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view of Mr. Street, though I do not stop to enquire whether, like 
Sir Gilbert Scott, he has transgressed the rules concerning restor- 
ation which he has himself laid down, though Sir Edmund Beckett 
accuses him of plaster-skinning and other enormities and crimes. 
But taking his dictum as it stands to mean that no artistic work 
should be touched at all, it is certainly a safe standpoint, and, 
besides, I suppose no reasonable being, except Mr. Stevenson, 
would quarrel with Mr. Street for his desire to replace in their 
original situations objects of interest and beauty improperly re- 
moved. 
But two questions arise, first, whether this limited theory of 
restoration is sufficient to meet and satisfy the aims and the argu- 
ments of the the restorationists, and, secondly, whether it is 
absolutely unlawful, as Mr. Street appears to contend, to touch 
original carving, sculpture, and painting at all. Now, I boldly 
answer both these questions in the negative, and state my own 
idea to be that, while all donxa-fide work, by all artists, whether 
known or unknown, and of whatever age, whether Saxon, Edwardian, 
or Georgian, should be left in its original condition as much as 
possible : still, occasions do arise when restoration is absolutely 
necessary either for preservation or general effect. For instance, 
in the damp climate of England, and the trying atmosphere of 
London, pictures, gilding, and sculpture must from time to time be 
cleaned. There really is no alternative. And when the operation 
has to be performed, the duty of the local authority is to see that 
nothing more is done than the requirements of the case demand, 
Works of art also often require restoration, not by way of renova- 
tion, but by replacement of some feature which may be missing, 
and thus the general effect is entirely marred. Thus, for example, 
it is not wrong, in my opinion, to give back a nose or a hand to a 
statue which may have been deprived, either wilfully or accidentally, 
of these useful and ornamental members. This practice was pursued 
wholesale by the great men of the 16th century, including Michael 
Angelo ; and provided the addition be made by artists, and not by 
contractors, I can see no objection. But in a matter like this it is 
impossible to draw any hard and fast line as to where to begin and 
