394: ARIADNE FLORENTINA. 



of the summer stream being taken away to supply a single 

 mill,) I know, finally, what value the British mind sets on the 

 ' beauties of nature/ and shall attempt no farther the excite- 

 ment of its enthusiasm in that direction. I shall indeed 

 endeavour to carry out, with Mr. Ward's help, my twenty 

 year's held purpose of making the real character of Turner's 

 work known, to the persons who, formerly interested by the 

 engravings from him, imagined half the merit was of the en- 

 graver's giving. But I know perfectly that to the general 

 people, trained in the midst of the ugliest objects that vice can 

 design, in houses, mills, and machinery, all beautiful form 

 and colour is as invisible as the seventh heaven. It is not a 

 question of appreciation at all ; the thing is physically invisi- 

 ble to them, as human speech is inaudible during a steam 

 whistle. 



And I shall also use all the strength I have to convince those, 

 among our artists of the second order, who are wise and mod- 

 est enough not to think themselves the matches of Turner or 

 Michael Angelo, that in the present state of art they only 

 waste their powers in endeavouring to produce original pict- 

 ures of human form or passion. Modern aristocratic life is 

 too -vulgar, and modern peasant life too unhappy, to furnish 

 subjects of noble study ; while, even were it otherwise, the 

 multiplication of designs by painters of second-rate power is 

 no more desirable than the writing of music by inferior com- 

 posers. They may, with far greater personal happiness, and 

 incalculably greater advantage to others, devote themselves to 

 the affectionate and sensitive copying of the works of men pf 

 just renown. The dignity of this self-sacrifice would soon be 

 acknowledged with sincere respect, for copies produced by 

 men working with such motive would differ no less from the 

 common trade-article of the galleries than the rendering of 

 music by an enthusiastic and highly-trained executant differs 

 from the grinding of a street organ. And the change in the 

 tone of the public feeling, produced by familiarity with such 

 work, would soon be no less great than in their musical en- 

 joyment, if having been accustomed only to hear black Christys, 

 blind fiddlers, and hoarse beggars scrape or howl about their 



