200 FINE ARTS. 



British artist. What a glorious triumph this for the British school, if 

 placed in the national gallery ! 



** 19 — Throwing the Casting Net,^' by J. R. Lee. — This is a picturesque, 

 but rather a close, woody scene ; with well-drawn figures ; a felicitous 

 execution ; a touch in the foliage, trunks of the trees, grounds, and 

 every other object, free but firm, and full of character, without anything 

 hard or laboured, or vague or spongy ; and with a mellow breadth of 

 verdure combining the true local colour and freshness of English 

 scenery with a noble sobriety of tone. It is evidently not a work of 

 imagination, but a truth from nature, told without swagger or pretension, 

 without a stroke too little or too much, and without a Jlaiv. At first 

 glance I took it for a production by Henry Lines, and from the resem- 

 blance of style, I cannot avoid, perhaps, an erroneous surmise, that the 

 two artists must have studied together, or that one has been a pupil of 

 the other. '* 154 — The River Dart — Summer," by the same artist. This 

 is, also, a woody scene, but darker, more extensive, and romantic, with 

 admirable figures ; and a Ruysdael-like flow of water inviting the eye 

 to wander and the mind to muse. The verdure is shadowy and solemn, 

 but with all the delicious freshness of English landscape ; and the handling 

 unites everything essential to a vigorous freedom with all that is excellent 

 in truth. What a source of inspiration for a poet ! What a study for a 

 painter ! What a banquet for an enthusiastic lover of nature ! What 

 a jewel for a collector of the beauties of British art I These are the two 

 first works, which I have seen from this artist's pencil ; and they leave 

 nothing to be wished for in their class. 



T. Baker has the following very charming landscapes : — " 33 — Hollo- 

 way, near Hales Owenj'' "44 — In the Leasowes j" "77 — View on the 

 river Leam, in Warwickshire j" ** 113 — Landscape with Cattle, near 

 Leamington j" " 126 — Ivy Bridge, Stoneleigh ;" and " 149 — Scene at 

 Battersea." In the happy choice of his subjects, the crispiness, delicacy, 

 and sweetness of his penciling ; the mild chastity of his tone ; the calm, 

 clear, unclouded breadth of his light; the depth and repose of his shade ; 

 and the brilliancy of his general eflfect, this artist's style so closely resembles 

 that of Creswick, the admirable Creswick, that, at first view, I thought 

 these were the works of the latter. I can give Baker's performances no 

 higher praise than to point out this similarity. Yet they do not betray 

 the smallest trace of that servility or tameness, which marks the manner 

 of an imitator ; they have all the pure and beautiful spirit of originality. 

 "110—^4 Brook Scene,'* and " 112— J Wood Scene," by this artist, 

 hang close to *' 109 — A Landscape — Morning," by Creswick ; and "111 

 — A Street Scene near Llangollen," by the same. The four little gems are 

 very small, nearly of the same size, and in the sparkling lightness and 

 vivacity of the penciling, are equal to the most admired small landscapes 

 by Velvet Breughell ; but, in chastity of colour and tone, they possess a 

 beauty which the Flemish master never reached. A visionary might 

 suppose the soul of Creswick had entered into Baker ; or of Baker into 

 Creswick. Which is the master or scholar ? What is their age ? Or 

 whether they ever studied together, or not, are matters of which I know 

 nothing. 



ITie above are only a few of the excellent landscapes and city views 

 contained, with three or four exceptions, in the great room, without my 

 selecting from the other three rooms, which are, also, rich in fine land- 

 scape specimens. 



Among the fancy subjects in the great room, I can mention only the 

 following, being a few of those, which claim particular notice : — *' 12 — 

 The Travelling Tinman," by C. jR. Leslie, R,A. Two girls are surprised 



