478 
tunity of feeing. It s tothe liberal efta- 
Blifhments and encouragements of the 
juftly-lamented Duke of Bedford that the 
Public in fome degree owe the perfection 
of Mr. Salmon’s procefs. His Grace*hav- 
ing, in exchanging his eftate in Houghton 
Conqueft, near Ampthill, in Bedfordfhire, 
with the Earl of UpperjOffory, determined 
on pulling down the almoft ruined man- 
fion of Houghton-houfe, which fteod upon 
it, charged Mr. Salmon with the execu- 
tion of the work. There was on the curved 
plafter-cieling of the great flair-cafe, a 
painting confifting of twelve perfons, pro- 
bably the twelve Apoftles, reprefented as 
looking down over a baluftrade, and in 
the center was a dove, furrounded by a 
glory ; and on removing the wainfcoting 
of the great hall, there was difcovered 
over the chimney-place a picture about 10 
feet wide by 6 feet high, of a fportf{man 
fhooting with acrofs-bow, painted on the 
plaftering of the wall of the chimney. 
This piéture being in tolerable preferva- 
tion, and the colours remarkably fine, a 
with was exprefled to Mr. Salmon that it 
might, if poffible, be preferved. Mr. 
Salmon, after much confideration, con- 
trived the procefs which he afterwards 
communicated to the Society for the En- 
couragement of Arts, and fucceeded, by 
carefully feparating and taking down the 
bricks and ftones of the chimney, in de- 
taching this large fheet of plafter, and the 
painting thereon, without deranging it ; 
and after clearing it of the plafter, he ap- 
plied it, with very little diminution of its 
dimenfions, or injury to the painting, toa 
canvas ; in which ftate it now is in the 
poffefiion of the Earl of Upper Offory, to 
whom it was afterwards prefented. 
Mr. Salmon likewife fucceeded in de- 
taching and fixing on a feparate canvas, 
without injury, moft of the twelve figures 
on the curved plafter of the cieling, and 
on a fiat or ftretched canvas. One of 
thefe was exhibited to the Society before- 
Mentioned, and five of them remain now 
in Mr. S2]mon’s pofleffion. Mr. Salmon 
foon after applied his procefs to transfer. 
ring paintings from old pannels of wood ; 
and he transferred a head of Queen Eliza- 
beth from an oak-board, which he met 
with in four pieces. This he alfo fent, 
on the 12th December, 1796, to be exhi- 
bited to the Society. After that a head of 
Chrift from a board; the latter picture 
having been exhibited on the board, and 
again when transferred tothe canvas. 
Juftice to an individual, and the Soci- 
ety who patronifed and firlt publifhed this 
> 
‘ > 
Pigures Tra*sferred.—Corrections on Lancafbire. { Jan. 1, 
invention, has induced me fo trouble you 
herewith, and I remain, Sir, your’s, &c. 
‘ JOHN FAREY. 
Crown-fireet, Weftminfter, : 
11th Dec. 1802. 
Ee 
To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
Obferve, in the Provincial Occurrences 
of your laft Magazine, an extract from 
a Defcriptive Sketch of Lancafhire, which 
appears to me in feveral refpeéts fo futile 
and-erroneous, that I think 1t may not be 
improper to beftow fore correction upon 
it. To begin with the enumeration of its 
inhabitants. — The writer might eafily 
have known, from the Parliamentary re- 
turns, that, inftead of 425,000, Lancathire 
contains upwards of 672,000 ; yet that it 
is not (as he affirms) inferior in po- 
pulation to Middlefex alone 5 Yorkthire 
poficfiing a greater number of inhabitants, 
though not, indeed, in proportion to its 
magnitude. His praife of the county, as 
a delightful and fertile diftriét,” will 
not be received without large abatements 
by one well acquainted withit. In faét, 
it is one of thefe which, in refpeét to foil 
and climate, are among the lealt favoured 
by Nature ; and this circumftance, by 
making land cheap, and the people induf- 
trious, has been a principal caufe of its 
commercial profperity. The ‘* great ex- 
tent of coaft”’ is unfortunately mentioned 
in connection with its populoufnefs, fince 
the fea-coaft is the leaft populous part, 
the town of Liverpool excepted, and its 
fea is little favourable either to navigation 
or fifhery. Its rivers are very imperfect- 
ly navigable; and its canals have been 
rather the confequences of its acquired 
wealth, than the caufes of that acquilition. 
The chief natural advantage it poffeffes is 
its inexhauftible plenty of fuel; and this 
has been, and ftillis, {ufficient to overba- 
lance many difadvantages. With regard 
to the writer’s lamentation over the fup- 
pofed negleé of agriculture in this county, 
mothing can be more inconfiderate. The 
preference of paiturage over tillage is ju 
tified by the wetnefs of the climate, by 
the prefent dearnefs of labour, and by the 
greater eafe of fupplying grain from fo- 
reign markets, than hay, milk, butter, 
and butcher’s meat. Lancafhire, with its 
modern population, mu? lock to diftant 
fources for the greatelt part of its provi- 
fion, and it is wife to import, rather than 
cultivate, thofe articles which are moft 
readily procured and conveyed from a dif- 
tance, It is idle to imagine that ne 
{hE 
