382 Strutt’s Delicie Sylvarum. 
we feel confident, and stake our credit on the assertion, that 
the tree in question, if not an actual portrait, has at least its 
prototype in nature, and is not a mere invention of the artist 
manufactured in his painting-room in Duke Street. If we 
mistake not, Mr. Strutt is more of an out-of-doors artist than 
some of his fraternity ; we mean that he is in the habit of 
sketching much, and even painting, in the open air. From a 
close and repeated inspection of his works, both on canvass 
and on copper, we apprehend that he studies Nature above 
and before all other models, and looks upon her as a surer 
guide to excellence than even the best of the old masters. 
