1324-.]^ Tour in Search of the Pici 



Jiiijlily amused in the idea of antique 

 jfowiis and Itrocade finery; however, in 

 the enjoyment of :ini;ic!it discoveries, 

 siie and her c()m()ai!iotis arc suddenly 

 apprized, hy an elderly matron, who is 

 more deeply interested, that this is not 

 a proper time for dressin<j and fixing 

 upon the hidden treasures of antiquity. 

 The artist has drawn many incidents, 

 and interwoven many curiosities. 

 Clater's liJcridiig; Lecture does not seem 

 to be relished: were Redection to read 

 morning- LecUires to most of us, we 

 should han^ down our heads too. 

 There is isovelly and interest in Willier- 

 int(ton's Picture Gallery ; and Newton's 

 Monsieur de Po7irceaugnac is charac- 

 teristic. Leslie's scene from that rich 

 luimourist Don Quixote, representing 

 Sancho in the Apartment of the Duchess, 

 is a truly high and comic composition. 

 Of its class, we consider it to stand 

 first, in colour, ijroupitij;, arrangement, 

 and decision ; the Spanish beauty, the 

 crabbed duenna on her right, the gig- 

 gling waiting-women, the proverb- 

 lovjng squire, the duchess and her 

 trilies, create as excellent a [)iece of 

 mirth as we ever laughed at during our 

 Leing. 



Wedged in one body like a flight of 

 cranes, Hurlstone's Michael and Satan 

 contending for the Body of RJoses, is a 

 muscular eirort, which brings to our 

 mind an old, but vnlgar, ejticnialion, — 

 * Pull baker, pull devil.' Rut si riously, 

 this contending of two angels, (he one a 

 fallen angel, is a struggle which confers 

 credit upon the painter. JJippingille's 

 Stage Coach Passengers is dtscriptive ; 

 who that has travelled remembers not 

 the tricks at an inn, of being attacked 

 by the halloo, before the foul has been 

 forked, or the ham spread .' w.'io dois 

 uot, in spite of hiing<r, hear ' the coach 

 is going!' a cry which admits of time 

 only to discharge (he price of snjiper, 

 and a fee to the sly ostler. The pangs 

 of parting, and iIk; smiles of meeting, 

 are depicted «ith natural truth, warm 

 feeling, and praiseworthy skill. No. 

 263 is a highly-finished painting; A 

 Highland Clan escorting the lieaalia of 

 Scotland, by l)jgli(on. Not less clever 

 is No. 18.5, repr(^senting a party of Evg- 

 lieh Travellers attached by Bmdilti on 

 the Road to Rome. May we never be 

 cx|)osed to so furious an attack, or be 

 obliged tr> defend it: we like the dc- 

 picling in preference to the reality, 

 desirous 

 * To shun our death, (ill Iltav'n our dculh 



d'_'cr«>e.' 

 MoMHLY Mac. \i). 397. 



uresque at the Royal Academy. 4-95 



Mulready has distinguished his pencil 

 at the expense of a Widow, who is ready 

 to throw her weeds aside and husband 

 them no longer. ' Why should she go 

 mourniug all her days ? ' Yet the artist 

 tells us that, 

 ' So mourned the dame of Ephesus her 



love.' 

 Slie smiles to accept the new offer of a 

 matrimonial alliance at the shrine, 

 greatly to (he surprise of her (laughter 

 and an elderly guest. If widows are 

 so forgetful of the past, as here de- 

 scribed, we must be ' content as bache- 

 lors to live,' or insure our slamina at 

 the centenary ofiiee. As the Quaker 

 said to Milton of Paradise Regained, so 

 we would say to Mr. Mulready, Next 

 year show us how ' mourned tho 

 widowers of Ephesus their loves !' A 

 View of Dedlington, Noi'folk, by Bayley, 

 is a fine landscape. Cal cot's View of 

 Rochester ; and Naysmitli, senior's. 

 View of Edinburgh, are equally natural. 

 Out of 1037 specimens, 547 are por- 

 traits ; as long as weallh preponderates 

 over historical interest, so long will this 

 portraiture mania coutimie fashi.onabIe : 

 differing from many of our contempora- 

 ries in this respect, we do not see why 

 the Duke of Devonshire, or the Duchess 

 of Gloucester, or even our own impor- 

 tant physiognomy, should not be deemed 

 as w orthy of a place as that of an old 

 racer, or group of puppies. We pro- 

 pose that a gallery be erected forthwith, 

 for the exhibiting other parts of the head, 

 than the face, namely, for the students 

 in craniology and phrenology. This 

 might be called liie " Bumping Aca- 

 demy." We doubt not the associates 

 would be numerous, and the plan suc- 

 ceed with the credulous disciples of the 

 marvellous phenomena of 1824. But 

 whom have we here? It is a Portrait 

 of the Widow of the Martyr Riego. 

 Singularly sweet and amiable, she wears 

 a plaintive expression, and gives us a 

 high opinion of her worthiness. What- 

 ever deOcieucy this year's collection 

 shows in history, fable, portrait, and 

 nunialure, sculpture does not fall off in 

 proportion. Chantrey's full-length sta- 

 tues arc fine. Flaxman's Pastoral 

 Apollo is classic, and beautifully simple. 

 Behnes has worked the infant son of 

 Mr. T. Hope into perfect polish and 

 loveliness. Most of the busts are clc- 

 verly done. Several of the leaders con- 

 tinue to beautify marble, r.nd make 

 'even the hIoiics cry out.' The wax 

 and mcdnllic portraits by Roiiw and 

 Morison, are excellent in tUoir kind. 

 3 S Several 



