The writer of an obituary of Charles Landseer, who died in July, 1879,
records an interesting incident connected with that artist’s picture,
“The Eve of the Battle of Edgehill.” This, perhaps his best work,
was painted in 1845. When it was nearly finished, Edwin Landseer was
asked by Charles to come and look at it; and remarking that it was a
very good picture, but “How nice a spaniel would look in that corner!”
Charles said, “Will you put it in, then?” At which the master took
up the brush, and at once painted in a fine old English spaniel with
some leather dispatch-bags lying on the ground by him. The picture was
duly exhibited and admired, the spaniel especially; but the dealer
who bought it, being a simple man of business, bethought him that Sir
Edwin’s dog would be worth more than the whole picture. So he coolly
cut it out and sold it, filling the place by a common dog copied from
it. Several years afterwards the owner of the picture showed Sir Edwin,
with some pride, the picture in which he had painted the dog; but
the great master declared “he’d be hanged if ever he did that dog.”
The picture was examined more closely, and then the trick was found
out. The identical picture, as cut out and put on another canvas, was
sold shortly before Charles Landseer’s death at Christie’s, in the
collection of the late Mr. White, for the sum of £43!