FRED LEIGHTON.

"2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD, KENSINGTON,

"_August 18, 1890_."

Examples of the kind of copies which Sir F. Leighton recommends

can be seen in the Art Museum in No. 1 Room. We have there a

photograph of the "Adoration of the Magi" of Paul Veronese, with

a series of studies by Mr. F. Shields of the composition, the

light and shade, and the arrangement of colour in the picture.

These copies suffice to prove that such a collection as Sir F.

Leighton recommends would be of the greatest value and interest.

May I say with regard to two points in the letter, that my

proposal to use some parts of the collections in our galleries

for the purpose of revealing the beauty of nature and the

greatness of human nature, does not involve any belief that the

giving of ethical teaching ought to be one of the functions of

pictures, and that the proposal is made partly for the purpose

of increasing the width of appeal of works of art. While trying

to make that appeal reach a large part of the community, we may

usefully teach, by means of other parts of the collections, that

the excellence of paintings has no relation to ethical

teaching.

With regard to the influence on the artist of the choice by

others of his subjects, I think that Sir F. Leighton is misled

by his own great gifts. A man of remarkably wide culture, and of

great poetical power, he has been enabled, by the great range

and strength of his imagination, to choose subjects giving ample

scope for the exercise of the qualities peculiar to the painter,

and yet appealing strongly to the powers of thought and feeling

of all fairly educated people. To such a man, and to such a man

only, spontaneous impulse can now be a sufficient guide in the

choice of his subject; and to such a man, and only to such a

man, the choice of his subject by other persons of intelligence

would be a harmful restriction. In every picture gallery it is

but too obvious that the majority of even able painters, though

unrestricted by the will of any committee, are impeded by more

hampering restrictions than any intelligent committee would

impose, and are unable to find subjects interesting both to

themselves and to others. For many able painters the intelligent

choice by others of subjects for their work would remove, and

not impose, restrictions. It must be remembered that the

subjects of the works of Pheidias, of Cimabue, of Giotto, and

indeed those of most of the works which have been much cared

for, were chosen for, and not by, the artists.--Yours, &c.,

T.C. HORSFALL.

The following letter is Mr. Horsfall's answer to the one published in

the _Manchester Courier_, August 30, 1890:--

SWANSCOE PARK, NEAR MACCLESFIELD,

_August 20, 1890_.

DEAR SIR FREDERIC LEIGHTON,--It is most kind of you to answer my

letter so fully. I shall show my gratitude by doing my best to

make your counsel as useful as possible to Manchester.

The system which you suggest for giving some idea of

masterpieces which are too distant to be visited seems to me to

be admirable, and I cannot but believe that it will be adopted

in one of our Manchester Galleries.

With regard to the advisableness of choosing for public

galleries chiefly pictures of noble subjects respecting which

most people have, when they see the pictures, or can be expected

to gain, some knowledge, though I feel the great weight of your

argument, I am still of the same opinion. I may say this without

presumption, because the great question which we are discussing:

"How can Art be made most useful to England?" involves the two

other questions: "What are the best conditions under which

artists can work?" and "How can the best work of artists be made

to influence the rest of the community?" In considering the

second of these questions an artist is, I think, impeded by his

special gifts, while I, not an artist, aided by the _qualites de

mes defauts_, and by the results of several years of experiment

in the use of pictures, believe myself to have gained much

trustworthy knowledge! Speaking from the standpoint which I have

thus reached, I should say that whilst the artist is most

conscious of the analogy which exists between painting and

instrumental music, there is really a much closer analogy

between painting and poetry, or between painting and song, and

that it is this closer analogy which should guide the action of

the directors of public galleries. Painting deals, while

instrumental music does not, with subjects respecting which we

think and feel, and it must accept the results for good and evil

of this; its products cannot be, as instrumental music is,

without definite relation to our feeling and thought, and a

simply neutral relation being impossible, the relation must be

ennobling or debasing in some degree. I think that my analysis

of the conditions which must be fulfilled if the relations is to

be an ennobling one was sound.

In asking that painters shall choose subjects pure and lovely

"and of good report," I am not asking that painting shall leave

its special function--shall cease to do that which it can do

better than any other art; but only that it shall recognise that

its function differs from that of instrumental music, and is the

creation in us of a symphony of feeling or emotional thought and

enjoyment of form and colour, and human skill, and love of

beauty.--With very many thanks, I am, dear Sir Frederic

Leighton, yours sincerely,

T.C. HORSFALL.

2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD, KENSINGTON, W.,

_August 22, 1890_.

DEAR MR. HORSFALL,--I have to thank you for your kind and

interesting letter of the 20th.

Knowing of old the views you entertain, and the radical

divergence which exists between them and my own, I had fully

anticipated the spirit of your answer; in fact, it almost seemed

to me when I wrote at some length the other day that I ought to

explain that it was out of deference to your wish and in high

appreciation of the long and earnest thought which you have

given to a grave subject that I did so, rather than in the hope

that my views would carry conviction or commend themselves to

you.

The divergence between us is, as I said, at the root of things,

and is one on which I do not think experience either qualifies

or disqualifies us to judge. The question is not what effect

pictures may have had on certain people, but what the _proper_

function of Art is. The question is theoretic rather than

practical. _If_ the primary function of Art is definitely

didactic, _if_ its first duty is to inculcate a specific moral

truth, then, indeed, there is, as you very rightly say, no

neutral ground. Either the teaching is wholesome or it is

mischievous.

Meanwhile, our brief correspondence only throws into stronger

light the impossibility to which I believe I alluded in my first

letter, of dealing with such a subject within the compass of a

letter, and in broad and sweeping outlines. So, for instance,

when I used instrumental music as a parallel, I did not for a

moment mean to describe its province as being identical with

that of painting. Neither, on the other hand, would you, I

presume, in instancing song on your side wish to be taken too

literally; for you would have, according to your theory, to

excommunicate, let us say, for instance, Schubert, the king of

song-writers, who has played on more varied chords of feeling

and imagination than any other musician of his kind, and of whom

I am not aware that he ever inculcated (I feel pretty certain

that he never meant to inculcate) a definite moral lesson.

But I am beginning again. Let me at once draw rein, and

abandoning a barren, however interesting controversy, remain,

dear Mr. Horsfall, yours sincerely,

FRED LEIGHTON.

2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD, KENSINGTON, W.,

_August 28, 1890_.

DEAR MR. HORSFALL,--Before starting for my holiday, of which I

stand in much need, I write one line to acknowledge and thank

you for your amiable and interesting letter, which shows me, I

am very glad to see, that we are much less divided in opinion

than I should have gathered from what you had previously

written, and indeed printed.

Judgments given as absolute in your letters to the Manchester

press are shown by the commentary which your last letter

furnishes to be in a manner conditional, and without that

commentary your words were rather misleading. I was not

unnaturally a little startled--I, who do not think a "subject"

in the ordinary sense of the word imperative at all--to find you

condemn the purchase of Yeames's "Arthur and Hubert" (which, for

the element of human emotion, certainly satisfies the

Aristotelian demand in reference to tragedy), because the

emotion does not turn on an heroic act; and I may say, in

passing, that I am unable to see how a scene in which deep pity

for the helpless is aroused, can be justly described as a

"horror which it is foolish to try to realise."

Meanwhile, I fully feel the practical difficulty which your last

letter describes. It is a difficulty of the most perplexing

kind. For it must be evident that whilst with a people of strong

moral fibre and an almost entire absence of aesthetic

sensibility--at all events, on the side of form--you may

indirectly insinuate some perception of the beautiful--of that

essence which lifts us out of ourselves--under the cover and

pretext of a _moral_ emotion--we cannot ignore the danger of

producing the exactly opposite effect of confirming the

dully-strung spectator in the belief that the stirring of that

moral emotion is in fact the _raison d'etre_ of the work. One

is, of course, glad, as the world goes, that the doors of

righteousness should be opened, even by the wrong key; but one

would still more desire that the door which yields only to that

key should not itself remain closed.

Pray do not take the trouble to acknowledge these parting words:

but believe me, very truly yours,

FRED LEIGHTON.

With regard to Leighton's acute artistic sense of fitness when it was

a matter of chosing a site for buildings or monuments, so that such

placing should give them their full value of effect, I remember, after

a site had been decided on for Cleopatra's Needle in London, Leighton

vehemently denouncing the idea of placing it where it now stands. The

conversation we had respecting it was recalled by finding the

following letter:--

DEAR SIR,--It is a source of regret to me that I am unable to be

present as a listener at the discussion to-morrow. Meanwhile the

question of the base, though a very important one, is in my mind

very secondary to that of the site, and the (in my poor opinion)

radical wrongness of the present selection much mars my interest

in the whole affair. A monument which, intended to be

conspicuous, is not the _focus_ of the avenues that lead to it,

I think against the most primary perceptions of effect. Two

magnificent avenues give access to Cleopatra's Needle, the

finest river and the finest embankment in Europe; _both of these

run past it_ as if they had forgotten it. I may add that what

would only have been feeble is rendered worse than feeble by the

(of course accidental) semblance of matching with the short

tower over the way.

Pray excuse the great haste in which I write and the consequent

abruptness of my expressions, and believe me, yours very truly,

FRED LEIGHTON.

Mr. J. Goodall, in his Reminiscences, says: "Many years before it was

removed from Egypt I used to see it lying on the seashore near

Alexandria. I agree with Lord Leighton's opinion that it was not

erected on a suitable site. It is a pity it was not put up in front of

the British Museum."

Leighton, needless to say, took infinite interest in Sir Henry Tate's

splendid scheme for memorialising the success of a commercial life, by

presenting to his nation a gallery in which the best British works of

art might find a home, and, moreover, by the gift to the public of

the nucleus of such a collection. It was truly amazing to see the

amount of time and trouble which Leighton devoted to this scheme,

considering how full to overflowing his life already appeared to be.

But, whether it was a question of a splendid enterprise, or a

struggling artist of whom the world had never heard, or even an

earnest amateur, once his sense aroused that he could be of help,

Leighton manufactured time somehow to give that help.[78] But the

high-minded, public-spirited view Sir Henry Tate took of the

responsibilities of wealth specially enlisted Leighton's sympathies,

and he evinced an intense interest in helping to work out the great

idea.

Another matter which concerned him very seriously was the fact that a

work by the greatest sculptor England can claim--Alfred

Stevens--purporting to memorialise our great warrior, the Duke of

Wellington, was allowed to remain unfinished and shunted away in a

side chapel of St. Paul's Cathedral, instead of being completed and

placed in the position for which it was designed. The following

letters to Mr. Henry Wells show that in 1888 Leighton had induced

others to view the matter in the same light:--

2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD,

_August 12, 1888_.

DEAR WELLS,--The list for the Memorial Committee is practically

complete, and though it is not in every particular the list

which you or I might have drawn up, it is a good one, and as I

told you I think in a previous note, I have not liked to

interfere too much, as Agnew has so zealously taken the work on

himself. I meant to send you the list, but have cleverly come

away from home (I am writing at the Senior United Service Club)

without it. I have of course asked Agnew to add his own name;

for the Academy I have proposed to him the four Trustees--not as

Trustees, but because they offer a ready-made group in a body

where none is afore or after--Sir J. Gilbert, Linton, and Coutts

Lindsay will complete the artistic section for the present. The

next step, as I have suggested to Agnew, is to get at the Dean

of St. Paul's--this I have offered to do. A chairman will have

to be appointed; I should suggest, or rather have suggested, the

D. of Cleveland--if he joins; I believe his answer has not yet

come in. And there must be a banker: then a letter from the

Committee should appear in the _Times_ inviting adhesions and

subscriptions, to be published from time to time: is all this in

harmony with your own view? Are you not afraid that the moment

when "everybody" (for _our_ purposes it _is_ everybody) is

leaving town or has left it--I go myself in a few days--is a

very bad one? Many people lose sight of their _Times_, or would

not write from the country or foreign parts. How would it strike

you to wait a month or two, having now laid the foundation? It

is a nice point. There are pros, but there are also cons. With

all good wishes, yours sincerely,

FRED LEIGHTON.

You have seen no doubt in your _Times_ that we mean to exhibit

our lamented friend's work in a worthy manner.

_P.P.S._--By-the-bye, _S. Kensington_ ought to be represented. I

will ask Agnew to write to T. Armstrong.

[Illustration: "BACCHANTE." 1892

By permission of Messrs. Henry Graves & Co., the owners of the

Copyright]

[Illustration: STUDY IN OILS FOR "BACCHANTE." 1892

By permission of Mrs. Stewart Hodgson]

2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD, KENSINGTON, W.,

_November 2, 1892_.

DEAR WELLS,--Best thanks for your cheque and kind note. You will

be glad to hear that the removal is going on capitally. I did

not wait for the full money-promise; I had _determined_ to do

the thing, and I set it going on my personal guarantee when we

were L300 short of the full sum. _Now_ we have the money, young

Lehmann munificently sending a cheque _for that amount_.

The great monument having been moved to its right position, the next

question was to raise funds for the completion of the work. This was

perplexing Leighton during the last weeks of his life. Having written

a letter to the _Times_ in 1895, and the donations having come in but

scantily, he was puzzled to know what further steps to take.

Leighton himself, so distinguished a sculptor, took a special interest

in all efforts to promote the knowledge and love of plastic art. When,

therefore, his old friend Mr. Walter Copland Perry called a meeting at

Grosvenor House--at which the late Duke of Westminster presided--to

lay before it his scheme for the formation of a gallery of casts from

all the best Greek and Roman statues, Leighton was one of the most

zealous and active promoters of the scheme.[79]

Leighton was commissioned by the Government to execute the medallion

for Queen Victoria's Jubilee in 1887. M. Edouard Lanteri, now

Professor of Modelling at the South Kensington schools, assisted him

in carrying out the design, and became an ardent admirer of the

President. M. Lanteri described to me how certain difficulties

occurred in the casting. Leighton said they must work on till these

were set right--and they _did_ work eighteen hours on end.

All to whom the work of Watts, Burne-Jones, and Rossetti has appealed,

owe Leighton a debt of gratitude. Before the Grosvenor Gallery

Exhibition of his work took place in 1882, Watts, in talking to me of

the unpopularity of the pictures he felt most inspired to paint, would

often give as a proof of this that, with one exception, no one had

ever cared to engrave his pictures; and truly, without Mr. Fred

Hollyer's photographs the general public would have known little of

the special value of this work, nor of the art of Rossetti and

Burne-Jones. Mr. Hollyer's photographs are not merely copies--they

have as art an atmosphere of charm in themselves; they render what may

be called the _soul_ of a picture. He writes:--

"About 1875 I received a letter from Baroness ----, requesting

me to call upon her in order to arrange to photograph the

collection of works of art in her country house. She had

employed other photographers, but the results had not been

satisfactory. I carried the matter through, and not only

received a considerable amount in remuneration, but was given

great encouragement to persevere with my work at a time when I

had nearly decided on going to America. The Baroness never

mentioned who it was that had recommended me, and though I had

been constantly working for him during many years, it was not

till six months after his death that I discovered it was Lord

Leighton who had been my good friend. I should be glad to bear

testimony to his great heart and loving kindness, and do regret

not having been able to thank him myself."

Leighton was made a Baronet in 1886. The following letter from

Gladstone, written in 1885, refers to Leighton having submitted to him

the names of Millais and Watts as artists worthy to receive the

honour, at the same time begging him earnestly not to include his

own:--

_Private._]

10 DOWNING STREET, WHITEHALL,

_June 17, 1885_.

MY DEAR SIR F. LEIGHTON,--Your letter has given me much

pleasure. I can assure you that I in return highly appreciate

the generous spirit you have shown, and I value the advice you

kindly tendered in this matter of Art Honours. I am reporting

rather fully to Her Majesty on our conversation of Monday, and

on the personal abnegation on your own part, which commands my

cordial respect.--I remain always, very faithfully yours,

W.E. GLADSTONE.

On Watts declining the honour, Leighton was at first much vexed; but

Watts, having explained to him the reason which made it inadvisable

for him to accept a baronetcy, Leighton fully, as he told my husband

and myself, saw the necessity of his declining.

Since the first years when Leighton settled in London he had been

favoured by the personal friendship of many members of the Royal

family, who very greatly esteemed him. He not only attended the State

banquets and entertainments to which he was summoned, but was

frequently the guest at receptions of a private and a more intimate

character at Marlborough House and elsewhere.

In these pages there is only space to note a few, among the very many

directions in which he served the Art interests of his country. In

foreign lands, and in the Colonies no less than in England, he

extended the knowledge and appreciation of the best English Art by his

unwearying exertions; and yet it must always be remembered he ever

remained "a workman first, an official after."

Professor Church, appointed in 1879 to the Professorship of Chemistry

in the Royal Academy of Arts in London, has preserved letters and

notes from Leighton on the subject of pigments.[80] It is almost

incredible that his mind could have penetrated with such accuracy into

all the details of his craft as fresh questions arose as to the value

of new vehicles and colours, considering his endless labours connected

with the wider interests of Art, and the absorbing nature of his own

work. But there exist over sixty letters, and more than twenty cards,

dating from 1880 to November 1895, two months before his death, in

which he proves his insistency to master thoroughly every detail of

his craft. He wrote: "It is, I feel, rather a duty in me to ascertain

about these various new vehicles."

The following extracts may prove of interest and value to

painters.[81]

_8th._

DEAR PROF. CHURCH,--I write to acknowledge your letter of the

6th, the information in which (Jaune de Naples) is to me of

very great importance indeed. I believe Hills to be really

anxious to help us in the matter of medium. I should be

peculiarly glad if we could send forth a thoroughly trustworthy,

hard-drying, supple, and not yellowing vehicle. Let us consider

it. I find myself using a mixture, roughly, of equal parts of

amber varnish (Roberson's) and oil of spike; and, say, a sixth

of the whole of poppy oil (Roberson's): that is, 3/7 amber, 3/7

spike, 1/7 poppy; but I vary according to the work; and again I

don't know what Roberson's amber varnish is, it does not seem

_very_ drying. Of course one would want a good middle drying

power, to which, _mixing the ingredients_, one might add any one

at will. I think that "Siccatif de Haarlem" has about that

middle quality, if I remember it rightly. It is, I think, copal,

poppy oil, and turps.; but it seemed to me to yellow a little,

why, I don't know; poppy should not darken. Chromophile is

delightful up to a certain point, and then the work sinks

extraordinarily blind and tallowy; and as you want something in

the way of varnish at the end, it seems desirable to carry that

or _some_ varnish in a moderate degree right through. Chromoph.

becomes a little _milky_ in a bottle with spir. of turp., and

turns bright green when left in a dipper.

Your proposal to _report_ to us annually is very valuable, and

could be worked to the _general_ advantage.

* * * * *

I am delighted to find that you are in co-operation with my

friend Mr. Hills, who has a warm and genuine desire to serve Art

and his friends the artists. I find his poppy oil _clarified

with charcoal_ very delightful stuff. Am I wrong in thinking the

action of the charcoal on it has been to render it more

_drying_? I think that a vehicle made with that oil, amber

varnish, and oil of spike will be a very satisfactory vehicle

indeed; particularly if you can, between you, _bleach_ the oil

yet more. Chromophile is quite colourless. The mastic varnish

_that won't bloom_ will be a great triumph. _Pace_ our

detractors, it shall, I hope, be seen in time that the R.A. is

not unmindful of the needs of artists even in the matter of

material appliances.

* * * * *

I observe that you speak in your valuable manual of Aureolin as

a _very slow-drying_ colour when ground with oil; finding, in

use, that _Roberson's_ Aureolin dries, on the contrary,

extremely quick--it is always absolutely dry the next day, and I

use no vehicle but Bell's Medium, _i.e._ linseed and oil of

spike and turps.--I wrote to ask him what he grinds the colour

in. He answers "_pure linseed oil without the addition of any

drier._" This puzzles me. Where is the solution? Are there

different kinds of Aureolin? When you have a leisure moment send

me a post-card.

* * * * *

Among the madders in your handbook _scarlet_ madder does not

appear; I hope it is not a treacherous colour; I use it freely,

but only mixture with other _dark_ colours, to give them

richness. I also use cadmium _red_; is that wrong? A line on a

post-card will greatly oblige.

_P.S._--Of course I only use cadmium red when I want a _very_

deep orange in drapery or sky--nothing could replace it.

* * * * *

_Feb. 2, 1885._

Here is a little problem: I thought all _burnt_ colours were

_ipso facto_ sound. Roberson tells me that burnt white

(Chremnitz do.), a lovely colour _like ivory_, plays most

amazing tricks, darkens and lightens again in rapid succession.

WHY? When you are in Long Acre make him show you his samples.

* * * * *

Thanks for your letter. I don't use any particular colours other

than those you mentioned in your lectures, although I thought of

trying deep yellow madder again; I used to like it very much. I

suppose you have the list--it is a very long one--of Edouard's

colours. Smith is his agent here (14 Charles Street, Middlesex

Hospital). I use one or two colours (Tadema I think _all_) from

Mommen's in Brussels; his burnt sienna is _superb_. Asphaltum

would reward study; it was _universally_ used by the Venetians,

and seems never to have cracked with them. I am very glad that

you are steadily pursuing your collection of specimens and

experiments, which I hope will by degrees become an exhaustive

one, and of infinite value to the profession. _Grounds_, too,

will deserve much attention.

* * * * *

Kindly tell me whether there is any harm in putting a _thin_

coat of mastic, softened perhaps with a drop or two of oil, over

works _finished quite recently_ but _begun_ a year or more ago?

If I understand rightly, cracking is caused by atmospheric

action through the _back_ of the canvas, by _distension_ of

underlying partially soft paint and, consequent disruption of

the upper, harder layer of varnish. If the first painting is a

year old, is it not tough enough to resist the atmosphere, and

is it not _anyhow_ pretty safe when the canvas is _backed_?

I suppose "Mutrie yellow" is quite safe alone and mixed with

other pigments?

* * * * *

Thanks for your note. Yes, I do like the white oil, but I add

copal to it if I want it to be very drying, or mix copal on the

palette with a slow-drying colour, say a lake. This, I suppose,

is all right; if so, don't trouble to acknowledge this. The oil

of orange is delightful on account of its smell, but dries less

quickly than turpentine (rectfd. spirit). Is it not _always_

better to have _some_ resin in a picture _throughout_ since it

has to be varnished at the end?

* * * * *

_April 21, 1888._

I am so much enamoured with the method, so far as vehicle is

concerned, which I have used during the last year, that I should

like to feel quite certain that it is _absolutely safe_. I use a

"single-primed" canvas, and underpaint with "Bell's medium" and

rect. spir. turps., which, under your advice, I have in _small_

bottles, so that using it freely a bottle lasts a very short

time, and the stuff is therefore always fresh. The mixture I

_use up to the end_ (except when I now and then use the pigment

_alone_), and letting the turps. rather _preponderate_ as I

advance. I have found to my amazement that this mixture dries

even in winter weather excellently, and that I can use with it

even scarlet madder and aureolin, which, at least the former,

hitherto I never attempted to use except stiffened with amber

or copal; and I further find that this mixture, though of course

it "sinks" to some extent (and especially with the blues), in

the main bears up very fairly, incomparably better than I should

have expected, and in fact quite enough. Before beginning to

paint I rub over the part each time with Bell's medium and

saliva nearly equal parts, or say five oil to four saliva beaten

up with the knife on the palette to a white mucilage. This, if

left alone, makes a good varnish, and is delightful to paint

into. So far, so good; at least I suppose so. (Do you see any

elements of danger? cracking? darkening?) But at the end

something must go over it all, if only to lock it up (I

suppose), certainly to get uniform gloss and strength. I propose

in the Academy to put Roberson's medium over the whole of my

large one and to retouch with the same. A portrait on to which I

_don't_ intend to work I should cover with mastic and _a little

poppy oil_; there is no harm in this, I suppose, and the small

quantity of mastic is not likely to yellow, is it? I know this

mixture _won't come off_, but why should it?

* * * * *

_May 30, 1889._

Messrs. Reeves send me a colour in which I delight, but which I

have hitherto always avoided as being unsafe, to wit, indigo. I

suppose one ought not to use it, ought one? although my old

friend, and in some ways my master, Robert Fleury, employed it

extensively in _underpainting_ blue draperies.

* * * * *

_December 23, 1889._

I have got a recipe--a very simple one--from a friend of mine in

Italy, who paints a good deal in distemper, and who in technical

matters is quite the most leery person I ever came across. In

this recipe he mentions what he calls "Gum Damar," which he, in

his characteristic ignorance of spelling (for Italians are not

very strong in orthography), writes with an apostrophe, D'Amar.

Now I presume he means "Gum Dammar" (I believe there is such a

thing, is there not?), but I should like to feel sure. Perhaps

you will kindly enlighten me on a post-card.

The distemper itself is the simplest thing in the world. It is

only a proportion of water and yolk of egg (he deprecates the

use of vinegar), to which he adds a certain number of drops (I

have not the recipe by me) of this gum. Of course it would be

important not to use the wrong gum. Hence the trouble I am

giving you.

* * * * *

_January 27, 1890._

I have just received from Perugia the enclosed sample of Gum

Dammar, which you were kind enough to say that you would report

upon to me. A few drops of this (by-the-bye, I do not know how

it is to be dissolved) and the yolk of an egg stirred in water,

form the distemper used by my friend Mariani.

I don't know whether I told you that he is rather an interesting

fellow. He is one of those extremely dexterous Italian

workmen-artists who know and can work in every material, and

whose forgeries of sixteenth century bric-a-brac, cassoni,

reliefs in pastiglia, &c. &c., have, I am afraid, not

infrequently been purchased as original by very crafty persons.

Several friends of mine who use distemper, and he amongst the

number, tell me that by putting a preparatory coating of

distemper over thoroughly dry oil, you can with perfect safety

interpose a layer of _painting_ in distemper between two

paintings in oil--an extremely valuable thing for us _for

recovering quality_.

* * * * *

_January 31, 1890._

Many thanks for your valuable letter. I have had the information

entered in a little book, where I keep the outpourings of your

wisdom on matters chemical.

Thanks also for the card, in which you give me a somewhat long

name for my Gomme Dammar. I suppose in an appeal to a chemist

the _first_ portion would suffice.

* * * * *

_February 14, 1890._

Many thanks for your valuable note. I may say in passing that

the specimen of "Ruby Madder" sent by Mr. Laurie appears to me

to be inferior in brilliancy to both the Rose Madder and the

Madder Carmine furnished by Messrs. Roberson; and I have no

reason to doubt that the latter colours are perfectly

trustworthy.

It will give me great pleasure to receive the dedication of your

book, which I look forward to seeing with pleasure, and using

with profit.

* * * * *

_May 19, 1890._

Many thanks for your note, which seems to open up an interesting

point. I gather from what you say that the mode of _manufacture_

of a colour may affect its drying properties over a range

extending from drying very slowly to drying very rapidly; and I

shall be much interested in hearing what your experiments lead

to under this head.

* * * * *

_January 30, 1891._

Many thanks for your letter. I see that I had better wait for a

final opinion until the few months have expired which you still

require as tests of permanence. Meanwhile, I am a little unhappy

to see in the case of colour after colour the expression

"semi-permanent." I do not quite know what that means. Let me

know _at your leisure_ whether it means permanent under certain

conditions, and, if so, what; or merely in a general way that

the pigment stands, but only pretty well. The Rosso Saturno I

quite understand is to be set aside.

Another perplexity is in regard to the Burnt Madder. If the

madders are in themselves sound colours, as I have always

understood them to be, how do they lose their permanence by

burning? I should like to use the Gialetto, and I rather gather

from what you say that I may do so. I hear with interest what

you tell me of your new varnish. As for myself, I have got to

dislike the use of any resins in my work to such an extent that

I have completely set them aside. Of course when a picture is

finished it requires some gum, not only to protect it, but to

bring up the colour to its full value. Will you let me know--but

this will do at your leisure, for the time has not come

yet--whether a picture being painted as I paint mine,

exclusively with Bell's medium and turpentine from first to

last, and, I may add, worked on up to the last moment of sending

in, _i.e._ a fortnight later, may on the walls of the Academy be

safely varnished with this new material of yours, either alone

or diluted with a little poppy oil? I look forward with interest

to Heyl's Madder Green.

* * * * *

_December 5, 1891._

I shall certainly try the Heyl's Madder Green, which I hear of

through you for the first time. Laurie's daffodil cadmium is

very pretty. I have got some; but my new delight now is yellow

cobalt, which you have found to be absolutely safe, and which is

absolutely delightful as a colour.

* * * * *

My tempera is come from Italy, and I am told that it is made of

the tails (feelers?) of the cuttle-fish (sepia). Would you like

to look at it again from curiosity? I understand that with the

reservation that it darkens, I may use it with impunity in,

under, and with the oil--that is enough for _my_ purpose.

* * * * *

_October 16, 1894._

Will you kindly advise me on the tempera, of which I send a

tube? It is used by my friend, Prof. Costa, who gave it me; he

likes it vastly. It coalesces _with oil_; he uses it also by

itself _between_ two paintings in oil. I have often longed for

something to keep down the _greasiness_ and _slipperiness_ of

oil paint when correcting or going over a surface often, oil and

water _do_ coalesce sufficiently. The most luminous thing I ever

painted (and it has stood like a rock) was painted (or certainly

_thickly under_painted) with a vehicle made of _starch and oil_.

What _this_ medium is, I don't know. Please advise.

* * * * *

_March 7, 1894._

Forgive secretary again.

I am much obliged by your note, and read with great satisfaction

what you say about Newman's golden ochre. I shall now, until I

hear from you further, adopt the motto "Ex uno disce omnes," and

assume that the _yellow_ ochre is equally sound and serviceable;

although the colour is so much finer than any yellow ochre of my

acquaintance that I cannot quite close my mind to a lurking

suspicion that it is stimulated or refreshed by some foreign

ingredient.

* * * * *

_March 13, 1894._

Many thanks. You send me good tidings. The yellow ochre is by

far the finest I have ever seen.

* * * * *

I enclose, because we think (Watts and I) that it will interest

you, a specimen of purple _lake_ (_not madder_), such as Watts

has used _all his life_, which has been baking in the sun for

_two_ years; it is slightly browner, but more beautiful than

ever, and has, you see, retained its full _body_; this is

remarkable.

* * * * *

_June 22, 1894._

Very many thanks for your interesting and exhaustive

investigations on the French lakes. I observe that in several

cases you mention lakes having _cracked_. I presume, however,

there is no reason to suppose they would do this when embodied

with other colours, and that _if_ otherwise safe they might

therefore be used. The purple lake used by our friend Watts is

furnished to him, I have always understood, by Messrs. Newton of

Rathbone Place. I am glad to hear so good an account of the pale

boiled linseed oil from May & Baker, Ltd., of Battersea. I do

not, however, gather from what you say that there can be any

reason for substituting it for Bell's medium, to which I am much

attached, and which, as you know, is, with the admixture of

one-third rectified essence of turpentine, the only vehicle I

use. This note, of course, requires no acknowledgment--anything

you may have to say on these various points will abundantly keep

until I get a further account of your investigations on the

purple lake.

* * * * *

Many thanks for your valuable caution. Amongst the lakes you

tried, did you include the garance _nuance brun_ and do. _brun

fonce_? Both are superb colours, and it would be nice to think

one might use them. It is very comfortable to feel that one has

a _conscience_ one can tune at Shelsley.

* * * * *

_April 19, 1894._

I am about now to take up a large decorative painting for the

Exchange, a work which cannot be done on the spot on account,

_inter alia_, of the darkness of the place, and will, therefore,

be carried out here at the studio on _canvas_, and then

"maroufle" on the wall. Macbeth (A.R.A.), who is also doing one,

is using _Parris's_ "Marble medium," in which, a thousand years

ago, I painted two figures for mosaic at South Kensington; great

brilliancy is obtainable, but I rather fear a certain tendency

to look waxy and almost shiny. I myself incline to use Gambier

_Parry's_ material, which I have used on the _wall_ at South

Kensington and greatly like. But now the question arises, ought

the canvas to be _prepared_? and on this I shall be grateful for

your opinion, as the matter is very important. G. Parry told me

that canvas either _could_ or _should_ be prepared for his

medium, I don't remember which. Roberson's man tells me that

Madox Brown and Fredk. Shields (I think) both had canvases

prepared for a similar purpose. I shall postpone ordering mine

till I have your instructions; till when, and always, I am, in

much haste.

* * * * *

_April 23, 1894._

Many thanks for your letter. I shall, of course, obey your

instructions punctually, and substitute paraffin wax for the

ordinary Brecknell and Turner beeswax, as prescribed by Parry

himself. I will see Roberson immediately, for I should not think

it right, as he ground the colours and prepared the medium

throughout for my two large frescoes at South Kensington, to

abandon him in favour of Laurie, or anybody else.

You suggest that I should make a little experiment on a small

canvas. Do you think that would be necessary? I presume that the

material will work exactly as it did before, and that the

surface will be--bar the granulation--very much the same as on a

wall. I ask this question, because I ought to get to work

immediately, and I gather from a reference to your work that it

will take several weeks before the process of preparation is

complete.

I wish I could throw light for you on the verb "maroufler," and

should like to know what subterranean connection there is, or

can be, between it and the word "maroufle" which is, as you say,

being interpreted, a "rascal."

At all events, when the moment comes for the operation, I must

endeavour to obtain information from France, where the process

is in very frequent use.

* * * * *

_February 27, 1895._

A contretemps has occurred of which I think I ought to inform

you, as it relates to the very interesting subject of grounds

and pigments.

Robersons, when they came to roll up my fresco to transport it

to the Exchange, found that either the ground or the

pigment--probably both, as they are of the same substance--was

extremely brittle and cracked right across, cracking at a rather

abrupt tangent from the circumference of the circle; so that

they immediately struck work, and declined to go any further.

As far as the painting itself is concerned, I do not believe

that any serious damage is done, because on re-straining it

flat, the cracks are barely perceptible, and probably would not

be at all perceptible in _situ_.

Meanwhile, if any question arises as to the ground, it has

occurred to me, and it is on this point I wish to consult you,

that the cause may be the substitution of paraffin wax for the

ordinary wax hitherto used in Gambier Parry's material, which,

though perhaps not absolutely so durable as paraffin, is

sufficiently so, and very malleable. One does not see what else

could have cracked in that abrupt and sharp manner--certainly

not the copal, which has oil in it and is further made supple by

the oil of spike. If it turned out that the paraffin was the

peccant element, I should be, _entre nous_, rather glad, because

it diminished the facility of the work.

* * * * *

With reference to the cracking of this work Professor Church writes:--

This unrolling was begun in very cold weather; if the

temperature had been a little higher, nothing of this kind would

have taken place. The picture now shows no sign of defect or

injury, and is in perfect condition. By substituting _ceresin_,

a paraffin obtained from ozokerite or earthwax, for crystalline

paraffin, the chance of cracking is obviated. The ceresin, which

should have a melting-point of 150 deg. or 160 deg. Fahrenheit,

constitutes a safe substitute for the beeswax commonly employed

in Gambier Parry's Spirit Fresco Medium.

FOGGIA, _October 15, 1895_.

You will be surprised to get a letter from me with an Italian

superscription; I am writing thus early before my return to save

time. When I was in Venice the other day, Van Haanen spoke to

me, _with approval_, of a certain vehicle, of which I had

already heard before vaguely, the invention of the French

painter, Vibert. You probably know of it, as the subject of

media has occupied you. There are, it appears, three forms of

this medium: the vehicle for painting, the medium for painting

_into_ in retouching, and the final _varnish_. As far as I

understood Van Haanen in a hurried conversation--he was a little

vague--the painting medium contains no gum, only, he seemed to

think, petroleum and oil; I assume that in the final "vernis"

there _is_ gum of some kind.

I am perfectly satisfied with Bell's medium and fresh turpentine

for the very little use I make of vehicle in painting; but there

is always the difficulty of the _final_ varnish in the Academy.

I don't like risking mastic or copal _so soon_ on work which

contains _nothing_ but oil (and if I ever do use a little, I put

poppy oil with it), and the result is that I generally varnish

with Roberson's medium, which is safe, but I fear a little

inclined to _yellow_ in time.

Now what I want you kindly to tell me, my dear Church, is the

exact composition of the _three_ Vibert media, and your opinion

about the safety of using _all three_ in the prescribed order;

and this I should like to know on my return at the _beginning_

of November (hence my haste in writing), and also whether I can

safely use these vehicles on work _begun in my usual medium_.

It is just possible you may not have heard of the Vibert

vehicles; if so, I would ask you to be so kind as to obtain (of

course at _my_ expense) a bottle of each of the mixtures and to

test them carefully.

A line to say this has reached you would find me at the Hotel

Royal Mazzeri, Via 20 Settembre, _Rome_.

With kind regards and anticipated thanks.

* * * * *

HOTEL ROYAL MAZZERI, ROME,

_October 22, 1895_.

Many thanks for your prompt and amiable answer. I shall be

interested to hear on my return the upshot of your analysis; but

I _hate vernis_ in painting, as Bocchini tells us the Venetians

did, _comme la peste_.

I am very glad you are getting on so satisfactorily with your

work on the frescoes.

In haste (for I have many letters before me).

_P.S._--No; I am sorry to say I am no better of my special

ailment though my _general_ condition is good.

* * * * *

2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD, KENSINGTON, W.,

_November 8, 1895_.

Excuse the hand of my secretary.

Many thanks for your note about Vibert's varnishes, which I

shall accordingly dismiss from my mind--the varnishes, I mean,

not your note.

One chapter in which is revealed Leighton's serious inner life closed

during the years he was President. The last letter which has been

preserved from his beloved master, Steinle, is dated 22nd November

1883, Frankfurt:--

DEAR FRIEND,--Yesterday evening I received your letter from

Florence, and answer at once, partly to tell you how delighted I

am at the result of the consultation with Quarfe, as also at

your comfort and well-being, and partly because this part of

your letter has greatly roused my curiosity for a second, which

shall also tell me something about Vienna, Verona, and Florence.

At the same time, however, I want to make use of a pause in my

work to tell you that the first three coloured contours are

completed. To the painting I dedicated all my small skill, and

would have died in order to secure that the drawing and

composition should produce a life-like effect; I believe also

that these pictures will look like frescoes in their

surroundings.

Some time after this Leighton wrote to Mrs. Pattison the following

letter, which proves that to the end he retained his great affection

for Eduard von Steinle. This friend and master died in 1886, but

whether Leighton made this inquiry before or after that date I do not

know, as his letter is not dated:--

DEAR MRS. PATTISON,--I saw a paragraph not long ago in the

_Academy_ which concerned me deeply; it did not _say_, but it

implied that my dear old friend and master, Ed. Steinle

(professor at Frankfurt a/M) is dead. Did you by chance write

the note? and do you know when or how he died, if he be indeed

dead? His wife has not written to me. I am anxious to have some

certainty in the matter.

(Influenced) "--for good far beyond all others by Steinle, a

noble-minded, single-hearted artist, _s'il en fut_ ... Steinle's is

the indelible seal." In making any estimate of Leighton's character

these words should ever be remembered. They prove how deeply rooted

were those feelings on which his principles were grafted. These words

were no mere outlet for youthful enthusiasm and affection, but were

noted with reference to an account of his life about to be written for

publication; therefore we may consider them to be a deliberate

statement made for a purpose, when he had reached the zenith of his

fame and was already President of the Academy. The design by Steinle

here produced, called _Der Winter_, in which the artist has drawn his

own portrait when old, throws a light on the mind and nature of

Leighton's master, whose influence on him for good was greater "far

beyond all others."

Written on the drawing are these lines, penned by Steinle:--

Giunto e gia 'l corso della vita mia,

Che tempestoso mar per fragil barca

Al comun porto ov 'a render si varca

Giunto ragion d'ogni opera trista e pia.

Indi l'affettuosa fantasia

Che l'arte si fece idola e monarca

Conosco ben quant 'era d'error carca

Ch' errore e cio che l'uom quaggiu desia.

. . . . . .

I pensier miei gia de' miei danni lieti

Che fian se s'a due morti m'avvicino

L'una m' e certa, l'altra mi minaccia?

. . . . . .

Ne pinger ne scolpir fin piu che queti

L'anima volta a quell' amor divino

Ch'aperse a prender noi in croce le braccia.

[Illustration: "DER WINTER"

Drawing by Eduard von Steinle]

No other member of Leighton's family was ever known to have been an

artist, and neither his parents nor his sisters pretended to any

knowledge of painting; but respecting literature he had an interest in

common with both his sisters, also a very strong sympathy existed

between Mrs. Matthews and Leighton in their love for music. In answer

to a letter from Mrs. Orr relating to Mr. Augustine Birrell's

well-known book, Leighton wrote, "I have read 'Obiter Dicta,' and am

much charmed with its delicate humour and ease of its style. I thought

'Truth Seekers' charmingly written." With reference, however, to the

Browning chapter he continues:--

Browning's obscurity hides a shorthand of which he keeps the key

in _his_ pocket. A matter of form, _not_ of matter, as "O.D."

hath it. Browning is not abstruse; he is a _deep_ thinker, who

_therefore_ (_vide_ "O.D.") requires obscure language; he is a

most ingenious dialectician and a subtle analyst; but he is not

a great poet on _that_ account--he is a great poet because of

his magnificent central heat, and the surface of interests over

which he sheds it. All this is rather late in the day to remark,

and one would not be exasperated by his friends if one had not a

sort of feeling that they _have_ done something to mar him. You

say he would not be obscure if he _knew_ it?--_distinguons_. His

obscurity is not intentional--of course--it is inherent in a

style which is strongly personal, and therefore sincere--but is

it in no degree _wilful_?--does he _not_ accept, virtually, some

such (absolutely false) view of his obscurity as "O.D.'s"? A

pity it certainly is; Browning is the last man who in his heart

_wishes_ to touch only the few--nobody knows better than he does

that that is not the characteristic of the greatest poets, and

that not for that is a poet's soul kindled to a white heat.

Meanwhile, here _is_ the fact that men of average culture and

average brains (I claim both, for an example), and _desirous_ of

_understanding_, as well as full of admiration for his powers,

often get at his meaning only by considerable effort, and

sometimes not at all, and that not because the thought is

obscure, but because it is wilfully written in cypher.

The following letter to a friend of his sister's contains a criticism

of Leighton's on Goethe's _Sprueche_ under the head of "Kunst":--

_Private._]

2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD, KENSINGTON, W.,

17/8/91.

DEAR MR. BAILEY SAUNDERS,--Complying with your wish, expressed

through my sister, Mrs. Orr, I have gone carefully through the

_Sprueche_ under the head "Kunst," and have marked certain

passages. I have, however, deferred writing till the last moment

(I am starting presently for the Continent), partly because I

have been overwhelmingly busy, and partly because I am a good

deal "exercised" on the whole matter. To speak with entire

frankness, I cannot feel sympathy with the idea of the

publication, and feel that the connection of my name with it

would imply an adhesion which does not exist. On re-reading more

than once the maxims and sayings in question, which I had not

seen for many years, I find myself confirmed in my earlier

impression of them, that their value is in no way commensurate

to the authority of Goethe's great name. Some of them are, in my

opinion, wholly misleading and some obscure; some commonplace,

some irrelevant to the subject. Again, my markings do not by any

means always mean assent; and, on the other hand, the

discrimination between the value of a marked paragraph is often

a nice one, and is not represented by the difference between

selection and omission, which, _on the face of it_, seems assent

and dissent. In sum, I ask myself what the outcome is--what _is_

the selection? it does not give to the world an important or

instructive intellectual possession; it _seems_ to express the

selection of the best by a particular individual (who does not

spontaneously desire to make such selections), and in _reality_

does _not_ represent anything that he assents to throughout.

But why a selection at all? I cannot refrain from asking myself.

The interest of these particular _Sprueche_ lies in the fact that

_they are utterances of Goethe's_ (and he gave them with a

context)--but then what is the meaning of a selection?

You see I speak very bluntly in the matter, but also sincerely;

and I have at all events shown my good will.--In much haste,

yours faithfully,

FRED LEIGHTON.

I am, as I said, just off, but if you wished especially to

communicate with me, a line sent _here_ would reach me after

some delay.

Though Leighton persisted in affirming that he hardly ever read, the

number of letters, and answers to letters from scholars, referring to

poems and general literature, which exist in the correspondence he

preserved, prove that if he did not read he nevertheless somehow got a

knowledge of the inside of books. To a question having reference to

the Nine Muses (he was then painting his frieze "Music") which he

asked Swinburne, he received the answer:--

THE PINES, PUTNEY HILL, S.W.,

_August 21, 1885_.

DEAR LEIGHTON,--I doubt very much whether Shelley himself could

have answered your question to your satisfaction. His

scholarship was that of a clever but idle boy in the upper forms

of a public school. His translation from Plato, as Mr. Jowett

tells me, and his translation from Euripides, as I know by

personal experiment, having carefully collated it with the

original text, absolutely swarm with blunders, sometimes,

certainly, resulting in sheer nonsense. I fancy he may have been

thinking of Aphrodite Urania, and perhaps confounding (as indeed

it seems to me that a Greek poet might possibly and pardonably

have done) the goddess of divine love with the Muse who was

_not_ the Muse of astronomy when she first made her appearance

in the Theogony of Hesiod, but simply the "heavenly one" in a

general way, as I gather from a reference to the lexicon. I

should have thought Calliope or Euterpe a fitter head mourner

for Keats: but probably Shelley wished to introduce the most

distinguished in the rank of the Muses in that capacity, on such

an occasion. And if Urania was in a certain sense the chief of

the Nine, she would naturally be most musical of mourners.--Ever

yours sincerely,

A.C. SWINBURNE.

As years went on, Leighton became more and more enamoured of the

beauty to be found in our own islands, and longed, as can be traced in

his letters, that his sisters should share with him his intense love

of nature.

To his elder sister, who was in Yorkshire, he wrote in 1887:--

"A broad shoulder of moor, lifted against a great field of sky,

is one of the grandest and most pathetic things in nature (see

Leopardi). The beauty of moorland is that it has a particular

poetry and impressiveness for _every_ condition of atmosphere

and weather."

Again:--

"I am very glad you like Ilkley so much--moors have an immense

fascination for me, but all English scenery of whatever kind has

charm for me. It has two immense virtues: first, being entirely

of its own _kind_, it never suggests a, to itself, disparaging

comparison with the scenery of any other country, and secondly,

it is steeped, every fold and nook of it, in English poetry, and

is haunted with the murmur of the prettiest of peace-suggesting

words: _home_. I wonder whether you both feel as I do the

endearing quality in our old green-brown country."

It became his habit, in these later years, to visit Scotland in

September before flying off to his second home. More and more did he

realise the marvellous beauty of the scenery there. He told me,

shortly before he died, that the most beautiful vision he had ever

beheld on earth was the one he saw when approaching Skye by sea from

the south, when the sun was setting and illuminating the range of the

Cuillin Hills with magic light and colour. He wrote to his father

from:--

THE HIGHLAND RAILWAY COMPANY'S STATION HOTEL,

INVERNESS.

Accurately the _charmingness_ of Scotland, it is the

starting-point for everything. But I observe that at the rate of

writing I should fill a volume before I had given you the

hastiest account of my journey, so I will e'en cut it short and

simply say that, taking it altogether, my too brief stay in the

Highlands has been a source of very great enjoyment to me, if

not of any particular benefit to my health, for which indeed it

has been too short. I have had more than the usual proportion of

fine weather, and am corroborated in my old opinion that for

beauty of colouring nothing north of the Alps will compare with

this most lovely country, and that the wealth and variety of

effects of light and shade is altogether unrivalled.

Unfortunately, working here is very difficult, all the effects

are so bafflingly fugitive; nevertheless, I have made three

little sketches which, though hasty, will be of value if only

to revive my recollections of the effects they very feebly

render; they were all done in one day; and no one day since I

did them has been such as to make sketching possible--except

this the last and one of the most enchanting, which I have spent

delightfully but fruitlessly on the top of a coach.

From Gressoney, St. Jean, September 1, 1891, he wrote to Mrs.

Matthews:--

Many thanks for your letter received last night; as it crossed

one from me to the Dad, which I hope he could read (it was writ

large), I should not write again at once (having, of course,

nothing to say--except that it is, _pour changer_, a splendid

afternoon, and I ought to be out of doors) but that I want you

at once to tell the poor old Dad how concerned and sorry I am to

hear that he has been so ailing, and ailing so long, and how I

wonder at his superb power of recuperation. I don't ask in

_this_ letter how the Dad is, because I am sure he will send me

a line in answer to my note to him. But I have another reason

for writing at once; I want you, please, to thank Lina with best

love, for her nice long letter (_she does not want a letter

written from here_), and tell her, before it is too late, that I

hope she won't give up her Ballater without _a very full trial_,

because I know that it takes many people a considerable time to

get acclimatised to that bracing air. Tell her also that I was

myself going to suggest an _Ausflug_ to Braemar; if she goes to

the Invercauld Arms let her use my name, and she will be well

treated. I should _peculiarly_ like her to see the Lynn of

Dee--she will only have to scramble five or six yards off the

main road to look down into the stream from under some of the

grandest old Scotch firs in Scotland; and I verily believe that

the watching for a silent bit of those dark, dark, seemingly

bottomless, noiselessly swirling pools, _tiny_ as they are under

the hollow grey craig, will, somehow, whisper a big peace and a

strange wondering fascination into her being; the whole thing is

not bigger than an expensive toy, but it lays a never-failing

grip on _me_.[82]--Affectionate brother,

FRED.

To Mrs. Orr when in Scotland:--

_August 22, 1891._

If you can manage it go to a favourite haunt of mine, the Lynn

of Dee, quite a tiny tumble of green waters in fantastically

scooped grey rocks, no higher than a cottage, under astounding

old Scotch firs (by-the-bye the grandest tree in the world to my

thinking), where I have sat interminably long looking down into

the dark deep pools, from which now and then a salmon leaps. To

me no spot about there is so fascinating.

GRAND HOTEL, BRUFANI, PERUGIA,

_October 3, 1891_.

DEAR LINA,--Well, I am glad you got to the Lynn of Dee, though

sorry that you could not be there in solitude and see it without

sitting in a pool of water. I am glad, too, that you saw the

salmon leap; I did not mention that most exciting spectacle

because it is not by any means _always_ on view--you were in

luck; but what you must make for another time is the bit three

or four yards _below_ the fall where the vehemence of the winter

torrent has scooped and worn pools so deep that as your eye is

drawn down past half-hidden submerged rocky shapes you come at

last to absolute dark brown night, and whilst you are conscious

of a rapid, swirling current, no _sound_, no faintest gurgle

even, reaches your ear; the silent mystery of it all absolutely

invades and possesses you; that is what I faintly tried to put

into my "Solitude," of which a photogravure embellishes your

staircase. I am vexed that you had so much rain; however, you

had a few fine glimpses, and if a rainy day in Scotland is like

the Scotch Sawbath, a fine one throws you the gates of Heaven.

It is curious how much clearer the air is (_when clear_) than we

get it south of the Tweed.

I am glad that the Dad has rallied so satisfactorily; tell him,

with my love, that I have heard from the gentleman in Copenhagen

for whom I carved the marble "Athlete." He is benighted enough

to say that in his opinion it is one of the most important

statues of modern times; and he wants my bust, if there is one,

for his collection of portraits.

[Illustration: STUDY IN COLOUR FOR "SOLITUDE." 1890

By permission of Mrs. Stewart Hodgson]

Leighton also particularly desired that his sister should see

Malinmore, County Donegal, when visiting Ireland. He wrote from

Kensington, "I am bent on your seeing Malinmore."

And again, from Scotland:--

INVERNESS, _September 13_.

DEAR LINA,--I can't help feeling a good deal of responsibility

about the melancholy, treeless wilds to which I have sent you,

because I happen to like them vastly; and I particularly feel

that _everything_ will turn on your seeing, not indeed all or

nearly all _I_ saw--that is impossible--but as much as your

strength will allow; take your courage, therefore, in one hand,

your goloshes in another, and your umbrella in a third, and

_from_ the car--_abseits_--see the _whole coast-line close_ to

the rocks overlooking the sea; there is not an inch that won't

reward you. There is a bit not more than half a mile from

Malinmore (_to'ards_ Malinhead), that is, though _small_, quite

Dantesque in its grim blackness (a few wet feet _im Nothfall_

won't hurt you). Of course, to do this well you must be in cars

_every_ day to take you in all directions to the point _from_

which to make your _Abstecher_--sometimes towards Glencolumskill

and the Hog's Back beyond (magnificent), sometimes towards

Malinhead, where you must see every little bay, including the

Silver Strand.

At first sight the breaking up of the weather is a bore, _mit

Seitenblick auf Ihnen_--but is not as bad as it seems; bad

(dirty) weather suits these parts, and the day will not dawn in

which I shall have forgotten certain dramatic sunsets and the

swooping of certain storm-clouds like the flight of huge fiery

birds of prey, more than once witnessed and deposed to on canvas

by me, over this treeless tract of moor.

FOOTNOTES:

[58] "Athlete Strangling a Python," exhibited in the International

Exhibition, Paris, 1878.

[59] "The Arts of War."

[60] "Addresses delivered to the Students of the Royal Academy by the

late Lord Leighton." Publishers: Kegan Paul, Trench, Truebner & Co.

1897.

[61] "Not everybody," wrote the late Mr. Underhill, who for some time,

as private secretary to Sir Frederic Leighton, had special

opportunities of knowing, "is aware of the tax upon a man's time and

energy that is involved in the acceptance of the office in question.

The post is a peculiar one, and requires a combination of talents not

frequently to be found, inasmuch as it demands an established standing

as a painter, together with great urbanity and considerable social

position. The inroads which the occupancy of the office makes upon an

artist's time are very considerable. There is, on the average, at least

one Council meeting for every three weeks throughout the whole year.

There are, from time to time, general assemblies for the election of

new members and for other purposes, over which the President is bound,

of course, to preside. For ten days or a fortnight in every April he

has to be in attendance with the Council daily at Burlington House, for

the purpose of selecting the pictures which are to be hung in the

Spring Exhibition. He has to preside over the banquet which yearly

precedes the opening of the Academy, and he has to act as host at the

annual conversazione. Finally, it is his duty every other year to

deliver a long, elaborate, and carefully prepared 'Discourse' upon

matters connected with art, to the students who are for that purpose

assembled. It is a post of much honour and small profit." "To

administer the affairs of the Academy, to fulfil a round of social

semi-public and public engagements, and to paint pictures which

invariably reach a high level of excellence, would, of course, be

impossible--even to Sir Frederic Leighton--were it not for the fact

that he makes the very most of the time at his disposal. 'That's the

secret,' remarked a distinguished member of the Academy to the present

writer some little time before the President's death; 'Sir Frederic

knows exactly how long it will take to do a certain thing, and he

apportions his time accordingly.'"--"Frederic, Lord Leighton, P.R.A.:

His Life and Works." By Ernest Rhys.

[62] While writing this discourse Leighton wrote to his father:--

PERUGIA, _October 5, 1889_.

DEAR DAD,--You will be surprised to hear that your letter (for

which best thanks) only came to my hands _yesterday_ on my

arrival here; it had apparently, after enjoying a junket through

Spain, returned to England before its final despatch here. The

envelope, which I enclose, will amuse you; Ulysses himself did

not visit more cities of men! I am glad my Spanish tour is at an

end; the insufferable heat, the long journeys, the frequent

_night_ travelling, have conspired to make it rather trying to

me physically. I have never been thoroughly well the whole time.

Here it is absolutely cold, and I shall probably soon begin

firing; it rains also, and I fear the weather is altogether

unpromising; but the air is magnificent, and I am very fond of

the place, and I shall enjoy my stay as much as the necessity of

writing my (adjective) Address will allow.

My journey through Spain, though fatiguing, was extremely

interesting and very profitable to me for the matter in hand. My

stay in Madrid was made more enjoyable by the extreme amiability

of my very old friend our ambassador, who brought me into

contact with two or three interesting people, from whom I

gathered valuable information in regard to things Spanish; to

say nothing of getting compartments reserved for me in trains,

&c. &c. It is rather fortunate that our diplomatic

representatives abroad are mostly personal friends of mine. Post

is just going, so good-bye for the present.--Your affectionate

son,

FRED.

Leighton mastered the Spanish language completely in the course of the

few weeks he spent in Spain in 1866. A friend who was present gives an

amusing account of an incident which occurred when Leighton dined with

Mrs. Adelaide Sartoris after his return. He was sitting next Senor

Garcia (only now just dead at the age of 102); the conversation was

being carried on in Spanish. Mrs. Sartoris, in astonishment and

admiration at the fluent manner in which Leighton was talking the

language of which he did not know a word a few weeks before, exclaimed,

"But, Senor Garcia, _do_ say he makes some little mistakes!" "But he

_doesn't_," replied Garcia; "he hasn't made one!"

[63] Mr. Norman Shaw wrote the following letter the day after he heard

this address in 1891:--

6 ELLERDALE ROAD, HAMPSTEAD, N.W.,

_December 11, 1891_.

DEAR SIR FREDERIC,--I was so sorry I missed you last night.

After the election I went into the galleries to find my people,

and when I came out you had gone--and quite right too, for you

must have been very tired.

I thank you very sincerely for your most admirable address. I

had heard that it was to be on the subject of French Art, but I

had not realised that it was to be entirely about Architecture!

and as an architect I naturally feel very deeply its great and

permanent value. It is altogether a new sensation to have a

Presidential address devoted to the Mother of the Arts! and I am

sure its influence will be wide, deep, and lasting.

Amongst the many regrettable phases of modern art, there is none

that I feel more than the isolation that the three great

branches of art exist under in this country (for in France I am

sure it is quite different), and I cannot help feeling that your

address is a tremendous step in the right direction; but, alas!

I don't believe one in twenty of our colleagues understood what

you were so clearly explaining, and I fear not one in fifty

cared! But it is absurd to suppose that with the advancement of

knowledge this state of things can last, so it is intensely

satisfactory to have it on record that not merely have we had a

President that knew all that is to be known about the art, but

who also cared and loved it!

I thought your remarks on the French apse quite delightful. I

have always felt this strongly, and though as an Englishman

(Scotchman!) I like our square east ends, still I am bound to

admit that there is a logical completeness about a chevet that

the square end cannot claim. But I shall only weary you if I go

on in this prosy way! so thanking you again most heartily for

your grand contribution, believe me to remain,--Yours very

sincerely,

R. NORMAN SHAW.

SIR FREDERIC LEIGHTON, BART.

[64] From a boy, without any effort or thought on his part, he

exercised an unquestioned domination over others. Speaking of the days

when he, as a boy of seventeen, first made friends with Leighton in

Rome, Sir E. Poynter said, "He knew he was clever, but he hadn't a

particle of conceit. I never saw him cast down, he was always jolly and

noble; none ever thought of refusing him obedience." Again, Sir E.

Poynter refers to these early days in his Dedication to Leighton of

"Ten Lectures on Art": "I came to-day from the 'Varnishing Day' at the

Royal Academy Exhibition with a pleasant conviction that there is, on

all sides, a more decided tendency towards a higher standard in Art,

both as regards treatment of subject and execution, than I have before

noticed; and I have no hesitation in attributing this sudden

improvement, in the main, to the stimulus given us all by the election

of our new President, and to the influence of the energy, thoroughness,

and nobility of aim which he displays in everything he undertakes. I

was probably the first, when we were both young, and in Rome together,

to whom he had the opportunity of showing the disinterested kindness

which he has invariably extended to beginners; and to him, as the

friend and master who first directed my ambition, and whose precepts I

never fail to recall when at work (as many another will recall them), I

venture to dedicate this book with affection and respect." Signor

Giovanni Costa wrote: "I remember once in Siena there was an unemployed

half-hour in our programme. Leighton happening to go to the window of

the hotel, exclaimed, 'The Cupola of the Duomo is on fire!' and as he

said it he rushed downstairs to go there. I, being lame, could not keep

pace with him, but followed, and on arriving in the Piazza attempted to

enter the Duomo past a line of soldiers who were keeping the ground;

but they would not allow me to. Seeing them carrying wooden hoardings

into the cathedral, I shouted. 'You are taking fuel to the fire! Let me

in--I am an artist and a custodian of artistic treasures.' The word

'custodian' moved them, and they let me pass. When I got inside the

Duomo I found Leighton commanding in the midst. He was saying, 'You are

bringing fuel to the fire.' There was a major of infantry with his

company, who cried out, 'Open the windows!' Leighton exclaimed, 'My

dear sir, you are fanning the flames; you must shut the windows.' He

had placed himself at the head of everybody, and the windows were shut.

From the cupola into the church fell melting flakes of fire ('cadean di

fuoco dilatate falde'--_Dante_) from the burning and liquefied lead,

which would certainly have ignited the boards with which they had

intended to cover the _graffitte_ by Beccafumi on the marble pavement.

Our half-hour was over. Leighton looked at his watch and said, 'In any

case the cupola is burnt; let us be off to the Opera del Duomo; Duccio

Buoninsegna is waiting for us!'"

[65] Sir George Grove wrote after the banquet in 1882: "Dear

Leighton,--Let me say a word of most hearty congratulations on the

brilliant way in which you got through your _Herculean_ task on

Saturday. You are really a prodigy! Your last speech reads just as

fresh and gay and unembarrassed as the first, and every one of the nine

is as neat, as pointed, as perfectly _a propos_ as if there were

nothing else to be said! Thank you especially for the reference to the

music business."

[66] The following is one of many letters of regret expressed when

Leighton resigned:--

19 QUEEN STREET, MAYFAIR, W.,

_June 24_.

DEAR SIR FREDERIC,--I trust you will allow me to express to you

the sincere regret I feel at your being compelled to give up

your command of the "Artists." To myself volunteering has always

been so inseparably connected with your command, that I cannot

at present realise the extent of the blank which your

resignation will create. I shall ever remember with pride that

it was under your auspices that I rose through the ranks and

obtained my commission.--Believe me, dear Sir Frederic, very

truly yours,

W. PASTEUR.

SIR FREDERIC LEIGHTON, P.R.A.

[67] The following correspondence took place between Leighton and Mr.

Henry Wells, R.A.

To Sir FREDERIC LEIGHTON, P.R.A.

_January 27, (?) 1880._

I will avail myself of this opportunity to remark upon the

statement you made in your summing up, viz. that if women were

made members under the existing law they would not have the

right to sit on Council.

If you can establish this, if you can show us that any one

elected a "member" under our law can be debarred on the score of

sex from taking a seat on the Council, then I will instantly

allow that our laws do provide for the election of women, and

that the very ground of our argument is proved to be a

quicksand. When you endorsed the statement that came so

naturally from Millais, Calderon, and Leslie, I felt the matter

was serious, for I saw at once that you could not do justice to

our argument in the summing up because its very foundation was

misapprehended by you. Although the question is now disposed of,

I beg of you to look closely into the matter and assure yourself

of it. I only wish I had known beforehand where your doubts were

centered, for I would have done my best to remove them. I know

you will find, beyond all doubt and controversy, that any one

made a "member" by election can make good a claim to a seat on

the Council, just as Mr. Tresham made good his claim; and it is

because our laws provide for only one kind of members--a

Council-sitting kind--that we felt the necessity of providing

for the election of a non-Council-sitting kind.

In making this distinction we follow the example of George the

Third and the founders of the Academy (who presumably knew

something of the understanding upon which the two ladies became

connected with the Society), for their decision, when they

_administered_ the law in the Tresham case, excluded women from

a privilege which could not be denied to a "member" elected

under the law. Of course their and our interpretation is open to

dispute; but this much is beyond dispute, that if the law is

interpreted as providing for women being "members," then it also

places them (against the intention, as we see, of the founders)

upon the Council; and as the great majority of the present

Academicians have made up their minds that women shall not sit

on Council, legislation would be necessary on either reading of

the law.

The schedule of privileges to be given on the one hypothesis,

would on the other give place to a subtraction of privileges,

and either schedule would be determined according to the varying

shades of opinions of the members.

There would remain only this difference in the result; one

schedule would be based upon a law that is open to varying

interpretations, whereas according to our method the schedule

was based upon a positive resolution providing for the election

of women, thus removing the question from all future discussion

and doubt.

H.T.W.

From Sir FREDERIC LEIGHTON, P.R.A.

_January 30, 1880._

"In regard to the women question, I perfectly _saw_ your

contention and the logical cohesion of your view, and I was

familiar with the Tresham episode, only I dissent from your

view; I maintain that there were from the first

non-Council-sitting members--for 'members' the women certainly

were. 'It is the King's pleasure that the following forty

persons be the original _members_ of the Society,' and they did

not serve on Council, as the roster shows, _though all members_

were supposed to have sat; of course the laws were for the

original as well as the elected members, and if the privilege

could be refused to an original member whose name stands on the

paper that says that all members shall serve in Council, it can

and must on the same grounds be refused to elected female

members after the custom is consecrated by Royal sanction."

_January 31, 1880._

"DEAR WELLS,--I should much like to hear what you wish to say

about the office of Treasurer--there are several points

connected directly or indirectly with the office which it will

be well to consider before I ask the Queen to appoint, and I

have called a Council for _Thursday_ (the funeral is not till

Tuesday), at which these matters may be considered. It would

seem advisable and convenient that the Treasurer's work be done

at the Academy, and not away from it. I think also that the

wording of the clause appointing a Surveyor might be made

clearer; it ought not to be _possible_ for any one to

misunderstand or misinterpret its bearing. Unfortunately I have

an appointment to-morrow afternoon at 4.30, and my work in the

day is so urgent, having to be handed over on a fixed day, that

I cannot leave it--would _Tuesday_ at _five_ do? say at the

Athenaeum, or here a little later? we should still be forty-eight

hours in advance of the Council. In regard to the women

question, I perfectly _saw_ your contention and the logical

cohesion of your view, and I was familiar with the Tresham

episode, only I dissent from your view; I maintain that there

were from the first 'non-Council-sitting' members--for 'members'

the women certainly were: 'It is Her Majesty's pleasure that the

following forty persons be the original _members_ of the

Society,' and they did not serve on Council as the roster shows,

though _all members_ were supposed to have sat. Of course the

laws were for the 'original' as well as for the 'elected'

members, and if the privilege could be refused to an original

member whose name stands on the paper, that says that all

members shall serve on Council, it can and must on the same

grounds be refused to 'elected' female members after the custom

is consecrated by Royal sanction.--In haste, yours very truly,

FRED LEIGHTON.

"I have said nothing in this letter about poor Barry, but you

may imagine whether the tragic event has moved and haunts me."

To Sir FREDERIC LEIGHTON, P.R.A.

_February 1, 1880._

I am very glad indeed to have the statement of your views which

you have given me on the women question. Everything is now

clear, side matters are disposed of, and only a single point

remains on which we have to join issue. On my part I hold that

our laws are in a definite and unequivocal form. That their

foundation is in the "Instrument" and that every addition to, or

modification, or annulment of the provisions in that document

has been made in the manner prescribed, viz. by "resolutions"

passed by the General Assembly and afterwards sanctioned by the

Sovereign. These acts of legislation are all drawn up in a

special way (as to size and pattern), to receive the sign manual

of the Sovereign; and the tablets arranged in the order of their

dates constitute our Statute-Book. I hold that no law can be

changed or privilege taken away except by a subsequent act of

legislation done in the prescribed manner.

On your part you hold that laws can be changed and privileges

taken away by a "custom consecrated by Royal sanction." Thus the

issue raised is very clear and distinct indeed.

I will point out that the question as to women sitting on

Council was only on one occasion, and then only incidentally,

before the Academy. Until the Tresham case arose the ballot had

been used in forming the Council, and consequently no question

of rights could appear while that process remained unchallenged.

But whether we are discussing a single act of adjudication, or

such a succession of acts as may be called a "custom," is really

immaterial, because the sole question before us is this--can any

act or acts other than those of legislation override and

supplant the enactments of our law?

If it could be established that our laws must give way to the

class of acts you point to, it would then be the first duty of

the Academy to have our records minutely searched to ascertain

what other laws have been supplanted by administrative actions

sanctioned by the Sovereign; and the historical method so much

discountenanced at our last Assembly would in truth rise into

paramount importance. Many cases would most probably be found.

We have one in suspense before us at this moment--the case of

the engravers.

The laws of the Academy distinctly provide (but not more

distinctly than that without discrimination "members" shall sit

on Council) that a vacancy in the case of R.A. engravers shall

not be filled up until the assent of the General Assembly has

been taken by vote. Since the making of that law only two

vacancies have occurred. They were both filled up without a

preliminary permission, and the Sovereign sanctioned the

election. On your contention, therefore, the custom consecrated

by these sanctions must override the law itself, and nothing at

this time stands between Barlow and the Queen's signature to his

Diploma.

The Constitutional question you have raised is certainly one of

the highest importance, and I shall watch its development with

great interest. It is a matter of little moment what the view of

an ordinary member like myself may be, but not so with the

President, and I offer no apology for endeavouring to throw

light upon the subject.

H.T.W.

[68] See Chapter III.

[69] Now in the Tate Gallery, purchased under the terms of the Chantrey

Bequest.

[70] The owners of Leighton's pictures must feel satisfaction, not only

in the fact that in all cases the beauty of the forms and arrangements

of line grow on the eye more and more the longer they are studied, but

also that the work itself improves by keeping. I noticed this to be the

case very decidedly in "Cymon and Iphigenia." I had seen it when

completed, the day before it left the studio in 1884; and when it

returned there in 1901 (the owner, Sir Cuthbert Quilter, having kindly

lent it for exhibition), and was placed in precisely the same light, I

was surprised to see how much it had improved in tone during those

seventeen years; it had gained so very greatly in those qualities which

suggest the feeling Leighton wished it to inspire.

[71] Leighton kept these precious studies he made for his pictures in a

drawer where I was often invited, rather apologetically, to turn them

over as if they were absolutely of no importance. I protested against

the cursory treatment they received at the hand of their creator; and

on seeing one superlatively beautiful study of drapery pinned on his

easel one day, I implored him to have it glazed and framed before it

ran any danger of being rubbed. He did so, and always alluded to it

after as "that sketch you lost for me," because, being framed, he lent

it to some one--he did not remember to whom--and it never came back.

Periodically I asked if it had returned; "No--some one, I suppose, has

taken a fancy to it," Leighton would reply. The pace at which he had to

live in order to fulfil the work he had set himself, enforced great

carelessness about his own interests in such matters. Unfortunately,

after Leighton's death, the sketches were exposed to much defacement, a

natural consequence of their being moved before being secured under

glass.

[72] Ceiling for a music room, painted for Mr. Marquand, New York.

[73] Mr. Brock gave a replica of this bust to the Leighton House

Collection in 1897. It is from some points of view the most

characteristic portrait of Leighton in existence.

[74] Miss Emily Hickey, the poetess, was inspired by Leighton's picture

to write the following lines:--

SOLITUDE

O'er the grey rocks, like monarchs robed and crowned,

High tower the firs in swart magnificence,

Where, winter after winter, vehemence

Of the wild torrent's rush, unstayed, unbound,

Hath scooped and worn the rocks till so profound

The deep pool's depth that all the gazer's sense

Fills with the absolute, dark-brown night intense.

The rapid current swirls, but never a sound.

By the high grandeur of the silence wooed

Into its bond of comradeship, the maid

Sits with the quiet on her bosom laid;

Not on the great unknowable to brood;

Only to wait a while till, unafraid,

She see the spirit of the solitude.

E.H. HICKEY.

_Oct. 26, '91._

[75] As portraits, the two heads Watts painted from "Dorothy Dene" were

superior to those Leighton painted.

[76] This referred to a joke we had had with reference to a photograph

Mrs. Cameron had taken of my brother-in-law, Mr. W.R. Greg. Mrs.

Cameron had insisted that all character, will-force, and superiority in

general, evinced themselves through the size of the nose and the height

of the bridge. The result was, in trying to accentuate this feature in

my brother-in-law's photograph, she had made it almost _all_ nose!

[77] Among Leighton's correspondence is the following interesting

letter from Irving, who was an ardent admirer of Leighton's, and was

among the first to join the committee formed to preserve his house for

the public.

15A GRAFTON STREET, BOND STREET, W.,

_January 1, 1889_.

DEAR SIR FREDERIC,--I am glad that you are coming to "Macbeth,"

and I wish you had been with us on Saturday.

The seats you wish for I enclose, though I should ever look upon

it as a great privilege to welcome you myself.

Ellen Terry's performance is remarkable, and perfectly

delightful after the soulless and insipid imitations of Sarah

Siddons to which we have been accustomed.

You will find the cobwebs of half a century brushed away.

There is an amusing article in to-day's _Standard_, which

overshoots the mark, and clearly shows how offensive it is to

some minds to be earnest and conscientious in one's work. But I

need not point this out to you.--Remaining, my dear Sir

Frederic, yours sincerely,

H. IRVING.

[78] Needless to say that time was invariably forthcoming to welcome

and entertain the friends he loved. The following letter from Costa

gives a picture of his delight in so doing:--

"LONDON, _Dec. 10, 1888_,

"2 HOLLAND PARK ROAD.

"DEAREST TONINA,--A thousand thanks for the twelve letters which

I have found awaiting me here.

"I have just arrived from the station, where I found the

President, who was shedding light all round him, all radiant

with his white beard. Note that the train arrived at a quarter

past five, and there was an hour's drive from the station to his

house, and then he had to dine, and at half-past seven he was

due at the Academy for a distribution of prizes to the students,

where I, too, was to have accompanied him. However, in London

there was one of those fogs which put a stop to all traffic, and

it took us an hour and three-quarters to reach home.

"The cabman had to get down and lead the horse; with one hand he

guided the animal, which was slipping on the ice, and with the

other he held a lantern. What darkness,--the gloom of hell

itself! Boys holding torches and shouting, showed us the way;

foot passengers called out, 'Hi there! look where you're going

to!' but, in spite of everything, the cabman with his lantern

banged into a railing.

"At last we arrived at our destination, having discussed all the

way along the speech which Leighton made at Liverpool. The

dinner was ready, and eaten hurriedly, with the obligatory

champagne. I had eaten nothing since the morning. Whilst dining,

I got off accompanying him to the Academy, pleading my rheumatic

pains, and I ate like a famished and attentive dog. But the

President, spite of the hurry he was in, never once ceased from

tracing the iron line along which I am to run as long as I am

with him, and so he has set me down for a trip on Saturday.

"Good-night; I am going to bed, as I am deadly sleepy. Did you

receive a letter of mine from Castle Howard?

"Thank for me the kind writers of the twelve little letters; in

the midst of these fogs they have been twelve stars to me. A

kiss to dear Tonachino. Frederic was much amused by Georgia's

letter, and embraces you all.

"Love to all, from Ninaccio, who has the greatest possible

desire to repass the Channel."--(See "Giovanni Costa: His Life,

Work, and Times," by Olivia Rossetti Agresti.)

[79] It may interest his friends to know that the valuable collection

of casts which Mr. Copland Perry spent four years in forming, after

visits to all the collections of ancient sculptures in Europe, has been

ceded to the British Museum, and will be transferred from the South

Kensington Museum, where it has long been hidden away in a dark

corridor, to suitable courts in the new buildings of the British

Museum.

[80] Professor Church's Lectures were given to the outer world beyond

the Academy in the form of a book, published in 1891, and dedicated by

permission to Leighton.

[81] The questions raised in these letters have been very fully

answered in the third edition of Professor Church's "Chemistry of

Paints and Painting" (see Index), published in 1901.

[82] This spot inspired the picture "Solitude."