I 



FtNE ARTS. 263 



into Calais harbour. SKe is so near as to constitute a large fore-ground, 

 or rather fore-water, object, occupying the centre, in, what sailors term, 

 *' the chops^' of the haven, and within hail of the pier, which lies beyond 

 her to the left, in the middle distance. The vessel and her crew are 

 artially in broad shadow, or tender half-tints, well kept together, and 

 aving no sails set, she is finely relieved from a mass of white clouds 

 rising above the horizon and beautifully flickered up the clear blue sky. 

 The detached forms of these snowy clouds, as they ascend, like silvery 

 fleeces, are painted with a lightness of pencil and sparkling lustre, which 

 must suff*er by any description. On the right side, shipping are under 

 sail in the offing. The dark masses on the vessel, and those in gradation 

 on the sea and pier, are large and eflfective ; and the sailors in varied and 

 spirited action, particularly the one, in a fore -shortened front-view, 

 stooping down over the side. 



This arrival is well chosen, and the artist has done it and himself 

 ample justice. He has not crowded his canvass with a multiplicity of 

 claims, and, thereby, lessened the interest of each. The objects are few 

 and cleverly treated ; a principal and subordinates, each setting off" the 

 other, and maintaining its proper distance and character. The waves 

 are of an open, picturesque form ; of a transparent hue, and in dancing 

 motion. They remind me of a line of Dr. Young's, in his '* Ode to 

 Ocean," in which the waves "dance on, in measure, to the shore." 

 The execution is of a standard quality, firm and solid, but sufficiently 

 free, without the slightest tendency to that bane of art, a flourish of the 

 pencil, to attract the ignorant by a false show of manual spirit. These 

 tricks, like clap-traps from brainless actors in the theatre, are rarely 

 resorted to by artists, who are conscious of better claims. The colour- 

 ing is vivid ; but the brightness of that lovely blue sky is so balanced 

 and toned by transparent sober tints, or mellow shades on all beneath the 

 horizon, that it presents the aspect of a fine summer day and a favourable 

 breeze in shore, with a brilliancy, freshness, and truth, which are 

 absolutely exhilarating. With all this beauty, it has a peculiar attraction 

 in its pure originality of style. Not a touch reminds you of any ancient 

 or modern master. As we stand before it, we think of nature, without 

 any reference to art, but that which affords us so unalloyed a gratifi- 

 cation. 



" 27— The Cow-yard," a small cabinet painting, by J. Linnel. On the 

 left side, a cow is seen in a field, through an opening close to the upright 

 trunk of a huge pollard. A man, carrying the milk pails, followed by 

 his dog, is entering the yard. A woman, milking near him, is almost 

 lost in shade, and, evidently, grown black, by a change in the colours. 

 A white cow occupies the centre, and a man, beyond her, is busy at the 

 door of the cow-house, which stands behind. These, with some cocks 

 and hens, on the right side, form the principal materials of the picture. 

 Every part is composed with great care, and elaborately finished. The 

 works of this very clever artist are justly valued in many distinguished 

 collections, and their fine truth of nature has often afforded me high 

 pleasure. He has always evinced a strict attention to the details of close 

 wood-land and farm scenery ; and one could see that his sketches were 

 selected in his walks with a discriminative eye. With what a simple 

 charm he has painted, and can paint, the hoary elm scathed by lightning, 

 or the aged oak, half-stripped of its bark, and branching out its giant arms 

 in picturesque variety. Not many artists can paint with more fidehty an 

 earthy bank, shaded by a few trees, enriched with mosses, herbage, clumps 

 of stone, a fallen log from the woodman's axe, a plash of water for the 

 cattle, and the cottage or farm-house, with its irregular hedges and half- 



NO. IV. 2 M 



