July 1, 1896.] 



KNOWLEDGE. 



165 



preceding wave passed this point. The crest of the wave 

 broke, streams of water-drops flew out, streaking the back 

 of the wave and giving it a " ropy " look. This is not 

 actually shown, for it happened a second or two before the 

 time represented in the picture, but the painting is so good 

 that we can reason backwards from it. This ropy appear- 

 ance is seen on a small scale at a certain stage in the 

 splash of a falling drop, and is shewn in a drawing in 

 Mr. Worthington's admirable papers on that beautiful 

 phenomenon. The streaking of the back of the wave 

 indicates the presence of little ridges and furrows, which 

 (as well, perhaps, as the larger ridges and furrows due to 

 cross waves) give rise to a vast number of whirlpools on 

 the back of the breaking wave. The foam of the breaking 

 crest, left behind as the wave rushes on, is whirled round 

 in the vortices. The vortices are always formed in pairs, 

 each pair consisting of a right-handed and a left-handed 

 whirl. The foam is collected round the edges of the 

 whirls, and particiilarly where the whirls approach one 



(whether of water or nf snnil) which are forced at their 

 crest by the co-operation of a forward current and a back- 

 ward eddy, as is the case with the storm waves of the sea 

 and with ripple-mark in sand. The knife edge is shown 

 on the billows to the right hand of the picture in exactly 

 the proper way, for the artist has shown the sharp edge 

 without falling into the mistake of making the top of the 

 wave too thin. In a more distant part of the same billow 

 we see the spraying " white horses," just where the crests 

 of the cross waves give to the main billow a height too 

 great for its forward velocity ; and the upward as well as 

 forward motion of the spray is just indicated. In fact, a 

 mass of detailed observation has been accurately em- 

 bodied, and perhaps condensed, in this small picture, and 

 the result is far finer than that of any attempted emphasis 

 by way of exaggeration. When I look at this picture I 

 see the storm itself; and soon, as each true detail starts 

 out clear before me, I feel the stinging spray ard breathe 

 the rasping air. 



"Where the wild Atlantic surges Eush with headlong race to shore." 

 From tin' iiHtff-coUiii- j},iiiiti,i<^ )ni Mr. Jic'ihmJd Smith, in the ifoynl Acatiemii Ktrliitntion n/isog. ( Hy /rniil'pcrmijsion of tha Arli^^t.) 



another, and a thin transparent network (for the bubbles 

 have burst, leaving only a thin film) is formed, the meshe.s 

 of the net being oval, for the circles are drawn out into ovals 

 by the forward motion of the water. This, I think, is 

 how the floating film of foam assumes the characteristic 

 and wonderfully persistent form which is so well indicated 

 in Sir Francis Powell's picture.* Again, there is a ten- 

 dency to form a Imi/'e edge along the crest of all billows 



* Tliere is another point to be noticed about the effect of vortex 

 motion upon the appearance of water : it gives a stretched or oWs look 

 to flic surface ; probably, as luis been suggested to nu\ because the 

 surface is ieiie«ed from below toj rapidly for ripples to form. This 

 stretcfedlook is often noticeable on the back of the breaker, especially 

 in a ground swell, and it deserves the attention of sea painters. The 

 most familiar example of the appearance produi'cd by vortices is the 

 swirling wake behind a rudder. Anotlier example is the wake left 

 outside the edges of the i)addles of a steamer. A sharp edge intro- 

 duced in running water will geiu^rally give it. The effect may oft^n 

 \>e noticed also in a swirling river. 



Among the larger works in the adjoining rooms, 

 " Britannia's Realm, " by Mr. -John Brett, shows a great 

 stretch of blue sea covered with the little waves raised 

 by a light zephyr. The scale of the picture is a part 

 of its merit, for it is only by including a multitude of 

 waves upon the canvas that an artist can fully convey the 

 rhythmical effect of a repeating undulation. Mr. Vicat 

 Cole's " Pool of London," which is placed next to this 

 picture, gives a line rendering of the restless waters of a 

 tidal river where wind conflicts with current. " Their 

 Only Harvest," by Mr. Colin Himter, in the nest 

 room, brings out well the cross waves which generally 

 traverse the larger undulations of the sea. The ren- 

 dering of this effect, emphasized by a low light, ia 

 characteristic of this artist's pictures. Mr. G. H. 

 Andrews' water-colour drawing, " A Storm in the North 

 Sea," takes in only two of the great storm billows ; but 

 the flanks of these are themselves carved into waves of 

 a not inconsiderable size. The eflfect of a scjuall, with 



