312 The Evolution of Art. 



Florence, representing the realities of a local hell-fire as fol- 

 lows : " A huge figure of Christ clad in robes of deep blue 

 and red, and displaying his pierced hands and feet, is the 

 prominent object; above him is a representation of the 

 Almighty as an old man in a red frock with a carefully 

 trimmed beard holding the book of life ; on each side are 

 attendant cherubs and seraphs. Beneath the Saviour is the 

 scene of the resurrection ; angels are helping the good to 

 rise from out of their tombs on his right hand, while on his 

 left great green devils with bat-like wings are eagerly pulling 

 sinners from their graves. Satan, as a huge monster of like 

 color, is seen sitting in the center of hell munching human 

 beings ; on either side of him are serpents and hideous imps 

 pursuing the damned, who escape their fury only by plung- 

 ing into lakes of fire. Above the infernal regions the 

 apostles and saints sit in stiff rows with books in their hands, 

 while archangels lead the saved in crowds to join them." 

 And this was a fair illustration, adds the author, of Floren- 

 tine art and theology in the thirteenth century. 



Let it not for a moment be supposed that any word here 

 spoken is to be taken as ignoring in any degree the true 

 school of realists in literature and art. Homer, Shakespeare, 

 Dickens, and all the noble names in literature were in a 

 true sense realists, if by realism be meant a faithful repre- 

 sentation of the incidents and circumstances of the world 

 about them ; but it is the crowning glory of Dickens that in 

 no single paragraph of his voluminous writings has he found 

 it either desirable or necessary to pander to the meretricious 

 taste ; and the name of Howells, among American realists, is 

 equally suggestive of clarity and a sound mind. Mark it 

 well, friends : when a teacher of the public heart and mind 

 begins to discuss with himself the decency of the scene or 

 illustration which he is to employ, he is in the same situation 

 with a holder of public office who finds himself splitting 

 hairs as to the right or wrong of some proposed official action. 

 In the one case as in the other, the only safe course to be 

 pursued is to put under his feet with a lofty scorn the 

 questionable proceeding, disenthrall his mind and heart from 

 the ignoble temptation, and walk resolutely forth into the 

 clear, still air where conscience breathes, and where the holy 

 promptings of his truer and better nature find a responsive 

 audience. 



And now, without in any sense, either complete or incom- 

 plete, having demonstrated how art has grown to be what it 



