234 APPENDIX. 



&c. &c, I think he would be compelled to admit 

 that he had undertaken a task which would at least 

 require time and patience for its completion ; but if, 

 in addition, the said person was to be removed to a 

 distance, so that the artist could only see him with a 

 powerful telescope, and had to follow his motions as 

 well as he could, and be content to catch a glimpse of him 

 crossing his field of view now and then, according to the 

 humour and good pleasure of the said individual, I 

 think the worthy limner would begin to think that after 

 all there was some difficulty to contend with. 



Now this case I conceive to be an exact parallel to 

 that of drawing living objects with a microscope. 



Their incorrigible restlessness so baulks and baffles the 

 artist, that he is frequently compelled to lay down his 

 pencil to regain his lost temper, and fresh courage to 

 proceed : in many cases his best resource is to study the 

 object till he has got all its features by heart — then to set 

 them down on paper — study again, and gradually cor- 

 rect them : by the time he has made half a dozen rough 

 sketches he will get pretty near the truth : he may then 

 commence a regular drawing. I can safely say that I 

 have drawn many of my objects five or six times over 

 before I could arrive at my portraiture. I have heard a 

 great deal about shutting one's eyes after having made an 

 observation, and drawing from the impression left on the 

 retina. This, I suspect, is better in theory than in prac- 

 tice, and it is evident that, unless the object is stationary, 



