The Life of Jean Henri Fabre 



at you with their great, round eyes, is the Eternal 

 Father, Whose robe swells as though puffed out 

 with the storm. To the right of the window, in 

 the embrasure, is the Wandering Jew. He wears 

 a three-cornered hat, a large, white, leather apron, 

 hobnailed shoes, and carries a stout stick. " Never 

 was such a bearded man seen before or after," 

 says the legend that surrounds the picture. The 

 draughtsman has not forgotten this detail; the old 

 man's beard spreads in a snowy avalanche over the 

 apron and comes down to his knees. On the left 

 is Genevieve of Brabant, accompanied by the roe; 

 with cruel Golo hiding in the bushes, sword in 

 hand. Above hangs The Death of Mr. Credit, 

 slain by defaulters at the door of his inn ; and 

 so on and so on, in every variety of subject, at 

 all the unoccupied spots of the four walls. 



I was filled with admiration of this picture- 

 gallery, which held one's eyes with its great patches 

 of red, blue, green, and yellow. The master, how- 

 ever, had not set up his collection with a view 

 to training our minds and hearts. That was the 

 last and least of the worthy man's ambitions. An 

 artist in his fashion, he had adorned his house ac- 

 cording to his taste; and we benefited by the 

 scheme of decoration. 



While the gallery of halfpenny pictures made 

 me happy all the year round, there was another 

 entertainment which I found particularly attrac- 

 tive in winter, in frosty weather, when the snow 

 lay long on the ground. Against the far wall 

 stands the fire-place, as monumental in size as at 



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