BAR 



310 



BAR 



Harry. ever distinguished. We find Barry elected profes- 

 sor of painting in the royal academy ; yet quarrel- 

 ling with every one of his associates, accusing then 

 of cabals and conspiracies against him, holding them 

 up to the ridicule and detestation of his pupils, 

 and at length attacking them publicly in an intem- 

 perate invective, which reduced them to the neces- 

 sity of thrusting him from his chair a chair which, 

 with more temper, he might have filled with the high- 

 est honour to himself, and advantage to the art which 

 lie professed. We find him, after the pre-eminence 

 of his genius had been universally acknowledged, de- 

 prived of almost every friend, sunk in the lowest indi- 

 gence, scowling with malignity on mankind, whom 

 he in general regarded as active enemies, and stung 

 with the keenest torments of disappointed expecta- 

 tions, and mortified pride. To such a frantic height 

 did his fear of conspiracies reach, that he would not 

 keep a servant, lest the active malice of his enemies 

 should employ her as an instrument for his destruc- 

 tion. His house presented a picture of the most 

 complete wretchedness ; its walls sunk, and its win- 

 dows broken ; without even a bed that deserved the 

 name ; dirty, gloomy, and cold. Such a house seem- 

 ed to offer but little temptation to plunderers ; yet it 

 was twice broken into, and robbed of several hundred 

 pounds. The loss was made up to Barry by the mu- 

 nificence of the Earl of Radnor, and two gentlemen 

 of the name of Hollis ; but still his capital was too 

 small to enable him to procure a more comfortable 

 mansion. He had planned and begun a series of 

 paintings to represent the progress of theology ; but 

 his narrow circumstances, and the want of proper ac- 

 commodation, prevented him from proceeding with 

 this design. In this situation he attracted the atten- 

 tion and pity of the Earl of Buchan, who set on foot 

 a public subscription on his behalf, as the best mode 

 of relieving his necessities without wounding his pride, 

 which would probably have spurned at the idea of 

 accepting any boon from individual benevolence. The 

 subscription when closed amounted to about a jthou- 

 sand pounds, with which the friends of Mr Barry had 

 just purchased an annuity, when their benevolent ex- 

 ertions were rendered useless by his death, which hap- 

 pened on the 22d February, 1806. 



As an artist, Barry was distinguished by the gran- 

 deur of his conceptions, and the general magnificence 

 of his designs. Glowing with the enthusiasm of ge- 

 nius, and impressed with an early conviction of the 

 paramount importance of his art, he pursued, with in- 

 defatigable ardour, whatever could be made even re- 

 motely subservient to his professional improvement. 

 He beheld the face of nature v/ith the exquisite rap- 

 ture of a poet ; and while he contemplated its mag- 

 nificent or tranquil scenes, felt his mind expand with 

 the finest conceptions of grandeur and of beauty. He 

 read, with all the interest of a kindred mind, the works 

 of our most classical bards, and had completely digested 

 and appropriated whatever was most pleasing or exalt- 

 ed in their descriptions. But his favourite study was his- 

 tory, which presented to his discriminating eye, all the 

 varieties of character, action, and passion, and furnish- 

 ed valuable hints for his direction in the high style of 

 historical painting. The monuments of Grecian sculp- 

 ture, which he contemplated in Italy with almost ido- 

 latrous admiration, led him to the study of mytho- 



logy^ hi which he acquired the skill and taste of an 

 accomplished critic. And his early education, aided 

 by the religious subjects of the Italian paintings, gave 

 his mind so strong a bias for theology, tha,t there was 

 scarcely a fact in its history with which he was not 

 acquainted. All these accomplishments were consi- 

 dered by himself as mere auxiliaries to his art ; and 

 their advantage is sufficiently apparent in his paint- 

 ings, which, however deficient in correctness and exe- 

 cution, are allowed by all to be almost unrivalled in 

 the sublimity of idea, and vast reacli of thought ex- 

 pressed in their design. But his varied acquisitions 

 appear with still more admirable effect in his writings, 

 which contain more acute and able criticisms on the va- 

 rious styles and productions of the great masters in 

 painting, and more judicious rules for the practice of 

 that art, than any work of the same kind that has ever 

 been given to the world. How much is it to be regret- 

 ted, that such an artist had not been enabled, by the 

 independence of his circumstances, to follow out, 

 without distraction, his own magnificent ideas ; or 

 that the sternness and irritability of his temper pre- 

 vented him from reaping the full advantage of his su- 

 periority ! In justice to his character, however, we 

 must observe, that though thus repulsive and irascible, 

 he was by no means deficient in the better qualities 

 of the heart. He was susceptible of the warmest 

 friendship ; and had not his mind been soured by de- 

 pendence and misfortune, might have been a clteer- 

 ful and engaging companion. His honesty, his can- 

 dour, and his sincerity, were proverbial ; and his de- 

 sires were so moderate and well regulated, that he 

 could submit, without repining, to privations, which 

 few men in polished life could even sustain. 



His principal paintings were, a picture of Adam 

 and Eve, Venus, Jupiter and Juno, and the paintings 

 in the great room in the Society -of Arts. His writings 

 are, Lectures on Painting ; Observations on different 

 Works of Art in France and Italy ; Fragment on the 

 Story, and Painting of Pandora ; An Inquiry into the 

 Real and Imaginary Obstructions to the Acquisition 

 of the Arts in England ; A Letter to the Dilettanti 

 Society ; An Account of a Series of Pictures in the 

 Great Room of the Society of Arts, &c. ; A Letter 

 to the President, Vice Presidents, and the rest of the 

 Noblemen and Gentlemen of the Society for the en- 

 couragement of Arts, &c. See the Works of the 

 late James Barry, Esq. with a sketch of his life pre- 

 fixed, (i) 



BARSALLI, a kingdom of Africa, on the river 

 Gambia, inhabited by the Jaloffs. This kingdom is 

 not mentioned by Durand, in his enumeration of the 

 different kingdoms on the north and south banks of 

 the Gambia, and must therefore be included in some 

 other state. See an account of Barsalli in the Mod. 

 Univers. Hist. vol. xiv. p. 10}-. See also Durand's 

 Voyage to Senegal, chap. iv. (to) 



BARTER, or Bahtah, in Arithmetic, is the 

 method of finding the value or quantity of one com- 

 modity which is to be given in exchange for another. 

 Qu stions of this kind arc solved either by the Rule 

 of Three, or Practice. 



l'.xam. 1. How many yards of broad-cloth at 

 17s. Cd. per yard must be given in exchange for 

 360 yards of linen at 3s. 6d. per yard ? 



Since the value of the two commodities is supposed 



Barter. 



