YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

Bought with the income
ofthe
ANN S. FARNAM FUND

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

JOHN LINNELL, ^ETAT. 76.
(From an oil-painting by himself.)

THE

Life of John Linnell

BY
ALFRED T. STORY

IN TWO VOLUMES
VOL. II.

LONDON
RICHARD BENTLEY AND SON
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[AU rights reserved]

CONTENTS OF VOL. II.

CHAPTER I.
PACE
Love of the Old Masters— Copies made of their Works — ' The
Four Ages' — Hook — David Roberts — French Ultramarine I — 4
CHAPTER II.
Growing Fame— Study of the Scriptures — Joins the Plymouth
Brethren—' The Windmill '—The Vernon Collection— Ser
geant Thomas — Mr. Webster, R.A.— Mr. Gibbons— Gillott—
' The Eve of the Deluge ' — ' The Last Gleam before the
Storm' 5 — 21
CHAPTER III.
Making Oil-Copal Varnish — Death of William Collins, R.A.—
Wilkie Collins — His Estimate of Linnell — John Everett
Millais — His First Love 22 — 26
CHAPTER IV.
Settlement in Surrey — Tunbridge Wells — Balcombe — First Visit
to Redhill — Purchase of Redstone Wood Estate — House
Building— Further Purchase of Land — Mr. Holman Hunt —
Encouragement of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood — ' I like
Good Ale ; I like Good Wine ' — Anecdote of Gambart the
Dealer 27 — 43
CHAPTER V.
Love of Nature — •' Advice from the Country ' — ' Summer ' — ' The
World of Beauty ' — Blake's Influence on Linnell — Parks —
' The Woodcutters '— ' The Hawthorn-Tree '— ' Up Rays ' 44—56

CONTENTS

CHAPTER VI. PAGE
Views on Art — Dialogue between the Painter and his Friend —
Morality in Art — Murillo — Rubens — Rembrandt — Raphael
—The Dutch School— The Italian School— Taste and Morals
— Qualifications of an Art-teacher —Figure-drawing 57 — 70

CHAPTER VII.
Biblical Criticism — Early Studies — Desire for Tranquillity —
Hebrew and Greek Studies — Diatheekee — Abraham's Cove
nant — ' The Lord's Day ' — Views in regard to Sunday — Burnt-
offerings- 71 — 84

CHAPTER VIII.
The Painter-poet — Poetry and Art — Beauty of Redhill — Begins
to write Poetry — Humour — 'Winter' — 'Spring' — 'The Soul's
Struggle '—' The Poet '—' Gradation '—' The Turk,' et c. 85-

CHAPTER IX.
Character— Early Habits — Rest and Work — Business Principles
— Ready-money Payments — Avoidance of Law — Thrift —
Freedom of Speech — Fox-hunting — Early Rising — Raising
Prices — Views on Catholicism — Letters to his Son and to
Count Guicciardini 99 — 122
CHAPTER X.
Correspondence respecting a Picture by Giulio Romano — W. M.
Rossetti and Blake's Life — Letters by Mrs. Sarah Austin —
Jean Ingelow — Correspondence with William Henry Hunt
— His Death 123  141

CHAPTER XI.
Additional Correspondence — Aphoristic Wisdom — Views on
Work— Views on Art—' Beware of Americans !' — Mr. and
Mrs. Cropsey — Death of Mrs. Linnell — Premonitions of his
own End— Letter from George Richmond, R.A. 142  163

CONTENTS

CHAPTER XII. PAGE
Refusal to become an Academician — Why was Linnell not elected
R.A. ? — What he himself thought — Urged by Creswick and
Herbert to put down his Name — His Reasons for Objecting
— Again urged by Stanfield — Royal Commission on the
Academy — Correspondence between Mr. Horsley, R.A., and
Linnell — Letter to the Athenaum — Mr. Cope's Reply - 164 — 186
CHAPTER XIII.
Linnell's Culminating Period— 'Noonday Rest'— ' The Hayfield'
— ' The Moorlands '—Replica of ' The Storm in Harvest-
time' — Biblical Subjects — 'The Disobedient Prophet' —
'The Journey to Emmaus' — ' Abraham '—' Sunset ' — Scene
in the Academy — The Artist and the Critic— ' Sleeping for
Sorrow'- - 187—203
CHAPTER XIV.
Second Marriage — Visit to Linnell's Studio — 'The Rooks' —
Habits in his Last Years— Political Opinions-Dinner Vision
—Studies in the Psalms — Correspondence— Spurious Copies
of his Works— Curious Legal Point as regards Forgery 204—220
CHAPTER XV.
Cornelius Varley— His Death— Letter by Mr. Gladstone— The
Chantrey Bequest— Proposal to purchase one of Linnell's
Picture's — Correspondence — Last Days — Visited by Mr.
Holman Hunt— Death - 221—232
CHAPTER XVI.
Conclusion— Sixty Years a Contributor to the Royal Academy—
Linnell's Fortune— His Monument in his Works— Estimate
of .his Powers— His Place in British Art 233—238
Appendix 239—284

ILLUSTRATIONS TO VOL. II.

John Linnell, jEtat. 76. (From an Oil-painting by him
self) Frontispiece
Redstone Wood. (From a Sketch by John Linnell, jun.) - 32
Windsor Forest. (From a Water-colour Drawing made in
1815) - 54
The Covenant with Abraham. (From an Oil-painting by
J. Linnell, 1853) 77
The Storm in Harvest-time. (From the 'Magazine of Art,'
by permission of Messrs. Cassell and Co.) 190
The Baptism of Christ. (From an Oil-painting by J. Linnell,
1867-69) 196

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

CHAPTER I.
Love of the Old Masters— Copies made of their Works—' The Four
Ages '—Hook— David Roberts— French Ultramarine.
Before leaving this period, it is necessary to dwell
a little more upon Linnell's love of the Old Masters
and the many copies he made of their works. His
admiration for them was so great that he never felt
it a toil to sit down and make an exact reproduction
of a picture he liked. Even in the prime of life,
when his hands were the fullest of business, he
would spare the time to indulge himself in this way.
On several occasions he had commissions to make
copies of certain pictures, as in the case of the two
Titians for Captain Digby Murray, already men
tioned. But as a rule he painted them for the
pleasure of doing so, without any thought of selling ;
albeit, as a matter of fact, many of them were pur
chased by connoisseurs. Thus he made a copy (in
1822) of Rembrandt's 'Abraham putting away
Hagar,' which was sold to Captain Murray. About
VOL. 11. 21

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

the same time he copied a landscape by Titian —
' The Coming Storm ' — now in the royal collection
at Buckingham Palace, but then in the possession of
Mr. R. R. Reinigale. This fine copy still hangs,
where it hung during the artist's lifetime, in the
library of his house at Redhill.
Mention has been made of his highly-finished
miniature copy on ivory in water-colour of the mag
nificent Raphael — ' The Virgin and Infant Saviour '
— the property of Earl Cowper ; also of the land
scapes by Raphael and Titian, the property of Mr.
Samuel Woodburn, which he copied in 1833 and
1837 respectively.
Between 1828 and 1834 he executed a series of
highly-finished water-colour drawings of pictures in
the National Gallery for Mr. Pye (the line engraver)
to engrave from. They were, ' Christ appearing to
Peter,' by Annibale Carracci ; ' Silenus,' by the
same artist ; ' Susannah and the Elders,' by Ludo-
vico Carracci ; ' The Coronation of St. Nicholas,'
by Paolo Veronese ; the portrait of Lord Heathfield,
by Sir Joshua Reynolds, and ' The Crucifixion,' by
Rembrandt. In 1839 he made an oil copy, the
same size as the original, of Lord Francis Egerton's
Titian, ' The Four Ages.'
This picture was at that time in the School of "
Painting at the Royal Academy, and Linnell made
his copy there in company with the students. John
Hook, the Royal Academician, who was then a
student, was copying ' The Four Ages ' at the same
time, but wanting to proceed more expeditiously

COPYING OLD MASTERS

than he could do alone, he got someone to help
him, which caused Mulready to tell the latter that he
ought to write over the picture, ' This was copied
by Hook and I.'
Amongst the last works of the kind that Linnell
executed was (in 1843) a highly-finished oil copy
the same size as the original, of a ' Holy Family,'
by Sebastiano del Piombo (the property of Mr.
W. Cunningham), which was bought in 1846 by
W. W. Pendarves, Esq,, M.P., for 150 guineas;
also (in 1844) a copy of a picture of ' Christ in the
Garden of Gethsemane,' attributed then to Raphael,
which Mr. Cunningham had just then acquired
from Italy, but which has since been assigned to
the Florentine School by the authorities at the
National Gallery, where it has now found a home.
Linnell's copy is still in the possession of the family.
Although these are the chief copies of Old
Masters that our artist made, they by no means
exhaust the list, which includes examples by Back-
huysen, Gaspar Poussin, Domenichino, Vandervelde,
etc. Linnell has again and again in his writings ex
plained the keen appreciation he had of the qualities
of form and colouring exemplified in the Old
Masters ; and it may be that his constant practical
study of their works in this way kept fresh, and pos
sibly even intensified, his own perception, especially
in regard to colour, which was recognised as a rare
gift by his fellow-artists.
Mr. Horsley, R.A., relates an incident touching

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

Linnell's fine sense of colour which is worth repeat
ing. At a dinner given by Mr. George Young, at
which many Academicians, besides others, were pre
sent, amongst them being Mr. Horsley himself,
Leslie, Creswick, Hart, Webster, and Roberts, the
latter was expatiating on the character and virtues of
the. new colour, French or artificial ultramarine, and
seemed hardly able to find words strong enough to
express how valuable an acquisition he considered
its production to be to artists. He explained in his
broad Scotch that it had been subj'ected to all the
different tests for colours, and that it had come out
triumphantly, and was therefore entitled to take its
place as a substitute for real ultramarine, lapis
lazuli, etc., which were so expensive, whereas it
could be had for sixpence a tube.
When Roberts had finished his enthusiastic eulogy,
Linnell, who was seated next to him, said : ' Mr.
Roberts, in your description of the numerous tests to
which this colour has been subjected, there is one
which you have omitted to mention.'
' Ah, indeed !' said Roberts, turning round and
looking down at his neighbour ; ' one test that I
have omitted ? And pray what may that be ?'
' It won't bear looking at,' replied Linnell very
quietly and deliberately.
That the other artists thought he had struck the
real defect of the new colour was evidenced by the
fact that his answer was greeted with a great out
burst of laughter and applause, which grievously
discomposed Mr. Roberts.

[ 5 ]

CHAPTER II.
Growing Fame — Study of the Scriptures — Joins the Plymouth Brethren
— ' The Windmill ' — The Vernon Collection — Sergeant Thomas —
Mr. Webster, R.A.— Mr. Gibbons— Gillott— ' The Eve of the
Deluge ' — ' The Last Gleam before the Storm.'
Thus Linnell patiently laboured on until about 1845,
when a surprising change came over the scene,
when, in short, there arrived a tardy recognition of
his powers. He was now fifty-four years of age —
an old man as some would be at his years. JBut
Linnell seemed to have learned the secret of peren
nial youth. Since his breakdown in the twenties he
had wonderfully recovered his constitutional vigour,
thanks to a naturally tough frame, and perhaps, also,
in some measure to that careful regimen which he
had established in his household, and from which he
never afterwards departed.
As we have seen, a certain amount of fame had
arisen out of the exhibition of the ' St. John preach
ing in the Wilderness ' at the British Institution in
1839. Perhaps this recognition of his ability may
have acted as a stimulus to his still latent powers,
and done much to call forth a fresh efflorescence of

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

talent. Certain it is that he began to paint with
renewed vigour about this time — that is, roughly
speaking, about his fiftieth year.
There is nothing more remarkable in the history
of great men than this fact regarding John Linnell.
Nor was it in art alone that he manifested this
renewed vigour. It penetrated and revivified his
whole intellectual and moral being, and made the
man of fifty begin as it were a fresh youth. It was
a fresh intellectual youth, at all events, for it was at
this period that he resumed, with increased zest, the
thread of his studies in Greek and Hebrew, which
he had commenced with such assiduity and delight
under Mr. Thomas Palmer, but had been obliged to
lay aside on account of the growing demands of his
family. He had never ceased, however, his study
of the Scriptures ; but this had been confined chiefly
to the English version, and to such exegetical works
as were then procurable. But now, at a time of life
when most men are beginning to think that, not
simply their days of learning, but their days for
work also, are well-nigh done, this man took down
his school-books and recommenced his studies with
all the ardour, and more than the ordinary energy,
of a young man.
He may have been stimulated to do this through
the influence of a new order of minds with which he
about this time came in contact. As already stated,
he in 1843 became acquainted with the body known
as the Plymouth Brethren, a sect which has dis
tinguished itself by its careful study of the original

THE PLYMOUTH BRETHREN

texts of the Scriptures, and has produced several
men of exceptional learning in this department of
research. With these people he associated in reli
gious communion, and occasionally attended their
meetings in London for 'breaking bread,' etc.
He had strong sympathy with the Brethren in
their principles and in their practice, where he con
sidered these in agreement with Scripture precept
and example. He was in accord with them in that
they had no paid preachers or ministers, and gave
no titles ; that they recognised the equality in stand
ing and privilege of all believers, all the brethren
having liberty of speaking, etc., in their assemblies ;
and that they professed to receive one another in
fellowship at ' the Lord's table ' simply on the ground
of having faith in Christ. He recognised that they
had clear spiritual perceptions of many truths as
revealed in the New Testament, having learned
these by sincere, careful, and critical study of the
texts, and by believing in the simple and literal
meaning of the Scripture words. Thus they be
lieved that they acquired light as to prophetical -j
truth, especially the truth of the pre-millennial per
sonal advent of Christ, etc.
It is essential to give these details, as showing
Linnell's turn of thought in these matters. But
after awhile he found that he could no longer
yield the Brethren that sympathy which he had at
first given. He thought that, through lack of the
humility that is proper and becoming to Christians,
and the unity that arises from real brotherly love,

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

a sectarian and intolerant spirit had sprung up
among them, certain of them presuming to judge
and censure others, and to usurp authority over
them, which caused separation and exclusions from
communion one of another.
Thus in January, 1846, at their headquarters in
Plymouth, the body became divided into two oppos
ing parties. The division, and the consequent in
tolerant action, spread to the different gatherings in
London, some of1 the leading men connected there
with assuming what Linnell considered priestly
prerogatives. This was one of the things against
which he had always warred, and so in 1848 he
and his family discontinued assembling with the
Brethren, losing sympathy with them, and being
unable any longer to co-operate with them in what
they considered their unscriptural action.
This intercourse with the Plymouth Brethren was
more of the nature of an incident in Linnell's life
than a matter which affected either his principles or
his habits. He took no active part in their public
meetings, and hardly ever spoke in them, preferring
the position of listener and learner, and simple
partaker in the Christian fellowship of the body.
As regards all they wrote and said, he tested and
judged them strictly and impartially by the text of
Scripture, as he had always done with regard to
the productions of everybody else. He was ever
ready to receive help in the understanding of the
inspired text from anyone, and thankfully availed
himself of every such afforded help ; but to the

STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURE

man himself who might be instrumental in giving
such help he allowed no authority.
As already said, his acquaintance with this body
probably stimulated his Biblical studies at that time,
but had no further effect. He was always grateful
to the Brethren for the books they had produced,
which afforded much assistance in the study of the
Greek and Hebrew texts, such as ' The English
man's Greek Concordance of the New Testament,'
and ' The Englishman's Hebrew Concordance of the
Old Testament.'
Returning thus to his early studies, he devoted
himself to the texts of the Old and New Testaments
with all the zeal and patience that he brought to bear
upon whatever he undertook, and he mastered their
spirit so thoroughly that he was enabled to throw
light upon more than one disputed passage. The
results of these studies on certain points he after
wards published in several pamphlets. Of these,
however, it will be necessary to speak in a subse
quent chapter. It is sufficient here to refer to the
fact as a sign of the renewed vigour of his in
tellect. After losing sympathy with the Plymouth Brethren,
Linnell never again joined any body of professing
Christians, being satisfied to worship in his own
way, and in accordance with what he believed to
be the direction of Scripture. He never at any
time of his life adopted what is called 'family
worship ' in any shape, considering it too formal
and unreal a thing, and, moreover, a hindrance to

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

business and work. Accordingly, all worship, prayer,
etc., on the part of himself and his family was of a
private nature, as directed in Matthew vi. 6.
He had the greatest objection to anything like
formalism, considering that it was the death of the
spirit. In this respect, Dissenter though he was,
he objected quite as much to the extemporary
prayers of the non-episcopal bodies as to those of
the Established Church, considering them inspired
by vanity more than by spiritual fervour. For the
same reason he was opposed to anything like a
regular ministry. Such, he held, always resulted in
what was virtually a priesthood, or, in other words,
in a domineering attitude in regard to spiritual
matters towards those over whom they were placed.
His contest was against what he was wont to
describe briefly as the ' one-man system.' He did
not consider it healthful for any one man to be the
final judge of what was true or right in regard to
doctrine or practice. Every man so placed as the
arbiter on points of truth must, he held, from the
very nature of man, end by becoming a pope and
usurper. Hence his life-long protest against all
systems which allowed of such a state of things.
His dislike, and at the same time his criticism, of
this system is set forth in the following vigorous
lines : 'As Christian perhaps you'd get on faster
If you had not a hired pastor ;
He gives you words, 'tis true, as sweet as honey,
And in exchange he gets your ready money ;
And if he gets not that, he gets the power,
Sweeter to many than the richest dower.

VIEWS ABOUT MEDICINE

He's always uppermost, pre-eminence he seeks,
Therefore he always teaches, preaches, speaks ;
And so the one-man system is established sure,
And, through the lack of faith, will for a time endure,'
As was Linnell's attitude towards ecclesiastical
systems, so it was to some extent towards medicine.
His intolerance of all arbitrary domination, together
with his strong sense of individual responsibility in
forming a right judgment on all subjects, led him to
hold decisive opinions in this respect also. He
would never put himself ' into the hands ' of any
medical man, nor would he take medicines without
knowing what he was swallowing, and something
about the drugs they contained.* For this reason
* On one occasion when his grandson, More Palmer, the son of
Samuel Palmer, had been ill, and Mrs. Palmer wrote a letter to
Mr. Linnell, telling him of her son's recovery, he sent the following
impromptu ; 'Anny, thou doest well
To praise thy Dr. Bell,
If he will tell
What medicines he gave ;
But if he won't disclose,
And finger puts to 's nose,
Then he's a knave.
' You'll say that he has cured your son,
Sure as a gun ;
Which certainly he may have done
By mere negation,
Preventing calomel and jalap
From giving his inside a wallop
Of violent purgation.
' The Allopath might easily have killed —
Rash, unwise, and most unskilled
In Nature's course, which often
Leads into health' from death's dark do.or,
Making our hearts with gratitude to soften
For so much given, with prospect still of More.'

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

he always required his physician's prescriptions to
be written so that he could himself understand
them. He held that the chief use of a doctor
was to instruct the patient as to the nature of his
complaint, and how he had incurred it, so that
he might avoid similar error in the future.
In regard to his own health, he had a theory which
probably served him in good stead of a great deal
of physic. He held that Nature is all the while
endeavouring to keep a person well, or to get him
well if ill, and that the best medicine is patiently to
aid her efforts. In this respect, also, as in many
others, he appears to have taken a hint from Mul
ready, who once when ill, being asked what he had
taken, replied, ' The best of all medicines — nothing.'
In_i835 Linnell sent to the British Institution a
small panel (9 by 15 inches) entitled 'Windsor
Forest,' which was purchased by Mr. Vernon for
30 guineas (and of which an engraving appeared in
the Art Journal for 1851). It afterwards went,
with that gentleman's collection, into the National
Gallery, where for a time it was almost the only
specimen of a work by a living artist.
Ten years later (1845) another of Linnell's land
scapes found its way into Mr. Vernon's collection,
and with it subsequently to the National Gallery.
The picture in question was ' The Windmill,' a
beautiful little composition (17 by 21 inches) with
cows in water, and a delightful breezy sky. It was
sold to Mr. Vernon from the British Institution for
50 guineas. This picture also was engraved for

A BARRISTER PICTURE-DEALER 13
the Art Jdurnal. A replica of it, painted in 1848,
sold for 1 50 guineas.
These and some few other landscape and figure
subjects were disposed of at small prices, but as
a rule they came back from the exhibitions to hang
upon the artist's own walls and accumulate in his
studio. At length an important factor in Linnell's
career came upon the scene in the person of Mr.
Jlalph Thomas, barrister-at-law, and, in a private
way, picture-dealer. Thomas was something of a
character, being what is usually called a self-made
man. He had originally pursued some humble
calling, but, being dissatisfied with it, he devoted
himself to study, and became successively book
seller, auctioneer, and barrister. He was, however,
above all a shrewd business, money-making man.
Linnell and Thomas met for the first time on
October 30, 1845, when, as the former records in
his journal, he had occasion to call and see the
lawyer at his office in Chancery Lane. The same
day Mr. Thomas went to Porchester Terrace to see
Linnell's pictures, and he appears to have been so
struck with them that he at once opened negotia
tions to do business. He proposed to sell to the
artist a house he owned on the Terrace, Hammer
smith, valued at ^480, taking pictures in exchange
for it. By November 10 terms had been agreed
upon, and in due course the house — No. 3, Hammer
smith Terrace — passed into Linnell's possession,*
* The house in question was one in which Linnell as a boy used to
visit Sir Benjamin West.

14 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

and ten of his pictures, together with some sketches,
into Thomas's.
This was the beginning of a number of business
transactions between the two that proved mutually
advantageous. On March 4, 1846, Thomas made
Linnell an offer of ,£1,000 for fifteen (afterwards
increased to seventeen) pictures, which was ac
cepted. The pictures, some of which required re
touching, were all delivered, and the money received,
by May 8. About the same time Linnell worked
upon an unfinished picture by William James Muller,
who had died a year previously at Bristol, for his
new patron. The picture was the artist's ' View of
the Ruins of Pinara, Asia Minor.' Linnell com
pleted it from Muller's original water-colour sketch,
and received 50 guineas in payment for his work.
Among the pictures which thus came into Mr.
Thomas's possession were several notable ones.
' The Meal in the Wood : Woodcutters in Windsor
Forest ' (30 by 43 inches), a sketchy replica of a
previous ' Woodcutters ' painted in 1 8 1 6, was sold
at Christie's in 1848 for 200 guineas, and was
subsequently bought by Mr. Birch, of Birmingham,
for 300 guineas. It shows a clearing in the forest
strewn with the trunks of trees. In the foreground
are a number of figures, some of them seated,
eating, others at work ; in the distance is a wooded
glade. ' The Cow-yard ' (a small panel), already men
tioned as one of Mr. Sheepshanks' gift to the nation
(purchased by him for ,£78 15s.), is, perhaps, the

MR. GIBBONS 15

gem of that collection, the drawing of the cows
being exceptionally fine.
' Noon,' another of Thomas's purchases, has
already been mentioned.
The barrister art-connoisseur and dealer was thus
the means of bringing grist to the artist's mill, and,
at the same time, of helping to make his works
known. As a set-off to the benefit thus conferred,
Linnell was enabled to do Thomas a good turn by
procuring the coif, a coveted distinction, for him.
His journal contains the entry :
'January 12. — Went to Lord Lyndhurst to ask
him to give Mr. Ralph Thomas the coif, but could
not see him.'
This is followed by another entry, on February 24,
to the effect that, at the request of Mr. Thomas, he
wrote a letter to Chief Justice Tindal, enclosing one
from Mr. Thomas, applying for the coif for him.
The application proved successful, and thus to some
extent Thomas owed his serjeantship to Linnell.
Thomas proved to be the forerunner of a host of
dealers, who now began to compete with each other
for the artist's work, and continued to do so for
many years to come — almost, indeed, to the day of
his death. Mr. Gibbons, of Regent's Park, a private
collector, was the first to follow Mr. Thomas with
purchases to any extent. In September, 1846, he
bought Linnell's portraits of William Mulready,
R.A., and William Collins, R.A. In November he
bought also the portrait of Samuel Rogers, and the
painter's copy of Mr. Harman's Vandervelde. He

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

also purchased at this time a small landscape —
' The Gateshead Windmill ' (exhibited at the Royal
Academy in 1847); and in the following January
(1847) he acquired the picture then in hand, and
exhibited in that year's Academy, entitled ' Mid
day,' giving for it 100 guineas.
There is a story connected with Mr. Gibbons'
early purchases which must not be left untold. Mr.
Webster, R.A., was always Linnell's good friend,
and a great and sincere admirer of his art. It was
to him at this time a matter of as great regret as
astonishment that the artist's pictures continued to
crowd his walls, whilst those of inferior men found
a ready market ; and it is to his credit that he did
what he could to make them known and appreciated.
On one occasion when he was executing a com
mission for Mr. Gibbons, he asked that gentleman if
he knew John Linnell ; and upon his saying he did
not, proposed that they should walk round to his
place and call upon him. Mr. Gibbons was agree
able, and they went ; but though Linnell's walls
were covered with pictures, the art-patron saw
nothing that took his fancy, and they left without
his purchasing a single thing. Webster was an
noyed, and told Gibbons that he was surprised that
he had not bought anything. The latter replied
that he had seen nothing that he cared for.
After parting with Gibbons, Webster returned to
Linnell's, and expressed his regret that his friend
had selected nothing. Linnell replied that it was
very kind of him to try to get a purchaser for some

'THE WOODCUTTERS' REPAST' 17
of his works, and thanked him for his good-will.
Webster, however, was not satisfied, and said he
would like to buy something himself. He had, he
said, just then a little money, and he would like to
have a bit of his work, if there was anything he
would sell at a price within his reach. He finally
chose a small picture, 9 by 1 5 inches, entitled ' The
Woodcutters' Repast,' and asked him what he
would take for it. Linnell said he would sell it
to him for 40 guineas. Webster agreed, and the
picture was duly paid for and carried home, where
it was hung in a central position, surrounded by
some of Webster's own canvases.
A few days later Mr. Gibbons again called to see
how his commission was progressing, and his eye at
once fell upon ' The Woodcutters' Repast.'
' What is that ?' he exclaimed. ' Is it yours ?'
' No ; of course it isn't,' said Webster. ' I can't
paint half as well as that ; I wish I could. It is
one of Linnell's — one of those you could see
nothing in.'
Gibbons now admired the picture so much that he
wanted to buy it ; but Webster said he would not
sell it — he would keep it as long as he lived, which,
in fact, he did.
Gibbons, however, was so taken with the little
picture that he asked his friend to take him to see
Linnell's works again. Webster accordingly went
round with him, and the result was that he at once
bought several pictures, and afterwards became one
of the artist's best customers at that time.
vol. 11. 22

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

Two months later (March, 1847) a still more
important patron made his appearance. This was
Mr. Joseph Gillott, the well-known pen-manufacturer
of Birmingham, who gave a number of commissions
for pictures, and also purchased (for £1,000) a
famous picture then in progress, ' The Eve of the
Deluge.' This was the first picture for which Linnell
obtained a large price. He thought he had excelled
himself in it, and, in order to pique curiosity, he
kept it covered with a drapery when he was not
working upon it. Over it he wrote the words
' Aspetta tu vedrai '* (Wait, and you shall see).
Mr. Gibbons was one of the very few who were^
permitted to look at it. He admired it greatly, and
was disposed to become a purchaser. Linnell asked
him to name a price, but he would not. Mr. Gillott
called and saw it a few days afterwards, and asked
the painter what he would take for it. Linnell
asked him to make an offer.
' But I might offer more than you want for it,'
Mr. Gillott replied.
' I will write the amount I wish for it on a piece
of paper,' the artist answered ; ' and if you offer
more, you shall have it at my price.'
Gillott offered £ 1,000, and the artist then showed
him the paper on which he had written his price : it
was .£1,000.
' The Eve of the Deluge ' was exhibited in the
* These were the words put up outside the Vatican by Pius IX. in 1847,
when all the world were looking to him for the institution of reforms.

A FAMOUS PICTURE 19
Royal Academy in 1848, and is one of Linnell's
greatest pictures. In size it is one of the largest
he painted, being 59 by 88 inches. On a rocky
eminence to the right is seen the ark, with animals
and birds flocking into it. In the foreground is a
group of seven figures. Another figure, followed by
two greyhounds, approaches from the left ; while
beyond a rocky gorge in the foreground is seen a
distant view. It is evening, and the stormy sky is
lit up by the setting sun.
This picture may be said to have set the final
stamp and seal to Linnell's growing fame. It quite
took the public by surprise, ' from the sublimity and
daring with which the painter invested his subject.'
Even Turner, who was not a man to give rash
judgments on pictures, remarked to Gillott, who
took him to see it in the Academy, that it was no
common work.
But, notwithstanding the intrinsic merits of the
picture, the effect it produced was greatly aided
by an altogether fortuitous circumstance. William
Westall, A.R.A., the water-colour painter, happened
also to exhibit the same year a canvas representing
' The Commencement of the Deluge.' It was
known that Westall had been working on his
picture for some time, and great expectations were
entertained of it. Though undoubtedly a fine
work, it appeared flat and colourless in comparison
with Linnell's glowing canvas ; and being both on
the line, and in near juxtaposition the one to the
other, the effect was unfortunate for the Associate.

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

' The Eve of the Deluge ' was purchased at
Mr. Gillott's sale in 1872 by Mr. W. Agnew, and
subsequently became the property of Mr. Angus
Holden, M.P., of Bradford.
About the same time (1847) was painted 'The
Last Gleam before the Storm ' (canvas, 35 by 50
inches), which, with its grand clouds and gloomy
landscape, constitutes another of the artist's master
pieces of composition and colour. The ' Last
Gleam ' was exhibited in the British Gallery in
1848, and, like the former, was purchased by Mr.
Gillott, the price being £250. Twenty-four years
later it was sold at his sale at Christie's for £2,500.
As a result of this sale — which, of course, did not
in the least benefit the painter — a curious thing
happened : Linnell had his income-tax doubled.
In the same year (1848) was painted for the same
munificent patron 'The Return of Ulysses,' on a
canvas 48^- by 72 inches. It was exhibited in the
Royal Academy in the following year, and sub
sequently in the Manchester Art Treasures Exhibi
tion. The picture represents an incident taken from
the ' Odyssey,' and bears the quotation, from Chap
man's translation of the ' Odyssey ' :
' And first brought forth Ulysses : bed, and all
That richly furnisht it ; he -still in thrall
Of all-subduing sleepe. Upon the sand
They set him softly downe ; and then, the strand
They strewed with all the goods he had, bestowed
By the renowned Phaeacians.'
In the foreground Odysseus is being carried
ashore by four men, followed by other figures ;

MR. JOSEPH GILLOTT

while the rocky shore of Ithaca and the sea are
seen stretching away in the distance.
Although what is called a ' self-made man,' Mr.
Gillott had very fine perceptions in art, and seldom
made a wrong judgment ; and it is to his credit that
he was among the first to give Linnell large prices.
It need hardly be said that he was a ' character ' in
his way — not to say an oddity. When he came to
town he used to put up at Furnival's Inn, where he
had a suite of rooms, and where he was wont to
feast his friends in the most sumptuous manner.
Linnell eschewed his dinners, but on one or two
occasions took tea with him, and used to recount
with amusement how the queer little pen-manu
facturer would empty out the pot, and make fresh
tea for every cup they drank, saying that they could
not drink it stale.
Gillott continued to give Linnell commissions,
and to buy largely of him for several years. Among
others who commenced dealing with him about the
same time as Gillott was Mr. Weathered, who, in
September, 1847, made the first of a series of pur
chases which extended over twelve years.
Thus began that full tide of success which kept
the artist's brush busily employed for the rest of his
life.

[ 22 ]

CHAPTER III.
Making Oil-Copal Varnish — Death of William Collins, R.A.— Wilkie
Collins— His Estimate of Linnell — John Everett Millais — His
First Love.
Reference has previously been made to the circum
stance of John Glover, the landscape-painter, having
made Linnell acquainted with the superior qualities
of oil-copal as a medium for oil-painting. In the
early part of his career our artist, as well as Mul
ready, had been in the habit of using only boiled
linseed-oil, diluted with turpentine, and many beau
tiful works by both artists exist in excellent condition
which were painted with this medium, though they
have not the brilliancy and transparency of their
later works in copal. For some time Linnell used
the ordinary oil-copal sold by the artists' colourmen,
but finding it not entirely to his satisfaction, he
finally took the matter in hand and resolved to
make his own varnish. This was about the time
(1847) when he began to devote himself entirely to
landscape-painting, and he was determined to have
everything of the very best quality to work with.
He accordingly studied the. making of varnishes

VARNISH-MAKING 23

very thoroughly, consulting the best books on the
subject from Cennino Cennini downwards, and then
arranged with a varnish-maker to produce some
under his supervision.
The necessary apparatus (consisting of fwo iron
furnaces) was erected at the end of the garden, and
early one summer morning, before people generally
were astir, the varnish-maker set to work, and, under
the direction of the artist, made a large quantity of
copal varnish, the best materials procurable — picked
gum copal, old linseed-oil, and zinc dryer — only being
used. The oil employed, however, proving doubtful
as to quality, Linnell took the means to obtain some
that was above suspicion, and about a month later
another lot of varnish was made. On this occasion
both copal and amber varnish were produced.
Mulready was greatly interested in the success of
these operations, and was present on the latter occa
sion. On two subsequent occasions, namely, in. the
September of the sarhe year, and again in 1848,
there were further experiments iri varnish-making. /
On the first occasion it was made with raw oil, on
the second with two oils. These concluded his
varnish-making operations, having now secured a
sufficient quantity of the best quality to more than
last his lifetime.
Creswick afterwards followed Linnell's example,
and employed the same firm to make him some
varnish, but he did not succeed so well.
In the same way, feeling that one of the secrets of

24 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
success in painting is to work with the very best
pigments, Linnell ground some of his own most
important colours, and spared neither trouble nor
expense in procuring the best materials.
It is, perhaps, natural to find that these and other
labours which Linnell conducted in order to obtain
articles he needed of the highest possible quality
led at one time or another to the circulation of
humorous skits at his expense, and in some cases to
actual misrepresentation, as when it was said that
he carried on the manufacture of canvas under his
roof. At a later period it was also spread about that he
even made his own shoes. Some of these reports
were possibly meant to injure ; but they never hurt
the subject of them, and few could enjoy the
humorous side of such tales better than he.
In 1847 Linnell's old friend, William Collins, died,
and he was some little time afterwards asked to
assist Wilkie Collins in the compilation of a life of
his father. Incidentally the matter is referred to in
the following letter, addressed to Mrs. Linnell,
which, unfortunately, has no date :
' My dear Mrs. Linnell,
' My brother and I are very anxious to take
advantage of your kind invitation to us to pay you a
visit at Porchester Terrace some evening. I now
write to know whether to-morrow or Friday evening
will be convenient to you. We are disengaged on
either day.

WILKIE COLLINS 25
' I shall hope to find Mr. Linnell at home, as I
hear he has some hints to give me respecting the
early parts of my father's life, which will, I am sure,
be of very great use to me in the biography I am
now writing.
' Do not trouble yourself to write. A verbal
answer by the bearer, either for to-morrow or Friday
evening, will be quite sufficient. ' Truly yours,
' W. Wilkie Collins.
' Tuesday evening'
The brother referred to, of course, was Charles
Collins, who, following in his father's footsteps,
became an artist. Linnell gave Wilkie Collins all
the aid he could in respect to the biography, and
the author was recognisant to the extent of referring
to him in its pages as being so capable an artist as
to be able to arrange a row of blacking-bottles in
such a way that they would look picturesque.
Several other letters from Wilkie Collins are
included in Linnell's correspondence. One of them,
evidently of a somewhat earlier date than the fore
going, is interesting as having reference to his
studies in art, to which he at first thought of turning
his attention. It is as follows :
' My dear Sir,
' You were kind enough to say that you
would give us some advice about the treatment of
our oil-sketches, when we had them ready for your
inspection. If you can conveniently call on us,

26 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
either Monday or Tuesday next, at any time before
three o'clock, we shall be happy to show them to
you. ' Faithfully yours,
' W. Wilkie Collins.'
Amongst other correspondence belonging to this
period is a letter from Mr. (afterwards Sir) John
Everett Millais. He writes from 83, Gower Street,
Bedford Square, saying that he wants to find ' a
small deep river with willows overhanging the
banks,' and asking if there is such a thing at Under-
River, ' a place I fancy you are familiar with,' he
adds. Linnell does not appear to have kept a copy
of his reply ; but on the fly-leaf of the letter he has
jotted down the following stanza in pencil :
' No river deep, though small,
With willows overhung,
Whose tender branches fall
In graceful forms along,' —
at Under- River, he no doubt meant, but whether
he was able to direct Mr. Millais to some other
place for what he wanted we have no means of
knowing. It is worthy of note that Linnell had the greatest
admiration for Millais' art, but more especially for
that of his earlier period. Later he thought he had
fallen off somewhat, and on one occasion, when they
met, he exclaimed, ' Ah, Mr. Millais, you have left
your first love — you have left your first love !'

[27]

CHAPTER IV.
Settlement in Surrey — Tunbridge Wells— Balcombe — First Visit to
Redhill — Purchase of Redstone Wood Estate — House Building
— Further Purchase of Land — Mr. Holman Hunt — Encourage
ment of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood — ' I like Good Ale ; I
like Good Wine ' — Anecdote of Gambart the Dealer.
W"e now come to John Linnell's last change of
residence, and the most important of all. For
upwards of twenty years he had lived at Bayswater,
and during the earlier of those years he was kept
so busy with portrait-painting and engraving, as
well as with his landscape work, that he had little
leisure for visits to the country, which were in
consequence few and brief. For many years he
seldom went away from home, unless it were on
business, and then he returned as quickly as possible.
His early sketches in Wales, in Windsor Forest,
the Isle of Wight, and elsewhere, supplied him with
abundant material for his pictures ; besides which
he still had the country, so to speak, at his door.
When he first built himself a house in Porchester
Terrace he was surrounded by fields. He had only
to go a few steps to be in the midst of rural sights
and scenes, while Hampstead could still be reached

28 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
by open field-paths. In 1830 he made a chalk
study at the north end of Porchester Terrace of a
bank with sheep, etc., and from this sketch he
painted the picture entitled ' Morning,' which was
exhibited at the British Institution in 1832. In
1834, again, he made oil studies from nature at a
brook near Wale's Tea-Gardens, Bayswater, from
one of which he painted his picture of ' The Hollow
Tree ' (or ' The Nest '), exhibited at the Royal
Academy in 1836.
But gradually, as the demand for his landscapes
increased, and, concurrently, as the education of
his sons and daughters took up less of his time, he
found more leisure for trips into the country, and
indulged himself to the utmost of his ability. More
over, as Bayswater was now becoming more and
more built up, he found these visits needful, not
only for himself, but for his sons, three of whom
were now Royal Academy students (having been
admitted in 1840), and were no longer satisfied,
as formerly, to make studies of the scraps of ' nature '
left in the neighbourhood of their home, and in
Kensington Gardens.
Accordingly, he went in 1840 with his three sons
to Sevenoaks, and having procured them a lodging
in the town, he returned to London. This was
their first excursion into the country, and they made
studies in Knoll Park, at Little Under-River, and
at ' Rook's Hill.' A few days afterwards our artist
took Mrs. Linnell and family to Under-River, where
they remained until the end of September, he stay-

VISITS TO THE COUNTRY 29
ing with them from Saturday till Monday, and
making excursions with his wife and children about
the locality.
In July of the following year he accompanied
Mrs. Linnell and family to Thatcham, where they
remained until October. As before, Linnell went
down from Saturday till Monday, visiting, and
generally making studies at, Cold Ash Common,
Beacon Hill, Kingsclere, Newbury, and Donnington.
Thatcham was visited again in like manner in the
following year. During the next four years no
excursions to the country were made, both the artist
and his sons being too fully employed at home paint
ing and engraving to be able to spare the time.
In 1847 Linnell repeated his visit to Little Under-
River, and in July took lodgings in the village for
his family. These relaxations from labour became
more and more enjoyable to him, and in order to
make the most of them he used to hire a covered
van and make excursions to places in the neigh- •
bourhood. In this way he visited Brasted Chart,
Westerham, and Sundridge (where there are some
fine pine-trees), also Tunbridge and Tunbridge
Wells, Erridge's Rocks, Penn's Rocks, etc., and
made studies at Under-River and at Wimlet Hill
(or Rook's Hill).
Returning to London after a few days, he sketched
out a design in chalk and crayons for the subject of
the ' Disobedient Prophet killed by the Lion ' (in
troducing the Sundridge pines). Then, visiting
Under-River for a day or two at a time, he made

30 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
more studies in chalk and crayons, and driving to
Sundridge with his son James, who assisted him,
he proceeded with and completed his study of the
pine-trees. In 1848 Linnell settled his family for the summer
at Balcombe, just over the Sussex border, running
down himself for a day or two at a time whenever
he could, but chiefly at the end of the week. In
October he spent several weeks together making
studies from nature in this charming neighbour
hood. These sketches are amongst the finest he
ever did, and a number of them were exhibited,
along with his other works, at the Old Masters
Exhibition in 1883.
There being nothing now to tie him to London,
Linnell resolved to gratify his love for the country
to the full. Bayswater was now built up on all
sides, leaving very little of the ' Nature ' a landscape-
painter requires, and hence for some time he had
felt a growing need for change. In May, 1849,
therefore, he went with his son James to Eden-
bridge to look out for a suitable locality in which
to settle within easy reach of London. At Red
hill Junction there was a delay, and they took the
opportunity to walk up the hill to Redstone Wood.
Linnell had previously noticed a wooded knoll on
the left of the line from London to Brighton, and
had remarked that it seemed just the place for an
artist's cottage.
A nearer view of the spot enhanced his satisfac
tion with it, and to his surprise he found that it was

REDSTONE WOOD 31
for sale. Well wooded, overlooking a magnificent
stretch of country, and in the midst of a thoroughly
agricultural district, it seemed the very place for
the home of a landscape-painter, and so convinced
was Linnell of the fact, that, after making the
necessary inquiries and investigations, he resolved
to buy it.
His solicitor told him the price asked by the
vendor was excessive. Linnell's reply was : ' Never
mind, the land will prove a good investment ; it
will give me foregrounds — indeed, most of the
materials I need for my pictures.'
It was a small estate, consisting of about eleven
acres, and belonged to a Mr. Allsop, of the Stock
Exchange, a well-known follower of Robert Owen,
the Socialist, to whom he afterwards introduced
Linnell, who, it may be mentioned, had but a poor
opinion of his ' intellects.'
Linnell's first visit to Redstone Wood occurred
towards the end of May. By June 20 he had
agreed upon the purchase, and on July 19 he had
sold out Bank of England stock to pay for it.
In the meantime he had taken lodgings at Red
hill for Mrs. Linnell and family, and the summer
and autumn were spent in excursions about the
neighbourhood, the artist himself spending as much
time in the country as he could spare from his work
in London. Superintending the building of his
house, which he at once set about erecting, necessi
tated the taking of lodgings at Redhill again in the
summer of 1850.

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

It had at first been his intention to build only a
small cottage for use in the summer months, pur
posing still to reside the greater part of the year in
his house at Bayswater. He soon changed his
mind, however, in this respect, and employed an
architect to draw up designs for a substantial house
such as would meet all the requirements of his

REDSTONE WOOD.
(From a sketch by John Linnell, jun.)
family, which now numbered four sons and five
daughters, the two youngest ones, Thomas and
Phcebe, being twins.
The original plan of the structure was his own,
and the execution of the design might have been
his, too, considering its many defects. But it is
roomy, convenient in spite of faults, and on the
lower floor well lighted. As regards light, when

HOUSE-BUILDING 33
building his house at Bayswater, Linnell had been
prevented from making his windows as large as he
would have liked because of the window-tax ; but
now that that objectionable impost was done away
with, he resolved to have all the light he wanted.
Hence all the principal windows at Redstone were
made of the largest size, and in the chief rooms
they were in such a position as at one season of
the year or another to afford glimpses of the sun
set. The house occupied the better part of two years
in building, and it was not until July, 1851, that the
family finally removed into it. The house in Bays-
water was then let, and henceforth to the end of
his days Linnell lived and worked at Redhill.
Some four or five years after acquiring the Red
stone estate, Linnell added to it by the purchase of
thirty-one acres from Lord Somers. The addition
consisted of three arable fields and some woodland
adjoining Redstone. From one of the fields, which
was planted with barley, Linnell painted a ' Harvest '
picture, seeing which the farmer who rented the
land remarked that he supposed that the artist
would get more out of the field than he should,
meaning that the painting would probably fetch
more than his year's crop.
Subsequently Linnell added still further to his
landed property by the purchase of the Chart
Lodge estate, consisting of thirty-two acres, which,
being in Chancery, was sold at the Auction Mart in
1862, his little demesne now consisting in all of
vol. 11. 23

34 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
about eighty acres. A large portion of it was
woodland, and this he kept almost intact, hardly
ever felling a tree, or even so much as lopping a
branch. In all this Linnell had an artist's eye to the
enjoyment of his surroundings ; and on every side
of him, as he went about his grounds, were presented
to his sight views such as few landscape-painters
could enjoy from their own domain.
Situated as his house was on the slope of the hill,
he had, on the one hand, a charming bit of wood
land ; on the other, a wide-stretching vale, with the
blue hills in the distance. Upon these and the
sunset he looked from his library window ; and it
was his delight, when the weather permitted it, to
sit in the open, facing the west, and watch the
magnificent panorama that gradually unfolded itself
to his eye, as the sun, coming down from his noon
day elevation, sloped through the lingering after
noon, shedding gold upon the fields and woods,
and finally disappearing with deepening and ever-
varied splendours.
On the summit of the hill, whence naturally there
is a still broader view, extending to Leith Hill on
the one hand and to Cookham Hill on the other,
he would often sit throughout the summer afternoon,
possibly with a sketch-book before him, making
note of a bit of sky, a sunlight effect upon the near
woods, a distant hill-slope, or what not ; or it might
be allowing his wonderful memory to be impressed
like a photographic plate with facts of sky and

A GLOWING DESCRIPTION 35
cloud and weather, to remain there until the time
came for them to become instinct with life and
reality upon his canvas.
It is of importance to note this, because Linnell
never painted topography, but aspects of Nature.
The distinction may not be easily intelligible to the
matter-of-fact mind, although to spiritually artistic
natures the truth will be at once apparent. In the
one case, the painter, if unendowed with the imagina
tive gift, seizes upon and records dry, hard details ;
in the other, he is seized upon by the phenomena,
and tells to the best of his ability what they convey
to him.
A writer recently, in a somewhat dithyrambic
strain, gave a glowing description of the impres
sions produced upon him by a day's sojourn in the
domain chosen as his home by this most idiosyn
cratic of English artists.
'From morning till night,' he writes, 'the pano
rama changes, and from the slopes and summit of
the hill upon which the colony* nestles the whole
is visible, from the golden sunrise, gradually clearing
the mists of the valley, through the broadening day,
to the down-closing of the star-spangled lid of night.
In every direction there is a more or less remote
horizon, here with beautiful outlines and an ever-
changing phantasmagoria of colour, yonder with
shadow mingled with the light to the verge of
* There were at this time three houses upon the estate, that which
John Linnell, senior, built for himself, and those which he had built
for his sons James and William.

36 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
gloom and mystery. One does not wonder that the
place was a continual inspiration to one who has left
an indelible name in the annals of English art. At
every turn there is a picture ; wherever the eye
lights, whether on earth or sky, there is beauty to
entrance the mind, and to enthral the heart, too, if
it have any tenderness for the Divine. And on
every hand there is life ; on the ground at our feet
a life innumerable as the blades of grass, and so
varied and wonderful that the mind never ceases to
see freshness and newness in it ; in the over-arching
space above a life grand and majestic, as of the
ceaseless procession of armies, or of all created
things moving to another ark ; and at night the
shapes of the processioning creatures are picked out
with stars. . . .
' The thick wood that clothes the hill-slope is full
of charming "bits," to use the language of artists
— bits that, paint they never so deftly, will possibly
elude their brush. Here the bright light trickling
through the undergrowth, and falling like glittering
diamonds upon the leafy floor, there falling with a
splash of golden colour upon a lichen-covered trunk.
Above the wood, where the hill-brow bares itself to
all the winds, the eye wanders over far fields to
distant and more distant hills. Meadows and corn
fields, with woodlands, hedgerows, farms with their
hay and corn stacks, fill the intervening space with
endless diversity of colour. Yonder is a brown,
heath like space, and near it a piece of water
glistening like burnished steel ; over it there is a

VISIT BY HOLMAN HUNT 37
shimmer of heat, though the wind comes from the
east ; beyond, hills in mist. The diapason of colour
runs up from the glowing yellow of a field of char
lock to deeper and deeper shades of purple ; and
over all is the vast transparency of blue.
' It is enough to make one break his palette and
throw away his brushes in despair. But the artist
who first settled down here, John Linnell, set him
self to paint the whole, and succeeded to a marvel
in transferring to his canvas the varied beauty of
the landscape.'*
Here it was, then, that, from the summer of 185 1
till the end of his days, Linnell continued to dwell
in quietude and repose, living, as Mr. Holman
Hunt, who visited him shortly after he had settled
in his new abode, puts it, like a patriarch, with his
grown-up family about him, painting the pictures
which were a wonder and delight to all who saw
them, and in his leisure time devoting himself to
those studies which had become dearer and of more
serious import to him than the labour by which he
earned his bread.
' This,' he observed to an artist who visited him
somewhat later—' this is the serious labour of my
life.' Then, pointing to a landscape on the easel,
he added, ' That is but my recreation.'
His eldest son, who, having remained unmarried,
always lived with him, describes him as being ever
filled with fresh delight by the varied and never-
ending beauties of nature about him. Spring,
* Tinsley's Magazine, October, 1890.

38 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
summer, autumn, and winter — it was always the
same. In the infinite panorama that moved to the
.music of his heart he found an unfailing interest,
and was in consequence never dull or lonely. He
never tired of it ; he never grew weary of his work.
If his hand flagged, he turned to his books for rest ;
from his books he turned again to his easel. He
-rose early, and was out and about directing the men
who were at work in the grounds ; and if there
happened to be any building or alterations or repairs
going on, he would be constantly about, directing
and superintending, and allowing nothing to go
wrong for want of the master's eye.
This he continued to do to the last, never
relinquishing his authority, or trusting wholly to
others. It was part of his principle. A household,
he considered, should be controlled and directed like
an army. There might be counsel with subordinates,
but no divided authority. Hence he would call
himself oi/cooWTrdYnc, ' the master of a house or family,'
and such in reality he was. In this respect it is
characteristic of him that, whilst ever holding the
command, he did not govern by command so much
as by injunction. He held that in this he was
following the Biblical example, inasmuch as the
commandments do not command, but rather enjoin,
the original Hebrew saying, not ' Thou shalt not
kill,' ' Thou shalt not steal,' etc., but ' Do not kill,'
' Do not steal,' thus showing how rigorously he
applied the lessons derived from his Scriptural
studies.

THE PRE-RAPHAELITES 39
Although a generous host to those who were con
genial to him, he did not care to have too many
guests at a tiine. He liked best to have those about
him who had ideas and could express them, and
especially those who had a love for nature and an
eye for beauties of landscape such as he could offer
them. Those who visited the artist invariably went away
wonderfully impressed with much that was peculiar,
and some brusqueness, perhaps, but also with an
originality, a vigour, and oftentimes a brilliance of
thought, very rarely to be met with united in one
person. Mr. Holman Hunt, who, as I have said, visited
Linnell about this time, has favoured me with a few
notes of his recollections of this visit, and I cannot
do better than give them in his own words. Linnell
had from the first recognised the high aims and the
undoubted abilities of the gifted young men who
banded themselves together as the Pre-Raphaelite
Brotherhood, and who, determined to do doughty
deeds for the cause of art, only succeeded for long
years in raising a dust of obloquy and scorn. But,
not content merely to be satisfied himself of the
Tightness of their endeavours, he must needs seek
them out and give them his God-speed to help them
on. This is the light in which one of the brother
hood regarded his encouragement :
' About his generous recognition of our school
when it was new, and had enemies innumerable and
savage among the elder of the profession, I can

\

40 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
never speak with too much admiration. His very
position at the time (having won, after a hard
struggle, recognition and patronage from the art
world, and without any aid, and therefore in opposi
tion to the Academy) was an encouragement to us
to continue our fight with hope as long as possible.
And his seeking us out on one varnishing morning,
and giving us a cordial invitation to come and spend
a Sunday with him at Redhill, was a proof that
independent judgment in a generous mind would
champion us.
' At this visit he was most hospitable and cordial.
The house was new ; the fare was simple, but most
liberal, and the host was reigning in patriarchal state.
After the mid-day dinner, taken in a large hall with
the door open to the breezy hills, some choice wine
was brought up from the cellar, and over this he
assured us of his admiration of particular works
which we had done, and of his confidence in the
course we were pursuing. In the afternoon he took
us out for a walk on his little domain, then clustered
with trees, which only here and there had an
opening.' In regard to Linnell's 'choice wine,' it is worthy
of remark that as soon as he could afford it he kept
a good cellar. His motto was, ' Moderation in all
things, but the best of everything.' He was very
careful in choosing his wine. He would go down
to the docks himself and make his selection, and
when he had obtained the order for it, he would
fetch the cask himself, and never lose sight of it

LIKING FOR GOOD WINE 41
until it was safely deposited in his cellar. No man
was ever more careful to see that a thing was done
well by doing it himself ; and his energy in the
prosecution of an object never flagged until it
was accomplished. Nor did anyone, perhaps, ever
more enjoy the fruits of his labours. Having got
his wine, he made the most of it. In one of his
poetical fragments he says :
' I like good ale, I like good wine,
But I don't care a jot for brandy,
Not even when with water mixed
And sweet as sugar-candy.
' I like a glass of good home-brewed,
Or a glass of port or sherry ;
But what I like best, with all the rest,
Is a friend to make me merry.'
Those hearing him recite Tom Taylor's ' St.
Swithin's Day,' which he greatly admired, might
have deemed him a devoted son of Bacchus, and
perhaps less sincerely religious than he really was.
But, despite some apparent contradictions in his
character, there was a striking congruity throughout,
and in regard to this, as in other respects, Linnell
was ever prepared to justify his point of view. His
attitude in this regard is aptly shown in the following
lines, in which the vine and the divine are equally
celebrated : 'The purple grape, in sunshine blushing,
Yields its sweets alone by crushing ;
When most trodden under foot,
Then flows its blood in liquid fruit,
Which the wise will store away,
To cheer their hearts another day.

42 LIFE OF JOHN LlNNELL
' So the truth when most oppressed
Sheds its benefits the best ;
Its glories shine, 'tis proved divine,
And those who treasure it are blessed.'
After Linnell's removal to Redhill, and he began
to produce more and more brilliant landscapes, the
demand for his works greatly increased. He could
hardly paint pictures quickly enough, and frequently
they were bought and paid for while still in their
initial stage. The dealers found a ready market for
all they could get, and for a time the demand seemed
never satisfied. To this, perhaps, is largely attri
butable the circumstance that, while so many of his
contemporaries are represented in our public gal
leries, and especially Turner and Constable, _onJy
eleven specimens of Linnell's works are to be found
divided between the National Gallery and the South
Kensington Museum, and these for the most part
are of minor importance.
In 185 1, soon after his settlement at Redhill, Mr.
Oxenham, the dealer of Oxford Street, appeared
upon the scene, and, as will presently be seen, made
a number of purchases. Then, about a year later,
Mr. E. Gambart sought Linnell out (for in no case
did the artist ever go after a dealer), and for two or
three years became a large buyer, giving good
prices. Linnell used to relate an amusing anecdote of
Gambart. He gave Mr. Holman Hunt a commis
sion, when he went to the Holy Land, for a large
picture similar to his ' Light of the World.' Mr.
Hunt painted for him ' The Scapegoat,' which, when

ANECDOTE OF A DEALER 43
delivered to the worthy dealer, so greatly disap
pointed him that he refused to accept it. Visiting
Linnell about the time, Gambart complained of his
treatment by Hunt, and said :
' I wanted a nice religious bicture, and he bainted
me a great goat !'
The dealer had reason afterwards to regret his
refusal of the picture, as the artist obtained a larger
price for it than he had agreed to give.
Shortly after Gambart, Messrs. Hooper and Wass,
amongst others, became extensive purchasers of
Linnell's works, and their commissions continued for
several years.

[44]

CHAPTER V.
Love of Nature— ' Advice from the Country '—'Summer'— 'The
World of Beauty ' — Blake's Influence on Linnell— Parks— ' The
Woodcutters '— ' The Hawthorn-Tree '— ' Up Rays.'
In speaking of Linnell's art, one would' fail to give
its true character if one did not point out the depth
and sincerity of his love of nature. In that his
noble landscape art had its root ; to that rich soil it
owed all its wonderful efflorescence in the latter half
of his life. Nothing more striking is to be met with
in the lives of men of genius. Born a Londoner,
and brought up almost within stone's-throw of Drury
Lane and the Seven Dials, he yet developed a love
of nature and a power of realizing it in art that was
on a par with the highest expression of the great
poetical painters of the past.
It was manifested and had its early fostering in
those rambles, now along the Thames at Millbank
— at that time charmingly rural — now higher up
stream by Richmond, Teddington, and Hampton
- Court, sometimes with Mulready, sometimes with
William Hunt, not unfrequently alone. The grow
ing delight impelled him to take those long and

ATTITUDE TOWARDS NATURE 45
often solitary walks of which record has been made,
at one time through Kent, at another in the Isle of
Wight, or in Wales. And everywhere he felt the
spirit of Nature as a something mysterious and
divine, as a brooding and indwelling presence, some
of whose deeper moods might from time to time
be surprised and transferred to canvas in all their
burning fervour of colour and entrancing witchery
of form.
In a hundred pictures we have the record of his
poetic perceptions ; in hundreds of studies from
nature he has shown us how he obtained his mastery.
But from these we do not learn the whole story :
for that we must go to his writings. He tells us
that ' in going to draw nature you must bear in
mind what you see depends upon what you take
with you.' It is not by simply going and copying
what we behold with the external organ of sight
that we can attain to his excellency of transcription ;
we must take with us that, devoted love which is
as the ' open sesame ' that unlocks and reveals all
secrets. In other words, it is necessary to bring
to the study of* Nature a cultivated mind and a
heart attuned to her rhythmic utterances.
Constable has said : ' No arrogant mind was ever
permitted to see Nature in all her beauty.' Linnell
has given expression to the same truth in several
of his poetical pieces, as, for instance, in the follow
ing, which he entitles ' Advice from the Country.'
It was written, as were all his verses, after his
removal to Redhill :

46 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' Live in the country if you can,
If you're a thoughtful, sober man,
If you love to look upon Nature's face,
Where the sky is clear, and a heavenly grace
Shines out in all the eye can see,
Urging a secret bended knee,
In thanks and praise for the wondrous things
Which every season round us brings.
' Live in the country if you can,
If you love the mind of God to scan
In the only book through every age,
The only key to Nature's page,
And where the choicest treasure lies
Far from the sight of carnal eyes ;
But where, if born of God above,
You'll read the mystery of his love.
' Live in the country if you can,
Cease from toil and cease from man,
If fashion has not chained you down
To a ceremonious life in town.
' But if you to the country come,
Parting from city's busy hum,
Be sure you leave it all behind,
And bring a lowly, docile mind,
If peace you wish and hope to find ;
For your reward will ever be,
Just as in the sweet country,
Where you may learn, if you do not know,
That you reap according to what you sow.'
The same reverent spirit in which he approached
nature is expressed in the following lines, which at
the same time show his fervent piety :
' Not in tree or mountain,
Not in cloud or sky,
Not in brook or fountain,
Or what human eye
Can apprehend or art can amplify,
Is God's own presence to the soul made nigh,
Unless his love, through his Spirit given,
Be poured into the heart.

POETIC PERCEPTIONS 47
Then God is seen in all his works,
The all and every part,
In mountain, tree, and sky,
In sun, and moon, and stars,
In all far off or nigh.
And his love is seen in all,
As never seen before ;
He is nigh in the lightning-flash,
And close in the thunder's roar ;
But nearest of all his love is felt
In the rain when it down doth pour.'
Such was his attitude towards that world of
beauty to the study of which he gave so unswerving
a devotion ; and both in his life and his work he
acted upon his perception in the most humble and
obedient spirit. Whatever of brusqueness or sus
picion there was in his manner towards men was
mellowed into gentleness and trust in the presence
of Nature, and of the Creator whose hand brought
it into existence. In that presence his whole being
became, as it were, transfused with a feeling of
reverent humility.
By long discipline he seems to have attuned his
mind into almost perfect harmony with Nature's
varied moods. How intimately the poetic worked
with the artistic sense in this respect is shown by
the following fragment, entitled ' Summer ' :
' The summer is past like a grand melody with
its chorus, and the great Master's hand has upon
Nature's harp wrought wondrous music of ever-
varied sweetness and energy — gentle sultry calm,
with choruses of thunder ; and now the note is
changed into the plaintive minor key, awakening

48 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
quiet sadness in the mind, .with some forebodings
of coming winter's blast. It seems as if there was
a lull after the struggle of the elements, after the
efforts of the earth's fruition, and the gathering in
of her bounteous produce, but for which man would
be extinct. No one hath seen God, yet we see him
every hour in his acts.'
This attitude towards nature and the Divine spirit
which dwells within and works through it was
not attained at once, but gradually, partly through
his own observation, partly also through the study
of the Old Masters. Later his whole being became
kindled, as it were, into a higher and more intense
life through the study of the inspired writings, and
his attitude towards the beauties of creation was
much the same as that of the prophets and poets
of the Hebrew Scriptures. The very strength of
his emotions frequently communicate to his verses
— often rough in form and hampered by his lack of
lyric art — something of the fervour of true poetic
insight. The following little poem, which is, per
haps, one of his best as regards form and feeling, is
doubly interesting beca'use of a certain reminiscence
of Blake that it carries with it. The first three
stanzas especially remind one of some of his ' Songs
of Innocence ' :
'THE WORLD OF BEAUTY.
' What a beautiful world ! only look
At the fields and the trees and the flowers,
And the clouds how they show in the brook,
On the hills how they're breaking in showers !

BLAKE'S INFLUENCE ON LINNELL 49
' Oh, look at those beautiful sheep,
As they feed on the side of the hill ;
How happy they seem as they ramble the steep,
Wandering whither they will !
And where they've climbed the height,
And where the sky looks so blue,
How they look like angels of light, • V
They sparkle so out to our view !
Then why not so happy as they,
When I beyond them am so blessed ?
'Tis the thought of how fleeting the hours of the day,
And how soon all this beauty must come to decay,
That makes my heart sink in my breast.
' But only one moment that pang of the heart,
Which the frailty of nature revealed ;
There's a firm ground of hope when from this world I part,
There's a better which now is concealed.'
I' have previously referred to Blake's influence
on Linnell. In nothing does it appear more
marked than in the enlarged, perception and deeper
poetic insight which it gradually brought about.
When the latter's life is studied intimately in his
works and his writings the inspiring cause may be
seen. At first he was not, perhaps, ripe enough to
benefit to the full from the mystical poet-artist's
influence, and it had by no means produced its
complete effect when all that was earthly of Blake
was laid in the unmarked grave in Bunhill Fields ;
but gradually and insensibly the work went on until
he united to his other powers some of the latter's
contemplative spirit, and he became a great poetic
interpreter of nature.
At first Blake's influence on Linnell was shown
in his impatience of forms and ceremonies, and in
vol. 11. 24

50 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
his reliance on the spirit alone. With this came a
broader perception and a deeper and more spiritual
philosophy. That he never attained to that vision
ary altitude which characterized the former is due,
perhaps, not so much to a more circumscribed
imagination or less spiritual perception, but to a
keener love of nature and a greater and possibly
saner unity with it.
A man may become so wrapped up in his contem
plation of nature as to be thereby unfitted to look at
things in any but the one aspect. Such to some
extent was the case with Linnell in the latter half of
his life. Thus he came to be impatient of man's
interference. Nature, and nature only, was his
desire. In his own words, he would have nothing
touched, or, if it must be, then as little as possible.
He wanted nature's own expression, free and un
sophisticated : in that he found delight and inspira
tion ; in that lies the charm of so many of his
landscapes. Hence it arose that he came to dislike the
formality and restraint of parks, and the studied
picturesque in landscape-gardening.
' Of all places in the country,' he says in one of
his occasional writings, 'parks are to me the most
desolate. There seems to be a dearth of intelli
gence and sympathy with Nature, or rather with
the design of the Creator, whose thoughts or inten
tions are not perceived because men seek to bend
Nature to express their sense of their own impor
tance, their riches and powers ; and they put Nature

MAN'S DESPOTISM 51
as far as they can into a kind of livery, as they do
their servants, degrading both with what pretends
to be ornament. The landscape is reduced to a
toy-shop sentiment on a large scale ; everything
is denuded of those accompaniments which give
the true expression of grandeur or beauty to the
scene. ' It is true the trees are left to grow unrestrained,
looking like aristocratic "swells," isolated from all
undergrowth ; and, with the ground shaved under
them, they look like large toy-trees placed upon a
green board. It is not until one gets upon a
common, near a forest, or into farm lands, that one
begins to breathe again, and feel out of the influence
of man's despotism. Man stamps his own thought
and character upon everything he meddles with, and,
unhappily in most cases, he obliterates the work of
God and substitutes his own.'
In some of his poetic pieces Linnell manifests a
rare perception of nature's methods, and not unfre-
quently hits upon a happy, though perhaps quaint,
form of expression, as in the following, entitled
' Summer ' :
'And must the summer die
Before you come to see
Tbe fervid beauty that doth lie
In every flower and tree,
Asking your admiration with a modesty
That to the beauty addeth intensity ?
' For your pleasure it is there,
And therefore so enticing looks,
Aided by balmy fragrant air
And sounds of happy birds in leafy nooks.

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

' The nightingale is yet a guest, sweet bird,
Who like a cheerful guest, unasked, unflattered, sings ;
The cuckoo, seldom seen, may yet be heard,
Measuring the woodlands as he flies on level wings.
' Soon will the ripened bending grass,
Emblem of man, who alike to earth is bound,
Feel the mower's scythe through its heart to pass,
And in its fall shed from its slaughter-ground,
Like a martyr'd saint, a perfume all around.'
Thus Linnell became after his settlement at Red
hill a simple child of Nature, and all his pictures
painted after that time, especially those of his best
period, strike one as being as intimately in accord
with, and as truthfully interpretative of, Nature as the
reedy notes of the shepherd feeding his flocks. By
living continuously in her midst, with but few dis
tractions from her contemplation, and those chiefly
of a character to increase his devotion, he became,
as it were, her confidant, knew her moods as a
devout lover would, and was intimate with all her
operations. Thus, though he may strike us some
times as being prosy, and not unfrequently prolix,
yet there are times when he approaches the rapture
of the poet and seer, especially when he touches
religious themes. Then we are permitted to see
the reason of the close sympathy between him and
Blake. These moods, however, are not the rule.
His art is based on a more median plane. It
delights in the pastoral, and revels in the homely
rather than the idyllic life. Howbeit, there is never
anything common or gross in it, while the fine
thread of poetry running through it saves it from

RUSKIN'S OPINION 53
the reproach of being mere transcription. A number
of pictures might be named, painted at this time, the
like of which for poetic perception and sympathetic
rendering of English landscape are rarely to be
met with. Amongst them may be mentioned ' The
Woodcutters (21 by 28 inches), showing an open
space in the midst of Windsor Forest, such as Pope
described in the lines :
' There, interspersed in lawns and opening glades.
The trees arise that shun each other's shade.'
This landscape, painted in 1855, fully justifies
Ruskin in his ' Modern Painters,' where he says :
'The forest scenes of John Linnell are peculiarly
elaborate, and in many points most skilful.'* It
is rich in colour, and admirably though, like all
his works, simply composed. Another characteristic
picture belonging to this period (1853) is 'The Haw
thorn-Tree ' (39 by 54 inches), showing, in the fore
ground, large trees meeting overhead, with figures
beneath listening to a shepherd-boy playing on a
pipe ; sheep, a thickly-wooded slope in the middle
distance, and a distant landscape to the right, fill up
the canvas. All is harmony and proportion ; and,
* It is worthy of note that Mr. Ruskin, considering apparently that
he had done but scant justice to so great and so original a genius as
Linnell, makes reference to him in the addenda to vol. ii. of ' Modern
Painters,' speaking of his close study, pursued through many laborious
years, characterized by an observance of Nature, scrupulously and
minutely painted, directed by the deepen sincerity, and aided by a
power of drawing almost too refined for landscape subjects, and only
to be understood by reference to his engravings after Michael Angelo.

54

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

as is usual in Linnell's landscapes, the view, wander
ing from the focus of interest in the foreground, is
lost in cloudland, for the forms of which he had
almost a sculptor's eye and hand.
The same or similar qualities are seen in ' On
Summer Eve by Haunted Stream,' showing a
tender sunset sky over a distant hilly landscape ;

WINDSOR FOREST.
(From a water-colour drawing made in 1815.)
in ' The Road through the Wood ;' in the ' Wheat
Harvest' of 1854 (36 by 57 inches); in 'The
Dusty Road' (1855); in 'Sheep reposing,' repre
senting a boy watching some sheep lying under
the shade of a wooded knoll ; in ' Sunny Scenes '
(catalogued as ' The White Cloud ' in the ' Old
Masters' of 1883), in which we have one of

ANECDOTE OF A PICTURE 55
Linnell's finest effects of aerial movement and trans
parency of cloud-forms ; and, not to mention any
more, in the ' Harvest Dinner,' shown at the Inter
national Exhibition of 1862, and sold at Christie's
in 1879 for 1,690 guineas.
The last-named picture was bought by Messrs.
Thomas Agnew and Son, and was one of the first,
if not actually the first, of a series of purchases and
commissions extending through a period of ten
years. During this time Mr. William Agnew's
relations with the artist were of a very intimate
nature ; they were based on sincere mutual respect,
and were broken off through what can only be
characterized as an unfortunate misunderstanding.
During a part of the same period Mr. Arthur
Tooth, amongst others, was a customer for a number
of pictures. One of his purchases was a picture
named ' Up Rays,' which exhibits a small arc of the
sun above a cloud low on the horizon, with vivid
rays of light shooting upwards. A companion to
it is entitled ' Down Rays.' When he bought the
first-named picture, Mr. Tooth asked the artist to do
some retouching on it, and, wishing specially to have
it by a certain day, he undertook to send Linnell a
salmon if he did not disappoint him. The artist
promised that he should have it in time. On the
morning of the day appointed for the picture to be
delivered to him, Mr. Tooth telegraphed to Redhill,
requesting that it might be sent on without fail In
reply he received a telegram desiring him to ' send

56 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
the salmon first' The fish was duly forwarded,
and in acknowledgment Linnell sent the following
lines : ' That which rhymes to gammon
Has just arrived thro' mammon,
Relating to an art sale,
And thereby hangs a tail.'

[57

CHAPTER VI.
Views on Art — Dialogue between the Painter and his Friend — Morality
in Art — Murillo — Rubens — Rembrandt— Raphael — The Dutch
School — The Italian School — Taste and Morals — Qualifications
of an Art-teacher — Figure-drawing.
Incidentally here and there in the preceding
pages we have obtained hints and glimpses of
Linnell's views on art in general, while, at the same
time, we have been enabled to gather what his
opinions were in regard to particular artists and
their work. We have seen, too, what his own aims
were, and to what extent he realized them. Those
views are probably not such as would be endorsed
by the generality of artists, but in art, as in other
matters, Linnell brought so much thought, know
ledge, and experience to bear upon his subject, that
not only are his ideas worthy of respect, but, even
if sometimes erroneous, they cannot be otherwise
than helpful.
Fortunately we are enabled to give his views in a
very clear and telling form from his own writings.
In the years 1853-54 he contributed a couple of
1 Dialogues upon Art ' to the little periodical before

58 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
mentioned, entitled The Bouquet. It was published
at first for private circulation only, and probably
never had many readers. The Bouqiiet was edited
by ' Bluebell ' and ' Mignonette,' and all the contribu
tors had floral quill-names. Linnell's was ' Lark
spur,' and under this pseudonym he contributed
dialogues to Nos. 25 and 33, in which he sets forth
in detail some of his views.
The first dialogue is between the Painter and
his Friend. The latter begins by affirming that
art is nothing, after all, but the imitation of Nature.
' Whoever comes closest to that,' he says, ' is the
greatest artist, I suppose. Is he not ? The stories
of Zeuxis and Parhasius show this, I think, where
it is related how one deceived the birds and the
other Zeuxis himself.'
The Painter replies : ' The best story is that of
Zeuxis when he deceived the birds and failed to
deceive them at the same time.'
' How do you mean ?' asks the Friend.
' Why, don't you remember the story of his paint
ing a boy holding a basket of grapes, and that the
grapes were so like nature that the birds came and
pecked at them, in spite of the figure of the boy,
which would have frightened them away had it
been as well painted as the grapes, and that the
painter justly considered his work a failure upon
the whole on this account ?'
' Good ! I remember now ' (replies the Friend),
' and it reminds me of Fuseli's criticism upon North-
cott's picture of Baalam and the Ass. " Master

THE 'SKIN OF NATURE' 59
Norcott," said Fuseli, "has painted de ass like
an angel, but he has painted de angel like an
ass." '
The Painter replies that it is certainly easier to
paint inferior objects so as to satisfy most people,
than to paint tolerably the expression of elevated
thought ; but, strictly speaking, he says Northcott
could not have done as Fuseli said, for if he had
possessed the power of painting the brute with
angelic skill, he would not have handled the angel
so brutally.
This leads the artist to controvert the common
notion that the most deceptive imitation of Nature
is the greatest triumph of art, and to develop his
own theory of art. Such stories, he considers, are
degrading to art, as the vilest imitations sometimes
deceive the eye. Such imitation of the mere ' skin
of nature,' he avers, is but the handwriting of art,
though rather a difficult one to learn ; and even
that cannot be found in any great perfection, un-
combined with higher art — qualities resulting from
a perception of the more spiritual and deeper-seated
attributes of Nature. For if those most beautiful
qualities escape the observation of anyone, he can
not be a good imitator of even Nature's mere surface
qualities. He may satisfy some who see no further
than himself, and, like the false prophet, may deceive
many ; but those who can perceive the spiritual
qualities of Nature will be disappointed, and feel
that the chief end of art is not attained or even
aimed at.

60 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Thus, while he grants that the only way to be
original and to produce the best works is to study
nature, and that all the finest principles are founded
upon nature, he yet holds that something else is
needed. In short, the artist must add something
to the product, and that something must be him
self. This is undoubtedly what he means by those
' spiritual qualities of Nature ' which are to be studied
and imitated. Such, however, he perceives, is not"
what is commonly thought of when the imitation
of nature is said to be everything in art. All that
is then meant is that the picture should look real,
and if it deceives the eye, as in the Zeuxis stories,
it is thought perfection.
Linnell held that a picture may be as like nature
as possible to the minds of some people, and may
deceive the eye, and yet be worthless compared
with others not possessing, or even aiming at,
that eye-deceiving quality, but having an emphasis
of imitation upon those qualities of nature which
give us ideas of sublimity and beauty ; and those
are the higher or more refined principles of art which
regard the perceptions of those qualities of nature,
and teach how the ideas of beauty and sublimity
may be best excited in the mind by a work of art.
These principles themselves lie in the deeper aspects
of nature ; that is to say, they are found in it, as
Shakespeare so well expresses in the lines :
' Nature is made better by no mean,
But Nature makes that mean ' —

THE TRUE END OF ART 61
a perception on the part of the poet as profound as
it is aptly put.
Linnell's view, therefore, was that the great end
of art is to develop the perceptions of beauty and
sublimity, not to make us stare with wonder how
one thing can be so like another ; for the feeling of
mere wonder is the result of ignorance, while the
perception of beauty and sublimity is the result of
knowledge — is knowledge, in short, for it is reading
something unintelligible to others.
Our astonishment may be excited without admira
tion or any pleasant feeling whatever, the work
which excites it may be disgusting ; but such art is
not to be praised or cultivated, for that would be
to make art a Gorgon's head. The skill of imita
tion is wasted unless the representation teaches some
moral or spiritual truth.
The business of the artist should be to create
spiritual perceptions ; and all the powers of imitation,
the skill in design, and the facility in colouring and
expression, should be used to this end. The artist
has, indeed, to do with the senses ; but his object
should be to reach the heart, the inner man, through
that medium. What is called ideal art, poetic,
imaginative, or high art, results not only from a
vivid perception of those qualities of nature which
most affect the mind with emotions of moral sym
pathy, and the sense of sublimity and beauty, but
also from a perception of the means by which the
effect is produced.
The effect is traced to its cause not only in its

62 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
broad result, but in all the details in the machinery.
Not only must there be a dissection of the plan,
but a reading of the design — in other words, a per
ception of what every variety and shade of emotion
depends upon. Then, superadded to this, there
must be the power of reproducing these qualities in
a work of art, divested of all that is calculated to
hinder those impressions, and heightened by an
increased emphasis upon some things, together with
an enlarged and more perfect combination upon
nature's own principles than is commonly found to
exist in nature itself. A true genius for art can
only coexist with an intelligence and a moral per
ception capable of receiving and producing in others
such impressions as these.
Such are, in a brief and succinct form, Linnell's
views in reference to art. As to those among the
Old Masters whose works attest their fidelity to
these principles, Linnell placed first and foremost,
as we have already seen, the great artists of the
Roman, Florentine, and Venetian schools ; whilst
he holds that Murillo in his religious art exemplifies
all that is to be most avoided.
In the second dialogue in The Bouquet we are
given the artist's reasons for condemning the Spanish
painter's art. I cannot do better than give his views
in his own words.
'I met a gentleman,' the dialogue begins, 'who
had just come from the British Gallery, where the
two large Murillos which had lately arrived from
Marshal Soult's collection were hanging. One of

MURILLO'S ART 63

the pictures was " The Prodigal Son," the other
the "Three Angels appearing to Abraham." My
friend asked me if I had seen the pictures, and
finding I had, he inquired rather eagerly :
' " Well, how do you like them ?"
' " Not at all," said I ; " I cannot bear them."
' " Oh," said he, "I am delighted to hear you say
so ; for, to tell you the truth, I felt disgusted with
the pictures, but was afraid to say so, because the
praise was so general, and the price said to have
been given for them so large," ' etc.
In reply to the query why he dislikes these
Murillos so much, the artist says :
' I can give you some idea by telling you what a
friend of mine said to me when we were looking at
the two pictures together at the British Gallery :
' " I say," said he, whispering, " what do you think
of those three angels ? Don't you think if they
were to make their appearance in Belgrave Square
that the new police would be after them pretty
soon r
' " To be sure," said I ; " and they would be taken
up on suspicion, and locked up for want of bail."
' " I see what you mean, and I remember the ex
pressions are anything but elevated. However, you
must allow the design and colouring to be splendid."
' " Indeed I cannot ; nor do I think that fine
design and fine colour are found in original works
combined with such expression and character."
' " What ! Doubt that fine design and colour can
be found united with vulgar forms ? Look at Rem-

64 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
brandt and Rubens : all speak of these masters as
great in design and colouring. WThy, nearly all the
lecturers on art wind up their discourses with the
praise of Rubens for these qualities."
' " Rembrandt certainly was a colourist, and com
posed finely ; and though his figures are not fine
specimens of form as to limb, the action is natural
and unaffected, often beautiful, and always original,
the expressions also generally true and sincere ; but
above all, he displays such a profound sentiment
and depth of feeling in everything by his extra
ordinary treatment of the light and shade, that he
stands alone as a wonderful example of what may
be done, in spite of certain defects, by working out
with confidence and diligence original perceptions
by an original method. Rubens I think very in
ferior to Rembrandt in all these qualities. He was
natural, but very coarse, and in some respects cor
rupt ; and there is no veil like Rembrandt's twilight
thrown over his defects. His vulgarity stands out
with a brazen front in broad sunlight, and is the
more offensive. But though Rubens is not without
affectation rn his allegorical and religious subjects,
and exhibits in the latter some of that hypocrisy so
common in the second-rate painters of sacred history,
yet he is not so hypocritical as Murillo."
' " Hypocritical ?"
'"Yes; and Raphael has been justly praised for
the opposite. His cartoons alone are sufficient to
establish this. Look at the action and expression of
every figure, how both correspond most sincerely !

A SAYING OF MULREADY'S 65
Do you remember the figure which steps forward
to present the sacrifice to Paul at Lystra, and the
calm dignity of the Messiah giving the charge to
Peter to feed His sheep ? Why, if you can remem
ber these enough to compare them with the dancing-
master attitudes of the figures in the Murillo before
us, and especially the figure of the youthful Christ in
the centre, I think you will agree with me that the
whole is more like a scene in a ballet than anything
else ; and as to the colour, I think it is as inferior to
the colouring of the Roman, Florentine, and Vene
tian schools as the design, the drawing, and the
expression." In regard to these criticisms on Murillo, Linnell
used to repeat a saying of Mulready's respecting a
' Holy Family ' of the Spaniard in the National
Gallery. Referring to the air of fashionableness and
conventionality about it, Mulready once said, ' You
can't help thinking that it is Master Christ with his
mamma and his papa.' But while he condemned
Murillo's religious pictures for their false sentiment,
Linnell had much genuine admiration for his secular
subjects, such as his ' Beggar Boy,' finding them
full of truthfulness and sincerity.
In his antipathy to Rubens' grossness, the artist
was undoubtedly betrayed into doing' an injustice to
the great Flemish painter, overlooking, amongst
other noble qualities, his pre-eminence in composi
tion. But even while recognising this error of judgment
we are enabled all the more distinctly to perceive
vol. ii. 25

66 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
and appreciate Linnell's point of view in regard to
art. He has only one criterion whereby to test the
truth of things. As in his daily conduct, so in his
views of art : he finds the Scriptures the only safe
guide. ' I cannot find the true principles of fine art,'
he says, ' anywhere but in the inspired writings ; and
in my opinion it is only by the knowledge of what is
therein taught that true taste can be acquired ; for
as the most minute things exist, and are sustained
by the same laws which uphold the universe, so the
Divine laws of universal truth must base and sustain
our least perceptions if we expect to build up an
edifice of truth in our minds.'
He therefore holds, with Ruskin, that all corrup
tion of art proceeds from moral corruption, and that
one of the very worst of moral corruptions is hypo
crisy. ' Christ said with great emphasis to his
disciples, " Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees,
which is hypocrisy ;" and I believe it is the deadliest
of poisons wherever it is found.'
We may see in his judgments on the Old Masters
what was Linnell's aim in his later art, in the works
that proceeded from his brush when he could devote
himself freely to the form of art he loved best. In
his earlier days he had been much influenced by the
Dutch and Flemish schools, and not a few of his
pictures then produced show many of the excellencies
of the Teniers, Ruysdaels, Hobbemas, Paul Potters,
etc. It was only when, later, he came to know more
about the Italian masters, and perceived how greatly
superior they were in conception and expression,

COLOUR AND DESIGN 67
that his views broadened and his art ripened, till it
became like nothing else in the English school — a
style sui generis.
It was not then so easy to study the Old Masters
as now. Specimens of their work had not at that
time been reproduced by photography, and such
copies as were to be seen were scarce, and often bad.
Hence he took every opportunity that was afforded
him of procuring copies of Raphael, Titian, Michael
Angelo, etc.
Thus he strengthened his belief that fine design
and fine colouring invariably go together. ' Fine
design and fine colour,' he said, ' can only proceed
from a well-disciplined and superior mind, where
perceptions — of every excellent quality — are more
likely to exist from the same cause.'
This he held to be the reason of the wonderful
universality of genius displayed by the first-rate
painters. Giulio Romano, 'Andrea del Sarto, and,
above all, Da Vinci, he considered, support his view
that fine colour and fine design are found together
only in the works of the best masters, because they
are imagined or conceived together, being one per
ception of the poetic vision.
' Did you ever see,' he asks in the second dia
logue, ' the copy by Da Vinci's favourite pupil,
Marco Oggione, of the " Last Supper," which the
Royal Academy possesses, in which the design, ex
pression, colour and light and shade, all work out
one profound sentiment of the sublimest pathos ?'
He goes on to say that ' the holy sincerity of

68 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
expression in those figures is enough, in my opinion,
to make one sick of Murillo and Rubens for ever,'
and holds that whoever perceives and delights in
the highest qualities of the best works of the Roman
and Florentine schools, will be too much disgusted
with what he meets with generally in Rubens, and
nearly always in Murillo, to care much about either
of them.
' It appears to me that, if anyone does not see
what those masters are deficient in, they are pleased
only as children, by something affecting merely the
visual organs ; or they have a depraved taste, which
may soon be detected in things of more importance
than pictures, and that is a serious matter ; for there
is a woe to those who call evil good, and good evil,
in all matters more or less according to the nature
of the subject.'
' That which is not good is not delicious to a
well-governed and wise appetite,' says Linnell,
quoting Milton ; and while he holds that the
difference of temperament and organization gives a
different bias towards different kinds of beauty, and
such differences are legitimate if connected with
knowledge and discipline, yet no one should love
what is corrupt and debasing.
In short, in John Linnell's opinion, the question
of taste is a moral one. It is also a religious ques
tion ; for to him there is no distinction to be made
with safety.
' It seems to me that he whose morality is not
essentially religious, or whose religion is not essen

VIEWS ON FIGURE DRAWING 69
tially moral, has little of either morality or religion.
Taste, therefore, though depending on organization
for its bias to one kind of beauty more than another,
is kept pure and good by the moral sense.'
Similar views in regard to the connection between
morals and art were expressed by our artist in a
letter which he wrote about this time in answer to
a landscape-painter who was a candidate for the
position of drawing-master to the City of London
School, and who applied to him for a testimonial.
It has an additional value, because it gives very
precisely his views as to the requirements of a
teacher of drawing. The letter, which is dated
1852, is as follows :
' Dear Sir,
' I have great pleasure in being able to
express my admiration of the works which I have
seen of yours in the Exhibition ; but as the testi
mony you seek relates entirely to your qualification
as a teacher, of which I know nothing, I really
think my opinion of your general artistic power as
a landscape-painter ought not to weigh much in the
matter. For my notions of a good drawing-master
are that he should draw the human figure accurately,
divested of all peculiarity of manner or style in the
process ; be able to show clearly how such drawing
of the figure is the only true basis of artistic power ;
make science the means of developing a perception
of beauty, and to prove that perception to be the
great end of art ; be. able to show that taste in art

70 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
is intimately connected with moral feeling, and that
no one can innocently admire a corrupt style : to do
all which you may be fully competent, and if so, I
hope you may succeed in your application ; for he
who has most of that sort of ability is, in my
opinion, best calculated for the office.'
His views in regard to figure-drawing are empha
sized in the following aphoristic lines written about
this time :
' There is a race of scribblers in art,
Who cannot well delineate one feature,
Muddling and dabbling on through thick and thin,
Not knowing when to leave or how begin.
For want of discipline in figure-drawing,
Their work is feeble, or presumptuous pawing ;
Handling it can't be called, for from a hand
Should come some handiwork that well would stand
The test of knowledge, by sound practice got,
And workmanlike, without a smear or blot.'

[ 7i ]

CHAPTER VII.
Biblical Criticism — Early Studies — Desire for Tranquillity — Hebrew
and Greek Studies — Diatheekee — Abraham's Covenant — 'The
Lord's Day'— Views in regard to Sunday — Burnt-offerings.
Reference has already been made to the circum
stance that Linnell was early attracted to Biblical.
studies through his surroundings as a religious man,
but chiefly by the example of his future father-in-
law, Mr. Thomas Palmer. He does not appear to
have carried his studies very far, however, at that
time, and they were probably soon relinquished —
albeit, the taste he had manifested from boyhood
for reading, and for book-learning in general, was
hereby greatly increased.
His Biblical studies were not taken up or resumed
in any definite and continuous way until 1843, when,
in company with his sons, he set to work in earnest
to study the original texts of the Scriptures. He
had now more time for literary pursuits, and returned
to his early love with great zeal. What he had
learned as a young man at Mr. Palmer's house in
Swallow Street — not much, perhaps, in amount —
served him in good stead, and proved to be a

72 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
useful basis to work upon. He at a later period
put it on record that the foundation of the critical
knowledge of the Bible which he afterwards attained
was laid in those early days, adding that his sub
sequent attainments, small as they were in amount,
he esteemed as the greatest of his acquisitions.
So great became his desire to widen and deepen
the extent of his knowledge about the time that he
reached the fiftieth year of his age, that he was led
by it to forego many amusements and recreations in
order that he might give the more time to reading
and study. Indeed, it now became his first thought
how he could best promote tranquillity and peace of
mind, and thus cut off many possible sources of
interruption. The adoption of this principle of
action, together with a daily recourse to literature,
and especially to the Scriptures, as the source of all
truth and the anchorage of all hope, spared him no
end of trouble and annoyance, and caused him in
advanced age to write :
' I cannot recount all the benefits I have derived
from pursuing this method. It has been my
guiding-star, my compass, my sail, and my rudder.'
He was greatly aided in his Biblical studies— and,
indeed, was to some extent stimulated thereto — by
the publication of several works, which served as
helps to the study of the Old and the New Testa
ments, and the languages in which they were
written. One of those works was Liddell and
Scott's Greek-English Lexicon (the first edition of
which was published in 1843). Other works from

BIBLICAL STUDIES 73
which he derived great aid were ' The Englishman's
Greek Concordance to the New Testament,' Daw
son's ' Analytical Lexicon to the New Testa
ment,' Lee's Hebrew Grammar, Gesenius's Hebrew
Lexicon, and ' The Englishman's Hebrew Concord
ance to the Old Testament.'
He also obtained facsimile reprints of the uncial-
letter texts of the Greek New Testament Scriptures,
likewise many of the best critical works on the
texts. In short, he spared no pains, and counted
no cost, in his desire to arrive at the true meaning
of the Sacred Writings.
It cannot be said that he became a thorough
master of Greek and Hebrew ; but he acquired a
sufficient acquaintance with them to be able to
compare the English version with the originals, and
to draw his conclusions as to their true meaning
and form of expression.
His researches in this field resulted in the publica
tion of several pamphlets on Biblical subjects, all of
which are characterized by careful research and con
siderable critical acumen.
His first work, which was published by Triibner
in 1856, when, therefore, he was in his sixty-fourth
year, is a comprehensive argument against the mis
naming of the Scriptures the Old and the New
Testaments, instead of, as he contends they should
be called, 'The Old and New Covenants.' It is
entitled ' Diatheekee,' the word which, in the
Septuagint Greek Version of the Old Testament,
is the translation of the Hebrew word JV13 (breeth).

74 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
In the Old Testament this word is rendered
covenant ; but in the New Testament portion of the
Authorized Version the Greek word {diatheke) the
equivalent of breeth is in some instances given as
testament, following the Old Latin Version, which,
however, in every case has testamentum, whereas
the English Version has testament in thirteen places,
and covenant in twenty places. Hence it is that we
get our word ' Testament'
Linnell's contention was that if the word ' testa
ment ' ever in Old Latin signified ' pact ' or
' covenant,' it now has such signification no longer,
and so misleads. The main object of his pamphlet,
therefore, was to prove that the word ' covenant '
should be used throughout the New Testament as
the translation of the Greek word diatheekee in the
original ; and he supports his view with great
cogency and force.
Since the issue of this little pamphlet a new and
independent version of the Scriptures has been made
by Wellbeloved and others (published by Longmans
in 1862), which, in every instance where the word
' testament ' occurs in other translations, substitutes
the more correct term ' covenant'
The ancient form or ceremony of making a
covenant, or, literally, ' cutting a breeth,' was pic-
torially represented by the artist in a painting
executed in 1853, a varied replica of which is still
in the possession of the Linnell family. Accord
ing to the ancient rite, a sacrificed victim was cut
or divided into two portions, and the covenanting

ABRAM'S COVENANT 75
parties (who bound themselves thereby) passed
between the divided pieces. Thus the covenant,
or promise, was confirmed or ratified. This cere
mony is described in Jer. xxxiv., and an illustration
of it is given in Gen. xv. Here we see how
' Jehovah made a covenant with Abram.' As
directed, Abram divided the victims into two por
tions, and set them opposite each other, and while
in a deep sleep, in the darkness after sunset, ' a
smoking furnace and a lamp of fire ' (representing
the Divine presence) passed between the pieces of
the slain animals.
In his tract Linnell quotes as follows from Gen. xv. :
' Take to me an heifer of three years old . . . and
a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took to
him all these and divided them in the midst, and
laid each piece one over against another.'
He explains that the last clause, literally trans
lated, would read, ' gave each piece to meet or
answer to its fellow,' i.e., opposite — to correspond
— leaving a space between the corresponding pieces,
for the party covenanting to walk through, as
described in Jer. xxxiv. 18: "And I will give the
men that have transgressed my covenant, which
have not performed the words of the covenant which
they had made before me, when they cut the calf in
twain, and passed between the parts thereof."
Then follows the sublime narrative of the peculiar
deep sleep, or trance, which fell upon Abram, in
which he learns the long-to-be-endured affliction of
his posterity, and their ultimate possession of the

76 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
land ; also his own peaceful departure. And to
confirm and witness, or ratify, the appointment of
these things, God gives Abram the vision of the
smoking furnace and lamp of fire passing between
these divisions of the animals.
This is the scene represented by Linnell in his
painting. A majestic form, or suggested Divine
presence, is dimly seen passing between the two
halves of the offering while the patriarch sleeps.
It is a very fine composition, and grandly sugges
tive. Later he made a small oil sketch of it, in
which the mysterious presence of Jehovah is repre
sented by a flame of brilliant whiteness, the effect
being to give an added mystery and sublimity to the
subject. The pamphlet concludes with an examination of
the passage in Heb. ix. 15-18, in the light of the
conclusions he has arrived at. In the words of the
text referred to, the ratification of the • new covenant '
is spoken of. Here, by a more literal rendering of
the original, and by consistently translating diatheekee
by ' covenant,' the true sense of that word is main
tained, and the argument of the writer has its full
and proper force and meaning.
In ' The Speaker's Commentary ' (published in
1 881) the principle of translation and interpretation
of the passage in question (Heb. ix. 15-18) which ^
Linnell contended for in his essay is adopted. The
rendering given of the clause in question is as
follows :
' By reason of this, he is the mediator of the

THE COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM.
(From an oil-painting by J. Linnell, 1853.)

THE LORD'S DAY' 79

new covenant, that a death having taken place for
the redemption of the transgressions that were under
the first covenant, they which are called may receive
the promise of the eternal inheritance. For where
a covenant is, there must needs be alleged the death
of him that made the covenant. For a covenant
is steadfast that is made over the dead : whereas it
hath no force when he that made the covenant
liveth. For which cause neither was the first
(covenant) dedicated (or inaugurated) without blood,'
etc. Another of our artist's striking works in the field
of Biblical criticism is his treatise, published in
1859, entitled 'The Lord's Day the Day of the
Lord.' As we have seen, Linnell was strongly
opposed to Sabbatarianism, and in this little work
he gives us his reasons for not believing in the
common doctrine of a Sunday Sabbath. The
phrase ' The Lord's day ' occurs, he tells us, only
once in the whole Bible (Rev. i. 10), and he explains
his reasons for believing that it is another form of
' the day ofthe Lord.' ' " The Lord's day " and " the
day of the Lord," ' he says, ' are nothing more than
two different modes of expressing the genitive case
of the same noun.' And he supplies a number of
quotations to show that this ' day of the Lord '
meant an extended period, ' a thousand years being
as one day, and a day as a thousand years, with the
Lord ' ; in short, that it refers to the time and to the
events which form the subject-matter of the prophecy
contained in the Apocalypse.

8o LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Linnell gives his own translation of the words in
Revelation upon which so much is based, and holds
it to be a correct rendering, and one that conveys
the true signification of the words of the original,
viz. : ' I became by the Spirit in the day of the
Lord, or day of Jehovah.' He adduces many in
stances in proof of the correctness of his rendering,
and in support of his view that the phrase ' Lord's
day ' (in Revelation) is not a designation of the
first day of the week he quotes Milton in his
' Christian Doctrine ' : ' Whether the festival of the
Lord's day (an expression which occurs only once
in Scripture, Rev. i. io) was weekly or annual,
cannot be pronounced with certainty, inasmuch as
there is not (as in the case of the Lord's Supper)
any account of its institution, or command for its
celebration, to be found in Scripture. If it was the
day of His resurrection, why, we may ask, should
this be considered as the Lord's day in any higher
sense than that of His birth, or death, or ascension ?
Why should it be held in higher consideration than
the day of the descent of the Holy Spirit ? And
why should the celebration of the one occur weekly,
whereas the commemoration of the others is not
necessarily even annual, but remains at the discretion
of each believer ?'
And again : ' Those, therefore, who, on the
authority of an expression occurring only once in
Scripture, keep holy a Sabbath day, for the con
secration of which no Divine command can be
alleged, ought to consider the dangerous tendency

OBSERVATION OF DAYS

of such an example, and the consequences with
which it is likely to be followed in the interpretation
of Scripture.'
Men will venerate something, is Linnell's con
clusion ; but, in proportion to their ignorance of the
true God, they have always worshipped the created
more than the Creator, and among the many super
stitions arising from that ' ignorance,' the observance
of days seems to have been one which has been
highly esteemed from the remotest times. ' How
beit,' he continues, quoting from Paul to the Gala-
tians, ' that when ye knew not God, ye did service
unto them which by nature are no gods. But now,
after ye have known God, or rather are known of
God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly
elements, whereto ye desire again to be in bondage ?
You observe days, and months, and times (seasons),
and years (anniversaries). I am afraid of you, lest
I have bestowed labour in vain upon you.'
As we have before seen, when John Linnell
arrived at a conclusion on a given subject, he was
never afraid to follow it to its logical consequences ;
and so, in regard to this question of the Sabbath,
having satisfied himself that there is no warrant in
Scripture for the observance of what is called the
Lord's day, he ceased to regard it as in any special
sense holy. Hence he 'regarded everyday alike,'
and, touching himself personally, he did just the
same on Sunday as on other days, working at
his painting, and attending to other matters with
out making any difference. At the same time he
vol. n. 26

82 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
did not interfere with the liberty of other people,
but left everyone to act as he chose.
Subsequently his daughter Mary translated, with
his approval, a work from the French of Louis
Victor Mellet, entitled ' Sunday and the Sabbath '
(Trubner and Co.), the argument of which is that
the Sabbatic rest is simply a Judaical ordinance
peculiar to the first covenant, belonging to the
whole mass of legal ceremonies, and that there is
no day of rest ordained of God for the Christian.
This, in brief, was Linnell's belief, and he acted
upon it unflinchingly to the day of his death.
His labours in Biblical criticism include still
another work. It is entitled ' Burnt-offering not
in the Hebrew Bible,' and was published in 1864
by E. Allen, Edgware Road. In this little work of
twenty-six pages a revised version is given of the
first four chapters of Leviticus. The chief point
argued is that the sacrifice described by Moses (in
Lev. i. 2, 3) is to be rendered, if we would strictly
adhere to the sense of the words of the original, not a
'burnt- offering,' but an 'ascension-sacrifice'; and that
the offering was not burnt, but fumed upon the altar.
Thus the Hebrew text of Lev. i. 2, 3, 9 he
renders : ' Speak to the sons of Israel, and say
to them, If any man among you bring a gift to
Jehovah, ye shall from the cattle of the herd, and
from the flock, bring your gifts. If his gift be an
ascension-sacrifice * ,he shall bring from the herd a
* Heb. Gohlah, that which ascends. ' This word, which is uniformly
rendered burnt-offering or burnt-sacrifice, is from the verb Gahlah,

BURNT OFFERINGS 83

perfect male to the door of the tent of appointment ;
he shall bring it for acceptance before Jehovah.
And he shall put his hand upon the head of the
ascension-sacrifice, and it shall be accepted to pro
pitiate for him. And he shall kill the bull before
Jehovah. . . . And the priests, Aaron's sons, shall
arrange the pieces, the" head, and the fat upon the
wood, which is upon the fire, which is upon the
altar . . . and the priest shall fume (kahtar) the
whole on the altar, an ascension by fire of an odour
of fragrance to Jehovah it is.'
The Hebrew word kahtar, Linnell explains, signi
fies ' to fume, to raise an odour by heat.' 'In the
original of the Book of Leviticus, everything is said
to be fumed until, in the fourth chapter, the sin-
sacrifice is, with wonderful emphasis, ordered to be
burned (sahraph) outside the camp. The use of
this word sahraph, the proper word for burn, for
the first time in connection with the sin-sacrifice, has
a poetic force entirely lost in the Authorized Version,
where everything is said to have been burned pre
viously, which in the original is said to have been
fumed.' ' With what sublime moral emphasis,' exclaims the
writer, ' is the hatefulness of sin expressed by all the
previous sacrifices being fumed only for an odour of
fragrance to Jehovah, incense forming an essential

"to ascend," as Josh. viii. 20, "the smoke of the city ascended up"j
Prov. xxv. 4, "who hath ascended up into heaven." . . Gohlah is seen
to have the same radical signification as the verb in Ezek. xl. 26, 31,
34, " There were seven steps to go up to it." '

84 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

part of such sacrifices ; and then the whole bull for
the sin-sacrifice taken outside the camp, and burnt
" in a fire with wood : " where the refuse is poured
out shall he be burned." The two ideas are totally
opposite ; one is the expression of peace, the other
of execration.'
The sacred text, Linnell •affirms, does not place
foremost the action of the fire by which the ascen
sion of the soothing odour to Jehovah was caused,
'but the ascension itself,' and 'calls the sacrifice an
ascension by fire of an odour of fragrance to
Jehovah.' All, he goes on to say in conclusion,
was intended ' to express gratitude, acceptance,,
atonement, and pacification ; whereas burning of
the sin-sacrifice was the expression of hatred and
execration against sin.' Everything was done to
express some important idea, but to confuse those
ideas, as the Authorized Version unavoidably does by
its inaccurate renderings, is a great loss to those who
can only read that version while seeking for exact
knowledge of Divine things.'
It will be confessed that all that the author
advances on this interesting point of criticism, as
on others with which he deals in his various works,
is highly suggestive, and exhibits in a striking light
the original and penetrative genius of the man, one
of whose leading traits appears to have been a
burning passion for the truth.

[ §5 ]

CHAPTER VIII.
The Painter-poet — Poetry and Art— Beauty of Redhill — Begins to
write Poetry — Humour — 'Winter' — 'Spring' — 'The Soul's
Struggle '— ' The Poet '— ' Gradation '— ' The Turk,' etc.
It is one of the surprising facts in John Linnell's
life that his removal to Redhill should have
awakened in him a poetic vein which had not
hitherto manifested itself, except in connection with
his art. Of the various poetical pieces he wrote,
all were composed subsequently to 1851. He had
always been a great^over_of_poetry, and it was one
of his doctrines that an artist should constantly
reinvigorate his mind by excursions into great
domains of thought if desired to avoid the deterio
ration of his art. He held that the best technical
work becomes merely mannered and conventional
unless constantly vivified by renewed inspiration
and deeper and wider perception. In this respect
he had found the reading of the poets of great
advantage. Their ideas stirred thought in him ;
their inspiration kindled his imagination and kept
the poetic perception fresh and clear. But it was
only after his settlement at Redhill, and therefore
when he was close upon sixty years of age, that

86 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
the poetic faculty found expression in verse. It
seems to have been the direct outcome of his
residence amid the beautiful surroundings of his
new home. His greater leisure also doubtless had
something to do with it ; for now, exempt as he was
from the toils of portrait-painting, he could devote
more time to reading, and give greater latitude to
thought. One of his earliest poetical compositions was an
impromptu, written in a note to his daughter,
Mrs. Palmer, a few months after his settlement at
Redstone (November, 185 1). In the missive in
question he writes :
' I only wish you were here. I saw a sunrise this
morning that was worth a winter's sojourn in a
desert to behold. It was on that slope to the south,
where we are planting an orchard.'
He gives a pen-and-ink sketch of the view as he
saw it from this southern slope, subscribing it :
' 7 a.m., looking S.-E.' Then follow the verses.
' Come with me to the southern slope
And enjoy the rising sun ;
Though the north is chill,
On this side the hill
The cold has scarce begun.
' 'Tis late in the year I know full well,
And reminded I am by that sounding knell
Of the falling leaf which the tale does tell,
That we who on this earth do dwell
Must fall like the leaf that just now fell.
1 But when I look at the pushing buds,
Adorning each branch with shining studs,
I feel the hope of future joy,
Of pleasures pure without alloy.

'THE BOUQUET' 87

' So come with me to the southern slope,
And enjoy a scene so full of hope,
And here you shall feel the autumn sun,
Though his rising is late
And his course soon run.
' The trees are decked in gayest attiie,
And in evening sunshine seem on fire,
Though scantily clad like a lady full drest,
They show their bare arms
In their richest vest.'
Some of his verses appeared in The Bouquet,
signed with his floral pen-name, ' Larkspur.' In
sending his first verses to the editress, he wrote :
' Redhill, 'June, 1853.
' Dear Thistle,
' I send you my feeble effort as a contribution
to The Bouquet, trusting that you will put it into the
fire, or into the B., as you please. If you think
either of the attempts worth insertion, I shall make
the same request to you that a working man made
to the editor of a newspaper, to whom he sent a
letter, viz., " to mend the spelling for me, and put
in the stops." ' Yours truly,
' Larkspur.'
The following verses, addressed ' To the Young
Ladies, Projectors of The Bouquet,' appeared with
the letter :
' Children, whose aspirations pure
Are told in such delightful measures,
Giving me far greater pleasures
Than from sense I can procure, —

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

' Will you grant a boon to me,
To let me join your youthful band ?
Though I am old, my heart and hand
Are ever with simplicity.
' The difference is not great between
Us children of the dust ;
I in my second childhood am,
And you are in your first.
' Such sweet fraternity does childhood make,
'Tis wisdom, highest wisdom to partake
Of the similitude, and thus to bear
That image which alone can heavenly glory share.
' Oh, let us seek with fervour to possess
All those rare qualities, that spiritual dress,
Taught us by all that God doth richly place
In childhood's precious image, full of heavenly grace.
' The guileless spirit that is childhood's own,
In lovely children found, with love that fain
Would have all happy and, without a moan,
Would be the slave of all to save but one from pain.
' And if we such became — we ought, we know —
Then should we still for ever younger grow,
Nor care to find this thread of life outspun :
Once children of our God, our life is but begun.'
The humble fruits of the artist's poetic vein
may be broadly classed under the three heads of
Humorous, Descriptive, and Religious. That he
was possessed of a strong sense of humour will
have been perceived ere this. The wonder is that
it did not show itself to a greater degree in his art.
It is the more surprising because in one or two
minor things that he executed the humour is
distinct and of a very refined quality. This is
notably the case as regards four drawings that he
did for a little book of ' Nursery Rhymes,' by Felix
Sommerby (Mr., afterwards Sir, Henry Cole, the

IMITATION OF LONGFELLOW 89
originator of the South Kensington Museum), which
contained illustrations, among others, by Mr. Red
grave and Mr. Horsley, the Academicians. Linnell's
sketches are unquestionably the most humorous in
the book, and call to mind some of the best hands
at this sort of illustration.
The following, entitled 'An Imitation of H. W.
Longfellow, by a Short- fellow,' is a parody of lines
seventy to eighty in the first part of »' Evangeline,'
and is based on an incident which occurred at
Redstone :
' By a roadside that leadeth to somewhere, in England so famous for
learning,
Standeth a labourer's cottage, that once had ten steps to its porch-
door ;
But now will those steps be in vain sought, by any who once stumbled
up them,
For all have been taken away, and flowers are there blooming
fragrant ;
Pity that such desire of change did ever come into the hearts of
The dwellers in that pleasant cot, whose children might yet have been
with them.
List, ye admirers of routine, how dangerous a little of that is ;
Ye who think that minds can be dealt with as if they were clock
work.
From this cottage went every morning two urchins sent forth by their
parents,
With satchel and books rather dog's-eared, and, what they liked
better, their dinner.
To the school of the parish priest they went, their lessons to say like
a parrot.
In the evening home they came, without being any the wiser.
Cleaner were they on a Sunday morn, with best coat and hat on ;
As down the hill they toddled to church, the bell going ding-done,
Marring the holy quiet with sounds like butchers' rough music,
When round a house with cleavers and bones they scatter dismay on
its inmates.
More pleasant in woodlands the nightingale's voice, or far-sounding
cuckoo,

90 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
With blackbirds and thrushes that throng thereabouts in the spring
time,
Though mostly in showery weather, foretold by the braying of
donkeys.
A sullen demureness sat on the face of each of these urchins,
For they were oppressed with learning by rote and vain repetitions,
Always on one note of their voice, and that rather alto,
To say they believed what they didn't, and thus to tell stories.
To the question, " What is your name ?' they oft had to answer,
And " What did godfathers and mothers do for you when christened,"
And so on, and so on, repeating without variations,
Which made these poor ignorant urchins such creatures of habit,
They only could go in routine, in a track they'd been used to,
And thus they became one day so completely bewildered,
As home they returned from school, and found not the ten steps,
Because in the morning soon after they left their own dwelling
Those steps were removed and a roundabout way to the door made,
Which bothered them so that they could not believe they at home
were;
But further went looking for ten steps, from habit, like question and
answer ;
And so wandered on until no one can tell where they are or about
them ;
But every day, just at school-time, their voices are heard in the
distance
Repeating their names and who gave them, and why they were
christened, when seeing
By reason of their being babies, they nothing could know of the
matter,
But godfathers promised all for them, how they .should renounce
when they grew up
The devil and all pomps and vain things, and so through the whole
Catechism ;
And then they say, " Let us go home now ; we know the way up by
the ten steps."
And small feet are heard to pass close by the spot where the steps
stood aforetime,
But never those urchins were seen more, those children of rigmarole
custom.'
The next piece, entitled ' On seeing Turner's
Picture of Ulysses deriding Polypheme,' is in a
different vein :

LOVE OF NATURE 91
' When Ulysses had put out old Polypheme's eye,
Who had eaten so many of his men, and him, too, very nigh,
He left him sprawling,
Roaring and bawling,
Which roused his friends who lived hard by.
And as they saw him lie,
They asked him what 'twas all about,
He made such a confounded rout :
Says he, " It's all my eye."
' Ulysses then gave Pol the slip,
And hied him to his ship,
And on the prow he stood,
In his hand the burning wood,
And though he was so wise, and was not very young,
Like many other folks he could not hold his tongue.
'And to revenge him for his losses by the giant's cruel maw,
He, in addition to his black-eye, gave him some of his jaw.
So standing on his vessel's prow,
He lustily did cry out,
" You bloodthirsty villain, here am I,
And there you go with your eye out."'
Some specimens have already been giv,en in which
the artist's love of Nature finds fitting expression.
The following, entitled 'Winter' and 'Spring,' may
be added thereto :
'WINTER.
' Is it only when the fields are green,
And the flowers begin to show,
That the beauty of this earth is seen ?
Oh no !
' Is it only when the ploughman ploughs,
And the sower begins to sow,
And the maid in the meadow milks her cows ?
Oh no!
' Is the beauty only then perceived
When the forest trees are fully leaved,
Or the ripened corn is reaped and sheaved ?
Oh no ! Oh no !

92 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' For beautiful as fields so green,
Or flowers in spring, when first they're seen,
When plougman ploughs and sower sows,
And maiden in meadow milks her cows,
And trees full-leaved, and corn just sheaved,
Is the sun on the hills 'mid the winter chills
Shining upon the snow.'
'SPRING.
' The north-east wind has ceased,
The bitter freezing sky relents ;
Clouds from the west, a lovely band, arise,
And showers fall sweetly o'er the awakened earth,
Roused from its frosty winter's dreary sleep.
Its snowy covering softer than fleece of lambs,
Which soon shall gambol on its grassy floor,
In Nature's wardrobe now is laid.
Balmy winds breathe soft, and sunny gleam>,
With shadows of the quickly-passing clouds,
Reveal the distant woods and hills,
And every graceful turn of the far-winding stream.
Nature is at her toilette,
And soon will show herself decked out so fair,
That all her favourite children will with rapture gaze,
When she comes smiling in her robe of May,
With flowers bespangled and with odours sweet,
Her feathered choristers attending in her train,
Chanting the praises of her mighty sire.'
The chief characteristic of the poetry which I
have designated religious, and some specimens of
which I give, is that it is bristling with thought,
and with the kind of thought peculiar to Linnell's
religious views. Perhaps ' The Soul's Struggle '
is too theological to suit the tastes of most readers,
but no one can deny to it great vigour, and not
unfrequently rare felicity of expression. The same
objection will not apply to ' The Poet ' and
' Gradation,' both of which give utterance to a

THE SOUL'S STRUGGLE' 93

deep thought, aptly and beautifully expressed. Of
' The Turk ' nothing need be said, save that it gives
a measure of the man's character from another point
of view. 'THE SOUL'S STRUGGLE.
' Shall siren melodies seduce our hearts
And serpent fascinations steal our sympathies,
When superstition in poetic garb salutes,
Chanting her bribes and threats to lure us to her sway?
What if the measure chimes, and in the verse are woven
Words of love, and purity, and truth —
Unholily united to the poisonous false,<
Like beauteous innocence betrayed by force and craft —
To wed deformity and vice ?
Shall we, because she sings of angels, saints, and heaven,
Be led unwarily by her to hell ?
Oh, how can they escape that condemnation,
Who, like the Pharisees of old, offspring of vipers,
Always resist the Holy Spirit, and make void
The Word of God by their inventions ?
How can any, fallen in their pit, be saved,
If not snatched like brands from the consuming fire
Of lust and passion fierce, most craftily concealed
Behind a seeming sweet serenity ?
No sultry stillness, prelude to earth's throes,
To hurricanes and storms,
More certainly portends the evils we should flee,
Than that same mimicry of peace and holiness,
Which ever is with aspect of devotion seen,
Pretending to communion with the God of truth,
Whose word it sets at naught, to whom it gives the lie.
' Is it not prophesied in Holy Writ,
And by the Spirit there expressly said,
That in the latter times some from the faith will turn,
Apostatizing, led by seducing spirits, and by demons taught
In all hypocrisy and lies, with conscience seared,
Prohibiting to marry, and forbidding meats which God created
That the faithful, who the truth well know,
May take the same with thanks?
And are not these the times foretold, even this present age,
When convents rise, prisons for the weaker sex seduced,

94 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
With monasteries and other fortresses of crime ;
Where the seducers sit, and where in secret they concoct
Their evil charms, distil their poisons, forge their fetters
Both for body and for mind,
Their instruments for torture and for death ;
Where they prohibit marriage — ordinance of God —
And abstinence from meats command ;
And even deny all access to the bread of life —
That heavenly manna sent by God —
Even his precious Word,
Able through faith to save the soul :
This they keep back, and in its place
Force all entangled in their snares
To fill themselves with a most poisonous counterfeit
Of what the soul most needs to satisfy and guide
Its yearnings after immortality.
How great, then, is that wickedness that starves the soul —
Withholding that which to man's life
More needful is than bread !
For it is written, " Not on bread alone shall man exist,
But upon every word proceeding from the mouth of God."
Well may the crafty foe that word withhold,
Seeing it is the weapon he most fears —
Chief of that perfect panoply of heaven
Provided for the soldier of the risen Christ —
Armour complete, that both detects the foe
And shields from his assaults.
Secure in this against the devil's wiles he stands,
His loins girt round with precious truth ;
And on his breast the righteousness of God,
His feet shod firmly with the tidings of that peace
Which everything surpasses for the good of man ;
The shield of faith quenching all fiery darts,
Salvation for a helmet, and the Spirit's sword
The Word of God, with living energy replete,
And sharp to pierce to the dividing of both soul and spirit,
Even to the marrow of all being.
Truly not fleshly are those weapons rare,
But powerful through God to level with the dust
The strongest holds and citadels of evil,
With everything that riseth up against
The knowledge of His glorious truth.
' Nor is the struggle against flesh and blood,
But against chiefs, authorities, and worldly powers

'THE POET' 95

Of that dread darkness now o'er all the earth
That spiritual wickedness usurping heavenly places —
This, the direful mystery of evil,
Already working with the energy of Satan
In seeming miracles and lying wonders,
In all unrighteousness deceiving those
Who perish rather than accept the truth that saves.
But thanks to God — whose thoughts and ways
Are as the heavens to earth, higher than thoughts of man —
His promise has been given, that as the rain
Descending from the heavens returneth not
Until the earth, satiate with refreshing streams,
Breaks forth in praise,
Speaking from the abundance of its heart in buds and fruits —
Giving, as if with joy and gratitude,
Seed to the sower, and to the eater bread-
Even so the Word proceeding from his mouth
Shall not return unfruitful or devoid of good,
But must accomplish all those purposes of grace
Whereto he sent it forth.'
'THE POET.
' Poet, thou canst not find
Rest for thy troubled mind,
Nor for thy dearest longings for eternal fame
A settled ground of hope, or even a name,
To last beyond the present age,
By looking on that page
Which thou call'st Nature. No, not there :
Not all those beauties, though so rich and fair,
Will e'er reveal to thee that longed-for goal,
Which in the yearnings of thy soul
Thou fondly didst expect to know and see,
And thereby reach thy aim and glory win to thee.
No ; it is written, " As the fading flower,
So is man's glory ;" but for one short hour,
And, like the grass that withers in the field,
No lasting good will man's exertions yield,
If but on Nature based, or works of man.
Only in that beyond all Nature's scan,
In God's own written Word, the key to Nature's page,
Can e'er be found the life beyond the age ;
There, only there, can ever be discerned
That gift of grace which never can be earned,

96 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
That life which all those ardent longings meant,
And to which all thy deepest thoughts intent
Do tend, didst thou but know and feel
What to thy peace belongs, and what the seal
Of that inheritance which those shall share
Who Christ confess on earth, and dare
Despise the Cross,
When earth and heaven — all shall pass away,
And Christ shall reign and all their worship pay.
' GRADATION.
' Not every stormy wind that blows
Blows always at its worst,
Nor every ocean wave that flows
With equal rage doth burst ;
But stays, as if to gather force,
Renew exhausted power,
Relaxing in its onward course,
Till, at its own right hour,
In renovated impulses of strength,
It works its mission to its fullest length.
Claim not, then, of man that he should do
Always like well in every effort new,
For he may not expect, whene'er he will,
His utmost to display of might or skill.
' In all the storms that rave
Upon the ocean vast,
There's an emphatic wave,
A climax of the blast.
Through Nature's wrath,
Through Nature's sadness,
There's a method in its madness ;
And as in gentler moods there's music still
From graduated force, by the Creator's will,
All Nature to th' observance of this law doth call,
And we must e'en obey the heavenly rule or fall.'
'MAN'S DEPENDENCE.
' Is there in man aught good or great ?
Then God has placed it there,
To his own glory ultimate,
But now for man to share.

'THE TURK' 97

' Remember, thou, that not in vain
Thy efforts will be made
To win, by patient toil and pain,
The crown that ne'er will fade.'
'TO BE PUT UP IN ALL PLACES OF WORSHIP.
' Let no one sing who in his heart
No melody doth make,
Nor name the name of Jesus Lord,
Unless he doth forsake
All evil ways, all idols vain,
Hypocrisy and pride,
Renouncing all unrighteous gain,
For sake of Christ who died.'
'THE TURK*
' The work of peace is done,
After the piece of work
Which we have had, through snow and sun,
All for the sake of the Turk.
' O Turk ! O Turk ! you deserve our care,
For after all has been said
Of your being infidel, I will declare
That you by most truth are led.
' More than most states who have the name
Of Christian falsely given,
Worshipping idols to their shame,
And lying before high heaven.
' Thou Turk, together with the Jew,
Hast kept that one great truth,
That " God is one " to open view,
And taught it to thy youth.
' By Turk and Jew to the Christian world
The name of infidel may back be hurled.
' For they have sold that precious truth,
Through lust of power and gain,
And every holy precept broke
Their idols to maintain.'
* Written at the close of the Crimean War.
VOL. II. 27

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

I have deemed it necessary to give these poetical
pieces, in order the more fully to carry out the aim
with which I started, namely, to show the man
exactly as he was. That some of them are not
poetry in the true sense, no one will deny ; but they
none the less mirror the artist's soul, and that is the
foremost object of this Life.

[99]

CHAPTER IX.
Character — Early Habits — Rest and Work — Business Principles —
Ready-money Payments — Avoidance of Law — Thrift — Freedom
of Speech — Fox-hunting — Early Rising — Raising Prices— Views
on Catholicism — Letters to his Son and to Count Guicciardini.
Linnell presents so many strong and individual
traits of character that it will not be amiss to point
out some of his more striking peculiarities. Nearly
everyone who has heard of him has been made
acquainted with his thrifty habits, and, indeed, in
this respect he was one in ten thousand. As we
have seen, at the age of twenty -five, when he
married, he had ,£500 in the funds, and the sum
was ever afterwards being added to, and never
diminished, to the day of his death.
He states in his 'Autobiography' that he early
adopted such habits as were best calculated to save
time and worry. Those habits were of the simplest.
He wasted no time in frivolous amusements, his
very relaxations consisting of what would be called
by others hard work. But when he had worked
enough he gave up, and did not force himself to
continue his labours when he was tired. Hence it
arose that he was enabled to do so much work of a

ioo LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
uniformly good quality. He gives some of the
results of his experience in this respect in a letter
to his son William while at Paris. It belongs to
a date some years in advance of the period we have
reached. 'Just received yours of the 17th. I am surprised
to find you measuring your powers of progress in
your work by James. You have plenty of time, if
you could only remember not to " Billy-Dixonize "
over it and judge of your work with a tired brain.
The small picture for F  should not hinder the
large one, as it could be used as a means of getting
a fresh eye. The time that is generally lost is
through going on when you should leave off, and
painting too soon after dinner, and in a deficient
light. Now, only be alive in these matters, and you
will succeed, I doubt not. . . .
' The house had better be deferred till you are
here, as the consideration now would hinder your
work, and that is the one point to secure. I think
I gave your address to  , but will do so again
soon. James is quite right, I think, to give up the
large picture, as he has one of his best of sufficient
size, " Wales." I expect to have three long " kit-
cats," etc. 'Your IX' *
Three of the artist's sons were now successful
painters, and in a way friendly competitors with their
* It should be explained that in writing to members of his family
the artist frequently signed himself n, or npetrfivrepog (Presbuteros),
signifying ' elder.'

BUSINESS PRINCIPLES

father for public favour. James began to exhibit in
the Royal Academy in 1850, his brother William in
1852, and Thomas, the youngest, a few years later.
When at Porchester Terrace, Linnell had a
billiard-table in his studio, and frequently when he
had a sitter he would break off work and propose a
game, though on no account would he play for
money, or allow others to do so in his house. By
this means he rested both himself and his subject,
and was enabled to get two sittings in the place of
one. At the same time he obtained a needed bit of
exercise. He showed similar business tact and diplomatic
ability in most of his dealings. Thus, when he built
his house in Bayswater, he made agreements with
all the firms who supplied the materials, and with
the master-builder also, that they should take part-
payment — half, two-thirds, or whatever it might be
-—in pictures or portraits. By this means he was
enabled very considerably to reduce his expenditure
upon the house.
Another habit which he early adopted, and thereby
saved himself much time, inconvenience and annoy
ance, as anyone who has not done the same will
admit, was that of paying for everything in ready
money. Nor was he to the last above doing a bit
of ' haggling*' with a tradesman in order to secure a
bargain. Then he always avoided going to law,
considering it better to suffer than to fall into the
lawyer's hands. His endeavour was ever to keep
himself free and unembarrassed, so that there should

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

be the least possible interference with work. Thus,
on one occasion in his younger days, when he was
drawn for the militia, he preferred to pay a substi
tute to wasting his time soldiering himself.
His saving of money by superintending the educa
tion of his children himself in place of sending them
to school has already been referred to. Perhaps
there never was a man of means whose school-bill
for his children came to so little as his.
Many stories are current implying that Linnell's
thriftiness verged upon downright meanness ; as,
for instance, that on one occasion when he received
^1,000 for a picture, he demanded the price of
the case in which it was packed, and so on. But
there is no foundation whatever for these stories.
Linnell undoubtedly drove close bargains ; he kept
a tight hold of his money, too, but he stinted no
expenditure that was for the good of those about him,
and in many cases he acted with rare generosity, as,
for example, in his dealings with his friend Blake.
On one occasion when a gipsy woman was taken
in the pains of labour on a plot of land — a favourite
spot for gipsy encampments — in the lane near his
house, he sent his own doctor to attend to her, after
wards paying his bill, and in other ways saw that
the poor woman did not want.
On another occasion he gave a substantial amount
to the National Life-boat Fund. But he was no
believer in indiscriminate charity, and he acted up
to his conviction.
As in the case of most men of his strong character,

VIEWS ON CHURCH DECORATION 103
the defects of his qualities were very pronounced,
and they became more so as he grew older. He
spoke his opinion with great freedom, and naturally
sometimes offended by so doing. He never spared
those whose views were opposed to his own, nor
allowed any latitude to what he considered wrong,
even though the matter were of comparatively minor
importance. Thus, he was opposed to the decoration
of churches on festive occasions, and he would not
allow holly to be gathered on his grounds for that
purpose. He held it to be a matter of allegiance to
the truth not to be a party to any such observance.
Once he was asked by a Redhill churchwarden' for
a gift of evergreens for the church. Linnell refused,
and the circumstance led to an exchange of letters
between the artist and the churchwarden. The artist
regarded the matter as so essentially one of prin
ciple that, more suo, he threw his opinion on the
subject into the following aphoristic form :
' An answer to the churchwarden's request for
cuttings of holly and ivy to decorate or ornament
the human building of dead stones, called a church,
but which name only properly belongs to God's
building of living stones, which he alone can orna
ment with the graces of his Spirit :
' The true ornaments of a church are the graces of the Spirit,
Ornaments that flesh does not inherit,
Ornaments to be had by the Church through the Divine lessons
taught her,
Ornaments not communicable to bricks and mortar.
Alas ! alas ! how great the folly,
To substitute for grace ivy and holly !
December 16, 1868.'

104 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Another of Linnell's pet aversions, though of a
more secular character, was his dislike of fox-hunting.
He was so determined in his opposition that he was
always up in arms when the hunt threatened to
trespass on his estate. Once reynard took refuge
in a disused pit near the house, and the hunters
wanted to dislodge him, but the artist refused to
allow them to do so. He declared that they should
not touch the poor fox if they gave him £50, and
they did not.
On another occasion a stag, which was being
followed by the hounds, took refuge in his grounds,
and finding the house-door open, entered the hall.
One of the artist's daughters immediately shut the
door to keep out the hounds. Linnell at first refused
to let the huntsmen touch the poor creature ; but as
it was not a very safe guest to have in a house, they
were permitted to secure it and take it away on the
Master of the Hounds agreeing to pay the damage
the hunt had done by trampling over the cultivated
ground and breaking some glass.
More than once when the fox-hunters wanted to
cross his grounds the artist got together everybody
about the place capable of bearing arms, put rakes,
hoes, and such-like weapons into their hands, and
then bade the red-coated huntsmen ' come on if they
dare.' All this, of course, was only for show : a
more peaceful man than John Linnell never lived.
At times he manifested a brusqueness which gave
those who came in contact with him an unfavourable
idea of his character, and one which was not borne

OBJECTION TO CHEQUES 105
put by subsequent acquaintance. He had an objec
tion to taking cheques in payment for his pictures, and
would not accept them from any but known and
tried customers. Once a friend took a gentleman
with him to see Linnell's pictures. The stranger
was so pleased with a landscape he saw that he
decided to buy it and carry it away there and then,
offering to write a cheque for it at once. But the
artist replied, ' No ; bring me notes or gold, and you
shall have the pictures, but not before,' greatly, of
course, to the would-be purchaser's amazement.
Subsequently the gentleman met one of the artist's
sons, whom he at once recognised by his likeness to
his father. He told him the circumstance of the
cheque, saying : ' I never had such a facer in my
life, my cheque always having been held good for
any amount ; but I took it in good part, setting his
manner down as one of the oddities of genius.'
Linnell always paid with gold or notes himself,
never keeping a banking account, but investing all
his money in the funds, except what he needed for
current expenses.
He was always an early riser, invariably lighting
his own fire, and often getting to work before others
were up. He was never one to require others to do
for him what he could do for himself, in this being
true to his democratic principles ; and this habit of
lighting his own fire in the winter time he continued
almost to the very last, until, in fact, he was for
bidden by his physician to do so any more.
Linnell probably acquired his shrewd business

106 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
habits from his father, who, having once failed, was
ever afterwards careful to make no bad debts, and
to keep strictly within his income. From him he
learned the beauty of cash payments, and the wisdom
of maintaining a watchful observation on the doings
of the business world.
Busy as he always was, he never failed to have an
eye to the fluctuations of the market, and to the
aspect of affairs generally ; and whenever he per
ceived a chance of benefit for himself he was quick
to take advantage of it. Tf business generally was
brisk and prices improving, he raised the price of
his pictures. He has expressed his views in this
respect in some of his pithy and humorous verses,
and I cannot do better than quote them, as showing
his particular point of view better than anyone else
could put them : ' 'Tis a fact I avow,
Which I'm sure you'll allow,
And which no one could dare to deny,
Tnat in war or in peace
We always increase
And exceedingly multiply.
' Whether in China or in Japan,
We blow up the natives as well as we can
Or lick the Russian bear into shape,
Till stopped by the coils of home red-tape ;
And then o'er the sea,
Where they're trying to free
And emancipate the nigger,
They've guns in store
Of the greatest bore,
And they're always getting bigger.
' So to keep on a level
With every fast devil,

¦ DISLIKE OF ROMANISM 107
I must raise my prices
At every crisis,
Taking care all the time to be civil.
Crying, " Double or quits,"
Though you go into fits,
Or your heart should go pit-pat
For every " Kitcat."
' You've only to pay,
And you have your own way :
Then come let us try,
I sell and you buy,
Any fine day.'
His prejudices were of the strongest. Amongst
them was a deep-rooted dislike of the Roman
Catholic Church, out of which he could not be made
to believe that any good whatever could come. This
was based upon his belief — which he held so firmly
— in the one priesthood of Christ, any other priest
between God and man being non-existent. But if
he held the Romanists in keenest detestation, he
had a positive contempt for the Ritualists — those
' hypocritical imitators of the Roman system of false
hood ' — and treated them often with but scant
courtesy, as in the following lines, which he entitles
' Pope- A wry ':
' Ye mongrel monks, ye snobs of Rome,
Who in old England, happy home
Of all true-hearted men,
Do play your superstitious pranks,
Using our liberty with little thanks,
But granting none again,—:
' Counterfeits ye are, for all ye say ;
Ye are not even genuine papists for a day.
The popery ye practise ye deny,
And play so awkwardly the trick,
Ye make us laugh or make us sick,
And all ye do is naught but Pope-awry.'

108 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
On one occasion this feeling against the Catholics
caused Linnell to refuse to meet Cardinal Wiseman.
The incident arose out of his acquaintance with the
Dowager Lady Mostyn, who for some years was a
near neighbour, living in a house near Redhill
Common, and who was a frequent visitor at Red
stone. She was a Catholic, and she and the artist
had many arguments on religious questions. But
being no match for the latter in the discussion of
these subjects, Lady Mostyn suggested that he
should have a talk with Cardinal Wiseman, who, she
said, would be able to explain matters of doctrine
and faith better than she could. For this purpose
she proposed that she should take an invitation to
the Cardinal to call and see Linnell's pictures. But
the artist would not consent ; he felt that he should
be no match for the erudite prelate in the subtleties of
dialectics, and so the two never met. He and Lady
Mostyn, however, continued their discussions when
ever they met ; sometimes, indeed, Linnell carried
his into the region of letters, as will be seen from
the following epistle, which is a good specimen of
the fearless — and one might add ' gloveless ' — way
in which he dealt with the doctrines of Catholicism :
' Dear Lady Mostyn,
' Believe me, I shall be glad to find that you
are able and willing to pay me a visit, and hope you
will do so whenever you please. You shall be at
liberty also to say what you please to me ; but I
shall, without asking your permission, tell you some

LETTER TO LADY MOSTYN 109
truths you are prevented from hearing elsewhere — •
prevented by the ignorance of the truth, or want of
zeal for it, in those you associate with — prevented
also by your own want of allegiance to the holy
fountain of truth and your deference to the authority
of men whose motives for keeping you in ignorance
of the truth ought to be, and would be evident, to
you if you did not willingly yield your conscience,
faith, and understanding to them, instead of to God,
whose precious Word you have in your hand, and
which you reject by substituting human inventions
scarcely possible to speak of without profanity. Why,
the words in your last note, " Our Blessed Mother,"
read to me like the commencement of a parody on
the Lord's prayer, which He gave as a model of
that brevity so becoming to us children of an omnis
cient Father, but which said model is generally set
at naught. Yes, Lady Mostyn, you are not, and
your friends called Catholics are not, the only people
who set at naught God's wisdom on this point. The
Divine Word says (Eccl. v. 2), " God is in heaven
and thou upon earth, therefore let thy words be
few." And how is this regarded ? Is not the ex
cess of disobedience rewarded as the greatest virtue,
and those who repeat certain forms of prayer
the greatest number of times reckoned the best,
though the Lord Jesus said, "Use not vain repeti
tions " ? All this proceeds from the want of con
science towards God. But my conscience towards
him requires of me that I should tell you plainly
this one thing, that " at the time when you ought to

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

be teachers you need to be taught the first rudiments
of God's Word" (Heb. v. 12). If, however, you
desire to be taught, let the holy Apostles teach you.
Read their inspired teachings, and give no heed to
anything that is contrary thereto, and you will soon
find that you are taught of God. As to the Mortara
case, as it will in all probability be publicly handled,
I need say only that you have not produced any
case like it amongst Protestants. What you can
mean by St. Malachi and his prophecy of the Pope
is beyond my utmost guess. Pray tell me the
chapter and verse. Surely you cannot appropriate
a prophecy of the Messiah to the Pope. I fear,
however, this must be the case.
' Yours, etc.,
' John Linnell.'
When the artist's son William went (in the
beginning of October, 1861) to Italy to study, he
was troubled all the time with the fear lest he should
be beguiled into joining the Church of Rome, and
was not satisfied until he had finally prevailed upon
him to quit Italy. But at this time he was getting
very old ; combined, too, with his own anxiety, there
was the failing health of his wife, and her natural
desire to see her son again before she died, to aug
ment his wish for his son's return.
Linnell was not what would be called a good
letter-writer. He did not carry on much corre
spondence, and what he did was mostly of a business
nature. But his letters were always characteristic,

CORRESPONDENCE

and some of those received by the dealers with
whom he chiefly dealt, peculiarly so. In not a few
of these he made sketches of the pictures which were
the occasion of his writing. Many of his letters to
Messrs. Agnew and Son, the dealers, were in this
respect very striking.
His letters to members of his own family, how
ever, best show the character of the man, because
they show the whole man. In nothing, perhaps,
does a person mirror himself so fully and so truly
as in his letters, and this is especially true of
Linnell, who was always perfectly natural, and never
made use of any sort of artifice in order to show
off or to appear to be other than what he really
was. On October 30, 1861, he wrote as follows to his
son :
' Dear William,
'We are glad to hear from you, and hope
you will write for your mother's sake as often as
you can. Your letters are meat and drink to her,
and a glass of wine to me. I hope, however, you
may be able to add some literal wine to the treat
before you leave Italy. I will pay for all letters,
so do not spare in number on account of expense.
We have had one letter on your arrival in France,
one from Paris, one from Marseilles, one from Nice,
and now one from Pisa.
' I am glad you took the road by the coast, and
have no doubt but you have the best of it. The

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

weather here, however, is very fine, and the foliage
is only just beginning to change colour. Our wood
this morning was looking so fine I wondered if you
were likely to see anything better. I hope you
will not let such things pass without some mem
oranda, however slight. Words will not suffice :
all the young lady travellers can supply plenty of
the finest, new and old. No day without a line.
Everything here is much the same. . . . A 
has paid for my drawings, so there is cash at home
if you want to buy a palazzo or a prize bull at the
cattle show at Florence. You had better save your
money, though, if you can, and go softly. Re
member Italy is volcanic, and there are strange
rumbling noises heard even here.
' Be wise, and look at the invisible as well as the
visible. ' I enclose you extract of Times — a sufficient dose.
I wish you could see the paper, but you have
sufficient in my extract to get at the rest.
' Remember me to Count Guicciardini, and tell
him I shall esteem it a great favour if he will put
you in the way to procure some of the best Italian
wine of more than one sort and send me samples
with price in cask and in bottle.
' Write again soon, and tell us if you stay at
Florence long enough to get another letter, or you
can arrange with your friends at Florence to forward
your letters to Rome if you go there. Naples, I
fear, is not safe enough yet. I see by a letter
to-day that an English captain was stopped in the

COUNT GUICCIARDINI 113
public street by a man who presented a pistol.
The captain threw up the thief's arm and kicked
him in the stomach, and only left him because some
accomplices came up. You see, therefore, the place
is not safe. You should avoid going out alone,
especially at night.
' Your mother was horrified at your account of
using Child's nightlights for anointing your face, in
order to prevent mosquitoes biting you. She says
that all those candles are made with arsenic, and
you may poison yourself badly. Olive-oil and
camphor or without camphor is best.
' Yours, ' J. L. and Co.'
The Count Guicciardini who is frequently men
tioned in this correspondence was one of the Ply
mouth Brethren, and the leading light of an Italian
branch of the sect in Florence. He was a direct
descendant of the historian of the same name. The
following characteristic epistle is to the Count him
self: To Count Guicciardini.
' Redstone Wood, Redhill,
'Surrey, England,
' December 27, 1861.
' Dear Friend,
' Permit me to address you by this title, as it
is your friendship that I rely upon to assist me in
my endeavours to obtain what it is almost impossible
to accomplish without such help. You are in a
vol. 11. 28

114 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
position to help me to procure some genuine first-
class wine, and I understood from my son when
he wrote from Florence, that you kindly offered to
attend to my solicitations on this subject. And in
a letter just arrived from Rome my son advises me
to write to you direct, that you may be in no doubt
respecting my wishes. I have many reasons for
applying to you to assist me to obtain some of the
best wine of Italy. First my wife requires such
for her health, and that which I got from Madeira
is nearly gone, and no more is to be had from that
place. I have no hope of obtaining any such from
wine merchants here, and, if I could, their price is
so exorbitant that I find it out of my reach. I find
in wine, as in most other matters, that unless I can
get near to the fountain-head, there is little chance
of being able to obtain the best. That which I
imported from Madeira was Sercial, and I have
never tasted any wine so good. It was a wine of
body and strength, though pure and delicate in
flavour. I name it to you as a guide in your selec
tion of any wine for me. I am told that Marsala
is to be had from Italy direct of a very superior
quality to what is sold here by the merchants. One
quarter cask (about twenty-three gallons) may be
sent of the best quality of this wine as a sample;
pale wine, if to be had, I find generally best, though
I have never seen pale Marsala. But as I am
unacquainted with Italian wine, I would gladly leave
it to your judgment to order for me what you think
best, from the grower, if possible, or as near to that

LIKING FOR GOOD WINE 115
point as convenient, for I fear every step from the
grower through the mercantile department.
' I trust that if you should be able to send me
two or three small casks of the best wine in the
first place as samples of what is to be had, you will
at the same time introduce me to the channel from
which I can procure more without again troubling
you. In the first instance, however, I am compelled
to intrude my want upon your attention.
' I am sorry to find that a struggle is requisite to
enable one to obtain anything pure and true in this
life, and even the Word of life itself is the most
adulterated by man ; but, thanks be to God, we have
direct access to the Father through the Son, and
do not rely upon man in this. What a predicament,
however, are those in who rely only on those who
make merchandise of their souls !
' Mr. Berger will, I have no doubt, assure you
of my ability and readiness to pay for everything
forwarded to me in any way directed by the party
sending the wine. As to the sort, I can only say as
Weber said when he was asked what sort of music
he liked best. " I like," said he, "good music" : so
I say I like good wine. Let it be good of the sort,
and wine that will keep in this climate, for we drink
but little at a time. It is really for stomach's sake
more than for appetite that we require it.
' If you should find it practicable to serve me in
this matter, I shall not forget your kindness, but be
always your obliged servant,
' John Linnell, Sen.'

116 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
The following characteristic letters are to his son :
' We were all glad to get your letter dated
October 25, from Olevano. We hope you may
realize your harvest some day, though you say you
have only just set your hand to the plough. What
thou sowest, that shalt thou reap. Your answer to
my remarks shows that you have missed my mean
ing. The qualities I spoke of had nothing to do
with a knowledge of Italy, or of the people, but
of Nature and Art in general. Many go to the
grandest scenery in the world, and they bring home
capital information, not so good, however, as photos.
I would rather have some good photos of Italian
romance — the wildest — wilder than any modern
pictures of Italy I have seen. It will be wise of
you to get all the photos you can of scenery and
figures, such as are only to be seen in Italy. As
for the wonderful skies that young ladies talk of,
I never expect to see them on canvas. I see them,
however, at Redhill, and other things finer than
anything brought or sent from Italy yet. ... I
shall not offer any more advice unless asked for as
to returning. Mr. and Mrs. Stewart I expect
will have found you ere you get this ; they take
colours to you, etc. . . . ' Yours,
' November 30, 1861.
' I have sent a letter to Florence for you
merely to say that we shall be glad to hear from

MR. SEVERN 117

you as soon as you can. We have not received any
letter from you since yours from Rome with post
mark November 4, the first and only one from that
city. . . .
' I hope I shall receive some wine from Italy
soon. Ask Mr. Severn about it. Perhaps he may
be able to do more than anyone we know. What I
want is first-rate wine at the growers' price, and not
the dealers' or merchants' prices, and if shipped from
the growers the price should be low. It is like
buying a picture of the artist instead of the dealer,
as to price, and also as to what is more important,
quality. The nearer to the source, the better in
eyerything that is good. Prompt payment, say
as soon as the wine is received and found all right.
Sample and price to be sent first if possible, or only
a small cask as sample ; but I should like to have
samples of several sorts of the best. . . .
' J. Linnell, Paterfamilias.'
The Mr. Severn above referred to is the friend
of Keats, whom Mr. W. Linnell met at Rome, as
MrTand Mrs. Palmer h&d-done years before during
their stay in Italy.
' Redhill, ' February 2, 1862.
' Your letter to your mother and others was
received to-day, and we are made both sorry and
glad by the contents : sorry to find that you have
suffered as I suspected (for there was a touch of
fever in your former letter), but glad to find you

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

are safe through the peril of that dire disease small
pox. I am glad we did not know of your condition
before, for it is certain some of us would have
suffered more than you who are blessed with courage
that enables you to go through the wave which
threatens to overwhelm you. Fear is undoubtedly
the thing of all others to be afraid of in many cases ;
caution, however, is wisdom. I think you run too
many risks, one in walking late into the country
after sunset. The air is unwholesome here, and
fifty-fold worse, I am told, in Italy. Then that is
the time for robbery and the stiletto. . . .
' There is room for all of us, but if anyone is to
refrain from exhibiting, I can best afford to do it, as
my work is nearly done, and if I have time to set
my house in order before I sleep, I shall be content.
I wish you could see how plain the course is open
before you to do well, and even better perhaps than
by any other by avoiding all political connection
with any academy or corporate body.
' It is better to keep to the ev aw/.ia koi ev Trvevfia
native; /cat E/cXnfljjrE ev fxia eXniSe. So far as the exhibi
tion is concerned, I am not likely to be sorry for any
hindrances respecting elections, though I suspect the
advice given you to keep where you are was with
reference to that matter.
' Mr. Cameron, the War Secretary to Mr. Lin
coln's Government, U.S., has been sent off as
Ambassador to Russia, because he was enthusiasti
cally troublesome for abolition, which the hypo
critical Federal Government intend to avoid if

THE ROYAL ACADEMY 119
possible. We shall see if God intends the liberation
and exodus of the slaves by the U.S. Government
being compelled to adopt it as their only safety.
It is the common policy of all crafty politicians to
send away on some foreign expedition whoever they
consider in their way. However, like Joseph's
brethren, what they intend for mischief often turns
through the grace of God to the benefit of those
meant to be lost.
' I am now most thankful I did not attain to the
degrading honour, or rather distinction the wrong
way, of A.R.A. I should not have been at Redhill,
or even alive. Let the men who cannot obtain a
living any other way seek and get those worldly
distinctions ; but when God has so far blessed our
labours as to put us on a level with the best, it is to
me ungrateful not to be content and to leave it
evident that it is to God we owe our success more
than to man. "Lest thou shouldst say, I have made
Abram rich." Reliance upon God throws us into
communion with Him, and gives power to all our
efforts. ' Yours, ¦j. l:
'March 6, 1862.
' . . . . Either I failed to express what I
intended, or you failed to see my meaning as to the
R.A. question. I do not regret your being at
Rome ; I only meant to say that, if you were right
in trying for the election, your being at Rome

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

might interfere with it. I am more than ever
convinced, however, that you are better as you are
— "even as I." You will not find out what the
cost is until too late ; no one tells the secret of his
own degradation, any more than fagging at public
schools is denounced by the sufferers. Scarcely
any of the men in the Academy are, I fear, awake
to the great argument upon which my conclusions
are based. Then, again, we ought to be contented
with the success granted to us. There is not to us
the excuse that so many have had of want of pur
chasers of our works — that great object for which
the distinction was at one time, and is now, by
many sought. It was for this chiefly that all the
machinery was set up, and all the time wasted at
meetings of business and ceremony. Glad would
many an R.A. have been, I have no doubt, could he
have had the constant employment that we have,
free from all bondage arising from the rules and
influence of a sort of monastic order, and free also
as to the choice of our subjects and artistic style —
more free in this last matter than if we were inside.
I have arrived at a point of view from which the
whole subject is to be more clearly seen than at an
earlier period of life, and I have no doubt but that
you will, if you arrive at the same point, see with
me, whether you are in or out. . . . 'J. L.
'It is settled now that I send my large picture of
"Carrying," and James his "Haymakers" — one
each. . . .'

THE TALENT OF SUCCESS 121
The picture referred to above as ' Carrying ' is
his ' Carrying Wheat ' (39 by 54 inches), exhibited
in the Academy in 1862. It was subsequently
damaged by fire, and was brought to the painter
and repaired in 1874. It shows a harvest-field,
with a waggon and horses in the foreground, and
men loading wheat. There is a distant view beyond,
with the sun setting in a cloudy sky. In 1867 it
was sold at Christie's for 1,650 guineas. 'April 10, 1862,
' We have just received yours dated April 5,
and hasten to reply, though I think I have already
said my say upon the one subject which seems
uppermost in your mind, and sends it wavering
about in an unstable state. I remember suffering
the same anxiety, to which I saw no end ; and I had
no peace until I made up my mind to give up all
endeavour to obtain a distinction, which, though it
held some worldly advantages, was fraught with
evident and latent mischief. Longfellow's words
on this subject are : " Better for them and for the
world in their example had they known how to
wait. Believe me, the talent of success is nothing
more than doing what you can well, and doing well
whatever you do without a thought of fame. If it
come at all, it will come because it is deserved, not
because it is sought after ; and, moreover, there will
be no misgivings, no disappointment, no hasty,
feverish, exhausting excitement." The struggle has
shortened the lives of many of the R.A.'s, and

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

would have shortened mine had I been elected.
Far better if one can be content to wait for such
results from our labour as God shall please to
produce, taking everything as from Him through
man's agency. It is only when contented that we
can work our best, and to be contented we must
feel possessed of real good — the best good — and
feel so rich as to be satisfied. We should be rather
terrified at the consequences of success, and, as
greatness is thrust upon us, the more humble our
selves. It appears to me that all which a man
should desire to do is now within your reach
by only working contentedly, and waiting for
results. . . . ' Yours,
•J. L.'
In June, 1862, the anxious father so far prevailed
that his son returned from Rome, remaining in
England until January in the following year.

[ '23 ]

CHAPTER X.
Correspondence respecting a Picture by Giulio Romano — W. M.
Rossetti and Blake's Life — Letters by Mrs. Sarah Austin — Jean
Ingelow — Correspondence with William Henry Hunt- — His Death.
Linnell having, in 1859, learned that there was
a valuable work by Giulio Romano for sale, and
being deeply impressed with the need of having as
many fine specimens of the old Italian masters
available for study as possible, wrote to his friend
George Richmond, representing to him the import
ance of securing this picture for the National Gallery,
and asking him to exert what influence he could in
the right direction. The following is Mr. Rich
mond's reply : 'August 5, 1859.
' My dear Mr. Linnell,
' The first thing I did on receiving your note
was to enclose it in one to Sir C. Eastlake, stating
that, although I did not myself remember the picture
of Giulio Romano, I took it as a strong recom
mendation that you did, and was at some pains to
secure its being purchased for the nation. I now
send you Sir Charles's answer, which I received last
night, and am on my way to the National Gallery
to see if the picture is arrived there yet.

124 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' I beg my kindest remembrances to Mrs. Linnell
and your whole party, and remain,
' Yours very faithfully,
' Geo. Richmond.'
Sir Charles Eastlake's letter was as follows :
' 7, Fitzroy Square, W.,
'August 4, 1859.
' My dear Sir,
' On my return last night from Cheltenham,
after having bought the Giulio Romano, I found
your note enclosing Mr. Linnell's. You will now
be able to tell him that the picture is secured for
the nation.
' There will soon be a change in the arrangements
of the pictures when the temporary galleries at
South Kensington are used, and I suppose any new
acquisition will not be exhibited till the alteration
takes place. ' Sincerely yours, ' C. L. Eastlake.
' Geo. Richmond, Esq.'
Linnell replied to Mr. Richmond as follows, under
date August 6 :
' My dear Sir,
' I return you Sir C. Eastlake's letter, with
many thanks both to you and Sir Charles. We are
all much gratified to find that a picture so full of
beauty and without any alloy is now the property
of the nation.

CORRESPONDENCE WITH ROSSETTI 125
' I hope you will see the picture soon, and then
run down here and tell us what you think of it.
' I am, dear sir,
,_ ' Yours sincerely, ' J. Linnell, Sen.
' Geo. Richmond, Esq., A.R.A.'
In 1862 some correspondence took place between
William Michael Rossetti and Linnell relative to
Blake. Rossetti was compiling his catalogue of
Blake's works for Gilchrist's Life, and he applied
to the artist for information on the subject of his
labours, as Allan Cunningham and Gilchrist had
done before him. Like them, he received valuable
aid ; and in one of his letters he refers to ' the
minute and useful answers ' which he had received
to his queries, and which were compiled by the
artist's eldest son from the various documents in his
father's possession.
One of Rossetti's questions had reference to a
story about the origin and inspiration of Blake's
dragons, the authority for which appears to have
been a Mr. Riviere, of Oxford. According to this
veracious witness, Blake at one time did heraldic
painting, and derived his information in the depart
ment of ' unnatural history ' relating to griffins and
dragons from coats-of-arms and the like recondite
sources. Linnell's answer was as follows :
' Dear Sir,
' Thanks for the information about the Blake
story, which I have no doubt is a mistake built upon

126 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
a criticism. I never heard of Mr. Riviere before,
or anyone of that name who knew Blake. I knew
a little of an artist of that name who was the brother
of Mrs. Bishop, the celebrated singer ; but he was
certainly not intimate with Blake, if he knew him
at all. I hope after this the story will not make its
appearance in the Life, for I can find no one who
believes it. Mr. S. Palmer has the same wish that
I have for its suppression. The criticism upon
Blake's dragons would apply just as well to Turner's
for his picture of Jason in the National Gallery,
where the dragon is quite as heraldic in its character
as any of Blake's, and even more so.* But the fact
is, dragons are rather uncommon. There are none
in the Zoological Gardens. They are traditional, and
all have been drawn from the same type, or nearly
so, and hence unavoidable similarity. Blake, how
ever, has given a sublimity of character to his
dragons and serpents which we look in vain for
elsewhere, and those who could not see the grandeur
of Blake's conceptions were always spiteful in their
criticisms, from a desire to bring that down to their
low level which they could not reach. I believe it
is in art as in the highest knowledge. The \pv^iKog,
or sensuous man, receiveth not the things of the
spirit ; they are foolishness to him, and he is unable
to know them because they are spiritually discerned,
' Yours,
' John Linnell, Sen.'
* I remember another picture in the National Gallery by Turner
which has a terrific dragon in it, high up on a rock.

SARAH AUSTIN 127

Before answering as above, however, Linnell had
put the question to Samuel Palmer in the following
humorous form :
' L. will be obliged to P.
To answer questions 2 OR 3.
' Does he know, or can he guess,
Not who wrote of the oil mess
That Blake, he said, made in his printing,
But who told how (no malice stinting)
Blake took all his griffs and dragons
From the coats-of-arms on flagons.
The Muse is tired, so off she goes
To rest herself in common prose.
'Did P. ever before this hear of the story of Blake's herald-painting ?
' Did P. inwent it or propagate it ?
' Did P. furnish Mrs. G. with the story ?
1 Does P. know who did, and will he tell ?
' Blake's reputation demands that this story be tested. The public
will be ill-treated if it is not set right.'
It will have been seen from the letter to Rossetti
that Samuel Palmer gave as little credit to the story
as did Linnell.
It may possibly have been this correspondence —
stirring up as it did the foundations of memory —
that first gave John Linnell the idea of writing down
the autobiographical notes which he commenced in
1863, and from which I have been allowed to draw
very largely in this Life.
Another very interesting series of letters, from a
well-known personage in her day, claims a few pages
at this point. Reference has previously been made
to Mrs. Sarah Austin, the authoress, two portraits
of whom Linnell had painted twenty years before.
It is to these portraits that the earlier letters refer.

128 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
The daughter spoken of, for whom she wanted a
copy of one of them, was, of course, Lady Duff
Gordon. In other respects the letters speak for
themselves. • ' London, 'AprilS, 1862.
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' I don't know if you have still any recollec
tion of one who is hardly to be reckoned among the
living, having lost more than half herself. Yet as
an old sitter, as well as an old neighbour and
admirer, I will urge my claim to be remembered. I
have a little request to make to you. Besides the
finished portrait, which Mrs. Empson very kindly
gave me after her husband's death (and which was
the source of infinite pleasure to my dear husband),
you made a little sketch of me. This my daughter
has always esteemed the most perfect likeness of me
in existence, and has always desjred either to possess
it or to have some true copy of it.
' You probably do not know that we have been
for two years and more in the greatest alarm
about her, and that she is at this moment at the
Cape of Good Hope, whither she was sent as a last
resource. God be thanked, it has proved successful,
and in six or eight weeks we hope to have her back
in renewed health, though still to be watched with
infinite care.
' Now, it would give me great satisfaction to be
able to gratify her wishes.
'Will you allow me to have a photograph, a litho-

PORTRAIT OF MRS. AUSTIN 129
graph, or any sort of copy of the sketch in question
taken ? Or are you disposed to part with it ?
' My own health is very much broken — sorrow and
anxiety have done their work — and before I depart
I should like to give my dear child the only likeness
of her mother she is fully satisfied with. Her father
was entirely satisfied with the other, and continually
expressed his pleasure in the possession of it.
' I write to you from London, but my home is
Weybridge, where I have often and often wished
for you to see some of our beautiful heath and wood
scenery. If ever you are inclined to look at it, pray
remember that there is an old rambling cottage at
which you would be very welcome. I hope all goes
well with you and yours. ' Very truly yours,
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' S. Austin.'
The likeness above referred to is the one from
which the portrait of Mrs. Austin on page 297, vol. i.,
was taken.
Linnell does not appear to have kept copies of
his replies to this and the following letters, although
of all letters of importance he invariably made and
carefully preserved copies. The other letters need
no comment.
' Esher, 'April 16, 1862.
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' Thank you for your compliance with my
request. But before I urge it further, I must be
vol. 11. 29

130 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
sure that we mean the same thing, which appears to
me questionable. The portrait I mean was certainly
a sketch in oil. I was leaning forward one day,
talking, when you asked me to remain in that
position while you made a sketch of me, which was
done. You had your palette and brush in your
hand. To the best of my recollection, I never sat
for that again. And this is the likeness which my
daughter always preferred to the finished picture,
now in her possession. When this doubt is cleared
up, I shall be happy to avail myself of your proposal
on your own terms ; I don't even know what a
"negative" is in any but the grammatical sense.
But I am sure you would make no stipulation that
would be unpleasant to me.* Is the picture at Red
hill or in London ? I should like much to see it.
If it is in London, nothing is easier; and if at
Redhill, I should be tempted to drive over in my
little pony-chaise and give myself the pleasure of
seeing not only that, but the contents of your studio,
and still more yourself. Your exhibited pictures I
have, of course, seen and admired with all the
world, and have felt a constant interest in your well-
merited success. I am at this moment at Esher
with my dear son-in-law and the children, but after
Monday I shall be at home. Weybridge, Surrey,
is all the address necessary. I gave none in town
because I was there but for a few days. I wish you
* Linnell had written Mrs. Austin to the effect that she might have
a photograph of the portrait by paying the expense and allowing him
to retain the negative.

INVITATION TO WEYBRIDGE 131
would think seriously of a little visit to Weybridge.
I could show you lovely spots. But I dare say you
know them all. ' Yours, dear Mr. Linnell,
' Very truly,' Sarah Austin.'
' Weybridge, 'June 14.
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
1 1 shall be very much obliged by your
sending the photograph (together with all charges,
etc.). ' My dear daughter is on the ocean, and may
arrive in a few days, or, more probably, in three
weeks. All my visitings stand over till this intense
anxiety is at an end. I have to thank you very
much for the remarkable and interesting lines you
sent me. You are very happy in being able to
satisfy yourself so completely that you understand
that wonderful and mysterious book. I feel that I
want more of that inward light which alone can
solve all difficulties. ' Yours very truly,
' S. Austin.
' I am told Joubert's photographs are excellent,
Have you seen any ?' 'June 17.
'Dear Mr. Linnell,
' I should be a traitor if I said that photo
graph is good enough for your picture. I shall be
content with nothing less than the best that can be

132 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

done. Since I wrote I have seen several of Joubert's,
which are really beautiful. Why not get him to do
it ? Nevertheless, I am very much obliged to you
for the one you have sent me. It only makes me
the more sensible of the merits of the picture, which
I positively must go to see.
' Thank you for the books ; I had no idea you
were such a Biblical scholar and critic. I am in no
danger of being priest-ridden. My difficulties will
never come from that quarter. You say the mystery
is told : told, yes ; but not explained — at least, not
to my poor understanding. But this is no subject
for a hasty note, so pray believe me,
' Very truly yours,
' S. Austin.
' What an extremely pretty picture it is ! The
arrangement is so free and graceful.'
' August 20.
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' I beg your pardon for so long delaying to
answer your inquiry. The truth is, that in the
hurry and agitation of my dear daughter's second
departure (she starts to-day for the Pyrenees, and
then Egypt) I entirely forgot it, which I am sure
you will allow for. My son-in-law never had any
thing to do with the " Duff Gordon Sherry " trade,
which, owing to his father's death, passed into other
hands when he was a boy. His brother had a share
in it for some years, but retired from it some years
ago, and has now nothing to do with it. I fear,

A VISITOR AT REDHILL 133
therefore, I can be of no service to you in the way
you mention. I do not even know the names of
the present successors to the business.
' Summer is slipping away without affording me
one opportunity of realizing my plan of a visit to
Redhill. My daughter has spent only one month
among us. I only returned last night to Weybridge,
where I shall now be stationary for some time. I
still do not quite, despair of my little journey, but am
very uncertain. ' Yours, dear Mr. Linnell,
' Very truly,
' S. Austin.'
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' Miss Ronalds was so kind as to send me a
very friendly invitation to Redhill, and though I told
her I feared I could hardly accept it at present, I
am now so strongly tempted that I write to you for
the indispensable information when you are to be
found at home. And likewise, whether Miss R. is
still inclined and at liberty to have me.
' My project is to drive in my pony-chaise, spend
the whole following day at Redhill, and return the
third day.
' Your account of railroad speed does not tempt
nor profit me, for I am not (thank God) in London,
and the way by Guildford supposes being tran
shipped four times at least.
'As for my dear daughter- — alas! since July I
have not seen her beloved face.

134 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' After two years of torturing anxiety, I parted
from her that she might go to seek health, or at
least life, at the Cape.
' I am now daily expecting the letter that is to
announce her return — with what feelings, I need not
say. ' I am sure Miss Ronalds will be kind enough to
write and tell me her plans and yours, and give me
exact directions where and how to find her house.
' I am by no means certain of coming. I never
am, for, added to the usual precariousness of weather,
I have now that of very feeble and uncertain health ;
but my wishes are strong.
' Yours, dear Mr. Linnell,
' Very truly,
' S. Austin.'
Another of Linnell's lady friends and corre
spondents was Miss Jean Ingelow. The friendship
appears to have grown out of a mutual appreciation
of each other's works. Under date September 24,
1863, Linnell wrote as follows :
'Dear Jean Ingelow,
' Your having expressed a sympathy with my
works, and having at the same time sent me a copy of
yours, is just one of the pleasantest things that has
happened to me for a long time. Believe me, the
liberty I have taken in addressing you as an intimate
friend arises from a fellowship I cannot help feeling
with such thoughts as are expressed in your poems.

JEAN INGELOW 135

I hope that you practise my art as an amateur, for
I find generally that those who do, or at least
endeavour something, know and feel most. And
that you may see that I follow my theory by
practice, I send you one of my endeavours to
express in language what I feel. Lest, however,
you should think I am nothing if not critical, I
promise to show you my studies from nature if
you will favour me with a visit, spending a long day
at Redhill with any companion you may choose to
bring. ' Yours gratefully,
' John Linnell, Sen.'
Three days later the artist received the following
letter in reply :
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' Your note was put into my hands two days
ago, and I am much pleased that you should respond
so kindly to my little offering. I should also much
like to make your personal acquaintance and see
those sketches from which result the pictures that
have so much delighted me. If, therefore, nothing
unforeseen should prevent it, and you do not write
to tell me it would be inconvenient, my brother and
I hope to come and pay you a call on Wednesday
or Thursday in next week.
' I thought your poem very original. Unfor
tunately, my admiration for your genius is not so
intelligent as I could wish, for I have no technical

136 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
knowledge of art. I can feel it intensely, but my
pleasure in it is derived chiefly from the love of
Nature, not from any power to paint.
' I am yours very sincerely,
'Jean Ingelow.'
The ' poem ' here referred to appears to have
been the following, which was appended to the
artist's letter as a sort of postscript :
' We hope you will come early,
And if you will stay till the sun is down
And the deep gloom set in,
You shall see the owl fly across the dell,
In a way that will cause your heart to swell,
When he enters the shade
By the thick leaves made,
With well-poised loitering wing.'
Amongst a number of other letters there is one
of a later date than the foregoing, which concludes
as follows :
' We have been reading the " Life of Blake " with
great delight. My brother, who has long admired
his works, bought his illustrations to Blair's "Grave"
some time ago. You cannot think how pleased I
am at the place you hold in it, and how glad I am
to discover that the painter whose works I have so
admired for years is as kind-hearted as he is great'
Linnell lived to see most of the artists whose
careers began about the same time as his fall off
one after another. John Varley had died in 1840,
Wilkie in 1841, Haydon in 1846 (by his own hand),
and William Collins in 1847. Mulready followed in

WILLIAM HENRY HUNT 137

1863, and William Henry Hunt in 1864. The
death of the latter is rendered particularly interesting
in connection with Linnell from the fact that shortly
before his death he recalled his former fellow-student
to mind, and opened a brief correspondence with
him after years of silence.
In 1858 Wethered the dealer had taken Hunt a
quince which Linnell had plucked for him from the
garden at Redstone. From this Hunt executed a
drawing, with grapes, etc. This Wethered bought,
and afterwards showed it to Linnell, who, in ex
change for it, gave him a sketch of his own. No
correspondence, however, at that time passed between
the former fellow-students, Wethered, who was doing
business with both, being the medium of communi
cation. Then, after a further silence of a year or two,
Linnell received the following letter from Hunt :
' 62, Stanhope Street,
' Hampstead Road, N.W.,
'November 16, 1863.
' Friend Linnell,
' I herewith send you a carte de visite of
myself at a venture, if you care to have the same. I
only know that I should prize one of yourself if you
will grant me the favour of one. I should like those
of your sons.
' How long ago is it since I met you at the Royal
Academy Exhibition ? I did not think how dif
ferent we look to what we did when I had the
advantage of sketching with you opposite Millbank.

138 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
What fine things you would have made in the old
town in France, and of the fishermen and boats, if
you had gone over the water !
' I hear of you sometimes through Wethered, and
I dare say he has told you how lame I am all through
falling off some four or five steps. I fear it's quite out
of the question my ever seeing your beautiful place.
Wethered tells me you have said you would like to
see me there. I should so much like to see you,
should you ever be able to favour me with a call.
' From yours truly,
'W. Hunt.
'J. Linnell, Esq.'
To this letter Linnell replied as follows :
'Redhill, 'November 17, 1863.
' My dear Friend William Hunt,
' Your sincere, kind, friendly epistle, received
this morning, gave me great pleasure, as it not only
contained the photo of your outward man, but an
intimation of the workings of your inner self. You
refer to old times and associations which are inter
esting and good to chew the cud of sometimes ; but,
alas ! there is so much of melancholy in all that has
passed away that it is better to press on towards a
glorious future, " forgetting the things behind." This
future is within your reach, only act in this matter
as you have done successfully in your art — go to the
fountain-head — study there. As you have studied
and faithfully copied Nature, the work of God, now

LETTER TO HUNT 139
study God himself. Be his disciple, and beware of
all ecclesiastical help ; beware of the Pharisees and
their counterfeit humility.
' Your wish to see me is gratifying every way,
and I shall make a point of paying you a visit, not,
however, to tease you, but to see you and your
work. ' I enclose photos of myself — one for you and one
for Mr. Wethered, when you see him. Keep which
you prefer best. These photos were taken in my old
shop at Bayswater, which I little thought, when I
built it, would be used for such a purpose. I am
right glad, however, to be here and not there, and
shall still hope to see you here next summer, if not
before. ' God bless you, my dear old friend, and believe
me, ' Yours faithfully,
'John Linnell, Sen.
' P.S. — There is another photo of you, I am told,
said to be better than the one you have sent. I shall
try to get it, though I like this much. Perhaps
Mr. Wethered will procure me the other photo of
you. Ask him.'
Perhaps the following epistle, addressed to Mr.
Wethered, which was at this time in Linnell's pos
session, may account somewhat for the tender tone
in which the foregoing letter is couched. What a
striking difference it reveals between the writer and
the old friend who, nearly sixty years before, had

140 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
commenced with him the ascent of ' Fame's rough
steep ' ! ' Bromley, 'June 1 8, i860.
' Friend Wethered,
' I am astonished to find you have had any
summer weather. As to going on with the drawing
of the house and the roses, it is quite out of the
question. I could do nothing in my painting-room
unless I kept a good fire. There must be some
mistake in the order of the seasons. Moore says
there will be nice hay-making weather in August ;
then perhaps I may be able to do something out
doors. Until there is really some warm weather I
can only make small drawings. The primrose
blossoms, the apple and the may blossoms, are all
over. I would try my hand at a cow, but it's too
cold even to sit in a cowshed. Still, I am not, nor
do I intend to be, idle. I fear that I shall not be
able to make two drawings for Mr. Gillott until there
is some large sort of fruit, such as melons, pines.
grapes, etc., which can be done in town, the latter
end of the summer, when it comes. We have had
to-day more or less rain and cold north wind, so
much indeed that I could not stay out-doors to hear
the Ranters preach about Christ being the only name
that can save sinners. But what's the use harping
upon it Sunday after Sunday ? You would be
amused to hear how they harp upon being washed
in the blood of Christ. What a very singular
destiny ! I will not forget to do something for you ;
(I do not quite understand what you mean by the

DEATH OF HUNT 141

large drawing for Mr. Gillott) ; and then I can make
the other two for him. ' From yours truly,
' Wm. Hunt.
' W. Wethered, Esq.'
Linnell received the following letter, dated De
cember 9 (1863), in acknowledgment of a second
photograph :
' Friend Linnell,
' In return for your second portrait I send
you another of myself, on, I think, a rather larger
scale. What a beautiful situation your house must
be ! My country retreat is an old farm-house near
Basingstoke, Hants, and that I rent.
' I still work very hard at grapes and apples ; but
I wish persons would like the drawings as bits of
colour instead of something nice to eat.
' With best respects to Mrs. Linnell and family,
' I am, yours truly, 'W. Hunt.
'J. Linnell, Esq.'
This was the last communication our artist ever
had from his friend. On February 10, 1864, he
received the following from Mr. Wethered :
' My dear Sir,
' I am sure you will with me much regret to
learn our dear old friend Hunt died this morning
early. ' Believe me, very faithfully yours,
' William Wethered.'

[ 142 ]

CHAPTER XI.
Additional Correspondence — Aphoristic Wisdom — Views on Work —
Views on Art — ' Beware of Americans !' — Mr. and Mrs. Cropsey
— Death of Mrs. Linnell — Premonitions of his own End — Letter
from George Richmond, R.A.'
Among the letters written by Linnell to his son
William during his second stay in Rome there are
many which have an exceptional interest, inasmuch
as they are replete with ideas on art. Here and
there, perhaps, prejudices crop up — the prejudices
of a man who has never visited Rome, the Mecca
and Medina as it were of art, and who, though
always staying at home, has yet discovered there,
at his very threshold, what the most laboriously
travelled has seldom found with all his wandering.
It is not to be wondered at, therefore, if he fails to
appreciate the value of foreign study, and sees all
the evils and none of the advantages derivable from
such change.
But, besides this, the letters are full of wisdom —
worldly, and other-worldly also. Nor are they lack
ing in wit. In many of the letters, not otherwise
of general interest, are interspersed gems of this
kind that are well worth quoting. Thus, in a note
dated October 7, 1864, occurs the following :

APHORISMS 143

' What you say of your transition state reminds
me of a certain blackbird that we heard trying with
all his might to whistle a well-known English tune ;
and he succeeded up to a certain point, when he
became but half blackbird, but he finished by whist
ling his " native wood-notes wild." I suppose when
he was half-seas over he was in the transition state.
Am I to account for your letters being so difficult to
read on the same principle ? If so, I wish you would
get over the transition state as soon as possible, and
write plainer.'
In another letter, wedged in between a lot of dry
business matters, occurs the following parody on
Shakespeare's well-known lines (Julius Ccesar,
Act IV., scene iii.) :
' There is in man's affairs a tide
Which leads to fortune if descried
And taken promptly at the flood ;
But if through laziness or blindness lost,
He may be in the tempest sadly tost,
And finally left sticking in the mud.'
In another saying he retorts upon La Roche
foucauld's ' No man is a hero to his own valet '
with the aphorism, ' No man is a hero to his own
valet, because valets are not judges of heroes, and
cannot tell when they have found one.'
The following characteristic views upon work
were written to his eldest daughter :
' According to your own account, you are very
busy with household matters. Here is some advice
from an idle person who is often detected poring

144 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
over books, or even dozing in the daytime. You
know the difference between a work of art and a
mere heap of matter, or jumble of things without
arrangement ? Well, try and consider your day's
work, or your week's work, as a work of art.
' Begin the work of the day
As if you had to play
A piece of music grand and glorious,
And you your utmost skill
Intended, with good will,
To use so as to be all-victorious, —
trying to resolve the unavoidable discords into
their proper harmonies by some lucid touches here
and there, using some touches also of melody in
the midst of the recitative of directions and com
mands.
' Yet of crotchets be aware,
And quavers, too, for they breed care,
If out of time at all ;
But breves and semibreves are best,
Sedate and calm, with many a rest,
As sweet as evening fall.'
The following letters to his son in Rome need
no comment :
' Redhill, ' May 2, 1 864.
' I am just arrived from the Royal Academy
Exhibition, where I saw G, who was so gracious
that I guess he will allow you anything. I expect
him here this week, and will tell him what you say,
and write to you. If you want to be in Rome again
in the autumn, you should certainly be here in the
summer, for very many reasons — more than I can
state. From what you say, I think it quite necessary

PICTURES IN THE ACADEMY 145
for you to return here as soon as you can arrange
it ; only, if you bring your large picture and frame,
do not think of taking it again to Rome. Your
" Banks and Braes " is on the line in the middle
room. James's are all low, but look well. One of
mine is too high, and looks nothing. My other kit
cat, " Haymakers," is on the line in the great room,
and looks something. There is nothing first-rate ;
most of the great guns have either missed fire or
not put in powder enough. Well, as to difficulties
of a moral sort, I pray not for you to be taken out
of the world of vice that you are in, so much as that
you may be kept from the evil.
' Were I with you, I should in all probability
throw up my cap for a peep at Sicily, though if it
should appear on inquiry that the autumn is the
best time for that, why, then I should come here in
the summer, and return early enough for Naples
and Sicily. This is a good time to finish off your
lust of travel. You can best judge what is prac
ticable, and I will not attempt to direct, and only
say be sober, be vigilant ; remember what your
adversary is, and remember also the helps — the
Xeirovpyoi, who are your companions, though unseen.
I will do what you wish as to money, etc., only let
me know in time. I have much to do just now.
James's house is to be enlarged — Chart Lodge also ;
and in painting also I have something to do.
' Yours, 'J. L., Sen.
tP # 'fa ^ -Jk
vol. ii. 30

146 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' Comfort yourself as to the evils about you that
there is a man with an inkhorn who sets a mark
upon those who honestly groan at the sight. Beware
of the spite and revenge, however, of those who
may, through your counsel to the simple, be dis
appointed of their prey ; so be wise as serpents.
' In your letter, supposed from Olevano, October 1 5,
you offer a scorpion to Tom in exchange for some
thing better than an egg — Luke xi. 12. I won't
say anything about the spirit of your observations
upon Redhill ; but, according to the letter,
' There is no one here but a fogey old,
For the rest they are only chits,
With Bell, and Shoe, and Oxtoby bold,
Oaks, and nubbly bits.
' The excitement of the discovery of the brass
Hercules accounts for your writing in the " Hercules
vein," smashing us poor Redhillians with your
club, and roaring as you used to do when you acted
lion under the table. That Olevano letter is a
terrible one, with the handwriting on the wall. If
your photo had been in the position of mine by
M. and P., we could have made pictures of the
subject. ' As far as I am concerned, I say :
' Send no more photos, photos send no more,
They are deceivers ever,
Fading at last if not before,
And satisfying never ;
So when they show, just say, " No go,"
And be you blithe and bonny,
Pooh-pooh the sellers' notes of woe,
And keep your ready money.'

ANTICIPATIONS OF WAR 147
' Redhill, ' May 9, 1864.
' Your letter came this morning, dated the
3rd ; the same day one was sent to you, and one
the day after, both of which you should have by
this time. The questions you ask in this last are
all answered in ours of the 3rd and 4th. It seems
to me that, as your pictures must be brought here
either in a finished or unfinished state, you may as
well do the last winding up here, as they are to be
seen in English atmosphere, and there is some
danger of your working to suit the Roman light,
which I think led to most of your trouble in " The
Gleaners." You are as capable of judging what is
best, and in a position to know better than I am ;
but I feel sure you ought to return some time
before the summer is over. We will attend to your
wishes respecting the captain and the pre-Raphaelite
Wallis. ' Look out for squalls in the political horizon.
Money is scarce, funds very low — all which, I sup
pose, you see. If you are flush of cash this summer,
I may want to borrow some to pay for additions to
Chart Lodge, which I have nearly settled to do. I
am to have six per cent, in rent ; but as Palmer's
house has swallowed up all my savings, I am
getting short, and loath to sell out at such a loss as
three or five per cent. A. has not been or written
lately. Everyone is cautious and shy, so we must
wait. If peace continues we shall prosper, but war
is very probable, I fear ; so be prepared, and do not

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

leave anything in Rome when you return here if
you can help it. Try and arrange so that you can
give up your studio when you please. I hope you
will come before the Royal Academy Exhibition
closes, and on your mother's account. You ought
to see her before long, lest you should regret the
omission. I have many irons in the fire, some
getting "werry ott" You should be here with
your sledge-hammer to lend us a rap. You shall
have some beer, I promise you ; for I am going to
brew in a day or two, while this north-east wind
lasts. ' Yours, 'J. L., Sen.'
' Redhill, ' Saturday, October 8, 1 864.
' In your letter of last April you asked for my
counsel, so I venture to give it now. The pictures
for G. I expect he will like, as he has, I think, good
reason to be satisfied, as I doubt not they will sell
well, and he will want more. The group of goats I
think capital, and many other points ; but the thing
I want to tell you is, there, is, I fear, a theatrical
scene-painter alloy creeping into your work that you
will not get rid of in Italy, because it is the vice of
the place. It is in every artist who goes to Rome,
and most go through the love of that quality. It
is not the beautiful they seek to accomplish, but
novelty, the sensational, the melodramatic. Hence
the pigmental colouring of drapery. These things,

ROME-GOING ARTISTS 149
however, soon tire, like fireworks. Beauty never
tires — qualities which affect the inner man. There
is, I fear, a bad style of art and criticism in Rome
of a contagious kind, rather Cropseyish, and worthy
only of the name "slang." I cannot help feeling,
notwithstanding the many good things in the two
pictures sent, that you have left your first love.
Your English subjects I like better ; even the
costume is more humane — not so savage. The
majority of artists who go to Rome think to make
up for the deficiency of power to express beauty by
seizing novelty. . . .
' I could not urge you to come here into frost
and snow, when you are just where most people
would like to be for the winter. If you stay, I have
no doubt but it will be far more profitable to make
studies from nature than to paint pictures. Finish,
or nearly so, your large picture, and no more; spend
the rest of your time in getting valuable matter
such as can be got nowhere else, and then, like a
good bee laden with sweets, come to your hive,
only don't you sting us if we are a little curious to
see your store. G. would see the small picture, and
wished to have it when you had retouched it. I
told him it was intended for A., and if A. did not
come soon and see it, or if he did not wish to have
it, I would let him (G.) know, when he said he
would write to you about it. I did not mention any
price. . . .
' Slight pictures, unless there is some peculiar
grace in the execution, are not good to send out ;

150 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
so I recommend more work upon the small picture
when you come here. ' Yours, ' J. L., Sen.
' The disease which appears to me to be in Rome
infects all the painters who go there — costume pig-
mentally coloured ; scene-painting style ; novelty,
and not quality, uppermost. I write strongly to
make what I mean clearer. There is, I fear, an
atmosphere in Rome unfavourable to improvement,
though the finest examples are to be seen. The
men, however, who produced them did not go after
novelty, but painted their own country, and what
they were used to ; hence, in my opinion, they were
affected more by what is permanently beautiful than
what is striking, because new. Beware of Americans,
North and South. They are repudiators of debts ;
so, whatever you do, expect nothing again. I will
attend to all you wish, but can't judge here — you
can. This winter in Rome ought, I think, to suffice
for you ; and you should be home in time to retouch
your large picture here that you intend to send from
Rome for the Royal Academy exhibition. There
is such a thing as drifting out of a good track — a
taint is soon acquired.'
The Cropsey referred to in the foregoing letter
was an American artist who had spent some time
in Rome, and who, as the result (as Linnell thought),
inflicted upon the world a lot of 'painty' and
rather meretricious work — a description which

A HUMOROUS LETTER 151
Linnell held in abhorrence. About this time (1864)
Mr. Cropsey and his wife sought an introduction to
the artist, and after a first formal visit to Redhill
there was some correspondence, preliminary to a
second visit with friends. A letter from Mrs.
Cropsey called forth the following humorous reply :
' Dear Mrs. Cropsey,
' Monday will do for me beautifully— if you
can only get the day to be beautiful. You are sure
to look so yourself, and your party also, if you only
look as usual. How could you be so cruel as to
dub me R.A. on the cover of your letter, and so
envelop me in an honourable distinction to which I
have no pretension ? I am so far infra such a dig.
I shall write you Wicountess Cropsey, I think, when
I am disposed to retaliate. Perhaps, however, you
meant something else than royal scholastic honours.
R. A. may stand for many things — for Right American,
or for 'Rong American, adopting the orthography
of Sir William Curtis, who gave as a toast the
three R's — -reading, writing, and arithmetic. I am
not sure that in my case R.A. might not stand for
Ragged Artist, seeing that I am more allied by
sympathy and habit to the ragged schools than to
any others, and such let the meaning be. I shall,
therefore, so take it in future, and subscribe myself,
' Your obedient servant and ragged artist,
' John Linnell.'
The following is from a letter undated, but having
the post-mark October 22, 1864 :

152 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
'Thanks for the folografs, as the Italians spell it.
Very few of the best things seem to be done. Are
there no fotos of the wonderfull bulls, rustic waggons
and figures, or are we to have those in words only?
I hope you will not return without studies and fotos
to back up your description, which is sure to fall
otherwise into the Bill Stumps style. I should be
glad also for once to see something to correspond
to the boasted Italian sky ; the pictures sent are — -
though very nicely finished — only English skies,
and not the best of those. The old vice in the
tints, proceeding, I suspect, from some red used
which increases in force after painting, or through
not mixing the light first and then refraining from
the addition of red or any warmer tints, except in
distinct features ; but, after all, the eye ought to
detect the fault and correct it before the stains have
accumulated, and by a better method of mixing
relative tints first, the fault I speak of ought to be
almost impossible, even if painting by lamplight.
I know by so rigid a process you would be shut out
from some varieties which are natural, but they
could be added safer than attempting them at first.
Then, again, when strong colours are in costume,
great care should be taken that the shadows and
middle tints are true, and evidence the influence of
the phenomena about. Without great attention to
this the figures will look like coloured prints in
children's books. Fotos will not help here — only
careful observation of facts in the circumstances
represented in the picture. There is a red garment

ITALIAN BRIGANDS 153
on the centre figure of the squares and of the two
pictures sent which is open to this criticism in my
opinion. The figure is sitting on the ground — a
man with a crimson cloak, or something of that
sort. You see nothing like it in any of the great
masters, only in the modern clap-trap Italy-mongers.
It is not colour in the true artistic sense — it is colour-
shop. ' We all remark how like Wales the mountains
are in the last picture — not better, to my mind. I
hope to see something yet which we may say could
only be got in Italy, or is worth going for. How
ever, you must not in your search for this forget
the brigands, who, I find by letters in the Times,
are now infesting the Roman States, and go from
there to the Italian. The French pursue, but
seldom catch them. You are ignorant in Rome
of the extent of the evil, as the Government hides all
and publishes nothing. Only to-day, October 13,
there is a letter to that effect, which has disturbed
your mother's mind not a little. Gambart says that
the banditti are very numerous, but they only rob
the English ; they do not carry them off. So you
may think yourself well off if you only get robbed,
which you had better permit quietly if they fall in
your way.
' I think it is the Indian red which James has
just procured for you that spoils your cloud tints.
I remember that Mulready and all I knew avoided
that pigment as one that showed itself in a most
obtrusive and offensive manner after the work was

154 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
dry, and could only be used by the coarse portrait-
painters of the regular old R.A. school. Vermilion
is safer, I have no doubt, and will not appear in the
tints beyond the time of the working. As the tints
appear when first put on, so they will remain,
whereas the Indian red comes out in stains after
wards. Scarlet extract and yellow ochre, or red
chrome, are best for lights on clouds when well
mixed with white lead. . . .
' I think it will be wise to return early next spring,
and leave nothing behind you. Make a clean sweep
of it, and trust to finding a place to suit you when
you go again, which may not be so soon as you.
expect. However, if you wish to keep your studio,
it will only be the loss of so much money ; but it
would be folly to risk the loss of your studies, so do
bring all those with you. Stirring events may be
expected before long.' ' Redhill, ' November 21, 1864.
' We are all much relieved from anxiety
about you by the receipt of yours to-day, dated from
Rome the 16th. The accounts of brigandage are
so frightful, all about Rome it is said, so, if you do
not know it, look out. ... I shall write to Count
Guicciardini soon, and tell him what you say. I do
not remember your former message, but I dare say
it was sent. I paid nothing to Home, who has
behaved liberally in refusing to take anything for
all the trouble we gave him about the case sent to
Mackraken. You may as well repeat your message,

ADAMS ACTON 155

which you say you asked me to give to C. G, as I
can better tell if it was attended to. You should
remember what a task I have to perform at my
age. I have, besides providing soap, candles, oil,
;and stone blue, etc., etc., to earn enough to pay all
expenses with no better materials to study from than
the " nubbly bits of Redhill, Oxtoby, Bell, bitch
and donkey." You really ought to contribute some
sensational figures that I might turn to account.
Some swinkamswash, melodramatic vagabond to
place on a bridge over a cataract just about to throw
a hinnocent babby into the foaming gulf. Oxtoby,
Bell and Co. might be looking on and form a
pleasing contrast. Next package you send I hope
will contain something to give us some notion of
what Italy is like.
'We expect Mr. Adams* here in a day or two,
and he will take out to you the mounted photo of
Mary and Phcebe. I enclose you Sarah's. I hope
Stewart will be with you before you get this, and
Adams soon after. ' Yours, 'J. L., Sen.'
'Redhill, 'January 7, 1865.
' . . . . Your mother improves, and I have
only lumbago, as much as I can well stand under,
though I can't understand it, seeing that I wear
woollen vests, and take care of myself. I begin to
* Mr. Adams Acton, the sculptor.

156 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
think I am getting old, or older than I was some
years ago, though I doubt that sometimes. . . .
' Do, pray, write more at leisure, and as soon as
you get my letter, instead of writing just before, and
in a hurry. It is incredible that you should not be
able to find time to write all that is requisite.
Candles are not scarce, I guess, in Rome surely. I
should have sent ,£100 this time, had you been
more attentive in acknowledging the last, so do not
omit this time. ' Yours, ' Paterfamilias.'
' Redhill, 'January 18, 1865.
' . . . . Now, put this and that together, as
Bill Stump would say, and then you will be able to
stump up some day. In the meantime as much
stumpey as you want shall be sent. In your letter
from Olevano you say I need not infer from your
remarks about everlasting oaks, nubbly bits, with
" Bell, Shoe, Oxtoby, bitch and donkey," that you
have "lost your taste for England." Why, from
those remarks it would seem there was not much to
lose, though, as you have painted such successful
contradictions to that idea, we shall set down your
remarks to another account. As they stand, how
ever, without the picture commentary, they look too
like the common claim set up by the admirers of the
man-stealers of South America, when, after praising
them for qualities which brigands may possess, and

WANTS 'SOMETHING ITALIAN' 157
calling men chivalrous who sell their own offspring
for slaves, these sympathizers with the slaveocracy
pretend they are as much opposed to slavery as you
who denounce the whole set.
' I am glad to find by your last that the Stewarts
have reached Florence. I hope they are with you
now. Send the wine as soon as you please. I
shall drink your health with that of the senders —
Stillman, Pendegrass and Co.
' Can't you fish out some prime old store ?
Though I suppose the Cardinals are such knowing
ones on that subject, that there is no chance of the
very best being procurable by such heretics as we are.
Severn could help in that matter if he would. See
growers yourself, if possible, and go into their cellars
and ferret out some reserved sample. You see how
I want something Italian. 'II.'
' Redhill, ' Febritary 10, 1865.
' We received yours dated February 1, 1865.
That is as near as I can make it out from your
masterly touches. I suppose I must be content,
though I would rather that all such matters as dates
should be given and written plain. . . .
' Thanks for inquiries after lumbago. I have had
as much as I could well get on with, and now a cold,
but not more than I can bear easily. I have such a
sense of the great blessings I possess in the know
ledge of Divine Wisdom and the gifts of her left
hand that I am supported through much bodily

158 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
weakness. Not that I am weaker than usual, but
I have a sense of the trials that threaten at times to
be too great for me. By faith, however, all is
possible, and so I walk. I hope poor Mr. Stewart
can find comfort that way. If you write to him or
Mrs. S., could you not give him or her a note of
introduction to Count G, who would do him
good ?
' Mr. Grece wants afoto of Aristotle's bust in the
Capitol ; I forget if I named it before. He has just
read to us an interesting article by Taine in the
Deux Mondes, a description of Rome, very
original and evidently true. He reads in English
from the French book. He would be a more
valuable ally if he received ra tov irvevfiaroi;. We
must not, however, forget that we were once in
darkness, though now <Pwe a* Kujoicu. As children of
light let us walk. These are some of the thoughts
which help me through the long nights here, which
I now pass alone in a room that should extort thanks
from anyone. The beautiful things to be seen from
the window even in the worst weather ; but the
worst weather seems to have been everywhere but
here. We have had nothing to speak of bad, and
some delightful days. The snow has been seven
and ten feet deep in the North, with many disasters
to travellers. . . .
' I shall be glad to get the wine you mention,
that Mr. Stillman will send. And what about the
other from M r. Pendegrass ? I enclose you another
copy of the group, which you can do as you

ISOLATION 159

think best with ; also one of the miniatures of
your mother. ' Yours,
' IlpEcr.
' Redhill, 'March 1, 1865.
' Notwithstanding what you say about Redstone
habits leading to isolation, I believe that I am the
most really sociable person in the family, and the
best employed, for, in spite of the Hebrew roots and
Greek constructions, I am enabled to do as much
painting work as you, if not more, and, if price is
any test, I can get enough and do get it — enough to
justify my boasting (irapatypovaiv AaXw) ; and, though
I do not visit much, others visit me, and I give
them the result of my studies by telling them as
much precious truth as they would hear in all
Portman Square in a week, especially if they are
priests or priest-defenders. These studies, however,
can't be very unprofitable, as you say you " hope to
get at it." If instead of no one knowing his neigh
bour, as you say, they secluded themselves as I do,
I think they would be more neighbourly and know
each other better, not so much Kara aapica, perhaps,
but more profitably. After all, however, there is a
deal of visiting here, more than I could find room
to tell.
' If the wine is shipped I ought to have the bill
of lading, especially as you have paid for the wine.
You are right in not ordering more till we taste the
first. I fear it is useless for you to write to Mr.

160 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Stewart, as the last we heard of him is that they
were at Leghorn, and he was not expected to live.
I forwarded a letter from Gambart to you ; say if
you have it. . . .
' Fitz has not kept his engagement, but I have
another string to my bow in Morley, who has just
arranged for a kitcat and a 30 by 20 inches. . . .
The kitcat is from one of my Balcombe subjects,
very woody (a scarce quality in Italy I fear now).
I guess you will have to borrow of Redhill now for
oaks, if not for ' nubbly bits.' Don't forget that
pictures depend more upon phenomena and expres
sion for their effect than upon the matter or topo
graphical character. The difference between Turner
and Stanfield lies there. ' Yours, 'II.
' This paper (i.e., that on which the letter was
written) was cut off your last'
The following letter, although undated, evidently
belongs to May 17, 1865 :
' Your picture of " Banks and Braes " is level
with the eye, and for height could not be better. It
is liked, and cannot easily be "licked."
' You should write again when you get our letter,
in order to get the step which, like an unskilful
walker, you have lost. Wait for our letter, and then
write at once instead of writing just before you get
ours. We got yours dated the ioth on the 17th

DEATH OF MRS. LINNELL 161
(to-day), and write immediately. If you go to the
mountains, write from the mountains, and beware of
brigands. I shall not be able to send a ransom for
you without selling three per cents. I must sell
stock to get you out of the stocks. You can have
some cash if you want it, as I have some coming in
a few days. I have just sold a small picture of
"Feeding Chickens" for 250 guineas — and some
thing to Fitz. Chart Lodge is not let, but I intend
to put it into a letting state. My " Disobedient
Prophet " sold at Christie's for 950 guineas. I can
not tell what is best for you. No one here can see
what you can see ; you must judge for yourself —
only remember your mother. ' Yours, 'J. L., Sen.'
As will have been seen from the foregoing letters,
Mrs. Linnell had been in failing health for several
years past, and her husband could not but fear the
worst, which took place on September 15, 1865, a
few days after the return of her son from Rome.
She died of heart disease in her seventieth year. If
she had lived two years longer, the aged couple would
have been able to celebrate their golden wedding,
so that their marriage lost nothing of the character
of durability by the simple secular ceremony in pre
sence of the Edinburgh magistrate of forty-eight
years before.
In Mrs. Linnell the artist lost a helpmate such as
it is the lot of but few men to possess. She was the
vol. 11. 31

1 62 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
personification of gentleness and piety ; her patience
had no end ; and through forty-eight years of mar
ried life she devoted herself to her husband and
family with unwearying fortitude and inexhaustible
affection. Although Linnell was destined to live many years
yet, he seems about this time to have had an im
pression that his own end was not far off. He
refers to this feeling in a letter written to his son in
April, 1865. In it he says :
' I have been relieved of my sufferings from
rheumatism and sciatica, or nearly so. I am now
putting all I can in order, though I fear being beaten
by time ; a sense of its value seems the last thing
that is learned. Your mother is certainly some
steps lower down towards release, and I feel the
shadows of evening are lengthening, and I feel also
the great value of the knowledge, though small, of
that TravoTrXm with which all the assaults of the evil
one are to be defeated. Hence, then, the melan
choly of the flesh. Tell me not of death, of church
yards and God's acre ; I am in love with Life, sweet
maid, and I will take her, as she is given me from
her Father's portal to be mine for ever, making me
immortal.' A letter received by Linnell from his old friend
George Richmond, sympathizing with him on the
death of his wife, will suitably close this chapter.
It is dated Holwood, Bromley, October 16, 1865,
and is as follows :

letter of condolence 163
' My dear Mr. Linnell,
' It was not from want of sympathy with you
in your great loss that I did not write to you directly
we heard of dear Mrs. Linnell's death, for both my
wife and I thought much of you, and of the true
friend whom we had also lost ; one with yourself,
when our fortunes were very low and our friends
few indeed, who always received us with kindness —
a kindness which neither time nor separation ever
shook, and the givers of which I believe we shall
always remember with most affectionate respect.
' Dear Mr. Li-nnell, we see very little of each
other, but if the company of an old friend would be
any pleasure to you now, I shall be only too pleased
myself to run down and see you. With kindest
remembrances to all of your house,
' Believe me, in true sympathy,
' Very faithfully yours,
' Geo. Richmond.
' John Linnell, Esq.
' P.S. — I return to town to-morrow.'

[ i64]

CHAPTER XII.
Refusal to become an Academician — Why was Linnell not elected
R.A. ? — What he himself thought — Urged by Creswick and
Herbert to put down his Name — His Reasons for Objecting —
Again urged by Stanfield — Royal Commission on the Academy —
Correspondence between Mr. Horsley, R.A., and Linnell — Letter
to the Athenceum — Mr. Cope's Reply.
Reference, has previously been made to the fact
that for many years Linnell applied in vain for
admission, to the Royal Academy, and something
has been said of his opinions as to the reason of his
being passed over. But the question why he was
not elected in the days that he sought the honour,
though often asked, has never hitherto been satis
factorily answered. For something like twenty years
(1821-1841) he regularly went through the pre
scribed form of setting down his name as a candidate
for the Associateship ; and for twenty years he was
as regularly passed over in favour, for the most
part, of inferior men. It could not be because his
work was not known, since, as we have seen, during
all those years he was a constant and honoured
exhibitor on the walls of the Academy.
The Academicians have more than once shown a

POLITICAL VIEWS 165
strange infatuation of blindness, as in the case of
William James Muller, one of the greatest of modern
painters, who, like Linnell, was not only not elected
to their ranks, but never even got the shadow of
fair treatment at their hands. But as regards Lin
nell, there was no such excuse as blindness to his
merits, for the undoubted powers displayed in his
works from the first were almost universally acknow
ledged, while the Academy never grudged him space
upon its walls.
Why, then, was he not elected ?
Was it, as he always averred, because he held
unpopular religious and political opinions — opinions
that were not relished by the powers that were ?
In other words, was it because he was a Noncon
formist and a democrat ? We have seen what
were his religious opinions. His politics were of a
similar decided and uncompromising stamp. He
never mixed up much in public affairs ; albeit he
voted steadily and consistently on the popular side.
But he was in political opinion somewhat of a re
publican of the' old Puritan type ; and he never
cared to disguise his views. Can it be because those
views, both in regard to religion and politics, were
not liked, that he was not elected ? Or was it
because, as Collins put it, a man who is a ' Sabbath-
breaker ' is capable of any wickedness, and therefore
not a fit person to associate with Academicians ?
Or are we to believe that it was because he did not
pay enough attention to his dress, and was not
enough of a courtier, as Mulready said ?

1 66 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Possibly all these various reasons may have had
their weight in the formation of the prejudice which
kept him outside the ' charmed circle ' of the Forty.
For that prejudice was the cause of the injustice is
unquestionable. Can anyone doubt that it was pre
judice, and not lack of talent, seeing the walls of the
Academy year after year covered with the bald,
conventional, and insipid canvases of such men as
Witherington, Lee, and others of the like stamp, who
were preferred before a man whose brilliant pictures
riveted alike the attention of learned and unlearned
in art by their wonderful qualities ?
The list of those who were elected Associates
during the time that Linnell continued to be a can
didate contains many notable names, such as those
of Etty, Leslie, Eastlake, Creswick, Grant (after
wards President of the Academy), Clint, etc. ; but
these form barely a fifth of the whole number. Of
the remaining four-fifths, the majority, as regards
painting, have passed out of the record as unimport
ant entities in the history of British art.
What, then, was the reason of his non-election ?
Can it possibly be that he relied too much upon his
art as the necessary passport, and that if he had not
done so, but had seconded it with some of those
electioneering devices which were so repugnant to
him, the result might have been different ? It was
broadly hinted to him more than once in his earlier
days that he should play the courtier more, make
himself acquainted with the Academicians, and solicit
their votes, etc.

POLICY OF THE ACADEMY 167
Anything of that sort, however, as we have seen,
Linnell resolutely refused to submit to, thinking that
to an academy of art a man should be elected for
his art alone.*
When he had ceased to put down his name as a
candidate, it became, after a time — when, having
relinquished portraits, he was exhibiting landscapes
more and more — a common thing for Academicians
to advise him to do so, telling him there was every
chance of his being elected at the next vacancy, and
so on. This, he afterwards believed, was the custom
and policy of the Academicians, in order to keep
men hanging on to the skirts of the institution,
judging, and doubtless rightly, that so long as they
had any hopes of being elected they would not set
themselves in opposition to the Academy.
At all events, this was the way in which Linnell
accounted for the perseverance with which, after he
had decided no longer to seek honour at the hands
of the Academicians, he was solicited to re-enter the
competition. In 1843, especially, William Collins
was urgent in his appeals to him not to omit to put
his name down, representing that he was almost
sure to be elected. The persistency of these de
mands had the effect of putting Linnell's back up,
remembering how often the same thing had been
said, and how often he had been deceived, and to
* One Academician remarked that the probable reason why John
Linnell was not elected was that Academicians generally did not know
his line, as he exhibited portraits, landscapes, figure-subjects, and was
even known to engrave. Surely that was a strange reason — to be
debarred because of the universality of his genius !

168 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
one Academician who thus importuned him, he is
reported to have replied impatiently, ' The Academy
can make me an R.A., but it can't make a fool of
me !'
But whether the remark was made or not, it is
certain that about i843_he resolved to seek election
no longer.
It was not resentment that caused him to come to
this decision. He had at this time resumed his
critical Biblical studies, and, in order to prosecute
them to the best advantage, he wanted all the calm
ness of mind and freedom from external worry that
it was possible to secure. And, though so fre
quently solicited to re-enter the competition, he never
wavered in his resolve.
Among others who thus entreated him were
Thomas Creswick, R.A., and John Rogers Herbert,
R.A., the one in 1847 and the other a year later.
When Herbert thus solicited him his picture of ' The
Eve of the Deluge ' was in the Royal Academy
exhibition. Recording the incident later, Linnell wrote :
' Herbert tried even to pull me downstairs to set
my name down in the list, and asked me to iet him
do it for me. But I refused, for I then saw clearly
that it was degrading to be chosen only to be an
Associate.' He goes on to say that, when he had been con
vinced that it would be hurtful to him as a man, as
a Christian, and as a painter also, to be a full member
of the R.A., it was not likely that he could ' submit

A FAMOUS LANDSCAPE 169
to the insult of being admitted to the ante-room
only.' He adds : ' There were men among the full
members who have been pretty generally set down
in the public estimate as inferior in attainment as
artists to me.'
Another by whom he was urged again to submit
his name for election was Stanfield. This was in
April, 1852. The R.A. sent a message to him by
Wethered the dealer, requesting him to call and see
him. He accordingly paid Stanfield a visit at
Hampstead, where he was then living.
Linnell had that year sent in three landscapes,
which were accepted and hung. They were ' The
Timber Waggon,' 'Barley Harvest,' and 'Sere
Leaf.' The first-named, the size of which is 34' by
56 inches, represents a dell surrounded by rich wood
land ; in it a number of men are leading a waggon
with timber, while a distant landscape is seen through
the trees to the right. This picture is remarkable
as being the last painted of the artist's middle period.
It was begun before -he went to Redhill, from which
time dates his later style. It is warm in tone, rather
Titiahesque in colouring, with a focus of rich blue
sky and deep green trees. It was, as has been
already observed, painted from studies made at
Under-River, near Sevenoaks.
'The Timber Waggon' was painted for Mr.
Oxenham, the dealer, of Oxford Street, by whom it
was sent to the Paris' Exhibition of 1855, and for
which he received the gold medal, the chief prize
for landscape. The medal, however, never reached

170 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Linnell's hands. The picture subsequently went
into Flatow's possession, who sold it to Mr. David
Price for ,£ 1,000.* It was lent by the latter to the
Old Masters Exhibition of 1883.
'Barley Harvest' (36 by 43 inches), which was
also at the Royal Academy Winter Exhibition (lent
by Thomas Jessop, Esq.) along with the last-named,
shows one of Linnell's troubled sunset skies over a
woody background. In the foreground are men
loading a waggon, while an empty wain is coming
along the field to the right. ' Barley Harvest ' was
sold to Gambart for 300 guineas, and was at the
Paris Exhibition of 1855. At the sale of the Gillott
Collection in 1872 it was sold for 1,630 guineas.
' The Sere Leaf shows us the middle of a wood,
with pools of water in the foreground, and near
them two men, one tying up a faggot, the other
carrying one on his head ; on the left are some
children at play under a tree, on the right a horse
and cart and other figures ; the distant landscape
is darkened by mist. The picture is somewhat
brown and dark, with a Poussin-like quality of
mystery about it. 'The Sere Leaf ' was purchased
by Mr. Oxenham, and was in the posthumous
exhibition, lent by Mr. Wakefield Christy.
These pictures, when exhibited on the walls of
the Academy in 1852, were greatly admired by all
the Academicians, and Stanfield took occasion to
point to the fact that the painter of them was still
* At the sale of Mr. Price's Collection (April 2, 1892), 'The Timber
Waggon' was sold for 3,100 guineas.

STANFIELD, R.A. 171

an outsider. Sir Charles Eastlake, Leslie, and
others, declared that it was disgraceful to the
Academy that such was the case, and a general
opinion was expressed that someone ought to see
Linnell and inform him that it was the general wish
of the Academicians that he should put his name
down for election.
It was to communicate this desire that Stanfield
sent for him. He told him what a great impression
his pictures had made, that he himself had got up
and made a speech in his favour, and that there was
a general feeling of regret that he had not put his
name down.
Linnell expressed his gratitude to the members of
the Academy for their high appreciation of his land
scapes, and said ' that if he did not put down his
name it would be for reasons allied to the fear of
the mischievous effects of titles.'
' When I told him ' (he writes) ' that I thought
all titles were bad and unwholesome, quoting the
Gospel of St. John : " How can ye believe that
receive honour one of another, and seek not the
honour that cometh from God only ?" Stanfield put
his hands upon my shoulders, and, looking in my
face, said : " Oh, do you think so ? Well, it is a
much grander thought, and if I could be sure that
it was so, I would lay down the title at once."
One is inclined to smile as one reads this, because,
good Catholic as Stanfield was, one can hardly
imagine him retiring from the Academy on such a
conscientious scruple.

172 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Later the same day Linnell went to see Mr.
Webster, R.A., who expressed the same views
about his pictures, and said he would be elected
if he put his name down. Mulready, whom he also
saw, expressed the same opinion as Webster, and
said all the landscape men would vote for him.
Referring to this invitation to accept the Associate-
ship at a later period, Linnell wrote : ' I had arrived
at that conviction, and through it resisted the entice
ment then offered to set down my name, with appar
ently a first-rate prospect of being chosen. I did
not then know that probably all was insincere, and
it was only to keep me as a follower, which, it is
evident now, it has always been the policy of the
R.A.'s to do with such as I was then.'
Thus the position remained until 1867, when, as
a result of the Royal Commission on the Academy
(1863), an alteration had been made in the method
of electing Associates, it then being no longer neces
sary for an artist to inscribe his name as a candidate.
Mr. J. C. Horsley, R.A., was deputed, or took it
upon himself, to ask Linnell whether, if he were
elected, he would accept the honour which he in
earlier years had so greatly desired. Of course,
after the position Linnell had taken up, there could
be but one answer.
Mr. Horsley's letter was as follows :
' MY DEAR SIR, 'January 13, 1867.
'You are perhaps aware that the mode of
obtaining a list of candidates for the degree of

INVITATION BY THE ROYAL ACADEMY 173
Associate at the Royal Academy is now altered,
and that it is no longer required that artists should
themselves put down their names, but that it is the
members of the Academy who are called upon to
put down the names of those who they think should
be elected.
' In the list just sent to me of names obtained in
the mode I have described above, there is one of a
man who, it can be safely asserted, is considered by
all who have any knowledge or love for art as one
of the most distinguished artists this country has
ever produced, and whose exclusion from the
Academy years ago is, I believe, the one great
blot upon their election annals.
' The miserable reasons which led to this exclu
sion, no one cares to know now or inquire about ;
but it is believed that there would be the most
hearty desire upon the part of a large majority (it
may be said a unanimous desire) of the institution
to rectify this wrong, and to give this honoured
name the full honours of the Academy at the
earliest possible day. There is an election for
Associates on the 31st of this month, and there
will be one for an Academician in June next at
latest (a vacancy existing now). Need I say that
the name I refer to is that of "John Linnell, Senior"!
It is very probable that your name has been put
doWm without your knowledge or consent, but being
down, I trust that you will sanction its appear--
ing. ' Nothing (artistically speaking) would give me

174 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
more satisfaction than to see the ranks of the
Academy honoured by the addition of your name.
' I repeat (and I do so after due reflection) that I
believe this is the only omission to be charged
against the Academy, but it is such an omission that
all its true friends will rejoice to see it atoned for.
I am of course aware that you declined a few years
since to let your name appear in the list, but I trust
you will alter that resolve now ; and you have given
lately such an unmistakable proof of feeling your
years to rest lightly upon you (let me sincerely con
gratulate you upon the event to which I allude !)
that I hope you will exhibit similar juvenile feelings
in matters academic.
' My old friend (and yours) and neighbour Webster
begs me to say how heartily he endorses all I have
said. ' All I have to ask is whether you sanction your
name going to election on the 31st inst. With kind
regards to you and all your circle,
' Always faithfully yours,
'J. C. Horsley.'
To this Linnell replied as follows :
' Redhill, Surrey,
'January 17, 1867.
' My dear Sir,
' I thank you sincerely for your letter con
taining so many kind expressions of professional
approbation and asking me to allow my name to
stand, with my sanction, in the list of candidates for

VIEWS ON THE ACADEMY 175

the degree of Associate of the Royal Academy. I
am gratified also by your saying that Mr. Webster
endorses your request, and that a good majority
might be expected in my favour. I am thankful for
all this kindness, as it affords me an opportunity
and a justification for stating my reasons for not
following your advice, as well as my reasons for not
having myself put down my name for the last
twenty years, though I had done so previously for
as many, or more, without success. I agree with
you that "the miserable reasons which led to this
exclusion no one cares to know or inquire about."
But though I do not wish at present to examine the
reasons for not electing me, I do wish to state (as
you kindly afford me this ground for so doing) what
my reasons were for discontinuing to put down my
name. First, then, the jealousies and falsehoods
that my endeavour to become an Associate gave
rise to. I saw that heartburnings, calumnies, and
injurious conduct beset everyone struggling in that
direction, and affecting some to the extent of
shortening their lives. I felt all this to be so
destructive to the peace necessary to successful
study and work, so destructive to all peace, and
especially that peace which surpasseth all under
standing, that I determined to abandon the con
tention for distinction and privilege, and to take the
result of only endeavouring to deserve them. I did
so, and I am contented with the result, and thankful
exceedingly that I did not succeed in my effort to
become an Associate, as I am convinced that if I

176 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
had succeeded I should not have been found in the
happy circumstances I now enjoy.
' One great cause of the heart - burnings and
jealousies seems to me to arise from the uncertainty
of ever arriving at the full membership of the R. A. ;
but being detained and fixed for life in a degraded
position of servility, alike degrading both to R.A.'s
and Associates. I never heard that any of the
foreign Academies of Art required an artist to
solicit for full or half membership, but I have heard
of full honours being conferred upon some without
their knowing it until it was done. Honour thus
conferred without seeking for it honours both the
giver and receiver. But to elect a man to a position
of servility and inferiority of privilege, and make his
elevation to full honours dependent on the will of
those who have already degraded him, is in my
opinion a disgrace to all concerned in the act. I
cannot therefore, it is plain, sanction my name being
placed on the lists as candidate for what I consider a
degradation. ' I am, yours faithfully,
' John Linnell, Sen.
' P.S. — When I think of that assembly which of
all others is the chief, if not the only one really
desirable to belong to — the real true Christian
Church, to which 3,000 were in one day admitted
to full membership — when faithful men established
a school in which there were only official distinc
tions, and when I think of the sad usurpations
afterwards established whereby the people were

THE ACADEMY SYSTEM 177

robbed of their privileges God had bestowed upon
them— when I think of the pretext urged for the
lording it over God's heritage, I see in all a sad
but somewhat amusing type of the doings in such
societies as the Royal Academy.
' To J. C. Horsley, Esq., R.A.'
That Linnell did not make too much of the
' servility and inferiority of privilege ' to which the
Associates are elected may be seen by the evidence
of David Roberts, R.A., before the Royal Com
missioners. He said :
' The drawbacks to the present system are really
so great that I think it renders not only the
Associates themselves very wretched, but makes the
Academicians feel very uncomfortable. ... I do
not see anything to compensate for the pain it
causes the Associates in the event of their not
becoming full members. There are some of the
Associates who have been upon the list upwards of
twenty years whose chances of becoming Royal
Academicians are hopeless, and who would have
been much better off if they had never been elected
Associates.'* He goes on to say :
' Whilst it (the Associateship) lasts (and it does
so for life with some), I cannot conceive anything
more painful to a sensitive mind ; and that all men
* It is worthy of note, in this connection, that Clint, after being an
A.R.A. for twenty years, resigned the 'position of inferiority,' the
degradation of which he could no longer support.
VOL. II. 32

178 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
of genius are sensitive will be readily admitted.
Murmur at his hard fate he dare not ; but he must
appear happy and contented, with sometimes a
heavy heart'
Linnell subsequently wrote the following letter,
which explains itself, to Mr. Horsley :
' Redhill, 'February 18, 1867.
' My dear Mr. Horsley,
' I was much pleased to hear from Mr. A.,
who, I suppose, is good authority, that I had not
forfeited the friendship of the R.A.'s by my con
scientious answer to your very kind letter inviting
me to sanction the insertion of my name in the list
of candidates for A.R.A. I hope this is true, and
that I am not to be looked upon as an enemy
because I have said what I believed to be the truth.
I had no other wish, I assure you, than to say what
I felt ought to be said by somebody, and the occa
sion seemed to me to justify the utterance of that
unmitigated expression of my opinion. But as along
with that expression I fear there was something
said by me that might have appeared ambiguous,
and imply more than I meant, I crave your indul
gence to explain that in asserting my belief as to
the custom of foreign Academies conferring full
honours at once upon those they deemed worthy,
and that without solicitation, and in my adding that
I thought the bestowing honour so gratuitously
honoured both giver and recipient, I only meant to
state a fact in opposition to what I condemned. I

A NATIONAL INSTITUTION 179
did not, however, for a moment intend it to be
guessed that I only wanted such honour to be
conferred upon me. And I should not have written
again upon the subject but for the fear that I might
possibly have been so misunderstood ; for allow me
to assure you that I have no wish for anything of
the kind from any society whatever. I am fully
content with my position ; and if my works obtain
their fair share of attention in the hanging, I shall
be thankful, and esteem it a favour, though- 1 think
I may claim somewhat in that direction, inasmuch
as the Royal Academy does occupy the place of a
national institution. ' I am, yours truly,
' John Linnell, Sen.
' P.S. — Years ago I was told that it was con
sidered infra dig. for an R.A. to visit an outsider
like myself who did not court the honours of the
Royal Academy, and it is a fact that I have had
scarcely any visits from R.A.'s, though often pro
mised. One R.A. did come as far as my door
mat, but could not be induced to penetrate beyond
that apparently enchanted circle, or rather square.
Now, what say you, Will you dare to come within
the circle where I am casting my pictorial bullets ?
If not, what prevents you ? Ask my old acquaint
ance, Mr. Richmond, who should not be forgot — ask
him if he will come with you ; he has not been
since he was R.A. Or will both of you see me
hanged first ?
'To J. C. Horsley, Esq., R.A.'

180 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

Mr. Horsley replied as follows : ' February 28, 1867.
' My dear Mr. Linnell,
' Please always direct to me as above, other
wise letters perform postal gyrations (as yours did
the other day) before they reach me. I have also
been away, otherwise I should have replied to your
letter long since. There was, I assure you, but one
feeling amongst the members of the Academy, and
that sincere regret at your decision. Several blamed
me for communicating with you at all, expressing
their belief that if nothing had been said, and you
were elected — as, doubtless, you would have been
in the most unanimous way possible — that you
would not have declined the election. It would be
a lamentable position for me were this the case ; but
I feel confident from the tone of your first letter
that nothing would induce you to alter your decision.
Webster and I agreed that it was only right towards
you and the Academy simply to state that you did
not wish your name to go to election, and I trust
that we verily and in deed acted according to your
fixed determination by so doing. You must be
joking in what you say about R.A.'s not calling
upon you ! Do you really believe that there is an
artist worthy of the name who would not think it
an honour to be welcomed under the roof of John
Linnell ? If you do, you have very little notion of
the estimate put upon you. The cares and troubles
of this mortal life prevent all of us from doing a
tithe of what we would do ; but I can truly say that

'THE ONLY ONE' 181

I scarcely ever pass Redhill without looking at your
roof peeping above the trees, and wishing I could
have the pleasure of a chat with you, and the
delight of seeing some sterling good art. Well, I
trust this year will not pass without my beating up
your quarters, and trying to convert you from what
I venture to consider the erroneous views you
entertain about the Academy. Think of two things
— that the Academy for one hundred years has
educated the whole body of artists of this country
entirely gratuitously (besides spending thousands
charitably upon others, and treating themselves, the
members, in the stingiest fashion), and that the
only real artist not included in their ranks during
that time — the only one, is John Linnell ; and admit
that the institution has done well, and justly to some
extent. ' With kind regards to you and yours,
' Ever faithfully yours,
' J. C. Horsley.
' I will give your message to Richmond.'
The two letters signed ' John Linnell ' (but with
out the postcripts) appeared in the Athenceum on
June 8, 1867, with the following explanation :
' Since those letters were written, I sent four
landscapes (39 by 28 inches) to the Royal Academy
Exhibition, expecting they would be hung as usual,
or a request to withdraw any one or more would
have been made to me during the hanging, as on a
former occasion, when my picture was afterwards

1 82 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
hung well, as I declined to withdraw it. This time,
however, I found my picture (No. i in my list)
among the rejected pictures in the hall of the Royal
Academy, with a label bearing my name stuck in
the frame, on Wednesday, May i, the varnishing
day ; and when I complained of this treatment to
one of the hangers, he said he thought a letter had
been sent to me. But that was not done. A letter
came three days after, requesting me to send for the
picture. This letter is dated May 3, and I had
taken the picture away on May 1.
' These are the facts, upon which I refrain from
making any remarks. Others will form their opinion
as to whether there was any connection between my
letters and the determination not to hang my picture,
judged by myself and friends to be my best work of
the season, and marked in my list accordingly as
No. 1. The picture had been painted for a collector,
who had hung it in his room with unqualified ap
probation ; but he became so disgusted and annoyed
by the rejection of the picture from the walls of the
Royal Academy, that I was induced to take it back,
and return the money he had paid me for it.
'John Linnell, Sen.'
To this Mr. W. C. Cope, R. A., replied as under :
' Mr. Linnell and the Royal Academy.
' 19, Hyde Park Gate South,
' Kensington Gore.
' Mr. Linnell has written to the Athenceum, June 8,
complaining of the treatment he has received at the

LETTER BY MR. COPE 183
hands of the Royal Academy. I do not propose to
follow him through his two letters on another subject
with which I have no concern ; but as he insinuates
a grave charge at the conclusion of his communica
tion, I think it my duty as one of the " hangers "
to notice it. He says, " Others will form their
opinion whether there was any connection between
my letters and the determination not to hang my
picture." In other words, he implies that the Royal
Academy is capable as a body not only of wishing
to injure Mr. Linnell professionally on account of
those letters, but that they had desired the Hanging
Committee to manifest their displeasure by rejecting
one of his pictures, and that the Hanging Committee
was capable of consenting to carry out so base a
suggestion. ' The simple facts are these : Mr. Linnell sent
four pictures for exhibition, all of which were ac
cepted. The hangers had placed three of them in
excellent positions, and the fourth was reserved to
ornament the North Room. After repeated efforts
to hang it upon the line, it was found impossible to
do so without displacing other works of merit, many
of them by younger artists who had not been so
fortunate as to get even one picture placed.
' Under these circumstances, the hangers concluded
that it would be more respectful to Mr. Linnell to
return the picture (with the usual letter expressive of
regret), so that it might be available for exhibition
on a future occasion, rather than place it in a position
inferior to what its great merits demanded.

t84 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' Mr. Linnell also complains of not having received
the letter until May 3. This might have occurred
from press of business in preparing the catalogue ;
but I presume that it was issued at the same time
as other similar letters. I would have written to
Mr. Linnell had I known that it had been done on
a previous similar occasion, and for this neglect I
hope he will accept my apology.
' In conclusion, I have only to express my regret
that it was found impossible to place a picture we all
so much admired, and to remark that it was detained
until the last moment in the hope of being able to
find it a place in the North Room, which was the
last to be arranged.
' Begging you to allow the insertion of this
(personal) explanation, and apologizing for its
length, ' I remain, etc.,
' C. W. Cope, R.A.'
Subsequently (1869) Linnell published this cor
respondence in a pamphlet, entitled ' The Royal
Academy a National Institution,' in which he set
forth at length his criticisms upon the Academy.
But the more personal aspect of the matter as
regards this episode in his career is well set forth in
some remarks on honours and titles in general at the
close of his Autobiography, the following excerpts
from which may fittingly be given here :
' When you have fpund that nugget of wisdom '
(he writes), ' " To know my end and the measure of

THE VANTAGE-GROUND OF TRUTH 1S5
my days, and to know how frail I am," then from
that point of view all may be seen in its true light.
God's estimate of worldly things becomes your esti
mate. This is the vantage-ground of truth that
Lord Bacon speaks of in his " Essay." From this
point of view how vain and contemptible the strug
gles for distinction seem ! " What is the chaff to
the wheat ? saith Jehovah," and you see it bears no
comparison, though you see thousands preferring the
chaff. And truly it is a very sad sight, from this
vantage-ground of truth, to see how elated even the
highly-educated are with the baubles and toys of
worldly ceremony and ostentation. We are not
surprised to see young children taken with toys, but
we expect them to grow out of that taste. We are
sadly mistaken, however, for it is only changing one
toy for another more vain and frivolous, and gener
ally baneful and pernicious. . . .
' But the true Christian man flies to his vantage-
ground of truth, and forms his estimate of worldly
things from that position. . . . With such percep
tions these toys are not to his taste. He has no
doubt about the wisdom of rejecting them ; and
when any officious friend reproves him for disre
garding his interest and the steps to his worldly
prosperity, he feels there is a snare in his path ; the
counsel is from one who regards not the things of
God but of men. . . . No, let this mind be yours as
also was Christ's, who emptied himself of the glory
he had, and became a slave, suffering crucifixion as
the path to exaltation. If we are exhorted to follow

1 86 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
this example, how can we pursue those toys ? If
reputation for well-doing follows us, let us be thankful
and accept the result in all honesty, as far as fair
remuneration for our work is given, but not in the
shape of those intoxicating, empty, worthless forms of
titles, badges, or marks of any kind, which are often
only marks of the beast'

[ i«7

CHAPTER XIII.
Linnell's Culminating Period— ' Noonday Rest'— 'The Hayfield'—
' The Moorlands '—Replica of ' The Storm in Harvest '—Biblical
Subjects— 'The Disobedient Prophet '—'The Journey to Emmaus »
'Abraham' — ' Sunset'— Scene in the Academy— The Artist and
the Critic — ' Sleeping for Sorrow.'
When his correspondence with Mr. Horsley took
place respecting the Royal Academy,, Linnell had
long since passed the term of three-score years and
ten. But, thanks to his careful living, hard work,
and abstemious habits, he was, though in his seventy-
fifth year, still hale and hearty, and able to wield his
brush with almost undiminished vigour of hand and
eye. In grasp of mind and vigour of invention there
was no sign of falling off. Perhaps the culminating
period of his power was a little before the Royal
Academy correspondence took place, that is, roughly
speaking, between the years 1862 and 1866, when
he was painting such landscapes as ' Noonday Rest '
(1862), 'The Hayfield' (1864), and 'The Moor
lands' (1865), all exhibiting a mastery such as in
their several ways the artist had seldom excelled.
The first-named (38^ by 54 inches) shows a par
tially-cut cornfield under the bright noon sunlight.

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

In the foreground three men are lying asleep in the
shade of some sheaves of corn, while beyond others
are busy harvesting. Nothing could better convey
the idea of shimmering sunlight and heat.
In ' The Hayfield' (28 by 39 inches), which was
exhibited in the Academy in 1864, we have a wide-
spreading upland meadow, with a group of figures
seated in the foreground and others making hay
beyond. An expanse of uncut grass stretches to
wards a distant plain on the horizon. Here again
we have that pearly freshness of a mid-day sunlit
landscape for which Linnell, perhaps more than any
other painter, is famous.
'The Moorlands' (28 by 39 inches) shows us
another aspect of nature — a wide expanse of rough
heath under a sunset sky, with overhanging, threat-
ful clouds of purple hue. In the foreground is a
pond with horses and cows watering. It is one of
the artist's favourite themes, in which oft-repeated,
magnificent struggling skies meet the eye with all
the charm of novelty. Moreover, it is replete with
the poetry of upland solitudes.
All these pictures exhibit the master-hand at its
best, and the artist's touch with nature as the most
intimate and sincere. And when the statement is
hazarded that after this period Linnell's work began
to show signs of decadence, it must be taken with
considerable latitude and with many allowances.
For whilst here and there, in works executed after
this time, there are indications of less firmness of
hand, of less clearness of' sight, they are for some

THE STORM IN HARVEST-TIME.
(From tlie 'Magazine of Art,' by permission of Messrs. Cassell and Co.)

A GREAT PICTURE 191
years to come so slight as almost to escape detection
save by the most experienced eyes. Even then the
best judges may sometimes doubt whether their own
eyes do not deceive them when they see such a
picture as the replica of ' The Storm in Harvest-
time,' which was executed after this time (1873), and
is undoubtedly one of the grandest pastoral subjects
the artist ever painted. It depicts the uprolling of a
black thundercloud, the central nucleus of which
seems just about to burst over the heads of a party
of harvesters. It is almost terrific in its grandeur.
The execution is no less masterful than the concep
tion. The original, upon which it shows some slight
variations (and in some respects it may be said for
the better), was painted in 1855 and 1856, and pur
chased by Sir William (now Lord) Armstrong.
Among other pictures belonging to this period,
and displaying a mastery in which it would be diffi
cult to point out positive signs of failure, the following
may be noted : ' The Woodlands ' (panel, 27 by
39 inches), 'The Wood-Cutters' (panel, 18 by 24
inches), 'Sheep' (canvas, 27 by 39 inches), 'Surrey
Woodlands ' (canvas, 38 by 54 inches), ' Milking-
time ' (canvas, 35^ by 55^ inches), 'The Dusty
Road' (canvas, 27 by 38 inches), and the ' Baptism
of Christ,' all of which belong to the years from
1863 to 1869 inclusive.
Not much has hitherto been said about Linnell's
Biblical pictures. Being, as they undoubtedly are,
subsidiary in importance as works of art to his more
purely landscape subjects, they do not appear so

IQ2 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
much to require chronological treatment. And yet
it would be a grave mistake to pass them over as
minor matters, and not calling for special remark.
The artist himself ranked some of them amongst his
most important works, and they are undoubtedly
of great importance as showing in a peculiar manner
the limitations of his art.
Some of those pictures which must be classed
amongst his Biblical subjects owe their distinction
very largely to their mastery as landscape studies.
Such, for instance, is the case with ' The Eve of the
Deluge,' ' The Disobedient Prophet,' ' Christ and
the Woman of Samaria,' ' David and the Lion,' and
several others. In these the subject was suggested
by the landscape, which was afterwards overruled,
and given additional interest to, by the figures. The
key-note of ' The Eve of the Deluge ' was struck by
the angry and threatful sky, which suggested a
drama of deep and world-moving import ; while' in
' The Disobedient Prophet ' the noble qualities of
the landscape, with its sombre pines, inspired the
idea of wedding it to a suitable historical subject.
Hence the figures of the lion and the ass, and that
of the disgraced prophet, were introduced.
In both these pictures, as well as in the ' Christ
and the Woman of Samaria,' there is sufficient
realism in the figures to give dramatic interest
and to fill out the theme supplied by the back
ground. This, however, is not the case in all the artist's
Biblical subjects. Their common fault is that they

SCRIPTURAL SUBJECTS 193

fail in not exhibiting that realization and truth of
nature for which his landscape and pastoral subjects
are remarkable. The figures in too many of them
are flat and weak, not having sufficient realism to
give dramatic interest. They were painted more
from his inner consciousness, and as an expression
of his poetical and religious ideas, than from that
outer aspect of nature his triumph over which in his
own peculiar line had been so signal.
The ' Journey to Emmaus ' is something of an
exception. That picture was painted to some extent
from models, his future son-in-law, Samuel Palmer,
having sat for the younger disciple in the straw hat.
This was — probably in consequence — the most
popular of his subjects, and was purchased by the
Art Union in 1838 as a prize picture, and engraved
by the artist for presentation to their subscribers.
The head of Christ was painted from an oil study
of a Polish Jew having a remarkably fine type of
feature, who happened to call upon Linnell while he
had the picture in hand.
In his other Scriptural subjects, as a rule, he used
no models. The exception is his picture of ' Jacob's
Well,' for the woman in which he made a careful
study from life.
These subjects were painted for the most part
late in life, when, apparently, the artist no longer
had the patience to work from models. He was
satisfied to paint from memory, or from what was in
his mind. This is strange, because it is so opposite
to the methods he pursued in early life, and which
vol. 11. S3

194 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
he recommended as the true ones to the end of his
days. Hence, though poetical, his Scriptural sub
jects do not interest us by their life-like and dramatic
qualities. His ' Gethsemane ' is a good example of his
weakness in this respect. The landscape is a
beautiful one, and, though not Oriental, is sugges
tive of a solemn theme ; but the figures are flaccid
and unreal, and do not rise by any means to the
height of the ' vast argument ' of the subject.
In short, most of John Linnell's Biblical themes
are more like ideal studies for figure-subjects than
actually worked-out pictures.
This may be said in especial of perhaps the
most notable, of his purely Scriptural subjects — his
' Abraham.' In this the character of the Divine
being is wholly dramatic and solemn in effect, and
is founded upon the artist's deep spiritual perception
of the subject, which gives grandeur and force to
the work, although the figure is not realized entirely
as it might have been by one of the Old Masters,
like Michael Angelo or Raphael.* And yet it has
a deep religious and spiritual import which makes
it unique. In this picture there is something of the
peculiar imagination and grandeur exhibited in
Blake's symbolic pictures.
This and one or two others, including the ' Philip
baptizing the Eunuch,' have a special significance,
* It should be noted, however, that the text says, ' a furnace and
lamp of fire passed,' etc. This will probably account for the indefinite-
ness here.

THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST.
(From an oil-painting by John Linnell, 1867-69.)

THE 'SUNSET' 197

as embodying a particular interpretation of the
Scripture text. In the latter baptism has been by
J complete immersion,' a doctrine he held to with
great tenacity. The same truth appears to be en
forced in the ' Baptism of Christ,' which forms a
rather striking picture. The Saviour is represented
standing on the bank of the stream, and John the
Baptist in the water, holding a branch with his left
hand ; the figure of a dove appears in a ray of
light above. The composition is very simple, yet
dignified. The treatment, however, is somewhat
hard, and the colour hot, while the landscape has
not the charm of some of his other ' religious '
subjects. The picture which called forth the correspondence
in the pages of the Athenceum Linnell himself did
not consider one of his best ; and his indignation
was aroused more by the neglect to let him know
that it was not hung, than by the fact of its not
finding a place on the walls of the Royal Academy.
The 'Sunset' is, nevertheless, a fine picture. It
represents a landscape aglow with the fires of the
setting sun — ;one of those scenes in nature, in short,
which never seemed to lose their hold upon the
artist, and which he was never tired of painting.
It was sold for ,£700 before it was finished ; but
when the gentleman who had purchased it found
that it was not hung, he wrote to Linnell, saying
that he bought the picture in the belief that it would
be exhibited on the walls of the Academy. In
short, he wanted to cry off. Linnell at once re-

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

turned him his money, and had the picture on bis
hands for several years;
A good deal has been made of the ' scene ' which
is said to have taken place at the National Gallery
(where the Academy then held its exhibitions) when
Linnell went there on varnishing day and failed to
find his favourite picture of the year, his No. i as
he styled it, upon the walls. The artist is reported
to have gone stamping from room to room, amid
R.A.'s, Associates, exhibitors, dealers, and porters,
demanding to be informed where was his ' Sunset,'
and indignantly fulminating against the Academy
and all its works.
Various versions of the occurrence are current ;
but, whilst all are more or less dramatic in concep
tion, they are all equally devoid of truth. The
simple fact, as narrated by an eye-witness, appears
to be that, having failed to find his picture on the
walls, he demanded of one or another in authority
to be shown where he could find it. He was finally
conducted to the basement, where he discovered the
missing picture amid a host of others.
It should be said that whatever indignation the
artist may have shown on this occasion was aroused
by the exceptional character of the annoyance, and
was soon over. Although he oftentimes received but
indifferent treatment at the hands of the hangers —
his splendid landscapes being often ' skied,' or stowed
away in corners, or in the architectural room, as was
his ' Hawthorn,' while banalities of the Witherington
and Lee type occupied the line — yet it was not his

A PRIVATE VIEW 199

habit to complain, but to take what he got and be
thankful. He had his compensation in the know
ledge that he obtained prices for his works that
very few of his academical rivals could emulate.
In his later years, when the dealers had come to
vie with each other for the possession of his works,
he had less cause for complaint. His landscapes
were then so well known and admired, that even the
most independent of hangers would hardly dare to
hang badly what the instructed public had come to
regard as among the first treasures of the exhibi
tions. How little resentment he felt in regard to the
rejected picture will be seen from the following
letter, dated May 3, 1867, and addressed to his son
William, who, having married, was then residing in
Paris :
' I have been with Marian to the private view of the
R.A. to-day. ... I saw lots of people, R.A.'s, and
all very friendly, except two R.A.'s,  and  , the
hangers, who wouldn't hang my " Sunset," but sent
it down in the passage along with the rejected
pictures. I found it there, and brought it home on
Wednesday. I said some plain words to  and
 and they are sulky. Not so others.
' Mr. Knight, the secretary, told me the P.V.
tickets were voted me by the Council with acclama
tion — this, of course, as a set-off against my " Sun
set." My other pictures are well placed. . . .
' I had lots of applications for the pictures hung.

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

. . . My eyes are weak, but are better for rest, so
you will excuse scribble. 'J. L.
' Lots of bad pictures in the Exhibition. Hook's
are excellent, and he is most hearty. I am going
to see him. Redgrave also is very friendly. He
has an exquisite picture of trees and water — no
figures. Webster, Herbert, Creswick, and Cook all
hearty and congratulatory. Sir F. Moon, ex-Mayor,
and Mr. Field, who introduced me to Tom Taylor,
have promised to come and see me.'
Tom Taylor paid his promised visit, which
gratified Linnell, who greatly admired his poems
and satirical writings in Punch. This was the only
occasion, however, on which the art critic of the
Times visited Redhill, and the two probably never
met again. Taylor appears to have been a genuine
admirer of Linnell's landscapes, and generally had
a good word to say in their favour. One year,
however, in writing of the Academy pictures, he
ventured to be less complimentary than usual, and
the artist was at once told by some of his friends
that there was something wrong, and that he ought
to send the critic a cheque for £^o. A strange
reflection, surely, on the supposed relations between
painter and critic !
However, Linnell did not act upon the sugges
tion. For one thing, he did not set much store upon
newspaper criticism, and even if he had he would
have been one of the last to buy it. Perhaps some-

'SLEEPING FOR SORROW' 201
one had given him such a hint when, in 1864, the
Times, referring to his ' Hayfield ' (previously re
ferred to), spoke of it as 'a poem of rural nature.'
This brought out the following bit of humorous
verse : ' The Times says my picture is a poem —
Tooral-ooral-lay !
A poem of rural nature —
Oh, the dear old crayture !
Tooral-ooral-lay !
The Times is surely growing better,
Obligation upon me to lay ;
If so I must remain his debtor,
For to such I never pay.
Rural tooral-ooral-lural,
Wide awake I say !'
It should be explained in regard to the 'private-
view ' tickets referred to in the foregoing letter, that
prior to this year Linnell had never been favoured
with invitations to the private view of the Academy.
His friend George Richmond called attention to
the fact, and henceforth to his death tickets were
regularly sent to him, and he valued the attention
very highly.
Among other works belonging to this period
may be mentioned 'Southampton Water,' ' Feeding
Sheep,' 'Chalk,' 'Harvest Showers' (the two latter
were exhibited in 1867), 'The Lost Sheep,' and
' Sleeping for Sorrow' (1870). <
The history of the latter picture is peculiarly
interesting. At the Manchester Art Treasures
Exhibition his sons saw and afterwards described
to him a picture by Bellini, entitled the ' Sleep of

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

Sorrow.' He was greatly struck with the subject,
and shortly afterwards began to work upon a picture
that had shaped itself in his mind. This work is
still upon the walls at Redstone Wood, Redhill. It
exhibits great dignity and force of treatment. Upon
a dim hillside are recumbent figures, over which the
last evening gleam still shows a shaping light, while
heavy clouds overhang and darken the scene.
Some years after this picture was painted Linnell
saw at the National Gallery the original, the descrip
tion of which had suggested his own ; but it was so
different that no one would suppose that the one
was in any way the outcome of the other.
In one respect there may be said to be a certain
amount of sameness in Linnell's later pictures. In
his earlier works he introduced Welsh, Derbyshire,
and other scenery, with which he was then familiar,
and with which — that of Wales in particular — he
had been so deeply impressed. The background of
his ' St. John preaching ' is Derbyshire scenery,
with a palm-tree introduced. But the subjects of
the pictures of his last period, that in which he had
attained to a style peculiarly his own, are derived
chiefly from Surrey scenery, of which he had always
been especially enamoured, and in the midst of
which he had, as it were, taken root during the
latter third of his life. In nothing was he more
successful than in his treatment of woodland and of
timber generally ; and his woods are essentially
Surrey woods. But even with this sameness there
is the greatest possible variety, as may be seen by a

SOME LATER WORKS 203
comparison of some of his later works, amongst
which may be mentioned 'The Ford' (1872),
'Woodcutters' (1874), 'Woods and Forests' (1875),
'The Hollow Tree' (1876), and ' Autumn ' (1877),
all of which were exhibited on the walls of the
Academy.

[ 204 ]

CHAPTER XIV.
Second Marriage — Visit to Linnell's Studio — 'The Rooks' — Habits in
his Last Years — Political Opinions — Inner Vision — Studies in the
Psalms — Correspondence — Spurious Copies of his Works —
Curious Legal Point as regards Forgery.
In the month of September, 1866, consequently
when he was seventy-four years of age, Linnell
entered the bonds of matrimony for the second time,
taking for his wife Mary Ann Budden, an old friend
of the late Mrs. Linnell and the family, and a former
member of the Plymouth Brethren. The marriage
took place in the simplest possible manner, before
the registrar of Reigate, thus showing what an
immense change had been effected in the marriage
laws since the artist's first wedding experience,
forty-nine years before. He thus makes entry of
the event in his journal :
'Sept. 18, 1866. — To Reigate to Mr. Hart's
office at 9.30 with Marian and her sister, E. L.,
J. T. L., etc. Received certificate of marriage
(which see). To St. Leonard's with Marian by
1 1.10 train.'
On the following day the venerable bridal pair
visited Ecclesborne and, on September 20, Fair-

SECOND MARRIAGE 205
light, returning to Redhill the same day. One or
two friends held up their hands in dismay at these
late nuptials, prophesying ill ; but Linnell took no
notice of them, and declared that he had become
rejuvenated thereby, and such in truth seemed to be
the case.
In the ' Life of Richard Redgrave ' (recently pub
lished) an amusing story is told about this second
marriage, and it has every appearance of being true.
The anecdote is quoted from Redgrave's diary, and
is as follows :
' On the occasion of his second marriage, the
Reigate registry-office was put in requisition. The
wedding took place not from the lady's own home,
but from Redstone, where she had arrived about a
week before. When someone objected to the old
painter that this was contrary to received custom,
he said : ' There is full authority for it. Rebecca
came to Isaac. Why should not Mary Ann
Budden come to John Linnell ? The only differ
ence I see is that Rebecca brought all her worldly
goods on a camel, whereas my bride's belongings
came by Pickford's van.'
Another story told by Redgrave is not only ill-
natured, but has not the merit of being ben trovato.
' Linnell's son John ' (the narration goes) ' asked his
father to give him some painting tools, of which
the old man had an abundant supply. " Nay ! nay !"
said the painter; "recollect, my boy, your mother's
first words to you, ' Bye-bye, bye-bye — buy-buy!' '
Redgrave gives the story as having been told by

206 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

another Academician, and adds that it 'showed
truly Linnell's habit of making the most out of
everything and everybody.' There are several
reasons for affirming that Linnell could not have
said any such thing. He never used the negative,
' nay,' and he never said 'my boy.' Moreover, the
person represented as being chiefly concerned has
no recollection of such an incident ; but he and all
other members of the family bear emphatic testi
mony to the fact that the artist never begrudged
anything to his sons and daughters that was neces
sary for their studies or their welfare.
Redgrave ought to have been the last to put such
a story on record. He was Linnell's friend, and he
bears testimony to his generosity as a host ; but the
latter remembered to his dying day an act of gross
inhospitality on Redgrave's part. They were, in a
sense, neighbours, the Academician having a cottage
at Abinger, near Leith Hill ; and Linnell one day,
when he was very old, drove over in his pony
carriage to see him. Redgrave came to the door
to speak to him, and did not so much as ask him to
step in.
A writer who paid a visit to the veteran painter
shortly after his second marriage, and who saw him
at work, says that, though his ' hand may not be as
strong as it was sixty or seventy years ago, it shows
no diminution of vital energy, or of the cunning that
it has so long possessed.'
The picture he gives of him, as seen at this time,
is interesting. ' Dressed in a close] gray suit, with

A VISIT TO LINNELL 207
the chosen one of a score of broad-brimmed hats
shading his brows, Linnell sits at a clear, easy dis
tance from his easel, holds his brush at arm's length,
and takes a view over his left-hand, as a mariner
by a point out at sea. Then, with a short, sharp,
nervous, incisive movement of the hand and brush,
he lays down his living mark of colour.'
Linnell's hand in his prime was so firm and
steady that he hardly ever used a maul-stick. Nor,
if we may judge from his neat, small handwriting,
which hardly showed signs of tremor to the last,
did that firmness of touch ever become much im
paired. A letter now lying on the writer's table,
which was written in 1865 — when, therefore, he was
seventy-three years of age — will not be easily
paralleled among septuagenarians.
' He never leaves his domain ' (the description
proceeds) ' except for a drive in the neighbourhood ;
and very often is not tempted over the threshold of
his house, unless there is a cloud which must be
looked at, or Nature holds out some such special
enticement to this most loving child of hers.
' " Just see those rooks," he says, when you follow
him into that holy of holies, his studio. He points
to a fresh picture now upon the easel. " I saw that.
I saw those rooks come boiling up over a cloud, and
then, while you stood looking, came another posse,
rushing past you like tigers." '*
The picture in question is among the best he
painted, and is an exceedingly beautiful one. Its
* From an article in the Dublin University Magazine, Nov., 1877.

208 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
only fault is that it is a little too gray in tone. It
shows a broad landscape, with a glint of water in it,
and some figures and a dog in the foreground. But
the rooks certainly form the central interest of the
picture. They are full of life and vigour, and seem
literally to boil up over the hill.
After his second marriage Linnell became more
than ever tied to Redstone. In his little domain,
with his sons and daughters and his grandchildren
about him, he was content to spend the remainder
of his days. He now seldom left his own grounds,
except occasionally for a drive in the neighbour
hood when the weather was fine. He spent much
time out-of-doors, however, driving, or having
himself driven, to and fro in a little donkey-chaise,
somewhat in the style of William Henry Hunt, the
companion of his younger days. Later he dis
carded the donkey, and had himself pulled about by
his man Bell, who, he used to declare, was the stub-
borner donkey of the two.
Always a man of marked individuality and origin
ality, these traits seemed to come out in a still
stronger light in these later years. In many of his
opinions there was something of incongruity when
considered in conjunction with his views on other
subjects. For instance, although strongly Liberal,
and even democratic, in his general tendency of
thought, yet on some subjects he was not only at
variance with the popular current of Liberal senti
ment, but quite Conservative, if not altogether
reactionary. As an instance in point, I may men-

VIEWS ON REFORM 209
tion that while he was in substantial agreement with
Mr. Gladstone's Liberal views in regard to general
reform, he did not support his foreign policy. He
had been a great admirer of Lord Palmerston as
Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and regarded Lord
Beaconsfield as his natural successor in that depart
ment. In short, he was no 'peace at any price '
man, but was ever for upholding the honour and
supremacy of England by vigorous action. Hence
the Afghan war had his hearty approval.
Some of the measures of reform also that came to
the front during his later years did not have his
entire sympathy. In short, he was of an older
generation, and could not trim his sails to every fresh
wind that blew. Most striking of all was his lack
of interest in Mr. Forster's Elementary Education
Bill. He soon became utterly weary of hearing about
it, and could not hear it spoken of with patience.
It is not difficult to understand this lack of interest
if we consider that he had never been to school him
self, and that all the education that he ever possessed
he had practically obtained by his own unaided
efforts. He, too, with the assistance of Mrs. Lin
nell, had directed the education of their children in
the rudiments of learning, and had been the inspirer
of their later self-education, which it is not sur
prising if he considered the best. Indeed, he
looked upon the home as the true school, and in a
large degree he was doubtless right. The fact is,
the artist was losing more and more his touch with
the everyday world. His thoughts were on other
vol. 11. 34

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

things. The life to come seemed more real to him
than the physical life about him, and he was con
templating that, and meditating upon it, with the
tranquillity of one who has long been perfectly
assured of its imminence and reality. Indeed, the
last few years of his life were characterized by a
perfect Christian calm, untroubled by doubts, and
free from worldly ambitions or cares. He had for
years been accustomed to turn to his Biblical studies
for rest, and for the purpose of escaping from the
minor worries of life. While thus occupied he was
as it were translated, an enfranchised being. Truly
has it been said by a writer who had met the subject
of whom he was writing :
' A man like this, who can feel in the life around
him an inner depth "for which the generality have no
eyes, may well observe that men choose to live in a
dust-hole when they might have the best room in
the house. With him, as, indeed, with every true
seer, artistic or otherwise, "everything," to use his
own words, " is duplicated and full of more meaning
than itself." The " Open thou mine eyes, that I
may see," with him refers not only to prophetic
vision, but to deep sight artistic'
That this inner vision of Linnell's had something
of real depth in it may be gathered from one bit of
criticism which was the outcome of his study of the
Psalms, which now became his favourite relaxation.
In Psalm civ. occur the words :
' O Jehovah, how manifold are thy works !
In wisdom thou hast made them all ;

CRITICAL INSIGHT

The earth is full of thy riches ;
So is this sea, great and wide in its shores,
Wherein are things creeping without number,
Living creatures both small and great.
There go the ships, there is that Leviathan,
Whom thou hast made to take his pastime therein.
These all wait upon thee,
That thou mayest give them their food in due season.'
Most thoughtful readers of the Bible have noticed
the incongruity of the ship occurring amongst the
creatures that God had made, and to which he gives
their ' food in due season.' The commentators and
Biblical critics have, of course, called attention to
the difficulties of the passage, albeit without showing
us any way out of them. It is all the more interest
ing, therefore, to see how a man of Linnell's imagina
tive insight would solve the enigma. For ' ship ' in
the ordinary sense he reads ' nautilus,' the little
' Portuguese man-of-war,' as it is called by seamen,
the ship of the Almighty's own making.
The point is not one of great vital moment, like
some of those questions to which Linnell had
formerly given so much attention, and many persons
perhaps may not see any particular interest in it
beyond a happy suggestion. But it is just in this
gift of suggestiveness that the critical intellect,
coupled with spiritual perception, is so potent in
solving difficulties, and in harmonizing the various
parts with the whole. And how happy in this case
is the result ! The picture presented by the mag
nificent passage is now complete. We behold the
fruitful earth and the wondrously peopled sea ; the
latter with its great whales and the tiny and delicate

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

nautili in their shells of iridescent hue, all the work
of his hand, all needing ' their food in due season.'
Such was the way in which Linnell approached
the great Book, which he took so literally, and by
which he had endeavoured so sincerely to shape his
life. For the Psalms in especial he had ever had the
greatest love and admiration, and it was now his
delight to compare the Authorized Version with the
original, and to make such emendations as he
thought were necessary for a more perfect rendering.
He had some idea of having the Psalms published
as thus edited or emended by himself, but he did
not live to complete the work. Some of his sug
gested alterations or corrections were very happy,
and showed that the critical acumen and the clear
perceptions which had guided him in his earlier and
more important studies of the Hebrew text had not
yet lost their brightness and vigour.*
How strong and clear his perceptions continued
to be, long after attaining the age of threescore years
and ten, is evidenced by a letter dated November 3,
1867, written to his nephew, Mr. Chance, on a
subject which was always uppermost in his mind.
It is as follows :
* Apropos of this love of the Psalms, Linnell used to relate with
much pleasure how a gentleman, who had purchased several of his
works, once told him that looking at one of his pictures did him as
much good as reading a Psalm. The artist, naturally deeply gratified
by such appreciation, replied that the compliment was the greatest
that could be paid him.

ROMANISM AND RITUALISM 213

' My dear Chance,
' I have read the report of the discussion
with much interest, and from the circumstances you
mentioned respecting his history, I guess he must
have been as industrious as Dr. Lee, the carpenter
who became the Professor of Hebrew, etc., at the
University of Cambridge. Mr. Booth has, it seems
to me, much light and much honesty, which I expect
will lead him into more truth. I care not for
the question between Prayer-book and Missal, or
Ritualism, as the Prayer-book Protestantism is, in
my opinion, only Romanism or Popery diluted.
The mother-tincture is at Rome, and the dilutions
are in England. For us, however, if we thirst for
it, there is the pure river of the water of life, and
the unadulterated Word, if we are disposed to prefer
it to poisoned streams.
1 1 wish you would get a tract by Catesby Paget
called, " Can Ritualism cast out Ritualism ? A
Letter to Earl Shaftesbury " (London : Marlborough
and Co., Ave Maria Lane). Give the tract to Mr.
Booth from me, and I will pay you for it.
'I am sorry for the Appendix to Mr. Booth's
report, as it seems to me to partake of the equivo
cation so common with Popery, and somewhat re
duces my estimate of Mr. Booth's sincerity. But
what is a man to do who has error to defend ? It
was so even with the inspired Apostles. See
Gal. ii. 12, 13, where Paul relates how Peter dis
sembled, and Barnabas was led away with the

214 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
hypocrisy of Peter and the Jews. Now, what can a
man do who has the Prayer-book to defend ? He
must equivocate and dissemble. How can he
honestly defend infant - sprinkling, falsely called
baptism, and the pretended regeneration, should he
be connected with it, and the sponsors, etc. ?
' And then the priesthood, which alone condemns
the whole system. Why, priesthood is a denial that
Christ has come in the flesh, and so is really Anti
christ. Bishops, I know, and others, impose upon
the ignorant by telling them a falsehood, viz., that
presbyter and priest are the same in the NewT Tes
tament. (See the Bishop of London's Charge to his
clergy.) Then the whole ceremonial, according to
the Prayer-book, is ritualistic and popish — only a
pot-and-kettle question of degree ; the vestments and
the titles usurp the glory of God ; even the common
title of reverend, assumed by Mr. Booth, is robbing
God, to whom alone it belongs (Ps. cxi. 9). I
exhort Mr, Booth to lay down this presumptuous
sin, as Mr. Spurgeon has publicly done.
' From all this a Christian should separate at
any cost. And that that cost may not be a hindrance
I recommend Mr. Booth to stick to his bench still,
and do as the Thessalonians were exhorted to do by
the Apostle. See 2 Thess. iii. ' Your uncle, 'J. L., Sen.
' P.S.— If Mr. Booth comes to Redhill I shall be
glad to see him, or if you like to bring him some
day to tea, at four or five o'clock, do so.'

COUNT GUICCIARDINI 215
The following letters to Count Guicciardini pre
sent a striking contrast to the above :
'Redhill, England,
'October 12, 1868.
' My dear friend Count Guicciardini,
' Will you be kind enough to remember me
as a dependent upon your kind assistance to procure
some more of the Priorata wine, which I hope this
year's vintage will produce in abundance and perfec
tion ? As soon as this year's wine is fit to move, I
shall be glad to have 100 gallons either in two casks
or four, as the last. I venture to ask this favour of
you again, as I fear to attempt to alter the channel
of application to the merchant or grower of the wine,
and as I can only write English I fear I should not
be successful. I hope the happy events in Spain
will tend to facilitate business rather than otherwise.
' The book you gave me about the doings of
Christian Brethren in Italy I got translated, but I
have lost both book and translation. I beseech you
to give me another copy. I always speak of the
Brethren in Italy as the best examples of Christians
in Europe. I trust they progress and increase.
' I am, -yours truly,
'John Linnell, Sen.'
' October 28, 1868.
' My dear kind friend Count Guicciardini,
' Thanks for your friendly note with offer to
obtain the best wine for me. It is very desirable to

216 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
procure the true and pure in all things in food and
drink, as well as knowledge. There is a mental
satisfaction in drinking good genuine pure wine ;
one feels there must have been veracity and con
scientiousness in the minds of all concerned in the
making the wine, and one feels grateful not only to
God, but to man, and the mental satisfaction is as
beneficial as the wine.
' My only reason for choosing this year's vintage
was that I supposed the season to be the best which
had occurred for years on account of the great heat,
which I always thought produced the richest wine ;
but if you think there is better Priorata wine in store
than this year's vintage will turn out, I leave it to
you to procure me the very best, and what will
keep. ' If the price of about a franc the bottle applies to
the white pale Marsala, my son will be glad to have
a quarter cask (24 gallons) of that, and one cask of
the red Sicilian, called Vittoria, which you intimate
will keep by saying it is good when old. The
Priorata has reached me via Liverpool by rail, and I
have paid the duty and expenses to the Liverpool
firm of Bahr, Behrend and Co. This plan suits
me best, as I have not to employ any agent in London
to clear the wine at the docks, etc. Now, if the
Marsala can be sent by the same route, I shall
prefer it much. I am told there is an article in
Marsala that never finds its way to England, but is
much superior to that which is usually sent ; they
say it is much paler. If there is any superior

A COUNTERFEIT 217

Marsala, I should be glad to have some ; that which
I had before from Florio was only the usual sort,
and no better or cheaper than I can get in London.
You may order 100 gallons of the best Priorata in
two or more casks, as may be most convenient ; and
if this year's vintage makes very superior wine, I
can wait till next year to receive it. I do not want
to pay for age, as I can wait and keep the wine till
it is old ; all I want is best quality, and such as will
keep. Payment shall be made as you direct, and
when you please. ' I am, yours truly,
' John Linnell, Sen.'
In 1869 occurred a correspondence with a gentle
man in Manchester, apparently a dealer in a small
way, who sent the artist a picture which he called
an early work of his, with a request that he would
do something to it. He wrote :
' I think it would be of greater interest if you
painted a few sheep in, and worked on the picture a
little — I know not what else to suggest.'
On the receipt of the picture and the letter Linnell
wrote : 'May 21, 1869.
' Dear Sir,
' Had I not had previous business transac
tions with you, I should have required the usual
verification fee, and a guarantee against being called
to give evidence on the point of originality of the
picture. All, however, I require now, before I say

218 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
aught of the work, is that you give me an assurance
that I shall not be called upon except to give a
written opinion of the work you have sent me. If I
am expected to say what I wish upon the work, I
think I may claim from you some account of where
it came from, from whom you had it, and how much
you gave for it, if it is your property, and if not, to
whom it really belongs. As soon as I receive from
you a satisfactory reply, I will write all that is
requisite. ' I am, yours truly,
' J. Linnell, Sen.
'  , Esq.,
' Manchester.'
In reply, the gentleman wrote that he had bought
the picture at Huddersfield, and had paid under ^"20
for it. He also said :
' Had there been a doubt about its genuineness I
would have sent the fee. (I can do so now if you
desire.) The foreground is so transparent, you
may see pencil-drawing previous to painting and
the impasto. What little there is, is Linnell all
over. . . .
' I've had great experience in pictures, ancient
and modern, and am known to understand them.
I've no desire to do anything unfair or shabby. I
thought a few sheep or geese would improve the
picture, and perhaps the tree on left-hand side of
picture worked up a little.'
To this letter Linnell replied under date, May 24,
1869, as follows :

a forged signature 219
' Dear Sir,
' I fear from the confidence you speak with
of your experience, etc., you will scarcely believe
my account of the picture you sent to me the other
day. But I beg to say that I never saw it before.
Of its merits I forbear to say aught but that I do
not feel flattered by your admiration and assertion
that it is " Linnell all over." Indeed, I think it
would soon be "all over" with Linnell if your
account of the matter were right. Now, I suppose,
after this from me, you will not either part with the
picture or keep it with a forged signature on it.
Will you allow me, before I return the picture, to
erase the forgery, and so have the evidence that it
does not leave my room with a falsehood as if I had
sanctioned it ?
' I shall require nothing more, but that you will
believe me to be, ' Truly yours,
' John Linnell, Sen.'
The desired permission to erase the forged sig
nature was not given, and the picture was finally
returned, followed by the annexed letter :
' Redhill, Surrey,
'May 26, 1869.
1 Dear Sir,
' I have sent the picture as you require with
the false signature on it, just as it came to me, and
beg to say that whoever now sells the picture with

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

that name on it will be liable to prosecution for
forgery, as Mr. Closs was, who was sent to Newgate
for the same thing in 1857.
' I am, yours faithfully,
' John Linnell, Sen.
' P.S. — I hope you will let me know if the name
has been erased, for it will be highly disgraceful if
the person who keeps the picture does not erase the
name after my declaration of its falsehood.'
In regard to the man Closs above referred to,
there appears at one time, when the demand for the
artist's pictures was at its height, to have been a
systematic manufacture of spurious ' Linnells,' and
from time to time he was called upon to decide as to
the genuineness of pictures said to be by him. There
was never any difficulty, however, in detecting the
counterfeits, the imitation always being crude, and
of the shallowest surface quality. Closs was one of
the spurious manufacturers, and was prosecuted for
passing off a copy with a forged signature.
A curious point of law turned up on this occasion.
Although it was proved beyond question that the
culprit had signed Linnell's name to his own work,
yet technically he could not be convicted of forgery,
because the signature was upon canvas, and not
upon paper or parchment, as by law it should be to
become a felonious act. Closs in consequence got
off with a nominal sentence.

[221 ]

CHAPTER XV.
Cornelius Varley — His Death — Letter by Mr. Gladstone — The
Chantrey Bequest — Proposal to purchase one of Linnell's Pictures
— Correspondence — Last Days — Visited by Mr. Holman Hunt —
Death.
Cornelius Varley, who has been previously men
tioned as having had so important an influence upon
the life and character of John Linnell, he having
been the first to introduce him to the Baptists, out
lived his elder brother John by upwards of a quarter
of a century, dying in 1873 (October 2), in the
ninety-second year of his age. He presents, in his
life and achievements, a striking contrast to his
brother, and exemplifies perhaps as well as anyone
could the advantage of talents over genius. John
Varley was a genius, with many of the eccentricities,
and all the possibilities of running an ill-regulated
course, that are among the only too well-known
attributes of genius. Cornelius, on the other hand,
with many talents, was as regular as a watch, to the
business of making which he was first put. He
subsequently devoted himself to the study of
mechanics, chemistry, and optics. After learning
the trade of an optician, he gave it up to follow

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

in the footsteps of his brother, as did also the third
brother, William Fleetwood Varley, becoming a
water-colour painter, and making several visits to
Wales, and one to Ireland, in the pursuit of his
calling. But he subsequently settled down again
to the making of optical instruments, and to the
study of science generally. He was the author of
many articles, and one or two works on subjects
connected with mechanics, optics, and allied subjects.
His invention of the Graphic Telescope has
already been referred to. The Colosseum, it would
appear, owed its origin to this instrument, Mr. T.
Horner, after satisfying himself of its capabilities,
having erected an observatory on the dome of St.
Paul's, where he fitted up a Graphic Telescope, and
traced his magnificent panorama of London, for the
reception of which the Colosseum in Regent's Park
was built.
In 1850 Mr. Varley was elected chairman of the
committee of exhibitors in Class 10 for the Great
Exhibition of 185 1, and received a prize-medal from
the jurors for his telescope, forty years after its
invention. A fellow-member of the Society of Arts
who had known him for many years has described
him as ' a most conscientious man, a true friend, an
excellent philosopher, and an able mechanic and
optician.' In 1871 John Linnell had occasion to write to
his old friend as an expert in the last-named capacity,
when his letter brought forth the following reply
with its double postscript :

CORNELIUS VARLEY 223

1 337, Kentish Town Road, N.W.,
' October 2, 1871.
' Friend Linnell,
' Though spectacles were largely made by
excellent machinery in London, yet latterly they
have all migrated to Sheffield, from whence nearly
all the dealers obtain them. So I reckon you can
be as well supplied in the nearest town to yourself
as in London, you stating size and focus that will
suit you. But I recommend pebbles as being more
transparent and harder than glass, and not so liable
to be scratched. ' Yours truly,
' Cornelius Varley,
' P.S. — I don't think we have seen each other
since you banished yourself from London. I am
nearly through my ninetieth year. How much
younger are you ?
' 2nd P.S. — I think it was you who gave me a
small coin found in the Red Hills many years ago.
It represents the beginning of the twelfth chapter of
Revelation — a woman clothed with the sun, the
moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars
on her head. The moon regulated all .the Jewish
feasts, particularly the Passover. It is her founda
tion and support ; the sun her clothing of righteous
ness ; the stars her honours, the twelve Apostles.
On the reverse is the woman and man-child whom
the dragon has always sought to destroy by floods
out of his mouth. Witness the many thousand
books which the clergy have poured and still are

224 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
pouring forth. It has become a separate trade to
deal in clerical books only.'
This and a letter dated nearly twenty years previ
ously are the only ones, in the mass of Linnell's
correspondence, from Cornelius Varley. The letter,
written from i, Charles Street, Clarendon Square,
and dated July 2, 1853, is as follows :
' Dear Sir,
' I cannot distinctly say I have practised
photography, though we have fitted up several sets
of apparatus for others. Two of my sons who were
making themselves acquainted with it have now got
profitable engagements very far from home, so at
present we are not pursuing it. Yet for any profit
able engagement I could go through the processes
sufficiently to communicate the same to others.
' The Photogenic Society have an exhibition of
excellent sun-pictures, and works in the Royal
Academy show that photography is doing much
good to the arts.
' I cannot fix any day in the ensuing week to give
you a visit, but may be able in the week after, if
you are determined to go heartily into play with the
sunbeams, the most glorious associate the arts have
ever had. ' Yours very truly,
' Cornelius Varley.
' J. Linnell, Esq.'
In 1873 Linnell sent to Mr. Gladstone, through
Mr. George Richmond, a copy of his engraved

W. E. GLADSTONE 225

portrait of Sir Robert Peel, which, called forth the
following reply from the Liberal leader :
' 11, Carlton House Terrace, S.W.,
'May 21, 1873.
' My dear Mr. Richmond,
' Acceptable as must be the engraved por
trait you have kindly deposited here, both for its
own sake and because it proceeds from Mr. Linnell,
I must not hold it in fraud ; and therefore I hasten
to acquaint you that Mr. Cardwell is the fortunate
possessor of the picture of Sir R. Peel which it
represents. ' I mentioned the work to Mr. Cardwell, and had
our respective positions in respect to the blessing of
offspring been reversed, I might perhaps have made
the acquisition, about which he was most con
siderate. ' I am happy enough to possess a picture by Mr.
Linnell, which I greatly value.
' Had not my name been placed in error on the
print, by Mr. Linnell's kindness, I should at once
have forwarded it to Mr. Cardwell, and I think I
had better do this as it is, unless I hear from you to
the contrary effect. ' Yours sincerely, ' W. E. Gladstone.
' I ought to add that I have sown my wild oats, and
am now a reformed character in regard to purchases.'
In the year 1876, when the Chantrey Fund became
available for the purchase of works for a national
vol. 11. 35

226 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
collection, there was a feeling amongst some of the
Academicians that a portion of the first money at
their disposal under the bequest could not be better
expended than in the purchase of one of John
Linnell's famous landscapes. George Richmond
made a proposal to that effect, and he was heartily
supported by Mr. Webster and others. The sugges
tion, however, does not appear to have been taken
up very earnestly amongst the Academicians gener
ally, or it must have resulted otherwise than it did.
Opinion was in favour of a picture of Linnell's
second period, when he was undoubtedly at his
greatest, and Mr. Richmond was commissioned to
see what was in the market. In the course of his
inquiries he made a journey to Redhill to look at
the pictures still in the artist's possession.
The following correspondence has reference to
the proposed purchase. The first letter is dated
January i, 1877, and was from Mr. Thomas Johnson,
a dealer of Manchester :
' My dear Sir,
' I cannot resist wishing you and yours every
good wish for the New Year.
' I think you will be equally gratified with myself
to hear that the Royal Academy think of purchasing
one of your finest works out of the " Chantrey
Bequest." In short I was asked if my friend
Mason, of Bradford, would sell the " Last Gleam
before the Storm," which I bought last year for
,£2,500 guineas, and which originally belonged to

THE CHANTREY BEQUEST 227
Mr. Eden, of Lytham. I have named the subject
to several R.A.'s, and they strongly approve of the
purchase, notably Webster, who told me this morn
ing that he sincerely hoped it would be accomplished.
Raeburn's portraits in the Academy are much
admired. I trust you keep fairly well.
' Yours truly,
' Thomas Johnson.'
On the receipt of this letter Linnell sent it with
the following note to Mr. Richmond :
' Dear Mr. Richmond,
' Enclosed is a letter received this morning,
and as you so kindly interested yourself in the
matter, I send it to you for perusal and return, with
my wish that you may remember my two R.A.
pictures, 1875, 1876, are both with me, price ,£2,000
each, a price I was offered for one, but refused.
' I am, yours truly,
' J. Linnell, Sen.'
The pictures referred to are ' Woods and Forests '
(41 by 57 inches), which was sold at the Neck sale
at Christie's in 1890 for 1,900 guineas, and 'The
Hollow Tree,' subsequently purchased by Mr.
McLean for ,£1,600.
Linnell's reply to Mr. Johnson, dated January 4,
was as follows :

228 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

' Dear Mr. Johnson,
' Many thanks for your kind letter. The
subject is not new to me, for my old friend Rich
mond, R.A., had last year interested himself in the
matter of the proposed purchase of one of my works
for the Chantrey Fund Collection. Mr. Richmond
recommended my 1875 R.A. picture as one, or the
1876, but the committee seemed to wish for one of
my middle style. If you are referred to, will you
kindly remember that both my R.A. pictures, 1875
and 1876, are still in my possession, price .£2,000
each. The amount I refused for one, but would
now for such a purpose feel gratified by the sale at
that price. Hoping you will come and see them
the first opportunity, ' I am, yours truly,
' John Linnell, Sen.
'Thomas Johnson, Esq.'
The following letter from Mr. Richmond com
pletes the correspondence on the subject, and
nothing more seems to have been done in the
matter.
' 20, York Street,
' Portman Square, W.,
'January 2, 1877.
' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' I heartily join with Mr. Johnson (whose
note I return) in wishing you, and all yours, a very
happy New Year ; and I can think of very few things
of a professional kind that would delight me more
than that the trustees under the Chantrey Fund

LETTER FROM GEORGE RICHMOND 229
should make their first purchase in a picture of John
Linnell, sen.
' This I stated in Council when I first entered
upon the duties two years ago, and the last time we
met before going out of office, I rose to urge this
with all the earnestness that I felt. This was on
December 12 last.
'Your picture exhibited in 1875 I mentioned as
one that I should like to purchase, but I see that
many of the Academicians incline to a work of your
middle time.
' I asked Woolner about the picture that was his,
and which was sold at Christie's last year, and he
said he would inquire if the possessor was willing to
part with it. So stand matters now. And such is
the uncertainty of things in which several persons
are concerned, that I should not be surprised if no
agreement is come to, and no picture purchased for
some time to come. But still I heartily hope that it
will not turn out so, but that purchases will be made
soon, and that a picture by you will be the first that
is purchased for the collection which is eventually to
be the nation's. ' I remain, ' Dear Mr. Linnell,
' Very faithfully yours,
' Geo. Richmond.'
It would have been a graceful act if the Academy,
which ignored Linnell so long, had seen its way to
do him the honour of selecting one of his noble

230 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
landscapes as the first to form the nucleus of a
national collection under the Chantrey Fund ; but it
was not to be — the spirit which had ever been
against him was against him still, and though his
friends in the Academy did their best for him, their
efforts were in vain. Mr. Richmond in particular
never ceased to regret the failure of this endeavour
to do an act of well-merited honour to the octo
genarian painter.
Linnell continued to paint almost to the last ; but
in his latest works he shows a gradual falling off.
He becomes somewhat mannered and less simple,
more large and general in his treatment, with less
of that definition and detail which give to his
earlier works some of the finer qualities of Dutch
art. Then his touch became less firm, with the
result that his pictures began to show a certain
amount of 'wooliness.' Along with the weakening
of his hand came a gradual failure of sight, so that
he had to take to stronger and stronger glasses.
Among the latest exhibited of his works was a
small ' Woodcutter.' A man is seen standing on
the felled trunk of a tree in the act of swinging his
axe. It was painted from a sketch made at Hamp
stead while he was living there, but it was not
finished till towards the close of his career. Then,
on account of the talk about Mr. Gladstone's fond
ness for tree-felling, he used to call it his ' Glad
stone.' It cannot, of course, be reckoned amongst
his best productions ; but it is, nevertheless, a suf
ficiently remarkable picture, when it is considered

VISIT BY HOLMAN HUNT 231
that it was painted when the artist was considerably
over eighty years of age. The last painted of his
pictures were 'Sweet fa's the Eve,' 'The Heath,'
and ' Sunset on the Common.'
Finally, during the last year or two of his life, in
consequence of the gradual decline of physical
power, he was obliged to give up painting altogether.
It was a trial to him ; but this, as well as his grow
ing physical infirmities, he bore with exemplary
patience. Happily his mental perceptions remained
undimmed to the last, which was a source of great
thankfulness both to himself and to those about
him. It was during this period (1881) that Mr. Holman
Hunt, being on a visit witFT Mrs. HuntlcPMr.
— -  c* — -
William Linnell, who was now living at Hill's
Brow, tlie house built for him on the estate by his
father, called upon his old friend. He thus describes
what occurred on that memorable occasion.
' He was then very feeble from advanced age,
not seeing people under ordinary circumstances.
To me it seemed a characteristic and noble earnest
ness which made him abruptly appeal to me on
my approach in exhortation on the importance of
mastering the teaching of the New Testament as
the first important duty of life. He would not
allow me to evade the question, but appealed to me
for a direct answer whether I had done this. The
scene was a very interesting one in my eyes. He
recognised that he had come to his last days, and
that there would never again be an opportunity for

232 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
him to deliver his sacredest message of all to me ;
and he would not fail, although, when he regarded
my reply as failing in thoroughness, he had to
reproach me, which he did unsparingly.'
The venerable painter had the Bible in his hand
when Mr. Hunt entered. He held it aloft tremb
lingly as he spoke, asking him if he had made sure
of his eternal salvation. To him then nothing else
appeared of any importance, and he insisted upon
the momentousness of the question with the earnest
ness and solemnity of a man with one foot in the
grave. This is almost the last glimpse we get of Linnell
from an outside source, and it shows him as he had
ever been — direct, fearless, and sincere, thinking
more of the real, the true, and the eternal, than of
that which is merely ephemeral and conventional.
He finally passed away, the physical powers of
his nature quite exhausted, on January 20, 1882,
being then ninety years of age all but five months.
He was conscious to the last, and had but a few
minutes before taken leave of the members of his
family, most of whom were gathered by his bed
side.

[233]

CHAPTER XVI.
Conclusion — Sixty Years a Contributor to the Royal Academy —
Linnell's Fortune — His Monument in his Works — Estimate of
his Powers— His Place in British Art.
There are but few more words to be said before
closing this imperfect record of a remarkable career.
As he had lived, so John Linnell died, true to the
principles he had espoused in early manhood, and
from which, through all his years of toil and
struggle, he had never swerved. There is hardly
another example in the whole history of art of a
life so uniform and consistent in its aim — of a devo
tion so entire and so unflagging through a career of
eighty years.
For sixty years he was a regular contributor to
the Royal Academy exhibitions, and during that
time exhibited something like 170 works, being an
average of nearly three per annum.* Only about
Jwice-during the whole' course of those years have
we a record of pictures which he sent for exhibition
being returned to him unhung ; and if the works
from his brush to be seen in our public galleries are,
* He also exhibited, from 1808 to 1859, about eighty-two works,/
that had not been exhibited elsewhere, at the British Institution.

LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

as regards size and numbers, inferior to those of
many of his contemporaries, they are so because as
soon as his art became known, almost to the day of
his death, he sold as quickly as he could paint, and
for the greater part of the time obtained such prices
as few contemporary artists did.
In a worldly sense, the result of his industry and
his painstaking perseverance through years of un
flagging endeavour was the accumulation of a for
tune such as it has been the lot of but few of his
profession to emulate. Artists in their confidential
moments are apt to hold their breath when speaking
of the fabulous amounts which it is currently re
ported John Linnell was enabled to amass. A
common figure at which his savings are put is
,£300,000. This, of course, is an exaggeration ;
but had he not invested largely in land, and settled
handsome sums upon his sons and daughters, his
fortune might have reached something like two-
thirds of that amount.
In accordance with that shrewd business tact,
however, which had characterized him through life,
he disposed of most of his fortune long before his
death, so that his personal property at the time of
his decease was comparatively small.
It is a remarkable fact, and one worthy of record
in this connection, that, according to his own state
ment, often repeated, he never in the whole course
of his career made a single bad debt, except it
might be in a very few instances of a trifling
character. The fact is almost astounding, and

HIS MONUMENT 235

speaks volumes for those business principles of his,
from which, established early in life, he never
deviated. In accordance with another principle upon which
he had always acted himself, and upon which he
wished to see others act in such matters, his family
had his remains interred in the unconsecrated portion
of the Reigate Cemetery, with no other monument
to mark the spot save the usual headstone, with a
suitable inscription.
His monument, as he believed all men's should
be, is in his works ; and a noble monument it is —
one which we may well believe will last so long as
sincerity in art is honoured ; for whatever may be
the ultimate judgment upon it, it can never be said
that John Linnell's art was other than sincere. It
is, perhaps, too early yet to estimate his influence
on landscape art, or to give him his true place in
the ranks of English artists. On the morrow of
his death the Times spoke of him as ' the most
powerful of landscape-painters since Turner died ' ;
and though the world generally has not yet accorded
him such a high place — and it might seem pre
sumptuous in his biographer to claim it for him —
still, that he will by universal consent be recognised
as one of the foremost of British artists no one can
doubt who has once had the opportunity of judging
of his work as the works of other native artists are
capable of being judged — that is, by a selection of
his best works being made ¦ available in a national
collection.

236 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Perhaps in the course of time other specimens of
his art may be bequeathed to the national collections,
or purchased for them. Since his death the ap
preciation in which his works are held has increased
rather than declined, and this is what we should
expect ; for John Linnell's art is of that kind that
comes home to men's hearts the more they know it.
We may travel in foreign lands, and be pleased and
delighted ; but the time invariably arrives when
native scenes and native skies offer an overwhelming
attraction. In this lies the strength of Linnell's art. It is so
English that it must ever be doubly interesting on
that account. It is as English as Gainsborough's,
as ' Old ' Crome's, as De Wint's, or as David Cox's.
It is on that account somewhat circumscribed as
compared with the works of men like Turner and
William H. Muller ; but it is rich in variety, never
theless, and may be said to cover the whole ground
of English landscape.
During his time John Linnell saw many changes
among contemporaries, and beheld fashions in land
scape art rise and decay. But throughout he
remained uninfluenced by them, and preserved as.
striking an individuality in his art as in his charac
ter. It is this unbroken unity in his strongly pro
nounced landscape-painting which has placed him
somewhat apart in the lineage of art. No one has
been able satisfactorily to trace his artistic pedigree.
He imbibed so much from others, but assimilated it
so perfectly, and made it so thoroughly his own by

CHARACTER OF HIS ART 237
interfusing it with his own perceptions, that though
it is not difficult to trace similarities and points
of contact with men of many schools — with the
Poussins and the Claudes, with the Hobbemas and
the Cuyps, with the Gainsboroughs and the Mor-
lands, etc. — yet from none of these can a clear
descent be made out. It was a fairy gift rather
than an inheritance that he derived from these men.
Indeed, as has been shown, in seeking his true
relationship, we must look to the older Masters
rather than to those of a later age.
Although, in regard to composition, Linnell's
pictures seem to owe something to the Poussins, in
colour their inspiration is derived more from the
splendours of Rubens, Titian, and the Venetian
School generally than from any other source.
In respect to contemporaries, Linnell exhibits
more points of resemblance with John Crome and
JDe Wint than with anyone else. But in order
to understand him aright we must look at him as
the child of Nature that he was, with a peculiar
and oftentimes deep insight into her ways and
mysteries, and with a rare power of reproducing her
in all her simplicity and truth.
It was owing to this gift, and to the perennial
freshness of his contact, that Nature and Art in his
works are rarely dissevered, but are ever one and
inseparable. In the same way he never separates
humanity from nature. His landscapes are always
peopled. They do not reveal merely the beauty of
nature ; they tell also the story of man's connection

238 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
therewith. Moreover, what he sets down is never
mean or trivial, but wholesome and dignified. In
all this he was loyal to the best traditions of English
landscape art, and for that we owe him much.
As regards composition, if he does not emulate
the complexity and magnificence of Turner; he is at
least harmonious and symmetrical. In his lines and
masses there is always dignity and proportion, in
which respect, and in the general simplicity of his
method of composition, he is again allied to the Old
Masters. It is questionable, perhaps, whether Linnell pos
sessed the power to have become a great figure-
painter. There is not much in his works to suggest
that he could ; and yet indications are not wanting,
faint it may be, but yet indubitable, that had he
enjoyed the opportunities as a young man, in place
of being kept so closely to portrait-painting and
engraving, he might possibly have shone in figure-
painting. It is useless to find fault with him that his power
was not broader and more general — that he did not
paint rugged mountain scenery, the sea, and Nature
as a whole in her wilder and more savage moods :
he painted what he could, and he painted it so well
that few before or after him have done what he did,
and done it better.

APPENDIX.

LIST OF PICTURES, ENGRA VINGS, ETC.

The following lists form a catalogue, as nearly complete as possible,
of John Linnell's landscapes and other paintings and drawings ;
also of his engravings. It also gives the more important portraits
that he painted.

[ 241 ]

ENGRAVINGS.
The sizes, wken named, are those of the engraved work.
Portrait of John Martin,- Pastor of the Baptist Church, Keppel
Street, London. Engraved (in etching and line) from the
artist's oil picture (1813).
Replica ofthe Head, small vignette (in dry point and line), signed
'J. Linnell, 1817.' (Gale and Fenner, Paternoster Row.)
Portrait of Rev. J. M. Bletsoe, head-master of Loughborough
Grammar School (6 by 4 inches), 18 14.
Portrait of Mr. G. Phillips (head) from the artist's own drawing,
1814.
Two Views in the Island of Elba. Small etching for ' A Tour
through the Island of Elba ' (one not used).
A View of the Source of the Ebro for General Maitland. Etching
on copper, 12 by 20 inches, 1814, 1815.
A Girl at a -Well (8 by 6 inches), etched on copper for Mr. Cristall,
1815.
' A Landscape,-' small ; engraved for J. Varley, 1816.
A View of Woody Mountains called 'Taleh Rudbar' (6 by 6 inches).
Etched for Sir Wm. Ouseley, 1816.
' Ruins near Morghun ' (Persia). For Sir W. Ouseley, fronl a
drawing by Col. D'Arcy, 181 6.
Two Views of Mountains, with Huts. For Sir W. Ouseley, 1816.
Portrait of Mr. Spence. Small etching for Mr. Rickards, 1816.
Portrait of Dr. Chalmers. Etching, small, 1817.
Bust of the Princess Charlotte, drawn on stone for Mr. White,
engraver, December, 1817.
Portrait of Mrs. Whiting (7 by 5 inches). Etched from the artist's
pencil-drawing for Miss Doig, 181 7.
Waterfall in a Wood (6£ by 5 inches). Etched from a drawing by
Robson, 18 1 8.
VOL. II. 36

242 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' Interior of a Ruined Abbey ' (4^ by 3^ inches). Etched from a
drawing by J. Constable, 1818.
'Mid-day' (4 by 8 inches), 1818. Etched on copper from his
picture painted the same year.
' Woodcutter's Repast ' (4 by 8 inches). Etched on copper from
his sketch in Windsor Forest, 1818.
Portrait of James Upton, pastor of the Baptist Church, Church
Street, Blackfriars Road (10 by 7^ inches). In line and dry
point from the artist's own picture, 18 18, 18 19. Linnell
employed William Blake to begin and lay in this portrait.
Landscape by Ruysdael (6£ by g\ inches). Etched from the
picture for Mr. S. Woodburn, 18 19.
Portrait of Wilson Lowry, F.R.S., M.G.S. Vignette, engraved (in
line) by J. Linnell and William Blake from Linnell's drawing,
1824. (Hurst, Robinson and Co., Cheapside.)
Portrait of Thomas Chevalier, F.R.S., F.S.A., F.H.S., Surgeon-
extraordinary to the King, and Professor of Anatomy and
Surgery to the Royal College of Surgeons. Vignette, en
graved (line) from the artist's own drawing from the life, 1825.
(Colnaghi and Co.)
Figure (small) from the centre panel of the triptych by Van Eyck
(3J inches square). Etched for Mrs. Aders as a specimen of
style for a prospectus for the publication of the whole work,
1825.
Triptych, by Van Eyck — first panel (20 by 7 inches). Engraved
in line for Mrs. Aders, 1826.
Views in Norway (6 plates containing 8 subjects). Etched from
drawings by Mr. Edward Price, 1827, 1828.
Portrait of the Rev. George Pritchard (vignette, 9 by 5 J inches).
From the artist's own drawing, 1827. (Wightman and
Cramp, Paternoster Row.)
Heads, various (8 plates, 6| by to inches), etched for J. Varley,
and published in his 'Treatise on Zodiacal Physiognomy,'
1828.
Michael Angelo's Figures on the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
Facsimile copies of old line engravings. Six plates of single
figures 6 by 4^ inches, 1828.
Portrait of Robert Gooch, M.D. (nf by 9^ inches). In line
from the artist's own picture, 1831. (W. J. White, Brown-
low Street.)

ENGRA VINGS 243

'Feeding the Rabbits,' by W. Collins, R.A. (15 by 12^ inches).
Engraved for the artist in mezzotint, 1831. (F. Collins, 52,
Great Marlborough Street.)
'Saul' (15 by 22 inches). Engraved in mezzotint from John
Varley's picture, 1831. (Albert Varley.)
Portraits of Rev. Rowland Hill, M.A. (1827); C. Babbage, Esq.
(1832); and Rev. Wm. Marsh, M.A. (1831). Engraved
from portraits by Miss Sheppard.
' Boys in a Boat' (6£ by s| inches). Engraved in mezzotint from
the picture by W. Collins, R.A., 1831.
Portrait of A. W. Callcott, Esq., R.A. (13 by 10 inches). In
mezzotint from the artist's own portrait from the life, 1832.
Portrait of Wm. Bray, Esq., of Shere, Surrey, in his ninety-seventh
year (14^ by i2f inches). Mezzotint from the artist's own
portrait, 1833. (Colnaghi and Co.)
Portrait of the Rev. T. R. Malthus, M.A., F.R.S., Professor of
Hist, and Pol. Economy at the East India CoUege, and
author of the ' Essay on the Principles of Population,' etc.
(14 by 1 1| inches). Mezzotint from the artist's own portrait,
1833. (Colnaghi and Co.)
Portrait of James Stephen, Esq, one of the Masters of the
High Court of Chancery. Mezzotint from the artist's own
posthumous portrait, 1834.
Portrait ofthe Rev. John Marshall (small). Mezzotint, 1834.
Portrait of Edward William Wynne Pendarves, Esq., M.P. (15 by
12 inches^. Mezzotint from the artist's own picture, 1835.
(Colnaghi and Co.)
Portrait of Pelham Warren, M.D., F.R.S. (15 by n| inches).
Mezzotint from the artist's own painting, 1835.
Portrait of ' The Right Hon. Thos. Spring-Rice, Chancellor of the
Exchequer,' etc. (14! by 12 inches). Mezzotint from the
artist's own picture, 1836. (Francis Graves and Co., Cock-
spur Street.)
Portrait of Mrs. Daniel, mother of the Rev. E. T. Daniel (8£ by
6£ inches). Etched from the artist's drawing, 1836.
Portrait of Mr. Zachariah Langton (15^ by 13 inches). Mezzo
tint from the artist's picture, 1836.
Portrait of the Rev. John Leifchild (15I by i2| inches). Mezzo
tint from the artist's picture, 1836. (Leifchild, 13, Picca
dilly.)

244 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Portrait of Thos. Norris, Esq., F.R.A.S. (15^ by i2| inches).
Mezzotint from the artist's own picture, 1837.
Facsimiles of Original Drawings of the Frescoes by Michael
Angelo on the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel These draw
ings were made at the time of the paintings, and before the
fresco of ' The Last Judgment ' was executed. Originally the
subjects were on one sheet of paper, forming one whole,
similarly to the frescoes of the ceiling. Forty-one plates,
engraved in mezzotint, and published at first in six numbers,
containing (with the key plate) seven plates each. The first
number was issued to subscribers, April, 1833 ; the others as
completed, the last being finished February, 1837.
Portrait of 'The Right Hon. Sir Robert Peel, Bart.,' etc. (16 by
13 inches). Mezzotint from the artist's picture from the life,
1838. (Thos. Boys, publisher.)
Portrait of Richard Whately, D.D., Archbishop of Dublin (12 by
9^ inches). Mezzotint from the artist's picture from the life,
1838. (B. Fellows, 39, Ludgate Street.)
Portrait of the Rev. Joseph Hallet Batten, D.D., F.R.S. (16 by
12 inches). Mezzotint from the artist's portrait from the life,
1838.
Portrait ofthe Rev. George A. E. Marsh, A.M., Rector of Bangor
(12 by g\ inches). Etched from the artist's drawing, 1835.
'The Journey to Emmaus' (13J by 18 inches). Mezzotint from
the artist's picture, 1839. A proof impression of this print,
from the picture selected by the Committee of the Society
for the Encouragement of British Art in the year 1838 was
presented to each subscriber for the season 1839.
Landscape by Titian — Herdsman driving cattle (7 by 6 inches).
In mezzotint for 'The Royal Gallery of Pictures.' (Jas.
Bohn, 1840.) The original is at Buckingham Palace.
Portrait of William Otter, D.D., Bishop of Chichester (i6£ by
13I inches). Mezzotint from the artist's portrait, 1841.
(W. H. Mason, Chichester; and Welch and Gwynne, St.
James's Street.)
Portrait of Major Beamish (14^ by n£ inches). Etched from
the artist's drawing, 1838.
Portrait of the Rev. Robert Clarke Caswall, LL.B. (10 by
8 inches). Mezzotint from the artist's painting from the
life, 1847.

ENGRA VINGS 245

Portrait of Robert Peel, Esq. (cousin of Sir Robert Peel), (size
15I by 13 inches). Mezzotint from the artist's picture, 1841.
Portrait of the Rev. Jno. P. Blencowe (8 by 6| inches). Etched
from the artist's drawing, 1841.
Portrait of Joseph Strutt, Esq., of Derby (15I by 13^ inches).
From the artist's picture, in mezzotint, 1842. (Moseley,
Derby.)
Portrait of 'Gen. B. Espartero' (vignette, 10 by 8 inches). Drawn
on stone from the artist's portrait, 1843. (T. McLean, Hay-
market.)
Portrait of William Coningham, Esq. (8 J by 6 J inches). Etched
from the artist's picture, 1843.
Four Illustrations for ' Traditional Nursery Songs of England,' by
Felix Summerby (Mr., afterwards Sir H. Cole), published by
J. Cundall, 12, Old Bond Street, 1843. The subjects were :
' Let's go to bed, says Sleepy Head ;'
' I've Caught a Hare Alive ;'
' The Cat sat Asleep by the Fire ;'
' There was an Old Woman,' etc.
Portrait of Lady Beauchamp (16 by 13 inches). On stone, from
the artist's portrait, 1845.
Portrait of Lord Methuen. On stone, from the artist's portrait,
1846.

[ 246 ]

PORTRAITS FROM THE LIFE. OIL PAINTINGS.
(only the more important portraits are given.)
Picture (small) of ' A Woman at Table Drinking ' (181 1). Painted
from Mr. Mulready's mother, and very like her. Purchased
by- Mr. Ridley Colborne (1811) for 25 guineas.
A companion picture, entitled 'A Boy Reading,' was painted
from William Mulready ( 1 8 1 1 ).
Linnell's first (recorded) commission for a portrait was from
Ridley Colborne, Esq. (afterwards Lord Colborne), for whom
he painted (181 1) a picture containing small whole-length
portraits of himself, Mrs. Colborne, and child. Mr. Colborne
appears as a gamekeeper bringing a hare to his wife, who
stands at a cottage door. (Panel, 15 by 12 inches.)
In 181 1 he commenced a portrait (head) of Francis Beckford,
Esq., of Southampton.
Mr. John Martin (Baptist minister), half-length, life-size, 1812.
(Engraved.) Exhibited at the 'Old Masters ' in 1883. In
possession of the artist's family.
In 1815 the artist painted about a dozen small portraits at New
bury and Kingsclere.
Rev. George Pritchard, Baptist preacher. Painted by the artist
for himself, and exhibited at Spring Gardens.
Mr. Bryan (author ofthe 'Dictionary of Painters '), 18 16.
Mr. Fisher (ofthe Exchequer Office), 1816.
Mr. Druysdale (from Russia), 1816.
Lord Strangford (for Mr. Carpenter, of Bond Street), 1816.
Miss Sophia Gwilt, 1816.
Mr. John Gage (3 portraits), 1816-17.

PORTRAITS IN OIL 247
Mr. Shirley, Baptist minister at Sevenoaks, Kent.
Mr. Trevithike, the engineer and inventor (life-size), 18 16.
Mr. Chin (Baptist minister at Walworth), 1816.
Dr. Steadman (Baptist minister), 1817.
The Dowager Countess of Errol (small), 1817.
The Right Hon. J. H. Frere (small), 1817.
Portraits in group of Philip Thomas Wykham, Esq:, Mrs. Wykham,
and two sons, and Mrs. Trottman (small whole-lengths), 181 7.
Painted at Tythrop House, near Thame, Oxon.
Portraits in group of Fiennes Trottman, Esq. (brother to Mrs.
Wykham), and Mrs. Trottman (small whole-lengths), 181 7.
Painted at Tythrop House.
The Duke of Argyle (small), 1817.
The Duchess of Argyle (small), 181 7.
Lord John Campbell (brother to the Duke of Argyle), (small),
1817.
C. Gusley, Esq. (West Indian), (small), 1818.
Dr. Jenkins (Baptist minister at Walworth), (small), 181 8.
Mr. James Upton (Baptist minister at Blackfriars), (small), 181 8.
(Engraved.)
Colonel Dumaresque (small), 1818; again in 1819.
Mr. Ivemy (Baptist minister), (small), 1818.
John Varley (the water-colour painter), (small), 1818.
Miss Furnell (of Henley-on-Thames), (small), 1818.
Henry Hervey, Esq., 1819. Also of Edward Hervey, Esq.
Lieut.-Colonel Torrens (small), 1819.
Mr. Sweatman, senr., (half-length, life-size), 1819
Mrs. Allies (of Southampton), (life-size), 1819.
Portraits in group of Lady Torrens and Family — (Miss Torrens,
Miss Hannah Torrens, Henry Torrens, Esq., Masters Arthur,
Frederic and Charles Torrens), 1 819-21. Width, 60 inches.
(Small whole-lengths.) For Sir Henry Torrens, of Fulham.
R.A., 1821.
Miss Waring (afterwards Mrs. J. Brooks), as Rowena in ' Ivan-
hoe,' 1820. R.A.,* 1821.
Colonel Maxwell, Governor of St. Kits (R.A.), and Mrs. Maxwell,
1821.
The Earl of Denbigh, 1821. R.A., 1823.
* The letters ' R. A.' indicate that the portrait or picture was exhibited in the
Royal Academy Exhibition.

248 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
E. Denny, Esq., 1821. R.A., 1822.
Sir Edward Denny, Bart, (of King's End House, near Worcester),
1821 ; also Lady Denny.
Master William Denny (youngest son of Sir E. Denny), 1821.
R.A., 1822.
Miss Charlotte Fector (afterwards Mrs. Bayley), (small), 1821.
— Bayley, Esq. (son of Judge Bayley), (small), 1822.
Mrs. George Stephen (small), 1822. R.A.
Miss Anne James, 1822. R.A., 1823.
The Right Hon. Lady Agnes Buller (twin-sister to the Duke of
Northumberland), 1822-23, (whole-length, life-size). R.A.,
1823.
Colonel Buller (of Whitehall Place), (whole-length, life-size),
1822-23.
Joseph James, Esq. (of Esher), 1823. R.A.
Captain Craigie, 1824.
Mrs. William Wilberforce, 1824. R.A.
Mrs. Digby Murray (whole-length, life-size), 1824.
General Darling, of Cheltenham ; also Mrs. Darling, 1825.
Portrait group of Miss C. Darling and Master F. Darling (small
whole-lengths), 1825.
Portrait group of Mrs. Darling and Children (small whole-lengths^
1825.
Colonel Kingscote (of Kingscote, Gloucestershire) ; also Mrs.
Kingscote (both half-length, life-size), 1825.
Miss Denny (small), 1825. R.A.
Mrs. Garratt (of Hampstead), 1825.
Edward Sheppard, Esq. (of 'The Ridge,' Gloucestershire), 1825.
R.A., 1826.
Miss J. Puxley (life-size), 1826. R.A.
— Kennerly, Esq. (half-length, life-size), 1826.
Miss Macdonald, 1826. R.A.
Mrs. Aders, 1827. (Engraved.)
Robert Gooch, M.D., 1827. Painted for Sir William Knighton.
R.A. (Engraved.)
Miss Knighton (afterwards Mrs. Seymour), 1827. For Si
William Knighton. R.A.
Lady Lyndhurst, 1827. For the Lord Chancellor. R.A., 1830.
George Stephen, Esq., 1827. R.A., 1829.
Miss Hawkins (and her dog), small whole-length, 1829.

PORTRAITS IN OIL 249
Portrait group of Colonel Smith's four children, 1829.
J. B. Flint, Esq. (of Canterbury) ; also of Mrs. Flint, 1830.
Miss Knighton (second daughter of Sir William Knighton), 1830.
Portrait group of William Garratt, Esq., and family (of Hamp
stead), 1830.
Mrs. Young (aged 81, mother of Mr. Young, the actor), 1831.
R.A., 1832.
A. W. Callcott, Esq., R.A., 1831. R.A., 1832. (Engraved.)
William Collins, Esq., R.A., 1831. Sold to J. Gibbons, Esq.,
1846.
Thomas Hill, Esq., 1831. R.A., 1832.
William Mulready, Esq., R.A., 1831. R.A., 1833. Sold to
J. Gibbons, Esq., 1846.
Lady Anstruther (late Miss Torrens), (life-size, with harp), 1831.
R.A., 1832.
Charles Aders, Esq., 1832. R.A., 1835.
The Rev. Edward Osborne, 1832.
Lord King; also Lady King, 1832. R.A.
Mrs. Ann Hawkins (9 by 7 inches), 1832. In the National
Gallery.
William Bray, Esq. (of Shere, Surrey) in his 97th year, 1832.
R.A., 1833. (Engraved.)
Miss Fowke (life-size), 1832.
Sir Frederick Fowke, Bart, (of Lowesby Hall, near Leicester,
1833. RA.
The Rev. C. G. Boyles (of Buriton, near Petersfield, Hants),
1832.
Mrs. Osborne (of Horndean, Hants), 1832.
The Rev. T. R. Malthus, M.A., F.R.S., etc., Professor of
Political Economy at the East India College, Herts; also
Mrs. Malthus, 1833. R.A. (Engraved.)
The Rev. H. G. Keene, Professor of Languages at the East India
College, 1833.
The Rev. Dr. Batten, Principal of the East India College, Herts,
1833. R.A. (Engraved.)
Mrs. Batten, 1833. R.A., 1834.
The Rev. J. Jeremie, Professor at East India College, 1833.
William Empson, Esq., 1833. R.A, 1834.
Samuel Rogers, Esq. (the poet), 1834. Sold to J. Gibbons, Esq.,
1846.

250 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

E. Stirling, Esq., 1834. R.A.
Mrs. Sarah Austin, 1834. (Painted for Lord Jeffrey.) R.A,
1835-
Mrs. Sarah Austin (second portrait, small), 1840.
— Austin. Esq., senr., 1834.
The Rev. — Musgrave, 1834.
Charles Plastow, Esq., 1834.
— Nasmyth, Esq.; also Mrs. Nasmyth, 1834.
The Rev. E. T. Daniel, 1835. R.A., 1836.
The Right Hon. Thomas Spring-Rice, 1835. R.A. (Engraved.)
— Stokes, Esq. (of Oakover Hill, Derbyshire) ; also Mrs. Stokes,
i835-
Thomas Phillips, Esq., R.A., 1835. R.A.
Major Dundas, 1835.
Pelham Warren, M.D., F.R.S., 1835. R.A., 1837. Second
portrait of Dr. Warren, 1835. (Engraved.)
E W. W. Pendarves, Esq., M.P., 1835. R.A., 1836. (En
graved).
G. W. Wood, Esq., 1835.
Professor Mylne, 1835.
The Rev. John Leifchild (half-length, life-size), 1835. RA-> l837-
(Engraved.)
General the Honourable Sir Galbraith Lowry Cole, G.C.B., etc..
1835. R.A, 1836.
Major-General Sir Charles Maxwell, 1836. R.A., 1837.
Zachariah Langton, Esq., 1836. (Engraved.)
Skinner Langton, Esq., also Mrs. Skinner Langton (life-size), 1836.
The Rev. James Stratten (half-length, life-size), 1836.
Thomas Norris, Esq., F.R.A.S., (of Preston, Lancashire), 1836.
(Engraved.)
Second portrait (half-length, life-size), 1837.
Edmund Pattison, Esq., 1836. R.A., 1837.
The Rev. E. Grubbe, 1836.
Mrs. Bray (of Clapham Common), 1836.
Richard Whately, D.D., Archbishop of Dublin, 1837. R.A.,
1838. (Engraved.)
E. W. W. Pendarves, Esq., M.P., 1837 (second portrait, half-
length, life-size). R.A., 1838.
William Russell, Esq. (son of Lord William Russell), 1837. R.A.,
1838.

PORTRAITS IN OIL 251

— Tremayne, Esq. (ex-member for Cornwall), 1837.
The Right Hon. Sir Robert Peel, Bart., M.P., 1837. R.A., 1838.
(Engraved.)
Portrait of J. M. W. Turner, Esq., R.A. (painted 'from recollec
tion '), June, 1838.
Writing, July, 1861, to Walter Thornbury, Esq. (who made inquiry of the
artist respecting this portrait), the latter says : 'The history of my portrait of
Turner the Great is a veiy short one. I painted it from recollection at the
request of a friend of his, at whose table we frequently met. I made no
memorandum at the lime of meeting, but painted from memory entirely the
first opportunity. [The diary notes "June 29, 1838," as the date of the paint
ing] ... I have a very careful outline of Turner's father, taken when attending
his son's lecture at the Royal Academy about 1810, and a sketch of the eyes
and brows, looking down, of the lecturer, both of which I will show you if you
think it worth coming to R. H. for.'
Captain Leckey, also of Mrs. Leckey, 1838.
R. B. Lopez, Esq., 1838. R.A., 1839.
William Bagge, Esq., M.P., 1838. R.A., 1839.
Robert Peel, Esq. (half-length, life-size), 1838. R.A., 1839.
(Engraved. )
Miss Peel (daughter of Sir Robert Peel), (life-size), 1838.
Mrs. Henslowe, 1838 ; Rev. E Henslowe (of Old Charlton, near
Woolwich), 1839.
— Farrant, Esq., 1839. Brit. Inst., 1840 (as 'the Connoisseur').
The Earl of Shelbourne, 1839. R.A., 1840.
Major Farrant, K.L.S. (and his Arabian horse), (small whole
length), 1839. R.A., 1840.
Arthur Aston, Esq., Minister Plenipotentiary to Madrid (half-
length), 1839.
Earl Talbot (of Ingestre, Stafford), (half-length, life-size), 1839.
The Marquess of Lansdowne, K.G., 1840. R.A.
John Claudius Loudon (life-size), 1840. Purchased 1877 'for
the Linnean Society.'
Miss Bingham, 1840. R.A., 1841.
Dr. Otter, Bishop of Chichester, 1840. R.A., 1841. (Engraved.)
Sir Alexander Duff Gordon, also Lady Duff Gordon (both small),
1840.
Mrs. de Bertodano Lopez (whole length, small), 1840. R.A.,
1841.
George Strutt, Esq. (of Belper), 1 840.
Joseph Strutt, Esq. (of Derby), 1840. R.A., 1841. (Engraved.)

252 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Sir Erskine Perry, 1841.
Portrait Group of General L. Mesurier, his Wife and Son, 1841.
Thomas Baring, Esq., 1841.
Mrs. Labouchere, 1841.
— Walker, Esq. (Surgeon at St. George's) (small), 1841.
Sir Thomas Baring, Bart, (small, whole length), 1841. R.A.,
1842.
Lord Grey's three grandchildren — Miss Georgina Bulteel, Miss
May Bulteel, and Miss May Barrington (daughter of Lady
Caroline Barrington) — (small), 1841.
Richard Bagge, Esq. (twin brother of William Bagge, Esq., M.P.
for Norfolk), 1841.
The Right Hon. Francis Baring, M.P. (half-length, life-size), 1842.
R.A.
Lady Baring (small, whole-length), 1842. R.A.
William Coningham, Esq. (half-length, life-size), 1842. R.A.
Mrs. William Coningham (half-figure), 1842. R.A., 1843.
Mrs. de Bertodano Lopez and Son (small, whole-lengths), 1842.
R.A, 1843.
Stewart Marjoribanks, Esq., M.P, 1842. R.A, 1843.
Portraits (in group) of the three eldest children of Robert Clutter-
buck, Esq., 1842. R.A, 1843.
Thomas Carlyle, Esq, 1843-4. R.A, 1844.
John Mosely, Esq. (of Suffolk), (half-length, life-size), 1843.
The Earl of Ilchester, 1843. R.A, 1845.
Mrs. Coningham (small, whole-length), 1843. R.A, 1844.
James Pattison, Esq, M.P, 1844. R.A.
Lord Methuen, 1844. R.A, 1845. Also Lady Methuen,
1844.
R. B. Lopez, Esq. (half-length, life-size), 1844. R.A, 1845.
Lady Beauchamp, 1845. R.A.
Lord Methuen (second portrait, in peer's robes), 1845.
— Tremayne, Esq, junior, 1845.
Mrs. Pendarves (half-length, life-size), 1845. R.A, 1846.
Henry Colman, Esq. (of Boston, U S.), 1845-46. R.A, 1846.
Alexander M. Sutherland, Esq. (son of Sir James Sutherland),
1846. RA.
Lady Sutherland, 1846.
Stewart Marjoribanks, Esq., M.P. (whole-length, life-size), 1846.
Painted for the Members of the Watford Masonic Lodge.

PORTRAITS IN OIL 253
— Fonnereau, Esq., also Mrs. Fonnereau (both half-length, life-
size), 1846.
Mrs. Gibbons — 'The Morning Walk' — (three-quarter figure),
1847. R-A-> 1847./
Dr. Meryon, 1850 (painted for J. Gibbons, Esq.). R.A.
The Rev. — Peirson, 1850 (painted for J. Gibbons, Esq.).
— Carter, Esq. (solicitor to the Great Northern Railway), 1850
(painted for J. Gibbons, Esq.).

[ 254 ]

MINIATURES ON IVORY (IN WATER COLOURS)
FROM THE LIFE.
(selected list.)
Mrs. Linnell (wife of the artist), 1818-20. (His first miniature
upon ivory.)
Lady Elizabeth Belgrave (daughter of the Marchioness of Stafford),
1820.
Second portrait ofthe same (in profile), 1820.
Lord Belgrave, 1820.
Lord Francis Leveson Gower, 1820.
Viscount Ebringtoh, also Vicountess Ebrington, 1820-21.
The Hon. Mrs. Leslie Cumming, 1820.
Lady Frederica Stanhope (daughter of Lord Mansfield), 1820.
Sir Roger Gresley, 1820.
Lady Sophia Coventry, 1820.
H.R.H. The Princess Sophia Matilda (sister of George IV.), (an
oval for the pocket), 182 1.
Second miniature, larger, showing another view of the face, 1821.
The Hon. H. G. Bennett, MP, 1821.
Lady Elizabeth (daughter of Lord Mansfield), 1823.
Vernon Smith, Esq. (nephew7 of the Countess of Warwick), also
Mrs. Vernon Smith, 1823.
Miss Beresford (daughter of Lady Anna Beresford), also Lady
Anna Beresford, 1823.
' The Favourite, a group, with portraits of the Artist's children,'
1823-24. R.A, 1825.
Miss Otway, and Miss Georgiana Otway, 1823.
— Inglefield, Esq. (son of Sir Harry Inglefield), 1824.
Mrs. Barclay, 1824.

MINIATURES ON IVORY 255
George Rennie, Esq, Miss A. Rennie, and Miss E. Rennie, 1824.
Captain Boger, 1824.
Colonel Moore, 1826.
Captain Englefield, also Mrs. Englefield, 1826.
Miss Sophia Pocock (daughter of Sir George Pocock), 1826.
Portrait of William Blake (unfinished). This is the one engraved
for Gilchrist's Life.
Sir George Pocock, Bart, (of Twickenham, 1827-28. R.A, 1832.
Miss Otway, 1827.
Mrs. Goring, 1827.
Miss Torrens, 1827.
Henry Torrens, Esq. (eldest son of Sir Henry Torrens), 1828.
Sir Jeremiah Dixon, 1828.
Miss Jackson (Mrs. Rennie), 1828.
George Stephen, Esq., 1829.
Mrs. (Captain) Stephen, 1829.
Frederick Torrens, Esq, 1829.
Captain Torrens, 1831.
George Pocock, Esq, also Mrs. Pocock, 1831.
Miss Laura Coventry (sister to Mrs. Pocock), 1831.
Captain Eyres, 183 1.
Miss Rushbrook, 1831.
Miss Illingworth, 1832.

[ 256 ]

PORTRAITS FROM THE LIFE: DRAWINGS IN
WATER-COLOURS, CHALKS, Etc
(selected list.)
The Rev. J. M. Bletsoe, 1814. (Engraved.)
Mrs. Kilpin (of Kingsclere), 1815.
Thomas Chevalier, F.R.S, F.S.A, etc, 1817. (Engraved.)
The Rev. Rowland Hill, 181 7. (Engraved for a new edition of
the ' Village Dialogues.')
Portrait-group, Philip Thomas Wykham, Esq, and Mrs. Wykham
(of Tythrop House, Thame — small, whole-lengths), 181 7.
J. Cochran, senior, and Mrs. Cochran, senior (of Glasgow), 181 7.
Mrs. Cochran senior's mother, aged 90 (drawn at Kilbarchin,
near Paisley), October, 1817.
Portrait (sketch) of Dr. Chalmers, November, 1817.
Portrait-group of Mrs. Harris and two children (for the Hon. and
Rev. A. Harris), 18 18.
Dr. Jenkins (Baptist minister at Walworth), 181 8.
The Rev. Thomas Allies (of Southampton), 1819.
Wilson Lowry, F.R.S, etc., 1820. (Engraved by Linnell and
Blake.)
Lady Denbigh, 1822.
Mrs. Hay and child ; also Captain Hay, 1823.
Captain Craigie's son (small, whole-length), 1824.
Hugh Sandeman, Esq. (in Highland garb — small, whole-length),
1824.
Second portrait (small, whole-length — in ordinary dress), 1824.
Thomas Sandeman, Esq, 1824.
— Hennessey, Esq., 1824.
Mrs. Birkbeck, — Birkbeck, Esq. (of Leyton), Miss Gurney, and
Mrs. Gurney (all executed at Leyton), 1824.

PORTRAITS IN WATER-COLOURS 257
Miss Kingscote, Miss C. Kingscote, Miss Fanny Sheppard, and
Mrs. Wedgewood (all executed at Kingscote), 1825.
Mrs. Dumaresq (whole-length), 1828.
Master Charles Collins (son of William Collins, R.A.), 1830.
Miss Johnstone (for the Earl of Essex), 1831.
Miss Stephens (the singer), 1831. Old Masters, 1883.*
Miss Flint (of Canterbury), 1832.
Thomas Flint, Esq. (of Margate) ; also Mrs. T. Flint, 1833.
Abraham Flint, Esq. (of Canterbury), 1833.
Francis Flint, Esq. (of Stroud), 1833.
Mrs. Daniel (mother of Rev. E. T. Daniel), 1835. (Engraved.)
Chambers Hall, Esq. (four portraits), 1835.
Portrait of a child — 'Sally' (small, whole-length), 1835. R.A.
(Sold to C. Hall, Esq.)
Portrait of a child — ' Polly ' (small, whole-length), 1835. R.A.
Lady Frances Harley (small, whole-length), T835. R.A.
Rev. G. Marsh (engraved) ; also Mrs. G. Marsh (two portraits),
1835-
Mrs. Marsh, 1835.
Alexander Bailey, Esq, 1835.
Rev. E. T. Daniel (for C. Hall, Esq.), 1835.
Miss Wildman (small, whole-length), 1836. R.A.
Portrait-group of Mrs. Wildman and boy, 1836. R.A.
Albin Martin, Esq. (for C. Hall, Esq.), 1836.
Miss Wilton (whole-length), 1836.
Portrait-group — Miss Grubb, with brother and sister (small, whole-
lengths), 1836. R.A, 1838.
Sydenham Malthus, Esq.
Mrs. Smith (late Miss Batten); also Miss Charlotte Batten, 1836.
Major Williams, 1 836.
Mrs. Harry Martin (whole-length), 1837.
The Rev. W. F. Groves (of Zeals, Dorset, whole-length), 1837.
Reginald Bray, Esq, and Mrs. Bray, 1838.
Major Beamish, 1838. (Engraved.)
Lady Mary Fitzmaurice (infant daughter of the Countess of Kerry,
small, whole-length, with dog), 1838. R.A, 1839.
Portrait-group of Mrs. Huddleston and children, 1838. R.A,
1839.
* The words 'Old Masters,' or (later) ' O.M,' mean that the portrait or
picture was -exhibited in the Winter Exhibition of the Royal Academy in 1883.
vol. 11. 37

258 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
The Rev. Harry Martin (whole-length), 1838.
Mrs. Alexander Trotter, 1838.
The Rev. J. P. Blencowe, 1838. (Engraved.)
The infant daughter of Le Comte de Pollon, 1838.
Dr. Crotch, 1839. R.A.
The Countess of Mount Edgecombe (whole-length, for Lord
Shelbome), 1838. R.A, 1840.
Patrick Talbot, Esq. (for Lord Talbot), 1839.
The Hon. and Rev. Arthur Talbot (whole-length), 1839.
Mrs. Talbot (whole-length), 1839.
Lord Ingestre (whole-length), 1839.
Portrait-group of Mrs. W. S. Fry and children (small, whole-
lengths), 1840. R.A, 1841.
The Rev. F. Fowler, 1840.
Lady Perry, 1841.
Lady Heywood, 1841.
Master Heywood (son of Sir B. Heywood, small, whole-length),
1842.
Master E. Heywood (small, whole-length), 1842.
Portraits (in group) of Lady Mary Lambton and Lady Emily
Lambton (daughters of Earl Grey), 1841.
— Grundy, Esq. (of Manchester, whole-length), 1842.
Portrait-group — the two children of Jonathan Peel, Esq, 1843.
Dr. Stanley (Bishop of Norwich), 1843. R.A., 1844.
General B. Espartero, 1843. (Engraved.)
The Duchess of Victoria (wife of the above), 1843.
Lady Beauchamp, 1843.
C. Kerr, Esq, 1844.
R. B. Lopez, Esq. ; also Miss Lopez, 1844.
Lady Kerry, 1844.
Miss Methuen, 1844.
F. Tollemache, Esq., 1844.
Rev. — Bury (of the Isle of Wight), 1844.
Henry Colman, Esq. (of Boston, U.S.), 1845.
Dr. Mackenzie, 1845.
Master Ormsby (of Brighton — whole-length), 1846.
— Methuen, Esq. (eldest son of Lord Methuen), 1846.
Master Lopez (whole-length), 1846.
Miss Mitford, 1846.
Samuel Bagster, senior (drawn at Windsor), May, 1849.

[ 259 ]

OIL PAINTINGS : LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-
PICTURES.
'A Study from Nature' (io by 12 inches), 1807. Exhibited at
the Royal Academy the same year.
' A View near Reading,' 1807. R. A.*
'Fishermen — A Scene from Nature' (panel, 14 by 20 inches),
1807. Brit. Inst, 1808.
'Fishermen' (30 by 36 inches), 1808, R.A. Painted for Mr.
Ridley Colborne.
'Removing Timber — Autumn' (26 by 34J inches), 1808. Brit.
Inst, 1809, gained the prize of 50 guineas offered in 1808 by
the Institution for the best landscape painted that year. The
principal figure is a portrait of the father of W. Mulready,
R.A. Exhibited at the Old Masters, 1883.
' Landscape — Morning,' 1809. R.A.
' A Cottage Door ' (about 18 by 14 inches), 1809. Brit. Inst, 1810.
'View ofthe Beach, Hastings,' 1809, Brit. Inst, 1810.
' Fishermen Waiting for the Return of the Ferry-boat [Fishing-
boat?], Hastings ' (upright panel, 12 by 8 inches), 1810. R.A.
Brit. Inst, 181 1. Purchased by the Earl of Camden at the
Brit. Inst.
' A Scene on the Bank of the Thames' (28 by 36 inches), 18 10.
Brit. Inst, 181 1.
' Fishing-boats — A Scene from Nature ' (panel, 20 by 24 inches),
1810. Brit. Inst , 181 1.
' The Quoit Players ' (panel, 32 by 41 inches), 1810. Brit. Inst,
1 8 1 1. Purchased at the exhibition by Sir Thomas Baring.
Bought at the sale of the latter's collection (1848) by Creswick,
the dealer, for 230 guineas, and subsequently sold to George
Simpson, Esq, for 1,000 guineas. Old Masters, 1883.
* When the year is not given^ the picture was exhibited the same year as
painted.

260 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
'The Ducking — A Scene from Nature,' 1811. R.A.
'A Scene on the Coast near Dover' (16 by 18 inches), 1811.
Brit. Inst, 1812. Spring Gardens,* 1816.
'A View on the Thames' (16 by 18 inches), 1811. Brit. Inst,
1812. Spring Gardens, 1816.
' Fishing Houses' (small), 181 1.
'The Dairy — Morning' (33 by 31 inches), 1811. Brit. Inst,
1812.
' Washerwomen's Cottages, Bayswater, in 1811 ' (18 by 24 inches).
Retouched and worked all over, 1871, for Mr. White.
'View from Window, Edgware Road,' 181 2. Retouched, 1865.
'The Gravel-Pits' (25 by 39 inches), 1812. Brit. Inst, 1813.
Sold at the Liverpool exhibition (1813) for 45 guineas.
Purchased (1847) by Creswick for ^220.
Replica, with additions (25 by 39 inches), 1857. Old Masters,
1883. Lent by Ralph Brocklebank, Esq.
Replica, finished sketch (panel, 12 by 19 inches).
*' The -Bird Catcher — A Scene from Nature.' Also known as
'Bayswater in 1814' (37 by 51 inches), 1813. Retouched,
with additions, in 1859. Brit. Inst, 1814. Old Masters,
1883. Sold at Christie's, 1891, for 750 guineas.
*' Evening-view in Wales ' (24 by 36 inches), 1813. Sold to Mr.
Chance. Retouched, i860.
'Midday, Wales,' 1813. Spring Gardens, 181 5.
'Morning' (small), 1813. Spring Gardens, 1815.
'Fishing-boats, Hastings' (small), 1814. Painted for Mr. S.
Woodburn.
*' Fishing-boats, Hastings' (upright panel, 9 by 6 inches),
1815.
*' Windmill' (small), 1814.
'The Fair upon the Thames when frozen over in January, 1814'
(small), 1 8 14. Sold to General Maitland.
'Coast Subject, Fishing-boats' (small), 1814. For Mr. S.
Woodburn.
*' Barges on the Thames,' 1815.
*' Afternoon — Going to Milk ' (5 by 6 inches), 18 14.
'Milking,' 1814-15. Spring Gardens, 1814.
*' Snowdon from Dolwydellan' (evening), 1814.
* The show rooms of the Society of Painters in Oil and Water Colours.
After this all pictures exhibited there the year of painting will be marked thus *

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 261
' Distant View of Snowdon,' 1816. Brit. Inst.
'Pike Pool, Derbyshire' (panel), 1815. Painted for Mr. S.
Bagster to illustrate the 'Complete Angler.' Retouched,
1871.
*'A View in Dovedale, Derbyshire' (panel, 7 J by 12 inches),
1815. Old Masters, 1883. Lent by A. T. Hollingsworth,
Esq.
A second picture with this title was painted in 1815.
*' Crossing the River Ford — North Wales' (morning), 1814.
Retouched (1871) for Mr. Dixon of Wolverhampton.
*' A Fine Evening after Rain — A Scene in Wales' (panel, 17 by
26 inches), 1815. Bought by Mr. Tomkinson.
'Shepherds' Amusement' (40 by 50 inches), 18 15. Spring-
Gardens, 1816. Retouched and exhibited at the Brit. Inst.
in 1836 as ' Evening.' Sold to Mr. R. Thomas in 1846 •
afterwards bought by Mr. Gibbons for 250 guineas.
*' The Haymakers' Repast — A Scene in Wales,' 1815. Retouched
in 1850.
*' Fishing-boats ' (or 'Shipping'), 1816.
' Hanson Toot, View in Dovedale, Derbyshire ' (36 by 48 inches),
1815. Spring Gardens, 1816. Retouched in 1854, also in
1870, for Mr. Dixon, of Wolverhampton. Christie's, 1873.
*' Evening,' 1816.
'View on the River Kennet' (near Newbury), 1815. Spring
Gardens, 1816. Brit. Inst, 1826. Sold to Mr. Blackie,
1 83 1. Retouched, 1868.
*'A View near Steep Hill, Isle of Wight' (small), 1816. Sold
to Mr. Vines.
Replica, 18 16, for Mr. Thos. Landseer, senr.
* ' A Potato Field ' (view in the Isle of Wight), (small), 1 8 1 6. Sold
to Mr. A. Robertson.
Replica (panel, 10 by 13 inches), 1829. Brit. Inst, 1830. Sold
to Mr. Thomas, 1846. Old Masters, 1883. James Orrock,
Esq.
' Forest Scene, with Bark Render^ ' (panel, 8J by 6J inches),
1816. Old Masters, 1883. Hubert Martineau, Esq.
*'Near Windsor Forest' (millboard, 7 by 10 inches), 1816.
Replica, with variation (panel, 9 by 15 inches), 1834. Brit. Inst,
1835. Purchased at the exhibition by Mr. Vernon. Now
in the National Gallery.

262 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' A Fall of Timber ' (or ' Falling Timber '), (40 by 50 inches),
1816. Spring Gardens, 181 7. In the summer exhibition
ofthe Brit. Inst, 1825, being ' Pictures by Living Artists ofthe
English School.' Title in catalogue ' Woodcutters — A Scene
in Windsor Forest' Purchased in 1817 by J. Alnutt, Esq,
of Clapham (for 50 guineas), who sold it through Mr. Colls
to Mr. Gibbons for ^250 (1846).
Replica (with variations — ' sketchy ' — 30 by 43 inches). Sold to
Mr. Thomas, 1846; Christie's, 1848, for 200 guineas, and
again to Mr. Birch, of Birmingham, for 300 guineas. Old
Masters, 1883, as ' Meat in the Wood.'
*'A View near Shanklin, Isle of Wight,' 1817. Bought in
exhibition by Mr. Vines.
'A Study of Trees' (near Thame), (18 by 25 inches), 18 17.
Retouched in 1868. Old Masters, 1883. (Henry A. Brassey,
Esq.)
*' A View at Niton,' 1817.
** Mid-day' — sheep lying under tree (panel, 9 by 15 inches),
1818. (Engraved.)
Replica (enlarged). Finished 1847. Sold to Mr. Gibbons.
*' Dairy — Morning' (small upright), 1818. Spring Gardens, 1819.
*'Isle of Wight by Moonlight' (panel, 8 by 12 inches), 1818.
(Companion to Steep Hill, Isle of Wight.) Painted for
Mr. Vines.
*'John Preaching in the Wilderness,' 1818 (38 by 53 inches).
Spring Gardens, 1818. Retouched and finished 1838, and
exhibited at Brit. Inst, 1839. Purchased at the private view
by Sir Thos. Baring for 150 guineas. Exchanged by Sir
Thos. Baring, 1841, for the picture of 'Flight into Egypt' in
Brit. Inst, 1841. International Exhibition, 1862. Old
Masters, 1883. (Mrs. Grove.)
*' Evening' (small), 1818-19. Spring Gardens, 1819.
'Sheep ' (small), 1818. To Mr. Holmes in exchange.
*' View near Windsor Forest,' 1819. Brit. Inst, 1826.
*' Twilight' (small, upright), 18 19.
*' Windmill,' 1819. Sold to T. M. Belisario, Esq.
Replica (with variations), 1830. Brit. Inst, 1831.
*' Evening, Bayswater,' 1818. Sold to Mr. Vines.
[Replica ?]. Sold to Mr. Belisario for £16. Retouched 1856.
Sold at Foster's in 1857 for 100 guineas.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 263
'Barges' (on the Thames), (small, upright), 1819. Companion
to 'Fishing-Boats,' 18 15. Painted for Mr. White, engraver.
*' Evening— Storm Clearing Off,' 1819. To Mr. Hall, of South
ampton, in exchange for the picture of ' Itchen Ferry ' painted
for him. In 1846 in the possession of Mr. Gibbons.
*'East Window of Netley Abbey,' 18 19 (painted on the spot),
(39 by 49 inches). Spring Gardens, 1820. Old Masters,
1883. In the possession of the family.
?'Windsor Forest — A Forest Scene,' 18 18. Sold to Mr. Robson
for 85 guineas.
'Windsor Forest' (Children Picking Flowers), 1819. Sold to
Mr. S. Woodburn for ^30.
'View of Southampton' (18 by 31 inches), 1819. Painted at
Southampton.
'Fine Evening after Rain ' (North Wales). See 1815.
A Replica (varied) of this subject for Mr. Tomkinson, in exchange
for a 42 guinea pianoforte, 1820.
Second Replica, smaller, for Mr. J. Harman, Governor of the
Bank of England, 1820. (30 guineas.)
Third Replica (14J by 23 inches) for Mr. Pepper, 30 guineas
(1820).
Fourth Replica sold at the Edinburgh Exhibition for 35 guineas
(1822).
Fifth Replica, 1829, sold at the Manchester Exhibition in 1829
for 50 guineas.
Sixth Replica (panel, 15 by 23 inches), 1836. Sold to Mr.
Thomas, 1846, for 50 guineas. Old Masters, 1883. Sold at
the Price Sale (Christie's), April, 1892, for 1,000 guineas.
Replica (sketch in oil, 7 by 12 inches). In the possession of
the Linnell family. Old Masters, 1883.
*' Woodcutters' Repast' (panel, 9 by 15 inches), 1820. In the
summer exhibition ofthe Brit. Inst, 1825. Brit. Inst, 1827.
Sold to the Hon. A. Ellis for 35 guineas.
Replica, 1826 (panel, 9 by 15 inches). Purchased by Mr. Web
ster, R.A, 1846, for 40 guineas. Old Masters, 1883. Now
in the possession of Jas. Orrock, Esq.
Replica, 1830.
'Kingsey Village, Buckinghamshire,' 1821-2. R.A, 1822. 'A
Village Scene,' Brit. Inst, 1827, when purchased by Sir Geo.
Crew, of Calke Abbey, Derbyshire, for 100 guineas.

264 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Replica (small), ' Kingsey Village' (7 by 10 inches).
Replica (varied), 'View near Kingsey, Bucks.' Brit. Inst, 1834.
*' The Young Gleaner' (panel, 7 by 5 inches), 1820. Brit. Inst,
1827. Sold to Mr. James Brown in 1829.
*'The Windmill' (42 by 48 inches), 1821. R.A. ('.Landscape').
Brit. Inst, 1824 ('Windmill'). Old Masters, 1883. [The
description agrees exactly, but the size given is different —
35 by 42 inches.] Sold to Thomas, 1846, for ^100. Sold
by Foster, 1856, for 500 guineas; at Christie's in 1891 for
^800.
'The Radish-Stall by Candlelight' (small), 1822. R.A. Brit.
Inst, 1827, where purchased by Lord Ellenborough.
Replica (smaller). Sold to Mr. Webster.
'Windsor Forest ' (small), 1822.
' Moonlight ' (Moonrise), (24 by 24 inches), 1822. R.A. Brit.
Inst, 1823. Retouched 1868.
' The Anglers — Sunset ' ( 1 8 by 2 3 inches) ,1822. Sold at Christie's
in 1890 for 145 guineas.
'Southampton from the River near Netley Abbey' (14 by 36
inches), 1824-5. Painted for Mr. Hall, of Southampton.
' Itchin Ferry ' (1825), (14 by 36 inches). Brit. Inst, 1828.
'Isle of Wight from Lymington Quay' (n by 15 inches), 1825.
Sold to Mr. E. T. Daniel for 30 guineas. Sold at Christie's
in 1883 for ,£409 1 os.
Replica (panel, 15 by 18 inches), 1826. Brit. Inst, 1829. Sold
to Mr. John Morris for 35 guineas.
'Mid-day' ('Sheep Reposing'), (panel, 9 by 15 inches), 1826.
Brit Inst, 1827.
'View at Southampton' (panel, 8 by 10 inches), 1825. Brit.
Inst, 1826. Sold to Sir J. Leicester for 25 guineas.
Replica, 1830.
Replica, drawing in water-colour, 1863.
1 Hampstead' (panel, 6 by 9 inches). Old Masters, 1883. Lent
by Linnell family.
' A View near Hampstead ' (with donkey), 1826 (panel, 8 by io|
inches), Brit. Inst, 1827.
' Hampstead, North End ' (panel, 7 £ by 9^ inches). Old Masters'.
1883. Linnell family.
'Evening, the Vicinity of a Farm,' 1827. (Hampstead.) R.A.
Sold to Thomas, 1846. Afterwards sold for ^70.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 265

'A Sandy Road' (36 by 42 inches), 1828-9. R-A., l829. Brit.
Inst, 1830. Retouched all over 1839; again in 1847 f°r
Mr. Gillott.
' A Village near a River, Showery Weather' (panel), 1828. Brit.
Inst, 1829, where purchased by Mr. Turner, of Clapham,
for 65 guineas.
Replica, 1830 (rather larger.)
'A Study from Nature' (millboard, 6 by 8 inches), 1828.
A bank and pond on Hampstead Heath. Brit. Inst,
1829.
Replica (panel, 8 by 10 inches), 1831. Brit. Inst, 1832. Sold to
Mr. Plestow.
'Mercury and Argus ' (panel, 14 by 12 inches), 1828. Water-
colour finished in oil. Brit. Inst, 1829. Retouched 1859,
and again in 1876. At one time in the possession of the
Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P.
'Interior of a Welsh Cottage' (panel, 15 by 16 inches), 1828.
Brit. Inst, 1829. Sold to Lord Selsey for 30 guineas.
' Christ and the Woman of Samaria,' or ' Jacob's Well ' (panel, 1 o
by 8 inches), 1828. Brit. Inst, 1829. Old Masters, 1883,
Linnell family.
' Milking' (small upright panel), 1828. Brit. Inst, 1829. Given
to Mr. Mulready.
Replica (larger — 16 by 21 inches), 1830. Brit. Inst, 1831. Sold
to Mr. Thomas, 1846, and by him to J. Gibbons, Esq, for
100 guineas. Sold at Christie's, 1883 ('Milking Time') for
' The Dairy Farm '¦ — a Welsh Farm- Yard (panel, 20 by 30 inches),
1828-9. Brit. Inst, 1830. Purchased, 1843, by B. Lopez,
Esq. Sold at Phillips's in 1848 for ,£194.
Sketch (first) of this [1827] (millboard on panel, 10 by 14
inches), finished 1847, and sold for 125 guineas. Sold at
Christie's (Eden collection), for 600 guineas.
'Fishermen, A View near Twickenham' (panel, 9 by 15 inches),
1829. Brit. Inst, 1830. Sold to Mr. Norris. Old Masters,
1883. Sold at Christie's, 1892, for 220 guineas.
' A Heath Scene,' North End, Hampstead (panel, 9 by 1 5 inches),
1829. Brit. Inst, 1830. Sold to the Earl of Essex, 35
guineas.
Replica, 1830.

266 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
'Sheepfold, Evening' (panel, io by 12 inches), 1829. Brit. Inst-,
1830.
'The Farmer's Boy' (panel, 24 by 18 inches), 1829-30. R.A,
1830. Given to Mr. Daniel. Old Masters, 1883.
Replica (small), 1830.
'The Wild-Flower Gatherers ' (8 by 10 inches), 1830. Brit. Inst,
1 83 1. Purchased by J. Sheepshanks, Esq, and now at South
Kensington.
'The Cow- Yard' (panel), 1831. Brit. Inst, 1832. In the
Sheepshanks Collection, South Kensington.
'Landscape, Morning' — (A Boy Minding Sheep), 1831. Painted
from a sketch made in Porchester Terrace in 1830. Brit.
Inst, 1832. Sold to Mr. Daniel forj>oj2;uineas ; at Phillips's
(1848) for £84.
'Unlading Boats' (small), 1832. Brit. Inst. 1833.
'Fish-Market, Hastings,' 1833 or 1834. R.A, 1834; Brit. Inst,
1835. Sold at Phillips's (1848) for ^136 10s.
'The Sand-Pit, Hampstead Heath' (panel, 9 by 15 inches), 1834.
Brit. Inst, 1835. Art Treasures, Manchester. Sold (1849)
to Mr. Bayley (Yorkshire) for 90 guineas. Old Masters,
1883.
' Christ's Appearance to the Two Disciples journeying to Emmaus '
(panel 22 by 30^ inches), 1834-5. R.A, 1835; Brit. Inst,
1836. Sold in 1838 to the Art Union for 60 guineas, and
engraved for the Society by the artist.
'Windsor Forest' (panel, 9 by 15 inches), 1834. Brit. Inst,
1835. Purchased then by Mr. Vernon for 30 guineas. Now
at South Kensington.
Replica (larger), 1837, R.A. Brit. Inst, 1838. To Mr. Thomas^
1846.
'The Fruit-Stall ' (panel, 12 by 10 inches), 1834-5. Brit. Inst,
1835. Art Treasures, Manchester. Purchased by Sir
Thomas Baring for 50 guineas. Old Masters.
'Fishing-Boats' (panel, 9 by 15 inches), 1835. Brit Inst, 1836.
To Mr. Thomas, 1846.
'The Hollow Tree' (or 'The Nest'), 1836. From an oil study
at Bayswater, 1834. R.A, 1836. Brit. Inst, 1837.
Replica, ' Nest ' (small, millboard on panel, 10 by 14 inches),
1.859. Old Masters.
Replica, ' Nest' (kitcat), i860.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 267
'Jeanie Deans and Madge Wildfire in the Churchyard ' (small),
1836. Painted for Messrs. Fisher and Son, Caxton Press,
to be engraved for a new edition of Scott's works.
'View near Thame' (panel, 12 by 15 inches), 1836. Bought
from Mr. Thomas by Mr. Gillott, and retouched for him,
1847.
'View of Southampton' (by Moonlight), 1836. R.A, 1837.
To Mr. Thomas, 1846.
'Noon' (29 by 38^ inches), 1839. Brit. Inst. 1840. To
Mr. Thomas, 1846. Old Masters. \ <g % 1> ^ * C"
'Hampstead' (panel). Painted on the spot in 1827; finished
at home about 1839. To Mr. Thomas (1846), and by him
to Mr. Gillott. ('Gipsies' in Brit Inst, 1840.)
'Philip baptizing the Eunuch '(39 by 54 inches), 1840. R.A.
Sir Thomas Baring, 150 guineas. Subsequently bought by
Mr. Rutherford for ^500.
'The Watering-Place ' (24 by 30 inches), 1840. Brit. Inst, 1841.
To Mr. Lopez, 1843. Retouched 1857.
'The Flight into Egypt' (38 by 54 inches), 1840-41. Brit. Inst,
j 841. Exchanged with Sir T. Baring for ' St. John Preach
ing.' Old Masters. Lent by C. W. F. Fryer, Esq.
' The Cottage Door,' or ' Winding the Skein ' (33J by 57 \ inches),
1841. RA. Brit. Inst, 1842. Mr. Thomas, 1846.
Replica (small), 1848.
Replica (panel, 10 by 14 inches), i860. To Mr. Fallows, Man
chester. In the Old Masters (1883) as ' Winding the Skein.'
(George Gurney, Esq.)
' A Forest Scene from Nature ' (three-quarter canvas), 1842-3.
Brit. Inst, 1843. To Mr. Thomas, 1846; by him to
Mr. Gibbons, 1847.
'The Supper at Emmaus ' (canvas), 1842-3. R.A, 1843; Brit.
Inst, 1844. To Mr. Thomas, 1846. Purchased by
Mr. Gillott for ^500. Retouched for him.
'Windmill'— A Landscape with Cows in Water (17 by 21 inches),
1844; Brit. Inst, 1845. Bought then by R. Vernon, Esq,
for 50 guineas. Now in the Vernon Collection at the
National Gallery.
Replica (varied), being the sketch for the above, finished for
Mr. Wethered in 1848 for 150 guineas (canvas, 17 by 21
inches.)

268 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' River Scene — Boy Fishing ' (panel, 12 by 15 inches), 1846. Old
Masters.
' A Wood Scene ' — Woodcutters and children gathering chips
(canvas, kitcat), 1844. Brit. Inst, 1845. Sold to Mr. Brown,
of Chester, for 125 guineas (he having a prize of ^80 in
the Art Union).
'A Spring Wood Scene' (26 by 38 inches), 1845-6. Brit. Inst,
1846. Retouched 1848. To Mr. Birch, of Birmingham
(1850), with the sketch of 'Philip,' for 350 guineas. At
the Old Masters as 'The Fallen Monarch.' (J. B. Dug-
dale, Esq.)
'Abraham entertaineth Three Angels' (panel, 11 by 17 J inches),
1845-6. Brit. Inst, 1846. To Mr. Cocksholt, holder of
Art Union prize of £&o. Old Masters. (The late David
Price, Esq.)
'The Young Brood' — Chickens (panel, 2i| by 27^ inches), 1846.
Sold (1846) to J. Hogarth, to be engraved in the Finden
Gallery (200 guineas).
' A Mountain Road, N. Wales ' (canvas, 17 by 25 inches), 1846.
An early picture, ' Travellers in Wales,' 1814. Repainted all over,
and altered 1846, and named ' A Mountain Road.' Brit.
Inst, 1847. Sold to Mr. Gillott.
'ADell' (panel, 10J by 12 inches), 1846-7. Brit. Inst, 1847.
Mr. Dillon, of Croydon, 1854.
'The Mill' (panel, 18 by 21 inches), 1846-7. R.A, 1847.
Finished for Mr. Gibbons.
' Mid-day — " While nature lies around deep - lulled in noon " '
jThomson)^i-847_. R.A. To Mr. Gibbons._, ...— -
'A Hillside Farm' (i6~ by 23^ inches), 1847. Finished for
Mr. Gillott. Brit. Inst, 1848. Sold at Christie's in 1881 for
^£950. Old Masters as ' Harvesting.' (D. Thwaites, Esq.)
' The Last Gleam before the Storm ' (canvas, 35 by 50 inches),
1847-8. Brit. Inst, 1848. To Mr. Gillott, 1848; subse
quently to Mr. Eden, of Lytham. Retouched 1863. Sold
at Mr. Eden's sale (1874) for 2,500 guineas. Old Masters.
(Henry Mason, Esq.)
Replica (sketch, varied), 1848.
'The Eve of the Deluge' (canvas, 59 by 88 inches), 1847-8.
R.A, 1848. To Mr. Gillott. Sold at his sale (1872) for
,£1,099. 0^ Masters. (Angus Holden, Esq, M.P.)

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 269
Sketch of this subject (1850) for Mr. Gillott. Retouched 1858.
Replica (second sketch, varied), showing the disc of the sun
(panel, 25 by 34 inches), 1858. Sold at Christie's in 1881'
for ^399-
Replica (sketch, panel, n| by 15 J inches). Old Masters. (The
Linnell Family.)
' The Return of Ulysses' (canvas, 48 by 72 inches), 1848. R.A,
1849; Manchester Art Treasure Exhibition, 1857. Painted
for Mr. Gillott. Sold at Christie's, 1887, for .£1,470. Old
Masters. (John Graham, Esq.)
'Fishermen — Evening' (kitcat), 1848. Also known as the'
' Fishing Party.' Painted for Mr. Gillott.
Replica. 'Sketch of Fishing Party,' 1848.
'A Summer Evening: Regent's Park' (canvas, 15 by 23^ inches),
1848. Brit Inst, 1849. Old Masters. (Richard News-
ham, Esq.)
'The Flight into Egypt' (38 by 53 inches), 1848. Brit. Inst,
1849. Bought by Gillott, the same year, for 300 guineas.
Retouched and in part altered, 1867. Sold at Christie's,
1890, for 1,079 guineas.
'Watering Cows' (small), 1848. Painted for Mr. Wethered.
' Sleeping Disciples ' (Gethsemane), 1848-9 (canvas, kitcat). Sold
to Mr. Gillott for ,£210, 1849; afterwards bought by Mr.
Naylor, of Liverpool, for £700.
'A Country Road' (canvas, kitcat), 1849. Painted for Mr.
Gillott for ^210.
Replica. Sketch, 1849.
'Sand -Pits' (canvas, 38 by 50 inches), 1849. R.A. ; International
Exhibition, 1862. Painted for Mr. Gillott for 300 guineas.
' Hoppers— Evening ' (small), 1849. To Mr. Gillott.
' Evening' (Farm), 1849 (small). To Mr. Gillott.
' Clearing Up.' Also known as 'The Clear-up Shower' (small),
1849. To Mr. Gillott.
'The Hillside Farm' (Upland Farm), Isle of Wight, 1849
(canvas, half length). Painted for Mr. Gillott for 300
guineas. Retouched for Messrs. Agnew and Son in 1859.
Sold with the Mendell Collection for ,£2,300 ; again (1891),
with the Bolckow Collection, for 2,000 guineas. Samuel
Montagu, Esq, M.P, is its present possessor.
Sketch of this Subject, varied.

270 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
'L' Allegro' — Dancing in the chequered shade (panel, 17 by 24
inches), 1849. Old Masters. (Richard Newsham, Esq.)
'Gravel Diggers' — Gravel-Pits (canvas, kitcat), 1849. Painted
for Mr. Gillott.
Sketch (small) of a similar subject.
'Crossing the Brook' (canvas, half length), 1849. Sold to Mr.
Gillott for 2co guineas. R.A, 1850 ; Art Treasures Exhi
bition, Manchester, 1857.
Replica. Sketch, varied.
Also Replica (kitcat). Sold to Mr. Huth.
' Hampstead Heath,' a Sunset with fir trees (panel, 18 by 24
inches), 1849.
'The Purchased Flock' (panel, 18 by 24 inches), 1849. Painted
for Mr. Miller. Brit. Inst, 1850.
'Opening the Gate: Hampstead Heath' (canvas, 27 by 35^
inches), 1850. Brit. Inst. Sold to Mr. Fordham. Pur
chased at Christie's in 1874, by the late Mr. David Price, for
£1,000. Old Masters. Sold at Christie's (Price Col.),
April, 1892, for £798.
Replica, the study for this subject, finished 1858 (panel, 16 by
29 inches).
'Woodcutters' (kitcat), 1849-50. Sold to Mr. Gillott. Same as
'Chips.' Brit. Inst, 1851.
'Harvest' (canvas, kitcat), 1850. Sold to Mr. Gillott for 200
guineas. Retouched in 1854.
' Christ and the Woman of Samaria ' at Jacob's Well (canvas, 38
by 56 inches), 1850. R.A. Painted for Mr. Holmes, of
Birmingham, as a companion to ' Philip Baptizing the
Eunuch.'
Replica (first study, in water-colour, about 1840, 40 by 50 inches ;
finished in oil, 1866). Sold to Mr. Bowring, 1866, for
£1,000. Sold at Christie's, in 1887, for £598.
'Heath Scene, Evening ' (canvas, 48 by 72 inches), 1850. For
Mr. Gillott (300 guineas). This was the ' Hampstead Heath '
of Mr. Gillott's Collection sold at Christie's, in 1872, for
1,660 guineas; again, in 1888, for £1,585.
'Woodlands' (canvas, 40 by 50 inches), 1850. Painted for Mr.
Pennell for £500. R.A, 185 1. Sold at Mr. Gillott's sale,
1872, for 2,500 guineas. Old Masters, 'Moving Timber.'
(Ralph Brocklebank, Esq.)

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 271

' David and the Lion ' (canvas, 54 by 84 inches), 1850. Finished
for Mr. Gillott andsold by him to Mr. Holmes. Retouched
1859, and again 1873, for Mr- White, who sold it for £1,700.
' Ulysses and the Boar ' — Hunting the Boar on Mount Parnassus
(panel, 14 by 21 inches), 1850. For Mr. Gillott. Retouched
in 1859.
' Woodcutter' (14 by 20 inches), 1850.
' The Farm, Evening,' being a View at North End, Hampstead
(panel, 10 by 16 inches), 1850. Brit. Inst, 1851.
--'Morning' — Sheep (canvas, 27! by 35^- inches), 1851. R.A.
Old Masters, ' Landscape with Sheep.' (S. Asheton Critch-
ley, Esq.)
Collins's Farm, North End, Hampstead' (panel, 6\ by 10,
inches), 185 1. Old Masters. (Charles Neck, Esq.)
'Sand Cart' (panel, 26 by 36 inches), 1851. Retouched 1866.
Old Masters. (Holbrook Gaskell, Esq.)
' Death of the Boar' (canvas, 34 by 58 inches), 185 1. Brit. Inst.,
1852. Retouched 1874.
' Boys Fishing ' (canvas, kitcat), 1852. Sold to W. A. Joyce, Esq.
' Sheepfold, Evening' (canvas, kitcat), 1852. Sold to Mr. Todd
(400 guineas). Art Treasures Exhibition, Manchester, 1857.
Replica (half length, 40 by 50 inches), 1858.
Replica, Drawing.
' David mocking Abner,' 1 Sam. xxvi. (canvas, 40 by 50 inches),
1853. Sold to E. Gambart for 300 guineas.
'The Timber Waggon' (canvas, 34 by 56 inches), 1852. R.A.
Painted for Mr. Oxenham, who had the Paris gold medal for
it. Subsequently bought by the late Mr. David Price for
1,000 guineas. Retouched for Mr. Price in i860. Old
Masters. Sold at the Price Sale (Christie's, April, 1892), for
3,100 guineas.
Study for this Picture, finished 1855.
'The Sear Leaf (canvas, 28 by 36 inches), 1852-3. Sold to
Mr. Oxenham, R.A, 1852. Retouched in 1859 and again
later. Old Masters. (Wakefield Christy, Esq.)
'Barley Harvest, Evening' (canvas, 35^ by 44 inches), 1852.
Sold to Mr. Gambart for 300 guineas. R.A. ; Paris Exhibi
tion, 1855. Sold in 1872 (Gillott sale) for 1,630 guineas.
Old Masters. (Thomas Jessop, Esq.)
Replica (drawing). Fojr Mr. D. White.

272 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
'Fishermen, Evening' (canvas, 25 by 29^ inches), 1847. Painted
for Mr. Gambart. Retouched 1853. Old Masters, ' Land
scape, Evening.' (C. F. Huth, Esq.)
'Travellers' (canvas, 28 by 36 inches), 1852. Finished for Mr.
Gambart. Sold, in 1857, at Foster's, for 280 guineas. Old
Masters, ' Inquiring the Way.' (Mrs. A. J. Brunton.)
' Redstone Wood ' (canvas, 26 by 37 inches), 1852. For Gambart..
' The Wold of Kent ' (canvas, 26 by 37 inches), 1852. Brit Inst,
1853-
' Shallow Rivers ' (panel, 13 by 18 inches), 1852. Brit. Inst, 1853.
Replica (drawing), 1852. For L. Colls.
'View in Surrey' (canvas, 28 by 35 inches), 1852-3. Old
Masters. (Chas. Butler, Esq.)
'A Forest Road' (canvas, 35 by 56 inches), 1853. R.A. ; in
Paris Exhibition, 1855. Sold to Agnew, 1859, for £600.
' Under the Hawthorn ' (canvas, 36 by 54 inches), 1853. For Gam
bart. R.A. International Exhibition, 1862. Sold at Christie's
in 1887 for £1071. Old Masters. (James Taylor, Esq.)
'The Village Spring' (canvas, 28 by 36 inches), 1853. For
Gambart. R.A.
'Sand-Pits' — Hampstead (kitcat), 1853. Sold to Gambart. Old
Masters, ' Hampstead Gravel-Pits.' (Charles Butler, Esq.)
'Harvest Home — Sunset' (canvas, 35 by 57 inches), 1853. Brit
Inst, 1854. To Gambart.
Replica (varied) ' Load of Wheat ' (kitcat).
' The Refuge' — Storm (35 by 57 inches), 1853. P"1- Inst, 1854.
Replica (kitcat), 1853. Retouched, 1859.
Second Replica (kitcat), 1853. Retouched, 1859.
Replica (small drawing).
' On Summer Eve by haunted stream ' (canvas, 27! by 35 inches),
1853. Old Masters. (W. Cuthbert Quilter, Esq.)
Replica (drawing).
' The Covenant with Abraham ' (kitcat), 1853. Sold to Gambart.
Replica (varied, 35^- by 47^ inches). In possession ofthe family.
Sketch of this (small). In possession of the family.
'The Disobedient Prophet' (canvas, 102' by 80 inches), 1851-54.
R.A, 1854; Paris Ex. Universal, 1855. Sold to Agnew,
i860. Old Masters. (Mrs. John Elder.)
Replica (drawing), Agnew.
'The Invitation' (Evnmaus, kitcat), 1853. Retouched, i860.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 273
Replica, in possession ofthe family (27 J by 35J inches), i860.
'The Gleaners' (kitcat), 1854. For Gambart. Sold in 1857 at
Foster's for 240 guineas.
Replica (small), to Wethered.
'Road through the Wood' — Redstone Lane (canvas, 35 \ by 44
inches), 1854. For Gambart, 300 guineas. Sold April,
1890, at Christie's, for £1,102 10s.
'The Donkey ' (canvas, kitcat), 1854. For Hooper and Wass.
'The Brook' (panel, 10 by 7 inches), 1854. Old Masters.
(B. W. Leader, Esq.)
'Heath Scene, Sunset' — Hampstead Heath (canvas, kitcat),
1854. For Hooper and Wass.
'Wheat Harvest' (canvas, 35 by 56J inches), 1854. For
Gambart. Old Masters. (T. D. Pritchard, Esq.)
'Sunset' — Harvest (kitcat), 1854. For Gambart.
'Sheep Reposing' (26 by 37 inches). 1854. For Hooper and
Wass. Old Masters. (James Wilson, Esq.)
'Carrying' — Wheat (canvas, 27 by 39 inches; 26 by 38^ inches),
1854. Painted for Mr. Wethered.
Replica, with variations, 1854-55 (36J by 55 inches). For Mr.
Hooper. Sold, April, 1890, at Christie's as 'The Harvest
Field,' for ,£1,701.
Replica (small sketch). Sold to Mr. L. Huth.
'Harvest Moon' (26 by 39 inches), 1855. Painted for Mr.
Wethered. Sold by Rought to Mr. Louis Huth for 400
guineas.
Replica (original sketch). Finished in 1858 for Mr. Wethered.
'Reaping' (canvas, 26 by 39 inches), 1855. Painted for Mr.
Wethered. Afterwards bought by C. F. Huth, Esq.
Replica (small). First sketch, finished in 1858 for Wethered.
Replica (drawing), without the figure on the right hand, 1863
(10 by 14 inches),
'Harvest P'ield ' (canvas, 37 by 56 inches), 1855. Painted for
Mr. Hooper for 400 guineas.
' Timber Waggon ' (small study of ' The Timber Waggon ' of 1852,
finished in 1855; 17 by 24 inches). Sold to Wethered. Old
Masters. (A. T. Hollingsworth, Esq.)
' Leith Hill from Redhill' (canvas, 18 by 24 inches), 1855. Sold
to Mr. Wethered.
Replica (24 by 30 inches). Painted for Mr. Stokes.
VOL. II. 3^

274 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
The Woodcutters' (canvas, 21 by 28 inches), 1855. Old
Masters. (J. A. Gardiner, Esq.)
'Hampstead Heath' (panel, 18 by 24 inches), 1855. Old
Masters. (George Gurney, Esq.) /
'The Harvest Cradle ' (36 by 56 inches), 1855. For Hooper and
Wass.
' The Dusty Road ' — Sheep passing a cart in the road, (canvas,
28 by 36 inches), 1855. Sold to Mr. L. Huth for £300.
Sold, May, 1868, at Mr. Fallow's sale, for 1,000 guineas.
'The Stirrup Cup' (panel, 10 by 12 inches), 1855. For
Wethered
' Gleaners' (panel, 14J by 18 inches), 1855 or 1856.
' Harvest Sunset ' (canvas, 37 by 52 inches), 1856. R.A. Painted
for L. Huth, Esq. Sold by Mr. L. Huth to Mr. Vokins, and
by the latter to Mr. Bigg. Sold at Mr. Bigg's sale, 1868, for
1,050 guineas. Old Masters. (Sir T. Fowell Buxton, Bart.)
Replica (first sketch), finished 1859 (19^ by 28 inches).
'Storm in Harvest' (canvas, 37 by 53 inches), 1855-56. Finished
for Mr. Hooper. Sold at Christie's (i860) for 630 guineas, and
subsequently to Sir William G. Armstrong. Old Masters.
Replica (with variations, 49 by 72 \ inches), 1873. Sold to
Mr. White. Old Masters. Now in the possession of Samuel
Montagu, Esq, M.P.
Replica. Sketch finished for Wethered (canvas, 18 by 24 inches).
'Sand-Pits' — Heath, Sandhill (canvas, 36 by 48- inches), 1856.
Old Masters. (J. Broughton Dugdale, Esq.)
Replica. Original sketch for the above, finished 1856 for
Mr. Colls (panel, 18 by 24 inches).
'Return from Market' (canvas, 37 by 55 inches), 1856. Retouched,
1857. Painted for Hooper and Wass.
'Timber Waggon' (canvas, 36 by 48 inches), 1856. For Hooper
and Wass.
' Heath ' (canvas, 18 by 24 inches), 1856. Painted for Mr. Smart.
Closs was tried at the Old Bailey in 1857 for fraud in
selling a copy of this picture, with a forged signature, as the
original.
'The White Cow' (canvas, 18 by 24 inches), 1856. Mr. L. Huth.
'Sunny Gleams ' (canvas, 36 by 52 inches), 1856-57. Hooper
and Wass. Old Masters, 'The White Cloud.' (John
Graham, Esq.)

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 275
'Labour' (panel, 26 by 39 inches), 1857. Engraved in the Art
Journal. Painted for Mr. Wethered for £300. Sold at
Mr. Fallow's sale (1868) for 1,000 guineas.
' Rest ' (panel, 26 by 39 inches), 1857. Engraved in Art Journal.
Painted for Mr. Wethered for £300. Sold at Mr. Fallow's
sale for 1,000 guineas. Old Masters. (C. F. H. Bolckow,
Esq.)
'A Clear-up Shower' (canvas, \g\ by 28 inches), 1857.
'The Rise ofthe River' (canvas, 37 by 52 inches), 1857.
' The Farm' (canvas, 17 by 26 inches), 1857.
Replica (36J by 56 inches), 1858.
'Shepherds' (canvas, 37 by 55 inches), f858. Painted for
L. Huth, Esq. R.A. International Exhibition, 1862.
'The Brow of the Hill' (canvas, 21 by 30 inches), 1858-
Exhibited at the French Gallery, 1858. Engraved in the
Art Journal va. 1859, and called ' Sunshine.'
'Evening in the Cornfield' (canvas, 26 \ by 38 inches), 1858.
Brit. Inst, 1859. Old Masters. (F. Pennington, Esq, M.P.)
'Clearing Up' (canvas, 19 by 31 inches), 1858.
' The Ford' (26 by 37 inches), 1858.
'Under the Beech' (canvas, 19 j by 28 inches), 1858. Old
Masters, ' The Old Oak.' (H. J. Turner, Esq.)
' The Farm ' (canvas, 35 by 56 inches), 1858-59.
¦'Evening' — Sheepfold (canvas, 40 by 50 inches), 1859. R.A.
International Exhibition, 1862. Sold at Mr. Unwin's sale,
Sheffield, 1866, for 1,300 guineas. Old Masters. (Mrs. Beau
mont.)
'The Paddock' (panel, 8 by n inches), 1859.
'Spring Wood Scene ' (kitcat), 1859.
' My Garden '—Lady Reading, and Children with a Dog (canvas,
24 by 30 inches), 1859.
'Barley' — Sunset (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1859.
'The Thunder Cloud ' (canvas, 21 by 29 inches), 1859.
' Balaam ' (canvas, 20 by 26 inches), 1859.
'Disobedient Prophet' (canvas, 20 by 26 inches), 1859.
' River Country ' (canvas, 28 by 39J inches), 1859.
' Cornfield Cradle ' (panel, 27 by 39 inches), 1859. Not a replica
of a former picture.
'The Keg," companion to the above (canvas, 27 by 39 inches),
1859.

276 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
' The Green Lane ' (canvas, 28 by 36 inches), i860. Old Masters,
' The Tramps.' (David Jardine, Esq.)
'Harvest Dinner' (canvas, 39^ by 54J inches), 1859. Inter
national Exhibition, 1862. Sold to Captain Fenton. Bought
by Agnew, at Christie's in 1879, for £1,690.
'Sunset and River' (8 by 10 inches), 1860. (Huth.)
'Road by a River' (8 by 6 inches), i860.
' Isaac and Rebecca' (panel, 10 by 15 inches), i860.
'Shepherd' (kitcat, canvas, 26 by 36 inches), i860. Old
Masters. (Louis Huth, Esq.)
Replica drawing for Agnew.
' Barley ' (panel, 18 by 24 inches), i860. For Agnew.
' Setting Up'— Wheat (canvas, 37 by 55 inches), i860. R.A.
Paris Exhibition, 1867.
Replica (28 by 39 inches), 1869. For R. Brooks. Sold at
Christie's, 187 1, for 890 guineas.
'Meadow' (canvas, 13 by 17 inches), i860. Sketch by his
daughter Elizabeth, finished and painted all over by J. L.
'The Mill' (canvas, kitcat), i860.
'Dairy Farm' (panel, 28 by 39 inches), i860.
' Leith Hill, Surrey' (panel, 13^ by 18 inches), 1861. Old
Masters. (J. A. Baumbach, Esq.)
' Woodcutter ' (20 by 24 inches), 1861. (Agnew.)
' Barley Cart ' (28 by 36 inches), 1861.
'Homeward Bound' — Sunset (27 by 36 inches), 1861. Sold at
Christie's, 1873, for 740 guineas.
' The Brook ' (panel, 20 by 24 inches), 1861.
' The Brow of the Hill,' Sunset (21 by 27 inches), 1861. R.A. in
1866.
'Folding Sheep' — Sunset (canvas, 20 by 30 inches), 1861. Re
touched in 1 87 1.
'Paddock' — Cow (panel, 8 by 10 inches), 1861. Old Masters,
' The White Cow.' (David Price, Esq.)
'Sheep' (8 by 10 inches), 1861.
'Travellers' (canvas, 14 by 18 inches), 1862.
' Gleaner ' (panel, 8 by 10 inches), 1862.
'Carrying Wheat' (canvas, 39 by 54 inches), 1861-62. R.A. in
1862. Sold at Christie's in 1867 for 1,650 guineas. Damaged
by fire in 1874, and repaired for E. F. White (lined and
restored), August, 1874. Old Masters. (S. G. Holland, Esq.)

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 277
Replica (first study) finished 1862 (18 by 24 inches) for Agnew.
Bought by Mr. Somes, of Roehampton, 1866, for £500.
'Sheep' (canvas, 28 by 38 inches), 1862.
'Sheep' (canvas, 28 by 38 inches), 1862. A different subject
from the last.
Replica (sketch), 1862. Sold at Christie's, 1873, for 125 guineas,
to J. W. Adamson, Esq., for whom it was retouched in con
sequence of illusage.
' Reapers ' — Noon (canvas, 39 by 54 inches), 1862. Sold to Mr.
Brooks under promise of exhibition, but not fulfilled ; hence
a duplicate, improved, was painted in 1865. Old Masters,
' Noonday Rest' (Jas. Hall Renton, Esq.)
Replica — 'Mid-day Rest ' (38 by 54 inches), 1865. R.A. Re
touched, 1875. _Replica nf ' Nnnn .' Sold at Christie's, in
1883, for £1,585"" ^~^ ~ ~
Replica (kitcat, 28 by 39 inches), 1871.
Replica — drawing (10 by i6| inches), 1867. In possession of
the family.
'Sunset — Cornfield' (canvas, 40 by 50 inches), 1862. Inter
national Exhibition. R.A, 1863. Sold to Mr. Agnew, and
by him to Captain Fenton as companion to the ' Harvest
Dinner.'
Replica, varied in the figures, etc. (28 by 39 inches), 1873-74.
Replica (drawing, 10 by 14 inches).
' Heath and Common ' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1863.
Replica (small study, 10 by 12 inches).
' Sunset '—Feeding Sheep (panel, 28 by 39 inches), 1863. R.A.
Old Masters. (H. J. Turner, Esq.)
R.eplica study (9 by 12 inches).
Replica study (drawing in water-colour, 9 by 12 inches).
' Sheep in Lane ' (canvas, 20 by 28 inches), 1863.
'The Milking Pail' (canvas, 20 by 30 inches), 1863. Sold at
Christie's, 1892, for 405 guineas.
Replica (canvas, 35J by 55! inches), 1866-68. Sold at Christie's,
1874, for 1,105 guineas. Old Masters, 'Milking Time.'
(J. W. Adamson, Esq.)
Replica (drawing).
' The Cloud ' (panel, 18 by 24 inches), 1863. Sold to Agnew for
£>75- t .
Replica (39 by 54 inches), 1863. Sold to Agnew for £700.

278 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
Replica (drawing in water-colour, io by 12 inches).
' Cornfield ' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1863.
Replica (drawing in water-colour).
' Windsor Forest ' (drawing, 20 by 28 inches).
'Windsor Forest' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1863 (?).
Replica (drawing, 10 by 14 inches).
'Pastoral' — Companion to Windsor Forest (28 by 39 inches),
1863. In 1866 in possession of Mr. Northcote, Forest Hill.
'Sheep' (drawing in water-colour, 10 by 14 inches). Sold to Mr.
Colls for Mr. Birket Foster.
'Barley' (drawing in water-colour). Sold to Mr. Colls for Mr.
Birket Foster.
'A Country Road' (panel, 28 by 39 inches), 1864. R.A. Sold
to Agnew for £350.
Replica (drawing, 10 by 14 inches), 1863.
Drawing, as companion, ' Cows in a Road.'
'Haymakers' (28 by 39 inches), 1864. R.A. Old Masters,
' The Hayfield.' (C. P. Matthews, Esq.) Sold at the Matthews'
sale, 1 89 1.
Replica (drawing, 9^ by 15 inches).
'Harvest Dinner' (panel, io£ by 15 inches), 1864. Old Masters.
(The Linnell family.)
'Sunset' (28 by 39 inches), 1864.
Replica (first study) finished 1864 (panel, 14 by 18 inches). Sold
to G. Simpson, Esq., Reigate, 1865, for £300.
'Traveller' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1864.
'Windsor Forest' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1864.
'Wales' (canvas, 39 by 54 inches), 1863. Sold to Agnew for
£700. Retouched, 1870.
'Over some Wide Watered Shore' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches),
1864.
'Sunset — Gleaners' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1864. Sold at
Christie's, 1874, for 810 guineas.
'Rainbow' (canvas, 20 by 30 inches), 1864.
'Contemplation' 28 by 39 inches), 1865.
'Thunderstorm and Sheep' (20 by 30 inches), 1865.
' Moorlands — Sunset ' — Horses and Cows Watering (28 by 39
inches), 1865.
'Barley-cart' (panel, 19 by 24 inches), 1865. Sold at Christie's,
1879, for 500 guineas.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 279

'The Woodlands' (panel, 28 by 39 inches), 1865. R.A, 1866.
Sold at Christie's, 1874, for 800 guineas. Old Masters.
(George Gurney, Esq.)
' Gee-Up '—Sunset (28 by 39 inches), 1865.
'Southampton Water' (canvas, 28 by .39 inches), 1865-66.
Sold at Mr. A. Tooth's, 1865, for 600 guineas. Old Masters.
(H. J. Turner, Esq.)
'The Bridge Tree' (panel, 18 by 21 inches), 1866.
'Harvest Showers' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1866. R.A, 1867.
Sold at Christie's, 1873, f°r 1,000 guineas.
'Sheejj' (28 by 39 inches), 1866. R.A, 1867. Old Masters.
(Frederick A. Tidd, Esq.)
' Chalk' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1866. R.A, 1867.
'Sunset' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1866. Sent to R.A. 1867,
but not hung. Retouched and sold to Mr. E. F. White,
1872, for £700.
' Surrey Woodlands ' (canvas, 38 by 54 inches), 1867-68. R.A,
1868. Old Masters. (Mrs. W. Moir.)
'Woodland — Timber Waggon' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches),
1867-68.
'Tramps' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1867-68. Sky retouched in
1869 for Agnew.
'Wood' (28 by 39 inches), 1867-68.
' Thirsty Shepherd ' (28 by 39 inches), 1867-68.
' Forest ' (28 by 39 inches), 1867-68.
'Emigrants' (35 by 56 inches), 186768. From a study from
nature made in 181 7 at Keswick.
'Good Samaritan' (paper on panel, 13 by 16 inches),
1867.
— 'Sheep' (panel, i\ by 10 inches), 1868.
'Hawthorn' (panel, nf by i6f inches), 1868.
'The Woodcutters ' (panel, 18 by 24 inches), 1868. Old Masters.
(H. M. Steinthall, Esq.)
'Clearing Off' (canvas, 13J by 23J inches), 1868.
'The Thunder Cloud' (28 by 39 inches), 1868. Retouched in
1871.
'Travellers' (30 by 39 hiches), 1868-72. Sold to Thos. Taylor,
Esq, for .£800.
Replica (sketch, 28 by 39 inches), ' The Cloud.' Finished in
1874 for Mr. White.

280 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL
'Moving the Punt' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1868. Sold in
1872 to Mr. Thomas Taylor. Sold at Christie's, 1890, as
' The Fishermen,' for 700 guineas.
'Tree and Faggots ' (7J by 10 inches), 1868.
' Mountain Track ' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1868. Sold at
Christie's, 1871, for 800 guineas.
' Woodcutters ' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1869. Christie's, 1871,
750 guineas.
' Mountain Shepherds ' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1870. Christie's,
1871, 850 guineas. There are forged copies of this picture.
'The Lost Sheep' (canvas, 39 by 54 inches), 1869. R.A.
'Travellers' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1869. Agnew, £700.
'Redstone Wood' (18 by 24 inches), 1869.
' Dust ' (kitcat, 28 by 39 inches), 1869. Sold to White for £700.
Old Masters, ' Dusty Road.' (Jas. R. Hoare, Esq.)
'The Baptism of Christ' (canvas, 28 by 36 inches), 1867-69.
Old Masters. (Charles L. Collard, Esq.) Sold at Christie's
1892.
'Sunset' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1869-70. Sold at. Christie's,
in 1890 for 870 guineas.
Replica (15 by 20 inches), 1869.
' Redstone Wood ' (18 by 24 inches), 1870. A companion to the
'Redstone Wood,' 1869. Sold to Brooks for £300. Sold
at Gillott's sale, 1872, for £600.
'Asses' Bridge' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1870. Sold to White
for £700.
'Sleeping for Sorrow' — Gethseraane (canvas, 38 by 54 inches),
1870. R.A.
Replica (sketch for picture, first).
' Shelter'— Storm Cloud (28 by 39 inches), 1871. R.A. Sold to
Mr. Worrall for £800.
' Woodcutters ' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1871.
' David and the Lion' (28 by 39 inches), 187 1.
'Timber Waggon' (28 by 39 inches), 1871.
Replica (considerable variation, canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1872.
Old Masters. (Charles Gassiot, Esq.)
'The Pull' (28 by 39 inches), 1871.
' Emigrants' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1872.
'The Ford — Sunset' (canvas, 45^ by 59^ inches), 1871-72. R.A.
Sold to Mr. White for 1,400 guineas.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 281

Replica (varied, 28 by 39 inches), 1872. Sold to Mr. White for
£700.
Replica (varied, 15 by 18 inches), 1875. Sold at the Neck Sale
at Christie's.
' Wood Scene ' — Three studies (of different subjects) on the spot
in 1852 ; finished into pictures 1872 (18 by 24 inches), for
Mr. White.
'Up Rays' — Gleaners (28 by 39 inches), 1872. Mr. White,
^7°°-
'Down Rays' — Cows (28 by 39 inches), 1872. Mr. White,
;£7°°-
Replica, with sheep and variations (28 by 39 inches), 1872.
'The Piper' (28 by 39 inches), 1872. Mr. White, £700.
Replica (smaller), variations ; shepherd in smock-frock.
'Cornfield' (16 by 25 inches), begun 1850; finished 1873.
Painted from a cornfield at Redstone Wood.
- Lambeth in 1806 '(15 by 22 inches), 1873. In possession of
the family.
'Cows' (28 by 39 inches), 1873.
'A Coming Storm' (canvas, 51 by 65 inches), 1873. R.A. Mr.
White for .£1,400.
Replica, 'Storm,' with variation (28 by 39 inches), 1873. Mr.
White, £75°-
' The Valley' (28 by 39 inches), 1873.
' A Bye-Road ' (28 by 39 inches), 1873.
'The Happy Valley' (28 by 39 inches), 1873. For Mr. White,
750 guineas. Retouched in 1874. Sold at Christie's, in
1890, for £940.
' Good-bye ' (28 by 39 inches), 1873. Mr. White, £750.
'The Woodcutters' (49 by 73 inches), 1873. R.A, 1874. Sold
to Mr. Grove, by Mr. White, for £3,000. Old Masters.
(Mrs. Grove.)
' The Haystack ' (28 by 39 inches), 1873. Sold to Mr. Price for
£1,000; at Christie's, 1892, for £630.
' Sand-Pits' (28 by 39 inches), 1874.
'Cattle Pond' (28 by 39 inches), 1874.
1 Morning— Sunrise ' (28 by 39 inches), 1874. Sold to Mr. White,
as ' Misty Morning,' for £750. Sold at Christie's, in 1890,
for 720 guineas.
'Cricket ' (28 by 39 inches), 1874. Mr. White, .£750,

282 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

'Crossing the Ford — Sunset '(15 by 18 inches), 1875. Sold at
the Neck sale.
'A Sultry Day' (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1874-75. Mr. White.
Sold at Christie's, in 1890, for 700 guineas. Old Masters.
(Chas. Neck, Esq.)
'Tramps,' or 'Pointing the Way ' (canvas, 31 by 43 inches), 1874.
Sold at Christie's, in 1890, for 1,140 guineas. Old Masters.
(Chas. Neck, Esq.)
'Barley,' or 'The Barley Harvest' (31 by 43 inches), 1874. Sold
at Christie's, in 1890, for 1,150 guineas.
'Asses' Bridge' (31 by 43 inches), 1874-75. Sold at Christie's,
in 1890, for 900 guineas. A different subject from the
'Asses' Bridge,' 1870.
' Hay and Haste ' (28 by 39 inches), 1874-75. In possession of
the family.
Replica (31 by 43 inches), 1874-75. Mn White.
' Last Load' (50 by 66 inches), 1874-75.
'Woods and Forests' (canvas, 41 by 57 inches), 1875. R.A.
Sold at Christie's, 1890, for 1,900 guineas.
'Sunset, with Rooks' (panel, 15 by 17 inches), 1875.
'Cornfield — Sunset' (panel, 15 by 18 inches), 1875. In posses
sion of the family.
' Windsor Forest ' (panel, 1 1 by 19 inches), 1875.
'Wood' (31 by 43 inches), 1876. Mr. White.
' The Creek ' (31 by 43 inches), 1876. Mr. White.
'Woodcutter' (panel, 17J by 2o£ inches), 1876. R.A, 1881.
The last picture the artist exhibited. In the possession of
the family.
'Rooks' (30 by 40 inches), 1877. In possession ofthe family.
'Crossing the Bridge' (canvas, 31 by 43 inches), 1877. Mr.
White, £1,000. Sold at Christie's, in 1890, for 1,120 guineas.
Old Masters. (Chas. Neck, Esq.)
'Autumn' — Cows in Water (canvas, 28 by 39 inches), 1877.
R.A. In the possession cf the family.
'Red Sunset' (canvas, 31 by 43 inches), 1878. Unfinished. In
the possession of the family.
'The Heath ' (canvas, 31 by 43 inches), 1878. R.A.
'Sweet fa's the Eve' — Sunset on Redhill Common (canvas, 31 by
43 inches), 1878. R.A, 1879. In the possession of the
family.

LANDSCAPES AND SUBJECT-PICTURES 283
'Fat Pasture' (28 by 39 inches), 1878-79. R.A, 1879. This
was the last picture of which J. L. made a sketch in his
Liber Veritatis* In possession of the family.
'The Hollow Tree,' 1875-76. R.A, 1876. Sold by the family
to Mr. McLean for £1,600.
* This Liber Veritatis was a pen-illustrated list of the major part of the
pictures the artist executed. It is still extant, and has been drawn upon very
largely for the identification of works in this catalogue. Doubtless there are
other pictures in existence of smaller size, and of less importance, of which the
artist did not keep a record. Certain of these (before unrecorded) works were
collected for the Old Masters in 1883, and these have been added to the list
from the catalogue of the exhibition ; those amongst them which were undated
being placed by themselves at the end.

284 LIFE OF JOHN LINNELL

UNDATED WORKS.— OIL PAINTINGS.
'Near Windsor Forest' (panel, i8| by 23J inches). Signed,
' J. Linnell fecit.' Old Masters. (Jas. Reiss, Esq.)
' On Hampstead Heath ' (canvas, 20^ by 25J inches). Signed,
'J. Linnell.' Sold at the Santurce sale, 189 1. Old Masters.
(Marquis de Santurce.)
'View near Hampstead' (panel, 8 by n inches). Signed, J.
Linnell f. Old Masters. (George Gurney, Esq.)
'Landscape, with a Haystack' (panel, 18 by 23 inches). Old
Masters. (Jane, Countess of Caledon.)
'The Farmyard' (panel, 12 by 15 inches). Signed, 'J. Linnell.'
Old Masters. (David Price, Esq.)
' Gathering in the Corn ' (panel, 8 by 12 inches). Old Masters.
(Louis Huth, Esq.)
'Shepherds' (panel, 6 \ by 8| inches). Old Masters. (Jas.
Orrock, Esq.)
'Landscape' (panel, 7 \ by n inches). Old Masters. (Thos.
Webster, Esq, R.A.)
' Sheep at Rest — Minding the Flock ' (panel, 6 by 9 inches). Sold
at the Santurce sale, 1891. Old Masters. (Marquis de
Santurce.)

the end.

HILLING AND SONS, PRINTERS, GUILDFORD. J. D. & Co.