(f' 



256 



AUDUBON 



was quite a shock to my nerves; but I had an appoint- 

 ment at Lord Spencer's and another with Mr. Ponton ; my 

 thoughts cooled, I concluded to keep my appointments. 

 On my return I found a note from Mr. Vigors telling me 

 Charles Bonaparte was in town. I walked as quickly as 

 possible to his lodgings, but he was absent. I wrote him 

 a note and came back to my lodgings, and very shortly 

 was told that the Prince of Musignano was below, and in 

 a moment I held him by the hand. We were pleased 

 to meet each other on this distant shore. His fine head 

 was not altered, his mustachios, his bearded chin, his keen 

 eye, all was the same. He wished to see my drawings, 

 and I, for the first time since I had been in London, had 

 pleasure in showing them. Charles at once subscribed, 

 and I felt really proud of this. Other gentlemen came in, 

 but the moment the whole were gone my thoughts returned 

 to the colorers, and my steps carried me in search of 

 some ; and this for three days I have been doing. I have 

 been about the suburbs and dirtier parts of London, and 

 more misery and poverty cannot exist without absolute 

 starvation. By chance I entered a print shop, and the 

 owner gave me the name of a man to whom I went, and 

 who has engaged to color more cheaply than it is done 

 in Edinburgh, and young Kidd has taken a letter from 

 me to Mr. Lizars telling him to send me twenty-five copies. 

 June 19. I paid a visit to Sir Thomas Lawrence this 

 morning and after waiting a short time in his gallery he 

 came to me and invited me into his painting-room. I had 

 a fair opportunity of looking at some of his unfinished 

 work. The piece before me represented a fat man sitting 

 in an arm-chair, not only correctly outlined but beautifully 

 sketched in black chalk, somewhat in the style of Raphael's 

 cartoons. I cannot well conceive the advantage of all that 

 trouble, as Sir Thomas paints in opaque color, and not as I 

 do on asphaltum grounds, as I believe the old masters did, 

 showing a glaze under the colors, instead of over, which I 



