Notl'ccs respecting Keiv Books. B3 



afaym-T/ard, probably of humble execution, but of sufficient 

 merit to attract his notice ; and he took evefy opportunity 

 of stealing from his father's side to contemplate the beauties 

 of this performance, which, in his eye, were of the highest 

 class. His father, catching him in one of these secret visits^ 

 corrected him : but this had little effect; he was soon again 

 at the door of the parlour, where being seen by the mistress 

 of the house, he was, by her interference, permitted to view 

 the picture without interruption. On his return home in 

 the evenings his first care was to procure canvass and colours, 

 and he immediately began to paint a resemblance of the 

 farm-yard. The next day he returned to the house, and 

 again in the evening; resumed his task at home* In this 

 manner, in the course of a few days, by the force of me- 

 mory on1y,he transmitted to his own canvass a very tolerable 

 copy of the picture. 



" Nearly by the same methods he copied a picture of se- 

 veral figures hunting, which he saw in the window of a 

 house-painter. In his copy, however, he had, in compliance 

 with the costume of his neighbourhood, placed a lumtress 

 upcm a pad instead of a side-saddle; and being laughed at for 

 this mistake, he some time afterwards destroyed his copy. 



" The love of painting had thus so thorouiihly established 

 its dominion over his whole mind, that nothing could now 

 divert him from engaging in it as a profession: his father, 

 however, still treated his attempts with great severity, 

 and used his utmost endeavours to check a pursuit, 

 which he considered as likely to prove injurious to his son's 

 future prosperity: but the aspiring views of the young 

 artist met with a zealous supporter in another part of his 

 family: his father's brother, a man of strong understand- 

 ing, and moreover an excellent arithmetician, continued to 

 view his progress with pleasure, and encouraged him in 

 his desire of karning, by jocularly complimenting him 

 with the name of the little Sir Isaac, in consideration of 

 the knowledge he displayed in mathematics. 



" He therefore followed his new studies with ardour, and 

 li.vl already attained a competent skill in portrait painting, 

 and had hung his father's house with the pictures of his 



F a family. 



