind that gave such character1 originality1 and freshness to his works4 ,he found that power within which so many seek1 and seek in vain1 without4 ,at the age of twenty-five ,raphael was summoned by the pope to paint the chambers of the ,vatican4 ,the famous frescos of the ,vatican need neither enumeration nor description2 the world is their judge and their eulogist4 ,no artist ever consecrated his works more by his affections than ,raphael4 ,the same hallowed influence of the heart gave inexpressible charm to ,correggio's1 afterward4 ,one of ,raphael's friends said to him1 in looking upon particular figures in his groups1 ,you have transmitted to posterity your own likeness4 ,see you nothing beyond that8 replied the artist4 ,i see1 said the critic1 the deep-blue eye1 and the long1 fair hair parted on the forehead4 ,observe1 said ,raphael1 the feminine softness of expression1 the beautiful harmony of thought and feeling4 ,when ,i take my pencil for high and noble purposes1 the spirit of my mother hovers over me4 ,it is her countenance1 not my own1 of which you trace the resemblance4 ,this expression is always observable in his ,madonnas4 ,his portraits of the ,fornarina are widely different4 ,raphael1 in his last and most excellent style1 united what was graceful and exquisite in ,leonardo with the sublime and noble manner of ,michael ,angelo4 ,it is the privilege and glory of genius to appropriate to itself whatever is noble and true4 ,the region of thought is thus made a common ground for all1 and one master mind becomes a reservoir for the present and future times4 ,when ,raphael was invited to ,rome by ,pope ,julius ,,ii41 ,michael ,angelo was at the height of his glory2 his character tended to inspire awe rather than affection2 he delighted in the majestic and the terrible4 ,in boldness of conception and grandeur of design1 he surpassed ,leonardo1 but never could reach the sweetness and gentleness of his figures4 ,even his children lose something of their infantine beauty1 and look mature2 his women are commanding and lofty2 his men of gigantic proportions4 ,his painting1 like his sculpture1 is remarkable for anatomical exactness1 and perfect expression of the muscles4 ,for this union of magnificence and sublimity1 it was necessary to prepare the mind2 the first view was almost harsh1 and it was by degrees that his mighty works produced their designed effect4 ,raphael1 while he felt all the greatness of the ,florentine1 conceived that there might be something more like nature--something that should be harmonious1 sweet1 and flowing--that should convey the idea of intellectual rather than of external majesty4 ,without yielding any of the correctness of science1 he avoided harshness1 and imitated antiquity in uniting grace and elegance with a strict observation of science and of the rules of art4 ,it was with surprise that ,michael ,angelo beheld in the youthful ,raphael a rival artist2 nor did he receive this truth meekly2 he treated him with coldness and distance4 ,in the meantime ,raphael went on with his works2 he completed the frescos of the ,vatican1 and designed the cartoons4 ,he also produced those exquisite paintings in oil which seem the perfection of human art4 ,illustration3 ,leo ,x4 at ,raphael's ,bier4 ,human affection is necessary to awaken the sympathy of human beings2 and ,raphael1 in learning how to portray it1 had found the way to the heart4 ,in mere grandeur of invention he was surpassed by ,michael ,angelo4 ,titian excelled him in coloring1 and ,correggio in the beautiful gradation of tone2 but ,raphael knew how to paint the soul2 in this he stood alone4 ,this was the great secret of a power which seemed to operate like magic4 ,in his paintings there is something which makes music on the chords of every heart2 for they are the expression of a mind attuned to nature1 and find answering sympathies in the universal soul4 ,while ,michael ,angelo was exalted with the ,epic grandeur of his own ,dante1 ,raphael presented the most finished scenes of dramatic life1 and might be compared to the immortal ,shakespeare--scenes of spiritual beauty1 of devotion1 and of pastoral simplicity1 yet uniting a classic elegance which the poet does not possess4 ,buonarroti was the wonder of ,italy1 and ,raphael became its idol4 ,julius was so much enchanted with his paintings in the halls of the ,vatican1 that he ordered the frescos of former artists to be destroyed4 ,among them were some of ,perugino's1 but ,raphael would not suffer these to be removed for his own2 he viewed them as the relics of a beloved and honored friend1 and they were consecrated by tender and grateful feelings4 ,raphael collected from every part of the world medallions of intaglios and antiques to assist him in his designs4 ,he loved splendor and conviviality1 and gave offence thereby to the rigid and austere4 ,it was said that he had a prospect of changing the graceful beretta for a cardinal's hat2 but this idea might have arisen from the delay which existed in his marriage with ,cardinal ,bibiano's niece1 whose hand her uncle had offered to him4 ,peremptorily to reject this proposal of the cardinal without giving offence would have been impossible1 and ,raphael was too gentle in his own feelings voluntarily to injure another's2 but he was not one to sacrifice his affections to ambition4 ,whatever were the struggles of his heart1 they were early terminated4 ,amid the caresses of the great1 the fond and devoted friendship of his equals1 the enthusiastic love of his pupils1 the adulation of his inferiors1 while crowned with wealth1 fame1 and honor1 and regarded as the equal of the hitherto greatest artist in the world1 he was suddenly called away4 ,he died on ,good ,friday1 the day of his birth1 at the age of thirty-seven1 #aebj4 ,we are sometimes impressed with veneration when those who have even drunk the cup of life almost to its dregs resign it with resignation and ,christian faith4 ,but ,raphael calmly and firmly resigned it when it was full to the brim4 ,leo ,x4 and ,cardinal ,bibiano were by his bedside4 ,the sublime picture of the ,transfiguration1 the last and greatest which he painted1 was placed opposite to him1 by his own desire4 ,how impressive must have been the scene6 ,his dying eye turned from the crucifix he held in his hand to the glory of the beatified ,saviour4 ,his contemporaries speak of him as affectionate1 disinterested1 modest1 and sincere2 encouraging humble merit1 and freely giving his advice and assistance where it was needed and deserved4 ,,titian ,by ,,giorgio ,,vasari#b ,footnote #b3 ,giorgio ,vasari1 a contemporary of ,titian1 and himself a painter of no mean rank1 wrote a series of lives of the ,italian artists1 from which the following is extracted4 ,there are several slight inaccuracies in his work ,titian was born1 not in #adhj1 but in #adgg1 and died in #aegf4 ,he was in coloring the greatest artist who ever lived4 #adgg-aegf ,illustration3 ,titian4 ,titian was born in the year #adhj1 at ,cadore1 a small place distant about five miles from the foot of the ,alps2 he belonged to the family of the ,vecelli1 which is among the most noble of those parts4 ,giving early proof of much intelligence1 he was sent at the age of ten to an uncle in ,venice1 an honorable citizen1 who1 seeing the boy to be much inclined to painting1 placed him with the excellent painter1 ,gian ,bellino1 then very famous4 ,under his care1 the youth soon proved himself to be endowed by nature with all the gifts of judgment and genius required for the art of painting4 ,now1 ,gian ,bellino and the other masters of that country1 not having the habit of studying the antique1 were accustomed to copy only what they saw before them1 and that in a dry1 hard1 labored manner1 which ,titian also acquired2 but about the year #aejg1 ,giorgione da ,castel ,franco1 not being satisfied with that mode of proceeding1 began to give to his works an unwonted softness and relief1 painting them in a very beautiful manner2 yet he by no means neglected to draw from the life1 or to copy nature with his colors as closely as he could2 and in doing the latter he shaded with colder or warmer tints as the living object might demand1 but without first making a drawing2 since he held that1 to paint with the colors only1 without any drawing on paper1 was the best mode of proceeding1 and most perfectly in accord with the true principles of design4 ,having seen the manner of ,giorgione1 ,titian early resolved to abandon that of ,gian ,bellino1 although well grounded therein4 ,he now1 therefore1 devoted himself to this purpose1 and in a short time so closely imitated ,giorgione that his pictures were sometimes taken for those of that master1 as will be related below4 ,increasing in age1 judgment1 and facility of hand1 our young artist executed numerous works in fresco which cannot here be named individually1 having been dispersed in various places2 let it suffice to say1 that they were such as to cause experienced men to anticipate the excellence to which he afterward attained4 ,at the time when ,titian began to adopt the manner of ,giorgione1 being then not more than eighteen1 he took the portrait of a gentleman of the ,barberigo family1 who was his friend1 and this was considered very beautiful1 the coloring being true and natural1 and the hair so distinctly painted that each one could be counted as might also the stitches in a satin doublet1 painted in the same work2 it was so well and carefully done1 that it would have been taken for a picture by ,giorgione1 if ,titian had not written his name on the dark ground4 ,giorgione meanwhile had executed the faade of the ,german ,exchange1 when1 by the intervention of ,barberigo1 ,titian was appointed to paint certain stories in the same building and over the ,merceria4 ,after which he executed a picture with figures the size of life1 which is now in the ,hall of ,messer ,andrea ,loredano1 who dwells near ,san ,marcuola2 this work represents ,our ,lady in her flight into ,egypt4 ,she is in the midst of a great wood1 and the landscape of this picture is well done2 ,titian having practised that branch of art1 and keeping certain ,germans1 who were excellent masters therein1 for several months together in his own house4 ,within the wood he depicted various animals1 all painted from the life1 and so natural as to seem almost alive4 ,in the house of ,messer ,giovanni ,danna1 a ,flemish gentleman and merchant1 who was his gossip1 he painted a portrait which appears to breathe1 with an ,ecce ,homo1 comprising numerous figures which1 by ,titian himself1 as well as others1 is considered to be a very good work4 ,the same artist executed a picture of ,our ,lady1 with other figures the size of life1 men and children being all taken from nature1 and portraits of persons belonging to the ,danna family4 ,in the year #aejg1 when the ,emperor ,maximilian was making war on the ,venetians1 ,titian1 as he relates himself1 painted the ,angel ,raphael1 with ,tobit and a ,dog1 in the ,church of ,san ,marziliano4 ,there is a distant landscape in this picture1 wherein ,san ,giovanni ,battista is seen at prayer in a wood2 he is looking up to heaven1 and his face is illumined by a light descending thence2 some believe this picture to have been done before that on the ,exchange of the ,germans1 mentioned above1 was commenced4 ,now1 it chanced that certain gentlemen1 not knowing that ,giorgione no longer worked at this faade1 and that ,titian was doing it 7nay1 had already given that part over the ,merceria to public view71 met the former1 and began as friends to rejoice with him1 declaring that he was acquitting himself better on the side of the ,merceria than he had done on that of the ,grand ,canal2 which remark caused ,giorgione so much vexation1 that he would scarcely permit himself to be seen until the whole work was completed1 and ,titian had become generally known as the painter2 nor did he thenceforward hold any intercourse with the latter and they were no longer friends4 ,in the year #aejh1 ,titian published a wood-engraving of the ,triumph of ,faith2 it comprised a vast number of figures3 our first ,parents1 the ,patriarchs1 the ,prophets1 the ,sybils1 the ,innocents1 the ,martyrs1 the ,apostles1 and ,our ,saviour ,christ borne in triumph by the four ,evangelists1 and the four ,doctors1 followed by the holy ,confessors2 here ,titian displayed much boldness1 a fine manner1 and improving facility4 ,i remember that ,fra ,bastiano del ,piombo1 speaking on this subject1 told me that if ,titian had then gone to ,rome1 and seen the works of ,michael ,angelo1 with those of ,raphael and the ancients1 he was convinced1 the admirable facility of his coloring considered1 that he would have produced works of the most astonishing perfection2 seeing that1 as he well deserved to be called the most perfect imitator of ,nature of our times1 as regards coloring1 he might thus have rendered himself equal to the ,urbinese or ,buonarroto1 as regarded the great foundation of all1 design4 ,at a later period ,titian repaired to ,vicenza1 where he painted ,the ,judgment of ,solomon1 on the ,loggetta wherein the courts of justice are held2 a very beautiful work4 ,returning to ,venice1 he then depicted the faade of the ,germain2 at ,padua he painted certain frescos in the ,church of ,sant' ,antonio1 the subjects taken from the life of that saint2 and in the ,church of ,santo ,spirito he executed a small picture of ,san ,marco seated in the midst of other saints1 whose faces are portraits painted in oil with the utmost care2 this picture has been taken for a work of ,giorgione4 ,now1 the death of ,giovan ,bellino had caused a story in the hall of the ,great ,council to remain unfinished2 it was that which represents ,federigo ,barbarossa kneeling before ,pope ,alessandro ,,iii41 who plants his foot on the emperor's neck4 ,this was now finished by ,titian1 who altered many parts of it1 introducing portraits of his friends and others4 ,for this he received from the senate an office in the ,exchange of the ,germans called the ,senseria1 which brought him in three hundred crowns yearly1 and which those ,signori usually give to the most eminent painter of their city1 on condition that from time to time he shall take the portrait of their doge1 or prince when such shall be created1 at the price of eight crowns1 which the doge himself pays1 the portrait being then preserved in the ,palace of ,san ,marco1 as a memorial of that doge4 ,after the completion of these works1 our artist painted1 for the ,church of ,san ,rocco1 a figure of ,christ bearing his cross2 the ,saviour has a rope round his neck1 and is dragged forward by a ,jew2 many have thought this a work of ,giorgione4 ,it has become an object of the utmost devotion in ,venice1 and has received more crowns as offerings than have been earned by ,titian and ,giorgione both1 through the whole course of their lives4 ,now1 ,titian had taken the portrait of ,bembo1 then secretary to ,pope ,leo ,x41 and was by him invited to ,rome1 that he might see the city1 with ,raffaello da ,urbino and other distinguished persons2 but the artist having delayed his journey until #aebj1 when the pope and ,raffaello were both dead1 put it off for that time altogether4 ,for the ,church of ,santa ,maria ,maggiore he painted a picture of ,st4 ,john the ,baptist in the wilderness2 there is an angel beside him that appears to be living2 and a distant landscape1 with trees on the bank of a river1 which are very graceful4 ,he took portraits of the ,prince ,grimani and ,loredano1 which were considered admirable2 and not long afterward he painted the portrait of ,king ,francis1 who was then leaving ,italy to return to ,france4 ,illustration3 ,a ,fte at the ,house of ,titian4 ,in #aecj1 when the ,emperor ,charles ,v4 was in ,bologna1 ,titian1 by the intervention of ,pietro ,aretino1 was invited to that city by the ,cardinal ,ippolito de' ,medici1 and there he made a magnificent portrait of his majesty in full armor4 ,this gave so much satisfaction that the artist received a present of a thousand crowns for the same4 ,out of these he had subsequently to give the half to ,alfonso ,lombardi1 the sculptor1 who had made a model of that monarch to be executed in marble4 ,having returned to ,venice1 ,titian there found that many gentlemen had begun to favor ,pordenone1 commending exceedingly the works executed by that artist in the ceiling of the ,hall of the ,pregai1 and elsewhere4 ,they had also procured him the commission for a small picture in the ,church of ,san ,giovanni ,elemosynario1 which they intended him to paint in competition with one representing that saint in his episcopal habits1 which had previously been executed there by ,titian4 ,but whatever care and pains ,pordenone took1 he could not equal nor even approach the work of the former4 ,titian was then appointed to paint a picture of the ,annunciation for the ,church of ,santa ,maria degli ,angeli1 at ,murano2 but those who gave the commission for the work1 not wishing to pay so much as five hundred crowns1 which ,titian required as its price1 he sent it1 by the advice of ,pietro ,aretino1 as a gift to ,charles ,v41 who being greatly delighted with the work1 made him a present of two thousand crowns4 ,the place which the picture was to have occupied at ,murano was then filled by one from the hand of ,pordenone4 ,when the emperor1 some time after this1 returned with his army from ,hungary1 and was again at ,bologna1 holding a conference with ,clement ,,vii41 he desired to have another portrait taken of him by ,titian1 who1 before he departed from the city1 also painted that of the ,cardinal ,ippolito de ,medici in the ,hungarian dress1 with another of the same prelate fully armed1 which is somewhat smaller than the first2 these are both now in the ,guardaroba of ,duke ,cosimo4 ,he painted the portraits of ,alfonso1 ,marquis of ,davalos1 and of ,pietro ,aretino1 at the same period1 and these things having made him known to ,federigo ,gonzaga1 ,duke of ,mantua1 he entered the service of the latter1 and accompanied him to his states4 ,at ,mantua our artist made a portrait of the duke1 which appears to breathe1 and afterward executed that of his brother1 the cardinal4 ,these being finished1 he painted twelve beautiful ,heads of the ,twelve ,csars1 to decorate one of the rooms erected by ,giulio ,romano1 and when they were done1 ,giulio painted a ,story from the ,lives of the ,emperors beneath each head4 ,the productions1 but more especially the portraits1 of ,titian are so numerous that it would be almost impossible to make the record of them all4 ,i will1 therefore1 speak of the principal only1 and that without order of time1 seeing that it does not much signify to tell which was painted earlier and which later4 ,he took the portrait of ,charles ,v4 several times1 as we have said1 and was finally invited by that monarch to his court2 there he painted him as he was in those last years2 and so much was that most invincible emperor pleased with the manner of ,titian1 that once he had been portrayed by him1 he would never permit himself to be taken by any other person4 ,each time that ,titian painted the emperor he received a present of a thousand crowns of gold1 and the artist was made a cavalier1 or knight1 by his majesty1 with a revenue of two hundred crowns yearly1 secured on the treasury of ,naples1 and attached to his title4 ,when ,titian painted ,filippo1 ,king of ,spain1 the son of ,charles1 he received another annuity of two hundred crowns2 so that these four hundred1 added to the three hundred from the ,german ,exchange1 make him a fixed income of seven hundred crowns1 which he possesses without the necessity of exerting himself in any manner4 ,titian presented the portraits of ,charles ,v4 and his son ,filippo to the ,duke ,cosimo1 who has them now in his ,guardaroba4 ,he also took the portrait of ,ferdinand1 ,king of the ,romans1 who was afterward emperor1 with those of his children1 ,maximilian1 that is to say1 now emperor1 and his brother2 he likewise painted the ,queen ,maria2 and at the command of the ,emperor ,charles1 he portrayed the ,duke of ,saxony1 when the latter was in prison4 ,but what a waste of time is this6 when there has scarcely been a noble of high rank1 scarcely a prince or lady of great name1 whose portrait has not been taken by ,titian1 who in that branch of art is indeed an excellent painter4 ,all these works1 with many others which ,i omit to avoid prolixity1 have been executed up to the present age of our artist1 which is above seventy-six years4 ,titian has been always healthy and happy2 he has been favored beyond the lot of most men1 and has received from ,heaven only favors and blessings4 ,in his house he has entertained whatever princes1 literati1 or men of distinction have gone to or dwelt in ,venice2 for1 to say nothing of his excellence in art1 he has always distinguished himself by courtesy1 hospitality1 and rectitude4 ,titian has had some rivals in ,venice1 but not of any great ability1 wherefore he has easily overcome them by the superiority of his art2 while he has also rendered himself acceptable to the gentlemen of the city4 ,he has gained a fair amount of wealth1 his labors having always been well paid2 and it would have been well if he had worked for his amusement alone during these latter years1 that he might not have diminished the reputation gained in his best days by works of inferior merit1 performed at a period of life when nature tends inevitably to decline1 and consequent imperfection4 ,in the year #aeff1 when ,vasari1 the writer of the present history1 was at ,venice1 he went to visit ,titian1 as one who was his friend1 and found him1 although then very old1 still with the pencils in his hand and painting busily4 ,great pleasure had ,vasari in beholding his works and in conversing with the master4 ,it may be affirmed1 then1 that ,titian1 having adorned ,venice1 or rather all ,italy1 and other parts of the world1 with excellent paintings1 well merits to be loved and respected by artists1 and in many things to be admired and imitated also1 as one who has produced1 and is producing1 work of infinite merit2 nay1 such as must endure while the memory of illustrious men shall remain4 ,,albert ,d,,rer#c ,footnote #c3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,helmar ,hess4 ,by ,w4 ,j4 ,,holland1 ,chancellor of the ,western ,university of ,pennsylvania 7#adga-aebh7 ,illustration3 ,albert ,drer4 ,it has been given to some men to be not only great in the domain of art by reason of that which they have themselves succeeded in producing1 but by reason of that which they have inspired other men to produce4 ,they have been not merely artists1 but teachers1 who by precept and example have moulded the whole current and drift of artistic thought in the ages and lands to which they have belonged4 ,among these lofty spirits1 who live through the centuries not only in what their hands once fashioned1 but still more in what they have inspired others to do1 undoubtedly one of the greatest is ,albert ,drer4 ,justly reckoned as the representative artist of ,germany1 he has the peculiar honor of having raised the craft of the engraver to its true position1 as one of the fine arts4 ,as a painter not unworthy to be classified with ,titian and ,raphael1 his contemporaries upon ,italian soil1 he poured the wealth of his genius into woodcuts and copperplates1 and taught men the practically measureless capacity of what before his day had been a rudimentary art4 ,drer was born in ,nuremberg on ,may #ba1 #adga4 ,the family was of ,hungarian origin1 though the name is ,german1 and is derived from ,threr1 meaning a maker of doors4 ,the ancestral calling of the family probably was that of the carpenter4 ,albert ,drer1 the father of the great artist1 was a goldsmith1 and settled about #adfj in ,nuremberg1 where he served as an assistant to ,hieronymus ,holper1 a master goldsmith1 whose daughter1 ,barbara1 he married in #adfh4 ,he was at the time forty years of age1 and she fifteen4 ,as the result of the union eighteen children were born into the world1 of whom ,albrecht was the second4 ,the lad1 as he grew up1 became a great favorite with his father1 who appeared to discern in him the promise of future ability4 ,the feeling of attachment was reciprocated in the most filial manner1 and there are extant two well-authenticated portraits of the father from the facile brush of the son1 one in the ,uffizi at ,florence1 the other in the possession of the ,duke of ,northumberland4 ,it was the original intention of the father of the artist that he should follow the craft of the goldsmith1 but after serving a period as an apprentice in his father's shop1 his strong predilection for the calling of the painter manifested itself to such a degree that the father reluctantly consented to allow the boy to follow his natural bent1 and placed him under the tutelage of ,michael ,wohlgemuth1 the principal painter of ,nuremberg4 ,wohlgemuth was a representative artist of his time1 who followed his calling after a mechanical fashion1 having a large shop filled with apprentices who1 under his direction and with his assistance1 busied themselves in turning out for a small consideration altar-pieces and pictures of martyrdoms1 which were in vogue as necessary parts of decoration in churches4 ,numerous examples of the work of ,wohlgemuth and his contemporaries survive1 attesting1 by the wealth of crudities and unintended caricatures with which they abound1 the comparatively low stage of development attained by the art of the painter in ,germany at that day4 ,according to ,drer1 the period of his apprenticeship to ,wohlgemuth was spent profitably1 and resulted in large acquisitions of technical skill4 ,the period of his preliminary training being ended1 he set forth upon his ,wanderjahre1 and travelled extensively4 ,just what points he visited cannot with certainty be determined4 ,it is ascertained beyond doubt that he visited ,colmar1 where he was hospitably entertained by the family of ,martin ,schongauer1 the greatest painter of his time on ,german soil1 but who had died shortly before the visit of ,drer4 ,he also visited ,strasburg1 and it is thought by many that he extended his journeyings as far as ,venice4 ,in #adid he returned to ,nuremberg1 and in the month of ,july was married to ,agnes ,frey1 the daughter of a prosperous merchant of the city4 ,he was twenty-three years of age1 and she somewhat younger4 ,they lived together happily1 though no children were born to them1 and it has been proved that the reputation which has been given her1 of being little better than a common scold1 who imbittered his life by her termagancy1 is the creation of the ill temper of one of the testy friends of ,drer1 ,willibald ,pirkheimer1 who1 in the spirit of spitefulness1 besmirched her character in a letter which unfortunately survives to this day1 and in which he accuses her of having led her husband a mad and weary dance by her temper4 ,the reason for this ebullition on the part of ,pirkheimer appears to have been that1 after ,drer's death1 she refused to give him a pair of antlers which had belonged to her husband1 and which ,pirkheimer had set his heart upon having4 ,illustration3 ,albert ,drer's ,wedding4 ,the first eleven years of the married life of ,drer were spent in ,nuremberg1 where he devoted himself with unremitting assiduity to the prosecution of his art4 ,during these years his powers unfolded rapidly1 and there are extant two notable pictures1 which were undoubtedly produced at this time1 the triptych in the ,dresden ,gallery1 and an altar-piece which is in the palace of the ,archbishop of ,vienna1 at ,ober ,st4 ,veit4 ,these compositions1 while remarkable in many respects1 still reveal the influence of his master1 ,wohlgemuth1 and give evidence of having been in part executed with the assistance of apprentices4 ,in fact1 the peak-gabled house at the foot of the castle-mound in ,nuremberg was a picture factory like that of ,wohlgemuth1 in which1 however1 work of a higher order than any hitherto produced in ,germany was being turned out4 ,we know the names of four or five of those who served as apprentices under ,drer at this time and they are stars of lesser magnitude in the constellation of ,german art4 ,but ,drer was not contented simply to employ his talents in the production of painted altar-pieces1 and we find him turning out a number of engravings1 the most noticeable among which are his sixteen great wood-cuts illustrating the ,apocalypse1 which were published in #adih4 ,the theme was one which had peculiar fascinations for all classes at the time4 ,the breaking up of all pre-existing systems1 the wonderful stirrings of a new life which were beginning to be felt everywhere with the close of the ,middle ,age and the dawning of the ,renaissance1 had filled the minds of men with wonder1 and caused them to turn to the writings of the ,apocalyptic ,seer with keenest interest4 ,a recent critic1 commenting upon his work as represented in these engravings1 says3 ,the energy and undismayed simplicity of his imagination enable him1 in this order of creations1 to touch the highest point of human achievement4 ,the four angels keeping back the winds that they blow not1 the four riders1 the loosing of the angels of the ,euphrates to slay the third part of men--these and others are conceptions of such force1 such grave or tempestuous grandeur1 in the midst of grotesqueness1 as the art of no other age or hand has produced4 ,at this period ,drer was also engaged in experimenting upon the art of copper-plate engraving1 in which he restricted himself mainly to reproducing copies of the works of other artists1 among them those of ,jacopo de ,barbari1 a painter of the ,italian school1 who was residing in ,nuremberg1 and who among other things gave the great artist instruction in plastic anatomy4 ,the influence of his instructor is plain1 when we compare engravings executed about #aejd with those published at a previous date1 and especially when we examine his design of the ,passion of our ,lord painted in white upon a green ground1 commonly known as ,the ,green ,passion1 which is treasured in the ,albertina at ,prague4 ,he also during these twelve years finished seven of the twelve great wood-cuts illustrating the passion1 and sixteen of the twenty cuts which compose the series known as ,the ,life of the ,virgin4 ,the activities of ,drer in ,nuremberg were temporarily interrupted by a journey to ,italy1 which he undertook in the fall of the year #aeje4 ,what the immediate occasion for undertaking this journey may have been is not plain1 though it seems most likely that one of his objects was to enable him to recuperate from the effects of a protracted illness1 from which he had suffered during the summer of this year1 and also incidentally to secure a market for his wares in ,venice1 the commercial relationships of which with ,nuremberg were very close at this period4 ,a ,german colony1 composed largely of ,nuremberg factors and merchants1 was located at this time in ,venice1 and they had secured the privilege of dedicating a great painting in the church of ,st4 ,bartholomew4 ,the commission for the execution of this painting was secured by ,drer4 ,it represents the adoration of the ,virgin1 but has been commonly known under the name of ,the ,feast of the ,rose ,garlands4 ,after having undergone many vicissitudes1 it is preserved to-day in a highly mutilated condition in the monastery of ,strachow1 near ,prague4 ,drer's stay in ,venice was signalized not only by the production of this painting1 but of three or four other notable works which still exist1 and which reflect the great influence upon him of the ,italian school of painting1 with which he had attained familiarity4 ,his stay in ,venice lasted about a year4 ,in the fall of #aejf1 he returned to ,nuremberg1 and there remained for the next fourteen years1 engaged in the practice of his art4 ,these years were years of success and prosperity4 ,his name and fame had spread over the whole of ,europe1 and the greatest artists of the day were glad to do him homage4 ,raphael said of him1 when contemplating some of his designs1 ,truly this man would have surpassed us all1 if he had the masterpieces of ancient art constantly before his eyes as we have4 ,a friendly correspondence was maintained between the immortal ,italian and his ,german contemporary1 and in his own country1 all men1 from the emperor to the peasant1 delighted to do honor to his genius1 the products of which were found alike in church and palace1 and through his printed designs in the homes of the humble poor4 ,the proud old imperial city of ,nuremberg had gathered within its battlemented walls a multitude of men who were distinguished not only for their commercial enterprise and wealth1 but many of whom were the exponents of the literary and artistic culture of the time4 ,among the men with whom ,drer found congenial companionship were ,adam ,krafft1 the sculptor2 ,veit ,stoss1 whose exquisite carvings in wood may reflect in some measure in the wild luxuriance of the imagination which they display1 the restless1 dare-devil spirit with which his biographers invest him2 ,peter ,vischer1 the bronze founder2 and last but not least4 ,hans ,sachs1 the cobbler poet1 whose quaint rhymes are a source of delight to this day1 and were a mighty force in the great work of the ,reformation1 by which the fetters of medival traditions and ecclesiastical abuse were thrown off by the ,german people4 ,of the personal appearance of ,drer at this time1 we are not left in ignorance4 ,a portrait of himself from his own hands has been preserved and is well known4 ,his features reveal refinement and great intellectuality1 united with grace1 and his attire shows that he was not oblivious to matters of personal adornment4 ,after the fashion of the time1 his hair was worn in long and graceful ringlets1 which fell in heavy masses about his shoulders4 ,the first six years which followed his return from ,venice were almost wholly given to painting1 and his productions give evidence of the fact that he had dismissed from his employment the retinue of assistants and apprentices1 whom he had employed in his earlier years4 ,from this period date most of his great masterpieces1 which are still preserved1 among them the ,adam and ,eve1 in the ,pitti ,palace2 the ,ten ,thousand ,martyrs of ,nicomedia1 in the ,imperial ,gallery1 at ,vienna2 the ,adoration of the ,trinity1 at the ,belvedere1 in ,vienna2 and ,the ,assumption of the ,virgin1 the original of which was destroyed by fire more than three hundred years ago1 but of which a good copy is preserved at ,frankfort4 ,to this period belong the portraits of ,charlemagne and of the ,emperor ,sigismund1 which are preserved in the ,national ,german ,museum at ,nuremberg4 ,illustration3 ,albert ,drer ,visits ,hans ,sachs4 ,but while prosecuting the work of the painter1 he did not neglect the art of the engraver1 and in #aeaa1 brought out in complete form his great book of woodcuts in folio1 and began to develop that marvellous art of etching which is indissolubly connected with his name4 ,among the products of the etcher's needle which attest his activity in this direction are those masterpieces which have for centuries been at once the delight and the puzzle of artistic minds3 the ,melancholia1 ,the ,knight and the ,devil1 and ,st4 ,jerome in his ,cell4 ,the most reasonable explanation of these weird fancies is that they were intended to represent in allegorical style the three temperaments--the melancholic1 the sanguine1 and the phlegmatic4 ,the ,diet of ,augsburg1 which was convened in #aeah1 gave ,drer a passing opportunity to depict the lineaments of the ,emperor ,maximilian1 who gave him several sittings1 and who manifested great interest in the painter4 ,the death of the emperor in the following year1 the outbreak of an epidemic in ,nuremberg1 together with the coronation of ,charles ,v4 at ,aix-la-,chapelle1 led ,drer to undertake a journey to the ,low ,countries1 in which he was accompanied by his faithful wife4 ,he was present at the coronation and was one of the distinguished civilians whose appearance added dignity to the occasion4 ,his diary1 in which he recounts his experiences upon this journey1 and which is accompanied by a multitude of wayside sketches1 is still preserved1 and contains1 besides the dry entries of his current expenditures1 most entertaining allusions to the distinguished people whom he met1 and who received him with the utmost cordiality4 ,intermingled with these narrative details are outbursts of feeling1 which are provoked by passing political and ecclesiastical events1 in which he took a profound interest1 though he never appears to have committed himself with positive openness to the party of reform4 ,his sympathies are1 however1 clearly shown by his writings1 as well as by his works of art1 to have been with the ,reformers1 and he lived on terms of intimacy with ,erasmus and ,melancthon1 of both of whom we have portraits from his hand4 ,drer returned from the ,netherlands in #aeba1 about the middle of ,july1 and the remaining years of his life were spent in the prosecution of the art of the engraver1 in painting1 and in the effort to elucidate the sciences of perspective1 geometry1 and fortification1 upon all of which he has left treatises4 ,his labors1 though they had not brought with them great wealth1 had secured for him a competency1 and the latter years of his life were devoted more and more to labors which1 while dignified1 did not tend to add greatly to his already magnificent reputation4 ,these labors were prosecuted in spite of ever-failing health4 ,while in the ,netherlands he had contracted a malarial fever1 the effects of which clung to him1 in spite of the best treatment which could be secured1 and left him the wreck of his former self4 ,on ,april #f1 #aebh1 death suddenly overtook him4 ,there was not even time to summon his friends to his side before his spirit had fled4 ,the city which had been his home from childhood was filled with mourning4 ,they took up his remains and gently laid them to rest in the burial vault of his wife's family in the graveyard of the ,church of ,st4 ,john1 where the setting sun pours its last glowing beams at evening over the low ,franconian hill-tops4 ,the vault has since been changed and the last resting-place of the remains of the ,raphael of the ,north is a lowly mound1 reverently approached by all who visit the quaint imperial city1 upon which is a slab1 covered with a bronze tablet upon which are the words3 ,quicquid ,alberti ,dureri ,mortale ,fuit ,sub ,hoc ,conditum ,tumulo4 ,emigravit ,,viii ,idus ,aprilis1 ,,mdxxviil ,emigravit is the inscription on the tombstone where he lies2 ,dead he is not1 but departed--for the artist never dies4 ,fairer seems the ancient city1 and the sunshine seems more fair1 ,that he once has trod its pavement1 that he once has breathed its air6 ,signature of the author4 ,,rubens ,by ,mrs4 ,,lee 7#aegg-afdj7 ,illustration3 ,rubens4 ,it is just one hundred and twenty years to-day1 said a young artist to his friend1 as he stood in the hall of ,st4 ,mark1 at ,venice1 contemplating the noble works of ,titian4 ,time1 the destroyer1 has here stayed his hand2 the colors are as vivid and as fresh as if they were laid on but yesterday4 ,would that my old friend and master1 ,otho ,venius1 was here6 ,at least ,i will carry back to ,antwerp that in my coloring which shall prove to him that ,i have not played truant to the art4 ,just one hundred and twenty years1 repeated he1 since ,titian was born4 ,venice was then in its glory1 but now it is all falling2 its churches and palaces are crumbling to dust1 its commerce interrupted4 ,the republic continually harassed by the ,porte1 and obliged to call on foreign aid2 depressed by her internal despotism1 her council of ten1 and state inquisitors2 her decline1 though gradual1 is sure2 yet the splendor of her arts remains1 and the genius of ,titian1 her favorite son1 is yet in the bloom and brilliancy of youth6 ,such was the enthusiastic exclamation of ,rubens1 as he contemplated those paintings which had brought him from ,antwerp4 ,how many gifted minds spoke to him from the noble works which were before him6 ,the three ,bellinis1 the founders of the ,venetian school2 ,giorgione1 ,titian1 and ,tintoretto4 ,then ,paolo ,veronese1 who1 though born at ,verona1 in #aecg1 adopted ,venice as his home1 and became the fellow-artist of ,tintoretto1 and the disciple of ,titian4 ,pordenone1 too1 who viewed ,titian as a rival and an enemy4 ,palma the young1 and ,palma the old1 born in #aedh1 and the ,bassanos1 who died near #afbg4 ,all these were present to the eye of ,rubens1 their genius embodied on the canvas in the halls of ,st4 ,mark4 ,these1 he exclaimed1 have formed the ,venetian school1 and these shall be my study6 ,from this time1 the young artist might daily be seen with his sheets of white paper1 and his pencil in his hand4 ,a few strokes preserved the outline which his memory filled up2 and by an intuitive glance1 his genius understood and appropriated every signal beauty4 ,in ,venice he became acquainted with the ,archduke ,albert1 who introduced him to the ,duke of ,mantua1 whither he went for the purpose of studying the works of ,julio ,romano4 ,from thence he proceeded to ,rome2 here ,raphael was his model1 and ,michael ,angelo his wonder4 ,he devoted himself to painting with a fervor that belongs only to genius2 and he soon proved that1 whatever he gained by ancient study1 the originality of his own conceptions would still remain and appear4 ,to the vivid and splendid coloring of the ,venetian school1 he was perhaps more indebted than to any other model4 ,the affectionate and constant intercourse1 by letters1 that subsisted between ,rubens and his mother1 made his long residence in ,italy one of pleasure4 ,at ,rome he was employed to adorn1 by his paintings1 the ,church of ,santa ,croce1 and also the ,chiesa ,nova4 ,rubens had been originally destined by his mother for one of the learned professions4 ,his father was born at ,antwerp1 and held the honorable office of councillor of state4 ,when the civil war broke out he repaired to ,cologne1 where his son1 ,peter ,paul ,rubens1 was born4 ,he died soon after his return to ,antwerp1 and left his property much diminished from losses occasioned by the civil war4 ,the mother of ,rubens put him early to the best schools1 where he was initiated in learning and discovered a taste for belles-lettres2 but all the intervals of necessary study were devoted to drawing4 ,his mother perceiving it1 determined to indulge his inclination1 and placed him in the studio of ,van ,noort4 ,the correct taste of the scholar soon led him to perceive that he could not adopt this artist's style1 and he became the pupil of ,otho ,venius4 ,similarity of thought and feeling united them closely1 and it was with true disinterestedness that the master urged his pupil to quit his confined circle and repair to ,italy1 the great school of art4 ,time flew rapidly with ,rubens1 while engaged in his beloved and honorable pursuit2 he looked forward to the period when he might return to ,antwerp and place his mother in her former affluence4 ,nearly seven years had passed since he took leave of her4 ,of late he thought her letters had been less cheerful2 she spoke of her declining health1 of her earnest hope that she might live to embrace him once more4 ,this hint was enough for his affectionate heart4 ,he immediately broke off all his engagements and prepared to return4 ,everyone knows what impatience is created when one first begins to contemplate home1 after a long absence1 and the heart is turned toward it4 ,seven years absent8 wrote ,rubens to his mother1 how is it possible ,i have lived so long away from you8 ,it is too long2 henceforth ,i will devote myself to your happiness4 ,antwerp shall be my future residence4 ,i have acquired a taste for horticulture2 our little garden shall be enlarged and cultivated1 and our home will be a paradise4 ,what are human anticipations and projects6 the day before he was to quit ,rome he received a letter informing him that his mother was very ill1 and begging him to return with all speed4 ,with breathless haste he hurried back1 without sleep or rest4 ,when he reached the city he dared not make any inquiries4 ,at length he stood before the paternal mansion2 he saw the gloomy tiles and half-closed window-shutters4 ,it was the fall of the trees4 ,he observed people going in and out at the door2 to speak was impossible4 ,at length he rushed in and heard the appalling sentence1 ,too late1 a sentence that often strikes desolation to the human heart4 ,his mother had expired that morning4 ,while he was struggling with the bitterness of sorrow1 he met with ,elizabeth ,brants4 ,there was something in the tone of her voice which infused tranquillity into his mind1 and affection came in a new form to assuage his loss4 ,she was the ladye of his love1 and afterward his wife4 ,he built a magnificent house at ,antwerp1 with a saloon in form of a rotunda1 which he ornamented and enriched with antique statues1 busts1 vases1 and pictures by the most celebrated painters4 ,thus surrounded by the gems of art1 he devoted himself to the execution of works which were the pride of his native country1 and caused honors and wealth to be heaped upon him4 ,there were those found who could not endure the splendor of his success2 these calumniated4 ,there were others who tried to draw him into visionary speculations4 ,a chemist offered him a share of his laboratory1 to join in his search for the philosopher's stone4 ,he carried the visionary to his painting-room1 and said1 ,the offer comes too late4 ,you see ,i have found out the art of making gold by my palette and pencils4 ,rubens was now at the height of prosperity and happiness1 a dangerous eminence1 and one on which few are permitted to rest4 ,a second time his heart was pierced with sorrow3 he lost his young wife1 ,elizabeth1 a few years after their union4 ,deep as was his sorrow1 he had yet resolution enough to feel the necessity of exertion4 ,he left the place which constantly reminded him of domestic enjoyment1 the memory of which contrasted so sadly with the present silence and solitude1 and travelled for some time in ,holland4 ,after his return1 he received a commission from ,mary de ,medici1 of ,france1 to adorn the palace of the ,luxembourg4 ,he executed for this purpose a number of paintings at ,antwerp1 and instructed several pupils in his art4 ,at this time ,rubens devoted himself wholly to painting1 and scarcely allowed himself time for recreation4 ,he considered it one of the most effectual means of instruction1 to allow his pupils to observe his method of using his paints4 ,he therefore had them with him while he worked on his large pictures4 ,teniers1 ,snyders1 ,jordaens1 and ,vandyke were among his pupils--all names well known4 ,when ,rubens had executed the commission given him by ,mary de ,medici1 wife of ,henry ,,iv41 he repaired to ,paris to arrange his pictures at the ,luxembourg palace1 and there painted two more1 and likewise the galleries1 representing passages of her life4 ,here he became acquainted with the ,duke of ,buckingham1 as that nobleman was on his way to ,madrid with ,prince ,charles4 ,on his return to ,antwerp1 he was summoned to the presence of the ,infanta ,isabella1 who had1 through ,buckingham1 become interested in his character4 ,she thought him worthy of a political mission to the court of ,madrid1 where he was most graciously received by ,philip4 ,while at ,madrid he painted four pictures for the convent of the ,carmelites1 and a fine portrait of the king on horseback1 with many other pictures2 for these extraordinary productions he was richly rewarded1 received the honor of knighthood1 and was presented with the golden key4 ,while in ,spain1 ,don ,john1 ,duke of ,braganza1 who was afterward king of ,portugal1 sent and invited him to visit him at ,villa ,vitiosa1 the place of his residence4 ,rubens1 perhaps1 might at this time have been a little dazzled with his uncommon elevation4 ,he was now ,sir ,paul and celebrated all over ,europe4 ,it was proper he should make the visit as one person of high rank visits another4 ,his preparations were great to appear in a becoming style1 and not to shame his noble host4 ,at length the morning arrived1 and1 attended by a numerous train of courteous friends and hired attendants1 the long cavalcade began the journey4 ,when not far distant from ,villa ,vitiosa1 ,rubens learned that ,don ,john had sent an embassy to meet him4 ,such an honor had seldom been accorded to a private gentleman1 and ,rubens schooled himself to receive it with suitable humility and becoming dignity4 ,he put up at a little distance from ,villa ,vitiosa1 awaiting the arrival of the embassy2 finally it came1 in the form of a single gentleman1 who civilly told him that the duke1 his master1 had been obliged to leave home on business that could not be dispensed with1 and therefore must deny himself the pleasure of the visit2 but as he had probably been at some extra expense in coming so far1 he begged him to accept of fifty pistoles as a remuneration4 ,rubens refused the pistoles1 and could not forbear adding that he had brought two thousand along with him1 which he had meant to spend at his court during the fifteen days he was to spend there4 ,the truth was1 that when ,don ,john was informed that ,rubens was coming in the style of a prince to see him1 it was wholly foreign to his plan2 he was a great lover of painting1 and had wished to see him as an artist4 ,he therefore determined to prevent the visit4 ,the second marriage of ,rubens1 with ,helena ,forman1 was1 no less than the first1 one of affection2 she had great beauty1 and became a model for his pencil4 ,his favor with the great continued4 ,mary de ,medici visited him at his own home more than once2 and the ,infanta ,isabella was so much satisfied with his mission in ,spain1 that she sent him to ,england1 to sound the disposition of the government on the subject of a peace4 ,rubens disclosed in this embassy his diplomatic talents2 he first appeared there in his character of artist1 and insensibly won upon the confidence of ,charles4 ,the king requested him to paint the ceiling of the banqueting-house at ,whitehall4 ,while he was employed upon it1 ,charles frequently visited him and criticised the work4 ,rubens1 very naturally introducing the subject1 and finding1 from the tenor of his conversation1 that he was by no means averse to a peace with ,spain1 at length produced his credentials4 ,the king received his mission most graciously1 and ,rubens returned to the ,netherlands crowned with honors and success4 ,he had passed his fiftieth year when his health began to fail1 and he was attacked with a severe fit of the gout4 ,those who have witnessed the irritation attendant upon that disorder will appreciate the perfect harmony and gentleness that existed between ,rubens and his wife4 ,with untiring tenderness she devoted herself to him1 and was ingenious in devising alleviations and comforts4 ,the severe attacks of ,rubens' disorder debilitated his frame1 yet he continued painting at his easel almost to the last2 and1 amid suffering and sickness1 never failed in giving the energy of intellect to his pictures4 ,he died at the age of sixty-three1 in the year #afdj1 leaving great wealth4 ,the pomp and circumstance of funeral rite can only be of consequence as showing the estimation in which a departed citizen is held4 ,public funeral honors were awarded1 and men of every rank were eager to manifest their respect to his memory4 ,he was buried in the ,church of ,st4 ,james1 at ,antwerp1 under the altar of his private chapel1 which was decorated with one of his own noble pictures4 ,,rembrandt#d ,footnote #d3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,elizabeth ,,robins ,,pennell 7#afjf-affi7 ,illustration3 ,rembrandt4 ,a heretic in art ,rembrandt was to many of his ,dutch contemporaries2 to us1 he is the master1 supreme alike in genius and accomplishment4 ,because1 as time went on1 he broke completely from tradition and in his work gave full play to his originality1 his pictures were looked at askance2 because he chose to live his own life1 indifferent to accepted conventions1 he himself was misunderstood4 ,it was his cruel fate to enjoy prosperity and popularity in his earlier years1 only to meet with neglect in his old age4 ,but this he felt probably less than other men2 he was not a courtier1 with ,velasquez1 nor vowed to worldly success1 with ,rubens4 ,his pleasure and his reward1 he found in his work4 ,so long as easel and canvas1 brushes and paints were left to him1 he demanded no greater happiness4 ,illustration3 ,marie ,de ,medici at the ,house of ,rubens4 ,in ,leyden1 a town already made famous by another master1 ,lucas van ,leyden1 ,rembrandt was born in #afjf2 though this date has been disputed1 some authorities suggesting #afjg1 others1 #afjh4 ,his family were respectable1 if not distinguished1 burghers1 his father1 ,harmen ,gerritszoon1 being a miller by trade1 his mother1 ,neeltjen ,willems of ,zuitbroeck1 the daughter of a baker4 ,not until early in the seventeenth century did permanent surnames become common among ,dutchmen2 hitherto children had been given their father's1 in addition to their own ,christian name2 ,rembrandt for many years was known as ,rembrandt ,harmenzoon1 or the son of ,harmen4 ,but the miller1 to be in the growing fashion1 had called himself ,van ,ryn--of the ,rhine--and thus1 later on1 ,rembrandt also signed himself4 ,harmen was well-to-do2 he owned houses in ,leyden1 and beyond the walls1 gardens1 and fields1 and the mill where ,rembrandt1 because he once drew a mill1 was supposed to have been born4 ,but there was no reason for ,neeltjen to move from a comfortable house in town into such rustic quarters1 and it is more likely that ,rembrandt's birthplace was the house pointed out in the ,nordeinde ,street4 ,a commercial career had been chosen for his four older brothers4 ,but ,harmen1 his means allowing the luxury1 decided to make of his fifth son a man of letters and learning1 and ,rembrandt was sent to the ,university of ,leyden4 ,that letters1 however1 had small charm for him1 was clear from the first4 ,better than his books he loved the engravings of ,swanenburch1 better still1 the pictures of ,lucas van ,leyden1 which he could look at to his heart's content on gala days1 when the ,town ,hall1 where they hung1 was thrown open to the public4 ,his hours of study were less profitable than his hours of recreation when he rambled in the country1 through his father's estate1 and1 sometimes as far as the sea1 a sketch-book1 the chances are1 for sole companion4 ,certainly1 by the time he was fifteen1 so strong were the proofs of his indifference to the classics and his love for art1 that his father1 sacrificing his own ambitions1 allowed ,rembrandt to leave the university for the studio of ,van ,swanenburch4 ,from this day forth1 his life's history is told in the single word--work2 his indeed was the genius of industry4 ,van ,swanenburch had studied in ,italy2 but his own painting1 to judge by the few examples still in existence1 was entirely commonplace4 ,three years were more than enough to be passed under his tuition4 ,at the end of the third1 ,rembrandt went to ,amsterdam1 and there entered the studio of ,lastman4 ,his second master also had studied in ,italy1 and also was a painter of mediocre talent1 popular in his own times--the ,apelles of the day1 he was called--but remembered now chiefly because of his relations to his pupil4 ,from the first1 ,rembrandt1 even if obliged to paint the stock subjects of the day1 was determined to treat them in his own way1 and not to follow set forms that happened to be adopted in the schools4 ,he used real men and women for models1 and painted them as he saw them1 not as he was bidden to look at them through his teacher's spectacles4 ,in six months he had learned at least one thing1 that ,lastman had nothing more to teach him4 ,the man of genius must ever be his own master1 though he remain the hard-working student all his days4 ,back to ,leyden and to his father's house1 ,rembrandt had not returned to lead a life of idleness4 ,he worked tremendously in these early years4 ,even needed models he found in the members of his family2 he has made the face of his mother as familiar as that of a friend2 his own1 with the heavy features1 the thick1 bushy hair1 the small intelligent eyes1 between them the vertical line1 fast deepening on the fine forehead1 he drew and etched and painted1 again and again4 ,more elaborate compositions he also undertook4 ,as in his maturity1 it was to the ,bible he turned for suggestions3 ,saint ,paul in prison1 ,samson and ,delilah1 the ,presentation in the ,temple--these were the themes then in vogue which he preferred1 rendering them with the realism which distinguished his later1 more famous ,samsons and ,abrahams and ,christs1 making them the motive for a fine arrangement of color1 for a striking study of light and shadow4 ,a pleasant picture one can fancy of his life at this period2 he was with his own people1 for whom his love was tender2 busy with brush1 pencil1 and etching-needle2 he was strengthening his powers of observation1 developing and perfecting his style1 occasionally producing work that won for him renown in ,leyden2 and1 gradually1 he gathered round him a small group of earnest fellow-workers1 chief among them ,lievens1 ,gerard ,dou1 and ,van ,vliet1 the last two1 though but slightly his juniors1 looking up to him as master4 ,these were the years of his true apprenticeship4 ,leyden1 however1 was not the best place for a young painter who had his fortunes to make4 ,it was essentially a university town2 interest was concentrated upon letters2 art was but of secondary consideration4 ,it was different in ,amsterdam1 the great commercial centre of ,holland4 ,there1 all was life and activity and progress2 there1 was money to be spent1 and the liberal patron willing to lavish it upon the artist4 ,holland just then was in the first flush of prosperity and patriotism1 following upon her virtual independence from ,spain4 ,not a citizen but glowed with self-respect at the thought of the victory he had1 in one way or another1 helped to win2 the state1 as represented by the good burghers1 was supreme in every man's mind4 ,it was natural that individuals and corporations alike should seek to immortalize their greatness by means of the painter's art1 which1 in ,holland1 had long since ceased to be a monopoly of the church4 ,hence the age became essentially one of portrait-painting4 ,many were the painters whose portraits had already achieved distinction4 ,de ,keyser was busy in ,amsterdam2 a far greater genius1 ,franz ,hals1 but fifteen years ,rembrandt's senior1 was creating his masterpieces in ,the ,hague and ,harlem4 ,it was as inevitable that ,rembrandt should turn to portraiture1 as that he should find commissions less numerous in ,leyden than in ,amsterdam4 ,often in the latter town his services were required2 so often1 indeed1 that at last1 about #afca1 when he was just twenty-five1 he settled there permanently and set up a studio of his own4 ,success was his from the start4 ,sitter after sitter sought him out in his house on the ,bloemgracht2 the most distinguished men in the town hastened to patronize him4 ,his work was liked by the burghers whom he painted1 its strength was felt by artists1 whose canvases soon showed its influence4 ,admirers crowded to his studio4 ,he had not been in ,amsterdam a twelvemonth when1 before he was yet twenty-six1 he was entrusted with an order of more than usual importance4 ,this was the portrait of ,dr4 ,tulp and his class of surgeons3 the famous ,lesson in ,anatomy now in the ,gallery at ,the ,hague4 ,the subject at the time was very popular4 ,many artists1 ,de ,keyser among others1 had already1 in painting prominent surgeons1 placed them around the subject they were dissecting2 indeed1 this was the arrangement insisted upon by the surgeons themselves1 and1 as there seems to have been no limit to their vanity1 ,lessons in ,anatomy were almost as plentiful in ,holland as ,madonnas in ,umbria4 ,rembrandt in his composition was simply adhering to accepted tradition4 ,it is true that he instilled life into a group hitherto1 on other painters' canvases1 stiff and perfunctory2 but1 though the picture was a wonderful production for a man of his years1 it is not to be ranked with his greatest work4 ,commissions now poured in still faster4 ,it was at this time he painted several of his best known portraits3 the ,master ,shipbuilder and his ,wife1 at present in ,buckingham ,palace2 that simply marvellous old woman at the ,national ,gallery in ,london1 made familiar to everyone by countless photographs and other reproductions2 the man in ruff and woman in coif at the ,brunswick ,museum2 and a score of others scarce less important4 ,with increasing popularity1 he was able to command his own prices1 so that only a part of his time was it necessary for him to devote to the portraits which were his chief source of income4 ,during the leisure he reserved1 he painted biblical subjects1 ever his delight1 and made etchings and drawings1 today the most prized treasures in the world's great galleries4 ,as in ,leyden1 he drew about him students2 a few1 notably ,ferdinand ,bol and ,christophe ,paudiss1 destined1 in their turn1 to gain name and fame4 ,indifferent to social claims and honors--an indifference the burghers1 his patrons1 found it hard to forgive1 his one amusement was in collecting pictures and engravings1 old stuffs and jewels1 and every kind of bric--brac1 until his house in ,amsterdam was a veritable museum4 ,this amusement later was to cost him dear4 ,four years after the ,lesson in ,anatomy was painted1 when he was at the height of prosperity1 in #afcd1 he married ,saskia van ,uylenborch1 the ,saskia of so many an etching and picture4 ,she was of a good ,frisian family1 and brought with her a dowry of no mean proportions4 ,rembrandt's marriage made small changes in his way of living4 ,into the society1 so ready to receive him1 he never went1 not even now that he had a wife to introduce4 ,it bored him1 and he was no toady to waste his time fawning upon possible patrons4 ,when ,i desire to rest my spirit1 ,i do not seek honors1 but liberty1 was his explanation4 ,the companionship of artists he always welcomed2 sometimes he visited the humbler burghers1 whose ways were as simple as his own2 sometimes he sought the humblest classes of all1 because of their picturesqueness1 and his contemporaries took him to task for his perverted taste for low company4 ,the truth is that always he devoted himself solely and wholly to his art2 the only difference1 once he was married1 was that1 when he sat at his easel all day or over his copperplate1 and sketchbook all evening1 ,saskia was with him4 ,she shared all his interests1 all his ambitions2 she had no will but his4 ,during his working hours1 she was his model1 obedient to his call4 ,she never tired of posing for him1 nor he of painting her now simply as ,saskia1 now as ,delilah feasting with ,samson1 as ,susanna surprised by the ,elders1 as the ,jewish ,betrothed at her toilet4 ,sometimes he represented her alone1 sometimes with himself at her side2 once1 in the famous ,dresden portrait1 on his knee1 as if to proclaim the love they bore for one another4 ,and he1 who could render faithfully the ways of the beggar1 the austere black of the burgher1 for himself and ,saskia found no masquerading too gay or extravagant4 ,in inventing costumes for their own portraits1 he gave his exuberant fancy free play3 in gorgeous embroidered robes1 waving plumes1 and priceless gems they arrayed themselves1 until even the resources of his collection were exhausted3 the same rich mantle1 the same jewels appear1 and reappear in picture after picture4 ,rembrandt's short married years were happy1 though not without their sorrows4 ,of ,saskia's five children1 four died in infancy2 the fifth1 ,titus1 was not a year old when1 in #afdb1 the end came for ,saskia1 and ,rembrandt1 who had just reached his thirty-seventh year1 was left in his great house alone with an infant son and his pupils4 ,her confidence in him is shown by her will1 in which the inheritance of ,titus is left in the father's charge1 though already ,rembrandt's affairs must have given signs of coming complications4 ,illustration3 ,connoisseurs at ,rembrandt's ,studio4 ,much of his best work remained to be done1 but after ,saskia's death his worldly fortunes and his popularity never again touched such high-water mark4 ,the reason for this is not far to seek4 ,during all these years1 ,rembrandt's powers had matured1 his methods broadened1 and his individuality strengthened4 ,with each new canvas1 his originality became more conspicuous4 ,it was not only that the world of nature1 and not imagination1 supplied his models4 ,many of the ,dutch painters now were no less realists than he4 ,it was not only that he solved certain problems of chiaro oscuro1 there were men1 like ,lievens1 who were as eager as he in the study of light and shadow4 ,but ,rembrandt brought to his every experiment an independence that startled the average man4 ,he painted well because he saw well4 ,if no one else saw things as he did1 the loss was theirs4 ,but he paid for his keener vision2 because he did not paint like other artists1 his methods were mistrusted4 ,to be misunderstood is the penalty of genius4 ,the picture which1 of all his work1 is now the most famous1 marks the turn in the tide of his affairs4 ,shortly before ,saskia's death1 he had been commissioned to paint a portrait group of ,banning ,cock and the military company which he commanded4 ,these portrait groups of the military corporations rivalled in popularity the ,lessons in ,anatomy4 ,each member1 or officer1 paid to be included in the composition1 and1 as a rule1 a stiff1 formal picture1 with each individual posed as for a photograph1 was the result4 ,rembrandt1 apparently1 was in nowise restricted when he undertook the work for ,banning ,cock1 and so1 instead of the stupid1 hackneyed arrangement1 he made of the portrait of the company a picture of armed men marching forth to beating of drums and waving of banners1 ,the ,night ,watch1 as it must ever be known--more accurately1 ,the ,sortie of the ,company of ,banning ,cock--now in the ,ryks ,museum of ,amsterdam4 ,with the men for whom it was painted1 it proved a failure4 ,the grouping1 the arrangement displeased them4 ,many of the company were left in deep shadow1 which was not the privilege for which they had agreed to pay good money4 ,rembrandt was not the man to compromise4 ,after this many burghers1 who cared much for themselves and their own faces1 and not in the least for art1 were afraid to entrust their portraits to him lest their importance might be sacrificed to the painter's effects4 ,certain it is that six years later1 in #afdh1 when the independence of ,holland was formally recognized at the ,congress of ,westphalia1 though ,terburg and ,van der ,heist celebrated the event on canvas1 ,rembrandt's services were not secured4 ,good friends were left to him--men of intelligence who appreciated his strong individuality and the great originality of his work4 ,banning ,cock himself was not among the discontented4 ,a few leading citizens1 like ,dr4 ,tulp and the ,burgomeister ,six1 were ever his devoted patrons4 ,artists still gathered about him2 pupils still crowded to his studio2 ,nicolas ,maes1 ,de ,gelder1 ,kneller among them4 ,many of his finest portraits--those of ,hendrickje ,stoffels1 of his son1 of himself in his old age1 of the ,burgomeister ,six1 above all1 his masterpiece1 ,the ,syndics of the ,guild of ,clothmakers1 now in ,amsterdam2 many of his finest etchings1 the little landscapes1 the famous ,hundred ,guilder ,print1 ,christ ,healing the ,sick1 belong to this later period4 ,there was no falling off1 but rather an increase1 in his powers1 despite the clouds that darkened his years of middle age4 ,of these clouds1 the darkest was due to his financial troubles4 ,rembrandt had made large sums of money2 ,saskia's dowry had been by no means small4 ,but he also spent lavishly4 ,he had absolutely no business capacity4 ,once he was accused of miserliness2 that he would at times lunch on dry bread and a herring served as reproach against him2 there was a story current that his pupils would drop bits of paper painted to look like money in order to see him stoop to pick them up4 ,both charges are too foolish to answer seriously4 ,when he was at work1 it mattered little to him what he ate1 so that he was not disturbed2 who would not stoop to pick up coins apparently scattered on the floor8 ,the money he devoted to his collection is sufficient to show how small a fancy he had for hoarding2 upon it a princely fortune had been squandered4 ,to his own people in ,leyden1 when times were hard1 he had not been slow to hold out a generous hand4 ,it was because he was not enough of a miser1 because he gave too little heed to business matters1 that difficulties at length overwhelmed him4 ,it is too sad a story to tell in detail4 ,perhaps the beginning was when he bought a house for which he had not the ready money to pay1 and borrowed a large sum for the purpose4 ,more and more involved became his affairs4 ,in time his creditors grew clamorous1 and at length the blow fell when1 in #afeg1 he was declared bankrupt4 ,the collection of years1 the embroidered mantles and draperies1 the jewels with which ,saskia had been so gayly decked1 the plumes and furs and gorgeous robes in which he himself had masqueraded1 the armor and plate1 the engravings and pictures which had filled his house--all were sold4 ,he1 the master1 had1 at the age of fifty-one1 to begin life anew as if he were still but the apprentice4 ,in the midst of his troubles and losses1 ,hendrickje ,stoffels1 whose portrait hangs in the ,louvre1 was the friend who cheered and comforted him4 ,she had been his servant2 afterward she lived with him as his wife1 though legally they were not married4 ,to ,titus1 as to her own children1 she was ever a tender mother1 and ,titus1 in return1 seems to have loved her no less well4 ,in the end1 they together took ,rembrandt's business interests into their own hands1 the son1 probably1 using his inheritance in the enterprise4 ,renting a house in their own name1 they became his print and picture dealers4 ,but as time went on1 ,rembrandt's work brought lower and lower prices1 and he1 himself1 the last two years of his life1 was almost forgotten4 ,though he still lived in ,amsterdam1 the town from which he had so seldom journeyed1 and then never far1 he had fallen into such obscurity1 that report now established him in ,stockholm as painter to the ,king of ,sweden1 now in ,hull1 or ,yarmouth4 ,in his own family nothing but sorrow was in store for him4 ,hendrickje died1 probably about #affd1 and he was once more alone2 and next he lost ,titus1 who then had been married but a few short months4 ,fortunately for ,rembrandt1 he did not long survive them4 ,in #affi1 at the age of sixty-two1 his release came4 ,he was buried in the ,west ,church1 quietly and simply4 ,thirteen florins his funeral cost1 and even this small expense had to be met by his daughter-in-law4 ,when an inventory of his possessions was taken1 these were found to consist of nothing but his own wardrobe and his painter's tools4 ,but better than a mere fortune1 his work he left as an heirloom for all time2 his drawings1 not the least among them without the stamp of his genius2 his prints1 still unsurpassed1 though it was he who first developed the possibilities of etching2 his pictures1 painted with light1 as ,fromentin has said4 ,his subjects he may have borrowed from the fashions and traditions of the time2 certain mannerisms of technique and arrangement his pupils may have copied4 ,but for all that1 his work belongs to no special school or group2 like all the world's great masterpieces1 whether produced in ,spain by a ,velasquez1 in ,venice by a ,titian1 in ,england by a ,whistler1 it stands alone and supreme4 ,signature of the author4 ,,william ,,hogarth 7#afig-agfd7 ,illustration3 ,william ,hogarth4 ,i was born1 says ,hogarth1 in his ,memoirs of himself1 in the city of ,london1 ,november #aj1 #afig4 ,my father's pen1 like that of many authors1 did not enable him to do more than put me in a way of shifting for myself4 ,as ,i had naturally a good eye and a fondness for drawing1 shows of all sorts gave me uncommon pleasure when an infant2 and mimicry1 common to all children1 was remarkable in me4 ,an early access to a neighboring painter drew my attention from play1 and ,i was1 at every possible opportunity1 employed in making drawings4 ,i picked up an acquaintance of the same turn1 and soon learned to draw the alphabet with great correctness4 ,my exercises when at school were more remarkable for the ornaments which adorned them than for the exercise itself4 ,in the former ,i soon found that blockheads with better memories could much surpass me1 but for the latter ,i was particularly distinguished4 ,to this account of ,hogarth's childhood we have only to add that his father1 an enthusiastic and laborious scholar1 who1 like many of his craft1 owed little to the favor of fortune1 consulted these indications of talent as well as his means would allow1 and bound his son apprentice to a silver-plate engraver4 ,but ,hogarth aspired after something higher than drawing ciphers and coats-of-arms2 and before the expiration of his indentures he had made himself a good draughtsman1 and obtained considerable knowledge of coloring4 ,it was his ambition to become distinguished as an artist2 and not content with being the mere copier of other men's productions1 he sought to combine the functions of the painter with those of the engraver1 and to gain the power of delineating his own ideas and the fruits of his acute observation4 ,he has himself explained the nature of his views in a passage which is worth attention3 ,many reasons led me to wish that ,i could find the shorter path--fix forms and characters in my mind--and instead of copying the lines1 try to read the language1 and1 if possible1 find the grammar of the art by bringing into one focus the various observations ,i have made1 and then trying by my power on the canvas how far my plan enabled me to combine and apply them to practice4 ,for this purpose ,i considered what various ways1 and to what different purposes1 the memory might be applied1 and fell upon one most suitable to my situation and idle disposition2 laying it down first as an axiom1 that he who could by any means acquire and retain in his memory perfect ideas of the subjects he meant to draw1 would have as clear a knowledge of the figure as a man who can write freely hath of the twenty-five letters of the alphabet and their infinite combinations4 ,acting on these principles1 he improved1 by constant exercise1 his natural powers of observation and recollection4 ,we find him roaming through the country1 now at ,yarmouth and again at ,queenborough1 sketching everywhere4 ,in his rambles among the motley scenes of ,london he was ever on the watch for striking features or incidents2 and not trusting entirely to memory1 he was accustomed1 when any face struck him as being peculiarly grotesque or expressive1 to sketch it on his thumb-nail1 to be treasured up on paper at his return home4 ,for some time after the expiration of his apprenticeship1 ,hogarth continued to practise the trade to which he was bred2 and his shop-bills1 coats-of-arms1 engravings upon tankards1 etc41 have been collected with an eagerness quite disproportionate to their value4 ,soon he procured employment in furnishing frontispieces and designs for the booksellers4 ,the most remarkable of these are the plates to an edition of ,hudibras1 published in #agbf2 but even these are of no distinguished merit4 ,about #agbh he began to seek employment as a portrait-painter4 ,most of his performances were small family pictures1 containing several figures1 which he calls ,conversation ,pieces1 from twelve to fifteen inches high4 ,these for a time were very popular1 and his practice was considerable1 as his price was low4 ,his life-size portraits are few2 the most remarkable are that of ,captain ,coram1 in the ,foundling ,hospital1 and that of ,garrick as ,king ,richard ,,iii41 which is reproduced in the present volume4 ,but his practice as a portrait-painter was not lucrative1 nor his popularity lasting4 ,although many of his likenesses were strong and characteristic1 in the representation of beauty1 elegance1 and high-breeding he was little skilled4 ,the nature of the artist was as uncourtly as his pencil4 ,when ,hogarth obtained employment and eminence of another sort through his wonderful prints1 he abandoned portrait-painting1 with a growl at the jealousy of his professional brethren2 and the vanity and blindness of the public4 ,march #be1 #agbi1 ,hogarth contracted a stolen marriage with the only daughter of the once fashionable painter1 ,sir ,james ,thornhill4 ,the father1 for some time implacable1 relented at last2 and the reconciliation1 it is said1 was much forwarded by his admiration of the ,harlot's ,progress1 a series of six prints1 commenced in #agca and published in #agcd4 ,the novelty as well as merit of this series of prints won for them extraordinary popularity2 and their success encouraged ,hogarth to undertake a similar history of the ,rake's ,progress1 in eight prints1 which appeared in #agce4 ,the third1 and perhaps the most popular1 as it is the least objectionable of these pictorial novels1 ,marriage la ,mode1 was not engraved till #agde4 ,illustration3 ,hogarth ,sketching the ,highway of ,queenborough4 ,the merits of these prints were sufficiently intelligible to the public3 their originality and boldness of design1 the force and freedom of their execution1 rough as it is1 won for them an extensive popularity and a rapid and continued sale4 ,the ,harlot's ,progress was the most eminently successful1 from its novelty rather than from its superior excellence4 ,twelve hundred subscribers' names were entered for it2 it was dramatized in several forms2 and we may note1 in illustration of the difference of past and present manners1 that fan-mounts were engraved containing miniature copies of the six plates4 ,the merits of the pictures were less obvious to the few who could afford to spend large sums on works of art1 and ,hogarth1 too proud to let them go for prices much below the value which he put upon them1 waited for a long time1 and waited in vain1 for a purchaser4 ,at last he determined to commit them to public sale2 but instead of the common method of auction1 he devised a new and complex plan with the intention of excluding picture-dealers1 and obliging men of rank and wealth who wished to purchase to judge and bid for themselves4 ,the scheme failed1 as might have been expected4 ,nineteen of ,hogarth's best pictures1 the ,harlot's ,progress1 the ,rake's ,progress1 the ,four ,times of the ,day1 and ,strolling ,actresses ,dressing in a ,barn produced only #dbg #gs41 not averaging #bb #ajs4 each4 ,the ,harlot's ,progress was purchased by ,mr4 ,beckford at the rate of fourteen guineas a picture2 five of the series perished in the fire at ,fonthill4 ,the ,rake's ,progress averaged twenty-two guineas a picture2 it has passed into the possession of ,sir ,john ,soane1 at the advanced price of five hundred and seventy guineas4 ,the same eminent architect became the proprietor of the four pictures of an ,election for the sum of #a1gcb4 ,marriage la ,mode was disposed of in a similar way in #agej2 and on the day of the sale one bidder appeared1 who became master of the six pictures1 together with their frames1 for #aae #ajs4 ,mr4 ,angerstein purchased them1 in #agig1 for #a1cha1 and they now form a striking feature in the ,national ,gallery4 ,the satire of ,hogarth was not often of a personal nature2 but he knew his own power1 and he sometimes exercised it4 ,two of his prints1 ,the ,times1 produced a memorable quarrel between himself1 on one side1 and ,wilkes and ,churchhill1 on the other4 ,the satire of the prints of ,the ,times1 which were published in #agfb1 was directed1 not against ,wilkes himself1 but his political friends1 ,pitt and ,temple2 nor is it so biting as to have required ,wilkes1 in defence of his party1 to retaliate upon one with whom he had lived in familiar and friendly intercourse4 ,he did so1 however1 in a number of the ,north ,briton1 containing not only abuse of the artist1 but unjust and injurious mention of his wife4 ,hogarth was deeply wounded by this attack2 he retorted by the well-known portrait of ,wilkes with the cap of liberty1 and he afterward represented ,churchill as a bear4 ,the quarrel was unworthy the talents either of the painter or poet4 ,it is more to be regretted because its effects1 as he himself intimates1 were injurious to ,hogarth's declining health4 ,the summer of #agfd he spent at ,chiswick1 and the free air and exercise worked a partial renovation of his strength4 ,the amendment1 however1 was but temporary1 and he died suddenly1 ,october #bfth1 the day after his return to his ,london residence in ,leicester ,square4 ,,sir ,,joshua ,,reynolds ,by ,,samuel ,,archer 7#agbc-agib7 ,illustration3 ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds4 ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds1 the celebrated painter1 was1 on ,july #af1 #agbc1 born at ,plympton1 a small town in ,devonshire1 ,england4 ,his father was a minister of the parish1 and also master of the grammar school2 and being a man of learning and philanthropy1 he was beloved and respected by all to whom he was known4 ,such a man1 it will naturally be supposed1 was assiduous in the cultivation of the minds of his children1 among whom his son ,joshua shone conspicuous1 by displaying at a very early period a superiority of genius and the rudiments of a correct taste4 ,unlike other boys1 who generally content themselves with giving a literal explanation of their author1 regardless of his beauties or his faults1 young ,reynolds attended to both these1 displaying a happy knowledge of what he read1 and entering with ardor into the spirit of his author4 ,he discovered likewise talents for composition1 and a natural propensity to drawing1 in which his friends and intimates thought him qualified to excel4 ,emulation was a distinguishing characteristic of his mind1 which his father perceived with the delight natural to a parent2 and designing him for the church1 in which he hoped that his talents might raise him to eminence1 he sent him to one of the universities4 ,soon after this period he grew passionately fond of painting2 and by the perusal of ,richardson's theory of that art was determined to make it his profession through life4 ,at his own earnest request1 therefore1 he was removed to ,london2 and about the year #agdb became a pupil to ,mr4 ,hudson1 who1 though not himself an eminent painter1 was preceptor to many who afterward excelled in the art4 ,one of the first advices which he gave to ,mr4 ,reynolds was to copy carefully ,guercino's drawings4 ,this was done with such skill1 that many of the copies are said to be now preserved in the cabinets of the curious as the originals of that very great master4 ,about the year #agdi1 ,mr4 ,reynolds went to ,italy under the auspices1 and in the company1 of the late ,lord 7then ,commodore7 ,keppel1 who was appointed to the command of the ,british squadron in the ,mediterranean4 ,in this garden of the world1 this magic seat of arts1 he failed not to visit the schools of the great masters1 to study the productions of different ages1 and to contemplate with unwearied attention the various beauties which are characteristic of each4 ,his labor here1 as has been observed of another painter1 was the labor of love1 not the task of the hireling2 and how much he profited by it is known to all ,europe4 ,having remained about two years in ,italy1 and studied the language as well as the arts of the country with great success1 he returned to ,england1 improved by travel and refined by education4 ,on the road to ,london from the port where he landed1 he accidentally found in the inn where he lodged ,johnson's life of ,savage1 and was so taken with the charms of composition1 and the masterly delineation of character displayed in that work1 that1 having begun to read it while leaning his arm on the chimney-piece1 he continued in that attitude1 insensible of pain till he was hardly able to raise his hand to his head4 ,the admiration of the work naturally led him to seek the acquaintance of its author1 who continued one of his sincerest admirers and warmest friends till #aghd1 when they were separated by the stroke of death4 ,the first thing that distinguished him after his return to his native country was a full-length portrait of ,commodore ,keppel2 which in polite circles was spoken of in terms of the highest encomium1 and testified to what a degree of eminence he had arrived in his profession4 ,this was followed by a portrait of ,lord ,edgecombe1 and a few others1 which at once introduced him to the first business in portrait-painting2 and that branch of the art he cultivated with such success as will forever establish his fame with all descriptions of refined society4 ,having painted some of the first-rate beauties of the age1 the polite world flocked to see the graces and the charms of his pencil2 and he soon became the most fashionable painter not only in ,england1 but in all ,europe4 ,he has indeed preserved the resemblance of so many illustrious characters1 that we feel the less regret at his having left behind him so few historical paintings2 though what he has done in that way shows him to have been qualified to excel in both departments4 ,the only landscape1 perhaps1 which he ever painted1 except those beautiful and chaste ones which compose the backgrounds of many of his portraits1 is ,a ,view on the ,thames from ,richmond1 which in #aghd was exhibited by the ,society for ,promoting ,painting and ,design in ,liverpool4 ,in #agfd ,mr4 ,reynolds had the merit of being the first promoter of that club1 which1 having long existed without a name1 became at last distinguished by the appellation of the ,literary ,club4 ,upon the foundation of the ,royal ,academy of ,painting1 ,sculpture1 and ,architecture1 he was appointed president2 and his acknowledged excellence in his profession made the appointment acceptable to all the lovers of art4 ,to add to the dignity of this new institution1 his majesty conferred on the president the honor of knighthood2 and ,sir ,joshua delivered his first discourse at the opening of the ,academy1 on ,january #b1 #agfi4 ,the merit of that discourse has been universally admitted among painters2 but it contains some directions1 respecting the proper mode of prosecuting their studies1 to which every student of every art would do well to pay attention4 ,i would chiefly recommend 7says he7 that an implicit obedience to the rules of art1 as established by the practice of the great masters1 should be exacted from the young students4 ,that those models1 which have passed through the approbation of ages1 should be considered by them as perfect and infallible guides1 as subjects for their imitation1 not their criticism4 ,i am confident that this is the only efficacious method of making a progress in the arts2 and that he who sets out with doubting will find life finished before he becomes master of the rudiments4 ,for it may be laid down as a maxim1 that he who begins by presuming on his own sense1 has ended his studies as soon as he has commenced them4 ,every opportunity1 therefore1 should be taken to discountenance that false and vulgar opinion1 that rules are the fetters of genius4 ,they are fetters only to men of no genius2 as that armor1 which upon the strong becomes an ornament and a defence1 upon the weak and misshapen turns into a load1 and cripples the body which it was made to protect4 ,each succeeding year1 on the distribution of the prizes1 ,sir ,joshua delivered to the students a discourse of equal merit with this2 and perhaps we do not hazard too much when we say1 that from the whole collected1 the lovers of belles-lettres and the fine arts will acquire juster notions of what is meant by taste in general1 and better rules for acquiring a correct taste1 than from the multitude of those volumes which have been professedly written on the subject4 ,in the autumn of #aghe he went to ,brussels1 where he expended about #a1jjj on the purchase of paintings which1 having been taken from the different monasteries and religious houses in ,flanders and ,germany1 were then exposed to sale by the command of the ,emperor ,joseph4 ,gainsborough and he had engaged to paint each other's portrait2 and the canvas for both being actually stretched1 ,sir ,joshua gave one sitting to his distinguished rival2 but to the regret of every admirer of the art1 the unexpected death of the latter prevented all further progress4 ,in #agij he was anxiously desirous to procure the vacant professorship of perspective in the academy for ,mr4 ,bonomi1 an ,italian architect2 but that artist not having been yet elected an associate1 was1 of course1 no academician1 and it became necessary to raise him to those positions1 in order to qualify him for being a professor4 ,mr4 ,gilpin being his competitor for the associateship1 the numbers on the ballot proved equal1 when the president1 on his casting vote1 decided the election in favor of his friend1 who was thereby advanced so far toward the professorship4 ,soon after this1 an academic seat being vacant1 ,sir ,joshua exerted all his influence to obtain it for ,mr4 ,bonomi2 but finding himself out-voted by a majority of two to one1 he quitted the chair with great dissatisfaction1 and next day sent to the secretary of the academy a formal resignation of the office1 which for twenty-one years he had filled with honor to himself and to his country4 ,his indignation1 however1 subsiding1 he suffered himself to be prevailed upon to return to the chair1 which1 within a year and a half1 he was again desirous to quit for a better reason4 ,finding a disease of languor1 occasioned by an enlargement of the liver1 to which he had for some time been subject1 increase1 and daily expecting a total loss of sight1 he wrote a letter to the academy1 intimating his intention to resign the office of president on account of bodily infirmities1 which disabled him from executing the duties of it to his own satisfaction4 ,the academy received this intelligence with the respectful concern due to the talents and virtues of their president1 and either then did enter1 or designed to enter1 into a resolution honorable to all parties1 namely1 that a deputation from the whole body of the academy should wait upon him1 and inform him of their wish1 that the authority and privileges of the office of president might be his during his life1 declaring their willingness to permit the performance of any of its duties which might be irksome to him by a deputy4 ,from this period ,sir ,joshua never painted more4 ,the last effort of his pencil was the portrait of the honorable ,charles ,james ,fox1 which was executed in his best style1 and shows that his fancy1 his imagination1 and his other great powers in the art which he professed1 remained unabated to the end of his life4 ,when the last touches were given to this picture1 ,the hand of ,reynolds fell1 to rise no more4 ,on ,thursday1 ,february #bc1 #agib1 the world was deprived of this amiable man and excellent artist1 at the age of sixty-eight years2 a man than whom no one1 according to ,johnson1 had passed through life with more observations of men and manners4 ,the following character of him is said to be the production of ,mr4 ,burke3 ,his illness was long1 but borne with a mild and cheerful fortitude1 without the least mixture of anything irritable or querulous1 agreeably to the placid and even tenor of his whole life4 ,he had1 from the beginning of his malady1 a distinct view of his dissolution1 which he contemplated with that entire composure which nothing but the innocence1 integrity1 and usefulness of his life1 and an unaffected submission to the will of ,providence1 could bestow4 ,in this situation he had every consolation from family tenderness1 which his tenderness to his family had always merited4 ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds was1 on very many accounts1 one of the most memorable men of his time2 he was the first ,englishman who added the praise of the elegant arts to the other glories of his country4 ,in taste1 in grace1 in facility1 in happy invention1 and in richness and harmony of coloring1 he was equal to the great masters of the renowned ages4 ,in portrait he went beyond them2 for he communicated to that branch of the art in which ,english artists are the most engaged1 a variety1 a fancy1 and a dignity derived from the higher branches1 which even those who professed them in a superior manner did not always preserve when they delineated individual nature4 ,his portraits reminded the spectator of the invention of history and the amenity of landscape4 ,in painting portraits he appears not to be raised upon that platform1 but to descend to it from a higher sphere4 ,his paintings illustrate his lessons1 and his lessons seem to be derived from his paintings4 ,he possessed the theory as perfectly as the practice of his art4 ,to be such a painter1 he was a profound and penetrating philosopher4 ,in full happiness of foreign and domestic fame1 admired by the expert in art1 and by the learned in science1 courted by the great1 caressed by sovereign powers1 and celebrated by distinguished poets1 his native humility1 modesty1 and candor never forsook him1 even on surprise or provocation2 nor was the least degree of arrogance or assumption visible to the most scrutinizing eye in any part of his conduct or discourse4 ,his talents of every kind--powerful from nature1 and not meanly cultivated in letters--his social virtues in all the relations and all the habitudes of life1 rendered him the centre of a very great and unparalleled variety of agreeable societies1 which will be dissipated by his death4 ,he had too much merit not to excite some jealousy1 too much innocence to provoke any enmity4 ,the loss of no man of his time can be felt with more sincere1 general1 and unmixed sorrow4 ,,benjamin ,,west ,by ,,martha ,j4 ,,lamb#e ,footnote #e3 ,reprinted by permission1 from the ,magazine of ,american ,history4 7#agch-ahbj7 ,illustration3 ,benjamin ,west4 ,in the wilds of the new world1 a century and a half ago1 there was1 apparently1 no spot less likely to produce a famous painter than the ,quaker province of ,pennsylvania4 ,and yet1 when ,george ,washington was only six years old there was born1 in the little town of ,springfield1 ,chester ,county1 a boy whose interesting and remarkable career from infancy to old age has provided one of the most instructive lessons for students in art that ,america affords4 ,perhaps ,benjamin ,west's aptitude for picture-making in his infancy1 while he was learning to walk and to talk1 did not exceed that of hosts of other children1 in like circumstances1 in every generation since his time4 ,but many curious things were remembered and told of this baby's performances after he had developed a decided talent for reproducing the beautiful objects that captivated his eye4 ,it was in the summer of #agde1 a few months before he was seven years old that his married sister came home for a visit1 bringing with her an infant daughter4 ,the next morning after her arrival1 little ,benjamin was left to keep the flies off the sleeping baby1 while his mother and sister went to the garden for flowers4 ,the baby smiled in its sleep1 and the boy was captivated4 ,he must catch that smile and keep it4 ,he found some paper on the table1 scrambled for a pen1 and with red and black ink made a hasty but striking picture of the little beauty4 ,he heard his mother returning1 and conscious of having been in mischief1 tried to conceal his production2 but she detected and captured it1 and regarded it long and lovingly1 exclaiming as her daughter entered1 ,he has really made a likeness of little ,sally6 ,she then caught up the boy in her arms1 and kissed instead of chiding him1 and he--looking up encouraged--told her he could make the flowers1 too1 if she would permit4 ,the awakening of genius in ,benjamin ,west has been distinctly traced to this incident1 as the time when he first discovered that he could imitate the forms of such objects as pleased his sense of sight4 ,and the incident itself has been aptly styled the birth of fine arts in the ,new ,world4 ,the ,quaker boy1 in course of years1 left the wilderness of ,america to become the president of the ,royal ,academy in ,london4 ,his irreproachable character not less than his excellence as an artist1 gave him commanding position among his contemporaries4 ,from first to last he was distinguished for his indefatigable industry4 ,the number of his pictures has been estimated1 by a writer in ,blackwood's ,magazine1 at three thousand2 and ,dunlap says that a gallery capable of holding them would be four hundred feet long1 fifty feet wide1 and forty feet high--or a wall a quarter of a mile long4 ,the parents of ,benjamin ,west were sincere and self-respecting1 and in the language of the times1 well-to-do4 ,his mother's grandfather was the intimate and confidential friend of ,william ,penn4 ,the family of his father claimed direct descent from the ,black ,prince and ,lord ,delaware1 of the time of ,king ,edward ,,iii4 ,colonel ,james ,west was the friend and companion in arms of ,john ,hampden4 ,when ,benjamin ,west was at work upon his great picture of the ,institution of the ,garter1 the ,king of ,england was delighted when the ,duke of ,buckingham assured him that ,west had an ancestral right to a place among the warriors and knights of his own painting4 ,the ,quaker associates of the parents of the artist1 the patriarchs of ,pennsylvania1 regarded their asylum in ,america as the place for affectionate intercourse--free from all the military predilections and political jealousies of ,europe4 ,the result was a state of society more contented1 peaceful1 and pleasing than the world had ever before exhibited4 ,at the time of the birth of ,benjamin ,west the interior settlements in ,pennsylvania had attained considerable wealth1 and unlimited hospitality formed a part of the regular economy of the principal families4 ,those who resided near the highways were in the habit1 after supper and the religious exercises of the evening1 of making a large fire in the hallway1 and spreading a table with refreshments for such travellers as might pass in the night1 who were expected to step in and help themselves4 ,this was conspicuously the case in ,springfield4 ,other acts of liberality were performed by this community1 to an extent that would have beggared the munificence of the old world4 ,poverty was not known in this region4 ,but whether families traced their lineage to ancient and noble sources1 or otherwise1 their pride was so tempered with the meekness of their faith1 that it lent a singular dignity to their benevolence4 ,the ,indians mingled freely with the people1 and when they paid their annual visits to the plantations1 raised their wigwams in the fields and orchards without asking permission1 and were never molested4 ,shortly after ,benjamin ,west's first efforts with pen and ink1 a party of red men reached and encamped in ,springfield4 ,the boy-artist showed them his sketches of birds and flowers1 which seemed to amuse them greatly4 ,they at once proceeded to teach him how to prepare the red and yellow colors with which they decorated their ornaments4 ,to these ,mrs4 ,west added blue1 by contributing a piece of indigo4 ,thus the boy had three prismatic colors for his use4 ,what could be more picturesque than the scene where the untutored ,indian gave the future artist his first lesson in mixing paints6 ,these wild men also taught him archery1 that he might shoot birds for models if he wanted their bright plumage to copy4 ,the neighbors were attracted by the boy's drawings1 and finally a relative1 ,mr4 ,pennington1 a prominent merchant of ,philadelphia1 came to pay the family a visit4 ,he thought the boy's crude pictures were wonderful1 as he was then only entering his eighth year4 ,when he went home he immediately sent the little fellow a box of paints1 with six engravings by ,grevling4 ,john ,gait1 who wrote from the artist's own statements1 describes the effect of this gift upon the boy4 ,in going to bed he placed the box so near his couch1 that he could hug and caress it every time he wakened4 ,next morning he rose early1 and taking his paints and canvas to the garret1 began to work4 ,he went to breakfast1 and then stole back to his post under the roof1 forgetting all about school4 ,when dinnertime came he presented himself at table1 as usual1 but said nothing of his occupation4 ,he had been absent from school some days before the master called on his parents to inquire what had become of him4 ,this led to the discovery of his secret painting1 for his mother proceeded to the garret and found the truant4 ,she was1 however1 so astonished with the creation upon his canvas1 that she took him in her arms and kissed him with transports of affection4 ,he had made a composition of his own out of two of the engravings--which he had colored from his ideas of the proper tints to be used--and so perfect did the picture appear to ,mrs4 ,west that1 although half the canvas remained to be covered1 she would not suffer the child to add another touch with his brush4 ,sixty-seven years afterward1 ,mr4 ,gait saw this production in the exact state in which it was left1 and ,mr4 ,west himself acknowledged that in subsequent efforts he had never been able to excel some of the touches of invention in this first picture4 ,the first instruction in art which the artist received was from ,mr4 ,william ,williams1 a painter in ,philadelphia4 ,young ,west's first attempt at portraiture was at ,lancaster1 where he painted ,the ,death of ,socrates for ,william ,henry1 a gunsmith4 ,he was not yet sixteen1 but other paintings followed which possessed so much genuine merit1 that they have been preserved as treasures4 ,one of these is in possession of ,general ,meredith ,reed1 of ,paris1 ,france1 a descendant of the signer4 ,west returned to his home in ,springfield1 in #aged1 to discuss the question of his future vocation4 ,he had an inclination for military life1 and volunteered as a recruit in the old ,french war2 but military attractions vanished among the hardships involved1 and in #agef1 when eighteen years old1 he established himself in ,philadelphia as a portrait-painter1 his price being five guineas a head4 ,two years later he went to ,new ,york1 where he passed eleven months1 and was liberally employed by the merchants and others4 ,he painted the portrait of ,bishop ,provoost1 those of ,gerardus ,duyekinck and his wife--full length--one of ,mrs4 ,samuel ,breese1 and many others1 which are in the families of descendants1 and characteristic examples of his early work4 ,in #agfj an opportunity offered for him to visit ,rome1 ,italy4 ,he carried letters to ,cardinal ,albani and other celebrities1 and as he was very handsome and intelligent1 and came from a far-away land about which hung the perpetual charm of tradition and romance1 he soon became the lion of the day among the imaginative ,italians4 ,it was a novelty then for an ,american to appear in the ,eternal ,city1 and the very morning after his arrival a curious party followed his steps to observe his pursuit of art4 ,he remained in ,italy until #agfc1 and while there he painted1 among others1 his pictures of ,cimon and ,iphigenia1 and ,angelica and ,medora4 ,his portrait of ,lord ,grantham excited much interest1 and that nobleman's introduction facilitated his visit to ,london1 which proved so prolific in results4 ,there was no great living historical painter in ,england just then2 and at first there was no sale for ,west's pictures1 as it was unfashionable to buy any but old masters4 ,but the young artist was undaunted1 and presently attracted attention in high places4 ,his picture of ,agrippina ,landing with the ,ashes of ,germanicus1 painted for ,dr4 ,drummond1 ,archbishop of ,york1 secured him the favor of ,george ,,iii41 and the commission from his majesty to paint the ,departure of ,regulus from ,rome4 ,his untiring industry and gentlemanly habits were conspicuous1 and may be regarded as among the great secrets of his continual advance and public recognition4 ,his ,parting of ,hector and ,andromache1 and ,return of the ,prodigal ,son1 were among his notable productions of this period4 ,his ,death of ,general ,wolfe has been1 says ,tuckerman1 truly declared to have created an era in ,english art1 by the successful example it initiated of the abandonment of classic costume--a reform advocated by ,reynolds1 who glories in the popular innovation4 ,his characters were clad in the dress of their time4 ,reynolds said to the ,archbishop of ,york3 ,i foresee that this picture will not only become one of the most popular1 but will occasion a revolution in art4 ,it was purchased by ,lord ,grosvenor4 ,among the long list of paintings executed by order of the king were ,the ,death of ,chevalier ,bayard2 ,edward ,,iii4 ,embracing his ,son on the ,field of ,battle at ,cressy2 ,the ,installation of the ,order of the ,garter2 ,the ,black ,prince ,receiving the ,king of ,france and his ,son ,prisoners at ,poictiers1 and ,queen ,philippa ,interceding with ,edward for the ,burgesses of ,calais4 ,west was one of the founders1 in #agfh1 of the ,royal ,academy1 and succeeded ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds as president of the institution in #agib1 which post he held almost uninterruptedly until #ahae4 ,in the year #aghj he proposed a series of pictures on the progress of revealed religion1 of which there were thirty-six subjects in all1 but he never executed but twenty-eight of these1 owing to the mental trouble which befell the king4 ,he then commenced a new series of important works1 of which ,christ ,healing the ,sick was purchased by an institution in ,great ,britain for #c1jjj1 and was subsequently copied for the ,pennsylvania ,hospital4 ,penn's ,treaty with the ,indians was painted for ,granville ,penn1 the scene representing the founding of ,pennsylvania4 ,west wrote to one of his family that he had taken the liberty of introducing in this painting the likeness of his father and his brother ,thomas4 ,that is the likeness of our brother1 he says1 standing immediately behind ,penn1 leaning on his cane4 ,i need not point out the picture of our father1 as ,i believe you will find it in the print from memory4 ,tuckerman says that the work which1 in the opinion of many critics1 best illustrates the skill of ,west in composition1 drawing1 expression1 and dramatic effect1 is his ,death on the ,pale ,horse4 ,his ,cupid1 owned in ,philadelphia1 is one of his most effective pictures as to color4 ,the full-length portrait of ,west1 by ,sir ,thomas ,lawrence1 ,p4,r4,a41 represents the great artist in his character as president of the ,royal ,academy1 delivering a lecture on coloring to the students4 ,under his right hand may be noticed1 standing on an easel1 a copy of ,raphael's cartoon of the ,death of ,ananias4 ,the picture of ,west's face has been considered a perfect likeness1 but the figure somewhat too large and too tall in its effects4 ,a copy of this portrait was made by ,charles ,r4 ,leslie2 and ,washington ,allston also painted a portrait of the artist4 ,there exists1 it is said1 a portrait of ,west from his own hand1 taken apparently at about the age of forty1 three-quarter length1 in ,quaker costume4 ,illustration3 ,benjamin ,west1 ,president of the ,royal ,academy4 ,,thorwaldsen ,by ,,hans ,,christian ,,andersen 7#aggj-ahdd7 ,it was in ,copenhagen1 on ,november #ai1 #aggj1 that a carver of figures for ships' heads1 by name ,gottskalk ,thorwaldsen1 was presented by his wife1 ,karen ,grnlund1 the daughter of a clergyman in ,jutland1 with a son1 who at his baptism received the name of ,bertel1 or ,albert4 ,the father had come from ,iceland1 and lived in poor circumstances4 ,they dwelt in ,lille ,grnnegade 7,little ,green ,street71 not far from the ,academy of ,arts4 ,the moon has often peeped into their poor room2 she has told us about it in ,a ,picture-book without ,pictures3 ,illustration3 ,thorwaldsen4 ,the father and mother slept1 but their little son did not sleep2 where the flowered cotton bed-curtains moved ,i saw the child peep out4 ,i thought at first that he looked at the ,bornholm clock1 for it was finely painted with red and green1 and there was a cuckoo on the top2 it had heavy leaden weights1 and the pendulum with its shining brass plate went to and fro with a 'tick6 tick6' ,but it was not that he looked at2 no1 it was his mother's spinning-wheel1 which stood directly under the clock2 this was the dearest piece of furniture in the whole house for the boy2 but he dared not touch it1 for if he did1 he got a rap over the fingers4 ,while his mother spun1 he would sit for hours together looking at the buzzing spindle and the revolving wheel1 and then he had his own thoughts4 ,oh6 if he only durst spin that wheel6 ,his father and mother slept2 he looked at them1 he looked at the wheel1 and then by degrees a little naked foot was stuck out of bed1 and then another naked foot1 then there came two small legs1 and1 with a jump1 he stood on the floor4 ,he turned round once more1 to see if his parents slept2 yes1 they did1 and so he went softly1 quite softly1 only in his little shirt1 up to the wheel1 and began to spin4 ,the cord flew off1 and the wheel then ran much quicker4 ,his mother awoke at the same moment2 the curtains moved2 she looked out and thought of the brownie1 or another little spectral being4 ',have mercy on us6' said she1 and in her fear she struck her husband in the side2 he opened his eyes1 rubbed them with his hands1 and looked at the busy little fellow4 ',it is ,bertel1 woman1' said he4 ,what the moon relates we see here as the first picture in ,thorwaldsen's life's gallery2 for it is a reflection of the reality4 ,thorwaldsen has himself1 when in familiar conversation at ,nyse1 told the author almost word for word what he1 in his ,picture-book1 lets the moon say4 ,it was one of his earliest remembrances1 how he1 in his little short shirt1 sat in the moonlight and spun his mother's wheel1 while she1 dear soul1 took him for a little spectre4 ,a few years ago there still lived an old ship-carpenter1 who remembered the little1 light-haired1 blue-eyed boy1 that came to his father in the carving-house at the dock-yard2 he was to learn his father's trade2 and as the latter felt how bad it was not to be able to draw1 the boy1 then eleven years of age1 was sent to the drawing-school at the ,academy of ,arts1 where he made rapid progress4 ,two years afterward1 ,bertel1 or ,albert1 as we shall in future call him1 was of great assistance to his father2 nay1 he even improved his work4 ,see the hovering ships on the wharves6 ,the ,dannebrog waves1 the workmen sit in circle under the shade at their frugal breakfasts2 but foremost stands the principal figure in this picture3 it is a boy who cuts with a bold hand the lifelike features in the wooden image for the beak-head of the vessel4 ,it is the ship's guardian spirit1 and1 as the first image from the hand of ,albert ,thorwaldsen1 it shall wander out into the wide world4 ,the eternally swelling sea should baptize it with its waters1 and hang its wreaths of wet plants around it4 ,our next picture advances a step forward4 ,unobserved among the other boys1 he has now frequented the ,academy's school for six years already1 where1 always taciturn and silent1 he stood by his drawing-board4 ,his answer was yes or no1 a nod or a shake of the head2 but mildness shone from his features1 and good-nature was in every expression4 ,the picture shows us ,albert as a candidate for confirmation4 ,he is now seventeen years of age--not a very young age to ratify his baptismal compact2 his place at the dean's house is the last among the poor boys1 for his knowledge is not sufficient to place him higher4 ,there had just at that time been an account in the newspapers1 that the pupil ,thorwaldsen had gained the ,academy's smaller medal for a bas-relief representing a ,cupid ,reposing4 ,is it your brother that has gained the medal8 inquired the dean4 ,it is myself1 said ,albert1 and the clergyman looked kindly on him1 placed him first among all the boys1 and from that time always called him ,monsieur ,thorwaldsen4 ,oh6 how deeply did that ,monsieur then sound in his mind6 ,as he has often said since1 it sounded far more powerfully than any title that kings could give him2 he never afterward forgot it4 ,in a small house in ,aabeuraa--the street where ,holberg lets his poor poets dwell--lived ,albert ,thorwaldsen with his parents1 and divided his time between the study of art and assisting his father4 ,the ,academy's lesser gold was then the prize to be obtained for sculpture4 ,our artist was now twenty years of age2 his friends knew his abilities better than himself1 and they compelled him to enter on the task4 ,the subject proposed was1 ,heliodorus ,driven out of the ,temple4 ,we are now in ,charlottenburg2 but the little chamber in which ,thorwaldsen lately sat to make his sketch is empty1 and he1 chased by the demons of fear and distrust1 hastens down the narrow back-stairs with the intention not to return4 ,nothing is accidental in the life of a great genius2 an apparent insignificance is a ,god's guiding finger4 ,thorwaldsen was to complete his task4 ,who is it that stops him on the dark stairs8 ,one of the professors just comes that way1 speaks to him1 questions1 admonishes him4 ,he returns1 and in four hours the sketch is finished1 and the gold medal won4 ,this was on ,august #ae1 #agia4 ,count ,ditlew de ,reventlow1 minister of state1 saw the young artist's work1 and became his protector2 he placed his own name at the head of a subscription that enabled ,thorwaldsen to devote his time to the study of his art4 ,two years afterward the large gold medal was to be contended for at the ,academy1 the successful candidate thereby gaining the right to a travelling stipendium4 ,thorwaldsen was again the first2 but before he entered on his travels1 it was deemed necessary to extend that knowledge which an indifferent education at school had left him in want of4 ,he read1 studied1 and the ,academy gave him its support2 acknowledgment smiled on him1 a greater and more spiritual sphere lay open to him4 ,a portrait figure stands now before us2 it is that of a ,dane1 the learned and severe ,zoega1 to whom the young artist is specially recommended1 but who only sees in him a common talent2 whose words are only those of censure1 and whose eye sees only a servile imitation of the antique in his works4 ,strictly honest in his judgment1 according to his own ideas1 is this man1 who should be ,thorwaldsen's guide4 ,we let three years glide away after the arrival of ,thorwaldsen1 and ask ,zoega what he now says of ,albert1 or1 as the ,italians call him1 ,alberto1 and the severe man shakes his head and says3 ,there is much to blame1 little to be satisfied with1 and diligent he is not6 ,yet he was diligent in a high degree2 but genius is foreign to a foreign mind4 ,the snow had just then thawed from my eyes1 he has himself often repeated4 ,the drawings of the ,danish painter ,carstens formed one of those spiritual books that shed its holy baptism over that growing genius4 ,the little atelier looked like a battle-field1 for roundabout were broken statues4 ,genius formed them often in the midnight hours2 despondency over their faults broke them in the day4 ,the three years1 for which he had received a stipendium1 were as if they had flown away1 and as yet he had produced nothing4 ,the time for his return drew nigh4 ,one work1 however1 he must complete1 that it might not with justice be said in ,denmark1 ,thorwaldsen has quite wasted his time in ,rome4 ,doubting his genius just when it embraced him most affectionately2 not expecting a victory1 while he already stood on its open road1 he modelled ,jason who has ,gained the ,golden ,fleece4 ,it was this that ,thorwaldsen would have gained in the kingdom of arts1 and which he now thought he must resign4 ,the figure stood there in clay1 many eyes looked carelessly on it1 and--he broke it to pieces6 ,it was in ,april1 #ahja1 that his return home was fixed1 in company with ,zoega4 ,it was put off until the autumn4 ,during this time ,jason occupied all his thoughts4 ,a new1 a larger figure of the hero was formed1 an immortal work2 but it had not then been announced to the world1 nor understood by it4 ,here is something more than common6 was said by many4 ,even the man to whom all paid homage1 the illustrious ,canova1 started1 and exclaimed3 ,quest' opera di quel giovane ,danese fatta in uno stilo nuovo1 e grandioso6 ,zoega smiled4 ,it is bravely done6 said he4 ,the ,danish songstress1 ,frederikke ,brunn1 was then in ,rome and sang enthusiastically about ,thorwaldsen's ,jason4 ,she assisted the artist1 so that he was enabled to get this figure cast in plaster2 for he himself had no more money than was just sufficient for his expenses home4 ,the last glass of wine had been already drunk as a farewell1 the boxes packed1 and the vetturino's carriage was before the door at daybreak2 the boxes were fastened behind4 ,then came a fellow-traveller--the sculptor1 ,hagemann1 who was returning to his native city1 ,berlin4 ,his passport was not ready4 ,their departure must be put off until the next day2 and ,thorwaldsen promised1 although the vetturino complained and abused him1 to remain so long4 ,he stayed--stayed to win an immortal name on earth1 and cast a lustre over ,denmark4 ,though forty years resident in ,rome1 rich and independent1 he lived and worked with the thought of once returning home to ,denmark1 there to rest himself2 unaccustomed to the great comforts of other rich artists in ,rome1 he lived a bachelor's life4 ,was his heart1 then1 no longer open to love since his first departure from ,copenhagen8 ,a thousand beautiful ,cupids in marble will tell us how warmly that heart beat4 ,love belongs to life's mysteries4 ,we know that ,thorwaldsen left a daughter in ,rome1 whose birth he acknowledged2 we also know that more than one female of quality would willingly have given her hand to the great artist4 ,the year before his first return to ,denmark he lay ill at ,naples1 and was nursed by an ,english lady who felt the most ardent affection for him2 and1 from that feeling of gratitude which was awakened in him1 he immediately consented to their union4 ,when he had recovered and afterward returned to ,rome1 this promise preyed on his mind1 he felt that he was not now formed to be a husband1 acknowledged that gratitude was not love1 and that they were not suited for each other2 after a long combat with himself1 he wrote and informed her of his determination4 ,thorwaldsen was never married4 ,the following trait is as characteristic of his heart as of his whole personality4 ,one day1 while in ,rome1 there came a poor countryman to him1 an artisan1 who had long been ill4 ,he came to say farewell1 and to thank him for the money that he and others of his countrymen had subscribed together1 with which he was to reach home4 ,but you will not walk the whole way8 said ,thorwaldsen4 ,i am obliged to do so1 replied the man4 ,but you are still too weak to walk--you cannot bear the fatigue1 nor must you do it6 said he4 ,the man assured him of the necessity of doing so4 ,thorwaldsen went and opened a drawer1 took out a handful of scudi and gave them to him1 saying1 ,see1 now you will ride the whole way6 ,the man thanked him1 but assured him that his gift would not be more than sufficient to carry him to ,florence4 ,well6 said ,thorwaldsen1 clapping him on the shoulder1 as he went a second time to the drawer and took out another handful4 ,the man was grateful in the highest degree1 and was going4 ,now you can ride the whole way home and be comfortable on the way1 said he1 as he followed the man to the door4 ,i am very glad1 said the man4 ,god bless you for it6 but to ride the whole way requires a little capital4 ,well1 then1 tell me how great that must be1 he asked1 and looked earnestly at him4 ,the man in a modest manner named the requisite sum1 and ,thorwaldsen went a third time to the drawer1 counted out the sum1 accompanied him to the door1 pressed his hand1 and repeated1 ,but now you will ride1 for you have not strength to walk6 ,our artist did not belong to the class of great talkers2 it was only in a small circle that he could be brought to say anything1 but then it was always with humor and gayety4 ,a few energetic exclamations of his are preserved4 ,a well-known sculptor1 expressing himself one day with much self-feeling1 entered into a dispute with ,thorwaldsen1 and set his own works over the latter's4 ,you may bind my hands behind me1 said ,thorwaldsen1 and ,i will bite the marble out with my teeth better than you can carve it4 ,thorwaldsen possessed specimens in plaster of all his works2 these1 together with the rich marble statues and bas-reliefs which he had collected of his own accord1 without orders1 and the number of paintings that he every year bought of young artists1 formed a treasure that he wished to have in his proper home1 ,copenhagen4 ,therefore1 when the ,danish government sent vessels of war to the ,mediterranean1 in order to fetch the works that were ready for the palace or the churches1 he always sent a number of his own things with them4 ,denmark was to inherit these treasures of art2 and1 in order to see them collected in a place worthy of them1 a zeal was awakened in the nation to build a museum for their reception4 ,a committee of his ,danish admirers and friends sent out a requisition to the people1 that everyone might give their mite2 many a poor servant-girl and many a peasant gave theirs1 so that a good sum was soon collected4 ,frederick ,,vi4 gave ground for the building1 and the erection thereof was committed to the architect1 ,bindesbol4 ,thorwaldsen1 in #ahch1 had attained universal fame4 ,the frigate ,rota was dispatched to bring a cargo of his works to ,copenhagen1 and he was to arrive at the same time1 perhaps to remain in ,denmark4 ,close to ,presto ,bay1 surrounded by wood-grown banks1 lies ,nyse1 the principal seat of the barony of ,stampenborg1 a place which1 through ,thorwaldsen1 has become remarkable in ,denmark4 ,the open strand1 the beautiful beech woods1 even the little town seen through the orchards1 at some few hundred paces from the mansion1 make the place worthy of a visit on account of its truly ,danish scenery4 ,here ,thorwaldsen found his best home in ,denmark2 here he seemed to increase his fame1 and here a series of his last beautiful bas-reliefs were produced4 ,baron ,stampe was one of nature's noblest-minded men2 his hospitality and his lady's daughterly affection for ,thorwaldsen opened a home for him here1 a comfortable and good one4 ,a great energetic power in the baroness incited his activity2 she attended him with a daughter's care1 elicited from him every little wish1 and executed it4 ,directly after his first visit to ,nyse1 a short tour to ,moen's chalk cliffs was arranged1 and during the few days that were passed there1 a little atelier was erected in the garden at ,nyse1 close to the canal which half encircles the principal building2 here1 and in a corner room of the mansion1 on the first floor facing the sea1 most of ,thorwaldsen's works1 during the last years of his life1 were executed3 ,christ ,bearing the ,cross1 ,the ,entry into ,jerusalem1 ,rebecca at the ,well1 his own portrait-statue1 ,oehlenschlger's and ,holberg's busts1 etc4 ,baroness ,stampe was in faithful attendance on him1 lent him a helping hand1 and read aloud for him from ,holberg4 ,driving abroad1 weekly concerts1 and in the evenings his fondest play1 ,the ,lottery1 were what most easily excited him1 and on these occasions he would say many amusing things4 ,he has represented the ,stampe family in two bas-reliefs3 in the one1 representing the mother1 the two daughters1 and the youngest son1 is the artist himself2 the other exhibits the father and the two eldest sons4 ,all circles sought to attract ,thorwaldsen2 he was at every great festival1 in every great society1 and every evening in the theatre by the side of ,oehlenschlger4 ,his greatness was allied to a mildness1 a straightforwardness1 that in the highest degree fascinated the stranger who approached him for the first time4 ,his atelier in ,copenhagen was visited daily2 he therefore felt himself more comfortable and undisturbed at ,nyse4 ,baron ,stampe and his family accompanied him to ,italy in #ahda1 when he again visited that country4 ,the whole journey1 which was by way of ,berlin1 ,dresden1 ,frankfort1 the ,rhine towns1 and ,munich1 was a continued triumphal procession4 ,the winter was passed in ,rome1 and the ,danes there had a home in which they found a welcome4 ,the following year ,thorwaldsen was again in ,denmark1 and at his favorite place1 ,nyse4 ,on ,christmas eve he here formed his beautiful bas-relief1 ,christmas ,joys in ,heaven1 which ,oehlenschlger consecrated with a poem4 ,the last birthday of his life was celebrated here2 the performance of one of ,holberg's vaudevilles was arranged1 and strangers invited2 yet the morning of that day was the homeliest1 when only the family and the author of this memoir1 who had written a merry song for the occasion1 which was still wet on the paper1 placed themselves outside the artist's door1 each with a pair of tongs1 a gong1 or a bottle on which they rubbed a cork1 as an accompaniment1 and sung the song as a morning greeting4 ,thorwaldsen1 in his morning gown1 opened the door1 laughing2 he twirled his black ,raphael's cap1 took a pair of tongs himself1 and accompanied us1 while he danced round and joined the others in the loud hurra6 ,a charming bas-relief1 ,the ,genius of ,poetry1 was just completed2 it was the same that ,thorwaldsen1 on the last day of his life1 bequeathed to ,oehlenschlger1 and said1 ,it may serve as a medal for you4 ,on ,sunday1 ,march #bd1 #ahdd1 a small party of friends were assembled at the residence of ,baron ,stampe1 in ,copenhagen4 ,thorwaldsen was there and was unusually lively1 told stories1 and spoke of a journey that he intended to make to ,italy in the course of the summer4 ,cahn's tragedy of ,griseldis was to be performed for the first time that evening at the theatre4 ,tragedy was not his favorite subject1 but comedy1 and particularly the comedies of ,holberg2 but it was something new that he was to see1 and it had become a sort of habit with him to pass the evening in the theatre4 ,about six o'clock1 therefore1 he went to the theatre alone4 ,the overture had begun2 on entering he shook hands with a few of his friends1 took his usual seat1 stood up again to allow one to pass him1 sat down again1 bent his head1 and was no more6 ,the music continued4 ,those nearest to him thought he was only in a swoon1 and he was borne out2 but he was numbered with the dead4 ,the mournful intelligence of his death soon spread through the country and through all lands2 funeral dirges were sung and funeral festivals were arranged in ,berlin and ,rome2 in the ,danish theatre1 whence his soul took its flight to ,god there was a festival2 the place where he sat was decorated with crape and laurel wreaths1 and a poem by ,heiberg was recited1 in which his greatness and his death were alluded to4 ,the day before ,thorwaldsen's death the interior of his tomb was finished1 for it was his wish that his remains might rest in the centre of the court-yard of the museum2 it was then walled round1 and he begged that there might be a marble edge around it1 and a few rose-trees and flowers planted on it as his monument4 ,the whole building1 with the rich treasures which he presented to his fatherland1 will be his monument2 his works are to be placed in the rooms of the square building that surrounds the open court-yard1 and which1 both internally and externally1 are painted in the ,pompeian style4 ,his arrival in the roads of ,copenhagen and landing at the custom-house form the subjects depicted in the compartments under the windows of one side of the museum4 ,through centuries to come will nations wander to ,denmark2 not allured by our charming green islands1 with their fresh beech-woods alone--no1 but to see these works and this tomb4 ,there is1 however1 one place more that the stranger will visit1 the little spot at ,nyse where his atelier stands1 and where the tree bends its branches over the canal to the solitary swan which he fed4 ,the name of ,thorwaldsen will be remembered in ,england by his statues of ,jason and ,byron2 in ,switzerland1 by his recumbent lion2 in ,roeskilde1 by his figure of ,christian the ,fourth4 ,it will live in every breast in which a love of art is enkindled4 ,,jean-,,fran,,ois ,,millet#f ,footnote #f3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7#ahad-ahge7 ,illustration3 ,jean-,franois ,millet4 ,we read that on one occasion1 when a picture by some ,dutch artist1 representing peasants at their sports1 was shown to ,louis ,,xiv41 he angrily exclaimed1 ,take away those vermin6 ,such subjects had never been chosen by ,french artists1 nor indeed had they been seen anywhere in ,europe before the ,dutch artists began to paint them in the seventeenth century4 ,the ,italian painters of the early and the later ,renaissance1 working almost exclusively for the churches1 or for the palaces of pleasure-loving princes1 did not consider the peasant or the laboring man1 by himself1 a proper subject for his art4 ,if he were introduced at any time into picture or bas-relief1 it was only as a necessary actor in some religious story1 such as ,the ,adoration of the ,shepherds1 or in the representations of the months or the seasons1 as in the ,fountain of the ,public ,square at ,perugia1 where we see the peasant engaged in the labors of the farm or vineyard3 cutting the wheat1 gathering in the grapes1 and treading out the wine1 and1 in the later season1 dressing the hog he has been killing2 for in those less sophisticated times1 ,art1 no more than ,poetry1 despised the ruder side of rustic life4 ,the ,german artists of the sixteenth century introduced peasants and peasant-life into their designs whenever the subject admitted4 ,albert ,drer was especially given to this1 and it often gives a particular savor1 sometimes a half-humorous expression1 to his treatment of even religious subjects2 as where1 in his design1 ,the ,repose in ,egypt1 he shows ,joseph1 the foster-father of ,jesus1 making a water-trough out of a huge log1 and a bevy of cherub-urchins about him gathering up the chips4 ,mary1 meanwhile1 as the peasant mother1 sits by1 spinning and rocking the cradle of the ,holy ,child with her foot4 ,but these examples only serve to make clearer the fact that in the earlier times there was no place found in art for the representation of the laboring man1 whether in the field or in the shop1 except as an illustration of some allegorical or religious theme4 ,nor in the ,dutch pictures that ,louis ,,xiv4 despised1 and that our own time finds so valuable for their artistic qualities1 was there anything outside of their beauty or richness of tone or color to redeem their coarseness and vulgarity4 ,there was no poetry in the treatment1 nor any sympathy with anything higher than the grossest guzzling1 fighting1 and horseplay4 ,the great monarch1 who1 according to his lights1 was a man of delicacy and refinement1 was certainly right in contemning such subjects1 and it is perhaps to his credit that he did not care enough for ,art for ,art's sake to excuse the brutality of the theme for the sake of the beauty of the painting4 ,the next appearance of the peasant in art was of a very different sort1 and represented a very different state of social feeling from the peasants of the ,dutch painters4 ,in the ,salon of #ahej there appeared a picture called ,the ,sower and representing a young peasant sowing grain4 ,there was nothing in the subject to connect it particularly with any religious symbolism--not even with the ,parable of the ,sower who went forth to sow2 nor with any series of personifications of the months4 ,this was a simple peasant of the ,norman coast1 in his red blouse and blue trousers1 his legs wrapped in straw1 and his weather-beaten hat1 full of holes4 ,he marches with the rhythmic step made necessary by his task1 over the downs that top the high cliffs1 followed by a cloud of crows that pounce upon the grain as he sows it4 ,at first sight there would seem to be nothing in this picture to call for particular notice2 but the public1 the artists1 the critics1 were with one accord strongly drawn to it4 ,something in the picture appealed to feelings deeper than mere curiosity1 and an interest was excited such as did not naturally belong to a picture of a man sowing a field of grain4 ,the secret was this3 that a man born and bred in the midst of laboring people1 struggling with the hard necessities of life--himself a laborer1 and one who knew by experience all the lights and shades of the laborer's life--had painted this picture out of his own deep sympathy with his fellows1 and to please himself by reproducing the most significant and poetical act in the life of the farmer4 ,the painter of this picture1 the first man of our time to give the laborer in the fields and on the farm a place in art1 and to set people to thinking about him1 as a man1 not merely as an illustration of some sacred text1 or an image in a book of allegories1 was ,jean-,franois ,millet1 known as the peasant painter of peasants4 ,he was born at ,gruchy1 a small hamlet on the coast of ,normandy1 where his family1 well known in the region for several generations1 lived by the labor of their hands1 cultivating their fields and exercising the simple virtues of that pastoral life1 without ambition and without desire for change4 ,this content was a part of the religion of the country and must not be looked upon as arguing a low state of intelligence or of manners4 ,of their neighbors we have no account1 but the ,millet household contained many of the elements that go to sustain the intellectual no less than the spiritual life4 ,if there was plain living1 there was high thinking2 there were books and of the best1 and more than one member of the circle valued learning for its own sake4 ,millet owed much to his grandmother1 a woman of great strength of character and of a deeply religious nature4 ,as his godmother she gave him his name1 calling him ,jean1 after his father1 and ,franois1 after ,saint ,francis of ,assisi4 ,as is usual in ,catholic countries1 the boy was called after the name of his patron saint1 and in the case of ,millet1 ,saint ,francis1 the ardent lover of nature1 the friend of the birds and of all the animate creation1 was well chosen as the guardian of one who was to prove himself1 all his life1 the passionate lover of nature4 ,the boyhood of ,millet was passed at home4 ,he had no schooling except some small instruction in ,latin from the village priest and from a neighboring curate1 but he made good use of what he learned4 ,he worked on the farm with his father and his men1 ploughing1 harrowing1 sowing1 reaping1 mowing1 winnowing--in a word1 sharing actively and contentedly in all the work that belongs to the farmer's life4 ,and in the long winter evenings or in the few hours of rest that the day afforded1 he would hungrily devour the books that were at hand--the ,lives of the ,saints1 the ,confessions of ,saint ,augustine1 the ,life of ,saint ,jerome1 and especially his letters1 which he read and re-read all his life4 ,these and the philosophers of ,port ,royal1 with ,bossuet1 and ,fnelon1 with the ,bible and ,virgil1 were his mental food4 ,virgil and the ,bible he read always in the ,latin2 he was so familiar with them both that1 when a man1 his biographer1 ,sensier1 says he never met a more eloquent translator of these two books4 ,when the time came1 therefore1 for ,millet to go up to ,paris1 he was not1 as has been said by some writer1 an ignorant peasant1 but a well-taught man who had read much and digested what he had read1 and knew good books from bad4 ,the needs of his narrow life absorbed him so seriously that the seeds of art that lay hid in his nature found a way to the light with difficulty4 ,but his master-passion was soon to assert itself1 and1 as in all such cases1 in an unexpected manner4 ,millet's attempts at drawing had hitherto been confined to studies made in hours stolen from rest4 ,he had copied the engravings found in an old family ,bible1 and he had drawn1 from his window1 the garden1 the stable1 the field running down to the edge of the high cliff1 and with the sea in the horizon1 and he had sometimes tried his hand at sketching the cows and sheep in the pasture4 ,but he was now to take a step in advance4 ,coming home one day from church1 he walked behind an old man bent with age and feebleness1 painfully making his way4 ,the foreshortening and the movement of the man's figure struck the boy forcibly1 and in a flash he discovered the secret of perspective and the mystery of planes4 ,he ran quickly home1 got a pencil and drew from memory a picture of the old man1 so lively in its resemblance that as soon as his parents saw it1 they recognized it and fell a-laughing4 ,talk with his boy revealed to the father his son's strong desire to be an artist2 but before such a serious step could be taken1 it was necessary to consult with some person better able to judge than any one in the ,millet household4 ,cherbourg1 the nearest large town1 was the natural place where to seek advice2 thither ,millet and his father repaired1 the boy with two drawings under his arm that he had made for the occasion1 and these were submitted to the critical eye of ,mouchel1 an old pupil of ,david1 who eked out the scanty living he got by painting by giving lessons in drawing4 ,when the two drawings made by young ,millet were shown him he refused to believe they were the work of the lad of fifteen4 ,the very subjects chosen by the boy showed something out of the common4 ,one was a sort of home idyl3 two shepherds were in a little orchard close1 one playing on the flute1 the other listening2 some sheep were browsing near4 ,the men wore the blouse and wooden shoes of ,millet's country2 the orchard was one that belonged to his father4 ,the other drawing showed a starry night4 ,a man was coming from the house with loaves of bread in his hand which he gave to another man who eagerly received them4 ,underneath1 in ,latin1 were the words from ,st4 ,luke3 ,though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend1 yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth4 ,a friend of ,millet's1 who saw these drawings thirty years after1 said they were the work of a man who already knew the great significance of art1 the effects it was capable of1 and what were its resources4 ,mouchel consented to receive ,millet as a pupil1 but1 as it proved1 he could do little for him in the way of direct teaching4 ,he left the boy free to follow his own devices4 ,he said to him3 ,do whatever you wish2 choose whatever model you find in my studio that pleases you1 and study in the ,museum4 ,this might not be the course to follow with every boy1 but ,mouchel had the artist's penetration and knew with whom he had to deal4 ,the death of ,millet's father interrupted his studies and he returned home for awhile to help his mother on the farm4 ,but it was thought best that he should keep on with the work he had begun4 ,the grandmother urged his return3 ,my ,franois1 she said1 we must accept the will of ,god4 ,thy father1 my son1 ,jean-,louis1 said that you were to be a painter2 obey him1 and go back to ,cherbourg4 ,millet did not need persuasion from his family4 ,friends in ,cherbourg urged him to come back1 promised him commissions1 and assured him a place in the studio of ,langlois1 a painter of a higher grade than ,mouchel1 who had recently set up his easel in the town4 ,once more established at ,cherbourg ,millet continued his studies after the same easy fashion with ,langlois as with his former master4 ,langlois1 who was as much impressed by his pupil's talent as ,mouchel had been and willing to serve him1 made a personal appeal to the mayor and council1 asking that ,millet1 as a promising young artist and one likely to do credit to the town1 might be assisted in going to ,paris to study under better advantages than he could enjoy at home4 ,on the strength of this appeal1 the council of ,cherbourg agreed to allow ,millet an annuity of four hundred francs1 equal to eighty dollars4 ,with this small sum1 and the addition of two hundred francs given him at parting by his mother and grandmother1 making one hundred and twenty dollars in all1 ,millet left his quiet life in ,normandy behind him and set out for ,paris1 where1 as his biographer1 ,sensier1 says1 he was to pass as a captive the richest years of his life4 ,millet was twenty-two years old when he went first to ,paris and he remained there1 with occasional visits to ,gruchy and ,cherbourg1 for the next thirteen years4 ,paris was1 from the first1 more than distasteful to him4 ,he was thoroughly unhappy there4 ,outside the ,louvre and the studios of a few artist-friends1 he found nothing that appealed to what was deepest in him4 ,his first experiences were unusually bitter4 ,the struggle with poverty was hard to bear1 but perhaps a more serious drawback was his want of an aim in art1 of a substantial reason1 so to speak1 for the profession he had chosen1 leading him to one false move after another in search of a subject4 ,unformed and unrecognized in his mind lay the desire to express in art the life he had left behind him in ,normandy2 but it was long before he arrived at the knowledge of himself and of his true vocation4 ,he seems to have had no one in ,paris to guide or direct him1 and he rather stumbled into the studio of ,delaroche1 than entered it deliberately4 ,he made but a brief stay there1 and although he won the respect of his master1 who would willingly have retained him as pupil and assistant1 he was conscious that he learned nothing from ,delaroche2 and accordingly1 in company with another pupil1 ,marolles1 who had taken a great liking to him1 he left the studio without much ceremony2 and the two friends improvised a studio and a lodging for themselves in a garret in a poor quarter of the city1 and began their search for a means of pleasing the public4 ,but the way was not opened to either of them2 they could not sell what they painted1 and they were reduced to serious straits4 ,it was not the fault of the public4 ,marolles was but an indifferent painter at any time1 and ,millet would not have blamed the public for its indifference to subjects in which he himself took no real interest4 ,millet was at a loss what to do for bread4 ,his mind ran back continually to his rural life at ,gruchy4 ,what if ,i should paint men mowing or winnowing8 he said to ,marolles2 their movements are picturesque6 ,you could not sell them1 replied his friend4 ,well1 then1 what do you say to fauns and dryads8 ,who in ,paris cares for fauns and dryads8 ,what shall ,i do1 then8 said ,millet in despair4 ,what does the public like8 ,it likes ,boucher's ,cupids1 ,watteau's ,pastorals1 nudities1 anecdotes1 and copies of the past4 ,it was hard for ,millet1 but hunger drove him4 ,he would not appeal to his family1 life was as difficult for them as for him4 ,but before yielding he would make one more trial1 painting something from his own fancy4 ,he made a small picture representing ,charity--a sad-faced woman cherishing three children in her arms4 ,he carried it to the dealers3 not one of them would buy it4 ,he came back to ,marolles4 ,give me a subject1 he said1 and ,i will paint it4 ,to this time belong the pictures for which ,millet has been much criticised by people who did not appreciate his position4 ,some of them recall ,watteau1 others ,boucher1 but they have a charm1 a grace of their own2 they are far from being copies of these men4 ,others were fanciful subjects to which ,marolles gave names likely to attract the notice of picture-buyers in search of a subject4 ,but all was in vain4 ,the dealers were obstinate3 the public unsympathetic4 ,the highest price that was offered was never above twenty francs1 or five dollars4 ,yet with this in his pocket1 ,millet deemed himself already on the high road to fortune1 and saw the day not distant when he could paint at his pleasure the rustic subjects1 memories of his home1 that had always been in his mind4 ,several times in the course of this hard novitiate1 ,millet had escaped from ,paris for a visit to his own country4 ,at one time he had remained for a year at ,cherbourg1 where he painted portraits for such small sums as he could get1 and here he and one of his sitters1 a young girl of ,cherbourg1 falling in love with one another1 were married4 ,the marriage only added1 as might have been foreseen1 to ,millet's troubles3 his wife's health was always delicate2 after her marriage it became worse1 and she died four years after in ,paris4 ,not long after her death ,millet married again1 and this proved a fortunate venture4 ,his wife came with him to ,paris1 and the struggle with life began anew4 ,the turning-point in the long period of ,millet's uncertainties and disappointments with himself came in #ahdi1 when the political troubles of the time1 and the visit of the cholera1 combined to drive him and his family from ,paris4 ,they took refuge at ,barbizon1 a small hamlet on the outskirts of the ,forest of ,fontainebleau1 and here1 in the place that was to be forever associated with his name and work1 ,millet passed1 with few interruptions1 the remaining years of his life4 ,the phrase so often heard to-day1 ,the ,barbizon ,school1 is rather wider than a strict interpretation would warrant1 since ,millet and ,rousseau were the only ones of the group who lived in the village4 ,corot was not acquainted with ,millet4 ,decamps was never in ,millet's house except as a rare visitor to his studio4 ,diaz lived in ,paris4 ,jacque1 the painter of sheep1 was a friend of ,millet1 and for a time at least lived at ,barbizon in the house where he lodged before he procured a home of his own4 ,the artistic relationship between these artists is slight1 except in the case of ,rousseau and ,diaz1 and even there it is only occasionally to be detected4 ,all these men1 with ,dupr1 ,courbet and ,delacroix1 were counted heretics in art by the ,academy and the official critics1 and as ,millet was the most marked figure in the group and was greatly admired and respected by all who composed it1 it was perhaps natural that they should be considered by the public as disciples of the peasant painter of ,barbizon4 ,here1 then1 at ,barbizon1 ,millet lived for the remaining twenty-seven years of his life1 dividing his day between the labors of his farm in the morning hours1 painting in his studio in the afternoon--he always preferred the half-light for painting--and in the evening enjoying the society of his wife and children and of such friends as might join the circle4 ,occasional visits to ,paris1 to the galleries1 and to the studios of his artist-circle1 kept him in touch with the world to which he belonged4 ,his books1 too1 were his unfailing companions1 though he never cared to stray far beyond the circle of his youthful friendships1 ,homer1 and ,virgil1 and especially the ,bible1 which he looked upon as the book of painters1 the inexhaustible source of the noblest and most touching subjects1 capable of expression in the grandest forms4 ,but it was in the rural life about him1 the life in which he actively shared1 that he found the world wherein he could pour all his thoughts1 feelings1 and experiences with the certainty of seeing them emerge in forms answering to his conception4 ,it was not until he came to ,barbizon that he began truly to live the artist-life as he understood it1 where the work is a faithful reflection of the only things a man really cares for--the things he knows by heart4 ,in the pictures painted at ,barbizon1 and in the multitude of slight sketches for subjects never painted1 with finished drawings and pastels1 ,millet has composed a series of moral eclogues well worthy of a place with those of ,virgil and ,theocritus4 ,all the world knows them2 all the world loves them3 the ,mother ,feeding ,her ,children1 ,the ,peasant ,grafting1 ,the ,first ,step1 ,going to ,work1 ,the ,sower1 ,the ,gleaners1 ,the ,sheep-,shearing1 ,the ,angelus--even to name them would carry us far beyond our limits4 ,they made the fame of ,millet while he still lived1 although the pecuniary reward of his labors was not what they deserved nor what it would have been had he earlier found his true way or had his life been prolonged to the normal limit4 ,he died in #ahge at the age of sixty-one4 ,since his death more than one of his pictures has been sold at a price exceeding all that he earned during his whole lifetime4 ,seen from the world's side1 there was much in his life that was sad and discouraging1 but from the spiritual side there was far more to cheer and uplift4 ,his private life was honorable and happy1 his friends were many and among the chosen ones of the time1 and he had the happiness of seeing his work accepted and rated at something like its true worth before he left it4 ,signature of the author4 ,,meissonier#g ,footnote #g3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7#ahac-ahia7 ,illustration3 ,meissonier4 ,among the many beautiful paintings collected in the ,metropolitan ,museum of ,art of ,new ,york1 there is one that always attracts a crowd1 on the free-days and holidays when the general public finds admission4 ,this is the picture called simply1 ,friedland3 #ahjg1 and representing the soldiers of ,napoleon saluting the emperor at the battle of ,friedland4 ,it was painted by ,jean ,louis ,meissonier for the late ,a4 ,t4 ,stewart1 of ,new ,york1 who paid for it what seemed a very large sum1 #fj1jjj2 but when ,mr4 ,stewart died1 and his pictures were sold at auction1 this painting brought the still larger sum of #ff1jjj1 showing that a great many people admired the work1 and were willing to pay a good price for it4 ,the picture was bought by ,judge ,hilton1 of ,new ,york1 and was presented by him to the ,metropolitan ,museum as a memorial of the long friendship that had existed between himself and ,mr4 ,stewart4 ,no doubt the facts of the high price paid for the picture1 and that a gift of such value should be made to the ,museum1 have caused a great many people to look at the painting with more interest than they would1 had the circumstances been less uncommon4 ,but a great many more people find this picture interesting for its own sake2 they are moved rather by the spirited way in which it tells its story1 and find their curiosity excited by the studious accuracy shown by the artist in the painting of every detail4 ,the scene of the action is a field that has been planted with grain which now lies trampled under the feet of men and horses4 ,the turning-point in the battle has been reached1 and in the joy of coming victory1 the body-guard of the emperor1 spurring their jaded horses to the hillock where he sits on his white charger surrounded by his mounted staff1 salute him with loud cries as they rush madly by him4 ,napoleon1 calm and self-possessed1 returns the salute1 but it is plain his thoughts are busier with the battle that is raging in the distance than with these demonstrations of his body-guard's loyalty4 ,this picture was the favorite work of the artist2 he calls it1 the life and joy of my studio1 and he is said to have worked on it at intervals during fifteen years4 ,illustration3 ,meissonier's ,atelier4 ,somebody has said that genius means nothing but taking pains4 ,in that case1 ,meissonier must have been a man of genius1 for1 with whatever he painted1 were it small or great1 he took infinite pains1 never content until he had done everything in his power to show things exactly as they were4 ,thus1 in the picture we have just been describing1 we may be sure that we know1 from looking at it1 exactly how ,napoleon was dressed on the day of ,friedland1 and also how each member of his military staff was dressed2 not a button1 nor a strap1 nor any smallest detail but has been faithfully copied from the thing itself1 while every head in the group is a trustworthy portrait4 ,when it was not possible to get the actual dress worn by the person he was painting1 ,meissonier spared no pains nor money to obtain an exact copy4 ,how it was in the case of the ,friedland1 we do not know1 but when he painted the ,march to ,paris1 ,meissonier borrowed from the ,museum1 in ,paris1 where relics of all the kings of ,france are kept 7the ,muse des ,souverains71 the famous little gray riding-coat worn by ,napoleon at the battle of the ,pyramids and in other engagements4 ,this coat1 ,meissonier had copied by a tailor1 with the minutest accuracy1 and it was then worn by the model while he was painting the picture4 ,the same pains were taken with the cuirassiers who are dashing across the front of the picture in the ,friedland4 ,as will be seen on looking closely1 one model served for all the men in the front rank1 but as the uniform was the same it was only necessary to vary the attitude4 ,the uniform and all the accoutrements were carefully reproduced by workmen from originals of the time1 borrowed by ,meissonier for the purpose1 and the model was then mounted on a jointed wooden horse and made to take the attitude required3 the action of the horse was as carefully studied from that of the living animal4 ,by the time that ,meissonier came to paint this picture1 he was so famous an artist1 and had gained such a place in the world1 that he could have almost anything he asked for to aid him in his work4 ,so1 when1 with the same desire for accuracy that he had shown in painting other parts of the picture1 he came to paint the trampled grain1 the ,government1 or so we are told1 bought the use of a field of ripe grain and lent ,meissonier the services of a company of cuirassiers who were set to dashing about in it until they had got it into proper condition4 ,we can see that the cost of all this accuracy would1 in the end1 amount to a considerable sum1 and when we reckon the time of an artist so distinguished as ,meissonier1 it is not so surprising as it may have appeared at first1 that his picture should have brought so much money4 ,of course1 ,meissonier did not come all at once to fame and prosperity4 ,the rewards he gained were such as are earned only by hard and constant labor4 ,when he came to ,paris about the year #ahcb1 from ,lyons1 where he was born1 he was about nineteen years old4 ,his parents were in humble circumstances1 and would seem to have been able to do nothing to advance the lad1 who arrived in ,paris with little money in his pocket1 and with no friends at hand4 ,he had1 however1 the materials out of which friends and money are made3 health1 a generous spirit1 energy1 and a clear purpose1 and with these he went to work4 ,we do not hear much about his early life in ,paris4 ,when he first appears in sight1 he is working in the same studio with ,daubigny1 the landscape-painter1 the two painting pictures for a dollar the square yard1 religious pictures probably1 and probably also copies1 to be sent into the country and hung up in the parish churches4 ,although this may have seemed like hardship at the time1 yet there is no doubt it was good practice1 for among artists we are told it is an accepted doctrine that in order to paint on a small scale really well1 you must be able to paint on a larger4 ,and it is said that ,meissonier was in the habit all his life of making life-size studies in order to keep his style from falling into pettiness4 ,so1 after all1 the painting of these big pictures may have been a useful ordeal for the artist who for the next sixty years was to reap fame by painting small ones4 ,while he was earning a scanty living by this hack-work1 ,meissonier found time to paint two pictures which he sent to the ,salon of #ahcf4 ,one of these attracted the attention of a clever artist1 ,tony ,johannot1 who introduced him to ,lon ,cogniet1 with whom he studied for a time1 but from whom he learned but little4 ,the mechanism of his art he had pretty well mastered already1 as was shown by the ,salon accepting his early pictures1 and the chief advantage he gained from his stay in ,cogniet's studio was a wider acquaintance with the world of artists2 for ,cogniet was a favorite teacher1 and had a great many pupils1 not a few of whom became distinguished painters4 ,but his style of painting was not one to attract ,meissonier1 who was ambitious to paint like the old ,dutch artists1 ,terburg1 ,metzu1 ,mieris1 and others1 who have the charm that their pictures are finished with the most exquisite minuteness1 and yet treated in such a large way that1 after awhile1 we forget the microscopic wonder of the performance and think only of the skill the artist has shown in painting character4 ,meissonier was the first artist to bring back into favor the ,dutch school of painting of the seventeenth century4 ,louis ,,xiv41 who set the fashion in everything in his day1 had set the fashion of despising the ,dutch painters1 and the ,french people had never unlearned the lesson4 ,it was ,meissonier who brought back the taste1 and taught the public to admire these small panels where interest in the subject is for the most part lost in the exquisite beauty of the painting and where the ,dutch painters of similar subjects are successfully met on their own ground and equalled in every respect except in the charm of color4 ,there is an old saying3 ,imitation is the sincerest mode of flattery2 and ,meissonier's immediate success with the public was the signal for a bevy of imitators to try to win a like success by like methods4 ,some of these artists were very clever1 but an imitator is but an imitator after all1 and is more apt to call attention to his model than to himself4 ,it must be admitted that ,meissonier himself has suffered somewhat in the same way3 the evident fact that his methods of painting were inspired by the study of the ,dutch masters has led to his being called an imitator1 and his pictures are often compared1 and not to their advantage1 with those of his models4 ,meissonier is1 however1 very much more than an imitator2 he was inspired by the ,dutch painters1 but he soon found a way of his own1 and he has put so much of himself into his work1 that the charge of imitation long since ceased to be brought against him4 ,while he was still not much known to the public1 the ,duke of ,orleans bought of him1 for six hundred francs1 a picture that to-day is worth thirty thousand francs4 ,as is usual in such affairs1 the purchase was made1 not by the duke in person1 but by an agent3 in this case1 it was his secretary1 ,m4 ,adaline1 who bought the picture from ,meissonier1 who as an acknowledgment of the service gave the secretary a water-color drawing which1 to-day1 like everything coming from the hand of ,meissonier1 would bring the owner a good round sum if offered for sale4 ,in #ahfe1 ,meissonier's son ,charles1 himself a very good painter1 went to a costume-ball dressed like a ,fleming of the seventeenth century and looking as if he had stepped out of a picture by ,terburg4 ,the costume had been made with the greatest accuracy1 and ,meissonier was so pleased with his son's appearance that he made a study and sold it for two thousand francs4 ,twenty years after1 in #ahhd1 hearing that it was to be sold at auction1 and desiring1 out of affection for his son1 to have the study back again1 he asked his friend1 ,m4 ,petit1 to buy it for him1 at whatever cost4 ,a rich ,parisian1 ,m4 ,secretan1 who had a collection of pictures since become famous--it was to him that ,millet's ,l',angelus belonged--and who had such an admiration for ,meissonier and his work that he had paid no less than four hundred thousand francs for his picture ,les ,cuirassiers1 hearing from ,m4 ,petit of ,meissonier's desire for the portrait of his son1 bought the picture for twenty-five thousand francs and presented it to the artist4 ,these stories are told only as illustrations of the growth of ,meissonier's reputation and of the increased number of people who desire to have an example of his work4 ,the rise in value of a small sketch of a single figure1 from #ejj to #e1jjj1 in fifteen years1 is no greater in proportion than has happened in the case of every one of ,meissonier's pictures1 drawings1 studies1 and even his slight sketches1 on some of which originally he would have placed no value at all4 ,yet everything he left behind him1 even unconsidered trifles1 are found to be of value1 and the sale of the contents of his studio just ended in ,paris brought nearly five hundred thousand francs1 although the collection contained not a single finished picture of importance1 but was made up almost entirely of unfinished studies and of sketches4 ,meissonier's industry was constant and untiring4 ,it is told of him that he rarely had the pencil or the brush out of his hand when in the house1 and that when he called at a friend's house and was kept waiting he used the spare minutes in sketching upon the first piece of paper that he found at hand4 ,one of his friends1 who knew of this habit1 collected in the course of many visits he received from the artist enough of these scraps to fill a small album2 while it is told of another of his friends that he instructed his servant to put beside ,meissonier's coffee-cup after dinner a number of bits of paper of the size of cigarette-papers but of better quality on which ,meissonier in his absent way would fall to drawing as he chatted with his companions4 ,after dinner these jottings remained as a valuable memorial of his visit4 ,perhaps if they were all collected1 these slight affairs might bring enough at auction to pay for all the dinners to which the prudent host had invited the artist4 ,the world of subjects included in ,meissonier's art was a very narrow one1 and was not calculated to interest men and women in general4 ,the nearest that he came to striking the popular note was in his ,napoleon subjects1 and beside the excellence of the painting1 these pictures really make a valuable series of historical documents by reason of their accuracy4 ,but the greater number of the pictures which he left behind him are chiefly interesting from the beautiful way in which they are painted3 we accept the subject for the sake of the art4 ,the world rewarded him for all this patient labor1 this exquisite workmanship1 by an immense fortune that enabled him to live in splendor1 and to be generous without stint4 ,from the humble lodgings of his youth in the ,rue des ,ecouffes1 he passed1 in time1 to the palace in the ,place ,malsherbes where he spent the latter half of his long life in luxurious surroundings3 pictures and statues1 rich furniture1 tapestries and armor and curiosities of art from every land4 ,but the visitor1 after passing through all this splendor1 came upon the artist in a studio1 ample and well lighted indeed1 but furnished only for work1 where1 to the end of his life1 he pursued his industrious calling with all the energy and ardor of youth4 ,he died in #ahia1 and was buried by the government with all the honors that befitted one of her most illustrious citizens4 ,signature of the author4 ,,rosa ,,bonheur#h ,footnote #h3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7,,born #ahbb7 ,a girl of something over ten1 of sturdy build1 with a dark complexion1 deep blue eyes1 and strong features crowned by a head of clustering curls1 is sitting in the window of a plainly furnished room1 high up in an apartment-house in ,paris4 ,in a cage at her side is a parrot1 which1 with its head on one side1 is gravely calling out the letters of the alphabet1 while the child as gravely repeats them1 interrupting the lesson every now and then by a visit to the other side of the room1 where a pet lamb greets its young mistress with a friendly bleat4 ,this is our first glimpse of ,rosalie1 known now to all the world as ,rosa ,bonheur1 the painter of ,the ,horse ,fair and of many another picture1 which have earned for her the distinction of the best animal-painter of her time4 ,her father's family belonged to ,bordeaux4 ,raymond ,bonheur had gone up as a youth to ,paris to study art4 ,after the usual apprenticeship to privation which art exacts from her servants1 he had become moderately successful1 when the condition of his parents1 now old and poorly-off1 moved him to return to ,bordeaux and do what he could to make their life easier4 ,as the chances for a professional artist were small1 he adopted the modest employment of drawing-teacher4 ,his skill soon brought him pupils2 among them a young lady from ,altona1 between whom and her teacher a mutual interest sprang up which led to their marriage4 ,raymond ,bonheur brought his wife home to his father's house1 where she was welcomed as a daughter1 and for the brief term of her life all went well4 ,what the husband earned by his drawing-lessons1 the wife supplemented by her lessons in music2 but this happiness was not to last4 ,the parents of ,raymond ,bonheur died1 and then1 after not more than twelve years of marriage1 the wife died1 leaving behind her four children1 ,rosalie1 ,francois-,auguste1 ,jules-,isidore1 and ,juliette4 ,illustration3 ,rosa ,bonheur4 ,rosalie is the best known of these four children of ,raymond ,bonheur2 but each of them has honorably connected his name with the art of modern ,france4 ,francois-,auguste has a reputation as an animal-painter almost equal to that of his sister ,rosa4 ,a fine picture painted by him1 ,cattle in the ,forest of ,fontainebleau1 was once the property of the late ,a4 ,t4 ,stewart4 ,his merit secured him the ,cross of the ,legion of ,honor in #ahfg4 ,he died in #ahhj4 ,the other brother1 ,jules-,isidore1 has gained distinction as a sculptor of animals2 most of his work is on a small scale1 but he has designed some large pieces that decorate his sister's chteau near ,fontainebleau4 ,juliette ,bonheur married a ,m4 ,peyrol1 and joining her family-name to his1 is known in the art-world as ,mme4 ,peyrol ,bonheur4 ,it is thus she signs her pictures1 mostly still-life and animal subjects1 which have gained for her a good position among the minor artists of ,france4 ,rosa1 the eldest of the family1 born in #ahbb1 was ten years old when her mother died4 ,not long after1 ,raymond ,bonheur decided to leave ,bordeaux and to return to ,paris1 where the chances for professional success were better than in a provincial town1 and where there were greater opportunities for the education of his young children4 ,the change proved very distasteful1 however1 to the little ones4 ,accustomed to the comparative freedom of the town in which they had been brought up1 and where their family had been so long rooted that their circle of friends and relatives gave them playmates and companions in plenty1 they found themselves very lonely in ,paris1 where they were reduced for a good part of the time to such amusement as they could find in the narrow quarters of their rooms on the sixth floor of an apartment-house4 ,it is not the custom in ,paris for the children1 even of the poor1 to make a playground of the street1 and our little ones had nobody to walk out with them but an old servant who had come with them from ,bordeaux1 and who was ill-fitted1 for all her virtues1 to take a mother's place to the children4 ,she was honest and faithful1 but like all of her class1 she liked routine and order1 and she could make no allowances for the restlessness of her bright-minded charge4 ,rosa was her especial torment2 the black sheep of the brood4 ,household tasks she despised1 and study1 as it was pursued in the successive schools to which her despairing father sent her1 had no charms for her4 ,her best playmates were animals2 the horses and dogs she saw in the streets and which she fearlessly accosted2 the sheep that found itself queerly lodged on the top floor of a city house2 and the parrot which1 as we have seen1 was not only her playmate but her schoolmaster4 ,there came a time when the charge of such a child1 so averse to rules and so given to strange ways of passing her time1 became too much for the old servant with her orthodox views of life1 and she persuaded ,rosa's father to put her as a day-scholar with the nuns at ,chaillot1 a small suburb of ,paris4 ,how it happened that she was allowed to go back and forth alone1 between home and school1 we do not know2 but it is not to be wondered at if she were irregular in her hours2 if1 one day1 she set the nuns wondering why she did not appear at school-opening1 and another day put the old servant into a twitter because she did not come home in season4 ,the truth was1 she had found that there was something better in ,paris than streets and shops and tall houses2 she had discovered a wood there1 a veritable forest1 with trees1 and pools of water1 and birds1 and wild flowers1 and though this enchanted spot which citizens called the ,bois de ,boulogne--not then a formal park as it is to-day--was off the road to ,chaillot1 yet it was not so far that she need fear getting lost in going there or in coming back4 ,no wonder1 then1 if1 once this way discovered of escape from tiresome school duties1 it was travelled so often by ,rosalie1 and that her school-work became in consequence so unsatisfactory that at length the patient nuns remonstrated4 ,they advised ,rosa's father1 since she neither would nor could learn anything from books1 that it would be better to put her to some useful trade by which she might earn her living2 and the good sisters suggested--dressmaking6 ,the wisdom of these ladies1 who could not see that they were dealing with the last woman in the world to whom dressmaking could be interesting1 was matched by that of the father1 who showed himself so blind to the character of his daughter that he resolved to act at once upon the advice of the nuns2 and without consulting the wishes of poor ,rosalie he apprenticed her straightway to a ,parisian dressmaker4 ,the docile girl allowed the yoke to be slipped over her head without complaint1 but the confinement wore upon her health and spirits1 and after a short trial the experiment had to be abandoned4 ,her father yielded to her entreaties and took her home4 ,illustration3 ,rosa ,bonheur4 ,the girl was long in coming to a knowledge of herself4 ,although she was to be1 in time1 a famous artist1 the familiar legend of the biographers is wanting in her case2 we read nothing about scribbled books or walls defaced by childish sketches1 nor does she appear to have handled a pencil or a brush until she was a girl well grown4 ,her father's means were not sufficient to give ,rosa or his other children an education such as he could wish2 but an expedient suggested itself in his perplexity over this latest experiment in providing for his eldest daughter3 he proposed to the principal of a young ladies' school where he taught drawing1 that his services should be accepted in payment of ,rosa's education4 ,the offer was accepted1 and in the regular course of study ,rosa became a member of her father's drawing-class4 ,it was not long before she surpassed all her school-fellows in that department1 and found herself for the first time in her life in possession of the key to that happiness which consists in knowing what we can do1 and feeling the strength within us to do it4 ,some of the biographers of ,rosa's life speak of unhappy days at this school3 the richer girls made sport of the dress of the drawing-master's daughter1 and of her independent1 awkward ways4 ,her progress in drawing1 too1 was counterbalanced by her slowness in her other studies2 in fact her new accomplishment was such a delight to her1 that in her devotion to it she became less and less interested in her books2 and as for dress--that it should be clean and suited both to her means and to the work she was doing1 was all that concerned her1 then or since6 ,at the end of her first year in school1 ,rosa obtained her father's permission to give up her other studies and to enter his studio as pupil and assistant4 ,from that time1 though as yet she had not found the reason of her vocation1 yet her true life had begun4 ,she worked diligently under the direction of a master she loved1 and her father1 in his turn1 delighted at the discovery of a talent so long hid1 redoubled his efforts to advance his pupil and to make up for lost time4 ,rosa worked for some months at copying in the ,louvre1 but though she worked with such diligence and skill as to win the praise of the director1 she came1 after a time1 to feel that the mere copying of the works of other men1 however great1 was not the goal she was striving after2 so one day she took a sudden determination1 left the ,louvre1 packed up her painting materials1 and started off for one of the rural suburbs of ,paris1 where she sat herself down to sketch from nature4 ,her love of animals1 hitherto an aimless pleasure1 now took on a new phase as she saw her beloved cows and sheep in their place in nature giving life and animation to the landscape4 ,in the winter season1 when work out-of-doors was no longer pleasant or profitable1 ,rosa made what use she could of the few opportunities ,paris had to offer for the study of animals4 ,she spent what time she could spare from work at the horse-market2 she visited the slaughter-houses1 and the suburban fairs where cattle and horses1 sheep and pigs compete for prizes1 and in these places she filled her portfolios with sketches4 ,in #ahdj she sent her first picture to the ,salon1 and as it was accepted and well received1 she continued to send her work every year2 but1 up to #ahdi1 her pictures were small1 and had little more interest than belongs to simple studies from nature2 #ahdi was a memorable year to her1 as it was to ,france4 ,in this year her father died of cholera1 just as he had been appointed director of the ,school of ,design for ,young ,girls4 ,rosa was appointed to succeed him with the title of ,honorary ,directress1 and her sister ,juliette was made a teacher in the school4 ,in the same year she exhibited the picture that may be said to have made her reputation with the artists and amateurs1 as well as with the general public4 ,this was her ,oxen of ,cantal1 a picture that combined with no little feeling for landscape the most admirable painting of cattle in repose4 ,its high qualities were immediately recognized4 ,horace ,vernet1 in the name of the ,provisional ,government1 presented her with a handsome vase of ,svres porcelain1 and the gold medal for painting4 ,in #ahea1 the jury selected for exhibition at the ,world's ,fair in ,london another picture by ,rosa1 ,ploughing in the ,nivernais1 which made the artist's name known to ,england1 where the national love of animals secured for her no end of praise and of substantial reward4 ,in #ahef ,rosa painted her most popular picture1 ,the ,horse ,fair1 now in the ,metropolitan ,museum4 ,this painting went from ,paris to ,london1 where it was bought for rising #a1ejj1 and created such an interest in the artist's personality as would have turned the head of any ordinary woman2 but ,rosa ,bonheur's whole life proves her no ordinary woman4 ,for many years ,mlle4 ,bonheur lived in ,paris in a house surrounded by a large garden where she kept a number of animals1 partly for the pleasure of their companionship1 partly for the opportunity it gave her of studying their habits1 and using them as models4 ,she now resides in the ,chteau ,by1 near ,fontainebleau1 where she leads the same industrious life in her advancing years that she did in the beginning of her career4 ,she rises early1 and works at her painting all day1 and often spends the evening in drawing3 for she takes but little interest in what is called society1 and cares only for the companionship of her intimate friends1 which she can enjoy without disarranging her life1 or neglecting the studies she loves4 ,she dresses with great simplicity at all times1 and even when she accepts invitations1 makes no concessions to the caprices of fashion4 ,in her student-days1 when visiting the abattoirs1 markets1 and fairs1 she accustomed herself to wear such a modification of man's dress as would permit her to move about among rough men without compromising her sex4 ,but1 beside that her dignity was always safe in her own keeping1 she bears testimony to the good manners and the good dispositions of the men she came in contact with4 ,rosa ,bonheur has always been an honor to art and an honor to her sex4 ,at seventy-two she finds herself in the enjoyment of many things that go to make a happy life4 ,she has a well-earned fame as an artist2 an abundant fortune gained by her own industry and used as honorably as it has been gained2 and she has troops of friends drawn to her by her solid worth of character4 ,of the great number of pictures ,rosa ,bonheur has painted1 by far the most are of subjects found in ,france1 but a few of the best were painted in ,scotland4 ,she has received many public honors in medals and decorations4 ,in #ahef1 after painting the ,horse ,fair1 the ,empress ,eugnie visited her at her studio and bestowed upon her the ,cross of the ,legion of ,honor1 fastening the decoration to the artist's dress with her own hands4 ,when the invading army of ,prussia reached ,paris1 the ,crown ,prince gave orders that the studio of ,rosa ,bonheur should be respected4 ,but though she1 no doubt1 holds all these honors at their worth1 yet she holds still more dear the art to which she owes1 not only these1 but all that has made her life a treasury of happy remembrances4 ,signature of the author4 ,g,r,,me#i ,footnote #i3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7,,born #ahbd7 ,illustration3 ,grme4 ,in the ,paris ,salon of #ahdg1 a small picture appeared1 representing a ,greek boy and girl stirring up two game-cocks to fight4 ,although it was the work of an unknown painter1 and had to contend with an unusually brilliant display of pictures1 many of them by men already famous1 yet it strongly attracted the general public1 partly by the novelty of the subject1 and partly by the careful and finished manner of the painting4 ,it delighted the critics as well1 and one of the most distinguished of them1 ,thophile ,gautier1 wrote3 ,a new ,greek is born to us1 and his name is ,grme6 ,this picture1 which was to prove the first leaf in a laurel-crown to be awarded the painter in his lifetime1 and not1 as is so often the case1 by the tardy hand of ,death1 was the work of ,jean-,lon ,grme1 a young man of twenty-three4 ,he had been for six years under the teaching of ,paul ,delaroche1 part of the time in ,italy1 but most of it in ,paris4 ,he was born at ,vesoul1 a small1 dull town in the ,department of ,haute-,sane1 in #ahbd4 ,his father was a goldsmith1 who1 like most ,french fathers in his rank of life1 had hoped to bring up his son to succeed him in his business4 ,the boy did for a time1 we believe1 work in his father's shop1 but he had a stronger natural bent for painting2 something perhaps in the occupation fostered1 or even created1 this taste--for not a few distinguished painters have been apprenticed to the goldsmith's trade--and his father1 like a wise man1 instead of opposing his son's wishes1 did what he could to further them4 ,he bought him painting-materials2 and instead of sending him to a school of design1 or putting him under the tutelage of some third-rate drawing-master1 such as is commonly found in country towns1 he bought him a picture by ,decamps1 an artist since become famous1 but then just in the dawn of his fame1 and put it before his son as a model4 ,young ,grme made a copy of this picture1 and an artist from ,paris1 who happened to be passing through ,vesoul1 saw it1 and discerning the boy's talent1 gave him a letter to ,paul ,delaroche1 encouraging him to go to ,paris and there to take up the study of art as a profession4 ,at seventeen years of age1 with his father's consent and #bej in his pocket1 ,grme went up to ,paris1 and presenting his letter to ,delaroche1 was well received by him1 and entered the ,school of ,fine ,arts 7cole des ,beaux-,arts7 as his pupil4 ,he had been with ,delaroche three years and had proved himself one of the most loyal and diligent of his pupils1 when an event occurred1 insignificant in itself1 but which was to have an important influence upon his life and give a new direction to his talent4 ,french studios are not as a rule very orderly places4 ,the young men who frequent them are left pretty much to themselves1 with no one to govern them or to oversee them4 ,the artist they are studying under makes1 at the most1 a brief daily visit1 going the round of the easels1 saying a word or two to each pupil1 although it often happens that he says nothing1 and then departs for his proper work1 leaving his pupils to their own devices4 ,the students are for the most part like young men everywhere1 a turbulent set1 full of animal spirits1 which sometimes carry them beyond reasonable bounds4 ,it was a boisterous outbreak of this sort1 but far wilder than common1 that occurred in the studio of ,delaroche1 and which brought about the crisis in ,grme's life to which we have alluded4 ,fortunately for him1 the incident took place while ,grme was on a visit to his parents at ,vesoul1 so that he was in no way implicated in the affair4 ,he came back to find the studio closed2 ,delaroche1 deeply disturbed1 had dismissed all his pupils and announced his intention to visit ,italy4 ,his studio was to be taken during his absence1 by ,gleyre1 and he advised those of his pupils in whom he took a personal interest1 to continue their studies under his successor4 ,grme was one of those to whom he gave this advice1 but ,grme was too much attached to his master to leave him for another1 and bluntly announced his purpose of following him to ,rome4 ,a few of the other pupils of ,delaroche were of the same mind1 and they all set out for ,italy together4 ,arrived in ,rome1 ,grme1 always a hard worker1 threw himself energetically into his studies2 drawing the ancient buildings1 the ,capitol1 the ,colosseum2 sketching in the ,forum and on the ,campagna2 copying the pictures and the statues1 saturating his mind in the spirit of antique art1 and schooling his hand in its forms1 until he had laid up a rich store of material for use in future pictures4 ,on his return to ,paris he worked for a while in ,gleyre's studio1 but when ,delaroche came back from ,italy1 ,grme again joined him and renewed his old relation as pupil and assistant--working1 among other tasks1 on the painting of ,charlemagne ,crossing the ,alps1 a commission given to ,delaroche by the ,government1 for the ,grande ,galerie des ,batailles at ,versailles3 a vast apartment lined with pictures of all the victories of the ,french from ,soissons to ,solferino4 ,such work as this1 however1 had little interest for ,grme4 ,his mind at this time was full of the ,greeks and ,romans2 his enthusiasm for ,napoleon1 which later was to give birth to so many pictures1 had not yet awakened2 nor did he care for the subjects from the histories of ,france and ,england in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries1 that had provided his master1 ,delaroche1 with so many tragic themes for his pencil3 ,the ,death of the ,duke of ,guise1 ,the ,children of ,edward1 the ,death of ,queen ,elizabeth1 ,the ,execution of ,lady ,jane ,grey1 ,cromwell at the ,coffin of ,charles ,i41 and others of the same strain4 ,grme's visit to ,italy had awakened in him a strong interest in the life of the antique world1 and this would naturally be strengthened by all that he would hear and see of the growing interest of the public in the same subject3 an interest kindled by the discoveries of archaeologists in classic soil3 in ,greece and ,italy1 in ,assyria and ,egypt4 ,these discoveries had filled the museums and the cabinets of private collectors with beautiful and interesting fragments illustrating the external life of the past1 and illuminating its poetry2 and it is no wonder that some of the younger artists rejoiced in the new world of anecdote and story that opened so richly before them4 ,however it came about--whether his own interest in the antique life communicated itself to his fellows1 or whether they1 all together1 simply shared in the interest taken in the subject by the world about them--,grme and some of his companions in ,delaroche's studio showed such a predilection for classic themes1 that they were nicknamed by the critics ,the ,new ,greeks4 ,among ,grme's fellow-pupils were two young men1 ,hamon and ,aubert1 who later gained no small applause by their playful and familiar way of treating classic themes4 ,they are well known to us by engravings from their pictures1 which are in all our shops4 ,hamon's ,my ,sister is not at home1 and ,aubert's various pretty fancies of nymphs and cupids1 while they are not great works of art1 are reasonably sure of a long life1 due to their innocent freshness and simplicity4 ,delaroche's pupils were working all together in friendly competition for the grand ,roman prize which was to give the fortunate one the right to four years' study in ,rome at the expense of the state4 ,grme's studio was shared by his friends ,picou and ,hamon4 ,hamon1 writing in later years about his youthful days1 says3 ,companions and rivals at the same time1 we were all working together for the ,grand ,prix de ,rome4 ,grme inspired us all with the love of hard work1 and of hard work to the accompaniment of singing and laughing4 ,but in the intervals of his hard work for the prize1 ,grme was also working on a picture which he hoped to have accepted for the ,salon4 ,this was the picture we spoke of in the beginning of this notice3 ,two ,young ,greeks stirring-up ,game-cocks to fight4 ,when it was finished ,grme showed it to his master with many misgivings2 but ,delaroche encouraged him to send it to the ,salon4 ,it was accepted1 and as we have seen1 won for ,grme a great success with the public4 ,the next year1 #ahdh1 he again exhibited1 but the impression he made was less marked than on the first occasion4 ,his former picture had a subject such as it was1 of his own devising4 ,the ,cock-fight was not an illustration of any passage in ,greek poetry1 and in spite of its antique setting1 it had a modern air1 and to this1 no doubt1 its popularity was largely due4 ,but in #ahdh he essayed an illustration of the ,greek poet1 ,anacreon1 translating into picture the poem that tells how1 one winter evening1 sitting by his fire1 the old poet was surprised by a sound of weeping outside his door1 and opening it1 found ,cupid wet and shivering and begging for a shelter from the cold4 ,the man takes the pretty1 dimpled mischief to his bosom1 warms his feet and hands at the fire1 dries his bow and arrows1 and lets him sip wine from his cup4 ,then1 when ,cupid is refreshed and warmed1 he tries his arrows1 now here1 now there1 and at last aims one straight at his benefactor's heart1 and laughing at the jest1 flies out at the open door4 ,grme's picture was in three panels4 ,the first showed the poet opening the door to the sobbing ,cupid1 with his bedraggled wings and dripping curls2 in the next1 the rosy ingrate wounds his benefactor2 in the third1 the poet sits disconsolate by his hearth1 musing over the days when ,love was his guest1 if but for an hour4 ,as the story was an old one1 so many an artist before ,grme had played with it as a subject for a picture4 ,jean-,franois ,millet himself1 another pupil of ,delaroche1 though earlier than ,grme1 had tried his hand at illustrating ,anacreon's fable before he found his proper field of work in portraying the occupations of the men and women about him1 the peasants among whom he was born and bred4 ,grme's picture did nothing to advance his fortunes with the public4 #ahdh was a stormy time in ,france and in all ,europe1 and people were not in the mood to be amused with such trifles as ,anacreon and his ,cupid4 ,the pictures in that year's ,salon that drew the public in crowds about them were ,couture's ,the ,romans of the ,decline of the ,empire1 in which all ,paris saw1 or thought it saw1 the handwriting-on-the-wall for the government of ,louis-,philippe2 and the ,shipwrecked ,sailors in a ,bark1 of ,delacroix1 a wild and stormy scene of terror that seemed to echo the prophecies of evil days at hand for ,france with which the time was rife4 ,grme's next picture1 however1 was to bring him once more before the public1 and to carry his name beyond his native ,france even as far as ,america4 ,leaving for the nonce his chosen field of antiquity1 where yet he was to distinguish himself1 he looked for a subject in the ,paris of his own day4 ,the ,duel after the ,masquerade opens for us a corner of the ,bois de ,boulogne--the fashionable park on the outskirts of ,paris--where in the still dawn of a winter's day1 a group of men are met to witness a duel between two of their companions who have quarrelled at a masked ball4 ,the ground is covered with a light fall of snow2 the bare branches of the trees weave their network across the gray sky1 and in the distance we see the carriages that have brought the disputants to the field4 ,the duel is over4 ,one of the men1 dressed in the costume of ,pierrot1 the loose white trousers and slippers1 the baggy white shirt1 and white skull-cap1 falls1 mortally wounded1 into the arms of his second3 the pallor of coming death masked by the white-painted face4 ,the other combatant1 a ,mohawk ,indian 7once a staple character at every masked-ball in ,paris3 curious survival of the popularity of ,cooper's novels71 is led wounded off the field by a friend dressed as ,harlequin4 ,grme in this striking picture showed for the first time that talent as a story-teller to which he is so largely indebted for his reputation4 ,whatever his subject may be1 it is always set forth in the clearest manner1 so that everyone may understand the story without the need of an interpreter4 ,leaving out of view the few pictures he painted illustrating passages in ,napoleon's career1 it may be said that ,grme's taste led him away from scenes of modern life2 for even his many oriental subjects so relate to forms of life belonging in reality to the past1 that they make no exception to the statement4 ,he did not therefore follow up ,the ,duel with other comments on the follies of modern society--for in the temper of that time this picture1 like ,couture's ,roman ,orgie and ,millet's ,man with the ,hoe1 was looked upon as a satire and a warning1 and owed its popularity as much to this conviction on the part of the public as to its pictorial merits--but returned to antique times1 and showed in his treatment of themes from that source an equal1 if not a greater power to interest the public4 ,grme's two pictures1 the ,ave ,csar6 ,morituri te ,salutant1 ,hail1 ,csar6 ,those about to die1 salute ,thee1 and ,the ,gladiators1 are so universally known as to need no description4 ,whatever criticism may be made upon them1 they will always remain interesting to the world at large2 from their subject1 from the way in which the discoveries of archology are made familiar1 and1 not least1 from the impression they make of the artist's own strong interest in what he had to say4 ,in both pictures he succeeded in showing the ,colosseum as no longer a ruin1 but as1 so to speak1 a living place peopled by the swarm of the ,roman populace1 with the emperor and his court1 and the ,college of the ,vestal ,virgins1 and1 for chief actors1 the hapless wretches who are butchered to make a ,roman holiday4 ,another picture that greatly increased ,grme's reputation1 was his ,death of ,julius ,csar1 though it must be confessed there was a touch of the stage in the arrangement of the scene1 and in the action of the body of senators and conspirators leaving the hall with brandished swords and as if singing in chorus1 that was absent from the pictures of the amphitheatre4 ,there was also less material for the curiosity of the lovers of archology2 no such striking point1 for instance1 as the reproduction of the gladiators' helmets and armor recently discovered in ,herculaneum2 but the body of the dead ,csar lying even at the base of ,pompey's statue with his face muffled in his toga1 was a masterly performance2 some critic1 moved by the grandeur of the lines1 said it was not a mere piece of foreshortening1 it was a perspective4 ,grme made a life-size painting of the ,csar in this picture4 ,it is in the ,corcoran ,gallery at ,washington4 ,grme painted several other pictures from classic subjects1 but none of them had the interest for the general public of those we have described4 ,in #ahed he exhibited a huge canvas1 called ,the ,age of ,augustus1 a picture suggested1 perhaps1 by the ,hemicycle of his master ,delaroche1 on which he himself had painted4 ,it represented heroes1 poets1 sages1 of the ,augustan age1 grouped about the cradle of the infant ,christ2 it procured for ,grme the red ribbon of the ,legion of ,honor1 and is now1 as the artist himself jestingly says1 the 'greatest' picture in the ,museum of ,amiens4 ,in the same year ,grme went to ,egypt for the first time2 since then he has more than once visited it1 but it is doubtful if he could renew the pleasure of his youthful experience4 ,i set out1 he says1 with my friends1 ,i the fifth1 all of us lightly furnished with money1 but full of youthful enthusiasm4 ,life was then easy in ,egypt2 we lived at a very moderate rate2 we hired a boat and lived four months upon the ,nile1 hunting1 painting1 fishing by turns1 from ,damietta to ,phil4 ,we returned to ,cairo and remained there four months longer in a house in the older part of the town1 belonging to ,soleman ,pasha4 ,as ,frenchmen1 he treated us with cordial hospitality4 ,happy period of youth1 of freedom from care6 ,hope and the future opened bright before us2 the sky was blue6 ,grme's pictures of ,eastern life make a gallery by themselves4 ,a few of them are historic1 such as his ,cleopatra visiting ,csar1 but the most of them are simply scenes and incidents drawn from the daily life of the modern inhabitants of ,cairo and the desert1 illustrating their manners and customs4 ,the mere titles would fill up a large part of our space4 ,many of the best of them are owned in this country1 and all have been reproduced by engraving or by photography4 ,in another field ,grme won great distinction1 painting scenes from the history of ,france in the reign of ,louis ,,xiv42 subjects drawn from what may be called the high comedy of court-life1 and treated by ,grme with remarkable refinement and distinction4 ,among these pictures the best known are3 ,molire ,breakfasting with ,louis ,,xiv41 illustrating the story of the king's rebuke to his courtiers who affected to despise the man of genius2 ,pre ,joseph1 the priest who under the guise of humility and self-abnegation reduces the greatest nobles to the state of lackeys2 ,louis ,,xiv4 ,receiving the ,great ,cond1 and ,collaboration1 two poets of ,louis ,,xiv4's time working together over a play4 ,among his accomplishments as an artist we must not forget the talent that ,grme has shown as a sculptor4 ,he has modelled several figures from his own pictures1 with such admirable skill as to prove that he might easily have made sculpture a profession had he not chosen to devote himself to painting4 ,signature of the author4 ,,dante ,,gabriel ,,rossetti#aj ,footnote #aj3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,edmund ,,gosse 7#ahbh-ahhb7 ,illustration3 ,dante ,gabriel ,rossetti4 ,those whose privilege it was to meet the late ,mr4 ,gabriel ,rossetti1 at once in the plenitude of his powers and in the freshness of their own impressions1 will not expect to be moved again through life by so magnetic a presence4 ,in his dealings with those much younger than himself1 his tact and influence were unequalled2 he received a shy but ardent youth with such a noble courtesy1 with so much sympathy yet with no condescension1 with so grand an air and yet so warm a welcome1 that his new acquaintance was enslaved at the first sentence4 ,this seems to me to have been in a certain sense the key-note of the man4 ,he was essentially a point of fire2 not a peripatetic in any sense1 not a person of wide circumference1 but a nucleus of pure imagination that never stirred or shifted1 but scintillated in all directions4 ,the function of ,gabriel ,rossetti1 or at least his most obvious function1 was to sit in isolation1 and to have vaguely glimmering spirits presented to him for complete illumination4 ,he was the most prompt in suggestion1 the most regal in giving1 the most sympathetic in response1 of the men ,i have known or seen2 and this without a single touch of the prophetic manner1 the air of such professional seers as ,coleridge or ,carlyle4 ,what he had to give was not mystical or abstract2 it was purely concrete4 ,his mind was full of practical artistic schemes1 only a few of which were suited to his own practice in painting or poetry2 the rest were at the service of whoever would come in a friendly spirit and take them4 ,i find among his letters to me1 which ,i have just been reading once again1 a paper of delightful suggestions about the cover of a book of verse2 the next youth who waited upon him would perhaps be a painter1 and would find that the great genius and master did not disdain the discussion of picture-frames4 ,this was but the undercurrent of his influence2 as we shall see more and more every year as the central decades of this century become history1 its main stream directed the two great arts of painting and poetry into new channels1 and set a score of diverse talents in motion4 ,but1 as far as anything can be seen plainly about ,rossetti at present1 to me the fact of his immovability1 his self-support1 his curious reserve1 seems to be the most interesting4 ,he held in all things to the essential and not to the accidental2 he preferred the dry grain of musk to a diluted flood of perfume4 ,an ,italian by birth and deeply moved by all things ,italian1 he never visited ,italy2 a lover of ritual and a sympathizer with all the mysteries of the ,roman creed1 he never joined the ,catholic ,church2 a poet whose form and substance alike influenced almost all the men of his generation1 he was more than forty years of age before he gave his verse to the public2 a painter who considered the attitude of the past with more ardor and faith than almost any artist of his time1 he never chose to visit the churches or galleries of ,europe4 ,it has been said1 among the many absurd things which his death has provoked1 that he shrank from publicity from timidity1 or spurned it from ill-temper4 ,one brilliant journalist has described him as sulking like ,hector in his tent4 ,it used to be ,achilles who sulked when ,i was at school2 but it certainly never was ,gabriel ,rossetti4 ,those who only knew him1 after his constitution had passed under the yoke of the drug which killed him1 cannot judge of his natural reserve from that artificial and morbid reserve which embittered the last years of his life4 ,the former was not connected with any objection to new faces or dislike of cordial society1 but with the indomitable characteristic of the man1 which made him give out the treasures of the spirit1 and never need to receive them4 ,so far from disliking society1 it is my impression that he craved it as a necessity1 although he chose to select its constituents and narrow its range4 ,he was born in #ahbh4 ,the story of his parentage is well known1 and has been told in full detail since his death4 ,he was born in ,london and christened ,gabriel ,charles ,rossetti2 it was not1 ,i am told1 until he was of age to appreciate the value of the name that he took upon himself the cognomen which his father had borne1 the ,dante by which the world1 though not his friends1 have known him4 ,living with his father in ,charlotte street1 with two sisters and a brother no less ardently trained in letters than himself1 he seems to have been turned to poetry1 as he was afterward sustained in it1 by the interior flame4 ,the household has been described to me by one who saw it in #ahdg3 the father1 titular professor of ,italian literature1 but with no professional duties1 seated the livelong day1 with a shade over his eyes1 writing devotional or patriotic poetry in his native tongue2 the girls reading ,dante aloud with their rich maiden voices2 ,gabriel buried here in his writing1 or darting round the corner of the street to the studio where he painted4 ,from this seclusion he wrote to the friend who has kindly helped me in preparing these notes1 and whose memories of the poet extend over a longer period than those of any survivor not related to him4 ,mr4 ,w4 ,b4 ,scott1 now so well known in more arts than one1 had then but just published his first book1 his mystical and transcendental poem of ,the ,year of the ,world4 ,this seems to have fallen under ,rossetti's notice1 for on ,november #be1 #ahdg1 he wrote to the author1 a perfect stranger to himself1 a letter of warm sympathy and acknowledgment4 ,mr4 ,scott was living in ,newcastle1 and1 instead of meeting1 the young poets at first made acquaintance with each other by correspondence4 ,rossetti soon mentioned1 of course1 his own schemes and ambitions1 and he sent1 as a sample of his powers1 his poems of ,the ,blessed ,damozel1 and ,my ,sister's ,sleep1 which he had written about eighteen months before4 ,mr4 ,scott tells me that his first feeling on receiving these poems1 written in ,english by an ,italian boy of eighteen1 was one of amazement4 ,i cannot wonder at it4 ,if the ,blessed ,damozel1 when it was published a quarter of a century later1 seemed a masterpiece to those who had1 in the meanwhile1 read so much that was vaguely inspired by it1 what must it have been in #ahdf8 ,certain pieces in ,tennyson's ,poems1 of #ahdb1 and a few fragments of ,browning's ,bells and ,pomegranates were the only ,english poems which can be supposed to have given it birth1 even indirectly4 ,in its interpretation of mystical thoughts by concrete images1 in its medival fervor and consistence of fancy1 in its peculiar metrical facility1 it was distinctly new--original as few poems except those by the acknowledged masters of the craft can ever be4 ,the sun was gone now2 the curled moon ,was like a little feather ,fluttering far down the gulf2 and now ,she spoke through the clear weather4 ,her voice was like the voice the stars ,had when they sang together4 ,this was a strange accent in #ahdf4 ,miss ,barrett and ,mr4 ,tennyson were then the most accepted poets4 ,mr4 ,browning spoke fluently and persistently1 but only to a very little circle2 ,mr4 ,horne's ,orion and ,mr4 ,bailey's ,festus were the recent outcomes of ,keats and ,goethe2 the ,spasmodic ,school1 to be presently born of much unwise study of ,festus1 was still unknown2 ,mr4 ,clough1 ,mr4 ,matthew ,arnold1 and ,mr4 ,patmore were quite unapparent1 taking form and voice in solitude2 and here was a new singer1 utterly unlike them all1 pouring out his first notes with the precision and independence of the new-fledged thrush in the woodland chorus4 ,in painting1 the process was somewhat different4 ,in this art1 no less than in poetry1 ,rossetti understood at once what it was that he wished to do himself1 and what he desired to see others doing2 but the difficulties of technique were in his way4 ,he had begun to write in childhood1 but he had taken up design late in his youth1 and he had undergone no discipline in it4 ,at the present day1 when every student has to pass a somewhat stringent examination in design1 ,rossetti1 at eighteen1 could not have entered the schools of the ,royal ,academy4 ,he did so1 however1 yet without ever advancing to the ,life ,school4 ,the soul of art1 at this early period1 interested him far more than the body1 especially such a substance as he found under the presidency of ,sir ,martin ,shee and the keepership of ,george ,jones4 ,let us not forget1 meanwhile1 that it is easy to sneer at the incompetence of mannered old artists1 and yet hard to over-estimate the value of discipline in a school1 however conventional4 ,rossetti was too impatient to learn to draw1 and this he lived to regret4 ,his immediate associates1 the young men whom he began to lead and impress1 were better draughtsmen than he4 ,his first oil picture1 ,i believe1 was a portrait of his father1 now in possession of the family4 ,but1 as far as can be now made out1 he did not begin to paint seriously till about ,january1 #ahdh1 when he persuaded another ,royal ,academy student1 ,w4 ,holman ,hunt1 to take a large room close to the paternal house in ,charlotte street1 and make it their studio4 ,here ,mr4 ,scott visited them in the early spring of that year2 he describes to me the large pictures they were struggling upon1 ,hunt1 on his ,oath of ,rienzi1 and ,rossetti1 on his ,girlhood of ,mary ,virgin4 ,the latter was evidently at present but poorly equipped2 the painting was timid and boyish1 pale in tone1 and with no hint or promise of that radiant color which afterward became ,rossetti's main characteristic4 ,but the feeling was identical with that in his far more accomplished early poems4 ,the very pulse and throb of medival adoration pervaded the whole conception of the picture1 and ,mr4 ,scott's first impression was that1 in this marvellous poet and possible painter1 the new ,tractarian movement had found its expositor in art4 ,yet this surely was no such feeble or sentimental echo as had inspired the declared ,tractarian poets of eight or nine years earlier2 there was nothing here that recalled such a book as the ,cherwell ,water ,lily of ,father ,faber4 ,this contained the genuine fleshly mysticism1 bodily presentment of a spiritual idea1 and intimate knowledge of medival sentiment without which the new religious fervor had no intellectual basis4 ,this strong instinct for the forms of the ,catholic religion1 combined with no attendance on the rites of that church1 fostered by no study of ecclesiastical literature or association with teachers or proselytes1 but original to himself and self-supported1 was at that time without doubt the feature in ,rossetti's intellectual character which demands our closest attention4 ,nor do ,i believe that this passion for the physical presentation of a mystical idea was ever entirely supplanted by those other views of life and art which came to occupy his maturer mind4 ,in his latest poems--in ,rose ,mary1 for instance--,i see this first impulse returning upon him with more than its early fascination4 ,in his youth1 however1 the mysticism was very nave and straightforward4 ,it was fostered by one of the very few excursions which ,rossetti ever took--a tour in ,belgium in ,october1 #ahdi4 ,i am told that he and the painter-friend who accompanied him were so purely devoted to the medival aspect of all they saw1 that1 in walking through the galleries1 they turned away their heads in approaching modern pictures1 and carefully closed their eyes while they were passing ,rubens's ,descent from the ,cross4 ,in ,belgium1 or as the result of his tour there1 ,rossetti wrote several curious poems1 which were so harsh and forced that he omitted them from his collection when he first published his ,poems1 in #ahgj4 ,the effort in these early pieces is too marked4 ,i remember once hearing ,rossetti say that he did not mind what people called him1 if only they would not call him quaint4 ,but the fact was that1 if quaintness be defined as the inability to conceal the labor of an art1 there is no doubt that both his poems and his designs occasionally deserved this epithet4 ,he was so excessively sincere an artist1 so determined not to permit anything like trickiness of effect or meaningless smoothness to conceal the direct statement of an idea1 that his lack of initial discipline sometimes made itself felt in a curious angular hardness4 ,and now it would be necessary1 if ,i were attempting a complete study of ,gabriel ,rossetti's intellectual career1 to diverge into a description of what has so much exercised popular curiosity1 the pre-,raphaelite movement of #ahdh4 ,but there is no reason why1 in a few notes on character1 ,i should repeat from hearsay what several of the seven brothers have reported from authoritative memory4 ,it is admitted1 by them and by all who have understood the movement1 that ,gabriel ,rossetti was the founder and1 in the ,shakespearian sense1 begetter of all that was done by this earnest band of young artists4 ,one of them1 ,mr4 ,millais1 was already distinguished2 two others1 ,mr4 ,holman ,hunt and ,mr4 ,woolner1 had at that time more training and technical power than he2 but he was1 nevertheless1 the brain and soul of the enterprise4 ,what these young men proposed was excellently propounded in the sonnet by ,w4 ,m4 ,r41 which they prefixed to their little literary venture1 the ,germ1 in #ahej4 ,plainly to think even a little thought1 to express it in natural words which are native to the speaker1 to paint even an insignificant object as it is1 and not as the old masters or the new masters have said it should be painted1 to persevere in looking at truth and at nature without the smallest prejudice for tradition1 this was the whole mystery and cabal of the ,p4 ,r4 ,b4 ,they called themselves preraphaelite1 because they found in the wings of ,lippi's angels1 and the columbines of ,perugino's gardens that loving and exact study of minute things which gave to them a sense of sincerity1 and which they missed in the breadth and ease of later work4 ,they had no ambition to splash as no one splashed before since great ,caldasi ,polidore2 but they did wish to draw a flower or a cloud so that it should be a portrait of that cloud or flower4 ,in this ambition it would be curious to know1 and ,i do not think that ,i have ever heard it stated1 how far they were influenced by ,mr4 ,ruskin and his ,modern ,painters4 ,i should not expect to find ,rossetti influenced by any outside force in this any more than in other instances1 but at all events ,mr4 ,ruskin eagerly accepted the brotherhood as practical exponents of the theories he had pronounced4 ,none of them1 ,i think1 knew him personally when he wrote the famous letter to the ,times in #ahea1 defending ,mr4 ,millais and ,mr4 ,holman ,hunt from the abuse of ignorant critics1 who1 he said1 had failed to perceive the very principles on which these two young men were proceeding4 ,somebody wrote to him to explain that there were three young men1 and ,mr4 ,ruskin wrote a note to ,gabriel ,rossetti1 desiring to see his work1 and thus the acquaintance of these two remarkable men commenced4 ,meanwhile1 although the more vigorous members of the brotherhood had shown no special sympathy for ,rossetti's religious mysticism1 a feebler artist1 himself one of the original seven1 had taken it up with embarrassing effusion4 ,this was the late ,james ,collinson1 whose principal picture1 ,st4 ,elizabeth of ,hungary1 finished in #ahea1 produced a sort of crisis in ,rossetti's career4 ,this painting out-mystified the mystic himself2 it was simply maudlin and hysterical1 though drawn with some feeling for grace1 and in a very earnest spirit4 ,rossetti1 with his strong good sense1 recognized that it would be impossible ever to reach the public with art of this unmanly character1 and from this time forth he began to abandon the practice of directly sacred art4 ,for some little time after abandoning the directly sacred field in painting1 ,rossetti seems to have passed through a disconsolate and dubious period4 ,i am told that he worked for many months over a large picture called ,kate the ,queen1 from some well-known words by ,browning4 ,he made no progress with this1 seemed dissatisfied with his own media1 felt the weight of his lack of training1 and passed1 in short1 through one of those downcast moods1 which ,shakespeare has so marvellously described in ,tired with all these1 and which are incident1 sooner or later1 to every man of genius4 ,while his touch in poetry grew constantly more sure and masterly1 his power as a draughtsman threatened to leave him altogether4 ,he was to have drawn one of the frontispieces in the ,germ1 but1 although he toiled with a design1 he could not make it come right4 ,at last a happy accident put him on the true track1 and revealed his proper genius to himself4 ,he began to make small drawings of poetical subjects in water-colors--most of those which ,i have seen are not more than twenty inches by twelve--over which he labored1 and into which he poured his exquisite sense of color1 inspired without doubt by the glass of medival church windows4 ,he travelled so very little1 that ,i do not know whether he ever saw the treasures of radiant jewel-work which fret the gloom of ,chartres or of ,bourges2 but if he never saw them1 he divined them1 and these are the only pieces of color which in the least degree suggest the drawings of this1 ,rossetti's second period4 ,as far as one can gather1 his method was1 first1 to become interpenetrated with the sentiment of some ballad or passage of emotional poetry1 then to meditate on the scene till he saw it clearly before him2 then--and this seems to have always been the difficult and tedious part--to draw in the design1 and then with triumphant ease to fill in the outlines with radiant color4 ,he had an almost insuperable difficulty in keeping his composition within the confines of the paper upon which he worked1 and at last was content to have a purely accidental limit to the design1 no matter what limbs of the dramatis person were sheered away by the frame4 ,it would not be the act of a true friend to ,rossetti's memory to pretend that these drawings1 of which for the next ten or fifteen years he continued to produce a great number1 were without faults of a nature which any coxcomb could perceive1 or without eccentricities which an untrained eye might easily mistake for faults2 but this does not in the least militate against the fact that in two great departments of the painter's faculty1 in imaginative sentiment and in wealth of color1 they have never been surpassed4 ,they have rarely1 indeed1 been equalled in the history of painting4 ,a ,rossetti drawing of this class hung with specimens of other art1 ancient or modern1 simply destroys them4 ,i do not mean that it is better or worse than they are1 but that it kills them as the electric light puts out a glow-worm4 ,no other man's color will bear these points of ruby-crimson1 these expanses of deep turquoise-blue1 these flagrant scarlets and thunderous purples4 ,he paints the sleeve of a trumpeter2 it is such an orange as the eye can scarce endure to look at4 ,he paints the tiles of a chimney-corner2 they are as green as the peacock's eyes in the sunshine4 ,the world is seldom ready to receive any new thing4 ,these drawings of ,rossetti's were scarcely noticed even by those who are habitually on the watch for fresh developments in art4 ,but when the painter next emerges into something like publicity we find him attended by a brilliant company of younger men1 all more or less influenced by his teaching and attracted by his gifts4 ,the ,pre-,raphaelite ,brotherhood had been a very ephemeral institution2 in three years1 or four at the most1 it had ceased to exist2 but its principles and the energy of its founder had left their mark on the whole world of art4 ,in #ahdi ,rossetti had exhibited his picture1 ,the ,girlhood of ,mary ,virgin1 at the ,portland ,gallery1 an exhibition in rivalry of the ,royal ,academy1 which existed but a very short time4 ,as far as ,i can discover1 he did not exhibit again in ,london until #ahef1 when he and his friends opened a collection of their pictures at #d ,russell ,place1 ,fitzroy ,square4 ,we would rather have seen that little gallery than see most of the show-exhibitions of ,europe4 ,in it the fine art of the ,anglo-,saxon race was seen dawning again after its long and dark night4 ,rossetti himself was the principal exhibitor1 but his two earliest colleagues1 now famous painters1 ,mr4 ,millais and ,mr4 ,holman ,hunt1 also contributed4 ,and here were all the new talents whom ,rossetti had attracted around him during the last seven years3 ,mr4 ,madox ,brown1 with his fine genius for history2 ,mr4 ,j4 ,d4 ,watson1 with his strong medival affinities2 ,mr4 ,boyce1 with his delicate portraiture of rustic scenes2 ,mr4 ,brett1 the finest of our students of the sea2 ,mr4 ,w4 ,b4 ,scott himself2 besides one or two others1 ,mr4 ,charles ,collins1 ,mr4 ,campbell1 ,mr4 ,halliday1 ,mr4 ,martineau1 whom death or adverse fortune removed before they had quite fulfilled their promise4 ,gabriel ,rossetti contributed to this interesting and historic exhibition five or six of those marvellous drawings of which mention has just been made4 ,dante's ,dream1 the famous vision of ,june #i1 #abij1 with its counterpart1 ,the ,anniversary of the ,dream1 in #abia1 were the most prominent of these4 ,a ,mary ,magdalene was perhaps the most moving and exciting4 ,this extremely original design showed the ,magdalene pursued by her lovers1 but turning away from them all to seek ,jesus in the house of ,simon the ,pharisee4 ,the architecture in this drawing was almost childish2 the wall of ,simon's house is not three inches thick1 and there is not room for a grown-up person on the stairs that lead to it2 but the tender imagination of the whole1 the sweet persuasiveness of ,christ1 who looks out of a window1 the passion of the awakened sinner1 who tears the roses out of her hair1 the curious novelty of treatment in the heads and draperies1 all these combine to make it one of those works1 the moral force and directness of which appeal to the heart at once4 ,perhaps the most brilliant piece of color at the ,russell ,place ,gallery may have been ,rossetti's ,blue ,closet1 a picture which either illustrated or1 as ,i should rather suppose1 suggested ,mr4 ,morris's wonderful poem published two years later4 ,the same year that displayed him to the public already surrounded by a brilliant phalanx of painter-friends1 discovered him also1 to the judicious1 as a centre of poetic light and heat4 ,the circumstances connected with ,rossetti's visit to ,oxford a little earlier than this are too recent1 are fresh in the memories of too many living persons of distinction1 to be discussed with propriety by one who was not present4 ,but certain facts are public1 and may be mentioned4 ,the ,oxford ,union still shows around the interior of its cupola strange1 shadowy frescoes1 melting into nothingness1 which are the work of six men1 of whom ,rossetti was the leader4 ,these youths had enjoyed no practical training in that particularly artificial branch of art1 mural painting1 and yet it seems strange that ,rossetti himself1 at least1 should not have understood that a vehicle1 such as yolk of egg mixed with vinegar1 was absolutely necessary to tempera1 or that it was proper1 in fresco-painting1 to prepare the walls1 and paint in the fresh wet mortar4 ,they used no vehicle1 they fixed their colors in no coat of plaster1 but they threw their ineffectual dry paint on the naked brick4 ,the result has been that their interesting boyish efforts are now decayed beyond any chance of restoration4 ,it is impossible1 however1 to ascend the gallery of the ,oxford ,union and examine the ghostly frescoes that are fading there1 without great interest and even emotion4 ,of the young men who painted there under ,gabriel ,rossetti's eye1 all have become greatly distinguished4 ,mr4 ,edward ,burne-,jones1 ,mr4 ,william ,morris1 and ,mr4 ,spencer ,stanhope were undergraduates at ,oxford4 ,mr4 ,valentine ,prinsep and ,mr4 ,arthur ,hughes1 ,i believe1 were ,royal ,academy students who were invited down by ,rossetti4 ,their work was nave and queer to the last degree4 ,it is perhaps not fair to say which one of them found so much difficulty in painting the legs of his figures that he drew an impenetrable covert of sunflowers right across his picture1 and only showed the faces of his heroes and heroines between the golden disks4 ,the ,oxford and ,cambridge ,magazine1 which also dates from the year #ahef1 is a still more notable expression of budding genius than the dome of the ,oxford ,union4 ,it was edited by ,mr4 ,godfrey ,lushington1 all its articles were anonymous1 and it contrived to exist through twelve consecutive monthly numbers4 ,a complete set is now rare1 and the periodical itself is much less known than befits such a receptacle of pure literature4 ,it contains three or four of ,rossetti's finest poems2 a great many of those extraordinary pieces1 steeped in medival coloring1 which ,mr4 ,william ,morris was to collect in #aheh into his bewitching volume1 called ,the ,defence of ,guenevere2 several delightful prose stories of life in the ,middle ,ages1 also by ,mr4 ,morris1 which1 like certain prose romances by ,mr4 ,burne-,jones1 have never been publicly claimed or reprinted by their author2 and not a little else that was as new as it was notable4 ,a little later ,mr4 ,william ,morris's first book was dedicated ,to my ,friend ,dante ,gabriel ,rossetti1 ,painter1 and in #ahfj ,mr4 ,swinburne followed with a like inscription of his first-fruits1 his tragic drama of ,the ,queen-,mother4 ,thus in the course of a little more than ten years1 ,rossetti had become the centre and sun of a galaxy of talent in poetry and painting1 more brilliant perhaps than any which has ever acknowledged the beneficent sway of any one ,englishman of genius4 ,but all this while the world outside knew nothing of the matter4 ,one by one the younger men stepped forward on the public stage and secured the plaudits of the discerning1 and ascended the slow incline of general reputation4 ,but ,rossetti remained obstinately recluse1 far preferring to be the priest and confessor of genius to acting himself a public part4 ,to this determination several outward things engaged him still further4 ,he married quite early in life2 and his wife1 who was herself an artist of rare1 if somewhat wild and untrained talent1 bore him a son who died at birth1 and then shortly after died herself4 ,during his brief married months ,rossetti had collected the ,,mss4 of his poems1 and thought to publish them2 but when he lost his wife1 in a paroxysm of grief he placed the sheets of his poems in her coffin1 and would hear no more a suggestion of publication4 ,in #ahfa he presented the world with a very learned and beautiful anthology of early ,italian poetry1 and proposed as early as that year to print his original poems4 ,it was his scheme to name the little volume ,dante in ,verona1 and other ,poems2 but it came to nothing4 ,about #ahfg the scheme of publication again took possession of him4 ,i have been told that a sudden sentiment of middle age1 the fact that he found himself in his fortieth year1 led him to conquer his scruples1 and finally arrange his pieces4 ,but he was singularly fastidious2 the arrangement would never please him2 the cover must be cut in brass1 the paper at the sides must bear a special design4 ,these niceties were rarer twelve years ago than they are now1 and the printers fatigued him with their persistent obstinacy4 ,it was not till early in #ahgj that the ,poems in stately form first appeared1 and were hailed with a shout of admiration which was practically universal4 ,it was about ,christmas in that same year1 #ahgj1 that he who writes these lines was first presented to ,gabriel ,rossetti4 ,the impression on my mental eye is as fresh as if it had been made yesterday1 instead of twelve years ago4 ,he was a man of average height1 commonly loosely clad in black1 so as to give one something of the notion of an abb2 the head very full1 and domed like that of ,shakespeare1 as it was then usual to say--to my thinking more like that of ,chaucer--in any case a head surcharged with imagination and power1 strongly ,italian in color and cast4 ,the eyes were exceedingly deep set1 in cavernous sockets2 they were large1 and black1 and full of a restless brilliance1 a piercing quality which consoled the shy novice by not being stationary4 ,lastly1 a voice of bell-like tone and sonority1 a voice capable of expressing without effort every shade of emotion from rage and terror to the most sublime tenderness4 ,i have never heard a voice so fitted for poetical effect1 so purely imaginative1 and yet1 in its absence of rhetoric1 so clear and various1 as that of ,gabriel ,rossetti4 ,i retain one special memory of his reading in his own studio the unfinished ,,ms4 of ,rose ,mary1 in #ahgc1 which surpassed in this direction any pleasure which it has been my lot to enjoy2 and on various occasions ,i have listened to his reading of sonnets1 his own and those of others1 with a sense that his intonation revealed a beauty in the form of that species of verse which it had never been seen to possess before4 ,i have already spoken of his wonderful courtliness to a new acquaintance1 his bewitching air of sympathy2 on a closer intimacy this stately manner would break up into wild fits of mirth1 and any sketch of ,rossetti would be incomplete that did not describe his loud and infectious laughter4 ,he lived very much apart from the every-day life of mankind1 not ostentatiously1 but from a genuine lack of interest in passing events4 ,an old friend tells me that during the ,french ,revolution he burst into ,rossetti's studio with the incredible news1 ,louis-,philippe has landed in ,england6 ,has he8 said ,rossetti1 calmly4 ,what has he come for8 ,that certain political events1 in which he saw a great symbolic significance1 could move him deeply1 is easily proved by such sonnets as the noble ,on the ,refusal of ,aid between ,nations1 and ,czar ,alexander ,,ii4 ,but such glances out of window into the living street were rare1 and formed no characteristic part of his scheme of life4 ,as a poet in these great years he possessed rare gifts of passionate utterance1 and harmony of vision and expression4 ,mr4 ,swinburne has characterized these qualities in words which leave no later commentator the chance of distinguishing himself4 ,but it would be totally unjust1 even in so cursory and personal a sketch as this1 to allow the impression to go undisputed that ,rossetti preferred the external form to the inward substance of poetry4 ,this charge was brought against him1 as it has always been brought against earnest students of poetic art4 ,i will rather quote a few words from a letter of ,rossetti to me1 written in #ahgc1 when he was composing his own magnum opus of ,rose ,mary4 ,i have always felt them to be very salutary1 none the less because it is obvious that the writer did not at all times contrive1 or perhaps desire1 to make them true in his own work3 ,it seems to me that all poetry1 to be really enduring1 is bound to be as amusing 7however trivial the word may sound7 as any other class of literature2 and ,i do not think that enough amusement to keep it alive can ever be got out of incidents not amounting to events1 or out of travelling experiences of an ordinary kind however agreeably1 observantly1 or even thoughtfully treated4 ,i would eschew in writing all themes that are not so trenchantly individualized as to leave no margin for discursiveness4 ,during the last eight years of his life1 ,rossetti's whole being was clouded by the terrible curse of an excitable temperament--sleeplessness4 ,to overcome this enemy1 which interfered with his powers of work and concentration of thought1 he accepted the treacherous aid of the new drug1 chloral1 which was then vaunted as perfectly harmless in its effect upon the health4 ,the doses of chloral became more and more necessary to him1 and ,i am told that at last they became so frequent and excessive that no case has been recorded in the annals of medicine in which one patient has taken so much1 or even half so much1 chloral as ,rossetti took4 ,under this unwholesome drug his constitution1 originally a magnificent one1 slipped unconsciously into decay1 the more stealthily that the poison seemed to have no effect whatever on the powers of the victim's intellect4 ,he painted until physical force failed him2 he wrote brilliantly to the very last1 and two sonnets dictated by him on his death-bed are described to me as being entirely worthy of his mature powers4 ,there is something almost melancholy in such a proof of the superior vitality of the brain4 ,if the mind had shared the weakness of the body1 the insidious enemy might perhaps have been routed in time to secure the elastic rebound of both4 ,but when the chloral was stoutly met at last1 it was too late4 ,so at the age of fifty-four we have lost a man whom we should have retained1 in the nature of things1 for twenty years longer in the plentitude of his powers1 but for a mistake in hygiene--a medical experiment4 ,his work of inspiring the young1 of projecting his fiery originality along the veins of others1 was perhaps completed2 it is doubtful whether this can ever be continued with advantage through more than two generations4 ,the prophet is apt at last to become a tyrant1 and from this ill apotheosis ,rossetti was spared4 ,but there was no reason why he should not1 for at least a score of years1 have produced noble pictures and have written gorgeous poems1 emphasizing a personal success which he would have extended1 though he hardly could have raised it4 ,yet he was always a melancholy man2 of late years he had become almost a solitary man4 ,like ,charles of ,austria1 he had disbanded his body-guard1 and had retired to the cloister4 ,perhaps a longer life would not have brought much enjoyment with it4 ,but these are idle speculations1 and we have rather to call to our remembrance the fact that one of the brightest and most distinguished of our race1 a man whose very existence was a protest against narrowness of aim and feebleness of purpose1 one of the great torch-bearers in the procession of ,english art1 has been called from us in the prime of life1 before the full significance of his genius had been properly felt4 ,he was the contemporary of some mighty names older than his1 yet there scarcely was to be found among them all a spirit more thoroughly original2 and surely1 when the paltry conflicts of passing taste are laid to rest forever1 it will be found that this man has written his signature indelibly on one of the principal pages of the register of our intellectual history4 ,signature of the author4 ,,gustave ,,dor#aa ,footnote #aa3 ,reprinted by permission1 from the ,nation4 ,by ,,kenyon ,,cox 7#ahcb-ahhc7 ,illustration3 ,gustave ,dor4 ,it is now eleven years since ,gustave ,dor died4 ,he was an officer of the ,legion of ,honor1 had attained considerable wealth1 and was probably more widely known than any other artist of his day4 ,his name was a household word in two continents4 ,yet he died a disappointed and embittered man1 and is proclaimed by his friends as a neglected and misunderstood genius4 ,he was known the world over as the most astonishingly prolific illustrator of books that has ever lived2 he wished to be known in ,france as a great painter and a great sculptor1 and because the artists and critics of ,france never seriously recognized his claims to this glory1 he seems to have become a victim of the mania of persecution1 and his naturally sunny nature was over-clouded with moroseness and suspicion4 ,hailed by some as the emulator and equal of the great names of the ,italian ,renaissance1 and considered a great moral force--a preacher painter--by others he has been denounced as designer in chief to the devil1 and described as a man wallowing in all foulness and horror1 a sort of demon of frightful power4 ,both these extreme judgments are ,english4 ,the late ,blanchard ,jerrold1 an intimate friend and collaborator of the artist1 takes the first view4 ,mr4 ,ruskin and ,mr4 ,hamerton have taken the second4 ,dor's own countrymen have never accepted either4 ,just where1 between them1 the truth lies1 as we see it1 we shall endeavor to show in this article4 ,the main facts of ,dor's life may be dismissed very briefly4 ,he was born with a caul on ,january #f1 #ahcb1 in the ,rue ,bleue at ,strasbourg1 near the ,cathedral4 ,about #ahda his father removed to ,bourg1 in the ,department of ,ain1 where he was chief government engineer of the department4 ,these two residences of the young artist are supposed to account for the mastery of ,gothic architecture and of mountain scenery which his admirers find in his mature work4 ,he showed very early in life a passion for drawing1 and1 as a small child1 had always a pencil in his hand1 which he begged to have sharpened at both ends1 that he might work longer without interruption4 ,his father intended him for an engineer1 but he was determined from the first to be an artist4 ,he was of a gay and jovial disposition1 given to pranks and practical jokes1 and of an athletic temperament4 ,thophile ,gautier afterward called him a gamin de gnie4 ,in #ahdg1 when he was fifteen years old1 being in ,paris with his parents1 he called upon ,phillippon1 the publisher1 and showed him some of his sketches4 ,m4 ,phillippon looked at them1 and sent a letter to ,dor's parents1 persuading them to allow the boy to remain in ,paris1 and promising them to begin using his work at once and to pay for it4 ,thus1 without any study of art whatever1 he began his career1 and in a few years had produced a prodigious quantity of work1 and was a celebrated man before he was twenty4 ,no one knows how many drawings he made4 ,he lived like an ,arab1 worked early and late1 and with astonishing rapidity made thousands of drawings for the comic papers1 besides early beginning the publication of independent books4 ,one estimate1 which ,mr4 ,jerrold thinks excessive1 credits him with having published forty thousand drawings before he was forty6 ,mr4 ,jerrold himself reckons two hundred and sixty-six drawings done in one year4 ,his ,labors of ,hercules was brought out in #ahdh1 when he was sixteen1 and before he was twenty-seven he had published his ,holy ,russia1 his ,wandering ,jew1 his illustrations to ,balzac's ,contes ,drlatiques1 to ,rabelais1 and many other authors4 ,his best work was done at an age when most artists are painfully acquiring the rudiments of their art4 ,we all know the books that followed4 ,meanwhile he was determined to be known as a great painter1 and1 while flooding the market with his countless illustrations1 was working at great canvases of ,biblical subjects1 which1 though the ,french would not accept them1 were hugely admired in the ,dor ,gallery of ,london4 ,later he tried sculpture also1 and his last work was a monument to ,alexandre ,dumas1 which he made at his own expense1 and presented to the city of ,paris4 ,he died in the beginning of the year #ahhc1 worn out with excessive production--a great name1 but an unsatisfied man4 ,mr4 ,jerrold has divided his book into two parts1 dealing first with ,dor the illustrator1 and then with ,dor the painter and sculptor4 ,it is an eminently natural arrangement1 and1 in our effort to arrive at ,dor's true position in art1 we cannot do better than to follow it4 ,dor's earliest work was frankly that of a caricaturist4 ,he had a quick eye1 no training1 and a certain extravagant imagination1 and caricature was his inevitable field4 ,he was1 however1 as ,mr4 ,jerrold himself remarks1 a caricaturist who seldom raises a laugh4 ,not hearty fun1 still less delicate humor1 was his4 ,in the higher qualities of caricature his contemporaries1 ,daumier and ,gavarni1 were vastly his superiors4 ,an exuberance of grotesque fancy and a recklessness of exaggeration were his dominant notes4 ,his earlier work1 up to and including the ,rabelais1 is not really funny--to many minds it is even painful--but it is unmistakably caricature of a dashing1 savage sort4 ,to our mind it remains his best work1 and that by which he is most likely to live4 ,at least it is the work that formed him and fixed his characteristics1 and an understanding of it is essential to any judgment of him4 ,the qualities and the defects of his later work--that which is most praised and most blamed in his production--are inherent in the work of this period1 and are best explained by a reference to the latter4 ,take1 for instance1 what has been denounced as his love of horrors and of foulness1 his delight in blood and massacre4 ,he is scored for this as if he were one of that modern ,french school1 beginning1 perhaps1 with ,regnault1 who have revelled in the realistic presentation of executions and battles1 and have sought to effect by sheer sensationalism what they could not by gentler means4 ,it is surprising that his critics have not seen that ,dor's battles are always1 even to the end1 the battles of a caricaturist4 ,his decapitated trunks1 cloven heads1 smoking hearts1 arms still fighting though severed from their bodies1 are simply a debauch of grim humor4 ,there is never the slightest attempt to realize carnage--only to convey1 by the caricaturist's exaggeration1 an idea of colossally impossible bloodthirstiness4 ,one may not enjoy this kind of fun1 but to take it seriously1 as the emanation of a gloomy and diabolic genius1 is absurd4 ,the same test is equally destructive of much of the praise ,dor has received4 ,he is constantly spoken of1 even by severe critics of his painting1 as a great illustrator who identified himself with the minds of one great writer after another4 ,but ,dor identified himself with no one2 he was always ,dor4 ,even in these early drawings he cannot keep to the spirit of the text1 though the subjects suited him much better than many he tried later4 ,there is a great deal of broad gayety and ,gallic wit in the ,contes ,drlatiques1 but it was not broad enough for ,dor1 and he has converted its most human characters into impossible grotesques4 ,another thing for which ,dor is praised is his wonderful memory4 ,mr4 ,jerrold repeats more than once ,dor's phrase1 ,i have lots of collodion in my head1 and recounts how he could scarcely be induced to make sketches from nature1 but relied upon his memory4 ,he also speaks of ,dor's system of dividing and subdividing a subject1 and noting the details in their places1 so that he could reproduce the whole afterward4 ,this question of work from memory is one of the most vital for an understanding of ,dor1 and one of general interest in all matters of art1 and is worth attention4 ,of course1 a man who made hundreds of drawings every year could not work much from nature1 and came to rely upon his memory4 ,but what is the nature of artistic memory1 and how does it perform its task8 ,we think the truth is1 that the artist who habitually works from memory1 fills in his details1 not from memory of the object1 but from memory of the way he has formerly drawn similar objects4 ,he reverts to a series of formul that he has gradually accumulated4 ,this man must have a cloak4 ,this is the way a cloak is done4 ,a hand8 ,nothing can be easier2 the hand formula is ready4 ,the stock in trade of the professional illustrator and caricaturist is made up of a thousand such formul--methods of expression that convey the idea readily enough to the spectator1 but have little relation to fact4 ,so it is that ,dor never learned1 in the true sense1 to draw4 ,he had made for himself a sort of artistic shorthand1 which enabled him to convey his superabundant ideas quickly and certainly to his public1 but his drawing is what is called mannered in the extreme4 ,it is not representation of nature at all1 but pure formula and chic4 ,he is said to be a master of drapery1 but he never drew a single fold correctly4 ,he is said to show great knowledge of ,gothic architecture1 but he never drew well a single column or finial4 ,in his later years he studied anatomy with great perseverance1 and advocated the necessity of dissection1 saying1 ,il faut fourrer la main dedans 7,you must stick your hand in it72 but the manner was formed1 and he never drew a leg with a bone in it4 ,with this equipment he illustrated ,don ,quixote1 ,dante1 the ,bible4 ,is it strange that he shows no sympathy with the grand simplicity of ,dante1 or the subtle humor of ,cervantes1 and that we can only be thankful that he never completed his projected illustrations to ,shakespeare8 ,dor1 the illustrator1 was fecund beyond precedent1 possessed a certain strange drollery1 had a wonderful flow of ideas1 but was superficial1 theatrical1 and mannered1 and as far from expressing real horror as from expressing real fun4 ,what shall we say of ,dor the painter and sculptor8 ,mr4 ,jerrold reports a discussion between ,dor and ,thophile ,gautier1 in which the roles of artist and man of letters are strangely reversed4 ,gautier and ,dor1 he says1 disagreed fundamentally on the aims and methods of art4 ,gautier loved correctness1 perfect form--the technique1 in short1 of art2 whereas ,dor contended that art which said nothing1 which conveyed no idea1 albeit perfect in form and color1 missed the highest quality and raison d'tre of art4 ,what is plain from this is1 that ,gautier was an artist and cared first of all for art1 while ,dor was never an artist1 properly speaking1 at all1 and never understood the artist's passion for perfection4 ,to ,dor1 what was necessary was to express himself anyhow--who cared if the style was defective1 the drawing bad1 the color crude8 ,the idea was the thing4 ,his admirers can defend him only on this ground1 and they adopt of necessity the ,philistine point of view4 ,the artists of ,dor's time and country were very clear in their opinion4 ,the painters1 says ,mr4 ,jerrold1 said he could not paint4 ,the sculptors admitted that he had ideas in his groups1 but he was not sculpturesque4 ,his friends protest against this judgment1 and attribute it1 ad nauseam1 to malevolence and envy4 ,what if his technique was less brilliant than that of ,hals1 they say2 what if his shadows are less transparent than those of ,rembrandt 7and they will make no meaner comparison78 ,he is teeming with noble thoughts1 and these will put his work on a level with the masterpieces of the ,italian masters of the sixteenth century4 ,it is the conception1 the creation--not the perfect painting of legs and arms and heads1 the harmonious grouping1 the happy and delicate combination of color--by which the observer is held spell bound4 ,all these qualities1 which his admirers grudgingly admit that ,dor had not1 are classed as mere dexterity1 and are not considered worth a second thought4 ,this is the true literary gospel of art1 but it is one that no artist1 and no critic who has any true feeling of art1 has ever accepted or will ever accept4 ,thoughts1 ideas1 conceptions1 may enhance the value of a work of art1 provided it is first of all a piece of beautiful art in itself1 but they have never preserved1 and never will preserve from oblivion bad painting or bad sculpture4 ,the style is the artist1 if not the man2 and of the two1 beautiful painting with no idea at all 7granting1 for the sake of argument1 that it exists71 will ever be infinitely more valuable to the world than the lame expression of the noblest thoughts4 ,what may be the real value of ,dor's thoughts is therefore a question with which we have no concern4 ,as painter and sculptor1 his lack of education and his great technical imperfections--his bad drawing1 false light and shade1 and crude color--relegate him forever to a rank far below mediocrity4 ,such reputation as he has is the result of the admiration of those altogether ignorant of art1 but possessed of enough literary ability to trumpet abroad their praises of great conceptions1 and will as surely fade away to nothing as the reputation of such simple painters as ,van ,der ,meer or ,chardin will continue to grow1 while painting as an art is loved and understood4 ,,composers ,,handel ,by ,c4 ,e4 ,,bourne 7#afhe-agei7 ,george ,frederick ,handel1 of whom ,haydn once reverently said1 ,he is the master of us all1 was born at ,halle1 in ,lower ,saxony1 on ,february #bc1 #afhe4 ,his father was a surgeon1 and sixty-three years of age at the time of his birth--a terribly severe old man1 who1 almost before his son was born1 had determined that he should be a lawyer4 ,the little child knew nothing of the fate before him1 he only found that he was never allowed to go near a musical instrument1 much as he wanted to hear its sweet sounds1 and the obstinate father even took him away from the public day-school for the simple reason that the musical gamut was taught there in addition to ordinary reading1 writing1 and arithmetic4 ,but love always finds out the way1 and his mother or nurse managed to procure for him the forbidden delights2 a small clavichord1 or dumb spinet1 with the strings covered with strips of cloth to deaden the sound1 was found for the child1 and this he used to keep hidden in the garret1 creeping away to play it in the night-time1 when everyone was asleep1 or whenever his father was away from home doctoring his patients4 ,illustration3 ,handel4 ,but1 at last1 when ,george ,frederick was seven years of age1 the old man was compelled to change his views4 ,it happened in this way4 ,he set out one day on a visit to the court of the ,duke of ,saxe-,weissenfels1 where another son by a former marriage was a page4 ,george ,frederick had been teasing his father to let him go with him to see his elder brother1 whom he had not yet met1 but this was refused4 ,when old ,handel started by the stagecoach the next morning1 the persistent little fellow was on the watch2 he began running after it1 and at length the father was constrained to stop the coach and take the boy in4 ,so1 though at the expense of a severe scolding1 the child had his way and was allowed to go on to ,saxe-,weissenfels4 ,when there1 the chapel1 with the beautiful organ1 was the great attraction1 and ,george ,frederick1 as indomitable then as he was in after-life1 found his way into the organ loft1 and when the regular service was over1 contrived to take the organist's place1 and began a performance of his own2 and strange to say1 though he had not had the slightest training1 a melody with chords and the correct harmonies was heard4 ,the duke had not left the chapel1 and noticing the difference in style from that of the ordinary organist1 inquired as to the player1 and when the little boy was brought to him he soon discovered1 by the questions he put1 the great passion for music which possessed the child4 ,the duke1 a sensible man1 told the father it would be wrong to oppose the inclination of a boy who already displayed such extraordinary genius2 and old ,handel1 either convinced1 or at any rate submitting to the duke's advice1 promised to procure for his son regular musical instruments4 ,handel never afterward forgot the debt of gratitude he owed to the ,duke of ,saxe-,weissenfels for this intercession4 ,on his return to ,halle he became the pupil of ,zachau1 the organist of the cathedral there4 ,this man was an excellent teacher and a sound musician4 ,before the pupil was nine years old his instructor used to set him to write fugues and motets as exercises1 and before long the boy was allowed to play the organ at the cathedral services on ,sunday1 whenever the elder musician was inclined to linger over his breakfast or to take a holiday4 ,at last1 when young ,handel was nine years old1 the master honestly confessed that his pupil knew more music than he himself did1 and advised that he should be sent to ,berlin for a course of further study there4 ,thither he accordingly went in the year #afif4 ,in ,berlin the boy of eleven years was soon recognized as a prodigy4 ,there he met two ,italian composers of established reputation1 ,bononcini and ,attilio ,ariosti1 both of whom he was to encounter in after-life1 though under very different circumstances1 in ,london4 ,bononcini1 who was of a sour and jealous disposition1 soon conceived a dislike for the gifted little fellow1 and attempted to injure him by composing a piece for the harpsichord full of the most extraordinary difficulties1 and then asking him to play it at sight4 ,the boy1 however1 at once executed it without a mistake1 and thus the malicious schemer was foiled by his own device4 ,attilio was of a different disposition2 he praised the young musician to the skies1 and was never weary of sitting by his side at the organ or harpsichord1 and hearing him improvise for hours4 ,the ,elector of ,brandenburg also conceived a great admiration for the boy's talents1 and offered to send him to ,italy4 ,on old ,handel being consulted1 however1 he pleaded that he was now an old man1 and wished his son to remain near him4 ,in consequence of this1 probably much to the boy's disappointment1 he was brought back to ,halle1 and there set to work again under his old master1 ,zachau4 ,soon after this return his father died1 in #afig1 leaving hardly anything for his family1 and young ,handel had now to seriously bestir himself to make a living4 ,with this object he went to ,hamburg1 where he obtained a place as second violin in the ,opera-house4 ,soon after arriving there1 the post of organist at ,lbeck became vacant1 and ,handel was a candidate for it4 ,but a peculiar condition was attached to the acceptance of the office2 the new organist must marry the daughter of the old one6 ,and1 as ,handel either did not approve of the lady1 or of matrimony generally 7and in fact he never was married71 he promptly retired from the competition4 ,at first1 no one suspected the youth's talents1 for he amused himself by pretending to be an ignoramus1 until one day the accompanyist on the harpsichord 7then the most important instrument in an orchestra7 was absent1 and young ,handel took his place1 astonishing everybody by his masterly touch4 ,probably this discovery aroused the jealousy of some of his brother-artists1 for soon afterward a duel took place between him and ,matheson1 a clever composer and singer1 who one night1 in the midst of a quarrel on leaving the theatre1 gave him a box on the ear2 swords were drawn1 and the duel took place there and then under the portico of the theatre4 ,fortunately ,matheson's weapon was shivered by coming in contact with a metal button on his opponent's coat4 ,explanations were then offered1 and the two adversaries became friends--indeed1 close friends--afterward4 ,almira1 ,queen of ,castile1 ,handel's first opera1 was brought out in ,hamburg in #agje1 and was followed by two others1 ,nero1 and ,daphne1 all received with great favor1 and frequently performed4 ,illustration3 ,handel's ,river-,concert for ,george ,i4 ,but the young musician determined to visit ,italy as soon as possible1 and after staying in ,hamburg three years1 and having1 besides the money he sent his mother1 saved two hundred ducats for travelling expenses1 he was able to set off on the journey1 then one of the great events in a musician's lifetime4 ,he visited ,florence1 ,venice1 ,rome1 and ,naples1 in almost every city writing operas1 which we are told were produced with the most brilliant success4 ,at ,venice an opera was sought for from him1 and in three weeks he had written ,agrippina4 ,when produced1 the people received it with frantic enthusiasm1 the theatre resounding with shouts of ,viva il caro ,sassone6 7,long live the dear ,saxon67 ,the following story illustrates the extraordinary fame he so quickly acquired in ,italy4 ,he arrived at ,venice during the middle of the carnival1 and was taken to a masked ball1 and there played the harpsichord1 still keeping on his mask4 ,domenico ,scarlatti1 the most famous harpsichord player of his age1 on hearing him1 exclaimed1 ,why1 it's the devil1 or else the ,saxon whom everyone is talking about6 ,in #agji he returned to ,hanover1 and was appointed by the ,elector ,george of ,brunswick1 afterward ,king ,george ,i41 of ,england1 his ,court ,capellmeister4 ,handel's wanderings next led him to ,england1 where he was treated with so much honor that he showed no great hurry to return to ,hanover1 and1 in fact1 he remained in ,england and coolly ignored his engagement as ,capellmeister4 ,but an awkward piece of retribution was at hand4 ,the ,elector of ,hanover1 on the death of ,queen ,anne1 came to ,england as the new king1 and ,handel1 his delinquent ,capellmeister1 could hardly expect to receive any share of the royal favor in future4 ,with the help of a friend of his1 ,baron ,kilmanseck1 he determined1 however1 to make an attempt to conciliate the king1 and accordingly he wrote twenty-five short concerted pieces of music1 and made arrangements for these to be performed by musicians in a boat following the royal barge on the ,thames1 one day when the king went on an excursion up the river for a picnic4 ,the king recognized the composer at once by his style1 and spoke in terms of approbation of the music1 and the news was quickly conveyed by his friend to the anxious musician4 ,this is the story of the origin of the famous ,water ,music4 ,soon afterward the king allowed ,handel to appear before him to play the harpsichord accompaniments to some sonatas executed by ,geminiani1 a celebrated ,italian violinist1 and finally peace was made between them1 ,handel being appointed music-master to the royal children1 and receiving an additional pension of #bjj4 ,in #agbf a private ,act of ,parliament was passed1 making ,george ,frederick ,handel a naturalized ,englishman4 ,in the year #agbj a number of noblemen formed themselves into a company for the purpose of reviving ,italian opera in ,london1 at the ,haymarket ,theatre1 and subscribed a capital of #ej1jjj4 ,the king himself subscribed #a1jjj1 and allowed the society to take the name of the ,royal ,academy of ,music1 and at first everything seemed to promise the most brilliant success4 ,handel was appointed director of the music4 ,bononcini and ,attilio ,ariosti1 his old acquaintances in ,berlin1 were also attracted by this new operatic venture to ,london1 and their arrival was followed by a competition of a very novel character4 ,the libretto of a new opera1 ,muzio ,scvola1 was divided between the three composers4 ,attilio was to put the first act to music1 ,bononcini the second1 and ,handel the third4 ,we need hardly wonder that the victory is said to have rested with the last and youngest of the trio1 although at this time the cabals against him1 which afterward were to do him such grievous harm1 had already commenced4 ,handel still clung to the operatic speculation2 and when he had to leave the ,haymarket ,theatre1 which was given up to another ,italian company with the famous ,farinelli1 from ,lincoln's ,inn ,fields1 undauntedly he changed to the ,lincoln's ,inn ,fields ,theatre1 and there commenced again4 ,more operas were produced1 with the one unvarying tale of fiasco1 and at last1 in #agcg1 having lost the whole of his hardly earned money1 ,handel was compelled to close the theatre1 and1 worse than all1 to suspend payment for a time4 ,happily he now turned his thoughts to oratorio4 ,saul and ,israel in ,egypt were composed in quick succession2 the last gigantic work being written in the almost incredibly short space of twenty-seven days4 ,how great it is everyone now knows1 but1 at the time the colossal choruses were actually considered a great deal too heavy and monotonous2 and ,handel1 always quick in resource1 at the second performance introduced a number of operatic songs to make them go down better1 and after the third performance the piece was withdrawn altogether4 ,fortunately1 opinions have changed since then4 ,these works were followed by his fine setting of ,dryden's ,ode on ,st4 ,cecilia's ,day1 and ,milton's ,l',allegro and ,il ,penseroso2 but it cannot be said that his pecuniary affairs were materially improved by their production4 ,the first performance of his greatest oratorio1 the ,messiah1 took place at ,neale's ,music ,hall1 in ,dublin1 on ,april #ah1 #agdb1 at mid-day1 and1 apropos of the absurdities of fashion1 it may be noticed that the announcements contained the following request3 ,that ladies who honor this performance with their presence1 will be pleased to come without hoops1 as it will greatly increase the charity by making room for more company4 ,the work was gloriously successful1 and #djj were obtained the first day for the ,dublin charities4 ,handel seems always to have had a special feeling with regard to this masterpiece of his--as if it were too sacred to be merely used for making money by1 like his other works4 ,he very frequently assisted at its performance for the benefit of the ,foundling ,hospital1 and he left the score as a precious gift to the governor of that institution4 ,this work alone brought no less a sum than #aj1bii to the funds of the hospital4 ,in this connection a fine saying of his may be repeated4 ,lord ,kinnoul had complimented him on the noble entertainment which by the ,messiah he had lately given the town4 ,my ,lord1 said ,handel1 ,i should be sorry if ,i only entertained them--,i wish to make them better4 ,and when someone questioned him on his feelings when composing the ,hallelujah ,chorus1 he replied in his peculiar ,english1 ,i did think ,i did see all heaven before me1 and the great ,god himself4 ,what a fine saying that was of poor old ,george ,,iii41 in describing the pastoral symphony in this oratorio--,i could see the stars shining through it6 ,the now constant custom of the audience to rise and remain standing during the performance of this chorus1 is said to have originated in the following manner3 ,on the first production of the work in ,london1 the audience were exceedingly struck and affected by the music in general2 but when that chorus struck up1 ',for the ,lord ,god ,omnipotent' in the ',hallelujah1' they were so transported that they all together1 with the king 7who happened to be present71 started up and remained standing till the chorus ended4 ,this anecdote ,i had from ,lord ,kinnoul4 ,so says ,dr4 ,beattie1 the once famous poet1 in one of his letters4 ,the ,messiah was commenced on ,august #bb1 #agda1 finished on ,september #abth1 and the orchestration filled up two days afterward--the whole work thus being completed in twenty-three days4 ,handel was fifty-six years old at the time4 ,the next ten years of the life of the ,goliath of ,music1 as he has been called1 are marked by some of the most splendid achievements of his genius4 ,samson1 the ,dettingen ,te ,deum1 ,joseph1 ,belshazzar1 ,the ,occasional ,oratorio1 ,judas ,maccabeus1 ,joshua1 ,solomon1 and1 ,theodora1 being composed by him during this time1 when1 already an old man1 it might have been thought that he would have taken some repose after the labors of so toilsome and troubled a life4 ,but1 oak-like1 he was one of those who mature late2 like ,milton1 his greatest works were those of his old age4 ,but a terrible misfortune was approaching--his eyesight was failing4 ,the drop serene1 of which ,milton speaks so pathetically1 had fallen on his eyes1 and at the time when1 in ,february1 #ageb1 he was composing his last work1 ,jephtha 7the one containing ,deeper and ,deeper ,still1 and ,waft her1 ,angels71 the effort in tracing the lines is1 in the original ,,ms41 very painfully apparent4 ,soon afterward he submitted to three operations1 but they were in vain1 and henceforth all was to be dark to him4 ,his sole remaining work was now to improvise on the organ1 and to play at performances of his oratorios4 ,there is a pathetic story told of an incident that occurred on one occasion1 when ,samson was given4 ,while the magnificent air1 ,total eclipse6 no sun1 no moon6 ,all dark1 amidst the blaze of noon4 ,o glorious light6 no cheering ray ,to glad my eyes with welcome day4 ,why thus deprived thy prime decree8 ,sun1 moon1 and stars are dark to me-- was being sung by ,beard1 the tenor1 the blind old man1 seated at the organ1 was seen to tremble and grow pale1 and then1 when he was led forward to the audience to receive their applause1 tears were in the eyes of nearly everyone present at the sight4 ,it was like the scene that is described in ,beethoven's life on the occasion of that composer's appearance1 when almost totally deaf1 to conduct his great ,choral ,symphony at ,vienna4 ,one night1 on returning home from a performance of the ,messiah at ,covent ,garden1 ,handel was seized with sudden weakness and retired hurriedly to bed1 from which he was never to rise again4 ,he prayed that he might breathe his last on ,good ,friday1 in hope of meeting his ,god1 his sweet ,lord and ,saviour on the day of his resurrection4 ,and strangely enough his wish was granted1 for on ,good ,friday1 ,april #ac1 #agei1 he quietly passed away from this life1 being then seventy-four years of age4 ,his remains were laid in ,poets' ,corner in ,westminster ,abbey1 and the place is marked by a statue by ,roubilliac1 representing him leaning over a table covered with musical instruments1 his hand holding a pen1 and before him is laid the ,messiah1 open at the words1 ,i know that my ,redeemer liveth4 ,,mozart ,by ,c4 ,e4 ,,bourne 7#agef-agia7 ,illustration3 ,mozart4 ,leopold ,mozart was a violinist in the band of ,archbishop ,sigismund1 the reigning ,prince of ,salzburg1 and it was probably in compliment to his master that he bestowed on the youngest of his seven children the name of ,joannes ,chrysostomus ,wolfgangus ,theophilus ,sigismundus4 ,born on ,january #bg1 #agef1 this child was destined to make the name of ,mozart famous wherever music is known2 and surely no more beautiful life--beautiful in itself and in the works of immortal beauty which in its short course were produced--has ever been lived by anyone of those to whom the crown of inspired singers and an enduring monument in the temple of art has been given4 ,look around1 was the epitaph on a great architect4 ,listen1 is the most fitting tribute to the wonderful genius of a ,mozart4 ,infant prodigies very often turn out to be nobodies in after-life4 ,but ,mozart was an exception2 and though he might well have been called the marvellous boy1 his latest works--and he died at the early age of thirty-five--were undoubtedly his grandest and most perfect4 ,he began very early to compose4 ,one of these first attempts was a concerto so difficult that no one could play it2 but the child undauntedly said1 ,why1 that's the very reason why it is called a concerto2 people must practise it before they can play it perfectly4 ,wolfgang and his sister1 ,nannerl1 as he used to call her1 had been taken by their father1 in #agfb1 to ,vienna1 where the children played the piano before the ,empress ,maria ,theresa and her husband4 ,little ,wolfgang was here1 as everywhere1 perfectly at his ease1 with a simplicity and childish grace that won every heart4 ,when he had been playing for some time1 he jumped without ceremony on the lap of the empress1 and kissed her heartily for being so good to him4 ,little ,marie ,antoinette1 her daughter1 afterward the ill-fated wife of ,louis ,,xvi41 and then about the same age as ,wolfgang1 he treated in almost the same way4 ,he had slipped on the polished floor1 to which he was unaccustomed1 and the little princess had hurried forward to raise him up1 on which he promptly said1 ,you are good2 ,i will marry you4 ,the empress asked why he wished this1 to which he answered1 ,out of gratitude2 she was kind1 while her sister took no notice of me 7she had not come forward to help him74 ,after returning to ,salzburg1 ,leopold ,mozart1 in the spring of #agfc1 took his children on a more lengthy tour to ,munich1 ,paris1 ,london1 and ,the ,hague1 and everywhere their playing1 especially ,wolfgang's performances on the organ1 which he had now learned1 were listened to with delight and astonishment4 ,at ,heidelberg the priest of the ,church of the ,holy ,ghost engraved on the organ the boy's name and the date of his visit1 in remembrance of this wonder of ,god1 as he called the child4 ,at ,london1 old ,mozart says1 they were received1 on ,april #bgth1 by ,king ,george ,,iii4 and ,queen ,caroline1 at the palace1 and remained from six to nine o'clock4 ,the king placed before the boy compositions of ,bach and ,handel1 all of which he played at sight perfectly2 he had also the honor of accompanying the queen in a song4 ,on leaving the palace1 the careful father says1 we received a present of #bd guineas4 ,a great delight was now before him1 for his father had resolved on a journey to ,italy1 then far more than now the land of music4 ,how much this visit did for the young maestro it is impossible to say2 he has not1 like ,mendelssohn1 left us an ,italian ,symphony1 recording the impressions which that sunny spot of classic beauty had made upon him1 but there can be little doubt of the great influence it had on the whole of his after-life4 ,there are some significant words which he wrote eight years later to his father from ,paris3 ,you must faithfully promise to let me see ,italy again in order to refresh my life4 ,i do entreat of you to confer this happiness upon me4 ,in ,mantua1 ,milan1 ,bologna 7where he had the good fortune to meet the learned ,padre ,martini1 one of the soundest musicians of his age1 and for whom he ever afterward maintained a warm attachment71 ,florence1 ,rome1 and ,naples1 the young genius was received everywhere with enthusiasm by the crowds who came to hear him4 ,in ,naples the superstitious people believed that there was magic in his playing1 and pointed to a ring on his left hand as the cause of his wonderful dexterity2 and it was only when he had taken this off1 and gone on playing just the same1 that they had to acknowledge it was simply the perfection of art4 ,there is something sad in contrasting these brilliant early days with the anxious times that came later on1 when the great ,mozart was compelled to wait in the ante-chambers of the great1 dine with their lacqueys1 give lessons to stupid young countesses1 and write begging letters to his friends2 yet1 in reality1 those later days1 when ,don ,giovanni1 ,die ,zauberflte1 and the ,requiem1 were composed1 were the truly brilliant ones4 ,and it may be that the very greatness came1 in some measure1 from the sorrow and pain2 that ,mozart1 like so many others of the world's great singers1 learnt in suffering what he taught in song4 ,on his return to ,munich1 after composing a comic opera in the ,italian style1 ,la ,finta ,giardiniera1 which had a great success1 young ,mozart1 who had been very shabbily treated by ,archbishop ,hieronymus--of whose spiteful conduct we shall hear more hereafter--the successor of ,sigismund1 determined to resign his situation in the court band1 and to set out on his travels again1 giving concerts from place to place1 and everywhere looking out for some suitable appointment that might afford him a permanent income4 ,this time his father was refused permission to travel1 and1 as on his exertions depended the support of the whole family1 he remained behind1 while ,frau ,mozart1 the mother1 accompanied young ,wolfgang4 ,in #aggg1 now a young man of twenty-one1 he set out upon his second great artistic tour1 buoyant with hope1 and with all the beautiful audacity of young genius determined to conquer the world4 ,this time it was not the infant prodigy whom men listened to1 but the matured musician and the composer of melodies sweeter than men had ever listened to before4 ,but the tale is changed now4 ,true1 there are triumphs to be spoken of1 flattery from the great1 and presents sent in recompense for his marvellous playing 7he tells one day of his chagrin in receiving from a certain prince a gold watch1 instead of money that he sorely wanted--and1 besides1 he had five watches already672 but rebuffs1 intrigues1 and all sorts of petty machinations against him1 make the tale a sadder one2 and so it continued to be to the end4 ,from ,munich--where it had been hoped that the elector would have given him an appointment at court1 but he was only told to go to ,italy and become famous1 it was too early yet to think about becoming a ,capellmeister--he went to ,augsburg1 spending some pleasant days there in the society of a cousin1 ,marianne1 nicknamed by him ,bsle1 a merry1 open-hearted girl of nineteen4 ,thence1 he went on to ,mannheim1 a town that is memorable as the place where he first met the ,webers1 and made the acquaintance of ,herr ,cannabich1 the director of the music at the elector's court1 and one who proved a stanch friend through everything to the young composer4 ,cannabich had a daughter named ,rosa1 a girl of thirteen1 exceedingly pretty and clever1 and ,wolfgang appears to have admired her very much1 and perhaps for a time to have flirted and been in love with her4 ,he wrote her a sonata1 and was delighted with the way in which she played it2 the andante1 he said1 he had composed to represent her1 and when it was finished he vowed she was just what the andante was4 ,but this little love affair1 if it existed1 soon was forgotten in a more serious one with ,aloysia ,weber4 ,her father was a theatre copyist in poor circumstances4 ,there were a number of children1 and she was a beautiful girl of fifteen1 with a magnificent voice4 ,she was cousin1 by the way1 to ,weber1 afterward composer of the ,freischtz4 ,mozart was so charmed with her voice that he undertook to give her lessons1 and we soon hear of him composing airs for her and meditating a concert tour in ,italy in company with her1 and her father and sister4 ,in writing of it to his own father he sets out the advantages to be gained by co-partnership1 and very prosaically says3 ,should we stay long anywhere1 the eldest daughter ,josepha1 afterward ,frau ,hofer1 for whom ,mozart wrote the part of ,astrafiammente in the ,zauberflte would be of the greatest use to us2 for we could have our own mnage1 as she understands cooking4 ,but papa ,mozart decidedly objected4 ,your proposal to travel about with ,herr ,weber--,n4 ,b41 two daughters--has driven me nearly wild1 and he straightway orders his son off to ,paris1 whither1 with a parting present of a pair of mittens knitted for him by ,mlle4 ,weber1 he reluctantly sets out in company with his mother4 ,his stay in ,paris during the next year was not very eventful1 and a symphony produced at the ,concerts ,spirituels seems to have been his most successful work at this time4 ,it was clever and lively1 full of striking effects1 and was most warmly applauded4 ,he says3 ,the moment the symphony was over ,i went off in my joy to the ,palais ,royal1 where ,i took a good ice1 told my beads1 as ,i had vowed1 and went home1 where ,i am happiest and always shall be happiest4 ,a great sorrow came to him here in the death of his mother4 ,owing to the great expense of living in ,paris1 they had been compelled to live together in a small1 dark room1 so cramped for space that there was not even room for the indispensable piano4 ,here she was taken ill1 and though for fourteen days ,wolfgang most devotedly attended to her wants1 she died in his arms4 ,the letters in which he breaks the news to his father and sister are full of the most beautiful tenderness and forgetfulness of his own grief in solicitude for theirs4 ,things did not indeed prosper with him in ,paris2 he tried to give lessons1 but the ladies whom he taught paid him very shabbily1 and the labor of getting from one part of the city to another to teach was so great that he found it difficult to give the time he wished to composition4 ,music in ,paris1 just then1 was at a low ebb4 ,vapidly pretty ,italian operas were in fashion1 and ,piccinni was the favorite composer4 ,it was some years afterward that the great contest between the ,piccinnists and ,gluckists culminated in the victory of the latter1 though ,alceste1 had already been produced1 and ,iphigenia was soon to follow4 ,mozart was a fervent admirer of ,gluck1 and the music of the older master had evidently an important influence on that of the younger and more gifted composer4 ,once more his thoughts were turned to ,salzburg1 for two of the leading musicians there having died1 the ,archbishop ,hieronymus offered their posts to the ,mozarts1 father and son1 at a salary of a thousand florins for the two4 ,the father anxiously entreated his son to return and accept this offer1 mentioning as a further bait1 that ,aloysia ,weber would probably be engaged to sing in ,salzburg4 ,much as ,wolfgang hated ,salzburg1 or rather the people living there1 his love for his father and sister prevailed over his aversion2 and though with no pleasure at all in the prospect of seeing the hateful archbishop again1 he set out from ,paris1 travelling to ,salzburg in very leisurely fashion via ,strasbourg1 ,mannheim1 and ,munich4 ,at ,strasbourg he was induced to give several concerts1 but they were not pecuniary successes1 and he did not make by any one more than three louis d'or4 ,but how the artist peeps out in every line of the letters in which he describes these6 ,after saying how few were present1 and how cold it was1 he proceeds3 ,but ,i soon warmed myself1 to show the ,strasbourg gentlemen how little ,i cared1 and played to them a long time for my own amusement1 giving a concerto more than ,i had promised1 and at the close extemporizing4 ,it is now over1 but at all events ,i gained honor and fame4 ,at ,munich a great shock awaited him4 ,he visited the ,webers1 and being in mourning for his mother1 wore1 after the ,french fashion1 a red coat with black buttons4 ,when he appeared1 ,aloysia hardly seemed to recognize him1 and her coldness was so marked1 that ,mozart quietly seated himself at the piano1 and sang in a loud voice1 ,ich lass das ,mdchen gern das mich nicht will 7,i gladly give up the girl who slights me74 ,it was all over1 and he had to bear the loss of the fickle girl as best he might4 ,there is a significant line in one of his letters at this time to his father3 ,in my whole life ,i never wrote worse than ,i do to-day1 but ,i really am unfit for anything2 my heart is so full of tears4 ,after two years' absence he returned home to ,salzburg1 where he was warmly welcomed back4 ,here he remained for a little while1 and wrote his first serious opera1 ,idomeneo1 to the text of an ,abbe ,varesco1 a ,salzburger4 ,this opera ,beethoven thought the finest of all that ,mozart wrote4 ,it was brought out at ,munich in ,january1 #agha1 and was brilliantly successful4 ,in the ,march following1 an order was received from the archbishop to follow him to ,vienna1 where he wished to appear with all the full pomp and brilliant retinue of a prince of the church2 and as one of this retinue ,mozart had to follow him1 little thinking at the time that he should never return to ,salzburg1 but that ,vienna henceforth was to be his home4 ,in ,vienna he found that he had to live in the archbishop's house1 and was looked upon there as one of the ordinary servants4 ,he says1 ,we dine at eleven o'clock in the forenoon1 unluckily rather too early an hour for me4 ,our party consists of the two valets1 the comptroller1 ,herr ,zetti1 the confectioner1 the two cooks1 ,cecarilli1 ,brunetti 7two singers71 and my insignificant self4 ,n4 ,b4--,the two valets sit at the head of the table4 ,i have1 at all events1 the honor to be placed above the cooks2 ,i almost believe ,i am back to ,salzburg4 ,mozart was a true gentleman1 with no foolish false pride1 but with the honorable self-respect that every gentleman must possess1 and it was very galling to him to have to suffer such odious treatment from the mean-spirited archbishop4 ,indeed1 it was only for his father's sake that he submitted to the continued contumely and petty slights to which the archbishop delighted in subjecting him4 ,at last the open rupture came4 ,the archbishop called him a knave and dissolute fellow1 and told him to be off2 and when ,mozart waited upon ,count ,arco1 the principal official1 to obtain the regular dismissal that was necessary1 the fellow poured abuse upon him1 and actually kicked him out of the room4 ,poor ,mozart was in a state of violent excitement after this outrage1 and for some days was so ill that he could not continue his ordinary work4 ,but now at least he was free1 and though his father1 like a timid1 prudent old man1 bewailed the loss of the stipend which his son had been receiving1 ,mozart himself knew that the release was entirely for the best4 ,in #aghb appeared ,die ,entfhrung aus dem ,serail1 his first really important opera1 full of beautiful airs1 which at once became enormously popular with the ,viennese4 ,the ,emperor ,joseph ,,ii4 knew very little about music1 but1 as frequently happens in such cases1 considered that he possessed prodigious taste4 ,on hearing it he said1 ,much too fine for our ears1 dear ,mozart2 and what a quantity of notes6 ,the bold reply to this was1 ,just as many notes as are necessary1 your ,majesty4 ,much of the delight which ,mozart felt in the success of the opera arose from the fact that it enabled him seriously to contemplate marriage4 ,aloysia ,weber had been faithless to him1 but there was another sister--with no special beauty save that of bright eyes1 a comely figure1 and a cheerful1 amiable disposition--,constanze1 whom he now hoped to make his wife4 ,his father objected to all of the ,weber family1 and there was some difficulty in obtaining the paternal consent2 but at last the marriage took place1 on ,august #d1 #aghb4 ,how truly he loved his wife from first to last1 his letters abundantly show2 her frequent illnesses were afterward a great and almost constant source of expense to him1 but he never ceased to write to her with the passionate ardor of a young lover4 ,he says3 ,i found that ,i never prayed so fervently1 or confessed so piously1 as by her side2 she felt the same4 ,and now for some time everything went smoothly in the modest little mnage in ,vienna4 ,mozart had plenty of lessons to give1 but none of the commissions for operas which he would have wished4 ,passing over a visit to ,leipsic--where he studied with the keenest delight a number of the unpublished works of the great ,sebastian ,bach--and to ,berlin1 he returned to ,vienna1 and at once set to work upon some quartets which the ,king of ,prussia had ordered from him4 ,cosi fan tutte1 a comic opera1 with the beautifully flowing music that only ,mozart could write1 but with a stupid plot that has prevented its frequent repetition in later times2 and the glorious ,zauberflte1 written to assist a theatrical manager1 ,schikaneder1 were his next works4 ,at this time a strange melancholy began to show itself in his letters--it may be that already his overwrought brain was conscious that the end was not far distant4 ,such lines as these1 pathetic and sad in their simple and almost childlike expression1 occur in a letter he wrote during a short absence from his wife1 at ,frankfort1 in #agij3 ,i am as happy as a child at the thought of returning to you4 ,if people could see into my heart ,i should almost feel ashamed--all there is cold1 cold as ice4 ,were you with me1 ,i should possibly take more pleasure in the kindness of those ,i meet here1 but all seems to me so empty4 ,on his return to ,vienna pecuniary want was rather pressingly felt2 his silver plate had to be pawned1 and a perfidious friend1 ,stadler1 made away with the tickets1 and the silver was never redeemed4 ,on one occasion ,joseph ,deiner1 the landlord of the ,silberne ,schlange1 chanced to call upon him1 and was surprised to find ,mozart and his wife ,constanze dancing round the room4 ,the laughing explanation was that they had no firewood in the house1 and so were trying to warm themselves with dancing4 ,deiner at once offered to send in firewood1 ,mozart promising to pay as soon as he could4 ,that grand work1 the ,zauberflte1 had just been completed when a strange commission was given him4 ,one day a tall1 haggard-looking man1 dressed in gray1 with a very sombre expression of countenance1 called upon ,mozart1 bringing with him an anonymous letter4 ,this letter contained an inquiry as to the sum for which he would write a mass for the dead1 and in how short a time this could be completed4 ,mozart consulted his wife1 and the sum of fifty ducats was mentioned4 ,the stranger departed1 and soon returned with the money1 promising ,mozart a further sum on completion1 and also mentioned that he might as well spare the trouble of finding out who had given this commission1 for it would be entirely useless4 ,we now know that the commission had really been given by ,count ,walsegg1 a foolish nobleman1 whose wife had died1 and who wanted1 by transcribing ,mozart's score1 to pass it off as his own composition--and this he actually did after the composer's death4 ,poor ,mozart1 in the weak state of health in which he now was1 with nerves unstrung and over-excited brain1 was strangely impressed by this visit1 and soon the fancy took firm possession of him that the messenger had arrived with a mandate from the unseen world1 and that the ,requiem he was to write was for himself4 ,not the less did he ardently set to work on it4 ,hardly1 however1 was it commenced than he was compelled to write another opera1 ,la ,clemenza di ,tito1 for which a commission had been given him by the ,bohemian ,estates1 for production on the occasion of the ,emperor ,leopold's coronation in their capital4 ,this was accomplished in the short space of eighteen days1 and though it does not contain the best music1 yet the overture and several of the numbers are full of a piquant beauty and liveliness well suiting the festival of a people's rejoicing4 ,but a far greater work1 the ,zauberflte1 was produced in ,vienna shortly afterward4 ,it did not take very well at first1 but subsequent performances went better4 ,illustration3 ,mozart ,singing his ,requiem4 ,his labors in bringing out the ,zauberflte over1 ,mozart returned to the ,requiem he had already commenced1 but while writing he often had to sink back in his chair1 being seized with short swoons4 ,too plainly was his strength exhausted1 but he persisted in his solemn work4 ,one bright ,november morning he was walking with ,constanze in the ,prater1 and sadly pointing out to her the falling leaves1 and speaking of death1 with tears in his eyes1 he added2 ,i well know ,i am writing this ',requiem' for myself4 ,my own feelings tell me that ,i shall not last long4 ,no doubt some one has given me poison--,i cannot get rid of this thought4 ,with these gloomy fancies haunting his mind1 he rapidly grew worse1 and soon could not leave his room4 ,the performances of the ,zauberflte were still going on1 and extraordinarily successful4 ,he took the greatest interest in hearing of them1 and at night would take out his watch and note the time--,now the first act is over1 now is the time for the great ,queen of ,night4 ,the day before his death he said to his wife1 ,oh1 that ,i could only once more hear my ',flauto ,magico6' humming1 in scarcely audible voice1 the lively bird-catcher song4 ,the same day1 at two o'clock in the afternoon1 he called his friends together1 and asked for the score of his nearly completed ,requiem to be laid on his bed4 ,benedict ,schack sang the soprano2 his brother-in-law1 ,hofer1 the tenor2 ,gerl1 the bass2 and ,mozart himself took the alto in a weak but delicately clear voice4 ,they had got through the various parts till they came to the ,lacrymosa1 when ,mozart burst into tears1 and laid the score aside4 ,the next day 7,sunday71 he was worse1 and said to ,sophie1 his sister-in-law1 ,i have the taste of death on my tongue1 ,i smell the grave1 and who can comfort my ,constanze1 if you don't stay here8 ,in her account of his last moments1 she says3 ,i found ,sssmayer sitting by ,mozart's bed4 ,the well-known ',requiem' was lying on the coverlet1 and ,mozart was explaining to ,sssmayer the mode in which he wished him to complete it after his death4 ,he further requested his wife to keep his death secret until she had informed ,albrechtsberger of it1 'for the situation of assistant organist at the ,stephen ,church ought to be his before ,god and the world4' ,the doctor came and ordered cold applications on ,mozart's burning head4444 ,the last movement of his lips was an endeavor to indicate where the kettledrums should be used in the ',requiem4' ,i think ,i still hear the sound4 ,,haydn ,by ,c4 ,e4 ,,bourne 7#agcb-ahji7 ,illustration3 ,haydn4 ,no composer has ever given greater or purer pleasure by his compositions than is given by papa ,haydn2 there is an unceasing flow of cheerfulness and lively tone in his music1 even in the most solemn pieces1 as in his ,masses1 the predominant feeling is that of gladness2 as he once said to ,carpani3 ,at the thought of ,god my heart leaps for joy1 and ,i cannot help my music doing the same4 ,but it is not alone as the writer of graceful and beautiful music that ,haydn has a claim on our remembrance2 he has been truly called the father of the symphony4 ,mozart once said3 ,it was from ,haydn that ,i first learned the true way to compose quartettes2 and ,the ,creation1 which must ever be counted one of the masterpieces of oratorio music1 was his work4 ,his family were of the people1 his father being a master wheelwright at ,rohrau1 a small ,austrian village on the borders of ,lower ,austria and ,hungary and his mother having been employed as a cook in the castle of ,count ,harrach1 the principal lord of the district4 ,joseph ,haydn was born on ,march #ca1 #agcb the second child of his parents2 and as ten brothers and sisters afterward came into the world1 it can easily be understood that his lot was not a very luxurious one4 ,his parents were simple1 honest people of the laboring class1 very ignorant1 but1 like most ,german peasants1 with a certain love for and facility in music1 not quite so common in this country4 ,haydn's father had a good voice1 and could sing well1 accompanying himself on the harp1 though he did not know a single note of written music4 ,then there was the village schoolmaster1 who could actually play the violin1 and whom little ,joseph watched with wondering eyes1 extracting those marvellously sweet sounds from his wooden instrument1 until1 with the child's spirit of imitation1 as his parents sang their ,volkslieder1 the little fellow1 perched on a stone bench1 gravely handled two pieces of wood of his own as if they were bow and fiddle1 keeping exact time1 and flourishing the bow in the approved fashion of the schoolmaster4 ,from this very little incident came an important change in his life2 for a relation1 ,johann ,mathias ,frankh1 of ,hainburg1 happened to be present on one occasion1 and1 thinking he saw an aptitude for music in the boy1 offered to take him into his own school at ,hainburg1 where accordingly young ,haydn went at the age of six years4 ,there he remained for two years1 making rapid progress in singing and in playing all sorts of instruments1 among others the clavier1 violin1 organ1 and drum4 ,he said afterward1 with the unaffected piety1 far removed from cant1 that was characteristic of him3 ,almighty ,god1 to whom ,i render thanks for all his unnumbered mercies1 gave me such facility in music that1 by the time ,i was six years old1 ,i stood up like a man and sang masses in the church choir1 and could play a little on the clavier and violin4 ,of ,frankh1 a very strict1 but thorough and most painstaking teacher1 he also said afterward3 ,i shall be grateful to that man as long as ,i live for keeping me so hard at work1 though ,i used to get more flogging than food2 and in ,haydn's will he remembered ,frankh's family1 leaving his daughter a sum of money and a portrait of ,frankh himself1 my first instructor in music4 ,for some years he seems to have lived a miserable1 struggling life1 giving lessons1 playing the organ in churches1 and studying when and where he could4 ,he had a few pupils at the moderate remuneration of two florins a month1 and he had contrived to obtain possession of an old worm-eaten clavier1 on which he used diligently to practise in the garret in the ,kohlmarkt1 where he lived4 ,a pitiable description is given of the lodging he then occupied4 ,it was on the sixth story1 in a room without stove or window4 ,in winter his breath froze on his thin coverlet1 and the water1 that in the morning he had to fetch himself from the spring for washing1 was frequently changed into a lump of ice before his arrival in that elevated region4 ,life was indeed hard2 but he was constantly at work1 and1 having made a precious find on an old bookstall one day of ,fux's ,gradus ad ,parnassum1 in a very dilapidated condition1 but very cheap1 he was ardently preparing himself for the life--he now vowed should be his--of a composer4 ,about this time ,haydn received a commission from ,felix ,kurz1 a comic actor of the ,stadt-,theatre1 to put a farce of his1 ,der neue krumme ,teufel1 to music4 ,this farce1 of which the words still remain1 though the music has been lost1 was very successful1 and was played in ,vienna1 ,prague1 ,berlin1 and a number of other towns4 ,the well-known story of ,haydn's ,tempest ,music is connected with this4 ,in one part of this piece a terrible storm was supposed to be raging1 and the accompanying music must of course be suitably descriptive2 but the difficulty was that ,haydn had never seen the sea3 therefore had not the slightest notion of what a storm at sea was like4 ,kurz tries to describe the waves running mountains high1 the pitching and tossing1 the roll of thunder1 and the howling of the wind2 and ,haydn produces all sorts of ugly1 jerky1 and noisy music1 but none of it is in the remotest degree like a storm at sea1 or anywhere else4 ,at last1 after ,kurz had become hoarse with his nautical disquisitions1 and ,haydn's fingers were tired of scrambling all over the piano1 the little musician in a rage crashed his hands down on the two extremes of the instrument1 exclaiming3 ,let's have done with this tempest6 ,why1 that's it2 that's the very thing6 shouted the clown1 jumping up and embracing him2 and with this crash and a run of semitones to the centre of the piano this troublesome tempest was most satisfactorily represented4 ,when1 many years afterward1 ,haydn was crossing the ,straits of ,dover to ,england1 amid his sufferings he could not help laughing at the ludicrous recollections of this early experience of his4 ,things still went on improving1 and ,haydn1 who was always lucky in the patrons he secured 7at least according to the notion about patrons that then prevailed71 was invited to the country-house of ,herr von ,frnberg1 a wealthy amateur1 to stay there and compose quartettes for him--a style of music for which von ,frnberg had an especial liking4 ,to his prompting it is that we owe the lovely series of quartettes which ,haydn wrote--still as fresh and full of serene beauty as when first tried over by the virtuosi of ,weinzirl4 ,the next piece of good fortune was ,haydn's appointment as director of the band and composer to ,count ,ferdinand ,morzin at ,lukaver near ,pilsen2 and here1 in #agei1 his first symphony was written4 ,his salary was very small1 only #bjj florins a year 7or #bj71 with board and lodgings2 but on the strength of it he unfortunately determined on the serious step of embarking in matrimony4 ,a barber1 named ,keller1 is said to have been very kind to him in the days of his poverty1 and out of gratitude ,haydn gave music-lessons to his daughters4 ,one of them1 the youngest1 was very pretty1 and ,haydn fell in love with her4 ,but she became a nun2 and the father then prevailed upon ,haydn to marry the elder one1 who was three years older than he--a sour-tempered1 bigoted1 and abominably selfish woman1 who contributed little to the happiness of his life1 and was always bringing priests and friars to the house and worrying her good-tempered husband to compose masses and other church music for these men4 ,count ,morzin was compelled to give up his band in #agfa2 but ,haydn did not remain long without employment1 as ,prince ,esterhazy1 who had heard his symphonies at ,morzin's house1 engaged him to assist ,werner1 his ,capellmeister4 ,as director of ,prince ,esterhazy's band1 ,haydn was fated to remain for many years living at ,esterhz1 the prince's country-seat1 composing there nearly all his operas and songs1 and many of his symphonies4 ,in #aghe ,haydn received a commission which showed the wide reputation he had then gained4 ,the ,chapter of ,cadiz ,cathedral requested him to write some instrumental music for performance on ,good ,friday4 ,the ,seven ,words of our ,saviour on the ,cross was in consequence written by him4 ,several invitations had been sent from ,england for ,haydn to pay a visit there2 but it was only after ,prince ,esterhazy was dead that he was prevailed on by ,salomon to cross the sea4 ,a characteristic conversation between him and ,mozart--which took place before he undertook this1 in those days1 really formidable journey--is recorded4 ,papa1 said ,mozart1 you have no training for the great world1 and you speak too few languages4 ,haydn replied3 ,my language is understood by all the world4 ,he set out on ,december #ae1 #agij1 and did not return to ,vienna till ,july1 #agib4 ,in ,london1 where he wrote and conducted a number of symphonies for ,salomon1 he was the lion of the season1 being in constant request for conducting concerts and paying visits to the nobility4 ,of these symphonies ,salomon once said to him3 ,i am strongly of opinion that you never will surpass this music4 ,i never mean to try1 was the answer4 ,but this must not be taken to mean that ,haydn had given up striving after the truest perfection in his art1 and it probably meant no more than that for the time he was satisfied with his work4 ,far more like the genuine expression of the feeling of the great artist was his utterance1 just before he died1 to ,kalkbrenner3 ,i have only just learned in my old age how to use the wind-instruments2 and now that ,i do understand them1 ,i must leave the world4 ,illustration3 ,haydn ,composing his ,creation4 ,great as the work accomplished in his youth and early manhood unquestionably was1 it remained for his old age to accomplish his greatest work1 and that by which he is best known--the oratorio of ,the ,creation4 ,it is said that the first ideas for this came to him when1 in crossing the ,english ,channel1 he encountered a terrific storm4 ,soon after his leaving ,london1 where the words had been given him by ,salomon1 ,haydn set about composing the music4 ,never1 he says1 was ,i so pious as when composing ',the ,creation4' ,i knelt down every day and prayed ,god to strengthen me for my work4 ,it was first produced on ,march #ca1 #agii1 his #fgth birthday1 at the ,national ,theatre1 ,vienna1 and was at once accorded an extraordinary share of popular favor4 ,there is a pathetic story of the last performance of the work1 at which ,haydn1 in extreme old age1 in #ahjh1 was present1 when ,salieri conducted4 ,he was carried in an arm-chair into the hall1 and received there with the warmest greeting by the audience4 ,at the sublime passage1 ,and there was light6 ,haydn1 quite overcome1 raised his hand1 pointing upward and saying1 ,it came from thence4 ,soon after this his agitation increased so much that it was thought better to take him home at the end of the first part4 ,the people crowded round him to take leave1 and ,beethoven is said to have reverently kissed his hand and forehead4 ,after composing ,the ,creation1 ,haydn was prevailed upon to write another work1 of somewhat similar character1 to words adapted from ,thomson's poem1 and entitled ,the ,seasons4 ,this1 though containing some fine descriptive music and several choruses of great beauty1 is not at all equal to the earlier work1 though at the time its success was quite as complete4 ,but the exertion of writing two such great works1 almost without rest between them1 was too great1 and he himself said3 ',the ,seasons' gave me the finishing stroke4 ,the bombardment of ,vienna by the ,french in #ahji greatly disturbed the poor old man4 ,he still retained some of his old humor1 and during the thunder of the cannons called out to his servants3 ,children1 don't be frightened2 no harm can happen to you while ,haydn is by6 ,he was now no longer able to compose1 and to his last unfinished quartette he added a few bars of ,der ,greis1 as a conclusion3 ,hin ist alle meine ,kraft3 ,alt und schwach bin ich4 --,,joseph ,,haydn4 ,gone is all my strength3 old and weak am ,i4 ,and these lines he caused to be engraved1 and sent on a card to the friends who visited him4 ,the end was indeed now near4 ,on ,may #bf1 #ahji1 he had his servants gathered round him for the last adieus2 then1 by his desire1 he was carried to the piano1 where he played three times over the ,emperor's ,hymn1 composed by him4 ,then he was taken to his bed1 where five days afterward he died4 ,,beethoven ,by ,c4 ,e4 ,,bourne 7#aggj-ahbg7 ,illustration3 ,beethoven4 ,in one of his letters to ,frau von ,streicher1 at ,baden1 ,beethoven writes3 ,when you visit the ancient ruins1 do not forget that ,beethoven has often lingered there2 when you stray through the silent pine-forests1 do not forget that ,beethoven often wrote poetry there1 or1 as it is termed1 composed4 ,he was always fond of claiming the title ,ton-dichter1 poet in music2 and surely of all the great geniuses who have walked the earth1 to none can the glorious name of poet more truly be given than to ,ludwig von ,beethoven4 ,he was born at ,bonn1 on ,december #ag1 #aggj4 ,his father1 ,johann von ,beethoven1 was a tenor singer in the ,electoral ,chapel of the ,archbishop of ,cologne1 at ,bonn1 and his mother1 ,maria ,magdalena1 was a daughter of the head cook at the castle of ,ehrenbreitstein4 ,the ,beethoven family originally came from ,louvain1 in ,belgium2 but the composer's grandfather had settled in ,bonn1 first as a singer1 and afterward as ,capellmeister to the court4 ,musicians were not held of much account in those days1 and the marriage of a singer with the daughter of a cook was not at all considered a msalliance4 ,johann was a sad drunken scapegrace1 and his poor wife1 in bringing up her family upon the small portion of his earnings which she could save from being squandered at the tavern1 had a pitiably hard and long struggling life of it4 ,johann soon discovered the extraordinary musical endowments of his child and at once set to work to make a prodigy of him1 as ,handel1 ,bach1 and ,mozart had been before2 for in this way the father hoped to secure a mine of wealth and lazy competence for himself4 ,so the boy1 when only a few years old1 was kept for long weary hours practising the piano1 and one of the earliest stories of his life is of the five-year-old little child made to stand on a bench before the piano laboring over the notes1 while the tears flowed fast down his cheeks at the cold and aching pain1 from which his hard taskmaster would not release him4 ,besides his father1 a clever musician who lodged in the house1 ,pfeiffer1 an oboist at the theatre1 gave him lessons4 ,beethoven used afterward to say that he had learnt more from this ,pfeiffer than from any one else2 but he was too ready to abet the father in his tyranny1 and many a time1 when the two came reeling home late at night from drinking bouts at the tavern1 they would arouse the little fellow from his sleep and set him to work at the piano till daybreak4 ,his next instructor was ,neefe1 the organist of the ,archbishop's private chapel1 a really skilful and learned musician1 who predicted that the boy would become a second ,mozart4 ,under him ,beethoven studied for several years1 and in #aghb1 when he was hardly twelve years old1 we find him acting as organist in ,neefe's place during the absence of the latter on a journey4 ,the next year three sonatas composed by young ,beethoven1 and dedicated to the ,elector in fulsome language1 which was probably his father's production1 were printed4 ,soon afterward the boy obtained the appointment of assistant-organist to the ,elector1 with a salary of a hundred thalers1 no inconsiderable addition to the resources of his poor mother1 who1 with her family of three children1 ,ludwig1 ,carl1 and ,johann1 and the more and more frequent visits of her ne'er-do-well of a husband to the tavern1 was often grievously hard put to it for money4 ,young ,ludwig had little play time in his life1 and little opportunity for education2 but amid his hard work some indications of a mischievous boyish spirit are to be found4 ,in the year #agia1 the ,elector1 as head of the ,teutonic ,order1 had to be present at a grand conclave at ,mergentheim1 and thither he resolved to take his musical and theatrical staff4 ,two ships were chartered to convey these gentlemen down the ,rhine and ,maine1 and a very pleasant excursion1 with all sorts of frolics and high revellings1 they had of it4 ,lux1 a celebrated actor1 was chosen king of the expedition1 and we find ,beethoven figuring among the scullions4 ,in the autumn of the year following1 a visit was paid by ,haydn to ,bonn on his return from his second journey to ,london4 ,the musicians of the town gave a breakfast at ,godesberg in his honor1 and here ,beethoven summoned up courage to show the veteran musician a cantata which he had recently composed4 ,this was warmly praised by ,haydn1 and probably about this time arrangements were made for ,beethoven to be received as a pupil by the older master4 ,it is in this period that we must place a well-known anecdote4 ,the young musician1 already famous in his own neighborhood1 was composing1 as his custom was1 in the wood outside the city1 when a funeral cortge passed him4 ,the priest1 seeing him1 instantly checked the dirge which was being chanted1 and the procession passed in solemn silence1 for fear of disturbing him4 ,in the beginning of ,november1 #agib1 the young musician left ,bonn for ,vienna1 and1 as it happened1 he never afterward returned to the familiar scenes of his birthplace4 ,beethoven was never a very easy man to get on with1 and his intercourse with ,haydn1 who used to call him the ,great ,mogul1 does not seem to have been the most friendly4 ,he was dissatisfied with the instruction given him1 and suspicions were awakened in his mind that the elder musician was jealous of him1 and did not wish him to improve4 ,these thoughts were strengthened by the result of a chance meeting one day1 as he was walking home with his portfolio under his arm1 with ,johann ,schenk1 a scientific and thoroughly accomplished musician4 ,beethoven complained to him of the little advance he was making in counterpoint1 and that ,haydn never corrected his exercises or taught him anything4 ,schenk asked to look through the portfolio1 and see the last work that ,haydn had revised1 and on examining it he was astonished to find a number of mistakes that had not been pointed out4 ,it is difficult to understand ,haydn's conduct in this matter1 for the perfidious treatment suspected by ,beethoven is quite at variance with the ordinarily accepted character of the old man1 and ,i cannot help fancying that the only foundation for ,beethoven's suspicion was that ,haydn did not quite understand the erratic genius of the youth till some time afterward4 ,beethoven dedicated his three pianoforte sonatas1 ,op4 ,,ii41 to ,haydn1 and when the latter suggested that he should add on the title page ,pupil of ,haydn1 the ,great ,mogul refused1 bluntly saying that he had never learnt anything from him4 ,after ,haydn1 ,albrechtsberger and ,salieri were for a time his teachers1 but ,beethoven got on no better with them1 and ,albrechtsberger said1 ,have nothing to do with him2 he has learnt nothing1 and will never do anything in decent style4 ,perhaps not in your pedant's style1 ,o great contrapuntist6 ,beethoven cannot be said to have been unfortunate in his friends4 ,he had many true and faithful ones throughout his life1 and though he suffered from pecuniary troubles1 caused by the conduct of his brothers1 he was never in such a state of grinding poverty as some other artists1 such as ,schubert1 have been--never compelled to waste precious years of his life in producing pot-boilers--working not for art so much as for mere food and shelter4 ,in #agid ,prince ,karl ,lichnowski1 who had been a pupil of ,mozart1 and who1 as well as his wife ,christiane1 was fanatico per la musica1 proposed that ,beethoven should come and live at his palace4 ,they had no children2 a suite of rooms was placed at the musician's disposal2 no terms were proposed2 the offer was the most delicate and friendly imaginable1 and was accepted by ,beethoven in the spirit in which it was made4 ,for ten years he resided with the ,lichnowskis1 and these were probably the years of purest happiness in the great composer's life1 although early in their course the terrible affliction of deafness began to be felt by him4 ,he at this time freely frequented the salons of the ,viennese nobility1 many of whom were accomplished virtuosi themselves1 and were able to appreciate the great genius of the new-comer1 rough and bearish as oftentimes he must have appeared to them--a great contrast to the courtly ,haydn and ,salieri1 who might be seen sitting side by side on the sofa in some grandee's music-room1 with their swords1 wigs1 ruffles1 silk stockings1 and snuff-boxes1 while the insignificant-looking and meanly dressed ,beethoven used to stand unnoticed in a corner4 ,here is a description of his appearance given by a ,frau von ,bernhard3 ,when he visited us1 he generally put his head in at the door before entering1 to see if there were any one present he did not like4 ,he was short and insignificant-looking1 with a red face covered with pock-marks4 ,his hair was quite dark4 ,his dress was very common1 quite a contrast to the elegant attire customary in those days1 especially in our circles4444 ,he was very proud1 and ,i have known him refuse to play1 even when ,countess ,thun1 the mother of ,princess ,lichnowski1 had fallen on her knees before him as he lay on the sofa to beg him to4 ,the ,countess was a very eccentric person4444 ,at the ,lichnowskis' ,i saw ,haydn and ,salieri1 who were then very famous1 while ,beethoven excited no interest4 ,it was in the year #ahjj that ,beethoven at last was compelled to acknowledge to himself the terrible calamity of almost total deafness that had befallen him4 ,he writes to his friend ,wegeler1 ,if ,i had not read somewhere that man must not of his own free will depart this life1 ,i should long ere this have been no more and that through my own act4444 ,what is to be the result of this the good ,god alone knows4 ,i beg of you not to mention my state to any one1 not even to ,lorchen ,wegeler's wife4 ,but1 he continues1 ,i live only in my music1 and no sooner is one thing completed than another is begun4 ,in fact1 as at present1 ,i am often engaged on three or four compositions at one time4 ,illustration3 ,an ,anecdote about ,beethoven4 ,but at first all was not gloom2 for ,beethoven was in love--not the love of fleeting fancy that1 like other poets1 he may have experienced before1 but deeply1 tragically1 in love2 and it seems that1 for a time at least1 this love was returned4 ,the lady was the ,countess ,julia ,guicciardi2 but his dream did not last long1 for in the year #ahja she married a ,count ,gallenberg4 ,hardly anything is known of this love affair of ,beethoven's4 ,a few letters full of passionate tenderness1 and with a certain very pathetic simple trustfulness in her love running through them all--on which her marriage shortly afterward is a strange comment2 the ,moonlight ,sonata1 vibrating1 as it is throughout1 with a lover's supremest ecstasy of devotion1 these are the only records of that one blissful epoch in the poor composer's life2 but how much it affected his after life1 how it mingled in the dreams from which his loveliest creations of later years arose1 it is impossible now to say4 ,in a letter to ,wegeler1 dated ,november #af1 #ahja1 he says1 ,you can hardly realize what a miserable1 desolate life mine has been for the last two years2 my defective hearing everywhere pursuing me like a spectre1 making me fly from every one1 and appear a misanthrope2 and yet no one in reality is less so6 ,this change to a happier life has been brought about by a lovely and fascinating girl who loves me and whom ,i love4 ,after the lapse of two years ,i have again enjoyed some blissful moments1 and now for the first time ,i feel that marriage can bestow happiness2 but alas6 she is not in the same rank of life as myself4444 ,you shall see me as happy as ,i am destined to be here below1 but not unhappy4 ,no1 that ,i could not bear4 ,i will grasp ,fate by the throat2 it shall not utterly crush me4 ,oh1 it is so glorious to live one's life a thousand times6 ,no misanthropy this1 surely2 he could not always speak the speech of common men1 or care for the tawdry bravery of titles or fine clothes in which they strutted1 but what a heart there was in the man1 what a wondrous insight into all the beauty of the world1 visible and invisible1 around him6 ,the most glorious lovesong ever composed1 ,adelaide1 was written by him2 but ,julia ,guicciardi preferred a ,count ,gallenberg1 keeper of the royal archives in ,vienna1 and ,beethoven1 to the end of his days1 went on his way alone4 ,it was at this time that he composed his oratorio1 ,the ,mount of ,olives1 which can hardly be reckoned among his finest works2 and his one opera--but such an opera--,fidelio4 ,the greater part of these works was composed during his stay1 in the summer months1 at ,hetzendorf1 a pretty1 secluded little village near ,schnbrunn4 ,he spent his days wandering alone through the quiet1 shady alleys of the imperial park there1 and his favorite seat was between two boughs of a venerable oak1 at a height of about two feet from the ground4 ,for some time he had apartments at a residence of ,baron ,pronay's1 near this village2 but he suddenly left1 because the baron would persist in making him profound bows every time that he met him4 ,like a true poet1 he delighted in the country4 ,no man on earth1 he writes1 loves the country more4 ,woods1 trees1 and rock give the response which man requires4 ,every tree seems to say1 ',holy1 holy4' ,in #ahjd the magnificent ,eroica symphony was completed4 ,this had originally been commenced in honor of ,napoleon ,bonaparte1 then ,first ,consul1 who1 ,beethoven--throughout his life an ardent ,republican--then believed was about to bring liberty to all the nations of ,europe4 ,when the news of the empire came the dream departed1 and ,beethoven1 in a passionate rage1 tore the title page of the symphony in two1 and1 with a torrent of imprecations against the tyrant1 stamped on the torn fragments4 ,my hero--a tyrant6 he shrieked1 as he trampled on the poor page4 ,on this page the inscription had been simply1 ,bonaparte--,luigi v4 ,beethoven4 ,for some years he refused to publish the work1 and1 when at last this was done1 the inscription read as follows3 ,sinfonia ,eroica per festigiari il sovvenire d'un grand' uomo 7,heroic symphony1 to celebrate the memory of a great man74 ,when ,napoleon died1 in #ahba1 ,beethoven said1 ,seventeen years before ,i composed the music for this occasion2 and surely no grander music than that of the ,funeral ,march was ever composed for the obsequies of a fallen hero4 ,this is not the place to enter into a description of the marvellous succession of colossal works--symphonies1 concertos1 sonatas1 trios1 quartets1 etc41 culminating in the ,choral ,symphony1 his ninth1 and last--which1 through those long years of a silent life1 imprisoned within himself1 the great master put forth4 ,his deafness prevented his appearing in public to conduct1 although1 with the natural desire of a composer to be present at the production of his own work1 he long struggled to take his part in the first performances of symphonies and concertos4 ,when the great choral symphony was first performed he attempted to conduct1 but in reality another conductor was stationed near him to give the right time to the band4 ,after the majestic instrumental movements had been played came the final one1 concluding with ,schiller's ,hymn to ,joy4 ,the chorus breaks forth1 thundering out in concert with all the instruments4 ,at the words ,seid umschlunger1 ,millionen1 the audience could no longer restrain their excited delight1 and burst into tremendous applause1 drowning the voices of singers and the sounds of strings and brass4 ,the last notes are heard1 but still ,beethoven stands there absorbed in thought--he does not know that the music is ended4 ,this was the first time that the people realized the full deprivation of hearing from which he suffered4 ,fraulein ,unger1 the soprano1 gently takes his arm and turns him round to front the acclaiming multitude4 ,there are few in that crowd who1 while they cheer1 do not feel the tears stealing down their cheeks at the sight of the poor lonely man who1 from the prison-house of his affliction1 has brought to them the gladness of thought so divine4 ,unmoved1 he bowed his acknowledgment1 and quietly left the building4 ,his later years were embittered with troubles about his nephew ,carl1 a youth to whom he was fondly attached1 but who shamefully repaid the love of the desolate old man4 ,letters like the following1 to the teacher in whose house the boy lived1 show the constant thought and affection given to this boy3 ,your estimable lady is politely requested to let the undersigned know as soon as possible 7that ,i may not be obliged to keep it all in my head7 how many pairs of stockings1 trousers1 shoes1 and drawers are required1 and how many yards of kerseymere to make a pair of black trousers for my tall nephew4 ,his death was the result of a cold which produced inflammation of the lungs4 ,on the morning of ,march #bd1 #ahbg1 he took the sacrament and when the clergyman was gone and his friends stood round his bed1 he muttered4 ,plaudite amici1 comedia finita est4 ,he then fell into an agony so intense that he could no longer articulate1 and thus continued until the evening of the #bfth4 ,a violent thunder-storm arose2 one of his friends1 watching by his bedside when the thunder was rolling and a vivid flash of lightning lit up the room1 saw him suddenly open his eyes1 lift his right hand upward for some seconds--as if in defiance of the powers of evil--with clenched fist and a stern1 solemn expression on his face2 and then he sank back and died4 ,,paganini 7#aghd-ahdj7 ,illustration3 ,paganini4 ,nicolo ,paganini1 whose ,european fame as a violinist entitles him to a notice here1 was born at ,genoa in #aghd4 ,his father1 a commission-broker1 played on the mandolin2 but fully aware of the inferiority of an instrument so limited in power1 he put a violin into his son's hands1 and initiated him in the principles of music4 ,the child succeeded so well under parental tuition1 that at eight years of age he played three times a week in the church1 as well as in the public saloons4 ,at the same period he composed a sonata4 ,in his ninth year he was placed under the instruction of ,costa1 first violoncellist of ,genoa2 then had lessons of ,rolla1 a famous performer and composer2 and finally studied counterpoint at ,parma under ,ghiretti and the celebrated maestro ,paer4 ,he now took an engagement at ,lucca1 where he chiefly associated with persons who at the gaming-table stripped him of his gains as quickly as he acquired them4 ,he there received the appointment of director of orchestra to the court1 at which the ,princess ,elisa ,bacciochi1 sister of ,napoleon ,i41 presided1 and thither invited1 to the full extent of her means1 superior talent of every kind4 ,in #ahac he performed at ,milan2 five years after1 at ,turin2 and subsequently at ,florence and ,naples4 ,in #ahbh he visited ,vienna1 where a very popular violinist and composer1 ,mayseder1 asked him how he produced such new effects4 ,his reply was characteristic of a selfish mind3 ,chacun a ses secrets ,in that capital1 it is affirmed1 he was imprisoned1 being accused of having murdered his wife4 ,he challenged proofs of his ever having been married1 which could not be produced4 ,then he was charged with having poignarded his mistress4 ,this he also publicly refuted4 ,the fact is that he knew better how to make money than friends1 and he raised up enemies wherever his thirst for gold led him4 ,avarice was his master-passion2 and1 second to this1 gross sensuality4 ,the year #ahca found ,paganini in ,paris1 in which excitable capital he produced a sensation not inferior to that created by the visit of ,rossini4 ,even this renowned composer was so carried away1 either by the actual genius of the violinist or by the current of popular enthusiasm1 that he is said to have wept on hearing ,paganini for the first time4 ,he arrived in ,england in #ahca1 and immediately announced a concert at the ,italian ,opera ,house1 at a price which1 if acceded to1 would have yielded #c1cia per night2 but the attempt was too audacious1 and he was compelled to abate his demands1 though he succeeded in drawing audiences fifteen nights in that season at the ordinary high prices of the ,king's ,theatre4 ,he also gave concerts in other parts of ,london1 and performed at benefits1 always taking at these a large proportion of the proceeds4 ,he visited most of the great towns1 where his good fortune still attended him4 ,he was asked to play at the ,commemoration ,festival at ,oxford1 in #ahcd1 and demanded #a1jjj guineas for his assistance at three concerts4 ,his terms were of course rejected4 ,paganini died at ,nice1 in #ahdj1 of a diseased larynx 7phthisie larynge74 ,by his will1 dated #ahcg1 he gave his two sisters legacies of #fj1jjj and #gj1jjj francs2 his mother a pension of #a1bjj2 the mother of his son ,achillino 7a ,jewess of ,milan7 a similar pension2 and the rest of his fortune1 amounting to #d1jjj1jjj francs1 devolved on his son4 ,these and other facts before related1 we give on the authority of the ,biographie ,universelle4 ,paganini certainly was a man of genius and a great performer1 but sacrificed his art to his avarice4 ,his mastery over the violin was almost marvellous1 though he made an ignoble use of his power by employing it to captivate the mob of pretended amateurs by feats little better than sleight-of-hand4 ,his performance on a single string1 and the perfection of his harmonics1 were very extraordinary2 but why1 as was asked at the time1 be confined to one string when there are four at command that would answer every musical purpose so much better8 ,his tone was pure1 though not strong1 his strings having been of smaller diameter than usual1 to enable him to strain them at pleasure2 for he tuned his instrument most capriciously4 ,he could be a very expressive player2 we have heard him produce effects deeply pathetic4 ,his arpeggios evinced his knowledge of harmony1 and some of his compositions exhibit many original and beautiful traits4 ,illustration3 ,paganini in ,prison4 ,,mendelssohn ,by ,c4 ,e4 ,,bourne 7#ahji-ahdg7 ,mendelssohn's lot in life was strikingly different from that of all the musicians of whom ,i have hitherto written2 he never knew1 like ,schubert1 what grinding poverty was1 or suffered the long worries that ,mozart had to endure for lack of money4 ,his father was a ,jewish banker in ,berlin1 the son of ,moses ,mendelssohn1 a philosopher whose writings had already made the name celebrated throughout ,europe4 ,the composer's father used to say1 with a very natural pride1 after his own son had grown up1 ,formerly ,i was the son of my father1 and now ,i am the father of my son6 ,felix ,mendelssohn-,bartholdy was born on ,february #c1 #ahji4 ,his parents were neither of them trained musicians1 though both appreciated and loved music1 and it was from his mother that young ,felix received his first music-lessons4 ,when he had made some advance1 ,ludwig ,berger became his tutor for the piano1 and ,zelter1 a very learned and severe theorist1 for counterpoint4 ,at the age of nine years ,felix had attained such proficiency that we find him taking the pianoforte part in a trio at a public concert of a ,herr ,gugel's1 and when twelve years old he began to compose1 and actually wrote a trio1 some sonatas1 a cantata1 and several organ pieces4 ,his home life was in the highest degree favorable to his musical development4 ,on alternate ,sundays musical performances were regularly given with a small orchestra in the large dining-room1 ,felix or his sister ,fanny1 who also possessed remarkable musical gifts1 taking the pianoforte part1 and new compositions by ,felix were always included in the programme4 ,many friends1 musicians and others1 used to be present1 ,zelter regularly among their number1 and the pieces were always freely commented on1 ,felix receiving then1 as indeed he did all his life1 the criticisms expressed1 with the utmost good-natured readiness4 ,illustration3 ,mendelssohn4 ,in #ahbd ,moscheles1 at that time a celebrated pianist1 and residing in ,london1 visited ,berlin1 and was asked to give ,felix music-lessons4 ,this is the testimony of ,moscheles1 an excellent and kind-hearted man1 and a thoroughly skilled musician1 after spending nearly every day for six weeks with the family3 ,it is a family such as ,i have never known before2 ,felix1 a mature artist1 and yet but fifteen2 ,fanny1 extraordinarily gifted1 playing ,bach's fugues by heart and with astonishing correctness--in fact1 a thorough musician4 ,the parents give me the impression of people of the highest cultivation2 and on the subject of lessons he says3 ,felix has no need of lessons2 if he wishes to take a hint from me as to anything new1 he can easily do so4 ,but it is very pleasant to find ,mendelssohn afterward referring to these lessons as having urged him on to enthusiasm1 and1 in the days in ,london when his own fame had far outstripped that of the older musician1 acknowledging himself as ,moscheles's pupil4 ,the elder ,mendelssohn was by no means carried away by the applause which the boy's playing and compositions had gained1 and in #ahbe he took his son to ,paris to obtain ,cherubini's opinion as to his musical abilities1 with a view to the choice of a profession2 for he had by no means made up his mind that ,felix should spend his whole life as a musician4 ,however1 the surly old ,florentine1 who was not always civil or appreciative of budding genius 7teste ,berlioz71 gave a decidedly favorable judgment on the compositions submitted to him1 and urged the father to devote his son to a musical career4 ,and1 indeed1 on listening to the pieces which were dated this year1 especially a beautiful quartet in ,b minor1 an octet for strings1 the music to an opera in two acts1 ,camacho's ,wedding1 and numerous pianoforte pieces1 it is difficult to realize that the composer was then only sixteen years of age1 or that anyone could question the artistic vocation that claimed him4 ,but the next year a work was written1 the score of which is marked ,berlin1 ,august #f1 #ahbf1 when it must be remembered that he was seventeen years of age1 which of itself was sufficient to rank him among the immortals--the overture to the ,midsummer ,night's ,dream4 ,full of lovely imaginings1 with a wonderful fairy grace all its own1 and a bewitching beauty1 revealing not only the soul of the true poet1 but also the musician profoundly skilled in all the art of orchestral effect1 it is hard to believe that it is the work of a boy under twenty1 written in the bright summer days of #ahbf1 in his father's garden at ,berlin4 ,passing over the intermediate years with a simple reference to the ,meeresstille1 ,calm ,sea and ,prosperous ,voyage1 which was then composed1 and a fine performance of ,bach's ,passion ,music1 for which he had been long drilling the members of the ,berlin ,singakademie1 the next event is a visit to ,england in #ahbi1 where he was received with extraordinary warmth1 playing at the ,philharmonic ,concerts1 conducting his ,c minor ,symphony1 which he dedicated to the ,philharmonic ,society1 they in their turn electing him one of their honorary members2 going to dinners1 balls1 and the ,house of ,commons1 and enjoying himself most hugely4 ,his letters from ,england at this time are brimming over with fun and graphic description2 there is one especially amusing1 in which he describes himself with two friends going home from a late dinner at the ,german ,ambassador's1 and on the way buying three ,german sausages1 going down a quiet street to devour them1 with all the while joyous laughter and snatches of part songs4 ,there is also a little incident of this time showing the wonderful memory he possessed4 ,after a concert on ,midsummer ,night1 when the ,midsummer ,night's ,dream had very appropriately been played1 it was found that the score had been lost in a hackney-coach as the party were returning to ,mr4 ,attwood's4 ,never mind1 said ,mendelssohn1 ,i will make another1 which he did1 and on comparison with the separate parts not a single difference was found in it4 ,at the beginning of ,december he was at home again1 and that winter he wrote the ,reformation ,symphony1 intended to be produced at the tercentenary festival of the ,augsburg ,confession in the following ,june4 ,this symphony1 with which ,mendelssohn was not entirely satisfied1 was only once performed during his lifetime1 but since his death it has frequently been performed1 and though not one of his most perfect works1 is recognized as a noble monument in honor of a great event4 ,the next spring he again set out on his travels1 this time southward to ,italy4 ,in #ahcc ,mendelssohn accepted an official post offered him by the authorities of ,dsseldorf1 by which the entire musical arrangements of the town1 church1 theatre1 and singing societies were put under his care4 ,immermann1 the celebrated poet1 being associated with him in the direction of the theatre4 ,things1 however1 did not go on very smoothly there4 ,mendelssohn found all the many worries of theatrical management--the engagement of singers and musicians1 the dissensions to be arranged1 the many tastes to be conciliated--too irksome1 and he did not long retain this appointment2 but the life among his friends at ,dsseldorf was most delightful1 and the letters written at this time are exceedingly lively and gay4 ,it was here that he received the commission from the ,ccilia-,verein of ,frankfort for1 and commenced1 his grand oratorio ,st4 ,paul4 ,the words for this1 as also for the ,elijah and ,hymn of ,praise afterward1 he selected himself with the help of his friend ,schubung1 and they are entirely from the ,bible--as he said1 ,the ,bible is always the best of all4 ,circumstances prevented the oratorio being then produced at ,frankfort1 and the first public performance took place at the ,lower ,rhine ,festival at ,dsseldorf1 in ,may1 #ahcf4 ,but his visits to ,frankfort had a very important result in another way4 ,mendelssohn there met ,mademoiselle ,ccile ,jeanrenaud1 the daughter of a pastor of the ,french ,reformed ,church1 and1 though he had frequently indulged in the admiration of beautiful and clever women--which is allowable1 and indeed an absolute necessity for a poet6--now for the first time he fell furiously in plain unmistakable and downright love4 ,but it is more characteristic of the staid ,teuton than the impulsive musician1 that before plighting his troth to her he went away for a month's bathing at ,scheveningen1 in ,holland1 for the purpose of testing the strength of his affection by this absence4 ,on his return1 finding his amatory pulse still beating satisfactorily1 he proposed to the young lady1 and1 as it must be presumed that she had already made up her own mind without any testing1 he was accepted4 ,on ,march #bh1 #ahcg1 they were married1 and the wedded life that then began was one of pure1 unclouded happiness to the very end4 ,ccile ,mendelssohn was a beautiful1 gentle-hearted1 and loving wife1 just the one to give a weary and nervous artist in the home-life1 with herself and the children near him1 the blessed solace of rest and calm that he so needed4 ,it is thus that ,edward ,devrient1 the great ,german actor1 and one of ,mendelssohn's most intimate friends1 describes her3 ,ccile was one of those sweet womanly natures whose gentle simplicity1 whose mere presence1 soothed and pleased4 ,she was slight1 with features of striking beauty and delicacy2 her hair was between brown and gold1 but the transcendent lustre of her great blue eyes1 and the brilliant roses of her cheeks1 were sad harbingers of early death4 ,she spoke little1 and never with animation1 in a low1 soft voice4 ,shakespeare's words1 ,my gracious silence1 applied to her no less than to the wife of ,coriolanus4 ,after giving up his official position at ,dsseldorf1 in #ahce1 ,mendelssohn was invited to become the conductor of the now famous ,gewandhaus concerts at ,leipsic1 a post which he gladly accepted1 and which1 retained by him for many years1 was to be one of the greatest delights of his artistic life4 ,not only was he loved and appreciated in ,leipsic--far more than in ,berlin1 his own city--but he had here an opportunity of assisting many composers and virtuosi1 who otherwise would have sought in vain for a hearing4 ,thus1 after ,liszt1 when visiting the town1 had been first of all received with great coldness1 owing to the usual prices of admission to the concerts having been raised1 ,mendelssohn set everything straight by having a soire in his honor at the ,gewandhaus1 where there were three hundred and fifty people1 orchestra1 chorus1 punch1 pastry1 ,meeresstille ,psalm1 ,bach's ,triple ,concerto1 choruses from ,st4 ,paul1 ,fantasia on ,lucia1 the ,erl ,king1 the ,devil and his ,grandmother1 the latter probably a mild satirical reference to ,liszt's stormy and often incoherent playing4 ,it is also pleasant to find how cordially ,mendelssohn received ,berlioz there1 as told in the ,memoirs of the latter1 spending ungrudgingly long days in aiding in rehearsals for his ,romeo et ,juliette1 though ,mendelssohn never sympathized much with ,berlioz's eccentric muse4 ,the ,lobgesang1 or ,hymn of ,praise1 a symphonie-cantata1 as he called it1 was his next great work1 composed in #ahdj1 together with other music1 at the request of the ,leipsic ,town-,council1 for a festival held in that town in commemoration of the invention of printing1 on ,june #beth4 ,none who have heard this work can forget the first impression produced when the grand instrumental movements with which it commences are merged in the majestic chorus1 ,all men1 all things1 praise ye the ,lord1 or the intensely dramatic effect of the repeated tenor cry1 ,watchman1 will the night soon pass8 answered at last by the clear soprano message of glad tidings1 ,the night is departing1 the day is at hand6 ,this watchman episode was added some time afterward1 and1 as he told a friend1 was suggested to the composer during the weary hours of a long sleepless night1 when the words1 ,will the night soon pass8 again and again seemed to be repeated to him4 ,but a greater work even than this was now in progress2 the ,elijah had been begun4 ,in #ahda began a troublesome and harassing connection with ,berlin1 a city where1 except in his home life1 ,mendelssohn never seems to have been very fortunate4 ,at the urgent entreaty of the king1 he went to reside there as head of the new ,musical ,academy4 ,but disagreements arose1 and he did not long take an active part in the management4 ,the king1 however1 was very anxious to retain his services1 and a sort of general office seems to have been created for him1 the duties of which were to supply music for any dramatic works which the king took it into his head to have so embellished4 ,and1 though it is to this that we owe the noble ,antigone1 ,oedipus1 ,athalie1 ,midsummer ,night's ,dream1 and other music1 this work to dictation was very worrying1 and one cannot think without impatience of the annoyances to which he was subjected4 ,the king could not understand why he shrank from writing music to the choruses of schylus's ,eumenides4 ,other composers would do it by the yard1 why not he8 ,passing rapidly over the intervening years filled with busy work1 both in composition and as one of the principals of a newly started ,conservatorium in ,leipsic1 we come to #ahdf1 when his great work ,elijah was at last completed and performed4 ,on ,august #bfth1 at the ,birmingham ,festival1 the performance went splendidly4 ,staudigl took the part of the prophet1 and a young tenor1 ,lockey1 sang the air1 ,then shall the righteous1 in the last part1 as ,mendelssohn says1 so very beautifully1 that ,i was obliged to collect myself to prevent my being overcome1 and to enable me to beat time steadily4 ,rarely1 indeed1 has a composer so truly realized his own conception as ,mendelssohn did in the great tone-picture which he drew of the ,prophet of ,carmel and the wilderness4 ,i figured to myself1 he says1 ,elijah as a grand1 mighty prophet1 such as might again reappear in our own day1 energetic and zealous1 stern1 wrathful1 and gloomy1 a striking contrast to the court myrmidons and popular rabble--in fact1 in opposition to the whole world1 and yet borne on angel's wings6 ,nothing can be finer than this1 with that exquisite touch in the last words1 in opposition to the whole world1 and yet borne on angel's wings4 ,after returning to ,germany he was soon busily employed in recasting some portions of ,elijah with which he was not satisfied2 he had also another oratorio on even a grander scale1 ,christus1 already commenced2 and at last1 after all his life-long seeking in vain for a good libretto for an opera1 he had begun to set one written by ,geibel1 the ,german poet1 ,loreley1 to music4 ,but his friends now noticed how worn and weary he used oftentimes to look1 and how strangely irritable he frequently was1 and there can hardly be a doubt that some form of the cerebral disease from which his father and several of his relations had died1 was already1 deep-seated and obscure1 disquieting him4 ,the sudden announcement of the death of his sister1 ,fanny ,hensel1 herself a musical genius1 to whom he was very fondly attached1 on his return to ,frankfort from his last visit to ,england in ,may1 #ahdg1 terribly affected him4 ,he fell to the ground with a loud shriek1 and it was long before he recovered consciousness4 ,indeed1 it may be said that he never really recovered from this shock4 ,in the summer he went with his wife and children1 and in company with his brother ,paul and his family1 on a tour in ,switzerland1 where he hoped that complete idleness as regards music1 life in the open air1 sketching1 and intercourse with chosen friends1 might once more give strength to his enfeebled nerves4 ,and for a time the beauty of the mountains and the lakes seemed to bring him rest1 and again he began to work at his oratorio ,christus2 but still his friends continued anxious about him4 ,he looked broken down and aged1 a constant agitation seemed to possess him1 and the least thing would often strangely affect and upset him4 ,in ,september he returned to ,leipsic2 he was then more cheerful1 and able to talk about music and to write1 although he could not resume the conductorship of the ,gewandhaus concerts4 ,he again had projects in view4 ,jenny ,lind was to sing in his ,elijah1 at ,vienna1 whither he would go and conduct1 and he was about to publish some new songs4 ,one day in ,october he went to call upon his friend1 ,madame ,frege1 a gifted lady who1 he said1 sang his songs better than anyone else1 to consult her about some new songs4 ,she sang them over to him several times1 and then1 as it was getting dark1 she went out of the room for a few minutes to order lights4 ,when she returned he was lying on the sofa1 shivering with cold1 and in agonizing pain4 ,leeches were applied1 and he partially recovered2 but another attack followed1 and this was the last4 ,,franz ,,liszt ,by ,rev4 ,,hugh ,r4 ,,haweis1 ,m4,a4 7#ahaa-ahhf7 ,illustration3 ,liszt4 ,franz ,liszt was born in #ahaa4 ,he had the hot ,hungarian blood of his father1 the fervid ,german spirit of his mother1 and he inherited the lofty independence1 with none of the class prejudices1 of the old ,hungarian nobility from which he sprang4 ,liszt's father1 ,adam1 earned a modest livelihood as agent and accountant in the house of ,count ,esterhazy4 ,in that great musical family1 inseparably associated with the names of ,haydn and ,schubert1 ,adam ,liszt had frequent opportunities of meeting distinguished musicians4 ,the prince's private band had risen to public fame under the instruction of the venerable ,haydn himself4 ,the ,liszts1 father and son1 often went to ,eisenstadt1 where the count lived2 there they rubbed elbows with ,cherubini and ,hummel1 a pupil of ,mozart4 ,franz took to music from his earliest childhood4 ,when about five years old he was asked what he would like to do4 ,learn the piano1 said the little fellow4 ,soon afterward his father asked him what he would like to be2 the child pointed to a print of ,beethoven hanging on the wall1 and said1 ,like him4 ,long before his feet could reach the pedals or his fingers stretch an octave1 the boy spent all his spare time strumming1 making what he called clangs1 chords and modulations4 ,he mastered scales and exercises without difficulty4 ,czerny at once took to ,liszt1 but refused to take anything for his instruction4 ,salieri was also fascinated1 and instructed him in harmony2 and fortunate it was that ,liszt began his course under two strict mentors4 ,he soon began to resent ,czerny's method--thought he knew better and needed not those dry studies of ,clementi and that irksome fingering by rule--he could finger anything in a half-a-dozen different ways4 ,there was a moment when it seemed that master and pupil would have to part1 but timely concessions to genius paved the way to dutiful submission1 and years afterward the great master dedicated to the rigid disciplinarian of his boyhood his ,vingt-quatre ,grandes tudes in affectionate remembrance4 ,such a light as ,liszt's could not be long hid2 all ,vienna1 in #ahbb1 was talking of the wonderful boy4 ,est deus in nobis1 wrote the papers1 profanely4 ,the little ,hercules1 the young giant1 the boy virtuoso from the clouds1 were among the epithets coined to celebrate his marvellous renderings of ,hummel's ,concerto in ,a1 and a free ,fantasia of his own4 ,the ,vienna ,concert ,hall was crowded to hear him1 and the other illustrious artists--then1 as indeed they have been ever since forced to do wherever ,liszt appeared--effaced themselves with as good a grace as they could4 ,it is a remarkable tribute to the generous nature as well as to the consummate ability of ,liszt1 that1 while opposing partisans have fought bitterly over him--,thalbergites1 ,herzites1 ,mendelssohnites versus ,lisztites--yet few of the great artists who have1 one after another1 had to yield to him in popularity have denied to him their admiration1 while most of them have given him their friendship4 ,liszt early wooed1 and early won ,vienna4 ,he spoke ever of his dear ,viennese1 and their resounding city4 ,a concert tour on his way to ,paris brought him before the critical public of ,stuttgart and ,munich4 ,hummel1 an old man1 and ,moscheles1 then in his prime1 heard him and declared that his playing was equal to theirs4 ,but ,liszt was bent upon completing his studies in the celebrated school of the ,french capital1 and at the feet of the old musical dictator1 ,cherubini4 ,the ,erards1 who were destined to owe so much to ,liszt1 and to whom ,liszt throughout his career owed so much1 at once provided him with a magnificent piano2 but ,cherubini put in force a certain by-law of the ,conservatoire excluding foreigners1 and excluded ,franz ,liszt4 ,this was a bitter pill to the eager student4 ,he hardly knew how little he required such patronage4 ,in a very short time le petit ,liszt was the great ,paris sensation4 ,the old noblesse tried to spoil him with flattery1 the ,duchesse de ,berri drugged him with bonbons1 the ,duke of ,orleans called him the little ,mozart4 ,he gave private concerts1 at which ,herz1 ,moscheles1 ,lafont1 and ,de ,beriot1 assisted4 ,rossini would sit by his side at the piano1 and applaud4 ,he was a miracle4 ,the company never tired of extolling his nerve1 fougue et originalit1 while the ladies who petted and caressed him after each performance1 were delighted at his simple and graceful carriage1 the elegance of his language1 and the perfect breeding and propriety of his demeanor4 ,he was only twelve when he played for the first time at the ,italian ,opera1 and one of those singular incidents which remind one of ,paganini's triumphs occurred4 ,at the close of a bravura cadenza1 the band forgot to come in1 so absorbed were the musicians in watching the young prodigy4 ,their failure was worth a dozen successes to ,liszt4 ,the ball of the marvellous was fairly set rolling4 ,gall1 the inventor of phrenology1 took a cast of the little ,liszt's skull2 ,talma1 the tragedian1 embraced him openly with effusion2 and the misanthropic ,marquis de ,noailles became his mentor1 and initiated him into the art of painting4 ,in #ahbd ,liszt1 then thirteen years old1 came with his father to ,england2 his mother returned to ,austria4 ,he went down to ,windsor to see ,george ,,iv41 who was delighted with him1 and ,liszt1 speaking of him to me1 said3 ,i was very young at the time1 but ,i remember the king very well--a fine1 pompous-looking gentleman4 ,george ,,iv4 went to ,drury ,lane on purpose to hear the boy1 and commanded an encore4 ,liszt was also heard in the theatre at ,manchester1 and in several private houses4 ,on his return to ,france1 people noticed a change in him4 ,he was now fourteen1 grave1 serious1 often pre-occupied1 already a little tired of praise1 and excessively tired of being called le petit ,liszt4 ,his vision began to take a wider sweep4 ,the relation between art and religion exercised him4 ,his mind was naturally devout4 ,thomas ,kempis was his constant companion4 ,rejoice in nothing but a good deed2 ,through labor to rest1 through combat to victory2 ,the glory which men give and take is transitory1 these and like phrases were already deeply engraven on the fleshly tablets of his heart4 ,amid all his glowing triumphs he was developing a curious disinclination to appear in public2 he seemed to yearn for solitude and meditation4 ,in #ahbg he again hurried to ,england for a short time1 but his father's sudden illness drove them to ,boulogne1 where1 in his forty-seventh year1 died ,adam ,liszt1 leaving the young ,franz for the first time in his life1 at the early age of sixteen1 unprotected and alone4 ,rousing himself from the bodily prostration and torpor of grief into which he had been thrown by the death of his father1 ,franz1 with admirable energy and that high sense of honor which always distinguished him1 began to set his house in order4 ,he called in all his debts1 sold his magnificent grand ,erard1 and left ,boulogne for ,paris with a heavy heart and a light pocket1 but not owing a sou4 ,he sent for his mother1 and for the next twelve years1 #ahbh-ahdj1 the two lived together1 chiefly in ,paris4 ,there1 as a child1 he had been a nine days' wonder1 but the solidity of his reputation was now destined to go hand in hand with his stormy and interrupted mental and moral development4 ,such a plant could not come to maturity all at once4 ,no drawing-room or concert-room success satisfied a heart for which the world of human emotion seemed too small1 and an intellect piercing with intuitive intelligence into the clear-obscure depths of religion and philosophy4 ,but ,franz was young1 and ,franz was poor1 and his mother had to be supported4 ,she was his first care4 ,systematically1 he labored to put by a sum which would assure her of a competency1 and often with his tender genial smile he would remind her of his own childish words1 ,god will help me to repay you for all that you have done for me4 ,still he labored1 often woefully against the grain4 ,poverty1 he writes1 that old mediator between man and evil1 tore me from my solitude devoted to meditation1 and placed me before a public on whom not only my own but my own mother's existence depended4 ,young and over-strained1 ,i suffered painfully under the contact with external things which my vocation as a musician brought with it1 and which wounded me all the more intensely that my heart at this time was filled entirely with the mystical feelings of love and religion4 ,illustration3 ,franz ,liszt4 ,of course the gifted young pianist's connection grew rapidly4 ,he got his twenty francs a lesson at the best houses2 he was naturally a welcome guest1 and from the first seemed to have the run of high ,parisian society4 ,his life was feverish1 his activity irregular1 his health far from strong2 but the vulgar temptations of the gay capital seemed to have little attraction for his noble nature4 ,his heart remained unspoiled4 ,he was most generous to those who could not afford to pay for his lessons1 most pitiful to the poor1 most dutiful and affectionate to his mother4 ,coming home late from some grand entertainment1 he would sit outside on the staircase till morning1 sooner than awaken1 or perhaps alarm1 her by letting himself in4 ,but in losing his father he seemed to have lost a certain method and order4 ,his meals were irregular1 so were his lessons2 more so were the hours devoted to sleep4 ,at this time he was hardly twenty2 we are not surprised anon to hear in his own words1 of a female form chaste1 and pure as the alabaster of holy vessel1 but he adds3 ,such was the sacrifice which ,i offered with tears to the ,god of ,christians6 ,i will explain4 ,mlle4 ,caroline ,st4 ,cricq was just seventeen1 lithe1 slender1 and of angelic beauty1 with a complexion like a lily flushed with roses1 open1 impressionable to beauty1 to the world1 to religion1 to ,god4 ,the countess1 her mother1 appears to have been a charming woman1 very partial to ,liszt1 whom she engaged to instruct ,mademoiselle in music4 ,the lessons went not by time1 but by inclination4 ,the young man's eloquence1 varied knowledge1 ardent love of literature1 and flashing genius won both the mother and daughter4 ,not one of them seemed to suspect the whirlpool of grief and death to which they were hurrying4 ,the countess fell ill and died1 but not before she had recommended ,liszt to the ,count ,st4 ,cricq as a possible suitor for the hand of ,mademoiselle4 ,the haughty diplomat1 ,st4 ,cricq1 at once put his foot down4 ,the funeral over1 ,liszt's movements were watched4 ,they were innocent enough4 ,he was already an enfant de la maison1 but one night he lingered reading aloud some favorite author to ,mademoiselle a little too late4 ,he was reported by the servants1 and received his polite dismissal as music master4 ,in an interview with the count his own pride was deeply wounded4 ,difference of rank6 said the count4 ,that was quite enough for ,liszt4 ,he rose1 pale as death1 with quivering lip1 but uttered not a word4 ,as a man of honor he had but one course4 ,he and ,caroline parted forever4 ,she contracted later an uncongenial marriage2 he seems to have turned with intense ardor to religion4 ,his good mother used to complain to those who came to inquire for him that he was all day long in church1 and had ceased to occupy himself1 as he should1 with music4 ,it was toward the close of #ahca that ,liszt met ,chopin in ,paris4 ,from the first1 these two men1 so different1 became fast friends4 ,chopin's delicate1 retiring soul found a singular delight in ,liszt's strong and imposing personality4 ,liszt's exquisite perception enabled him perfectly to live in the strange dreamland of ,chopin's fancies1 while his own vigor inspired ,chopin with nerve to conceive those mighty ,polonaises that he could never properly play himself1 and which he so gladly committed to the keeping of his prodigious friend4 ,liszt undertook the task of interpreting ,chopin to the mixed crowds which he revelled in subduing1 but from which his fastidious and delicately strung friend shrank with something like aversion4 ,from ,chopin1 ,liszt and all the world after him got that tempo rubato1 that playing with the duration of notes without breaking the time1 and those arabesque ornaments which are woven like fine embroidery all about the pages of ,chopin's nocturnes1 and lift what in others are mere casual flourishes into the dignity of interpretative phrases and poetic commentaries on the text4 ,people were fond of comparing the two young men who so often appeared in the same salons together--,liszt with his finely shaped1 long1 oval head and profil d'ivoire1 set proudly on his shoulders1 his stiff hair of dark blonde thrown back from the forehead without a parting1 and cut in a straight line1 his aplomb1 his magnificent and courtly bearing1 his ready tongue1 his flashing wit and fine irony1 his genial bonhomie and irresistibly winning smile2 and ,chopin1 also1 with dark blonde hair1 but soft as silk1 parted on one side1 to use ,liszt's own words1 ,an angel of fair countenance1 with brown eyes from which intellect beamed rather than burned2 a gentle1 refined smile1 slightly aquiline nose2 a delicious1 clear1 almost diaphanous complexion1 all bearing witness to the harmony of a soul which required no commentary beyond itself4 ,nothing can be more generous or more true than ,liszt's recognition of ,chopin's independent support4 ,to our endeavors1 he says1 to our struggles1 just then so much needing certainty1 he lent us the support of a calm1 unshakable conviction1 equally armed against apathy and cajolery4 ,there was only one picture on the walls of ,chopin's room2 it hung just above his piano4 ,it was a head of ,liszt4 ,it is no part of my present scheme to describe the battle which romanticism in music waged against the prevalent conventionalities4 ,we know the general outcome of the struggle culminating1 after the most prodigious artistic convulsions1 in the musical supremacy of ,richard ,wagner1 who certainly marks firmly and broadly enough the greatest stride in musical development made since ,beethoven4 ,in #ahdb ,liszt visited ,weimar1 ,berlin1 and then went to ,paris2 he was meditating a tour in ,russia4 ,pressing invitations reached him from ,st4 ,petersburg and ,moscow4 ,the most fabulous accounts of his virtuosity had raised expectation to its highest pitch4 ,he was as legendary even among the common people as ,paganini4 ,his first concert at ,st4 ,petersburg realized the then unheard-of sum of #b1jjj4 ,the roads were crowded to see him pass1 and the corridors and approaches to the ,grand ,opera blocked to catch a glimpse of him4 ,the same scenes were repeated at ,moscow1 where he gave six concerts without exhausting the popular excitement4 ,on his return to ,weimar he accepted the post of ,capellmeister to the ,grand ,duke4 ,it provided him with that settled abode1 and above all with an orchestra1 which he now felt so indispensable to meet his growing passion for orchestral composition4 ,but the time of rest had not yet come4 ,in #ahdd and #ahde he was received in ,spain and ,portugal with incredible enthusiasm1 after which he returned to ,bonn to assist at the inauguration of ,beethoven's statue4 ,with boundless liberality1 he had subscribed more money than all the princes and people of ,germany put together1 to make the statue worthy of the occasion and the occasion worthy of the statue4 ,the golden river which poured into him from all the capitals of ,europe now freely found a new vent in boundless generosity4 ,hospitals1 poor and needy1 patriotic celebrations1 the dignity and interests of art1 were all subsidized from his private purse4 ,his transcendent virtuosity was only equalled by his splendid munificence2 but he found--what others have so often experienced--that great personal gifts and prodigious clat cannot possibly escape the poison of envy and detraction4 ,he was attacked by calumny2 his gifts denied and ridiculed2 his munificence ascribed to vainglory1 and his charity to pride and ostentation2 yet none will ever know the extent of his private charities1 and no one who knows anything of ,liszt can be ignorant of the simple1 unaffected goodness of heart which prompted them4 ,still he was wounded by ingratitude and abuse4 ,it seemed to check and paralyze for the moment his generous nature4 ,ftis saw him at ,coblenz soon after the ,bonn festival1 at which he had expended such vast sums4 ,he was sitting alone1 dejected and out of health4 ,he said he was sick of everything1 tired of life1 and nearly ruined4 ,but that mood never lasted long with ,liszt2 he soon arose and shook himself like a lion4 ,his detractors slunk away into their holes1 and he walked forth victorious to refill his empty purse and reap new laurels4 ,his career was interrupted by the stormy events of #ahdh4 ,he settled down for a time at ,weimar1 and it was then that he began to take that warm interest in ,richard ,wagner which ended in the closest and most enduring of friendships4 ,he labored incessantly to get a hearing for the ,lohengrin and ,tannhuser4 ,he forced ,wagner's compositions on the band1 on the grand-duke2 he breasted public opposition and fought nobly for the eccentric and obscure person who was chiefly known as a political outlaw and an inventor of extravagant compositions which it was impossible to play or sing1 and odiously unpleasant to listen to4 ,but years of faithful service1 mainly the service and immense prestige and authority of ,liszt1 procured ,wagner a hearing1 and paved the way for his glorious triumphs at ,bayreuth in #ahgf1 #ahhb1 and #ahhc4 ,i have preferred to confine myself in this article to the personality of ,liszt1 and have made no allusion to his orchestral works and oratorio compositions4 ,the ,symphonic ,poems speak for themselves--magnificent renderings of the inner life of spontaneous emotion--but subject-matter which calls for a special article can find no place at the fag-end of this1 and at all times it is better to hear music than to describe it4 ,as it would be impossible to describe ,liszt's orchestration intelligibly to those who have not heard it1 and unnecessary to those who have1 ,i will simply leave it alone4 ,i saw ,liszt but six times1 and then only between the years #ahgf and #ahha4 ,i heard him play upon two occasions only1 and then he played certain pieces of ,chopin at my request and a new composition by himself4 ,i have heard ,mme ,schumann1 ,blow1 ,rubenstein1 ,menter1 and ,esipoff1 but ,i can understand that saying of ,tausig1 himself one of the greatest masters of technique whom ,germany has ever produced3 ,no mortal can measure himself with ,liszt4 ,he dwells alone upon a solitary height4 ,,richard ,,wagner ,by ,,franklin ,,peterson1 ,mus4 ,bac4 7#ahac-ahhc7 ,illustration3 ,wagner4 ,richard ,wagner's personality has been so overshadowed by and almost merged in the great controversy which his schemes of reform in opera raised1 that his life and character are often now sorely misjudged--just as his music long was--by those who have not the time1 the inclination1 or the ability to understand the facts and the issues4 ,before briefly stating then the theories he propounded and their development1 as shown in successive music dramas1 it will be well to summarize the story of a life 7#ahac-hc7 during which he was called to endure so much vicissitude1 trial and temptation1 suffering and defeat4 ,born in ,leipsic1 on ,may #bb1 #ahac1 the youngest of nine children1 ,wilhelm ,richard was only five months old when his father died4 ,his mother's second marriage entailed a removal to ,dresden1 where1 at the ,kreuzschule1 young ,wagner received an excellent liberal education4 ,at the age of thirteen the bent of his taste1 as well as his diligence1 was shown by his translation 7out of school hours7 of the first twelve books of the ,odyssey4 ,in the following year his passion for poetry found expression in a grand tragedy4 ,it was a mixture1 he says1 of ,hamlet and ,lear4 ,forty-two persons died in the course of the play1 and1 for want of more characters1 ,i had to make some of them reappear as ghosts in the last act4 ,weber1 who was then conductor of the ,dresden opera1 seems to have attracted the boy both by his personality and by his music2 but it was ,beethoven's music which gave him his real inspiration4 ,from #ahcj to #ahcc many compositions after standard models are evidence of hard and systematic work and in #ahcc he began his long career as an operatic composer with ,die ,feen which1 however1 never reached the dignity of performance till #ahhh--;five years after ,wagner's death4 ,after some time spent in very unremunerative routine work in ,heidelberg1 ,knigsberg1 and ,riga 7where in #ahcf he married71 he resolved1 in #ahci1 to try his fortune in ,paris with ,rienzi1 a new opera1 written on the lines of the ,paris ,grand ,opera and with all its great resources in view4 ,from the month's terrific storm in the ,north ,sea1 through which the vessel struggled to its haven1 till the spring of #ahdb1 when ,wagner left ,paris with ,rienzi unperformed1 heartsick with hope deferred1 his lot was a hard and bitter one4 ,berlioz1 in similar straits1 supported himself by singing in the chorus of a second-rate theatre4 ,wagner was refused even that humble post4 ,in #ahdb ,rienzi was accepted at ,dresden1 and its signal success led to his appointment as ,capellmeister there 7,january1 #ahdc74 ,in the following year the ,flying ,dutchman was not so enthusiastically received1 but it has since easily distanced the earlier work in popular favor4 ,the story was suggested to his mind during the stormy voyage from ,riga2 and it is a remarkable fact that the wonderful tone-picture of ,norway's storm-beaten shore was painted by one who1 till that voyage1 had never set eyes on the sea4 ,in #ahde his new opera1 ,tannhuser1 proved at first a comparative failure4 ,the subject1 one which had been proposed to ,weber in #ahad1 attracted ,wagner while he was in ,paris1 and during his studies for the libretto he found also the first suggestions of ,lohengrin and ,parsifal4 ,the temporary failure of the opera led him to the consideration and self-examination which resulted in the elaborate exposition of his ideal 7in ,opera and ,drama1 and many other essays74 ,i saw a single possibility before me1 he writes1 to induce the public to understand and participate in my aims as an artist4 ,lohengrin was finished early in #ahdh1 and also the poem of ,siegfried's ,tod1 the result of ,wagner's studies in the old ,nibelungen ,lied2 but a too warm sympathy with some of the aims of the revolutionary party 7which reigned for two short days behind the street barricades in ,dresden1 ,may1 #ahdi7 rendered his absence from ,saxony advisable1 and a few days later news reached him in ,weimar that a warrant was issued for his arrest4 ,with a passport procured by ,liszt he fled across the frontier1 and for nearly twelve years the bitterness of exile was added to the hardships of poverty4 ,it is this period which is mainly responsible for ,wagner's polemical writings1 so biting in their sarcasm1 and often unfair in their attacks4 ,he was a good hater2 one of the most fiendish pamphlets in existence is the ,capitulation 7#ahga71 in which ,wagner1 safe from poverty 7thanks to the kindness of ,liszt and the munificence of ,ludwig ,,ii41 of ,bavaria71 and nearing the summit of his ambition1 but remembering only his misfortunes and his slights1 gloated in public over the horrors which were making a hell of the fairest city on earth4 ,there is excuse at least1 if not justification1 to be found for his attacks on ,meyerbeer and others2 there are considerations to be taken into account while one reads with humiliation and pity the correspondence between ,wagner and his benefactor1 ,liszt2 but it is sad that an affectionate1 humane1 intensely human1 to say nothing of an artistic1 nature1 could so blaspheme against the first principles of humanity4 ,in #aheb the poem of the ,nibelungen ,ring ,trilogy was finished4 ,in #ahed ,rheingold 7the introduction of ,vorabend7 was ready1 and ,die ,walkre 7,part ,i47 in #ahef4 ,but tired1 as he said1 of heaping one silent score upon another1 he left ,siegfried unfinished1 and turned to the story of ,tristan4 ,the poem was completed in #aheg1 and the music two years later4 ,at last1 in #ahfa1 he received permission to return to ,germany1 and in ,vienna he had the first opportunity of hearing his own ,lohengrin4 ,for three years the struggle with fortune seems to have been harder than ever before1 and ,wagner1 in broken health1 had practically determined to give up the unequal contest1 when an invitation was sent him by ,ludwig ,,ii41 the young ,king of ,bavaria--,come here and finish your work4 ,here at last was salvation for ,wagner1 and the rest of his life was comparatively smooth4 ,in #ahfe ,tristan und ,isolde was performed at ,munich1 and was followed three years later by a comic opera1 ,die ,meistersinger1 the first sketches of which date from #ahde4 ,siegfried 7,nibelungen ,ring1 ,part ,,ii47 was completed in #ahfi1 and in the following year ,wagner married ,cosima1 the daughter of ,liszt1 and formerly the wife of ,von ,blow4 ,his first wife1 from whom he had been separated in #ahfa1 died at ,dresden in #ahff4 ,a theatre built somewhere off the main lines of traffic1 and specially constructed for the performance of ,wagner's later works1 must have seemed the most impracticable and visionary of proposals in #ahgj2 and yet1 chiefly through the unwearying exertions of ,carl ,tausig 7and1 after his death1 of the various ,wagner societies71 the foundation-stone of the ,baireuth ,theatre was laid in #ahgb1 and in #ahgf1 two years after the completion of the ,gtterdmmerung 7,nibelungen ,ring1 ,part ,,iii471 it became an accomplished fact4 ,the first work given was the entire ,trilogy2 and in ,july1 #ahhb1 ,wagner's long and stormy career was magnificently crowned there by the first performance of ,parsifal4 ,a few weeks later his health showed signs of giving way1 and he resolved to spend the winter at ,venice4 ,there he died suddenly1 ,february #ac1 #ahhc1 and was buried in the garden of his own house1 ,wahnfried1 at ,baireuth4#ab ,footnote #ab3 ,our illustration represents him at ,wahnfried in company with his wife ,cosima1 her father ,franz ,liszt1 who was his lifelong friend1 and ,herr von ,wolzogen4 ,wagner's life and his individuality are of unusual importance in rightly estimating his work1 because1 unlike the other great masters1 he not only devoted all his genius to one branch of music--the opera--but he gradually evolved a theory and an ideal which he consciously formulated and adopted1 and perseveringly followed4 ,it may be asked whether ,wagner's premises were sound and his conclusions right2 and also whether his genius was great enough to be the worthy champion of a cause involving such revolutions4 ,unless ,wagner's operas1 considered solely as music1 are not only more advanced in style1 but worthy in themselves to stand at least on a level with the greatest efforts of his predecessors1 no amount of proof that these were wrong and he right will give his name the place his admirers claim for it4 ,it is now universally acknowledged that ,wagner can only be compared with the greatest names in music4 ,his instrumentation has the advantage in being the inheritor of the enormous development of the orchestra from ,haydn to ,berlioz1 his harmony is as daring and original as ,bach's1 and his melody is as beautiful as it is different from ,beethoven's or ,mozart's4 7,these names are used not in order to institute profitless comparisons1 but as convenient standards2 therefore even a qualification of the statement will not invalidate the case47 ,illustration3 ,wagner and his ,friends4 ,his aim 7stated very generally7 was to reform the whole structure of opera1 using the last or ,beethoven development of instrumental music as a basis1 and freeing it from the fetters which conventionality had imposed1 in the shape of set forms1 accepted arrangements1 and traditional concessions to a style of singing now happily almost extinct4 ,the one canon was to be dramatic fitness4 ,in this ,art ,work of the ,future1 as he called it1 the interest of the drama is to depend not entirely on the music1 but also on the poem and on the acting and staging as well4 ,it will be seen that ,wagner's theory is not new4 ,all or most of it is contained in the theories of ,gluck and others1 who at various periods in the development of opera consciously strove after an ideal music drama4 ,but the times were not ripe1 and therefore such music could not exert its proper influence4 ,the twin arts of music and poetry1 dissociated by the rapid advance of literature and the slow development of music1 pursued their several paths alone4 ,the attempt to reunite them in the end of the sixteenth century was futile1 and only led to opera which never needed1 and therefore did not employ1 great poetry4 ,in ,germany music was developed along instrumental lines until the school arrived at its culmination in ,beethoven2 and when an opera composer stopped to think on the eternal verities1 the result must always have been such a prophecy of ,wagner's work as we find in ,mozart's letters3 ,october1 #agha4--,verse indeed is indispensable for music1 but rhyme is bad in its very nature4444 ,it would be by far the best if a good composer1 understanding the theatre and knowing how to produce a piece1 and a clever poet1 could be united in one4444 ,other but comparatively unimportant features in the ,wagner music drama are1 e4g41 the use of the ,leitmotiv1 or leading motive--found occasionally in ,gluck1 ,mozart1 ,weber1 etc41 but here first adopted with a definite purpose1 and the contention for mythological rather than historical subjects--now largely admitted4 ,but all ,wagner's principles would have been useless without the energy and perseverance which directed his work1 the loving study which stored his memory with all the great works of his predecessors1 and1 above all1 the genius which commands the admiration of the musical world4 ,wagner's works show a remarkable and progressive development4 ,rienzi is quite in the grand opera style of ,meyerbeer1 ,spontini1 etc4 ,the ,flying ,dutchman is a deliberate departure from that style1 and in romantic opera strikes out for itself a new line1 which1 followed still further in ,tannhuser1 reaches its stage of perfection in ,lohengrin4 ,from this time dates the music drama1 of which ,tristan is the most uncompromising type1 and by virtue of wonderful orchestration1 and the intense pathos of the beautifully written poem1 the most fascinating of all4 ,the ,trilogy 7,walkre1 ,siegfried1 ,gtterdmmerung1 with the ,rheingold as introduction7 is a very unequal work4 ,it is full of ,wagner's most inspired writing and most marvellous orchestration2 but it is too long and too diffuse4 ,the plot also is strangely confused and uninteresting1 and fails alike as a story and as a vehicle of theories1 morals1 or religion4 ,parsifal1 with its sacred allegory1 its lofty nobility of tone1 and its pure mysticism1 stands on a platform by itself1 and is almost above criticism1 or praise1 or blame4 ,the libretto alone might have won ,wagner immortality1 so original is it and perfect in intention2 and the music seems to be no longer a mere accessory to the effect1 but the very essence and fragrance of the great conception4 ,,giuseppe ,,verdi 7,,born #ahac7 ,illustration3 ,verdi4 ,giuseppe ,verdi1 the last and most widely successful of the school of ,italian opera proper1 was born at ,roncole1 near ,busseto1 ,october #i1 #ahac4 ,at ten years he was organist of the small church in his native village1 the salary being raised after a year from #a #hs4 #aj;d4 to #a #abs4 per annum4 ,at the age of sixteen he was provided with funds to prosecute his studies at the ,conservatorium at ,milan2 but at the entrance examination he showed so little evidence of musical talent that the authorities declined to enroll him4 ,nothing daunted1 he pursued his studies with ardor under ,lavigna1 from #ahca to #ahcc1 when1 according to agreement1 he returned to ,busseto to take the place of his old teacher ,provesi1 now deceased4 ,after five unhappy years in a town where he was little appreciated1 ,verdi returned to ,milan4 ,his first opera1 ,oberto1 is chiefly indebted to ,bellini1 and the next1 ,un ,giorno di ,regno 7which fulfilled its own title1 as it was only once performed71 has been styled ,un ,bazar de ,reminiscences4 ,poor ,verdi had just lost his wife and two children within a few days of each other1 so it is hardly to be wondered at that a comic opera was not a very congenial work1 nor successfully accomplished4 ,nabucodonosor 7#ahdb7 was his first hit1 and in the next year ,i ,lombardi was even more successful--partly owing to the revolutionary feeling which in no small degree was to help him to his future high position4 ,indeed1 his name was a useful acrostic to the revolutionary party1 who shouted ,viva ,verdi1 when they meant ,viva ,vittorio ,emanuele ,re ,d' ,italia4 ,ernani1 produced at ,venice in #ahdd1 also scored a success1 owing to the republican sentiment in the libretto1 which was adapted from ,victor ,hugo's ,hernani4 ,many works followed in quick succession1 each arousing the enthusiasm of the audiences1 chiefly when an opportunity was afforded them of expressing their feelings against the ,austrian rule4 ,only with his sixteenth opera did ,verdi win the supremacy when there were no longer any living competitors2 and ,rigoletto 7#ahea71 ,il ,trovatore1 and ,la ,traviata 7#ahec7 must be called the best1 as they are the last of the ,italian opera school4 ,i ,vespri ,siciliani 7#ahee7 and ,simon ,boccanegra 7#aheg7 were not so successful as ,un ,ballo in ,maschera 7#ahei72 and none of them1 any more than ,la ,forza del ,destino 7#ahfb7 or ,don ,carlos 7#ahfg71 added anything to the fame of the composer of ,il ,trovatore4 ,only now begins the interest which the student of musical history finds in ,verdi's life4 ,hitherto he had proved a good man1 struggling with adversity and poverty1 a successful composer ambitious to succeed to the vacant throne of ,italian opera4 ,but the keen insight into dramatic necessity which had gradually developed and had given such force to otherwise unimportant scenes in earlier operas1 also showed him the insufficiency of the means hitherto at the disposal of ,italian composers1 and from time to time he had tried to learn the lessons taught in the ,french ,grand ,opera ,school1 but with poor success4 ,now a longer interval seemed to promise a more careful1 a more ambitious work1 and when ,ada was produced at ,cairo 7#ahga71 it was at once acknowledged that a revolution had taken place in ,verdi's mind and method1 which might produce still greater results4 ,the influence of ,wagner and the music-drama is distinctly to be felt4 ,but ,verdi was apparently not yet satisfied4 ,for sixteen years the successful composer maintained absolute silence in opera1 when whispers of a great music-drama roused the expectation of musical ,europe to an extraordinary pitch2 nor were the highest expectations disappointed when ,otello was produced at ,milan in #ahhg4 ,the surrender of ,italian opera was complete1 and ,verdi took his right place at the head of the vigorous new school which has arisen in ,italy1 and which promises to regain for the ,land of ,song some of her ancient preeminence in music4 ,a comic opera by ,verdi1 ,falstaff1 was announced in #ahib3 it has well sustained his previous reputation4 ,,dramatic ,,and ,,lyric ,,artists ,,david ,,garrick ,by ,,samuel ,,archer 7#agaf-aggi7 ,this celebrated actor was the son of ,peter ,garrick1 who had a captain's commission in the army1 but who generally resided at ,lichfield4 ,he was born at ,hereford1 when his father was on a recruiting party there1 and was baptized in the ,church of ,all-,saints1 in that city1 on ,february #bj1 #agaf4 ,young ,garrick received part of his education at the grammar school there1 but he did not apply himself to his books with much assiduity4 ,he had conceived a very early passion for theatrical representation1 from which nothing could turn him aside4 ,when he was a little more than eleven years of age1 he formed the project of getting a play acted by young gentlemen and ladies4 ,after he had made some trial of his own and his companions' abilities1 and prevailed upon the parents to give their consent1 he pitched upon the ,recruiting ,officer1 for the play4 ,he assembled his little company in a large room1 the destined place of representation4 ,there we may suppose our young boy distributed the several characters according to the merits of the performer4 ,he prevailed on one of his sisters to play the part of the chambermaid4 ,sergeant ,kite1 a character of busy intrigue and bold humor1 he chose for himself4 ,illustration3 ,garrick4 ,the play was acted in a manner so far above the expectation of the audience1 that it gave general satisfaction1 and was much applauded4 ,the ease1 vivacity1 and humor of ,kite are still remembered with pleasure at ,lichfield4 ,the first stage attempt of our ,english ,roscius was in #agbg4 ,not long after1 he was invited to ,lisbon by an uncle1 who was a considerable wine merchant in that city1 but his stay there was very short1 for he returned to ,lichfield the year following4 ,it is imagined that the gay disposition of the young gentleman was not very suitable to the old man's temper1 which was1 perhaps1 too grave and austere to relish the vivacities of his nephew4 ,however1 during his short stay at ,lisbon1 young ,garrick made himself agreeable to all who knew him1 particularly to the ,english merchants who resided there1 with whom he often dined4 ,after dinner they usually diverted themselves by placing him upon the table1 and calling upon him to repeat verses and speeches from plays1 which he did with great readiness1 and much to the satisfaction of the hearers4 ,some ,portuguese young gentlemen of the highest rank1 who were of his own age1 were also much delighted with his conversation4 ,he afterward returned to ,lichfield1 and in #agcg came up to town in company with ,samuel ,johnson1 who was to make so conspicuous a figure in the literary world1 and of whose life we have already given an account4 ,soon after his arrival in ,london1 ,garrick entered himself at ,lincoln's ,inn1 and he also put himself under the tuition of ,mr4 ,colson1 an eminent mathematician at ,rochester4 ,but as he applied himself little to the study of the law1 his proficiency in mathematics and philosophy was not extensive4 ,his mind was theatrically led1 and nothing could divert his thoughts from the study of that to which his genius so powerfully prompted him4 ,he had #a1jjj left him by his uncle at ,lisbon1 and he engaged for a short time in the wine trade1 in partnership with his brother1 ,mr4 ,peter ,garrick2 they hired vaults in ,durham ,yard1 for the purpose of carrying on the business4 ,the union between the brothers was of no long date4 ,peter was calm1 sedate1 and methodical2 ,david was gay1 volatile1 impetuous1 and perhaps not so confined to regularity as his partner could have wished4 ,to prevent the continuance of fruitless and daily altercation1 by the interposition of friends the partnership was amicably dissolved4 ,and now ,garrick prepared himself in earnest for that employment which he so ardently loved1 and in which nature designed he should eminently excel4 ,he was frequently in the company of the most eminent actors2 he got himself introduced to the managers of the theatres1 and tried his talent in the recitation of some particular and favorite portions of plays4 ,now and then he indulged himself in the practice of mimicry1 a talent which1 however inferior1 is never willingly resigned by him who excels in it4 ,sometimes he wrote criticisms upon the action and elocution of the players1 and published them in the prints4 ,these sudden effusions of his mind generally comprehended judicious observations and shrewd remarks1 unmixed with that illiberality which often disgraces the instructions of stage critics4 ,garrick's diffidence withheld him from trying his strength at first upon a ,london theatre4 ,he thought the hazard was too great1 and embraced the advantage of commencing his noviciate in acting with a company of players then ready to set out for ,ipswich1 under the direction of ,mr4 ,william ,gifford and ,mr4 ,dunstall1 in the summer of #agda4 ,the first effort of his theatrical talents was exerted as ,aboan1 in the play of ,oroonoko1 a part in which his features could not be easily discerned4 ,under the disguise of a black countenance1 he hoped to escape being known1 should it be his misfortune not to please4 ,though ,aboan is not a first-rate character1 yet the scenes of pathetic persuasion and affecting distress in which that character is involved1 will always command the attention of the audience when represented by a judicious actor4 ,our young player's applause was equal to his most sanguine desires4 ,under the assumed name of ,lyddal1 he not only acted a variety of characters in plays1 particularly ,chamont1 in the ,orphan2 ,captain ,brazen1 in the ,recruiting ,officer2 and ,sir ,harry ,wildair2 but he likewise gave such delight to the audience1 that they gratified him with constant and loud proofs of their approbation4 ,the town of ,ipswich will long boast of having first seen and encouraged so great a genius as ,garrick4 ,his first appearance as an actor in ,london1 was on ,october #ai1 #agda1 when he performed the part of ,richard ,,iii41 at the playhouse in ,goodman's ,fields4 ,his easy and familiar1 yet forcible1 style in speaking and acting1 at first threw the critics into some hesitation concerning the novelty1 as well as propriety1 of his manner4 ,they had been long accustomed to an elevation of the voice1 with a sudden mechanical depression of its tones1 calculated to excite admiration1 and to intrap applause4 ,to the just modulation of the words1 and concurring expression of the features from the genuine works of nature1 they had been strangers1 at least for some time4 ,but after he had gone through a variety of scenes1 in which he gave evident proofs of consummate art and perfect knowledge of character1 their doubts were turned into surprise and astonishment1 from which they relieved themselves by loud and reiterated applause4 ,they were more especially charmed when the actor1 after having thrown aside the hypocrite and politician1 assumed the warrior and the hero4 ,when news was brought to ,richard that the ,duke of ,buckingham was taken1 ,garrick's look and action1 when he pronounced the words ----,off with his head6 ,so much for ,buckingham6 were so magnificent and important1 from his visible enjoyment of the incident1 that several loud shouts of approbation proclaimed the triumph of the actor and satisfaction of the audience4 ,richard's dream before the battle1 and his death1 were accompanied with the loudest gratulations of applause4 ,such was the universal approbation which followed our young actor1 that the more established theatres of ,drury ,lane and ,covent ,garden were deserted4 ,garrick drew after him the inhabitants of the most polite parts of the town3 ,goodman's ,fields were full of the splendor of ,st4 ,james' and ,grosvenor ,square2 the coaches of the nobility filled up the space from ,temple ,bar to ,whitechapel4 ,he had so perfectly convinced the public of his superior accomplishments in acting1 that not to admire him would not only have argued an absence of taste1 but the grossest stupidity4 ,those who had seen and been delighted with the most admired of the old actors1 confessed that he had excelled the ablest of them in the variety of the exhibitions1 and equalled them all in their must applauded characters4 ,alexander ,pope was persuaded by ,lord ,orrery to see him in the first dawn of his fame4 ,that great man1 who had often seen and admired ,betterton1 was struck with the propriety and beauty of ,mr4 ,garrick's action2 and as a convincing proof that he had a good opinion of his merit1 he told ,lord ,orrery that he was afraid the young man would be spoiled1 for he would have no competitor4 ,mr4 ,garrick shone forth like a theatrical ,newton2 he threw new light on elocution and action2 he banished ranting1 bombast1 and grimace2 and restored nature1 ease1 simplicity1 and genuine humor4 ,in #agdb he entered into stated agreements with ,fleetwood1 patentee of ,drury ,lane1 for the annual income of #ejj4 ,his fame continued to increase at the royal theatre1 and soon became so extended that a deputation was sent from ,ireland1 to invite him to act in ,dublin during the months of ,june1 ,july1 and ,august1 upon very profitable conditions4 ,these he embraced1 and crossed the seas to the metropolis of ,ireland in ,june1 #agdb1 accompanied by ,mrs4 ,woffington4 ,illustration3 ,garrick as ,richard ,,iii4 ,his success at ,dublin exceeded all imagination1 though much was expected from him2 he was caressed by all ranks of people as a prodigy of theatrical accomplishment4 ,during the hottest days in the year the play-house was crowded with persons of fashion and rank1 who were never tired with seeing and applauding the various essays of his skill4 ,the excessive heat became prejudicial to the frequenters of the theatre2 and the epidemical distemper1 which seized and carried off great numbers1 was nicknamed the ,garrick fever4 ,satisfied with the emoluments arising from the summer campaign1 and delighted with the generous encouragement and kind countenance which the nobility and gentry of ,ireland had given him1 and of which he always spoke in the strongest terms of acknowledgment and gratitude1 he set out for ,london1 to renew his labors and to receive the applause of the most critical1 as well as most candid1 audience in ,europe4 ,such an actor as ,garrick1 whose name when announced in the play-bill operated like a charm and drew multitudes to the theatre1 of consequence considerably augmented the profits of the patentee4 ,but at the time when all without doors was apparently gay and splendid1 and the theatre of ,drury ,lane seemed to be in the most flourishing condition1 by the strange and absurd conduct of the manager the whole fabric was absolutely running into certain destruction4 ,his behavior brought on a revolt of the principal actors1 with ,mr4 ,garrick and ,mr4 ,macklin at their head1 and for some time they seceded from the theatre4 ,they endeavored to procure a patent for a new theatre1 but without success2 and ,garrick at length accommodated his dispute with the manager1 ,mr4 ,fleetwood1 by engaging to play again for a salary of six or seven hundred pounds4 ,in #agdd1 ,garrick made a second voyage to ,dublin1 and became joint-manager of the theatre there with ,mr4 ,sheridan4 ,they met with great success2 and ,garrick returned again to ,london1 in ,may1 #agdf1 having considerably added to his stock of money4 ,in #agdg he became joint-patentee of ,drury ,lane ,theatre with ,mr4 ,lacy4 ,mr4 ,garrick and ,mr4 ,lacy divided the business of the theatre in such a manner as not to encroach upon each other's province4 ,mr4 ,lacy took upon himself the care of the wardrobe1 the scenes1 and the economy of the household2 while ,garrick regulated the more important business of treating with authors1 hiring actors1 distributing parts in plays1 superintending of rehearsals1 etc4 ,besides the profits accruing from his half-share1 he was allowed an income of #ejj for his acting1 and some particular emoluments for altering plays1 farces1 etc4 ,in #agdi1 ,mr4 ,garrick was married to ,mademoiselle ,violetti1 a young lady who 7as ,mr4 ,davies says71 to great elegance of form and many polite accomplishments1 joined the more amiable virtues of the mind4 ,in #agfc1 #agfd1 and #agfe1 he made a journey to ,france and ,italy1 accompanied by ,mrs4 ,garrick1 who1 from the day of her marriage till the death of her husband1 was never separated from him for twenty-four hours4 ,during his stay abroad his company was desired by many foreigners of high birth and great merit4 ,he was sometimes invited to give the company a taste of that art in which he was known so greatly to excel4 ,such a request he very readily consented to1 for indeed his compliance cost him nothing4 ,he could1 without the least preparation1 transform himself into any character tragic or comic1 and seize instantaneously upon any passion of the human mind4 ,he could make a sudden transition from violent rage1 and even madness1 to the extremes of levity and humor1 and go through the whole circle of theatric evolution with the most surprising velocity4 ,on the death of ,mr4 ,lacy1 joint patentee of ,drury ,lane with ,mr4 ,garrick1 in #aggc1 the whole management of that theatre devolved on ,mr4 ,garrick4 ,but in #aggf1 being about sixty years of age1 he sold his share of the patent1 and formed a resolution of quitting the stage4 ,he was1 however1 determined1 before he left the theatre1 to give the public proofs of his abilities to delight them as highly as he had ever done in the flower and vigor of his life4 ,to this end he presented them with some of the most capital and trying characters of ,shakespeare2 with ,hamlet1 ,richard1 and ,lear1 besides other parts which were less fatiguing4 ,hamlet and ,lear were repeated2 ,richard he acted once only1 and by the king's command4 ,his ,majesty was much surprised to see him1 at an age so advanced1 run about the field of battle with so much fire1 force1 and agility4 ,he finished his dramatic race with one of his favorite parts1 with ,felix1 in ,the ,wonder a ,woman ,keeps a ,secret4 ,when the play was ended1 ,mr4 ,garrick advanced toward the audience1 with much palpitation of mind1 and visible emotion in his countenance4 ,no premeditation whatever could prepare him for this affecting scene4 ,he bowed--he paused--the spectators were all attention4 ,after a short struggle of nature1 he recovered from the shock he had felt1 and addressed his auditors in the following words3 ,,ladies ,,and ,,gentlemen3 ,it has been customary with persons under my circumstances to address you in a farewell epilogue4 ,i had the same intention1 and turned my thoughts that way2 but indeed1 ,i found myself then as incapable of writing such an epilogue1 as ,i should be now of speaking it4 ,the jingle of rhyme and the language of fiction would but ill suit my present feelings4 ,this is to me a very awful moment2 it is no less than parting forever with those from whom ,i have received the greatest kindness and favors1 and upon the spot where that kindness and those favors were enjoyed4 ,here he was unable to proceed till he was relieved by a shower of tears4 ,whatever may be the changes of my future life1 the deepest impression of your kindness will always remain here 7putting his hand on his breast7 fixed and unalterable4 ,i will very readily agree to my successors having more skill and ability for their station than ,i have2 but ,i defy them all to take more sincere1 and more uninterrupted pains for your favor1 or to be more truly sensible of it1 than is your humble servant4 ,after a profound obeisance1 he retired1 amid the tears and acclamations of a most crowded and brilliant audience4 ,he died on ,wednesday morning1 ,january #bj1 #aggi1 at eight o'clock1 without a groan4 ,the disease was pronounced to be a palsy in the kidneys4 ,on ,monday1 ,february #ast1 the body of ,david ,garrick was conveyed from his own house in the ,adelphi1 and most magnificently interred in ,westminster ,abbey1 under the monument of his beloved ,shakespeare4 ,he was attended to the grave by persons of the first rank2 by men illustrious for genius1 and famous for science2 by those who loved him living1 and lamented his death4 ,,edwin ,,forrest#ac ,footnote #ac3 ,reprinted by permission of ,the ,cassell ,publishing ,company1 from ,actors and ,actresses of ,great ,britain and the ,united ,states4 ,by ,,lawrence ,,barrett 7#ahjf-ahgb7 ,illustration3 ,edwin ,forrest4 ,edwin ,forrest was born in the city of ,philadelphia1 ,march #i1 #ahjf1 his father1 a ,scotchman1 having emigrated to ,america during the last year of the preceding century4 ,the boy1 like many others of his profession1 was designed for the ministry1 and before the age of eleven the future ,channing had attracted admiring listeners by the music of his voice and the aptness of his mimicry4 ,his memory was remarkable1 and he would recite whole passages of his preceptor's sermons4 ,perched upon a chair or stool1 and crowned with the proud approval of family and friends1 the young mimic filled the hearts of his listeners with fervent hopes of his coming success in the fold of their beloved church4 ,these hopes were destined to be met with disappointment4 ,the bias of the future leader of the ,american stage was only faintly outlined as yet2 his hour of development was still to come4 ,he must have learned early the road to the theatre1 permitted to go by the family1 or going1 perhaps1 without the knowledge or consent of his seniors in the overworked household2 for1 before he had passed his tenth year1 our young sermonizer was a member of a ,thespian club1 and before he was eleven he had made his appearance at one of the regular theatres in a female character1 but with most disastrous results4 ,he soon outgrew the ignominy of his first failure1 however1 and again and again sought to overcome its disgrace by a fresh appearance4 ,to his appeals the irate manager lent a deaf ear4 ,the sacred portal that leads to the enchanted ground of the stage was closed against young ,forrest1 the warden being instructed not to let the importunate boy pass the door4 ,at last1 in desperation1 he resolved to storm the citadel1 to beat down the faithful guard and to carry war into the enemy's camp4 ,one night he dashed past the astonished guardian of the stage entrance just as the curtain fell upon one of the acts of a play4 ,he emerged before the footlights1 eluding all pursuit1 dressed as a harlequin1 and1 before the audience had recovered from its astonishment at this scene not set down in the bills1 the baffled1 but not subdued1 aspirant had delivered the lines of an epilogue in rhyme with so much effect that1 before he could be seized by the astounded stage-manager and hurled from the theatre1 he had attracted public notice1 successfully won his surprised audience1 and not only secured immunity from punishment for his temerity1 but actually gained that respect in the manager's estimation which he had so long and so vainly striven to acquire4 ,at last ,forrest was promised an appearance at the ,walnut ,street house1 then one of the leading theatres of the country4 ,he selected ,young ,norval in ,home's tragedy of ,douglas1 and on ,november #bg1 #ahbj1 the future master of the ,american stage1 then fourteen years of age--a boy in years1 a man in character--announced as ,a ,young ,gentleman of this ,city1 surrounded by a group of veteran actors who had for many years shared the favor of the public1 began a career which was as auspicious at its opening as it was splendid in its maturity4 ,at his entrance he won the vast audience at once by the grace of his figure and the modest bearing that was natural to him4 ,something of that magnetism which he exercised so effectively in late years now attracted all who heard him1 and made friends even before he spoke4 ,he was allowed to reappear as ,frederick in ,lovers' ,vows1 repeating his first success2 and on ,january #h1 #ahba1 he benefited as ,octavian in the ,mountaineers1 a play associated with the early glories of ,edmund ,kean4 ,in this year1 also1 he made his first and only venture as a manager1 boldly taking the ,prune ,street ,theatre1 ,philadelphia1 and giving a successful performance of ,richard ,,iii41 which not only pleased the audience1 but brought him a few dollars of profit4 ,he made many attempts to secure a regular engagement in one of the ,western circuits1 where experience could be gained2 and at last1 after many denials1 he was employed by ,collins and ,jones to play leading juvenile parts in their theatres in ,pittsburgh1 ,cincinnati1 and ,lexington4 ,thus1 at the age of sixteen or eighteen1 ,edwin ,forrest enrolled himself as a regular member of a theatrical company1 and broke loose from trade forever4 ,of his professional progress here we have but poor accounts4 ,he seems to have been very popular1 and to have had an experience larger than he had heretofore enjoyed4 ,he played with the elder ,conway1 and was affected by the grandeur of that actor's ,othello1 a study which served ,forrest well when in late years he inherited the character4 ,jane ,placide1 who inspired the first love of ,edwin ,forrest1 was an actress who combined talent1 beauty1 and goodness4 ,her character would have softened the asperities of his1 and led him by a calmer path to those grand elevations toward which ,providence had directed his footsteps4 ,baffled in love1 however1 and believing ,caldwell to be his rival and enemy1 he challenged him2 but was rebuked by the silent contempt of his manager1 whom the impulsive and disappointed lover posted4 ,the hard novitiate of ,edwin ,forrest was now drawing near its close4 ,securing a stock engagement with ,charles ,gilfert1 manager of the ,albany ,theatre1 he opened there in the early fall1 and played for the first time with ,edmund ,kean1 then on his second visit to ,america4 ,the meeting with this extraordinary man and the attention he received from him were foremost among the directing influences of ,forrest's life4 ,to his last hour he never wearied of singing the praises of ,kean1 whose genius filled the ,english-speaking world with admiration4 ,two men more unlike in mind and body can scarcely be imagined4 ,until now ,forrest had seen no actor who represented in perfection the impassioned school of which ,kean was the master4 ,he could not have known ,cooke1 even in the decline of that great tragedian's power1 and the little giant was indeed a revelation4 ,he played ,iago to ,kean's ,othello1 ,titus to his ,brutus1 and ,richmond to his ,richard ,,iii4 ,in the interval which preceded the opening of the ,bowery ,theatre1 ,new ,york1 ,forrest appeared at the ,park for the benefit of ,woodhull1 playing ,othello4 ,he made a pronounced success1 his old manager sitting in front1 profanely exclaiming1 ,by ,god1 the boy has made a hit6 ,this was a great event1 as the ,park was then the leading theatre of ,america1 and its actors were the most famous and exclusive4 ,he opened at the ,bowery ,theatre in ,november1 #ahbf1 as ,othello1 and made a brilliant impression4 ,his salary was raised from #bh to #dj per week4 ,from this success may be traced the first absolute hold made by ,edwin ,forrest upon the attention of cultivated auditors and intelligent critics4 ,the ,bowery was then a very different theatre from what it afterward became1 when the newsboys took forcible possession of its pit and the fire-laddies were the arbiters of public taste in its neighborhood4 ,an instance of ,forrest's moral integrity may be told here4 ,he had been approached by a rival manager1 after his first success1 and urged to secede from the ,bowery and join the other house at a much larger salary4 ,he scornfully refused to break his word1 although his own interests he knew must suffer4 ,his popularity at this time was so great that1 when his contract for the season had expired1 he was instantly engaged for eight nights1 at a salary of two hundred dollars a night4 ,the success which had greeted ,forrest on his first appearance in ,new ,york1 was renewed in every city in the land4 ,fortune attended fame1 and filled his pockets1 as the breath of adulation filled his heart4 ,he had paid the last penny of debt left by his father1 and had seen a firm shelter raised over the head of his living family4 ,with a patriotic feeling for all things ,american1 ,forrest1 about this time1 formed a plan for the encouragement or development of an ,american drama1 which resulted in heavy money losses to himself1 but produced such contributions to our stage literature as the ,gladiator1 ,jack ,cade1 and ,metamora4#ad ,after five years of constant labor he felt that he had earned the right to a holiday1 and he formed his plans for a two years' absence in ,europe4 ,a farewell banquet was tendered him by the citizens of ,new ,york1 and a medal was struck in honor of the occasion4 ,bryant1 ,halleck1 ,leggett1 ,ingraham and other distinguished men were present4 ,this was an honor which had never before been paid to an ,american actor4 ,footnote #ad3 ,of ,forrest's performance of ,metamora1 in the play of that name1 ,w4 ,r4 ,alger says1 ,never did an actor more thoroughly identify and merge himself with his part than ,forrest did in ',metamora4' ,he was completely transformed from what he appeared in other characters1 and seemed ,indian in every particular1 all through and all over1 from the crown of his head to the sole of his foot4 ,he had been absent about two years when he landed in ,new ,york in ,september1 #ahcf4 ,on his appearance at the ,walnut ,street ,theatre1 ,philadelphia1 he was received with unprecedented enthusiasm4 ,he gave six performances only1 on this occasion1 and each saw a repetition of the scene at the beginning of the engagement4 ,the receipts were the largest ever known in that house4 ,on ,september #ai1 #ahcf1 ,forrest embarked once more for the mother country1 this time with serious purpose4 ,after a speedy and uneventful passage he reached ,england1 and at once set about the preliminary business of his ,british engagement1 which began ,october #ag1 #ahcf4 ,he was the first really great ,american actor who had appeared in ,london as a rival of the ,english tragedians2 for ,cooper was born in ,england1 though always regarded as belonging to the younger country4 ,his opening part was ,spartacus in the ,gladiator4 ,the play was condemned1 the actor applauded4 ,in ,othello1 in ,lear1 and in ,macbeth1 he achieved instant success4 ,he began his engagement ,october #agth and closed ,december #aith1 having acted ,macbeth seven times1 ,othello nine1 and ,king ,lear eight4 ,a dinner at the ,garrick ,club was offered and accepted4 ,here he sat down with ,charles ,kemble and ,macready2 ,sergeant ,talfourd was in the chair4 ,it was during this engagement he met his future wife1 ,miss ,catherine ,sinclair4 ,in the latter part of ,june1 #ahcg1 the marriage took place in ,st4 ,paul's ,church1 ,covent ,garden4 ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,forrest soon after embarked for ,america4 ,the tragedian resumed his ,american engagements ,november #ae1 #ahcg1 at the old ,chestnut ,street ,theatre1 ,philadelphia4 ,presented to his friends1 his wife at once made a deep and lasting impression4 ,her native delicacy of mind and refinement of manners enchanted those who hoped for some such influence to be exerted in softening the rough vigor and democratic downrightness of the man4 ,domestic discord came too soon1 however1 and in an evil hour for himself1 in an evil hour for his art and for the struggling drama in ,america1 ,edwin ,forrest threw open the doors of his home to the scrutiny of the world1 and appealed to the courts to remove the skeleton which was hidden in his closet4 ,with the proceedings of that trial1 which resulted in divorce1 alimony1 and separation1 this memoir has nothing to do4 ,illustration3 ,forrest as ,metamora4 ,edwin ,forrest1 leaving the court-room a defeated man1 was instantly raised to a popularity with the masses beyond anything even he had before experienced4 ,he began an engagement soon after at the ,broadway ,theatre1 opening as ,damon4 ,the house was crowded to suffocation4 ,the engagement of sixty nights was unparalleled in the history of the ,american drama for length and profit4 ,but despite the flattering applause of the multitude1 life never again had for him the smiling aspect it had so often worn before4 ,the applause which filled his ears1 the wealth which flowed in upon him could not improve that temper which had never been amiable1 and all the hard stories of his life belong to this period4 ,on ,september #bj1 #aheb1 he reappeared at the ,broadway ,theatre1 ,new ,york4 ,in ,february1 #ahec1 ,macbeth was produced in grand style1 with new scenery and appointments4 ,the tragedy was played on twenty consecutive nights1 then by far the longest run of any ,shakespearean play in ,america4 ,the cast was very strong4 ,it included ,conway1 ,duff1 ,davenport1 ,pope1 ,davidge1 ,barry1 and ,madame ,ponisi4 ,on ,september #ag1 #ahfj1 after an absence of nearly four years1 ,edwin ,forrest appeared again on the stage4 ,he was engaged by ,james ,nixon1 and began his contract of one hundred nights at ,niblo's ,garden1 ,new ,york1 in the character of ,hamlet4 ,the long retirement only increased the curious interest which centred round his historic name4 ,upon his opening night the seats were sold at auction4 ,his success in ,philadelphia rivalled that of ,new ,york4 ,in ,boston the vast auditorium of the grandest theatre in ,america was found too small to contain the crowds he drew4 ,severe attacks of gout were beginning to tell upon that herculean form1 sapping and undermining it2 and in #ahfe1 while playing ,damon at the ,holiday ,street ,theatre1 in ,baltimore1 the weather being very cold and the theatre open to draughts1 he was seized with a sudden illness1 which was followed by very serious results4 ,suffering the most intense agony1 he was able to get to the end of the part2 but when his robes were laid aside and physicians summoned1 it was found to his horror that he had suffered a partial paralysis of the sciatic nerve4 ,in an instant the sturdy gait1 the proud tread of the herculean actor was forever gone2 for he never regained complete control of his limb1 a perceptible hobble being the legacy of the dreadful visitation4 ,his right hand was almost powerless1 and he could not hold his sword4 ,in #ahff he went to ,california1 urged by the manager in ,san ,francisco4 ,his last engagement in ,new ,york took place in ,february1 #ahga4 ,he played ,lear and ,richelieu1 his two greatest parts4 ,on the night of ,march #be1 #ahgb1 ,forrest opened in ,lear at the ,globe ,theatre1 ,boston4 ,lear was played six nights4 ,during the second week he was announced for ,richelieu and ,virginius2 but he caught a violent cold on ,sunday1 and labored sorely on ,monday evening through the part of ,richelieu4 ,on ,tuesday he repeated the performance1 against the advice of friends and physicians4 ,rare bursts of his old power lighted up the play1 but he labored piteously on against his illness and threatened pneumonia4 ,when stimulants were offered he rejected them1 declaring that if he died to-night1 he should still be his old royal self4 ,announced for ,virginius the following evening1 he was unable to appear4 ,a severe attack of pneumonia developed itself4 ,he was carried to his hotel1 and his last engagement was brought to an abrupt and melancholy end4 ,as soon as he was able to move1 he left ,boston for his home in ,philadelphia1 resting on his way only a day in ,new ,york4 ,as the summer passed away1 the desire for work grew stronger and stronger1 and he decided to re-enter public life1 but simply as a reader of the great plays in which he had as an actor been so successful4 ,the result was a disappointment4 ,on ,december #aa1 #ahgb1 he wrote to ,oakes his last letter1 saying sadly1 but fondly3 ,god bless you ever1 my dear and much-beloved friend4 ,when the morning of ,december #abth came1 his servant1 hearing no sound in his chamber at his general hour of rising1 became alarmed1 opened his master's door1 and found there1 cold in death upon his bed1 the form of the great tragedian4 ,his arms were crossed upon his bosom1 and he seemed to be at rest4 ,the stroke had come suddenly4 ,with little warning1 and without pain1 he had passed away4 ,the dead man's will was found to contain several bequests to old friends and servants1 and an elaborate scheme by which his fortune1 in the hands of trustees1 was to be applied to the erection and support of a retreat for aged actors1 to be called ,the ,edwin ,forrest ,home4 ,the idea had been long in his mind1 and careful directions were drawn up for its practical working2 but the trustees found themselves powerless to realize fully the hopes and wishes of the testator4 ,a settlement had to be made to the divorced wife1 who acted liberally toward the estate2 but the amount withdrawn seriously crippled it1 as it was deprived at once of a large sum of ready money4 ,other legal difficulties arose4 ,and thus the great ambition of the tragedian to be a benefactor to his profession was destined to come almost to naught4 ,of this happily little he recks now4 ,he has parted with all the cares of life1 and has at last found rest4 ,forrest's greatest ,shakespearean parts were ,lear1 ,othello1 and ,coriolanus4 ,the first grew mellow and rich as the actor grew in years1 while it still retained much of its earlier force4 ,his ,othello suffered with the decline of his faculties1 although his clear conception of all he did was apparent to the end in the acting of every one of his parts4 ,coriolanus died with him1 the last of all the ,romans4 ,he was greatest1 however1 in such parts as ,virginius1 ,william ,tell1 and ,spartacus4 ,here his mannerisms of gait and utterance were less noticeable than in his ,shakespearean characters1 or were overlooked in the rugged massiveness of the creation4 ,hamlet1 ,richard1 and ,macbeth were out of his temperament1 and added nothing to his fame2 but ,richelieu is said to have been one of his noblest and most impressive performances4 ,he was in all things marked and distinctive4 ,his obtrusive personality often destroyed the harmony of the portrait he was painting2 but in his inspired moments1 which were many1 his touches were sublime4 ,he passed over quiet scenes with little elaboration1 and dwelt strongly upon the grand features of the characters he represented4 ,his ,lear1 in the great scenes1 rose to a majestic height1 but fell in places almost to mediocrity4 ,his art was unequal to his natural gifts4 ,he was totally unlike his great contemporary and rival1 ,macready1 whose attention to detail gave to every performance the harmony of perfect work4 ,this memoir may fitly close with an illustrative anecdote of the great actor4 ,toward the end of his professional career he was playing an engagement at ,st4 ,louis4 ,he was very feeble in health1 and his lameness was a source of great anxiety to him4 ,sitting at a late supper in his hotel one evening1 after a performance of ,king ,lear1 with his friend ,j4 ,b4 ,mc,cullough1 of the ,globe-,democrat1 that gentleman remarked to him3 ,mr4 ,forrest1 ,i never in my life saw you play ,lear so well as you did to-night4 ,whereupon the veteran almost indignantly replied1 rising slowly and laboriously from his chair to his full height3 ,play ,lear6 ,what do you mean1 sir8 ,i do not play ,lear6 ,i play ,hamlet1 ,richard1 ,shylock1 ,virginius1 if you please1 but by ,god1 sir1 ,i am ,lear6 ,nor was this wholly imaginative4 ,ingratitude of the basest kind had rent his soul4 ,old friends were gone from him2 new friends were but half-hearted4 ,his hearthstone was desolate4 ,the public1 to whom he had given his best years1 was becoming impatient of his infirmities4 ,the royalty of his powers he saw by degrees torn from his decaying form4 ,other kings had arisen on the stage1 to whom his old subjects now showed a reverence once all his own4 ,the mockery of his diadem only remained4 ,a wreck of the once proud man who had despised all weakness1 and had ruled his kingdom with imperial sway1 he now stood alone4 ,broken in health and in spirit1 deserted1 forgotten1 unkinged1 he might well exclaim1 ,i am ,lear6 ,,charlotte ,,cushman ,by ,,dutton ,,cook 7#ahaf-ahgf7 ,illustration3 ,charlotte ,cushman4 ,the ,pilgrim ,fathers figure in ,american pedigrees almost as frequently and persistently as ,norman ,william and his followers appear at the trunk of our family-trees4 ,certainly1 the ,mayflower must have carried very many heads of houses across the ,atlantic4 ,it was not in the ,mayflower1 however1 but in the ,fortune1 a smaller vessel1 of fifty-five tons1 that ,robert ,cushman1 ,nonconformist1 the founder of the ,cushman family in ,america1 sailed from ,england1 for the better enjoyment of liberty of conscience and freedom of religion4 ,in the seventh generation from ,robert ,cushman appeared ,elkanah ,cushman1 who took to wife ,mary ,eliza1 daughter of ,erasmus ,babbit1 ,jr41 lawyer1 musician1 and captain in the army4 ,of this marriage was born ,charlotte ,saunders ,cushman1 in ,richmond ,street1 ,boston1 ,july #bc1 #ahaf1 and other children4 ,charlotte ,cushman says of herself3 ,i was born a tom-boy4 ,she had a passion for climbing trees and for breaking open dolls' heads4 ,she could not make dolls' clothes1 but she could manufacture their furniture--could do anything with tools4 ,i was very destructive to toys and clothes1 tyrannical to brothers and sister1 but very social1 and a great favorite with other children4 ,imitation was a prevailing trait4 ,the first play she ever saw was ,coriolanus1 with ,macready in the leading part2 her second play was ,the ,gamester4 ,she became noted in her school for her skill in reading aloud4 ,her competitors grumbled3 ,no wonder she can read2 she goes to the theatre6 ,until then she had been shy and reserved1 not to say stupid1 about reading aloud in school1 afraid of the sound of her own voice1 and unwilling to trust it2 but acquaintance with the theatre loosened her tongue1 as she describes it1 and gave opportunity and expression to a faculty which became the ruling passion of her life4 ,at home1 as a child1 she took part in an operetta founded upon the story of ,bluebeard1 and played ,selim1 the lover1 with great applause1 in a large attic chamber of her father's house before an enthusiastic audience of young people4 ,elkanah ,cushman had been for some years a successful merchant1 a member of the firm of ,topliffe ,cushman1 ,long ,wharf1 ,boston4 ,but failure befell him1 attributable1 writes ,charlotte ,cushman's biographer1 ,miss ,stebbins1 to the infidelity of those whom he trusted as supercargoes4 ,the family removed from ,boston to ,charlestown4 ,charlotte was placed at a public school1 remaining there until she was thirteen only4 ,elkanah ,cushman died1 leaving his widow and five children with very slender means4 ,mrs4 ,cushman opened a boarding-house in ,boston1 and struggled hard to ward off further misfortune4 ,it was discovered that ,charlotte possessed a noble voice of almost two registers1 a full contralto and almost a full soprano2 but the low voice was the natural one4 ,the fortunes of the family seemed to rest upon the due cultivation of ,charlotte's voice and upon her future as a singer4 ,my mother1 she writes1 at great self-sacrifice gave me what opportunities for instruction she could obtain for me2 and then my father's friend1 ,mr4 ,r4 ,d4 ,shepherd1 of ,shepherdstown1 ,va41 gave me two years of the best culture that could be obtained in ,boston at that time1 under ,john ,paddon1 an ,english organist and teacher of singing4 ,when the ,english singer1 ,mrs4 ,wood--better known1 perhaps1 as ,miss ,paton--visited ,boston in #ahce or #ahcf1 she needed the support of a contralto voice4 ,charlotte ,cushman was sent for1 and rehearsed duets with ,mrs4 ,wood4 ,the young beginner was advised to prepare herself for the operatic stage2 she was assured that such a voice would lead her to any height of fortune she coveted4 ,she became the articled pupil of ,mr4 ,maeder1 the husband of ,clara ,fisher1 actress and vocalist1 and the musical director of ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,wood4 ,instructed by ,maeder1 ,miss ,cushman undertook the parts of the ,countess in ,the ,marriage of ,figaro and ,lucy ,bertram in the opera of ,guy ,mannering4 ,these were her first appearances upon the stage4 ,mrs4 ,maeder's voice was a contralto2 it became necessary1 therefore1 to assign soprano parts to ,miss ,cushman4 ,undue stress was thus laid upon her upper notes4 ,she was very young1 and she felt the change of climate when she went on with the ,maeders to ,new ,orleans4 ,it is likely that her powers as a singer had been tried too soon and too severely2 her operatic career was brought to a sudden close4 ,her voice failed her2 her upper notes departed1 never to return2 she was left with a weakened and limited contralto register4 ,alarmed and wretched1 she sought counsel of ,mr4 ,caldwell1 the manager of the chief ,new ,orleans theatre4 ,you ought to be an actress1 and not a singer1 he said1 and advised her to take lessons of ,mr4 ,barton1 his leading tragedian4 ,her articles of apprenticeship to ,maeder were cancelled4 ,soon she was ready to appear as ,lady ,macbeth on the occasion of ,barton's benefit4 ,the season ended1 she sailed for ,philadelphia on her way to ,new ,york4 ,presently she had entered into a three years' engagement with ,mr4 ,hamblin1 the manager of the ,bowery ,theatre1 at a salary of twenty-five dollars a week for the first year1 thirty-five for the second year1 and forty-five for the third4 ,mr4 ,hamblin had received excellent accounts of the actress from his friend1 ,mr4 ,barton1 of ,new ,orleans1 and had heard her rehearse scenes from ,macbeth1 ,jane ,shore1 ,venice ,preserved1 ,the ,stranger1 etc4 ,to enable her to obtain a suitable wardrobe1 he became security for her with his tradespeople1 deducting five dollars a week from her salary until the debt was satisfied4 ,all promised well2 independence seemed secure at last4 ,mrs4 ,cushman was sent for from ,boston2 she gave up her boarding-house and hastened to her daughter4 ,miss ,cushman writes3 ,i got a situation for my eldest brother in a store in ,new ,york4 ,i left my only sister in charge of a half-sister in ,boston1 and ,i took my youngest brother with me4 ,but rheumatic fever seized the actress2 she was able to act for a few nights only1 and her dream of good fortune came to a disastrous close4 ,the ,bowery ,theatre was burned to the ground1 with all my wardrobe1 all my debt upon it1 and my three years' contract ending in smoke4 ,grievously distressed1 but not disheartened1 with her family dependent upon her exertions1 she accepted an engagement at the principal theatre in ,albany1 where she remained five months1 acting all the leading characters4 ,in ,september1 #ahcg1 she entered into an engagement1 which endured for three years1 with the manager of the ,park ,theatre1 ,new ,york4 ,she was required to fulfil the duties of walking lady and general utility at a salary of twenty dollars a week4 ,during this period of her career she performed very many characters1 and toiled assiduously at her profession4 ,it was then the custom to afford the public a great variety of performances1 to change the plays nightly1 and to present two and sometimes three plays upon the same evening4 ,the actors were forever busy studying new parts1 and1 when they were not performing1 they were rehearsing4 ,it was a time of hard work1 writes ,miss ,stebbins1 of ceaseless activity1 and of hard-won and scantily accorded appreciation4 ,miss ,cushman had no choice of parts2 she was not the chief actress of the company2 she sustained without question all the characters the management assigned to her4 ,her appearance as ,meg ,merrilies 7she acquired subsequently great favor by her performance of this character7 was due to an incident--the illness of ,mrs4 ,chippendale1 the actress who usually supported the part4 ,it was in the year #ahdj2 the veteran ,braham was to appear as ,henry ,bertram4 ,a ,meg ,merrilies had to be improvised4 ,the obscure utility actress was called upon to take ,mrs4 ,chippendale's place4 ,she might read the part if she could not commit it to memory but personate ,meg ,merrilies after some sort she must4 ,she had never especially noticed the part2 but as she stood at the side scene1 book in hand1 awaiting her moment of entrance1 her ear caught the dialogue going on upon the stage between two of the gypsies1 conveying the impression that ,meg was no longer to be feared or respected--that she was no longer in her right mind4 ,this furnished her with a clew to the character1 and led her to present it upon the stage as the weird and startling figure which afterward became so famous4 ,of course1 the first performance was but a sketch of her later portrayals of ,meg ,merrilies1 yet she made a profound impression4 ,i had not thought that ,i had done anything remarkable1 she wrote1 and when a knock came at my dressing-room door1 and ,i heard ,braham's voice1 my first thought was1 ',now what have ,i done8 ,he is surely displeased with me about something4' ,imagine my gratification1 when ,mr4 ,braham said1 ',miss ,cushman1 ,i have come to thank you for the most veritable sensation ,i have experienced for a long time4 ,i give you my word1 when ,i saw you in that first scene ,i felt a cold chill run all over me4 ,where have you learned to do anything like that8' ,during her visits to ,england1 ,miss ,cushman personated ,meg ,merrilies more often than any other character4 ,in ,america she was also famous for her performance of ,nancy1 in a melodrama founded upon ,oliver ,twist2 but this part she did not bring with her across the ,atlantic4 ,she had first played ,nancy during her general utility days at the ,park ,theatre1 when the energy and pathos of her acting powerfully affected her audience1 and the tradition of her success in the part long lingered in the memory of managers1 and caused them1 ever and anon1 as their business interests prompted1 to bring great pressure to bear upon her for a reproduction of it4 ,mr4 ,george ,vandenhoff describes ,nancy as ,miss ,cushman's greatest part2 fearfully natural1 dreadfully intense1 horribly real4 ,in the winter of #ahdb ,miss ,cushman undertook the management of the ,walnut ,street ,theatre1 ,philadelphia1 which was then in rather a fallen state4 ,under her energetic rule1 however1 the establishment recovered its popularity4 ,she displayed at that day1 writes ,mr4 ,george ,vandenhoff--who starred at the ,walnut ,street ,theatre for six nights to small audiences--a rude1 strong1 uncultivated talent4 ,it was not till after she had seen and acted with ,mr4 ,macready--which she did the next season--that she really brought artistic study and finish to her performances4 ,macready arrived in ,new ,york in the autumn of #ahdc4 ,he notes3 ,the ,miss ,cushman1 who acted ,lady ,macbeth1 interested me much4 ,she has to learn her art1 but she showed mind and sympathy with me--a novelty so refreshing to me on the stage4 ,she discerned the opportunity for study and improvement presented by ,macready's visit1 and underwent the fatigue of acting on alternate nights in ,philadelphia and ,new ,york during the term of his engagement at the ,park ,theatre4 ,her own success was very great4 ,she wrote to her mother of her great reception3 of her being called out after the play2 of the hats and handkerchiefs waved to me2 flowers sent to me1 etc4 ,in ,october1 #ahdd1 she sailed for ,england in the packet-ship ,garrick4 ,she had little money with her4 ,a farewell benefit taken in ,boston1 her native city1 had not proved very productive1 and she had been obliged to make arrangements for the maintenance of her family during her absence4 ,and with characteristic prudence she left behind her a certain sum1 to be in readiness for her1 in case failure in ,england should drive her promptly back to ,america4 ,no engagement in ,london had been offered her2 but she received1 upon her arrival1 a letter from ,macready1 proposing that she should join a company then being formed to give representations in ,paris4 ,she thought it prudent to decline this proposal1 however1 so as to avoid entering into anything like rivalry with ,miss ,helen ,faucit1 the leading actress of the troupe4 ,she visited ,paris for a few days1 but only to sit with the audience of the best ,french theatres4 ,she returned to her dull lodgings in ,covent ,garden1 awaiting her destiny4 ,she was fond1 in after years1 of referring to the struggles and poverty1 the hopes and the despair1 of her first sojourn in ,london4 ,her means were nearly exhausted4 ,sally1 the dresser1 used to relate3 ,miss ,cushman lived on a mutton-chop a day1 and ,i always bought the baker's dozen of muffins for the sake of the extra one1 and we ate them all1 no matter how stale they were1 and we never suffered from want of appetite in those days4 ,she found herself reduced to her last sovereign1 when ,mr4 ,maddox1 the manager of the ,princess's ,theatre1 came to her with a proposal4 ,the watchful ,sally reported that he had been walking up and down the street for some time early in the morning1 too early for a visit4 ,he is anxious1 said ,miss ,cushman4 ,i can make my own terms4 ,he wished her to appear with ,forrest1 the ,american tragedian1 then visiting the ,london stage for the second and last time4 ,she stipulated that she should have her opportunity first1 and alone4 ,if successful1 she was willing to appear in support of ,forrest4 ,so it was agreed4 ,her first appearance upon the ,english stage was made on ,february #ad1 #ahde2 she assumed the character of ,bianca1 in ,dean ,milman's rather dull tragedy of ,fazio4 ,her triumph was indisputable4 ,her intensity and vehemence completely carried away the house4 ,as the pit rose at ,kean's ,shylock1 so it rose at ,charlotte ,cushman's ,bianca4 ,she wrote to her mother in ,america3 ,all my success put together1 since ,i have been upon the stage1 would not come near my success in ,london4 ,the critics described1 as the crowning effort of her performance1 the energy and pathos and abandonment of her appeal to ,aldabella1 when the wife sacrifices her pride1 and sinks1 huddled into a heap1 at the feet of her rival1 imploring her to save the life of ,fazio4 ,miss ,cushman1 speaking of her first performance in ,london1 was wont to relate how she was so completely overcome1 not only by the excitement of the scene1 but by the nervous agitation of the occasion1 that she lost for the moment her self-command1 and was especially grateful for the long-continued applause which gave her time to recover herself4 ,when she slowly rose at last and faced the house again1 the spectacle of its enthusiasm thrilled and impressed her in a manner she could never forget4 ,the audience were standing2 some had mounted on the benches2 there was wild waving of hats and handkerchiefs1 a storm of cheering1 great showering of bouquets4 ,her second character in ,london was ,lady ,macbeth1 to the ,macbeth of ,edwin ,forrest2 but the ,american actor failed to please1 and the audience gave free expression to their discontent4 ,greatly disgusted1 ,forrest withdrew1 deluding himself with the belief that he was the victim of a conspiracy4 ,miss ,cushman's success knew no abatement4 ,she played a round of parts1 assisted by ,james ,wallack1 ,leigh ,murray1 and ,mrs4 ,stirling1 appearing now as ,rosalind1 now as ,juliana in ,the ,honeymoon1 as ,mrs4 ,haller1 as ,beatrice1 as ,julia in ,the ,hunchback4 ,her second season was even more successful than her first4 ,after a long provincial tour she appeared in ,december1 #ahde1 as ,romeo at the ,haymarket ,theatre1 then under the management of ,mr4 ,webster1 her sister ,susan assuming the character of ,juliet4 ,she had sent for her family to share her prosperity1 and had established them in a furnished house at ,bayswater4 ,her success as ,romeo was very great4 ,the tragedy was played for eighty nights4 ,her performance won applause even from those most opposed to the representation of ,shakespeare's hero by a woman4 ,for a time her intense earnestness of speech and manner1 the passion of her interviews with ,juliet1 the fury of her combat with ,tybalt1 the despair of her closing scenes1 bore down all opposition1 silenced criticism1 and excited her audience to an extraordinary degree4 ,she appeared afterward1 but not in ,london1 as ,hamlet1 following an unfortunate example set by ,mrs4 ,siddons2 and as ,ion in ,talfourd's tragedy of that name4 ,in ,america1 toward the close of her career1 she even ventured to appear as ,cardinal ,wolsey1 obtaining great applause by her exertions in the character1 and the skill and force of her impersonation4 ,but histrionic feats of this kind trespass against good taste1 do violence to the intentions of the dramatists1 and are1 in truth1 departures from the purpose of playing4 ,miss ,cushman had for excuse--in the first instance1 at any rate--her anxiety to forward the professional interests of her sister1 who1 in truth1 had little qualification for the stage1 apart from her good looks and her graces of manner4 ,the sisters had played together in ,philadelphia in ,the ,genoese--a drama written by a young ,american--when1 to give support and encouragement to ,susan in her personation of the heroine1 ,charlotte undertook the part of her lover4 ,their success prompted them to appear in ,romeo and ,juliet4 ,other plays1 in which both could appear1 were afterward selected--such1 for instance1 as ,twelfth ,night1 in which ,charlotte played ,viola to the ,olivia of ,susan--so that the engagement of one might compel the engagement of the other4 ,susan1 however1 quitted the stage in #ahdg1 to become the wife of ,dr4 ,sheridan ,muspratt1 of ,liverpool4 ,illustration3 ,charlotte ,cushman as ,mrs4 ,haller4 ,charlotte ,cushman called few new plays into being4 ,dramas1 entitled ,infatuation1 by ,james ,kenny1 in #ahde1 and ,duchess ,elinour1 by the late ,h4 ,f4 ,chorley1 in #ahed1 were produced for her1 but were summarily condemned by the audience1 being scarcely permitted indeed a second performance in either case4 ,otherwise1 she did not add to her repertory4 ,for many years she led the life of a star1 fulfilling brief engagements here and there1 appearing now for a term in ,london1 and now travelling through the provinces1 playing some half a dozen characters over and over again4 ,of these ,lady ,macbeth1 ,queen ,katherine and ,meg ,merrilies were perhaps the most frequently demanded4 ,her fame and fortune she always dated from the immediate recognition she obtained upon her first performance in ,london4 ,but she made frequent visits to ,america2 indeed1 she crossed the ,atlantic upward of sixteen times1 says her biographer4 ,in #ahed she took a house in ,bolton ,row1 ,mayfair1 where for some years she dispensed the most charming and genial hospitality1 and1 notably1 entertained ,ristori on her first visit to ,england in #ahef4 ,several winters she passed in ,rome1 occupying apartments in the ,via ,gregoriana1 where she cordially received a host of friends and visitors of all nations4 ,in #ahei she was called to ,england by her sister's fatal illness2 in #ahff she was again summoned to ,england to attend the death-bed of her mother4 ,in #ahfj she was playing in all the chief cities of ,america4 ,three years later she again visited ,america1 her chief object being to act for the benefit of the ,sanitary ,commission1 and aid the sick and wounded victims of the civil war4 ,during the late years of her life she appeared before the public more as a dramatic reader than as an actress4 ,there were long intervals between her theatrical engagements2 she seemed to quit her profession only to return to it after an interval with renewed appetite1 and she incurred reproaches because of the frequency of her farewells1 and the doubt that prevailed as to whether her last appearances were really to be the very last4 ,it was not until #ahgd1 however1 that she took final leave of the ,new ,york stage1 amid extraordinary enthusiasm1 with many poetic and other ceremonies4 ,she was the subject of addresses in prose and verse4 ,mr4 ,bryant1 after an eloquent speech1 tendered her a laurel wreath bound with white ribbon resting upon a purple velvet cushion1 with a suitable inscription embroidered in golden letters2 a torchbearers' procession escorted her from the theatre to her hotel2 she was serenaded at midnight1 and in her honor ,fifth ,avenue blazed with fireworks4 ,after this came farewells to ,philadelphia1 ,boston and other cities1 and to these succeeded readings all over the country4 ,it is to be said1 however1 that incessant work had become a necessity with her1 not because of its pecuniary results1 but as a means of obtaining mental relief or comparative forgetfulness for a season4 ,during the last five or six years of her life she was afflicted with an incurable and agonizing malady4 ,under most painful conditions she toiled unceasingly1 moving rapidly from place to place1 and passing days and nights in railway journeys4 ,in a letter to a friend1 she writes3 ,i do get so dreadfully depressed about myself1 and all things seem so hopeless to me at those times1 that ,i pray ,god to take me quickly at any moment1 so that ,i may not torture those ,i love by letting them see my pain4 ,but when the dark hour passes1 and ,i try to forget by constant occupation that ,i have such a load near my heart1 then it is not so bad4 ,she died almost painlessly at last on ,february #ah1 #ahgf4 ,charlotte ,cushman may assuredly be accounted an actress of genius in right of her originality1 her vivid power of depicting emotion1 the vehemence and intensity of her histrionic manner4 ,her best successes were obtained in tragedy1 although she possessed a keen sense of humor1 and could deliver the witty speeches of ,rosalind or of ,beatrice with excellent point and effect4 ,her ,meg ,merrilies will probably be remembered as her most impressive achievement4 ,it was really1 as she played it1 a character of her own invention2 but1 in truth1 it taxed her intellectual resources far less than her ,bianca1 her ,queen ,katherine1 or her ,lady ,macbeth4 ,her physical peculiarities no doubt limited the range of her efforts1 hindered her advance as an actress1 or urged her toward exceptional impersonations4 ,her performances lacked femininity1 to use ,coleridge's word2 but in power to stir an audience1 to touch their sympathies1 to kindle their enthusiasm1 and to compel their applause1 she takes rank among the finest players4 ,it only remains to add that ,miss ,stebbins' fervid and affecting biography of her friend admirably demonstrates that the woman was not less estimable than the actress2 that ,charlotte ,cushman was of noble character1 intellectual1 large and tenderhearted1 of exemplary conduct in every respect4 ,the simple1 direct earnestness of her manner upon the mimic scene1 characterized her proceedings in real life4 ,she was at once the slave and the benefactress of her family2 she was devotedly fond of children2 she was of liberal and generous nature2 she was happiest when conferring kindness upon others2 her career abounded in self-sacrifice4 ,she pretended to few accomplishments1 to little cultivation of a literary sort2 but she could write1 as ,miss ,stebbins proves1 excellent letters1 now grave1 now gay1 now reflective1 now descriptive1 always interesting1 and altogether remarkable for sound sense and for force and skill of expression4 ,her death was regarded in ,america almost as a national catastrophe4 ,as ,miss ,stebbins writes1 ,the press of the entire country bore witness to her greatness1 and laid their tributes upon her tomb4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the following letter of good counsel from ,miss ,cushman to young ,mr4 ,barton is reprinted1 by permission of ,messrs4 ,houghton1 ,mifflin ,co41 from the ,life and ,letters of ,charlotte ,cushman4 ,i think if you have to wait for a while it will do you no harm4 ,you seem to me quite frantic for immediate work2 but teach yourself quiet and repose in the time you are waiting4 ,with half your strength ,i could bear to wait and labor with myself to conquer fretting4 ,the greatest power in the world is shown in conquest over self4 ,more life will be worked out of you by fretting than all the stage-playing in the world4 ,god bless you1 my poor child4 ,you have indeed trouble enough2 but you have a strong and earnest spirit1 and you have the true religion of labor in your heart4 ,therefore ,i have no fears for you let what will come4 ,let me hear from you at your leisure1 and be sure you have no warmer friend than ,i am and wish to be4 ,,rachel ,by ,,dutton ,,cook 7#ahba-aheh7 ,illustration3 ,rachel4 ,it is told that ,rachel ,felix was born on ,march #bd1 #ahba1 at ,munf1 near the town of ,aarau1 in the ,canton of ,aargau1 ,switzerland2 the burgomaster of the district simply noting in his books that upon the day stated1 at the little village inn1 the wife of a poor pedler had given birth to a female child4 ,the entry included no mention of family1 name1 or religion1 and otherwise the event was not registered in any civil or religious record4 ,the father and mother were ,abraham ,felix1 a ,jew1 born in ,metz1 but of ,german origin1 and ,esther ,haya1 his wife4 ,they had wandered about the continent during many years1 seeking a living and scarcely finding it4 ,several children were born to them by the wayside1 as it were1 on their journeyings hither and thither3 ,sarah in ,germany1 ,rebecca in ,lyons1 ,dinah in ,paris1 ,rachel in ,switzerland2 and there were other infants who did not long survive their birth1 succumbing to the austerities of the state of life to which they had been called4 ,for a time1 perhaps because of their numerous progeny1 ,m4 and ,madame ,felix settled in ,lyons4 ,madame ,felix opened a small shop and dealt in second-hand clothes2 ,m4 ,felix gave lessons in ,german to the very few pupils he could obtain4 ,about #ahcj the family moved to ,paris4 ,they were still miserably poor4 ,the children ,sarah and ,rachel1 usually carrying a smaller child in their arms or wheeling it with them in a wooden cart1 were sent into the streets to earn money by singing at the doors of cafes and estaminets4 ,a musical amateur1 one ,m4 ,morin1 noticed the girls1 questioned them1 interested himself about them1 and finally obtained their admission into the ,government ,school of ,sacred ,music in the ,rue ,vaugirard4 ,rachel's voice did not promise much1 however2 as she confessed1 she could not sing--she could only recite4 ,she had received but the scantiest and meanest education2 she read with difficulty2 she was teaching herself writing by copying the manuscript of others4 ,presently she was studying elocution under ,m4 ,st4 ,aulaire1 an old actor retired from the ,franais1 who took pains with the child1 instructing her gratuitously and calling her ma petite diablesse4 ,the performances of ,m4 ,st4 ,aulaire's pupil were occasionally witnessed by the established players1 among them ,monval of the ,gymnase and ,samson of the ,comdie4 ,monval approved and encouraged the young actress1 and upon the recommendation of ,samson she entered the classes of the ,conservatoire1 over which he presided1 with ,michelot and ,provost as his co-professors4 ,at the ,conservatoire ,rachel made little progress4 ,all her efforts failed to win the good opinion of her preceptors4 ,in despair she resolved to abandon altogether the institution1 its classes and performances4 ,she felt herself neglected1 aggrieved1 insulted4 ,tartuffe had been announced for representation by the pupils2 she had been assigned the mute part of ,flipote1 the serving-maid1 who simply appears upon the scene in the first act that her ears may be soundly boxed by ,madame ,pernelle4 ,to this humiliation she would not submit4 ,she hurried to her old friend1 ,st4 ,aulaire1 who consulted ,monval1 who commended her to his manager1 ,m4 ,poirson4 ,she entered into an engagement to serve the ,gymnase for a term of three years upon a salary of #c1jjj francs4 ,m4 ,poirson was quick to perceive that she was not as so many other beginners were2 that there was something new and startling about the young actress4 ,he obtained for her first appearance1 from ,m4 ,paul ,duport1 a little melodrama in two acts4 ,it was called ,la ,vendenne1 and owed its more striking scenes to ,the ,heart of ,midlothian4 ,after the manner of ,jeanie ,deans1 ,gnevive1 the heroine of the play1 footsore and travel-stained1 seeks the presence of the ,empress ,josephine to implore the pardon of a ,vendan peasant condemned to death for following ,george ,cadoudal4 ,la ,vendenne1 produced on ,april #bd1 #ahcg1 and received with great applause1 was played on sixty successive nights1 but not to very crowded audiences4 ,the press scarcely noticed the new actress4 ,the critic of the ,journal des ,dbats1 however1 while rashly affirming that ,rachel was not a phenomenon and would never be extolled as a wonder1 carefully noted certain of the merits and characteristics of her performance4 ,she was an unskilled child1 but she possessed heart1 soul1 intellect4 ,there was something bold1 abrupt1 uncouth about her aspect1 gait1 and manner4 ,she was dressed simply and truthfully in the coarse woollen gown of a peasant-girl2 her hands were red2 her voice was harsh and untrained1 but powerful2 she acted without effort or exaggeration2 she did not scream or gesticulate unduly2 she seemed to perceive intuitively the feeling she was required to express1 and could interest the audience greatly1 moving them to tears4 ,she was not pretty1 but she pleased1 etc4 ,bouff1 who witnessed this representation1 observed3 ,what an odd little girl6 ,assuredly there is something in her4 ,but her place is not here4 ,so judged ,samson also1 becoming more and more aware of the merits of his former pupil4 ,she was transferred to the ,franais to play the leading characters in tragedy1 at a salary of #d1jjj francs a year4 ,m4 ,poirson did not hesitate to cancel her agreement with him4 ,indeed1 he had been troubled with thinking how he could employ his new actress4 ,she was not an ingnue of the ordinary type2 she could not be classed among soubrettes4 ,there were no parts suited to her in the light comedies of ,scribe and his compeers1 which constituted the chief repertory of the ,gymnase4 ,it was on ,june #ab1 #ahch1 that ,rachel1 as ,camille1 in ,horace1 made her first appearance upon the stage of the ,thtre ,franais4 ,the receipts were but seven hundred and fifty francs2 it was an unfashionable period of the year2 ,paris was out of town2 the weather was most sultry4 ,there were many ,jews in the house1 it was said1 resolute to support the daughter of ,israel1 and her success was unequivocal2 nevertheless1 a large share of the applause of the night was confessedly carried off by the veteran ,joanny1 who played ,horace4 ,on ,june #afth ,rachel made her second appearance1 personating ,emilie in the ,cinna1 of ,corneille4 ,the receipts fell to five hundred and fifty francs4 ,she repeated her performance of ,camille on the #bc;d2 the receipts were only three hundred francs6 the poorest house1 perhaps1 she ever played to in ,paris4 ,she afterward appeared as ,hermione in ,andromaque1 ,amnaide in ,tancrde1 ,eriphile in ,iphignie1 ,monime in ,mithridate1 and ,roxane in ,bajazet1 the receipts now gradually rising1 until1 in ,october1 when she played ,hermione for the tenth time1 six thousand francs were taken at the doors1 an equal amount being received in ,november1 when1 for the sixth time1 she appeared as ,camille4 ,paris was now at her feet4 ,in #ahci1 called upon to play two or three times per week1 she essayed but one new part1 ,esther1 in ,racine's tragedy of that name4 ,the public was quite content that she should assume again and again the characters in which she had already triumphed4 ,in #ahdj she added to her list of impersonations ,laodie and ,pauline in ,corneille's ,nicomde and ,polyeucte1 and ,marie ,stuart in ,lebrun's tragedy4 ,in #ahda she played no new parts4 ,in #ahdb she first appeared as ,chimne in ,le ,cid1 as ,ariane1 and as ,frdgonde in a wretched tragedy by ,le ,mercier4 ,rachel had saved the ,thtre ,franais1 had given back to the stage the masterpieces of the ,french classical drama4 ,it was very well for ,thackeray to write from ,paris in #ahci that the actress had only galvanized the corpse1 not revivified4444 ,racine will never come to life again and cause audiences to weep as of yore4 ,he predicted3 ,ancient ,french tragedy1 red-heeled1 patched1 and beperiwigged1 lies in the grave1 and it is only the ghost of it that the fair ,jewess has raised4 ,but it was something more than a galvanized animation that ,rachel had imparted to the old drama of ,france4 ,during her career of twenty years1 her performances of ,racine and ,corneille filled the coffers of the ,franais1 and it may be traced to her influence and example that the classic plays still keep their place upon the stage and stir the ambition of the players4 ,but now the committee of the ,franais had to reckon with their leading actress1 and pay the price of the prosperity she had brought them4 ,they cancelled her engagement and offered her terms such as seemed to them liberal beyond all precedent4 ,but the more they offered1 so much the more was demanded4 ,in the first instance1 the actress being a minor1 negotiations were carried on with her father1 the committee denouncing in the bitterest terms the avarice and rapacity of ,m4 ,felix4 ,but when ,rachel became competent to deal on her own behalf1 she proved herself every whit as exacting as her sire4 ,she became a socitaire in #ahdc1 entitled to one of the twenty-four shares into which the profits of the institution were divided4 ,she was rewarded1 moreover1 with a salary of forty-two thousand francs per annum2 and it was estimated that by her performances during her cong of three or four months every year she earned a further annual income of thirty thousand francs4 ,she met with extraordinary success upon her provincial tours2 enormous profits resulted from her repeated visits to ,holland and ,belgium1 ,germany1 ,russia1 and ,england4 ,but1 from first to last1 ,rachel's connection with the ,franais was an incessant quarrel4 ,she was capricious1 ungrateful1 unscrupulous1 extortionate4 ,she struggled to evade her duties1 to do as little as she possibly could in return for the large sums she received from the committee4 ,she pretended to be too ill to play in ,paris1 the while she was always well enough to hurry away and obtain great rewards by her performances in the provinces4 ,she wore herself out by her endless wanderings hither and thither1 her continuous efforts upon the scene4 ,she denied herself all rest1 or slept in a travelling carriage to save time in her passage from one country theatre to another4 ,her company complained that they fell asleep as they acted1 her engagements denying them proper opportunities of repose4 ,the newspapers at one time set forth the acrimonious letters she had interchanged with the committee of the ,franais4 ,finally she tended her resignation of the position she occupied as socitaire2 the committee took legal proceedings to compel her to return to her duties2 some concessions were made on either side1 however1 and a reconciliation was patched up4 ,the new tragedies1 ,judith and ,clopatre1 written for the actress by ,madame de ,girardin1 failed to please1 nor did success attend the production of ,m4 ,romand's ,catherine ,,ii41 ,m4 ,soumet's ,jeanne d',arc1 in which1 to the indignation of the critics1 the heroine was seen at last surrounded by real flames6 or ,le ,vieux de la ,montagne of ,m4 ,latour de ,st4 ,ybars4 ,with better fortune ,rachel appeared in the same author's ,virginie1 and in the ,lucrce of ,ponsard4 ,voltaire's ,oreste was revived for her in #ahde that she might play ,electre4 ,she personated ,racine's ,athalie in #ahdg1 assuming long white locks1 painting furrows on her face1 and disguising herself beyond recognition1 in her determination to seem completely the character she had undertaken4 ,in #ahdh she played ,agrippine in the ,britannicus of ,racine1 and dressed in plain white muslin1 and clasping the tri-colored flag to her heart1 she delivered the ,marseillaise to please the ,revolutionists1 lending the air strange meaning and passion by the intensity of her manner1 as she half chanted1 half recited the words1 her voice now shrill and harsh1 now deep1 hollow1 and reverberating--her enraptured auditors likening it in effect to distant thunder4 ,to the dramatists who sought to supply her with new parts1 ,rachel was the occasion of much chagrin and perplexity4 ,after accepting ,scribe's ,adrienne ,lecouvreur she rejected it absolutely only to resume it eagerly1 however1 when she learned that the leading character was to be undertaken by ,mademoiselle ,rose ,chri4 ,his ,chandelier having met with success1 ,rachel applied to ,de ,musset for a play4 ,she was offered1 it seems1 ,les ,caprices de ,marianne1 but meantime the poet's ,bettine failed1 and the actress distrustfully turned away from him4 ,an undertaking to appear in the ,medea of ,legouv landed her in a protracted lawsuit4 ,the courts condemned her in damages to the amount of two hundred francs for every day she delayed playing the part of ,medea after the date fixed upon by the management for the commencement of the rehearsals of the tragedy4 ,she paid nothing1 however1 for the management failed to fix any such date4 ,m4 ,legouv was only avenged in the success his play obtained1 in a translated form1 at the hands of ,madame ,ristori4 ,in lieu of ,medea ,rachel produced ,rosemonde1 a tragedy by ,m4 ,latour de ,st4 ,ybars1 which failed completely4 ,other plays written for her were the ,valria of ,,mm4 ,lacroix and ,maquet1 in which she personated two characters--the ,empress ,messalina and her half sister1 ,lysisca1 a courtesan2 the ,diane1 of ,m4 ,augier1 an imitation of ,victor ,hugo's ,marion ,delorme2 ,lady ,tartuffe1 a comedy by ,madame de ,girardin2 and ,la ,czarine1 by ,m4 ,scribe4 ,she appeared also in certain of the characters originally contrived for ,mademoiselle ,mais1 such as ,la ,tisbe in ,victor ,hugo's ,angelo1 and the heroines of ,dumas's ,mademoiselle de ,belle ,isle and of ,louise de ,lignerolles by ,,mm4 ,legouv and ,dinaux4 ,the classical drama of ,france has not found much favor in ,england and ,america4 ,we are all1 perhaps1 apt to think with ,thackeray disrespectfully of the old tragedies--well-nigh dead1 and full time too--in which half a dozen characters appear and shout sonorous ,alexandrines for half a dozen hours2 or we are disposed to agree with ,mr4 ,matthew ,arnold1 that their drama1 being fundamentally insufficient both in substance and in form1 the ,french1 with all their gifts1 have not1 as we have1 an adequate form for poetry of the highest class4 ,those who remember ,rachel1 however1 can testify that she breathed the most ardent life into the frigid remains of ,racine and ,corneille1 relumed them with ,promethean heat1 and showed them to be instinct with the truest and intensest passion--,when she occupied the scene1 there could be no thought of the old artificial times of hair powder and rouge1 periwigs and patches1 in connection with the characters she represented4 ,phdre and ,hermione1 ,pauline and ,camille1 interpreted by her genius1 became as real and natural1 warm and palpitating1 as ,constance or ,lady ,macbeth could have been when played by ,mrs4 ,siddons1 or as ,juliet when impersonated by ,miss ,o',neill4 ,before ,rachel came1 it had been thought that the new romantic drama of ,,mm4 ,hugo and ,dumas1 because of its greater truth to nature1 had given the coup de grce to the old classic plays2 but the public1 at her bidding1 turned gladly from the spasms and the rant of ,angelo and ,angle1 ,antony and ,hernani1 to the old-world stories1 the formal tragedies of the seventeenth century poet-dramatists of ,france4 ,the actress fairly witched her public4 ,there was something of magic in her very presence upon the scene4 ,none could fail to be impressed by the aspect of the slight1 pallid woman who seemed to gain height by reason of her slenderness1 who moved toward her audience with such simple natural majesty1 who wore and conducted her fluent classical draperies with such admirable and perfect grace4 ,it was as though she had lived always so attired in tunic1 peplum1 and pallium--had known no other dress--not that she was of modern times playing at antiquity1 she was the muse of ,greek tragedy in person4 ,the physical traditions of her race found expression or incarnation in her4 ,her face was of refined ,judaical character--the thin nose slightly curved1 the lower lip a trifle full1 but the mouth exquisitely shaped1 and the teeth small1 white1 and even4 ,the profuse black-brown hair was smoothed and braided from the broad1 low1 white1 somewhat over-hanging brow1 beneath which in shadow the keen black eyes flashed out their lightnings1 or glowed luridly like coals at a red heat4 ,her gestures were remarkable for their dignity and appropriateness2 the long1 slight arms lent themselves surprisingly to gracefulness2 the beautifully formed hands1 with the thin tapering fingers and the pink filbert nails1 seemed always tremblingly on the alert to add significance or accent to her speeches4 ,but there was eloquence in her very silence and complete repose4 ,she could relate a whole history by her changes of facial expression4 ,she possessed special powers of self-control2 she was under subjection to both art and nature when she seemed to abandon herself the most absolutely to the whirlwind of her passion4 ,there were no undue excesses of posture1 movement1 or tone4 ,her attitudes1 it was once said1 were those of a ,pythoness cast in bronze4 ,her voice thrilled and awed at its first note3 it was so strangely deep1 so solemnly melodious1 until1 stirred by passion as it were1 it became thick and husky in certain of its tones2 but it was always audible1 articulate1 and telling1 whether sunk to a whisper or raised clamorously4 ,her declamation was superb1 if1 as critics reported1 there had been decline in this matter during those later years of her life1 to which my own acquaintance with ,rachel's acting is confined4 ,i saw her first at the ,franais in #ahdi1 and ,i was present at her last performance at the ,st4 ,james' ,theatre in #ahec1 having in the interval witnessed her assumption of certain of her most admired characters4 ,and it may be true1 too1 that1 like ,kean1 she was more and more disposed1 as the years passed1 to make points1 to slur over the less important scenes1 and reserve herself for a grand outburst or a vehement climax1 sacrificing thus many of the subtler graces1 refinements1 and graduations of elocution1 for which she had once been famous4 ,to ,english ears1 it was hardly an offence that she broke up the sing-song of the rhymed tirades of the old plays and gave them a more natural sound1 regardless of the traditional methods of speech of ,clairon1 ,le ,kain1 and others of the great ,french players of the past4 ,illustration3 ,rachel as the ,muse of ,greek ,tragedy4 ,less success than had been looked for attended ,rachel's invasion of the repertory of ,mlle4 ,mars1 an actress so idolized by the ,parisians that her sixty years and great portliness of form were not thought hindrances to her personation of the youthful heroines of modern comedy and drama4 ,but ,rachel's fittest occupation and her greatest triumphs were found in the classical poetic plays4 ,she1 perhaps1 intellectualized too much the creations of ,hugo1 ,dumas1 and ,scribe2 gave them excess of majesty4 ,her histrionic style was too exalted an ideal for the conventional characters of the drama of her own time2 it was even said of her that she could not speak its prose properly or tolerably4 ,she disliked the hair-powder necessary to ,adrienne ,lecouvreur and ,gabrielle de ,belle ,isle1 although her beauty1 for all its severity1 did not lose picturesqueness in the costumes of the time of ,louis ,,xv4 ,as ,gabrielle she was more girlish and gentle1 pathetic1 and tender1 than was her wont1 while the signal fervor of her speech addressed to ,richelieu1 beginning1 ,vous mentez1 ,monsieur le ,duc1 stirred the audience to the most excited applause4 ,rachel was seen upon the stage for the last time at ,charleston on ,december #ag1 #ahef4 ,she played ,adrienne ,lecouvreur4 ,she had been tempted to ,america by the prospect of extravagant profits4 ,it had been dinned into her ears that ,jenny ,lind1 by thirty-eight performances in ,america1 had realized seventeen hundred thousand francs4 ,why might not she1 ,rachel1 receive as much8 ,and then1 she was eager to quit ,paris4 ,there had been strange worship there of ,madame ,ristori1 even in the rejected part of ,medea4 ,but already ,rachel's health was in a deplorable state4 ,her constitution1 never very strong1 had suffered severely from the cruel fatigues1 the incessant exertions1 she had undergone4 ,it may be1 too1 that the deprivations and sufferings of her childhood now made themselves felt as over-due claims that could be no longer denied or deferred4 ,she forced herself to play1 in fulfilment of her engagement1 but she was languid1 weak1 emaciated2 she coughed incessantly1 her strength was gone2 she was dying slowly but certainly of phthisis4 ,and she appeared before an audience that applauded her1 it is true1 but cared nothing for ,racine and ,corneille1 knew little of the ,french language1 and were urgent that she should sing the ,marseillaise as she had sung it in #ahdh6 ,it was forgotten1 or it was not known in ,america1 that the actress had long since renounced revolutionary sentiments to espouse the cause of the ,second ,empire4 ,she performed all her more important characters1 however1 at ,new ,york1 ,philadelphia1 and ,boston4 ,nor was the undertaking commercially disappointing1 if it did not wholly satisfy expectation4 ,she returned to ,france possessed of nearly three hundred thousand francs as her share of the profits of her forty-two performances in the ,united ,states2 but she returned to die4 ,the winter of #ahef she passed at ,cairo4 ,she returned to ,france in the spring of #aheg1 but her physicians forbade her to remain long in ,paris4 ,in ,september she moved again to the ,south1 finding her last retreat in the villa ,sardou1 at ,cannet1 a little village in the environs of ,cannes4 ,she lingered to ,january #c1 #aheh4 ,the ,thtre ,franais closed its doors when news arrived of her death1 and again on the day of her funeral4 ,the body was embalmed and brought to ,paris for interment in the cemetery of ,pre la ,chaise1 the obsequies being performed in accordance with the ,jewish rites4 ,the most eminent of the authors and actors of ,france were present1 and funeral orations were delivered by ,,mm4 ,jules ,janin1 ,bataille1 and ,auguste ,maquet4 ,victor ,hugo was in exile2 or1 as ,janin announced1 the author of ,angelo would not have withheld the tribute of his eulogy upon the sad occasion4 ,,edwin ,,booth#ae ,footnote #ae3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7#ahcc-ahic7 ,illustration3 ,edwin ,booth4 ,the great actor who has lately left the world furnished1 in his own remarkable character and shining career1 a striking exception to the popular tradition that men of genius are the fathers of ordinary sons4 ,the father of ,edwin ,booth was in his time one of the glories of the ,english and ,american stage2 but1 even in his case the strict rule wavered1 for his father1 though not a genius1 was yet a man of exceptional character2 one who marked out a clear path for himself in the world1 and walked in it to the end4 ,how far back the line of the family can be traced1 or what was its origin1 we do not know2 but it has lately been said that the family was of ,hebrew extraction1 and came into ,england from ,spain1 where it had been known by the ,spanish name1 ,cabana4 ,the branch of the family that left ,spain to live in ,england translated the name into the language of their new home1 and from ,cabana1 a shepherd's cabin1 made the ,english equivalent1 ,booth4 ,however it may have been in this case1 it was quite in the order of things that this change of name should be made4 ,it has been done everywhere in ,europe since very early times1 and is doing to-day in this country by new comers from all parts of the old world4 ,the first of the ,booths we read of in ,england was a silversmith1 living in ,bloomsbury1 ,london1 in the latter half of the last century4 ,he had a son1 ,richard1 who was bred to the law1 but who was so imbued with the republican ideas rife at the time that he actually came to ,america to fight in the cause of ,independence6 ,he was taken prisoner1 and carried back to ,england1 where1 not without some struggles1 he again applied himself to the practice of the law1 and in time made a fortune4 ,he did not1 however1 forget ,america1 and we are told that he had1 hanging in his house1 a portrait of ,washington1 which he expected all his visitors to salute4 ,one of the ways in which the republicans of that time showed where their sympathies lay1 was in naming their children after the heroes of ,greece and ,rome2 and accordingly we find ,richard ,booth calling his eldest son1 ,junius ,brutus ,booth1 after the ,roman patriot4 ,this son was born in ,london1 in #agif4 ,his father was a man of scholarly tastes1 and gave the boy a classical education1 but it was long before he showed a marked inclination for any particular walk in life4 ,he tried his hand at painting1 sculpture1 and poetry2 and for a while studied law with his father4 ,but1 when the time came to choose1 he gave his voice for the navy1 and would have joined the brig ,boxer1 then fitting out for ,nova ,scotia4 ,but1 as war threatened between ,england and ,america1 he was induced1 by the strong persuasions of his father1 not to run the risk of being forced to fight against ,america4 ,he then decided to go upon the stage1 and1 in spite of his father's remonstrances1 carried out his purpose4 ,after some unimportant essays he at last succeeded in attracting public attention1 and before long showed such unmistakable ability in dealing with difficult parts1 that the public1 till that time undivided in its enthusiasm for ,kean1 awoke to the fact that a dangerous rival threatened the security of their idol's throne4 ,in the midst of his successes1 however1 ,booth married and left ,england with his wife for a honeymoon trip to the ,west ,indies4 ,he had intended to return at once to ,england1 but he was persuaded to prolong his journey and to visit ,new ,york4 ,after playing a successful engagement there he went to ,richmond1 where he was no less prosperous4 ,he next visited ,new ,orleans and acquired such facility in speaking ,french that he played parts in ,french plays more than acceptably1 and distinguished himself by acting ,orestes in ,racine's ,andromaque1 to the delight of the ,french-speaking population4 ,his accent is said to have been remarkable for its purity4 ,returning to ,new ,york1 he acted ,othello to ,forrest's ,iago2 but1 in the midst of his successes1 the death of two of his children produced a temporary insanity1 and this was made worse by the news of the death of his favorite son1 ,henry ,byron1 in ,london1 of small-pox4 ,this grievous loss was1 however1 to be made up to him by his son1 ,edwin1 in whom he was to find the counterpart of himself1 softened1 refined1 ennobled1 while between father and son was to grow a strong attachment1 a bond of mutual affection to last as long as life should endure4 ,edwin ,thomas ,booth was born at ,bel ,air1 ,maryland1 ,november #ab1 #ahcc4 ,he was named ,edwin1 after his father's friend1 ,edwin ,forrest1 and ,thomas1 after ,thomas ,flynn1 the actor1 whom the elder ,booth had known intimately in ,london4 ,his son dropped the name of ,thomas1 later in life1 and was only known to the public by the name of ,edwin ,booth4 ,owing to his father's wandering life ,edwin had few advantages of education1 but he made the most of his opportunities1 and indeed was a student of good letters all his life1 turning the light of all he learned from books and experience upon his art4 ,his youth is described as reticent1 and marked by a strong individuality1 with a deep sympathy for his father1 early manifested2 his father1 a much enduring1 suffering man1 strongly in need of sympathy1 knowing to repay it1 too1 in kind4 ,edwin ,booth made his first appearance on the stage in #ahdi at the ,boston ,museum in the youthful part of ,tressil1 in ,colley ,cibber's version of ,shakespeare's ,richard ,,iii4 ,it had been against his father's wishes that he had adopted the stage as a profession2 but1 as his father had done in a like case before him he persevered1 and soon had the satisfaction of convincing his parent that he had decided wisely4 ,he did not at once come to ,new ,york after his success in ,boston1 but went to ,providence and to ,philadelphia1 acting ,cassio in ,othello1 and ,wilford in the ,iron ,chest1 a part he soon made his own and in which he made his first appearance in ,new ,york1 playing at the ,national ,theatre in ,chatham ,street1 in #ahej4 ,the next year he played ,richard ,,iii4 for the first time1 taking the part unexpectedly to fill the place of his father1 who was suddenly ill4 ,in #aheb he went out with his father to ,san ,francisco1 where his brother1 ,junius ,brutus ,booth1 ,jr41 was the manager of a theatre2 and the father and his two sons acted together4 ,at ,sacramento1 we are told that the incident occurred which led ,edwin ,booth to think of acting ,hamlet1 a part which was to become as closely associated with his name as that of ,richard ,,iii4 was with his father4 ,he was dressed for the part of ,jaffier in ,otway's play1 ,venice ,preserved1 when some one said to him ,you look like ,hamlet1 why not play it8 ,it was1 however1 some time before he ventured to assume the part4 ,in ,october1 #aheb1 the father and son parted1 not to meet again4 ,the elder ,booth went to ,new ,orleans1 and after playing for a week took passage in a steamboat on the ,mississippi1 and catching a severe cold succumbed after a few days' illness and died4 ,for a while after his father's death ,edwin suffered greatly from poverty and from the hardships of his precarious life1 unsustained as he now was by the affection and encouragement of a father who1 with all his faults1 and in all the misfortunes brought on by serious ill-health and some aberrations that were the effect of ill-health had always been an affectionate and true friend4 ,but a talent such as ,edwin ,booth possessed1 united to a high character1 and to a dauntless spirit1 could not long be hid1 and in a short time his name began to be heard of as that of one destined to great ends4 ,in #ahed he went to ,australia as a member of ,laura ,keene's company4 ,he had made a deep impression in ,california1 acting such parts as ,richard ,,iii41 ,shylock1 ,macbeth1 and ,hamlet1 and on returning there from ,australia that first impression was greatly strengthened4 ,on leaving ,san ,francisco he received various testimonials showing the high esteem in which his acting was held by the educated part of the community2 but throughout ,edwin ,booth's career1 the interest he excited in the vast audiences that followed him was by no means confined to the self-styled best people4 ,though he never played to the gallery1 the heart of the gallery was as much with him as the heart of the boxes1 and he knew the value of its rapt silence as well as of its stormy voices4 ,in ,boston1 in #aheg1 he played ,sir ,giles ,overreach1 in ,massinger's ,a ,new ,way to ,pay ,old ,debts1 and the profound impression he made in it confirmed him in his purpose to devote himself to tragic acting4 ,the story of an actor's life is seldom eventful1 and ,mr4 ,booth's history1 after his first assured success1 is the record of a long line of triumphs without a failure4 ,the most remarkable of these triumphs was at the ,winter ,garden ,theatre in ,new ,york1 where he acted ,hamlet to large and ever-increasing audiences for over one hundred successive nights1 that is1 from ,november #ba1 #ahfd1 to ,march #bd1 #ahfe4 ,on this occasion a gold medal was presented to the actor by friends and admirers in ,new ,york2 the list of subscribers including the names of many well-known citizens4 ,the ,winter ,garden ,theatre was managed by ,booth and his brother-in-law1 the clever actor1 ,j4 ,s4 ,clarke1 until ,booth bought out ,clarke and assumed the entire management himself4 ,in #ahfe the terrible tragedy occurred which blighted ,booth's whole after-life1 and for a time drove him from the stage4 ,he did not act again until #ahff2 in #ahfg the theatre was destroyed by fire1 and in #ahfh the corner-stone of a new building1 to be known as ,booth's ,theatre1 was laid1 and in a short time ,new ,york was in possession1 for the first time1 of a thoroughly appointed1 comfortable1 and handsome theatre4 ,this building was made famous by a number of ,shakespearian revivals that for beauty1 magnificence1 and scenic poetry have1 we believe1 never been equalled4 ,we doubt if ,hamlet1 ,julius ,csar1 or ,romeo and ,juliet1 have ever been presented with more satisfying completeness to the eye and to the imagination than in this theatre by ,mr4 ,booth and his company4 ,although the theatre was in existence for thirteen years1 from #ahfh to #ahhb1 when it was finally closed1 ,mr4 ,booth's management lasted only about half that time4 ,the speculation was not a fortunate one for the actor2 the expenses ate up all the profits1 and ,mr4 ,booth was bankrupted by his venture4 ,he paid all his debts1 however1 and went bravely to work to build up a new fortune4 ,he made a tour of the ,south1 which was one long ovation1 and in a season of eight weeks in ,san ,francisco he took in #if1jjj4 ,in #ahhj he went to ,england and remained there two years4 ,in #ahhb he visited ,germany1 acting in both countries with great success1 and in #ahhc he returned home and made a tour of ,america1 repeating everywhere his old triumphs1 and winning golden opinions from all classes of his countrymen4 ,edwin ,booth died in ,new ,york1 ,june #g1 #ahic1 at the ,players' ,club1 where he had lived for the last few years of his life4 ,this was a building erected by his own munificence1 fitted up with luxurious completeness1 and presented to a society of his professional brethren for the use and behoof of his fellow-artists1 reserving for himself only the modest apartment where he chose to live1 in sympathetic touch with those who still pursued the noble art he had relinquished4 ,mr4 ,booth was twice married4 ,by his first wife1 ,miss ,mary ,devlin1 who died in #ahfc1 he had one child1 a daughter2 by the second1 ,miss ,mc,vicker1 he had no children4 ,she died in #ahha4 ,signature of the author4 ,,joseph ,,jefferson#af ,footnote #af3 ,copyright1 #ahid1 by ,selmar ,hess4 ,by ,,clarence ,,cook 7,,born #ahbi7 ,illustration3 ,joseph ,jefferson4 ,joseph ,jefferson1 distinguished1 among his other brilliant successes as an actor1 as the creator for this generation of the character of ,rip ,van ,winkle in the play dramatized from the story in ,washington ,irving's ,sketch ,book1 was the third of his name in a family of actors4 ,the first of the three was born at ,plymouth1 ,england1 in #aggd4 ,he was the son of ,thomas ,jefferson1 a comedian of merit1 the contemporary and friend of ,garrick1 and came to this country in #agie1 making his first appearance in ,new ,york on ,february #aj1 #agif1 in the part of ,squire ,richard in ,the ,provoked ,husband4 ,dunlap says that1 young as he was1 he was already an artist1 and that among the men of the company he held the first place4 ,he lived in this country for thirty-six years1 admired as an actor and respected as a man4 ,he died at ,harrisburg1 ,pennsylvania1 in #ahcb4 ,joseph ,jefferson1 the second1 was born in ,philadelphia in #ahjd4 ,he inherited the laughing blue eyes and sunny disposition of his father1 but he had not his talent as an actor2 he is said to have been best in old men's parts4 ,his taste1 however1 led him to scene-painting rather than to acting2 yet his skill in either direction was not enough to win success1 and1 in spite of well-meant efforts1 he lived and died a poor man3 ill luck pursuing him to the end of his days1 when he was carried off by yellow fever at ,mobile in #ahdb1 just as his unprosperous skies were brightening a little4 ,his son bears affectionate witness to the upright character of the man and to his indomitable cheerfulness in the most adverse circumstances4 ,he spared no pains in bringing up his children in good ways1 and he was earnestly seconded by his wife1 a heroic figure in her humble sphere1 whose tact and courage not seldom saved the family bark when it was drifting in shoal water4 ,mrs4 ,jefferson came of ,french parents1 and was a ,mrs4 ,burke1 a widow with one child1 a son1 when she married ,mr4 ,jefferson4 ,her son tells us that she had been one of the most attractive stars in ,america1 the leading prima donna of the country2 but she bore her changed fortune1 as the wife of an unsuccessful actor and manager1 with no less dignity on the stage of real life1 where no applause was to be had but what came from those who loved her as mother1 wife1 and friend4 ,this1 then1 was the family circle in which our ,joseph ,jefferson passed his earliest years1 the formative period of his life4 ,there were the kind-hearted1 easy-going father1 the practical1 energetic mother1 a sister1 and the half-brother1 ,charles ,burke1 whose after-reputation as an actor lives in the pages of ,jefferson's autobiography enshrined in words of warm but judicious appreciation4 ,although only a half-brother1 says ,jefferson1 he seemed like a father to me1 and there was a deep and strange affection between us4 ,nor must mention be forgotten of one other member of the family3 ,mary1 his foster-mother1 as ,jefferson affectionately calls her1 a faithful1 loving1 truthful friend1 rather than a servant1 with no ambition or thought for herself1 living only for us1 and totally unconscious of her own existence4 ,joseph ,jefferson1 the third of the name1 and in whom the talent of his grandfather was to reappear enriched with added graces of his own1 was born in ,philadelphia in #ahbi4 ,he tells us that his earliest recollections are connected with a theatre in ,washington4 ,this was a rickety1 old1 frame-building adjoining the house in which his father lived as manager1 the door at the end of the hall-way opening directly upon the stage2 and as a toddling little chap in a short frock he was allowed full run of the place4 ,thus behind the scenes was his first playground2 and here1 in this huge and dusty toy-shop made for children of a larger growth1 he got his first experience4 ,he was early accustomed to face an audience2 for1 being the son of the manager and almost living in the theatre1 he was always pressed into the service whenever a small child was wanted1 and often went on the stage in long clothes as a property infant in groups of happy peasantry4 ,his first dim recollection of such a public appearance is as the child1 in ,kotzebue's play1 ,pizarro1 who is carried across the bridge by ,rolla4 ,his next appearance was in a new entertainment1 called ,living ,statues1 where he struck attitudes as ,ajax ,defying the ,lightning1 or ,the ,dying ,gladiator4 ,at four years of age he made a hit by accompanying ,t4 ,d4 ,rice1 the original ,jim ,crow1 as a miniature copy of that once famous character1 and the first money he earned was the sum of #bd thrown upon the stage in silver from pit and gallery1 to reward his childish dancing and singing on that occasion4 ,thus early wedded to the stage1 ,jefferson followed the fortunes of his family1 and led with them a wandering life for many years1 growing1 by slow degrees and constant1 varied practice1 to the perfection of his prime4 ,in #ahch his father led the flock to ,chicago1 just then grown from an ,indian village to a thriving place of two thousand inhabitants1 where he was to join his brother in the management of a new theatre1 then building4 ,jefferson's account of the journey is a striking picture1 at once amusing and pathetic1 of the changes that have been wrought by fifty years4 ,the real privations and hardships of the trip are veiled in the actor's story by his quiet humor and his disposition to see everything in a cheerful light4 ,always quizzing his own youthful follies1 he cannot conceal from us by any mischievous anecdotes his essential goodness of nature1 his merry helpfulness1 his unselfish devotion to the welfare of the others1 or the pluck with which he met the accidents of this itinerant life4 ,from ,chicago1 where their success was not brilliant1 the family went by stage to ,springfield1 where1 by a singular chance1 they were rescued from the danger that threatened them in the closing of the theatre by a municipal law trumped up in the interest of religious revivalists1 by the adroitness of a young lawyer1 who proved to be none other than ,abraham ,lincoln4 ,in ,memphis1 when bad business had closed the theatre1 young ,jefferson's pluck and ready wit saved the family purse from absolute collapse4 ,a city ordinance had been passed1 requiring that all carts1 drays1 and public vehicles should be numbered2 and the boy1 hearing of this1 called at the mayor's office1 and1 explaining the situation that had obliged his father to exchange acting for sign-painting1 applied in his name for the contract for painting the numbers--and obtained it6 ,the new industry furnished father and son with a month's work1 and some jobs at sign-painting helped still further to make life easier4 ,from ,memphis the family went to ,mobile1 where they hoped to rest after their long wanderings1 and where it was also hoped the children1 ,joseph and his sister1 might be put to school4 ,but the yellow fever was raging in ,mobile1 and they had been in the city only a fortnight when ,mr4 ,jefferson was attacked by the disease and died4 ,in ,mobile1 too1 the good ,mary died1 and ,mrs4 ,jefferson was left alone to care for herself and her children as she could4 ,she had no longer a heart for acting1 and she decided to open a boarding-house for actors1 while ,joseph and his sister earned a small stipend by variety work in the theatre4 ,more years of hardship followed--the trio of mother and children wandering over the country1 south and west3 in ,mississippi and ,mexico1 seeing life in all its phases of ill luck and disappointment1 with faint gleams of success here and there1 but meeting all with a spirit of such cheerful bravery as makes the darkest experience yield a pleasure in the telling4 ,surely1 it might soften the heart of the sourest enemy of the stage to read the spirit in which this family met the long-continued crosses of their professional life4 ,illustration3 ,joe ,jefferson as ,bob ,acres4 ,joseph ,jefferson tells the story of his career so modestly1 that it is hard to discover just when it was that success first began to turn a smiling face upon his efforts4 ,yet it would seem as if1 for himself1 the day broke when he created the part of ,asa ,trenchard in ,our ,american ,cousin4 ,he says that up to #aheh1 when he acted that part1 he had been always more or less a legitimate actor1 that is1 one who has his place with others in a stock company1 and never thinks of himself as an individual and single attraction--a star1 as it is called4 ,while engaged with this part1 it suddenly occurred to him that in acting ,asa ,trenchard he had1 for the first time in his life on the stage1 spoken a pathetic speech2 up to that time all with him had been pure comedy4 ,now he had found a part in which he could move his audience to tears as well as smiles4 ,this was to him a delightful discovery1 and he looked about for a new part in which he could repeat the experiment4 ,one day in summer1 as he lay in the loft of a barn reading in a book he well calls delightful1 ,pierre ,irving's ,life and ,letters of ,washington ,irving1 he learned that the great writer had seen him act the part of ,goldfinch1 in ,holcroft's ,road to ,ruin1 and that he reminded him of his grandfather1 ,joseph ,jefferson1 in look1 gesture1 size1 and make4 ,naturally pleased to find himself remembered and written of by such a man1 he lay musing on the compliment1 when the ,sketch ,book and the story of ,rip van ,winkle came suddenly into his mind4 ,there was to me1 he writes1 magic in the sound of the name as ,i repeated it4 ,why was not this the very character ,i wanted8 ,an ,american story by an ,american author was surely just the thing suited to an ,american actor4 ,there had been three or four plays founded on this story1 but ,jefferson says that none of them were good4 ,his father and his half-brother had acted the part before him1 but nothing that he remembered gave him any hope that he could make a good play out of existing material4 ,he therefore went to work to construct a play for himself1 and his story of how he did it1 told in two pages of his book1 and with the most unconscious air in the world1 reveals the whole secret of ,jefferson's acting3 its humor and pathos subtly mingled1 its deep humanity1 its pure poetry--the assemblage of qualities1 in fine1 that make it the most perfect as well as the most original product of the ,american stage4 ,yet the play1 even in the form he gave it1 did not satisfy him1 nor did it make the impression in ,america that he desired4 ,it was not until five years later that ,dion ,boucicault1 in ,london1 remade it for ,jefferson2 and it was in that city it first saw the light in its new form1 ,september #e1 #ahfe4 ,it was at once successful1 and had a run of one hundred and seventy-five nights4 ,with his ,asa ,trenchard and his ,rip van ,winkle will ever be associated in the loving memory of play-goers his ,bob ,acres in ,sheridan's ,rivals1 thought by many to be his capital part--a personification where all the foibles of the would-be man-of-the-world3 his self-conceit1 his brag1 his cowardice1 are transformed into virtues and captivate our hearts1 dissolved in the brimming humor which yet never overflows the just measure1 so degenerating into farce4 ,between the two productions of ,rip van ,winkle in ,new ,york and in ,london1 ,jefferson had had many strange experiences4 ,his wife died in #ahfa1 and he broke up his household in ,new ,york1 and leaving three of his children at school in that city1 he left home with his eldest son and went to ,california4 ,after acting in ,san ,francisco1 he sailed for ,australia1 where he was warmly received2 thence went to the other ,british colonies in that region1 touched on his return at ,lima and ,callao and ,panama1 at which place he took a sailing-packet for ,london1 and after his great success in that city returned to ,america in #ahff4 ,in #ahfg he married1 in ,chicago1 ,miss ,sarah ,warren1 and since that time his life has flowed on in an even stream1 happy in all its relations1 private and public1 crowned with honors1 not of a gaudy or brilliant kind1 but solid and enduring4 ,his art is henceforth part and parcel of the rich treasure of the ,american stage4 ,signature of the author4 ,,adelina ,,patti ,by ,,frederick ,f4 ,,buffen 7,,born #ahdc7 ,illustration3 ,adelina ,patti4 ,a consensus of opinion places this distinguished artiste at the head of all her compeers1 for it may be truly said that she is the brightest star which has dazzled the musical firmament during the past half century1 and1 is still in the very zenith of her noonday splendor4 ,regardful of the transcendent beauty of her voice1 enhanced as this is by her other natural and attractive attributes1 one might almost believe that nightingales have surrounded the cradle presided over by ,euterpe1 for never has bird sung so sweetly as the gifted subject of my memoir1 and while the ,fates smiled on the birth of their favorite1 destined to become the unrivalled ,queen of ,song throughout the civilized world1 fanciful natures might conceive a poetical vision1 and behold ,melpomene with her sad1 grave eyes breathing into her the spirit of tragedy1 and ,thalia1 with her laughing smile1 welcoming a gifted disciple by whose genius her fire was to be rekindled in the far future4 ,in the year #ahfa there arrived in ,england a young singer who1 accompanied by her brother-in-law1 took apartments in ,norfolk ,street1 ,strand4 ,the young lady1 then only seventeen1 sought ,mr4 ,frederick ,gye1 who was the lessee of the ,royal ,italian ,opera1 for his permission to sing at his theatre1 volunteering to do so for nothing4 ,the offer was at first absolutely declined1 but subsequently the young artiste succeeded1 and made her first appearance on ,may #ad1 #ahfa1 as ,amina in ,bellini's opera of ,la ,sonnambula4 ,unheralded by any previous notice1 she was then totally unknown to the ,english public4 ,not a syllable had reached that country of her antecedents or fame4 ,i remember being present on the occasion when this youthful cantatrice tripped lightly on to the centre of the stage4 ,not a single hand was raised to greet her1 nor a sound of welcome extended to encourage the young artiste4 ,the audience of ,covent ,garden1 usually reserved1 except to old-established favorites1 seemed wrapped in more than their conventional coldness on that particular evening4 ,ere long1 however1 indeed before she had finished the opening aria1 a change manifested itself in the feelings of all present4 ,the habitus looked round in astonishment1 and people near me almost held their breath in amazement4 ,the second act followed1 and to surprise quickly succeeded delight1 for when in the third act she threw all her vocal and dramatic power into the melodious wailing of ,ah non credea1 with its brilliant sequel1 ,ah non giunge1 the enthusiasm of the audience forgot all restriction1 and burst into a spontaneous shout of applause1 the pent-up fervor of the assembly exploding in a ringing cheer of acclamation rarely heard within the walls of the ,royal ,italian ,opera ,house4 ,the heroine of the evening was ,adelina ,patti1 who thenceforward became the idol of the musical world4 ,when ,i left the theatre that evening1 ,i became conscious that a course of fascination had commenced of a most unwonted nature2 one that neither time nor change has modified1 but which three decades have served only to enhance and intensify4 ,at the conclusion of the performance1 ,mr4 ,gye went on to the stage full of the excitement which prevailed in the theatre1 and he immediately concluded an engagement with ,mlle4 ,patti on the terms which had been previously agreed between them2 these being that ,mlle4 ,patti was to receive at the rate of #aej a month for three years1 appearing twice each week during the season1 or at the rate of about #ag for each performance4 ,mr4 ,gye also offered her the sum of #bjj if she would consent to sing exclusively at ,covent ,garden4 ,patti repeated her performance of ,amina eight times during the season1 and subsequently confirmed her success by her assumption of ,lucia1 ,violetta1 ,zerlina1 ,martha1 and ,rosina4 ,having met with such unprecedented success throughout the ,london season1 ,mlle4 ,patti was offered an engagement to sing at the ,italian ,opera in ,paris1 where unusual curiosity was awakened concerning her4 ,everyone is aware that the ,parisians do not admit an artist to be a celebrity until they have themselves acknowledged it4 ,at ,paris1 after the first act1 the sensation was indescribable1 musicians1 ministers1 poets1 and fashionable beauties all concurring in the general chorus of acclamation2 while the genial ,auber1 the composer of so many delightful operas1 and one of the greatest authorities1 by his experience and judgment1 on all musical matters1 was so enchanted that he declared she had made him young again1 and for several days he could scarcely talk on any other subject but ,adelina ,patti and opera4 ,the conquest she had achieved with the ,english public was thus triumphantly ratified by the exacting and critical members of musical society in ,paris4 ,adle ,juan ,maria ,patti1 according to her own statement1 which she related to the ,queen ,isabella of ,spain1 was born at ,madrid1 on ,february #ai1 #ahdc1 and is the youngest daughter of two famous ,italian singers1 ,signor ,salvatore ,patti and ,signora ,patti-,barili4 ,the signor having placed her two sisters--,amalia1 who subsequently married ,maurice ,strakosch1 the well-known impresario1 and ,carlotta1 also a vocalist of remarkable powers--in a boarding-school at ,milan1 went to ,new ,york with his wife and daughter1 where they remained until ,adelina reached sixteen4 ,adelina ,patti had barely reached the age of three years when she was heard humming and singing the airs her mother sang4 ,the child's voice was naturally so flexible that executive difficulties were always easy to her1 and1 before she had attained her ninth year she could execute a prolonged shake with fluency4 ,her father not being prosperous at the time1 it became a necessity for him to look for support to his little ,adelina1 who had shown such remarkable promise2 and1 accordingly1 she began to take singing lessons--not1 as is stated in ,grove's ,dictionary of ,musicians1 from ,maurice ,strakosch1 but from a ,french lady1 subsequently studying with her step-brother1 ,ettore ,barili1 who was a famous baritone singer2 but nature had been so prodigal of her gifts to the child that she never undertook a serious course of study1 but1 as she herself says1 her real master was le bon ,dieu4 ,at a very early age she would sing and play the part of ,norma1 and knew the whole of the words and music of ,rosina1 the heroine of ,rossini's immortal ,il ,barbiere di ,seviglia4 ,she sang at various concerts in different cities1 until she reached the age of twelve and a half1 when her career was temporarily interrupted1 for ,maurice ,strakosch1 observing the ruinous effect the continuous strain upon her delicate voice was working1 insisted upon her discontinuing singing altogether1 which advice she happily followed4 ,after this interval of two years' silence1 and having emerged from the wonder-child to the young artiste1 she recommenced her studies under ,m4 ,strakosch1 and very soon afterward was engaged to sing on a regular stage4 ,strakosch travelled with her and ,gottschalk1 the pianist1 through the ,united ,states1 during the tour giving a number of concerts with varying financial results2 ultimately returning to ,new ,york in #ahei1 where she appeared at a concert of which ,the ,new ,york ,herald of ,november #bhth gives the following notice3 ,one of the most remarkable events in the operatic history of the metropolis1 or even of the world1 has taken place during the last week at the ,academy of ,music4 ,mlle4 ,patti sang the mad scene from ,lucia in such a superb manner as to stir up the audience to the heartiest demonstrations of delight4 ,the success of this artiste1 educated and reared among us1 has made everybody talk of her4 ,in the following year1 ,strakosch considered the time had arrived for her to appear in ,europe4 ,he accordingly brought his young protge to ,england1 with the result ,i have already attempted to describe4 ,after singing in ,london and ,paris1 ,patti was engaged to appear at ,berlin1 ,brussels1 ,moscow1 and ,st4 ,petersburg1 at which latter city enthusiasm reached its climax1 when on one occasion she was called before the curtain no fewer than forty times4 ,one who was with her there during her last visit1 writes3 ,having been witness of ,adelina's many triumphs and of outbursts of enthusiasm bordering upon madness1 ,i did not think that greater demonstrations were possible4 ,i was profoundly mistaken1 however1 for the ,st4 ,petersburg public far surpassed anything ,i have seen before4 ,on ,adelina's nights extraordinary profits were made4 ,places for the gallery were sold for ten roubles each1 while stalls were quickly disposed of for a hundred roubles each4 ,the emperor and empress1 with the whole court1 took part in the brilliant reception accorded to ,patti1 and flowers to the amount of six thousand roubles were thrown at her4 ,that she has been literally worshipped from infancy upward is only a natural consequence of her unsurpassable gifts1 and nowhere has this feeling manifested itself to such an extent as in ,paris1 and by none more so than by the four famous composers1 ,auber1 ,meyerbeer1 ,rossini1 and ,gounod4 ,auber1 after hearing her sing ,norina1 in ,donizetti's ,don ,pasquale1 offered her a bouquet of roses from ,normandy1 and in answer to her questions about her diamonds1 said1 ,the diamonds you wear are beautiful indeed1 but those you place in our ears are a thousand times better4 ,patti was the pet of the gifted composer of ,guillaume ,tell1 and no one was ever more welcome at ,rossini's beautiful villa at ,passy1 well known as the centre of a great musical and artistic circle4 ,the genial ,italian died in ,november1 #ahfh1 and ,patti paid her last tribute of respect to his memory by taking part in the performance of his immortal ,stabat ,mater1 which was given on the occasion of ,rossini's burial service4 ,gounod1 always enthusiastic in his remarks upon her1 said1 that until he heard ,patti1 all the ,marguerites were ,northern maidens1 but ,patti was the only ,southern ,gretchen1 and that from her all future singers could learn what to do and avoid4 ,although it is not the custom to bestow titles or honorific distinctions upon artists of the fair sex1 yet1 in lieu of these1 to such an extent have presents been showered upon ,adelina ,patti1 that the jewels which she has been presented with from time to time are said to be of the enormous value of #ajj1jjj4 ,in the year #ahhe1 when she appeared in ,new ,york as ,violetta1 the diamonds she wore on that occasion were estimated to be worth #fj1jjj4 ,one of the handsomest lockets in her possession is a present from ,her ,majesty1 ,queen ,victoria1 and a splendid solitaire ring which she is in the habit of wearing was given to her by the ,baroness ,burdett-,coutts4 ,of no less than twenty-three valuable bracelets1 one of the most costly is that presented by the committee of the ,birmingham festival4 ,a magnificent comb1 set with twenty-three large diamonds1 is the gift of the ,empress ,eugnie4 ,the emperors of ,germany1 ,austria1 and ,russia have vied with each other in sending her jewels of the rarest value4 ,when singing in ,italy1 ,king ,victor ,emmanuel each night visited the opera for the purpose of hearing her2 and at ,florence1 where the enthusiastic ,italians applauded to the very echo1 ,mario1 prince of ,italian tenors1 leaned from his box to crown her with a laurel wreath4 ,a similar honor was bestowed upon her by the ,duke of ,alba at ,madrid1 who presented her with a laurel crown4 ,at the opera house in that city numbers of bouquets and poems were to be seen whirling through the air attached to the necks of birds4 ,queen ,isabella of ,spain1 gave a large amethyst brooch surrounded by forty enormous pearls1 and the ,jockey ,club of ,paris presented her with twelve laurel crowns4 ,the citizens of ,san ,francisco1 upon the occasion of her last visit1 presented her with a five-pointed star formed of thirty large brilliants1 and from the ,queen of ,portugal she received a massive locket containing ,her ,majesty's portrait1 enriched by an enormous oriental pearl encrusted in brilliants2 and even at the present time scarcely a day passes without the ,diva receiving some acknowledgment in recognition of her transcendent powers4 ,adelina ,patti's first husband was ,henri1 ,marquis de ,caux1 an equerry to the ,empress ,eugnie1 from whom she was separated and subsequently divorced2 and1 on ,june #aj1 #ahhf1 she married ,ernesto ,nicolini1 the famous tenor singer4 ,in appearance1 ,patti is still youthful1 and really seems destined to rival the celebrated ,french beauty1 ,ninon de l',enclos1 who was so beautiful at sixty that the grandsons of the men who loved her in her youth adored her with equal ardor4 ,patti's figure is still slim and rounded1 and not a wrinkle as yet is to be seen on her cheeks1 or a line about her eyes1 which are as clear and bright as ever1 and which1 when she speaks to you1 look you straight in the face with her old winning smile4 ,during her career ,patti has earned upward of half a million sterling1 and the enormous sums paid to her at the present time more than double the amounts which ,jenny ,lind received1 and which in that day were regarded as fabulous4 ,on a natural plateau1 surrounded by picturesque vales1 and situated in the heart of the very wildest and most romantic part of ,south ,wales1 between ,brecon and ,swansea1 and at the base of the ,rock of the ,night1 stands the ,castle of ,craig-y-nos4 ,this is the nightingale's nest4 ,the princely fortune which ,patti has accumulated has enabled her so to beautify and enlarge her home1 that it now contains all the luxuries which ,science and ,art have enabled ,fortune's favorites to enjoy2 and so crowded is it with curios and valuables that it may best be described as the home of all ,art yields or ,nature can decree4 ,here1 in picturesque seclusion1 surrounded by a unique splendor created by her own exertions1 lives this gifted and beautiful songstress4 ,she is the ,lady ,bountiful of the entire district1 extending many miles around the castle1 over which she presides with such hospitable grace4 ,the number of grateful hearts she has won in the ,welsh country by her active benevolence is almost as great as is the legion of enthusiastic admirers she has enlisted by the wonderful beauty of her voice and the series of artistic triumphs1 which have been absolutely without parallel during the present century4 ,,sarah ,,bernhardt ,by ,h4 ,s4 ,,edwards 7,,born #ahdd7 ,a little girl1 as ,sarcey relates1 once presented herself at the ,paris ,conservatoire in order to pass the examination for admission4 ,all she knew was the fable of the ,two ,pigeons1 but she had no sooner recited the lines-- ,deux pigeons s'aimaient d'amour tendre1 ,l'un d'eux1 s'ennuyant au logis-- than ,auber stopped her with a gesture4 ,enough1 he said4 ,come here1 my child4 ,the little girl1 who was pale and thin1 but whose eyes gleamed with intelligence1 approached him with an air of assurance4 ,your name is ,sarah8 he said4 ,yes1 sir4 was the reply4 ,you are a ,jewess8 ,yes1 sir1 by birth2 but ,i have been baptized4 ,she has been baptized1 said ,auber1 turning to his colleagues4 ,it would have been a pity if such a pretty child had not4 ,she said her fable of the ',two ,pigeons' very well4 ,she must be admitted4 ,illustration3 ,sarah ,bernhardt4 ,thus ,sarah ,bernhardt1 for it was she1 entered the ,conservatoire4 ,she was a ,jewess of ,french and ,dutch parentage1 and was born at ,paris in #ahdd4 ,her father1 after having her baptized1 had placed her in a convent2 but she had already secretly determined to become an actress4 ,in her course of study at the ,conservatoire she so distinguished herself that she received a prize which entitled her to a dbut at the ,thtre ,franais4 ,she selected the part of ,iphignie1 in which she appeared on ,august #aa1 #ahfb2 and at least one newspaper drew special attention to her performance1 describing her as pretty and elegant1 and particularly praising her perfect enunciation4 ,she afterward played other parts at the ,thtre ,franais1 but soon transferred herself from that house to the ,gymnase1 though not until she had made herself notorious by having1 as was alleged1 slapped the face of a sister-actress in a fit of temper4 ,the director of the ,gymnase did not take too serious a view of his new actress1 who turned up late at rehearsals1 and sometimes did not turn up at all4 ,nor did her acting make any great impression at the ,gymnase1 where1 it is true1 she was only permitted to appear on ,sundays4 ,at this theatre she lost no time in exhibiting that independence and caprice to which1 as much as to her talent1 she owes her celebrity4 ,the day after the first representation of a piece by ,labiche1 ,un ,mari qui ,lance sa ,femme1 in which she had undertaken an important part1 she stealthily quitted ,paris1 addressing to the author a letter in which she begged him to forgive her4 ,after a tour in ,spain1 ,sarah returned to ,paris1 and appeared at the ,odon4 ,here she created a certain number of characters1 in such plays as ,les ,arrts1 ,le ,drame de la ,rue de la ,paix1 and ,le ,btard1 but chiefly distinguished herself in ,ruy ,blas1 and in a translation of ,king ,lear4 ,already she had riveted the attention of the public and the press1 who saw that a brilliant future lay before her4 ,at the end of #ahgb she appeared at the ,comdie ,franaise1 and with such distinction that she was retained1 first as a pensionnaire1 at a salary of six thousand francs1 and afterward as a socitaire4 ,her successes were rapid and dazzling1 and whether she appeared in modern comedy1 in classic tragedy1 or as the creator of characters in entirely new plays1 the theatre was always crowded4 ,her melodious voice and pure enunciation1 her singularly varied accents1 her pathos1 her ardent bursts of passion1 were such that her audience1 as they hung upon her lips1 forgot the caprices and eccentricities by which she was already characterized in private life4 ,it seemed1 however1 that ,sarah's ambition was to gain personal notoriety even more than theatrical fame2 and by her performances of one kind or another outside the theatre make herself the talk of society4 ,she affected to paint1 to chisel1 and to write2 sent pictures to the ,salon1 published eccentric books1 and exhibited busts4 ,she would receive her friends palette in hand1 and in the dress of a male artist4 ,she had a luxurious coffin made for her1 covered with velvet1 in which she loved to recline2 and she more than once went up in a balloon4 ,her caprice1 whether in private or public1 was altogether unrestrained4 ,in #ahhj mile ,augier's admirable comedy1 ,l',aventurire1 was revived at the ,comdie ,franaise1 and the author confided the part of ,clorinde to ,sarah ,bernhardt4 ,after the first representation1 however1 she was so enraged by an uncomplimentary newspaper criticism that she sent in her resignation to ,m4 mile ,perrin1 director of the theatre1 quitted ,paris1 and went to ,england1 where she gave a series of representations1 and1 appearing there for the first time1 caused a veritable sensation in ,london society4 ,meanwhile1 ,m4 ,perrin instituted against her1 in the name of the ,comdie ,franaise1 a lawsuit for breach of contract1 with damages laid at three hundred thousand francs4 ,it was at this juncture that ,sarah accepted the offers of an enterprising manager for a tour in ,america1 where she achieved no less phenomenal successes than in ,europe4 ,a sensational account of this ,american tour was afterward published by one of her associates1 ,mlle4 ,marie ,colombier1 under the title of ,sarah ,bernhardt en ,amrique4 ,this was followed by a second volume from the same pen1 entitled ,sarah ,barnum4 ,the latter book1 as its title suggests1 was not intended as a compliment2 and ,sarah ,bernhardt brought an action against the writer1 by which she was compelled to expunge from her scandalous volume all that was offensive4 ,the rest of ,sarah's career is too recent to be traced in detail4 ,nor can the life of an actress of our own time be dealt with so freely as that of a ,sophie ,arnould or an ,adrienne ,lecouvreur4 ,from ,america ,sarah returned to ,paris1 where she revived all her old successes1 and where1 in #ahhh1 at the ,odon1 she produced a one-act comedy from her own pen1 entitled ,l',aveu1 which met with a somewhat frigid reception4 ,she has appeared in several of ,shakespeare's plays with great success1 but her most ambitious and perhaps most admirable productions of late years have been her ,cleopatra1 first produced in ,paris in #ahij1 and her ,joan of ,arc4 ,among her numerous eccentricities1 ,mlle4 ,bernhardt once got married2 ,london1 by reason of the facilities it affords for this species of recreation1 being chosen as the scene of the espousals4 ,the hero of the matrimonial comedy1 which was soon followed by a separation1 to which1 after many adventures on the part of both husband and wife1 a reconciliation succeeded1 was ,m4 ,damala1 a ,greek gentleman1 possessed of considerable histrionic talent1 who died in #ahhj4 ,,among ,,the ,,special ,,contributors ,,to ,,this ,,work ,,are3 ,illustration3 ,signatures of the authors4 ,,terms ,,of ,,publication4 ,the work1 ,great ,men and ,famous ,women1 will be published in sixty-eight parts1 at twenty-five cents each2 it will be printed on paper made expressly for it3 each part will contain three full-page engravings1 making a total of more than two hundred in the entire work1 of which sixty-eight will be photogravures by ,messrs4 ,goupil ,co41 of ,paris1 and other eminent makers4 ,there will be twenty-four pages of letterpress in each part4 ,no subscriber's name is received for less than the entire set4 ,and no order can be cancelled after acceptance4 ,the ,publisher guarantees to complete the work in sixty-eight parts4 ,the parts are payable only as delivered1 the carrier not being permitted to receive money in advance nor to leave parts on credit4 ,subscribers who remove1 or who are not regularly supplied1 will please address the ,publisher by mail4