To Ka\o"v. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014 / https://archive.org/details/memoirsofsirjosh01nort £ni)rtUfJ f>Y Jtohcrt Cooper livni a Dniwi/ii/ hy John Jat-kson IWithal Jiuic x^'^jfii? by Jfjciiry CeUiuyi ('o?iduit Street J.ciideii . MEMOIRS OF SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS, KNT. LL.D. F.R.S. F.S.A. &c. LJTE President of the royal academy. COMPRISING ©rigmal ^nertotes; OF MANY DISTINGUISHED PERSONS, HIS CONTEMPORARIES; AND A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF HIS DISCOURSES. TO WHICH ARE ADDE1>, VARIETIES ON ART, BY JAMES NORTHCOTE, ESQ. R. A. LONDON: PRINTED FOR HENRY COLBURN, BRITISH AND FOREIGN PUBLIC LIBRARY, CONDUIT-STREET, HANG VER-SQUASE AND SOLD BY GEORGE GOLDIE, EDINBURGH ; AND JOHN GUMMING, DUBLIN. 1813, 1 Jamrs Gillet, Primer, Crown-court, Fleet-street, London. PREFACE. My attempting to write the Life of so illustrious a man as Sir Joshua Reynolds — a task which Burke declined and Malone has not performed — a work, also, so formidable in my own view of it — may require some apology for such presumption ; but the truth is, that I was drawn into it by degrees, as we commonly are to all the sins we commit. I had at first written a short Memoir on the subject, at the earnest request of a friend, which was received with marks of approbation. I had also collected many little anecdotes, which I was told were worth preserving ; and at length was persuaded to make the present attempt, or rather, I may say, pressed into the service. PREFACE. Another motive to my undertaking this subject was, that some of the circumstances which I had to relate might help to clear Sir Joshua, in respect to the unwarranted ideas, many persons have entertained, that he was not the author of his own Discourses, and that also in his youth he was particularly illite- rate. That the latter is far from the truth may be seen in the Letter from him to Lord E-^ , which is demonstrative of a delicate, elegant, grateful, and feeling mind ; and is written with admirable simplicity of language. Familiar letters by Sir Joshua are, however, very scarce : he was too busy and too wise to spend his time in an occupation ^vhich is more congenial to the idle and the vain, who are commonly very voluminous in their production of this article. With respect to the anecdotes which I have inserted in these Memoirs, some few of them, I hope, may be f^ratifying to the Artist ; others may amuse the leisure PREFACE. hours of my reader; some of them, I must acknow- ledge, are trifling, and may not do either : but I have given all I could recollect, and would not make myself the judge by selection, especially when I reflected, that minute particulars are frequently characteristic, and that trifles even are often amusing, when they relate to distinguished persons : therefore I felt unwilling that any memorial, iiowever slight, should be lost, as would inevitably happen, in a very few years. It is my fixed opinion, that if ever there should appear in the world a Memoir of an Artist well given, it will be the production of an Artist ; but as those rarely possess an eminent facility in literary compo- sition, they have avoided the task ; and the labour of writing the lives of Painters has been left to depend solely on the skill and ingenuity of those who knew but little concerning the subject they had undertaken, inconsequence of which their work is rendered useless and insipid. PREFACE. I sensibly feel that some parts of these Memoirs may be judged tedious, some parts weak, and other parts not sufficiently connected with the original subject; but I was not so competent a judge of my own work as to make the proper selection : and I also apprehend that, in a variety of readers, some will be pleased with what others will despise, and that one who ])resumes to give a public dinner must provide, as well as he is able, a dish for each particular palate ; so that if I have given too much, it is at my own risk, and from an earnest desire to satisfy every one. The miscellaneous papers which accompany these Memoirs were the result of my leisure moments : some of them have already appeared in print, and have been approved of beyond my expectations ; which has induced me to collect them into this volume, and to add considerably to their number. Some few of the following pages which have been before the public were given under a feigned character; these retain their original form without any alteration. PREFACE. The subject of these Essays may perhaps be con- sidered, in a great degree, as of a confined nature ; - although I have attempted to treat it frequently in such a manner as I hoped might afford some small amusement to the general reader. In order to explain my meaning with more distinctness, I have given opinions in respect to the arts under a variety of views, and endeavoured to convey the best advice in my power, in such a manner as to appear least dicta- torial, for I do not presume to be a teacher : however, if they shall prove to be worth the consideration of any persons, they will be best suited to those who are connected with the study of the Arts. In respect to the volume on the whole, if I should say,by way of excusing its imperfections, and to screen myself from severe censure, that it was composed in my idle hours, to relieve my mind when pressed by the difficulties of my profession, and therefore ought to be looked upon with a favourable eye, it would be asked, " Why I should, with any pretence PREFACE. to modesty or justice, suppose that my idlings will, in any degree, occupy the attention, or contribute to the amusement, of an enlightened public?" And if, on the other hand, I declare that it has cost me infinite pains and labour, and that I now humbly and respectfully offer it to the experienced world as the very utmost I could produce, after all my most earnest endeavours, it may then very reasonably be said, that I ought to have performed my task much better, as the effect is by no means answerable to such labour and effort. Under these considerations, therefore, I shall say no more on this subject; but calmly submit the work to the animadversion of the public, and rest perfectly satisfied witii their decision, as on the verdict of the purest jury, and one from whose judgment there can be no appeal. tVILL OF J. N C mTHC OTE, ESQ. (From the Observer.) The will of this deceased Teteran and eccentric artist has been proved in Doctors' Commons, and a very extraordinary document it is. It first directs that his body shall be kept uniulerred as Ion); as it can be suffered, to prevent the possibi> .lity of being byiried aliv«, and to be inspected by some com- petent surt^eon. He desires to be buried either in the vauU under the New St. Alarylebone Church, near to his late triends Air. Cosway and Aliss B^olh, or in St. Paul's Ca. thedral, near his late lamented friend tind master, Sir Joshua Reynokis. He directs Francis Chantrey, K.A. and sculptor, will execute a fit and proper monu> -ment to his memory, for which he orders his cxe. outers to pay 1,00U/. ; and tbe same artist to execute a mouument for the deceased's brother, Samuel North, cote, to be placed in St. Andrew's Church, Plymouth, at an expense of 200/. He sta-es, that he has completed the inanuscript, and executed the designs, for a second set of 100 fablas, in continuation of the first, which he is desirous should be published as speedily after the death of his sister as may be; and he directs that not less than 1,000/. or more than .1,400/. shall be expended out of his personal estateii, on en graving and publishinf^ such fables ; and he requests that Mr. Edmund Southey ilegcrs, one of the King's Messengers, will superintend the publication thereof. He desires his executors, William iiillman, Joseph Hawker, and Newbold Kinton, will look over his manuscripts, and therefrom select such as in their judg. ment are of importance to his memory and character, and destroy all the rest. He leaves his house in Argyle-place to his sister rent free, for her life ; and if she should not wish to live there, his executors are to let the same for her benefit on lease for seven years. Plate, linen, china, household goods, and furniture, and all and sinj^ular the pictures, prints, books, and personal estate in Argyle-placc, to his sister, Mary Northcote, for her life ; and after her decease, furniture, linen, and chins, or such of them as shall then remain . (but not pictures, books, or plate), to his servant, Elizabeth Gilchrist. After the deiith of his sister, he gives to Sit Stafford Henry Northcote, of Pyncs, in the county of Devon, Baronet, and his heirs for ever, all the pictures of the North, cote family, his bust by Uononie, the two manuscript volumes of the " Account of the Northcote F*mily ;" the two volumts of " Public Characters," by Cadell and Davies ; the " Life of Sir Joshua Reynolds ;" and the Portfolio, containing hi* Di- plomas from the Royal Academy ; a volume of birds, by his father and brother, all to be placed in the library at Pyncs. To his friend, William IJiliman, of Arpjle-street, 50 volumei of books, such as he may i)lea8c to select out of his library, after the doath ef his nister. To Joseph Hawker, Esq., Richmond Herald of Arms, two pictures he may choose, except the Northcote family, and 30 volumes of books, aficr Hillman has choten his. The residue of his estate to hit exe- cutors in trust, to pay dividends and annual preceeds to his said tister, for her lite, and after her de'ith, to invest in their own names 1,250/. in the Three per Cent. Annuities upon trust, to pay the interest to his late faithful servant, Char, lotte Gilbert, during her life, and after her death to such pir»0D8 as she may appoint. The said trustCLS, after thi; death of said sister, to retain to themselves the following le- y iCifiSy viz* ' I William Hillman £1,500 Joseph Hawker 600 Nswbold Kinton 2(K> And to pay likewise the following lC(;acies : — Eliz. Gilchiist, duty free - 1,600 Mrs. H iwke', wife of Jo- seph HawKer — • 100 Ailair Hawkins IdO Prnice Hoare 100 Sir W. Knixhton, Bart 100 Lady Kiiinhton 10 i jMmts Carrick Moore, of Caiwell, Scotland 100 Mrs. Mooru, his wife 100 Capt. J. Raijtersfeld, R.N. 100 Annabtlla Plutntree JflO AValter Roc 100 William GGdwin ILO £. Peter Coude IdO .lames WarJ, the artist loll lehn Jackson, R.A 106 Philip Rollers, landic.ipe paintsr 100 Abraham Johns 100 Thomas Copeland 1(,0 J. T.Tylor, late editor of the Sun ion Naihanitl H-ward 100 William Hazlilt Ion Abraham Wyvill. artist 100 Bdm. Rogers, Kin^'s messcn- k-er •••56 if these pcrsoas be living af:er the death of h\% sister. To the Jlinister aqd Churchwardens, for the time being, of St- An- drew's, Plymouth, 200/. duty free, to be invested, and the in. terest to be laid out in bread and meat to the poor of the s.iid parish. In a sec«nd codicil he leives Mary Wilsfbrd, wife of Peter Wil»ford, 500/. duly free.Thomas Lister Parker, 105/., aud any one picture he may i-elect, not before c'^osen. Tho. mas Poynder,of Christ's Hospita1,any oncother pic;ure not be- fore cho8e.ii : residue to his executors. Personal property under .25,000/.— considerably less ifaan, from the penurious habits of [Mr. Northcote, bis friends expected. MEMOIRS OF SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. The last century may be said to have formed an era in the progressive refinement of the British empire in all matters of taste ; an era from whence future historians will date our advancement in the arts, and our rivalry of the most polished nations. In the early part of that century, however, so weak and puerile were the efforts of almost all our native professors, particularly in the A rt of Paintings as to reflect equal disgrace on the age and nation. Philosophers, poets, statesmen, and warriors, of unquestionable eminence, were our own ; but no Englishman had yet added the praise of the elegant arts to the other glories of his country, and which alone seemed wanting to fill up the measure of British fame. This remark- able deficiency in the efforts of genius in that department, B 2 MEMOIRS OF may, in a great degree, have arisen from the want of sufficient encouragement — a natural consequence proceeding from the customs and manners of the preceding ages. What the fury of Henry the Eighth had spared at the Reformation, was condemned by the Puritans, and the Arts, long disturbed by civil commotions, were, in a manner, expelled from Great Britain, or lay neglected in the sensual gallantry of the restored court of Charles the Second : nor were its hopes revived by the party contentions that immediately followed and wholly occupied the attention of all men, rendering them unfit to relish, and without the leisure to protect, the fine arts. In illustration of this, I may add- the observation of an excellent author, that no set of men can have a due regard for the Fine Arts who are more enslaved by the pleasures arising from the grosser senses than from those springing from, or connected with, reflection. The interests of intemperance and study are so opposite, that they cannot exist together in the same mind, or, at least, in such degree as to produce any advantages to the agent. When we indulge our grosser appetites beyond what we ought, we are dragged to contrition through the medium of anguish, and forego or violate that dignified calmness of the system which is only compatible with an honorable ambition — the sorceries of Circe, or the orgies of Bacchus, cannot administer or infuse efficient inspiration to intellects debauched by unhallowed fervor ; such as sink under their influence, may, indeed, be negatively contented with their ignorance of the value of superior merit, but will never exert their ability for, nor pant with the desire of being enviable, happy, or renowned. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. s The period at length arrived in which taste was to have its sway ; and to seize and improve the favorable opportunity, pre^ignted by the circumstances of the times to one possessed of superior talents and ardour of mind, was the fortunate lot of Sir Joshua Reynolds : yet, notwithstanding that he carried his art so much beyond our expectation, and has done so much, we cannot but lament that he was not more frequently called upon to exercise his great genius on subjects more suitable to so enlarged a mind. It is worthy of remark, that the county of Devon has produced more painters than any other county in England ; whilst, at the same time, it must be noticed, that till very lately there were fewer collections of pictures, of good ones, at least, in that county, than in any other part of England of an equal space. Of that county was Thomas Hudson, the best portrait painter, of his day, in the kingdom, and famous for being the master of Reynolds ; also Francis Hayman, the first historical painter of his time ; and Mr. Cosway, R. A., Mr. Humphry, R. A., Mr. Downham, Mr. Cross, all eminent in their pro- fession. Of that county also, was Sir Joshua Reynolds, eminent in the highest degree; this illustrious painter, and distinguished ornament of the English nation, the subject of the following memoir, being born at Plympton in Devonshire, on the 16th of July, 1723. It has been noticed as not unworthy of record, that this event took place about three months before the death of Sir Godfrey Kneller, which hap- pened on the 27th of the succeeding October, as if thus B 2 4 MEMOIRS OF perpetuating the hereditary descent of the art ; and preceding biographers are correct in stating that he was on every side of his genealogy connected with the clerical profession, as both his father and grandfather were in holy orders, besides having a paternal uncle, John, the elder brother of the family, who was a canon of St. Peter's, Exeter, and held a fellowship of the College at Eton ; to this latter, Exeter College in Oxford is much indebted for the bequest of a very valuable library, and a considerable part of his fortune, of which it became possessed by his death in 1758. There is a mezzotinto print of him scraped by Mr. Ardell, from a portrait painted by his Nephew, now in Eton College ; besides which, it is recorded that his maternal grandfather was in orders, who had to his wife the daughter of the Reverend Thomas Baker^ a most eminent mathematician of the seventeenth century, and one to whom the Royal Society were, on several occasions, par- ticularly indebted. This gentleman was the son of Mr. James Baker of Ilton in Somersetshire, who lived in great respectability, and was steward for the extensive estates of the family of Strangeways in Dorsetshire. Thomas was born at Tlton in 16*25, and at the age of fifteen, entered a student of Magdalen, at Oxford, from whence he was five years afterwards elected scholar of Wadliam College, in which situation, in the year 1645, he pj c ved his loyalty by the performance of some little service for King Charles I. in the garrison of that city. In 1647 he was admitted A. B. but quitted ttie university without com- pleting that degree by determination ; and having taken orders, he was appointed Vicar of Bishop's Nymmet, in Dor- SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 5 setshire, where he resided many years in studious retirement. Here he applied himself assiduously to the study of mathe- matics, in which he made a most extraordinary progress ; but was totally unknown and unvalued in his obscure neighbour- hood, until 1684, when he published his famous " Geometrical Key" in quarto, and in Latin and English. The Royal Society now became ambitious of possessing the result of the labours of his learned life, and having, in particular, but a short time before his death, sent him some difficult and abstruse mathematical queries, he returned an answer so extremely satisfactory, that they voted him a gold medal, with an inscription dictated by the deepest sense of respect. This venerable mathematician died in 16'90, and was buried in his own church at Bishop's Nymmet. Joshua Reynolds was the son of the reverend Samuel Rey- nolds and Theophila his wife, whose maiden name was Potter ; he was the seventh of eleven children, (five of whom died in their infancy,) and it has been said by Mr. Malone, that his father was prompted to give him his scriptural appellation, in hopes that such a singular, or at least uncommon name, might, at some future period of his life, perhaps, be the means of attracting for him the patronage of some person with a similar prefix. The good man's intentions, if the circumstance were a fact, were indeed never literally fulfilled ; but instead of that, had he lived, he might have seen his son become an honour to his country. I do not know on what evidence Mr. Malone gives this account concerning the introduction of the name of Joshua 6 MEMOIRS OF into the family, but this I know, from undoubted authority, (having seen it in Sir Joshua's own hand-writing, and there- fore shall insert it, as it serves to controvert this very impro- bable story, which otherwise would altogether be unworthy of notice) that it is certain that Sir Joshua had an uncle, whose christian name was Joshua, and dwelt at Exeter, and who was his Godfather, but not being present at the baptism of his nephew, was represented by a Mr. Aldwin ; the other godfather being a Mr. Ivie ; and that his godmother was his Aunt Reynolds of Exeter, represented also by proxy by a Mrs. Darly. Mr. Malone is in general very correct, but not in the circumstance he has related as above. I hope to be excused in being thus minutely particular, as it serves to prove a fact. The register of Plympton, however, has, by some negligence or inaccuracy, deprived him of this baptismal name ; for in that record it appears that he was baptized on the 30th of July, and he is styled " Joseph son of Samuel Reynolds, Clerk." It is difficult to account for this error in any other way than that which Mr. Malone has given, by supposing that the name was written originally on a slip of paper in an abbreviated form — " Jos. son of Samuel Reynolds," and was at a subse- quent period entered erroneously by the clergyman or clerk of the parish. The maintenance of this family of six children was a tax sufficiently heavy on the slender income of the father who possessed no other resources than those which he derived from the living of Plympton, and the grammar school annexed SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 7 to it ; the whole amounting to a very small sum : for the church was only a Windsor curacy, and he was so ill calculated for the management of a school, that notwithstanding his possessing a high character for learning, its number was, before his death, literally reduced to one solitary scholar. Yet this mortification, which might have overpowered a more irritable temper, the good old man bore without any dejection of spirits, and he continued as much as ever beloved and respected for the variety of his knowledge, his philanthropy, his innocence of heart, and simplicity of manners. Young Reynolds is said to have been for some time instructed in the classics by his father, who was very assiduous in cul- tivating the minds of his children, but as it is known that the son did not display any proofs of classical attainments in the earlier part of his life, it is most probable that the mass of general knowledge, by which he was at a later period so emi- nently distinguished, was the result of much studious applica- tion in his riper years. A correct classical scholar, however, he could not be considered in any part of his life. That he was what the world terms a genius, and of the first order, cannot be disputed. He possessed talents of the highest kind which he brought into full and constant action by a laudable ambition, the ardent desire of acquiring eminence in the pro- fession which he had adopted. It has been ignorantly said, that his father intended him for the church and sent him to one of the universities where he received the degree of Master of Arts. This erroneous notion probably arose from his subsequent honorary degree of 8 MEMOIRS OF LL. D. I have, however, heard him say that his father at first intended him for the practice of physic ; and that, if such had been the event, he should have felt the same determination to become the most eminent physician, as he then felt to be the first painter of his age and country. Indeed it was ever his decided opinion, that the superiority attainable in any pursuit whatever, does not originate in an innate propensity of the mind to that pursuit in particular, but depends on the general strength of the intellect, and on the intense and constant application of that strength to a specific purpose. He regarded ambition as the cause of eminence, but accident as pointing out the means. It is true that, at an early period of his life, he made some trifling attempts in drawing from common prints, but this cannot be considered as any proof that his faculties were more particularly fitted for the study of the arts than for any other, although it has been brought forward as such. The same thing has been done by ten thousand boys before him, and will be done by thousands yet to come, without any of them ever becoming great artists. Such dis- plays of childish ingenuity are the most common refuge of idleness, in order to escape from the labour of a loathsome task ; they have the double recommendation that they are not enjoined by command, and that they are more easily performed with credit to the young candidate for applause as they are not likely to be scrutinized by any competent judge of their merits. There is now one of these very early essays, in the possession of the family, a perspt.^tive view of a book case, under which his father has written, " Done by Joshua out of pure idleness." SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 9 It is on the back of a Latin exercise. No wonder it should appear like idleness to his father ; doing that which you are not required to do, and neglecting to do that which is con- sidered as your duty, will of course look very like idleness, and partake of it in a certain degree. Notwithstanding those little checks from the father, he no doubt perceived that he had raised himself in the opinion of his parent, which gave him encouragement to go on ; and it is allowed by his biogra- pher, that his father, who was himself fond of drawings, and had a small collection of anatomical and other prints, was pleased with his son's efforts. We are also informed from the same authority, that his elder sisters had likewise a turn for the art before him, and that his first essays were made in copying several little sketches done by them ; he afterwards copied various prints he met with among his father's books, such as those in Dryden's edition of Plutarch's Lives, and became particularly fond of the amusement. But Jacob Cats' book of Emblems was his great resource, a book which his great grandmother, by the father's side, a Dutchwoman, had brought with her when she quitted Holland. Young Reynolds had accidentally read the Jesuit's Per- spective when he was not more than eight years old, a proof of his capacity and active curiosity. He attempted to apply the rules of that treatise in a drawing which he made of his father's school, a building well suited to his purpose, as it stood on pillars. On showing it to his father, who was merely a man of letters, it seemed to strike him with astonishment, and he exclaimed, Now this exemplifies what the author of the ' Perspective' asserts in his preface, — that by observing the c 10 MEMOIRS OF rules laid down in this book, a man may do wonders ; — for this is wonderful."* The surprize he excited, and the praise he obtained, natu- rally inflamed his ambition to surmount greater difficulties in a field of knowledge in which, from the ignorance of those about him in the graphic art, he seemed to stand alone. From these attempts he proceeded to draw likenesses of the friends and relatives of his family with tolerable success. Richard- son's Theory of Painting was now put into his hands, where he saw the enthusiastic raptures in which a great painter is de- scribed ; and it is no wonder that he thought Raffaelle (as he himself has said) the most extraordinary man the world had ever produced. His mind thus stimulated by a high example, and constantly ruminating upon it, the thought of remaining in hopeless obscurity became insupportable to him. It was -this feeling which more and more excited his elforts, and in the end produced those works which have established his reputation on a lasting basis. t It should be remembered, that * Of this school, an engraving accoinpunies this work, done from an original picture by Prout, a native of Devonshire. Tlie school itself is one of the best in the county; it was erected in l664, by Sir Jt)hn Maynard, one of the trustees of Elizeus Hall, Esq., of Cornwood, near Plyniontii, who gave £1500 per annum to such uses. •f- Dr. Johnson, in his Life of Cowley, saysj "That in the windows of his mother's apartment, (Cowley's) L^y Spenser's Fairy Queen, in which he very early took delight to read, till, by feeling the charms of verse, he became, as he relates, irrecoverably a [joet. Such are the accidents which, sometimes remembered, and perhaps sometimes forgotten, produce that particular designation of mind, and propensity for some certain science or employment, which is commonly called SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 11 at the time he read Richardson's Treatise, he could know nothing of ll.iffaelle but from the praise bestowed upon him ; mere verbal criticism could evidently give him little insight into the particular beauties or genius of liafFaelle as a painter: but the enthusiastic admiration of the writer kindled a spark of the same generous flame in his own breast, and urged him to pursue the same path of gloVy, because it was the first that opened itself to his view. I have ventured to deliver these opinions the more freely, because I know them to have been his own, and that, if they are not received as the truth, no one has ever yet been able to prove that they are false. Sir Joshua Reynolds's notions on this subject have, notwithstanding, been sometimes mistaken, and his reasonings have been therefore charged with incon- sistency. He never meant to deny the existence of genius, as this term denotes a greater degree of natural capacity in some minds than others ; but he always contended strenuously against the vulgar and absurd interpretation of the word, which supposes, that the same person may be a man of genius in one respect, but utterly unfit for, and almost an ideot in, every thing else, and that this singular and unaccountable faculty is a gift born with us, which does not need the assist- ance of pains or culture, time or accident, to improve and perfect it. genius. The true genius is a mind of Inrge general powers, accidentally delerinined to some particular direction. Sir Joshua Reynolds bad the first fondness for l}is art excited by the perusal of Richardson's Treatise.' C 2 12 MEMOIRS OF As he had shown so early an inclination towards the arts, a neighbour and friend of the family (a Mr. C ranch) advised the father to send his son to London, to be placed under the tuition of Mr. Hudson, a well known painter of portraits, who was also a native of Devonshire. This advice was followed, and Hudson's consent being obtained, young Reynolds was sent to receive instruction from his preceptor : with this view he first visited the capital on the 14th of October, 1741, when he was not quite eighteen years of age ; and on the 18th of that month, the day of St. Luke the patron of painters, was placed with his instructor. In order to give the reader some idea of the state of the arts at that time, it must be observed, that Hudson was then the greatest painter in England ; and the qualification that enabled him to hold this decided pre-eminence, was the ability of producing a likeness with that kind of address which, by the vulgar, is considered as flattering to the person. But after having painted the head, Hudson's genius failed him, and he was obliged to apply to one Vanhaaken to put it on the shoulders and to finish the draperj'^, of both which he was himself totally incapable. Unluckily Vanhaaken died, and for a time Hudson was driven almost to despair, and feared he must have quitted his lucrative employment : he was, however, fortunate enough to meet with another drapery-painter, named Roth, who, though not so expert as the former, was yet sufficiently qualified to carry on the manufactory. Such were the barren sources of instruction at the time when SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 13 Reynolds first came to London to be inspired by the genius of Hudson ! It should be remarked, however, of Hudson, that though not a good painter himself, yet out of his school were produced several very excellent ones, viz., Reynolds, Mortimer, and Wright of Derby, who at that time formed a matchless triumvirate. Yet it appears that Hudson's instructions were evidently not of the first rate, nor his advice to his young pupil very judicious, when we find that, probably from pure ignorance, instead of directing him to study from the antique models, he recommended to him the careful copying of Guercino's draw- ings, tbus trifling his time away ; this instance serves to show the deplorable state of the arts at that time, in this country : however, the youthful and tractable pupil executed his task with such skill, that many of those early productions are now preserved in the cabinets of the curious in this kingdom ; most of which are actually considered as originals by that master. He could not escape, indeed, without the ordinary fate of excellence, that of exciting jealousy even in the breast of his master ; who, as it is related, having seen an head, painted whilst he was yet a pupil, from an elderly female servant in the family, in which he discovered a taste superior to that of the painters of the day, foretold the future success of his pupil, but not without feeling, and afterwards displaying, in his behaviour to his young rival, some strong symptoms of that ungenerous passion. When young Reynolds first came to London, he was sent 14 MEMOIRS OF by his master to make a purchase for him at a sale of pictures, and it being a collection of some consequence, the auction-room was uncommonly crowded, Reynolds was at the upper end of the room, near the auctioneer, when he perceived a con- siderable bustle at the farther part of the room, near the door, which he could not account for, and at first thought somebodj'- had fainted, as the crowd and heat were so great. HoM'cver he soon heard the name of " Mr, Pope, Mr, Pope," whispered from every mouth, for it was Mr. Pope himself who then entered the room. Immediately every person drew back to make a free passage for the distinguished poet, and all those on each side held out their hands for him to touch as he piassed ; Reynolds, although not in the front row, put out his hand also, under the arm of the person who stood before him, and Pope took hold of his hand, as he likewise did to all as he passed. This was the only time that Reynolds ever saw that great moralist. — Pity that Pope had not known the future importance of the hand he then received in his own ! The above anecdote I heard from Sir Joshua himself. Reynolds continued only two years with his master, in which time he made so rapid a progress, that the picture of his painting, already noticed, having been accidentally seen in Hudson's gallery, it obtained so universal a preference, that the preceptor immediately grew doubly jealous of his pupiPs excellence, and on that account they soon afterwards parted. Reynolds returned to Devonshire, where he is said, by his biographer, to have dissipated the three following years, making little effort and as little improvement, to the great SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 15 disquiet of his conscience afterwards. Yet it is well known, that during the period here spoken of, he produced a great many portraits, particularly one of a boy reading by a reflected light,* and several others which are undoubtedly very fine, as he himself acknowledged on seeing them at the distance of thirty years ; when he lamented that in so great a length of time he had made so little progress in his art. If it is true, therefore, that he really lamented his loss of time in that interval, it arose most probably from a regret that he had not sooner established himself in London, v4iich he always con- sidered as the proper field for the display of talents : and it was, besides, his early and fixed opinion, which might add to his uneasiness on this subject, that if he did not prove himself the best painter of his time, vvhen arrived at the age of thirty, he never should. At the period thus fixed upon by himself, there can be little doubt that he had, at least, surpassed all his competitors. At that interval of supposed negligence, I apprehend he was still making his observations on what he saw, and forming his taste ; and although there were but few works of art, as I have before noticed, within his reach in that county, still there were the works of one artist, who, notwith- standing he was never known beyond the boundary of the county in which he lived and died, was yet a man of first rate abilities ; and I have heard Sir Joshua himself speak of this painter's portraits, which are to be found only in Devonshire, with the highest respect : he not only much admired his talents * Tliis painting, fifty years afterwards, was sold by auction for thirfy-five guineas. Some portraits of the noble family of Abercorn are also very coiieclly stated to have brought him into considerable notice at the above period. 16 MEMOIRS OF as an artist, but in all his early practice evidently adopted his manner in regard to painting the head, and retained it in some degree ever after. This painter was William Gandy of Exeter, whom I cannot but consider as an early master to Reynolds. The paintings of Gandy were, in all probability, the first good portraits that had come to his knowledge previous to his going to London ; and he told me himself, that he had seen portraits by Gandy that were equal to those of Kembrandt, one, in particular, of an alderman of Exeter, which is placed in a public building in that city. I have also heard him repeat some observations of Gaudy's, which had been mentioned to him, and that he approved of; one in particular was, that a picture ought to have a richness in its texture, as if the colours had been composed of cream or cheese, and the reverse to a hard and husky or dry manner.* Mr. Reynolds and his two youngest unmarried sisters had now taken a house at the town of Plymouth Dock, in which he occupied the first floor, and painted various portraits, some of which evince great capacity, although necessarily embarrassed by the want of practice and executive power. That of himself from which the print was taken, accompanying this work, was executed at this period. He now began to be employed, much to his satisfaction, as * At the end of this Memoir will be found some biographical notices of William Gandy. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 17 by a letter which, at the time, he sent to his fcither, who resided at Plympton, he acquaints him with some degree of exultation, that he had painted the portrait of the greatest man in the place — and this was the commissioner of Plymouth Dock yard. Soon after this he lost his father, who died on Christmas- day, 1746. This gentleman, the Reverend Samuel Reynolds, as has been before observed, was eminent for his learning and moral character, to which he united such innocence of heart and simplicity of manners, that he has often been mentioned as another parson Adams. He was also what is called an absent man. The following instance was related by an inti- mate friend of his, as occurring on a visit which the old gentleman once made him at his house, about three miles from Plympton, the place of his own residence. When Mr. Reynolds set out from his home on horse-back, he rode in a pair of gambados, that is, a large pair of boots of a peculiar make, very heavy, and open at the outside, so as easily to admit the legs of the rider, and which were thus attached to the saddle. When the old gentleman arrived at his friend's house, it was observed to him that he had only one gambado: " Bless me!" said he, "it is very true, but I am sure that I had them both when I set out from home and so it proved to be, as the lost gambado was afterwards found on the road, having dropt from the saddle and his leg without his perceiving the loss of it. It has been also said, that he was somewhat remarkable for his taciturnity. His wife's D 18 MEMOIRS OF name, as I have already mentioned, was Theophila, and thence, in order to avoid superfluous words and questions, whenever he would choose to drink tea or coffee, he told her, " "When I say The, you must make tea ; but when I say Offy, you must make coffee. This, however, if it did take place, must have been merely as a jest upon his own harmless foible. It may seem unlikely that the early success of Sir Joshua Reynolds should, in any measure, have been connected with the politics of the times ; yet nothing is more true, for not- withstanding his own wishes to visit Italy, the mother and nurse of the arts, still that event might not so soon have taken place, had it not been for some occurrences, which, being so considerably instrumental to the gratification of his desire, even thence possess sufficient importance to be recorded here, as well as from their relating to the earliest and most firm friend Sir Joshua ever had. During his residence at Plymouth he first became known to the family of Mount Edgecumbe ; who warmly patronized him, and- not only employed him in his profession, but also strongly recommended him to the Honourable Augustus Keppel, then a captain in the navy, and afterwards Viscount Keppel. This officer not having been paid off at the peace of Aix la Chapelle, which took place in 1749^ was now about to be employed on a service in which all the characteristic qualities of his mind were, for the first time, eminently called forth. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 19 He had indeed long distinguished himself, as well by his spirited activity as by his agreeable and accommodating manners, and at the same time, although still a very young man, displaying the greatest firmness when either his own or his country's honour was at hazard. At this period the long warfare in which almost all Europe had been engaged, had given ^opportunities to the commanders of the various Barbary Corsairs to renew their depredations on the neighbouring states, and that too without paying attention to the protectiou of any flag whatsoever. Some of these depredations had even been committed on the English flag, which were in some measure submitted to ; for though these states were even then well known to be neither powerful nor rich, rendering it thereby easy to compel a cessation of hostilities, or to purchase an ialliance, yet it had been our policy to consider it "as not very safe or prudent, either to show to an indigent race of barbarous pirates that they had it in their power to exact tribute from a warlike nation like Great Britain, or to engage in war with a people who might, in some measure, be even protected by their very weakness, — a people upon whom no reprizals could be made, and whose armaments, such as they were, could be renewed, as often as they were annihilated, with much less inconvenience than we must have suffered in destroying them. - Under these circumstances they continued, during the early part of 1749, to infest the seas and coasts of the Mediterra- nean ; when the Pope ordered out all his gallies under Monsieur 20 MEMOIRS OF de Bussy, to put a stop to their insults, if possible. The Genoese too, once so powerful as a maritime nation, were now actually unable to oppose those barbarians at sea, and were reduced to the prudential measure of merely placing guards along their coast, in order to prevent their landing, as they had done in several other places, committing the greatest devast- ation. They were at length, however, able to furnish three gallies, which they fitted out and sent to join a force collected at the particular instance of his Holiness, consisting of four gallies armed by himself, and two ships of war contributed by the Grand Master of Malta, with two xebecs and four large settees from some of the other powers. Instead, however, of exerting themselves in defence of Chris- tendom, this armament permitted eleven Algerine ships to alarm the whole coast of Naples, where they had proceeded in hopes of seizing the king whilst he was employed in pheasant- shooting in the island of Procida ; a design, however, in which they were frustrated, though their insolence was now roused to such a pitch, through impunity, that they became totally regardless of all treaties, and pushed some of their cruizers into the Atlantic in order to capture British vessels. On the 7th of May, 1749, the Prince Frederic packet- boat arrived at Falmouth, having sailed from Lisbon for that port upwards of two months before, but had been captured by four Algerine Corsairs who had carried her into port, where they detained her twenty-three days, on pretence that the captain named in the commission was not on board, and that the money and jewels of which they plundered SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 21 her, were the property "of Jews. They treated the crew, however, civilly, and did not rob them ; and at length permitted the vessel to return home. At this period Mr. Keppel was fitting out at Plymouth Dock, in order to proceed to the JMediterranean station as commodore ; and Mr. Ueynolds gladly accepted of an earnest invitation to accompany him during part of the voyage. Orders were instantly given by the Admiralty for fitting out a squadron consisting of the Centurion, Assurance, Unicorn, and Sea-horse ; in the former of which the commodore was to hoist his broad pendant. It was intended also that this squadron should not only carry out presents for the Dey of Algiers, buttha tthe Commodore should also be empowered to demand restitution of the money plundered out of the Prince Frederic. As the equipment of the squadron, however, and the pre- paration of the presents were likely to occupy some time, the Commodore had orders to proceed immediately to sea in his own ship, the Centurion, and accordingly he sailed, accompanied by Mr. Reynolds, on the 1 1th of May, 1749- After a passage, rather tedious in point of time, they arrived at Lisbon on the 24th of that month, where our young painter saw several grand religious processions and other ceremo- nies, novel to him, and which he notices in his memorandums. After a short stay at Lisbon, they proceeded towards Gibraltar, where they arrived on the 9th of June, and after a few weeks got under weigh for Algiers, in order to execute the Commodore's 22 MEMOIRS OF commission. There they arrived on the 20th of July, and Mr. Reynolds accompanied the Commodore in his visit of state, when he had an opportunity of being introduced to the Dey in the usual form ; but the most friendly assurances being held out, Commodore Keppel thought it unnecessary to make any longer stay, and immediately sailed for Port Mahon in the island of Minorca, at which place Mr. Reynolds went on shore to live on the 23rd of August. Here the friendship of the Commodore, as well as his own merit, soon introduced him to notice, and he was employed busily in painting the portraits of almost all the officers in the garrison, and on the station, much to the improvement of his skill and fortune. To General Blakeney, the Governor, he was much indebted for polite attention ; as that gentleman not only insisted on his not being at any expence during his stay on the island for quarters, but also pressed him to a constant seat at his own table. His stay at Port Mahon was however prolonged much beyond his original intention, by an unpleasant and indeed very dangerous accident ; his horse having fallen down a precipice, by which his face was so much cut as to confine him to his room. At this time it was, I believe, that his lip was so much bruised as to oblige him to have part of it cut oif ; from whence arose that apparent contraction which Mr. Edwards supposes to have been ov/ing to his subsequent illness at Rome which brought on his partial deafness. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 25 His recovery now enabled liim to pursue his original plan, and he for a time took leave of his friend, who had been literally so during the whole course of the voyage, treating him in all respects as a brother, affording him the liberal use of his cabin and library, and introducing him, when in port, to the first circles in which he associated. Before we follow Mr. Reynolds to Italy, it will not be irrelevant to notice a subsequent anecdote of his friend the Commodore, who in the course of the ensuing year found it necessary to return to Algiers in consequence of the renewed depredations of the Corsairs. Having proceeded with his squadron to that place, he anchored in the bay, directly opposite to, and within gun-shot of, the palace, and then went on shore, accompanied by his captain, and attended only by his barge's crew. On his arrival at the palace he demanded an audience, and on his admission to the Divan, laid open his embassy, requiring at the same time, in the name of his sovereign, ample satisfaction for the various injuries done to the British nation. Surprised at the boldness of his remonstrances, and enraged ^ at his demands of justice, the Dey, despising his apparent youth, for he was then only four and twenty, exclaimed, that he wondered at the insolence of the King of Great Britain in sending him an insignificant beardless boy. On this the youthful, but spirited. Commodore is said to have returned an answer in so determined and fearless a manner as to rouse all the passions of the tyrant, who, unused 24 MEMOIRS OP to such language from the sycophants of his court, was so faf enraged as to forget the law of nations, in respect to embas- sadors, and actually ordered his mutes to advance with the bowstring, at the same time telling the Commodore, that his life should answer for his audacity. The Commodore listened to this menace with the utmost calmness, and being near to a window which looked out upon the bay, directed the attention of the African chief to the squadron there at anchor, telling him, that if it was his plea- sure to put him to death, there were Englishmen enough on board to make a glorious funeral pile. The Dey, having cooled a little at this hint, was wise enough to permit the Commodore to depart in safety, and also to make ample satisfaction for the damage already done, faithfully promising to abstain from violence in future. To return, to our subject — Mr. Reynolds now proceeded for Leghorn, and from thence to Rome. When arrived in this garden of the world, this great temple of the arts, (where I have enjoyed so much pleasure, now almost fading from my memory,) his lime was diligently and judiciously employed in such a manner as might have been expected from one of his talents and virtue. He contemplated, with unwearied attention and ardent zeal, the various beauties which marked the styles of different schools and different ages. He sought for truth, taste, and beauty at the fountain head. It was with no common eye that he beheld the productions of the great masters. He copied and sketched in the Vatican such parts of the works of Raffaelle and Michael Angelo as he thought would SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 25 }}e most conducive to his future excellence; and by his well directed study acquired, whilst he contemplated the best works of the best masters, that grace of thinking to which he was principally indebted for his subsequent reputation as a portrait painter. In attending more particularly to this, he avoided all engagements for copying -works of art for the various travellers at that time in Rome ; knowing that kind of era ploy nient, as he afterwards said in a letter to Barry, to be totally useless — " Whilst I was at Rome, I was very little employed by them, and that little I always considered as so much time lost." Whilst pursuing his studies at Rome, several other English artists were there, to the same intent ; particularly Mr. John Astley, who had been his fellow pupil in the school of Hud- son, and of whom Reynolds used to say, that Astley would rather run three miles to deliver his message by word of mouth than venture to write a note. Probably his education had been neglected ; however, he afterwards became a very rich man by an advantageous marriage which he contracted with a wealthy lady of quality. The observation of his bio- grapher on this event is, that Astley owed his fortune to his form ; his follies to his fortune : indeed, at the period of his life I now allude to, he was as poor in purse, as he ever was as an artist. It was an usual custom with the English painters at Rome to meet in the evenings for conversation, and frequently to make little excursions together in the country. On one of those occasions, on a summer afternoon, when the season was E 26 MEMOIRS OP particularly hot, the whole company threw off their coats, as being an incumbrance to them, except poor Astley, who alone shewed great reluctance to take off his ; this seemed very unaccountable to his companions, when some jokes, made on his singularity, at last obliged him to take his coat off also. The mystery was then immediately explained ; for it appeared, that the hinder part of his waistcoat was made, by way of thriftiness, out of one of his own pictures, and thus displayed a tremendous waterfall on his back, to the great diversion of all the spectators. Mr. Reynolds was too much occupied in his studies to de- dicate much time to epistolary correspondence : but I think it not improper to insert here the following letter, as the first sketch of one he sent to his friend and patron . Lord E., written with admirable simplicity of language, and rendered interesting from the elegant, grateful, and feeling mind it displays, as well as shewing the absurdity of imputing some others to his pen. TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LORD E. MY LORD, " I am now (thanks to your Lordship) at the height of my wishes, in the midst of the greatest works of art that the world has produced. I had a very long passage, though a very pleasant one. I am at last in Rome, having seen many places and sights which I never thought of seeing. I have been at Lisbon, Cadiz, Gibraltar, Algiers, and Mahon. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 27 The Commodore staid at Lisbon a. week, in which time there happened two of the greatest sights that could be seen had he staid there a whole year, — a bull feast, and the procession of Corpus Chrisfi. Your Lordship will excuse me if I say, that from the kind treatment and great civilities I have received from the Commodore, I fear I have even laid your Lordship under obligations to him on my account ; since from nothing but your Lordship's recommendation I could possibly expect to meet with that polite behaviour with which I have always been treated : I had the use of his cabin, and his study of books, as if they had been my own ; and when he went ashore he generally took me with him ; so that I not only had an opportunity of seeing a great deal, but I saw it with all the advantages as if I had travelled as his equal. At Cadiz I saw another bull feast. I ask your Lordship's pardon for being guilty of that usual piece of ill manners in speaking so much of myself ; I should not have committed it after such favours. Impute my not writing to the true reason : I thought it impertinent to write to your Lordship without a proper reason ; to let you know where I am, if your Lordship should have any commands here that I am capable of executing. Since I have been in Rome, I have been looking about the palaces for a fit picture of which I might take a copy to present your Lordship with ; though it would have been much more genteel to have sent the picture without any previous intimation of it. Any one you choose, the larger the better, as it will have a more grand effect when hung up, and a kind of painting I like more than little. Though perhaps it will be too great a presumption to expect it, I E 2 28 MEMOIRS OF must needs own I most impatiently wait for this order from your Lordship. " I am, &c, &c. Joshua Reynolds." Sir Joshua has himself ingenuously confessed, in his writings, that at the first sight of Raffaelle's works in the Vatican, to his great disappointment, he did not relish, or well com- prehend their merits, but that he studied them till he did. Perhaps we may account for this circumstance from the difference in the dispositions of the two painters : Raffaelle possessed a grandeur even to severity ; and did not display in his pictures either the allurements of colour, or any great effect of light and shade ; parts of the art which delighted Reynolds, whose natural disposition inclined him solely to the cultivation of its graces, and of whose works, softness and captivating sweetness are the chief characteristics. It is a curious circumstance, and scarcely to be credited in the life of an artist so refined, who seems, even from the earliest dawning of his genius, to have devoted himself to the service of the graces, that he should ever have been, at any period, a caricaturist. Y,et this was actually the case during his residence at Rome, where he painted several pictures of that kind ; particularly one which is a sort of parody on Raffaelle's School of Athens, comprising about thirty figures and representing most of the English gentlemen then in that city : this picture, I have been informed, is now in the pes- / SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 29 session of a Mr. Joseph Henry, of StraiYan, in Ireland, whose portrait also it contains. But I have heard Sir Joshua himself say, that although it was universally allowed he exe- cuted subjects of this kind with much humour and spirit, he yet held it absolutely necessary to abandon the practice, since it must corrupt his taste as a portrait painter, whose duty it becomes to aim at discovering the perfections only of those whom he is to represent. After remaining in Italy about three years, in which time he visited most of the principal cities of that country, he returned to England by the way of France, and took the road over Mount Cenis, upon which mountain he very unexpectedly met with his old master, Hudson, in company with Roubiliac the famous sculptor, both going to pay a short visit to Rome. Of Roubiliac it is a pleasing circumstance to record, that his own goodness of heart first brought his excellent abilities into notice, and that his great success in life seems to have depended, in some degree, on his honest and liberal conduct soon after he came to England. At that time he was merely working as a journeyman for a person of the name of Carter, and the young artist having spent an evening at Vauxhall, on his return picked up a pocket-book, which he discovered, on examining it at his lodgings, to contain a considerable number of Bank notes, together with some papers apparently of consequence to the owner. He immediately advertised the circumstance, and a claimant soon appeared, who was so pleased with the integrity of the youth, and so struck with his genius, of which he shewed several specimens, that he not 30 MEMOIRS OF only, being a man of rank and fortune, gave him a handsome remuneration, but also promised to patronize him through life, and faithfully performed that promise. On the arrival of Mr. Reynolds at Paris he met his friend Mr. Chambers, the architect (afterwards Sir William), accom- panied by his wife, then also on their way to Rome ; and whilst there, he painted the portrait of Mrs. Chambers, which has since been copied in mezzotinto. With this eminent architect, indeed, he long continued in habits of intimacy, respecting him as an instance of genius rising in opposition to circumstance. Mr. Chambers, it is pretty generally known, was, though a Swede by birth, a Briton by descent, having sprung from the ancient family of Chalmers in Scotland, who were also barons of Tartas in France : his father was a merchant, and had suf- fered much in his fortune by supplying Charles the Twelfth with money and goods during his campaigns, for which he received nothing more than the base copper coin of that mad monarch, struck for the purpose in his various emergencies, and which becoming soon depreciated, the generous and confiding merchant was involved in ruin. At the early age of two years. Sir William was brought to England and placed at Rippon school in Yorkshire, after leaving which he was appointed to a situation under the India Company, which carried him to China : he then returned to London, and soon displayed those talents for architecture which introduced him to the notice of the Earl of Bute, who immediately appointed him drawing master to his present SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 31 Majesty, a situation partly held also by Goupy ; in conse- que ce of this connection he soon had the management of the Gardens at Kew. Sir William Chambers's works in architecture are numerous in England, Scotland, and Ireland; but the principal and best of them is Somerset Place, commenced by him in the year 1776, (but not yet fully completed,) under his immediate and constant inspection, according to his original designs. Of his writings the principal ones are, " A Treatise on Civil Archi- tecture," which has gone through three editions — " A Disserta- tion on Oriental Gardening," which has gone through two, and has been elegantly translated into French, by Monsieur de la Rochet, with Chetqua's Explanatory Discourse, in de- fence of that work. After parting with his friends at Paris, Mr. Reynolds pro- ceeded for the British metropolis, and on his arrival in Eng- land, which took place in the month of October, 1752, he found his health in such an indifferent state, as to judge it prudent to pay a visit to his native air, and accordingly set off immediately for Plymouth, during which visit to that town, he painted the portrait of his friend Dr. Mudge, a remarkable fine head, of which there is also a print. From this time a warm, disinterested, and reciprocal friendship sub- sisted between this truly respectable family of the Mudges and Mr. Reynolds, who always held them in the highest esteem, and the friendly connection between them was kept up to the latest period of his life. 32 MEMOIRS OF This portrait and one other of a young lady were all that he undertook whilst at Plymouth, being strongly urged by his friend Lord Edgecumbe to return, as soon as possible, to the metropolis, as the only place where his fame could be esta- blished and his fortune advanced ; in consequence of which advice, as soon as his health permitted, he set off for London, \ and engaged handsome apartments in St. Martin's lane, at that time the favorite and fashionable residence of artists, about the end of the year 1752. At this period, as it is recorded of him, the earliest specimen he gave of his improvement in the art, was the head of a boy in a Turkish turban, richly painted, something in the style of Rembrandt ; which being much talked of, induced his old master, Hudson, to pay him a visit, when it so much attracted his attention, that he called every day to see it in its progress, and perceiving at last no trace of his own manner left, he exclaimed. By G — , Reynolds, you don't paint so well as when you left England 1" This little anecdote, however, we must consider as a jest upon Hudson by some of his contemporaries, or else it would seem that he had improved but little in taste during his Italian tour, in his progress to which, Mr. Reynolds had met him, but the year before, upon Mount Cenis. The first pupil whom Mr. Reynolds had under his care was Giuseppe Marchi, a young Italian whom he brought home with him from Rome, the place of his birth. He continued SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 3S with him the principal part of his life, and assisted him in making his copies, in sitting for attitudes for his portraits, and in partly painting his draperies. In the latter part of his time he had a salary from Sir Joshua, I think about a hun- dred per year, togetlier with his board and lodging, but left him many years before his death, and went to Swansea in Wales, where he practised as a portrait painter ; some time after he returned again to London, and to Sir Joshua, with whom he continued till the death of the latter; after which he completed, as well as he was able, several pictures which Sir Joshua had left unfinished. The picture mentioned above of a boy in a Turkish habit, was painted from this Giuseppe Marchi by Sir Joshua, soon after their arrival in England, and is a great likeness ; there is a mezzotinto print taken from it. Marchi sometimes scraped in mezzotinto himself, and there are several plates done by him from the paintings of Reynolds. He died in London, but at what time I do not exactly know. It was about the year 1753 that Mr. Reynolds so much distinguished himself by some of his most admired portraits ; and he now found his prospects so bright and extensive, that he removed to a large house on the north side of Great Newport-street, where he afterwards resided for eight or nine years. This period was the dawn of his splendour ; for his amiable modesty, accompanied by his extraordinary talents, soon gained him powerful and active connections : even his earliest F 34 MEMOIRS OF sitters were of the highest rank ; the second portrait which he painted in London being that of the old Duke of Devon- shire. Yet Mr. Reynolds, notwithstanding this auspicious commencement of his career in London, seems to have been annoyed by the great celebrity of a very mean competitor, but who, at that time, was the pink of fashion. This was John Stephen Liotard, a native of Geneva ; he was born in 1702, and was designed for a merchant, but he went to study at Paris in 1725, and in 1738 accompanied the Marquis de Puisieux to Rome, who was going embassador to Naples. At Rome he was taken notice of by the Earls of Sandwich and Besborough (then Lord Duncannon,) who engaged Liotard to go with them on a voyage to Constantinople. At the Porte he became acquainted with Richard second Lord Edgecumbe, (who was the particular and early friend of Mr. Reynolds,) and Sir Everard Fawkener, our embassador, who persuaded him to come to England. In his journey to the Levant he had adopted the Eastern habit, and wore it here with a very long beard. It contributed much to the portraits of himself, and some thought it was to attract customers. He painted both in miniature and enamel, though he seldom practised them : but he is best known by his works in crayons. His likenesses were very strong, and too like to please those who sat to him ; thus he had great employment the first year and very little the second. Devoid of imagination, he could render nothing but what he saw before his eyes. Freckles, marks of the small-pox, every thing found its place ; not so much from fidelity, as because he could not conceive the absence of any thing that appeared to him. Minuteness pre- SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 35 vailed in all his works, grace in none ; nor was there any ease in his outlines, but the stiffness of a bust in all his portraits. Thence his heads want air and the softness of flesh. Reynolds gives his opinion of this artist thus : " The only merit in Liotard's pictures is neatness, which, as a general rule, is the characteristic of a low genius, or rather no genius at all. His pictures are just what ladies do when they paint for th«ir amusement ; nor is there any person, how poor soever their talents may be, but in a very few years, by dint of prac- tice, may possess themselves of every qualification in the art which this great man has got." Liotard was twice in England, and staid about two years each time. In respect to the laborious, and what is called the finished manner, Sir Joshua used to add, that the high finished manner of painting would be to be chosen, if it was possible with it to have that spirit and expression which infallibly fly off when you labour ; but those are transient beauties which last less than a moment, and must be painted^in as little time ; besides, in poring long, the imagination is fatigued and loses its vigour. You will find nature in the first manner, but it will be nature stupid and without action. The portraits of Holbein are of this high finished manner ; and, for colouring and similitude, what was ever beyond them ? but then you see fixed counte- nances, and all the features seem to remain immoveable. Gerard Vanderwerf also — ^how spiritless are his figures ! Mr. Reynolds now exerted his talents to the utmost of their powers, and produced a singularly fine whole length portrait F 2 36 MEMOIRS OF of his patron Commodore Keppel, in which he appears to be walking with a quick pace on the sea-shore, and in a storm. This picture, by its excellence and the novelty of the attitude, attracted general notice ; and its design, as I have been in- formed, and perhaps with some truth, arose from the following interesting circumstance in the life of his noble friend. Mr. Keppel having been appointed to the command of the Maidstone frigate in the year 1746, soon after his return from the eventful voyage under Commodore Anson, he was unfor- tunately wrecked in that ship, on the coast of France, on the 7th of July in the subsequent year ; for running close in shore, in pursuit of a French privateer, in the vicinity of Nantz, she struck and soon afterwards went to pieces. Cap- tain Keppel, by his skill and active exertions, saved the lives of his crew ; but they were immediately made prisoners : they, as well as he, were treated with great hospitality and polite- ness, and he himself was in a few weeks permitted to return to England, when a court-martial, as usual upon such occa- sions, was held upon him, and he was honourably acquitted from all blame respecting the loss he had sustained. The portrait represents him as just escaped from ship- wreck ; and has since been engraved by Fisher, that most exact and laborious artist, of whom Sir Joshua used to say, that he was injudiciously exact in his prints, which were mostly in the mezzotinto style, and wasted his time in making the precise shape of every leaf on a tree with as much care as he would bestow on the features of a portrait. Fisher himself was not, indeed, brought up to the art ; it is said that he was SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 37 originally a hatter: has, however, made some good copies of several of Sir Joshua's best pictures, particularly those of Garrick and Lady Sarah Bunbury. The novelty and expression introduced in his portrait of Mr. Keppel, were powerful stimulants to the public taste; and, as it has been well observed by one of his biographers, he " soon saw how much animation might be obtained by deviating from the insipid manner of his immediate predeces- sors ; hence in many of his portraits, particularly when combined in family groups, we find much of the variety and spirit of a higher species of art. Instead of confining himself to mere likeness, in which, however, he was eminently happy, he dived, as it were, into the minds, and manners, and habits, of those who sat to him ; and accordingly the majority of his portraits are so appropriate and characteristic, that the many illustrious persons whom he has delineated, will be almost as well known to posterity, as if they had seen and conversed with them." Soon after this he added to his celebrity by his picture of Miss Greville and her brother, as Cupid and Psyche, which, it has been well observed, he composed and executed in a style superior to any portraits that had been produced in this kingdom since the days of Vandyke. He was now employed to paint several ladies of high quality, whose portraits the polite world flocked to see, and he soon became one of the most distinguished painters, not only in England, but in Europe. For it should be remarked. 88 MEMOIRS OP that at this time there were no historical works to make a demand upon the painter's skill : and though it may seem a curious observation, it will nevertheless be found, on exami- nation, to be one most true, that hitherto this empire of Great Britain, so great, so rich, so magnificent, so benevolent, so abundant in all the luxury that the most ample wealth could procure, even this exalted empire had never yet been able to keep above one single historical painter from starving, whilst portrait painters have swarmed in a plenty at all times thick as " autumnal leaves in Vallombrosa." A true taste was wanting ; vajiity, however, was not want- ing; and the desire to perpetuate the form of self-complacency crowded his sitting room with women who wished to be transmitted as angels, and with men who wanted to appear as heroes and philosophers. From Reynolds's pencil they were sure to be gratified. The force and felicity of his portraits not only drew around him the opulence and beauty of the nation, but happily gained him the merited honour of perpetuating the features of all the eminent and distinguished men of learning then living ; with most of whom (sq attractive were his manners as well as his talents) he contracted an intimacy which only ended with life. In this assemblage of genius, each was improved by each. Reynolds, like a man of a great mind, always cultivated the acquaintance and friendship of the first characters of his time ; and often assisted those who were in difficulties, both with his advice and iiis purse. He had a mind ever open and desirous to acquire useful information, a sound and penetrating judgment to select and SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 39 separate what he acquired, and infinite industry and applica- tion in rendering it serviceable to its proper purpose. It was not my good fortune to be personally acquainted with him at this early period of his fame, when he first became intimate with the (afterwards) great Dr. Johnson ; to whom, as Mr. Boswell says, " Sir Joshua Reynolds was truly his duke decus, and with whom he maintained an uninterrupted intimacy to the last hour of his life." I shall therefore avail myself of the very just account of the event, as related by Mr. Malone in the sketch prefixed to his works. " Very soon after Sir Joshua's return from Italy, his acquaintance wdth Dr. Johnson commenced ; and their inti- macy continued uninterrupted to the time of Johnson's death. Happening to meet with the Life of Savage, in Devonshire, which, though published some years before, was new to him, he began to read it," (as Mr. Boswell has informed us,) " while he was standing with his arm leaning against a chimney-piece. It seized his attention so strongly, that, not being able to lay down the book till he had finished it, when he attempted to move, he found his arm totally benumbed." Being then unacquainted with the author, he must naturally have had a strong desire to see and converse with that extraordinary man ; and, as the same writer relates, he, about this time, was introduced to him. When Johnson lived in Castle-street, Cavendish-square, he used to visit two ladies who resided at that time in Newport-street, opposite to Reynolds's, Miss Cotterells, daughters of Admiral Cotterell ; Reynolds used to visit there also, and thus they met. Mr. Reynolds, as I have 40 MEMOIRS OF observed above, had, from the first reading of his Life of Savage, conceived a very high admiration of Johnson's powers as a writer. His conversation no less delighted him, and he cultivated his acquaintance with the laudable zeal of one who was ambitious of general improvement. Sir Joshua, indeed, was lucky enough, at their very first meeting, to make a remark, which was so much above the common place style of conversation, that Johnson at once perceived that Reynolds had the habit of thinking for himself. The ladies were regret- ting the death of a friend, to whom they owed great obliga- tions ; upon which Reynolds observed, " You have, however, the comfort of being relieved from the burden of gratitude." They were shocked a little at this alleviating suggestion, as too selfish ; but Johnson defended it in his clear and forcible manner, and was much pleased with the mind, the fair view of • human nature it exhibited, like some of the Reflections ot Rochefoucault. The consequence was, that he went home with Reynolds, and supped with him. Sir Joshua used to relate a characteristic anecdote of Johnson. About the time of their first acquaintance, when they were one evening together at the Miss Cotterells, the then Duchess of Argyle and another lady of high rank came in : Johnson, thinking that the Miss Cotterells were too much engrossed by them, and that he and his friend were neglected as low company, of whom they were somewhat ashamed, grew angry ; and resolving to shock their supposed pride, by making their great visitors imagine they were low indeed, he addressed himself in a loud tone to Mr. Reynolds, saying, " How much do you think you and I could get in a week, if we were to work as hard as we could V as if they had been common mechanics. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 41 This anecdote, as it- relates to Johnson, betrays in him more of pride, envy, and vulgarity, than of the patience of philosophy, totally unlike the disposition of his companion to whom he addressed his speech. Another anecdote, which I heard related by Sir Joshua's sister, serves to shew how susceptible Johnson's pride was of the least degree of mortification. At the time when Sir Joshua resided in Newport-street, he one afternoon, accompanied by his sister Frances, paid a visit to the Miss Cotterells, who lived much in the fashionable world. Johnson was also of the party on this tea visit; and at that time being very poor, he was, as might be expected, rather shabbily and slovenly apparelled. The maid servant, by accident, attended at the door to let them in, but did not know Johnson, although he had been a frequent visitor at the house, he having always been attended by the man servant. Johnson was the last of the three that came in ; when the servant maid, seeing this uncouth and dirty figure of a man, and not conceiving he could be one of the company who came to visit her mistresses, laid hold of his coat just as he was going up stairs, and pulled him back again, saying, You fellow, what is your business here ? I suppose you intended to rob the house.'' This most unlucky accident threw poor Johnson into such a fit of shame and anger, that he roared out, like a bull, for he could not immediately articulate, and was with difficulty at last able to utter, What have I done ? What have I done ?" Nor could he recover himself for the remainder of the evening from this mortifying circumstance. G 42 MEMOIRS OF Of these ladies, the Miss Cotterells, so often mentioned in Johnson's Biography, as well as by the different writers who speak of Sir Joshua, it will not be reckoned obtrusive here to notice that they were the daughters of a very respectable naval officer, Rear Admiral Charles Cotterell, who, towards the latter part of his life, was not employed in the service, having been put on the superannuated list of flag-officers in 1747- He died in 1754, very soon after Sir Joshua's acquaintance took place with his family. His first appointment to the command of a ship was in 1726, when he succeeded Sir Yclverton Peyton in the Diamond frigate ; and five years afterwards he was removed to the Princess Louisa, a line of battle ship. On the rupture with Spain, in 1739? he was commissioned in the Lion, of sixty guns, and served with Sir John Norris in the Channel fleet during the ensuing summer ; after which he was ordered to proceed to the West Indies, in a squadron commanded by Sir Chaloner Ogle, for the express purpose of reinforcing Admiral Vernon, previous to the attack upon Carthagena. Captain Cotterell was actively engaged in that service, and, soon after its failure, returned to England ; when, his ship being paid off, he was appointed to the command of the Canterbury, in 1742. In that ship he went on service to Gibraltar, and on his return was promoted to the Royal George, in which ship he served for some time in the Channel fleet ; but this was his last commission, as he remained unem- ployed after her being paid off, and, according to the etiquette of the service, lost his flag, not being in actual service, and in full pay, when the promotion took place in 1747- I have recorded this veteran's services the more particu- SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 43 larly as his daughters have been so often mentioned : and in unison with the preceding anecdote of the Doctor, whose external appearance had so much deceived the servant at the Miss Cotterells, I may also note, that Johnson, it is well known, was as remarkably uncouth in his gait and action, as slovenly in his dress, insomuch as to attract the attention of passengers who by chance met him in the street. Once, par- ticularly, he was thus annoyed by an impertinent fellow, who noticed him, and insultingly imitated him in derision so ludi- crously, that the Doctor could not avoid seeing it, and was obliged to resent it, which he did in this manner : " Ah !" said Johnson, " you are a very weak fellow, and I will convince you of it when immediately he gave him a blow, which knocked the man out of the foot-path into the dirty street flat on his back, and the Doctor walked calmly on. Another circumstance Sir Joshua used to mention relative to Dr. Johnson, which gives an idea of the situation and mode of living of that great philosopher in the early part of his life. Roubiliac, the famous sculptor, desired of Sir Joshua that he would introduce him to Dr. Johnson, at the time when the Doctor lived in Gough-square, Fleet-street. His object was to prevail on Johnson to write an epitaph for a monu- ment, on which Roubiliac was then engaged for Westminster Abbey. Sir Joshua accordingly introduced the Sculptor to the Doctor, they being strangers to each other, and Johnson received him with much civility, and took them up into a garret, which he considered as his library ; in which, besides his books, all covered with dust, there was an old crazy deal G 2 44 MEMOIRS OF table, and a still worse and older elbow chair, having only three legs. In this chair Johnson seated himself, after having, with considerable dexterity and evident practice, first drawn it up against the wall, which served to support it on that side on which the leg was deficient. He then took up his pen, and demanded what they wanted him to write. On this Roubiliac, who was a true Frenchman, (as may be seen by his works,) began a most bombastic and ridiculous harangue, on what he thought should be the kind of epitaph most proper for the purpose, all which the Doctor was to write down for him in correct language ; when Johnson, who could not suffer any one to dictate to him, quickly interrupted him in an angry tone of voice, saying, Come, come. Sir, let us have no more of this bombastic, ridiculous rhodoraontade, but let me know, in simple language, the name, character, and quality, of the person whose epitaph you intend to have me write." Such was the first interview of two men both eminent for genius ; and of Roubiliac I may here record another anecdote which took place on the return of that Sculptor from Rome, when he paid a visit to Reynolds, and expressed himself in raptures on what he had seen on the Continent — on the exquisite beauty of the works of antiquity, and the captivating and luxuriant splendour of Bernini. " It is natural to sup- pose," said he, " that I was infinitely impatient till I had taken a survey of my own performances in Westminster Abbey, after having seen such a variety of excellence, and by G my own work looked to me meagre and starved, as if made of nothing but tobacco-pipes." I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 45 A strong proof this of the improvement he had gained from his tour to the Continent, of his candor, and uncommon humility. Doctor Johnson had a sjreat desire to cultivate the friend- ship of Richardson, the author of Clarissa, and with this view paid him frequent visits. These were received very coldly by the latter; " but," observed the Doctor (in speaking of this to a friend), " I was determined to persist till I had gained my point ; because I knew very well, that when I had once overcome his reluctance and shyness of humour, our intimacy would contribute much to the happiness of both." The event verified the Doctor's prediction. It must, however, be remarked, that an intimacy with Johnson was always attended with a certain portion of inconvenience to persons whose time was much occupied, as his visits to those he liked were long, frequent, and very irregular in the hours. The Doctor's intercourse with Sir Joshua was at first pro- duced in the same manner as is described in respect to Richard- son. He frequently called in the evening, and remained to a late hour, when Sir Joshua was desirous of going into new company, after having been harassed by his professional occu- pations the whole day. This sometimes overcame his patience to such a degree, that, one evening in particular, on entering the room where Johnson was waiting to 3ee him, he imme- diately took up his hat and went ouc of tlie house. Rey- nolds hoped by this means he would have been effectually 46 MEMOIRS OP cured ; but Johnson still persisted, and at last gained his friendship. Johnson introduced Sir Joshua and his sister to Richardson, but hinted to them, at the same time, that if th^y wished to see the latter in good humour, they must expatiate on the excellencies of his Clarissa. Johnson soon became a frequent visitor at Sir Joshua's, particularly at Miss Reynolds's tea-table, where lie had every opportunity of female conversation whilst drinking his favorite beverage. Indeed his visits were not alone to Sir Joshua, but to Miss Reynolds, for whom he had the highest respect and venera- tion ; to such a degree, that some years afterwards, whilst the company at Mr. Thrale's were speculating upon a micro- scope for the mind, Johnson exclaimed, " I never saw one that would bear it, except that of my dear Miss Reynolds, and her's is very near to purity itself." There is no doubt that Miss Reynolds gained much of his good-will by her good-humoured attention to his extraordi- nary predilection for tea, he himself saying, that he wished his tea-kettle never to be cold ; but Sir Joshua having once, whilst spending the evening at Mr. Cumberland's, reminded him of the enormous quantity he Avas swallowing, observing that he had drank eleven cups, Johnson replied, " Sir, I did not count your glasses of wine, why then should you number up my cups of tea SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 47 Johnson's extraordinary, or rather extravagant, fondness for this refreshment did not fail to excite notice wherever he went ; and it is related, though not by Boswell, that whilst on his Scottish tour, and spending some time at Dunvegan, the castle of the chief of the Macleods, the Dowager Lady Macleod having repeatedly helped him, until she had poured out sixteen cups, she then asked him, if a small bason would not save him trouble and be more agreeable ? — "I wonder, Madam," answered he roughly, " why all the ladies ask me such questions ! It is to save yourselves trouble, Madam, and not me." The lady was silent, and resumed her task. Every reader, in this place, will recollect the so often told anecdote of his versification at Miss Reynolds's tea table, when criticis- ing Percy's Reliques, and imitating his ballad style — " Oh ! hear it then my Renny dear, v " Nor hear it with a frown — ' " You cannot make the tea so fast, " As I can gulp it down." Doctor Johnson's high opinion of Sir Joshua Reynolds was formed at a very early period of their intimacy, and increased, instead of diminishing, through life. Once at Mr. Thrale's, when Sir Joshua left the room, Johnson observed, " There goes a man not to be spoiled by prosperity ;"— and on another occasion he said, " A story is a specimen of human manners, and derives its sole merit from its truth : when Foote has told me something, I dismiss it from my mind like a passing shadow : when Reynolds tells me something, I consider myself as possessed of an idea the more." 48 MEMOIRS OF In 17«^3, the artists began to exert themselves to give some kind of public eclat to their profession, and an Academy of Arts was proposed to be instituted. For this purpose a meet- ing was called by circular letter, in order to adopt the first principles for its foundation ; but some jealousies and dis- agreements prevented any thing being done : indeed, some invidious persons were so anxious to thwart every thing connected with the improvement of the national taste, that they even descended to treat this as a subject fit for caricature, and published some satirical prints, in which they attempted to point ridicule at the most active friends to the measure. These prints, however, if they had any effect at the time, are now sunk in oblivion, and are no where to be found. In 1755 Mr. Reynolds was still advancing in fame. His price in that year was twelve guineas for a head only, and for half and whole lengths in proportion. It was about this time too, that a conversation took place between him and Johnson, which may, in some measure, be considered as a kind of apology on the part of Johnson, for having, in some degree, forced himself into an intimacy ; when Johnson said, " If a man does not make new acquaintance as he advances through life, he will soon find himself alone : a man. Sir, should keep his friendship in constant repair." From a letter of Dr. Johnson to Bennet Langton, in the year 1758, we find that the fame of Mr. Reynolds had so far increased, as to justify him in raising his price pretty con- siderably. He says — " Mr. Reynolds has this day (January 9th) raised his price to twenty guineas a head, and Miss is SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 49 much employed in miniatures. I know not any body else whose prosperity has increased since you left them." Notwithstanding Sir Joshua's prosperity was now so great as to occupy the whole of his time, yet in the succeeding year he found leisure to produce his first efforts in the literary way, consisting of three papers for the Idler, then conducted and principally executed by his friend Johnson. At that time, indeed, Johnson was under many obligations, as well as those literary ones, to Sir Joshua, whose generous kindness would never permit his friends to ask a pecuniary favour, his purse and heart being always open. Johnson, however, still preserved the strong spirit of inde- pendent exertion ; and being at this period pushed for money to defray the expences of his mother's funeral, and to settle some little debts she had left, he sat down to his " Rasselas," which, as he afterwards informed Sir Joshua, he composed in the evenings of a single week, having it printed as rapidly as it was written, and even not reading it over until several years afterwards, when finding it accidentally in a chaise, whilst travelling in company with Mr. Boswell. Yet this work, so hastily written, enabled the publisher to pay him the sum of one hundred and twenty-five pounds. I have heard Sir Joshua repeat a speech which the Doctor made about this time, and in which he gave himself credit in two particulars:—" There are two things,'' said he, " which I am confident I can do very well : one is an introduction to any literary work, stating what it is to contain, and how it ^ H 50 MEMOIRS OF should be executed in the most perfect manner ; the other is a conclusion, shewing, from various causes, why the execution has not been equal to what the author promised to himself and to the public." The papers in the Idler, to which I have alluded, are the Numbers 76, 79? and 82, written between September and November, 1759- In the first of these he ridicules, with con- siderable humour, the cant of ignorant and presuming connois- seurs, who, trusting to narrow rules, are often guided by false principles ; and even though these should be correct, are still totally unqualified to form a just estimation of the sublime beauties in works of genius : and in this Essay he states a position which, given with his ingenuity, has an appearance of as much novelty as truth, that whatever part of an art can be executed or criticised by rules, that part is no longer the work of genius, which implies excellence out of the reach of rules : so that, as he adds, if a man has not correct perceptions, it will be in vain for him to endeavour to supply their place by rules, which, though they may certainly enable him to talk more learnedly, will never teach him to distinguish more acutely. In laying down these positions, he does not, however, assert that rules are absolutely injurious to a just perception of works of taste and genius, or to their execution ; but merely censures that scrupulous and servile attention to minute exactness or frivolous ornament, which are sometimes incon- sistent with higher excellence, and always lost in the blaze of expanded genius. In his second Essay he displays a considerable depth of SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. M thought, and great quickness of perception, on the just meaning of the general rule, " to imitate nature." He shews tliat a mere literal adherence to this rule would baulk every flight of fancy in tlie painter, though these flights are what serve to immortalize the poet; such imitation, if conducted servilely, being a species of drudgery to which the painter of genius can never stoop, and one in which even the under- standing has no part, being merely a mechanical effort. He further shews, that Painting has its best plea for claiming kindred with its sister, Poetry, from the power which, like her, it can exercise over the imagination ; and as he adds, it is to this power that the painter of genius directs his aim : in this sense he studies nature, and often arrives at his end, even by being unnatural, in the confined sense of the word. His concluding remarks in this Essay, on the works of Michael Angelo, contain in themselves a volume of criticism, and display that " enthusiasm of intellectual energy," by which he was always moved, when speaking of, or contem- plating the productions of, those masters most eminent for their intellectual power. In the third Essay, his delinition of beauty is as clear and distinct as his conception of it was accurate : and from the inference he draws — that the works of nature, if we compare one species with another, are all equally beautiful, and that preference is given from custom, or from some asso- ciation of ideas, and thus, that in creatures of the same species, beauty is the medium or centre of all its various forms — he again illustrates and confirms the principle of his first Essay, proving that the painter, by attending to the invariable H 2 52 MEMOIRS OF and general ideas of nature, produces beauty; but that, if he regards minute particularities and accidental discrimina- tions, so far will he deviate from the universal rule, and pollute his canvas with deformity. Indeed, those papers may be considered as a kind of syllabus of all his future discourses, and certainly occasioned him some thinking in their composition. I have heard Sir Joshua say, that Johnson required them from him on a sudden emergency, and on that account he sat up the whole night to complete them in time; and by it he was so much disordered, that it produced a vertigo in his head. The efforts of Mr. Reynolds had not only produced an improvement in the art, in consequence of the number of professional men who imitated his style, but had also infused such a taste in the public at large, that in the year I76O they were content to pay twenty-five guineas for a head. This improved taste in portrait painting had also extended itself to other departments of the art, which even but ten years before had been at but a low ebb in public opinion ; for though the artists had contrived to support, by annual subscription, an academy in St. MartinVlane, governed by a committee of the whole body, yet that whole body consisted of but a very small number. The public attention, indeed, had been fortunately, in some measure, engaged by the paintings which several of the professors had gratuitously bestowed on the Foundling Hos- pital ; and the body of artists were, from the result of this SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 53 experiment, stimulated to form a general exhibition of their several works, which first took place in this year ; and the exhibition so far succeeded, as to have the double effect of amusing and enlightening the public, whilst the artists them- selves were also gaiiiers by the spirit of emulation excited by competition : for as Edwards observes, from the time of the accession of his present Majesty to the throne, the arts have made more rapid advances towards perfection in Great Britain, than ever was known in any other country in so short a space of time. Finding himself now sufficiently established to move in a higher sphere, Mr. Reynolds quitted his residence in Newport- street, and removed to Leicester-fields, where he had bought a handsome house on the west side of the square ; to which he added a splendid gallery for the exhibition of his works, and a commodious and elesjant room for his sitters. In this speculation, as I have heard him confess, he laid out almost the whole of the property he had then realized. He also set up a handsome carriage ; and his mode of living was in other respects suitably elegant. Johnson, this year, in a letter to Barretti, alludes to the general exhibition just established, saying — " The artists have instituted a yearly exhibition of pictures and statues, in imi- tation, I am told, of foreign academies. This year was the second exhibition. They please themselves much with the multitude of spectators, and imagine that the English school will rise much in reputation. Reynolds is without a rival, and continues to add thousands to thousands, which he deserves, 54 MEMOIRS OF among other excellencies, by retaining his kindness for Barretti." ' This exhibition lias filled the heads of the artists, and lovers of Art. Surely life, if it be not long, is tedious ; since we are forced to call in the assistance of so many trifles, to rid us of our time — of that time which never can return." The cynical turn of this latter observation is certainly not in unison with the sentiments which dictated the former part of the passage ; but we must make allowances not only for the want of perception of the beauties of painting, which was the natural consequence of Johnson's near-sightedness, but also for that species of envy which perhaps even Johnson felt when comparing his own annual gains with those of his fortunate friend. At the first exhibition opened by the artists, the Catalogue was the ticket of admission by which whole companies could be admitted ; but this mode was found, by experiment, to produce little other than tumult, and it was then considered as absolutely necessary to demand one shilling admission from each person, Johnson, although he speaks so superciliously of the arts, yet willingly employed his pen in composing a Preface to the Catalogue which was then given gratis : but as this was a new regulation, it was thought requisite by the artists to give reasons to the public for this alteration ; and, as Johnson has done this so well in his forcible and clear language, explaining the nature and intention of the exhibition, and also has given so essential a part of historical information SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 55 in the region of the arts, I apprehend no apology can be necessary for inserting it in this place. Written by Dr. Johnson. " The public may justly require to be informed of the nature and extent of everv desio;n for which the favour of the public is openly solicited. The artists, who were themselves the first promoters of an exhibition in this nation, and who have now contributed to the following Catalogue, think it, therefore, necessary to explain their purpose, and justify their conduct. An exhibition of the works of art being a spectacle new in the kingdom, has raised various opinions and con- jectures among those who are unacquainted with the practice of foreign nations. Those who set their performances to general view, have too often been considered the rivals of each other ; as men actuated, if not by avarice, at least by vanity, and contending for superiority of fame, though not for a pecu- niary prize. It cannot be denied or doubted, that all who offer themselves to criticism are desirous of praise ; this desire is not only innocent but virtuous, while it is undebased by artifice, and unpolluted by envy ; and of envy or artifice those men can never be accused, who, already enjoying all the honours and profits of their profession, are content to stand candidates for public notice, with genius yet unexperienced, and diligence yet unrewarded ; who, without any hope of increasing their own reputation or interest, expose their names and their works, only that they may furnish an opportunity of appearance to the young, the diffident, and the neglected. 56 MEMOIRS OF The purpose of this exhibition is not to enrich the artist, but to advance the art ; the eminent are not flattered with pre- ference, nor the obscure insulted with contempt ; whoever hopes to deserve public favour, is here invited to display his merit. Of the price put upon this exhibition, some account may be demanded. Whoever sets his works to be sliewn, naturally desires a multitude of spectators ; but his desire defeats its own end, when spectators assemble in such numbers as to obstruct one another. " Though we are far from wishing to diminish the pleasures, or depreciate the sentiments of any class of the community, we knoAV, however, what every one knows, that all cannot be judges or purchasers of works of art. Yet we have already found, by experience, that all are desirous to see an exhibition. When the terms of admission were low, the room was thronged with such multitudes, as made access dangerous, and frightened away those whose approbation was most desired. " Yet because it is seldom believed that money is got but for the love of money, we shall tell the use which we intend to make of our expected profits. Many artists of great abili- ties are unable to sell their works for their due price : — to remove this inconvenience, an annual sale will be appointed, to which every man may send his works, and them, if he will, without his name. Those works will be reviewed by the committee that conduct the exhibition ; a price will be secretly set on every piece, and registered by the secretary ; if the piece exposed is sold for more, the whole price shall be the artist's ; but if the purchasers value it at less than the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 57 committee, the artist shall be paid the deficiency from the profits of the exhibition." In 1762, the famous affair of the Cock-lane Ghost took place, in which Johnson acted rather a prominent part. Mr. Reynolds, however, had too little taste for those wander- ings of the imagination to join in the absurdity which gave credeiice to this juggling business; he therefore escaped that severity of censure which very justly fell upon Johnson and several others. At this time he was particularly noticed by the pen of Sterne, in the sixth volume of his Tristram Shandy, just then published ; and there too is noticed that want of stability in the colours of Sir Joshua, which has, in many instances, been very severely, and sometimes even unjustly, adverted to. He says, I would not answer for my aunt Dinah, was she alive, — faith scarce for her picture — were it but painted by Reynolds — but if I go on with my drawing, after naming that son of ^ Apollo, I'll be shot." And again, in describing the attitude of Corporal Trim, in reading the Sermon, he says, " Nat Reynolds, great and graceful as he is, could have conceived one superior." In the same year Reynolds produced the so much celebrated picture of Garrick between Tragedy and Comedy, to which there could not be a much higher compliment paid than in the opening of the Epilogue to the " Brothers," by Cumber- land. I 58 MEMOIRS OP " Who but hath seen the celebrated strife, Where Reynolds calls the canvas into life, And 'twixt the Tragic and the Comic muse. Courted of both, and dubious which to choose, Th' immortal actor stands." For this picture the Earl of Halifax paid three hundred guineas ; but it has since been purchased, by Mr. Angerstein, at two hundred and fifty. Mr. Garrick's intimacy with Mr. Reynolds had been now formed for some years, and it continued until the close of the former's life ; of course I had many opportunities of observing that great actor, and of acquiring many anecdotes about him. To give to all these their due chronological order, would be an unnecessary precision ; I shall, therefore, insert some of them in the present place, from their being particularly connected with the subject of this biography. David Garrick sat many times to Sir Joshua Reynolds for different portraits. At one of those sittings he gave a very lively account of his having sat once for his portrait to an indifferent painter, whom he wantonly teazed ; for when the artist had worked on the face till he had drawn it very cor- rectly, as he saw it at the time, Garrick caught an opportunity, whilst the painter was not looking at him, totally to change his countenance and expression, when the poor painter patiently worked oji to alter the picture and make it like what he then saw ; and when Garrick perceived that it was thus SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 5^ altered, he seized another opportunity, and changed his coun- tenance to a third character, which, when the poor tantaUzed artist perceived, hf\ in a great rage, threw down his pallet and pencils on the floor, saying, he believed he was painting from the devil, and would do no more to the picture. As a contrast to the foregoing anecdote of Garrick, I remember that Mrs. Yates, the famous tragedian, when she sat for her portrait to Sir Joshua Reynolds, said to him, " I always endeavour to keep the same expression and counte- nance when I sit to you, Sir Joshua ; and, therefore, I gene- rally direct my thoughts to one and the same subject.'^ Once, when the Bishop of St. Asaph was sitting to Sir Joshua, the conversation turning on Garrick, the Bishop asked him, how it was that Garrick had not been able to make any excellent players with all his instructions? and Sir Joshua's answer was, — Partly because they all imitate him, and then it became impossible : as this was like a man's resolving to go always behind another ; and whilst this resolution lasts, it renders it impossible he should ever be on a par with him." Sir Joshua Reynolds had it long in contemplation to paint a picture of an extensive composition, purposely to display the various powers of David Garrick as an actor. The principal figure in the front was to have been a full length of Garrick, in his own proper habit, in the action of speaking a prologue, surrounded by groups of figures representing him in I 2 60 MEMOIRS OF all the different characters, by personifying which he had gained fame on the stage. This scheilie Sir Joshua described to Garrick, at the time he was painting his portrait ; and Garrick expressed great pleasure when he heard it, and seemed to enjoy the idea prodigiously ; saying, " That will be the very thing I desire ; the only way, by G , that I can be handed down to posterity." It is much to be regretted, however, that this picture was never begun, as, from such a hand as Sir Joshua's, the work would have been invaluable, supposing it even to have been left in an unfinished state. But we may conclude, that Sir Joshua, on mature consideration, foresaw that the subject was not eminently calculated to make a good composition for a painting. On Sunday mornings, there was always a kind of public levee at Mr. Garrick's house, where, at one time or other, all the most illustrious characters of the kingdom might be seen. On one of those public mornings, Mr. B W , an eminent painter, paid a visit to Mr. Garrick, and took in his hand his little daughter, telling her, before hand, that he would carry her to see the greatest stage player in the world. When they were in the room, and in the midst of this splendid company, the child ran up to her father, and speaking with a voice sufficiently audible to be heard by every one there, said Father, father, be all these folks that I see liere stage- SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 6*1 players Her fatlier was not a little disconcerted at the child's abrupt speech. When Garrick once complained to Sir Joshua of the daily sarcasms with which he was annoyed from Foote, the comedian. Sir Joshua answered, that Foote, in so doing, gave the strongest proofs possible of sensibly feeling his own inferiority ; as it was always the lesser man who condescended to become malignant and abusive. Dr. Mudge, when in Garrick's company at Mount Edge- cumbe, heard him say, that his regard for his mother's peace and happiness prevented him from appearing on the stage till after her death, and that he imagined this circumstance greatly contributed to the vast success he had met with ; for being then turned of thirty, his judgment was more mature, and occasioned his avoiding many errors which he might have run into had he begun earlier in life'. I also remember to have heard old Dr. Chauncey say, at Sir Joshua's table, that he saw Garrick at his first appear- ance on the stage in Goodman's-fields, at which time he was infinitely more excellent, more pureW natural than afterwards, when he had acquired many stage tricks and bad habits. I shall here close these anecdotes with a curious thou£jh rather too severe a criticism on the manner of Garrick's performing the part of King Richard the Third. On the morning after Garrick had appeared in that part, Gibbon the historian 6£ MEMOIRS OF called on Sir Joshua, when he mentioned his having been at the play on the preceding evening, and immediately began to criticise Garrick^s manner of acting that character. He said he thought that he gave it, in the first scenes, a mean, creeping, vulgar air, totally failing in the impression of a prince; and in the latter part so very different a cast, that it did not seem to be the same person, and therefore not in harmony as a whole. In the autumn of the year 1762, Mr. Reynolds having impaired his health by incessant application to his profession, again paid a visit to his native country, accompanied by his friend Dr. Johnson, with whom he was entertained at the seats of several noblemen and gentlemen in the west of England. During their stay at Plymouth, they were the guests of Dr. John Mudge, who was then a surgeon, and afterwards an eminent physician of that town ; a man whose virtues and various powers of mind, if described, would occupy a much larger space than I shall presume to give them in this short Memoir. Mr. Reynolds's friendship for the whole family, and the interest he took in whatever related to them, were of the liveliest kind. This acquaintance with the Mudges, both father and son, ought to be reckoned amongst the earliest of his literary connections. Yet though I refrain to give way to my own grateful and SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 63 friendly feelings towards this family, I hope I shall be excused in recording the testimonies of two such good judges of human nature, as Burke and Johnson, upon this very subject. In a letter which the former wrote to Mr. Malone, in the year 1797? and which I here quote from its intimate connection with the subject of my biography, he speaks of how much Sir Joshua " owed to the writings and conversation of Johnson ;" adding, that " nothing shows more the greatness of Sir Joshua's parts, than his taking advantage of both, and making some application of them to his profession ; when Johnson neither understood, nor desired to understand, any thing of painting, and had no distinct idea of its nomenclature, even in those parts which had got most into use in common life. But though Johnson had done much to enlarge and strengthen his habit of thinking. Sir Joshua did not owe his first rudiments of speculation to him. He has always told me, that he owed his first disposition to generalize, and to view things in the abstract, to old Mr. Mudge, Prebendary of Exeter, and father to the celebrated mechanic of that name. I have myself," adds Mr. Burke, " seen Mr. Mudge the clergyman at Sir Joshua's house. He was a learned and venerable old man ; and, as I thought, very much conversant in the Platonic philosophy, and very fond of that method of philosophizing. He had been originally a dissenting minister ; a description which at that time bred very considerable men, both among those who adhered to it, and those who left it. He had entirely cured himself of the unpleasant narrowness which in the early part of his life had distinguished those gentlemen, and was perfectly free from the ten times more 64 MEMOIRS OF dangerous enlargement which has been, since then, their general characteristic. Sir Joshua Reynolds had always a great love for the whole of that family, and took a great interest in whatever related to them." In addition to this, I shall insert from the periodical obituary of the day, a high eulogy bestowed upon the same individual by Johnson himself, on his demise in the year 1769. He speaks of him as " the Reverend Mr. Zachariah Mudge, prebendary of Exeter, and vicar of St. Andrews in Plymouth ; a man equally eminent for his virtues and abilities, and at once beloved as a companion, and reverenced as a pastor. He had that general cm^iosity to which no kind of knowledge is indifferent or superfluous, and that general benevolence by which no order of men is despised or hated. " His principles, both of thought and action, were great and comprehensive. By a solicitous examination of objections, and judicious comparison of opposite arguments, he attained what inquiry never gives but to industry and perspicuity, a lirm and unshaken settlement of conviction. But his firmness was without asperity ; for knowing with how much difficulty truth was sometimes found, he did not wonder that many missed it. " The general course of his life was determined by his profes- sion ; he studied the sacred volumes in the original languages; with what diligence and success, his Notes upon the Psalms give sufficient evidence. He once endeavoured to add the knowledge of Arabic to that ot Hebrew ; but finding his thoughts SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 65 too much diverted from other studies, after some time desisted from his purpose. " His discharge of parochial duties was exemplary. How his seruions were composed, may be learned from the excellent volume which he has given to the public ; but how they were delivered, can be known only to those who heard them ; for as he appeared in the pulpit, words will not easily describe him. His delivery, though unconstrained was not negligent, and though forcible was not turbulent ; disdaining anxious nicety of emphasis and laboured artifice of action, it captivated the hearer by its natural dignity, it roused the sluggish and fixed the volatile, and detained the mind upon the subject without directing it to the speaker. " The grandeur and solemnity of the preacher did not intrude upon his general behaviour ; at the table of his friends he was a companion, communicative and attentive, of unaffected manners, of manly cheerfulness, willing to please, and easy to be pleased. His acquaintance was universally solicited, and his presence obstructed no enjoyment which religion did not forbid. Though studious he was popular ; though inflexible he was candid ; and though metaphysical yet orthodox." Such was the obituary testimony of Johnson to the memory of a man, equally and deservedly dear both to himself and to Sir Joshua Reynolds ! In addition to this, I have myself heard Sir Joshua declare, that the elder Mr. Mudge was, in his opinion, the K 66 MEMOIRS OP wisest man be had ever met with in his life ; and so great an admirer was he of the literary works of Mr. Mudge, that he had intended to have re-published his Sermons, which were out of print ; and also to have written a sketch of his life and character. — Pity it was not done by one who could have done it so well ! Some of the occurrences, which took place during this tour, have been already narrated by Mr. Boswell, who informs us, that Sir Joshua and his friend were not only shewn every thing relative to the Dock-yard and other parts of the naval establish- ment at Plymouth, with a degree of sedulous and polite atten- tion on the part of the commissioner, but that the same officer also accommodated them with his yacht for the purpose of a marine trip to the Eddystone light-house, which, however, they were prevented examining with accuracy, from the tempestuous state of the weather. It was about this time I first saw Sir Joshua ; but I had seen several of his works which were in Plymouth, (for at that time I had never been out of the county,) and those pictures filled me with wonder and delight, although I was then very young ; insomuch, that I remember when Reynolds was pointed out to me at a public meeting, where a great crowd were assembled, I got as near to him as I could from the pressure of the people, to touch the skirt of his coat, which I did with great satisfaction to my mind. During their stay at Plymoutli, Dr. Mudge, in conversation with Johnson, mentioned a circumstance of a most curious SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 6? mode of trial, to which a friend of his, a man of undoubted veracity, had been an eye witness : Dr. Johnson desired to have it related to him by the person who saw it ; on which the gentleman being introduced to the Doctor, he repeated the circumstances, which were these : — In some part of the East Indies, a man, one of the natives, was suspected of murder, and the mode taken to prove either his guilt or innocence was this. The suspected criminal was brought guarded, and his hands bound, to a public place pre- pared for the trial, where was a large fire, over which was a cauldron of melted lead : into this vessel of melted lead he was . forced to dip his naked hand, which, if he was innocent of the supposed crime, it was concluded, would receive no injury from the burning metal ; but, if guilty, would be destroyed. All the officers of the English man-of-war then in the harbour, and of which the gentleman who related it was the purser, were present at this extraordinary manner of trial, and the gentleman averred, that he distinctly saw the prisoner dip his hand into the melted lead, taking up some in his palm, and leisurely spilling it on the ground at his feet, without any apparent injury, or even pain to his hand. One of the English officers present had the curiosity to put a small stick, which he held in his hand, into the cauldron, and on taking it out again, found the part which had been immersed in the metal nearly consumed. Dr. Johnson heard the narrative with much attention, and declared he would most willingly take a voyage to the East Indies, if he could be insured to be witness to such a sight. K 2 68 MEMOIRS OF If there was any juggling in this affair, it cannot now be detected ; but the person who saw it was unable to account for it, and the credulity of Dr. Johnson made him a very fit man to relate this story to. Sir Joshua having completed his pleasant trip, and suc- ceeded, in a great measure, in the restoration of his health, he returned to the metropolis and to the practice of his art ; indeed, the true enjoyment of a profession Sir Joshua possessed, in as great a degree, perhaps, as any man ever did ; he was never so happy as in those hours which he passed in his painting room. He has often confessed, that when he has com- plied with the invitations of the nobility to spend a few days of relaxation with them at their country residences, though every luxury was afforded which the heart could desire, yet he always returned home like one who had been kept so long without his natural food. Sir Joshua used to say, that he will never make a painter who looks for the Sunday with pleasure as an idle day." None of his hours were ever spent in idleness, or lost in dissipation ; and on those evenings which he spent at home, after his daily occupation was past, he employed himself in looking over, and studying from, the prints of the old masters, of wliich he had procured a fine collection. He was, however, happy in the friendly society of a few amiable individuals, with whom his evenings were sometimes spent ; and amongst those the Cotterells were still numbered, at whose house Johnson and he had been frequent visitors. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. eg In a letter from Johnson to Barretti, written in December, after the return of the two friends to the metropolis, the former says, " Reynolds still continues to increase in reputation and riches. Miss Cotterell is still with Mrs. Porter. Miss Char- lotte is married to Dean Lewis, and has three children." And in a subsequent letter, he adds, " Miss Cotterell still continues to cling to Mrs. Porter. Mr. Reynolds gets 6000 a-year." Mr. Reynolds's practice was now, indeed, so great, that he found it necessary to have pupils to assist in the minor parts of his profession, of which number the first after Marchi was Mr. Beech, a native of Dorsetshire, and soon after Mr. Ber- ridge was placed under his tuition ; this gentleman was born in Lincolnshire : and his fourth pupil was Mr. Hugh Barron, whose early promise and final failure may serve as a warning to others. This person was a native of the metropolis, and born somewhere near Soho, in which vicinity his father had an official situation in the Westminster Dispensary, as apothecary to that establishment. He was placed with Mr. Reynolds, with whom he continued several years ; and, on leaving him, attempted his profession as a portrait painter in the capital : but the desire of improving himself in the art induced him to visit Italy in 1773, to which country, like Sir Joshua, he took the maritime route, and like him called at Lisbon on his way. He made some stay there, practising his art, being much patronized by the English factory both there and at Oporto, and then proceeded on his voyage : he seems to have been long a sojourner at the seat of the arts, principally at Rome and at Genoa, returning to England not until 1778. His 70 MEMOIRS OF first residence in London was in his old master's immediate neighbourhood, but he did not remain there long ; and is since, dead, (in 1791,) at the age of middle life. This person was in some degree an instance of misapplied talents ; for though, as Mr. Edwards records, he was the best amateur performer of his day on the violin, yet he was never much esteemed as a painter, notwithstanding the early promise which he gave of graphic excellence whilst a youth, at the drawing-school> under the tuition of Fournier, some time about the year 1764. - His younger brother, William, about the year 1775, pro- duced a view of Wanstead House, which was engraved by Picot, and dedicated to Sir Joshua ; further particulars of him will be found in Edwards. At his hours of leisure Mr. Reynolds considered it as necessary to his mental improvement, as well as to his professional interest, to mix in learned and convivial society ; and about this time, in order not only to enjoy it with freedom, but also more particularly with the kind intention of gratifying his venerable friend, he became the proposer, and with the assistance of Johnson was the founder, of that club, still in existence, and for many years denominated the " Literary Club.'' This, however, was a title which they did not arrogate to them- selves ; a thing, indeed, in which Sir Joshua would have been the last person to join : but as I was not then in the metro- polis myself, and feel so anxious for the literary fame of him whose friendship did me so much honour, as to wish to guard him against the imputation of affecting that which he really SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. , 71 did possess, though some envious persons have denied it, (I allude to his own literary merit,) I consider myself as warranted in going to some length on the subject, from the authority of contemporary biographers. Whilst writinjy the life too of the founder of the club, it will not be considered as out of place briefly to notice the original design which, as first declared at its institution, in February, 1764, was to confine the club to twelve members, consisting of Sir Joshua, then only Mr. Reynolds, Dr. John- son, Drs. Goldsmith, Nugent, and Percy afterwards Bishop of Dromore, Sir Robert Chambers and Sir John Hawkins, with Messi-s. Burke, Langton, Chamier, Dyer, and the Honourable Topham Beauclerk. These were thus so judiciously selected, as Mr. Malone observes, and were men of such talents and so well knoAvn to each other, that any two of them, if they should not happen to be joined by any more, might be good company for each other. Such was the beginning of a society which has now existed for half a century, boasting of having had enrolled, on its list of members, many of the most celebrated characters of the last century. Sir John Hawkins, though he does not expressly mention Sir Joshua as the founder, has, notwithstanding, entered more into detail on this subject than either Mr. Boswell or Mr, Malone ; he observes, speaking of Dr. Johnson in the pre- ceding year, (1763,) that he had now considerably extended the circle of his acquaintance, and had added to the number 72 MEMOIRS OF of his friends sundry persons of distinguished eminence ; amongst whom he enumerates Sir Joshua and some others of the original members, and he then enters more minutely into those principles which must have weighed much with the founder when he first thought of the plan : for he adds, that from Johnson^s delight in convivial meetings, his love of con- versation, and his sensible feeling of the attractions of a tavern, it was but natural that he should wish for frequent oppor- tunities of indulging them in a way that would free him from domestic restraint, from the observance of hours, and from a conformity to family regulations. A tavern was the place for these enjoyments, and a weekly club was instituted for his gratification, and the mutual entertainment and delight of its several members. The first movers in this association were Johnson SLud Sir Joshua Reynolds ; the place of meeting was the Turk's Head in Gerard-street ; the day, Monday in every week ; and the hour of assembling, seven in the evening. Our evening toast," continues Sir John, "was esto perpetua. A lady, distinguished by her beauty and taste for literature, (Mrs. Montague,) invited us two successive years to a dinner at her house ; curiosity was her motive, and possibly a desire of interminslincf with our conversation the charm of her own. She affected to co s der us as a set of literary men, and perhaps gave the first occasion for distinguishing the society by the name of the Literary Club, a distinction which it never assumed to itself." Having thus slightly noticed what may be considered as an event not wholly unimportant in the life of Sir Joshua, I may further add of this year, as connected with the art, SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 73 that in the month of April was first opened the exhibition of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, at the Great Room in Spring Gardens. This took place from a union of all the artists of the metropolis in I76O, and was followed by a royal charter in the succeeding year. It may not be foreign to my purpose here, for the information of general readers, to take some notice of the royal charter of incorporation of this establishment, par- ticularly as it has been entirely passed over by former biographers. This charter then was given to the Society of Artists of Great Britain," to consist of a president, vice president, directors, and fellows, to be for ever after a body corporate, with perpetual succession, and with power to enjoy lands in perpetuity, either by purchase or devise, to the yearly value of c£lOOO, notwithstanding the statute of mortmain. Their arms, or corporation seal, consisted of azure, a brush, a chissel, and a pair of compasses, composed fretty, or ; over these, in chief, a regal crown proper. This coat had two supporters : on the dexter side, Britannia ; on the sinister. Concord. The crest was on a wreath, an oak branch, and a palm branch in saltire, and in the centre of these, a chaplet of laurel. This common seal too, a thing very unusual in heraldic grants, they had liberty to break, alter, or change the same, from time to time, as they thought fit. It was further stipulated, that all the officers, together 74 iVIEMOIRS OF with the directors, should be either painters, sculptors, architects, or engravers, by profession. The charter further authorized them to hold meetings for the better improvement of those arts, in London, or within ten miles thereof, as often as it might be necessary. Mr. Lambert was the first president, and Mr. Hay man his vice ; Messrs. Dalton and Newton were the first treasurer and secretary ; the other members of the direction were Sir William Chambers, Messrs. Mac Ardell, Barret, Collins, Cotes, Grignion, Gwyn, Hone, Meyer, Moser, Payne, Penny, Rooker, Sandby, Seaton, Tyler, Wall, Wilson, Wilton, and Yeo. As the events which gave rise to this establishment are intimately connected with the present Royal Academy in its progress and foundation, I cannot give a better view of them, in part, than is afforded by the slight sketch drawn up in the year 1766, by Mr. John Gwyn, an ingenious architectural writer, in his " London and Westminster Improved." The passage has, indeed, been quoted before, but will not be improper in this place. He observes, that " Sir Peter Lely and Sir Godfrey Kneller kept up the national passion with great success ; and some public works, which required decorations, gave opportunity to Sir James SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 75 Thornhill and otiiers, to shew, that historical painting, if properly encouraged, was a field in which the British nation might engage with their competitors, not without advantage : but notwithstanding this advancement of the art of painting, and the number of ingenious professors who continually advanced in every branch, neither painting, nor professors of painting, were, known, distinguished, or encouraged. The few, indeed, who had taste and discernment, sought for these ingenious men, and purchased their works ; but the public knew them not, nor did they know each other : they had no society or intercourse with their fellow artists, consequently had very little to say in each other's recommendation, in the different branches of painting ; and he who had the greatest acquaintance, whatever were his abilities, was sure to get the most money. However, the natural good sense and ingenuity .t)f the British nation continued still to furnish very able masters ; and these, at length, collected their scattered and dispersed brethren, and formed a little society, who, wisely considering their mutual interest., by a voluntary subscription among themselves, established an academy in St. Martin's- lane. The establishment of the Foundling Hospital, which was a national concern, and attracted the notice of the public in a very particular manner, gave an opportunity, when finished, for displaying a scene entirely new to this nation. The Hospital was just in its infancy, and elegant decorations, and every possible means that could allure or draw the attention of the public towards its support and maintenance, were 76 MEMOIRS OF. found necessary; but the expense ^f^sucli ornaments coultl not be afforded by a charity whose utmost abilities were demanded for the succour and support of deserted perishing infants. In order to contribute to the support of this useful establishment, and to shew at once that ingenuity and com- passion for the distresses of human nature are usually found to reside in the same person, the most considerable artists in Great Britain nobly and generously united in bestowing a great number of excellent performances, in painting and sculpture, which embellished the Hospital, entertained the public, and, at the same time convinced the world that paint- ing was arrived to a degree of perfection in this kingdom, of which, until this era, they had no conception. The Governors of the Hospital, convinced of the use and benefit which accrued to the charity from these truly valuable donations, and desirous of improving a connection so very advantageous to them, encouraged the several contributors, and also the whole body of those who professed the polite arts, to have an annual meeting at the Hospital, on the fifth of November : these meetings drew together the most ingenious artists from every quarter, and at one of them it was proposed to the whole body, to have an annual exhibition of such performances as should be judged worthy the notice of the public. A proposal so very advantageous to merit of every kind, could not fail of being received with applause, and was unanimously agreed to. In consequence of this resolution, application was made to the Society of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, who, taking it into consideration, rightly judged, that an exhibition of this nature could not be carried SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 77 into execution with so much propriety as under their patronage ; they complied, therefore, willingly, with this request, and, in the year I76O, the first exhibition of the artists of Great Britain was made, and another the year following ; but as every member of the society was at liberty to distribute what number of tickets for admittance he thought fit, that which was intended only as a polite enter- tainment and rational amusement for the public, became a scene of tumult and disorder ; and to such a height was the rage of visiting the exhibition carried, that, when the members themselves had satisfied their own curiosity, the room was crowded, during the hours allotted for the exhibition, with menial servants and their acquaintance. This prostitution of the polite arts, undoubtedly became extremely disagreeable to the professors themselves, who heard, alike, with indignation, their works censured or approved by kitchen-maids and stable-boys ; but the cause of the final separation, (for this abuse might have been remedied,) of the artists of Great Britain from the Society, was this : it had been, and still is, usual for the Society to give premiums for historical and landscape painting; these rewards were usually adjudged among the competitors some little time before the exhibition began, and as those who gained the premiums were obliged to leave their pictures a limited time with the Society, they were, of course, sure to be in the exhibition. The great incon- venience of this method of proceeding was soon discovered by several of the most eminent painters, whose reputations were already so eminently established as to prevent their becoming candidates for a trifling premium ; these, therefore, as their 78 MEMOIRS OF characters were so nearly concerned, very justly objected to the continuation of this custom, for the following obvious reason: it was generally known that the Society had determined premiums for several pictures, and it was natural enough for persons who knew nothing of the matter to inquire, upon entering the room, which of the pieces, among that profusion of art, were those that had obtained the premium ? and, being satisfied in this particular, they very innocently concluded, for want of better judgment, that these had obtained the prize from all the rest, and, consequently, were the best pictures. Had it been possible to have confined this injurious decision to the vulgar spectators, it would have been a thing of no conse- quence ; but, unfortunately for the arts, many in a much higher sphere of life were liable to be led away by the same opinion ; and therefore, as the society would not give up the point, a separation ensued, and every succeeding exhibition has been made at the room in Spring Gardens. The prodigious encouragement given to it, and the applause bestowed on the several performances, by persons of the greatest taste and distinction, evidently shew what a prodigious progress has been made in the arts, as well as what great expectations may be formed of what will probably, be done by concurring incite- ments of applause and emulation, and the effects of society and concord. The success of the exhibition, and the harmony which subsisted among the exhibitors, naturally led them to the thoughts of soliciting an establishment, and forming themselves into a body : in consequence of which solicitation, his Majesty was most graciously pleased to grant them his Iloyal Charter, incorporating them by the name of the Society SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 79 of Artists of Great Britain ; which charter bears date the 26th day of January, 1765, and is the one of which I have given the preceding sketch. In the summer of this year a violent and very dangerous illness had attacked Mr. Reynolds, which had nearly deprived his associates of one of the best of friends, and the worFd of one of its brightest ornaments. His illness, however, was but of short duration, and his recovery was cheered by the following affectionate letter from Dr. Johnson, then on a visit in Northamptonshire : ** TO JOSHUA REYNOLDS, ESQ., IN LEICESTER-FIELDSj LONDON. ** DEAR SIR, " I did not hear of your sickness, till I heard, likewise, of your recovery, and therefore escaped that part of your pain which every man must feel to whom you are known as you are known to me. Having had no particular account of your disorder, I know not in what state it has left you. If the amusement of my company can exhilarate the languor of a slow recovery, I will not delay a day to come to you ; for I know not how I can so effectually promote my own pleasure as by pleasing you, or my own interest as by preserving you ; in whom, if I should lose you, I should lose almost the only man whom I call a friend. Pray let me hear 80 MEMOIRS OF of you from yourself, or from dear Miss Reynolds. Make my compliments to Mr. Mudge. " I am, dear Sir, " Your most affectionate, and Most humble servant, " Sam. Johnson. " At the Rev. Mr. Percy's, at Easton-Maudit, Northamptonshire, (by Castle Ashby) August 19, 1764." In 1765 Mr. Reynolds exhibited a whole length portrait of Lady Sarah Bunbury, in which she is represented as sacrificing to the Graces. Previous to this he had painted an excellent whole length portrait of Lady Elizabeth Keppel, in the dress she wore as bridemaid to the Queen ; and in the same exhi- bition he had another portrait of Lady Waldegrave ; of which J Mr. Barry, in a letter to Dr. Sleigh, says, " We have had two exhibitions since I wrote to you ; the pictures that struck me most were Lady Sarah Bunbury sacrificing to the Graces, and Lady Waldegrave ; they are some of Mr. Reynolds's best works, which is the greatest character they can have." It was in this year that Johnson's edition of Shakspeare made its appearance ; and even for this, the world is much obliged to Sir Joshua Reynolds. Mr. Boswell tells us, that in 1756 the Doctor had resumed his scheme of giving that work with notes, and had even published proposals, in which he promised that it should be perfected by Christmas, 1757, but that his habitual indolence had prevented him from pursuing the system of research necessary for such an under- SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 81 taking. Sir Jolin Hawkins also notices particularly that a Reverend Divine (Churchill) had exhibited hira to ridicule in a satirical poem, and revived the remembrance of that engagement to the public, " which by this and other instances of the laxity of his mind, he seemed not inclined to fulfil." This was about I76O ; but as Hawkins adds, although Johnson was insensible to the abuse, yet his friends took the alarm, and by aU the arts of persuasion and reasoning, endeavoured to convince him that his credit was at stake, in having yet made no progress in a work, for which he had already taken subscriptions. The true reason to be given for the delay of this work is, that Johnson had undertaken it at a period when he was obliged to be a literary drudge for his livelihood, and merely on account of the profits it would afford him ; but it never was an object of his desire. In the mean time he became possessed of the pension of three hundred per annum from the bounty of his present Majesty, and therefore, that task, which before was undertaken from necessity only, now became loathsome to him, and he could not summon up sufficient resolution to go on with the work, although he had engaged himself to the public by having received subscriptions for it. He indeed confessed that he was culpable, and made promises, from time to time, that he would commence the necessary course of reading ; but even now his best friends trembled for his fulfilment of these promises, nor was it until Sir Joshua and some others of his friends contrived to entangle jiiiin in a M 82 MEMOIRS OF wager for its performance at a given period, that he could be prevailed to sit down to it in earnest. These friendly exertions, however, had the best effect, and at length, in 1765, the work was produced. I make no doubt that Sir Joshua, in order to encourage Johnson in the business, at the same time offered to furnish him with the few notes on the text of Shakspeare, which he faithfully performed ; and as these notes serve to show the clearness of perception and mode of thinking in Reynolds, it is surely requisite to insert them in this place. In Macbeth, act the first, scene the sixth, in the dialogue between the King and Banquo, is this passage — King. " This castle hath a pkasant seat; the air Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself Unto our gentle senses. Ban. This Guest of summer. The temple-haunting Martlet, does approve. By his lov'd mansionry, that the Heav'n's breath Smells wooingly. Here is no jetty frieze, Buttrice, nor coigne of vantage, but this bird Hath made his pendant bed and procreant cradle : W here they most breed and haunt, I have observed The air is delicate." On which Sir Joshua observes, " this short dialogue between Duncan and Banquo, whilst they are approaching the gates of Macbeth's castle, has always appeared to me a striking instance of what in painting is termed repose. This conversa- tion very naturally turns upon the beauty of its situation, and the pleasantness of the air ; and Banquo, observing the martlets* SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 83 nests ill every recess of the cornice, remarks, that where those birds most breed and haunt, the air is delicate. Tlie subject of quiet and easy conversation gives that repose so necessary to the mind after the tumultuous bustle of the preceding scenes, and perfectly contrasts the scene of horror that immediately succeeds. It seems as if Shakspeare asked himself, what is a prince likely to say to his attendants on such an occasion ? Whereas, the modern writers seem, on the contrary, to be always searching for new thoughts, such as would never occur to men in the situation which is represented. — This also is frequently the practice of Homer, who, from the midst of battles and horrors, relieves and refreshes the mind of the reader, by introducing some quiet rural image, or picture of familiar domestic life." On this note, the following observation has been made in a late edition by Mr. Malone, which, although expressing a difference of opinion, is yet highly complimentary to Sir Joshua. — "It is not without reluctance that I exprses my dissent from the friend whose name is subscribed to the preceding note ; whose observations on all subjects of criticism and taste are so ingenious and just, that posterity may be at a loss to determine, whether his consummate skill and execution in his own art, or his judgment in that andother kindred arts, were superior." In Othello, act first, scene third, the Duke says, " Let me speak like yourself; and lay a sentence. Which, as a grise or step, may help these lovers Into your fayour." M 2 84 MEMOIRS OP The Duke then proceeds to repeat a variety of proverbs in rhyming distichs ; on which Johnson says in a note, " The Duke seems to mean, when he says he will speak like Brabantio, that he will speak sententiously." But Sir Joshua was of opinion, that Shakspeare here meant something further ; for Brabantio was father of Desdemona, and the Duke was endeavouring to reconcile him to her marriage with the Moor : he therefore adds, " i. e. let me speak as yourself would speak, were you not too much heated with passion." Perhaps the Poet might have also wished to say, or to imply, " Hear me now say, what you ought to say ; let me repeat those wise proverbs of which you are so fond, and whose wisdom ought now to regulate your feelings." In the same scene Brabantio says, *' But words are words ; I never yet did hear That the bruis'd heart was pierced through the ear." On this passage Warburton had observed, that " the Duke had by sage sentences been exhorting Brabantio to patience, and to forget the grief of his daughter's stolen marriage: to which Brabantio is made very pertinently to reply, to this effect, * My Lord, I apprehend very well the wisdom of your advice ; but though you would comfort me, words are but words ; and the heart, already bruised, was never pierced, SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 85 or wounded, through the ear.' It is obvious that the text must be restored thus : That the bruised heart was pierced through the ear. That is, that the wounds of sorrow were never cured, or a man made heart-whole, merely by the words of consolation." Next comes Mr. Stevens, who treats the bruised heart, first surgically, and then applies a black letter plaister to the wound. " Pierced may be right. The consequence of a bruise is sometimes matter collected, and this can no way be cured without piercing or letting it out. Thus in Hamlet : " Tt will but skin and filra the ulcerous place, Whiles rank corruption, mining all within. Infects unseen." Again, "This is th'imposthume of much wealth and peace, That inward breaks, and shows no cause without, Why the man dies." What reference these passages can possibly have to the point in question, I will not pretend to say ; and indeed Mr. Stevens himself seems to have doubted there being a cure for this bruised heart ; he therefore adds — " Our author might have had in his memory the following quaint title of an old book ; i. e. * A Lytell Treatyse called the Dysputacyon, or„ the Complaynte of the Harte through perced with the lokynge of the eye. Imprinted at London, in Flete-strete, at y^ sygne of the Sonne, by Wynkin de Worde.' 86 MEMOIRS OP "Again, in a 'Newe and a Mery Interlude, concerning Pleasure and Payne in Love, made by Jhon Heywood : fol. Rastel. 1634. " Thorough myne erys dyrectly to myne harte Percyth his wordys evyn lyke as many sperys." After all this display of ingenuity and research, Sir Joshua Reynolds, with all the calm dignity of a philosophical annotator, expresses himself thus : " Shakspeare was continually changing his first expression for another, either stronger or more uncommon ; so that very often the reader who has not the same continuity, or succession of ideas, is at a loss for his meaning : many of Shakspeare's uncouth-strained epithets may be explained by going back to the obvious and simple expression, which is most likely to occur to the mind in that state. I can imagine the first mode of expression that occurred to the poet was this : " The troubled heart was never cured by words." To give it poetical force he altered the phrase : " The wounded heart was never reached through the ear." Wounded heart he changed to broken, and that to bruised, as a more common expression. Reached he altered to touched, and the transition is then easy to pierced ; i. e. throughly touched : when the sentiment is brought to this state, the commentator, without this unravelling clue, expounds piercing SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 87 heart in its common acceptation wounding the heart, which making in this place nonsense, is corrected to pierced the heart, which is very stiff, and as Polonius says, is a vile phrase J* This note seems to have been tlie foundation forMalone's subsequent, and more copious, illustration of the passage. On a subsequent passage in the same play, in the first scene of the fourth act, where Othello, in his jealousy, exclaims, " Nature would not invest herself in such shadowing passion without some instruction. It is no words that shake me thus — pish — noses, ears, and lips — is't possible ! — confess 1 handkerchief ! — O devil 1" — [Falls in a trance^ Warburton says, that *' The starts and broken reflections in this speech have somethincf very terrible, and show the mind of the speaker to be in inexpressible agonies. But the words we are upon, when set right, have a sublime in them that can never be enough admired. The ridiculous blunder of writing instruction ^ov induction, (for so it should be read,) has, indeed, sunk it into arrant nonsense. Othello is just going to fall into a swoon ; and, as is common for people in that circumstauce, feels an unusual mist and darkness, accompanie dwith horror, coming upon him. This, with vast sublimity of thought, is <:ompared to the season of the sun's eclipse, at which time the earth becomes shadowed by the induction or bringing over of the moon between it and the sun. This being the allusion, the reasoning stands thus — * My nature could never be thus overshadowed, and falling, as it were, into dissolution, for no cause. There must be an induction of something ; there must be a real cause. My jealousy cannot be merely imaginary. Ideas, words only, could not shake me thus, and raise all this 88 MEMOIRS OF disorder. My jealousy, therefore, must be grounded on matter of fact/ — Shakspeare uses the same word in the same sense in King Richard the Third : " A dire iDduction am I witness to." ** Marston seems to have read it thus in some copy, and to allude to it in these words of Fame : " Plots ha' you laid ? inductions dangerous." Sir Joshua Reynolds, in his note upon this passage observes, that, " However ingenious Dr. Warburton's note may be, it is certainly too forced and far-fetched. Othello alludes only to Cassio's dream, which had been invented and told him by lago. When many confused and very interesting ideas pour in upon the mind all at once, and with such rapidity that it has not time to shape or digest them, if it does not relieve itself by tears, (which we know it often does, whether for joy or grief,) it produces stupefaction and fainting. *' Othello, in broken sentences, and single words, all of which have a reference to the cause of his jealousy, shews, that all the proofs are present at once to his mind, which so overpowers it, that he falls into a trance, the natural consequence." In a letter written by Mr. Burke to Barry, then at Rome, in the year I766, I find some observations of Sir Joshua's recorded, which deserve insertion here. i SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 89 He says, " Reynolds was dining with me when the pictures arrived, (meaning those by Barry, painted at Rome, and sent to Mr. Burke,) and I wiil tell you fairly what he said. " He declared the drawing to be perfectly correct, the expression just and noble: Alexander's attention, and the physician's unaffected manner, could not, he said, be better. In regard to the colouring, he said he did not wish it other than it was. That colouring was a knack acquired by habit and experiment ; that nothing, however, could be more dangerous to a young painter than to indulge himself in that glare of colour which catches the eye, and imposes on the imperfect judgment. I do not at all suppose that his opinion is, that to begin with a wish of excelling in colour, is to begin at the wrong end of the art. As our conversation naturally dwelt on painting, I found that Reynolds's expectations of what would be your great object of attention were the works of ]\Iichael Angelo, w^hom he considers as the Homer of Painting: I could find that his own study had been much engrossed by that master, whom he still admires the most. He mentioned, indeed, his having, Aor some months, confined himself to the Capella Sistina, and begged me to desire you to let us know the effect it has on you when you give it your attention," &c. In this year, also, he painted a very excellent three-quarter portrait of Mrs. Collier, an eminent beauty of that time, and from which there is a mezzotinto print taken by J. Watson, N I I 90 MEMOIRS OF The face is seen in profile, and has a pensive air, as if con- templating the death of a favorite sparrow, which appears laid on the table before her. The lines under the print are from Catullus: Passer mortuus est meae puellac ; Passer delitiae mese puellae ; Quem plus ilia oculis suis amabat. The following couplets were written by a gentleman of Devonshire, a friend of Sir Joshua's, and who knew the lady, on seeing the picture — The torture of a father's breast Timanthes to conceal, Anguish too great to be exprest. He covered with a veil. The lightning of bright Collier's eyes Reynolds despaired to show, That vivid fire his art defies. So bade the tear to flow. Doctor Farmer, of Cambridge, had written a most excellent and convincing pamphlet to prove that Shakspeare knew little or nothing of the ancients but by translations. Being in company with Dr. Johnson, he received from him the following compliment upon the work : " Dr. Farmer," said Johnson, " you have done that which never was done before ; that is, you have completely finished a controversy beyond all further doubt." " I thank you," answered Dr. Farmer, " for your flattering opinion of my work, but still think there are SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. §1 some critics who will adhere to their old opinions ; certain persons that I could name." " Ah !" said Johnson, " that may be true : for the limbs will quiver and move after the soul is gone." Dr. Farmer has been long celebrated as a man particularly well informed on the subject of old English literature ; and, as a man of learning, was, therefore, always an acceptable truest with Sir Joshua. He was a native of Leicester, and nearly of the same age with his friend ; and having completed his education at Cambridge, he entered into orders, serving a curacy at a village near that university for many years, whilst a tutor at Emanuel College : but his appointment, in 1767, as a preacher at Whitehall, gave him frequent opportunities of residence in London, where he became a distinguished book collector. Dr. Askew, of Queen's-square, was particularly attached to him, and being himself a man of learning, gave him a most hospitable reception at his house, where he first met Sir Joshua, along with several others of the distinguished characters of the day. With these two he mixed much in evening society ; so much so, indeed, that, when offered a bishopric by Mr. Pitt, so strong was his wish to associate without restraint, " and to enjoy himself without responsibility," that, as he said to a friend, " one that enjoyed the theatre and the Queen's Head in the evening, would have made but an indifferent bishop." 92 MEMOIRS OF He was therefore a member of several clubs, particularly one in Essex-street, founded by Johnson ; the unincreasible club at the Queen's Head in Holborn, where he met Hayley, Romney, Topham, Newbery, and others ; and the Eumelian club held at the Blenheim Tavern, in Bond-street, of which Sir Joshua himself was a member, together with Messrs, Boswell, Windham, Knight, North, Burney, Seward, and many other highly respectable and much esteemed public characters. It is not here irrelevant to notice, that it was owing to his good sense and good taste (whilst canon residentiary of St. PauPs) that his colleagues were induced to admit the ornaments of sculpture into that cathedral. Had such a man been con- cerned in the direction of that edifice, when it was proposed to decorate it with the efforts of the graphic art, how easily would a new and permanent source of encouragement have been established ? one too, most certainly no less consonant with the principles of the Protestant religion than the produc- tions of the sculptor. / In 1767 the royal patronage was extended to the artists, and an attempt was made to form an academy, partly arising from the dissensions and animosities which followed the incor- poration in 1765 ; for those who were not admitted into the body as incorporated, were so stimulated by jealousy as to resolve to submit no longer to rules and regulations, towards which they had no voice, and they accordingly attempted, for a year or two, to get up an exhibition of their own, but were not very successful in this plan. In the regular exhibition of this year, Mr. Reynolds did SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 93 not produce a single effort of his pencil ; yet even here he gave a proof that merit will always be exposed to the little attacks of malice ; for Burke observes in a letter to Barry, dated the 26th of April, 1767, " Jones, who used to be poet laureat to the exhibition, is prepared to be a severe and almost general satirist upon the exhibitors. His ill behaviour has driven him from ail their houses, and he resolves to take revenge in this manner. He has endeavoured to find out what pictures they will exhibit, and upon such information as he has got, has before-hand given a poetic description of those pictures which he has not seen. I am told he has gone so far as to abuse Reynolds, at guess, as an exhibitor of several pictures, though he does not put in one." The reason of his apparent inattention to the exhibition this year, is afterwards explained by Burke, saying, " The exhibition will be opened to-morrow. Reynolds, though he has, I think, some better portraits than he ever before painted, does not think mere heads sufficient, and having no piece of fancy finished, sends in nothing this time.*' In a subsequent letter from the same pen, in August, we find, " As to Reynolds, he is perfectly well, and still keeps that superiority over the rest, which he always had from his genius, sense, and morals." I may mention in this place, that Mr. Parry was a pupil of Mr. Reynolds some time before the year 1767, being then also a student at the academy in St. Martin's-lane : his early initiation into the art having commenced at Shipley's drawing- 94 MEMOIRS OF school, and been continued in the gallery of the Duke of Richmond, so nobly and generously established for the fur- therance of taste, and the developement of genius. It is recorded of him, however, that his early excellence, or rather the praises bestowed on it, together with the pre- miums awarded by the Society for the encouragement of Arts, for his drawings from antique models, and also from the life, had the unpleasant effect of relaxing his studies and exertions, instead of stimulating him to attempt approaching nearer to perfection. After finishing his term wifh Sir Joshua, he retired to Wales, where he was invited by the late munificent Sir Watkyn Williams Wynne, who was his steady patron, and assisted him in his -proposed plan of studying at Rome, whither he went in the year 1770 ; returning five years after- wards to England, when he attempted to settle in his profession in the metropolis, taking a house in Duke-street, St. James's. Having married Miss Keene, daughter of the architect of that name, he was affected so much by some unhappy family occurrences, as to retire from the metropolis soon after, and to settle at his former Welsh residence, where, however, he remained but a short time ; the loss of his wife, who died in parturition of her only child, having induced him, once more, to leave what may properly be called his natal country ; for, though born in London, he was yet of Welsh parentage, his father being the celebrated blind performer on the Welsh harp. His object in visiting Rome seems to have been to seek SIR JOSKUA REYNOLDS. 95 employment in his art, in addition to the wish of stifling the regret for the loss of an amiable wife ; he accordingly com- menced the copying of some of the finest pieces in that capital, but his health was soon so much impaired, that he was induced to return to England, where he did indeed arrive, but only to breathe his last sigh where he had first opened his eyes upon the world. In Edwards's Anecdotes may be seen many particulars respecting his performances ; and I cannot help regretting, along with that author, that his drawing, in chalk, of the gallery so munificently filled with valuable subjects for the student, and so liberally opened by a late Duke of Richmond, is lost, as such a thing would now be his^hly interesting to all lovers of the art. Mr. Reynolds now attained the summit of his reputation as an artist, and maintained his dignified station to the close of his life. Cotes and Ramsay shared, in some degree, with him the fashion of the day ; for each of those painters had employ- ment from the court of England, where Reynolds as an artist was never able to become a favorite. From that source ot envied and enviable honour, he had not the happiness of receiving a single commission ; for it is to be observed, that those exquisite portraits of the King and Queen, now in the , council-room of the Royal Academy, were painted at the request of Reynolds himself, purposely for that place. Mr. Cotes has now been dead upwards of forty years, havinty lived only two years after the establishment of the Royal 96 MEMOIRS OF Academy, of which he was a member, and indeed one of the four who signed the petition to his Majesty to soUcit its foundation. This was the artist whom Hogarth considered superior to Reynolds as a portrait painter ; but perhaps his great excellence ought to be confined solely to his portraits in crayons, in which style he was certainly superior to most of his rivals, as has been properly remarked by Mr. Edwards. In oils, however, he must be considered totally inferior to his illustrious competitor ; and he was evidently so in the opinion of the public, as his price for a three-quarter never exceeded twenty guineas. Mr. Allan Ramsay, even if possessed of no merit of his own, would always have been noticed as the son of Allan, the Scottish poet, and the Burns of the early part of the last century. His father is called a self-taught poet. It is difficult, however, to know what that means when said by way of distinction — every real poet must be self-taught. And the son, in the same manner, is said to be a self-taught painter, because he had received no instructions till he gave them to himself in Italy ; as every good painter has done before him, either there or elsewhere. But his being the compatriot of the Earl of Bute was a ready passport to royal notice on his return, particularly when added to his own abilities. He was certainly superior to the artists of his time in general ; though his excellence did not warrant Walpole in classing him so SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 97 exactly with Sir Joshua, when he said, Reynolds and Ramsay have v/aiited subjects, not genius." But 1 have heard Sir Joshua say, that Ramsay was the most sensible man of all the living artists ; and therefore it proved that something besides good sense is required to make a good painter. Without entering into a tedious detail of minute circum- stances and of the petty animosities at that time existing among the artists, I shall briefly observe, that during all the contentions between the Society of Artists, Dalton's Royal Academy in Pall Mall, and the intrigues and quarrels that occupied so much of the public press and of the public time, Mr. Reynolds did not interfere ; his name, indeed, was on the roll of the Society at its first incorporation, and he was afterwards appointed one of the directors, but he did not act, and, as quaintly observed by a writer of that time, "did not like them much — in fact, he had long withdrawn himself from tlie private meetings of the directors, declaring publicly, that he was no triend to their proceedings. Much fredit is, however, due to him, for his exertions in favor of the public exhibitions ; and Barry, indeed, does him full justice in one of his lectures, Avhen speaking of them as established by Sir Joshua, he says, " to which we owe almost all the art we can boast." In this year (1768), in order at once to put an end to these jarring interests, a rational and extended plan was drawn up for the present Royal Academy, of which, it has since been well observed by Barry, " under the reign of his present Majesty, our most gracious patron, the arts were, in some measure, raised out of that disgraceful o ■ 98 MKMOIRS OF obscurity in wliich they had been so long buried ; and a Royal Academy was instituted under the King's immediate protection, for the purpose of bringing forward that great line of historical, superior art ; from the successful prosecution of which only, the King and public can expect to see its reputation worthy their attention." Notwithstanding the part which Mr. Reynolds was taking in the necessary preparations for this establishment, yet he found time to gratify himself Avith a trip to Paris, in the autumn of this year, in company with Mr. William Burke, who, in a letter dated the 10th of October, from that metropolis, says, " Mr. Reynolds and I make this scamper together, and are both extremely satisfied with our tour ; were turn in a fevv^ days/' His return took place within the expected time ; and so forward were the proposed arrangements, that on the 28th of November a petition was presented to his Majesty, of which the professed objects were the establishment of a well regulated school or academy of design, for the use of students in the arts, and an annual exhibition open to ail artists of distinguished merit, where they should have an opportunity of presenting their productions to the inspection of the public, and of thereby obtaining such share of general reputation and encouragement, as their performances might seem to merit. It was intended to supply the funds for the support of the institution, by the produce of this annual exhibition ; and his Majesty was graciously pleased to promise what further aid it might require, from the privy purse. This aid sill JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 99 was necessary, for a few years, to the amount of £5000 ; but the sums raised by the exhibitions were soon so considerable, as not onl}^ to render the royal munificence unnecessary, but even to accumulate a large surplus in the funds, now forming the basis of a liberal fund for decayed artists. For the first twenty years, the net produce, on an average, amounted to upwards of £1500 per annum, and since that it has amounted to an additional ci/lOOO. A very good view of the regulations of this establishment may be found in the Monthly Magazine for March, 1810 ; and I may here observe, that annual prizes were also determined on as stimulants to rising genius. These were, of course, to be awarded to the best productions ; but it was whimsically- quoted at the time, from the laws of the ancient city of Thebes, that formerly the painter who exhibited the worst picture, was also subject to a fine 1 Professorships were likewise established, and Dr. Johnson was nominated Professor of Ancient Literature; an office, indeed, merely honorary, but conferred on him, as Sir John Hawkins hints, at the recommendation of Mr. Reynolds. Goldsmith also was not forgotten, he having received the complimentary appointment of Professor of Ancient History ; an office, like the preceding, without trouble or salary, and, as Dr. Percy observed, merely giving him a place at the annual dinner. Goldsmith himself, in a letter to bis brother, says of it — o 2 100 MEMOIRS OF '* The King has lately been pleased to make me Professor of Ancient History in a Royal Academy of Painting, which he has just established ; but there is no salary annexed ; and I took it, rather as a compliment to the Institution, than any benefit to myself. Honours to one in my situation are something like ruffles to a man that wants a shirt." But the most important event as relative to this Institution, and as connected with the subject of the present biography, was, that in order to give dignity to this Royal Academy of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, which was composed of the ablest and most respectable artists then resident in Great Britain, Reynolds was elected the first president by an unanimous vote. On that occasion he was knighted, perhaps with a view to dignify him : and indeed, had that distinction been always so bestowed, it would really have been an honour, and not the subject of those sarcasms which but too often accompany the title. Reynolds received it with satisfaction, as he well knew that it would give additional splendour to jiis works in vulgar eyes. It is not matter of surprize that his election as president was unanimous : it is certain that, every circum- stance considered, he was the most fit, if not the only person, qualified to take the chair : his professional rank, his large fortune, the circle of societj'^ in which he moved, all these contributed to establish his claim ; and to these was added a still more urgent motive, namely, that he had refused (as I have been told) to belong to the Society on any other con- ditions. Accordingly the Royal Acadeniy of Arts in London was opened on the 10th of December, IjGQ, by Sir Joshua Reynolds, Knt,, with a discourse adapted to the occasion. » SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 101 This honour of knighthood was highly gratifying to all Sir Joshua's friends. Dr. Johnson acknowledged that for years he had not tasted wine, until he was induced to break through his rule of abstemiousness in order to celebrate his friend^s elevation ; and Barry afterwards observed, in a letter to Mr. Burke, " I have a notion, some how or other, that the arts would be just now of some consequence, and pretty much of a public concern, did not the state competitors, of whom the papers are so full, divert the attention of the public into another channel. " However, I can say with truth, that as nobody is more an enthusiast for Art than I am, so there is no one who rejoices more sincerely at the honour done Art by the title and dignity his Majesty has graciously conferred on that person ■whose plan of a public exhibition has been as serviceable to the art as his performances were. The public opinion will supply what I would say." The task of delivering discourses in the Academy was no part of the prescribed duty of this office, first so ably fdled by Sir Joshua ; but was voluntarily imposed on himself, for reasons which shall be afterwards noticed, whilst taking a slight view of his fifteenth discourse. Before we proceed to investigate the purport of his discourses in their regular order, it may be well here to observe, that the delivery of these discourses was not particularly happy, considering the great taste of the speaker in other respects, and cannot be much commended ; wliich 102 MEMOIRS OF may be accounted for from two causes ; first, that his deafness might have prevented his being well able to modulate his voice ; but secondly, I am rather of opinion that the real cause was, that as no man ever felt a greater horror at affectation than he did, so he feared to assume the orator, lest it should have that appearance : he therefore naturally fell into the opposite extreme, as the safest retreat from what he thought the greatest evil. It has been related as an anecdote, that on one of the evenings when he delivered his discourse, and when the audience was, as usual, numerous, and composed principally of the learned and the great, the Earl of C , who was present, came up to him, saying, " Sir Joshua, you read your discourse in so low a tone, that I could not distinguish one word you said." To which the President, with a smile replied, " That was to my advantage." There is some little difficulty in fixing the exact date of his first discourse ; some accounts stating its delivery on the 10th of December, 1768, when the Academy was first opened: in Malone's edition of his works, it is indeed dated on the 2nd of January, 17^9; whilst Sir Joshua himself, in a letter to Bany, which will be hereafter inserted, speaks of its being delivered on the first of that month. Without attempting to reconcile those jarring dates, I shall merely observe, that the objects he had in view in this first discourse, were to imprint upon the minds of his audience how many advantages might be expected from such an SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 103 institution ; after which he offered hints for the consideration both of the professors and of the visitors, whose office it is to attend the school of the living model. He next showed the absolute necessity of an implicit obedience to all the rules of art, on the part of the youthful students, warning them to repress any premature or irregular disposition to aim at masterly dexterity before they had well acquired the necessary rudiments ; and he then showed, to render even diligence effectual, it was absolutely necessary that it should always be directed to proper objects. In alluding to the extraordinary circumstance of such an institution not having been before established, he observed, that It is, indeed, difficult to give any other reason why an empire like that of Britain should so long have wanted an ornament so suitable to its greatness, than that slow progression of things which naturally makes elegance and refinement the last effect of opulence and power." After shewing that the Academy had commenced its labours at, perhaps, the happiest possible period, not only from the patronage of the Monarch, and from the general desire among the nobility to be distinguished as lovers and judges of the arts, as well as from the greater superfluity of public wealth in general to reward the professors, but also from the fact, that there was, at that time, a greater number of excellent artists than were ever known before, at one period, in the nation ; he pointed out the principal advantages resulting from the academy to the art itself, to consist, not only in its furnishing able men to direct the student, but in being, also, 104 MEMOIRS OP a repository for the great examples of the art. These/' said he, " are the materials on which genius is to work, and without which the stro.igest intellect may be fruitlessly or deviously employed." Whilst recomm-end ng strict attention to the students, he particularly inc ulcated, that " those models which have passed through the approbaMon of ages, should be considered by them as perfect and infallible guides ; as subjects for their imitation, not their criticism;" and he then e pressed his confidence, that this was he only efficacious way of making any progress in the arts ; adding, that he who sets out with doubting, will find life finished before he becomes master even of the rudiments of his profession. He here considered it as a maxim, that he who begins by presuming on his own sense, has ended his studies as soon as he has commenced them ; and from this he took occasion to observe, that every opportunity should be seized to discountenance that false and vulgar opinion, that rules are the fetters of genius. In contradiction to such an opinion, he asserted, that they were fetters only to men of no genius; as that armour which, upon the strong, is an ornament and defence, becomes a load upon the weak and mis-shapen, crippling that body which it was intended to protect. The advantages of assiduity he proved by experience : — When we read the lives of the most eminent painters, every page informs us, that no part of their time was spent in dissipation. Even an increase of fame served only to augment their industry. To be convinced with what SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 105 persevering assiduity they pursued their studies, we need only reflect on their method of proceeding in their most celebrated works. When they conceived a subject, they first made a variety of sketches, then a finished drawing of the whole ; after that, a more correct drawing of every separate part — heads, hands, feet, and pieces of drapery ; they then painted the picture ; and, after ail, retouched it from the life. The pictures, thus wrought with such pains, now appear like the effect of enchantment, and as if some mighty genius had struck them off at a blow !" At the conclusion of this spirited discourse, he expressed his hope that the Institution might answer the expectation of its Royal Founder — " that the present age may vie in arts with that of Leo the Tenth ; and that the dignity of the dying art (to make use of an expression of Pliny) may be revived under the reign of George the Third." This spirited oration gave general satisfaction, and in a periodical journal of that time, it was observed, that this discourse certainly did honour to the President as a painter, if any honour could be added to that which he had already acquired by his pencil. It v/as also acknowledged, that it had great merit as a literary composition ; M'hilst Sir Joshua's idea, " that the Academy would at least contribute to advance the knov/ledge of the arts, and bring us nearer to that ideal excellence which it is the lot of genius always to contemplate, but never to attain," is followed by the observation, that this sentiment, none but a genius conscious of the idea of 106 MEMOIRS OF unattainable perfection, and of a perpetual effort to approach it, could have conceived. As a further testimony of Sir Joshua's merit, and well deserved elevation, Barry says, in a letter, in the early part of this year, to Mr. Burke, I am happy to find Mr. Reynolds is at the head of this academy (this was previous to his hearing of his knighthood ;) " from his known public spirit, and warm desire of raising up art among us, (which exerted itself so successfully in establishing the Exhibition,) he will, I have no doubt, contrive this institution to be productive of all the advantages that could possibly be derived from it; and whilst it is in such hands as his, we shall have nothing to fear from those shallows and quicksands upon which the Italian and French academies have lost themselves :" and on another occasion, in the same year, he wrote from Paris to Mr. Burke, whilst speaking of the paintings at Versailles, " What I have seen since, gives me more and more reason to admire Mr. Reynolds ; you know my sentiments of him already, and the more I know and see of the art, the less likely they are to change." On the first of January, I769, a poetical tribute was paid to the arts, and to the new Academy of London, by the pen of the Reverend Dr. Thomas Francklin, Chaplain to the King, and translator of Phalaris, Sophocles, and Lucian, into English, and author also of three plays, the Earl of Warwick, and Matilda, tragedies, and the Contract, a comedy. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. THE TRIUMPH OF THE ARTS. When Discord; late, her baleful influence shed O'er the fair realms of Science and of Art, Neglected Genius bent his drooping head, And pierced with anguish ev'ry tuneful heart; Apollo wept his broken lyre, Wept to behold the mournful choir Of his lov'd Muses, now an exil'd train, And in their seats to see Alecto reign. When lo ! Britannia, to the throne Of goodness makes her sorrows known. For never there did grief complain. Or injur'd merit plead in vain. The monarch heard her just request. He saw, he fell, and he redressed ; Quick with a master hand he tunes the strings, .^nd harmony from discord springs. Thus good, by Heav'n's command, from evil flow?, From Chaos, thus, of old. Creation rose; When order with confusion join'd, And jarring elements combin'd. To grace with mutual strength the great design, And speak the Architect divine. W^hilst Eastern tyrants, in the trophy'd car, Wave the red banner of destructive war. In George's breast a nobler flame Is kindled, and a fairer fame Excites to cherish native worth. To call the latent seeds of genius forth. To bid discordant factions cease, And cultivate the gentle arts of peace. And lo ! from this auspicious day, The sun of science beams a purer ray. p 2 MEMOIRS OF Behold! a brighter train of years, A new Augustan age appears ; The time, nor distant Tar, shall come. When England's tasteful youth no more Shall wander to Italia's classic shore ; No more to foreign climes shall roam In search of models, better found at home. With rapture the prophetic muse ^ Her country's opening glories views, Already sees, with wond'ring eyes. Our Titians and our Guides rise. Sees new Palladios grace th' historic page. And British Raffaelles charm a future age. Meantime, ye sons of art, your offerings bring, To grace your Patron and your King, Bid Sculpture grace his honour'd name la marble, lasting as his fame : Bid Painting's magic pencil trace The features of his darling race, And as it flows through all the royal line. Glow with superior warmth and energy divine. If tow'ring Architecture still Can boast her old creative skill, Bid some majestic structure rise to view, Worthy him, and worthy j/om; Where ar? may join with tiature and with sense. Splendor with grace — with taste, magnificence; Where strength may be with elegance combin'd. The perfect image of its master's mind. And oh ! if with the tuneful throng The Muse may dare to mix her humble song, In your glad train permit her to ap[)ear, Though poor, yet willing, and though rude, sincere To praise the Sov'reign whom her heart approves, And pay this tribute to the ART she loves." SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 109 On the 2d of the month, the academy Avas opened, and a general meeting of the Royal Academicians took place, when some public business was gone through ; after which the whole body adjourned to an elegant entertainment at the St. Alban's Tavern, where Sir Joshua presided with his accustomed urbanity, the meeting being honoured with the presence of many of the most distinguished nobility, who were now proud to come forward as patrons of the arts. It seems beneath the dignity even of biography, to note these things which many will esteem trifling in themselves, yet the time may come when even these particulars will be of some interest ; and as this period was an era in the annals of British art, I must be allowed to mark it by the gratulations of the Poets of the day, who exprest their good wishes in the best manner they were able, and no doubt would have done it much better if it had been in their power. In that point of view, therefore, I shall not refrain from inserting a song made for the occasion, by the good old Mr. Hull, the comedian, and sung at this joyous meeting by Mr. Vernon, the fashionable performer of the day. SONG. Let Science hail this happy year, Let Fame its rising glories sing^ When rts unwonted lustre wear, And boast a patron in their King ; And here unrivall'd shall they reiu;n, For George protects the polish'd train. 110 MEMOIRS OF To you, just ripen'd into birth, He gives the fair, the great design ; 'Tis 7/ours, ye Sires, of genuine worth. To bid the future artists shine; That arts unrivall'd long may reign. Where George protects the polish'd train. 'T'lsi/ours, O well selected band. To watch where infant genius blows. To rear the flower with fost'ring hand. And ev'ry latent sweet disclose; So arts unrivall'd long will reign, Where George protects the polish'd train. No more to distant realms repair For foreign aid, or borrow'd rule. Beneath her Monarch's gen'rous care, Britannia founds a nobler school, Where arts unrivall'd shall remain, For George protects the polish'd train. So shall her sons in Science bred. Diffuse her arts from shore to shore. And wide her growing genius spread. As round the v/orld her thunders roar; For he, who rules the subject main, Great George protects the polish'd train." This song, so congenial to the flattering hopes of the company, whose cares were, for a time, suspended in festivity, and who had met to be gay, was received with much applause. On Wednesday, the 26th of April, the exhibition of the Royal Academy, in Pall Mall, was opened for the first time, and drew the greatest crowds and of the highest fashion ; and I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. Ill it was observed in the periodical journals of the time, that the encouragement given to this institution was even ah'eady visible in the works of genius then exhibited : and I may take the opportunity of noting in this place, that Sir Joshua's exertions to raise the character of the Academy, were not confined to his discourses alone ; as from its first opening, until the year 1790, inclusive, it appears that he sent no less than two hundred and forty-four pictures to the various exhibitions. In this year Sir Joshua Reynolds wrote a most excellent letter to Barry, then a student at Rome. It is so descriptive of the writer's principles, and so honourable to his feelings as an artist, that I shall insert it here at length, only premising, that it was partly addressed to Barry in consequence of a letter from him to Mr. Burke, in which he described himself as engaged in some contests with the picture dealers at Rome, who were acting very illiberally towards young English artists, and using underhand means to prevent their being employed by various travellers in copying or making originals, as those dealers in rotten pictures earnestly desired to possess themselves of all the loose cash which affluent tourists had purposed to lay out in Vertu. " DEAR SIR, *' I am very much obliged to you for your remembrance of me in your letter to Mr. Burke, which, though I have read with great pleasure as a composition, I cannot help saying with some regret, to find that so great a portion of your 112 MEMOIRS OF attention has been engaged upon temporary matters, which might be so much more profitably employed upon what would stick by you through your whole life. ** Whoever is resolved to excel in painting, or, indeed, in any other art, must bring all his mind to bear upon that one ' object, from the moment he rises till he goes to bed ; the effect of every object that meets the painter's eye may give him a lesson, provided his mind is calm, unembarrassed with other objects, and open to instruction. This general attention, with other studies connected with the art, which must employ the artist in his closet, will be found sufficient to fill up life, if it was much longer than it is. Were I in your place, I would consider myself as playing a great game, and never suffer the little malice and envy of my rivals to draw off my attention from the main object ; which, if you pursue with a steady eye, it will not be in the power of all the Cicerones in the world to hurt you. Whilst they are endeavouring to prevent the gentlemen from employing the young artists, instead of injuring them, they are, in my opinion, doing them the greatest service. " Whilst I was at Rome I was very little employed by them, and that I always considered as so much time lost: copying those ornamental pictures, which the travelling gentlemen always bring home with them as furniture for their houses, is far from being the most profitable manner of a student spending his time. Whoever has great views, I would recommend to him, whilst at Rome, rather to live on bread and water, than lose those advantages which he can never hope to enjoy a SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 113 second time, and which he will find only in the Vatican ; where, I will engage, no cavalier sends his students to copy for him. I do not mean this as any reproach to the gentlemen ; the works in that place, though they are the proper study of an artist, make but an awkward figure painted in oil, and reduced to the size of easel pictures. The Capella Sistina is the production of the greatest genius that was ever employed in the arts ; it is worth considering by what principles that stupendous greatness of style is produced ; and endeavouring to produce something of your own on those principles, will be a more advantageous method of study, than copying the St. Cecilia in the Borghese, or tlie Herodias of Guido, which may be copied to eternity, without contributing one jot towards making a man a more able painter. " If you neglect visiting the Vatican often, and particularly the Capella Sistina, you will neglect receiving that peculiar advantage which Rome can give above all other cities in the world. In other places you will find casts from the antique, and capital pictures of the great painters, but it is there only that you can form an idea of the dignity of the art, as it is there only that you can see the works of Michael Angelo and Raffaelle. If you should not relish them at first, which may probably be the case, as they have none of those qualities which are captivating at first sight, never cease looking till you feel something like inspiration come over you, till you think every other painter insipid, in comparison, and to be admired only for petty excellencies. " I suppose you have heard of the establishment of a Royal Q 114 MEMOIRS OF Academy here ; the first opportunity I have I will send you the discourse I delivered at its opening, which was the first of January. As I hope you will be hereafter one of our body, I wish you would, as opportunity offers, make memorandums of the regulations of the academies that you may visit in your travels, to be engrafted on our own, if they should be found useful. " I am, with the greatest esteem, yours, " J. Reynolds. ** On reading my letter over, I think it requires some apology for the blunt appearance of a dictatorial style, in which I have obtruded my advice. I am forced to write in a great hurry, and have little time for polishing my style." In the month of October, this year. Sir Joshua was called on to attend the sessions in the Old Bailey, in company with Dr. Johnson, Garrick, Dr. Goldsmith, and several other distinguished characters, to give evidence to character in favor of the well known Mr. Barretti, in consequence of his being obliged to stand trial under a verdict of manslaughter, found against him by a coroner's inquest, on the 10th of the month. This unfortunate circumstance arose from Mr. Barretti having been attacked on the 5th in the evening, at the end of Panton-street, going into the Haymarket, by a prostitute, who rudely and indecently accosted him. He pushed her from him, but she finding by his accent that he was a foreigner. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. m immediately called him by the most opprobrious names ; and her loud tones having brought up a bully, he began to assault Mf. Barretti in the most outrageous manner. Some more of the gang then approached, and attempted to hustle him, when he was obliged, in his defence^ to pull out a small knife, warning them not to use him ill, tnat he would ' not bear it, and would strike the first person that should come near him. He then ran, and as .they pursued him, he kept moving his hand backward and forward in running from them, to defend himself, and thus wounded two of his assailants, one of whom died afterwards in the Middlesex hospital. The crowd was now so great, that Mr. Barretti, no longer in dread of his life, immediately submitted himself, and was committed by Sir John Fielding to Tothill-fields prison. The coroner's inquest sat two days before they brought in their verdict, when Barretti was admitted to bail, and the trial taking place on the 23rd, he refused to avail himself of the usual privilege of having half his jury composed of foreigners ; but the evidences for the prosecution so completely contra- dicted themselves and each other, that little more was necessary than for him to explain the circumstances, which he did, justifying the act as one of self-defence, after having been repeatedly struck and abused ; at the same time asserting, that the knife was drawn only to terrify, and not to wound, though the pressing of the populace in his retreat had, in a moment of agitation, led him further than he at first intended. Q 2 116 MEMOIRS OF This was (EOiifirmed by some most respectable eye-witnesses ; and the host of brilliant evidence, in favour of his general character, immediately drew forth a verdict of acquittal, to the complete satisfaction of the court and of the public at large. The only pupil whom Sir Joshua had at this period was Mr. Charles Gill, son of a person at Bath, whose exquisite taste as a pastry cook has been particularly noticed by Anstey in his celebrated poem. Mr. Gill, the younger, has, however, not been so celebrated in his art, and is unhappily one of those whom Mr. Edwards , notices to have been peculiarly unfortunate, having received a very severe wound in his thigh, which has deprived him of the use of his leg. Sir Joshua during part of this year appears to have been deprived of his sister's domestic attentions, by a visit to Paris. This has been very prettily noticed by Dr. Johnson, in a letter to a Miss Flint, a very young lady who had translated his Strictures on Shakspeare into French, and was then resident at that gay metropolis. He says, " How can you prevent me from complaining of those charms by which you have gained so much on Miss Reynolds, that she no longer remembers her country nor her friends ? It is but a trifle for you to praise us ; it is a trifle to spread our literary fame, whilst you deprive us of the pleasure of seeing and of con- versing with Miss Reynolds. In short. Madam, you must "become less amiable, if you wish that we should love you more." It was also some time about this period, and previous to my SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 117 t becoming a pupil of Sir Joshua, that a circumstance took place, highly illustrative of his character, and which I shall now detail, knowing it to be authentic. Sir Joshua, as his usual custom, looked over the daily morning paper at his breakfast time ; and on one of those perusals, whilst reading an account of the Old Bailey sessions, to his great astonishment, saw that a prisoner had been tried and condemned to death for a robbery committed on the person of one of his own servants, a negro who had been with him for some time. He immediately rung the bell for the servants, in order to make his inquiries, and was soon convinced of the truth of the matter related in the newspaper. This black man had lived in his service as footman for several years, and has been pourtrayed in several pictures, particularly in one of the Marquis of Granby, where he holds the horse of that General. Sir Joshua reprimanded this black servant for his conduct, and especially for not having informed him of this curious adventure; when the man said he had concealed it only to avoid the blame he should have incurred had he told it: he then related the following circumstances of the business, saying, that Mrs. Anna Williams (the old blind lady who lived at the house of Dr. Johnson) had, some time previous, dined at Sir Joshua's with Miss Reynolds ; that in the evening she went home to Bolt-court, Fleet-street, in a hackney-coach, and that he had been sent to attend her to her house. On his return he had met with companions who had detained him till so late an hour, that when he came to Sir Joshua's house, he found the doors were shut and all the servants gone to rest, ^n this dilemma he wandered in the 118 MEMOIRS OF street till he came to a watch-house, in which he took shelter for the remainder of the night, among the variety of miserable companions to be found in such places ; and amidst this assembly of the wretched, the black man fell sound asleep, when a poor thief, who had been taken into custody by the constable of the night, perceiving, as the man slept, that he had a watch and money in his pocket (which was seen on his thigh), he watched his opportunity and stole the watch, and with a pen-knife cut through the pocket, and so possessed himself of the money. When the Black awaked from his nap, he soon discovered what had been done to his cost, and immediately gave the alarm, and a strict search was made through the company ; when the various articles which the Black had lost were found in the possession of the unfortunate wretch who had stolen them. He was accordingly secured, and next morning carried before the Justice, and committed to take his trial at the Old Bailey, (the Black being bound over to prosecute), and, as we have seen, was at his trial cast and condemned to death. Sir Joshua, much affected by this recital, immediately sent his principal servant, Ralph Kirkly, to make all inquiries into the state of the criminal, and, if necessary, to relieve his wants in whatever way could be done. When Kirkly came to the prison, he was soon admitted to the cell of the prisoner, where he beheld the most wretched spectacle that imagination can conceive — a poor forlorn criminal, without a friend on earth who could relieve or assist him, and reduced almost to a skeleton by famine and by filth, waiting till the dreadful morning should arrive when he was to be made an end of by a violent death. Sir Joshua now ordered fresh cloathing to be sent to him, and also that the black servant SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 119 should carry to him every day a sufficient supply of food from his own table ; and at that time Mr. E. Burke being very luckily in office he applied to him, and by their joint interest ' they got his sentence changed to transportation ; when after being furnished with all necessaries, he was sent out of the kingdom. When Goldsmith first published his " Deserted Village/' he dedicated it to his friend Sir Joshua, in which he elegantly observes, " I can have no expectations, in an address of this kind, either to add to your reputation, or to establish my own. You can gain nothing from my admiration, as I am ignorant of the art in which you are said to excel ; and I may lose much by the severity of your judgment, as few have a juster taste in poetry than you. Setting interest, therefore, aside, to which I never paid much attention, I must be indulged, at present, in following my affections. The only dedication I ever made was to my brother, because I loved him. better than most other men. He is since dead. Permit me to inscribe this Poem to you." During the latter part of the year, Sir Joshua was much occupied in the preparation of his second discourse, which was delivered at the rooms of the Academy, on the 11th of December, 1769- The general object of this discourse was to convey a brief code of instructions for improvement in the various arts "which the Academy was intended to encourage ; and these hints, as it was neatly observed at the time, were offered 120 MEMOIRS OF with the ingenuous modesty of a man, who by excellence becomes conscious of defect, as hints founded upon his own ; previous mistakes which might at least prevent industry from being misapplied." Considering the study of Painting, in particular, as divided into three parts, he supposed the first, which was merely that of acquiring a facility of drawing any object, a tolerable readiness in the management of colours, and an acquaintance with the most simple and obvious of the rules of composition, to have been already passed through by the student, to whom he next recommended the absolute necessity of collecting subjects for expression, and of amassing a stock of ideas capable of being combined and varied agreeable to circum- stances. This he considered as forming the second period, in which the student was to endeavour to acquire a general knowledge of all that was already known and executed ; in which, no longer under the tuition of any particular master, he was to consider himself solely as the pupil of the art, and thus to acquire and combine all the perfections scattered through the works of the most celebrated of past times, and of the various schools. In this part of the progress, though the student was to be at liberty to regulate his taste, and to enlarge the powers of his imagination, still was he to consider himself as restricted by certain rules, and so much in subjection and discipline under the art in general, as not to be permitted to resign himself SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 121 to any particular authority, much less to deviate into any track where he could perceive no antecedent footsteps. Having gone through the second, and arrived at the last stage, he considered the student as then liberated from all former authority, and to be now guided solely by judgment ; being thus placed, if not upon an equality, yet in the same rank with those who had preceded him ; and even as exercising a portion of sovereignty over those very rules by wliich he himself had been governed in the former course of his studies. At this period too, he described him as justified in adopting a new mode of judgment ; being no longer bound to compare the productions of art with each other, but to examine the art itself by Nature's own standard, and thus to correct its errors* and supply its defects. With a memory thus stored, and a judgment thus directed, then, and not till then, was the student to try the power of imagination, nay, even to give it the reins; for he asserted that the man whose mind has been thus disciplined, might be indulged in the warmest enthusiasm, and might even venture to play on the borders of the wildest extravagance ; as then the habitual dignity which long converse with the greatest minds has imparted to him, will display itself in all his attempts, and he will stand among his instructors, not as an imitator, but as a rival.'' He assumed that invention was little more than a new combination of such images as R \ 122 MEMOIRS OP have been already treasured up in the memory, so that he whose mind was best stored with images, would most certainly be the most capable of invention ; and thus that he who was best acquainted with the compositions of others, would be the most capable of originality. Of course it followed, as he premised, that such artists as toil on in the dull drudgery of copying, though they might, indeed, faithfully exhibit the minutest part of some favourite composition, would, however, never arrive at any excellence. This position, so much at variance with the rules then generally adopted, he explained by the observation, that of the best large compositions, a great part was always common- place, which, though it takes much time to copy, could conduce but little to improvement. It follows, of course, as he observes, that imitation should always be preceded by selection ; but still as that requires no effort of the mind, so would the powers of invention and composition become torpid and devoid of energy from want of exercise, instead of being kept, as they ought to be, in constant practice. Indeed, he confined the use of copying solely to the learning to colour ; though, even that branch of the art can never be acquired by a servile copyist: and here too he pointed out that a skilful artist would always rather consider what the productions of the ancient masters had been, than what they are now, when changed by dirt and varnish ; and from hence he again pointed out the necessity to copy Nature herself, in comparison with whose hues, the best coloured pictures SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 123 are but faint and feeble, and therefore most likely to give the youthful student ideas totally distinct from either art or nature. In addition to these hints, he allowed that copying might be so far proper, as to make slight sketches of the machinery and general management of any admired picture, in order to preserve these for future regulations of style, so that the student, instead of copying the touches of the great masters, would only copy their conceptions. Yet in these general observations, it was not his intention to do away models in painting : but instead of advising the student to paint a copy, he recommended to him to paint a companion ; so that by comparing the two carefully together, he might best see his own defects, and be thereby taught to guard against them. In this most important part of the art, he recommended Lodovico Caracchi as the best model for style, and this he accompanied by some most judicious remarks, but too long for insertion here : and his concluding observations are highly worthy the attention of all students, showing them that to excel, they must always consider that " Excellence is never granted to man but as the reward of Labour." In the year 1779 died a former pupil of Sir Joshua's of the name of Dusign. His father was a colonel in the army, and his mother daughter of the Earl of Hyndford, a Scottish peer. After quitting Sir Joshua, he practised, for a few years, at R 2 124 MEMOIRS OF Bath, where his family resided ; but the desire of improving himself in his art induced him to proceed to Rome, and there he soon after died of a consumption. About this time, also, a little circumstance took place which, from its connection with the art, deserves a record here. Most persons remember the lines by Pope which begin thus : " Come gentle air ! th' iEolian shepherd said, While Procris panted in the secret shade." These verses, it is well known. Pope sent to Miss Martha Blount, accompanied with a fan, on which he had painted the story of Cephalus and Procris, from a design of his own invention, with the motto " Aura Veni" After the death of Miss Blount, this fan, with other effects, was sold by public auction, and Sir Joshua Reynolds sent a person to bid for it, as far as thirty guineas ; but the man who was intrusted with the commission mistook the mark in the catalogue, and thought it could mean no more than thirty shillings, as that sum seemed a very sufficient price for a fan. As it sold, however, for about two pounds, he lost the purchase ; but, luckily, it was bought by a dealer in toys, and Sir Joshua got it by giving him a reasonable profit on his bargain. The fan was afterwards stolen from him. Sir Joshua's opinion of the degree of skill with which it was painted, being asked ; he replied, that it was such as might have been expected from one who painted for his amusement SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS, 125 alone ; like the performance of a child. This must always be the case when the work is taken up only from idleness, and laid aside when it ceases to amuse any longer. But those, he added, who are determined to excel, must go to their work whether willing or unwilling, morning, noon, and night, and will find it to be no play, but, on the contrary, very hard labour. This was said to his pupils, and in this mode only it was that he ever gave any instruction to them, when accident produced an opportunity to give it force. Sir Joshua's close attention to his profession required a certain portion of relaxation and social intercourse with his friends ; and about the year 1770> he, as stated by Mr. Cumberland, was one of a very pleasant society, which, without having the name of a club, was accustomed to dine together, on stated days, at the British Coffee House. This society was composed of men of the first eminence for their talents, and as there was no exclusion, in the system, of any member's friend or friends, their parties were continually enlivened by the introduction of new guests, who, of course, furnished new sources for conversation, from which politics and party seemed, by general consent, decidedly proscribed. Such a society might, no doubt, have been highly agreeable ; but its description, thus strongly marked by Mr. Cumberland, seems rather drawn up in contradistinction to the Literary Club, of which he was not a member. 126 MEMOIRS OF This society at the Britisli Coffee House must, however, with the exception of Johnson's conversation, have made him amends for any exclusion from the other ; for here were Foote, Fitzherbert, Garrick, Macpherson, Doctors Carlisle, Robinson, and Beattie, Caleb Whiteford, and " though last, not least," Sir Joshua Reynolds, who introduced Goldsmith as a member, immediately previous to the representation of his comedy of " She Stoops to Conquer.'* It was about this time, too, that the so often told circum- stance of the Epitaphs took place. The occurrences which led to this display of witticism, have been variously detailed. I shall, therefore, insert Mr. Cumberland's account of it, as it contains some particulars not otherwise generally known. He says, that it was on a proposal started by Edmund Burke, that a party of friends who had dined together at Sir Joshua's, and at his house, should meet at the St. James's Coffee House, which accordingly took place, and was occasionally repeated with much festivity and good fellowship. Dr. Barnard, Dean of Derry, Dr. Douglas, afterwards Bishop of Salisbury, Johnson, Garrick, Sir Joshua, Goldsmith, Edmund and Richard Burke, Hickey, an attorney, an Irishman, and a friend of the Burkes, commemorated by Goldsmith, and two or three others, constituted the party. It was at one of these meetings that the idea was suggested of extempore Epitaphs upon the parties present ; pens and ink were called for, and Garrick, off hand, with a good deal of humour, wrote the Epitaph upon poor Goldsmith, who was the JO SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. \ 1§7 first in jest, as he proved in reality, that was committed to the grave. The Dean also gave him an epitaph, and Sir Joshua illuminated the Dean's verses with a sketch of his bust in pen and ink, which Mr. C. states to have been inimitably- caricatured ; but this does not appear to me like an act of Sir Joshua's, nor did I ever hear it mentioned by any other author. These circumstances were of course sufficient to prompt Goldsmith to his well known poem of " Retaliation," which, however, was written with such good temper, as to shew that lie was fully convinced of the pleasantries of his friends having been solely produced by the harmless mirth of the moment. It is probable that whoever reads this Memoir, must have already seen that celebrated poem ; yet still his delineation of Sir Joshua is too accurate to be here omitted. " Here Reynolds is laid ; and to tell you my mind, He has not left a better or wiser behind ; His pencil was striking, resistless, and grand, His manners were gentle, complying, and bland ; Still born to improve us in every part, His pencil our faces, his manners our heart : To coxcombs averse, yet most civilly staring, When they judged without skill, he was still hard of hearing ; When they talked of their Raffaelles, Corregios, and stuff, He shifted his trumpet, and only took snuff!" 128 MEMOIRS OF In the poetical epistle addressed to Goldsmith, by Cum- berland, as a supplement to his Poem, are the following lines : " Pour forth toT^eynolds without stint, Rich Burgundy, of ruby tint ; If e'er his colours chance to fade, This brilliant hue shall come in aid ; With ruddy lights refresh the faces. And warm the bosoms of the Graces." These lines certainly savour much of their author. When first the cross readings, ship news, and mistakes of the press, appeared in the newspapers of the day, they attracted universal attention, and the lucky invention so much delighted Dr. Goldsmith, that he declared, in the heat of his admiration of them, that it would give him more pleasure to have been the author, than of all the ^^^orks he had ever published of his own. They were written by the late Caleb Whiteford, who was one of the members when the epitaphs were written. On that occasion, Whiteford wrote two on Goldsmith and Cumberland, with which they were both so displeased, that he did not attend at the next meeting, but addressed the following apology to Sir Joshua. " Admire not, dear Knight .* That I keep out of sight, 1 SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 32.9 Consider what perils await him, Who with ill season'd jokes Indiscreetly provokes Tlie Genus irritubue Vatum. * I felt when these swains Rehears'd their sweet strains, That mine had too much lemon juice; And strove to conceal. For the general weal, What at last I was forc'd to produce. After such panegyric The least thins; satiric Must throw both the Bards in the twitters; Twas impossible they, After drinking Tokay, Could relish a bumper of bitters. Do talk, to each bard, Beg they won't be too hard, But be merciful as they are stout ; I rely on your skill. Say just what you will, And as you brought me in, bring me oul ' To the company too, Some apology's due, 1 know you can do it with ease ; Be it your's. Sir, to place. In the best light, my case. And give it what colour you please, For those brats of my brain, Which have caus'd so much pam, Henceforth I renounce and disow n 'em ; And still keep in sight. When 1 epitaphs write, De mortuis nil nisi bonum" S 130 MEMOIRS OP With this whimsical request it is said Sir Joshua complied, and by his friendly exertions succeeded in restoring that harmony which had thus been interrupted by the irritability of those who were annoyed by Caleb's briskness. It is scarcely necessary to enter into the particulars of the well known anecdote of Dr. Bernard, already mentioned as a member of this society ; when having advanced in conversation with Sir Joshua and Dr. Johnson, that he thought no man could improve who was past the age of forty-five, the latter immediately turned round to the Dean and observed, " that he (the Dean) was an instance to the contrary ; for there was great room for improvement in him, and he wished that he would set about it." The Dean took no notice of this hint at the time, but the next day sent a very elegant poetic epistle, addressed to Sir Joshua Eeynolds and Co. and as part of those stanzas is highly descriptive of Sir Joshua, I shall not only insert that passage, but the whole in order to make it more intelligible and impressive. « " I lately thought no man alive. Could e'er improve past forty-five, And ventur'd to assert it ; The observation was not new. But seemed to me so just and true, That none could controvert it. No, Sir ! says Johnson, 'tis not so, That's } our mistake, and I can shew SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 131 An instance if you doubt it ; You, Sir ! who are near forty-eight. May much improve, 'tis not too late, I wish you'd set about it. Encourag'd thus to mend my faults, I turn'd his counsel in my thoughts. Which way I should apply it; Learning and wit seem'd past ray reach, For who can learn, when none will teach And wit — I could not buy it. Then come, ray friends, and try your skill. You can inform me if you w ill, (My books are at a distance ;) With you I'll live and learn, and then, Instead of books, I shall read men, So lend me your assistance. Dear Knight of Plympton, tell me how To suffer with unruffled brow. And smile serene like thine ; The jest uncouth, or truth severe. To such I'll turn my deafest ear. And calmly drink my wine. Thou say'st not only skill is gain'd, But genius too may be attain'd. By studious imitation ; Thy temper mild, thy genius fine, I'll copy till T make them mine By constant application. Thy art of pleasing, teach me, Garrick ! Thou who reversest odes Pindarick,* * Garrick had said tl.at Cumberland's Odes might be read cither backwards or forwards, with equal beauty and precision. s 2 152 MEMOIRS OF A second time read o'er; Oh conld we read thee backwards too, Last thirty years thou shouldst review. And charm us thirty more. If I have thoughts, and can't express them, Gibbon shall teach me how to dress them, In terms select and terse; Jones teach me modesty and Greek, Smith how to think. Burke how to speak. And Beauclerk to converse. Let Johnson teach me how to place. In fairest light, each borrow'd grajce, From him I'll learn to write; Copy his clear, /arailiar style, And from the roughness of his file Grow like himself — polite." In the midst of all this excellent society, Sir Joshua still attended sedulously to his profession; and in this year (1770,) his price for a head was raised to thirty-five guineas : his own portrait was also painted about this time by Zoffanii, in a large picture, in which were represented ail the first members of the Royal Academy, and now in the King's collection. This group of portraits was afterwards engraved by Earlom. On the 14th of December he produced his third discourse, whose leading objects were a delineation of the great and essential principles of the grand style, an investigation of beauty, and a series of arguments to prove that the genuine habits of nature are totally distinct from those of fashion. He commenced this discourse by adverting to a ^reat SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 133 difficulty which operated against him in the arrangement of each discourse ; that was the circumstance of his being obliged to direct his advice to an assembly composed of so many students of different ages, and of different degrees of advancement. In speaking afterwards of the close attention to be paid to nature, he still warned the student that even nature herself is not to be too closely copied ; and he added^ that there are excellencies in the art of painting beyond what is commonly called the imitation of nature ; so that a mere copier of nature can never produce any thing great, can never raise and enlarge the conceptions, nor warm the heart of the spectator. He therefore recommended to the genuine painter to have more extensive objects in view, and instead of endeavouring to amuse mankind with the minute neatness of his imitations, rather to endeavour to improve them by the grandeur of his ideas ; and thus to strive for fame by captivating the imagina- tion, instead of seeking praise by the silly attempt at deceiving the senses. The correctness of this principle he considered as so absolute in itself, as not to require the aid of novelty to recommend it, and he shewed that it was from the earliest times enforced by the poets, orators, and rhetoricians of antiquity, as well as supported by the general opinion of the enlightened part of mankind, giving, at the same time, appropriate quotations from the classic authorities. To this he added, that " the moderns are not less convinced than the ancients of this superior power (of the ideal beauty) existing in the art ; nor less sensible of its effects. Every / 134 MEMOIRS OF language has adopted terms expressive of this excellence. The gusto grande of the Italians, the beau ideal of the French, and the great style, genius, and taste, among the English, are but different appellations of the same thing. It is this intel- lectual dignity, they say, that ennobles the painter's art; that lays the line between him and the mere mechanic ; and produces those great effects in an instant, which eloquence and poetry, by slow and repeated efforts, are scarcely able to attain." He confessed, indeed, that it is not easy to define in what this great style consists ; nor to describe, by words, the proper means of acquiring it, even if the mind of the student should be highly capable of such an acquisition ; for if taste or genius were to be taught by rules, then they would no longer be taste or genius. Still, although there neither are, nor can be, any precise invariable rules for the exercise or the acquisition of these great qualities, yet, as he expressed himself, they always operate in proportion to our attention in observing the works of nature, to our skill in selecting, and to our care in digesting, methodizing, and comparing our observations. He therefore recommended a long and strict examination both of the beauties and defects of nature, by which means the student is enabled to acquire a just idea of her beautiful forms, and to correct nature by herself, her imperfect state by her more perfect. The eye being thus enabled to distinguish the beauties SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 135 and deficiencies, as well as the deformities, the judgment is then enabled, as he observed, to make out an abstract idea of the general forms of things, more perfect than any one original, " and what may seem a paradox, the student learns to design naturally by drawing his figures unlike to any one object." This then, he described to be " Ideal Beauty," the idea of the perfect state of nature, that great leading principle by which works of genius are conducted ; an idea which has acquired, and which seems to have a right to the epithet of divine, " as it may be said to preside like a supreme judge over all the productions of nature, appearing to be possessed of the will and intention of the Creator, as far as they regard the external form of living beings." He added, that when a man once possesses this idea in its perfection, there is no danger but that he will be sufficiently warmed by it himself, and also be enabled to warm and ravish every one else. With respect to fashion, he laid it down as a principle, that however the mechanick and ornamental arts may be obliged, or even permitted, to sacrifice to her, yet she must be entirely excluded from any control over the art of painting : wherefore the painter must never mistake this capricious changeling for the genuine offspring of nature, but must divest himself of all prejudices in favour of his age and country ; and must even disregard all local and temporary ornaments, looking only on those general habits which are every where and always the same, addressing his works to the people of every age 136 MEMOIRS OF and every country, and even calling upon posterity to be his spectators. Here he took occasion to reprobate the ridiculous frippery of the style of French painting in the time of Louis XIV. but acknowledged, that to avoid the errors of that school, and to retain the true simplicity of nature, is still a task more difficult than may appear at first sight ; as the prejudices in favour of the fashions and customs to which we have been used, and which are justly called a second nature, make it often difficult to distinguish that which is natural from that which is the result of education. Our only guides and instructors, then, he asserted, are to be found among the ancients ; by a careful study of whose works, the artist and the man of taste will be enabled to form a just conception of the real simplicity of nature : to which he added, " they will suggest many observations which would probably escape you, if your study were confined to nature alone, and indeed, I cannot help suspecting, that in this instance the ancients had an easier task than the moderns. They had, probably, little or nothing to unlearn, as their manners were nearly approaching to this desirable simplicity ; while the modern artist, before he can see the truth of things, is obliged to remove a veil, with which the fashion of the times has thought proper to cover her." Had Sir Joshua, however, happily lived until the present times, he would perhaps have omitted the latter observation! After some very judicious observations on the imitators of i SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 137 nature in her lowest forms, and justly reprobating them in some instances, he concluded his admirable discourse, by warning his hearers not to consider him as countenancing a careless or undetermined manner of painting ; adding, that although the painter is certainly to overlook the accidental discriminations of nature, yet he is still to exhibit distinctly and with precision, the general forms of things ; wherefore a firm and determined outline is one of the characteristics of the great style in painting : to which he subjoined the important truism, that he who possesses the knowledge of the exact form which every part of nature ought to have, will be fond of expressing that knowledge with correctness and precision in all his works. It was in the year 1771, that I was first placed under the tuition of Sir Joshua Reynolds, to whom I was introduced, and strongly recommended by my good and much respected friend Dr. John Mudge. If I might now^ be suffered to say a little of myself, I would declare that I feel it next to impossible to express the pleasure I received in breathing, if it may be so said, in an atmosphere of art ; having until this period been entirely debarred, not only from the practice of the art itself, but even from the sight of pictures of any excellence, as the county of Devon at that time did not abound with specimens, and even those few which are scattered about that country I had no opportunity of ever seeing ; and as from the earliest period of my being able to make any observation, I had conceived him to be the greatest painter that ever lived, it may be conjectured what I felt when I found myself in his house as his scholar: T 138 MEMOIRS OF but as the admiration and respect which I now honestly confess I always felt for him, render me liable to be considered as a partial judge of his various merits, this consideration inclines me to give the authorities of others, in preference to my own, whenever it will serve my purpose — of such as knew him well, and may be considered as less prejudiced encomiasts. As one prominent cause of Sir Joshua's cultivating the very best society, and which almost may be said to have been domesticated with him, Mr. Malone is certainly correct in stating, that finding how little time he could spare from his profession, for the purpose of acquiring, and adding to his knowledge from books, he very early and wisely resolved to partake, as much as possible, of the society of all the ingenious and learned men of his own time, in consequence of which, and his unassuming and gentle manner, and refined habits, his table, for above thirty years, exhibited an assemblage of all the talents of Great Britain and Ireland ; there being, during that period, scarce a person in the three kingdoms distinguished for his attainments in literature or the arts, or for his exertions at the bar, in the senate, or the field, who was not occasionally found there. In addition to this, it has been stated by the author of Testimonies," to his genius, that the circle of his acquaint- ance, owing to the celebrity of his name, was very extended ; that many illustrious foreigners were on a footing of personal intimacy with him ; and that he was resorted to by persons of the highest quality, who revered his genius as much as they respected the excellence of his private character. Thence, SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 139 his house was long the resort of excellence of every kind, of the learned, the elegant, the polite, in short of all that were eminent for worth, or distinguished by genius. " From such connections, his mind, rich in its own store, received an accession of most extensive knowledge, and an inexhaustible treasure for conversation. He was rich in observation, anecdote, and intelligence." To return to Mr. Malone's account of him, from which I trust my readers will excuse the transcription of a note, I shall here insert his observation, that the Nodes Ccenceque Deu?n enjoyed at his table, (as Mr. Boswell in the dedication prefixed to his Life of Johnson, has described it,) will be long remembered by those who had the happiness to partake of them ; but the remembrance must always be accompanied with regret, when it is considered, that the death of their amiable and illustrious host has left a chasm in society, and that no such common centre of union for the accomplished and the learned now exists, or is likely soon to exist, in London." The observation above alluded to, of Mr. Boswell's, is to the following purport. " If there be a pleasure in celebrating the distinguished merit of a contemporary, mixed with a certain degree of vanity, not altogether inexcusable, in appearing fully sensible of it, where can I find one, in complimenting whom I can with more general approbation gratify those feelings ? Your excellence, not only in the art over which you have long presided with unrivalled fame, but also in philosophy and elegant literature, is well known to the present, T 2 140 MEMOIRS OF and will continue to be the admiration of future ages. Your equal and placid temper, your variety of conversation, your true politeness, by which you are so amiable in private society, and that enlarged hospitality which has long made your house a common centre of union for the great, the accomplished, the learned, and the ingenious ; all these qualities, I can, in perfect confidence of not being accused of flattery, ascribe to you." This warm and friendly tribute to the excellence of Sir Joshua Reynolds was written in I79I, a very short period before his lamented death ; but I trust I shall not be accused of premature anachronism by its insertion in this place, to which it so particularly refers. To such testimonies as those ray own suffrage is unnecessary : I shall therefore only observe, that, among the many advantages which were to be gained in the house of Sir Joshua Reynolds, one of the most considerable certainly was, the opportunity of improvement from the familiar intercourse which he thus perpetually kept up with the most eminent men of his time for genius and learning. A few anecdotes of some of those persons I have collected, but have related only such as are new and not to be found in any other writer ; for of the illustrious dead even the slightest memorials are ever received with a degree of satisfaction ; and though but trifles in themselves, yet as they relate to distinguished characters, we consider them as a kind of relics, and attend to each little circumstance with the same religious SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 141 enthusiasm as the devotee follows the footsteps of his saint. They help to transport the mind back to the very period in which the occurrences were passing, and for a time we seem to be existing in a former age. Therefore, without further apology, I shall give those which at this time occur to my recollection. Dr. Johnson being in company with Sir Joshua and his sister, Miss Reynolds, and the conversation turning on morality ; Sir Joshua said, he did not think there was in the world any man completely wicked. Johnson answered I do not know what you mean by completely wicked." *' I mean," returned Sir Joshua, *' a man lost to all sense of shame." Dr. Johnson replied, that to be completely wicked a man must be also lost to all sense of conscience.'* Sir Joshua said, he thought it was exactly the same, he could see no difference. ** What !" said Johnson, " can you see no difference ? I am ashamed to hear you or any body utter such nonsense ; when the one relates to men only, the other to God !" Miss Reynolds then observed, that when shame was lost, conscience was nearly gone. Johnson agreed that her conclusion was very just« 142 MEMOIRS OF Dr. Johnson was displeased if he supposed himself at any time made the object of idle curiosity. When Miss Reynolds once desired him to dine at Sir Joshua's, on a day fixed upon by herself, he readily accepted the invitation ; yet having doubts as to the importance of her companions, or of her reasons for inviting him, he added, at the same time, " But I will not be made a show of." James Mac Ardell, the mezzotinto engraver, having taken a very good print from the portrait of Rubens, came with it one morning to Sir Joshua Reynolds, to inquire if he could inform him particularly of the many titles to which Rubens had a right, in order to inscribe them properly under his print ; saying, he believed that Rubens had been knighted by the kings of France, Spain, and England ; was secretary of state in Flanders, and to the privy council in Spain ; and had been employed in a ministerial capacity from the court of Madrid to the court of London, to negotiate a treaty of peace between the two crowns, and that he was also a magistrate of Antwerp, &c. Dr. Johnson happened to be in the room with Sir Joshua at the time, and unrlerstanding Mac Ardell's inquiry, interfered rather abruptly, saying, Pooh ! pooh ! put his name alone under the print, Peter Paul Rubens : that is full sufficient and more than all the rest." This advice of the Doctor's was accordingly followed. At the time that Miss Linley was in the highest esteem as a * SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 143 public singer, Dr. Johnson came in tlie evening to drink tea with Miss Reynolds, and when he entered the room, she said to him, See, Dr. Johnson, what a preference I give to your company, for I had an offer of a place in a box at the Oratorio, to hear Miss Linley : but I would rather sit with you than hear Miss Linley sing." "And I, Madam," replied Johnson, " would rather sit with you than sit upon a throne." The Doctor would not be surpassed even in a trifling compliment. Several ladies being in company with Dr. Johnson, it was remarked by one of them, that a learned woman was by no means a rare character in the present age : when Johnson replied, '* I have known a great many ladies who knew Latin, but very few who know English." A lady observed, that women surpassed men in epistolary correspondence. Johnson said, *' I do not know that." " At least," said the lady, they are most pleasing when they are in conversation." — " No, Madam," returned Johnson, " I think they are most pleasing when they hold their tongues." A friend of Dr. Johnson's, in conversation with him, was lamenting the disagreeable situation in which those persons stood who were eminent for their witticisms, as they were perpetually expected to be saying good things — that it was a heavy tax on them. 144 MEMOIRS OP " It is, indeed," said Johnson, " a very heavy tax on them ; a tax which no man can pay who does not steal.*' A prosing dull companion was making a long harangue to Dr. Johnson upon the Punick war, in which he gave nothing either new or entertaining. Johnson, afterwards, speaking of the circumstance to a friend, said, " Sir I soon withdrew my attention from him, and thought of Tom Thumb." A young gentleman, who was bred to the Bar, having a great desire to be in company with Dr. Johnson, was, in consequence, invited by Miss Reynolds, Sir Joshua's sister, to meet him at their house. When the interview took place, they fell into deep conversation on politics, and the different governments in Europe, particularly that of Venice. Miss Reynolds, who related the anecdote, said, that as it was a subject which she neither liked nor understood, she did not attend to the conversation, except to hear that the young man was humbly making his inquiries to gain all possible information from the profound knowledge of Dr. Johnson ; when her attention was suddenly attracted by the Doctor exclaiming in a very loud and peremptory tone of voice, ** Yes, Sir, I know very well that all Republican rascals think as you do !" One morning when Garrick paid a visit to Sir Joshua, in the course of conversation he was very freely giving his opinion up(m an eminent authorofthattime; he particularly condemned his dramatic works, respecting which he expressed himself in SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 145 these words": " Damn lii^i dish-clout face ; his plays would never do for the stage if I -Hd not cook them up and make prologues and epilogues for him, so that they go down with the public." He also added, " he hates you, Sir Joshua, because you do not admire the painter whom he considers as a second Corregio." " Who is that r" replied Sir Jojshua." " Why, his Corregio,' answered Gairick, " is Romney the painter 1" I remember to have heard Garrick complain that it was a very great fatigue to him to dine in company so frequently as his interest seemed to require. From hence we may conclude, that he considered himself as under the necessity of being a very delightful companion, which he certainly was : but had he been content to belike other persons at table, it would have then been no fatigue to him. On the same account he avoided ever going to a masquerade in any specific personification, as that would have involved him in the difficulty of supporting his character as a wit. Sir Joshua had given to Dr. Johnsoii a copy of that portrait now at Knowle, the seat of the Duke of Dorset, in which the Doctor is represented with his hands held up, and in his own short hair ; it is nearly a profile, and there has been a print taken from it, v/hich portrait the Doctor notices this year in the foilowinsf letter : C3 146 MEMOIRS OP " TO SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS, IN LEICESTER-FIELDS. " DEAR SIR, " When T came to Lichfield, I found that my portrait had been much visited, and much admired. Every man has a lurking wish to appear considerable in his native place ; and I was pleased with the dignity conferred by such a testimony of your regard. " Be pleased, therefore, to accept the thanks of, Sir, " Your most obliged and humble servant, ^' Ashbourn in Derbyshire, '*Sam. Johnson. " July 17, 1771. " Compliments to Miss Reynolds." Dr. Johnson knew nothing of the art of painting either in theory or practice, which is one proof that he could not be the author of Sir Joshua's discourses ; indeed his imperfect sight was some excuse for his total ignorance in that department of study. Once being at dinner at Sir Joshua's, in. company with many painters, in the course of conversation Kichardson's Treatise on Painting happened to be mentioned. Ah !" said Johnson, " I remember wlien I was at college, I by chance found that book on my stairs : I took it up with me to my chamber and read it through, and truly I did not think it possible to say so much upon the art." Sir Joshua, who SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 147 could not hear distinctly, desired of one of the company to be informed what Johnson had said ; and it being repeated to him so loud that Johnson heard it, the Doctor seemed hurt, and added, " But I did not wish. Sir, that Sir Joshua should have been told what I then said." The latter speech of Johnson denotes a delicacy in him, and an unwillingness to offend ; and it evinces a part of his character which he has not had the credit of having ever possessed. Sir John Hawkins also observes very well of Johnson, that of the beauties of painting, notwithstanding the many eulogiums on the art, which, after the commencement of his friendship with Sir Joshua, he inserted in his writings, he had not the least conception ; indeed he said once to Sir John, that in his whole life he was never capable of discerning the least resemblance of any kind, between a picture and the subject it was designed to represent. Those who wish to know more of his sentiments upon the art, may find a specimen in an anecdote related by Mrs. Piozzi on that subject, in the 98th page of her book. But I shall give, as, perhaps, a more pleasing subject, some other ideas of Dr. Johnson, " that majestic teacher of moral and religious wisdom," who, in several places, thus speaks of portraits : Genius is chiefly exerted in historical pictures, and the u 2 148 MEMOIRS OF art of the painter of portraits is often lost in the obscurity of this subject. But it is in painting as in life ; what is greatest is not always best. I should grieve to see Reynolds transfer to heroes and to goddesses, to empty splendor and to airy fiction, that art, which is now employed in diffusing friendship, in renewing tenderness, in quickening the affections of the absent, and continuing the presence of the dead/' And again, " Every man is always present to himself, and fias, therefore, little need of his own resemblance ; nor can desire it but for the sake of those whom he loves, and by whom he hopes to be remembered. This use of the art is a natural and reasonable consequence of affection ; and though, like other human actions, it is often complicated with pride, yet even such pride is more laudable than that by which palaces are covered with pictures, that, however excellent, neither imply the owner's virtue, nor excite it.'^ This is certainly the best apology for portrait that has ever been given ; and to it 1 shall here add a few observations of my own on this department of painting. Under this view of art so well described by Johnson, it is that portrait may assume a dignity : and certain it is that all those portraits which have been executed by the higher order of painters have it ; as we may perceive 'in them how much the genius of the artist has been able to discern, and faithfully to represent that which was characteristic and valuable in the individual which was his model, and thereby clearly demonstrated the possession of high powers. . SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 149 But the reason why portrait is treated with so much contempt, is because there are more bad pictures of this class preserved than of any other branch in the art, on account of their local value, being tiie resemblance of some favorite object, whereas, the bad performances in any other brancli of art havinc; no value, are neglected and perish. It may be observed also, that more bad portrait painters get employ- ment than bad painters of any other class ; which adds to. the comparative plenty of those works : and this excessive plenty of bad portraits, from tlie above causes, has, in the end, given a degraded rank to that department. But could we see in portraiture all tjie qualities displayed of which it is capable, it would be found to contain many of the highest merits of even history itself;, and those who treat it slightly surely cannot have examined it with a suiiicient attention nor have had a clear idea of all its difficulties and merits. It appears to me to be in many respects similar to that of writing a distinct character of an individual, which, when it is done with justice and nice discrimination, ' I apprehend to be a greater effort of genius than to write the life or memoir. But the department of portrait alone may be divided into different classes as practised by different professors according to their abilities and inclinations. Three are distinct, for instance ; and first those portraits which are true but not ingenious, where their merit consists in a careful endeavour at similitude to the person represented, but in a maimer dry, laboured, and tasteless ; secondly, those which are ingenious but not true ; in these much skill is often to be fuiind, but then the pure imitation of nature has been sacrificed to 150 • MEMOIRS OF ideal graces and adscititious beauties ; Leiy and Koeller are instances ; the consequence of which is, that manner and sameness become the poor substitute for truth, variety, and nature. Such works are too much like each other to be like any thing else, and create no interest ; but that order of portrait which does honor to the department is both true and ingenious, as may be exemplified in the works of Kembrandt, Velasquez, Vandyke, Reynolds, and Titian. After all that has been said, there can be no doubt but that a decided superiority must be given to historical painting, when it is of the highest order, as it requires, of necessity, a much greater mass of acquired knowledge of every kind ; also, because that in it is contained a large portion of the excellence of portrait, if not the whole : and when portraiture is compared with grand composition, it bears but as a part, and, of consequence, a part is much easier to accomplish than a whole. Yet I will venture to say, that, in certain instances, I have seen groupes of portraits by Titian which have contained the essence of history ; and history by Raffaelle which contained the essence of portrait : and it can scarcely be denied, that portrait, in its greatest degree of perfection, becomes a species of history, as it must possess its first merits, character, and expression ; and that history is not degraded by the intro- duction of dignified portrait. Therefore I am of opinion that it is a most useful and necessary part of the practice of an historical painter, that he sometimes should recur to the close imitation of nature by employing himself in portrait, and not SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. , 151 survey it with an improper pride. A strong proof ot an ingenious and speculative mind is its being able to gain instruction from every quarter, even from whence it might be least expected. While on the subject of portrait, I may be allowed to observe, that it is a very desirable thing that the name should be written on the back of every portrait, signifying the person it represents. I remember a letter from Mr. Locke to Collings, of which the following is an extract : " Pray get Sir Godfrey to write on the back of Lady Marsham's picture, Lady Marsham ; and on the back of mine John Locke, 1704. This he did to Mr. Molyneaux's : it is necessary to be done, or else the pictures of private persons are lost in two or three generations ; and so the picture loses its value, it not being known whom it was made to represent." Mr. Locke died about a month after this letter was written. Sir Joshua himself, indeed, never did this, nor even mark his own name, except in the instance of Mrs. Siddons's portrait as the Tragic Muse, when he wrote his name upon the hem of her garment. I remember to have heard General Paoli declare, that he could decide on the character and disposition of a man whose letter he had seen. 1 152 MEMOIRS OF Notwithstanding this assertion may be carried something beyond what we may be inclined to allow, yet it is not destitute of truth to such as are nice discriminators of character. If such is possible to be the case from merely seeing a letter, how much more information may we suppose to be drawn from a fine portrait ; and in this particular excellence the portraits of Reynolds most certainly surpass all other portraits existing in the world. This brings to my remembrance the anecdote told of Bernini, the famous sculptor, that Charles the First having a desire that Bernini should make his bust, sent over his portrait, painted by Vandyke, which exhibited three views of his face ; and when the picture Was presented to Bernini, who did not know whom it represented, he immediately exclaimed, " My God ! whose portrait is this ? — the man will not come to a timely end." In the course of this year, Sir Joshua took another trip to Paris, from which he had scarcely returned when Mr. Bennet Langton renewed, in a very pressing manner, an invitation which he had given to him and Goldsmith to spend some part of the autumn with him and his lady, the Countess of Rothes, at their seat in Lincolnshire. With this obliging request, however, he was unable to comply, and Goldsmith, in a letter to Mr. Langton, declining the invitation on the part of both, says, " Reynolds is just returned from Paris, and finds himself now in the case of a truant, that must make up for his idle time by diligence ; Ave have therefore agreed to postpone our journey till next summer.*' I. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. In fact, at this period Sir Joshua may be said to liave been at the zenith of his eminence, as we see him now employed in poLirtraying the most illustrious personages in every different department, whilst his intimacy was sedulously sought after by all degrees of persons. Much of the attention which even Goldsmith personally met with was undoubtedly owing to the patronage of his admired friend ; yet Sir Joshua used to say, that Goldsmith looked at, or considered, public notoriety, or fame, as one great parcel, to the whole of which he laid claim, and whoever partook of any part of it, whether dancer, singer, slight of hand man, or tumbler, deprived him of his right, and drew off the attention of the world from himself and which he was striving to gain. Notwithstanding this, he lamented that whenever he entered into a mixed company, he struck a kind of awe on them, which deprived him of the enjoyment and freedom of society, and which he then made it his endeavour to dispel by playing wanton and childish pranks in order to bring himself to the wished-for level. It was very soon after my first arrival in London, where every thing appeared new and wonderful to me, that I expressed to Sir Joshua my impatient curiosity to see Dr. Goldsmith, and he promised I should do so on the first opportunity. Soon afterwards Goldsmith came to dine with him, and immediately on my entering the room, Sir Joshua, with a designed abruptness, said to me, " This is Dr. Gold- smith ; pray why did you wish to see him?" I was niucli confused by the suddenness of the question, and answered, in X 154 MEMOIRS OF my hurry", " Because he is a notable man." This, in one sense of the word, was so very contrary to the character and conduct of Goldsmith, that Sir Joshua burst into a hearty laugh, and said, that Goldsmith should, in future, always be called the notable man. What I meant, however, to say was, that he was a man of note, or eminence. He appeared to me to be very unaffected and good-natured; but he was totally ignorant of the art of painting, and this he often confessed with much gaiety. It has been often said of Goldsmith, that he was ever desirous of being the object of attention in all companies where he was present ; which the following anecdote may serve to prove. On a summer's excursion to the continent he accompanied a lady and her two beautiful daughters into France and Flanders, and often expressed a little displeasure at perceiving that more attention was paid to them than to himself. On their entering a town, I think Antwerp, the populace surrounded the door of the hotel at which they alighted, and testified a desire to see those beautiful young women ; and the ladies, willing to gratify them., came into a balcony at the front of the house, and Goldsmith with them ; but perceiving that it was not himself who was the object of admiration, he presently withdrew, with evident signs of mortification, saying, as he went out, " There are places where I am the object of admiration also." SIR JOSHUA KEYNOLDS. 155 One day when Drs. Goldsmith and Johnson were at dinner with Sir Joshua, a poem, by a poet already alluded to, was presented to Sir Joshua, by his servant, from the author. Goldsmith immediately laid hold of it, and began to read it, and at every line cut almost through the paper with his finger nail, crying out, " What d d nonsense is this when Sir Joshua caught it out of his hands, saying, " No, no, don't do so ; you shall not spoil my book, neither for the Doctor could not bear to hear of another's fame. Sir Joshua was always cautious to preserve an unblemished character, and careful not to make any man his enemy. I remember when he was told of some very indiscreet speech or action of Goldsmith, he quickly said, " What a fool he is thus to commit himself, when he has so much more cause to be careful of his reputation than I have of mine!" well recol- lecting that even the most trivial circumstance which tells against an eminent person, will be remembered as well as those in his favour ; and that the world watch those who are distinguished for their abilities with a jealous eye. Sir William Temple, in his Memoirs, relates a surprizing instance of sagacity in a Macaw, one of the parrot genus of the largest kind, which occurred under his own observation. His relation is, indeed, a very wonderful one ; but I am the more apt to give it credit from being myself a witness of the following instance of apparent intellect in a bird of this species, and therefore can vouch for its truth : at the same time I hope to be excused for giving what I consider merely as a curious circumstance, and not to incur the accusation of X 2 156 MEMOIRS OF vanity, in this instance at least, by making a weak endeavour to extol my own poor work, for very poor it was. In the early part of the time that I passed with Sir Joshua as his scholar, I had, for the sake of practice, painted the portrait of one of the female servants ; but my performance had no other merit than that of beinj; a strong likeness. Sir Joshua had a large macaw, which he often introduced into his pictures, as may be seen from several prints. This bird was a great favorite, and was always kept in the dining parlour, where he became a nuisance to this same house-maid, whose department it was to clean the room after him ; of course, they were not upon very good terms with each other. The portrait, when finished, was brought into the parlour, one day after dinner, to be shown to the family, that they might judge of the progress I had made. It was placed against a chair, while the macaw was in a distant part of the room, so that he did not immediately perceive the picture as he walked about on the floor ; but when he turned round and saw the features of his enemy, he quickly spread his wings, and in great fury ran to it, and stretched himself up to bite at the face. Finding, however, that it did not move, he then bit at the hand, but perceiving it remain inanimate, he proceeded to examine the picture behind, and then, as if he had satisfied his curiosity, left it, and walked again to a distant part of the room ; 4)ut whenever he turned about, and again saw the picture, he would, with the same action of rage, repeatedly attack it. The . 1. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 169 Metliought a veil, of lucid rays composed, Disparting wide, an heav'nly form disclos'd; And as the ground Iier beauteous foot imprest, Hope's clieerful ray seem'd kindling in my breast. Witli wmning sweetness, yet majestic air, " I come," she cried, " thy gloomy soul to cheer; To guide thy erring will, thy passions sooth, And make the rugged paths of nature smooth. That vole below that fills thy soul with dread. And seems with gloom and horrors overspread. Owes its appearance to thy troubled mind. Deaf to the voice of truth, to reason blind : 'Tis 1 alone that can the film remove That dims thy sight, and make yon gloomy grove Smile with immortal fruits, and bloom with flow'rs Fairer than poets feign of Paphian bow'rs. lam RELIGION, whose all-powerful ray I Beams on the darken'd mind celestial day; Points out the path that leads to pure delight; And proves this truth — Whatever is is right!" The eminence of Sir Joshua was now so high, that the quantity of complimentary verses which were addressed to him would fill a volume, and would'be tedious to repeat ; but the following lines I cannot omit, as I think them an excellent instance of the mock heroic, though intended as very serious, and very exquisite. Surely the Genius of Affectation is never so busy, nor triumphs half so much, as when he attends at the elbow of his favorite poets, and makes them speak thus : " Feel ve What Reynolds felt when first the Vatican Unbarr'd her gates, and to his raptur'd eye Gave all the god-like energy that flow'd From Michael's pencil." Z 170 MEMOIRS OF The aifectation in these lines appears still more gross when we recur to the grand simplicity of the character of him to whom they allude, or compare them with those which were last recited. In the discourse delivered this year, (1772,) on the 10th of December, Sir Joshua concluded his series of remarks begun in one of the former years. His grand object in this display was to incite the young students to consider the attainment of the higher excellencies of the art as an acquisition of the first importance, though not to the total exclusion of a search after the subordinate qualifications ; which, however, he considered as but of minor consequence : at the same time warning his hearers, that caution and circumspection was not to be lost sight of in the eagerness of pursuit. On this part of his subject he particularly noted, that judgment was necessary not only in the acquisition of these excellencies, but also in their application : for though many would bear to be united, and some be even improved from the union ; yet still there were others which, though perfect in themselves, were of a nature so discordant with their companions, that nothing but incongruity could be produced by their mutual introduction. And here his meaning was fully exemplified by his illustrations ; for laying it down as a truth, that the expression of passion was not in unison y^'iih perfect beauty, all the passions producing some degree of distortion and deformity, even in the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. most beautiful countenances; so those that attempted to preserve beauty, where strong passions ought to be considered as operating powerfully upon the personages represented, must inevitably sacrifice a superior excellence, as Guido has done in many instances, particularly in his Judith, Herod ias, Andromeda, nay, even in the mothers' countenances in the Slaughter of the Innocents, which have, thus, little more expression than he has given to his " Venus attired by the Graces." One principle which he had here in view was to guard the artist against the effects of that false criticism which so often marks the writings of men who are not of the profession, who being unable to find out the real beauties of a performance, merely find out that which they are before-hand resolved to discover ; and therefore not only praise excellencies which cannot with propriety exist together, but even dilate upon the expression of mixed passions, a thing which his accurate knowledge of the human countenance and human heart well knew to be a thing impossible. He even proved his position from the theory and practice of the ancients, who always described their Jupiter as possessed in the aggregate of all those great qualities which were separately enjoyed by subordinate deities ; but yet, when they called in the aid of art to represent him, they confined his character to that of majesty alone, without attempting to delineate the others. At this part of his discourse he took the opportunity of 172 MEMOIRS OF shewing bow much the great Pliny liimself resembled some ot" our modern connoisseurs, when, with something bke the cant of modern criticism, he stated that the spectator might discover no less than three different and distinct characters in a statue of Paris, executed by the famous sculptor Euphranor, and in which were to be seen the dignity of a judge of the goddesses, the lover of Helen, and the conqueror of Achilles ; adding, " A statue in which you endeavour to unite stately dignity, youthful elegance, and stern valour, must surely possess none of those to any great degree." After this he adds, what will be best expressed in his own words : " I do not discourage the younger students from the noble attempt of uniting all the excellencies of art, but to make them aware, that, besides the difficulties which attend every arduous attempt, there is a peculiar difficulty in the choice of the excellencies which ought to be united. I wish you to attend to this, that you may try yourselves, whenever you are capable of that trial, what you can, and what you cannot do ; and that instead of dissipating your natural faculties over the immense field of possible excellence, you may choose some particular walk in which you may exercise all your powers ; in order each of you to be the first in liis way." In exemplification of the judicious choice of excellence, he observed, that Lodovico Caracci, in particular, was well acquainted with the works both of Corregio and of the Venetian painters, and also knew the principles by which they produced those pleasing eifects which, at first glance, prepossess us so much in their favour ; but then he stated, that he took only as niuch from each as would embellish, but not overpower. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 173 that manly strength and energy of style which form his peculiar character. In speaking of SVi//e.9 he also shewed, that although the ornamental cannot, with propriety, be considered as a principal, it is still expedient to be called in to soften the harshness and mitigate the severity of the great style, which latter being that of the greatest masters, Michael Angelo, and Raftaelie, is principally to be found in fresco paintings, a mode of execution which excludes attention to minute elegancies. The concluding part of this discourse may be considered as the Jewel of Connoisseurs ; for in it they will find a plain, simple, yet delicate investigation of the merits of those two great masters, as well as of Salvator Rosa, Carlo Maratti, Poussin, Rubens, &c., an investigation founded on the dictates of taste, genius, and sound sense, and the more particularly valuable from being cleared of all the tinsel of terms, which only serve to give a glare to igaorance. The intimate friendship between Dr. Johnson and Sir Joshua still existed in its full force ; yet so flattering were the compliments which Johnson properly chose to pay to Mrs. Thrale, who sincerely esteemed him, that we find him writing to her, in the month of February, 1773, after a slight illness, for her approbation of his visiting at his friend's liouse : he says, " I have an invitation to dine at Sir Joshua Reynolds's on Tuesday ; may I accept it ? I have undertaken to beg from you the favor of lending Miss Reynolds, Newton on the Prophecies, &c." This, however, was, probably, mere 174 MEMOIRS OF matter of compliment, or to consult her on its safety in respect to his returning health ; for Sir Joshua's house and table were always open to his friends, with invitation or without, and as freely made use of. To Goldsmith, in particular, he was always attentive ; a man of whom it has been, not unaptly, said, that his carelessness of conduct, and frivolity of manners, obscured the goodness of his heart. Mr. Cumberland, in his own Memoirs, has a passage peculiarly illustrative of this, where he says, that Sir Joshua Reynolds was very good to him, and would have drilled him into better trim and order for society, if he would have been amenable ; for Reynolds was a perfect gentleman, had good sense, great propriety, with all the social attributes, and all the graces of hospitality, equal to any man. He well knew how to appreciate men of talents, and how near akin the Muse of Poetry was to that Art of which he was so eminent a master. From Goldsmith he caught the subject of his famous Ugolino ; what aids he got from others, if he got any, were worthily bestowed, and happily applied." Mr. Cumberland, however, is, perhaps, rather inaccurate in his assertion respecting the painting of " Ugolino," which was finished in this year, (1773?) and begun, not long before, as an historical subject. The fact is, that this painting may be said to have been produced as an historical picture by an accident : for the head of the Count had been painted previous to the year 1771 J and finished on what we painters call " a half length SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. canvas," and was, in point of expression, exactly as it now stands, but without any intention, on the part of Sir Joshua, of making it the subject of an historical composition, or having the story of Count Ugolino in his thoughts. Being exposed in the picture gallery, along with his other works, it was seen, either by Mr. Edmund Burke, or Dr. Goldsmith, I am not certain which, who immediately exclaimed, that it struck him as being the precise person, countenance, and expression of the Count Ugolino, as described by Dante in his Inferno." This affecting description is given in the thirty-third Canto of the first part of his Comedia, where, in his supposed passage through hell, he introduces Ugolino gnawing the head of his treacherous and cruel enemy, the Archbishop Ruggiero, and then telling his own sad story on the appearance of the poet. The historical facts are simply these, that in the latter end of the thirteenth century there were great intestine divisions, in the city and state of Pisa in Italy, for the sovereignty ; divisions which gave rise to the well known contests of the Ouelphs and Ghibellines. The former of these consisted of two parties, at the head of which were Visconti and Ugolino : whilst the Archbishop Ruggiero led the third. Between this latter and Ugolino a compromise took place, by which means Visconti and his partizans were driven out ; when Ruggiero, finding the Guelph faction considerably weakened, immediately plotted against his quondam friend, 176 MEMOIRS OF already elected sovereign. The mob being excited by the crafty priest against their new prince, the unfortunate Ugolino was overpowered, and he and his two sons, together with two grandsons, were then conveyed to the city prison, where they remained some months, until the Pisans being excommunicated by the Pope, they became so enraged, that they determined to revenge themselves on the unhappy prisoners ; and having accordingly strongly secured and barricadoed the doors of the dungeon, they threw the keys of the prison into the river Arno, so that Ugolino and his unhappy offspring perished. Thus far the historian — when the imagination of the poet undertook to fill up the awful hiatus between the sealing of their doom and the last moment of expiring nature : and of the poet's powers I am happy to be able to give an illustration, in the following beautiful translation by my friend Mr. "Nathaniel Howard, of Plymouth, Devon, who is an ornament to his country : " La Bocca sallevo dal fiero pasto ^ Quel peccator," &c. " The sinner pausing from his grim repast, AVip'd in the miscreant's hair his gory jaws, ' My desperate woe, obedient to thy will, I now relate,' he answered, * tho' with pain Remembrance wring my heart. For if my tale Should to this traitor, whom I gnaw, produce The fruit of infamy, tho' tears gush forth. Yet will I speak. — I know not whence thou art, Or what commission brings thee to this gulf. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 1T7 But speech, in truth, bespeaks thee Tuscan born. Ktiovv, Ugolino and that prelate base, Ruggiero, meet thy presence ; mark our forms. I need not mention that his evil mind First wrong'd my confidence, then caused my death ; But what lies undivulg'd shall now be heard, The cruel manner of my lingering doom : Then shall thou learn the colour of his guilt. Within the iron dungeon, which still bears The name of " Famine" since my dreadful death. And still where others pine, there thro' the grate Shone many a moon ; and oft my feverish dreams Unveil'd the future to my mental view. This priest, I dreamt, was leader of the chase ; Swift to the Julian mountain with his whelps Hurried the wolf : with blood-hounds gaunt and keen Lanfranchi and Sismondi, and the chief Gualundi foUow'd. Soon the course was spent ; The victim and his infant race grew faint, When on them sprang, f thought, the savage pack, And with their tusks transpierc'd their panting sides. This wak'd me ere the dawn, when in their sleep I heard ray children groan and call for bread — Oh cruel! should no pity touch thy soul To think how much a father's heart presag'd ; If now thou shed'st no tears, what have thy eyes Been us'd-to weep at? — Now my boys awoke; The hour arriv'd, when each expected food, As wonted, would be brought him ; — but his heart Mistrusted, when each thought upon his dream. And I, O horrible! that instant heard The dungeon-doors below more firmly lock'd — la desperate silence on my sons I gaz'd, — I could not weep — My heart was turn'd to stone. The little victims wept, and one began, My dear Anselmo : ' Father! why that look ! * What ails my father?' — Ah ! 1 could not weep, A A 178 MEMOIRS OF Nor answer all that day, nor yet the night. Till on the world another morn arose. As faintly thro' our doleful prison gleam'd The tremulous ray, so I could view again Each face, on which my features were imprest. Both hands I gnaw'd in agony and rage. Sweet innocents they thought me hunger-stung, And, rising on a sudden, all exclaimed, ' Father ! our anguish would be less severe, ' If thouwould'st feed on us. This fleshly vest * Thou did'st bestow, now take it back again.' — 1 check'd my inward nature, lest my groans Should aggravate their anguish. All were mute That bitter day, and all the morrow. Earth! Why did'st thou not, obdurate earth ! dispart ? The fourth sad morning came, when at my feet My Gaddo fell extended : ' Help !' he cried, * CavLSt thou not help me, father T — and expired. So wither'd as thou see'st me, one by one, I saw my children ere the sixth noon die : And, seiz'd with sudden blindness, on my knees I grop'd among them, calling each by name For three days after they were dead. — At last, Famine and death closed up the scene of woe. So having said, with dark distorted eyes. He on the wretched skull infix'd his teeth, And like a mastift' gnaw'd the solid bone." After this exquisite detail by the poet, the subject was taken up by the sculptor, and Richardson in his ** Science of a Connoisseur," relates that Michael Angelo Buonarotti composed a bas-relief of the Count sitting with his four children, one of which lay dead at his feet : over their heads SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 179 were a figure to represent Famine, and beneath them another personifying the river Arno, on whose banks the tragedy was acted. The whole subject is well handled by Richardson, and may be read with pleasure, as relative to the picture, although written long before the idea started by Burke was adopted by Sir Joshua, who immediately had his canvas enlarged in order that he might be enabled to add the other figures, and to complete his painting of the impressive description of the Italian poet. The picture when finished was bought by the late Duke of Dorset for four hundred guineas ; and it has since been noticed by Dr. Joseph Warton, who in his Essay on the Genius and Writings of Pope, introduces the story in exem- plification of some pathetic passages in that writer ; and then adds — " Sir Joshua Reynolds, whose mind is stored with great and exalted ideas, has lately shown, by a picture on this subject, how qualified he is to preside at a Royal Academy, and that he has talents that ought not to be confined to portrait painting." Some time after this, his pencil gave to the world another historical subject of great celebrity, the Infant Jupiter, now the property of the Duke of Rutland. When Goldsmith's comedy of She Stoops to Conquer," was to be brought out on the stage, on the 15th of March in this year, he was at a loss what name to give it, till the very A A 2 180 MEMOIRS OF last moment, and then, in great haste, called it " She Stoops to Conquer, or the Mistakes of a Night.'' Sir Joshua, who disliked this name for a play, offered a much better to him, saying, " You ought to call it the Belle's Stratagem, and if you do not I will damn it." However, Goldsmith chose to name it himself, as above ; and Mrs. Cowley has since given that name to one of her comedies. Goldsmith was in great anxiety about its success, he was much distressed in his finances at the time, and all his hopes hung on the event ; and at the dinner preceding the representa- tion of his play, his mouth became so parched and dry, from the agitation of his mind, that he was unable to swallow a single mouthful. The actors themselves had great doubts of its success ; but, contrary to their expectations, the play was received with great applause ; Sir Joshua and a large party of friends going for the purpose of supporting it if necessary. The dinner party, which took place at the Shakspeare, is humourously described by Cumberland. Dr. Johnson took the head of the table, and there were present the Burkes, Caleb Whiteford, Major Mills, &c., &c. I remember Dr. Goldsmith gave me an order soon after this, with which I went to see this comedy ; and the next time I saw him he inquired of me what my opinion was of it. I told him that I would not presume to be a judge of its merits ; he thensaid, "Did itmakeyou laugh?" lanswered, "Exceedingly." '* Then," said the Doctor, " that is all I require." One day Dr. Johnson and Dr. Goldsmith meeting at Sir SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 181 Joshua Reynolds's table, the conversation turned on the merits of that well known tragedy, Otway's Venice Preserved, which Goldsmith highly extolled, asserting, that of all tragedies it was the one nearest in excellence to Shakspeare ; when Johnson, in his peremptory manner, contradicted him, and pronounced that there were not forty good lines to be found in the whole play ; adding, *' Pooh ! what stuff are these lines : — * What feminine tales hast thou been listening to, of unaired shirts, catarrhs, and tooth-ach got by thin soled shoes ?' " " True," replied Goldsmith, "to be sure that is very like Shakspeare." Sir Joshua used to say, that he thought any man of tolerable capacity might write a tragedy, such as an audience would receive from the stage without objection ; but that it required a real genius for humour, together^ with considerable taste, to write a comed}^ The remark has been made by Sorbiere, an eminent French physician, who gives ample reasons for this opinion.* * " More tragedies than comedies are produced. Young men first make an attempt at tragedy; not being able, for want of knowledge and experience, to attempt any other kind of writing. Their hero of the tragedy is, for the most part, a fictitious character, and Phoebus and the Muses are invoked to fit him out for appearing. On the contrary, the characters of a comedy are such as we meet with daily in the streets at every turn; and vve have only to transcribe their words and actions. It is true, that those we esteem the most excellent painters are not frequently the best copyists; and that good historians are not always skilful in drawing characters. But, perhaps, this is a defect in them ; and, to speak fairly, the painter who copies nature exactly, and with art, is surely as deserving of our praise as he who cuiinoi paint after nature^ but looks for an original in his caprice. It 182 MEMOIRS OF A few persons dining at Sir Joshua Reynolds's about this time, of whom I was one, in the course of conversation after dinner Sir Joshua spoke of Mr. Malane's edition of Shakspeare, which was then just about to be published. He said it was such a work as would render it totally unnecessary to attempt to improve it any further, as Mr. Malone had, with indefatigable industry and the deepest research, now explored every source of knowledge from which Shakspeare might have had any means of getting assistance, for in truth it had been the prime object of his pursuits, and the business of his whole life with intense application. I must confess honestly, that I felt a little degree of irritation at hearing this vast eulogium on a work which, in its very nature, cannot be a matter requiring the least genius; neither can it add one atom to the matchless excellencies of that captivating poet, and does little more than to form an excuse for the name of the commentator being handed down to posterity attached to that of the immortal Shak- speare. I rather hastily replied, as a counteraction to the foregoing appears that comedy is the most difficult of dramatic works : as the poet imitates characters which are under the observation of all, and whose opinions must confirm the likeness of the portraiture. The st^ile of comedy is less arduous than that of tragedy : as there is less art in running very fast, and skipping up and down, than in a regular march or a graceful dance. Yet it is not so difficult to soar in heroic verse as to represent common Vile ; which requires a steady and vigorous pencil." Samuel Sorbiere, an eminent physician in Paris, in the time of Louis XIV, and patronized by Cardinal Mazarin, was born in the year 16IO, and died in I67O. SIR JOSHtJA REYNOLDS. 183 speech of Sir Joshua's, " What a very despicable creature must that man be who thus devotes himself and makes another man his God when Boswell, who sat at my elbow, and was not in my thoughts at the time, cried out immediately, "Oh! Sir Joshua, then that is me!" I was exceedingly sorry when he took it to himself, and excused the speech I had made in the best manner I was able. However, if Boswell's office was not a high one, the work he has produced by it is much more original and more valuable beyond all comparison, as very few books in the English language bid fairer for immortality than his life of Pr. Johnson. In the early part of this year Sir Joshua took a trip with a party of friends to Portsmouth, on the occasion of the King's reviewing the navy there : and in the latter part of the summer he also made a visit to Plymouth, the reason of which was this, that having already been made a freeman of his native town of Plympton, this mark of respect was followed by his being chosen alderman and mayor of that borough, generally called Plympton Maurice, or Earl's Plympton, to distinguish it from Plympton St. Mary's, formerly a convent of Benedictines, about half a mile distant, the abbot of which was lord of the manor, and sat in the house of peers after the dissolution of religious houses. The town was incorporated by a charter granted in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, under a mayor, recorder, eight aldermen, or principal burgesses, who are called common councilmen, a bailiff, and town clerk, &c. 184 MEMOIRS OF So strongly was Sir Joshua attached to the place of his birth, that he declared that this circumstance gave him more pleasure than any other honour which he had received during his life. On this occasion he presented his portrait, painted by himself, to the corporation, who placed it in the town hall. It is a good picture with a light sky back ground, and in his academical dress as doctor of laws. There is another portrait of him painted when young, and now in the possession of T. Lane, Esq. of Cofflett, about three miles from Plympton. In this picture he holds one hand over to shadow his eyes, an attitude often chosen by painters when they paint their own portraits. The Rev. Mr. Alcock, vicar of Cornwood, a parish in the neighbourhood, presented to Sir Joshua the following distich on the receipt of this valuable present to the corporation. " Laudat Rotnanus Raphaelem, Graecus Apellem, Plympton Reynolden jactat, utrique parem." But the new mayor, though perhaps pleased with the compliment, modestly declared that he thought it would be assuming too much honour to himself, to have it affixed to, or even put on the back of, the picture. The following elegant letter to Sir Joshua, as it relates to Zond there was a picture painted by Mr. Hone, entitled " Two Gentlemen in Masquerade they were represented as Capuchin Friars, regaling themselves with punch. When this picture was sent for admission, one of the personages was represented as squeezing a lemon, while the other was stirring the liquor with the crucifix, at the end of his rosary : but the Council considered the latter circumstance as too indecorous to allow the picture's being exhibited in that state ; and the artist was requested SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 221 to alter the crucifix. This request was comphed with, but Mr. Hone was much offended, when in truth, he ought rather to have been pleased," with their liaving pointed out an impropriety, which might not have struck him upon the first idea of liis picture. However, the desired alteration was made, and a ladle introduced, which he painted with a substance easily washed away; and the picture was again displayed at his own exhibition in its primitive state. The other picture, which was the leading feature of his exhibition, represented an o|d man, half-length, the size of life, painted after the model from which Sir Joshua Reynolds had painted his Count Ugolino. This picture, which J\lr. Hone called the Conjuror, was intended as a satire upon Sir Joshua's method of composing his pictures. Yet Mr. Hone's ridicule was not very apparent, for his figure represented little more than an old man, with a wand in his hand, performing incantations, by which a number of prints and sketches were made to float in the air, all of wb.ich were representations of those originals from which Sir Joshua had taken the actions of the figures and groupes which he had introduced into some of his principal portraits. As this picture, which did not display much vigour of mind, was evidently meant as an attack upon the President, the Council of the Royal Academy thought it prudent to exclude it from their exhibitiou, which again greatly displeased Mr. Hone; and he, like many others, disappointed in his private schemes, appealed to the public by an exhibition of his own. 222 MEMOIRS OF Instead of trusting to my own temper in animadverting any further on such an attack on this great painter, I shall give a passage, and perhaps with more force, from the pen of a writer ■who, whatever his merits or demerits may be, cannot be accused of partiality for the subject of our biography. He says, speaking of Hone, ''This gentleman should be almost exclusively arranged as a portrait painter, as he painted but two historical compositions. The first was a satire on monkish licentiousness ; and the other was the exhibition of 2i pictorial conjurer, displaying his cleverness in the arts of deceiving the sight. This last performance was intended as an exposition of the manoeuvring, in respect to attitudes, which was so attributable to Sir Joshua Reynolds. This vindictive effort was sent by its parent to the annual exhibition ; but was rejected by the Academicians with becoming scorn, as the issue of a little mind, and powers of fancy most scandalously directed — a keenness of rebuke which has well employed the pen of the author. In the course of this year, Sir Joshua had finished his well- known picture of " Venus chiding Cupid." It was done for Sir Brooke Boothby, who in 1794 sold it to Sir Tliomas Bernard. Boswell, about this time, records an observation of Dr. Johnson's, which was highly descriptive of Sir Joshua's placidity and evenness of disposition ; not an overstrained stoicism, but that happy equability which proceeds both from mind and disposition. Whilst conversing on melancholy, Johnson said, SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 223 that " some men, and very thinking men too, have not these vexing thoughts. Sir Joshua Reynolds is the same all the year round." A character of the Honourable Mrs. P., written by Sir Joshua, was published in the newspapers of the day, and the printer had taken the liberty of altering a word in it, to make it, as he thought, much better, but which Sir Joshua thought made it much otherwise. In speaking of this afterwards to the late Caleb Whiteford, Sir Joshua complained of the absurd alteration, and said it had quite destroyed the simplicity of the whole, when Whiteford made the comparison of a pot of broth over the fire, into which a lump of soot falls from the chimney, and the whole mess is spoiled. What the word was which the printer expunged I do not know ; but the character here inserted is iii its original form. - Character of the Honourable Mrs. P. b\) Sir Joshua Rn/no/ds, December 2lsf, 1775. " The death of this Honourable Lady was occasioned by a stroke of the palsy, which happened soon after her lying-in of a daughter ; of this she appeared to be recovering ; but receiving a second stroke, and soon after that a third, it put an end to the life of one of the most valuable of women. Her amiable disposition, her softness and gentleness of manners, endeared her to every one that had the liappiness of knowing her : her whole pleasure and ambition were centered 224 MEMOIRS OF in a consciousness of properly discharging all the duties of a wife, a mother, and a sister ; and she neither sought for, nor expected, fame out of her own house. As she made no osten- tation of her virtues, she excited no envy ; but if there had existed so depraved a being as to wish to wound so fair a character, the most artful malignity must have searched in vain for a weak part. Her virtues were uniform, quiet, and habitual ; they were not occasionally put on ; she wore them continually ; they seemed to grow to her and be a part of herself ; and it seemed to be impossible for her to lay them aside or be other than what she was. Her person was eminently beautiful ; but the expression of her countenance was far above all beauty that proceeds from regularity of features only. The gentleness and benevolence of her disposition were so naturally impressed on every look and motion, that without any aftected effort or assumed courtesy, she was sure to make every one her friend that had ever spoke to her, or even seen her. " In so exalted a character it is scarce worth mentioning her skill and exact judgment in the polite arts: she seemed to possess, by a kind of intuition, that propriety of taste and right thinking, which others but imperfectly acquire by long labour and application." At the time when I was a student at the Royal Academy, I was accidentally repeating to Sir Joshua the instructions on colouring I had heard there given by an eminent painter who then attended as visitor. Sir Joshua replied, that this painter was undoubtedly a very sensible man, but by no means a good I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 225 colourist ; adding, that there was not a man then on earth who hud the least notion of colouring ; " we, all of us," said he. " have it equally to seek for and find out, as at present it is totally lost to the art." • Strong objections were often certainly made to Sir Joshua's process or mode of colouring ; but perhaps the best answer to all these is in the following anecdote. One of these critics, who passed for a great patron of the art, was complaining strongly to a judicious friend of Sir Joshua's " flying colours" and expressing great regret at the circum- stances as it prevented him from having his picture painted by the president. To all this his friend calmly replied, that he should reflect that any painter who merely wished to make his colours stand, had only to purchase them at the first colour shop he might come to ; but that it must be remem- bered that " every picture of Sir Joshua's was an experiment of art made by an ingenious man, — and that the art advanced by such experiments, even ii)here they failed. In fine, what Gainsborough said of the President is strictly true: that in his opinion Sir Josiuia's pictures in their most decayed state were better than those of any other artist when in their best. I once humbly endeavoured to persuade Sir Joshua to abandon those fleeting colours lake and carmine, which it was his practice to use in painting his flesh, and to adopt vermilion in their stead as infinitely more durable although not .G G 526 MEMOIRS OF SO exactl}' true to nature as the former. I remember he looked on his hand and said " I can see no vermilion in flesh/' I replied, " but did not Sir Godfrey Kneller always use vermilion in his flesh colour," when vSir Joshua answered rather sharply, " What signifies what a man used who could not colour. But you may use it if you will !" It is to be observed, however, that Sir Joshua made use of vermilion himself in all his latter works, finding by experience the ill effects of lake and carmine in his early productions. If any other apology were necessary for Sir Joshua's mode of practice, it may be found in his own words, in one of the fragments, as presei ved by Mr. Malone ; there he says, " I was always willing to believe that my uncertainty of proceeding in my works, that is, my never being sure of my hand, and my frequent alterations, arose from a refined taste, which could not acquiesce in any thing short of a high degree of excellence. I had not an opportunity of being early initiated in the principles of Colouring : no man indeed could teach me. If I have never been settled with respect to colouring, let it at the same time be remembered, that my unsteadiness in this respect proceeded from an inordinate desire to possess every kind of excellence that I saw in the works of others, without considering that there are in colouring, as in style, excellencies which are incompatible with each other : however, this pursuit, or indeed any other similar pursuit, prevents the artist from being tired of his art. We all know how often those masters, who sought after colouring, changed their manner ; whilst others, merely from not seeing various modes, acquiesced all SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 227 their lives in that with which they set out. On the contrary, I tried every effect of colour, and by leaving out every colour in its turn, showed every colour that I could do without. As I alternately left out every colour, I tried every new colour ; and, after, as is well known, failed. The former practice, I am aware, may be compared by those whose first object is ridicule, to that of the poet mentioned in the Spectator,who in a . poem of twenty-four books, contrived in each book to leave out a letter. But I was influenced by no such idle or foolish affectation. My fickleness in the mode of colouring arose from an eager desire to attain the highest excellence. This is the only merit I can assume to myself from my conduct in that respect." But it was not to experiments on his own colouring alone that Sir Joshua trusted for gaining experience ; for he actually tried experiments with several capital ancient paintings of the Venetian School, in order, if possible, to ascertain their grounds, to trace their process in laying on, and to analyze the chemical mixture of their various tints. This circumstance has been noticed by Mr. Malone, and is very just — -an experiment too, conducted at an immense expense, for each painting thus investigated was, of course, totally destroyed. Sir Joshua's early and continued success is, however, very well delineated by himself in one of those fragments already mentioned, where he says, " I considered myself as playing a great game, and, instead of beginning to save money, I laid it out faster than I got it, in purchasing the best examples of art that could be procured ; for 1 even borrowed money for G G 2 •228 MEMOIRS OF this purpose. The possessing portraits by Titian, Vandyke, Rembrandt, &c., I considered as the best kind of wealth, By studying carefully the works of great masters, this advantage is obtained ; we find that certain niceties of expression are capable of being executed, which otherwise we might suppose beyond the reach of art. This gives us a confidence in ourselves, and we are thus incited to endeavour at not only the same happiness of execution, but also at other congenial excellencies. Study, indeed, consists in learning to see nature, and may be called the art of using other men's minds. By this kind of contemplation and exercise we are taught to think in their way, and sometimes to attain their excellence. Thus, for instance, if I had never seen any of the works of Corregio, I should never perhaps have remarked in nature the expression which I find in one of his pieces ; or if I had remarked it, I might have thought it too difficult, or perhaps impossible, to be executed." It must have been reasons such as these which could ever induce him to make a copy from any master, and only when he desired to possess himself of some peculiar excellence which another possessed before him, and when he did condescend to copy, its degree of correctness may be judged of by an instance which I heard himself relate. The Cheva- lier Vanloo, the eminent portrait painter, being in England, one day when he paid a visit to Sir Joshua, boasted of his great knowledge in the works of the dift'erent famous painters, saying he could not be deceived or imposed upon by a copy for an original. Sir Joshua then shewed him a head of an old wcman which he had copied from one by Rembrandt, and SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 229 witliout letting bim into the secret asked his opinion upon it. The French painter, after a very careful inspection into it, said he could pronounce that it was undoubtedly an original picture by Rembrandt ! Of Sir Joshua's paintings, any accident that befel them seems of sufficient importance to record. In a small room next to his own painting room, there were a great number of those portraits which had been rejected and were left upon his hands ; round the sides of this room were shelves, on which were placed large heads, casts from the antique, and at a great height, for the room was lofty ; and over these hung some old portraits by Lely and otliers. In this room as I was one day busily employed in painting a drapery to one of his portraits, I suddenly heard a noise as if something had fallen, when looking up to the place, I saw that one of those pictures by Lely had dropt from its nail, and falling on the shelf, and thence forward, threw down two or three very large plaister heads. I had but a moment to get up in the corner of this little room, when the whole fell down on the floor, just where I had been at work, with a violence that would have certainly proved fatal to me, had I not got in time out of the way, as a moment would have been too late. The easel was knocked down, together with the picture on which I was at work, and driven with violence through five or six of those unfortunate rejected portraits, as they happened to be placed one before the other, whilst the floor was covered with the fragments of the broken plaister heads which were dashed to pieces by the fall. The great noise 230 MEMOIRS OF which this made alarmed even Sir Joshua, although deaf, and brought liim into the room in a hurry to know what was the matter, when he stared with surprize to behold the wreck, but soon calmly smiled at a misfortune, which, indeed, did not require reparation. As I have hinted at the subject of his drapery's having been frequently executed by the hands of his scholars, it is but just to remark in this place, that the Avhole together of the picture, was at last his own, as the imitation of particular stuffs is not the work of genius but is to be acquired easily by practice, and this was what his pupils could do by care and time more than he himself chose to bestow, but his own slight and masterly work was still the best. No painter like Sir Joshua knew how to make his drapery answer the purpose of enriching his figures, as may be seen in his excellent portrait of General Tarlton ; for though the figure is merely in a close jacket, yet, by making it unite, in a certain degree, with the flags in the back ground, it assumes a richness unexampled : others may have done the same by accident, in him it was principle. Further, in respect to this part of the subject, I remember once when I was disposing the folds of drapery with great care on the lay figure, in order to paint from it into one of his pictures, he remarked that it would not make good drapery if set so artificially, and that whenever it did not fall into such folds as were agreeable, I should try to get it better, by SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS, 231 taking the chance of another toss of the drapery stuff, and by that means I should get nature, which is always superior to art. Besides the assistance which Sir Joshua had from his pupils, he also employed Peter Toms to paint drapery for him, who was considered as the most perfect auxiliary in that depart- ment of painting that existed in his time. He was a Royal Academician, and son of Mr. Toms the engraver, and had practiced some time in Ireland as a portrait painter. Sir Joshua was fond of introducing animals or birds occasionally into his compositions, and these lie painted with great spirit and life. At one time he kept a very fine eagle which was chained to its perch, in the back area of the house : when this bird died I took the body and suspended it by strings so as to give it an action as if it was alive, with its wings spread, intending to paint a picture from it for myself. But when Sir Joshua saw me about it he seemed pleased, and told me to do it as well as T was able ; and when I had finished the work to the best of my power, he took the picture and the bird into his own painting room, and in about a quarter of an hour gave it such touches of animation as made it truly fine, though executed with a bad light, for I remember it was late in the day when he did it, having been the night before at a masquei-ade, which had occasioned his remaining very long in bed that day. In this year it was that Mr. Doughty was placed under the tuition of Sir Joshua. William Doughty was a native of 232 MEMOIRS OF Yorkshire, and recommended to the notice of Sir Joshua by the Rev. Mr. Mason. He remained about three years in the house of Sir Joshua as his pupil, and at that time, by the desire of Mr. Mason, and for him, painted tlie portrait of Gray the poet by description, (as Gray was dead,) and the help ©f an outline of his profile, which had been taken by lamp light when he was living, and therefore must have been very exact ; and this now remains as the only portrait of Gray. It has been engraved for the frontispiece of his works, and sculptured on his monument. Mr. Mason was the particular friend of Gray, and the editor of his works after his death, and alsp the patron of Doughty. On Doughty leaving Sir Joshua he went to Ireland but did not succeed, although highly recommended by his master as well as his patron, and also possessing greater ability than his more fortunate rivals. He then returned to London exceed- ingly dispirited, from whence he took shipping for Bengal in 1780 ; but before he left England had married one Margaret Joy, a servant girl in Sir Joshua's house; she also accompanied him when he left England. Having been captured by the combined squadrons of France and Spain, and carried to Lisbon, he there closed his mortal career. In 1778 he had exhibited a three quarter length of his patron which possessed considerable merit ; and he scraped some excellentmezzotinto portraits, among which, those of the Rev. Mr. Mason and Dr. Johnson were the most perfect. His widow continued her voyage to India, but died just on her arrival at Bengal. The following little circumstance, as it serves to shew the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 233 kind disposition of Sir Josliua, I may be allowed to mention, although it relates so much to my own concerns. The latter end of the year 1775 was now arrived, when it only wanted a few months of five years that I had been with him, and when I also approached the twenty-ninth year of my age ; and I thought it high time for me to do something for myself at so late a period in the life of a pupil, having been prevented by many causes from beginning my studies as a painter in earlier youth. I therefore thought it proper to give Sir Joshua notice of my intentions some months before my departure ; this, however, was a task very disagreeable to me, and I deferred it from day to day, but at last determined, and going to him one morning in the month of December, when he was alone in his painting room, I began by saying that at the end of May next it would be five years since I first came to his house. Sir Joshua, with a gentleness in his manner, said, that he thought that was full sufficient, and that I was now well able to do for myself. I then replied, that I was very sensible of the obligation I owed him, and that I would stay any time longer he should think proper if I could be of any service to him. Sir Joshua said by no means, as I had already done him much service ; I answered that I feared I had not been of so much assistance to him as I wished, but that it was solely from want of power, and not inclination. Sir Joshua was so obliging as to say, that I had been very useful to him, more so than any scholar that had ever been with him ; and he added, *' I hope we shall assist each other as long as we live," and " that if I would remain with him until the month of May he should be very much H H 234 MEMOIRS OF obliged to me, as I could be very useful to him ;" I answered, that I intended it, and during that time wished to work as much as it was in my power for his service, and thus the conversation ended. On the 12th of May, 1776, I took my leave of Sir Joshua Reynolds, to take my chance in the world, and we parted •with great cordiality ; he said I was perfectly in the right in my intentions, and that he had been fully satisfied with my conduct whilst I had been with him ; also, that he had no idea I should have staid with him so long, " but now," added Sir Joshua, " to succeed in the art, you are to remember that something more is to be done than that which did formerly ; Kneller, Lely, and Hudson, will not do now." I was rather surprized to hear him join the former two names with that of Hudson, who was so evidently their inferior as to be out of all comparison. It was impossible to quit such a residence as Sir Joshua's without reluctance, a house in which I had spent so many happy hours, and although perfectly satisfied in my own mind that what I did in this respect was right, and that it was high time for me to be acting for myself on the stage of life, yet to leave that place, which was the constant resort of all the eminent in every valuable quality, without an inward regret, was not in my power. It is a melancholy reflection even at this moment, when one considers the ravages a few short years have made in that unparalleled society which shone at his table, now all gone ! SIR JOSHUA KEYNOLDS. 235 As this event was a considerable era in my life when I was no longer to be an inmate as one of the family of Sir Joshua Reynolds, I may be suffered to make a pause, and indulge my thoughts in the pleasing recollection of many little circumstances and matters of observation which occurred during the space of five years; therefore, as a kind of summing up, and closing of this period, I shall record in this place several matters, perhaps pleasing only to myself, from the lively remembrance they raise in my mind of those happy years of my life. Of the political sentiments of Sir Joshua at that time I may merely state, that during the contest between England and America, so strongly was it the opinion of many persons that we should conquer them in the end, that Sir Joshua, who thought the contrary, actually received five guineas each from several gentlemen under a promise to pay them in return one thousand pounds if ever he painted the portrait of General Washington in England, and which he was not to refuse to do in case the General should be brought to him to that intent. One day at dinner with Sir Joshua and his sister. Miss Reynolds, I remarked to her that I had never seen any picture by Jervas, which was rather extraordinary, as he was a fashionable painter in his day ; she said, " Nor I neither, I wonder how that should be. I do not, know that I ever saw one then addressing Sir Joshua, she said, Brother, how- happens it that we never meet with any pictures by Jervas H H 2 236 MEMOIRS OF the painter?" when he answered very briskly, " because they are all up in the garret." In so saying, he alluded to the destiny of bad portraits, which, in the succeeding generation, are thus treated with neglect and contempt. I have heard Sir Joshua say that at the time when he began his career in life as a painter, the admiration of the works of Sir Godfrey Kneller was so prevalent in England, that had any person ventured to name those of Vandyke in compe- tition with them, the painters then living would have laughed him to scorn as having advanced the greatest absurdity. This instance serves to prove the power of prejudice and fashion, which we often see so abundantly contribute to prop up and exalt the lauded idol of the day. Another anecdote (perhaps curious to painters,) Sir Joshua used to relate, which he heard from Mr. Jonathan Richardson the portrait painter. When Richardson was a very young man, in the course of his practice he painted the portrait of a very old lady, who, in conversation at the time of her sitting to him, happened to mention, that when she was a girl about sixteen years of age, she sat to Vandyke for her portrait. This immediately raised the curiosity of Richardson, who asked a hundred questions, many of them unimportant : however the circum- starice which seemed to him as a painter, to be of the most SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 237 consequence in the information he gained was this : she said, she well remembered, that, at the time when she sat to Vandyke, for her portrait, and saw his pictures in his gallery, they appeared to have a white and raw look, in comparison with tlie mellow and rich hue which we now see in them, and which time alone must have given to them, adding much to their excellence. At the time that Gibbon's Roman History was published, it was the fashion to admire it exceedingly. Edmund Burke conversing with Sir Joshua upon that work, said, " he had just then been reading it, that he disliked the style of writing, that it was very affected, mere frippery and tinsel." Upon another occasion, Mr. Edmund Burke when in conversation with Sir Joshua, remarked to him the peculiar advantages which certain situations gave to those who chose to make use of them ; " for instance, you, Sir Joshua, from your character and the opportunities you have by your profession of being so much in private with persons of the highest rank and power, at moments, also, when they are at leisure and in good humour, might obtain favours from them which would give you a patronage almost equal to that of a prime minister." " There is some truth in what you say," answered Sir Joshua, " but how could I presume to ask favours from those to whom I became known only by my obligations to them ?" The earnest desire which Sir Joshua had to render his pictures 238 MEMOIRS OF perfect to the utmost of his ability, and in each succeeding instance to surpass the former, occasioned his frequently making them inferior to what they had been in the course of the process, and when it was observed to him, " That probably he never had sent out to the world any one of his paintings in as perfect a state as it had been he answered, that he believed the remark was very just ; but that, notwithstanding, he certainly gained ground by it on the whole, and improved himself by the experiment : adding, " If you are not bold enough to run the risk of losing, you can never hope to gain." With the same ardent wish of advancing himself in his art, I have heard him say, that whenever a new sitter came to him for a portrait, he always began it with a full determination to make it the best picture he had ever painted ; neither would he allow it to be an excuse for his failure, to say, " The subject was a bad one for a picture ;" there was always nature, he would observe, which, if well treated, was fully sufficient for the purpose. In the short fragment inserted in his Memoir by Mr. Malone, he expresses himself thus, much to the same purport : " My success and continual improvement in my art, (if I may be allowed that expression) may be ascribed, in a good measure, to a principle which I will boldly recommend to imitation ; I mean a principle of honesty ; which, in this, as in all other instances, is, according to the vulgar proverb, certainly the best policy. I always endeavoured to do my best. Great or vulgar, good subjects or bad, all had nature; by the exact representation of which, or even by the endeavour to give SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 239 such a representatioiij the painter cannot but improve in his art." It was one of Sir Joshua's favorite maxims, that all the gestures of children are graceful, and that the reign of distortion and unnatural attitude, commences with the introduction of the dancing master. He delighted much in marking the dawning traits of the youthful mind, and the actions and bodily movements even of infants ; and it was by these means that he acquired the ability which enabled him to pourtray children with such exquisite happiness, truth, and variety. A circumstance, as related by himself, occurs to my remembrance, which may serve to prove the truth of the above observation, as well as to shew how watchful his mind was to catch instruction wherever it was to be gained. Sir Joshua being in company with a party of ladies and gentlemen, who were viewing a nobleman's house, they passed through a gallery of portraits, when a little girl, who belonged to one of the party, attracted the particular attention of Sir Joshua by her vivacity and the sensible drollery of her observations ; for whenever the company made a stand, to look at each portrait in particular, the child, unconscious of being observed by any one, imitated, by her actions, the air of the head, and sometimes awkward effect of the ill disposed position of the limbs in each picture ; and this she did with so much innocence and true feeling, that it was the most just and incontrovertible criticism that could be made on the picture. 240 MEMOIRS OF We may perceive, by this instance, that those parts of the art which are its essentials, and the most difficult to accomplish with tolerable success, namely, grace, ease of attitude, and expression, are qualities which lie open to the knowledge and judgment of the most simple and untaught persons, in a much greater degree than to the half learned connoisseur. The many trifles which I have here related, T fear make me liable to the censure of my judicious reader, and most of those trifles probably had much better have been omitted ; but as it is all truth, and several of the circumstances are worth preserving, I was unwilling to make myself the judge, by a selection, and therefore, have risked the danger of giving too many, least I should have fallen into the worse fault of giving too few : and I have also an apology for what I have done, and which I here give in the very words of that great prelate. Seeker, in his tenth sermon, where he has the following passage, " Rabbi David Kimchi, a noted Jewish commentator, who lived about five hundred years ago, explains that passage in the first psalm, ' His leaf also shall not wither,' from Rabbins yet older than himself, thus : that even the idle talk (so he expresses it,) of a good man ought to be regarded; the most superfluous things, he saith, are always of some value." I shall, therefore, boldly proceed on such authority, even if my good reader be fatigued by my relating those minute and petty matters, but which have dwelt in my memory from the time 1 left the house of Sir Joshua, and which, probably, appear more important to my mind, as I have before observed. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 241 than they can to another, from their connection with that period of my youth. It was an opinion of his, that as it is impossible for us to do hurt to the dead, therefore we may hold up their imperfections to view, as an example for others to avoid the like, and by this means do good to the living. If we owe regard (says Johnson) to the memory of the dead, there is yet more respect to be paid to knowledge, to virtue, and to truth. On speaking to him concerning a friend of his, who was dying of a lingering disease, for which he was sensible there was no possible cure, it was remarked of this person, that his situation seemed to excite in him the utmost degree of impatience and terror, and that he appeared like a criminal under sentence of death. Sir Joshua observed, " That we are all under sentence of death ; but that his warrant was signed." It was an observation of his, that it had a bad tendency to look at works worse than our own, as it might make us too easily content with our own productions, or else deaden our ardor for the art itself. Tiie exact reverse to this is the consequence from viewing fine pictures. It was his opinion, that it never did a painter much credit to have no other pictures than his own in a collection, as it became tiresome to the spectator from the want of variety, 1 I MEMOIRS OF and also, that the painter's peculiar defects became more conspicuous by seeing them so often repeated. Sir Joshua used to say, that he could instruct any boy that chance should throw in his way, to be able in half a year to paint a likeness in a portrait ; but to give a just expression and true character to the picture was rare to be seen, and proved the great master: and of Velasquez the celebrated Spanish painter, of whose great powers he thought so favor- ably, he said, " What we are all attempting to do with great labour, he does at once/' A friend of his was relating to him the ill success of an indifferent painter in the country, who, by his caricature like- nesses, enraged his sitters, and more especially the ladies, as much as if he had really made them in their own persons, as they were in their portraits, and this he observed seemed to be carrying their anger too far. " Why you know," said Sir Joshua, " he has given it under his hand that they are so." A very bad picture, which by the possessor was thought to be of great value, was oiTered to him for his purchase, and the price demanded for it most absurdly was two hundred guineas, when he answered, with some degree of impatience, " Why not two thousand I" In conversation once with Sir Joshua, he said in the way SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 243 of advice, that " He who would arrive at eminence in his profession should confine his whole attention to that alone, and not do as many very sensible men have done, who spend their time in acquiring a smattering aud general kind of knowledge of every science, by which their powers become so much divided, that they are not masters of any one." 1 said ha;»tily, " That is exactly my own father." He replied, And it was mine also." A young painter who was showing his performance to him in order to have his opinion and instruction upon it, when the faults were pointed out to him, excused himself by saying he had committed the error by following the dictates of his employer whom he wished to please. Sir Joshua would not allow such a reason to be any palliation of his faults, adding, "It is you who are to understand your own business, and not your employer." Yet he would never willingly offer advice, unless he perceived the mind of the person, who asked it, was earnestly engaged on their subject ; otherwise, he said it was lost labour, and that instruction went in at one ear and out at the other. The following observations by Sir Joshua Reynolds, were the result of many conversations, or froiii fragments written by himself. " The great principle of being happy in this world is not to recrard or be affected with small things." ** No man relishes an evening walk like him whose mind has been employed the whole preceding day," I I 2 244 MEMOIRS OF " Polite behaviour and a refined address, like good pictures, make the least show to ordinary eyes." " Humility is not to despise any thing, especially mankind." " Magnanimity is not to be disturbed at any thing." " A man is a pedant who, having been brought up among books, is able to talk of nothing else. The same of a soldier, lawyer, painter, &c." " Natural, is that which is according to the common course of things. An ugly face is not according to the common course of things, consequently an ugly face is an unnatural face." The character of a nation is perhaps more strongly marked by their taste in painting, than in any other pursuit, although more considerable ; as you may easier find which way the wind sits by throwing up a straw in the air than any heavier substance." " Rules are very necessary to, but will never make, a painter! They should be used as servants, and subject to us, not we to them." " In painting prefer truth before freedom of hand." " Grandeur is composed of straight lines. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 245 ** Genteelness and elegance of serpentine lines." " A firm and determined manner is grand, but not elegant." " Genteelness is not being crowded, especially if there is a fullness at the same time." Air is a single moment of any action." " Simplicity is an exact medium between too little and too much." ** Grace is the medium of motion, beauty is the medium of form, and genteelness the medium of the fashion." Ornament is the medium between wanting what is neces- sary, and being over-furnished." " Ornament ought to arise only from the right ordering of things. Orno is Latin for * to furnish.' " ** Manner in painting is like peculiarity of behaviour ; though it may please a few, the bulk of mankind will con- demn it." ** The only wages a real genius thinks of in his labour, is the praise of impartial judges." " A good portrait painter may not be capable of painting history." 246 MEMOIRS OF But an historical painter for certain has the ability to paint portrait/' I shall now resume my narrative. In Sir Joshua's seventh discourse, delivered on the tenth of December, as usual, in this year, his object was to prove the existence of a real standard of taste ; this he considered as absolute as one for corporeal beauty, and as an immutable truth in itself, although, at the same time, it did not preclude the existence of certain variable and secondary truths, differing according to circumstances, in their influence as well as in their stability, and therefore particularly requiring the artist's close attention. At the commencement of this oration, he again recommended industry most strenuously to the students ; but with this happy distinction, that it was not the industry of the hands, but of the mind." He then marked the precise definition of the art itself, which, though " not a divine gift, so neither is it a mechanical trade," considering its foundation as resting on solid science, but still insisting that practice, although essential to perfection, would never arrive at its aim unless directed by a judicious principle. As great learning is not absolutely necessary for a painter, he recommended his youthful hearers not to be terrified at the want of it, but still to keep in mind that a certain degree of cultivation, such as was in their power, was nevertheless essential ; and he therefore pointed out the propriety of being SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 247 tolerably conversant with the poets, even in English, so as to imbibe a poetical spirit, of adopting a habit of acquiring and digesting ideas, and of obtaining some knowledge of that part of philosophy which gives an insight into human nature, as connected with the manners, characters, passions, and affections ; in short, that a painter " ought to know something concerning the mind, as well as a great deal concerning the body of man" — a truth which he more fully exemplified in another part of the discourse, saying, that, " in fact, as he who does not know himself, does not know others, so it may be said, with equal truth, that he who does not know others, knows himself but very imperfectly." For this great end, he recommended reading as the recreation of leisure hours ; and that the student (agreeable to his own custom) should supply what partial and desultory reading cannot afford by the conversation of learned and ingenious men, which he considered as the best of all substitutes for those who have not the means or opportunities of deep study. Of these studies, and of this conversation, added Sir Joshua, the desire and legitimate offspring is a power of distinguishing right from wrong ; which power, when applied to works of art, he considered to be that which the world calls " taste." He then proceeded to examine, whether taste is so far beyond human reach as to be unattainable with care, or so very vague and capricious that no care ought to be employed about it. i To follow him through this investigation would be far 248 MEMOIRS OF beyond my proposed limits ; though it may be noticed, that he laid it down as an axiom, that although Genius and Taste, in their common acceptation, appear to be very nearly related, as " the difference lies only in this, that genius has superadded to it a habit or power of execution : or we may say, that taste, when this power is added, changes its name and is called genius, — still is the popular opinion most absurd, that they may both claim an entire exemption from the restraint of rules ; that their powers are intuitive ; and that, under the name of genius great works are produced, and under the name of taste an exact judgment is given, without our knowing why, and without our being under the least obligation to reason, precept, or experience." After speaking of taste in general, he applied it to the art in its various particulars, observing, that it is reason and good sense which rank and estimate every art, and every part of that art, according to its importance, from the painter of animated, down to inanimate, nature ; but he protested against any man who shall prefer the inferior style, saying, that it is his taste ; for here taste has nothing, or, at least, ought to have nothing, to do with the question — " he wants not taste, but sense and soundness of judgment." In avoiding one extreme of opinion, however, Sir Joshua did not commit the frequent error of adopting its opposite ; but still acknowledged that a part of taste does not absolutely belong to the external form of things, but is addressed to the mind, and actually depends on its original frame, or, as he expressed himself, " the organization of the soul ; I mean the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 249 imagination and the passions" — but then he contended, that the principles of these are as invariable as the former, and are to be known and reasoned upon in the same manner, by an appeal to common sense deciding upon the common feelings of mankind. In his enthusiasm for the art itself, Sir Joshua never lost sight of its highest advantages in its bearing upon the minds of mankind wherever it was cultivated ; and in this very discourse he noticed, that it has been often observed, that the good and virtuous man alone can acquire this true or just relish even of works of art ; an opinion which he considered as well founded, when we reflect that the same habit of mind which is acquired by our search after truth in the more serious duties of life, is only transferred to the pursuit of lighter amusements ; that the same disposition, the same desire to find something steady, substantial, and durable, on which the mind can lean, as it were, and rest with safety, actuates us in both cases ; and, as he adds, that the subject only is changed, but that we pursue the same method in our se rcli after the idea of beauty and perfection in each ; " of virtue, by looking forwards beyond ourselves to society, and to the whole ; of arts, by extending our views in the same manner to all ages and all times." The truths with which he closed this brilliant discourse are too important to mankind in general not to be repeated ! ere; for Sir Joshua always had the power, as well as the desire, of rendering art useful to morals. " The true spirit of philo- K K 250 MEMOIRS OF sophy," said he, " by giving knowledge, gives a manly confidence, and snbstitutes rational firmness in the place of vain presumption. A man of real taste is always a man of judgment in other respects ; and those inventions which either disdain, or shrink from, reason, are generally, I fear, more like the dreams of a distempered brain, than the exalted enthusiasm of a sound and true genius. In the midst of the highest flights of fancy or imagination, reason ought to preside from first to last, though I admit her more powerful operation is upon reflection !" Of the year 1777 I have little to record concerning Sir Joshua from my own knowledge, as, at that time, I was not in London, A poetical epistle, about this period, had been printed, addressed to him, in which, whilst praising a portrait of Lord Amherst, the poet says something about the fleetiness of his colours, when he good-humouredly observed, in answer, that it must be acknowledged, then, that he came off with flying colours. This poem, in addition to its mixture of praise, and of a certain portion of implied censure, also offered Sir Joshua some advice, recommending to him the further painting of Burke and Garrick ; a hint which was totally unnecessary both to the wishes and the genius of the artist and the friend. In 1778 Sir Joshua published his Seven Discourses, with a Dedication to his Majesty, of which it was aptly said at the time, that it was a model to dedicators, and a hint both to 7^ tr^JuU^ y\yr-rj^ ^)^^-^ y<3.^*-i^ (.^^^..^''^^Cft^^L^ /^J^'^^y^^Y'^'t^^y^^ ^^'^^^^'^^^'^'''^^^''^y^^ / SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 251 writers and painters, that a portrait may be well drawn, without being varnished, and highly coloured without being daubed. The most prominent feature in it runs thus: — " The regular progress of cultivated life is from necessaries to accommo- dations, from accommodations to ornaments. " By your illustrious predecessors were established Marts for Manufactures, and Colleges for Science ; but for the Arts of Elegance, those Arts by which Manufactures are improved and Science refined, to found an Academy was reserved for your Majesty. " Had such patronage been without effect, there had been reason to believe that nature had, by some insurmountable impediment, obstructed our proficiency ; but the annual exhibitions, which your Majesty has been pleased to encourage, show that only encouragement had been wanting. " To give advice to those who are contending for royal liberality, has been, for some years, the duty of my station in the Academy ; and these discourses hope for your Majesty's acceptance, as well intended endeavours to excite the emu- lation which your notice has kindled, and to direct those studies which your bounty has rewarded. " Sint Moecenates non deerunt Maroties." — I think it has already been observed, that at all the times K K 2 MEMOIRS OF when Sir Joshua delivered his discourses to the Royal Academy, the audience was very numerous, being composed of ihe learned and the great, as well as those engaged in the study of the arts. A gold medal was presented once in every two years by the Ro; al Academy, as a prize for the best historical picture, to be painted by a student of the Academy. A young painter who had made several different designs for the composition of the story he was about to execute in order to his becoming a candidate, brought liis sketches to Sir Joshua, to consult with him and have his opinion as to which was the best in point of sentiment, or most clear in explaining the history. Sir Joshua's answer was to this effect:. " You may choose whichever you please; it will turn out precisely the same; you are to recollect that your picture is to be judged of by painters only. It will be the manual execution of the work, and that alone which will engross the attention of Artists, and the degree of merit displayed in that part of the art is what will determine them in their election of the candidate for the prize. " It is no matter how long or how short the time may have been in which you have done tlie w^ork : or with how much difSculty, or with how much ease you have accomplished it. The result alone is to be considered. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 253 This is quite consistentwithsomeobservationsinthe fragments preserved by Mr. Malone, where he says, " My principal labour was employed on the whole together ; and I was never weary of changing, and ubying different modes and different effects. I had always some scheme in my mind, and a perpetual desire to advance. By constantly endeavouring to do my best, I acquired a power of doing that with spontaneous facility, which at first was the effort of ray whole mind ; and my reward was threefold ; the satisfaction resulting from acting on this first principle, improvement in my art, and the pleasure derived from a constant pursuit after excellence." In this year he painted one of his best portraits of Dr. Johnson, who observes of it in a letter to Mrs. Thrale, I have twice sat to Sir Joshua, and he seems to like his own performance. He has projected another in which I am to be busy ; but we can think on it at leisure" — and in a subsequent epistle, he adds, " Sir Joshua has finished my picture, and it seems to please every body, but I shall wait till I see how it pleases you." In this strict intimacy so long kept up with Dr. Johnson, Sir Joshua seems to have considered himself as enjoying both pleasure and advantage ; and upon one occasion, whilst conversing with a friend upon the strictness with which Johnson inculcated to all his acquaintance the importance of perpetual vigilance against the slightest degree of falsehood, he observed that the effect had been, that all who were of his school were distinguished for a love of truth and accuracy. 254 MEMOIRS OF which they might not have possessed in the same degree, if they had not been acquainted with Johnson. Sir Joshua's regard for the memory of his departed friend Goldsmith is properly recorded by Bosweli in a conversation which took place at this period, at a dinner party at his house. When talking of the " Traveller" he said, " I was glad to hear Charles Fox say, it was one of the finest poems in the English language." Mr. Langton then asked. " Why were you glad ? you surely had no doubt of this before to which Johnson added, " No ! the merit of the Traveller is so well established, that Mr. Fox's praise cannot augment it, nor his censure diminish it ;" when, with great modesty, Sir Joshua replied, " but his friends may suspect they had too great a partiality for him." Speaking of this conversation afterwards, Johnson seemed to display some little jealousy at Sir Joshua's friendship with the heads of a party to which his own politics were inimical, for he said, " Yes, Sir, I knocked Fox on the head, without ceremony. Reynolds is too much under Fox and Burke at present. He is under the Fox Star, and the Irish Constellation. He is always under some planet ;" — but the truth is, that Sir Joshua never attempted to borrow light from any political or scienlific luminary, however brilliant ; for, to carry on the metaphor, 'twas his own powerful attraction that brought him and them into the same sphere. However, he had soon after an opportunity of returning SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 255 the retort, when Johnson, talking of a phrase of Garrick's, who called Lord Camden a " little lawyer," at the time that he was boasting of his acquaintance, said, " Well, Sir, Garrick talked very properly. Lord Camden was a little lawyer to be associating so familiarly with a player on which, as IVIr. Boswellsays, Sir Joshua observed, and with great truth, " that Johnson considered Garrick to be, as it were, his property, and that he would allow no man either to bianie or to praise Garrick in his presence, without contradicting him." Another conversation about this time, recorded l)y Mr. Boswell, is so descriptive of Sir Joshua's mild, yet persevering manner, in argumentative, yet friendly discourse, that I should not feel myself at liberty to omit it. Whilst dining at General Paoli's, the subject of wine drinking was introduced, which Sir Joshua defended, and Boswell at that time drinking Avater in imitation of Johnson, the latter exclaimed, " Boswell is a bolder combatant than Sir Joshua : he argues for wine without the help of wine; but Sir Joshua with it." Sir Joshua replied, " But to please one's company is a strong motive when Jwhnson", then supposing the whole company to be a little elevated, exclaimed, " I won't argue any more with you, Sir : you are too far gone ;" to which he mildly answered, " I should have thought so indeed. Sir, had I made such a speech as you have now done." On this Johnson drew himself up, blushing, as Boswell describes it, and said, " Nay, don't be angry, I did not mean to offend you." 256 MEMOIRS OF Sir Joshua then observed, " At first the taste of wine was disagreeable to me ; but I brought myself to drink it, that I might be like other people. TJie pleasure of drinking wine is so connected with pleasing your company, that altogether there is something of social goodness in it/' As this touched upon Johnson's own peculiarity he felt it, and, though inaccu- rately, complained that it was only saying the same thing over again. On another occasion Sir Joshua' shewed his habit and facility of judging of character, for whilst conversing about Johnson in his absence. Bos we 11 said, that his power of reasoning was very strong, and that he had a peculiar art of drawing characters, which was as rare as good portrait painting. " Yes, replied Sir Joshua, he is undoubtedly admirable in this ; but in order to mark the characters which he draws, he overcharges them, and gives people more than they really have, whether of good or bad." Another proof of Sir Joshua's nice discrimination of characters is seen in the distinction he makes between true politeness and the affectation of it, and clearly given by him in the instance of two noblemen, to whom he paid a morning visit on a Sunday. The first that he paid his respects to received him with extraordinary affected condescension, and seemed very desirous to please, talked to him the whole time on nothing but his art, in order to give him a fair opportunity of appearing to the most advantage, and observed to him, that he had requested the pleasure of this visi^^ on a Sunday that SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 257 he might not occasion his losing tliat time which, on other days, could be so much better employed. After quitting this nobleman, he paid his next visit to another, (I think it was Lord Chesterfield,) who, unlike the first, received him with the same freedom as if he had been his equal, never once spoke upon the subject of art, nor observed that Sunday was the day of rest for the laborious ; but discoursed on the news and the occurrences of the day, and on such other topics as a gentleman of education is supposed to be acquainted with, and no word escaped him that denoted his recollection of any difterence in their stations. This anecdote was related to me by Sir Joshua himself many years after the occurrence, as an instance that had struck him very forcibly as a fine contrast. The perspicuity and clearness of Sir Joshua's judgment was evident in all his conversation, and another little instance is thus given in his own words from a fragment written in his own hand, Josiah Tucker, Dean of Gloucester, at a meeting of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, said, that he thought a pin-maker was a more useful and valuable member of society than Ralfaelle. This is an observation of a very narrow mind ; a mind that is confined to the mere object of commerce, that sees L I. 258 MEMOIRS OF with a microscopic eye but a part of the great machine of the economy of life, and thinks that small part which he sees to be the whole. Commerce is the means, not the end, of happiness or pleasure : the end is a rational enjoyment of life, by means of arts and sciences ; it is, therefore, the highest degree of folly to set the means in a higher rank of esteem than the accomplished end. It is as much as to say that the brick-maker is a more useful member of society than the architect who employs him. The usefulness of the brick- maker is acknowledged, but the rank of him and the architect are very different. No man deserves better of mankind than he who has the art of opening sources of intellectual pleasure and instruction by means of the senses." It is not to be understood from this anecdote that Sir Joshua was apt to over-rate the degree of his profession in respect to its rank in society. The following circumstance v/ill show how just a view he had of its comparative import- ance. Sir Joshua Reynolds had as great a portion of enthusiasm for his art, as any man can have for the study which he may have adopted ; and, indeed, without this stimulus nothing great or difficult can be accomplished : yet he was totally free from that weakness so commonly found among professional men, of over-rating either the rank, value, or importance of his profession. He felt it as a duty to excel in the department which he had undertaken : he relied upon it entirely, as his great source of support and honour, his bulwark and preserver; but he did not expect or require, as a thing of course, that SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 259 others should see it in the saiiiQ view : it was of high consequence to him ; but not equally so to them. The plank which saves a man from drowning becomes to him of more value than a first rate man of war, yet he does not expect that others should look on it as of the same degree of importance. Hence Sir Joshua always considered this professional kind of mania as a species of pedantry, and thought a certain eminent professor of the science of music very absurd who, when he related a circumstance of three great musicians having been introduced at the court of a prince, said these three great personages were presented," a term only applicable to persons of high rank in society. It has often been remarked that the king never commissioned Sir Joshua for a single picture ; indeed he never sat to him but once, when his portrait was painted by him for the Royal Academy. Soon after that picture was finished. Sir Joshua went down on a visit to Dr. Warton at Winchester College, where he was particularly noticed by their Majesties, who were then making a tour through the summer encampments, having taken Winchester in their route. In Dr. Warton's biography, some of the particulars of this visit are entered into ; his house being stated at that period to have been filled with men, some of whom were of high and acknowledged talents ; amongst others, in addition to Sir Joshua, were the late Lord Palmerston, Messrs. Stanley L L 2 260 MEMOIRS OF and Warton, and Mr. Garrick ; a whimsical accident is stated to have occurred to the latter at one of the reviews, and which Sir Joshua afterwards recounted with great humour. At one of those field days in the vicinity, Garrick found it necessary to dismount, when his horse escaped from his hold and ran oif ; throwing himself immediately into his professional attitude he cried out, as if on Bosworth field, " A horse ! a horse ! my kingdom for a horse !" This exclamation, and the accompanying attitude, excited great amazement amongst the surrounding spectators, who knew him not ; but it could not escape his Majesty's quick apprehension, for it being within his hearing, he immediately said, " Those must be the tones of Garrick ! see if he is not on the ground.'' The theatrical and dismounted monarch was immediately brought to his Majesty, who not only condoled with him most good himiouredly on his misfortune, but flatteringly added, " that his delivery of Shakspeare could never pass undiscovered." Of any further incidents relative to art, connected with the biography of Sir Joshua during this year, I need only mention, that Mr. Score, a native of Devonshire, was his pupil about this time, and that on the 10th of December, as usual, the President delivered his eighth discourse. In this he laid it down as a truth, that all the principles both of painting and poetry have their foundation in the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 261 human mind ; that novelty and contrast, however necessary, must still become defects, if carried to excess ; and that even simplicity itself might be overstrained. These points he generally illustrated, as emanating from the mind itself, by stating, that as variety reanimates the attention, which is apt to languish under a continual sameness, so novelty makes a more forcible impression on the mind, than can be produced by the representation of what we have often seen before, whilst contrast stimulates the power of comparison by opposition. All this he considered so obvious as not to require proof ; but at the same time he very judiciously added, that the mind, though an active principle, has likewise a disposition to indolence ; and though it loves exercise, loves it only to a certain degree, beyond which it is very unwilling to be led, or driven. From this, then, he inferred, that the pursuit of novelty and variety may be carried to excess ; for whenever variety entirely destroys the pleasure arising from uniformity and repetition, and whenever novelty counteracts and shuts out the pleasure arising from old habits and customs, they must then oppose, in too great a degree, the indolence of our disposition, so tliat the mind can only bear with pleasure, a small portion of novelty at a time. This position he exemplified further, by observing, that when the objects are scattered and divided into many equal parts in any composition, the eye is thereby perplexed and fatigued, from not knowing where to rest, where to find the principal action, or where is the principal figure ; for when all are making equal pretensions to notice, all are in equal 262 MEMOIRS OF danger of neglect. " The expression which is used very often on these occasions is, the piece wants repose ; a word which perfectly expresses a relief of the mind from that state of hurry and anxiety which it suffers, when looking at a work of this character." Sir Joshua then proceeded to exemplify his subject by a critical review of both painters and poets, and took occasion to introduce that excellent note on Macbeth, already noticed. In the year 1799 Sir Joshua devoted his abilities to partly ornamenting of the new apartments in Somerset-house, by executing a picture for the handsome ceiling of the library. In the centre is Theory sitting on a cloud. In her hand she holds a scroll with an inscription, " Theory is the knowledge of what is truly nature," a definition quite in unison with the general principle so ably maintained by the painter throughout his various discourses. It is an obvious remark, that the point of view in which paintings on ceilings can be seen, is by no means favorable to their general effect ; this difficulty has, however, been surmounted, in some degree, by the discriminating skill of Sir Joshua, and his judicious choice of his subject, to which he has imparted the most graceful lightness, representing her rather as hovering over the head of the spectator, than as fixed on any permanent seat. In addition to this elegant specimen of his art, are the two Royal portraits, in the council room, of their present Majesties; SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 263 the King being represented on his coronation chair, as at the performance of that ceremony, and his consort also, adorned with all tile paraphernalia of regal costume and state. This year terminated the mortal career of Garrick, whose fame will, however, last long. He had continued to act on the stage until a late period of his life ; and it being remarked to Sir Joshua as rather extraordinary, that this Roscius of the British drama should still undergo so much fatigue after his fortune was made, and his fame established, he observed, with great knowledge of human nature, " That it was necessary for Garrick to do so, in order to preserve his popularity, and to keep up his importance with the great, who soon neglect and forget those who cease to be the town talk, however eminent they may have been,^' so much does fashion govern the world. On Mr. Garrick's demise, a monody was written by Mr. Sheridan to his memory : in Avhich he very elegantly shews, that the fame of the orator and the actor must be nearly as evanescent as those exertions on which it was founded, if not aided by the poet or the painter, whose works also have a better chance of immortality. In this production he paid Sir Joshua the compliment of placing his efforts in apposition with those of Raffaelle himself. " Whate'er of wonder Reynolds now may raise, Raffaelle still boasts contemporary praise; Each dazzling light, and gaudier bloom subdu'd, With undiminished awe his works are view'd : E'en Beauty's portrait wears a softer prime, Touch'd by the tender hand of mellowing time." 264 MEMOIRS OF III this year Sir Joshua raised his price to fifty guineas for a head size, which he continued during the remainder of his life: his rapidly accumulating fortune was not, however, for his own sole enjoyment ; he still felt the luxury of doing good, and had many objects of bounty pointed out to him by his friend Johnson, who, in one of his letters in this year to Mrs. Piozzi, inquires, Will master give me any thing for my poor neighbours ? I have had from Si)^ Joshua and Mr. Strahan." The year 1780 is particularly noticeable, as that in which the Academy first began to exhibit at Somerset-house ; their apartments in that building having recently been finished for their reception. On this occasion the critics of the day seemed to consider themselves as arrived at a new era in the arts, or, at least, in the annals of the Academy itself, thus by the Sovereign's munificence established in a superb edifice, supposed to be well calculated for all the purposes of the Societ}^ : and I find the two following criticisms which were written upon that occasion. One of them is in an address to his Majesty, prefixed to a " Candid Review of the Exhibition," where it is said, that " The excellence to which the arts have arisen calls particularly on the attention of the world. The progress of the Academy has been so rapid, that, though this is only the 12th year of its existence, it has already made Britain the seat of Arts, and in painting, sculpture, and engraving, it rivals, if it does not excel, all the other schools in Europe. In all ages the il I i SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 265 progress of the arts to excellence has been slow and gradual ; but it is the singular merit of the Royal Academy of Britain, that it has broke through the fetters with which similar institutions have heretofore been confined, and by one rapid stride has attained the pre-eminence of all competitors." In' opposition to this, a writer in the London Courant observes, that " an establishment bearing the sanction of royal patronage, and committed to the direction of a genius like that of Sir Joshua Reynolds, whose works, the acknow- ledged patterns of grace and expression, conduce not more to excite emulation, than his lectures serve to instruct the students in the solid principles of design and composition, might have been presumed to have exerted such effects of British genius in the sublimer branches of the arts, as might almost have rivalled the exquisite sculpture of Ancient Greece and Rome, or the finished paintings of the Roman, Florentine, and Flemish schools ; but in Sculpture, as well as in History, Painting, and Landscape, we cannot but perceive a mortifying disparity in the best of these pieces, in the late exhibition, when placed in competition with the works before mentioned." This wise critic, it seems, expected that painters would start up as mushrooms do, and thrive under as small a portion of attention, but he ought to have^ known that Art is not to be raised by the numbers, however great, who only gaze on them, and do no more. Sir Joshua's offerings to the Exhibition this year consisted of his historical portrait of Miss Beauclerc in the character M M 266 MEMOIRS OF of Spencer's Una, and of his emblematical figure of Justice, then drawn as a model for the window which Mr. Jarvis was painting at Oxford ; to these were subjoined his portraits of the Historical Gibbon, of Lady Beaumont, of Lord Cholraon- deley, and of the present Duke of Gloucester. The receipts of this year's exhibition exceeded the sum of 3000/. Sir Joshua in addition to these pictures thus exhibited, also painted for the Royal Academy that portrait of Sir William Chambers which they now possess. In this year, too, he delivered two discourses, the first of which took place on the l6th of October, on the opening of the Academy at their present apartments. In this his object was a general one, to impress upon the minds of his audience, a full conviction of the advantages resulting to society from the cultivation of intellectual pleasures ; and here he most forcibly inculcated that " the estimation in which we stand with respect to our neighbours, M'ill be in proportion to the degree in which we excel or are inferior to them in the acquisition of intellectual excellence, of which trade, and its consequential riches, must be acknow- ledged to give the means ; but a people whose whole attention is absorbed in those pursuits, and who forget the end, can aspire but little above the rank of a barbarous nation. Every establishment that tends to the cultivation of the pleasures of the mind, as distinct from those of sense, may be considered as an inferior school of morality, where the mind is polished and prepared for higher attainments.'^ He concluded with an SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 267 elegant eulogium on Refinement of Taste, most truly saying, that if it does not lead directly to purity of manners, it obviates at least their greatest depravation, by disentangling the mind from appetite, " and conducting the thoughts through succes- sive stages of excellence, till that contemplation of universal rectitude and harmony which began by Taste, may, as it is exalted and refined, conclude in virtue !" Though the hospitable urbanity of Sir Joshua Reynolds was always directed to the promotion of social and friendly intercourse among his intimates, yet it sometimes happened, as in all mixed societies, that jars would arise. One incident which took place at his house in this year, deserves notice, as it also relates to two men of great importance in the literary world. All the friends both of Johnson and Warton lamented the unhappy disagreement between them, which almost at once put a period to a warm and long continued friendship of many years. The whole particulars were only known to the parties themselves ; but one of the company who overheard part of the wordy conflict, begins his account by stating Johnson as saying, " Sir, I am not used to be contradicted to which Dr. Warton replied, " Sir, if you were, our admiration could not be increased, but our love might." On the interference of the gentleman who overheard this, the dispute ceased, but a coolness always existed afterwards, which, I find it stated, was increased by many trifling circumstances that, without the intervention of this contest, might have passed unnoticed by either party. M M 2 268 MEMOIRS OF The very various classes of different companies that were to be met with at Sir Joshua's table calls to my remembrance the saying of one illustrious person upon that subject. A large company being invited to dine at Sir Joshua's, Mr. Dunning, afterwards Lord Ashburton, was one, and chanced to be the first person of the company who came. On entering the room, he said, " Well, Sir Joshua, and who have you got to dine with you to-day ? for the last time I dined with you in your house, the assembly was of such a sort, that by G I believe all the rest of the world were at peace, for that after- noon at least." This observation was by no means ill applied ; for as Sir Joshua's companions were chiefly composed of men of genius, they wereoften disputatious, and apt tobe vehementinargument. In this year, and for several successive ones. Sir Joshua was busily employed on his designs for the celebrated painted window, in New College Chapel, at Oxford, consisting of seven compartments in the lower range, each twelve feet high, and three wide, and containing the allegorical figures of the four cardinal, and three christian, virtues ; viz. Temperance, Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Faith, Hope, and Charity. In all of these, the figures are accompanied by their several attributes ; and they are all single, except the centre one, where Charity is represented by a groupe, which, as described by a local critic, deserves especial notice, for the expression of the various persons introduced, whilst the " fondling of the infant, the importunity of the boy, and the placid affection of SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 269 the girl, together with the divided attention of the mother, are all distinguishably and judiciously marked with a know- ledge of character for which the great artist who gave this design is so justly celebrated." Above this, on a grand scale of ten feet by eighteen, is the Nativity, a composition including thirteen figures, and in this, it has been well observed, that Sir Joshua had great advantages over Corregio, who, in his famous Notte, introduces no light in the painting but that which proceeds from the infant Saviour. The idea is not the invention even of Corregio, but certainly grand, and has been most judiciously adopted, for a transparency, by Sir\Joshua, who cannot be said to have copied it, as his execution, both in manner and circumstance, gives it the effect of novelty ; for from the transparent medium on which it is painted, it is light that actually does proceed through that part from whence the fancy of the painter supposes it to emanate. This latter design was sold to the late Duke of Rutland for 1200 guineas, those of the Cardinal Virtues are now in the possession of the Marchioness of Thomond. The final execution was entrusted to Mr. Jervis, whose portrait, as well as that of Sir Joshua himself, is introduced in the larger compartment ; they are represented as shepherds. Mr. Jervis originally practised in Dublin, as a painter on glass; but his friends pointing out to him the superior advantages which might arise from a residence in London, he 270 MEMOIRS OF proceeded to that capital, and was employed both by Sir Joshua and Mr. West in the transmission of their works from canvas to be preserved on glass, at Oxford, Windsor, and Greenwich. With respect to the great work, which is noticed with great and due praise both by Dr. Warton, and by Mr. Thomas Warton, I may also be permitted to add some of Sir Joshua's own observations, as contained in a letter preserved by Mr. Malone in his work. It seems that it had been at first intended to distribute the various figures in difterent parts of the chapel ; but this Sir Joshua very judiciously opposed, and prevailed on the parties concerned to have the west window prepared for the reception of the whole by an alteration of the stone work. In a letter, written about two years previous to this, he had observed, " Supposing this scheme to take place, my idea is to paint, in the great space in the centre, Christ in the Manger, on the principle that Corregio has done it, in the famous picture called the Notte ; making all the light proceed from Christ. These tricks of the art, as they may be called, seem to be more properly adapted to glass painting, than any other kind. This middle space will be filled with the Virgin, Christ, Joseph, and angels ; the two smaller spaces on each side I shall fill with the shepherds coming to worship ; and the seven divisions below with the figures of Faith, Hope, Charity, and the Four Cardinal Virtues ; which will make a proper rustic base, or foundation for the support of the Christian Religion. Upon the whole, it appears to me, that chance has presented to us materials so well adapted to our purpose, that if we SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. had the whole window of our own invention and contrivance, we should not probably have succeeded better." The execution of this window soon after drew forth the following address, which is too poetic to be passed over : " Ah ! stay thy treach'rous hand, forbear to trace Those faultless forms of elegance and grace ! Ah! cease to spread thy bright transparent mass AVith Titian's pencil, o'er the speaking glass ! Nor steal, by strokes of art, with truth combin'd, The fond illusions of my wayward mind ! For long enamoiir'd of a barb'rous agp, A faithless truant to the classic page, Long have I luv'd to Ciitch ihe simple chime Of minstrel harps, and s[iell the fabling rhyme; To view the festive rites, the knightly play, That deck'd heroic Albion's elder day ; To mark the mould'ring halls pf barons bold, And the rough castle, cast in giant mould ; With Gothic manners, Gothic arts explore. And muse on the magnificence of yore. " But chief, enraptur'd, have I lov'd to roam, A ling'ring votary, the vaulted dome. Where the tall shafts, that mount in massy pride, Their mingling branches shoot from side to side ; Where elfin sculptors, with fantastic clew. O'er the long roof their wild embroid'ry drew; Where Superstition, with capricious hand. In many a maze the wretched window plann'd, With hues romantic ting'd the gorgeous pane. To fill with holy light the wondrous fane ; To aid the builder's model, richly rude. By no Vilruvian symmetry subdued ; MEMOIRS OF To suit the genius of the mj'stic pile: Whilst as around the far retiring aisle. And fretted slirines with hoary trophies hung, Her dark illumination wide she flung, With new solemnity, the nooks profound. The caves of death, and the dim arches frown'd. From bliss long felt unwillingly we part; Ah ! spare the weakness of a lover's heart! Chace not the phantoms of my fairy dream. Phantoms that shrink at Reason's painful gleam That softer touch, insidious artist stay. Nor to new joys my struggling breast betray ! " Such was a pensive bard's mistaken strain.— But oh ! of ravish'd pleasures why complain ) No more the matchless skill I call unkind That strives to disenchant my cheated mind. For when again I view thy chaste design. The just proportion, and the genuine line; Those native portraitures of Attic art. That from the lucid surface seem to start; Those tints that steal no glories from the day. Nor ask the srn to lend his streaming ray ; The doubtful radiance of contending dyes. That faintly mingle yet distinctly rise; Twixt light and shade the transitory strife ; The feature blooming with immortal life: The stole in casual foldings taught to flow. Not with ambitious ornaments to glow ; The tread majestic, and the beaming eye That lifted speaks its commerce with the sky : Sudden, the sombrous imag'ry is fled, Which late my visionary rapture fed : Thy powerful hand has broke the Gothic chain^ And brought my bosom back to truth again : To truth, whose bold and unresisted aim Checks frail caprice, and fashion's fickle claim ; SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. To Truth, whose charms deception's magic quell, And bind coy Fancy in a stronger spell. " Ye brawny prophets, that in robes so rich, At distance due, possess the crisped niche ; Ye rows of patriarchs, that sublimely rear'd. Diffuse a proud primevcd length of beard ; Ye saints, who clad in crimson's bright array, More pride than humble poverty display ; Ye virgins meek, that wear the palmy crown Of patient faith, and yet so fiercely frown ; Ye angels, that from golden clouds recline, But boast no semblance to a race divine; Ye tragic tales of legendary lore, That draw devotion's ready tear no more ; Ye martyrdoms of unenlightened days. Ye miracles, that now no wonder raise; Shapes that with one broad glare the gazer strike! Kings, bishops, nuns, apostles, all alike! Ye colours, that th' unwary sight amaze. And only dazzle in the noontide blaze ! No more the sacred window's round disgrace, But yield to Grecian groupes the shining space, Lo ! from the canvas Beauty shifts her throne, Lo ! Picture's powers a new formation own ! Behold, she prints upon the chrystal plain. With her own energy, th' expressive stain! The mighty master spreads his mimic toil More wide, nor only blends the breathing oil; But calls the lineaments of life complete From genial alchemy's creative heat; Obedient forms to the bright fusion gives. While in the warm enamel nature lives. Artist, 'tis thine, from the broad window's height, To add new lustre to religious light : Not of its pomp to strip this ancient shrine. But bid that pomp with purer radiance shine • N N 274 MEMOIRS OF With arts unknown before, to reconcile The willing Graces to the Gothic pile." In this, the concluding passage is justly applicable to Mr. Jervis, who so dexterously executed the mechanical part of Sir Joshua's exquisite designs ; and thus gave to the great master's work a degree of immortality, which may perhaps outlive the canvas. The second discourse delivered this year, on the 11th of December, was the tenth in succession ; and in this Sir Joshua, stepping out of what may strictly be termed his own line of art, investigated the objects, form, and character of Sculpture, which he considered as possessing but one style ; he also noticed the ineffectual attempts of sculptors, of the present day, to improve the art, arising partly from the costume of modern times not being so well suited to execution as that of the classic ages. He commenced by explaining his reasons for not having sooner noticed this particular branch of art, on the principle that Painting is much more extensive and complicated than Sculpture, and affords, therefore, a more ample field for criticism ; and consequently as the greater includes the less, the leading principles of sculpture are comprized in those of painting. The former he considered as an art of much more simplicity and uniformity than the latter, as it cannot with propriety, or the best eftect, be applied to many subjects ; the objects of its pursuit being comprized in two words. Form and Character, which qualities can be presented in one manner, or in one style^ only. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. He then noticed that the sculptors of the last age, not having attended sufficiently to the discrimination of the several styles of painting, have been led into many errors ; so that when they endeavoured to copy the picturesque effects, contrasts, or petty excellencies of whatever kind, which not improperly find a place in the inferior branches of painting, they doubtless imagined themselves improving and extending the boundaries of their art by this imitation ; but, on the contrary, Sir Joshua was of opinion, that they were in reality violating its essential character, by giving a different direction to its operations, and proposing to themselves either what is unattainable, or at best a meaner object of pursuit. " The grave and austere character of Sculpture," says he, " requires the utmost degree of formality in composition ; picturesque contrasts have here no place ; every thing is carefully weighed and measured, one side making almost an exact equipoise to the other: a child is not a proper balance to a full grown figure, nor is a figure sitting or stooping a companion to an upright figure." He further laid it down as a principle, that the excellence of every art must consist in the complete accomplishment of its purpose, but that all false imitations of nature, arising from a mean ambition of producing a picturesque efiect or illusion of any kind, thereby degrading that grandeur of ideas which the art ought to excite, must be strictly guarded against. This he exemplified in a familiar manner, by observing, that if the business of Sculpture were only to administer pleasure to ignorance, or a mere entertainment to the senses, then the Venus de Medicis might certainly receive much improvement N N 2 MEMOIRS OF by colour; but the character of sculpture makes it her duty to afford delight of a different, and, perhaps, of a higher kind — the delight resulting from the contemplation of perfect beauty ; and this, which is in truth an intellectual pleasure, is in many respects incompatible with what is merely addressed to the senses, such as that with which ignorance and levity contemplate elegance of form." In the progress of this discourse, Sir Joshua stated some other truths which are of that general tenor and import to deserve a place here. " AVhat Grace is," said he, " how it is to be acquired or conceived, are in speculation difficult questions; but causa latet, res est notissima : without any perplexing inquiry, the effect is hourly perceived. I shall only observe, that its natural foundation is correctness of design ; and though grace may be sometimes united with incorrectness, it cdixmoi proceed ivom \t.'' Another observation may be no less interesting and important to the general reader. "It may be remarked that Grace, Character, and Expression, though words of different sense and meaning, and so understood when applied to the works of painters, are indiscriminately used when we speak of Sculpture. This indecision we may expect to proceed from the undeter- mined effects of the arj: itself; those qualities are exhibited in Sculpture, rather by form and attitude, than by the features, and can therefore be expressed but in a very general manner." The happy manner which Sir Joshua possessed of drawing tnoral reflections from the excellencies of art, and of thereby SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 277 extending the usefulness of his instruction, was exemplified in his conclusion, when he observed, that there is no circum- stance which more distinguishes a well regulated and sound taste, than a settled uniformity of design, where all the parts are compact, and fitted to each other, every thing being of a piece. " This principle extends itself to all habits of life, as well as to all works of art." Upon these general grounds, then, he drew his inference, that the uniformity and simplicity of the materials on which the sculptor labours, prescribe bounds to his art, and teach him to confine himself to a proportionate simplicity of design. Sir Joshua's exertions for the Exhibition in 1781, were principally confined to three paintings, of Avhich Dr. Beattie thus observes in a letter written from London in the May of that year, " The exhibition of pictures at the Royal Academy is the best of the kind I have seen. The best pieces, in my opinion, are Thais (with a torch in her Jiand) ; the Death of Dido ; and a Boy supposed to be listening to a wonderful story ; these are by Sir Joshua Reynolds." I do not, indeed, insert this criticism as a support to Sir Joshua's fame, but rather for the purpose of noticing a fact, not generally known, that Sir Joshua's literary aid was not neglected by his literary friends ; a fact completejy at variance with those critics who have thought proper to deny him the merit of writing his own discourses. Beattie was at this very period preparing his Essay on Beauty" for the press, and in this he seems evidently to have 278 MEMOIRS OF consulted Sir Joshua; for in a letter to the Duchess of Gordon- he says, " However one must keep to one's word ; and as your Grace desired to see this Essay, and I promised to send it (as soon as I could get it transcribed,) I send it accordingly. I should not give you the trouble to return it, if I had not promised a reading of it to Sir Joshua Reynolds." Sir Joshua, indeed, seems to have been applied to by his friends on all occasions ; and by none oftener than by Dr. Johnson, particularly for charitable purposes. Of this there is an instance, in a note of Johnson's preserved in his life, too honourable to him to be here omitted. to sir joshua reynolds. Dear Sir, ** It was not before yesterday that I received your splendid benefaction. To a hand so liberal in distributing, I hope nobody will envy the power of acquiring. *' I am. Dear Sir, *' Your obliged and most humble servant, June 23, 1781. " Sam. Johnson." A few days afterwards, Johnson received from Miss Frances Reynolds (a lady for whom he was always known to have had a very high regard, and who died at the advanced age of SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 279 eighty, on the 1st of November, 1807,) a copy of a work written by her, privately printed, but never published, called an " Essay on Taste." In return for this he sent her the following letter. " to mrs. frances reynolds. Dearest Madam, *' There is in these few pages, or remarks, such depth of penetration, such nicety of observation, as Locke or Pascal might be proud of. This I desire you to believe is my real opinion. ** However, it cannot be published in its present state. Many of your notions seem not to be very clear in your own mind ; many are not sufficiently developed and expanded for the common reader : it wants every where to be made smoother and plainer. ** You may, by revisal and correction, make it a very elegant and a very curious work. " I am, my dearest dear, *' Your affectionate and obedient servant, " Samuel Johnson.'' Bolt Court, June 28, 1781. To return to the subject of the Exhibition of this year, I may remark, that this picture of Thais gave rise, but very unjustly, to some attempts at scandalous anecdote. In a 280 MEMOIRS OF periodical work of the time, it was noticed that this picture was highly admired ; that the painter had caught the very spirit of the heroine, and that she seemed rushing from the canvas to destroy Persepolis. The Critic then observed, that there was an anecdote hanging on this picture, which was circulated by the enemies of Sir Joshua when he exhibited it ;• but this the writer very properly refused to give credit to, as a thing derogatory to Sir Joshua's general conduct and feelings. " The whisper insisted that the face of this picture was painted for the famous Emily Bertie, that she paid him seventy-five guineas down, and was to pay him the like sum when the picture was finished, which she was unable to do ; the picture remained with Sir Joshua some time, when he, finding it not called for, took it into his head to metamorphose Emily Bertie into Thais, and exhibit her to the world in her proper character, rushing with a torch to set the Temple of Chastity on fire/' He then adds, that " the truth of the matter is. Sir Joshua has now got the picture of the lovely Emily in his collection, and Thais has no kind of connexion with it, except that of two faces in a small degree resembling each other." To M hich I can add, from my own knowledge, that the whole story is an entire fabrication of folly; for Sir Joshua never painted any person of the name of Emily Bertie. The portrait in the character of Thais was painted in the year 1776, the head only, on a whole length canvas, from a beautiful young girl who was known by the name of Emily Coventry ; she afterwards accompanied a gentleman to the East Indies, and sill JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 281 there died young. The picture was not finished till the year 1781, and then sold" to Mr. G for one hundred guineas ; it is now in the possession of the Earl of Dysart, and is particularly excellent. The other picture of Dido was much admired, and drew immense crowds to the Exhibition, exciting the applause not only of Englishmen, but of the most judicious foreigners, by the beauty of the countenance and the extreme richness of the colouring. In the month of July, 1781, Sir Joshua set off, in company with his friend Mr. Metcalf, for the Continent, with the intention of examining the various celebrated productions of the Dutch and Flemish schools. The two friends left London on the 24th, and proceeded in a post chaise for Margate, where they took shipping for Ostend, and from the latter place they took the route of Ghent, Brussels, and thence to Mechlin, at which latter place. Sir Joshua paid particular attention to the altar-piece in the cathedral, the work of Rubens, and of which he related an anecdote illustrative of that artist's manner of proceeding in his large works. This anecdote has been given more at length in the notes written by himself on the various productions of the pencil seen in this tour, published in his works, and which, indeed, were taken with the intention of drawing up a sketch of the tour for the press, but this he never proceeded further in than the writing a few introductory o o 282 MEMOIRS OF paragraphs addressed to his companion to whom he meant to dedicate it. It seems that a citizen of Mechlin having bespoke this picture for the cathedral, was anxious to avoid the danger of its removal, and therefore requested Rubens to paint it in the church, to which he assented, as his own country seat at Stein was in the vicinity of that city. He therefore completed his sketch in colours, and intrusted one of his scholars, of the name of Van Egmont, with the task of dead colouring the canvas for the great picture at Mechlin, from this sketch. The person who bespoke it, on receiving notice of this circumstance, immediately stopped Van Egmont's labours, exclaiming that he had engaged for a picture from the hand of the master and not of the scholar. However, as Sir Joshua adds, Rubens satisfied him that this was always his method of proceeding ; and that this piece would be as completely his work as if he had done the whole from tlie beginning. " The citizen was satisfied, and Rubens proceeded with the picture, which appears to me to have ko indications of neglect in any part; on the contrary, I think it has been one of his best pictures, though, those who know this circumstance pretend to see Van Egmont's inferior genius transpire through Rubens's touches." From Mechlin, the travellers proceeded to Antwerp, and having seen almost every thing curious in Flanders, set off for Holland, where they visited Dort, the Hague, thence to SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. Leyden, and Amsterdam, from whence they made a short excursion into Germany, crossing the Rhine near Dusseldorf, at which latter place Sir Joshua records a curious pictorial anecdote. Being much pleased with the easy access to the famous Dusseldorf Gallery, and with the liberty of staying in it as long as he chose, and also with the extreme facilities afforded to students, many of whom he found copying in the gallery, and others in a large room, above stairs, expressly allotted for that purpose, Sir Joshua mentioned his great satisfaction at this liberal arrangement to the keeper, Mr. Kraye ; but this gentleman informed him that although it was the Elector's wish to afford the most perfect accommodation to visitors, yet in regard to the students, he took some credit to himself; for when he first asked the Elector's permission for their copying the pictures, that prince refused the boon, asserting, that the copies would be offered for sale as originals, which multiplication would deteriorate the value of his collection. To this unfounded objection, Mr. Kraye answered, that painters capable of taking such copies as might pass for originals, were not likely to do so, as their time was fully occupied on originals of their own, and that the copies of the young students could not hurt his originals, as they could only impose upon the ignorant whose opinions were below his Highness's attention. To this he added the very forcible argument, that if the Elector wished to produce artists in Iiis own country, the refusal of such advantages to the student would be most unwise, and exactly on a parity v/ith a person who should pretend to be a patron of literature, and yet in his o o 2 284 MEMOIRS OF attempts to produce scholars should refuse them the use of a library. To reasoning so plain and simple, the Elector must have been stupid indeed if he had refused assent, and Mr, Kraye had carte blanche accorded to him in favour of the youthful pupils. From Dusseldorf, the two friends proceeded for Aix-la- Chapelle, and Liege ; thence by the way of Brussels to Ostend, where they re-embarked, and landing at Margate, arrived, on Sunday the l6th of September, at the metropolis. Whilst at Antwerp, Sir Joshua had taken particular notice of a young man of the name of De Gree, who had exhibited some considerable talents as a painter. His father was a taylor, and he himself had been intended for some clerical office, but as it is said by a late writer, having formed a different opinion of his religion than was intended, from the books put into his hand by an Abbe who was his patron, it was discovered that he would not do for a priest, and the Abbe therefore articled him to Gerrards of Antwerp. Sir Joshua received him, on his arrival in England, with much kindness, and even recommended to him most strongly to pursue his profession in the metropolis ; but De Gree was unwilling to consent to this, as he had been previously engaged by Mr. Latouche ^to proceed to Ireland. Even here Sir Joshua's friendly attentions did not cease, for he actually made the poor artist a present of fifty guineas to fit him for his Hibernian excursion, the whole of which, however, the careful son sent over to Antwerp for the use of his aged parents. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 285 About this time Mr. Opie came ftrst to settle in London, accompanied by his friend Dr. Wo'cot, when tlie novelty and originality of his manner in his pictures, added to his great abilities, drew an universal attention from the connoisseurs, and he was immediately surrounded and employed by all the principal nobility of England. I remember that Sir Joshua himself compared him to Carravagio. However, it is curious to observe the changes M'hich frequently happen in the course of a very short period, and if we oftener made this the subject of our reflection, it would have a great tendency to check our vanity in prosperity, and give us consolation even , in situations apparently the most forlorn : for in a very little space of time that capricious public who had so violently admired and employed Opie, when first he appeared, and was a novelty among them, and was, in reality only the embryo of a painter, yet, when he had proved himself to be a real artist, they left him with disgust because he was a novelty no longer. They now looked out for his defects alone, and he became in his turn totally neglected and forgotten, and instead of being the sole object of public attention, and having the street, where he lived, so crowded with coaches of the nobility as to become a real nuisance to the neighbourhood, and when, as he jestingly observed to me, that he thought he must place cannon at his door to keep the multitude off from it, he now found himself as entirely deserted as if his bouse had been infected with the plague. — Such is the world 1 He afterwards by painting some fine historical pictures for the Shakspeare gallery, Sec, became again the object of 286 MEMOIRS OF moderate attention and employment, gained by his own shew of merit ; but not like the first onset, for the world are never infatuated twice by the same object. It was an observation made to me by old Mr. Wilton, the statuary, that he thought Sir Joshua Reynolds was the only eminent painter that had been able to call back the public to himself after they had grown tired of him, and which he had done more than once. This Vandyke could not accomplish ; but when he was deserted in England, as one who had been too long the object of attention, went over to Paris in hope to gain employment there; but even there he was no novelty : and it not answering his expectations, he returned to England, where he soon after died, which leaves it uncertain what would have been the consequence had he survived. Yet certain it is, that Sir Joshua was not much employed in portraits after llomney grew into fashion, although the difference between those painters was so immense. We have to regret that Mr. Opie died at an early period of his life, and before he had time fully to make the trial of winning a second time the capricious world to appreciate justly those abilities which will ever rank him among the first of English painters. I knew him very well ; and I shall take the liberty to ' insert in this place the following character, which I wrote immediately on his death, and which is my true opinion of him. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. Sii/ " JOHN OPIE, Esq., K. A. " Professor of Painting to the Royal Academy. Died April 9th, I8O7. " A man whose intellectual powers, and indefatigable industry in their cultivation, rendered him at once an honour to the county from which he originated, and an example of imitation to mankind. *' Born in a rank of life in which the road to emine ce is rendered infinitely difficult, unassisted by partial patronage, scorning, with virtuous pride, all slavery of depende ce, he trusted alone for his reward to the force of his natural powers, and to well directed and unremitting study ; and he demonstrated, by his works, how highly he was endowed by nature with strength of judgment and originality of conception. His thoughts were always new and striking, as they were the genuine offspring of his own mind ; and it is difficult to say if his conversation gave more amusement or instruction. *' The toil or difficulties of his profession were by him considered as matter of honourable and delightful contest ; and it might be said of him that he did not so much paint to live, as live to paint. " As a son he was an example of duty to an aged parent. He was studious yet not severe ; he was eminent yet not vain : his disposition so tranquil and forgiving, that it was the reverse of every tincture of sour or vindictive ; and what to some might have appeared as roughness of manner, was only 288 MEMOIRS OF the effect of an honest indignation towards that which he conceived to be error. " How greatly have we cause to lament that so much talent, united to so much industry, perseverance, and knowledge, should have been prematurely snatched from the world, which it would have delighted with its powers, and benefited by its example !" J. N. Of the opinion of connoisseurs concerning Sir Joshua we may form some idea from the numerous compliments whicli were paid him at this crisis. Mr. Nichols in his Life of Hogarth, whilst speaking of that artist's attempt to paint a Sigismunda, which should surpass that of Corregio now at the Duke of Newcastle's, at Clumber Park, says that, " to express a sorrow like that of Tancred's (Siffredi's) daughter, few modern artists are fully qualified, if we except indeed Sir Joshua Reynolds, with whose pencil Beauty in all her forms, and the Passions in all their varieties, are equally familiar." The London Courant in the same year also speaks of " Sir Joshua Reynolds, whose works, the acknowledged patterns of grate and expression, conduce not more to excite emulation, than his lectures serve to instruct the students in the solid principles of design and composition." To which I may justly add some observations from a Preface to Imitations of Drawings, by Mr. Rogers, in which it is expressed " how happy it is for the Academy to have for its first President a SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 289 genius who feels, and is sensible of the necessity of enlarging the ideas of youth, by placing before them the works of the great masters ; who teaches them to disregard the tinsel of the last age, but eagerly to search after the rich ore of that of Leo X., and who directs them in the proper method of bringing the golden fleece out of Italy into his Majesty*s dominions." With such a fame, particularly among the eminent for talents, it is not surprizing that all his friends were much alarmed at a slight paralytic affliction, which after an almost uninterrupted course of good health for many years, attacked him at this period. This was but slight, however, as its eftects were completely removed in the space of a few weeks, to the great happiness of all who knew him, but perhaps of none more than Dr. Johnson, who wrote him the following letter on the occasion. ** Dear Sir. " I heard yesterday of your late disorder, and should think ill of myself if I had heard of it without alarm. I heard likewise of your recovery, which I sincerely ^ish to be complete and permanent. Your country has been in danger of losing one of its brightest ornaments, and I of losing one of my oldest and kindest friends : but I hope you will still live long, for the honour of the nation ; and that more enjoyment of your elegance, your intelligence, and your benevolence, is still reserved for, " Dear Sir, Your most affectionate, &c. Brighthelm stone, Nov. lith, 1782. " Sam. Johnson." 290 MEMOIRS OF 1 1 was not, however, to his partial friends alone that Sir Joshua was dear ; for in this very year we find him praised by an universal satirist ; one who, with original humour, had magni- fied the most unimportant actions of royalty into foibles, and foibles into follies ; it is unnecessary to add the name of Peter Pindar, who was indeed an excellent critic on art, and amused himself occasionally in landscape painting, and therefore the better qualified to judge of the excellencies of Sir Joshua. In his Lyric Odes of this year, he has several allusions to the President of the Academy. " Close hy them hung Sir Joshua's matchless pieces — Works ! that a Titian's hand could form alone — Works ! that a Rubens had been proud to own." And again in his Farewell Odes, nearly of the same date, he advises a painter to " Be pleased like Reynolds to direct the blind. Who aids the feeble faltering feet of youth ; Unfolds the ample volume of his mind, With genius stor'd and Nature's simple truth." Exclaiming also in another part — Lo! Reynolds shines with undimiriish'd ray! Keeps, like the bird of Jove, his distant vc ay : Yet, simple Portrait strikes too oft our eyes, Whilst History, anxious for his pencil, sighs." Sach praises, from such an author, may well be considered as sincere and genuine. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. Sir Joshua was sufficiently recovered from liis late illness to. give his usual discourse on the 10th of December, the objects of which, at this period, were the investigation of Genius, and the proof that it refers to the taking of general ideas only, and consists principally in the comprehension of a grand whole. The generally received opinion of the worth of Genius, he exemplified by the position that it was the height of every artist's ambition, who, so long as he could procure the addition of the supposed possession of this quality to his name, will always patiently bear any imputation of incorrectness, of carelessness, and in short, of any other defect. The extravagant length to which this desire may be some- times carried, he instanced by saying that some go such lengths as to trace its indication in absolute faults, not only excusing such faults on account of genius, but actually presuming genius from their existence. As this discourse was more specifically addressed to artists than to the world in general, I shall not examine it further than to introduce his definition of genius as applied to a painter ; and he says, this Genius consists, I conceive, in the power of expressing that which employs your pencil, whatever it may be, as a whole ; so that the general effect and power of the whole may take possession of the mind, and for a while suspend the consideration of the subordinate and particular beauties or defects." — In addition to which, he concluded his discourse, by stating, that '* the great business of study is, to p p 2 292 MEMOIRS OF form a mind, adapted and adequate to all times and ali occa- sions ; to which all nature is then laid open, and which may be said to possess the key of her inexhaustible riches." In t*lie beginning of this year the Academy suffered a very considerable loss in the death of its able and active keeper ; and one to whom the Institution, in a great degree, owed its establishment. The demise of Mr, Moser, the first person who held the office in the Royal Academy, was honoured by Sir Joshua, in a public testimonial to his memory, which was inserted in the newspapers of the day : the character is justly given by his sincere friend ; and as it relates to the arts, as well as to the subject of our Memoir, cannot, with propriety, be omitted. It is now given, (says Mr. Malone,) from a copy in Sir Joshua's hand-writing " Jan. 94, 1783. " Yesterday died, at his apartments in Somerset-place, George Michael Moser, Keeper of the Royal Academy ; aged seventy-eight years. He was a native of Switzerland, but came to England very young, to follow the profession of a chaser in gold, in which art he has been always considered as holding the first rank. But his skill was not confined to this alone ; he possessed an universal knowledge in all branches of -V painting and sculpture, which perfectly qualified him for the place that he held in the Academy, the business of which principally consists in superintending and instructing the students, who draw or model from the antique figures. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 293 " His private character deserves a more ample testimony than this transient memorial. Few have passed a more inoffensive, or, perhaps, a more happy life ; if happiness, or enjoyment of life, consists in having the mind always occupied, always ititent upon some useful art, by which fame and distinction may be acquired. Mr. Moser's whole attention was absorbed, either in practice, or something that related to the advancement of art. He may truly be said, in every sense, to have been the father of the present race of artists ; for long before the Hoyal Academy was established, he presided over the little societies which met first in Salisbury-court, and afterwards in St. Martin's-lane, where they drew from living models. Perhaps nothing that can be said will more strongly imply his amiable disposition, than that all the different societies with which he has been connected, have always turned their eyes upon him for their treasurer and chief manager ; when, perhaps, they would not have contentedly submitted to any other authority. His early society was composed of men whose names are well known in the world ; such as Hogarth. Rysbrach, Roubiliac, Wills, Ellis, Vanderbank, &c. *' Though he had outlived all the companions of his youth, he might, to the last, have boasted of a succession equally numerous ; for all that knew him were his friends. ** When he was appointed Keeper of the Royal Academy, his conduct was exemplary, and worthy to be imitated by whoever shall succeed him in that office. As he loved the employment of teaching, he could not fail of discharging that 294 MEMOIRS OF duty with diligence. By the propriety of his conduct he united the love and respect of the students ; he kept order in the Academy, and made himself respected, without the austerity or importance of office ; all noise and tumult immediately ceased on his appearance ; at the same time there was nothing forbidding in his manner, which might restrain the pupils from freely applying to him for advice or assistance. " All this excellence had a firm foundation : he was a man of sincere and ardent piety, and has left an illustrious example of the exactness with which the subordinate duties may be expected to be discharged by him whose first care is to please God. " He has left one daughter behind him, who has distin- guished herself by the admirable manner in which she paints and composes pieces of'flowers, of which many samples have been seen in the exhibitions. She has had the honour of being much employed in this way by their Majesties, and for her extraordinary merit has been received into the Royal Academy." Mr. Lowe,* the painter, as stated by Mr. Boswell, in hi^ * Mr. Lowe was a natural son of the late Lord Sutherland, from whom he had an annuity. He was much esteemed by Dr. Johnson, who bequeathed him a legacy, and stood to one of his children as godfather. He was sent to Rome by the patronage of the Royal Academy, in consequence of his having gained the gold medal in 1771 ; and died, at an obscure lodging in Westminster, September, 1793. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 295 Life of Johnson, was very much distressed that a large picture which he liad painted was refused to be received into the Exliibition of the Royal Academy ; and as he was intimate with, and much befriended by, Dr. Johnson, he immediately applied to him to use his interest with Sir Joshua in order to procure its admittance, on which Johnson sent the following letter to Sir Joshua Reynolds, which letter I have seen, and another to Mr. Barry, who at that time was one of the council. to sir joshua reynolds. " Sir, Mr. Lowe considers himself as cut off from all credit and all hope, by the rejection of his picture from the Exhibition. Upon this work he has exhausted all his powers, and suspended all his expectations : and certainly, to be refused an oppor- tunity of taking the opinion of the public, is, in itself, a very great hardship. It is to be condemned without a trial. ** If you could procure the revocation of this incapacitating edict, you would deliver an unhappy man from great affliction. The council has sometimes reversed its own determinations ; and I hope that, by your interposition, this luckless picture may be got admitted. " I am, &c., April 12, 1783. " Sam. Johnson.'* 296 MEMOIRS OF " TO JAMES BARRY, ESQ. ^*SlR, *' Mr. Lowe's exclusion from the Exhibition gives him more trouble than you and the other gentlemen of the council could imagine or intend. He considers disgrace and ruin as the inevitable consequence of your determination. He says, that some pictures have been received after rejection ; and if there be any such precedent, I earnestly intreat that you will use your interest in his favour. Of his work I can say nothing : I pretend not to judge of painting ; and this picture I never saw : but I conceive it extremely hard to shut out any man from the possibility of success ; and therefore I repeat my request, that you will propose the re-consideration of Mr. Lowe's case ; and if there be any among the council with whom my name can have any weight, be pleased to communicate to them the desire of. Sir, " Your most humble Servant, " April 12, 1783. " Sam. Johnson." Such intercession was too powerful to be resisted ; and Mr. Lowe's performance was admitted at Somerset House, and exhibited there in an empty room. The subject was the Deluge, at that point of time when the water was rising to the top of the last uncovered mountain. Near to the spot • was seen the last of the antediluvian race, exclusive of those who were saved in the ark of Noah. This was one of those giants, then the inhabitants of the earth, who had still strength to swim, and with one of his hands held aloft his SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 297 infant child. Upon the small remaining dry spot appeared a famished lion ready to spring at the child and devour it. Mr. Lowe told Boswell that Dr. Johnson said to him, " Sir, your picture is noble and probable." " A compliment indeed," said Mr. Lowe, from a man who cannot lie, and cannot be mistaken." In this speech of Mr. Lowe's we may perceive how easily and readily vanity or conceit can give flattery to itself. That Johnson would not lie we will admit ; but, in his own letter to Barry he allows an ample field for mistake, as he confesses he knows nothing of the art, and that he had never seen the picture. I saw the picture myself when it was exhibited in an anti room in the Academy, and then thought it had been much better for Mr. Lowe if he had complied with the first decree of the council ; for if the conception of the picture had been good, as Dr. Johnson insinuates, yet the execution of it was execrable beyond belief. Johnson was also mistaken in saying it was like condemning without a trial. On the contrary, Mr. Lowe had been tried, and by the fairest jury, that of his peers, those of the same profession; and the world confirmed their decision to be just, as the picture, when shewn in public, was universally condemned. This Mr. Mauritius Lowe was the pupil of Mr. Cipriani, but improved little under his tuition. He was also admitted a student of the Royal Academy among the first of those who entered that institution. In this situation he made very slender advances in the art, being too indolent and inattentive to his studies to attain any excellence. But it is remarkable, Q Q 298 MEMOIRS OF that he was the person who obtained the gold medal first offered by the Royal Academy to the student who should produce the best historical picture. The subject given was Time discovering Truth. If it be asked, how Mr. Lowe, though deficient as an artist, could obtain the medal ? it may with truth be said, that he owed his success to the partiality of the Italian gentlemen, members of the Academy, who voted for him at the solicitation of Mr. Baretti, for whom Mr. Lowe had been a very favourable evidence on his trial in the year 1769: for it is very certain that Lowe's was not the best of the pictures offered for the premium. Of this year's Exhibition Dr. Johnson gives some particulars in a letter to Mrs. Thrale, thus : On Saturday I dined, as is usual, at the opening of the Exhibition. Our company was splendid, whether more numerous than at any former time I know not. Our tables seem always full. On Monday, if I am told truth, were received at the door, one hundred and ninety pounds, for the admission of three thousand eight hundred spectators. Supposing the show open ten hours, and the spectators staying,, one with another, each an hour, the rooms never had fewer than three hundred and eighty jostling against each other. Poor Lowe met with some discouragement ; but I interposed for him, and prevailed." Johnson's manners were indeed so very uncouth, that he was SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 299 not fit to dine in public ; I remember the first time I ever had the pleasure to duie in company with him, wiiich was at Sir Joshua's table, I was previously advised not to seem to observe him in eating, as his manner was very slovenly at his meals, and iie was very angry if he thought it was remarked. Mr. Boswell in this year records an opinion of Sir Joshua's on the subject of conversation, which may be noticed in this place. When it had been proposed to add some members to the Literary Club, (during Goldsmith's life) that writer had said in favour of it, that it would give the Club an agreeable variety, that there could then be nothing new among the members, and that they had travelled over each other's minds; to which Johnson answered, " Sir, you have not travelled over my mind I promise you !" When Sir Joshua, was afterwards told of this, he agreed with Goldsmith, saying that " when people have lived a great deal together, they know what each of them will say on the subject. A new understanding, therefore, is desirable ; because, though it may only furnish the same sense upon a question which would have been furnished by those with whom we are accustonied to live, yet this sense will have a different colouring ; and colouring is of much effect in every thing else as v/ell as in painting." The mention of Goldsmith calls to my recollection a circumstance related to me by Miss Reynolds. About the year ll'Ji), Dr. Goldsmith lo.st his mother, who Q Q 2. 300 MEMOIRS OF died ill Ireland. On this occasion he immediately dressed himself in a suit of cloaths of grey cloth trimmed with black, such as commonly is worn for second mourning. When he appeared the first time after this at Sir Joshua Reynolds's house, Miss F. Reynolds the sister of Sir Joshua, asked him whom he had lost, as she saw he wore mourning ? when he answered, a distant relation only ; being shy, as I conjecture, to own that he wore such slight mourning for so near a relative. This appears in him an unaccountable blunder in wearing such a dress : as all those who did not know his mother, or of her death, would not expect or require him to wear mourning at all, and to all those who knew of his mother's death it would appear to be not the proper dress of mourning for so near a relative ; so that he satisfied nobody and displeased some ; for Miss Reynolds, who afterwards heard of her death, thought it unfeeling in him to call his mother a distant relation. Mr. Barry seems at this period to have given vent to some of his spleen against Sir Joshua Reynolds, by a publication v/hich is thus noticed by Dr. Johnson in a letter to Mrs. Thrale, on the 1st of May. — " Mr. Barry's exhibition was opened the same day, and a book is published to recommend it, which, if you read it, you will find it decorated with some satirical pictures of Sir Joshua Reynolds and others. I have not escaped. You must, however, think with some estimation of Barry for the comprehension of his design." This attack of Barry's certainly arose from that morbid SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 301 disposition in his own mind which made him often quarrel with his best friends, and which was perhaps heightened, at the present moment, by an idea that Sir Joshua's influence in the Academy had not been in liis favour. That influence was certainly great, but at the same time always justly exerted ; and on the following day after Johnson's note to Mrs. Thrale, we find him soliciting the President's interest in favour of his friend Mr. Cruikshanks as candidate for the anatomical professorship. " to sir joshua reynolds. " Dear Sir, The gentleman who v.aits on you with this is Mr. Cruikshanks, who wishes to succeed his friend Dr. Hunter, as Professor of Anatomy in the Royal Academy. His qualifications are very generally known, and it adds dignity to the institution that such men are candidates. " I am Sir, " Your most humble servant, Mai/ 2d, 1783. " Sam. Johnson." Johnson, though confessedly ignorant of painting, seems however to have still been much interested in the success of the Academy, whose exhibitions were now arriving at a great pitch of perfection. In a note, written on the 8th of May, he says, " The exhibition prospers so much, that Sir Joshua says 302 MEMOIRS OF it will maintain the Academy : he estimates the probable amount at i^SOOO/' While Mr. Barry was engaged in his great work at the Adelphi Rooms, Mr. Penny resigned his situation of professor of painting in the Royal Academy, of which he had been possessed from iho foundation of the institution, when Mr. Barry ofiered to fill the vacant chair and was elected to it in 1782. But he was not over diligent in preparing for the duties of his office ; on which account Sir Joshua Reynolds made some remarks upon his conduct, to which Barry retorted witii great insolence and brutality. He gave his first lecture March 2, 1784. In this situation his turbulent disposition began to express itself. His lectures very soon became mere vehicles of invective and satire against the principal Academicians, and most pointedly against Sir Joshua, who was reduced by it to so awkward a situation in his chair as an auditor, that he was obliged at last either to appear to be asleep or to absent himself from the place. After the death of Sir Joshua he bestowed high praise on him and great abuse on those who were still alive, till at length a regular charge was preferred against him, and it was found to be absolutely necessary to dismiss him from the office of lecturer, and also from the Royal Academy in 1799- In the month of June this year, Johnson sat for his picture to Miss Reynolds ; much as he admired that lady, however, he did not compliment her upon that production, but when finished, told her it was "Johnson's grimly ghost and as SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 303 the picture was afterwards to be engraved, he recommended, as a motto, the appropriate stanza from the old ballad of *' William and Margaret." Dr. Johnson was indeed so accustomed to say always the exact truth, that he never condescended to give an equivocal answer to any question, of which the following is an instance. A lady of his acquaintance once asked him how it happened that he was never invited to dine at the tables of the great ? He replied, Because, Madam, great lords and ladies do not like to have their mouths stopped !" In the autumn of this year, great and important political changes were taking place in the Netherlands by the Emperor's order, particularly the suppression of the greatest part of the religious and monastic institutions, which was expected to cause the sale of a great number of Rubens's best paintings. Many persons went over to examine them, and amongst the rest Sir Joshua ; and he took both Brussels and Antwerp in his route : but I do not possess any specific knowledge of this trip, except that he made some further excellent observations, which are among the best of his criticisms, and highly illustrative of the merits of Rubens, that prince of Flemish painters. Mr. Malone has preserved some of his observations at this 304 MEMOIRS OF period, and he says, that vSir Joshua on his return from his first tour in 1781, thouglit that his own works seemed to want force, but that on viewing the paintings of Rubens a second time, they even appeared much less brilliant than on a former inspection. This circumstance he was at first unable to account for, until he recollected, that v/hen he first saw them he had his note book in his hand, for the purpose of writing down some remarks, which he considered as the reason of their now making a less vivid impression in this respect than they had before done ; for by the eye passing immediately from the white paper to the picture, the colours derived uncommon richness and warmth ; tliough for want of this foil they afterwards appeared comparatively cold. But, as he has also remarked, on his return the first time, that his own pictures wanted force, and it was observed that he painted with more depth and brilliancy of colour afterwards, is it not more probable that the difference of the impression he felt from the sight of Rubens's pictures was owing to his having accustomed his eye in the mean time to a greater force and richness in his own works ? or, at any rate, this must have assisted to increase the impression he felt. Sir Joshua this year executed several admired portraits ; but in the midst of his professional engagements he still found leisure to attend to literary pursuits, and to subjoin some very elaborate notes, consisting principally of practical observations and explanations of the rules laid down, to that SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 305 translation of Du Fresnoy's Art of Painting by Mr. Mason, which was published at this period. These notes are in the third volume of his works, as published by Mr. Malone. It appears, indeed, if the world owe any thing to Mr. Mason for this production, that they are also partly indebted for it to Sir Joshua, as it had long lain in manuscript unfinished, in Mr. Mason's library, and was only at length brought forward in consequence of his having requested a sight of it, and then freely made an offer of illustrating it in the manner he has done, which renders the work inva- luable. One professional anecdote which Sir Joshua mentions in these notes, of his own practice, deserves notice here. Speaking of Paul Veronese, Tintoret, and the other painters of the Venetian School, he says, " When I was at Venice, the method I took to avail myself of their principles was this : When I observed an extraordinary effect of light and shade in any picture, I took a leaf out of my pocket book, and darkened every part of it in the same gradation of light and shade as the picture, leaving the white paper untouched, to represent the light, and this without any attention to the subject, or to the drawing of the figures, A few trials of this kind will be sufficient to give the method of their conduct in the management of their lights. After a few experiments I found the paper blotted nearly alike ; their general practice appeared to be, to allow not above a quarter of the picture R R 306 MEMOIRS OF for the light, including in this portion both the principal and secondary lights ; another quarter to be kept as dark as possible ; and the remaining half kept in mezzotint, or half shadow. Rubens appears to have admitted rather more light than a quarter, and Rembrandt much less, scarce an eiglith ; by this conduct Rembrandt's light is extremely brilliant, but it costs too much ; the rest of the picture is sacrificed to this one object. That light will certainly appear the brightest which is surrounded with the greatest quantity of shade, supposing equal skill in the artist. *' By this means you may likewise remark the various forms and shapes of those lights, as well as the objects on which they are flung ; whether a figure, or the sky, a white napkin, animals, or utensils, often introduced for this purpose only. It may be observed, likewise, what portion is strongly relieved, and how much is united with its ground ; for it is necessary that some part (though a small one is sufficient,) should be sharp and cutting against its ground, whether it be light on a dark, or dark on a light ground, in order to give firmness and distinctness to the work ; if, on the other hand, it is relieved on every side, it will appear as if inlaid on its ground. Such a blotted paper, held at a distance from the eye, will strike the spectator as something excellent for the dispo- sition of light and shadow, though he does not distinguish whether it is a history, a portrait, a landscape, dead game, or any thing else ; for the same principles extend to every branch of the art.'* SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. This recurrence to the Venetian painters brings to my mind a little circumstance which happened at the very time he here speaks of when in his youth studying at Venice. Being one night at the opera, the manager of the liouse ordered the band to play an English ballad tune as a compliment to the English gentlemen then residing in that city. This happened to be the popular air which was played or sung in almost every street in London just at their time of leaving it ; by suggesting to them that metropolis, with all its connexions and endearing circumstances, it immediately brought tears into our young painter's eyes, as well as into those of his countrymen who were present. Thus nature will prevail, and Paul Veronese, Tintoret, and even Titian, were all given up at the moment, from the delightful prospect of again returning to his native land after an absence of near three years. To return to the period of our narrative, it was said in a contemporary character of him at this period, that he had so little of the jealousy of his profession, that when a celebrated English artist, on his arrival from Italy, asked him where he should set up a house. Sir Joshua told him that the next house to his own was vacant, and that he had found his own situation a very good one. It is also recorded as an instance of his prizing extraor- dinary merit, that when Gainsborough asked him but sixty guineas for his celebrated girl and pigs, yet being conscious II R 2 308 MEMOIRS OF in his own mind that it was worth more, he liberally paid him down one hundred guineas for the picture. I also find it mentioned on record, that a painter of considerable merit having unfortunately made an injudicious matrimonial choice, was, along with that and its conse- quences, as well as an increasing family, in a few years reduced so very low, that he could not venture out without danger of being arrested, a circumstance which, in a great measure, put it out of his power to dispose of his pictures to advantage. Sir Joshua having accidentally heard of his situation, immediately hurried to his residence, to inquire into the truth of it, when the unfortunate man told him all the melancholy particulars of his lot, adding, that forty pounds would enable him to compound with his creditors. After some further conversation, Sir Joshua took his leave, telling the distressed man he would do something for him, and when he was bidding him adieu at the door, he took him by the hand, and after squeezing it in a friendly way, " hurried off with that kind of triumph in his heart, the exalted of human kind only experience," whilst the astonished artist found that he had left in his hand a bank note for one "hundred pounds. Of such traits of benevolence certainly many other instances might be recorded, but I shall only mention two. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 309 When Zoffanii the painter came to England hs was hut little known in this country, and without a patron ; but the very first picture which he exhibited in London was purciiased by Sir Joshua at the price which Zoffanii demanded for it. The picture represents a scene in the farce of the Alchymist, in which there is a most excellent portrait of Garrick in the character of Able Drugger, accompanied by those of Palmer and Burton. This picture Sir Joshua sold soon after to the Earl of Carlisle for twenty guineas above the price which lie had given for it, and sent the advanced price immediately to Zoffanii, saying, " he thought he had sold the picture at first below its real value." The clergyman who succeeded Sir Joshua's father as master of the Grammar School at Plympton, at his decease left a widow, who after the death of her husband opened a boarding school for the education of young ladies. The governess who taught in this school had but few friends in situations to enable them to do her much service, and her sole dependence was on her small stipend from the school: hence she was unable to make a sufficiently reputable appearance in apparel at their accustomed little balls. The daughter of the school-mistress, her only child, and at that time a very young girl, felt for the poor governess, and the pitiable insufficiency in the article of finery, but being unable to help her from her own resources devised within herself a means by which it might be done otherwise. 310 MEMOIRS OP Having heard of the great fame of Sir Joshua Reynolds, his character for generosity, and charity, and recollecting that he had formerly belonged to the Plympton school, she without mentioning a syllable to any of her companions addressed a letter to Sir Joshua, whom she had never even seen, in which she represented to him the forlorn state of the poor governess's wardrobe, and begged the gift of a silk gown for her. Very shortly after they received a box containing silks of different patterns, sufficient for two dresses, to the infinite astonishment of the simple governess, who was totally unable to account for this piece of good fortune, as the compassionate girl was afraid to let her know the means she had taken in order to procure the welcome present. I mentioned the circumstance afterwards to Sir Joshua who assured me of its truth. In the year 1784, Sir Joshua had a pre-eminence of pictures, at the Exhibition, the principal of which were the portrait of Mrs. Siddons, as the Tragic Muse, now the property of William Smith, Esq. M. P., from which a well known print has been taken ; this picture Sir Joshua valued at 1000 guineas ; the Fortune-teller, sold to the Duke of Dorset, and a portrait of Miss Kemble. The last of these drew forth great applavise from the numerous literary friends of that lady. And the following poetic tribute to his skill, may not be undeserving of insertion. "While hands obscene, at vicious grandeur's call. With miraic harlots clothe th' indignant wall. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 311 Destructive snares for youthful passion spread, The slacken'd boson), and the faithless bed, Thy pencil, Reynolds ! innocently ga}', To virtue leads by pleasure's flowery way; In blushing honour decks the tim'rons bride. Or maid whose thoughts confederate Angels guide; For thy rare skill, to surface unconfin'd, Through every genuine feature pours the mind. Should the wild rage of other Phrynes compare With Corinth's past the British drama's fair, (Though art may Palmer's vauish'd form deplore, And Satchell's eyes unpictur'd beam no more) If firm duration crowns thy just design. Nor all its soft similitudes decline. In Kemble's look chastis'd will yet be seen What one bright daughter of the stage has been — Reserv'd though mingling with the loud, the vain, And unseduc'd where Syren pleasures reign. Where dames undone and social ruin smile, While echo'd scandal shakes aguilly pile. Pleas'd we behold, by thy congenial hand. In native charms embodied virtue stand ; For vice can ne'er its odious traces hide, The glanc e of lewdness, or the swell of pride. Mark'd to be shunn'd, and stigmatis'd by fate, Since in each varied guise, of scorn or hate. O'er ail the face its dire effusions shoot, As branches still are modell'd by the root. But, for our love when grace and merit vie, Ai tract the decent, check the lawless eye, Th' instrui live canvas moral worth excites, And Reynolds paints the lessons Johnson writes. Should time, whose force our hopes in vain withstand, Blast the nymph's face, and shake the painter's hand, Yet may these tints divide the fame they give, And art and beauty bid each other live ! ' 312 MEMOIRS OF / Another painting of Sir Joshua's was exhibited this year by the Society for promoting Painting and Design at Liverpool ; which was a landscape containing a view on the Thames from his own villa on Richmond-hill. This has been engraved by Birch in his " Delices de la Grand Bretagne," and was one of the very few landscapes ever done by the subject of our biography. In regular landscape-painting his works are very scarce; there is, as I have been informed, one in the possession of Sir Brook Boothby, Bart., another in the collection of Lord Pelham at Stanmer, and two he bequeathed to Sir George Baker, Bart. M. D. who attended the family ; these are of course with the exceptions of those chaste and exquisite ones which so often form a back ground to his portraits. Soon after this. Sir Joshua interested himself most strenu- ously for his friend Dr. Johnson, in order to procure an additional grant from the crown as an increase to his pension, in order to enable him to try the air of the South of France, and Italy, for his declining health. Sir John Hawkins in his life of Johnson gives all the credit of this negotiation, at least of its commencement, to Sir Joshua, whilst Mr. Boswell claims the merit of having written the first letter on the subject to Lord Thurlow, then Lord Chancellor. The various details of the event have been so often related by Johnson's biographers, that I need not enter furtlier on it than to say, that it met with Sir Joshua's cordial concurrence SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 313 and assistance from the first, and was attended to by him with much assiduity during the progress, from his earnest wish for the welfare of his venerable friend. On the death of Ramsay, the King's painter, in August of this year. Sir Joshua was sworn principal painter to his Majesty, to which a small salary is also annexed ; but this, of course, was not the object of Sir Joshua's ambition. In this year Charles Catton, a Royal Academician, was, by rotation, become master of the Painter Stainers Company of the city of London, and he was particularly ambitious of introducing his friend, and a man so celebrated as Sir Joshua Reynolds, to share in their corporate honours ; accordingly the brothers voluntarily voted him the freedom of their company, which was presented to him when he dined at their hall on St. Luke's day, the patron saint of painters. This favor, so properly and well bestowed, he received with due respect. This civic compliment was accompanied by a copy of verses in honour of their new brother citizen ; in which the Muses were invoked to celebrate his praise and an event so important. — A compliment, on the whole, which pleased Sir Joshua not a little. The lines, may be found in the Gentleman's Magazine for that year, page 854 ; they are not indifferently written ; a portion of taste is even displayed in some of the passages, but it is very possible that their dinner was still better than their poetry, and their respect more gratifying than either. Sir Joshua now met with an irreparable loss in the demise s s 314 MEMOIRS OF of his friend, Dr. Samuel Johnson, who died on the 13th of December, 1784. The particulars of this event have been so often recorded, that it would be superfluous to detail them here ; I may- observe, however, that Mr. Boswell has justly stated, that the Doctor made three requests of Sir Joshua a short time previous to his death : one was to forgive him thirty pounds which he had borrowed of him ; another was, that Sir Joshua should carefully read the Scriptures ; and the last, that he should abstain from using his pencil on the sabbath day ; to all of which Sir Joshua gave a willing assent. Johnson had appointed him one of the executors of his will, along with Sir William Scott and Sir John Hawkins ; a trust which he faithfully fulfilled ; he also left him his great French Dictionary, by Moreri, and his own copy of his folio English Dictionary, of the last revision, as a friendly testimony of remembrance ; also a book from his library to Mrs. Frances Reynolds, sister to Sir Joshua. What the feelino-s of Sir Joshua must have been on this occasion may be easily conceived, and it has been well described by Mr. Boswell in his dedication of his " Life of Johnson," some time afterwards. This dedication is at the same time so honorable to, and descriptive of, Sir Joshua, in many respects, that I trust I shall be excused for the insertion of part of it in this place. Mr. Boswell says, Every liberal motive that can actuate SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 315 an author in the dedication of his labours, concurs in directing me to you, as the person to whom the following work should be inscribed. If there be a pleasure in celebrating the distinguished merit of a contemporary, mixed with a certain degree of vanity not altogether inexcusable, in adpearing fully sensible of it, where can I find one in complimenting whom I can with more general approbation gratify those feelings ? Your excellence, not only in the art over which you have long presided with unrivalled fame, but also in philosophy and elegant literature, is well known to the present, and will continue to be the admiration of future ages. Your equal and placid temper, your variety of conversation, your true politeness, by which you are so amiable in private society, and that enlarged hospitality which has long made your house a common centre of union for the great, the accomplished, the learned, and the ingenious ; all these qualities I can, in perfect confidence of not being accused of flattery, ascribe to you. If a man may indulge in an honest pride, in having it known to the world, that he has been thought worthy of particular attention by a person of the first eminence in the age in which he lives, whose company has been universally courted, I am justified in availing myself of the usual privilege of a dedication, when I mention that there has been a long and uninterrupted friendship between us. If gratitude should be acknowledged for favors received, I have this opportunity, my dear Sir, most sincerely to thank you for the many happy hours which I owe to your kindness — for the cordiality with which you have, at all times, been pleased to welcome — for the number of valuable acquaintances to whom you have introduced me — for the noctes cosnceque Deum which I have s s 2 316 MEMOIRS OF enjoyed under your roof. If a work should be inscribed to one who is master of the subject of it, and whose approbation, therefore, must insure it credit and success, the Life of Dr. Johnson is, with the greatest propriety, dedicated to Sir loshua Reynolds, who was the intimate and beloved friend of that great man ; the friend whom he declared to be the most iiivulnerable man he knew, with whom, if he should quarrel, he should find the most difficulty how to abuse. You, my dear Sir, studied him, and knew him well. You venerated and admired him." To this testimony of Boswell, it will certainly not be mis- placed to add some few other observations of Johnson himself respecting his friend. In one place, Boswell records that he much admired the manner in which Sir Joshua treated of his art, in his discourses to the Royal Academy, Of one remarkable passage, he said, " I think I might as well have said this myself and on another occasion, whilst Mr. Bennet Langton was sitting with him, he read one of them with great attention, and exclaimed, " Very well. Master Reynolds ; very well indeed. But it will not be understood.'^ Johnson once observed, " I know no man who has passed through life with more observation than Reynolds and Boswell himself has very justly said, that his philosophical penetration, and justness of thinking were not less known to those who lived with him, than his genius in his art is admired by the world." sill JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 317 Johnson had so high an opinion of Sir Joshua's benevolence of disposition, that he said to him once with a smile. " Reynolds, you hate no person living. But I like a good hater." It seems by this speech that Johnson conceived that a good hater, as he termed it, was one who would feel the strongest degree of attachment to those who were so fortunate as to gain their love, and also that it might proceed probably from a mind that made strong distinctions in character : but it is certainly a dangerous doctrine. I remember, however, that I once heard Sir Joshua say, that he thought it a very bad state of mind to hate any man, but that he feared that he did hate Barry, and if so, he had much excuse, if excuse be possible. The hatred of such a man is no trifling disgrace ; still I am convinced that this sentiment never influenced his conduct towards him. I may now remark that they lie side-by-side in the grave. Three days before Johnson's decease. Sir Joshua delivered his twelfth discourse at the Academy, which was principally of professional import. He laid it down as a truism that particular methods of study are of little consequence, and that little of the art can be taught. The love of method, he considered as often arising from a disposition to mental idleness, whilst at the same time he acknowledged that " Pittori improvisator^ as he terms them, are apt to be careless and incorrect, and are very seldom either 518 MEMOIRS OF original or striking ; defects proceeding from their not paying the proper attention to the works of Nature and the great masters. From some observations in the early part of this discourse, it seems as if its subject had been, in some measure, pressed upon Sir Joshua, or rather perhaps hinted to him ; for in taking a view of the " Method of Study," he expressly said that all the necessary information had already been given in his former discourses, and that any other would merely consist of plausible but ostentatious amplification, and would therefore be totally useless. On this point he made an observation highly worthy of general notice in this educating age. " Treatises on Education, and Method of Study have always appeared to me to have one general fault. They proceed upon a false supposition of life ; as if we possessed, not only a power over events and circumstances, but had a greater power over ourselves than I believe any of us will be found to possess !" Again he observed, " In the practice of art, as well as in morals, it is necessary to keep a watchful and jealous eye over ourselves : idleness, assuming the specious disguise of industry, will lull to sleep all suspicion of our want of an active exertion of strength." Much interest was excited among the Dilletanti in the course of this year, by a discovery Sir Joshua made of an original painting of Milton, which he purchased for one hundred guineas, from a picture dealer who had obtained it from a common furniture broker, who could not remember the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 319 time nor manner in which he came by it. In this portrait the dress is black with a band ; the date 1653, and the painter's initials (S. C.) are marked upon it. On the back of it was a written memorandum, stating that this portrait had belonged to Deborah Milton, who was her father's amanuensis, and that at her death it was sold to Sir William Davenant's family. It also stated that the portrait was painted by Samuel Cooper, who was painter to Oliver Cromwell, at the time when Milton was Latin Secretary to the Protector, and that the Poet and Painter were nearly of the same age, Milton being born in I6O8, and dying in 1674 ; and Cooper being born in 1609, and dying in 1672 ; they being companions and friends till death parted them. It was also stated, that several encouragers and lovers of the Fine Arts at that time wanted this picture, particularly Lord Dorset, John Somers, Esq., Sir Robert Howard, Dryden, Atterbury, Dr. Aldrich, and Sir John Denham. Mr. Warton, who notices this portrait particularly in his edition of Milton says, that Lord Dorset was probably the lucky man, as this seems to be the very picture which Vertue wished Prior to seek for in Lord Dorset's collection ; but in another he adds, that it must be owned that this miniature strongly resembles Vandyke's picture of Selden in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, it being highly probable that Cooper should have executed a miniature of Selden as a companion to the heads of other heroes of the commonwealth. This inference, however, is equally applicable to the supposition of its being Milton's ; and Sir Joshua Reynolds himself said of it, The picture is admirably painted, and with such a 320 MEMOIRS OF character of nature, that I am perfectly sure it was a striking likeness. I have now got a distant idea of the countenance of Milton, which cannot be got from any other than that I have seen. It is perfectly preserved, which shows that it has been shut up in some drawer ; if it had been exposed to the light, the colours would, long before this, have vanished." A doubt having been started some years afterwards respecting the originality and authenticity of this miniature, a letter was inserted in the Gentleman's Magazine for 1791, in answer to one in a preceding number, containing some strictures, and expressing various doubts on the subject. To these strictures and doubts, the letter was a very con- clusive and argumentative reply ; and as it is now well known to have been the production of Sir Joshua's pen, and is not inserted in his works, I shall here give it a place. " Mr. Urban, June 15. " A correspondent in your last Magazine, p. 399, has made some strictures respecting the originality of the portrait of Milton, in the possession of Sir Joshua Reynolds, on which I beg leave to make some observations. That your readers may have a distinct view of the question, I shall transcribe the writing which is on he back of the picture. " ' This picture belonged to Deborah Milton, who was her father's amanuensis ; at her death it was sold to Sir William Davenant's family : it was painted by Mr. Samuel Cooper, who was painter to Oliver Cromwell at the time Milton was • I ' dJ) 'iJJ nil i-^ w !1JLjM.'o jl , jiuy -> . SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 321 Latin Secretary to the Protector. The Painter and Poet were near of the same age, (Milton was born in 1608, and died in 1674 ; Cooper was born in 1609, and died in 1672) ; and were companions and friends till death parted them. Several encouragers and lovers of the fine arts at that time M'anted this picture, particularly Lord Dorset, John Somers, Esq., Sir Robert Howard, Dryden, Atterbury, Dr. Aldrich, and Sir John Denham.^ Your critic first observes, that Deborah Milton, dying in 1727, all those encouragers and lovers of the fine arts here mentioned, were dead long before that time. Secondly, he remarks, that the picture could not belong to the Dorset family in 1720, which belonged to Deborah Milton in 1727- He asks, likewise, what can be meant by the miniature having been sold to the family of Sir William Davenant, as the memorandum bears so late a date as 1727 ? These objections, I will suppose for the credit of the writer, would not have been made if he had seen the print, under which he would have found the following remark : *' The manuscript on the back of the picture appears to have been written some time before the year 1693, when Mr. Somers was knighted, and afterwards created Baron Evesham, which brings it within nineteen years after Milton's death. The writer was mistaken in supposing Deborah Milton was dead at that time ; she lived till 1727) but in indigence and obscurity, married to a weaver in Spitalfields. *' There is no reason to think (notwithstanding Mr. Warton's T T 322 MEMOIRS OF supposition, that Lord Dorset was probably the lucky man who purchased the picture,) that it ever was in Lord Dorset's possession. Vertue, indeed, had desired Prior to search in his Lordship's collection for this miniature, probably from the suggestion of Richardson, whose son Jonathan informed Sir Joshua Reynolds, that he had heard his father say, that there was somewhere a miniature of Milton, by Cooper, which, he was told, was a remarkable fine picture, but that he himself had never seen it. Perhaps Lord Dorset was thought likely to have been the possessor of this picture, because he formed a large collection of portraits, of the most eminent men of his time, which are still to be seen at Knowle. I cannot avoid adding, that the present Duke, with equal respect to genius and talents, and with still more skill in the art, continues this plan ; and to this collection of his ancestor has added the portraits of Dr. Johnson, Dr. Goldsmith, Mr. Garrick, and many others. — The third objection is easily answered : there is no date at all to the memorandum ; and, so far from its bearing so late a date as 1727, it is very apparent it was written before the year 1693, and that the writer of it was probably Sir William Davenant's son, who was at this time thirty-seven years old ; and the picture may be supposed to be at that time wanted by Lord Dorset, John Somers, Esq. &c. The critic says, * I never had an opportunity of seeing the original miniature in question, and, unfortunately, the print by Aliss Watson has never fallen in my way ; but I should wish to know whether the drop serene be visible in it, as in Faithonie's drawing, and in the bust. The date on the miniature is 1652, by whicli time Milton had become utterly blind.' SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 323 • In regard to the drop serene, we can assure your correspondent that it is not visible in the miniature, and that he is mistaken in saying that it is visible in the crayon picture by Faithorne ; and that it is visible in the bust, as he alHrms, is truly ridiculous. Milton himself says, that, though he had lost his sight, it was not perceptible to others ; and that his eyes preserved their original lustre. " The date on the picture is 1653, and not 1652. This inaccuracy is of no great consequence : but how did he know that there was any date at all, as he says he never saw th.i picture ? That Deborah Milton recognized her father's picture, does not prove that she might not have been still more struck with the likeness of the miniature. One is at a loss to know upon what ground it is assumed (by a person who never saw the picture or the print,) that, if Faithorne's be like, the miniature is not like ; and still less can it be conceived why he thinks that ' the likeness in Sir Joshua's picture cannot be a striking likeness of Milton, whatever it may be of Selden.* How came Selden into his head ? Here some suspicion arises that he has seen the picture and the print, a circumstance which he chooses to conceal, as the comment by Sir Joshua on the print would have prevented the parade of his criti- cism. " The opinion of Sir Joshua Reynolds, in matters relating to his own profession, certainly ought to have some weight. He is not likely to be wanting in that skill to which every T T ^ 324 MEMOIRS OP Other artist pretends, namely, to form some judgment of the likeness . of a picture without knowing the original. It appears that Sir Joshua told Warton, that he was perfectly- sure that ' the picture in his possession was a striking likeness, and that an idea of Milton's countenance cannot be got from any of the other pictures/ Without being an artist, it is easily perceived that the picture of Faithorne does not possess that individuality of countenance which is in the miniature. There is something very perverse in believing that an ordinary, common-place portrait, painted by an engraver for the purpose of making a print from it, should be preferred, or be supposed to be more like, than the best picture of the first miniature painter, perhaps, that ever lived. Cooper possessed all the correctness, precision, and all the attention to peculiarity of expression, which we admire in Vandyke ; whereas Faithorne imitated, as well as he could, the lax and vicious manner then introduced by Sir Peter Lely, who, though upon the whole an ingenious artist, stands in the first rank of what the painters call mannerists. We may add, in regard to Faithorne, that, however he might be distinguished among his contemporaries, and since by the curious in old prints^ his merit as an engraver (and much less as a painter,) were he now living, would not raise him above the rank of the common herd of artists. It does not appear that Deborah Milton, when Faithorne's picture was shewn to her, said any thing to confirm us in the opinion of its being so extremely like : she exclaimed, ' O, Lord ! that is the picture of my father.' She probably had seen the picture before, and it is I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 325 even probable that she was present when it was painted ; and, when she saw it again, she immediately recognized it, as she would have done her father's watch, buckles, or any other appendage to his person. *' There is no doubt but that Milton sat to Faithorne for that crayon picture ; the distinguishing features are the same as in the miniature ; the same large eyelid, the same shaped nose and mouth, and the same long line which reaches from the nostril to below the corners of the mouth, and the same head of hair; but if the effect and expression of the whole together should l)e, as in fact it is, different in the two pictures, it cannot, I should think, be difficult for us to determine on which side our faith' ought to incline, even though neither possessed any strong marks of identity. " All the objections that have been made by your corre- spondent, I hope, have been answered, and some, perhaps, which the reader will think were scarcely worthy of an answer. There is no occasion to take notice of objections which are made in order to be confuted, namely, the pains the critic takes to obviate a supposition which nobody ever supposed, that the writer of the memorandum on the back might, by mistake, write her death instead of his death. This is to raise conjectures in order to triumph in their confutation ! Mr. Tyrwhitt, to whom the miniature was shewn at the Archbishop of York's table, and whose skill in matters of this kind is universally acknowledged, scouted the question which was there put to him, * Whether he thought the 326 MEMOIRS OF manuscript was a late fabrication ?' ' The orthography, as well as the colour of the ink, shews it to have been written about a hundred years since.' He then remarked the mistake of the writer in supposing that Deborah Milton was dead at the time he wrote; and, though your correspondent thinks that this mistake is a sufficient reason for calling the whole a palpable fiction, we may reasonably oppose Mr. Tyrwhitt's opinion to that of your anonymous correspondent, of whom we may say, if he had possessed a greater share of critical sagacity, he would have remarked, that even the mistake of supposing Deborah Milton to be dead when he wrote, shews it to be not what he calls it, a fiction. A man who deals in fiction takes care, at least, not to be easily detected. No man in these later days but knows that Deborah Milton lived till 1727j as that circumstance was made notorious to the v/orld from Richardson's Life of Milton, and from the benefit play which was given to Deborah's daughter in the year 1752. I believe Richardson (who, as Dr. Johnson says, was one of Milton's fondest admirers,) was the first who made any inquiry after Milton's family, and found his daughter Deborah to be still living. I cannot conclude without making one observation. Before a writer indulges himself in the self-congratulation of victory, or laughing at the slip which he fancies others have made, he should be sure of the steadiness of his own footing. *' Your correspondent reprehends Tom Warton for his inaccuracy in historical points ; he blames the aggravated immorality of the seller of the picture * in imposing on so SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 32? fair and worthy a man as Sir Joshua Reynolds ;' treating him as a bon homme, and the whole ' as a palpable fiction, drawn up by some person ignorant of history, who furnished out a tale with very scanty materials.' Whether this was the case, the reader will, I imagine, not^ find it -very difficult ta determine. R. J. " P. S. The progress of the picture seems to be this : — Milton dying insolvent, and Deborah Milton of course in great indigence, it is very improbable that she would keep to herself a picture of such value ; it was therefore sold, as we suppose, to the author of the memorandum ; and the account there given is probably such as he received from the seller of the picture, who, in order to raise its value, boasts how many great men had desired to have it. If to this it is urged, that it is too much to expect all those suppositions will be granted, we can only say, let the supposition be made of its being a forgery, and then see what insurmountable improbabilities w^ill immediately present themselves. After all, the whole indulgence required is for the mistake respecting Deborah Milton's death ; and we may add, that the great object of inquiry, that it is an original picture of Milton by Cooper, is no way affected either by this or any other mistake that may be imputed to the writer of the memorandum." In this year the portrait of Sir Joshua, which was painted for, arid afterwards in the possession of, Mr. Alderman Boy dell, was executed by Mr. C. G. Stuart, an American, and for a time was placed in the Shakspeare Gallery : this is 328 MEMOIRS OP one of many which have been done, but it has not been engraved. The year 1785 was marked by several compliments to Sir Joshua's taste and genius. Miss Hannah More, in her Poem on Sensibility, says, *' To snatch bright beauty from devoni ing fate. And bid it boast with him a deathless date ; To shew how genius fires, how taste restrains, While what both are, his pencil best explains. Have we not Reynolds ?" To the merit of one of Sir Joshua's finest pictures produced this year, and exhibited, " Love unloosing the Zone of Beauty," the following poetic tribute was also paid. " Fann'd by the summer's gentlest wind. Within the shade a nymph rechn'd. As on her neck they artless stray'd, The zephyrs with her tresses play'd ; A careless vest around her thrown Was girded with an azure zone ; Her figure shone replete with grace — She seem'd — ^the goddess of the place. The soothing murmur of the rill, The plumed warbler's tenderest trill, The perfum'd air, the flow'ry ground, Spread a delicious languor round ; Her swelling breast new tremors move. And all her melting soul was love. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 329 When Cupid saw lier soft a]; i.ns, And flew, insidious, to her aims; The little god she warmly prest, And ruin, in his form, carest; For by indulgence hardy grown, He silly loos'd her guardian zone. But Virtue saw the sleight, and sigh'd — ' Beware, beware, fond nymph !' she cry'd; * Behold where yonder thorny flow'r, ' Smiling in summer's radiant hour, ' With outstretch'd wing a painted fly, ' In thoughtless pleasure flutters nigh, ' Nor, heedless, sees, beneath the brake, * The jaws of a devouring snake.' The nymph look'd up — with conscience flush'd. And as she tied her zone, she blush'd. It chanc'd that Genius, passing by, Remark'd the scene with eager eye ; Then, with the tint from Virtue stole. With Reynolds pencil sketch'd the whole." In the autumn of this year, the great and long expected sale of pictures, collected from the dissolved monasteries and religious houses in Flanders and Germany, commenced on the twelfth of September, and continued during the ensuing month. A trip to Flanders, therefore, became quite fashionable amongst the lovers of the fine arts, who were all anxious to possess some of the exquisite specimens of the great Flemish masters. For this purpose Sir Joshua also made a tour to that country, and laid out upwards of one thousand 17 u 330 MEMOIRS OF pounds in purchases, many of which were of great value, and which I shall have occasion to notice further in a subsequent part of the Memoir. In the Exhibition of 1786, Sir Joshua did not produce any historical piece, nor even any composition of fancy, his time aiid thoughts being occupied on a great work, having had the honour of a commission from the Empress of Russia to paint an historical picture, in which he was at liberty as to subject, size, and price. He debated long with himself on what subject to fix, which might be complimentary to the Empress ; and at first I heard him say he would paint the procession of our great Queen Elizabeth, when she visited her camp at Tilbury, in Ihe time of the threatened Spanish invasion ; but at last he made choice of the infant Hercules overcoming the serpents when in his cradle, as the most fit, in allusion to the great difficulties which the Empress of Russia had to encounter in the civilization of her empire, arising from the rude state in which she found it. This picture he finished. It was a large and grand composition ; and in respect to beauty, colour, and effect, was equal to any picture known in the world. The middle groupe, which received the principal light, was exquisite in the highest degree. The following lines on this picture are an extract from a Pindarick Ode, by John Taylor, Esq., a man whose benevo- lence of heart, in addition to his genius, renders hira valuable to those who have the advantage of knowing him. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 331 Reynolds, thy pencil fix'd my wand'ring view, Suprenie in genius — woit'.iy all thy fame; Thy ni;igic touch to taste and nature true. Secures for immortality a name. Aye — here's the vig'rous son of am'rous Jove, Fruit of sly transports with Amphvtrion's wife. Whose cradled strength with twining monsters strove, And crush'd out, giant-like, the venom'd life. Ah! Reynolds, why should portrait thee confine, Whose stroke can epic force at once impart. Whose canvas with Homeric fire can shine And blaze with all the true sublime of art. I have understood that Sir Josliua told a friend that the attitude and expression of the prophet Tiresias, introduced in the groupe, were taken from those in which he had occasionally- seen his deceased friend Johnson. It may be so, for his eye and mind were always intent to seize and fix the passing truth ; and perhaps the truest criticism that ever Dr. Beattie hazarded on Sir Joshua's works was with regard to this very picture, when he said, in a letter to Sir William Forbes, *' Your account of Sir Joshua's new picture is very enter- taining. It is an unpromising subject ; but Sir Joshua's imagination v/ill supply every thing." When it was finished, and had been exhibited at Somerset House, it was sent to Russia to the Empress. Whether this compliment was ever explained to her, or u u 2 332 MEMOIRS OF whether she was left to suppose it alluded to the fate of her husbaiul, I do not know ; however, soon after the picture arrived at St. Petersburg, Count Woronzow, the Russian Embassador at the court of England, waited on Sir Joshua Reynolds to inform him that the picture he painted last year for the Empress of Russia had been received at St. Petersburgh, with two sets of his Discourses, one in English, and the other in French, which, at the desire of her Imperial Majesty, had been sent with the picture. At the same time, Count Woronzow delivered to Sir Joshua a gold box, enriched with the Empress's portrait, and very large diamonds, &c., containing a most gracious writing by her Imperial Majesty's own hand. The Embassador left also with Sir Joshua a copy of the following letter, which his Excellency had received from the Empress with the said valuable present : Monsieur Le Comte Woronzow, " I have read, and, I may say, with the greatest avidity, those Discourses pronounced at the Royal Academy of London, by Sir Joshua Reynolds, which that illustrious artist sent me with his large picture ; in both productions one may easily trace a most elevated genius. " I recommend to you to give my thanks to Sir Joshua, and to remit him the box I send, as a testimony of the great satisfaction the perusal of his Discourses has given me, and which I look upon as, perhaps, the best work that ever was wrote on the subject. I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 333 " My portrait, which is on the cover of the box, is of a composition made at my Hermitage, where they are now at work about impressions on the stones found there. " I expect you will inform me of the price of the large picture,- on the subject of which I have already spoke to you in another letter. Adieu — I wish you well. (Signed) " Catharine.^' St. Pefersburgh, March 5, 1790. The portrait mentioned in the imperial letter, wa^ a basso relievo of her Majesty : and Sir Joshua's executors afterwards received fifteen hundred guineas for the painting, which is now at St. Petersburo;h. An en^ravino; in mezzotinto was taken from it before it left England ; and another print from it was done in Russia, by an English artist, patronized by that court. I have already noticed the verifying of the authenticity of Milton's picture by Sir Joshua, to which I may add a discovery nearly similar, which has been stated by an anonymous writer, who says, that in this year he was so fortunate as also to meet with a valuable head of Oliver Cromwell, which had long remained concealed from the prying eye of antiquarian research in the false bottom of a gold snuff-box ; and which was ascertained to be the original head painted by Cooper, for the use of Simons the sculptor, who was then engaged in modelling a resemblance of the 334 MEMOIRS OF Protector. It was particularly valuable in being the only picture which Cooper finished of the Protector Oliver ; for though the artist had prevailed upon Cromwell to sit a second time, yet, some difference or dispute having taken place, this latter was never completed, but is in that state now, in the possession of Sir Thomas Frankland, a descendant from that extraordinary man. It was said that the picture had been shewn to his Majesty ; and upon that occasion it was smartly observed, " How much would Charles the First have valued that man who had brought him the head of Cromwell ?" In his thirteenth discourse, delivered this year. Sir Joshua's object was to shew, in illustration and explanation of his theory of genius, that art is not merely imitation, but must be considered as under the direction of the irnagination ; after which he pointed out how far, and in what manner, painting, poetry, acting, even architecture and gardening, depart, or differ, from nature. Here he laid down what he esteemed as the highest style of criticism, and, at the same time, the soundest, in referring solely to the eternal and immutable nature of things ; and this was, that any specific art, together with its principles, should be considered in their correspondence with the prin- ciples of other arts, or at least of such as address themselves primarily and principally to the imagination. " When those connected and kindred principles," said he, " are brought together to be compared, another comparison will grow out of SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 335 this ; that is^ the comparison of them all with those of human nature, from whence arts derive the materials upon Avhich they are to produce their effects. Wlieii this comparison of art with art, and of all arts with the nature of man, is once made with success, our guiding lines are as well ascertained and established as they can be in matters of this description.'* Some other truths, inculcated in this discourse, are of such high importance in general life that I trust I shall be excused for giving a sketch of them ; whilst, at the same time, they will display that deep thought which places Sir Joshua on a level, as a moralist, with the greatest philosophers ; truths, too, not conceived in the silence of the closet, but extracted from human nature itself, in its various modifications, as they passed under his eye, or presented themselves in his daily intercourse with the ornaments of society. He particularly noticed, that there is, in the commerce of life, as in art, a sagacity which is far from being contrary to right reason, and is superior to any occasional exercise of that faculty, which supersedes it, and does not wait for the slow progress of deduction, but goes at once, by what appears a kind of intuition, to the conclusion. A man, said he, endowed with this faculty, feels and acknowledges tlie truth, though it is not always in his power, perhaps, to give a reason for it; because he cannot recollect, and bring before him, ail the materials that gave birth to his opinion ; for very many, and very intricate considerations may unite to form the principle, even of small and minute parts, involved in, or dependent on, a great system of things : though these, in 336 MEMOIRS OF process of time, are forgotten, the right impression still remains on the mind. This impression, then, collected, we do not always know how, or when, he considered as the result of the accumulated experience of our life ; and, therefore, this mass of collective observation, however acquired, ought to prevail over that reason which, however powerfully exerted on any particular occasion, will probably comprehend but a partial view of the subject. He, therefore, laid it down as a principle, that our conduct in life, as well as in the arts, is, or ought to be, generally governed by this habitual reason. It is our happiness, he added, that we are enabled to draw on such funds ; if we were obliged to enter into a theoretical deliberation on every occasion, before we act, life would be at a stand, and art would be impracticable. Speaking of " Imitation," he said that it is the lowest style only of arts, whether of painting, poetry, or music, that may be said, in the vulgar seme, to be naturally pleasing. The higher efforts of those arts, we know by experience, do not affect minds wholly uncultivated. This refined taste is the consequence of education and habit ; we are born only with a capacity of entertaining this refinement, as we are born with a disposition to receive and obey all the rules and regulations of society ; and so far it may be said to be natural to us, and no further." His reasonings on the propriety of acting, and on the pleasures derived from jt, are highly worthy the attention SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 337 both of performers and audience ; but they are too long even to give a slight sketch of them in this place: I shall therefore merely add his own conclusion to this discourse ; when he says, that " it is allowed on all hands, that facts and events, however they may bind the Historian, have no dominion over the Poet or the Painter. With us. History is made to bend and conform to this great idea of art. And why? Because these arts, in their highest province, are not addressed to the gross senses ; but to the desires of the mind, to that spark of divinity which we have within, impatient of being circum- scribed and pent up by the world about us. Just so much as our art has of this, just so much of dignity, I had almost said of divinity, it exhibits ; and those of our artists who possessed this mark of distinction in the highest degree, acquired from thence the glorious appellation of Divine /" When Alderman Boy dell projected the scheme of his magnificent edition of the plays of Shakspeare, accompanied with large prints from pictures to be executed by EnoHsh painters, it was deemed to be absolutely necessary that something of Sir Joshua's painting should be procured to grace the collection ; but, unexpectedly Sir Joshua appeared to be rather shy in the business, as if he thought it degrading himself to paint for a print-seller, and he would not at first consent to be employed in the work. George Stevens, the Editor of Shakspeare, now undertook to persuade him to comply, and taking a bank bill of five hundred pounds in his liau;], he had an interview with Sir Joshua, when usin<>- all his eloquence in argument, he in the mean time slipt X X 338 MEMOIRS OF the bank bill into his hand ; he then soon Ibund that his mode of reasoning was not to be resisted, and a picture was promised. Sir Joshua now commenced his studies, and no less tlian three paintings were exhibited at the Shakspeare Gallery, or at least taken from that poet, the only ones, as has been very correctly said, which Sir Joshua ever executed for his illustration, with the exception of a head of King Lear, (done indeed in 1783) and now in the possession of the Marchioness of Thomond, and a portrait of the Honourable Mrs. Tollemache in the character of Miranda, in the " Tempest," in which Prospero and Caliban are introduced. One of these paintings for the Gallery was Puck, or Robin Goodfellow, as it has been called, which in point of expression and animation is unparalleled and one of the happiest efforts of Sir Joshua's pencil, though it has been said, by some cold critics, not to be perfectly characteristic of the merry wanderer of Shakspeare. It is now the property of Samuel Rogers, Esq. Macbeth, with the Witches and the Cauldron, was another, and for this Mr. Boydell paid him one thousand guineas ; but who is now the possessor of it I know not. The third was Cardinal Beaufort, for which 500 guineas were paid ; now the property of the Earl of Egremont. Of this latter picture an artist of great genius always declared that it united the local colouring of Titian with the Chiaro SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 339 scuro of Rembrandt: this is a just criticism; and another critic has observed " this picture of the dying Beaufort is truly an impressive performance ; the general hue of the picture is consonant to Shakspeare's awful scene — sober — grand — solemn.— The excruciating agony of guilt and fear that writhes each limb, and fastens his convulsive fingers on the bed clothes, makes each spectator shudder — and the face of the dying Cardinal has that agonized and horrid grin described by the poet. "See how the pangs of death do make him grin." This last is common newspaper criticism of which much was poured forth at the time; for this picture when exhibited excited great attention, and gave rise to much critical contro- versy : and with respect to the demon at the pillow of the dying Cardinal, there have been many objections made ; nay Sir Joshua was most earnestly importuned to erase it, but knew better than to comply. These objections require to be combatted in vindication of the illustrious author of the work, as he did not seem inclined to do it for himself, although he could have so amply refuted them. It must be allowed that the first business of an historical painter is to make his picture tell its story distinctly, clearly, and quickly ; or else he can claim but little merit to himself above that which belongs to the mechanical part, the mere operation of his hand. The peculiar and characteristic essence of this subject, the X X 2 340 MEMOIRS OF death of tlie wicked Cardinal Beaufort, is that the dying man's agonies do not proceed from bodily pain, so much as from the horrors of a guilty conscience. This is a distinction in expression, of so nice a kind in respect to its being pourtrayed, that perhaps Raffaelle himself would have found it difficult to execute it: yet this important article of information must of necessity be decidedly and distinctly pronounced, or the subject is not explained. Even Shakspeare himself in his text has thought it requisite to employ his imagery in order to make his intentions more surely to be understood, by making the King say, " Oh ihon eternal mover of the Heavens, Look with a gentle Eye upon this wretch! Oh beat away the busy meddling fiend That lays stro7ig siege unto this wretch's soul, And from his bosom purge this black despair." How much more necessary then is it to the painter, whose powers in this respect are so much more limited by not being able to explain those circumstances which are past ? However, we have a right to conclude that Sir Joshua was doubtful of the power in himself, and perhaps of the power in the art also, to compass the difficulty of explicitly and distinctly giving the just and clear expression of guilt, in contradistinction to bodily pain : which Avas absolutely neces- sary to explain the story ; an explanation which, if not quickly given, is not well given, for the essence of painting is to produce and effect an instantaneous impression on the spectator: the introduction of the demon therefore does this, I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 341 and leads the mind to furtlier inquiry, and to investigate tlie more hidden excellencies of the work, and prevents the possibility even for a moment, of mistaking it for the representation of a man dying in a mere painful bodily disease. The late Mr. Opie in his lectures has touched upon this same subject, and it is with much gratification that I give the opinion of this most able critic, as it is so consistent with my own. *' The varied beauties of this work, he says, might well employ a great part of a lecture, but, at present, I shall pass them over, and attend only to what relates immediately to the question before us, the effect of the visionary devil, couched close, and listening eagerly behind the pillow of the dying wretch; which not only invigorates and clothes the subject in its appropriate interest and terror, but immediately clears up all ambiguity, by informing us that those are not bodily sufferings which we behold so forcibly delineated ; that they are not merely the pangs of death which make him grin ; but that his agony proceeds from those daggers of the mind, the overwhelming horrors of a guilty and awakened conscience. This was the point, on which rested the whole moral effect of the piece ; it was absolutely necessary to be understood, and could by no other means have been so strongly and perspicu- ously expressed. An expedient, therefore, at once necessary, so consistent with the spirit of the subject, and so completely successful, far from being regarded as an unwarrantable license, is justifiable by all rules of sound criticism, and ought to be 342 MEMOIRS OF regarded as one of the most signal examples of invention in the artist." Whoever paints to the mind will eventually succeed ; and no one must be discouraged in the pursuit, because he meets with contradictory opinions as to the first and most alluring objects in his picture ; as most persons, especially the uneducated, see differently : and to obey the capricious and unsettled humours of each, would be to sacrifice every thing that is just and noble in the art. An artist should calmly hear the opinions of all ; but reserve it for the adoption of his future thought, how far he will or will not alter his design ; — and he can scarcely hesitate too much, as the first thoughts are, generally speaking, more vigorous than those conceived and born after the imagination and this judgment has been forced into action, and generated in obedience to the wishes of a cold observer. It was proposed that Sir Joshua should also have executed the closet scene in Hamlet ; but I believe it was never even begun. I know it was not his desire to paint any circumstance in history of a complicated nature, his expression to me on that subject was, " That it cost him too dear.'' His great pleasure was in those works of fancy in which might be shown beauty, expression, or character, in a single figure, or at most not more tjmn two, and in those when of his own choice, he was unrivalled by either ancient or modern artists. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 343 How far it had ever been Sir Joshua's intention to paint ont a scene of the play of Hamlet, I do not know, but I remember just about that time, lie repeated to me an observation of a great man on that very play. The illustrious Charles Fox, conversing once with Sir Joshua Reynolds on the merits and demerits of Shakspeare, said it was his opinion that Shakspeare's credit would have stood higher if he had never written, the play of Hamlet. This anecdote was told me by Sir Joshua himself. I must confess that my own opinion differs very much from this high authority. It seems to me that if there is one play of Shakspeare's which denotes genius above the others, it is that of Hamlet. Such an infinite and subtile discrimination of character, such feeling is displayed in it ; it is rendered so exquisitely interesting., yet without the help of a regular plot, almost without a plan ; so like in its simplicity to the progress of nature itself, that it appears to be an entire effusion of pure genius alone. Besides those historical scenes from Shakspeare which Sir Joshua executed for that truest and greatest encourager of English Art, that England ever saw, the late Alderman Boydell, that gentleman, who reverenced merit of every kind wherever he found it, also employed Sir Joshua's pencil, as the greatest painter, to pourtray for him the greatest hero 344 MEMOIRS OF of his day, the late Lord Heathfield, of Gibraltar ; and this exquisite portrait, when finished, was exhibited in his gallery in Pall Mall. I cannot refrain recording a little anecdote as related by the general, at the time the painter was employed on the picture, whom he frequently diverted by some curious narrative, or amused by relating some droll anecdotes ; one in particular, of a very rich Jew who resided in Prussia at the time of Frederick the Great, and was in high favour with his Majesty, and a very useful person to him. Certain apprehen- sions arising, however, in the Jew's mind, that a very wealthy subject was not in the most safe situation, while under an arbitrary Sovereign, he resolved within himself to get out of the Prussian dominions, together with his property, as soon as he could accomplish it. But this he saw was not possible to- be done till he had procured the King's consent. He therefore in the humblest and most cunning manner wrote to Frederick to obtain his permission, alleging that both his health and affairs required his departure. But the more crafty King, who probably saw through his design, returned this short but affectionate answer, " My Dear Mordecai, " Nothing but death shall part us. *' Frederick." The good offices of Sir Joshua through life M'ere not confined to his intimate friends, but were often extended, particularly to professional men ; one of whom in a great measure owed his success in the art to his advice, and to his recommendation of him, in this year, to the late Dnkc of Rutland, then setting out on his appointment to the Vice-Royalty of Ireland. . rvo«GE AUGUSTUS i:uioTi\K,n GKNKRAS. SIR GEORGE 7^ /('V// //// f>'/f^/^/^'f SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 345 The person I allude to was a Mr. Pack, a native of Norwich, and Avho, from a fondness for the art, had copied many of Sir Joshua's paintings with great accuracy, having been strongly recommended to him by a friend. Some time after this, Mr. Pack, who was a mercantile man, suffered considerably by his American connections, and found it expedient to seek for support from that which he had practised before only as an amusement; and he was so successful in his Irish trip as to be tempted to risk his fate in London, where he afterwards practised with some little degree of fame. This liberality of conduct, indeed. Sir Joshua practised frequently ; and always candidly bestowed praise on his contemporaries, where due. Of Gainsborough, he said, that he could copy Vandyke so exquisitely, that at a certain distance he could not distinguish the copy from the original, or the difference between them. His manner he considered as peculiarly his own, and as one producing great effect and force ; and one day whilst examining a picture of his with considerable attention, he at length exclaimed, "I cannot make out how he produces his effect !" Sir Joshua, at the solicitation of Gainsborough, sat one morning to him for his portrait, but being taken ill soon after this first sitting, he was obliged to go to Bath for the recovery of his health, and, at his return, sent to Gainsborough to inform him, that he was ready to attend at any time he would appoint, 346 MEMOIRS OF in order to have the picture finished ; but Gainsborough never resumed the work, and therefore it was never completed : why he declined it is not known ; probably because Sir Joshua had made no offer to return the compliment by engaging to paint the portrait of Gainsborough. But Sir Joshua never had such an intention, which I heard him declare. No further intercourse took place between these two artists until Gainsborough was on his death-bed, when his better feelings overcame his capriciousness, and he sent for Sir Joshua to thank him for the liberal manner in which he had always spoken of him in public and in private conversation. Sir Joshua, indeed, had proved his opinion of his talents, by paying one hundred guineas for his well known picture of the ** Girl attending Pigs." Nothing can be more strongly expressive of Gainsborough's acknowledged goodness of heart, and of his ardent love for the profession, than the exclamation uttered whilst expiring — We are ail going to Heaven, and Vandyke is of the party i" He was interred, on the 9th of August, in Kew Church-yard, with his name alone cut on his tomb-stone ; Sir Joshucl being one of the pall-bearers, together with Sir William Chambers, Mr. West the present President, Mr. Meyers, and Messrs. T. Cotes, Sandby, and Bartoiozzi. The ceremony was also attended by several other gentlemen eminent for abilities, particularly Mr, Sheridan, &c. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 347 On pronouncing his eulogiuni, which took place this year at the usual delivery of the Discourse, Sir Joshua's praises were just, instructive, and eloquent. The purport of the whole discourse, indeed, turned upon Gainsborough's character, together with his excellencies and defects ; and, amongst other reasons for adopting this subject, he observed, that when we draw our examples from remote and revered antiquity, Vvith some advantage undoubtedly in the selection, we expose ourselves to some inconveniencies, being, perhaps, led away too much by great names, and too much subdued by overbearing authority. He considered it, therefore, to be sometimes of service, that our examples should be near us ; and be such as raise a reverence sufficient to induce us carefully to observe them, yet not so great as to prevent us from engaging with them in something like a generous contention. With great justness Sir Joshua declared his opinion, that if ever this nation should produce genius sufficient to acquire for us the honorable distinction of an English School, then the name of Gainsborough will be transmitted to posterity, in the history of the art, among the very first of that rising name : and after shewing that he had owed much of his excellence to his love for the art, he expressed himself of him personally, with great candour in the following words: — " Of Gainsborough we certainly know that his passion was not the acquirement of riches, but excellence in his art ; and to enjoy that honourable fame which is sure to attend it. — That he felt this ruling passion strong in death, I am myself a witnes.s. A few Y Y 2 348 MEMOIRS OF days before he died, he wrote me a letter to express his acknowledgments for the good opinion I entertained of his abilities, and the manner in which (he had been informed) I always spoke of him ; and desired he might see me once more before he died. I am aware how flattering it is to myself to be thus connected with the dying testimony which this excellent painter bore to his art. But I cannot prevail on myself to suppress, that I was not connected with him, by any habits of familiarity: if any little jealousies had subsisted between us, they were forgotten in those moments of sincerity ; and he turned towards me as one who was engrossed by the same pursuits, and who deserved his good opinion by being sensible of his excellence. Without entering into a detail of what passed at this last interview, the impression of it upon my mind was, that his regret at losing life, was principally the regret of leaving his art ; and more especially as he now began, he said, to see what his deficiencies were ; which, he said, he flattered himself, in his last works, were, in some measure, supplied." The remainder of this discourse, the fourteenth, was dedicated to a comparison of Gainsborough with some other landscape painters, and it contains many most judicious observations, alike useful to the critic and the artist. Of the many portraits of Sir Joshua himself, by his own hand, the last which he painted was executed this year ; it is a three quarter length, with spectacles, representing him familiarly, as in common domestic life. Of this picture there are several duplicates : one in the possession of the Duke of SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 349 Leeds ; but his niece, the Marchioness of Thomond, possesses the original. The well known satirical and descriptive production, called " Modern Characters from Shakspeare," was published this year. The passages, from the Winter's Tale and Timon, applied to Sir Joshua, are so well selected, that 1 cannot refuse them a place here. The first was — " That rare master, who, had he himself eternity, and could put breath into his work, would beguile nature of her custom." — The second — "Admirable! how this grace spefaks his own standing ! what a mental power this eye shoots forth ! how big imagination moves in this lip!" I come now to a most unfortunate era in the life of this great artist, when he encountered a heavy dispensation, the heaviest that could befal a professional man, the partial loss of his sight. Mr. Malone, whose intimacy with Sir Joshua, at the time, enabled him to be perfectly correct in his statement, says, that he for the first time perceived this failure in the month of July, whilst giving nearly the last finishing to a portrait of the present Marchioness of Hertford. This, of course, was the last female portrait which he ever painted ; for, finding it difficult to proceed, he immediately desisted, and in a few months afterwards he totally lost the use of his left eye, notwithstanding all the care of the most skilful practitioners in that branch of surgery. 350 MEMOIRS OF Amongst the last of his portraits of men, were those of Messrs. Windham and Cholniondeley, of Lord Macartney, never finished, and of Mr. Fox. I mention these circumstances particularly in this place, because, that he now found it absolutely necessary to abstain from the use of his pencil, lest his remaining eye should also be affected ; a determination which cost him great pain, and required great resolution to adhere to, as it deprived him of his best and dearest source of enjoyment, though he still ventured to read a little, or to listen to others ; nor did he find himself deprived of the society of his friends, his misfortune not having affected his equal mind so much as to render him peevish or discontented. Indeed, like a philosopher, he endeavoured to console himself by the pleasures left him, more than to lament the loss of those of which he was deprived ; and of these pleasures, he found many in the friendly intercourse the Literary C/w^. which, however, was, in some measure, interrupted by the politics of that period, if we are to judge from a letter of Sir William Jones to Sir Joseph Banks, written in the latter end of this very year: "I wish politics at the devil, but hope, that when the King recovered. Science revived. It gives me great pain to know, that party, as it is called, (I call it faction, because I hold party to be grounded on principles, and faction on self-interest,) has found its way into a Literary* Club, who meet reciprocally to impart, and receive new ideas. I have deep-rooted political principles, which the law taught me ; but I should never think of introducing them among men of science, and if, on my return to Europe, ten or twelve years hence, I should not find more science than politics in the club, my seat in it will be at SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS, 351 the service of any politician who may wish to be one of the party." Sir William Jones, however, did not live to return ; nor did Sir Joshua, indeed, mingle in those debates to which he alludes, but preserved the same friendly tenor of conduct and suavity of manners to his associates there, that he exercised towards all men in private life ; for politics never amused him or ever employed his thoughts a moment. That kindness of manner and readiness to oblige were particularly exemplified by a little incident which happened this year, thus noticed by Mr. Dayes, the artist, who says, " Malice has charged him with avarice ; probably from his not having been prodigal like too many of his profession. His offer to me proves the contrary. At the time that I made the drawings of the King at St. Paul's, after his illness, Reynolds complimented me handsomely on seeing them, and afterwards observed, that the labour bestowed must have been such, that I could not be remunerated from selling them ; but if I would publish them myself, he would lend me the money necessary, and engage to get me a handsome subscription among the nobility." An unhappy difference now took place between the President and the Royal Academy, which made considerable noise, and has often been related by various writers, according (in some measure,) to the feelings which they had in the business. I shall endeavour, however, to state the whole affair as impar- tially as possible ; but according to my own conception of the 352 MEMOIRS OF business, which is very well told by an obscure author in a pamphlet published at the time, who says, that in the year 1790, Sir Joshua Reynolds (probably at the request of the Earl of Aylesford,) possessed a very anxious desire to procure the vacant professorship of Perspective in the Academy for Mr. Bonomi, an Italian architect ; and as Mr. Bonomi had not yet been elected an Associate, and of course was not an Academician, it became a necessary step to raise him to those situations, in order to qualify him for being a Professor. The election proceeded, and Mr. Gilpin was a competitor for the associateship with the Italian architect. The numbers on the ballot proved equal ; and the President gave the casting vote for his friend Mr. Bonomi, who was thereby advanced so far towards the professorship. On the vacancy bf an academic seat by the death of Mr. Meyers, Sir Joshua Reynolds exerted all his influence to obtain it for Mr. Bonomi ; but a spirit of resistance appeared, (owing, I believe, to some mis- conception, or to some informality on the part of Sir Joshua, in producing some drawings of Bonomi's) and Mr. Fuseli was elected an Academician by a majority of two to one. The President then quitted the chair with great dissatisfaction ; and on the following day (the 12th of February,) Sir Joshua Reynolds, who for twenty-one years had filled the chair of the Royal Academy, with honour to himself and his country, sent his resignation to Mr. Richards, the Secretary of the Academy. A council was soon after held, and the subject of their delibera- tion was, the resignation of the President. A letter from Sir Joshua to Mr. Richards was then read, declaring his resolution SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 353 to resign the presidency of the Royal Academy. A letter from Sir William Chambers to Sir Joshua was also read ; this was addressed to Sir Joshua, in consequence of Sir William's interview with the King, in an early stage of this business ; and, ai^iong other flattering marks of the Sovereign's favour, the letter expressed, " That his Majesty would be happy in Sir Joshua's continuing in the President's chair." Sir Joshua's letter to Sir William Chambers, in reply, stated in effect, " That he inferred his conduct must have been hitherto satisfactory to his Majesty, from the very gratifying way in which his Royal pleasure had been declared ; and, if any inducement could make him depart from his original resolution, the will of his Sovereign would prevail ; but that, flattered by his Majesty's approval to the last, there could be nothing that was not perfectly honourable in his resignation ; and that, in addition to this determination, as he could not consistently hold the subordinate distinction of Royal Acade- mician, alter he had so long possessed the chair, he begged also to relinquish that honour." All idea of now soothing Sir Joshua, by any proceeding of the Academy, since the Sovereign's wishes had been of no avail, was rejected as superfluous and inconsistent. Immediately on Sir Joshua's resignation, the following lines were addressed to him by a Nobleman of genius, which I insert because they contain characteristic truths, and elegance of poetry. Some other verses were addressed to hira by different persons but none of equal merit. z z 354 MEMOIRS OF TO SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS, &C. &C. Too wise for contest, and too meek for strife, Like Lear, oppress'd by those you rais'd to life, Thy sceptre broken, thy dominion o'er. The curtain falls, and thou'rt a king no more. Still near the wreck of thy demolished state. Truth, and the weeping Muse with me shall wait ; Science shall teach Britannia's self to moan, And make, O injured Friend ! thy wrongs her own. " Shall we forget when, with incessant toil. To thee 'twas given to turn this stubborn soil; To thee with flowers to deck our dreary waste. And kill the poisonous weeds of vicious taste; To pierce the gloom where England's genius slept, Long of soft love and tenderness bereft ; From his young limbs to tear the bands away, And bid the infant giant run and play? Dark was the hour, the age an age of stone. When Hudson claimed an empire of his own; And from the time when, darting rival light, Vandyke and Rubens cheered our northern night, Those twin stars set, the Graces all had fled, Yet paused to hover o'er a Lely's head ; And sometimes bent, when won with earnest prayer, To make the gentle Kneller all their care ; But ne'er with smiles to gaudy Verrio turned ; No happy incense on his altars burned. O witness, Windsor, thy too passive walls, Thy tortured ceilings, thy insulted halls! Lo ! England's glory, Edward's conquering son, Cover'd with spoils from Poictiers bravely wonj SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 355 Yet no white plumes, no arms of sable hue, Mark the young hero to our ravished view ; In buskin trim, and laurelled helmet bright, A well-dressed Roman meets our puzzled sight ; And Gallia's captive king, how strange his doom, A Roman too perceives himself become ! " See too the miracles of God profaned, By the mad daubings of this impious hand. For while the dumb exult in notes of praise, While the lame walk, the blind in transport gaze, While vanquished demons Heaven's high mandates hear. And the pale dead spring from the silent bier ; With laced cravat, long wig, and careless mien. The painter's present at the wondrous scene ! " Vanloo and Dahl, these may more justly claim A step still higher on the throne of fame ; Yet to the west their course they seem to run, The last red streaks of a declining sun. " And must we Jervas name ? so hard and cold, In ermine, robes, and peruke only bold ; Or when inspired, his rapturous pencil own The roUed-up stocking, and the damask gown. Behold a tasteless age in wonder stand. And hail him the Apelles of the land ! And Denner too ; — but yet so void of ease. His figures tell you they're forbid to please ; Nor in proportion, nor expression nice. The strong resemblance is itself a vice : As wax-work figures always shock the sight, •\ Too near to human flesh and shape, affright, ^ And when they best are form'd afford the least delight. ^ " Turn we from such to thee, whose nobler art Rivets the eye, and penetrates the heart z z 2 MEMOIRS OF To thee whom nature, in thy earliest youth, Fed with the honey of eternal truth : Then, by her fondling art, in happy hour, Enticed to learning's more sequest'red bovver. There all thy life of honours first was planned. While nature preached, and science held thy hand. When, but for these, condemned perchance to trace The tiresome vacuum of each senseless face. Thou in thy living tints had ne'er combined All grace of form, and energy of mind. How^, but for these, should we have trembling fled The guilty tossings of a Beaufort's bed ; Or let the fountain of our sorrows flow At sight of famished Ugolino's woe ? Bent on revenge, should we have pensive stood O'er the pale cherubs of the fatal wood. Caught the last perfume of their rosy breath. And viewed them smiling at the stroke of death ? Should we have questioned, stung witli rage and pain. The spectre line witii the distracted Thane ? Or with Alcmena's natural terror wild, From the envenomed serpent torn her child ? " And must no more thy pure and classic page Unfold its treasures to the rising age ? Jsor from thy own Athenian temple pour On listening youth of art the copious store; Hold up to labour inde[ endent ease. And teach ambition all the ways to please; With ready hand neglected Genius save, Sickening, o'erlook'd in Misery"'s hidden cave; And, nobly just, decide the active mind Neither to soil, nor climate is confined " Desert not then thy sons, those sons who soon Will moutn with me, and all their error own. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 357 Thou must excuse that raging fire, the same Which lights their daily course to endless fame; Alas! impels them thoughtless far to stray From filial love, and Reason's sober way. Accept again thy power, resume the chair, " Nor leave it, till you place an Equal there." Even Peter Pindar, in his eccentric way, laments also what he considered as improper treatment of this great painter, and in his verse attempts to immortalize that head which had so often, assisted by its hand, immortalized the heads of so many others ; and this the witty poet compares to that of Orpheus, which, on his being torn in pieces, was carried down the stream and drifted to the island of Lesbos. The passage is in one of his Lyric Odes. *' Now I've been thinking, if our Reynolds' head Should, on his palette, down the Thames drive souse, And mindful of the walls he once array'd Bring to, a bit, at Somerset new house ; What scramblings there would be, what worlds of pains Among the artists to possess his brains. And like Neanthus for great Orpheus' lyre. Some for his palette would be raising frays, In hopes, no doubt, the wood would each inspire To paint like him for — fame in better days j As if a soldier, who'd no legs to use. Should fight for his dead comrade's boots and shoes. Reynolds, when I reflect what sons of fame Have shar'd thy friendship, J with sighs regret That all have died a little in thy debt, And left a trump unknown to swell thy name ; But courage friend ! when Time's relentless tooth Hath nibbled mountains to the ground smack smooth 358 MEMOIRS OF And pick'd, as one would pick a savoury bone, Each monument of iron, and brass, and stone ; — Thy name shall live, and like heav'n's sacred fire Succeeding artists kindle, and inspire." Every Academician now regretted the unforeseen conse- quence of the unfortunate disagreement ; however, the whole body showed so liberal a desire to retain Sir Joshua in the chair, that, after agitating those unpleasant differences between the president and the academy with as much delicacy as possible, it was determined that a delegation of the following gentlemen, to wit, Messrs. West, Farington, Cosway, Catton, Sandby, Bacon, Copley, Barry, and Rigaud, should wait upon Sir Joshua, and lay before him the resolution which the Academy had come to in order to produce a conciliatory effect. The resolution was in substance as follows : " That it appeared, when the drawings of Mr, Bonomi were introduced at the election, Sir Joshua, by whose directions they were brought in, had certainly acted in conformity to the intentions of the council, as appeared by an order entered on their books ; but that, such order not going through the regular forms necessary to constitute a law, the full body of Academicians remained ignorant of the proceeding, and therefore fell into an error in ordering the drawings to be removed. But, as they unanimously professed that no personal disrespect was intended towards Sir Joshua, they trusted he would be prevailed upon to comply with the wishes of the King, and continue in the Presidency of the Royal Academy." Slit JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 359 The above delegates accordingly waited upon Sir Joshua, to intreat him to withdraw his letter of resisfnation, and resume his situation as President of an institution to which his talents had been so long an essential support. They had an interview with him at his house in Leicester Square, and were received with great politeness ; and every mark of respect was expressed by those who had hitherto been deemed least cordial to the interests of the President. Upon a full expla- nation of the intentions and views of the Academy being made, and their wishes expressed that Sir Joshua would continue to adorn the presidency, he, after a handsome declaration of his gratitude for this honorable proceeding towards him, consented to resume the chair, and the whole of the delegates were invited to dine with him, in order to convince them that he returned to his office with sentiments of the most cordial amity. On the suggestion of Lord Lansdowne, it was thought that Sir Joshua could not resume the chair till he had the proper authority of the King. For this, in due form. Lord Lansdowne applied ; and when granted, this great artist attended at Somerset House, to be restored to all his honours in full assembly of the members. Shortly after this, Sir Joshua delivered his fifteenth and ^ast discourse, in which he took leave of the Academy, on the 10th of December, 1790 : a discourse which gave a foreign artist, of considerable celebrity, occasion to say, that if he had only heard this final oration in praise of Michael AngelOj and seen that great national ornament, Somerset. 360 MEMOIRS OF House, he should have been certain that the English nation were far advanced in the highest departments of art. On this interesting occasion, Sir Joshua observed, that the intimate connexion which he had maintained with tlie Royal Academy ever since its establishment, and the social duties in which he and its members had been mutually engaged for so many years, rendered any profession of attachment on his part altogether superfluous ; as, independent of other causes, such attachment would naturally have been produced in such a connexion, by the influence of habit alone. He modestly liinted at the little differences which had arisen : but expressed his wish that such things should be lost amongst the members in mutual esteem for talents and acquirements, and that every controversy would be sunk in general zeal for the perfection of that art common to them all. In parting with the Academy, he declared that he would remember with pride, aft'ection, and gratitude, the support with which he had almost uniformly been honoured, from the commencement of the Establishment ; and that he should leave it with unaftected cordial wishes for its future concord, and with a well-founded hope, that in that concord, the aus- picious, and not obscure, origin of the Academy, might wo^ be forgotten in the splendor of succeeding prospects. He then, with his usual modesty, assigned his reasons for thus voluntarily giving those periodical discourses. " If prizes were to be given, it appeared not only proper r SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 361 but almost indispensably necessary, that something should be said by the President on the delivery of those prizes, and the President, for his own credit, would wish to say something more than mere words of compliment ; which, by being frequently repeated, would soon become flat and uninteresting, and by being uttered to many, would at last become a distinction to none. I thought, therefore, if I were to preface this compliment with some instructive observations on the art, when we crowned merit in the artists whom we rewarded, I might do something to animate and guide them in their future attempts." Though Sir Joshua had not actually made his final resignation at this period, yet it is evident that he contem- plated it, as he observed that his age and infirmities made it probable that this would really be his last address ; and he added, with a degree of philosophy worthy of imitation, that excluded as he was from indulging his imagination with a distant and forward perspective of life, so he trusted that he would be excused for turning his eyes back on the way that he had passed. To follow him through this review of his professional life and discourses would far exceed my proposed limits ; but I may be permitted to say, that if he did not absolutely feel the ruling passion strong in death, yet he appeared to express its strongest sentiments in what may thus be called his profes- sional demise, which he concluded with these remarkable words, after having expatiated on the exalted genius of his favourite master — 3 A 362 MEMOIRS OF " I feel a self-congratulation in knowing myself capable of such sensations as he intended to excite. I reflect, not without vanity, that these discourses bear testimony of my admiration of that truly divine man ; and I should desire that the last words which I should pronounce in this Academy, and from this place, might be the name of — Michael Angela On the evening of the delivery of this discourse one remarkable circumstance occurred, which, at the moment, not a little alarmed the company there assembled, and which was this. At the time when Sir Joshua was delivering his oration to a very numerous and even crowded audience, composed of persons of the highest rank in the state, as well as all those who were the most eminent in art, and just at the moment when a respectful and solemn silence prevailed, on a sudden, a loud crash was heard, and a sensation felt, as if the floor of this great room, which is at the top of the house, was giving way and falling. The company immediately took the alarm, and rushed towards the door, or to the sides of the room, tumbling one over the other, in the utmost confusion and consternation, expecting, every moment, that the floor would fall away, and precipitate them down to the lower part of the building. Sir Joshua was silent, but did not move from his seat : when, after some little time, the company perceiving that the danger had ceased, most of them resumed their places, and Sir Joshua calmly continued his discourse, as coolly as if nothing extraordinary had occurred. On an examination of the floor afterwards, it was found SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 363 that one of the beams for its support had actually given way from the great weight of the assembly of persons who pressed upon it, and probably from a flaw also in the wood. I remember the remark Sir Joshua made on this accident was, that if the floor had really fallen, most of the persons assembled must have been crushed to death in consequence ; and if so, the arts, in this country, would have been thrown two hundred years back. But, providentially, no ill effect was produced by the circumstance. It was the opinion of Sir Joshua Reynolds, that Michael Angelo was superior to the ancients, as he once declared to me ; and on my not according with him in that opinion, I remember he said, " You have the strongest party in the argument, because you have the world on your side.^' But at this time I am more inclined to think with him, at least thus far, that in the works of Michael Angelo there always appears to be an exquisite sentiment produced ; but from the antique, nothing of that which he inspires. The antique gives us, undoubtedly, a more perfect example of just proportions, and of characters. I apprehend the same qualities run through all their works of every species : their dramas seem to be the works of men of most powerful heads, and therefore the most proper models for the schools, as, in them, nothing that is wrong can be found; and we may therefore assist our judgment, by the help of their examples, as infallible guides, which examples can be reduced to rules. 3 A 2 364 MEMOIRS OF But the feelings of the heart admit of but little assistance or improvement irom fixed rules. Thus, he who may have settled his notions of perfection from the models of the ancient dramas, and supposes nothing can surpass them in any quality whatever, must be struck with astonishment and admiration^ when, for the first time, he contemplates the pages of Shakspeare, where such various sensations, subtle and refined; are described. Yet Shakspeare cannot, like the ancients, be admitted as a model for the schools, inasmuch as he is irregular and licentious, and his excellencies, like all those of genius, cannot be taught. It must have been in this view that Sir Joshua saw a superiority in Michael Angelo over the antique ; as surely he could not think him equal to them in just proportion, or in the decision and propriety of character. Some attempts may be discovered in his practice to imitate Michael Angelo ; and more to imitate Corregio : but it is evident, that his whole life was devoted to his finding out the Venetian mode of colouring ; in the pursuit of which he risked both his fame and his fortune. This being nearly the close of Sir Joshua's professional life, I may remark, that, for some years, his price had been fifty guineas for a head portrait, the other sizes being in proportion. On this subject, a friend observed to him, that it certainly seemed to be a great demand ; but that when it was taken into consideration how many pictures were left upon his hands, and never paid for, it would not amount to SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 365 more, perhaps, than ten guineas for each, individually, which was too small a price. To this Sir Joshua smilingly replied, that he thought " ten guineas for each was a very reasonable profit." I recollect a circumstance of a certain lady who came to Sir Joshua to have her portrait painted by him, a short time before he raised his price to its final extent ; but on her asking his demand, and being informed that it was forty guineas for the half length, she started, saying that she did not apprehend his terms to be so high, adding, that she must take some time to consider upon it. Shortly after, this lady paid Sir Joshua another visit, and informed him, that she had now made up her mind, and was come to a resolution to comply with his proposed terms ; when he acquainted her with his price being raised ; and, of course, that what would have been forty, was now sixty guineas. Thus, doubly mortified, the lady saw there was no alternative ; and she frankly owned, that she would have her portrait drawn by him at any price ; and accordingly sat for it. Though now contemplating a secession from public life, Sir Joshua did not feel any decrease in his love for the art, or in his good wishes for the profession, sentiments strikingly evinced by his general conduct at all times, and particularly so in the year 1791 • He had, during the course of his professional labours, procured a very large and valuable collection of paintings, the works of the old masters ; and his assemblage of prints was 366 MEMOIRS OF highly valuable and interesting. So great, indeed, was his desire to render his collection a good one, that, as Mr. Dayes very accurately states, he offered to cover twice with guineas, as the price of purchase, the picture of the " Witch coming from Hell with a lapfuU of Charms," by Teniers ; but this was refused. Yet it is pleasing to record, that he afterwards possessed this very picture ; and, as he modestly declared, by only painting a portrait, a fancy subject, and giving another of his own works, already executed. The sum which he offered would have amounted to near one thousand s^uineas 1 In this collection he had what he thought to be an oil painting of his favorite, Michael Angelo — a Madona and Child. But this involves a question which no one can deter- mine ; for if it was by Michael Angelo it would be invaluable indeed, not so much from its intrinsic merit, as from the extreme rarity of oil paintings from the pencil of that artist, and of which there are, indeed, very few in existence ; for oil-painting, he used to say, " was only fit for women and children !"* Still, however. Sir Joshua's professed admiration of him was so great, that Angelo's head was engraved on his seal ; and he also introduced his bust in that portrait which he painted of himself for the Royal Academy, and has marked the name of Michael Angelo on the paper held in the hand of his portrait, now in the Gallery at Florence. * He had also a Study by the same master. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 367 So anxious was Sir Joshua Reynolds for the diffusion of a good taste in the art, and that future students might lind a practical commentary on those precepts which he had now ceased to deliver, that he, in the most liberal manner, offered to the Academy this collection of paintings at a very low price, on the condition that they would purchase the Lyceum in the Strand for the purpose of constructing an exhibition room. This generous offer, however, for several reasons, was declined ; yet this must still be a subject of regret when we consider the various testimonies which Sir Joshua has left, to the merit of the great masters, and the necessity of often referring to them ; and whilst so many well selected works were in this collection. In one place he exclaims, " On whom, then, can the student rely, or who shall shew him the path' that leads to excellence ? The answer is obvious : those great masters who have travelled the same road with success, are the most likely to conduct others. The works of those who have stood the test of ages, have a claim to that respect and veneration to which no mortal can pretend. The duration and stability of their fame are sufficient to evince that it has not been suspended upon the slender thread of fashion and caprice, but bound to the human heart by every tie of sympathetic approbation." He follows this up by adding, that " Our minds should be habituated to the contemplation of excellence, and, far from being contented to make such habits the discipline of our youth only, we should, to the last moment of our lives, continue a settled intercourse with all the true examples of grandeur. Their inventions are not only the food of our infancy, but the substance which supplies the fullest maturity of our vigour," S68 MEMOIRS OF His often repeated advice then was, — " Study, therefore, the great works of the great . masters for ever. Study, as nearly as you can, in the order, in the manner, on the principles, on which they studied. Study nature attentively, but always with those masters in your company ; consider them as models which you are to imitate, and at the same time as rivals which you are to combat." Failing in his attempt to establish a gallery for his pictures, Sir Joshua in this year, (1791,) determined to make a tempo- rary exhibition of them ; and this took place in the month of April, at an apartment in the Haymarket, which had formerly been that of Ford the auctioneer. To this, the price of admission was one shilling ; and as the profits arising from the exhibition were generously given by him to his old servant, Ralph Kirkley, so in the catalogue it was designated as, Ralph's Exhibition." Hitherto, Sir Joshua's personal health had not forsook him, and indeed, Mr. Malone states that in September of this year, he was in such health and spirits, that on returning to London from Gregories in Buckinghamshire, the seat of their mutual friend Edmund Burke, he and Sir Joshua left his carriage at the Inn at Hayes, and walked five miles on the road in a warm day, without his complaining of any fatigue. " He had at that time, though above sixty-eight years of age, the appearance of a man not much beyond fifty, and seemed as likely to live for ten or fifteen years, as any of his younger friends.'^ SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 369 In October, hovveverj his spirits became much depressed, as he then entertained strong apprehensions respecting a tumour which had been for some time collecting over his left eye. This was now accompanied by a considerable degree of inflammation, which rendered him fearful that his right eye might also be affected, and the surgeons adopted every means in their power to discuss it. but without effect ; for it was afterwards discovered to consist merely of extravasated blood, and had no connection with the optic nerve. He was so impressed, however, with a knowledge of his own state of health, that he now determined to retire from the situation of President; and accordingly he addressed a letter to the Academy, " intimating his intention to resign the office on account of bodily infirmities, which disabled him from executing the duties of it to his own satisfaction." This was dated on the 10th of November ; and on the 15th, a meeting of all the Academicians being called for the election of associates to that body, Mr. West, the present President, laid the letter before them, which was received with the most respectful concern by his long tried companions, to whom his talents and virtues were so well known. It was now proposed to embody a resolution whose purport should be that a deputation should wait on Sir Joshua to express their regret at this determination, and their wish that he might still retain the office, but appoint a deputy to execute its more laborious duties. This office was bestowed on, and accepted by, Mr. West, as a temporary arrangement ; 3 B 370 MEMOIRS OF but Sir Josliua was never able afterwards to resume any of his functions; for as Mr. Malone ' observes, "he laboured under . a much more dangerous disease, (than that connected M'ith the state of his eyes,) which deprived him of his wonted spirits and his appetite, though he was wholly unable to explain to his physicians the nature or seat of his disorder." During the course of Sir Joshua's active life, he had passed his days in a state of professional honour and social enjoyment, that has scarcely been equalled, and never surpassed by any of his predecessors in art. He had been blessed also with an excellent constitution by nature. Of these advantages he was very sensible, and I well remember a remark he once made to me, saying, " I have been fortunate in an uninterrupted share of good health and success for thirty years of my life: therefore, whatever ills may attend on the remainder of my days, I shall have no right to complain." But infirmities more than age seemed to rufh upon him in the decline of life, and were naturally embittered by the sudden contrast. He had from the beginning of his malady a fixed apprehension that it would end fatally to him, yet death was slow in its approach, which he surveyed with the fortitude of a philosopher, and the piety of a christian. When a friend attempted to give him comfort in the hope of returning health. He calmly answered, " I know that all things on earth must have an end, and now I am come to mine." It was not more than a fortnight before his death, it was SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. discovered that his disorder was occasioned by a diseased liver, which had confined him three painful months to his bed. Thus, not having completed his sixty-ninth year, he was taken from the world which admired him, and the country whicli he adorned, on Thursday evening, February the 23rd, 1792. His friends had for some considerable time conceived that he was low spirited, without material cause ; but on his being opened by Mr. Hunter, a preternatural enlargement of the liver, to more than double the usual size, sufficiently accounted for his depression and his death. Thus have I humbly attempted to trace the rise, and progress to the final dissolution, of Sir Joshua Reynolds, the nation's ornament, and the favourite of an approving world, taken from it when in the height of his professional honours, and in the full possession of an established fame — an artist and a man of whom scarce any praise can be too high. To sum up his character in brief I shall here insert the eulogium of Burke, written on the impulse of the moment, and which is alike creditable to the memory of departed genius, and to the ready talent of the surviving friend. " Last nighf, in the sixty-ninth year of his age, died, at his house in Leicester-fields, Sir Joshua Reynolds. His illness was long, but borne with a mild and cheerful fortitude, without the least mixture of any thing irritable or querulous ; agreeably to the placid and even tenour of his whole life. He had, from the beginning of his malady, a distinct view of his dissolution ; 3 B 2 372 MEMOIRS OF and he contemplated it with that entire composure, which nothing but the innocence, integrity, and usefuhiess of his life, and an unaffected submission to the will of Providence, could bestow. In this situation he had every consolation from family tenderness, which his own kindness had, indeed, well deserved. " Sir Joshua Reynolds was, on very many accounts, one of the most memorable men of his tim^. He was the first Englishman who added the praise of the elegant arts to the other glories of his country. In taste, in grace, in facility, in happy invention, and in the richness and harmony of colouring, he was equal to the greatest masters of the renowned ages. In portrait he went beyond them ; for he communi- cated to that description of the art, in which English artists are the most engaged, a variety, a fancy, and a dignity, derived from the higher branches, which even those who professed them in a superior manner, did not always preserve, when they delineated individual nature. His portraits remind the -spectator of the invention, of history, and the amenity of landscape. In painting portraits, he appeared not to be raised upon that platform, but to descend upon it from a higher sphere. His paintings illustrate his lessons, and his lessons seem to be derived from his paintings. He possessed the theory as perfectly as the practice of his art. To be such a painter, he was a profound and penetrating philosopher. '* In full affluence of foreign and domestic fame, admired by I I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 373 the expert in art, and by the learned in science, courted by the great, caressed by Sovereign powers, and celebrated by distinguished poets, his native humility, modesty, and candour, never forsook him even on surprize or provocation ; nor was the least degree of arrogance or assumption visible to the most scrutinizing eye in any part of his conduct or discourse. ' " His talents of every kind, powerful from nature, and not meanly cultivated by letters, his social virtues in all the relations and all the habitudes of life, rendered him the centre of a very great and unparalleled variety of agreeable societies, which will be dissipated by his death. He had too much merit not to excite some jealousy, too much innocence to provoke any enmity. The loss of no man of his time can be felt Av^ith more sincere, general, and unmixed sorrov\\ " HAIL ! AND FAREWELL ! " , All the periodical journals of the time teemed with eulogies on the character of this eminent man ; but they are too numerous to insert here, although several of them v/ere extremely well written : but of this of Burke's, it was said by a contemporary journalist, that it was the eulogium of ApcUes pronounced by Pericles, and that to attempt to add to it, would be to risk the same censure that would be passed upon an inferior artist who should presume to retouch one of Sir Joshua's own pictures. What now remains to be detailed, is the account of his funeral ; and I shall, in this, avail myself partly of copying 374 MEMOIRS OP some particulars of that solemn ceremony as they were drawn up for the public prints, by the pens, it is said, of Messrs. Burke and Malone in conjunction — a very just statement given with simplicity and feeling, and worthy of its subject. It may be necessary to premise, that Mr. Burke applied by letter to the Council of the Royal Academy, soon after Sir Joshua's decease, requesting that the apartment allotted to the exhibition, might then be prepared in the usual forms of solemnity, in order that the body might lie there in state previous to interment, so that the last sad tribute to his memory might take place from that spot so often embellished by the effusions of his magic pencil. The Academy felt the requisition too forcibly, not to consent immediately, with one solitary exception ; however, this opposition was sufficiently powerful to hold its ground against all the united voices, until silenced by an express order from the Royal Patron that every possible honour should be paid to the memory of their venerable President. Therefore, acting under this express order of his Majesty, a condescension highly honourable to the memory of Sir Joshua Reynolds, and exceedingly gratifying to the wishes of that Society of eminent Artists — every thing being finally arranged, the corpse, in a coffin covered with black velvet, was removed from Leicester-fields to Somerset-house on the night of Friday, the 2nd of March, where it lay in state that night, and until the beginning of the funeral procession, in the Model-room of the Academy which was hung with black cloth and lighted by SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS- 375 chandeliers, whilst an escutcheon of arms was emblazoned at the head of the room ; the hour of noon on the following day being appointed for the performance of the obsequies. On Saturday, the 3rd of March, 1792, the expectation of this solemnity had filled all the streets, through which the procession was to pass, with people innumerable of all ranks, as well as the windows of every house; but the passage of all carriages, except those which were to form the procession, was strictly prevented by peace officers stationed for that purpose, and all the shops in the line of procession were closely s.hut up. Independent of those who, according to the arrangement, were to form the funeral cavalcade, the greatest part of the most distinfruished individuals in the kingdom had assembled at Somerset-house, anxious to pay the last melancholy duties to him whom they had been accustomed to love for his virtues, and to respect for his talents ; and many more v/ere prevented by illness and unexpected and unavoidable necessity, from paying this mark of respect, to their great regret. The persons, who attended the funeral, assembled in the Council-chamber and Library of the Royal Academy, and the Academicians in the great Exhibition-i^oom ; and as many others as could be admitted with propriety into the procession, were permitted to join it ; and though the company were very select, yet so extended was the line of carriages, that the procession required nearly two hours to move from Somerset-house to 376 MEMOIRS OF St. Paul's : and the last carriage had only set off from the former place just as the City Marshals, who led the procession, had arrived at the doors of the Cathedral. The order of the procession was arranged as follows: Two Sheriffs of London. The Undertaker and ten Conductors on horseback. A Lid with plumes of feathers. The Hearse with six horses. Ten Pall-bearers, viz. Duke of Dorset, Lord High Steward of His Majesty's Household, Duke of Leeds, Duke of Portland, Marquis Townshend, Marquis of Abercorn, Earl of Carlisle, Earl of Inchiquin, Earl of Upper Ossory, Lord Viscount Palmerston, Lord Eliot. Robert Lovel Gwatkin, Esq. Chief Mourner. Two Attendants of the family, one of them Mr. Marchi. Right Honourable Edmund Burke. 1 Twelve peace officers to clear the way. Two City Marshals on horseback. Lord Mayor's Carriage. Edmond Malone, Esq. Philip Metcalfe, Esq. The Council of the Royal Academy. The Keeper. The Treasurer. The Secretary. The Librarian. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 377 Professors. Mr. T. Sandby, Mr. Barry, Bennet Langton, Esq. James Boswell, Esq. (m ancient literatuip.) (Secretary for foreign correspondence.) Academicians, two and two. Associates, two and two. Artists, not Members of the Royal Academy. Students. After these there followed, the Archbishop of York, Marquis of Buckingham, Earls of Fife and Carysfort, Bishop of London, Lords St. Asaph, Fortescue, Somers, and Lucan, the Dean of Norwich, Right Honourable William Windham, Sirs Abraham Hume, George Beaumont, Thomas Dundas, Charles Bunbury, and William Forbes, Barts. Drs. George Fordyce, Ash, Brocklesby, and Blagden ; also the following Members of Parliament, Sir William Scott, George Rose, John RoUe, William Weddell, Reginald Pole Carew, Matthew Montague, Richard P. Knight, Dudley North, and John Cleveland, Esquires ; to whom we may add other gentlemen, viz. Richard Clark, Charles Townley, Abel Moysey, Welbore Ellis Agar, William Seward, Edward Jerningham, Richard Burke," Thomas Coutts, J. J. Angerstein, Edward Gwatkin, Charles Burney, John Hunter, William Cruikshank, and John Devaynes, Esqrs. together with Colonel Gwynn, Captain Pole, Mr. Kemble, Dr. Lawrence, Mr. Alderman Boydell, Messrs. Poggi, Breda, &c. &;c. &c. This company was conveyed in forty-two mourning coaches, whilst forty-nine coaches belonging to the nobility and gentry, followed the procession. 3 c MEMOIRS OF Tlie statement of which I have spoken, goes on to detail that at half past three o'clock was interred the body of " Sir Joshua Reynolds, Knt. Doctor of Laws in the Universities of Oxford and Dublin, Principal Painter to his Majesty, President of the Royal Academy of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, of London, Fellow of the Royal Society, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and Member of the Imperial Academy at Florence." The spot selected for the grave was in the crypt underneath the body of the Cathedral, next to that of Dr. Newton, late Bishop of Bristol, " and close by the tomb of the famous Sir Christopher Wren, the architect of that edifice." On this solemn occasion it was still some consolation to reflect, that the company who attended it consisted of a great number of the most distinguished persons, who were emulous in their desire of paying the last honours to the remains of him whose life had been employed in the exertions of the highest talents, and in the exercise of those virtues that make a man respectable and beloved. Never was a public solemnity conducted with more decorum and dignity. The procession set out at half an hour after twelve o'clock. The hearse arrived at the great western gate of St. Paul's about a quarter after two, and was there met by the Dignitaries of the church, and by the gentlemen of the choir, who chaunted the proper Psalms, while the procession moved to the entrance of the choir, where was performed, in a superior manner, the full choir evening service, together with SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 379 the famous anthem of Dr. Boyce ; the body remaining during the whole time in the centre of the choir. The chief mourner and gentlemen of the Academy, having long cloaks of black, as of the family, were placed by the body ; the chief mourner in a chair at the head ; the two attendants at the feet ; the Pall-bearers and Executors in the seats on the decanel side ; the other noblemen and gentlemen on the cantorial side. The Bishop of London was in his proper place, as were the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs. After the service, the body was conveyed into the crypt, and placed immediately beneath the perforated brass plate^ under the centre of the dome. Dr. Jefferies, Canon Residentiary, with the other Canons, and the whole choir, came under the dome ; the grave digger attending in the middle with a shovel of mould, which at the proper time was thrown through the aperture of the plate, on the coffin. The funeral service was chaunted, and accompanied on the organ in a grand and affecting manner. When the funeral service was ended, the Chief Mourner and Executors went into the crypt, and attended the corpse to the grave, which was dug under the pavement. *' The Lord Mayor and Sheriffs honoured the procession by coming to Somerset Place, where an officer's guard of thirty men was placed at the great court-gate. After the procession had passed through Temple Bar, the gates were shut by order of the Lord Mayor, to prevent any interruption from carriages passing to or from the City." 3 c 2 ^30 , MEMOIRS OF After the ceremony, the Procession returned in nearly the same order to the Royal Academy ; and I may here mention, that it had contained as many members, of the " Literary Ckib," as were not prevented by personal duties from attending it. It has also been noticed, as worthy of record, that in the procession were three Knights of the Garter, two of St. Patrick, and one of the Thistle, three Dukes, and four noblemen who had held the high office of Viceroy of Ireland. A cold collation having been prepared for the members of the Royal Academy, on their return to Somerset Place, Mr. Burke entered the room to return the thanks of the family for the attention shewn to the remains of their lamented President ; but his feelings were too acute to permit him to utter the sentiments he wished to express. *' Thus," says a recent panegyrist, " thus were deposited the remains of Sir Joshua Reynolds, doubly hallowed by a nation's respect, and by the tears of private friendship — and thus ends all that is earthly and perishable of him whose fame as an artist, as a patronizer of the arts, and above all, as a good man, will long survive him !" As a token of respect and a pledge of remembrance, a print engraved by Bartolozzi, was presented to each of the gentlemen who had joined the procession. It represented a female clasping an urn, a funeral emblem of a weeping muse, (from the pencil of Burney) and on the SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. monument are a pallet, pencils, and a resting stick. The Genius of Painting is also introduced, holding an inverted and extinguished torch, and pointing to the monument, on which is written, " Succeclet fama, vivusque per ora feretur." Beneath is a complimentary address : and a fac simile of the whole will be found at the close of these Memoirs. The funeral expenses were in part defrayed out of the funds of the Royal Academy. The last will and testament of Sir Joshua Reynolds had been written not very long previous to his decease, being dated on the 5th of November, 1791 • He had written it with his own hand, and its beginning was extremely expressive of his own feelings and sentiments on the subject, for he says, " As it is probable that I may shortly be deprived of sight, and may not have an opportunity of making a formal will, I desire that the following memorandums may be considered as my last will and testament. I commend my soul to God, in humble hopes of his mercy, and my body to the earth." All his property, real and personal, with the exceptions here recorded, he then bequeaths to his niece Miss Palmer, now 382 MEMOIRS OF Marchioness of Thomond, including his Richmond Villa, the house in Leicester-fields, together with all property in the public funds, pictures, books, furniture, plate, &c. He then proceeds to specify his various legacies: viz., to Mrs. Gwatkins, c£ 10,000 in the three per cents. ; to his sister, Miss Francis Reynolds, £2,500 in the funds for life, with the reversion to Miss Palmer; to Mr. Burke, .£2,000, with the cancelling of a bond of the same amount for money borrowed ; to the Earl of Upper Ossory, the first choice, and to Lord Palmerstone the second choice of any picture of his own painting; to Sir Abraham Hume, Bart, the choice of his Claude Lorraines ; to Sir George Beaumont, Bart, the *' Return of the Ark/' by Sebastian Bourdon ; the sum of ^200 each to his executors, and the same to Mr. Boswell, to be expended, if they thought proper, in the purchase of a, picture, to be bought for each at the sale of his paintings, and to be kept for his sake ; his miniature of Milton, to Mr. Mason ; one of Oliver Cromwell, by the same artist, (Cooper) to Richard Burke, jun. ; his watch and seals to his nephew, William Johnson, then at Calcutta ; his picture of the angel Contemplation, which formed the upper part of the Nativity, to the Duke of Portland ; to Mrs. Bunbury, the portrait of her son ; to Mrs. Gwyn, her own portrait, with a turban ; ^1,000 to his old and faithful servant, Ralph Kirkley, who had lived with him upwards of thirty years. This is the principal purport of his will, which was proved in Doctor's-Commons on the 28th of February ; and the whole amount of cash and funded property was, at least, .£60,000, sill JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 383 whilst the houses, pictures, &c., were valued at .£20,000 more : a sum that fully proves the high estimation in which he had professionally been held, particularly when we consider the liberal and hospitable manner in which the greatest part of his life had been spent. Completely to fill up the vacancy which the loss of such a man produced m society, was impossible ; Dr. Douglas, Bishop of Salisbury, was selected to occupy his seat in the Literary Club ; Mr. Laurence as principal painter in ordinary to his Majesty ; and Mr. West, the present President of the Royal Academy, was unanimously elected to fill the chair at Somerset- place, on the 24th of March ; on which occasion he united a handsome tribute of praise towards his deceased friend and predecessor, with his expression of thanks for the honor conferred on him. On the death of Sir Joshua, even those whose little jealousies had contributed to give him some uneasiness whilst living, all stood forward to make amends by the warmest commendations ; amongst the rest was Mr. Barry, who now gave a full scope to his more generous feelings, and about a year afterwards, on the 18th of February, 1793, paid some very well deserved compliments to his friend in his sixth Lecture read at the Academy.* This just tribute to the memory of Sir Joshua, was noticed * See Barry's works, vol i. pages 552 to 557. 384 MEMOIRS OF by the Marquis and Marchioness of Thomond, who, in order to mark their approval, presented him with their estimable relative's painting-room chair. I have preserved his answer, from its connection with the present itself, and its containing an appropriate compliment to the former lamented possessor. " Mr. Barry presents his most respectful compli- ments to Lord and Lady T. with every acknowledgment and thanks for their inestimable favour conferred on him this morning in the gift of Sir Joshua's chair. " Alas ! this chair, that had such a glorious career of fortune, instrumental as it has been in giving the most advantageous stability to the otherwise fleeting, perishable graces of a Lady Sarah Bunbury, or a Waldegrave, or in perpetuating the negligent honest exterior of the authors of the Rambler, the Traveller, and almost every one to whom the public admiration gave a currency for abilities, beauty, rank, or fashion. " The very chair that is immortalized in Mrs. Siddons's Tragic Muse, where it will have as much celebrity as the chair of Pindar, which for so many ages was shewn in the porch at Olympia ! This chair of Sir Joshua Reynolds may rest well satisfied with the reputation it has gained, and although its present possessor may not be enabled to grace it with any new ornament, yet it can surely count upon finding a most affectionate, reverential conservator, whilst God shall permit it to remain under his care." January 30th, 1794. Some time after the funeral, a copy of verses were addressed SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 385 to the Royal Academicians, written by the beautiful Mrs. Robinson, which possess considerable merit, but are, however, too long for insertion ; therefore, I shall make an extract of those lines only which apply to the particular merits of Sir Joshua Reynolds. " Ye solemn mourners, who, with footsteps slow. Prolonged the sable line of public woe> Who fondly crowding round his plumed bier^ Gave to his worth, th' involuntary tear; Ye children of his school, who oft have hung On the grac'd precepts of his tuneful tongue; Who many an hour in mute attention caught The vivid lustre of his polished thought ! Ye who have felt, for ye have taste to feel. The magic influence o'er your senses steals When eloquently chaste, from wisdom's page He drew each model for a rising age ! Say, is no kind, no grateful tribute due, To HIM who twin'd immortal wreaths for you? Who from the dawn of youth to manhood's prime Snatch'd hidden branches from the wings of time; Who gave new lustre to your wond'ring sight, Drawn froin the chaos of oblivious night; Where chain'd by Ignorance, in Envy's cave, The art he courted found a chilling grave; Where native genius faded, unadmired. While emulation's glorious flame expir'd. Till Reynolds, braving Envy's recreant spell, Dragg'd the huge monster from her thorny cell. Who, shrinking from his mild benignant eye, Subdued, to Stygian darkness fled to die. Beneath yon lofty dome that props the skies Low ' on the lap of earth' your patron lies ; 3 D MEMOIRS OF Cold is the hand that gave the touch divine, Which bade the mimic orbs of reason shine : Closed is thai eye which beamV! vvitli Hving Uglit,, That gave the mental soul, to mortal sight ! For, by the matchless wonders of his art The outward mien bespoke the hidden heart ! Taste, feeling, character, his pencil knew. And TRUTH acknowledged e'en what Fancy drew. So, just to nature ev'ry part combin'd, ^ach feature mark'd the tenor of the mind ! 'Twas his, with varying excellence to show Stern manhood's dignity and beauty's glow ! To paint the perfect form, the witching face. With Guido's softness^ and with Titian's grace! The dimpled cherub at the mother's breast, The smile serene, that spoke the parent blest ! The PoEx's vivid thought, that shone divine Through the rich image of each finish 'd line! The tale that bids the tear of pity flow; The frenzied gaze of petrifying woe; The dying father, fix'd in horror vi ild, O'er the shrunk imatre of his famish'd child. Ah ! STAY MY MUSE — Horlracc the madd'ning scene. Nor paint the starting eye, the frantic mien ; Turn from the picture of distracting woes, Turn from each charm that beauty's smile bestows, Go form a wreath Time's temple to adorn, Bedeck'd with many a rose — with many a thorti ! Go, bind the hero's brow with deathless bays; Or, to calm friendship cliaunt the note of praise; Or, vvith a feather stol'n from Fancy's wing, Sweep with light hand the gay fantastic stnng; But leave, oh, leave thy fond lamenting song. The feeble echo of a wond'ring throng — Can'st thou with brighter tints adorn the rose. Where nature's vivid blush divinely glows? SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 38r Say cons't thou add one ray to heaven's own light. Or give to Alpine snow a purer white Cans't thou increase the diamond's burning glow, Or to the floyver a richer scent bestow ? Say cans't thou snatch, by sympathy sublime. One kindred bosom irom the grasp of Time? Ah ! no ! then bend with cypress boughs thy lyre, Mute be its chords, and quench'd its sacred fire. For dimly gleams the poet's votive lays TMidst the vast splendor of a nation's praise." To sum up the whole of Sir Joshua's character as a profes- sional man, it may be observed that when we contemplate him as a painter, we are to recollect, that after the death of Kneller, the arts in England fell to the lowest state of barbarism, and each professor either followed that painter's steps, or else wandered in utter darkness, till Reynolds, like the sun, dispelled the mist, and threw an unprecedented splendor on the department of portraiture. Hence the English school is, in a great degree, the growth of his admirable example. To the grandeur, the truth, and simplicity of Titian, and to the daring strength of Rembrandt, he has united the chasteness and delicacy of Vandyke. Delighted with the picturesque beauties of Rubens, he was the first that attempted a bright and gay back ground to portraits ; and defying the dull and ignorant rules of his master, at a very early period of life, emancipated his art from the shackles with which it had been encumbered in the school of Hudson. There is, however, every reason to believe, that he very rarely copied 3 D 2 388 MEMOIRS OF an entire picture of any master,* though he certainly did imitate the excellent parts of many ; and his versatility in this respect was equalled only by the susceptibility of his feelings, the quickness of his comprehension, and the ardor which prompted his eftbrts. His pictures in general possess a degree of merit superior to mere portraits, they assume the rank of history. His portraits of men are distinguished by a certain air of dignity, and those of women and children by a grace, a beauty, and simplicity, which have seldom been equalled, and never surpassed. No painter ever gave so completely, as himself, that momentary fascinating expression, that irresistible charm, which accompanies and denotes " the Cynthia of the minute." In his attempts to give character where it did not exist, he has sometimes lost likeness ; but the deficiencies of the portrait were often compensated by the beauty of the picture. The attitudes of his figures are generally full of grace, ease, and propriety ; he could throw them into the boldest variations, and he often ventures on postures, which inferior painters could not execute ; or which, if attempted, would * Of the very few copies he made at Rome the only finished one is St. Michael, the Archangel, chaining the dragon, after Guido. This copy he placed in the ceiling of his Picture Gallery, where it remained till his death. It was then taken down by his niece, and heiress, when she left that house. He made a small copy of the School of Athens, from RafTaelle; also about eight or ten heads selected from Ralfaelle in ihe Vatican, and a head or two from Titian. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 389 inevitably destroy their credit. His chief aim, however, was colour and effect ; and these lie always varied as the subject required. Whatever deficiencies there niay be in the design of this great master, no one at any period better understood the principles of colouring ; nor can it be doubted that he carried this branch of his art to a very high degree of perfection. His lights display the knowledge he possessed, and with shade he conceals his defects. Whether we consider the power, the brilliancy, or the form of his lights, the transparency of his shadows, with the just quantities of each, and the harmony, richness, and full effect of the whole, it is evident that he has not only far transcended every modern master, but that his excellencies in these captivating parts of painting, vie with the works of the great models he has emulated. The opinion he has given of Raffaelle may, with equal justice, be applied to himself ; " that his materials were generally borrowed, but the noble structure was his own." No one ever appropriated the ideas of others to his own purpose with more skill than Sir Joshua. He possessed the alchemy of painting, by converting whatever he touched into gold. Like the bee that extracts sweets from the most noxious flowers, so his active observation could see every thing pregnant with a means of improvement, from the wooden print on a common ballad, to the highest graces of Parmegiano. Perhaps there is no painter that ever went before him, from whom he has not derived some advantage, and appropriated certain excellencies with judicious selection and consummate taste. Yet after all that can be alledged against him as a borrower of forms from other masters, it must be allowed that he engrafted on them beauties peculiarly I MEMOIRS OF his own. The severest critics, indeed, must admit that hia manner is truly original, bold, and free. Freedom is certainly- one of his principal characteristics ; and to this he seems often to have sacrificed every other consideration. He has, however, two manners ; his early pictures are without those violent freedoms of execution and dashes of the pencil, being more minute and more fearful, but the colouring is clear, natural, and good. In his latter and bolder works, the colour, though excellent, is sometimes more artificial than chaste. As an Historical painter, he cannot be placed in the same rank which he holds in the line of portraiture. The compositions of his portraits are unquestionably excellent, whilst his historical pictures are, in this respect, often very defective. They frequently consist of borrowed parts, which are not always suited to each other. Though many times inaccurate, and deficient in the style of drawing, they must, however, be allowed to possess great breadth, taste, and feeling, and many of them fine expression. His light poetical pieces much excelled those of a narrative or historical character. There is a circumstance contained in one of his fragments of an intended discourse, preserved by Mr. Malone, in which he says, " It has frequently happened, as I was informed by the keeper of the Vatican, that many of those whom he had conducted through the various apartments of that edifice, when about to be dismissed, have asked for the works of Raffaeile, and would not believe that they had already passed SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 391 through the rooms where they are preserved ; so little impression had those performances made on them. One of the first painters now in France once told me, that this circumstance happened to himself ; though he now looks on Raffaelle with the veneration which he deserves from alt painters and lovers of the art. " I remember very well my own disappointment, when I first visited the Vatican ; but on confessing my feelings to a brother student, of whose ingenuousness I had a high opinion, he acknowledged that the works of Raffaelle had the same effect on him ; or, rather, that they did not produce the effect which he expected. This was a great relief to my mind ; and on inquiring further, of other students, I found that those persons only who, from natural imbecility, appeared to be incapable of ever relishing those divine performances, made pretensions to instantaneous raptures on first beholding them. In justice to myself, however, I must add, that though disappointed and mortified at not finding myself enraptured with the works of this great man, I did not for a moment conceive or suppose that the name of Raffaelle, and those admirable paintings in particular, owed their reputation to the ignorance and prejudice of mankind ; on the contrary, my not relishing them, as I was conscious I ought to have done, was one of the most humiliating circumstances that ever happened to m.e ; I found myself in the midst of works executed upon principles with which I was unacquainted : I felt my ignorance, and stood abashed. All the indigested notions of painting which I had brought with me from England, where the art was in the lowest state it had ever been in, (it could not, indeed, be 392 MEMOIRS OF , lower.) were to be totally done away, and eradicated from my mind. It was necessary, as it is expressed on a very solemn occasion, that I should become as a little child. Notwith- standing my disappointment, I proceeded to copy some of those excellent works. I viewed them again and again ; I even affected to feel their merit ; and to admire them more than I really did. In a short time a new taste and new perception began to dawn upon me ; and I was convinced that I had originally formed a false opinion of the perfection of art, and that this great painter was well entitled to the high rank which he holds in the estimation of the world. The truth is, that if these works had really been what I expected, they would have contained beauties superficial and alluring, but by no means such as would have entitled them to the great reputation which they have so long and so justly obtained.'* Considering the study and practice Reynolds must have gone through before he visited Italy, he certainly was, in comparison with others, a man of a cultivated taste ; and, though what has been said may be very true, that many persons, after having been conducted through the rooms of the Vatican, have turned to the keeper, and asked him for the paintings of Raffaelle, yet it is not easy to conceive how he, who probably had seen the cartoons, and other pictures, besides prints from this great painter, should have formed such an inadequate and erroneous idea of what he was to see at Rome. Splendor of colour, depth of chiaro-scuro, he must have been taught not to expect ; strength and dignity of character, unexampled variety, and vivacity of expression, I SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 393 (qualities more striking to the eye of taste, and scarcely less so to the. vulgar,) they certainly possess. To what, then, can be attributed their want of impression, particularly on such as him? It does not appear that the same complaint has been made of the works of Michael Angelo. That, which in his discourses he denominates the orna- mental style, and which he treats in his writings with so much severity, seems to have been the very style which it was his constant endeavour to attain, and which it may be said he did attain in an unexampled degree ; while the excellencies of the grand style, its severe and majestic simplicity, he seems not to have been inclined to attempt, although so great an admirer of it, that even its defects are deemed beauties in his eyes ; whilst its dryness and hardness of manner, and an inharmonious effect, frequently proceeding from a want of skill in the painter, he contemplates altogether with enthu- siastic admiration. His theory and his practice are evidently at variance ; he speaks of the cold painters of portraits, and ranks them on a level with the epigrammatist and sonnettcer, yet devoted his life to portraits. How to account for this dereliction of his theory may be difficult ; the reason given by himself was, that he adapted his style to the taste of the age in which he lived ; and again, that a man does not always do what he would, but what he can. My own opinion is, that his mind by nature was constituted more for the cultivation of that which belorios to the beautiful and the graceful, than of those qualities which compose the terrible or the sublime, and that the style of Michael Angelo 3 E 394 MEMOIRS OF which he seems to have lamented that he did not adopt in his youth, was not that style to which he could, with most advantage to himself, have devoted his studies ; yet it must ever remain a doubt, whether he could or could not have succeeded in the highest style, if the opportunity had been offered to him. All that we can say of him is, that he had done full enough to prove that he was a very great genius, as he is an example of the most perfect growth that English culture can produce ; and from the means which he had he has accomplished that end, and availed himself of that patronage which is in the hands of an infinity of persons to bestow. But that great style, which he so properly had made his idol, and appeared to adore, a style which never can exist in its fullness but in countries where the religion, or the govern- ment, or both together, are its patrons — it is an article totally useless and unfit in respect to the habits of private life, and in this country held as very disagreeable ; and had Raffaelle or Michael Angelo been born in England, they would, perhaps, have been far greater than Sir Joshua Reynolds, and most undoubtedly would have acquired great fame ; but they would have been known only as illustrious portrait painters even to themselves. The grand style is an instrument fit only to be in the hands of government, civil or religious, and only proper for solemn occasions. It is not to be the subject of vulgar criticism ; it is to command, to guide, and to direct the heart, and such are the uses the church of Rome have made of it. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 395 The lectures which he delivered at the Royal Academy on the 10th of December, at first every year, and latterly every two years, are the works which chiefly bestow on him the character of an estimable writer. In these he treats his favorite art with the depth of a philosopher, the accomplish- ments of a scholar, and the accuracy of a critic. These were designed to animate and direct the students in the pursuit of excellence, and indeed are replete with the soundest instructions, expressed in language at once natural, perspi- cuous, and correct. The profound knowledge of the art displayed in these discourses is enriched by the classical and appropriate illustrations of a polished mind ; they are treasures of information to the student and to the proficient ; and the elegance and chastity of the style have very rarely, if ever, been equalled by the most eminent of our writers. His observations on the old masters are equally just and ingenious ; several branches of the theory of art are treated with uncommon judgment and ability, and the composition V throughout is strongly marked by the simplicity of his own individual character and manner, and totally unlike that of any of his literary friends, to whom some idle critics have attributed the merit of tliose discourses. They have been translated mto French, and the late Mr. Baretti published an edition of them in the Italian lan2;uase. It has been conjectured that Sir Joshua was not the author of the discourses which he delivered at the Royal ik;ademy. 3 E 2 'JQfi MEMOIRS OF I can only say that at the periods wlien it was expected he should have composed them, I have heard him walking at intervals in his room as if in meditation, till one or two o'clock in the morning, and I have, on the following morning, at an early hour, seen the papers on the subject of his art which had been written on the preceding night. I have had the rude manuscript from himself in his own hand writing, in order to make a fair copy from it for him, to read it in public ; I have seen the manuscript also after it had been revised by Dr. Johnson, who has sometimes altered it to a wrong meaning, from his total ignorance of the subject and of art ; but never to my knowledge saw the marks of Burke's pen on any of the manuscripts. I remember one day in particular, after Sir Joshua had been studying the preceding night, Burke paid him a morning visit, and at that time I was at work in the adjoining room, and could easily overhear their conversation, which, as Sir Joshua was deaf, was very distinct ; and he read aloud to Bnrke the following paragraph of his discourse for December the 10th, 1794. " Like a sovereign judge and arbiter of art," (alluding to tiie painter,) he is possessed of that presiding power which separates and attracts every excellence from every school ; selects both from what is great and what is little, brings home knowledge from the east and from the west ; making the universe tributary towards furnishing his mind and enriching his works with originality and variety of invention." SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 397 Burke commended it in the highest terms saying, " This is, indeed, excellent, nobody can mend it, no man could say it better." Yet, I must confess, it is wonderful, that a man, whose time was so entirely absorbed in the practical acquirements of his art, and who could not be ranked as a man eminent for literature, should compose such prose as good judges have pronounced to be amongst the highest examples in our language. The Bishop of Rochester, who has examined the writings of Mr. Burke since his death, and has lately edited a part of them, informed a friend that he could discover no reason to think that Mr. Burke had the least hand in the discourses of Reynolds : nor can I pay any attention to what Mr. Courtenay says in his " Moral and Literary Character of Dr. Johnson," where he seems to think that Reynolds copied from the latter, or imitated him. " To Fame's proud cliff, he bade our Raffaelle rise. Hence Reynolds' pen with Reynolds' pencil vies." Mr. M'Cormick also asserts, that Burke wrote his letter in 1790, when he retired from the chair ; but I trust that there is sufficient evidence already adduced, to prove that those opinions are totally erroneous. KSTTRACT OF A LETTER FROM E. BURKE, TO MR. MALONE, " I have read over some part of the discourses with an 398 MEMOIRS OF unusual sort of pleasure ; partly because, being faded a little in my memory, they have a sort of appearance of novelty ; partly by reviving recollections mixed with melancholy and satisfaction. The Flemish Journal I had never seen before. You trace in that, every where, the spirit of the discourses, supported by new examples. He is always the same man ; the same philosophical, the same artist-like critic, the same sagacious observer, with the same minuteness, without the smallest degree of trifling." Before I quit the subject of these discourses of Sir Joshua, I cannot refrain from giving the opinionof the ChevalierMengs on them, whether because he had not the capacity to compre- hend them, or from the effect of envy I cannot determine, but this Mengs says, " That the book of the English Reynolds would lead youth into error, because it abandons them to superficial principles, the only ones known to that author." This criticism from Mengs raised the choler of our English Poet, Cumberland, and he thus retorts the charge to the great annoyance of the Chevalier Don Joseph Nicholas D'Azara, Spanish minister at Rome, and the Editor of Mengs's manuscripts', also his adorer. " If the genius of Mengs," says Cumberland, " had been capable of producing a composition equal to that of the tragic and pathetic Ugolino, I am persuaded such a sentence as the above would never have passed his lips; but flattery made him vain, and sickness rendered him peevish : he found himself in Madrid, in a country without rivals, and because SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 399 the Arts had travelled out of his sight, he was disposed to think they existed no Avhere but on his own palette. The time perhaps is at hand when our virtuosi will extend their route to Spain, and of these some one probably will be found, who, regarding with just indignation the dogmatical decrees of Mengs, will take in hand the examination of his paintings, which I have enumerated; and we may then be told, with the autho- rity of science, that his nativity though so splendidly encased, and covered with such care that the very winds of Heaven are not permitted to visit the face too roughly, would have owed more to the chrystal than it does, in some parts at least, had it been less transparent than it is ; that it discovers an abortive and puisne Bambino, which seems copied from a bottle ; that Mengs was an artist who had seen much, and invented little ; that he dispenses neither life nor death to his figures ; excites no terror, rouses no passions, and risks no flights ; that by studying to avoid particular defects, he incurs general ones, and paints with taraeness and servility ; that the contrasted scale and idea of a painter of miniatures, as which he was brought up, is to be traced in all, or most of his compositions, in which a finished delicacy of the pencil exhibits the hand of the artist, but gives no emanations of the soiil of the master; if it is beauty it does not warm ; if it is sorrow it excites no pity: that, when the angel announces the salutation to Mary, it is a messenger that has neither used dispatch in the errand, nor grace in the delivery ; that although Rubens was by one of his oracular sayings condemned to the ignominious dullness of a Dutch translator, Mengs was as capable of painting Rubens's adoration, as he was of creating the star in the East that ushered the Magi : but these are 400 MEMOIRS OF questions above my capacity ; I resign Mengs to abler critics, and Reynolds to better defenders ; well contented that posterity should admire them both, and well assured that the fame of our countryman is established beyond the reach of envy and detraction." I have given this long quotation from Cumberland, because in my apprehension it contains a true and candid estimate of the talents of Mengs, of him who treats the works of Rubens and of Reynolds with contempt. Cumberland thus adds, " Yet Mengs is the author whom courtly prejudice has put above comparison in Spain, whom not to admire is treason against the state, and whose worship is become canonical, a part almost of the orthodox idolatry of their religion." With respect to his character as a man, to say that Sir Joshua was without faults, would be to bestow on him that praise, to which no human being can have a claim ; but when "we consider the conspicuous situation in which he stood, it is surprizing to find that so few can be discovered in him: and certainly he possessed an equanimity of disposition very rarely to be met with in persons whose pursuit is universal reputa- tion, and who are attended and surrounded in their perilous journey by jealous competition. " His native humility, modesty, and candour never forsook him, even from surprize or provocation, nor was the least degree of arrogance or assumption visible to the most scrutinizing eye in any part of his conduct." He was not annoyed by that fluctuation of idea and inconstancy of temper which prevent many with equal desire for fame from resolving upon any particular plan, and sill JCJSHUA REYNOLDS. 401 dispose them to change it, even after they have made their election. He had none of those eccentric bursts of action, those fiery impetuosities which are supposed by the vulgar to characterize genius, and which frequently are found to accom- pany a secondary rank of talent, but are never conjoined with the first. His incessant industry was never Avearied into despondency by miscarriage, nor elated into negligence by success. All nature and all art combined to form his academy. His mind was constantly awake, ever on the wing, compre- hensive, vigorous, discriminating, and retentive. His powers of attention were never torpid. He had a strong turn and relish for humour in all its various forms, and very quickly saw the weak sides of things. Of the numerous characters which presented themselves to him in the mixed companies in which he lived, he was a nice and sagacious observer, as I have had frequent occasions to remark. The Graces," says a certain author, " after wandering to find .a home, settled in the bosom of Addison." I think such a compliment would be equally, if not more applicable to Sir Joshua; for all he said or did was wholly unmixed with any of those inelegant coarsenesses which frequently stain the beauty of high exertions. There was a polish even in his^ exterior, illustrative of the gentleman and the scholar. His general manner, deportment, and behaviour, were amiable and prepossessing ; his disposition was naturally courtly. He always evinced a desire to pay a due respect to persons in superior stations, and certainly contrived to move in a higher sphere of society than any other English artist had dene before him. Thus he procured for Professors of the Arts a 3 F 402 MEMOIRS OF consequence, dignity, and reception., which they had never before possessed in this country. In conversation he preserved an equable flow of spirits, which rendered him at all times a most desirable companion, ever ready to be amused, and to contribute to the amusement of others. lie practised the minute elegancies, and, though latterly a deaf companion, was never troublesome.* Although easy and complying in his intercourse with the world, yet in his profession, having, by unremitting study, matured his judgment, he never sacrificed his opinion to the casual caprices of his employers, and without seeming to oppose theirs, still followed his own. He had temper to bear with the defects of others, as well as capacity to understand their goqd qualities, and he possessed that rare wisdom which consists in a thorough knowledge, not only of the real value of things, but of the genius of the age he lived in, and of the characters and prejudices of those about him. Far from over-rating his own talents, he did not seem to hold them in that degree of estimation which they deservedly obtained from the public. In short, it may be safely said, that his faults were few, and that those were much subdued by his wisdom, for no man had ever more reverence for virtue, or a higher respect for unsullied fame. * His deafness, I have been informed, first came upon him fiom a cold which he caught by his intense application in the winter season, in the unaired rooms of Raffaelle in the Vatican. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 403 As to his person ; in his stature Sir Joshua Reynolds was rather under the middle size, of a florid complexion, roundish blunt features, and a lively aspect ; not corpulent, though somewhat inclined to it, but extremely active ; with manners uncommonly polished and agreeable. In conversation, his manner was perfectly natural, simple, and unassuming. He most heartily enjoyed his profession, in which he was both fortunate and illustrious, and I agree with Mr. Malone who says he appeared to him to be the happiest man he had ever known. He was thoroughly sensible of his rare lot in life and truly thankful for it ; his virtues were blessed with their full reward. It is a common, but a just observation, that virtue cannot exist where irregularity is present ; and the converse is true as applied to Sir Joshua's mode of life, which was so regular as to produce correctness without degenerating into insipidity, or tediousness to his friends by unnecessary and troublesome precision. Rising at eight o'clock in general, he was enabled to retire from the breakfast table to his painting room about ten, where, for an hour at least, he occupied himself in arranging the subordinate accessories in such of his works as he was then engaged in, or perhaps in preserving some new ideas by a sketch- The hours dedicated to his sitters were generally from eleven to four, but not with rigid attention, as he often gave a relaxation to his mind by receiving the visits of particular 3 F 2 404 MEMOIRS OF friends. Yet upon the whole, his application was great, nay, in some measure, excessive ; for it is very true, as he himself observed to Malone, that such was his love of his art, and such his ardour to excel, that he had often and during the gre-ater part of his life, laboured as hard with his pencil, as any mechanic working at his trade for bread. Considering the hospitable elegance of his own table, and the number of his friends, it is not to be wondered at that his invitations to other tables were pretty numerous. Of these, however, he seldom accepted more than two in the week, during the winter ; and though his regulated plan was to have his friends once at home during the same period, yet it frequently happened that his table was filled much oftener by the most estimable and remarkable men in public life. In such companies, intellectual pleasures must be considered as the most important: yet neither he nor his friends disdained the good things which affluence could provide, and of course every elegance and every luxury Mere always to be found there in moderation. Mr. Malone draws the comparison between the character of Laelius as given by Mr. Melmoth, and Sir Joshua Reynolds, which seems in many respects to be singularly similar, but too long for insertion ; here I shall only give the concluding part, which says — "In public estimation, in uniform success in life, in moderation, in prosperity, in the applause and admiration of contemporaries, in simplicity of manners and playfulness of SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 405 humour, in good sense and elegant attainments, in modesty and equability of temper, in undeviating integrity, in respect for received and long-established opinions, in serenity, cheer- fulness, and urbanity, the resemblance must be allowed to be uncommonly striking and exact." As before observed. Sir Joshua had many pupils who resided for years under his roof. It is a surprizing fact, however, that scarcely any of their names have been heard of as painters. Most of them have pined in poverty and died in want, miserable to themselves, and a disgrace to the art. To account for this seeming paradox many reasons may be assigned. First, the vast difficulties of the art of painting- render its higher branches unattainable to nine-tenths of those persons who profess, or pretend to study it : Secondly, Sir Joshua, never having received a well-founded education in the academies of art, was forced to make his own way by the strength of his genius and unwearied industry : hence those excellencies which he possessed could not be iniparted or taught to another, and what could be taught he did not sufficiently possess. It is art which the scholar is to learn, and not genius. Sir Joshua seems to have disdained the rules of art, and may be said to have snatched a grace beyond them. But the young painter who daubs because he fancies Sir Joshua daubed, is like the fool who purchased the lamp of Epictetus. The best reason that can be assigned for his having ,a more enlarged notion of grace and greatness than his con- temporaries is, that he had more information and understanding than they. A vulgar man may acquire what is termed cleverness, but cannot arrive at greatness ; which can only be ■ 406 MEMOIRS OF attained by him, who unites general information with taste and feeling. Along with other various tributes to the memory of departed excellence, we must not omit the following extract from Mr, Sotheby's poetical epistle to Sir George Beaumont, in which the subject of our biography is so elegantly characterized, and which has been published since his death. * Hail ! guide and glory of the British School, Whose magic line gave life lo every rule. Reynolds! thy portraits, true to nature, glow'd Yet o'er the whole ideal graces flow'd ; While forth to sight the living likeness came, Souls touch'd by genius, felt thy higher aim : Here, where the public gaze a Siddons views, See fear and pity crown the Tragic muse. There, girt with flames, where Calpe gleams afar. In dauntless Heathfield hail the god of war. Painter of grace ? Love gave to thee ahane, Corregio's melting line, with Titian's tone, Bade Beauty wear all forms that breathe delight, And a new charm in each attract the sight : Here a wild Thai's wave the blazing brand. There yield her zone to Cupid's treach'rous hand. An empress melt the pearl in Egypt's bowl. Or a sly gypsey read the tell tale soul. Painter of passion ! horror in thy view Pour'd the wild scenes that daring Shakspeare drew When the fiend scowl'd on Beaufort's bed of death, And each weird hag 'mid lightnings hail'd Macbeth. Thee Dante led to Famine's murky cave ; " Round yon mute father hear his children rave ; SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 407 " Beliold them stretch'd beneath his stony eye, " Drop one by one, and gaze on him, and die; *' So strain each starting ball in sightless stare, *' And each grim leature fix in stern despair." No earth-born giant struggling into size, Stretch'd in thy cmvas, sprawls before our eyes. The mind applies its standard to tlie scene, Notes with mute awe, the more than mortal mien. Where boundless genius brooding o'er the whole, Stamps e'en on babes sublimity of soul. Whether, where terror crowns Jove's infant brow, Before the God-head aw'd Olympus bow, Or in yon babe, th' Herculean strength upholds Th' enormous snakes, and slacks their len:^th'ning folds ; Or while, from Heav'n, celestial Grace descends. Meek on his knees the infant Samuel bends. Lifts his clasp'd hands, and as he glows in prayer. Fixes in awful trance his eye on air. Yet not fair forms, by Reynolds' hand design 'd, No, nor his magic pen, that paints the mind; That pen, which erst on charm'd Ilyssus' shore Th' exulting Graces to their Plato bore. When Fancy wove, for Truth, her fairest flow'rs; And Wisdom commun'd with the Muse's bow'rs; Not these suffice ' Little remains now to add, only, that in the year 1795 that line collection of pictures of the ancient masters, which Sir Joshua had so judiciously amassed, actually fetched the sum of 10,31 Q'^. 9,s. 6d. ; whilst, in the succeeding year, various historical and fancy pictures of his own painting, accompanied by some unclaimed portraits, were sold for 4,505/. 18^. ; these 408 MEMOIRS OF sums were independent of his most valuable coi'.ecti'on of prints and drawings, which since that have come to the hammer. That such a man as Sir Joshua Reynolds should not yet have had a monument erected to his memory, may seem a kind of public disgrace ; I am pleased, however, to mention, that in the early part of 1807 his friends and admirers came to a determination to perform that duty, for which a distinguished place has been appropriated by the Dean and Chapter of St. Paul's, in their Cathedral. The model has already been exhibited at Somerset-house, and the monument is in progress of execution by Mr. Flaxman. It may seem superfluous to present readers to mention that in the present yeav (1813) a Commemoration of his talents has been celebrated by the " British Institution,"" in which they have been most liberally aided by the patriotic kindness of a considerable part of the jiossessors of specimens of Sir Joshua •Reynolds's pencil ; a most brilliant collection of his works being thus exhibited at the rooms of the institution, late the Shakspeare Gallery : but, if this work "descend to posterity, though not so lasting as his fame, it may be proper that I should here close these Memoirs with also noticing, that in the room in which the company dined, at its opening — a dinner highly honoured by the presence of the Prince Regent, numerous nobility, and eminent artists — a small whole length "1^ ^ 1?; a p,i' 11 5 O 5 SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 409 model of this great painter was placed at the head of the room, and accompanied by the following inscription from the pen of R. P. Knight, Esq. : Joshua Reynolds Pictorum sui seculi facile principi, Et splendore et commissuris Colorum, Alternis vicibus Luminis et Umbrai Sese mutuo excitantium, Vix uUi Veterum secundo ; Qui, cum summa artis, gloria modeste iiteretur, Et moru'm suavitate et vitse elegantia Perinde commendaretur ; Artem etiara ipsam, per orbem terrarum, Languentur et prope inter mortuam Exemplis egregie venustis suscitavit, Prccceptis exquisite conscriptis illiistravit, Atque emendationem et expolitiorem, Posteris exercendam tradidit ; Laudem ejus fautores et amici Plane effigiem posuerunt. f MDCCCXIII. To Sir Joshua Reynolds Confessedly the first artist of his time ; Scarcely inferior to any of the Ancients, In the splendour and combination of colours, V In the alternate succession of light and shade, Mutually displaying each other : Who, whilst he enjoyed with modesty the first honours of his Art, 3 G 410 MEMOIRS OP SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. Was equally commended For the suavity of his manners and the elegance of his mind Who restored, by his highly beautiful models, The Art itself, languishing and almost extinguished In every part of the world ; Who illustrated it by the admirable precepts contained In his writings. And transmitted it in a correct and refined state To be cultivated by posterity ; The friends and admirers of his Talents Have raised this monument. 1813. MEMOIR OF WILLIAM GANDY. As there is no record of this William Gandy preserved in any manner but what he has formed for himself by his pictures, which being without his name marked on them are known but to few, and thus will soon be wholly unknown, I cannot resist the impulse of preserving the small record which tradition gives of him as a just tribute to his memory before it is too late, and thus be lost for ever. This must be an excuse for the adding of a subject which at first sight may seem unconnected with our present plan ; but will have this good effect, at least, that by pointing him out as one admired both by Sir Joshua Reynolds, and Sir Godfrey Kneller (in whose time he lived) it may be the means of preserving many of his works which otherwise might have been destroyed by those ignorant of their merit. William Gandy was an itinerant painter in the county of Devon, where he lived and died ; but it is uncertain whether he was a native of that county. He was the son of James Gandy, of whom Pilkington in his Dictionary of the Painters gives the following account : ^ 3 G 2 412 MEMOIR OF " James Gandy, painted portrait. Died 1689, aged 70. " This painter, although he was a very able artist, is but little known ; he was born in the year I6l9j and instructed by Vandyke, and his works are a sufficient proof of the signal improvement he received from the precepts and example of that great master. " The cause of his being so totally unknown was, his being brought into Ireland by the old Duke of Ormond, and retained in his service ; and as Ireland was at that time in a very unsettled condition, the merit and memory of this master would have been entirely unnoticed, if some of his performances, which still subsist, had not preserved him from oblivion. There are at this time in Ireland many portraits painted by him of noblemen and persons of fortune, which are very little inferior to Vandyke either for expression, colouring, or dignity ; and several of his copies after Vandyke, which were in the Ormond collection at Kilkenny, were sold for original paintings of Vandyke." Thus much is related of the father by Pilkington, who seems to have known nothing of William the son ; a circumstance not much to be wondered at, as William's little fame has seldom passed the limits of the county in which he resided ; and where he spent his life in a state of indigence most truly pitiable, if a great part of it did not deserve to be considered as much his own fault, as his misfortune. WILLIAM GANDY. 413 He was a man of a most untractable disposition, very resentful, of unbounded pride, and in the latter part of his life both idle and luxurious ; of which I remember to have heard many instances from my father who knew him, and whose portrait he painted when a child. He was at all times totally careless of his reputation as a painter ; and more particularly so if any thing happened in the course of his business to displease him. He was once employed to paint the portrait of a Mr. Jolm Vallack, an Apothecary of Plymouth, who had amassed a large fortune in that town ; and as Gandy always attended at the houses of his employers to execute his work (having no room of his own fit to receive a sitter) he expected, of course, to be invited to dinner (which was not the least of his gratifications), concluding he should be well entertained by his patron ; but unfortunately for Gandy, it was Mr. Val lack's custom to have a certain fixed dinner for each day of the week, and by ill luck it happened to be a Saturday M'hen the portrait was begun, and the dinner on that day was nothing more than pork and peas, to the utter mortification and disappointment of the Artist, who at his return to his lodgings vented his rage in curses on his employer's meanness, and not having good nature enougii to be thoroughly reconciled to him afterwards, totally neglected the picture. This anecdote is certified by the performance itself which I have seen, and a very indifferent performance it is. Another instance which I shall give, discovers a singular display of pride and poverty. 414 MEMOIR OF He was invited, together with a friend of his, to visit Sir William Carew at Anthony House, which is on the other side of the River Tamer, and at such a distance from Plymouth, where they lived, that it was nearly impossible for them to return to their home on the same day, and of consequence they were to sleep at Sir William's : but it so happened that the house at that time was so crowded with visitors, that there was a necessity for Gandy and his friend to content themselves with one bed between them. This seemed greatly to mortify Gaudy's pride at the moment ; and they were no sooner retired to their chamber than he began to give free vent to his ill humour, in curses on the indignity thus offered them, by treating two gentlemen (to use his own term) in such a manner, and not allotting to each of them a separate chamber. Notwith- standing all the reasons which were offered to him, from the necessity of the case, as the house was at that time so filled with guests, nothing that could be urged was sufficient to appease the rage of Gandy ; and of this the secret and real cause was now about to transpire, for on his taking off his clothes to go to bed, it evidently appeared that, instead of proper linen, he had two shirts on (if such might be called shirts) both of which were in such a ruinous and tattered condition, such a mere bundle of rags, that out of the two it would have been impossible to realize half a one fit for wear. His portraits (for I believe he never painted any thing else) are slight and sketchy, and show more of genius than labour ; they indeed demonstrate facility, feeling, and nice observation, as far as concerns the head ; but he was so idle and so unambitious WILLIAM GANDY. 415 that the remainder of the picture, except sometimes the hand, is commonly copied from some print after Sir Godfrey Kneller. It is evident that there must have been some period of his life when he pursued his profession with assiduity and energy, which alone could have gained him the facility of practice that he possessed ; but in the latter part of his life he could never be induced to paint at all, unless driven to it by mere want ; and he had no sooner acquired a little money than it was as quickly gone in luxurious feeding, which seemed to be his great passion. There is little reason to doubt that he might have been the greatest painter of his time, had he not been his own greatest enemy. There is no portrait of himself existing that I ever heard of, and when, how, or where he died or was buried, I never knew, but most probably at Exeter, as that city was chiefly the place of his residence. He came to Plymouth about the year 1714, and was then a man advanced in years. My grandfather was a great friend to him ; but Gandy quitted Plymouth much in his debt, departing secretly and leaving only a few old books and prints behind him. I have seen in Devonshire several very fine heads of his painting, particularly one of the Rev. John Gilbert, Canon of 416 MEMOIR OF the cathedral of Exeter, and vicar of St. Andrews', Plymouth, and father of the archbishop of York, of that name : it is less than life, and has been engraved by Vertue for the volume of Sermons, published by Mr. Gilbert. There is also a fine portrait of the Reverend Nathaniel Harding, at that time a famous dissenting preacher of Plymouth ; this picture was painted by the desire of my father's mother, and given by her to the daughter of Mr. Harding, after his death. There is likewise a portrait of one Tobias Langton of Exeter, remarkably fine. Sir Godfrey Kneller, who was once at Exeter, by chance saw this picture, and with astonishment inquired who was the artist capable of having painted it, and when told it was by a painter of that city who was in great poverty, he exclaimed, " Good God ! why does he bury his talents in the country when he ought immediately to come to London, where his merit would soon be known and properly rewarded ?" One, of my father when a child of four years of age, is equally excellent. — One of my father's mother is likewise extremely fine, although Gandy, from his ill nature, was quarrelling with her the whole time he was painting it. The drapery of this picture is painted in a slovenly manner from a print after Kneller, but there is a hand in it very finely executed. There are also a great many of his pictures scattered about Devonshire and Cornwall ; some very fine and many more good-for-nothing, though the worst of them still look like the careless productions of a good painter ; but the draperies were WILLIAM GANDY. 417 always so entirely neglected by him, that this very much conduces to destroy the general effect of the picture. He seemed never to have thought of fame, but only how to get rid of his work, that he might the sooner receive the money, which was not above two guineas a head. He wished to have it supposed that he was the natural son of the great Duke of Ormond, who was afterwards banished, and always insinuated that he had some secret reasons for not appearing publicly in London ; whether this was really the case, or whether he only hoped to give himself importance by his mysterious speeches, I cannot determine. I have learnt these particulars from my father, whose family had opportunities of being well acquainted with Gandy's history, in consequence of his having resided a long time in the house of my grandfather, who admired his talents, and esteemed him as the greatest artist of his time. I have seen a portrait by Gaudy's father (of whom Pilking- ton speaks) of the Duke of Ormond ; it is in the possession of the Earl of Leicester, and this, as it was of his patron, may be supposed one of his best performances ; if so, I must give the preference in ability to the son ; for though this portrait is finished with much more care than any by the younger Gandy, yet it is very far from discovering so much genius. It is remarkable that the drapery in this portrait is so exactly similar to that which wc so often find in Vandyke's pictures, that it confirms Pilkington's supposition of Gandy, the father, having been the assistant of Vandyke, and almost 3 H 418 MEMOIR OP WILLIAM GANDY. proves him to have frequently painted those parts in the pictures of that celebrated painter. It appears to me to be highly probable that this James Gandy, the father, was a native of Exeter, as the son made choice of it for his place of residence, and also because that it is a well known name and family still remaining in that city. We find the name also in Prince's " Worthies of Devon.'* I cannot close the memoir of this man without noticing how much it proves that the greatest abilities may become totally useless to the possessor, and lost to the world at large, if not directed by virtue and industry : and the lives of such persons, as they exhibit an example of the distresses to which idleness and want of moral principles may expose men of parts, may be an useful lesson to the rising generation, and prove a more powerful persuasive to industry, economy, and the right use of great talents, than the most laboured argument ; and as Johnson so exquisitely expresses it — Those who, in confidence of superior capacities or attainments, disregard the common maxims of life, should be reminded, that nothing will supply the want of prudence ; and that negligence and irregularity long continued, will make knowledge useless, wit ridiculous, and genius contemptible." The example of Sir Joshua Reynolds is an illustrious contrast to this, where we see that great abilities, united to virtue, have raised for him an everlasting monument of fame. VARIETIES