LETTEE TO F. T. PALGKAVE 203 
A letter of June 27 to his cousin, Francis Turner Palgrave,^ 
whose inherited interest in art and art-criticism had displayed 
itself very early, deserves passing reference as showing Hooker's 
sustained interest in pictures as well as music. The letter is 
too long to quote save for a few personal passages. Palgrave, 
the younger by seven years, had won a scholarship at Balliol 
in 1842. Now ' the reappearance of some quondam Scotch- 
men, who return hitherward with good Scotch seriously 
damaged through long continued unsuccessful attempts to 
speak English,' reminds him that Francis is to be congratulated 
on the beginning of the summer vacation ; but it was Francis 
who had the credit of ' breaking the ice that has frozen up the 
current (ever sluggish) of correspondence that runs (creeps) 
between us.' 
I heartily wish that you would come down to this place 
before I go. You would I am sure enjoy it extremely, for 
it is a most liveable place, with plenty to see and admire 
in the neighbourhood. The only exhibition that I have 
seen was one of Scotch artists, open, or rather which shut 
on the day of my arrival ; it was very bad as far as Scotch 
performances were concerned ; some Stanfields, Turners, 
Landseers, and young Phillip's ' Borrow ' were far the 
best things in the room. 
Next he speaks of ten of the prize cartoons for the decoration 
of the Houses of Parliament, which had been shown two years 
before in Westminster Hall. These were now exhibited in 
Edinburgh in connection with a proposed book of lithographs. 
He criticises them as if Francis remembered all about them, 
which very likely is not the case ; noting the relation of the 
best among them to the Hampton Court cartoons, of which no 
one in Edinburgh knew anything ; and quoting the story of 
the best picture if the least original, Caractacus led through 
Rome, namely, that the artist studied a lion's head to pourtray 
the British Captive's from. 
Of Old Masters he could show his cousin the collection at 
Dalkeith, where ' the place is very badly kept, but the scenerj 
^ See family pedigree^ p: 18. 
