446 Mr. H. E. Statham [June 4, 



for drinking from, and when not in nse to stand inverted on its 

 spreading rim, and its whole form precisely suggests this. Let some 

 manufacturer, ambitious of novelty, j)lace the handles as shown in 

 Fig. 22, and the beauty of the thing is gone because its fitness is 

 gone ; the handles are in the way when using it, and it will not stand 

 either way up. Take, again, the Japanese method of decorating a 

 door, now so much in fashion, by painting on the jjanels a tree-form, 

 which disappears under the framing and re-appears in the next panel 

 (Fig. 30). This is an absolute contradiction of the facts of the 

 construction of the door, in which each panel is a separate piece 

 enclosed and held by the framing ; whereas this way of decorating 

 makes the framing appear as something laid over the whole and 

 hiding part of the drawing. If it is considered piquant to treat the 

 panels irregularly, at least each one should appear as a separate 

 design (Fig. 29), and then they may be kept in their place (decora- 

 tively) by a simple treatment of the framing in lines following and 

 emphasizing the lines of construction. In this case the line ornament 

 is arranged so as exactly to denote the method of framing and the 

 length of each j)iece, the side rails going right through to the top and 

 the cross one being fixed between them ; but this may be carrying 

 "truth" a little farther than necessary. In any case, the panel decora- 

 tion probably looks best when symmetrically arranged in relation to 

 the centre of the panel (Fig. 31), rather than when treated irregularly ; 

 but fashion decides otherwise at present. Another example of the 

 conflict of fashion and true taste is in the Chippendale chair 

 (Fig. 33). This "ribbon-backed" chair was Chippendale's special 

 pride ; he said that he believed a better chair had never been made, 

 and as far as the construction went he was probably right ; and as far 

 as design is concerned we may add that a worse one was never made. 

 The festoons of ribbons in the back are utterly weak and unmeaning, 

 and unsuited to the material and the position, and the scrolls which 

 touch each other in the top rail and the legs present points of mani- 

 fest weakness (in appearance) just where there ought to be strength. 

 The chair by Sheraton (Fig. 32) is, though simple, a thoroughly well- 

 designed one ; the ornament is all applied so as to emphasize the 

 lines of construction and give strength where it is required, the broad 

 portion of the top rail is placed where it is needed for the back, the 

 bend outwards of the foot is not only graceful in effect but operates 

 in giving the chair a broader and firmer base. But both these chairs, 

 though utterly different in principle and taste, are now offered and 

 accepted indiscriminately as good furniture, merely because they both 

 belong to a period the productions of which are in fashion at present. 

 Lastly, it may be observed that no ornament ought to appear to 

 contradict or ignore the laws of nature. We have a common style 

 of ceiling ornament in the Queen Anne period, which is being much 

 copied now, in which festoons seem to hang all round from a central 

 ornament (Fig. 28). Now, as the festoon form is produced by the 

 action of gravitation, which, as far as we are concerned, operates 



